We are pleased to hear the recent decision by the UK government not to permit the architect of the Myanmar coup, Min Aung Hlaing, to attend the upcoming G7 ASEAN summit in Liverpool. This follows ASEAN’s own decision to refuse to invite Min Aung Hlaing to the ASEAN summit this month in Brunei, and is in line with the conclusions of an increasing number of foreign powers and supranational organisations; namely, that Min Aung Hlaing is not the legitimate leader and representative of the Myanmar people. That he is a criminal and traitor who seized power illegally, and has ordered his soldiers to carry out a campaign of terror against the Myanmar people in a desperate bid to assert authority.

The junta know that they took power illegally, and that they have neither the legal nor moral right to rule. They know also that the people see through their lies and will fight to their last breath to see democracy and freedom restored. The military desperately needs international recognition, or at the least, indifference, to lift the sanctions, normalise foreign relations, and return to the parasitic oppressive style of leadership they practised before democratic elections unseated them in 2015. This cannot be allowed to happen, and it is exactly for this reason that decisions such as that made by the UK are so powerful and so important for democracy to ultimately succeed. Rejecting the junta, refusing to recognise the military and their lackeys as legitimate representatives of the Myanmar people, and opening formal relations with the NUG as the true democratic government are crucial first steps to turning the tide against the military and liberating the Myanmar people from the genocidal military once and for all.

As such, we once again laud and applaud the UK government for the stand they have taken in refusing Min Aung Hlaing’s attendance at the upcoming G7 ASEAN joint summit, and further urge the UK to pledge to bar all representatives of the treasonous military and their illegitimate so-called “caretaker government” from this, and all future summits. Furthermore, we ask the UK to follow the example of an increasing number of democratic states and supranational organisations in formally rejecting the military and recognising the NUG as the legitimate government of Myanmar. Doing so will serve to hasten the restoration of stability and democracy in Myanmar and the world, and it will create a stable and dependable ally in the region.

Sincerely,

H.E. Dr. Sasa
Union Minister of Ministry of International Cooperation
Spoke Person of Nation Unity Government
Former Special Envoy to United Nations