HRW Urges ASEAN Leaders to Prioritize Human Rights and Myanmar’s Humanitarian Crisis

Human Rights Watch (HRW) has called on Southeast Asian leaders attending upcoming regional summits in Malaysia to reject Myanmar’s military junta’s plan to hold elections in December 2025, warning that the move would only deepen the country’s ongoing human rights and humanitarian crises.

In a letter sent to all governments participating in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and its partner summits, scheduled for October 26–28 in Kuala Lumpur, HRW urged member states to adopt a unified stance against the junta’s efforts to legitimize its rule through what it called “sham elections.”

The rights organization said the Myanmar military continues to carry out arbitrary arrests, torture, forced conscription, and indiscriminate attacks on civilians, intensifying its repression of pro-democracy forces ahead of the planned polls. Since seizing power in February 2021, the junta’s violent crackdown has displaced millions across the country.

“Myanmar’s junta has demonstrated neither the intention nor the capacity to organize and hold elections that would even remotely meet international standards,” said John Sifton, Asia Advocacy Director at Human Rights Watch. “The junta’s repression and unlawful attacks have created a climate of fear in which no genuine polls can take place, let alone voting that will be free and fair.”

HRW noted that the junta’s widespread atrocities — including war crimes, crimes against humanity, and the persecution of opposition politicians and parties — have rendered any credible election impossible. A new law issued on July 30 further criminalizes dissent by banning speech, organizing, or protesting that could “disrupt any part of the electoral process.”

The organization also highlighted that much of Myanmar remains under the control of opposition armed groups, making it impossible for the junta to conduct elections across most townships.

International actors have voiced similar concerns. Julie Bishop, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Myanmar, warned that holding elections under the current conditions risks triggering more resistance, protests, and violence, further destabilizing the already fragile country.

Earlier this month, on October 11, a group of former ASEAN foreign ministers issued a joint statement urging ASEAN to “unequivocally reject” the junta’s planned elections and initiate a “complete strategic reset” on Myanmar.

HRW emphasized that ASEAN and its partner governments must refuse to recognize or support the planned elections in any form.

“ASEAN and its partners should categorically reject the idea that free and fair elections can currently be held in Myanmar,” Sifton said. “If elections are held, other governments should make clear that any supposed results will not be considered credible.”

Source: ANI