- NASA launches probe to study if life possible on icy Jupiter moon
- 'Unique' Ronaldo an example to everyone, says Martinez
- New lawsuits against Sean Combs allege sex assault, including of minor
- Italy begins migrant transfers to Albania with first group of 16
- Google signs nuclear power deal with startup Kairos
- Carsley open to foreign England manager amid Guardiola links
- Pogba hungry to have his football cake after doping ban
- India and Canada expel top envoys in Sikh separatist killing row
- Mbappe says victim of 'fake news' after 'rape' report in Sweden
- Lebanon says 21 killed in strike on northern village
- Netanyahu vows no mercy after deadly Hezbollah drone strike
- Russia could be able to attack NATO by 2030: German intelligence
- EVs seek to regain sales momentum at Paris Motor Show
- Clarke backs Scotland to bounce back from 'tough' run
- Harris, Trump target crucial Pennsylvania as US vote looms
- NASA probe Europa Clipper lifts off for Jupiter's icy moon
- Lebanese Red Cross says 18 killed in strike in north
- Mendy borrowed money from Man City team-mates for legal fees
- Palestinian officials say Israeli forces kill two in West Bank
- Football leagues, unions file EU complaint against FIFA in calendar dispute
- Nigeria boycott AFCON qualifier in Libya after 'inhumane treatment'
- India to recall top envoy to Canada: foreign ministry
- Hezbollah, Israeli troops in 'violent clashes' after drone strike
- China insists won't renounce 'use of force' to take Taiwan as drills end
- Painkiller sale plan to US gives France major headache
- Italy begins landmark migrant transfers to Albania
- Russia jails French researcher for three years
- 'Unsustainable' housing crisis bedevils Spain's socialist govt
- Stocks shrug off China disappointment but oil slides
- New Zealand 4-0 up in America's Cup but British show signs of life
- Russian prosecutor demands 3 years prison for French researcher
- 'Innocent' British nerve agent victim caught in global murder plot: inquiry
- Afghan Taliban vow to implement media ban on images of living things
- Russian prosecutor demands 3 years, 3 months jail for French researcher
- England ready for Pakistan's spin assault in second Test
- New Zealand's Ravindra excited for India Tests with father in crowd
- India's capital bans fireworks to curb air pollution
- Stocks diverge, oil retreats as China disappoints markets
- FIFA to open 'global dialogue' on transfer system after Diarra ruling
- Trio wins economics Nobel for work on wealth inequality
- Starmer vows to cut red tape as he urges foreign investors to 'back' UK
- Ex-Stasi officer jailed over 1974 Berlin border killing
- 'Not viable': Barcelona turns against surging tourism
- Hezbollah says targeted Israeli naval base after deadly drone strike
- Rice praises 'unbelievable' England interim boss Carsley despite uncertainty
- Nepali teenager hailed as hero after climbing world's 8,000m peaks
- England captain Stokes back from injury for second Pakistan Test
- Shanghai stocks gain after stimulus briefing as markets rally
- Shanghai stocks gain after stimulus briefing as Asian markets rally
- South Korea military says 'fully ready' as drone flights anger North
RBGPF | 2.84% | 61.23 | $ | |
CMSC | 0.11% | 24.738 | $ | |
SCS | 0.5% | 12.975 | $ | |
GSK | 0.79% | 39.14 | $ | |
BTI | 0.78% | 35.455 | $ | |
RELX | 1.18% | 47.39 | $ | |
RIO | 0.69% | 67.695 | $ | |
BP | -0.36% | 31.995 | $ | |
BCC | 0.49% | 143.075 | $ | |
AZN | 0.96% | 78.1 | $ | |
CMSD | 0.08% | 24.97 | $ | |
BCE | -1.41% | 32.56 | $ | |
RYCEF | 0.43% | 7.03 | $ | |
VOD | 0.31% | 9.68 | $ | |
JRI | -0.29% | 13.212 | $ | |
NGG | 0.98% | 66.895 | $ |
ASEAN must step up pressure on Myanmar junta: UN expert
Southeast Asia's regional bloc must increase pressure on Myanmar's junta or there will be more death and suffering, a UN expert warned Thursday, after a long period of stalled diplomacy.
Myanmar has been in turmoil and its economy paralysed since the February 2021 coup that ousted civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who was transferred from house arrest to solitary confinement in prison this week.
Efforts by the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to bring peace to the country -- which is a member of the bloc -- have stalled as fighting continues to rage.
Last year, they agreed on the so-called "five-point consensus", which calls for a cessation of violence and constructive dialogue, but the junta has ignored it.
Divisions in ASEAN, long criticised as a toothless talking shop, have also complicated attempts to resolve the crisis.
Asked about the bloc's efforts, Tom Andrews, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, said that "clearly, more needs to be done".
"The longer we wait, the more inaction that there is, the more people are going to die, the more people are going to suffer," he said.
"The people of Myanmar just can't take another year of inaction," added Andrews, speaking at the end of a visit to ASEAN member Malaysia, which has strongly criticised the coup.
He said the five-point consensus, hammered out at a meeting in Jakarta in April 2021, is "meaningless if it sits on a piece of paper".
"It's only chance of making a difference is if it's put into meaningful action."
He said Malaysian Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah had suggested "practical, pragmatic steps forward" and urged regional leaders to heed his recommendations.
Some ASEAN states have spoken out against the military takeover, but others have appeared reluctant to take a strong stand.
In January, Hun Sen, Cambodia's authoritarian ruler of more than three decades, made the first trip by a foreign leader to Myanmar since the coup, which critics said risked undermining efforts to isolate the generals.
Cambodia currently holds ASEAN's rotating chairmanship, and the junta's defence minister attended a meeting of the bloc's defence chiefs in Phnom Penh on Wednesday.
Andrews also said it was "preposterous" to suggest that elections planned by the junta for next year could be free and fair.
"You can't have a free and fair election if you have locked up your opponents," he said.
Suu Kyi has been convicted of a raft of charges and sentenced to 11 years in jail so far.
D.Cunningha--AMWN