India, ASEAN should come together to resolve Myanmar crisis: Report

Amid the continued humanitarian crisis in Myanmar due to the February 1 military coup, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is finding it difficult to find a solution to the crisis that has thrown several challenges to the regional bloc, according to a Toronto-based international think tank. As violence continues to intensify in Myanmar, over 800 people have been killed and 4,330 people are currently under detention. The International Forum for Rights and Security (IFFRAS) in its latest report has said the Myanmar crisis has exposed limitations of the ASEAN in dealing with human rights violations and state of democracy in the region.

Along with ASEAN, the Myanmar crisis has equally affected other neighbouring democratic countries like India. According to IFFRAS, India is directly impacted by the political, societal, and humanitarian upheaval in Myanmar. “For India, Myanmar is not only an immediate neighbour but also an important pillar of India’s Act East policy. With more than 1600-kilometer-long boundary shared between Myanmar and four states of India, namely: Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Mizoram, and Nagaland, it is natural for India to keep a close vigil on the political dynamics in Myanmar,” the think tank said.

“A major factor that links India directly with Myanmar is the cultural and ethnic link between the people living on either side of the India-Myanmar boundary. These ethnic linkages are living testimonies to the common historical and cultural similarities between the people of these two countries,” it added. The think tank further stated that crisis-struck people of Myanmar have nowhere else to go in the neighbourhood except India and Thailand.

Not just India, other stakeholders have also asked for an immediate end to the violence in Myanmar. They are also working towards a peaceful and lasting solution to the crisis, which includes the restoration of democracy in the country. “Two critical immediate steps in that direction should be to put a halt to violence in Myanmar with the objective to make sure that ASEAN and India work together in resolving the humanitarian crisis looming large,” IFFRAS concluded. (ANI)