Image: Reuters Berita 24 English - The United Nations says that a senior U.N. official is in Myanmar this week. This is a rare visit that ...
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| Image: Reuters |
Berita 24 English - The United Nations says that a senior U.N. official is in Myanmar this week. This is a rare visit that comes at a time of political turmoil in Myanmar and weakening ties with its Southeast Asian neighbors.
Myanmar has been in chaos since early last year, when the military toppled an elected government led by Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi and started a bloody crackdown on protests.
The U.N. secretary-special general's envoy to Myanmar, Noeleen Heyzer, is going there after "extensive consultations with actors from across the political spectrum, civil society, and communities affected by the ongoing conflict," a Monday statement from the UN said.
The United Nations said Heyzer would "focus on dealing with the worsening situation and immediate concerns." This was in response to a call from the U.N. Security Council for an immediate end to all forms of violence and unhindered access for humanitarian workers.
It said nothing else about her visit. A pro-army news outlet was told by Junta spokesman Zaw Min Tun that Heyzer was due to arrive on Wednesday.
"She will meet with the leader of the country and other top ministers," he said, adding that no one had asked to meet with Suu Kyi.
A representative from the ASEAN group has not been able to meet with her because of the junta.
On Monday, a Myanmar court found Suu Kyi guilty in four cases of corruption and gave her a six-year prison sentence.
The 77-year-old veteran leader of Myanmar's opposition to military rule has been charged with at least 18 crimes, from bribery to election violations, that could put him in jail for a total of nearly 190 years.
Suu Kyi has said that the accusations are crazy and that she is not guilty of any of them. She is being kept in solitary confinement, and she has already spent 11 years in jail for other crimes.
Western countries and other people who don't like the junta say that the charges against Suu Kyi are made up and are meant to stop her from ever running for office again.
Last month, the junta was criticized around the world for putting to death four democracy activists who were accused of helping with "terror acts."
ASEAN, a group of countries in Southeast Asia that includes Myanmar, said that the executions "mocked" its efforts to bring peace to the country.
