Metro Manila, Philippines – Foreign Affairs Secretary Theresa Lazaro met Myanmar’s military ruler Min Aung Hlaing on Tuesday in her first visit to the country as special envoy of the ASEAN chair, as Manila begins efforts to revive a long-stalled regional peace plan amid disputed elections.
The Department of Foreign Affairs said Lazaro held “warm and constructive” discussions with Min Aung Hlaing — who serves as acting president — as well as Prime Minister U Nyo Saw and Foreign Minister U Than Swe in the capital, Nay Pyi Taw.
Talks focused on “geopolitical developments, the political situation in Myanmar particularly the ongoing elections,” ASEAN priorities under Philippine chairmanship, and the implementation of the bloc’s ASEAN Five-Point Consensus, the DFA said.
“As Chair of ASEAN, the Philippines will continue to build on the efforts of previous Special Envoys of the ASEAN Chair on Myanmar in advancing the implementation of the Five-Point Consensus,” Lazaro said.
The Philippines assumed the rotating chairmanship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations this year under the theme “Navigating our Future, Together,” inheriting one of the region’s most intractable crises following Myanmar’s 2021 military takeover. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. appointed Lazaro as special envoy on Myanmar ahead of the trip.
The visit comes as Myanmar conducts its first elections in five years, a process criticized by the United Nations and human rights groups as neither free nor fair. Opposition parties were barred from participation and pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi remains detained. Early results show the junta-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party winning most seats in the lower house.
ASEAN’s five-point consensus, agreed in April 2021, calls for an immediate cessation of violence, inclusive dialogue among all parties, humanitarian assistance and mediation led by a special envoy.
Lazaro thanked Myanmar authorities for their assistance in facilitating the repatriation of more than 600 Filipinos who were victims of human trafficking. Myanmar officials, in turn, expressed appreciation for the Philippines’ deployment of an 89-member military and humanitarian contingent and financial aid following an earthquake that struck parts of the country last year.
During the visit, Min Aung Hlaing granted amnesty to a Filipino national convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude, the DFA said.
