Myanmar junta looks to come in from the cold with Aung San Suu Kyi photos

{"text":[[{"start":8.76,"text":"After years of international pressure for proof of life of Aung San Suu Kyi, Myanmar’s military rulers finally relented, permitting a meeting this week between the jailed democracy icon and a foreign envoy."}],[{"start":21,"text":"The 81-year-old Nobel Peace Prize laureate has been detained at an unknown location and prevented from seeing her family since her arrest in 2021, raising concerns about her health."}],[{"start":32.52,"text":"But the meeting, believed to have been Aung San Suu Kyi’s first contact with a foreign representative since she was deposed in a military coup, was less a concession than a carefully choreographed step in the regime’s quest to gain international credibility and end its diplomatic isolation, analysts said."}],[{"start":49.74,"text":"The release coincided with a visit this week by coup leader Min Aung Hlaing to neighbouring Thailand, whose prime minister called for a “calibrated re-engagement” with Myanmar."}],[{"start":59.44,"text":"“This is primarily a diplomatic gesture rather than a genuine policy shift,” said Ye Myo Hein, a senior fellow at the Southeast Asia Peace Institute. “This should not be interpreted as a broader relaxation of the regime’s policies or a meaningful step towards political transition.”"}],[{"start":76.2,"text":"Min Aung Hlaing, who traded his role as military chief for president in April following a sham election, is attempting to project himself as a democratic leader even as the military continues to jail opponents and conduct air strikes on civilian areas, analysts said."}],[{"start":92,"text":"Within Myanmar, the military remains deeply unpopular and faces widespread resistance from various armed opposition groups. More than 100,000 have been killed since the coup and more than 30,000 arrested, according to conflict monitoring groups."}],[{"start":107.16,"text":"“Although the junta has called for ceasefires and peace talks, these initiatives have so far been largely performative,” Ye Myo Hein said, adding that the military was trying to create the impression of political progress."}],[{"start":null,"text":"

"}],[{"start":119.36,"text":"In particular, it is seeking the embrace of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the 11-member regional bloc that has banned Myanmar from its official meetings. Normalising ties with Asean would be a first step towards broader international acceptance, analysts said."}],[{"start":135.022,"text":"Allowing the meeting with Aung San Suu Kyi was “a very small step in the right direction”, her son Kim Aris told the FT."}],[{"start":142.52,"text":"Aung San Suu Kyi was recently moved from prison to house arrest, according to the military. She was sentenced to more than three decades in prison on a slew of charges in the wake of the coup."}],[{"start":153,"text":"But Aris, who said he last spoke to his mother the day before the coup, said that she had not been permitted to access her lawyers for more than two years."}],[{"start":161.4,"text":"“She’s still being denied her basic human rights of family contact,” he said. “From what I gather, she’s still essentially been held in a form of solitary confinement, even if that isn’t in prison.”"}],[{"start":173.16,"text":"Aung San Suu Kyi previously spent more than 15 years under house arrest under another military regime. She remains Myanmar’s most popular political figure, and led the country from 2016-2021 as de facto head of an elected government under a power-sharing agreement with the military."}],[{"start":191,"text":"She has also drawn criticism, mostly from abroad, for playing down the military’s atrocities against the country’s Rohingya Muslim minority, and previously travelled to The Hague to personally defend the military against accusations of genocide."}],[{"start":null,"text":""}],[{"start":205.2,"text":"Myanmar’s neighbours have recently shown willingness to re-engage with the junta. Last month, Myanmar’s foreign minister met Asean counterparts for the first time in five years."}],[{"start":214.84,"text":"Min Aung Hlaing, who is subject to western sanctions, also recently visited India and China. The latter is Myanmar’s biggest international backer and investor, and has made significant strategic investments in its neighbour."}],[{"start":227.36,"text":"However, critics including Aris said engaging with the military regime when it had made no progress towards peace only provided legitimacy to its actions."}],[{"start":236.76,"text":"“I realise that there needs to be some form of dialogue going on . . .  [but] there must be other ways that they can do this without rolling out the red carpet for Min Aung Hlaing,” said Aris. “I feel like this is legitimising what is essentially a terrorist organisation.”"}],[{"start":251.48,"text":"The engagement push also comes as Myanmar’s economy continues to deteriorate amid the civil war and global energy shock. The World Bank recently said that the economy remains under “significant strain”, with higher oil prices worsening growth prospects."}],[{"start":268.16,"text":"In a speech this week to mark 100 days into his tenure as president, Min Aung Hlaing outlined a five-year roadmap for his economic agenda, promising to improve trade and expedite infrastructure projects."}],[{"start":281.24,"text":"He said his government had also intensified efforts to hold negotiations with opposition groups, citing talks held with 13 armed ethnic groups."}],[{"start":289.76,"text":"Such efforts are “political theatre”, said Sai Kyi Zin Soe at the University of Sydney. “Within Myanmar, there is no change in terms of the peace process, democratisation or the promotion of human rights,” he said."}],[{"start":303.48,"text":"Meanwhile, “the economic hardship is getting severe”, he added. “Countries engaging with the new regime should look beyond the illusion that [Min Aung Hlaing] is building up.”"}],[{"start":318.04,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1786278276_3164.mp3"}