DFA to bring home Filipinos in Myanmar
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Foreign Affairs is getting ready to bring home Filipino migrant workers in Myanmar after its military declared a state of emergency.
DFA Executive Director for Strategic Communications Ivy Banzon-Abalos told reporters that is finalizing a repatriation flight on February 15.
"252 Filipinos have signified interest to be repatriated, embassy is in the process of getting confirmation of those Filipinos," Abalos said in a text message.
The DFA earlier expressed "deep concern" over the situation in Myanmar, following the arrest of de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi and other officials.
The agency then urged Filipinos in Myanmar to "exercise due caution, monitor developments through reputable sources, and observe the guidance of local authorities."
UN rights council to hold special session on Myanmar
The UN Human Rights Council said it will hold a relatively rare special session this Friday to discuss the ongoing political crisis in Myanmar.
The move was officially requested on Monday by Britain and the European Union, with enough backing from countries to automatically trigger the meeting.
The call came a week after Myanmar's generals conducted a coup in the country.
"The Human Rights Council will hold a special session to address the human rights implications of the crisis in Myanmar this Friday," the UN's top rights body said in a statement.
The support of one-third of the 47 council members — so 16 or more — is required for a special session to be convened.
It has the backing of 19 so far, including Argentina, Brazil, Japan, Mexico and South Korea, plus EU nations including France, Germany and Italy.
It will be the 29th special session of the council.
— Patricia Lourdes Viray with AFP
Follow this thread for updates on the situation in Myanmar, where a coup may be happening after de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi and other officials have reportedly been detained by the military.
Photo: Military officers wearing facemasks who serve as members of Myanmar's parliament leave after a session at the Assembly of the Union (Pyidaungsu Hluttaw) in Naypyidaw on March 10, 2020. AFP/Ye Aung Thu
Myanmar's junta is endangering the life of jailed democracy figurehead Aung San Suu Kyi, her political party says on Thursday, accusing the military of depriving her of medical care and food.
Suu Kyi has been detained since the generals seized power in February 2021, ending a 10-year democratic experiment and plunging the Southeast Asian country into bloody turmoil.
In recent days, local media have reported the Nobel laureate, 78, was suffering dizzy spells, vomiting and unable to eat because of a tooth infection. — AFP
Myanmar's Aung San Suu Kyi will be pardoned, state media says.
The United States is "deeply concerned" by the decision from Myanmar's ruling junta to extend the country's state of emergency for six months, a State Department spokesman says.
The extension, announced earlier in the day, spelled a delay for elections the military had pledged to hold in August as it battles anti-coup fighters across the country.
"The United States is deeply concerned by the Burma military regime's extension of the state of emergency, which comes as the regime plunges the country deeper into violence and instability," says spokesman Matthew Miller, using an alternate name for the country. — AFP
The United States is "deeply concerned" by the decision from Myanmar's ruling junta to extend the country's state of emergency for six months, a State Department spokesman says.
The extension, announced earlier in the day, spelled a delay for elections the military had pledged to hold in August as it battles anti-coup fighters across the country.
"The United States is deeply concerned by the Burma military regime's extension of the state of emergency, which comes as the regime plunges the country deeper into violence and instability," says spokesman Matthew Miller, using an alternate name for the country. — AFP
Singapore Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan says that conditions were not yet right for ASEAN to open high-level talks with Myanmar on the country's political situation.
"We believe it would be premature to re-engage with the junta at a summit level or even at a foreign minister level," Balakrishnan says when asked about a news report that Thailand had proposed talks.
Speaking in a joint press conference in Washington with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Balakrishnan said the leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations had recently reaffirmed their stance. — AFP
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