Charles Santiago
𝐌𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐬𝐢𝐚 𝐌𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐂𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐟𝐲 𝐈𝐭𝐬 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝: 𝐍𝐨 𝐋𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐜𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐌𝐲𝐚𝐧𝐦𝐚𝐫’𝐬 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐦 𝐄𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬
It’s murky, confusing and deeply troubling. News reports from Myanmar claim that Malaysia’s foreign minister, Mohamad Hasan, expressed satisfaction with the junta’s election preparations and even offered to send Malaysian election observers.
If true, this would amount to a dangerous endorsement of a regime that has massacred civilians, jailed political opponents, and bombed its own people. Any gesture that lends legitimacy to this so-called election is a betrayal of the Myanmar people and of ASEAN’s own principles.
Let’s be clear: there can be no credible elections under a military dictatorship that continues to wage war against its citizens.
Villages are being burned, thousands of political prisoners remain behind bars, and the junta controls the country through fear and bloodshed.
To praise “election preparations” in such a context is to normalise atrocity and to give the generals exactly what they crave most: international recognition.
If this report is inaccurate, the foreign minister must immediately clarify Malaysia’s position. Silence will only deepen suspicioun that Putrajaya is shifting towards appeasement at a time when moral clarity is desperately needed.
If, however, the meeting did happen as reported, then Mohamad Hasan owes the Malaysian public and the people of Myanmar a full explanation.
Why is Malaysia engaging with a regime that stands accused of crimes against humanity? What possible justification could there be for sending “election observers” to a process designed to rubber-stamp military rule? This would not be diplomacy but complicity.
The junta’s planned elections are not about democracy. They are a political theatre meant to consolidate control and neutralise opposition under the illusion of civilian rule. For Malaysia to participate, even symbolically, would undermine regional and global efforts to hold the generals accountable for their atrocities.
Mohamad Hasan must make it clear, now, where Malaysia stands: with the junta or with the people of Myanmar. At this critical moment, Malaysia cannot afford to be on the wrong side of history.
Charles Santiago
