FOREIGN Affairs Secretary Ma. Theresa P. Lazaro kicked off a month-long humanitarian mission in Myanmar amid the nation’s civil war, aiming to expand aid access to areas that previous missions were unable to reach.
In a statement on Wednesday, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Ms. Lazaro, as the special envoy of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Chair on Myanmar, will lead an ASEAN monitoring team mission to support communities affected and displaced by the five-year civil war.
Ms. Lazaro is joined by representatives of ASEAN Missions and Japan based in Yangon.
The DFA said the humanitarian mission will last for one month, focusing on communities in Kayin State, Southern Shan State and Northern Shan State.
The mission comes as Myanmar’s military-backed government started a new ASEAN Affairs Committee as it attempts to reintegrate into the association. The country has been blocked from summits and foreign ministers’ meetings by the Southeast Asian bloc since late 2021, due to its failure to implement ASEAN’s Five-Point Consensus plan.
The consensus called for an immediate cessation of violence, dialogue among “all parties” and access to humanitarian aid. — Francessca S. Abalos