Asean News Headlines at 10pm on Friday (Aug 1, 2025)
* Media a vital bridge of information between police and public, says IGP
* Penang defers implementation of new water tariffs to July 2026
* Children accused of crime must be treated with dignity, says Suhakam
* US cuts Malaysia tariff to 19% from 25%
* 'Governor's family not involved in student's death'
* Malaysia factory slump eases as July PMI hits five-month high
* Four teens nabbed for allegedly beating up classmate in Kajang mall
* Malaysian pharmaceuticals, semiconductors exempt from US tariffs, minister says
* Reduction of US tariff rate to 19% a significant achievement, says Zafrul
* Kuching Waterfront set to be longest riverfront nationwide
* Unemployed man charged with raping former sister-in-law in Cheras
* Man who stabbed cop in KL tests positive for dugs
* Ten police officers nabbed by MACC to face disciplinary action, says Bukit Aman
* CAAM-Mavcom rationalisation in effect, Mohd Sharil is new chairman, says Transport Ministry
* Minimum wage extended to contract apprentices as amended law takes effect, says HR Ministry
* Teen pregnancies still an issue in Sabah due to poor sex education, says state assistant minister
East Timor's President Jose Ramos-Horta delivers his speech at the Association of South-East Asian Nations (Asean) Secretariat in Jakarta on August 1, 2025. -- Photo by BAY ISMOYO / AFP
Singapore:
* Man accused of raping Singaporean woman who hired him to fix lights in her flat claims she made first move
* Three Singaporean men charged over living on the earnings of prostitution
* Tanjong Katong sinkhole: Singapore says affected road will open progressively to motorists from noon on Aug 2
* Singapore's 2024 MRT breakdown could have been prevented with better coordination: SMRT CEO
* HK actor Raymond Lam and family kick off their summer vacation in Singapore
* Mariah Carey to stage shows in Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, Japan
* Asia: Stocks struggle as Trump unveils new tariff sweep
* S'pore cop among trio held over illegal exit attempt
* US, Australia hold joint military exercise in Papua New Guinea for first time
* Singapore's OCBC sees lower 2025 net interest income, Q2 profit matches forecasts
Indonesia:
* A treat for Nusantara music fans - Indonesian star Pamungkas and local boys Fugo join in the fun for Panggung Purnama concert on Sept 28
* World economies reel from Trump's tariffs punch, but most South-East Asian countries rejoice thanks to kinder rates
* Indonesian President Prabowo pardons political opponents
* RM2mil drug haul: Syndicate smuggling to Indonesia busted
* Farmer charged with trafficking six Indonesians into country
* Prabowo's political rivals among over 1,000 granted clemency
* Paradise beaches sit empty as Indonesia bets on saturated Bali
* Oil steadies as concerns about tariff impacts vie with Russian supply threats
Foreign military attaches from major powers and Asean member countries, along with diplomats from 23 countries and Thai military personnel, visit a shelter in Sisaket province following a ceasefire between Cambodia and Thailand, where displaced people have been staying since July 24, in Sisaket province, Thailand, August 1, 2025. -- Photo: REUTERS/Chalinee Thirasupa
Thailand:
* Thailand seeks neutral venue for border talks with Cambodia; Malaysia seems to be best venue
* Thailand welcomes 19% US tariff as 'major success'
* Trump sets 19% tariff on Thailand, Cambodia after peace deal'
* Court to rule on Thaksin's hospitalisation jail dodge
* Trump's tariffs send Asian FX markets reeling, won leads losses
* New US tariffs draw regional reactions across Asia-Pacific
* Trump's call broke deadlock in Thailand-Cambodia border crisis
Philippines:
* World Bank to provide US$700mil loan to boost Philippines' resilience to natural disasters
* Philippines national nabbed at Kota Kinabalu airport with fake travel passes
* Philippines' Marcos eyes India trade, defence in talks with Modi
* Philippines records 10.5bil pesos infrastructure damage due to south-west monsoon, cyclones with death toll at 37
* Asian currencies fall to two-month low as tariff deadline nears
* On World Day Against Trafficking, UN sounds alarm on scam centre surge
China's swimmer Peng Xuwei dives as she competes in a semi-final of the women's 200m backstroke swimming event during the 2025 World Aquatics Championships in Singapore on Friday, August 1, 2025. -- Photo by François-Xavier MARIT / AFP
Vietnam:
* Weather havoc in Vietnam - Flash floods kill three in mountainous north, nine more people missing
* Vietnamese PM calls for completion of 3,000 km of expressways by end-2025
* Flooding leaves 14 dead, missing in Vietnam's Dien Bien
* Vietnamese lychees attract global buyers
* Asia's factory activity worsens as US trade uncertainty bites
* Countries with no trade deal will hear from US by midnight, White House says
Myanmar:
* Myanmar enforces Cybersecurity Law, targeting unauthorised online gambling and VPN services
* Myanmar imposes martial law in 63 townships following state of emergency declaration
* US tariff set to shift Indochina economic balance with Myanmar and Laos worst hit
* Japan says 'seriously concerned' about Myanmar elections without release of those detained
* Conflict-ridden Myanmar to vote
A crew disembarks the Indian Navy ship guided-missile destroyer, INS Delhi, that is docked at Manila's port, Philippines, on Friday, Aug. 1, 2025. -- AP Photo/Aaron Favila
Cambodia:
* Cambodia to nominate Donald Trump for Nobel Peace Prize, says deputy PM
* Thailand returns two wounded soldiers to Cambodia but continues to hold 18 of their comrades
* Cambodia says the country had agreed to talks in Malaysia at Thailland's request
* Cambodia deputy PM says 19% US tariff rate averts collapse of its garments manufacturing sector
* Hun Manet urges troop release as ceasefire holds
Laos:
* Russia, Laos sign seven documents, including a roadmap for nuclear cooperation
* US tariff set to shift Indochina economic balance with Myanmar and Laos worst hit
* Laos launches digital ID system
Brunei:
* Brunei announces enforcement on abuse of dominant positions
* Brunei lion dance team heads to Kuala Lumpur for international debut
* Brunei enforces key provisions of the Competition Act
Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, and Laotian President Thongloun Sisoulith applause during a ceremony of exchange of documents following their meeting at the Grand Kremlin Palace in Moscow, Russia. -- AP
AseanPlus:
* Penang chosen as filming spot for Miss HK Pageant 2025, joined by TVB stars Benjamin Yuen & Moon Lau
* Save my baby: Mother gives up baby girl while being nabbed during immigration raid in Tawau
* What's it like to scale the highest active volcano in South-East Asia
* Immigration nabs dozens of foreigners in raids on Pontian nightclubs
* Actress Eleanor Lee wins lawsuit against former assistant who doctored her audio recording
* Captain of Turkish yacht found safe after 40-hour ordeal at sea
* Forget dating apps: More young Malaysians go back to face-to-face interactions
* Beijing officials admit 'gaps' in readiness after rains kill dozens
* Man's naked body found surrounded by sex toys in Hong Kong flat
* China prepares to unseat US in fight for AI market
* Hong Kong police arrest 82 triad suspects, seize assets worth HK$15 million
* The cultural lore and hidden gems in 'KPop Demon Hunters'
* Trump says tariffs talks with China 'moving along well'
* Landslide-prone Nepal tests AI-powered warning system
* Australian minister says US tariffs to remain at 10%
* Hong Kong GDP expands 3.1%, faster than forecast
* Japanese woman with child injured in subway station attack in China, says Tokyo embassy
* Ancient 'lamp shells' practised social distancing, fossil find in China reveals
* Renewable energy on fast lane amid China's green transition
* Nvidia says no 'backdoors' in chips as China questions security
* Chinese warships arrive in Russia for joint Pacific naval exercise
* Did a lab of AI 'scientists' design a possible Covid-19 treatment?
* Taiwan to seek lower tariff after Trump's 'temporary' 20% levy
* China's manufacturing activity shrinks as exports drag, S&P PMI shows
* Trump sets 10% to 41% 'reciprocal' tariffs on dozens of countries' exports
* Toddler survives deadly encounter with cobra by biting its head off
* Japan plans another record hike in minimum wage, Kyodo News says
* Woman, 35, to deny making false statement to secure Hong Kong study permit
* China, HK stocks book steepest weekly losses since April on soft data, Trump tariffs
* Hulk Hogan's racist sex tape influenced estranged daughter Brooke to remove herself from will
* China courier puts sick daughter in delivery box at work to save on childcare
* Will China win renewables race while US pivots to fossil fuels and nuclear?
* Wu Yiquan: The Chinese AI researcher scoring big on the basketball court
* South Korea says it has no written pact on US trade deal
* South Korean restaurant owner puts pet dog inside fridge to prevent animal from overheating
* US President Trump hits dozens of countries' goods with steep tariffs; Canada, Brazil and India among worst hit
* Heat fuels China's booming night-time tourism - As sweltering heat waves sweep across China, a recent tourist trend has emerged
* South Korea's former President strongly resists special counsel's attempt to arrest him for questioning
* South Korea's ex-leader Yoon lay on floor of cell and refused to be questioned, prosecutors say / New arrest warrant for Yoon over missed summons
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The Star
22 minutes ago
- The Star
The US said it had no choice but to deport them to a third country. Then it sent them home
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The Trump administration says that some serious criminals need to be deported to third countries because even their home countries won't accept them. But a review of recent cases shows that at leastfive men threatened with such a fate were sent to their native countries within weeks. President Donald Trump aims to deport millions of immigrants in the U.S. illegally and his administration has sought to ramp up removals to third countries, including sending convicted criminals to South Sudan and Eswatini, formerly known as Swaziland, two sub-Saharan African nations. Immigrants convicted of crimes typically first serve their U.S. sentences before being deported. This appeared to be the case with the eight men deported toSouth Sudan and five to Eswatini, although some had been released years earlier. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said in June that third-country deportations allow them to deport people 'so uniquely barbaric that their own countries won't take them back.' Critics have countered that it's not clear the U.S. tried to return the men deported to South Sudan and Eswatini to their home countries and that the deportations were unnecessarily cruel. Reuters found that at least five men threatened with deportation to Libya in May were sent to their home countries weeks later, according to interviews with two of the men, a family member and attorneys. After a U.S. judge blocked the Trump administration from sending them to Libya, two men from Vietnam, two men from Laos and a man from Mexico were all deported to their home nations. The deportations have not previously been reported. DHS did not comment on the removals. Reuters could not determine if their home countries initially refused to take them or why the U.S. tried to send them to Libya. DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin contested that the home countries of criminals deported to third countries were willing to take them back, but did not provide details on any attempts to return the five men home before they were threatened with deportation to Libya. 'If you come to our country illegally and break our laws, you could end up in CECOT, Alligator Alcatraz, Guantanamo Bay, or South Sudan or another third country,' McLaughlin said in a statement, referencing El Salvador's maximum-security prison and a detention center in the subtropical Florida Everglades. FAR FROM HOME DHS did not respond to a request for the number of third-country deportations since Trump took office on January 20, although there have been thousands to Mexico and hundreds to other countries. The eight men sent to South Sudan were from Cuba, Laos, Mexico, Myanmar, South Sudan and Vietnam, according to DHS. The man DHS said was from South Sudan had a deportation order to Sudan, according to a court filing. The five men sent to Eswatini were from Cuba, Jamaica, Laos, Vietnam and Yemen, according to DHS. White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said the men deported to South Sudan and Eswatini were 'the worst of the worst' and included people convicted in the United States of child sex abuse and murder. 'American communities are safer with these heinous illegal criminals gone,' Jackson said in a statement. The Laos government did not respond to requests for comment regarding the men threatened with deportation to Libya and those deported to South Sudan and Eswatini. Vietnam's foreign ministry spokesperson said on July 17 that the government was verifying information regarding the South Sudan deportation but did not provide additional comment to Reuters. The government of Mexico did not comment. The Trump administration acknowledged in a May 22 court filing that the man from Myanmar had valid travel documents to return to his home country but he was deported to South Sudan said the man had been convicted of sexual assault involving a victim mentally and physically incapable of resisting. Eswatini's government said on Tuesday that it was still holding the five migrants sent there in isolated prison units under the deal with the Trump administration. 'A VERY RANDOM OUTCOME' The Supreme Court in June allowed the Trump administration to deport migrants to third countrieswithout giving them a chance to show they could be harmed. But the legality of the removals is still being contested in a federal lawsuit in Boston, a case that could potentially wind its way back to the conservative-leaning high court. Critics say the removals aim to stoke fear among migrants and encourage them to 'self deport' to their home countries rather than be sent to distant countries they have no connection with. 'This is a message that you may end up with a very random outcome that you're going to like a lot less than if you elect to leave under your own steam,' said Michelle Mittelstadt, communications director for the non-partisan Migration Policy Institute. Internal U.S. immigration enforcement guidance issued in July said migrants could be deported to countries that had not provided diplomatic assurances of their safety in as little as six hours. While the administration has highlighted the deportations of convicted criminals to African countries, it has also sent asylum-seeking Afghans, Russians and others to Panama and Costa Rica. The Trump administration deported more than 200 Venezuelans accused of being gang members to El Salvador in March, where they were held in the country's CECOT prison without access to attorneys until they were released in a prisoner swap last month. More than 5,700 non-Mexican migrants have been deported to Mexico since Trump took office, according to Mexican government data, continuing a policy that beganunder former President Joe Biden. The fact that one Mexican man was deported to South Sudan and another threatened with deportation to Libya suggests that the Trump administration did not try to send them to their home countries, according to Trina Realmuto, executive director at the pro-immigrant National Immigration Litigation Alliance. 'Mexico historically accepts back its own citizens,' said Realmuto, one of the attorneys representing migrants in the lawsuit contesting third-country deportations. The eight men deported to South Sudan included Mexican national Jesus Munoz Gutierrez, who had served a sentence in the U.S. for second-degree murder and was directly taken into federal immigration custody afterward, according to Realmuto. Court records show Munoz stabbed and killed a roommateduring a fight in 2004. When the Trump administration first initiated the deportation in late May, Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum said her government had not been informed. 'If he does want to be repatriated, then the United States would have to bring him to Mexico,' Sheinbaum said at the time. His sister, Guadalupe Gutierrez, said in an interview that she didn't understand why he was sent to South Sudan, where he is currently in custody. Shesaid Mexico is trying to get her brother home. 'Mexico never rejected my brother,' Gutierrez said. 'USING US AS A PAWN' Immigration hardliners see the third-country removals as a way to deal with immigration offenders who can't easily be deported and could pose a threat to the U.S. public. "The Trump administration is prioritizing the safety of American communities over the comfort of these deportees,' said Jessica Vaughan, policy director at the Center for Immigration Studies, which supports lower levels of immigration. The Trump administrationin Julypressed other African nations to take migrants and has askedthe Pacific Islands nation of Palau, among others. Under U.S. law, federal immigration officials can deport someone to a country other than their place of citizenship when all other efforts are 'impracticable, inadvisable or impossible.' Immigration officials must first try to send an immigrant back to their home country, and if they fail, then to a country with which they have a connection, such as where they lived or were born. For a Lao man who was almost deported to Libya in early May, hearing about the renewed third-country deportations took him back to his own close call. In an interview from Laos granted on condition of anonymity because of fears for his safety, he asked why the U.S. was 'using us as a pawn?' His attorney said the man had served a prison sentence for a felony. Reuters could not establish what he was convicted of. He recalled officials telling him to sign his deportation order to Libya, which he refused, telling them he wanted to be sent to Laos instead. They told him he would be deported to Libya regardless of whether he signed or not, he said. DHS did not comment on the allegations. The man, who came to the United States in the early 1980s as a refugee when he was four years old, said he was now trying to learn the Lao language and adapt to his new life, 'taking it day by day.' (Reporting by Kristina Cooke in San Francisco and Ted Hesson in Washington; Additional reporting by Nate Raymond in Boston, Brendan O'Boyle and Lizbeth Diaz in Mexico City, Marc Frank in Havana, Phuong Nguyen and Khanh Vu in Hanoi, Panu Wongcha-um in Bangkok, Kirsty Neeham in Sydney; Editing by Mary Milliken and Claudia Parsons)
Hype Malaysia
an hour ago
- Hype Malaysia
Terrace @ Boulevard At Sunway Pyramid Is Your New Klang Valley Culinary Hangout!
Psstt… a brand-new dining sensation awaits your feasting at Sunway Pyramid! Say hello to Terrace @ Boulevard, a three-storey culinary haven spanning 30,000 sqft, which has officially opened its doors! Just a few steps away from the iconic Lion Head is the vibrant F&B hub, formerly known as the Blue Cube. Located on the Ground Floor, right next to the New Pantai Expressway (NPE), it's easily accessible for everyone seeking their next great meal, a memorable hangout spot, or even Instagram-worthy moments at the Lion Head landmark! Terrace @ Boulevard brings a curated selection of unique eateries and cafés, offering everything from savoury delights to tempting sweet treats. 'We are incredibly excited to introduce Terrace @ Boulevard — a landmark addition that elevates the dining landscape at Sunway Pyramid,' said Jason Chin, Senior General Manager of Sunway Malls. 'Dining today is not just about food; it's about experience and lifestyle. With the iconic Lion Head as a stunning backdrop, this new zone offers a truly unique ambience that redefines what it means to dine out.' 'Terrace @ Boulevard also significantly strengthens our F&B portfolio, which now features over 200 diverse dining options. From cosy cafés ideal for casual meetups to authentic international kitchens that offer a true culinary journey, this curated mix positions Sunway Pyramid as an immersive food destination,' Chin continued. Gastronomic Delights Await Terrace houses the two-storey Seminyak by Warung Eropa outlet, boasting a modern, casual dining concept with a strong Balinese influence in both restaurant design and authentic menu. Look forward to the restaurant's customisable Nasi Jinggo Bowls to create your perfect Indonesian meal with preferred proteins and sambal options. The highlight of their Nasi Jinggo Bowls is the Nasi Jinggo Empal Seminyak, served with jukut goreng, tempe orek, a slice of telur dadar, serundeng, and sambal bawang! Three additional menu items are also available exclusively at Sunway Pyramid – Batagor Bandung, Sop Ikan Goreng Sanur, and Crispy Duck Pancake, so be among the first to check them out! Now at Sunway Pyramid, the iconic Aftermeal Desserts is set to become your go-to for refreshing sweet treats. Their signature Iron Lady Milk Tea Kakigori features finely shaved Tieguanyin oolong tea ice accompanied by brown sugar jelly, grass jelly, and house-made taro and sweet potato mochi. From this to other popular options like Dark Milo and Matcha Kakigori variations and hot desserts, Aftermeal is the perfect spot to cool down on a warm day or after a shopping spree with your besties. Come True Café at Terrace offers a world of modern Taiwanese-inspired fusion cuisine that's Muslim-friendly. You can expect a variety of mouth-watering fusion creations, but their true specialty lies in exquisite soufflés that'll leave you wanting more. The best part? They offer a Sunway Pyramid-exclusive Tiramisu Soufflé for a truly melt-in-your-mouth experience. Need a setting and food offerings that are perfect for family gatherings? Coming soon to Terrace, Muslim-friendly restaurant Cili Kampung, hailing from Langkawi, Kedah, brings authentic local kampung dishes that truly embody the essence of Malaysian flavours. Their rich, spicy, and flavourful Masak Lomak Beef dish is not to be missed. Beyond this signature, don't miss out on their Sambal Petai Prawns and Asam Pedas Tenggiri. Known as a glasshouse-style café with a menu that incorporates staple flavours from the East and West, Pokok KL, perched on the 3rd floor of Terrace, offers a unique dining experience, with a stunning, unobstructed view of the iconic Lion Head as you tuck into satisfying meals and soak in the beautiful, Instagrammable aesthetic. Here, you can be among the first to savour their exclusive pizza creation that promises a taste sensation you won't find anywhere else. Boulevard, Reimagined Sunway Pyramid has also rebranded the Oasis Boulevard area as Boulevard, housing 19 existing F&B outlets to form a dedicated and cohesive dining hub. Centralising Sunway Pyramid's extensive dining options, Boulevard allows for easy navigation and discovery of an even wider array of culinary choices, ranging from beloved Asian eateries to Western favourites. 'The unveiling of this vibrant new zone — along with the rebranding of Oasis Boulevard to the Boulevard — is part of our ongoing commitment to delivering exceptional, multi- sensory experiences for our visitors.' Dine, Spin & Win! From now until 31st August 2025, visitors should not miss out on the chance to win a year's worth of free meals! To participate, spend a minimum of RM150 within two receipts at any F&B outlet in Sunway Pyramid. You will then earn 1 spin to win shopping vouchers or Sunway Super App vouchers, as well as an automatic entry to stand a chance to win a year's worth of meals! Feel free to submit as many entries as you can to score free meals for the entire year – the more you submit, the higher your chances of winning! Simply visit the Sunway Super App counter on the 1st Floor to redeem your rewards. With Terrace @ Boulevard joining Sunway Pyramid's extensive and vibrant retail landscape, the ultimate shopping mall destination for gastronomic delights and diverse lifestyle experiences just got bigger and better! For more information and exciting updates, visit Sunway Pyramid's website or social media (@sunway_pyramid).
The Star
2 hours ago
- The Star
Asean's parallel diplomacy on Myanmar: Creativity sans coordination
AT the 58th Asean Foreign Ministers' Meeting on July 9, the regional bloc reiterated its commitment to the Five-Point Consensus (5PC) as the central political reference for addressing the deepening crisis in Myanmar, which was also stated in the 2025 Asean Leaders' Statement on a Ceasefire in Myanmar Extended and Expanded. Yet more than four years since the military coup, with escalating violence, deepening displacement and widespread human rights violations, one must ask: How effective has this approach truly been? What has become increasingly clear is the growing disconnect between Asean's rhetoric and its actions. Far from being a roadmap to peace, the 5PC has become a diplomatic placeholder, invoked ritually in communiqués yet divorced from realities on the ground. What has emerged in its place is a fragmented and contradictory set of responses has emerged, exposing Asean to what is described as the trap of "parallel diplomacy". This trap reveals both institutional stagnation and growing division among Asean member states. Rather than forging a cohesive and principled regional strategy, Asean has allowed individual member states to pursue uncoordinated and improvised national initiatives. These fragmented actions, often detached from Asean's formal mechanisms, have bred confusion, diluted collective pressure on the junta and eroded public confidence in the bloc's credibility. Parallel diplomacy, by nature, is not inherently flawed. Informal channels, Track 1.5 dialogues and backchannel negotiations can play crucial roles in complex conflict contexts. However, when these efforts unfold without coordination or a shared strategic vision, they risk undermining peace building efforts. Fragmented diplomacy, in such a case, becomes a symptom of disunity, not a strategy for flexibility. Thailand's approach to the Myanmar crisis exemplifies the consequences of this incoherence. Often operating outside Asean frameworks, Thailand has spearheaded what has come to be known as the 'Bangkok Process', a series of direct engagements with Myanmar's military regime. This began with then-foreign minister Don Pramudwinai's visit to Naypyidaw in 2021 and continued with the appointment of a Thai special envoy to Myanmar. Several informal consultations followed, including meetings involving the junta and its closest allies. In December 2022, Thailand hosted a closed-door meeting that included junta representatives and the foreign ministers of Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Singapore boycotted the meeting, citing their commitment to the 5PC and objected to the junta's inclusion. Similar meetings followed in June 2023 and December 2024, often framed around humanitarian engagement. The latter was attended by ministers from Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Singapore, with the rest sending lower-level delegates. These moves signalled improvisation over unity, diplomacy over strategy. Indonesia as Asean chair in 2023, meanwhile, held consultations with over 145 stakeholders, including resistance groups, by September that year. These engagements evolved into an informal Joint Coordination Body known as the "Jakarta Club", which remains active today. The January 2025 Asean Foreign Ministers' Retreat further highlighted the region's growing fragmentation over Myanmar. The Philippines proposed a new political framework, while Vietnam called for the inclusion of ethnic armed organisations in future dialogue. These diverging positions do not signal healthy pluralism, they reflect deepening strategic incoherence within Asean. In April, Malaysia initiated direct engagement with the National Unity Government Myanmar's civilian-led opposition. However, diplomatic courtesies and technical cooperation with the junta continue in parallel, lending de facto legitimacy to the military regime while reducing pro-democracy actors to symbolic participants. The emergence of multiple informal mechanisms, such as Indonesia's Jakarta Club, Thailand's Bangkok Process and Malaysia's dual-track diplomacy, reflects both innovation and disarray in Asean's approach. These ad-hoc efforts, in the absence of a unified strategy, illustrate Asean's drift: engaging both the junta and the opposition without a coherent political roadmap risks perpetuating stalemate rather than resolving the crisis. Part of this incoherence stems from Asean's institutional structure. The rotating nature of the Special Envoy, changing with each Asean Chair, undermines continuity and long-term strategy. Compounding this, minister-level envoy is no longer on the table. While some of these adjustments are framed as strategic, they also reflect the bloc's limited political will and uneven commitment to addressing the crisis. Another structural flaw lies in Asean's lack of a clear, enforceable mechanism to address unconstitutional changes of government. This institutional gap not only enables impunity but makes the bloc complicit in democratic backsliding. Without the courage to confront member states that violate core democratic norms, the bloc merely adds strain to its already fragile regionalism project. Another disunity has been revealed in member states' responses to Myanmar's planned 2025 elections, to be held later this year. Malaysia and Singapore have rightly questioned the vote's legitimacy, while Thailand remains neutral and Cambodia has even offered to send observers. These divergent positions highlight Asean's chronic inability to speak with one voice on fundamental democratic principles, undermining its credibility and emboldening authoritarian actors within and beyond Myanmar. Asean stands at a critical juncture shaped by crisis, centrality and conscience. This photo taken on December 10, 2023 shows members of the Mandalay People's Defense Forces (MDY-PDF) heading to the frontline amid clashes with the Myanmar military in northern Shan State. Myanmar's junta ended the country's state of emergency on July 31, 2025, ramping up preparations for a December election being boycotted by opposition groups and criticised by international monitors. — AFP The humanitarian catastrophe in Myanmar, marked by mass killings, displacement and aid blockades, has spilled across borders, fuelling instability and transnational crime. Some advocate for using all diplomatic tools, including parallel tracks, but innovation without principled leadership and a unified strategy risks becoming a smokescreen for inaction rather than a path to peace. The true test of Asean's centrality is no longer its ability to speak in uniformity, but to harmonise many voices without losing the plot. Centrality must mean more than procedural prominence, it must signal strategic coherence and moral leadership. The Myanmar crisis has revealed troubling signs of institutional drift, and unless corrected, Asean's foundational claims to unity and purpose will ring increasingly empty. Above all, Asean must summon moral clarity. Leading with conscience means naming the perpetrators, supporting the victims and rejecting impunity masquerading as diplomacy. — The Jakarta Post/ANN Yuyun Wahyuningrum is executive director of Asean Parliamentarians for Human Rights (APHR).
