Duterte admin’s ‘nonchalance’ on Myanmar coup ‘defends militarization of gov’t’ — Lagman

MANILA, Philippines — The “nonchalant attitude” of the Duterte administration towards the military coup in Myanmar “confirms and defends the militarization of the government,” Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman said Tuesday.

Lagman made the remark after presidential spokesperson Harry Roque refused to comment on the “internal” matters of Myanmar, but stressed that the government’s top priority at the moment is to ensure the safety of Filipinos there.

“The nonchalant attitude of the Duterte administration confirms and defends the militarization of the government and its implementation of repressive policies like the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020, continuing red-tagging and the unilateral abrogation of the UP-DND accord,” Lagman said in a statement.

Lagman was one of the solons who filed a petition questioning the controversial Anti-Terrorism Law before the Supreme Court.

The independent lawmaker said that the military coup in Myanmar should not be sidelined by the Duterte administration as a mere domestic issue.

“While the protection of Filipinos in Myanmar is a major concern of the Philippine government, the death of democracy in Myanmar as a result of a military coup d’état should not be sidelined by the Duterte administration as a purely domestic matter,” Lagman said in a statement.

“The ouster by the military of the elected government of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, one of democracy’s leading icons, is a global concern which the entire free world must condemn instantly and unequivocally,” he added.

INQUIRER.net has reached out to the Palace for a comment but has yet to receive a reply as of posting time.

Myanmar’s military staged a coup on Monday, detaining the country’s leaders, including the state counselor, Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, and declaring a state of emergency for one year.

EDV