Philippines as ASEAN chair urges Myanmar to free Aung San Suu Kyi, other prisoners

MANILA- The Philippines, chair of the regional bloc ASEAN, on Friday encouraged more prisoner releases in Myanmar, including ousted former leader Aung San Suu Kyi and said a recent amnesty was a positive step towards inclusive national dialogue.

"We reaffirm our commitment to assisting Myanmar, as an integral part of ASEAN, to achieve a peaceful and durable solution to the political crisis in the country," the Philippines said in statement as chair of the 11-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

Aung San Suu Kyi has been in detention since her elected government was toppled in a 2021 coup and her welfare was discussed this week by Thai Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow when he met Myanmar's new President Min Aung Hlaing.

Sihasak said Min Aung Hlaing, who led the 2021 coup, told him Aung San Suu Kyi, 80, was being "well looked after" and "good things" for her were being considered, without elaborating. Sihasak said he had conveyed ASEAN's concerns about her welfare.

Aung San Suu Kyi has been serving a 27-year sentence after being convicted of multiple offenses based on charges her allies said were politically motivated to keep her at bay, ranging from incitement and corruption to election fraud and violating a state-secrets law.

Her sentence was commuted by one-sixth as part of an amnesty last week for thousands of prisoners that included the release of her ally, Win Myint, the ousted former president and co-defendant in many of her trials.

Former military chief Min Aung Hlaing led the coup that ended a decade of tentative democracy in Myanmar and triggered mass protests and a civil war, prompting an intervention by ASEAN and its exclusion of the then ruling generals from its summits.

During his recent inauguration, Min Aung Hlaing said his priority was peace and reconciliation in Myanmar and he would seek to normalize ties with ASEAN, which Thailand has pledged to support.

(Reporting by Mikhail Flores and Karen Lema; Editing by Martin Petty)