(Photo : Getty Images: Lauren DeCicca / Stringer)
The UN Security Council disagreed on a joint statement condemning the coup in Myanmar but said talks would continue.
The UN Security Council disagreed on a joint statement condemning the coup in Myanmar but said talks would continue.
The 15-member council considered a UK-drafted statement wherein the envoy of the UN Security Council to Myanmar said that the country should "collectively send a strong signal in favor of democracy."
The virtual meeting followed Aung San Suu Kyi's arrest and other top politicians by the military in a series of early morning raids on Monday. Armed Forces Leader Min Aung Hlaing took control after.
The army stated that its coup was legitimate and was vowed to hold new elections. Arguing with the poll last November was illegitimate without evidence. For one year, a state of emergency will remain in effect, they added.
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A potential declaration, drafted by Britain, is being discussed by the UN Security Council, which would condemn the Myanmar coup and call on the military to uphold the rule of law and human rights and immediately release those illegally detained, the diplomats said. Such declarations must be decided by consensus.
Following the behind-closed-doors video conference meeting that lasted just over two hours, "China and Russia have asked for more time," one diplomat told the AFP news agency.
The document, drafted by Britain, would also demand that the state of emergency is lifted and that "democratic standards be adhered to by all sides." According to AFP, there was no mention of sanctions.
Human rights organizations condemned the council's inability to take swift action on the Myanmar coup.
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UN Security Council on Myanmar coup and the factor from China
"As Aung San Suu Kyi was confirmed to be in 'good health'," as the security council met, but her location and condition remain unknown. However, it is suspected that she is being kept in Naypyidaw, the country's remote capital, where she has a home.
Although Suu Kyi sponsored demonstrations, given the military's reputation for violence and recent crackdowns on peaceful marches, people were hesitant to take to the streets.
"I want the soldiers to go back to their dorms and that's why we doctors are not going to hospitals," a 29-year-old doctor in Yangon relayed his opinion to Reuters news agency.
Instead, on Wednesday, a campaign of civil disobedience started with workers halting work to demonstrate against the coup at 70 hospitals and medical departments in 30 cities across Myanmar.
On Tuesday night, individuals in Yangon even picked up pots and pans to bang out their anger at the power grab.
The UN Security Council's declaration needs China's support, the key supporter of Myanmar in the United Nations and as a permanent member of the Security Council. The Myanmar coup was not denounced by China, though state media described the events of Monday as a "cabinet reshuffle."
With Russia's backing, China protected Myanmar from any primary council intervention after a violent military crackdown in the state of Rakhine forced more than 740,000 mostly Muslim Rohingya to flee to where they remain, Bangladesh.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Western states have accused the army of ethnic cleansing in Myanmar, which they have denied.
The United Nations has also raised their fears that the coup may only aggravate some 600,000 Rohingya's plight still living in the country.
