Jakarta. ASEAN has ruled out sending observers to Myanmar’s year-end elections, according to the group’s secretary-general Kao Kim Hourn, but members are free to deploy a team under bilateral settings.

Kuala Lumpur recently wrapped up the three-day ASEAN Summit with the grouping repeating its calls for an end to violence. The summit rolled out a flurry of statements, including a document on how the Southeast Asian bloc has “taken note” of Myanmar’s request for ASEAN to send election observers to the general polls, which will begin on Dec. 28. 

Kao admitted Thursday that the Kuala Lumpur talks had members deliberating on the invitation. The now-eleven-strong grouping has decided to turn down Myanmar’s offer, and would not send poll observers under the ASEAN banner.

“Collectively, we will not have an ASEAN observation team,” Kao told a briefing in Jakarta.

He repeated ASEAN’s calls for Myanmar to stop the violence happening in its soil and hold an inclusive political dialogue first before hosting the polls. However, there is still a chance for ASEAN nations to individually send a team if they wish. 

“But [that decision] is up to each ASEAN member state,” Kao said.

Filipino President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. recently admitted that the members had slight differences in opinion regarding what to do with the polls. Marcos is keeping his fingers crossed for ASEAN to take a common position by December, while revealing his intentions to individually ask other Southeast Asian nations on their plans.

“It would be much preferable if ASEAN moves as one. … [If there is no consensus], the Philippines will move by itself. We will agree to disagree,” Marcos said.

The Kuala Lumpur summit saw Malaysia passing the ASEAN chair baton to the Philippines. Manila will officially take the group's helm in 2026.

The military-run Myanmar’s plans to hold elections have faced international opposition, who fear that this is a sham exercise aimed at legitimizing the junta rule. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has also flagged concerns over the election’s fairness.

With only two months remaining, the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party has begun their campaigns. Democratically-elected State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi remains behind bars to this day.

In February 2021, the Myanmar military staged a coup against the democratically elected government. Since then, ASEAN has been trying to help resolve the crisis in its backyard. ASEAN came up with the so-called five-point consensus about two months after the coup, and has since then stuck to this plan as its main reference on the Myanmar crisis. The peace plan calls for an immediate cessation of violence and a constructive dialogue among all parties concerned. 

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