Myanmar protests: will Singapore's 'truth telling' make a difference as death toll rises?
In the aftermath of the Myanmar military's violent crackdown on the 2007 Saffron Revolution mass protests, Singapore briefly found itself in the international spotlight alongside its ignominious Asean neighbour.
With few outside players having leverage over the reclusive ruling generals, who at the time had been in power for nearly two decades, attention turned to the wealthy city state due to its status as a key source of investments and technical assistance for Myanmar.
Rights groups had a litany of complaints: Singaporean banks - with their tough secrecy laws - were supposedly home to the generals' shady offshore accounts; the island nation was giving them easy access to its world-class hospitals; and was, overall, all too happy for military rule to continue as it was good for business.
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Naturally, Singapore's pushback was robust. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, then three years into the job, dismissed sanctions on the generals as likely to be "counterproductive" and expressed exasperation over the expectation that his government was obliged to block the generals' access to health care.
As Western nations moved to sanction the junta, Singaporean officials maintained that the country's banking sector would only comply with "international agreements" - implying no action would be taken against Myanmar entities unless the United Nations moved to do so first.
The dim view taken by rights groups towards Singapore and the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) was not helped by the grouping's failure to demand accountability from Myanmar for the 2007 killing of protesters, though the group - under the city state's leadership - collectively voiced "revulsion" when reports of the use of automatic weapons against unarmed civilians emerged.
Such scrutiny largely receded in the ensuing years as the Tatmadaw, as the Myanmar military is known, subsequently set the stage for democratic reforms and the landmark 2015 elections won by Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy (NLD).
With Myanmar once again staring into the abyss of autocratic rule following the army's February 1 coup against Suu Kyi's NLD government, Singapore - now the No 1 investor in Southeast Asia's poorest nation - is back on the radar of Myanmar watchers, anti-junta protesters and right groups alike.
Following Tuesday's informal meeting of foreign ministers from Asean, it was remarks from Singapore's top diplomat, Vivian Balakrishnan, that appeared to be most closely parsed by observers of the crisis.
A link to the official transcript of his prepared remarks to the virtual meeting was widely circulated on social media, with many praising Balakrishnan's stern language.
The minister has over the past few weeks gradually toughened Singapore's position on the coup, and in Tuesday's meeting - attended by junta-appointed foreign minister Wunna Maung Lwin - he said the republic was "appalled" by the use of lethal force against unarmed protesters, echoing comments he had made to Singapore's parliament a day earlier.
Myanmar riot police officers move forward to disperse demonstrators in Pyinmana township, Naypyidaw, on March 4. Photo: EPA alt=Myanmar riot police officers move forward to disperse demonstrators in Pyinmana township, Naypyidaw, on March 4. Photo: EPA
Subsequently, the best hope for a resolution to the crisis was a negotiated settlement among the various stakeholders, Balakrishnan said. "We just want the best for you and your people. This can only be achieved if you have honest, frank dialogue among yourselves in Myanmar. The rest of us cannot do this for you. We can be helpful, we can be constructive, but you need to do this yourself."
'ACT OR LEAVE A VACUUM'
Balakrishnan's strong language, compared with the anodyne statement Brunei issued late on Tuesday in its capacity as the 2021 Asean chair, was appreciated by diplomatic observers.
Adding to the focus on Singapore was the release of Prime Minister Lee's interview with the BBC about the crisis. The 69-year-old leader said the use of lethal force against unarmed civilians was "disastrous", though he hoped wisdom would prevail as it did after a major military crackdown in 1988 as well as in the aftermath of the Saffron Revolution.
Asked his thoughts on Balakrishnan's comments, former Australian ambassador to Myanmar Nicholas Coppel told This Week in Asia that they showed the city state's eagerness for Asean "to take a stronger stance in response to developments in Myanmar".
"Singapore is concerned that if Asean does nothing meaningful, then there will be a vacuum that will be filled by others. Singapore doesn't want Myanmar to become another client state of China," Coppel said by email.
"Singapore also wants Asean to be a more respected and important grouping and, for this to happen, Asean can't keep hiding behind its principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of member states," he added. "Singapore is rightly pointing out that Asean has other principles which are equally important, including adherence to the rule of law, respect for fundamental freedoms and the principles of democracy that need to be upheld."
Singapore's foreign minister Vivian Balakrishnan says the Myanmar crisis has put Asean's credibility at risk. Photo: Reuters alt=Singapore's foreign minister Vivian Balakrishnan says the Myanmar crisis has put Asean's credibility at risk. Photo: Reuters
But, as in 2007, the republic has been unable to shake off at times vehement attacks on account of its outsize investment footprint in Myanmar and legacy of cosy ties with the Tatmadaw.
One key gripe among activists is that Singapore has given no indication it will freeze billions of dollars of Myanmar's gas revenue purportedly held in the island nation's banks.
This Week in Asia could not independently corroborate these claims, and Singapore's central bank on February 23 said regular surveillance of the country's US$2 trillion banking system showed Myanmar companies and citizens did not have "significant funds" there.
Among those who had mixed views on Balakrishnan's Tuesday speech was Matthew Smith, co-founder of the Southeast Asian rights group Fortify Rights.
"Extraordinary statement on the Myanmar coup and crackdown from Singapore coming out of today's meeting of Asean foreign ministers," Smith tweeted on Tuesday night. "It condemns the coup, calls for the release of detainees [and] urges US-Asean ties in this context. Thank you, Singapore."
He later told This Week In Asia that it was "very good to see" Singapore do "some uncharacteristic truth telling".
"But the statement alone won't be sufficient," he said. "Singapore banks have long been the playground of Myanmar's military elite, and have long held Myanmar public funds, including multibillion-dollar gas revenues."
Kyaw Win, the London-based executive director of the Burma Human Rights Network, said Singapore's toughened position over the past two weeks was merely a "public relations campaign" aimed at keeping critics in the West at bay.
"We are calling it crocodile tears, [we] never trust Singapore," the activist said in an interview. "There are some countries out there that prioritise their own interest but also show some morality. But I don't see that in Singapore ... they are all about their own interests."
A Myanmar demonstrator holding a home-made shield flees after riot police move to disperse protesters, a day after 38 people were killed by security forces. Photo: EPA alt=A Myanmar demonstrator holding a home-made shield flees after riot police move to disperse protesters, a day after 38 people were killed by security forces. Photo: EPA
ASEAN'S INTERESTS
In his remarks, Singapore's foreign minister Balakrishnan sought to press home that lasting stability in Myanmar was critical to the interests of all Asean states.
Balakrishnan said he hoped Myanmar would not prevent the group's efforts to "engage our external partners" as a whole, pointing out that there was a standing proposal from the new administration of US President Joe Biden for an Asean-United States foreign ministers' meeting that "should be held as soon as possible".
Balakrishnan's comments could also "be read as a subtle warning to the [Tatmadaw] against taking steps that would undermine the bloc's ability to engage as a unitary entity with the US", said John Lichtefeld, vice-president at Washington-based strategic consultancy The Asia Group.
For now, Lichtefeld said, Myanmar contacts with links to the military had confided with him that "officials are at least somewhat sensitive to taking steps that would put them in a bad position with their Asean partners".
Other students of Singapore's foreign policy, meanwhile, cautioned against parsing too much from Balakrishnan's speech.
Ultimately, the republic's position was not unique within Asean, suggested Joseph Liow, a prominent international relations scholar at Singapore's Nanyang Technological University.
Demonstrators in Naypyidaw call for the release of Myanmar's ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Photo: EPA alt=Demonstrators in Naypyidaw call for the release of Myanmar's ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Photo: EPA
He described the chair statement released by Brunei as "strong", adding that the bloc had been "proactive and forward-leaning in trying to reach out to Myanmar".
Indonesia's foreign minister Retno Marsudi in late February engaged in what Jakarta termed "shuttle diplomacy", visiting several Asean nations for consultations on ways to deal with the crisis. As part of that effort, she met her military-appointed counterpart Wunna Maung Lwin in Bangkok on February 24.
Jakarta's position, made public by Marsudi in remarks to reporters after Tuesday's talks, were also hard hitting. While the meeting was about finding solutions, "it takes two to tango", she said. "Asean's good intentions and readiness will be meaningless if Myanmar does not open its door for Asean".
Coppel, who was Australia's representative to Myanmar from 2015 to 2018, suggested that while the stepped-up pressure from Indonesia and Singapore was laudable, it might prove futile given the nature of the coup's architect, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing.
"Even if Singapore and Indonesia are successful in getting Asean to commit to a stronger statement of concern, Min Aung Hlaing is unlikely to agree to dialogue, let alone to back down," Coppel said. "He will never admit that his actions were wrong."
This article originally appeared on the South China Morning Post (SCMP).
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