Bundestag President Schäuble condemns the military coup in Myanmar

In light of the current situation in Myanmar and the hitherto close relations between the German Bundestag and the country’s parliament, the President of the Bundestag Dr Wolfgang Schäuble has declared his solidarity with the Speaker of the Assembly of the Union, T Khun Myatt, who is currently under house arrest.

In an open letter, Schäuble also condemns the military coup as unlawful and calls for the immediate release of the arrested members of Parliament and of the former government along with the reinstatement of democratic structures.

The open letter is also addressed to the members of the Committee Representing Pyidaungsu Hluttaw – a body established by elected members of Parliament following the military takeover in order to represent Parliament's interests. “The democratic legitimacy of the parliamentarians elected in November 2020 is reflected in the protests currently underway among the population, which are being violently crushed”, the letter states.

The Bundestag has maintained contact with the Assembly of the Union in Myanmar since 2012 in the form of reciprocal visits and exchanges, and supports the democratisation process underway in the country through, among other elements, an intensive cooperation project with the Hanns Seidel Foundation and the Bundesrat on Capacity Building for the parliamentary administration in Myanmar (since 2016).

Schäuble's open letter

Bundestag President Schäuble has sent the following open letter:

Courtesy Translation

His Excellency
T Khun Myatt
Speaker of the Pyithu Hluttaw
of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar

Members of the
Committee Representing Pyidaungsu Hluttaw YANGON Myanmar

Berlin, 26 February 2021

Dear Colleague,

Dear elected Members,

I have been following the current developments in your country with great concern. I condemn the military coup and the associated arrests of democratically elected members of Parliament in the strongest possible terms. On behalf of the German Bundestag, I assure my sincerely felt sympathy and my solidarity to you and to all parliamentarians suffering under repression in Myanmar, not least in light of the intensive bilateral relations between our two parliaments in recent years.

It is my profound hope that the international community’s appeals to the military leadership in Myanmar, which has unlawfully put an abrupt end to the democratic change in your country, fall on fertile ground. The state of emergency must be lifted, arrested members of Parliament and the former government must be released immediately and democratic structures reinstated. The democratic legitimacy of the parliamentarians elected in November 2020 is reflected in the protests currently underway among the population, which are being violently crushed. The welfare of your country and its population must no longer be placed in jeopardy.

I wish you all the strength, health and energy necessary to withstand your current plight and to overcome this predicament with the intention of restoring democracy, fundamental and human rights, freedom of speech and the rule of law to Myanmar.

Yours sincerely,

Sgd. Dr Wolfgang Schäuble,

President of the German Bundestag