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MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines views the military coup in Myanmar as an “internal matter” that it should not meddle in, presidential spokesman Harry Roque said Monday.
Roque said the government was prioritizing helping Filipinos in Myanmar who wanted to return home.
Myanmar’s military staged a coup on Monday, detaining the country’s leaders, including the state councilor, Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, and declaring a state of emergency for a year.
“Our embassy in Myanmar is moving to provide assistance to all Filipinos. If some Filipinos want to go home, we will find a way to get them home. If they want to seek temporary refuge in the embassy, we will find a way, “said Roque at a press conference.
Military ships, aircraft
The Philippine military is ready to deploy ships and planes if necessary to bring the Filipinos back home, he said.
He also reminded Filipinos in Myanmar to be careful in everything you do.
Roque said the Palace would refrain from commenting on the events in Myanmar, as the military takeover was an internal matter for the country, although it wanted to return to normalcy.
“We hope that, as soon as possible, it will return to normal, although what happened in Myanmar is an internal matter and we would not interfere with it,” he said.
Stable situation
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) assured that Philippine officials were in contact with the Philippine community in Myanmar.
“At the moment, the situation in Yangon and Mandalay appears stable, apart from the COVID restrictions and mobile lines that are down,” said the DFA.
“As a standard, the Philippine Embassy is reaching out to Filipinos in Myanmar through Philippine community networks … The Embassy can communicate with Filcom via WhatsApp,” he added.
The DFA said there were 1,273 Filipinos in Myanmar as of June 2020. –WITH A REPORT FROM TINA G. SANTOS INQ
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