[ad_1]
NEW YORK: Myanmar’s United Nations envoy in New York vowed to continue fighting on Saturday (February 27) after the junta fired him for urging countries to use “any means necessary” to reverse a US coup. February 1 that overthrew the nation’s elected leader, Aung San Suu Kyi.
“I decided to fight back as much as I can,” Kyaw Moe Tun told Reuters on Saturday.
Myanmar’s state television announced on Saturday that Kyaw Moe Tun had been fired for “betraying the country.”
However, the United Nations does not officially recognize the junta as Myanmar’s new government as it has not received any official notification of any changes, said a UN official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, so Kyaw Moe Tun remains Myanmar’s ambassador to the UN for now.
“We have not received any communication about changes in Myanmar’s representation at the United Nations in New York,” said UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric.
READ: Myanmar police fire rubber bullets, pressure increases on protests as UN envoy breaks ranks
READ: Myanmar’s ambassador to the UN calls on the world body to take action to end the military coup
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres’ special envoy in Myanmar, Christine Schraner Burgener, warned the 193 members of the UN General Assembly on Friday that no country should recognize or legitimize the Myanmar junta.
If Myanmar’s junta, led by General Min Aung Hlaing, tries to seek international recognition by installing a new UN envoy, it could spark a fight in the world body that could culminate in a vote in the General Assembly.
The UN has previously had to address competing claims for representation in the world body.
In September 2011, the General Assembly approved a request from Libya to accredit envoys from the country’s interim government. The move came after the United States, Russia, China and European nations recognized the new authorities.
Kyaw Moe Tun told the United Nations on Friday that he was speaking on behalf of the Suu Kyi government and asked for help to reverse “the illegal and unconstitutional military coup.” Such a leadership, at odds with those in power in a country, is rare.
READ: Myanmar civil servants strikes begin to affect
READ: Myanmar police raid protest district as World Bank stops some payments
The elected lawmakers overthrown in the coup have formed a committee and Kyaw Moe Tun said it is the “legitimate and duly elected government of Myanmar and should be recognized by the international community as such.”
Guterres has promised to mobilize international pressure “for this coup to fail.” The Security Council has expressed concern about the state of emergency, but fell short of condemning the coup due to opposition from Russia and China.
