The Committee Representing Pyidaungsu Hluttaw (CRPH) announced on Friday that the 151st Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Assembly reaffirmed the CRPH as Myanmar’s legitimate parliament at a meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, on Oct. 19-23.
“This decision was reaffirmed at a time when the terrorist military group has announced plans to hold a sham election, and the CRPH will continue to attend IPU meetings as Myanmar’s representative,” the CRPH stated on its official social media page.
The CRPH delegation was led by National Unity Government (NUG) Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management Win Myat Aye, and Minister of Foreign Affairs Zin Mar Aung. Both attended the five-day assembly and its related meetings.
The IPU recognized the CRPH as Myanmar’s legitimate parliamentary interlocutor since the 2021 military coup. It includes members of political parties, including the National League for Democracy (NLD) party, which was ousted from government on Feb. 1, 2021. NLD State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and President Win Myint have been held in prison since then.
NUG Foreign Affairs Minister Zin Mar Aung urged global parliamentarians to reject the regime scheduled elections in Myanmar, set to begin on Dec. 28.
She also called on the IPU to reaffirm recognition of Myanmar’s elected lawmakers, to demand the release of over 20,000 political prisoners in Myanmar, including Aung San Suu Kyi and Win Myint.
“Let us not allow dictatorship to be disguised as democracy. Let us not allow humanitarianism to be hostage to tyranny,” Zin Mar Aung told the IPU Assembly. “Let us act with compassion and conviction—for the people of Myanmar and for all those suffering under oppression.”
The CRPH and NUG said its representatives discussed the military’s increasing use of airstrikes and attacks on civilians during bilateral meetings with parliamentary delegations from Malaysia, Thailand, Italy, Canada, New Zealand, Sweden, and Australia.
The CRPH delegation at the IPU assembly also called for international support in efforts to achieve sustainable solutions to Myanmar’s four-year-long conflict.
The IPU, an independent global organization that serves as the parliamentary partner of the U.N., was founded in 1889 and is headquartered in Geneva. It brings together 183 national parliaments to promote democracy, peace, and cooperation among countries.
