UN envoy in Myanmar to step down

Noeleen Heyzer, the UN secretary-general’s special representative in Myanmar, will step down on June 12, according to the United Nations, after a relatively short tenure of about 18 months.

The Singaporean and former UN Assistant Secretary General took office in October 2021, some nine months after the military coup in Myanmar. He replaced Christine Schraner Burgener, a Swiss diplomat who held the post for more than three years.

Heyzer’s upcoming departure was announced on Wednesday by UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric, who did not provide a reason for the move, other than to explain that it was the end of his contract.

Heyzer previously served as director of the United Nations Development Fund for Women from 1994 to 2007 and of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific from 2007 to 2014.

“The Secretary General thanks Ms. Heyzer for her tireless efforts on behalf of peace and the people of Myanmar,” Dujarric said.

Heyzer was tasked with “urging the Myanmar junta to engage in political dialogue with its opponents and end the crackdown,” according to The United Nationsbut made little progress.

Questioned Envoy Paper

The UN envoy’s time in office was met with mixed reviews.

She met with the military regime last year, drawing a rebuke from the shadow National Unity Government, which questioned the timing of the trip shortly after a military court sentenced the country’s deposed leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, to six more years in prison. Suu Kyi Faces a total of 33 years in prison for 19 cases.

The NUG and hundreds of society groups then called for it to be removed from positionand criticized the envoy role itself.

“The long history of UN attempts to broker peace with the Myanmar military through special envoys has never catalyzed significant results, but has instead given legitimacy to the perpetrators of international atrocity crimes and allowed crises to worsen. humanitarian and human rights issues,” the groups said. he said at the time.

Still, Heyzer didn’t mince words when it came to the board.

In a speech to the UN General Assembly on March 16, he said the regime’s plans to hold staged elections in the country this year without engaging in dialogue with the opposition or restoring political rights “risk exacerbating violence.” ”.

“There is no public trust in the regime, whose interest is seen as consolidating its control by transitioning from a state of emergency to a longer-term military-backed government,” Heyzer said.