YANGON, July 26 (Xinhua) -- Myanmar's House of Representatives (Lower House) on Tuesday unanimously denounced the statement of UN envoy Yanghee Lee which criticized the country over its human rights situation.
Lee, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, issued a statement recently at the end of her 12-day mission in the country, criticizing the Myanmar government over its alleged restriction on her trip to Myanmar as well as inaction on alleged abuses in conflict areas,
In response, Myanmar's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs U Kyaw Tin said that inheriting numerous issues including armed conflicts, differences in political viewpoints, all-round slow development and poverty, the Myanmar government is building trust between different social sectors and trying to turn many differences into a driving force for resolving these issues.
Welcoming constructive criticism to practically deal with the situation of the country, U Kyaw Tin insisted that the government favors a communicative approach as opposed to direct confrontation on matters of human rights, adding that cooperation with the United Nations is a foundation in Myanmar's foreign policy.
Meanwhile, a statement of the Ministry of the Office of the State Counselor also criticized Lee's statement as containing many sweeping allegations and a number of factual errors.
Myanmar had expected the statement to reflect the difficulties of resolving the problems that are a legacy of decades of internal conflict, isolation and underdevelopment, the statement said.
