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With Friends Like These . . .?



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U Rewata Dhamma--
   "On the morning of Nov. 23, 1 had breakfast at the U.N.
Plaza Hotel, with the special U.N. rapporteur for Myanmar
Prof. Yozo Yokota. ....he told me that SLORC was absolutely
determined to carry on with its present National Convention
agenda.  For this reason it was of the utmost importance that
Suu Kyi should work together with SLORC.  He also
expressed the view that she ought to accept whatever
assignment or post they might give her, and if she were to do
so she might gradually succeed in helping to change her
country's overall situation for the better and in constructing a
truly democratic constitution for Myanmar."

     "When, at last, I met with her on Jan. 30 her attitude
seemed   to have changed significantly and she did not seem so
eager to see me.  Nonetheless I told her that it was the general   
consensus among these officials I had spoken with abroad that  
she should cooperate with SLORC.  She then told me that I       
had come too late as she had already issued a statement on      
Jan. 22.  On hearing this, I refrained from discussing the      
matter further and turned the conversation toward more  
general topics.  However, before our visit came to an end, she  
did ask me when I returned to England if the press or anyone  
else were to ask me about her situation then I should repeat     
what she had said in her statement released on Jan. 22."


Myanmar priest tells the behind-the-scenes story about a top
dissident's release

MYANMAR'S FUTURE HINGES ON SLORC-SUU KYI
RECONCILIATION 
By Ven. Dr. Rewata Dhamma

  (A lifetime of Buddhism -- The Ven. Dr. Rewata Dhamma
was born in Myanmar in 1929.  He has studied Theravada
Buddhism since childhood.  He obtained the highest degree in
Pali examination at the age of 23 and was then awarded the
title of Sasanadhaja siripavara dhammacartiya by the then
president of Myanmar in 1953.
  He has also studied Indian philosophy and Mahayana
Buddhism in India.  In 1975 he went to England and
established a Buddhist center in Birmingham from which he
has traveled widely in Europe and the United States, teaching
Buddhism and conducting Vipassana mediation retreats.)

Special to "THIS IS Yomiuri"

The very first time I met Aung San Suu Kyi, the daughter of
the late Gen. Aung San, who was the hero of the struggle for
Myanmar's independence from the British, was during the
early 1960s at the Deer Park in Isipatana, near Varanasi.  This
park is the place where the Buddha Gotama preached his First
Sermon.  Suu Kyi had come to Varanasi with her mother, Daw
Khin Kyi, the Myanmar ambassador to India at that time. 
They were there to perform personal religious duties.  I and my
fellow monks thought ourselves quite fortunate to be able to
meet the family of the late Gen.  Aung San.  Suu Kyi's mother
generously invited the monks to come to visit her residence in
New Delhi.

So whenever I went to New Delhi, I would visit Daw Khin Kyi
and I used to see her daughter, Aung San Sun Kyi, from time
to time.  The one thing I did notice about her was that despite
her youth, she was already a remarkably determined and self-possessed person.  In 1978 I met her again, this time in Oxford
when His Holiness the XVI Karmapa of Tibet came to visit the
Oxford Buddhist Center at Oakenholt, where I was living at
the time.  Aung San Suu Kyi, her husband and their two small
sons were among the guests.  She spoke to me in Burmese and
told me she was Aung San's daughter and gave me her address
in Park Town, Oxford, and I used to go to visit her there from
time to time.  Whenever I was lecturing in Oxford she would
always come by bicycle to see me.  My first impressions of her
character as a young girl remained unchanged as I came to
know her somewhat better over a period of about five years.

In 1988 a mass uprising against the military government
occurred in Myanmar, formerly known as Burma.  Just before
this mass revolt Suu Kyi returned home to Myanmar to care
for her ailing mother.  Subsequently, she joined in
demonstrations against the government and became the leader
of these protests.  On Sept. 18, the State Law and Order
Restoration Council (SLORC) staged a coup against Maung
Maung's government.  This was condemned outright by a
number of Western governments.  The United States and the
then EC immediately withdrew all financial aid to Myanmar as
a protest against the coup's bloodshed.  It was their hope that
this action would cause the economy and the government to
collapse.  However, this did not happen.  Some of the Western
governments, Germany in particular, admitted that this policy
had failed.  This was because Myanmar has such a wealth of
natural resources that it is able to attract a great deal of foreign
trade, worldwide, especially with its neighboring countries. 
The fact is that Myanmar has been thriving since 1992.  The
main reason for its prosperity is that SLORC allows an open
market system to operate throughout the country and this
policy strengthens the economy and makes it prosper.

Suu Kyi put under house arrest

On July 20, 1989, Sun Kyi was placed under house arrest
because of her open criticism of the Myanmar Army and of
Gen.  Ne Win in particular.  SLORC therefore declared that
she was a threat to national security and unity.  Although she
was under house arrest, her political party the National League
For Democracy (NLD) won more than 80 percent of the seats
in the National Assembly in the 1991 election.  Many
governments in the rest of the world and many in the Myanmar
democracy movements demanded the immediate release of Sun
Kyi and the transfer of power to the winning NLD.  But
SLORC ignored these demands.  These events served to make
Sun Kyi the focal point for Myanmar's democracy movement. 
Moreover, since she has been under house arrest, she has been
awarded many honors and prizes, including the Nobel Peace
Prize in 1991.  It would seem that her detention has served to
make her an admirable and popular figure.  Since she was put
under house arrest the governments of the United States,
Japan, Australia and those of the European Union have urged
SLORC to release her and hand over power to the NLD.  The
United Nations had passed five resolutions designed to put
pressure on SLORC to hand over power to the legally elected
NLD and to free all political detainees.  The member countries
of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations merely chose to
follow a policy of "constructive engagement." None of the
aforementioned pressures or requests were effective.

In November 1993, 1 went to the United States to lecture at
Harvard and Columbia universities.  While I was in New
York, I went to see Francesc Vendrell, director of political
affairs for South Asia and the Pacific countries in the United
Nations, and complained to him that when the two things
which were being asked of SLORC-the freeing of Sun Kyi and
the transfer of power to the NLD-were not granted, the
Western governments canceled their financial aid programs for
Myanmar and by doing so totally isolated themselves
politically from SLORC.  SLORC then turned to China,
Thailand and Singapore for business and trade.  I then told
Vendrell that according to the Buddhist way of doing things, if
I were to ask another person to do something and if that person
did not do what I had asked, then I ought not to feel angry or
make any hasty decisions at first.  Instead it would be better if
initially, I were to find out why the person could not do as I
had asked, what is his or her problem or difficulty.  If I knew
this at the outset then a solution to the problem might be found. 
I then told him that an isolationist stance toward Myanmar was
not a good policy to follow and that "friendly dialogue" would
be the best means to use to deal with such difficult and
sensitive issues.  Vendrell then suggested I should express
these views to diplomats of the Western countries and the U.S.
government.  Acting on his advice, I traveled to Washington
the next day and met with some officials from the State
Department and expressed my ideas and view to them.  I then
went back to New York and met with some diplomats
representing Australia, Germany, Britain and Sweden.  I spoke
to them about these matters.  They remarked that any
suggestions were new ideas and a that reasonable way was to
approach and deal with SLORC.  However the British
diplomat was of the opinion that the idea of using "friendly
dialogue" is too soft an approach and it would be preferable to
employ "critical dialogue" instead and after that various
governments would try to find different ways to communicate
more effectively with SLORC.  They then asked me, if I, as a
Buddhist monk, could find out for myself, the reason SLORC
was reluctant to free Suu Kyi and transfer power.

Talks with SLORC leaders

There were times when I thought it was unlikely that I should
ever be able to return to Myanmar in this lifetime.  In fact,
after discussions and consultation with friends and well-wishers from all over the world, I was able to return last year. 
Shortly after my arrival on May 4, 1994, 1 went to see former
Prime Minister U Nu, and we discussed his Buddhist works
and publications.  On the second day of my visit, I met with
former President Maung Maung and a number of retired
generals.  During the course of my visit, I met with Maung
Maung three times.  He encouraged me to teach the people,
implying SLORC, about reconciliation while I was in
Myanmar.  Sadly, Maung Maung passed away not long after I
returned to England.  Just before I left, I also met with Lt. 
Gen.  Khin Nyunt, the secretary-1 of SLORC.  This meeting
was an opportunity for me to tell him that it was the rest of the
world's opinion that SLORC should free Suu Kyi and transfer
power to the NLD.  Having heard my comments, Khin Nyunt
explained to me at length in confidence why SLORC could not
free Sun Kyi or hand over power to the NLD.  Nonetheless,
our discussion was quite amicable and cordial, and he was
careful to impress upon me that whatever SLORC was doing
was for the sake of establishing democracy in Myanmar.  He
also made the point that the idea of democracy could be
interpreted differently in the East in contrast to how the West
defined this concept.  Two days later, I left Myanmar and
returned to England.  In mid-June, I went to the United
Nations in New York and gave an account of my discussion
with Khin Nyunt.  In response to this report Vendrell and some
other Western diplomats queried: if SLORC could not free Sun
Kyi and transfer power why then would they not talk to her at
all.  I returned to England and then on Aug. 5, 1 went to
Myanmar for just one week.  When I arrived at Yangon airport
I was escorted by the Myanmar authorities to the Government
Guest House on Inya Road, which is a five minutes drive from
Sun Kyi's home on University Avenue.  When, Khin Nyunt
came to see me that afternoons explained to him that it was the
United Nations' wish and that of other world powers for
SLORC to engage in dialogue with Suu Kyi, if SLORC was
not able to free her.  He said that if she were willing to talk to
them, they would be willing to talk with her.  I then asked if I
might go to see her, and all the necessary arrangements were
made.

Meeting with Suu Kyi

On Aug. 7, I was invited by Sun Kyi for a meal. Early that
morning before I left for her home, Col. Kyaw Win, the deputy
director of intelligence, called on me to tell me that I could
visit her for as long as she might wish me too.  After lunch
everyone, including her husband Michael Aris, who was at that
time visiting her left the room and we were left alone to talk. 
She told me that she was not angry or hateful and added that
"when you keep anger and animosity in your mind, it is like
keeping a cobra in your heart and this is very dangerous."
Another point she made was that she herself did not need to be
freed, as she was living in a very comfortable house, but she
wanted freedom granted to those people who had been detained
in jails throughout the country.  She also said that if she would
be able to have dialogue with SLORC then her personal
freedom was not a matter of necessity.  On the subject of
democracy, she also spoke her mind, saying that democracy
was not something you can beg from someone else, rather, it is
something you had to build for yourself.  In the course of the
rest of our conversation, she also said that because her father
had been the founder of the Myamnar Army, she regarded all
members of the military as her brothers.  To my mind, this is
absolutely true, as she was brought up in her father's home in
which the army and army life was a predominant feature so it
was quite easy to understand how from an early age she could
regard the military as her "family." After she told me of her
feelings about the army I told her that even members of
SLORC regard her with respect because of her late father's and
her family's strong links with the army.  So whatever
differences and problems she and SLORC both had could
indeed be solved as brothers and sister.  She answered me by
saying that only the Myamnar people could understand
Myanmar's problems, and so whatever differences we had must
be sorted out among ourselves, and she added that she was
willing to talk with people from SLORC.  I left her home at 3
P.M. and returned to the Government Guest House.  I was
visited later that afternoon by Gen.  Khin Nyunt and I told him
about my conversation with Suu Kyi and he was quite pleased. 
The next day he called on me again together with Senior Gen. 
Than Shwe and they said that they would like to meet with
Sun Kyi in the very near future.  I left Yangon for England on
Aug. 10, and before I left for the airport, I called on Sun Kyi
and told her that the generals would be talking to her soon. 
She was pleased.

Suu Kyi meets with SLORC

Immediately upon my return to Birmingham from Yangon, I
rang the BBC World Service's Burmese Unit and let it be
known that I had met Sun Kyi.  The officer I had spoken to
said, "This is very hot news.  Please wait for a few moments as
I want to arrange an 'on the spot' interview with you for our
Burmese listeners." Within a few minutes, the interview was
set up and I was able to briefly explain how I had come to meet
with her, and then I broke the news that SLORC was now
willing to talk with Aung San Sun Kyi.  This news was
quickly spread around the world.

Two weeks later I once again went to the U.N. headquarters in
New York, where I made a verbal report on the extent to which
the Myanmar situation had improved.  While I was still in
New York, news from Myanmar emerged that SLORC was
planning to meet with Suu Kyi at the end of the year.  The
overall reaction to this news abroad was one of great
disappointment as it was thought that waiting until December
was far too long to wait for such an important dialogue to take
place.  So I suggested to SLORC that the promised dialogue
with Suu Kyi should take place as soon as possible. 
Subsequently, on Sept. 20, 1994, a dialogue did take place
between her and SLORC, and a second one was held in
October.  After staying in New York for a week, I returned to
England.  It was then that I decided to return to Myanmar once
again as Suu Kyi had asked me to do so in a letter.  However,
on reflection, I decided it might be better if I were to first meet
with some of the U.N. officials and diplomats and some
Japanese government officials in order to hear their views and
suggestions regarding the then prevailing situation in
Myanmar.  So yet again, I set off for New York in
mid- November.

Upon my arrival I was able to meet with many diplomats. 
Some U.N. officials also were of the opinion that whatever
problems she had had with the Myanmar Army (Tatmadaw)
between 1988 and 1989 were attributable to specific
circumstances. 

Nevertheless, one day she might well find that she could
cooperate with the Tatmadaw and they could work together
effectively.  On the morning of Nov. 23, 1 had breakfast at the
U.N. Plaza Hotel, with the special U.N. rapporteur for
Myanmar Prof. Yozo Yokota.  As we conversed, it soon
became clear to me that he held a similar view to those of the
previously mentioned U.N. officials.  Moreover, he told me
that SLORC was absolutely determined to carry on with its
present National Convention agenda.  For this reason it was of
the utmost importance that Suu Kyi should work together with
SLORC.  He also expressed the view that she ought to accept
whatever assignment or post they might give her, and if she
were to do so she might gradually succeed in helping to change
her country's overall situation for the better and in constructing
a truly democratic constitution for Myanmar.  I left New York
on Nov. 25 for Japan.  While staying in Japan, I met with
about 70 members of the Diet and several senior foreign
officials.  I learned that all of them were of the same mind and
wanted Suu Kyi to be freed so that she might work alongside
SLORC and toward achieving democracy for Myanmar.  After
having several meetings with various other Japanese officials,
on Dec. 14 1 left Tokyo for Bangkok.  Once there I took the
time to go to Cambodia to see for myself what the latest
Buddhist situation was there.  I then returned to Bangkok,
where I made an impromptu change to my itinerary and
traveled to Chaing Mai in northern Thailand to meet Bo Mya,
the chairman of the Karen National Union.  Our discussion
was confidential and comprehensive.  He made it quite clear
that he very much wanted to reach a cease-fire agreement with
SLORC so that peaceful negotiations might begin.  I conveyed
his wish to Khin Nyunt when I again met with him in Yangon
in December.

Talks with Japanese officials

I arrived in Yangon on Dec. 18.  On Dec. 19.  Khin Nyunt
called on me at the Government Guest House, and we talked
for about two hours.  During that conversation I expressed the
opinions and ideas I had recently heard when I met with the
various U.N. and Japanese government officials prior to my
return to Yangon.

I then told him that I would like to see Suu Kyi.  He responded
by telling me that Than Shwe would be calling on me, and
afterward arrangements could be made for me to see her.  On
Dec. 27 Senior Gen.  Than Shwe came to see me along with
Gen.  Maung Aye, the chief of staff of the army, and Secretary-1 Khin Nyunt and Secretary 2 Lt.  Gen.  Tin Oo.  Our
discussion focused on Buddhism in Myanmar and abroad.  Just
before they left Than Shwe asked Khin Nyunt to make the
necessary arrangements for me to meet with Aung San Suu
Kyi.

He immediately remembered that her husband, Aris, and their
two sons were already there, visiting her and he then said that
it was best if they were left alone as a family for a while and
that I should defer my visit for a while.  I marked how
concerned he was that their family life should not be intruded
upon.

On Jan. 22, Aris left Yangon for Bangkok, where he gave a
press conference, during which he issued a statement on behalf
of Sun Kyi.  Her statement annoyed SLORC because it stated
that she was not about to do any secret deals with SLORC, but
that she would negotiate with them only after she had
consulted with the senior members of the NLD and the various
pro-democracy movements etc.

When, at last, I met with her on Jan. 30 her attitude seemed to
have changed significantly and she did not seem so eager to see
me.  Nonetheless I told her that it was the general consensus
among these officials I had spoken with abroad that she should
cooperate with SLORC.  She then told me that I had come too
late as she had already issued a statement on Jan. 22.  On
hearing this, I refrained from discussing the matter further and
turned the conversation toward more general topics.  However,
before our visit came to an end, she did ask me when I returned
to England if the press or anyone else were to ask me about her
situation then I should repeat what she had said in her
statement released on Jan. 22. On Feb. 1, I left Myamnar.

At both Yangon and Bangkok airports, I was approached by
many journalists keen to question me about Suu Kyi and what
she thought.  In response to their questions I repeated the gist
of what she herself had said in her most recent statement.
Suu Kyi finally released

On Monday, July 10, Suu Kyi was freed from house arrest. 
The whole world was surprised at her
release as there had been no indications that she would be freed
on that day.  Many people speculated on the reasons for her
unexpected release, In fact she was freed not as a result of any
international pressure being imposed on SLORC, but because
SLORC had to abide by its own rules as it had declared that
Sun Kyi could only be detained according to the law for just
six more months that was from Jan. 10, 1995, until July 10,
1995. 

The other reasons for her release were that SLORC was
confident that it could handle any situation that might arise in
the wake of her release.  Moreover, they no longer regarded
her as a threat to that she was freed unconditionally but in fact
there is yet no guarantee that any dialogue aimed at
reconciliation will take place in the future.  Therefore, Sun Kyi
herself stated, " I have been released, that's all.  There's nothing
else." Her numerous invitations to SLORC for dialogue for
reconciliation were always answered by silence.

Many of us are aware that simply releasing Sun Kyi will not
necessarily lead to any positive changes in Myanmar's political
situation.  She herself said a few days after her release, "We've
got to continue our work.  We've to walk a long road."
Immediately upon her release all international pressure and
suspicion and tension connected with SLORC abated, and
some countries were now willing to resume financial aid to
SLORC.

However, Suu Kyi urged the World Bank and other
international lending institutions to take a cautious approach
saying: "They should wait to see whether there is a genuine
move toward reconciliation and a truly democratic system of
government." On the subject of "constructive engagement" she
said, "I cannot say at this moment whether foreign investment
has helped our cause or not."

Within one day of Sun Kyi's release, however, Japan
announced that it would resume aid to Myanmar.  Similarly
the ASEAN member countries, especially Malaysia, the
Philippines and Thailand, welcomed SLORC's decision to free
Aung San Suu Kyi as it effectively opened the door for
Myanmar to join ASEAN.  Suu Kyi's response to these
developments was: "I wonder why the government of Japan
feels a need to hurry about it ... I don't think there is really such
a need." Concerning the ASEAN countries' enthusiasm for
Myanmar to join it she said, "I will ask them to support the
cause of democracy; nothing has changed yet, apart from my
release." She also said, "I think they should go on observing
the situation very closely and accept that we are nowhere near
democracy yet."

We have to think carefully whether or not the ASEAN nations
and Japan will heed her remarks.  The ASEAN member
countries on the whole only want Myanmar to improve its
human rights record, abolish use of forced labor and allow
freedom of the press.  If SLORC complies and makes these
reforms then they will not hesitate to support SLORC further.

A delicate dilemma

After her release Suu Kyi found herself in a very delicate
position and faced with the dilemma of which path to follow. 
If as a "daughter of the Tatmadaw" she were to cooperate with
SLORC totally, then her followers might become divided in
their loyalty, and she would lose their valued and vital support. 
On the other hand, if she were to struggle on supported by the
Western countries and if carefully calculated pressure
strategies were used in the name of "democracy," then without
a doubt SLORC would not entrust her with any power what-
soever.  Bearing these things in mind we can then say that at a
tactical level, with the liberation of Sun Kyi, the struggle for
the democracy movement and SLORC have entered a new
phase.

This is a very crucial time for Suu Kyi, requiring courage,
patience and understanding.  Although she had been involved
in Myanmar's politics for just 11 months prior to being put
under house arrest, this is the ideal time for her to work for her
fellow countrymen who admire, respect and trust her to help
them to build a democracy and bring peace to Myanmar.

I sincerely hope that she walks on well with loving kindness,
compassion, sympathetic joy and equanimity, principles taught
by the Buddha, which the majority of the people of Myanmar
appreciate.

These principles are known as the Brahma Viharas, the Divine
Abidings and have been principles the people of Myanmar
have followed for centuries.  If Suu Kyi and the members of
SLORC abide by the principle of the Buddha's teachings and
solve their problems, then they will succeed in building a
democracy fit for Myanmar, and peace and stability will be
restored to the land.

This article was originally written for the October issue of
"THIS IS Yomiuri", a monthly magazine published by The
Yomiuri Shimbun.


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