BBC-Monday, 1 May, 2000, 09:32 GMT 10:32 UK
The Association of South East Asian Nations (Asean) meeting, which has brought together ministers from the 10 member countries as well as Japan and China, is set to discuss greater economic and trade integration and the setting up of a free trade zone.
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Myanmar's strongman Lieutenant
General Khin Nyunt arrives at the
summit |
Burma has had a limited diplomatic diary since the ruling government ignored the NLD's election win almost 10 years ago, with sanctions imposed from the West. It joined Asean in 1997.
In his opening address, the country's intelligence chief Lieutenant-General Khin Nyunt - considered to be the most powerful government figure - showed the military leadership's pleasure at the event.
He said the fact Burma was hosting such a high-profile meeting was evidence the government was building "a country that is peaceful, stable and economically vibrant, with people full of zest and full of confidence in the future".Khin Nyunt attacked the West and the "doomsayers" who lay doubt about the future prospects of the Asian region.
"The last couple of years have proved these critics wrong," he said.
Burma's Foreign Minister Win Aung said the country was moving ahead with this meeting. "We cannot be isolated forever; we cannot stay out of the mainstream forever," he said.
Free trade zone
The Asean ministers will look at creating a free trade zone in south-east Asia from 2003.
Thai Commerce Minister Supachai Panitchpakdi, the future head of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), said he hoped the meeting would "emphasise that we are on track with our AFTA scheme".
Japan, South Korea and China are also attending the meeting under efforts to strengthen ties between neighbours.
In his speech, Khin Nyunt said Burma was recovering from the challenges of
the Asian economic crisis in 1987, when foreign investment fell sharply.
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He said the economy had grown by more than 10% in the last fiscal year.
"We are fully confident that Myanmar's (Burma's) economy is on the verge of economic take-off," he said.
A World Bank report last year however said only radical economic and political reform could prevent an economic breakdown.
The NLD leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, says the military junta has mismanaged the country's rich natural resources.
She says hopes of rescuing Burma's dysfunctional economy are slim in the absence of political freedom and human rights.
Myanmar's NLD Tells Generals to Go in May Day Call
The party, led by 1990 Nobel Peace prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi, said the country had suffered economic collapse since the military came to power in the early 1960s.
ASEAN ministers meet in Yangon on regional integration
Delegates to the two-day meeting, which Japan, China and South Korea will join from Tuesday, were to address progress of the ASEAN Free Trade Agreement, positions towards the World Trade Organisation and ways to pull all ASEAN countries into the Internet and e-commerce age.
INTERVIEW-ASEAN told to embrace Internet or be bypassed
Roberto Romulo, a former Philippine foreign minister, spoke in the capital of military-ruled Myanmar which bars Internet access to all but a select few and tightly controls the media.
Media repression lamented before world press day
In a report released ahead of World Press Freedom Day on May 3, the Paris-based group said that journalists were swept up in conflicts across the globe and muzzled in too many countries, with an estimated 100 currently jailed for speaking out against governments that curb free speech.
Iraq UN Program Said Challenging
By WAIEL FALEH, Associated Press Writer
The new humanitarian coordinator in Iraq, Tun Myat
arrives for a news conference in Baghdad on Sunday, April 30, 2000. Myat, from
Myanmar, is in charge of the U.N. oil-for-food program. (AP Photo/Jassim
Mohammed).
BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) - The new head of
the U.N. humanitarian program in Iraq said Sunday he had a ``challenging task''
ahead in ensuring basic supplies reach all Iraqis suffering from shortages after
nearly 10 years of sanctions.
Tun Myat will take up his post Monday, filling the vacancy left when Hans Van Sponeck quit last year in protest against the continuing sanctions. Sponeck's predecessor, Denis Halliday, also quit saying he did not want to be associated with the adverse impact of the sanctions.
But Myat dismissed criticism that the U.N. program was not meeting the needs of Iraqis.
Speaking to reporters on arrival in Baghdad, the Myanmar native said the program ``was not established to supply Iraqis with all their needs. The program was meant to meet the humanitarian needs of the Iraqi population, not the totality of needs.''
Myat, 58, is to serve as the humanitarian coordinator for the so-called ``oil-for-food program,'' which was set up in 1996 to provide relief from the sanctions imposed following Iraq's 1990 invasion of Kuwait. The program allows Iraq to sell oil to buy food and other humanitarian goods under U.N. supervision.
Myat acknowledged that Iraqis would be able to meet their full needs only when the sanctions were lifted. ``But my mandate is simply to ensure that the relief food ... gets adequately distributed,'' he said.
``It is a beautiful job. It is a very challenging task,'' he said, adding that his job was ``not to enforce sanctions.''
The sanctions, which Iraq blames for the deaths of more than a million people, cannot be lifted until the U.N. Security Council certifies that Iraq is free of weapons of mass destruction. That certification has become a remote possibility with Iraq refusing to allow U.N. weapons inspectors into the country.
Iraq demands the sanctions be lifted unconditionally, saying it has fulfilled all the U.N. resolutions, including the one on weapons.
Myat, whose previous U.N. post was as director of external relations at the World Food Program, said he expected to have a good working relationship with the Iraqi authorities.
Monday May 1 6:34 AM ET
ASEAN Economic Ministers Meet
By GRANT PECK, Associated Press Writer
First Secretary of Myanmar's State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) Lt.Gen. Khint Nyunt, 6th left and Minister at SPDC Office Brig.Gen. David Abel 7th left, join arms in arms with Asean Economic Ministers (AEM) during traditional group photograph after the opening ceremony of the ministers meeting at a hotel in Yangon Monday, May 1, 2000. The two-day meeting opened in Myanmar for the first time. The ministers are left to right: Brunei's Abdul Rahman, Cambodia's Cham Prasidh, Indonesia's Hatanto Reksodipoetro, Laos' Bountiem Phissamay, Asean Secretariat Rodolfo Severino, Malaysia's Rafidah Aziz, Philippines' Manuel Roxas, Thailand's Supachai Panichpakdi, Vietnam's Vu Khoan and Singapore's George Yeo. (AP Photo/Apichart Weearwong)
First Secretary of the State Peace and Development Council of Myanmar Lt.Gen. Khint Nyunt, 2nd left, accompanied by Asean Secretariat Rodolfo Severino, left, arrives for the openning ceremony of the Asean Economic Ministers Retreat at a hotel in Yangon Monday, May 1, 2000. The two-day meeting opened in Myanmar for the first time since the country joined the Southeast Asian Nations grouping in 1997. (AP Photo/Apichart Weerawong)
YANGON, Myanmar (AP) - Southeast Asian ministers today discussed trade issues and economic relations with China, Japan and South Korea in a meeting that was expected to give a boost to Myanmar's military regime no matter what the results.
The gathering of the economic ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations was called a ``retreat'' to emphasize its informal nature.
It was to include consultations with their Northeast Asian counterparts Tuesday. The meeting also marks the first visit by a Japanese cabinet minister to Myanmar since the ruling military junta took power in 1988.
The presence of Takashi Fukaya, Japan's international trade and industry minister, represents a diplomatic coup for a government treated as a pariah by the West because of human rights abuses and its failure to hand power to a democratically elected government.
Japan has generally taken a softer line, refraining from harsh criticism and making little effort to discourage private trade and investment.
By contrast, the United States and the European Union have attacked the regime in international bodies, instituted sanctions against it, and used their influence to bar most aid from international lenders.
Economic reforms that promised growth in the early 1990s have largely stagnated in Myanmar, formerly known as Burma.
In a welcoming speech today, a leading member of the regime praised the solidarity of ASEAN members in the face of the regional economic crisis that began in 1997 - the same year Myanmar became a member of the group.
Lt. Gen. Khin Nyunt said it was important that there was ``growing awareness'' among Asian countries that they share a ``common destiny,'' and thanked China, Japan and South Korea for their help.
The delegates met behind closed doors at a downtown hotel after his speech.
An opposition leader told The Associated Press on Sunday that his party welcomed the ASEAN meeting, but had a cautionary note for Japan and other nations.
``So long as they are democratic countries, they have to think, if they are to attend this sort of a meeting, what sort of effect - bad effect - it will have on those struggling very much for democracy and human rights in Burma,'' said Tin Oo, vice chairman of the National League for Democracy.
Myanmar has been ruled by the military since 1962. The current regime came to power in 1988 after crushing a popular uprising. The military held a general election in 1990 but refused to honor its results after a landslide victory by the NLD, led by Nobel Peace Prize-winner Aung San Suu Kyi.
Monday, May 1 4:04 PM SGT
Myanmar keen to exploit propaganda value of summit
YANGON, May 1 (AFP) -
Myanmar's generals are determined to exploit the propaganda value of hosting this week's ASEAN Economics Ministers retreat, styling the country as a key regional player and honoured member of an important alliance.
"Our country is open for high-level visits, and top ranking ministers from all over the region will come and look. They will be suprised at our development," chief Economics Minister Brigadier General David Abel was quoted as saying in the junta-backed Myanmar Times.
The meeting represents a moment of political opportunity for the government in its bitter battle with the democratic opposition of Aung San Suu Kyi who issues frequently scathing critiques of the generals' qualifications to rule.
It is also a chance to thumb its nose at Western powers which do their best to deprive the junta of a significant role on the world stage due to Myanmar's dubious human rights record and status as a major drugs producer.
Critics of Myanmar say the military has no right to rule following the crushing election win of Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy in
But further legitimacy will be conferred on the government on Tuesday when envoys from Tokyo, Seoul and Beijing arrive for so-called Association of Southeast Asian Nations plus three talks.
"Just imagine -- China, Japan, South Korea and our ASEAN brothers - you can see the impact and impetus that can be created," said Abel.
The military, which goes under the name of the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) wants the meeting to exemplify its central philosophy -- that it is the only institution capable of ensuring stability in a country riven by ethnic differences.
Lieutentant General Khin Nyunt, the head of military intelligence, on Monday welcomed regional trade ministers to a "country that is peaceful, stable and economically vibrant, with people full of zest and full of confidence for the future."
That's a vision sharply at odds with the Myanmar potrayed by Aung San Suu Kyi and the country's critics -- a land of political strife and economic deprivation struggling under the iron grip of military rule.
"The government don't expect much to come out of this meeting, they are just happy they can hold it and deliver the message that Myanmar is at peace and stability has been achieved," one analyst said here on condition of anonymity.
The meeting marks another step on Myanmar's journey out of the socialist isolation imposed on the country for nearly 30 years from the early 1960s by reclusive dictator Ne Win.
Myanmar joined ASEAN after concluding that it could no longer afford to go it alone and had more to gain from interacting with its neighbours than by ignoring them.
But its emergence has not been heralded by any loosening of the military's grip on the domestic political scene and consequently its entry into the organisation came against bitter opposition from Western critics who accuse the junta of gross human rights violations.
Myanmar's membership has poisoned inter-group relations between ASEAN and the European Union, which are only now on the verge of being repaired after several years of acrimony.
The dispute was triggered by differing approaches to the country. ASEAN prefers "constructive engagement" while the EU seeks to punish the junta into reform.
Officials here stress that Myanmar is an integral part of Southeast Asia, and is hoping that a return of investment after the regional crisis will help it ride out the impact of Western sanctions and trade restrictions.
"The future of Myanmar and ASEAN cannot be separated," said Khin Nyunt.
"An ASEAN without Myanmar will not be ASEAN in its true sense."
"Now that the economic recovery of the region is taking place, it is our hope that mutually beneficial cooperation will regain its momentum."
ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
Monday, May 1 12:25 PM SGT
ASEAN trade ministers open meeting in Myanmar
YANGON, May 1 (AFP) -
Myanmar on Monday opened its biggest-ever diplomatic meeting, welcoming trade ministers from Southeast Asia by predicting its economy was about to take off and taking a swipe at its critics in the West.
The retreat of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Economic Ministers (AEM) is military-run Myanmar's most high profile undertaking since joining the group in 1997.
Opening the meeting, the head of military intelligence Lieutenant General Khin Nyunt characteristically took aim at Myanmar's critics in the West who he said saw the Asian economic meltdown as proof that development, Asian style, did not work.
"At the time of the crisis, it may be recalled that there were many doomsayers, particularly from the West," he said.
"Many attacks were launched against Asian values and some doubts were even expressed about the future of ASEAN, about the future prospects of the Asian region.
"But the last couple of years have proved these critics wrong," said Khin Nyunt, who oversees Myanmar's ASEAN steering committee.
Myanmar's entry into ASEAN three years ago came despite fierce criticism from Western nations which accuse the government of gross human rights violations and of suppressing the democracy movement of Aung San Suu Kyi.
Khin Nyunt however said Myanmar's ability to hold such a high profile meeting was proof that the government was succeeding in building a "country that is peaceful, stable and economically vibrant, with people full of zest and full of confidence in the future."
Ministers from all 10 Association of Southeast Asian Nationsmembers will hold a day of talks expected to be dominated by arrangements for the ASEAN free trade area due to come into force in 2003.
They will try to make progress on a dispute over automobile tariffs which threatens to derail smooth progress towards the implementation of AFTA.
Malaysia, which is keen to protect its national car, the Proton, wants a minimum two-year exemption on import tariff reductions on automobile and agricultural products.
Thai Commerce Minister Supachai Panitchpakdi, the future head of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), said he hoped the meeting would "emphasise that we are on track with our AFTA scheme in spite of some diversions."
The ministers will be joined on Tuesday by counterparts from Japan, South Korea and China in the latest step in a process of deepening ties between ASEAN and its powerful neighbours.
Khin Nyunt said in his speech that Myanmar's economy was beginning to overcome the challenges of the Asian crisis, which saw inward foreign investment fall sharply.
"Preliminary figures show that Myanmar's economy grew by more than 10 percent during the last fiscal year ... we are fully confident that Myanmar's economy is on the verge of economic take-off."
His assessment contrasts sharply with outside evaluations of the economy, which is plagued by power shortages, roller coaster inflation and an almost worthless currency.
The World Bank said in a leaked report last year that only radical economic and political reform could pull the country back from the brink of economic breakdown.
As well as the official economy, a huge blackmarket and informal economy operates here providing many people with their only source of income.
ASEAN's most developed countries, Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand have agreed to cut tariffs to zero-to-five-percent on most products by 2002 under the accelarated AFTA scheme.
Less-developed members Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam have more time to meet the targets. AFTA is scheduled to debut in 2003.
ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
Bangkok Post - May 1, 2000.
New border trade initiative
Mae Soh, Tak Ajoint trade fair aimed at boosting trade and
bilateral relations between Thailand and Burma will officially open today. The Thai-Myanmar Trade Fair and Export-Import 2000 is being held at Mae Moei
City shopping centre near the Friendship Bridge in Ban Rim Moei, Mae Sot
district. Pranee Siripairot, chief of Tak provincial commerce office, said the Thai
displays include ready-to-wear clothes, cars, motorcycles, bicycles, vegetables,
fruits, processed food and locally-made products from 17 northern provinces. Burmese products are fresh and processed seafood, jewellery, silk, furniture
and wooden items. During the fair, which ends on May 7, representatives from the state and
private sectors will discuss solutions to trade barriers. Foreign Trade Department chief Kreukkrai Jirapaet will lead the Thai
delegation to the two-day meeting. Burma will be represented by Border Trade
Department chief Min Hla Aung, who will lead 60 representatives.
Burma ASEAN leader reiterates
co-operation
Japan unveils assistance for
Myanmar
Fukaya unveiled the package in a meeting with Lt. Gen. Khin Nyunt, first
secretary of the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), the country's
military government.
Ajinomoto, Japan's top seasoning manufacturer, built a factory for bottled
products in Myanmar in 1997, but the company was forced to halt operations early
last year because authorities imposed a ban on the import of materials, saying
they were harmful, according to the embassy officials
''We have no problem accepting North
Korea's participation'' in the forum. ''We separate bilateral issues from
regional ones,'' Win Aung told Kyodo News on the sidelines of a meeting of
economic ministers of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations
(ASEAN)
here.