Burma ignores the International Calls for Changes

(By Md. Sadek)

Chittagong, April 13: Burma had repeatedly ignored the international calls for changes in the country through genuine national reconciliation, advance democratic reforms and release political prisoners, including pro-democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi.

Burma is a country ruling by one of the most brutal military dictatorships in the world and carrying a history of gross human rights abuses in the present day. It resulted tens of thousands of refugees and IDPs to its neighboring countries of Bangladesh, Thailand, Laos, China and India and etc.

It is known as a silent killing field. The ruler is known as military dictator. Though, once its people played vital role in peace building process among the people of the world, taking part in the United Nations as Secretary General which is immemorial for all, like present position of Kofi Annan as United Nations Secretary General (UNSG).

But today, Burma lost its honor that received in the previous day, even fall under international pressure to form democracy in respect of human rights, peace and justice, whilst it is going to take place in the ASEAN’s Chairmanship in 2006, having supports from small democratic countries.

Though, it is expecting of ASEAN Chairmanship in next year ignoring the international calls and ongoing pressures for democratic reforms and release of all political prisoners including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the democracy icon of the 21^st Century.

Burmese Foreign Minister U Nyan Win’s meeting with Nobutaka Machimura, the Japanese Foreign Minster in Asian Cooperative Dialogue (ACD) in Islamabad, Nyan Win said “the adjournment of the convention was inevitable as participants have to be involved in economic activities for now”, reports Kyodo News on April 8.

The Burmese Foreign Minister also dismissed Machimura's view that the junta is hindering the NLD from taking part in the democratization process, saying the party has chosen not to do so, while he called on “Burma to let the National League for Democracy party be involved in the democratization process,” report mentioned.

On the other hand, Nyan Win said “the European Union and the United States had no right to force his country to abandon the alphabetically rotating Chairmanship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN),” reported in AP news on April 10.

“That is their attitude, not ours. We can decide ourselves because we are an independent country,” U Nyan Win told reporters on April 8, as he arrived in the seaside resort island of Mactan, as Southeast Asian foreign ministers begin their meeting in the central Philippines on April 9.

Burma’s ASEAN colleagues Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam have been treading carefully over the diplomatic puzzle, but the issue has sown seeds of division.

ASEAN’s newer members Cambodia and Vietnam have said they will support Burma’s chairmanship. Laos is likely to back Rangoon as well, while Thailand has said it believes in “constructive engagement.”

Thai Foreign Minister Kantathi Suphamongkhon said, “Thailand wants to play a positive role on Burma's Chairmanship issue. However, the issue should be pursued through quiet diplomacy.

Burma's Foreign Minister on April 8 dismissed international calls that his country be barred from holding ASEAN's prestigious chairmanship unless it moves rapidly toward democracy and ends human rights abuses.# #

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