BurmaNet News, October 21, 2009

[Editor]

October 21, 2009 Issue #3823


INSIDE BURMA
Kachin News Group: KIO’s final demand to Snr-Gen Than Shwe
IMNA: USDA implements new “home-town” strategy in preparation for 2010
elections
Mizzima News: EU diplomats’ fact-finding mission extends to USDA
Karen Information Center: Food shortage haunts over 250 displaced Karen

ON THE BORDER
AP: Report: Myanmar timber still smuggled to China
DPA: Dhaka rejects reports of souring relations with Yangon

BUSINESS / TRADE
Xinhua: Myanmar, Sri Lanka to boost bilateral trade, investment
Xinhua: Nearly 100 private companies take part in teak cultivation in Myanmar
Upstream Online (USA): Japanese win job for compression platform at gas
field off Burma

INTERNATIONAL
AFP: US to send mission to Myanmar
Irrawaddy: Burmese pro-democracy leaders visit US Sen. Webb
Australian Associated Press: Qantas won't stop Jetstar's Burma route

OPINION / OTHER
Irrawaddy: Asean’s never-ending struggle for relevance – Editorial

STATEMENT
U.S. Department of State: U.S. policy toward Burma




____________________________________
INSIDE BURMA

October 21, Kachin News Group
KIO’s final demand to Snr-Gen Than Shwe

In a major development the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) has said
it is willing to surrender its weapons, without the need to transform to
Border Guard Force (BGF), if the junta respects and accepts the spirit of
the Panglong Agreement.

The Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), the last remaining ethnic
Kachin armed group, which rejected the Burmese junta-proposed conversion
to the BGF has communicated this demand to the regime supremo Snr-Gen Than
Shwe, said KIO sources.  Than Shwe is the sole arbitrator in the junta.

The KIO has written to Than Shwe that the KIO will surrender its weapons
without the necessity of transforming to BGF, if the junta respects and
accepts the spirit of the Panglong Agreement which was jointly signed on
February 12, 1947 by Burman leader Gen Aung San and ethnic leaders--- of
Kachin, Chin and Shan states for the high hope of genuine multi-ethnic
Union of Burma.

According to the Panglong Agreement, the Union of Burma received
independence from the British in January 4, 1948. The Panglong Agreement
was based on equal rights between the majority Burman and ethnics, who had
the right to rule their own states and secession rights from the Union was
also authorized to the ethnics.

The KIO's written-demand was sent early this month to Snr-Gen Than Shwe
through Maj-Gen Soe Win, commander of the junta's Northern Regional
Command (Ma-Pa-Kha) based in the Kachin State's capital Myitkyina, said
KIO officials.

KIO sources said the demand to the junta is yet to be publicly announced.
But it may be released soon.

The KIO’s final demand was submitted to the junta after it rejected the
KIO's proposal to transform its military-wing the Kachin Independence Army
(KIA) to the Kachin Regional Guard Force (KRGF) instead of the Burmese
Army-controlled BGF.  The KIO also demanded direct participation of its
people in the new Kachin State government to be formed after the 2010
elections, said KIO officials.

In another proposal, KIO told the junta that it would like to jointly
continue activities of its four departments under the KIO--- the
Department of General Administration (civil administration), Education,
Health and Rural Reconstruction. However the proposal was rejected by the
junta, said KIO officials in Laiza headquarters on the Sino-Burma border
in Kachin State.

For the forcible implementation of the "one country, one military policy"
of the junta, the KIO and all ethnic ceasefire groups have been given a
deadline of 31 October to transform their armed-wings to the BGF.

On the other hand, the Loikang-based KIA's 4th brigade in Northeast Shan
State is being threatened by the regime that it would be wiped out from
the region if it does not transform to the three smaller militia groups
under the Burmese Army or else it would unconditionally have to withdraw
to Kachin State.

So far, the KIO has rejected any shift of the 4th brigade and it is
waiting for a response from Snr-Gen Than Shwe over its final demand
related to the Panglong Agreement, said KIO officials.

____________________________________

October 21, Independent Mon News Agency
USDA implements new “home-town” strategy in preparation for 2010 elections
– Asah

Officers of the Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA) who
serve the organization in Karen State have been ordered back to their home
villages in order to organize on behalf of Burma’s military government for
the upcoming 2010 elections.

A source in Karen State who works closely with the USDA reported to IMNA
that for the last 20 days USDA officers from Karen State have been leaving
their offices in the cities of Karen State, and are returning to their
native villages in Karen State and Mon State. The orders for this mass
exodus reportedly came directly from the Burmese military government.

“If USDA members organize in their home-towns, first of all it’s easier to
organize the residents of that town, because he knows the town. Also the
residents will believe what the USDA member says [if he is from the
village]. The USDA is very wise to use this method. The USDA members who
are organizing their home towns will be enthusiastic about the government,
because the government is giving them authority,” he added.

This USDA insider from Karen State claims that USDA members have gone back
to their home villages in both Karen State and Mon State, these villages
include Hpa-an, Hlaingbwe, Kyainnseikyi in Karen State and Chaung zone
township (Belukyun) in Mon State.

According to the resident from Kyone Pe village in Karen State, for the
last month and-a-half, the USDA has been holding meetings in every Mon
village in Karen state; at these meetings the USDA has reportedly been
organizing local youths, and students who have passed the ten standard
high-school examination, to support the Burmese military government in the
2010 elections; these villages include Zartapyin, Kyone-Pe, Kayar and
Than-le.

“The USDA came to the village, and then wanted students there to both
participate in the USDA and serve under them for their new generation.
Then, they announced at the meeting that they [the USDA] will be giving
20000 kyat each to each student” she added.

Sources in Myawaddy informed IMNA that the USDA hopes that its efforts at
organizing in villages will result in the USDA’s receiving additional
funding and local power under the new constitution that will be written
during the 2010 elections.

A trader from Mayawaddy said “the USDA wants as a place while the
government makes the constitution. They are organizing not for the people,
just for themselves because the military controls the USDA. If they get a
place in the constitution, they will be like the government too. Now they
want to show the people the good things that they [the government] did,
but they are also asking for taxes from us.”

____________________________________

October 21, Mizzima News
EU diplomats’ fact-finding mission extends to USDA – Salai Pi Pi

New Delhi – As part of its fact-finding mission, European Union diplomats
last week met the Chairman of Burma’s military junta-backed civilian
outfit, the Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA).

Diplomatic sources as well as the junta’s mouthpiece the New Light of
Myanmar newspaper on Wednesday said the Swedish Ambassador to Thailand
Lennart Linner along with European diplomats based in Rangoon and Bangkok
on October 16 met USDA, General Secretary Htay Oo.

“Htay Oo explained to them about USDA and its state and rural development
work. He also discussed with them the issue related to the present
political condition in the country,” the paper said.

While the Swedish embassy in Bangkok refused to comment on the meeting,
David Lipman, the EU regional ambassador, who returned from a five-day
visit to Burma told journalists in Bangkok on Tuesday that he had detected
a new mood among the Generals.

“I think the government is being a lot more cooperative than in the past.
They are basically engaged,” reports quoted Lipman as saying.

Earlier on October 14, the EU delegation visited Burma’s opposition party
headquarters in Rangoon’s Shwegondine Street and met National League for
Democracy’s Central Executive Committee members.

During the meeting, the delegation asked the NLD about its stand on the
junta’s planned 2010 elections, Aung San Suu Kyi’s cooperation and fact
finding on sanctions, and whether the party is demanding a power-sharing
arrangement by asking the junta to revise its 2008 constitution.

Khin Maung Swe, a CEC member of the NLD, who attended the meeting, told
Mizzima that the NLD is willing to work in harmony with the international
community and it does look for power but demands a revision of the 2008
constitution to a constitution that reflects the will of the people and
guarantees the rights and equality of all Burmese citizens.

However, Win Min, a Thailand-based Burmese analyst on Wednesday, said the
European Union delegations’ meeting with the USDA, a group widely known as
the junta’s puppet organisation, could be a compromise between the junta
and the EU diplomats, who were also allowed to meet the NLD.

“Apparently it is a kind of ‘give and take’ between the regime and the
EU,” Win Min said.

“The regime wanted them to meet the USDA when they [EU diplomats]
approached them for permission to meet NLD members,” he added.

The USDA, formed in 1993, is proclaimed by the ruling junta as the largest
civilian organisation in the country having about 24 million members
across the country. Burmese military junta supremo Senior General Than
Shwe is a patron of the organization.

Observers said the USDA seems to be preparing to run for office in the
forthcoming 2010 elections, but said it is still not clear whether the
group will transform into a political party or will float a separate
party.

“It seems that EU diplomats also wanted to know the USDA’s position on the
2010 election,” Win Min said.

Since the United States in September announced its new policy of engaging
the military junta, while maintaining the existing sanctions, the European
Union said it is conducting a fact finding mission to analyse its position
on Burma and in order to help the Southeast Asian nation into a smooth
transition that will be inclusive, the EU diplomats told NLD leaders
during their meeting.

Earlier in April, EU renewed its sanctions on the Burmese military junta,
which was first imposed in 1996.

However, the London-based Burma Campaign UK had earlier said members of
the EU had long been divided over sanctions, with several countries
including Germany not favouring sanctions, while British led other groups
wanting to follow the US path of sanctions.

Despite the disagreement, EU stepped up its sanctions by adding to the
list of targeted sanctions the members of the judiciary responsible for
sentencing pro-democracy leader Aung San SUu Kyi on August 11.

However, EU has left a channel open for providing humanitarian assistance
to Burma. On Tuesday, the EU announced that it will provide €35m as the
Livelihoods and Food Security Trust fund (LIFT) for humanitarian
assistance to Burma.

“I think the fund apparently will go for relief work in the delta region
and other areas of the country,” a western diplomat based in Rangoon told
Mizzima.

“This time we tried to cover the whole area in the country,” he added.

____________________________________

October 21, Karen Information Center
Food shortage haunts over 250 displaced Karen – Nan Htoo San

Acute shortage of food is staring over 250 displaced Karen people from Pha
Pun region, northern Karen State in the face, sources in the region said.

The displaced Karen people are from Hkalel Sekho, Haw Thuu Pu and Lel
Hkalawt village under Mae Mue sub-tract, in Buu Tho Township. All the
villagers fled to the jungle since October 6 because they were threatened
by the Kasaw War battalion and Maung Chit and Tin Win from the
headquarter-escort battalion of DKBA 666 Brigade.

According to a Pha Pun local, the villagers could not carry sufficient
stocks of rice and food leading to food shortage now.

"The DKBA is still active in the area and there are a total of 256 people
hiding in the jungle. There are 38 houses in the village. They could not
carry sufficient food, while fleeing and are afraid to go back to get it.
DKBA soldiers have looted food and rice belonging to the villagers," a
local told KIC.

Besides, "DKBA battalions threaten and force villagers to do all kinds of
work for them. To make matters dangerous, they lay landmines around the
village. So we are afraid to live in the village," he added.

Since the Burmese Army arrived in Pha Pun district in 1997, locals had to
relocate from one place to another. Eventually they became homeless
leading to perennial food shortage. Besides, there has been increased
deployment of soldiers and more military operations in the region. This in
turn has led to more and more people being displaced year after year.

In 2009, the Burmese Army and DKBA forces deployed more troops in the
area. The soldiers have been killing and committing human rights abuses
among locals. It's learnt that there are over 7,000 displaced Karen
refugees in Buu Tho and Lu Thaw Township, in Pha Pun district.

____________________________________
ON THE BORDER

October 21, Associated Press
Report: Myanmar timber still smuggled to China – Grant Peck

Bangkok — There has been a sharp decline in timber illegally imported into
China from Myanmar, but smugglers are still supplying Chinese companies
that export the wood to Europe, America and throughout the world, an
environmental watchdog agency said Wednesday.

The British-based group Global Witness, in a report issued Wednesday,
called on Chinese and Myanmar authorities to step up efforts to stop
illegal logging in northern Myanmar and crack down on illicit cross-border
trade.

"Clearly action taken by authorities in China and Burma to combat illegal
logging in Kachin state has had a significant positive impact," Global
Witness quotes its forest policy expert, Jon Buckrell, saying. "But they
should do more to close down the remaining industry, which is almost
wholly reliant on the illegal timber supply from Burma."

After an October 2005 report by Global Witness alleged that vast stretches
of virgin forest were being destroyed to feed China's growing demand for
wood, Beijing sought to curb the trade by closing border crossings to
timber trucks from its southern neighbor. The military government of
Myanmar — also known as Burma — announced it had suspended timber cutting,
transport and shipments to China.

In the 2005 report, Global Witness described the area where the forests
were being cut as "very possibly the most bio-diverse, rich, temperate
area on earth" — a place home to red pandas, leopards and tigers. It said
that China depended largely on imported lumber from Malaysia, Russia,
Myanmar, Indonesia and Gabon after it banned the felling of its own
old-growth trees in 1998.

China became the biggest foreign investor in Myanmar this past year, and
is the closest ally of its military regime, which is shunned by the West
because of its poor human rights record and failure to hand over power to
a democratically elected government.

The new report, "A Disharmonious Trade," said trade data showed that
imports of logs and sawed wood from Myanmar to China fell by more than 70
percent between 2005 and 2008, confirming a trend found by the group's own
field investigations.

But smugglers use "bribery, false papers, transportation at night and
avoiding checkpoints" to get around the restrictions on sending the wood
to China, the report said.

China's Foreign Ministry and Myanmar's Forestry Department did not
immediately respond to requests for comment.

Global Witness said its researchers had visited flooring companies on
China's east coast to gauge the availability of timber from Myanmar, and
found widespread use of teak from Myanmar, along with other high value
species such as black walnut.

Global Witness said its investigators were told by 13 of the 14 firms
visited that it was still possible for them to obtain timber from Myanmar
despite the import restrictions, and that several admitted that their
supplies were obtained through smuggling.
The report said the Chinese companies export worldwide, including to the
United States and Europe. It said some U.S. based companies advertise wood
flooring from Myanmar, although under a U.S. law amended by Congress last
year, the Lacey Act, it is illegal to import illegally obtained plants and
their products, including timber and wood products.

____________________________________

October 21, Deutsche Presse-Agentur
Dhaka rejects reports of souring relations with Yangon

Dhaka – The government of Bangladesh on Wednesday rejected media reports
of mounting tension with Myanmar over Yangon's bid to erect barbed-wire
fencing on the border between the two countries.

"There may have been provocation from some quarters to bitter the
relations between Bangladesh and Myanmar. Their motive is to capitalize on
souring relations," Bangladeshi Foreign Minister Dipu Moni told
journalists.

Bangladeshi newspaper reports have suggested that Myanmar had been trying
to push-in thousands of Rohingya refugees into Bangladesh. The reports
also said Bangladesh reinforced paramilitary troops on its part.

____________________________________
BUSINESS / TRADE

October 21, Xinhua
Myanmar, Sri Lanka to boost bilateral trade, investment – Feng Yingqiu

Yangon – Myanmar's biggest business organization of the Federation of
Chambers of Commerce and Industry and diplomats of Sri Lanka have recently
met here to seek ways of boosting bilateral trade and investment.

Their discussions focused on tapping potential markets in Sri Lanka for
Myanmar agricultural produce, enhancing cooperation between businesses of
the two countries and holding trade fair to show their products.

On the sidelines of the Joint Committee of Bilateral Cooperation (JCBC) of
Myanmar and Sri Lanka in early August, meetings between entrepreneurs of
the two countries were held to promote bilateral economic and trade
cooperation.

In June this year, Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa paid a state
visit to Myanmar on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the
establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

During the visit, Myanmar and Sri Lanka signed in Nay Pyi Taw an agreement
on mutual exemption of visas for diplomatic passport and service passport
holders of the two countries and a memorandum of understanding on
cooperation in tourism.

Moreover, the Myanmar government made a cash donation of 50,000U.S.
dollars as a humanitarian assistance to the Sri Lanka for that country's
internally displaced people in the northern part, while Sri Lanka helped
establish a village, called Mitta, in Myanmar's cyclone-hit Kungyangon
township in Yangon division.

The two countries set up the JCBC in 1996 which met first in July 2007
when Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama visited Myanmar.

Besides, Myanmar and Sri Lanka have recently formed a business relation
group in a bid to increase their bilateral trade.

In November last year, Myanmar and Sri Lanka agreed to establish direct
air and sea links to effectively boost bilateral trade ties.

Currently, trade between Myanmar and Sri Lanka is transacted through
Singapore.

According to the Directorate of Trade under the Ministry of Commerce, Sri
Lanka mainly imports forestry products and beans and pulses from Myanmar
via brokers in Singapore and the country has expressed interest in also
importing Myanmar gems and selling its own products in the Myanmar
markets.

Moreover, Myanmar is seeking gem trade with Sri Lanka in a bid to develop
its gem industry.

Myanmar and Sri Lanka, which established diplomatic relations on June 7,
1949, have enjoyed cultural and religious ties since the 11th century.

Both Myanmar and Sri Lanka are members of the subregional grouping of Bay
of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation
(BIMSTEC) which also comprises Bangladesh, India and Thailand.

Myanmar remains as an observer of the South Asia Association for Regional
Cooperation (SAARC).

____________________________________

October 21, Xinhua
Nearly 100 private companies take part in teak cultivation in Myanmar

Yangon – A total of 95 private companies in Myanmar have taken part in
teak and hardwood cultivation since the government opened up the sector to
private enterprises four years ago, sources with the forestry department
said on Wednesday.

These companies have grown over 99,000 hectares of teak and hardwood since
2005 when such undertakings were granted.

The Myanmar government's move is aimed at preventing teak depletion and to
enhance development of the forestry sector.

The cultivation covered areas of Kachin, Kayin and Shan states, and
Sagaing, Magwe, Ayeyawaddy, Bago, Mandalay and Yangon divisions, it said.

Meanwhile, the forestry authorities have planted a total of 107 million
trees in 972,000 hectares across the country over the past two decades
since 1988.

Under a 30-year plan involving the private sector, a number of private
companies such as Kaungmyat, Htoo Foundation, ATSO Green, Yeedagon, NRTC
and Honda have also been cultivating teak and hardwood in Kachin state and
Bago division respectively.

Meanwhile, foreign organizations such as Korean International Cooperation
Agency (KOICA), Japanese Kokusai Kogyo Corporation, the Food and
Agriculture Organization (FAO) and International Center for Integrated
Mountain Development (ICIMOD) are also providing assistance for the
further improvement of the Myanmar forestry sector.

According to the National Commission for Environmental Affairs (NCEA), the
rate of forest depletion in Myanmar between 2000 and 2005 amounted up to
466,000 hectares, standing as the fourth most forest depleting country in
the world after Brazil, Indonesia and Sudan.

Myanmar, the major exporter of teak in the world, takes up 75 percent of
the world market.

The country is rich in forest resources with forests covering about 50
percent of its total land area.

____________________________________

October 21, Upstream Online (USA)
Japanese win job for compression platform at gas field off Burma – Russell
Searancke

Japanese engineering and construction company Nippon Steel Corporation has
come from behind to score a significant victory for the contract to build
a big compression platform for the Yetagun wet gas field off Burma.

The 6150-tonne topsides for the platform will be built by subsidiary
company Thai Nippon Steel in Thailand, while the 4650-tonne steel jacket
will be fabricated by Nippon Steel's Indonesian subsidiary on Batam
Island, said sources.

Furthermore, a 100-metre bridge weighing 760 tonnes will connect the
compression platform to the Yetagun-B facility.

The topsides will be divided into three modules, while the jacket will be
more than 100 metres in length to suit the water depths at the field
location.

The winning contract also includes host tie-in and modification work for
the existing production facilities at Yetagun.

Following the submission of commercial bids for the job, Indian company
Larsen & Toubro had emerged with the lowest price, but the other five
bidders including Nippon Steel were close behind and felt they still had a
chance throughout the clarifications stage.

The other bidders were South Korea's Hyundai Heavy Industries, Singapore's
SMOE, plus Malaysians Sime Darby and Kencana.

Sources said Nippon Steel's competitive advantage might have come from its
good reputation with Petronas and former operator of the Yetagun field
Premier Oil, and at the Total-operated Yadana field that sits nearby.

Nippon Steel has built some of the existing offshore facilities for both
developments, and sources said the company has long been assisting the
Yetagun and Yadana owners with hook-up and maintenance services.

The compression platform is needed for the fourth development phase of
Yetagun, which is operated by Malaysian national oil company Petronas.

The aim of phase four is to maintain high production rates, and the
platform is due to be installed in 2012.

The invitation to bid for the phase four transport and installation
package has not yet been issued, said sources.

Yetagun production in 2009 is expected to average 400 million cubic feet
per day of gas and 10,220 barrels per day of condensate, said co-venturer
PTTEP.

____________________________________
INTERNATIONAL

October 21, Agence France Presse
US to send mission to Myanmar

Washington, D.C. — The United States said Wednesday it would send a rare
mission to Myanmar in the coming weeks as it pursues engagement with the
reclusive regime.

Kurt Campbell, the US assistant secretary of state for East Asia, said the
trip would follow up on his talks last month with a senior official in New
York -- the highest-level US contact with the military regime in nearly a
decade.

"We intend to go to Burma in the next few weeks for a fact-finding
mission," Campbell testified before the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

Campbell did not state who would take part in the trip to Myanmar,
formerly known as Burma. A State Department spokeswoman had no immediate
information on the mission.

"During our trip, we will talk to the Burmese government, representatives
of the ethnic nationalities and the democratic opposition including the
National League for Democracy, Aung San Suu Kyi and others," he said.

The National League for Democracy, headed by democracy icon Aung San Suu
Kyi, swept the nation's last elections in 1990 but was never allowed to
take power.

The junta has kept Aung San Suu Kyi, a Nobel laureate, under house arrest
for most of the past two decades.

President Barack Obama's administration has sought to engage US
adversaries including Iran, Cuba and Sudan.

The Obama administration, in a policy review, concluded that longstanding
US policy of isolating Myanmar had said it would not ease sanctions
without progress on democracy and human rights.

In August, Myanmar's military leader Than Shwe held an unprecedented
meeting with a visiting US senator, Jim Webb, a leading advocate of
engaging the junta.

____________________________________

October 21, Irrawaddy
Burmese pro-democracy leaders visit US Sen. Webb – Lalit K Jha

Washington, D.C. — A delegation of pro-democracy leaders met US Sen. Jim
Webb to present their views on the current situation in Burma and their
perspective on the way forward, in particular with regard to sanctions and
restoration of democracy in Burma.

The delegation was led by Maung Maung, the general secretary of the exiled
National Council of the Union of Burma, and Bo Hla Tint, the foreign
minister of the exiled National Coalition Government of the Union of
Burma. They were accompanied by legal advisers from the Public
International Law and Policy Group.

Webb, who recently became the first US law maker to visit Burma in a
decade, has emerged as a key player in the Obama administration in shaping
America’s Burma policy. He met with Snr-Gen Than Shwe and the
pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi during his visit.

Maung Maung said the meeting helped them to understand each other’s points
of view, and they learned that they share the same goals.

“He [Webb] clarified that his stand on sanctions was not lessening
sanctions. He emphasized that he was misquoted by the media,” Maung Maung
told The Irrawaddy. “He is not for the lifting of sanctions right now, at
the moment. This is what we learnt from him.”

Maung Maung said Webb told the delegation that he wants more economic
development, peace and prosperity in Burma. “He wants to help us,” he
said.

He said they advised Webb that the present US policy of not lifting
sanctions but working to increase diplomatic contacts is a sound policy.

“We are in support of the present Burma policy,” he said, adding that it
needs to be continued with consistent and concentrated effort on the part
of the US.

The delegation gave the senator reports on the issues of national
reconciliation and ethnic nationalities.
____________________________________

October 21, Australian Associated Press
Qantas won't stop Jetstar's Burma route

Qantas Airways Ltd has indicated it will reject calls for its 49 per
cent-held budget arm Jetstar Asia to cease flight services to Burma.

About a dozen protesters demonstrated outside the national carrier's
annual general meeting in Perth on Wednesday, saying Jetstar should end
its three flights-a-week service to Burma because it was helping to prop
up a military dictatorship.

Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce told shareholders Jetstar had a "policy
of constructive engagement" with Burma.

He said the airline provided a valuable service by providing charities
with access to Burma.

"World Vision's Tim Costello says Jetstar should provide the link there
because it provides access to the country," Mr Joyce said.

Burma has been under military rule since 1962.

Its democracy icon, the Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, has spent
13 of the past 19 years in detention since the junta refused to recognise
her National League for Democracy's landslide victory in the last
elections in 1990.

____________________________________
OPINION / OTHER

October 21, Irrawaddy
Asean’s never-ending struggle for relevance – Editorial

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) will hold another
summit in Hua Hin, Thailand, on Oct. 23-25, and once again, Burma is
expected to be high on the agenda.

For the past 12 years, the abysmal human rights record of the country’s
ruling regime has been a constant embarrassment to the 10-member Asean.
This time, regional leaders will be obliged to answer questions about the
junta’s relentless repression of the political opposition ahead of next
year’s planned election, as well as the recent breakdown of cease-fire
agreements with ethnic armed groups. Concerns about the threat to regional
security posed by the flood of refugees and migrants into neighboring
countries will also loom large over the gathering.

Whether it defends the regime or issues a rare statement criticizing its
actions, Asean will find itself in an awkward position. It wants to
maintain unity, but it also needs to be taken seriously by the rest of the
world—and that can’t happen if it remains forever at the mercy of the
whims of Burma’s generals.

It is ironic that a grouping established at the height of the Cold War to
serve as a bulwark against the spread of communism is incapable of
persuading the authoritarian regime in Burma to change its behavior.

Asean now has a charter and is in the process of creating a human rights
body. However, the new commission’s mandate will be limited to “promoting”
human rights rather than actually defending them. This means that human
rights offenders among member countries can continue to abuse and lock up
their own citizens without fear of penalty. Certainly, Burma’s more than
2,000 political prisoners will have little reason to celebrate Asean’s
attempt to institutionalize its hollow commitment to human rights.

Sadly, even Asean’s modest moves to create a less repressive political
climate in the region have been flatly rejected by the governments of
Burma, Laos and Cambodia, which believe they have the right to deal with
domestic “troublemakers” as they see fit. This was reflected by their
efforts to impose restrictions on an encounter between civil society
groups and Asean leaders ahead of the summit.

It is a worrying sign that these three countries, which were the last to
join the grouping, have ganged up to prevent the participation of civil
society in Asean affairs. It is important to remind them that Asean is not
a club of bureaucrats, politicians, generals and dictators, but, as its
charter states, a “people-centered” association.

Asean has always claimed that it wants to play a more active role in
shaping the region’s future. However, every time it holds a meeting of
foreign ministers or an annual summit, doubts about its credibility and
relevance grow.

In recent years, Asean leaders have occasionally expressed frustration
with the intransigence of Burma’s ruling generals. But even at their most
exasperated, they continue to cling to the principle of non-interference
in the “internal affairs” of member states. As a result, these outbursts
have served only to reinforce Asean’s image as an organization incapable
of dealing effectively with problems within its own ranks.

Nyan Win, a spokesman for the National League for Democracy, the party
that won Burma’s last election in 1990, summed up the feelings of many
Burmese citizens when he said recently that Asean is incapable of making
any positive political change in his country.

But Burma is not the only country affected by Asean’s failures. There are
600 million people living in the region who long for freedom, democracy
and good governance. Whether they are in prison in Burma or walking freely
on the streets of Bangkok, Phnom Penh or Vientiane, many will share Nyan
Win’s sentiment.

____________________________________
STATEMENT

October 21, U.S. Department of State
U.S. policy toward Burma – Kurt M. Campbell

Statement before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs

Washington, DC – Mr. Chairman, Ms. Ros-Lehtinen, and Members of the
Committee, thank you for inviting me here today to testify about U.S.
policy toward Burma and a possible new direction for U.S.-Burma relations.

I appreciate this opportunity to discuss the overarching assessments that
helped shape our review. The Administration launched a review of our Burma
policy seven months ago, recognizing that political and humanitarian
conditions in Burma were deplorable. Neither sanctions nor engagement,
implemented alone, have succeeded in improving those conditions and moving
Burma forward on a path to democratic reform.

Moreover, it was clear to us that the problems Burma presents, not only to
its people, but to its neighbors, the wider region and the world at large,
demand that we review and reconsider our approach. In addition to taking a
hard look at the current situation inside Burma, we also focused on
emerging questions and concerns regarding Burma’s relationship with North
Korea, particularly in light of the passage of UN Security Council
Resolution 1874. This resolution prohibits member states from engaging in
trade with North Korea in virtually all conventional weapons as well as in
sensitive technologies, including those related to ballistic missiles and
nuclear and other WMD programs.

Our policy review also was informed by the fact that, for the first time
in recent memory, the Burmese leadership has shown an active interest in
engaging with the United States. But, let me be clear: we have decided to
engage with Burma because we believe it is in our interest to do so.

We have consulted widely throughout the review process with Congress,
other governments, and key stakeholders such as non-governmental
organizations, business leaders, academics, and representatives of
international organizations. We also have consulted with the National
League for Democracy and other democratic activists inside Burma.

The conclusions of our policy review, announced last month, reaffirmed our
fundamental interests in Burma: we support a unified, peaceful,
prosperous, and democratic Burma. While our goals in Burma remain the same
as before, the policy review confirmed that we need additional tools to
augment those that we have been using in pursuit of our objectives. A
policy of pragmatic engagement with the Burmese authorities holds the best
hope for advancing our goals. A central element of this approach is a
direct, senior-level dialogue with representatives of the Burmese
leadership. We hope a dialogue with the Burmese regime will lay out a path
forward towards change in Burma and a better, more productive bilateral
relationship.

Through a direct dialogue, we will be able to test the intentions of the
Burmese leadership and the sincerity of their expressed interest in a more
positive relationship with the United States. The way forward will be
clearly tied to concrete actions on the part of the Burmese leadership
addressing our core concerns, particularly in the areas of democracy and
human rights.

We will also discuss our proliferation concerns and Burma’s close military
relationship with North Korea. Burma has said it is committed to comply
fully with UN Security Council Resolutions 1718 and 1874. Nevertheless, we
remain concerned about the nature and extent of Burma’s ties with North
Korea. Full and transparent implementation of these resolutions is
critical to global peace and security, and we will be looking to the
Burmese authorities to deliver on their commitments.

We expect engagement with Burma to be a long, slow, and step-by-step
process. We will not judge the success of our efforts at pragmatic
engagement by the results of a handful of meetings. Engagement for its own
sake is obviously not a goal for U.S. policy, but we recognize that
achieving meaningful change in Burma will take time.

We will work to ensure that the Burmese leaders have an absolutely clear
understanding of our goals for this dialogue and the core issues on our
agenda. A fundamentally different U.S.-Burma relationship will require
real progress on democracy and human rights. We will continue to press for
the unconditional release of Aung San Suu Kyi and all political prisoners;
an end to conflicts with ethnic minority groups; accountability of those
responsible for human rights violations; and the initiation of a genuine
dialogue among the Burmese government, the democratic opposition, and the
ethnic minorities on a shared vision for the way forward in Burma. This
last issue is critical, since only the Burmese people themselves can
determine the future of their country. Our intent is to use our dialogue
with the Burmese authorities to facilitate that process. Only if the
government of Burma makes progress toward these goals will it be possible
to improve our bilateral relationship in a step-by-step process.

For more, visit: http://www.state.gov/p/eap/rls/rm/2009/10/130769.htm