BurmaNet News, October 5, 2010

[Editor]

October 5, 2010 Issue #4056


INSIDE BURMA
AFP: Suu Kyi sues Myanmar junta over party dissolution: lawyer
Irrawaddy: USDP-promoted surgery 'blinds' patients
DVB: Yuzana employees given weapons training
SHAN: Junta declares state of emergency for six months

BUSINESS / TRADE
Reuters: Exclusive: Toyota arm sells Myanmar joint venture stake
Irrawaddy: Election uncertainty brings trade downturn

REGIONAL
NLM: Senior General Than Shwe, wife Daw Kyaing Kyaing and party pay homage
to That Louang Stupa in Vientiane

INTERNATIONAL
Press Association (UK): Burmese elections a disgrace: Clegg
Canadian Press: Asia, EU leaders call on Myanmar to release detainees, but
do not press for Suu Kyi's freedom

OPINION / OTHER
Reuters: Can an "election of generals" help reform Myanmar? – Martin Petty
The Brookings Institution: The election in Burma: What is America’s stake?
– Lex Rieffel
Huffington Post (US): Burma's electoral authoritarianism – Matthew Smith

PRESS RELEASE
ITUC: Trade unions call on ASEM to act on Burma






____________________________________
INSIDE BURMA

October 5, Agence France Presse
Suu Kyi sues Myanmar junta over party dissolution: lawyer

Yangon — Detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi filed a lawsuit
against Myanmar's junta at the Supreme Court Tuesday for dissolving her
party ahead of widely criticised elections, her lawyer said.

Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) has been forcibly abolished
for boycotting the November 7 vote, which activists and the West have
condemned as a charade aimed at putting a civilian face on military rule.

The lawsuit aims to reverse the dissolution.

The NLD won a landslide election victory in 1990 but was never allowed to
take office. Suu Kyi has spent most of the past 20 years in detention and
is currently under house arrest.

In May, the Supreme Court threw out a suit filed by Suu Kyi aimed at
preventing her party's dissolution.

Asked why the NLD is submitting yet another case with the court, Suu Kyi's
lawyer told reporters: "We are continuing because we have not given up. If
we give up we have nothing left to do."

The New Light of Myanmar newspaper, a junta mouthpiece, recently warned an
unnamed party -- thought to be the NLD -- to drop protests against its
abolition, and threatened jail for anyone impeding the upcoming vote.

The party decided to boycott the election in response to rules barring
serving prisoners -- such as Suu Kyi -- from participating.

The Nobel Peace laureate's current term of house arrest is due to end on
November 13, just days after the election.

Myanmar has been ruled by the military since 1962 and critics say the
generals are taking no chances for the upcoming poll.

One quarter of the seats in parliament are reserved for the military,
while the junta's proxy parties are seen as having a major advantage in
the contest for the remaining seats.

The National Democratic Force (NDF), a breakaway opposition party created
by former NLD members, is among those planning to contest the vote, a
decision that put it at odds with Suu Kyi, who favoured a boycott.

Opposition parties have faced formidable hurdles, including a fee of 500
dollars per candidate -- the equivalent of several months' wages for most
people -- and a tight timetable to register to stand.

____________________________________

October 5, Irrawaddy
USDP-promoted surgery 'blinds' patients – Ba Kaung

At least 20 people in Central Burma have reportedly completely lost their
eyesight after undergoing eye operations provided by the junta proxy Union
Solidarity and Development Party (USDP).

According to local people in Yesagyo township, Magwe Division, where the 
operations were carried out, one of the leading USDP candidates, Myint
Maung, Burma's minister of religious affairs, initiated free eye
operations in the local hospital in June and July with the help of a local
eye specialist and a Taiwanese doctor.

In June, nearly 170 people successfully received eye surgery performed by
Dr.  Aung San Win of Minbu Township. None of the patients reported any
problem.

But when another round of operations was performed by July by a Taiwanese
doctor, at least 20 of the more than 100 patients went blind, according to
Dr. Kyaw Ngwe, a local medical doctor.

He accused the two eye doctors of carelessness, saying the patients who
lost their eyesight appeared to have contracted a virus.

One patient, U Shwe, 60, a bicycle repairman, who lives in No.2 ward of
southern Yesagyo township, had lost the sight in one eye after a cataract
operation five years ago. Four days after being operated on in July by the
Taiwanese doctor he went completely blind.

“Where should I go now for treatment?” he asked in a phone interview with
The Irrawaddy on Tuesday. He said he had already sought help at a  public
hospital in Mandalay but had been told by doctors there that there was
nothing they could do for him.

Another victim, U Javana, a 70-year-old abbot of a Buddhist monastery in
Kanthit village, said he experienced severe pain after the operation and
doctors in a Mandalay hospital had to remove one eye after the operation,
Dr. Kyaw Ngwe said.

Dr. Ne Win, the chief physician of the local township hospital, declined
to comment on the cases when contacted by The Irrawaddy.

Many of the victims were said to be women from villages near Yesagyo.

“The operations were meant to win votes for USDP,” said Dr. Kyaw Ngwe.
“Now people are blind and they cannot make any complaint.”

An eye physician in Rangoon said the cases were unfortunate because there
is now a great percentage of success in modern eye surgery.

Although Myint Maung was previously expected to stand as a USDP candidate
in his home township, Yesagyo, he will now run for the Lower House in
Thongwa Township, Rangoon Division, according to the official list of
candidates.

Many other top USDP candidates are standing for election in their home
towns, where they have introduced welfare programs into their campaigns.

____________________________________

October 5, Democratic Voice of Burma
Yuzana employees given weapons training – AKT

Employees of the Yuzana construction company, which recently bought up
swathes of land in the Hukawng tiger reserve in northern Burma, are being
trained in weapons handling by the Burmese army, a local development group
has said.

Around 500 workers of the company, whose chief Htay Myint is close to the
Burmese junta, have been trained for militias over the past three months
and were given firearms in a special ceremony on 2 September, Aung Wa of
the Kachin Development Networking Group (KDNG) said. The training has
focused on workers Tanai in Kachin state.

The KDNG in August released a report documenting Yuzana’s move into the
Hukawng Valley, which is now the world’s largest tiger reserve. Up 200,000
acres of land has been cleared by the company for planting sugar cane, and
with it villages are reportedly being flattened and locals displaced.

There is speculation that Yuzana fears a backlash from villagers, who have
filed complaints to the International Labour Organisation (ILO) about the
land grab, and so is equipping workers with weaponry.

The majority of the employees were hired from lower Burma prior to the
project’s inception in 2007, Aung Wa said, adding that the 2 September
ceremony was attended by a Burmese army commander from the Tanai region.

The Kachin News Group reported last year that Yuzana had built around
100,000 houses in the valley for men and women working on the plantations,
which are being created in what last month became the world’s largest
tiger reserve and the largest protected area in Southeast Asia, and
celebrated enthusiastically by the Burmese junta.

Locals have said that Yuzana had confiscated land in seven villages in the
region and compensated only 80,000 kyat (US$80) for an acre of land
normally valued at 300,000 kyat (US$300). More than 160 families are so
far thought to have been displaced.

____________________________________

October 5, Shan Herald Agency for News
Junta declares state of emergency for six months – Hseng Khio Fah

A state of emergency has been declared in Burma three months before the
elections and three months after the elections by Naypyitaw, according to
informed sources from the border.

No officer or man is allowed to resign and retire during the period.

“A person whose service is over at this period must suspend,” the officer
said.  Military service in Burma is for 10 years.

However, they will still need to find their replacements even after the
period. “Otherwise, they have to stay until they get a replacement,” he
added.

“In addition, every soldier has been ordered to be ready for combat at all
times,” he said.

Till date, the military junta has reportedly been reinforcing its troops
and weapons in ethnic states, mostly in areas facing ceasefire groups in
Shan State North,  which have turned down Naypyitaw’s demand to disarm,
according to sources from both the Thai-Burma and Sino-Burma border.

In addition, many townships in ethnic states were also declared as
“lacking conditions to hold free and fair elections”. On 16 September,
Burma’s state media announced that of 330 townships across the country,
parts of 32 townships (around 500 village tracts) in Shan, Kachin, Mon,
Karenni and Karen states will be unable to hold elections as conditions in
those areas are not ready for a “free and fair” process.

In Shan State, most of those banned townships are controlled by the United
Wa State Army (UWSA) and its ally the Mongla-based National Democratic
Alliance Army (NDAA) that have rejected disarmament.

The junta is now imparting military training to its militia men in
northern Shan State to help safeguard polling booths.  Last month, the
junta Prime Minister Thein Sein told citizens to protect the country’s
image during the November elections and to prevent anyone from derailing
the first polls in 20 years.

The elections are drawing near but reports of fighting and tension between
the Burmese Army soldiers and ceasefire groups are still coming in.

Latest report said, on 3 October, four Dongfeng trucks carrying junta
troops were reported to have arrived in Mongyai Township, near the First
Brigade of Shan State Army (SSA) ‘North’ controlled territories.

____________________________________
BUSINESS / TRADE

October 5, Reuters
Exclusive: Toyota arm sells Myanmar joint venture stake – Ross Kerber and
Bernie Woodall

BOSTON (Reuters) - A Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T: Quote, Profile, Research,
Stock Buzz) affiliate has sold its stake in a joint venture in Myanmar
with the country's military regime, according to a letter sent to
shareholder activists.

Managers of socially responsible investment firms including Trillium Asset
Management in Boston and Domini Social Investments in New York have
pressed Toyota for years to cut ties with the joint venture because of the
country's poor human rights record.

Toyota had the stake through its trading arm Toyota Tsusho Corp, or TTC.
Toyota previously said TTC planned to wind down its business in Myanmar,
which plans its first election in two decades next month.

But only in June did TTC sell all its shares in the joint venture and get
approvals for the transaction, Toyota Motor North America told the
investment firms in a letter dated August 12.

Other than a liaison office, "No other Toyota affiliate has any business,
direct or indirect, with the Burmese government, to our knowledge," wrote
Toyota Motor Group Vice President James Wiseman. "TTC is now fully
divested from its joint venture operations in Burma," he wrote, using the
name for the country still preferred by many in its democratic opposition.

Wiseman wrote that TTC made the decision "at their own business judgment
as an independent company." Toyota owns 20 percent of TTC. A Toyota
spokesman confirmed the August letter on Monday.

Many U.S. and European companies cannot do business with Myanmar under
sanctions such as those imposed by the United States since 2003. Asian
countries have moved more slowly.

In a 2008 letter, Toyota told Trillium that it "shares your concerns about
the human rights situation in Burma" and that it had asked TTC to
"reconsider its business activities in the country."

The operation was not a significant size for Toyota. Shin Furuya, lead
researcher for Domini, estimated that it produced 12,000 vehicles in 2006.
It is technically known as Myanmar Suzuki Motor, and its sales of autos
and motorcycles were restricted to wealthier citizens in the poor country,
and to its military, according to the activists.

"Toyota Motor has taken an important step to acknowledge and address human
rights concerns within its sphere of influence," Furuya said in a
statement.

Domini and Trillium each manage around $900 million, much less than
conventional mutual funds like Vanguard Group Inc and Fidelity
Investments, each with more than $1 trillion.

Domini and Trillium said TTC is involved in other businesses in the
country that could pose human rights problems. Furuya estimates that
Suzuki Motor Corp (7269.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) owned
most of the joint venture and that his group would also prefer Suzuki to
exit the business. A Suzuki spokesman did not immediately respond to
questions.

The sale of the stake comes as Toyota has been trying to repair its
reputation in the United States, its largest market. Toyota since last
fall has been reeling from the worst safety crisis in its history, and had
more than 10 million vehicles recalled worldwide.

Toyota also ran afoul of the United Auto Workers union when it closed a
plant in California that it once operated with General Motors Co GM.UL.

Toyota said that once GM pulled out last summer, the plant could not be
operated profitably.

The UAW has picketed Toyota dealerships because of the closing of the
California plant, which was the site of the only unionized Toyota workers
in the United States.

(Reporting by Ross Kerber and Bernie Woodall. Editing by Robert MacMillan)

____________________________________

October 5, Irrawaddy
Election uncertainty brings trade downturn – Ko Htwe

Rangoon-based merchants say trade has slowed as traders face uncertainty
regarding the Nov. 7 election.

After the government announced the election, many traders reduced their
investments, said Rangoon-based merchants.

Speaking to The Irrawaddy on Tuesday, Kyaw Kyaw, who is running a
commodity broker market in Bayintnaung Wholesale Market in Rangoon, said:
“I don't dare invest at the moment and must wait to see what circumstances
will bring. Traders don't want to hold much stock, ” adding that things
were so slow that the food stalls in the market had few customers.

“The authorities collected 1o, oooo (about US $100) kyat for repairing
some of the roads in the market area, but how can we pay them when the
market is so slow,” said another broker.

Bayintnaung Wholesale Market is the largest wholesale center in the
country for rice, beans, pulses and other agricultural commodities.

The downtown has hit the price of gold, which fell from 660000 kyat ($660)
a tical (16.4 grams) last month to 650000 kyat ($650). There have been few
dealers in the market, said a Rangoon-based gold-dealer speaking
anonymously.

“We stopped selling on credit to customers even though we know them. What
we don't know is what is going to happen after the election,” the
gold-dealer said.

Business in Burma relies on credit as retailers and wholesalers build
confidence with each other, Rangoon traders said.

“After we stopped giving credit to retailers, our products have barely
sold,” said a clothing dealer from Yuzana Plaza in Rangoon. “On many days
we sell nothing at all."

“Our business relies on credit,” said a dealer from South Okkalapa
Township in Rangoon.  “We take raw material on credit from wholesalers and
pay them for it after we have sold it. But credit lines have closed thanks
to the election, so we no longer have work for the 12 people who are with
us."

Last month the rice price rose depending on the kind of rice, but the
price of oil which sold for 2050 kyat ($2) a viss (1.6kg) last month
dropped 150 kyat ($0.15) this month.

The price of real estate in South Okkalapa Township, however, has
increased 20 percent over last year, according to the Rangoon-based
journal The Voice Weekly.

____________________________________
REGIONAL

October 5, New Light of Myanmar
Senior General Than Shwe, wife Daw Kyaing Kyaing and party pay homage to
That Louang Stupa in Vientiane

Nay Pyi Taw  - A Myanmar delegation led by Chairman of the State Peace and
Development Council Senior General Than Shwe and wife Daw Kyaing Kyaing
paid homage to That Louang Stupa in Vientiane of the Lao People’s
Democratic Republic on 2 October morning.

At 9.20 am, the Senior General, wife and party arrived at the stupa where
they were welcomed by Vice-Mayor of Vientiane Mr Somvandee Nathavong and
officials.

Senior General Than Shwe and wife offered meal, fruits, flowers, water,
lights and joss sticks to the Buddha image on the platform of the stupa.

They went round the stupa clock-wise.

Senior General Than Shwe and wife Daw Kyaing Kyaing signed the visitors’
book accepted the donation.

Senior General Than Shwe and wife donated a mosaic of Shwedagon Pagoda,
Jade Buddha image, diamond orb and cash for the stupa. The Vice- Mayor
accepted the donation.

The Vice-Mayor briefed the Senior General, wife and party on history of
the stupa.

Accompanied by Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office Mr Phongsavath
Boupha and Myanmar Ambassador U Nyunt Hlaing, Senior General Than Shwe and
wife and party left Vientiane International Airport by Laotian special
aircraft and arrived at the airport in Savannakhet.

They were welcomed by Governor of Savannakhet Province Mr Vilayvanh
Phomkhe and wife.

Two Laotian girls presented bouquets to Senior General Than Shwe and wife
Daw Kyaing Kyaing.

Senior General Than Shwe, wife and party were accorded welcome at
Savannakhet Airport by Lao traditional music troupes and the people waving
miniature flags.

Senior General Than Shwe, wife and party left there and arrived at
Daosavanh Resort Hotel in Savannakhet where they stayed.

____________________________________
INTERNATIONAL

October 5, The Press Association (UK)
Burmese elections a disgrace: Clegg

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has slammed the forthcoming elections in
Burma as a sham which would merely reinstate a "military government in
civilian clothes".

He told an EU-Asia summit in Brussels that the current military regime had
failed to heed all demands from the international community amid continued
mistreatment of the Burmese people, with 2,100 "prisoners of conscience"
in jail.

Mr Clegg declared: "There is still no inclusive process in place to help
reconcile the nation, or indeed help it develop socially or economically.

"Not a single expectation of the international community or the Burmese
people has been met, and we are now a month away from elections that will
do no more than reinstate the military government in civilian clothes -
elections that will not be free, nor fair, that will be exploited by a
regime responsible for the grave mistreatment of the Burmese people."

Mr Clegg went on: "This is a complete disgrace, and we should all be
prepared to say so.

"So the UK is unequivocal: Burma must co-operate fully with the UN
Secretary-General's Good Offices Mission.

"All political prisoners, including Aung San Suu Kyi, must be released,
without delay.

"And let there be no doubt that the elections will not fulfil the
expectations of the international community, and nor will they be a
legitimate expression of the will of the people of Burma."

Writing in the International Herald Tribune, Mr Clegg said the UK was
urging all Asian and European leaders "to speak with one voice against the
gross mistreatment of the Burmese people".

He continued: "This week is an opportunity for Asian and European nations
to reaffirm that message. Military men must know that swapping their
uniforms for suits will not change the demands of the international
community. We will not be pacified by a democratic facade. Our
expectations will not drop."

____________________________________

October 5, The Canadian Press
Asia, EU leaders call on Myanmar to release detainees, but do not press
for Suu Kyi's freedom

Brussels— Leaders of 48 Asian and European countries urged the military
junta of Myanmar to release political prisoners before general elections
next month.

The leaders attending the biannual Asian-European Union summit, or ASEM,
said they "touched upon the issue" of Aung San Suu Kyi, the opposition
leader who has been under house arrest for 15 of the last 21 years, but
did not specifically call for her freedom.

But a statement concluding the two-day conference said the release of
detainees would help the elections be "more inclusive, participatory and
transparent."

The position was included in a "Chair's Statement," which meant it did not
require consensus or Myanmar's agreement.

Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy was declared illegal after it
failed to register by last May to take part in the election, scheduled for
Nov. 7. The NLD is boycotting the vote, which it considers undemocratic.
Suu Kyi filed a suit earlier Tuesday with Myanmar's High Court to declare
that the NLD remains a legal party.

Suu Kyi's latest term of 18 months' house arrest is due to expire on Nov.
13, but it was unclear if her detention would be extended by Senior Gen.
Than Shwe, the junta chief.

The ASEM statement urged the government to talk with all parties in a
process of national reconciliation, saying a free and fair election would
be a step toward "a legitimate, constitutional, civilian system of
government."

____________________________________
OPINION / OTHER

October 5, Reuters
Can an "election of generals" help reform Myanmar? – Martin Petty

Bangkok (Reuters) - By holding an election to legitimize decades of
military rule, Myanmar's power-hungry generals may have inadvertently
created a framework for a democratic system they might not be able to
control.

An army-dominated political process will culminate in November 7 polls
dubbed an "election of generals" and widely dismissed as a sham, but there
is hope that the system could spur reforms and gradually take power away
from authoritarian military officers.

For now, few expect any change to the status quo, just more suits and a
lot less army uniforms. Most analysts say a transfer of power to civilians
-- whether intentional or not -- would be an evolutionary process of at
least a decade.

"Of course the election won't be free and fair, but there's a chance here
that over time, more political space will be created," said Georgetown
University's David Steinberg, a veteran Myanmar analyst who has studied
the former British colony since before the generals seized power in a 1962
coup.

"There's potential for improvements to the economy and for the first time
in decades, a parliament will convene and normal people will have some
voice."

But it's almost certain that voice will be silent at first.

Myanmar's complex and verbose constitution, which few Burmese admit to
having read, appears to be a blueprint for cementing the military's grip
on power, with recently retired generals poised to win scores of
parliament and senate seats, in addition to the 25 percent quota reserved
for serving soldiers.

Restrictive election laws and steep registration fees mean pro-democracy
parties will present no challenge to two well-heeled pro-military parties,
whose lawmakers are sure to choose a powerful army-backed president whose
policies and ministerial appointments will sail through parliament.

But even with the generals still at the helm, analysts expect they will
initiate some reforms -- perhaps self-serving -- in the resource-rich
country's ailing economy after decades of mismanagement, corruption and
crippling western sanctions.

WISER POLICIES?

"The election might help with the overall civilianization of the
government and so lead to slightly wiser economic policies," said Josh
Kurlantzick, a Southeast Asia expert at the U.S.-based Council on Foreign
Relations think tank. He said, however, it was unlikely much would change
in the near-term.

A privatization drive is underway, although the process has been extremely
opaque and fraught with cronyism, benefitting the junta and its allies
among a wealthy civilian elite set to become the country's economic
powerbrokers for years to come.

There are now 19 private banks -- four owned by tycoons close to the
generals and targeted by western sanctions -- which will provide more
branches, cash machines and small loans, although Australian economist
Sean Turnell, a Myanmar expert, dismissed the banks as "cash-boxes" and
"playthings" for their rich owners.

But the mass selloff of about 300 state assets this year in areas like
banking, telecommunications, transport and shipping may not be all bad. It
has transferred vital sectors away from the direct control of notoriously
corrupt and inept generals.

Perhaps of more benefit to the population are plans to improve
agriculture, which employs about 70 percent of the population and accounts
for more than half of Myanmar's economic output. Under British rule,
Myanmar was once the world's biggest rice exporter and is aiming to become
a top exporter again. It shipped more than 1 million metric tons in 2009.

Agriculture currently receive only 0.4 percent of credit created, but this
is expected to change as efforts are made to improve farming practices,
increase output and boost farmers' incomes in what could be early populist
measures by the military.

MILITARY MODERATES

Most analysts point to the formation of 14 regional assemblies as the best
hope for change and perhaps a willingness by the military to loosen its
grip and allow more civilian input at local level while still retaining
central power.

Others are hoping moderates will emerge in the military who one day start
to civilianize the system by bringing on board educated technocrats or
pursue their own individual agendas by forming political alliances with
powerful public figures.

But Western countries have indicated that substantial reforms will be
required before economic sanctions in place because of the government's
poor human rights record are lifted.

A first step would be to release an estimated 2,200 detained political
activists or opposition politicians including Nobel laureate Aung San Suu
Kyi, the figurehead of the struggle against military rule.

Suu Kyi's house arrest term is due to expire six days after the polls and
some analysts believe the generals might release her and some other
political prisoners when they are no longer deemed threats to what appears
to be an transfer of sovereign power to themselves.

But few expect any substantive progress while the wily 78-year-old junta
supremo Than Shwe and sidekick Maung Aye, 72, remain in charge either
directly, as president and vice president, or as puppet masters from
behind the scenes.

"As long as these two guys are around, no one else can have a say in the
decision making," said a Burmese academic, who asked not to be named for
fear of repercussions.

"But after that, things will eventually change for the better. It might be
a matter of unintended consequence. The military can't create democracy
and take it over forever, lock stock and smoking barrel."

(Editing by Andrew Marshall)
____________________________________

October 5, The Brookings Institution
The election in Burma: What is America’s stake? – Lex Rieffel

The military junta that has ruled Burma with an iron fist since 1988—and
renamed it Myanmar—will hold a national election on November 7. The last
election, in 1990, was won in a landslide by the opposition National
League for Democracy (NLD) led by Nobel-laureate Aung San Suu Kyi. The
junta, however, disavowed the result and has kept Aung San Suu Kyi under
house arrest for most of the past 20 years.

At the same time, the junta has failed to resolve the ethnic conflict that
lies at the heart of what is now the world’s longest continuing civil war,
dating back to the country’s formal independence from British colonial
rule in 1948. Moreover, unlike other authoritarian regimes in Asia in the
past 50 years, the generals who have run the country since the first coup
in 1962 have totally botched the job of economic development. From being
the Southeast Asian country with the brightest economic prospects at the
end of World War II, Burma has steadily moved down to the bottom rank of
countries on most socio-economic indicators.

The U.S government has been intensely interested in Burma since 1990
despite its distance and its marginal importance globally by conventional
measures. The U.S. government has led the world in imposing economic and
political sanctions against Burma, and sponsored a U.N. Security Council
resolution condemning the regime’s human rights abuses that was vetoed in
2007 by China and Russia.

The political heat reflected in the U.S. government’s policies toward
Burma since 1990 has come from American human rights and democracy
advocates rallied by the charisma of Aung San Suu Kyi and energized by the
unconscionable treatment of her by the military junta. But sanctions and
“megaphone diplomacy” have not alleviated the suffering of the 50 million
people who live within Burma’s borders. Indeed, it may have made it easier
for the junta to maintain control and continue to exploit the country’s
resources for its own benefit.

To its credit, one year ago the Obama administration announced a more
nuanced policy of “pragmatic engagement.” The new policy, however, has
almost no visible domestic support in the U.S. and has yet to yield any
tangible results. Indeed, the Obama administration appeared to back away
from the policy after the junta issued five laws in March for implementing
the November 7 election. The laws stack the deck in favor of
government-supported parties and against opposition parties. The whole
election process lacks credibility because it is bringing into force a
constitution, approved in a patently-rigged referendum in 2008, which
lacks certain fundamental democratic features.

The U.S. government, Burma’s Association of Southeast Asian Nations
(ASEAN) partners, and the United Nations have all called on the regime to
ensure that the elections will be “free, fair, open, and transparent” to
no avail. The only imaginable outcome is an upper and lower chamber of the
national assembly, and 14 sub-national state and region assemblies,
dominated by elected representatives from the government-supported parties
and appointed members from the military. While the next government will be
civilian in form, it will be thoroughly military in reality.

Americans have an interest in Burma’s election because of our strong
belief in and commitment to democracy, not just at home but around the
world. Yet Americans are still learning how hard it is to export democracy
to foreign countries, and we are still surprised when countries that have
embraced democracy—like Thailand, Burma’s neighbor—revert to authoritarian
rule in the face of domestic turmoil.

Americans also have a strong humanitarian impulse and a geo-political
interest that have a bearing on U.S. policy. We would like to see the
population of Burma reaping the benefits of economic progress that are
being enjoyed by non-democratic countries in Asia such as Vietnam as well
as by fledgling democracies such as Indonesia. We would like to see China
and India working together to help Burma resolve its internal conflicts
and modernize, instead of competing with each other to gain access to
Burma’s abundant natural resources (especially natural gas).

Given these multiple interests, a case can be made for focusing less on
the November 7 election and more on the government that will emerge in the
first quarter of 2011. Most academic experts see the elections as the
first step in a transfer of power to a new generation of military officers
wielding power in a quasi-democratic framework. If the U.S. government
plays its cards smartly, the outcome could be a regime that gives greater
respect to human rights and provides more economic freedom to the
long-suffering population, and a country that moves steadily from being an
Asian problem to another Asian engine of economic growth.

____________________________________

October 5, Huffington Post (US)
Burma's electoral authoritarianism – Matthew Smith

Three years ago last month was a moment of high hope for Burma's
pro-democracy movement. Buddhist monks organized across major cities,
towns and villages to lead throngs of citizens, young and old, on peaceful
demonstrations in the streets -- an unlawful act in the military-ruled
country.

Dubbed the "Saffron Revolution," it was more of a Saffron Reformation.
Tens of thousands of protestors bravely demanded political and economic
reforms, including the release of all political prisoners, a decrease in
fuel costs, and national reconciliation, which is a euphemism for
tripartite dialogue between the Burmese junta, the democratic opposition,
and the ethnic nationalities.

What they got in return was a violent crackdown by the state. At least 31
people were killed, problematic monks were defrocked by the authorities,
and the number of political prisoners has gradually increased by half
since then -- there's now approximately 2,200 behind bars, including
numerous clergy.

Now, the country is preparing for its first elections in 20 years,
ushering in a new form of politics: electoral authoritarianism.

The principle tools of electoral authoritarian regimes are flawed
constitutions and feigned elections, crude instruments of un-democracy
commonly designed to further entrench the political and economic interests
of a select few.

U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki Moon and the Friends of Burma -- a
ministerial group of key nations at the U.N. -- recently announced that
the elections won't be credible unless imprisoned Nobel Peace Prize
laureate Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is released. Asian and European leaders
reiterated the sentiment this week at the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) in
Brussels.

But Ban and Friends missed a very basic point: the elections won't be
credible either way. Even people in Burma who plan to fully participate in
the elections know that to be true. The electoral laws impose impossible
restrictions on political parties, political prisoners are barred from
participation, and military intelligence and the regime's proxy parties
are busy coercing and intimidating voters nationwide. Burma's new system
will be as intolerant of dissent as the last.

This isn't to say the elections don't present certain opportunities.

I've talked to a number of citizens, exiled and not, who view the election
as an opportunity to boycott this new brand of authoritarianism, itself a
poignant and important political act. These activists are standing up for
freedom and exposing the fundamental flaws in the undemocratic process.
Their work is particularly important for foreign governments and financial
institutions that may be inclined to legitimize undemocratic regimes so
long as they hold the almighty election.

I've talked to others who view the elections as an opportunity to push the
envelope and work carefully within Burma's socio-political reality,
woefully corrupt and repressive as it may be. Some of these individuals
view the elections as an opportunity to chip away at the military regime
from the inside out, emptying the ocean with the proverbial spoon.

It's not a question as to which strategy is the wiser. Both make sense.

A better question is what can we realistically expect post-election?

For nearly six years, I've documented the impacts of development projects
in Burma with my colleagues at EarthRights International, the Shwe Gas
Movement, and other organizations. The country is rich in natural gas,
minerals, timber, and other lootable resources like precious stones -- all
sectors associated with human rights and environmental abuses.

In Burma's new electoral authoritarian system, gas pipelines, mines, and
large dams will still be built under the watchful eye of the Army, land
will be still confiscated for corporate interests, villagers will be
forced to labor around these projects and will still be dispossessed,
particularly in the territories of the ethnic nationalities. Access to
justice will still be a deep and fundamental problem.

If the international community wants to do its part, it should encourage
tripartite dialogue in Burma and support a UN-mandated Commission of
Inquiry into crimes against humanity in the country, crimes which have not
been unrelated to natural gas pipelines. Investors in companies operating
in Burma's energy sector should aggressively engage the companies with
clear benchmarks geared toward postponing new projects and mitigating the
harms of existing ones. Governments whose national companies are pursuing
"development" projects in Burma -- such as India, Thailand, and China --
should re-think their energy security strategies, which are resulting in
neither energy nor security for the people on the other end.

If managed responsibly, Burma's natural resources have the potential to
play an important part in the country's development. Displaced enthusiasm
for the electoral process and the new electoral authoritarian regime is
unlikely to help the situation.

____________________________________
PRESS RELEASE

October 1, International Trade Union Confederation
Trade unions call on ASEM to act on Burma

Brussels: Trade unions from across Asia and Europe, gathered in Brussels
in for o the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) Leaders’ Summit are calling on
ASEM Leaders to take action on Burma, including demanding the immediate
and unconditional release of all political prisoners and the ending of
attacks on the civilian population, particularly ethnic communities and
democracy supporters.

The ITUC is concerned that some in the international community is viewing
national elections in Burma next month as a reason to relax pressure on
the regime. The elections are deeply flawed: pro-democracy voices have
been excluded, other parties have been prevented from campaigning
effectively, and regardless of the outcome of the vote, the military is
guaranteed effective control of government under a flawed constitution. UN
Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon stated on 27 September that elections will
not be credible without the release of political prisoners, including
democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

The international community needs to significantly step up pressure on the
regime until there is tangible progress towards an inclusive and
democratic constitution and full respect for human rights.

ASEM governments and social partners can play their part by cutting the
trade and investment ties that are keeping the regime in power, in line
with the 2000 ILO resolution on Burma.

With the regime stepping up its war against its own people, ASEM Leaders
should call on the UN Security council to approve a total arms embargo on
Burma and support a UN Commission of Inquiry into crimes against humanity.

To put pressure on the regime to remove its ban on trade unions and give
Burmese workers a voice, ASEM governments should support the launch of an
ILO Commission of Inquiry into Freedom of Association in Burma in the ILO
Governing Body.

Pressure on the regime to end all forms of forced labour must be stepped
up. Those who are guilty of using forced labour must be punished and the
recruitment of children into the military must stop.  A significant
starting point would be to ensure that the ILO is able to work freely
across the country, including to investigate cases of forced labour.

The ITUC represents 176 million workers in 151 countries and territories
and has 301 national affiliates. http://www.ituc-csi.org  and
http://www.youtube.com/ITUCCSI

For more information, please contact the ITUC Press Department on: +32 2
224 0204 or +32 476 621 018