China spearheads move to soften UN text on Myanmar
October 9 , 2007
UNITED NATIONS (AFP) — China on Monday spearheaded a move in the UN Security Council to soften a Western-sponsored statement on the military crackdown in Myanmar amid broad agreement on the need for ending the violence and freeing political prisoners.
Experts from the council's 15 members huddled behind closed doors for nearly three hours in "a constructive atmosphere" and the sponsors agreed to come up with a revised text taking into account of the amendments, said a delegate from Ghana, which chairs the council this month.
"They intend to circulate a revised text some time this evening which we would then refer to our capitals for consideration and instructions," Albert Yankey told AFP.
The United States, Britain and France introduced their initial draft Friday after the council heard a report from UN envoy Ibrahim Gambari on his recent mission to Myanmar to defuse the crisis.
The text would condemn "the violent repression of peaceful demonstrations" by Myanmar's rulers, urge them to "cease repressive measures" and release detainees as well as all political prisoners, including opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
Yankey said there was consensus on calling the violence by the military regime and its repression of peaceful protests "unacceptable," on the need for dialogue and national reconciliation, and for expressing support for Gambari's mission.
But he noted that China, backed by several other delegations, insisted on replacing the word "condemn" by "strongly deplore" and dropping a reference to consideration of "further steps," suggesting instead that the council continues to monitor the situation.
The Chinese also objected to a detailed formulation in the draft of the steps the Myanmar regime must take to defuse the crisis, the diplomat said.
"China has a key role to play (in the crisis) and needs to maintain communications with the regime. The same applies to Gambari," said Yankey, who noted that members were keen "not to jeopardize" the twin mediation.
"There is no delegation that does not want to see a quick adoption" of the text, he said, adding that all members were ready for compromise.
Yankey said he did not expect the experts to meet again until Wednesday.
The text was debated here amid intense pressure for strong council action from world public opinion following outrage over Myanmar's deadly repression of peaceful anti-government protests led by Buddhist monks late last month.
At least 13 people died and more than 2,100 were locked up in the crackdown as security forces moved to crush protests involving up to 100,000 people with live rounds, baton charges and tear gas.
On Saturday, protests were held in several cities around the world in support of Myanmar's embattled pro-democracy movement.
Italy's UN Ambassador Marcello Spatafora for his part stressed that it was urgent for the council to send a "strong, unified" message to Myanmar's ruling junta.
Unlike a resolution, a so-called presidential statement requires the consent of all 15 members to be adopted.
China, which has close ties with Myanmar and favors constructive engagement with its military regime, warned last week that putting pressure on the ruling generals "would lead to confrontation."
The United States has threatened to push for UN sanctions against the military regime, including an arms embargo, if it refuses to halt its crackdown and refused to cooperate with Gambari's mediation for national reconciliation.
But any sanctions resolution was likely to face resistance and possibly a veto from China and Russia, which deem the turmoil in the southeast Asian country an internal matter and not a threat to broader peace and security.
In a conciliatory move apparently aimed at forestalling tough council condemnation, Myanmar's rulers trumpeted the release of hundreds of monks and demonstrators and donated thousands of dollars as well as food and medicines to monasteries in Yangon.
And junta chief Than Shwe named the deputy labor minister, Aung Kyi, as the "manager for relations" with Aung San Suu Kyi, four days after the military supremo made a heavily conditioned offer to meet with the Nobel Peace prize laureate, state television said.
Aung San Suu Kyi, who has come to symbolize Myanmar's peaceful struggle for democracy, has spent most of the past 18 years under house arrest.
October 9 , 2007
UNITED NATIONS (AFP) — China on Monday spearheaded a move in the UN Security Council to soften a Western-sponsored statement on the military crackdown in Myanmar amid broad agreement on the need for ending the violence and freeing political prisoners.
Experts from the council's 15 members huddled behind closed doors for nearly three hours in "a constructive atmosphere" and the sponsors agreed to come up with a revised text taking into account of the amendments, said a delegate from Ghana, which chairs the council this month.
"They intend to circulate a revised text some time this evening which we would then refer to our capitals for consideration and instructions," Albert Yankey told AFP.
The United States, Britain and France introduced their initial draft Friday after the council heard a report from UN envoy Ibrahim Gambari on his recent mission to Myanmar to defuse the crisis.
The text would condemn "the violent repression of peaceful demonstrations" by Myanmar's rulers, urge them to "cease repressive measures" and release detainees as well as all political prisoners, including opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
Yankey said there was consensus on calling the violence by the military regime and its repression of peaceful protests "unacceptable," on the need for dialogue and national reconciliation, and for expressing support for Gambari's mission.
But he noted that China, backed by several other delegations, insisted on replacing the word "condemn" by "strongly deplore" and dropping a reference to consideration of "further steps," suggesting instead that the council continues to monitor the situation.
The Chinese also objected to a detailed formulation in the draft of the steps the Myanmar regime must take to defuse the crisis, the diplomat said.
"China has a key role to play (in the crisis) and needs to maintain communications with the regime. The same applies to Gambari," said Yankey, who noted that members were keen "not to jeopardize" the twin mediation.
"There is no delegation that does not want to see a quick adoption" of the text, he said, adding that all members were ready for compromise.
Yankey said he did not expect the experts to meet again until Wednesday.
The text was debated here amid intense pressure for strong council action from world public opinion following outrage over Myanmar's deadly repression of peaceful anti-government protests led by Buddhist monks late last month.
At least 13 people died and more than 2,100 were locked up in the crackdown as security forces moved to crush protests involving up to 100,000 people with live rounds, baton charges and tear gas.
On Saturday, protests were held in several cities around the world in support of Myanmar's embattled pro-democracy movement.
Italy's UN Ambassador Marcello Spatafora for his part stressed that it was urgent for the council to send a "strong, unified" message to Myanmar's ruling junta.
Unlike a resolution, a so-called presidential statement requires the consent of all 15 members to be adopted.
China, which has close ties with Myanmar and favors constructive engagement with its military regime, warned last week that putting pressure on the ruling generals "would lead to confrontation."
The United States has threatened to push for UN sanctions against the military regime, including an arms embargo, if it refuses to halt its crackdown and refused to cooperate with Gambari's mediation for national reconciliation.
But any sanctions resolution was likely to face resistance and possibly a veto from China and Russia, which deem the turmoil in the southeast Asian country an internal matter and not a threat to broader peace and security.
In a conciliatory move apparently aimed at forestalling tough council condemnation, Myanmar's rulers trumpeted the release of hundreds of monks and demonstrators and donated thousands of dollars as well as food and medicines to monasteries in Yangon.
And junta chief Than Shwe named the deputy labor minister, Aung Kyi, as the "manager for relations" with Aung San Suu Kyi, four days after the military supremo made a heavily conditioned offer to meet with the Nobel Peace prize laureate, state television said.
Aung San Suu Kyi, who has come to symbolize Myanmar's peaceful struggle for democracy, has spent most of the past 18 years under house arrest.
Burma’s Diplomatic Offensive
By Aung Zaw October 8, 2007
Is Than Shwe’s offer to meet detained Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi a sign of weakness or a diplomatic offensive?
According to state-run television, Snr-Gen Than Shwe set conditions for talks with Suu Kyi, demanding that she must abandon “confrontation” and “utter devastation,” give up “obstructive measures” and her support for sanctions.
The general, according to the state-run press, said that he would meet directly with her for dialogue, if she agrees to these four conditions.
A sign of weakness?
Probably not. More probable is that this is a clever and calculated diplomatic offensive launched by Than Shwe and his experienced diplomats. The former psychological warfare officer was indeed manipulating in order to deflect external and internal opinion and criticism with the aim of buying time.
Than Shwe has had two face-to-face meetings in the past with Suu Kyi and reportedly holds a grudge toward the Nobel Peace Prize winner.
He and his hardliners masterminded a plot to kill Suu Kyi and her supporters in Depayin, a remote area in central Burma where no journalists, film crew or photographers were able to witness the carnage in May 2003.
Suu Kyi and her deputy Tin Oo (former army chief in the 1970s) narrowly escaped the thuggish attack and were taken in custody to a safe location by intelligence officers belonging to Gen Khin Nyunt, who was then still in power.
Although no film footage or photographs of the attacks reached the outside world, the incident prompted international condemnation. Than Shwe, however, launched a clever counteroffensive.
Shortly after the attack, the regime surprised the world by releasing dozens of photographs of meetings between Suu Kyi and top leaders, including Than Shwe, to demonstrate that the regime had conducted dialogue with her, while accusing her of destabilizing the regime.
Now, after crushing the street demonstrations in Burma, the regime has stepped up its damage-control campaign, with the blessing of China and neighboring countries.
At the UN, Burma's UN ambassador, Kyaw Tint Swe, said his country was committed to forging ahead with national reconciliation and asked for “patience, time and space” for his regime. He opposed Security Council action on Burma.
Asking for patience, time and space? The regime showed no patience when it brutally crushed the monks and innocent people who demonstrated peacefully in city streets last month.
The bad news is that Burma’s diplomatic offensive and Burmese deception might work at some level. Some diplomats and officials at the UN, far from the scene of the recent bloody events, may be ready to swallow Burmese diplomats’ statements.
At home, the regime stepped up its offensive against monks. The New Light of Myanmar reported today that during raids on monasteries, “42 uncensored pornographic VCDs, one uncensored pornographic DVD, 10 condoms, sexual tonic medicine sachet, dildo (with belt), one statuette of woman and a man hugging each other, 13 women’s wear longyis (sarongs), eight panties and a love letter and perfume/glycerin bottles, men’s wear longyis, two cordless phones and 18 different kinds of swords, 10 alcohol bottles, 9 mm round of ammunition, and leaflets” were confiscated.
Burmese Buddhists maintain that this slur campaign against the Sangha will only add salt to the wounds and will prove counterproductive. It’s a further provocation in the propaganda war, they say.
The regime has no shortage of contingency plans to overcome obstacles to its aim to prolong military rule. Whenever it faced crisis, the regime leaders made strategic decisions to counter domestic dissent, growing international criticism and possible UN actions.
After crushing the 1988 uprising, the regime promised elections in 1990, giving itself plenty of time to rebuild the army and consolidate its position of power.
Then, after ignoring the election outcome, it called in 1993 for a National Convention to draft a new constitution, a strategy to buy still more time.
After the Depayin attack of 2003, the regime introduced a seven-point “road map,” another delaying tactic. The first step, drafting guidelines for a new constitution, has just been completed.
The offer by Than Shwe to meet Suu Kyi is thus nothing more than farce, but a well- calculated diplomatic offensive, nonetheless.
Some foreign visitors who recently met Than Shwe in Naypyidaw said the old man’s hands shook as he greeted them, perhaps a sign that he is not well. Now in his late 70s, he might indeed not have long to live, but the former psychological warfare officer isn’t giving up easily—his craftiness and his psychosomatic functions are still working.
Is Than Shwe’s offer to meet detained Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi a sign of weakness or a diplomatic offensive?
According to state-run television, Snr-Gen Than Shwe set conditions for talks with Suu Kyi, demanding that she must abandon “confrontation” and “utter devastation,” give up “obstructive measures” and her support for sanctions.
The general, according to the state-run press, said that he would meet directly with her for dialogue, if she agrees to these four conditions.
A sign of weakness?
Probably not. More probable is that this is a clever and calculated diplomatic offensive launched by Than Shwe and his experienced diplomats. The former psychological warfare officer was indeed manipulating in order to deflect external and internal opinion and criticism with the aim of buying time.
Than Shwe has had two face-to-face meetings in the past with Suu Kyi and reportedly holds a grudge toward the Nobel Peace Prize winner.
He and his hardliners masterminded a plot to kill Suu Kyi and her supporters in Depayin, a remote area in central Burma where no journalists, film crew or photographers were able to witness the carnage in May 2003.
Suu Kyi and her deputy Tin Oo (former army chief in the 1970s) narrowly escaped the thuggish attack and were taken in custody to a safe location by intelligence officers belonging to Gen Khin Nyunt, who was then still in power.
Although no film footage or photographs of the attacks reached the outside world, the incident prompted international condemnation. Than Shwe, however, launched a clever counteroffensive.
Shortly after the attack, the regime surprised the world by releasing dozens of photographs of meetings between Suu Kyi and top leaders, including Than Shwe, to demonstrate that the regime had conducted dialogue with her, while accusing her of destabilizing the regime.
Now, after crushing the street demonstrations in Burma, the regime has stepped up its damage-control campaign, with the blessing of China and neighboring countries.
At the UN, Burma's UN ambassador, Kyaw Tint Swe, said his country was committed to forging ahead with national reconciliation and asked for “patience, time and space” for his regime. He opposed Security Council action on Burma.
Asking for patience, time and space? The regime showed no patience when it brutally crushed the monks and innocent people who demonstrated peacefully in city streets last month.
The bad news is that Burma’s diplomatic offensive and Burmese deception might work at some level. Some diplomats and officials at the UN, far from the scene of the recent bloody events, may be ready to swallow Burmese diplomats’ statements.
At home, the regime stepped up its offensive against monks. The New Light of Myanmar reported today that during raids on monasteries, “42 uncensored pornographic VCDs, one uncensored pornographic DVD, 10 condoms, sexual tonic medicine sachet, dildo (with belt), one statuette of woman and a man hugging each other, 13 women’s wear longyis (sarongs), eight panties and a love letter and perfume/glycerin bottles, men’s wear longyis, two cordless phones and 18 different kinds of swords, 10 alcohol bottles, 9 mm round of ammunition, and leaflets” were confiscated.
Burmese Buddhists maintain that this slur campaign against the Sangha will only add salt to the wounds and will prove counterproductive. It’s a further provocation in the propaganda war, they say.
The regime has no shortage of contingency plans to overcome obstacles to its aim to prolong military rule. Whenever it faced crisis, the regime leaders made strategic decisions to counter domestic dissent, growing international criticism and possible UN actions.
After crushing the 1988 uprising, the regime promised elections in 1990, giving itself plenty of time to rebuild the army and consolidate its position of power.
Then, after ignoring the election outcome, it called in 1993 for a National Convention to draft a new constitution, a strategy to buy still more time.
After the Depayin attack of 2003, the regime introduced a seven-point “road map,” another delaying tactic. The first step, drafting guidelines for a new constitution, has just been completed.
The offer by Than Shwe to meet Suu Kyi is thus nothing more than farce, but a well- calculated diplomatic offensive, nonetheless.
Some foreign visitors who recently met Than Shwe in Naypyidaw said the old man’s hands shook as he greeted them, perhaps a sign that he is not well. Now in his late 70s, he might indeed not have long to live, but the former psychological warfare officer isn’t giving up easily—his craftiness and his psychosomatic functions are still working.
Burma’s Business Partners Can Promote Change
[Editorial]By The Irrawaddy October 9, 2007
Thailand has formally protested to the Burmese regime over its bloody crackdown on peaceful demonstrations, Thai Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont, told reporters on Monday. His stand sounds encouraging and must be welcomed. But it is too early to conclude that Thailand’s policy on Burma is at a turning point.
Since Burma's current ruling generals seized power by suppressing demonstrations calling for democracy and human rights in 1988, Thailand has never exercised its attention with the question of how to respond to the unrelenting repression of the Burmese people by the country's ruling generals.
On the contrary. Thailand has won many business contracts with the cash-strapped military generals to buy Burma's natural resources, including natural gas. Last year, Burma sold Thailand natural gas to the value of US $2 billion.
Thailand's Burma ambitions have progressively driven other countries in the region, notably China and India, to compete for the country's natural gas, timber, seafood, minerals and gems.
For this reason, those countries with the most leverage over Burma have always suggested a softly-softly diplomatic approach towards the junta. Now is the time for a change of approach.
Asean, the regional grouping that includes Thailand, has publicly expressed its unhappiness about the Burmese regime’s inhumane crackdown on peaceful demonstrations. This is the first time since 1988 that there has been a regional outcry over a crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators.
The Thai prime minister called the crackdown in Burma unacceptable, following a similar line to Asean’s. "Amid international pressure, Thailand will monitor the situation and will discuss within Asean what kind of action should be taken," he said.
On September 27, Asean foreign ministers issued a strong statement on the crackdown in Burma. The upcoming Asean summit, scheduled for November 19-21 in Singapore, could face problems in initiating concrete action, however.
It will not be easy for Asean to push for democracy in Burma while China, which holds veto power in the UN Security Council, is calling on council members to avoid using strong language in the text of a common statement on Burma.
It seems that the ball is in China's court now. Some reports say that Burma activists are pushing for a boycott of the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Anger over China’s inaction is so high in Burma that unknown gunmen fired on the Chinese consulate in Mandalay at the weekend.
The attack cannot be condoned, but it came as no great surprise. It is a warning that pressure on China will only increase if China continues to support Burma’s ruling generals.
Along with Asean, which includes Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia—Burma's first, third and fourth largest foreign investors—China could play a key role in developments in Burma, using its considerable political and economic weight.
Modern thinking says that businesses must consider the interests of society by taking responsibility for the impact on customers, employees, shareholders, communities and the environment in all aspects of their operations. It is shameful to do business with a brutal regime that kills and oppresses its own people. Good business must be built on ethics and morality.
Since Burma's current ruling generals seized power by suppressing demonstrations calling for democracy and human rights in 1988, Thailand has never exercised its attention with the question of how to respond to the unrelenting repression of the Burmese people by the country's ruling generals.
On the contrary. Thailand has won many business contracts with the cash-strapped military generals to buy Burma's natural resources, including natural gas. Last year, Burma sold Thailand natural gas to the value of US $2 billion.
Thailand's Burma ambitions have progressively driven other countries in the region, notably China and India, to compete for the country's natural gas, timber, seafood, minerals and gems.
For this reason, those countries with the most leverage over Burma have always suggested a softly-softly diplomatic approach towards the junta. Now is the time for a change of approach.
Asean, the regional grouping that includes Thailand, has publicly expressed its unhappiness about the Burmese regime’s inhumane crackdown on peaceful demonstrations. This is the first time since 1988 that there has been a regional outcry over a crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators.
The Thai prime minister called the crackdown in Burma unacceptable, following a similar line to Asean’s. "Amid international pressure, Thailand will monitor the situation and will discuss within Asean what kind of action should be taken," he said.
On September 27, Asean foreign ministers issued a strong statement on the crackdown in Burma. The upcoming Asean summit, scheduled for November 19-21 in Singapore, could face problems in initiating concrete action, however.
It will not be easy for Asean to push for democracy in Burma while China, which holds veto power in the UN Security Council, is calling on council members to avoid using strong language in the text of a common statement on Burma.
It seems that the ball is in China's court now. Some reports say that Burma activists are pushing for a boycott of the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Anger over China’s inaction is so high in Burma that unknown gunmen fired on the Chinese consulate in Mandalay at the weekend.
The attack cannot be condoned, but it came as no great surprise. It is a warning that pressure on China will only increase if China continues to support Burma’s ruling generals.
Along with Asean, which includes Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia—Burma's first, third and fourth largest foreign investors—China could play a key role in developments in Burma, using its considerable political and economic weight.
Modern thinking says that businesses must consider the interests of society by taking responsibility for the impact on customers, employees, shareholders, communities and the environment in all aspects of their operations. It is shameful to do business with a brutal regime that kills and oppresses its own people. Good business must be built on ethics and morality.
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