Megawati's diplomatic 'coup' in freeing Suu Kyi<\/p>\n
Kornelius Purba, Staff Writer, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
\nkorpur@yahoo.com<\/p>\n
A euphoric tide of democratization has swept through some members
\nof the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in recent
\nyears, especially founding members Indonesia, the Philippines and
\nThailand.<\/p>\n
ASEAN has also experienced a steady recovery in its once lowly
\ninternational stature. But, just when things seemed to be
\nimproving, enter the brutality of Myanmar's military junta
\nagainst world democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, something that has
\nproved to be a major thorn in the side of the regional grouping.<\/p>\n
In a surprise move in June, ASEAN abandoned its much
\ncriticized non-interference credo when its foreign ministers
\nduring their annual meeting in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, harshly
\nrebuked the Myanmar military regime and demanded the quick
\nrelease of Suu Kyi.<\/p>\n
The spirit of concern for Suu Kyi has even infected Malaysian
\nPrime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, who was once angered by then
\nIndonesian President B.J. Habibie when the later expressed
\nsympathy for jailed former Malaysian deputy prime minister Anwar
\nIbrahim, his long-time friend.<\/p>\n
Even Singapore, famous for its sophisticated legal moves to
\nimpoverish antigovernment leaders like Joshua J.B. Jeyaratnam and
\nSingapore's Democratic Party (SDP) leader Chee Soon Juan, also
\nstrongly urged Yangoon to free Suu Kyi.<\/p>\n
After four years in limbo since the economic crisis hit Asia
\nin 1997, ASEAN has been able to regain some of its international
\nprowess, ironically thanks to the Sept. 11 tragedy and the Bali
\nbombings in October last year. The impacts of the two tragedies
\nhave translated into the impetus for stronger unity in the
\nregional grouping. Western countries have once again come to
\nrealize the strategic value of the region in terms of economics
\nand global security.<\/p>\n
ASEAN's partners in the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), the Asia-
\nPacific Economic Forum (APEC), and Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM),
\nand Asian economic giants China, Japan and South Korea, are being
\nlured back to seek out lucrative business opportunities in the
\nregion.<\/p>\n
When industrialized countries and wealthy investors meet with
\nASEAN, of course both parties want to concentrate on business
\ninterests, and they want to get rid of all possible stumbling
\nblocks to negotiations. So, when Myanmar remains under the iron
\nfist of a military junta and continues to mistreat the 1990 Nobel
\nPrize laureate, Myanmar's presence at the negotiating table
\nbecomes a serious liability to ASEAN.<\/p>\n
People in the region are now more conscious of democratic
\nvalues, including the significance of having elected leaders.
\nIndonesians, Thais and Filipinos show more concern now over a
\nrepressive regime in their midst. To a certain extent, they might
\nalso be ready to demand that their governments stop pretending
\nnot to know that Suu Kyi's party, the National League for
\nDemocracy (NLD), overwhelmingly won the military-controlled
\ngeneral elections in 1989.<\/p>\n
Myanmar's neighbors can no longer accept the non-interference
\nargument, because the military abuses against Suu Kyi have
\ndirectly affected their own well-being. Like in any neighborhood,
\nneighbors will have to take action if they continue to witness
\ndomestic violence in a neighboring home. They have to act to stop
\nsuch domestic cruelty.<\/p>\n
Indonesia, as the current ASEAN chairman, is supposed to lead
\nthe group in its mission to address the source of diplomatic
\ndisruptions: The political chaos in Myanmar.<\/p>\n
In February 1997, it was Soeharto who directed ASEAN's final
\njudgment on the bids of Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia to join the
\ngroup. At that time Indonesia strongly believed that the
\nincorporation of Myanmar into ASEAN would be productive for the
\nregion.<\/p>\n
This was the time when Soeharto was at the peak of his power,
\nafter cracking down hard on Megawati Soekarnoputri in 1996.
\nClearly he had no interest in defending Suu Kyi. Myanmar's
\ngenerals were proud to learn from him on how to rule their
\ncountry with an iron fist.<\/p>\n
It is only natural that Suu Kyi should have more hope now that
\nMegawati is at the helm, especially because they have similar
\nfamily backgrounds. Megawati's father, Sukarno, and Su Kyi's
\nfather, Aung San, were the founding fathers of Indonesia and
\nMyanmar respectively.<\/p>\n
But what has happened? The current government's attitude to
\nthe issue is a virtual carbon copy of Soeharto's attitude to
\nMyanmar. That is the reason why visiting Myanmar foreign minister
\nWin Aung presented a small but seemingly pleasant gift to his
\nhost Indonesia, which is hungry for international recognition in
\nthe diplomatic arena.<\/p>\n
Indonesia can now only nostalgically look back on its
\ndiplomatic triumphs of the past, when it helped settle the
\nconflicts in Cambodia, and in the Southern Philippines, at least
\nfor a while. Today, the optimum result of what it could
\naccomplish is reflected in the statement of foreign minister
\nHassan Wirayuda yesterday: \"We have received a guarantee that the
\nAung San Suu Kyi case will be over before the ASEAN summit (in
\nOctober in Bali).\"<\/p>\n
Myanmar's military regime was clearly delighted with President
\nMegawati's lenient, if not permissive, approach to the brutality
\nof Myanmar's military junta against Myanmar's democratically
\nelected leader.<\/p>\n
After being harshly warned by Malaysian Prime Minister
\nMahathir Mohamad that Myanmar could be ousted from the
\nAssociation of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) for Suu Kyi's
\ndetention, the ruling Myanmar generals can now smile broadly as
\nthey have been able to appease Indonesia with only a small
\nconcession.<\/p>\n
It will be very embarrassing for Megawati if the 58-year-old
\nSuu Kyi is still detained during the October summit when the 10
\nASEAN leaders will also receive the leaders of China, Japan and
\nSouth Korea.<\/p>\n
But is her release enough? She can easily be arrested again
\nafter the summit. It is essential for ASEAN to convince the
\ngenerals in Myanmar that it is firstly in their own interests to
\ngive Suu Kyi the opportunity to lead the country as the winner of
\nthe 1989 elections.<\/p>\n
It would then be no less pressing for ASEAN to convince Suu
\nKyi that it would be in the interests of her country, and the
\nstability of her government, to give concessions to the generals.
\nCan Megawati do it? Can Minister Hassan convince his own boss
\nthat it is now the time to act?<\/p>",
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