'Myanmar road map is ASEAN concern'

'Myanmar road map is ASEAN concern'

Agence France-Presse, Bangkok

Thailand's Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra said on Wednesday he planned to consult regional leaders further on the kingdom's "road map" proposal for democratic reforms in neighboring Myanmar.

"There will be more consultations on the road map. The issue of Myanmar is both a Thai and an ASEAN concern," Thaksin told reporters.

The military-ruled state has been intensely criticized by the international community since it detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi after her supporters were mobbed by a pro-junta gang on May 30.

But Myanmar's generals have resisted calls for the democracy icon's release, raising concerns among its Southeast Asian neighbors who fear the entire region will be brought into disrepute by its intransigence.

Thailand, which is concerned about a potential flood of illegal migrants from Myanmar as tough new U.S. sanctions bite into its economy, has floated the "road map" as a way out of the crisis.

Thaksin said he planned to discuss the proposal with various leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in the next few weeks.

"The ASEAN leaders will consult with each other. I will discuss it with Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri later this month and with Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong in our retreat early next month, and maybe with President Gloria Arroyo," he said.

The Indonesian president is due to make an official visit to Thailand on August 29 and 30, while Thaksin will reportedly travel to Singapore and the Philippines in early September.

The premier said he was hopeful that the road map, presented earlier this month to Myanmar Foreign Minister Win Aung in Bangkok, would be received positively.

"On the one hand Myanmar is concerned with dignity and its sovereignty, but on the other hand, it realizes Thailand's goodwill in trying to make Myanmar acceptable to the international community," he said.

The premier's comments came after Thailand's Foreign Minister Surakiart Sathirathai returned from a one-day visit to Singapore Tuesday, during which he held talks with his Singaporean counterpart S. Jayakumar.

Surakiart said in a statement that the two agreed ASEAN should play a key role in pushing national reconciliation in Myanmar. On Monday UN envoy to Myanmar Razali Ismail met with Surakiart in the Thai capital on the plan, after which he said he would do everything possible to persuade Myanmar to accept it.

Razali said the United Nations would work together with Thailand on its proposal.

Most of the details of the scheme are being kept secret but it will include an international forum to brainstorm solutions for Myanmar.