Releasing Suu Kyi the only viable option

Releasing Suu Kyi the only viable option

Jose Ramos-Horta, Inter Press Service, Dili, East Timor

Current events in Myanmar are deeply disturbing. A very
revered monk, Sayadaw U Satetara, a high-ranking member of the
holy Sangha and strong supporter of imprisoned Nobel Peace
Laureate Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, passed away last week from what
many suspect were not natural causes.

In the meantime, Suu Kyi, who was awarded the Nobel Peace
Prize for her campaign to restore democracy and civil liberties
in Myanmar by peaceful means, remains incarcerated and held
incommunicado.

The recent attacks on Suu Kyi, leader of the country's
opposition party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), and
her supporters were orchestrated by hard-liners in Myanmar's
military regime who fear her enduring popularity and the
national reconciliation process supported by other, more
tolerant, members of the ruling junta.

Appeals for Suu Kyi's release from Rangoon's friends and
Myanmar's neighbors seem to have fallen on deaf ears. This
certainly does not augur well for the country, and Myanmar could
pay a high price internationally for the hard-liners'
intransigence.

Myanmar's most important foreign donor, Japan, until recently
excessively cautious in its approach to human rights issues in
the region, has decided to stop almost all its support for the
country.

Leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN),
must also keep up the pressure on the Burmese generals.

The foreign ministers of ASEAN -- of which Myanmar is a member
-- recently broke a taboo against interfering in what have
traditionally been regarded as the internal affairs of a member
state.

Embarrassed that the international reputation of ASEAN was
suffering because of the gross and systematic human rights
violations in Myanmar, the ministers demanded at their recent
annual meeting in Phnom Penh that Suu Kyi be freed immediately.

China, as a regional power, too, must take its cue from Japan
and act decisively in pressuring the Burmese junta to release Suu
Kyi. While understandably cautious in its conduct of foreign
relations and not wanting to be misconstrued as a regional bully,
China cannot sidestep its responsibility by avoiding a central
role in the resolution of conflicts on its doorstep.

There is also a role for India. As Asia's oldest and the
world's first largest democracy, India is in a position to prod
the Burmese generals to loosen their grip on the nation. New
Delhi has had diplomatic experience in dealing with Rangoon
within the ambit of the Non-Aligned Movement. At this crucial
moment, India must not eschew its own responsibilities.

As regional powers, China, Japan and India, working closely
with Indonesia in its current position as chair of ASEAN, must
find a solution to this impasse. Failure to do so will weaken
ASEAN and undermine its international influence.

In the 1970s, we witnessed regional silence and complicity
surrounding the Cambodian tragedy. It will be tragic if the same
attitude is adopted with regard to Myanmar.

But the winds of change are blowing through the region, and
there are encouraging signs that ASEAN is becoming more prepared
to address human rights abuses in its own backyard.

China, too, has opened up even if it continues to be a one-
party state. Only two countries, Myanmar and North Korea, remain
frozen in time.

There is, however, hope for Myanmar.

Myanmar's military regime can learn from the positive lessons
of its neighbors, namely Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, the
Philippines, Indonesia, and Cambodia. These might not be perfect
democracies, but they are relatively open and economically
successful.

In working towards a peaceful and stable political transition,
the democracy movement in Myanmar as well as the international
community must also consider safeguards and incentives for those
in power to allow the evolution to proceed. The military should
be offered assurances that there will be no vendetta against it
once democracy is restored in Myanmar.

Meanwhile, the United States and the European Union should
consider responding to each meaningful step taken by the military
government with measures such as a gradual easing of travel
restrictions for regime members and providing humanitarian aid
through non-government organizations.

There must also be a role for the United Nations in Myanmar.
The UN, in close consultation with ASEAN leaders, must be
involved in facilitating and supervising the steps for free
elections within three years.

With political reform under way, the World Bank and other
institutions, such as the United Nations Development Program,
should step in to help reform Myanmar's institutions and
economy.

But for all this to happen the military must first release Suu
Kyi and her supporters, reopen the offices of the National League
for Democracy, and accept a clear timetable for restoring
democracy in Myanmar.

The writer, awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1996, is East
Timor's minister for foreign affairs.