Yangoon's coolness disappoints Mega

Yangoon's coolness disappoints Mega

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post, New York

President Megawati Soekarnoputri expressed disappointment on
Wednesday (Thursday Jakarta time) at the cool response from
Myanmar to the visit of special envoy Ali Alatas early this week
to secure the release of prodemocracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Briefing the press in New York before leaving for a two-day
visit to Tunisia, Megawati said the visit of her special envoy to
Myanmar failed to secure the release of the opposition leader.

She also urged the military junta to come up with a better
arrangement to ensure the democratization process in the country.

"The message that I sent to them was clear, that is we want
the democratization process in Myanmar to continue and Madam Suu
Kyi released before the upcoming ASEAN summit, slated to begin on
Oct. 7," the President said.

"The road map for democracy and reconciliation in Myanmar that
they presented has no clear direction or time frame. So there is
a possibility of me sending Ali Alatas to the country for a
second time," Megawati said.

The President said she would summon Ali Alatas for a report on
results of his trip to Myanmar.

"I would like to hear more details of his visit, which I heard
was warmly welcomed by Myanmar authorities," Megawati stressed.

As the chair of the Association of Southeast Asia Nations
(ASEAN), in which Myanmar is also a member, Indonesia has become
the focal point for all member countries to pressure Myanmar to
release Suu Kyi.

Ali Alatas traveled to Myanmar last Sunday to campaign for the
release of Suu Kyi, who has been detained since June. He met with
Myanmar leaders but failed to meet Suu Kyi face to face.

Indonesia has repeatedly said that Suu Kyi should be released
before the ASEAN Summit in Bali early next month.

Major countries such as the United States and Japan have
threatened to impose sanctions on Myanmar, while fellow ASEAN
member Malaysia has proposed expelling the country from the
regional grouping.

The President also said the Myanmar issue was one of the
topics of discussion in her meeting with United Nations
Secretary-General Kofi Annan.

"Secretary-General Annan would like to hear about the recent
development in the Southeast Asia region in dealing with the
Myanmar issue," Megawati disclosed.

Meanwhile, Suu Kyi's doctor said on Thursday that she would be
discharged from the hospital in "a day or two", but it was
unclear if she would be detained again, put under house arrest or
be freed.

Nor was it clear whether stepped up pressure from neighbors on
Myanmar military rulers to end Suu Kyi's nearly four-month
isolation would have any impact. A Thai envoy talked to them on
Thursday, a day after Alatas left empty-handed.

"I cannot definitely say the date she will be discharged, but
it will be in a day or two," Dr. Tin Myo Win announced at the
private Yangon hospital where Suu Kyi is recuperating after major
surgery for gynecological problems last week.

Asked where she would be taken to convalesce, Tin Myo Win
said, "It's the concern of the authorities, but I have told them
I need to be in touch with her for another one or two months and
the authorities have agreed to it."

There is concern that attendees of next month's ASEAN summit
could be embarrassed if the military keeps the 1991 Nobel Peace
Prize winner, whose plight has sparked international outrage and
Western sanctions, isolated.

The 10-member ASEAN, one of the few groups willing to have
Myanmar as a member, will meet on Bali. Usually loathe to
criticize the internal affairs of its members, the group issued a
sharp rebuke to Yangon after Suu Kyi was detained on May 30
following a bloody clash between her supporters and government
backers.

ASEAN Secretary-General Ong Keng Yong said on Wednesday the
group's credibility and image would take a knock if it did not
express concern over Myanmar's actions.

However, he did not expect a serious effort in Bali to expel
Myanmar.