Clinton urges Myanmar to free Suu Kyi
Thu Nov 12, 4:27 am ET
MANILA (Reuters) – Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called again on Thursday for the unconditional release of Myanmar democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, but suggested there could be high-level contacts with the country's military leaders at a summit this weekend.
She said Nobel Peace Prize winner Suu Kyi, who has been in detention for 14 of the last 20 years, had "every right, as any person should have...to participate in the active democratic life" of her country.
"We believe that her detention over so many years is baseless and not founded on any concern other than she is the leader of the political opposition," Clinton said at a news conference in the Philippine capital, Manila.
Clinton called for the opposition to be allowed to take part in the reclusive state's planned 2010 election.
But she also said there could be high-level contacts with the former Burma's junta at a meeting this weekend of Southeast Asian states to be attended by U.S. President Barack Obama -- though no formal bilateral meeting was planned.
"First of all there is no meeting," she told reporters. "There may very well be an opportunity for the leaders, including myself, including the president, to meet the leaders of Burma, something that we have not done before."
The Obama administration decided in September to pursue deeper engagement with Myanmar to try to spur democratic reforms. Obama will be at the summit in Singapore on Sunday, where Lieutenant General Thein Sein, Myanmar's prime minister, will also be present.
Myanmar's military government is shunned by the West over its rights record, which has kept previous U.S. presidents from meeting all 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, of which Myanmar is a part.
Clinton said of next year's planned election: "I will underscore our skepticism about an election that does not include all of the people or their representatives who are in opposition."
There were no plans, she said, to drop U.S. economic sanctions on Myanmar.
"We have made it very clear we are not lifting sanctions on Burma but we are trying to encourage Burma to conduct the kind of internal dialogue with all the stakeholders, including Aung San Suu Kyi, that could lead to there being fair, free and credible elections next year."
Thu Nov 12, 4:27 am ET
MANILA (Reuters) – Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called again on Thursday for the unconditional release of Myanmar democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, but suggested there could be high-level contacts with the country's military leaders at a summit this weekend.
She said Nobel Peace Prize winner Suu Kyi, who has been in detention for 14 of the last 20 years, had "every right, as any person should have...to participate in the active democratic life" of her country.
"We believe that her detention over so many years is baseless and not founded on any concern other than she is the leader of the political opposition," Clinton said at a news conference in the Philippine capital, Manila.
Clinton called for the opposition to be allowed to take part in the reclusive state's planned 2010 election.
But she also said there could be high-level contacts with the former Burma's junta at a meeting this weekend of Southeast Asian states to be attended by U.S. President Barack Obama -- though no formal bilateral meeting was planned.
"First of all there is no meeting," she told reporters. "There may very well be an opportunity for the leaders, including myself, including the president, to meet the leaders of Burma, something that we have not done before."
The Obama administration decided in September to pursue deeper engagement with Myanmar to try to spur democratic reforms. Obama will be at the summit in Singapore on Sunday, where Lieutenant General Thein Sein, Myanmar's prime minister, will also be present.
Myanmar's military government is shunned by the West over its rights record, which has kept previous U.S. presidents from meeting all 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, of which Myanmar is a part.
Clinton said of next year's planned election: "I will underscore our skepticism about an election that does not include all of the people or their representatives who are in opposition."
There were no plans, she said, to drop U.S. economic sanctions on Myanmar.
"We have made it very clear we are not lifting sanctions on Burma but we are trying to encourage Burma to conduct the kind of internal dialogue with all the stakeholders, including Aung San Suu Kyi, that could lead to there being fair, free and credible elections next year."
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U.S., Myanmar leaders may cross paths at ASEAN: Clinton
By Manny Mogato and David Alexander – Thu Nov 12, 7:26 am ET
MANILA (Reuters) – President Barack Obama has no plans for talks with Myanmar's leaders on the sidelines of a weekend Asian summit, but Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the opportunity might arise for her or Obama to meet them.
Leaders of the reclusive military-run state, including Lieutenant General Thein Sein, Myanmar's prime minister, are expected to attend a meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Singapore. Obama also will attend the event.
"There is not a meeting (with Myanmar's leaders)," Clinton told a news conference during a visit to the Philippine capital Manila. "There very well may be the opportunity for leaders, including myself and including the president, to meet with the leaders of Burma, something that we have not done before."
Since taking office less than a year ago, Obama has greeted and spoken to leaders, such as Venezuela's Hugo Chavez, that were avoided at international summits by his predecessor.
Myanmar's military government is shunned by the West over its rights record, which has kept previous U.S. presidents from meeting all 10 members of ASEAN, of which Myanmar is a part.
Clinton renewed her call for Myanmar's military leaders to agree to the unconditional release of democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, and said the United States would "encourage, urge, persuade" the former Burma's leaders to enter into a dialogue with its opponents on the country's political future.
IMPORTANT FIRST STEP
"We think it is an important first step," Clinton said of the political dialogue. "We are continuing to call for the freedom of Aung San Suu Kyi. We believe her detention over so many years is baseless and not founded on any concern other than she is the leader of the political opposition."
She said Nobel Peace Prize winner Suu Kyi, who has been in detention for 14 of the last 20 years, had "every right, as any person should have...to participate in the active democratic life" of her country.
Clinton pressed for the opposition to be included in planning for the 2010 election, saying: "I will underscore our skepticism about an election that does not include all of the people or their representatives who are in opposition."
The Obama administration decided in September to pursue deeper engagement with Myanmar to try to spur democratic reforms. U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell visited Myanmar last week in what was the highest-level U.S. visit in 14 years.
Despite the increased diplomacy, Clinton said there were no plans at this stage to drop U.S. economic sanctions on Myanmar.
"We have made it very clear we are not lifting sanctions on Burma but we are trying to encourage Burma to conduct the kind of internal dialogue with all the stakeholders, including Aung San Suu Kyi, that could lead to there being fair, free and credible elections next year."
By Manny Mogato and David Alexander – Thu Nov 12, 7:26 am ET
MANILA (Reuters) – President Barack Obama has no plans for talks with Myanmar's leaders on the sidelines of a weekend Asian summit, but Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the opportunity might arise for her or Obama to meet them.
Leaders of the reclusive military-run state, including Lieutenant General Thein Sein, Myanmar's prime minister, are expected to attend a meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Singapore. Obama also will attend the event.
"There is not a meeting (with Myanmar's leaders)," Clinton told a news conference during a visit to the Philippine capital Manila. "There very well may be the opportunity for leaders, including myself and including the president, to meet with the leaders of Burma, something that we have not done before."
Since taking office less than a year ago, Obama has greeted and spoken to leaders, such as Venezuela's Hugo Chavez, that were avoided at international summits by his predecessor.
Myanmar's military government is shunned by the West over its rights record, which has kept previous U.S. presidents from meeting all 10 members of ASEAN, of which Myanmar is a part.
Clinton renewed her call for Myanmar's military leaders to agree to the unconditional release of democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, and said the United States would "encourage, urge, persuade" the former Burma's leaders to enter into a dialogue with its opponents on the country's political future.
IMPORTANT FIRST STEP
"We think it is an important first step," Clinton said of the political dialogue. "We are continuing to call for the freedom of Aung San Suu Kyi. We believe her detention over so many years is baseless and not founded on any concern other than she is the leader of the political opposition."
She said Nobel Peace Prize winner Suu Kyi, who has been in detention for 14 of the last 20 years, had "every right, as any person should have...to participate in the active democratic life" of her country.
Clinton pressed for the opposition to be included in planning for the 2010 election, saying: "I will underscore our skepticism about an election that does not include all of the people or their representatives who are in opposition."
The Obama administration decided in September to pursue deeper engagement with Myanmar to try to spur democratic reforms. U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell visited Myanmar last week in what was the highest-level U.S. visit in 14 years.
Despite the increased diplomacy, Clinton said there were no plans at this stage to drop U.S. economic sanctions on Myanmar.
"We have made it very clear we are not lifting sanctions on Burma but we are trying to encourage Burma to conduct the kind of internal dialogue with all the stakeholders, including Aung San Suu Kyi, that could lead to there being fair, free and credible elections next year."
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APEC ministers endorse "market-oriented" currencies
By Nopporn Wong-Anan – Thu Nov 12, 5:09 am ET
SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Asia-Pacific finance ministers endorsed "market-oriented" exchange rates on Thursday and said they would stick with economic stimulus plans until a sustained economic recovery was under way.
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said the timing of stimulus exit policies would vary between countries, but business confidence and the financial system must be restored first. "The challenge is growth. First growth, but make sure we have business confidence restored, investments expanding again, unemployment coming down, financial sector definitively repaired -- that's our basic challenge," Geithner said in Singapore after a meeting of Pacific rim finance ministers.
The ministers of the 21-member Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) discussed strengthening the post-crisis global economy to prevent asset bubbles and excess leverage with prudent macroeconomic and regulatory policies.
In a statement they agreed to "undertake monetary policies consistent with price stability in the context of market-oriented exchange rates that reflect underlying economic fundamentals."
The group includes China, which has effectively pegged its currency against the dollar since the middle of 2008 to help fend off the global downturn.
Other APEC economies aside from China manage their currencies to some degree, including Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam.
U.S. President Barack Obama told Reuters in an interview this week that he would raise the currency issue on a visit to China next week. [ID:nOBAMAASIA] His administration says an undervalued yuan is one factor contributing to economic imbalances between the first- and third-biggest economies in the world.
China's central bank said on Wednesday it will consider major currencies in guiding the yuan, suggesting a departure from the effective dollar peg.
"I'd say that ... is the most significant news we've had on the yuan for months, and that APEC is more of a formal reminder from China's closest neighbors, not just the U.S. and Europe, that forex rigidity in a huge trading economy is not a domestic issue," said Westpac Banking Corporation strategist Sean Callow.
WARNING OF ECONOMIC FALSE DAWN
Emergency measures put in place by APEC member governments, including some $1 trillion in Asia alone and $787 billion in the United States, prevented a deeper recession, Geithner said.
However, Australian Treasurer Wayne Swan told reporters before going into the APEC meeting: "What we have to do is to make sure that we don't withdraw global support too early."
"In Australia's case, our economic stimulus peaked in the middle of this year and is being gradually withdrawn as we go through the rest of the year," Swan said.
World Trade Organization Director General Pascal Lamy cautioned of a false dawn in the recovery.
"There's certainly a recovery happening, certainly in this region, which has suffered less from the crisis than from other regions of the planet," he told CNBC in an interview on the APEC sidelines in Singapore. "But I would be prudent whether or not this would be sustainable six months or a year from now."
He said rising unemployment was the main threat to free trade and could spark greater protectionist policies around the globe.
Jobless queues have jumped across the industrialized world since the global economic crisis erupted a year ago and have been a prime reason nervous governments have resisted calls to start winding back stimulus measures.
The U.S. jobless rate hit a 26- year high of 10.2 percent in October and economists polled by Reuters expect it to rise to 10.5 percent by the middle of next year.
APEC's trade and foreign ministers pledged to refrain from raising new barriers to trade and investment, and said a review of measures taken by member economies that began last July to ensure they were not protectionist would continue into 2010.
CLIMATE TAKES BACK SEAT
The ministerial meetings will be followed by a weekend summit of leaders of APEC, which is dominated by members of the Group of 20, including the United States, Russia, Japan and China.
Diplomats expect discussion on the sidelines on how to bring North Korea back to talks on ending its nuclear arms program, and the United States' decision to engage Myanmar's junta.
On a side visit to Manila on Thursday, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called for the unconditional release of Myanmar democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi but suggested there could be high-level contacts with the country's military leaders at the summit this weekend.
The APEC meeting represents one of the final opportunities ahead of next month's Copenhagen summit for leaders to overcome differences on the shape of a climate pact to fight rising seas, more chaotic weather and threats to crops and livelihoods.
However, there is little prospect of new initiatives emerging in Singapore this weekend and the climate agenda might instead focus on liberalizing trade in green goods and services.
APEC member economies account for 40 percent of the world's population across four continents, more than half of global gross domestic product and nearly half of world trade.
But their members range from relatively poor countries such as Papua New Guinea, Peru and the Philippines, emerging markets such as Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia, and rich economies, including the United States and Japan.
By Nopporn Wong-Anan – Thu Nov 12, 5:09 am ET
SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Asia-Pacific finance ministers endorsed "market-oriented" exchange rates on Thursday and said they would stick with economic stimulus plans until a sustained economic recovery was under way.
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said the timing of stimulus exit policies would vary between countries, but business confidence and the financial system must be restored first. "The challenge is growth. First growth, but make sure we have business confidence restored, investments expanding again, unemployment coming down, financial sector definitively repaired -- that's our basic challenge," Geithner said in Singapore after a meeting of Pacific rim finance ministers.
The ministers of the 21-member Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) discussed strengthening the post-crisis global economy to prevent asset bubbles and excess leverage with prudent macroeconomic and regulatory policies.
In a statement they agreed to "undertake monetary policies consistent with price stability in the context of market-oriented exchange rates that reflect underlying economic fundamentals."
The group includes China, which has effectively pegged its currency against the dollar since the middle of 2008 to help fend off the global downturn.
Other APEC economies aside from China manage their currencies to some degree, including Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam.
U.S. President Barack Obama told Reuters in an interview this week that he would raise the currency issue on a visit to China next week. [ID:nOBAMAASIA] His administration says an undervalued yuan is one factor contributing to economic imbalances between the first- and third-biggest economies in the world.
China's central bank said on Wednesday it will consider major currencies in guiding the yuan, suggesting a departure from the effective dollar peg.
"I'd say that ... is the most significant news we've had on the yuan for months, and that APEC is more of a formal reminder from China's closest neighbors, not just the U.S. and Europe, that forex rigidity in a huge trading economy is not a domestic issue," said Westpac Banking Corporation strategist Sean Callow.
WARNING OF ECONOMIC FALSE DAWN
Emergency measures put in place by APEC member governments, including some $1 trillion in Asia alone and $787 billion in the United States, prevented a deeper recession, Geithner said.
However, Australian Treasurer Wayne Swan told reporters before going into the APEC meeting: "What we have to do is to make sure that we don't withdraw global support too early."
"In Australia's case, our economic stimulus peaked in the middle of this year and is being gradually withdrawn as we go through the rest of the year," Swan said.
World Trade Organization Director General Pascal Lamy cautioned of a false dawn in the recovery.
"There's certainly a recovery happening, certainly in this region, which has suffered less from the crisis than from other regions of the planet," he told CNBC in an interview on the APEC sidelines in Singapore. "But I would be prudent whether or not this would be sustainable six months or a year from now."
He said rising unemployment was the main threat to free trade and could spark greater protectionist policies around the globe.
Jobless queues have jumped across the industrialized world since the global economic crisis erupted a year ago and have been a prime reason nervous governments have resisted calls to start winding back stimulus measures.
The U.S. jobless rate hit a 26- year high of 10.2 percent in October and economists polled by Reuters expect it to rise to 10.5 percent by the middle of next year.
APEC's trade and foreign ministers pledged to refrain from raising new barriers to trade and investment, and said a review of measures taken by member economies that began last July to ensure they were not protectionist would continue into 2010.
CLIMATE TAKES BACK SEAT
The ministerial meetings will be followed by a weekend summit of leaders of APEC, which is dominated by members of the Group of 20, including the United States, Russia, Japan and China.
Diplomats expect discussion on the sidelines on how to bring North Korea back to talks on ending its nuclear arms program, and the United States' decision to engage Myanmar's junta.
On a side visit to Manila on Thursday, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called for the unconditional release of Myanmar democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi but suggested there could be high-level contacts with the country's military leaders at the summit this weekend.
The APEC meeting represents one of the final opportunities ahead of next month's Copenhagen summit for leaders to overcome differences on the shape of a climate pact to fight rising seas, more chaotic weather and threats to crops and livelihoods.
However, there is little prospect of new initiatives emerging in Singapore this weekend and the climate agenda might instead focus on liberalizing trade in green goods and services.
APEC member economies account for 40 percent of the world's population across four continents, more than half of global gross domestic product and nearly half of world trade.
But their members range from relatively poor countries such as Papua New Guinea, Peru and the Philippines, emerging markets such as Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia, and rich economies, including the United States and Japan.
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Dhaka to revive talks on Myanmar-India gas link
Thu Nov 12, 2009 8:21am EST
DHAKA, Nov 12 (Reuters) - Bangladesh will restart negotiations over a long standing proposal for a pipeline across its territory that would take natural gas from Myanmar to India, a senior energy official said on Thursday.
"We have received a green signal from Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and forwarded the proposal to the foreign ministry to resume negotiations with New Delhi and Yangon in this regard," said Mohammad Mohsin, secretary for the energy and mineral resources division.
India has in the past proposed building the 290-km (181-mile) pipeline to import gas from Myanmar, but the proposal did not get immediate approval from Bangladesh.
"Now we have received the green signal from the head of the government to revive the discussions regarding the construction of a regional gas pipeline as it will benefit our country," Mohsin told Reuters.
Bangladesh, which faces gas shortages of up to 250 million cubic feet a day, hopes to use gas from the link and to gain from fees, the official said.
In January 2005 energy ministers of the three countries met for the first time in Yangon to discuss construction of a tri-nation gas pipeline with a total length of 950-km, and signed a draft memorandum of understanding.
The pipeline was expected to enter eastern Bangladesh through the Brahmanbaria border point and enter India's West Bengal state from the northern Rajshahi area of Bangladesh.
The draft had a provision for hydropower transit from the Himalayas to Bangladesh through India, and a corridor across India for trade between Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan.
Progress on the project has been delayed due to differences between Dhaka and New Delhi over trade and corridor issues.
India and Myanmar in 2006 considered redesigning the gas pipeline so that it skipped Bangladesh altogether.
Analysts said there were gas reserves of up to 6.0 trillion cubic feet in the blocks off Myanmar from which gas is to be transported to India.
Investors in the relevant gas fields off Myanmar include South Korean Gas Corporation (KOGAS), India's Oil and Natural Gas Corp. (ONGC) (ONGC.BO), GAIL India (GAIL.BO) and Daewoo International (047050.KS).
If the plan is implemented, about $350 million would be invested in Bangladesh and it would expect to get nearly $100 million as a carrier fee per year, energy officials said.
Bangladesh would also get another $100 million as a one-off "right of way" charge and $25 million each year for sharing in its management, the officials said.
Thu Nov 12, 2009 8:21am EST
DHAKA, Nov 12 (Reuters) - Bangladesh will restart negotiations over a long standing proposal for a pipeline across its territory that would take natural gas from Myanmar to India, a senior energy official said on Thursday.
"We have received a green signal from Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and forwarded the proposal to the foreign ministry to resume negotiations with New Delhi and Yangon in this regard," said Mohammad Mohsin, secretary for the energy and mineral resources division.
India has in the past proposed building the 290-km (181-mile) pipeline to import gas from Myanmar, but the proposal did not get immediate approval from Bangladesh.
"Now we have received the green signal from the head of the government to revive the discussions regarding the construction of a regional gas pipeline as it will benefit our country," Mohsin told Reuters.
Bangladesh, which faces gas shortages of up to 250 million cubic feet a day, hopes to use gas from the link and to gain from fees, the official said.
In January 2005 energy ministers of the three countries met for the first time in Yangon to discuss construction of a tri-nation gas pipeline with a total length of 950-km, and signed a draft memorandum of understanding.
The pipeline was expected to enter eastern Bangladesh through the Brahmanbaria border point and enter India's West Bengal state from the northern Rajshahi area of Bangladesh.
The draft had a provision for hydropower transit from the Himalayas to Bangladesh through India, and a corridor across India for trade between Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan.
Progress on the project has been delayed due to differences between Dhaka and New Delhi over trade and corridor issues.
India and Myanmar in 2006 considered redesigning the gas pipeline so that it skipped Bangladesh altogether.
Analysts said there were gas reserves of up to 6.0 trillion cubic feet in the blocks off Myanmar from which gas is to be transported to India.
Investors in the relevant gas fields off Myanmar include South Korean Gas Corporation (KOGAS), India's Oil and Natural Gas Corp. (ONGC) (ONGC.BO), GAIL India (GAIL.BO) and Daewoo International (047050.KS).
If the plan is implemented, about $350 million would be invested in Bangladesh and it would expect to get nearly $100 million as a carrier fee per year, energy officials said.
Bangladesh would also get another $100 million as a one-off "right of way" charge and $25 million each year for sharing in its management, the officials said.
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Myanmar junta leader 'thrilled' to be in Sri Lanka
by Mel Gunasekera – 2 hrs 3 mins ago
KANDY (AFP) – Myanmar's junta leader General Than Shwe said he was "thrilled" to be in Sri Lanka, where he was given a 21-gun salute and an elaborate red-carpet welcome at the start of his four-day state visit Thursday.
"Sri Lanka and Myanmar have a history of close Buddhist ties," he said during a meeting with Sri Lanka's foreign minister Rohitha Bogollagama in the central Buddhist pilgrim city of Kandy.
Than Shwe, who is on his first visit to the island and comes with a 26-member delegation, said he was looking forward to touring Buddhist shrines during his stay, before leaving on Sunday.
Speaking through a translator, the reclusive junta leader looked relaxed in a dark grey pin-striped suit and nodded when Bogollagama said he hoped the visit would also explore avenues for economic co-operation.
"We warmly welcome you, your excellency," Bogollagama said during the meeting in a heavily guarded deluxe hotel in Kandy, 115 kilometers (72 miles) northeast of Colombo.
Than Shwe was due to meet Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse later Thursday. Rajapakse welcomed him earlier at the Bandaranaike International Airport.
Sri Lanka and Myanmar both practise Theravada Buddhism and have had cultural and religious ties since the 11th century.
Myanmar monks living in Sri Lanka have warned Colombo that its increasingly close relations with Myanmar's military regime would further raise international concern over the island's rights record.
In a statement on Wednesday, the monks said Rajapakse was "foolish" to become associated with Than Shwe.
A spokesman for the monks said they were not demonstrating against Than Shwe's visit due to safety fears.
"The Sri Lankan government has very good relations with the junta and if we demonstrate they could use force against us," a monk, who identified himself as Nyanasyri, told AFP.
Than Shwe is to spend two days in Kandy and then travel to the ancient site of Anuradhapura to visit more Buddhist sites.
The junta leader is due to receive blessings from Buddhist monks at a temple outside the capital Colombo on Sunday before he leaves.
Rajapakse visited Myanmar in June and thanked the junta for providing relief supplies for Sri Lankan civilians displaced earlier this year during the final stages of fighting between troops and separatist Tamil rebels.
by Mel Gunasekera – 2 hrs 3 mins ago
KANDY (AFP) – Myanmar's junta leader General Than Shwe said he was "thrilled" to be in Sri Lanka, where he was given a 21-gun salute and an elaborate red-carpet welcome at the start of his four-day state visit Thursday.
"Sri Lanka and Myanmar have a history of close Buddhist ties," he said during a meeting with Sri Lanka's foreign minister Rohitha Bogollagama in the central Buddhist pilgrim city of Kandy.
Than Shwe, who is on his first visit to the island and comes with a 26-member delegation, said he was looking forward to touring Buddhist shrines during his stay, before leaving on Sunday.
Speaking through a translator, the reclusive junta leader looked relaxed in a dark grey pin-striped suit and nodded when Bogollagama said he hoped the visit would also explore avenues for economic co-operation.
"We warmly welcome you, your excellency," Bogollagama said during the meeting in a heavily guarded deluxe hotel in Kandy, 115 kilometers (72 miles) northeast of Colombo.
Than Shwe was due to meet Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse later Thursday. Rajapakse welcomed him earlier at the Bandaranaike International Airport.
Sri Lanka and Myanmar both practise Theravada Buddhism and have had cultural and religious ties since the 11th century.
Myanmar monks living in Sri Lanka have warned Colombo that its increasingly close relations with Myanmar's military regime would further raise international concern over the island's rights record.
In a statement on Wednesday, the monks said Rajapakse was "foolish" to become associated with Than Shwe.
A spokesman for the monks said they were not demonstrating against Than Shwe's visit due to safety fears.
"The Sri Lankan government has very good relations with the junta and if we demonstrate they could use force against us," a monk, who identified himself as Nyanasyri, told AFP.
Than Shwe is to spend two days in Kandy and then travel to the ancient site of Anuradhapura to visit more Buddhist sites.
The junta leader is due to receive blessings from Buddhist monks at a temple outside the capital Colombo on Sunday before he leaves.
Rajapakse visited Myanmar in June and thanked the junta for providing relief supplies for Sri Lankan civilians displaced earlier this year during the final stages of fighting between troops and separatist Tamil rebels.
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Obama embarks on debut Asia mission
2 hrs 6 mins ago
WASHINGTON (AFP) – Barack Obama embarked Thursday on his first tour of Asia as US president, bound for Japan before later stops in Singapore, China and South Korea on a week-long trip.
Obama will seek to counter charges that America's influence in the world's most populous region is fading amid the rise of China and the distraction of US-led wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
"It's a common perception in the region that US influence has been on the decline in the last decade, while Chinese influence has been increasing," said Obama's top East Asia aide Jeffrey Bader.
"One of the messages that the president will be sending in his visit is that we are an Asia-Pacific nation and we are there for the long haul."
After re-fueling in Alaska, where he will address US troops, Obama's first stop will be Japan, where he will make a major address in Tokyo on Saturday.
He will seek to cement ties with new Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama and draw similarities between their respective crusades for political change, while dampening a row over the relocation of a US military base on Okinawa.
Obama will then debut at the Asia Pacific Cooperation forum summit in Singapore, and attend the first-ever joint meeting of a US president and leaders of all 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Before departing, Obama said he would seek to try and tackle the imbalances in global growth in which Asia relies too heavily on exports for economic growth and the United States too much on spending.
Announcing a White House meeting in December to tackle America's soaring unemployment, Obama said his discussions with APEC leaders would be about "a strategy for growth that is both balanced and broadly shared.
"It's a strategy in which Asian and Pacific markets are open to our exports and one in which prosperity around the world is no longer as dependent on American consumption and borrowing, but rather more on American innovation and products."
In Singapore, Obama will also have to deal with Myanmar's suppression of democracy, which has long disrupted US ties with Southeast Asia.
After years of attempting to isolate Myanmar, Washington is now engaging the junta, but a private Obama meeting with Prime Minister Thein Sein is unlikely.
It is a measure of China's rising influence that Obama's talks in Beijing will range over global questions including North Korea, Iran's nuclear program and Afghanistan.
Obama will hold a town hall meeting in Shanghai Monday, before flying to Beijing ahead of formal talks and a state dinner with President Hu Jintao on Tuesday.
He will also raise human rights, after declining to meet Tibet's spiritual leader the Dalai Lama before he had visited Beijing.
Significant breakthroughs are not expected on global warming in Obama's talks with Hu, although China and the United States are considered vital to fading hopes of a deal at UN climate talks in Copenhagen next month.
Obama wraps up the tour in South Korea, arriving on November 18 before holding talks with President Lee Myung-Bak on North Korea, climate change and trade.
Shadowing the US president throughout the trip will be his looming decision on whether to deploy thousands more US troops to Afghanistan.
The White House is stressing that Obama, who grew up in Hawaii and spent a number of childhood years in Indonesia, is familiar, and to some extent shares an Asian worldview on some issues.
Obama aides say the previous Bush administration saw ties with Asia through the prism of their global war on terror, and neglected the relationships.
As China expanded its clout, US influence suffered from the spending and borrowing binge that triggered the worst economic crisis since the 1930s.
Yet for all the talk of a diminished role, Washington remains a key player.
The United States is a guarantor of Asian security, with a combined 75,000 troops in South Korea and Japan and the Seventh Fleet prowling regional waters.
While the dollar is humbled and the US economy wounded, a consumer-led American recovery would revive vast export markets for Asian nations.
But Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner suggested that Washington is also looking to its Asian trading partners to power demand in the meantime.
"As US households save more and the US reduces its fiscal deficit, others must spur greater growth of private demand in their own economies," Geithner said in an op-ed co-authored with his counterparts from Indonesia and Singapore and published Thursday in the Wall Street Journal.
2 hrs 6 mins ago
WASHINGTON (AFP) – Barack Obama embarked Thursday on his first tour of Asia as US president, bound for Japan before later stops in Singapore, China and South Korea on a week-long trip.
Obama will seek to counter charges that America's influence in the world's most populous region is fading amid the rise of China and the distraction of US-led wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
"It's a common perception in the region that US influence has been on the decline in the last decade, while Chinese influence has been increasing," said Obama's top East Asia aide Jeffrey Bader.
"One of the messages that the president will be sending in his visit is that we are an Asia-Pacific nation and we are there for the long haul."
After re-fueling in Alaska, where he will address US troops, Obama's first stop will be Japan, where he will make a major address in Tokyo on Saturday.
He will seek to cement ties with new Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama and draw similarities between their respective crusades for political change, while dampening a row over the relocation of a US military base on Okinawa.
Obama will then debut at the Asia Pacific Cooperation forum summit in Singapore, and attend the first-ever joint meeting of a US president and leaders of all 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Before departing, Obama said he would seek to try and tackle the imbalances in global growth in which Asia relies too heavily on exports for economic growth and the United States too much on spending.
Announcing a White House meeting in December to tackle America's soaring unemployment, Obama said his discussions with APEC leaders would be about "a strategy for growth that is both balanced and broadly shared.
"It's a strategy in which Asian and Pacific markets are open to our exports and one in which prosperity around the world is no longer as dependent on American consumption and borrowing, but rather more on American innovation and products."
In Singapore, Obama will also have to deal with Myanmar's suppression of democracy, which has long disrupted US ties with Southeast Asia.
After years of attempting to isolate Myanmar, Washington is now engaging the junta, but a private Obama meeting with Prime Minister Thein Sein is unlikely.
It is a measure of China's rising influence that Obama's talks in Beijing will range over global questions including North Korea, Iran's nuclear program and Afghanistan.
Obama will hold a town hall meeting in Shanghai Monday, before flying to Beijing ahead of formal talks and a state dinner with President Hu Jintao on Tuesday.
He will also raise human rights, after declining to meet Tibet's spiritual leader the Dalai Lama before he had visited Beijing.
Significant breakthroughs are not expected on global warming in Obama's talks with Hu, although China and the United States are considered vital to fading hopes of a deal at UN climate talks in Copenhagen next month.
Obama wraps up the tour in South Korea, arriving on November 18 before holding talks with President Lee Myung-Bak on North Korea, climate change and trade.
Shadowing the US president throughout the trip will be his looming decision on whether to deploy thousands more US troops to Afghanistan.
The White House is stressing that Obama, who grew up in Hawaii and spent a number of childhood years in Indonesia, is familiar, and to some extent shares an Asian worldview on some issues.
Obama aides say the previous Bush administration saw ties with Asia through the prism of their global war on terror, and neglected the relationships.
As China expanded its clout, US influence suffered from the spending and borrowing binge that triggered the worst economic crisis since the 1930s.
Yet for all the talk of a diminished role, Washington remains a key player.
The United States is a guarantor of Asian security, with a combined 75,000 troops in South Korea and Japan and the Seventh Fleet prowling regional waters.
While the dollar is humbled and the US economy wounded, a consumer-led American recovery would revive vast export markets for Asian nations.
But Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner suggested that Washington is also looking to its Asian trading partners to power demand in the meantime.
"As US households save more and the US reduces its fiscal deficit, others must spur greater growth of private demand in their own economies," Geithner said in an op-ed co-authored with his counterparts from Indonesia and Singapore and published Thursday in the Wall Street Journal.
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Group: Work half done to clear world of land mines
By ELIANE ENGELER, Associated Press Writer – Thu Nov 12, 10:06 am ET
GENEVA (AP) – Significant progress has been made in removing land mines around the world, but the hidden devices killed more than 1,260 people last year, the International Campaign to Ban Land mines said Thursday.
Land mines have been cleared from 3,200 square kilometers (1,236 square miles) in 90 countries — an area twice the size of London — in the last decade, said the group, which won the 1997 Nobel Peace Prize for its work to establish the Mine Ban Treaty. But more needs to be done because a similar amount of land is still mined and dangerous, the group said.
Mines remain planted in the earth in more than 70 countries, said the group's 1,253-page report. Mines killed at least 1,266 people and wounded 3,891 last year, it said, adding that most of the victims were civilians.
"Significant progress has been made in eradicating anti-personnel mines, but much work remains," the report said.
While more than 150 countries have agreed to the treaty's provisions to end the production, use, stockpiling and trade in mines, a number of holdouts remain. China, India, Pakistan and the United States are among those yet to join the treaty, but only Myanmar and Russia are believed to have used mines in recent years, according to the campaign.
Civilians bear much of the brunt of mines because they can remain active for years in the ground, exploding with little provocation, decades after wars end.
More than 2.2 million anti-personnel mines, 250,000 anti-vehicle mines and 17 million other explosives left over from wars have been removed since 1999, the report said.
But finding and removing mines is a delicate and slow process. The explosives are more easily detected now with the use of trained dogs and new machines, but human deminers with metal detectors remain the most common technique.
The report is part of an annual series by the campaign since the land mine treaty came into force in 1999, and gave signatories 10 years to completely demine their territories. Fifteen countries have missed the deadline, the report said.
"The fact that still 10 years after the United Kingdom and Venezuela have not started formal clearance operations is unacceptable," said Stuart Casey-Maslen, an editor of the report. "At least the U.K. is planning to start clearance later this year and Venezuela the following year." Britain has an estimated 16,000 mines left on the Falkland Islands from its war with Argentina in 1982.
Peru and Ecuador also should do more, Casey-Maslen said, while Bosnia and Herzegovina is only clearing 1.2 square miles (3 square kilometers) a year, despite large resources for demining.
The report credited 11 countries with fulfilling their promise, including several Central American nations and France.
Demining activity was strongest last year in Afghanistan, Cambodia and Croatia, the study said.
By ELIANE ENGELER, Associated Press Writer – Thu Nov 12, 10:06 am ET
GENEVA (AP) – Significant progress has been made in removing land mines around the world, but the hidden devices killed more than 1,260 people last year, the International Campaign to Ban Land mines said Thursday.
Land mines have been cleared from 3,200 square kilometers (1,236 square miles) in 90 countries — an area twice the size of London — in the last decade, said the group, which won the 1997 Nobel Peace Prize for its work to establish the Mine Ban Treaty. But more needs to be done because a similar amount of land is still mined and dangerous, the group said.
Mines remain planted in the earth in more than 70 countries, said the group's 1,253-page report. Mines killed at least 1,266 people and wounded 3,891 last year, it said, adding that most of the victims were civilians.
"Significant progress has been made in eradicating anti-personnel mines, but much work remains," the report said.
While more than 150 countries have agreed to the treaty's provisions to end the production, use, stockpiling and trade in mines, a number of holdouts remain. China, India, Pakistan and the United States are among those yet to join the treaty, but only Myanmar and Russia are believed to have used mines in recent years, according to the campaign.
Civilians bear much of the brunt of mines because they can remain active for years in the ground, exploding with little provocation, decades after wars end.
More than 2.2 million anti-personnel mines, 250,000 anti-vehicle mines and 17 million other explosives left over from wars have been removed since 1999, the report said.
But finding and removing mines is a delicate and slow process. The explosives are more easily detected now with the use of trained dogs and new machines, but human deminers with metal detectors remain the most common technique.
The report is part of an annual series by the campaign since the land mine treaty came into force in 1999, and gave signatories 10 years to completely demine their territories. Fifteen countries have missed the deadline, the report said.
"The fact that still 10 years after the United Kingdom and Venezuela have not started formal clearance operations is unacceptable," said Stuart Casey-Maslen, an editor of the report. "At least the U.K. is planning to start clearance later this year and Venezuela the following year." Britain has an estimated 16,000 mines left on the Falkland Islands from its war with Argentina in 1982.
Peru and Ecuador also should do more, Casey-Maslen said, while Bosnia and Herzegovina is only clearing 1.2 square miles (3 square kilometers) a year, despite large resources for demining.
The report credited 11 countries with fulfilling their promise, including several Central American nations and France.
Demining activity was strongest last year in Afghanistan, Cambodia and Croatia, the study said.
*************************************************************
Independent Online
Suu Kyi detention 'baseless'
November 12 2009 at 12:45PM
Manila - US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called again on Thursday for the unconditional release of Myanmar/Burma democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, but suggested there could be high-level contacts with the country's military leaders at a summit this weekend.
She said Nobel Peace Prize winner Suu Kyi, who has been in detention for 14 of the last 20 years, had "every right, as any person should have...to participate in the active democratic life" of her country.
"We believe that her detention over so many years is baseless and not founded on any concern other than she is the leader of the political opposition," Clinton said at a news conference in the Philippine capital, Manila.
Clinton called for the opposition to be allowed to take part in the reclusive state's planned 2010 election.
But she also said there could be high-level contacts with the former Burma's junta at a meeting this weekend of Southeast Asian states to be attended by US President Barack Obama - though no formal bilateral meeting was planned.
"First of all there is no meeting," she told reporters.
"There may very well be an opportunity for the leaders, including myself, including the president, to meet the leaders of Burma, something that we have not done before."
The Obama administration decided in September to pursue deeper engagement with Myanmar to try to spur democratic reforms. Obama will be at the summit in Singapore on Sunday, where Lieutenant General Thein Sein, Myanmar's prime minister, will also be present.
Myanmar's military government is shunned by the West over its rights record, which has kept previous US presidents from meeting all 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, of which Myanmar is a part.
Clinton said of next year's planned election: "I will underscore our scepticism about an election that does not include all of the people or their representatives who are in opposition."
There were no plans, she said, to drop US economic sanctions on Myanmar.
"We have made it very clear we are not lifting sanctions on Burma but we are trying to encourage Burma to conduct the kind of internal dialogue with all the stakeholders, including Aung San Suu Kyi, that could lead to there being fair, free and credible elections next year." - Reuters
Suu Kyi detention 'baseless'
November 12 2009 at 12:45PM
Manila - US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called again on Thursday for the unconditional release of Myanmar/Burma democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, but suggested there could be high-level contacts with the country's military leaders at a summit this weekend.
She said Nobel Peace Prize winner Suu Kyi, who has been in detention for 14 of the last 20 years, had "every right, as any person should have...to participate in the active democratic life" of her country.
"We believe that her detention over so many years is baseless and not founded on any concern other than she is the leader of the political opposition," Clinton said at a news conference in the Philippine capital, Manila.
Clinton called for the opposition to be allowed to take part in the reclusive state's planned 2010 election.
But she also said there could be high-level contacts with the former Burma's junta at a meeting this weekend of Southeast Asian states to be attended by US President Barack Obama - though no formal bilateral meeting was planned.
"First of all there is no meeting," she told reporters.
"There may very well be an opportunity for the leaders, including myself, including the president, to meet the leaders of Burma, something that we have not done before."
The Obama administration decided in September to pursue deeper engagement with Myanmar to try to spur democratic reforms. Obama will be at the summit in Singapore on Sunday, where Lieutenant General Thein Sein, Myanmar's prime minister, will also be present.
Myanmar's military government is shunned by the West over its rights record, which has kept previous US presidents from meeting all 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, of which Myanmar is a part.
Clinton said of next year's planned election: "I will underscore our scepticism about an election that does not include all of the people or their representatives who are in opposition."
There were no plans, she said, to drop US economic sanctions on Myanmar.
"We have made it very clear we are not lifting sanctions on Burma but we are trying to encourage Burma to conduct the kind of internal dialogue with all the stakeholders, including Aung San Suu Kyi, that could lead to there being fair, free and credible elections next year." - Reuters
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VOA News - US Leaders May Interact With Burmese at Singapore Summit
By David Gollust, Manila
12 November 2009
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says she or President Barack Obama might meet Burmese leaders in the context of a U.S.-ASEAN summit Sunday in Singapore. The Obama administration is pressing Burmese military leaders to release detained democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and hold free, fair and credible elections next year.
The Obama administration shelved the isolation strategy of its predecessor and is trying dialogue with the Burmese military government to push it toward reform.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says there are no formal meetings planned, but she left open the possibility that she and President Barack Obama might interact with Burmese Prime Minister Thein Sein or other officials when they take part in a U.S.-ASEAN summit-level dialogue Sunday in Singapore.
Two senior U.S. diplomats went to Burma last week to open the dialogue and at a Manila news conference with Philippine Foreign Secretary Alberto Romulo, Clinton called the mission by Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian Affairs Kurt Campbell and his deputy Scott Marciel "very successful."
The two State Department officials were allowed to hold a private, unmonitored meeting with Aung San Suu Kyi.
Clinton said the United States continues to demand the unconditional release of the Nobel Peace laureate, who has been detained most of the time since 1990, when her National League for Democracy party won national elections but was barred by the military from taking power.
"We are trying to encourage Burma to conduct the kind of internal dialogue with all of the stakeholders including Aung San Suu Kyi that could lead to there being fair, free and credible elections next year," she said.
"We think that is an essential first step. We are continuing to call for the freedom of Aung San Suu Kyi. We believe that her detention over so many years is baseless and not funded on any concern other than that she is a leader of the political opposition," she added.
Clinton said Aung San Suu Kyi "has every right" to resume an active role in politics and that her future role would be something the Burmese people, and not the United States, would have to decide.
She said the United States would be highly skeptical of an election process that did not include representatives of all elements of the political opposition. She urged active involvement by Burma's neighbors to spur reform.
"What we want to do, along with friends like the Philippines and other ASEAN members is to encourage, urge, persuade the leadership of Burma to enter into this dialogue with their own people-to create the conditions for legitimacy that should be apparent when you have an election, and that is what we are looking to achieve," said the secretary of state.
Clinton said despite the outreach to Burma, the Obama administration is not dropping human rights related sanctions, which include a virtually total U.S. trade ban against that country.
Sunday's summit of the United States and ASEAN - the Association of Southeast Asian nations - will take place on the sidelines of the broader 21-nation Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Singapore.
By David Gollust, Manila
12 November 2009
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says she or President Barack Obama might meet Burmese leaders in the context of a U.S.-ASEAN summit Sunday in Singapore. The Obama administration is pressing Burmese military leaders to release detained democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and hold free, fair and credible elections next year.
The Obama administration shelved the isolation strategy of its predecessor and is trying dialogue with the Burmese military government to push it toward reform.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says there are no formal meetings planned, but she left open the possibility that she and President Barack Obama might interact with Burmese Prime Minister Thein Sein or other officials when they take part in a U.S.-ASEAN summit-level dialogue Sunday in Singapore.
Two senior U.S. diplomats went to Burma last week to open the dialogue and at a Manila news conference with Philippine Foreign Secretary Alberto Romulo, Clinton called the mission by Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian Affairs Kurt Campbell and his deputy Scott Marciel "very successful."
The two State Department officials were allowed to hold a private, unmonitored meeting with Aung San Suu Kyi.
Clinton said the United States continues to demand the unconditional release of the Nobel Peace laureate, who has been detained most of the time since 1990, when her National League for Democracy party won national elections but was barred by the military from taking power.
"We are trying to encourage Burma to conduct the kind of internal dialogue with all of the stakeholders including Aung San Suu Kyi that could lead to there being fair, free and credible elections next year," she said.
"We think that is an essential first step. We are continuing to call for the freedom of Aung San Suu Kyi. We believe that her detention over so many years is baseless and not funded on any concern other than that she is a leader of the political opposition," she added.
Clinton said Aung San Suu Kyi "has every right" to resume an active role in politics and that her future role would be something the Burmese people, and not the United States, would have to decide.
She said the United States would be highly skeptical of an election process that did not include representatives of all elements of the political opposition. She urged active involvement by Burma's neighbors to spur reform.
"What we want to do, along with friends like the Philippines and other ASEAN members is to encourage, urge, persuade the leadership of Burma to enter into this dialogue with their own people-to create the conditions for legitimacy that should be apparent when you have an election, and that is what we are looking to achieve," said the secretary of state.
Clinton said despite the outreach to Burma, the Obama administration is not dropping human rights related sanctions, which include a virtually total U.S. trade ban against that country.
Sunday's summit of the United States and ASEAN - the Association of Southeast Asian nations - will take place on the sidelines of the broader 21-nation Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Singapore.
*************************************************************
Wall Street Journal
NOVEMBER 12, 2009, 2:15 P.M. ET
Clinton Vows Continued Military Support for Philippines
By JAMES HOOKWAY
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton vowed Thursday to continue American military support for the Philippines' efforts to root out al Qaeda-linked insurgents, despite calls from some Filipino nationalists for the Philippine government to renegotiate the terms of the legal framework enabling U.S. troops to operate there.
Speaking in Manila, Mrs. Clinton also continued to apply pressure on Myanmar, repeating recent calls for the unconditional release of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi as the U.S. prepares for a summit with Southeast Asian states -- including Myanmar -- at an Asia-Pacific leaders summit in Singapore this weekend.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton greets students at a flood-stricken school east of Manila on Thursday.
Since 2005, U.S. troops have provided training and surveillance support for Philippine troops in their fight against a violent Islamist separatist group known as Abu Sayyaf.
The group made a name for itself kidnapping and sometimes killing foreign tourists, and is closely tied to the Jemaah Islamiyah terrorist group, which operates across Southeast Asia.
But the U.S. presence in the islands -- usually no more than 600 troops at a time -- rankles some leftist and nationalist groups in the Philippines, whose Senate in 1991 voted to end an agreement allowing the U.S. to run permanent bases in the islands. The Philippine Senate recently passed a nonbinding resolution calling on the government to renegotiate the 1999 Visiting Forces Agreement, which enables U.S. forces to train and assist Philippine troops even though it no longer maintains permanent bases there.
Senators complained that U.S. troops are given special privileges in the Philippines -- such as the right to be detained in the U.S. Embassy if they violate Philippine laws. So far, the Philippine government hasn't responded to that call.
"I would just reiterate that the United States stands ready to assist our friends in the Philippines who are seeking to counter terrorism and the threat of extremism and we will be willing to support them in any way that is appropriate that they request," Mrs. Clinton said at a news conference in Manila, the Associated Press reported.
The U.S. and Philippine militaries consider the U.S. mission there a success. It revolves around providing humanitarian assistance and infrastructure development as well as training and surveillance. A similar program was later applied in western Iraq's Anbar province to win over local chieftains.
Since the U.S. entered the Philippine conflict, the Abu Sayyaf has seen its numbers drop from 2,000 guerrillas to a few hundred operating in the thick interior of Jolo island, 600 miles south of Manila.
Last month, Philippine troops uncovered a large underground bunker complex on the island in a fresh blow against the rebels, while a larger Muslim insurgent group, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front has increasingly looked towards negotiating a peace agreement with the Philippines government.
On Myanmar, which is also known as Burma, Mrs. Clinton said no bilateral meetings are planned this weekend between U.S. President Barack Obama and the leaders of the military-led Southeast Asian state. But Mr. Obama is expected to meet Myanmar leaders in a group forum involving multiple heads of state from across Southeast Asia.
The U.S. in recent months has launched an effort to engage with Myanmar's reclusive leaders to persuade them to allow greater political freedoms. Washington, along with the European Union, also imposes strict economic sanctions on the country to encourage reform, and Mrs. Clinton has said the U.S. needs to see a concrete commitment to democratic reforms in Myanmar before it can re-think its sanctions policy.
The leaders of Southeast Asian countries, including Myanmar, are scheduled to meet with Mr. Obama this weekend on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in Singapore.
NOVEMBER 12, 2009, 2:15 P.M. ET
Clinton Vows Continued Military Support for Philippines
By JAMES HOOKWAY
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton vowed Thursday to continue American military support for the Philippines' efforts to root out al Qaeda-linked insurgents, despite calls from some Filipino nationalists for the Philippine government to renegotiate the terms of the legal framework enabling U.S. troops to operate there.
Speaking in Manila, Mrs. Clinton also continued to apply pressure on Myanmar, repeating recent calls for the unconditional release of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi as the U.S. prepares for a summit with Southeast Asian states -- including Myanmar -- at an Asia-Pacific leaders summit in Singapore this weekend.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton greets students at a flood-stricken school east of Manila on Thursday.
Since 2005, U.S. troops have provided training and surveillance support for Philippine troops in their fight against a violent Islamist separatist group known as Abu Sayyaf.
The group made a name for itself kidnapping and sometimes killing foreign tourists, and is closely tied to the Jemaah Islamiyah terrorist group, which operates across Southeast Asia.
But the U.S. presence in the islands -- usually no more than 600 troops at a time -- rankles some leftist and nationalist groups in the Philippines, whose Senate in 1991 voted to end an agreement allowing the U.S. to run permanent bases in the islands. The Philippine Senate recently passed a nonbinding resolution calling on the government to renegotiate the 1999 Visiting Forces Agreement, which enables U.S. forces to train and assist Philippine troops even though it no longer maintains permanent bases there.
Senators complained that U.S. troops are given special privileges in the Philippines -- such as the right to be detained in the U.S. Embassy if they violate Philippine laws. So far, the Philippine government hasn't responded to that call.
"I would just reiterate that the United States stands ready to assist our friends in the Philippines who are seeking to counter terrorism and the threat of extremism and we will be willing to support them in any way that is appropriate that they request," Mrs. Clinton said at a news conference in Manila, the Associated Press reported.
The U.S. and Philippine militaries consider the U.S. mission there a success. It revolves around providing humanitarian assistance and infrastructure development as well as training and surveillance. A similar program was later applied in western Iraq's Anbar province to win over local chieftains.
Since the U.S. entered the Philippine conflict, the Abu Sayyaf has seen its numbers drop from 2,000 guerrillas to a few hundred operating in the thick interior of Jolo island, 600 miles south of Manila.
Last month, Philippine troops uncovered a large underground bunker complex on the island in a fresh blow against the rebels, while a larger Muslim insurgent group, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front has increasingly looked towards negotiating a peace agreement with the Philippines government.
On Myanmar, which is also known as Burma, Mrs. Clinton said no bilateral meetings are planned this weekend between U.S. President Barack Obama and the leaders of the military-led Southeast Asian state. But Mr. Obama is expected to meet Myanmar leaders in a group forum involving multiple heads of state from across Southeast Asia.
The U.S. in recent months has launched an effort to engage with Myanmar's reclusive leaders to persuade them to allow greater political freedoms. Washington, along with the European Union, also imposes strict economic sanctions on the country to encourage reform, and Mrs. Clinton has said the U.S. needs to see a concrete commitment to democratic reforms in Myanmar before it can re-think its sanctions policy.
The leaders of Southeast Asian countries, including Myanmar, are scheduled to meet with Mr. Obama this weekend on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in Singapore.
*************************************************************
Nov 13, 2009
OBAMA ON THE ASIAN HIGHWAY
Asia Times Online - Myanmar up close
By Eli Clifton
WASHINGTON - United States President Barack Obama's attendance at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum leaders' meeting in Singapore next week will chart a new direction for US participation in Asian multilateral diplomacy and call attention to the new administration's policy of engagement with the reclusive military-led government in Myanmar.
Next week's summit between Obama and Southeast Asian leaders, which will occur on the sidelines of the APEC summit, signifies a major shift in US diplomacy towards Southeast Asia from the approach of the George W Bush administration, which focused on counter-terrorism and military cooperation but largely ignored regional diplomatic frameworks, while China expanded its economic ties to the region.
China's increasing economic engagement in Southeast Asia has become most evident in its extensive economic ties to the ruling military junta in Myanmar and the China-ASEAN free-trade agreement (FTA), which will come into effect in January.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, includes Brunei, Myanmar, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
Obama's summit with Southeast Asian leaders will be historic not only for the renewed US interest in US-ASEAN diplomatic ties, but also in that it will be one of the highest level meetings between a US president and a senior official - Prime Minister Thein Sein - in Myanmar's military junta.
The US imposes strict economic sanctions on Myanmar as a result of widespread allegations of human-rights abuses committed by the military junta.
ASEAN's policy of "constructive engagement" - seen by many human-rights activists as a justification for conducting lucrative trade with Myanmar - has been a divisive issue in US relations with ASEAN.
"The policy of ASEAN has been 'constructive engagement' but it was really profiteering," Jennifer Quigley, advocacy director at the US Campaign for Burma, told Inter Press Service. "Thailand and Singapore have been making loads of money off of this."
The Bush administration's policy of strict economic sanctions and no diplomatic engagement with Myanmar made it difficult to engage through the regional framework of ASEAN due to its inclusion of Myanmar.
The Obama administration's decision to engage the military junta diplomatically - while still enforcing strict economic sanctions - has been promoted by the US administration as both an opportunity for the US to participate in bringing about free and fair elections in 2010 and to engage ASEAN as a regional mediator in applying pressure to the ruling junta's leader, General Than Shwe.
OBAMA ON THE ASIAN HIGHWAY
Asia Times Online - Myanmar up close
By Eli Clifton
WASHINGTON - United States President Barack Obama's attendance at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum leaders' meeting in Singapore next week will chart a new direction for US participation in Asian multilateral diplomacy and call attention to the new administration's policy of engagement with the reclusive military-led government in Myanmar.
Next week's summit between Obama and Southeast Asian leaders, which will occur on the sidelines of the APEC summit, signifies a major shift in US diplomacy towards Southeast Asia from the approach of the George W Bush administration, which focused on counter-terrorism and military cooperation but largely ignored regional diplomatic frameworks, while China expanded its economic ties to the region.
China's increasing economic engagement in Southeast Asia has become most evident in its extensive economic ties to the ruling military junta in Myanmar and the China-ASEAN free-trade agreement (FTA), which will come into effect in January.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, includes Brunei, Myanmar, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
Obama's summit with Southeast Asian leaders will be historic not only for the renewed US interest in US-ASEAN diplomatic ties, but also in that it will be one of the highest level meetings between a US president and a senior official - Prime Minister Thein Sein - in Myanmar's military junta.
The US imposes strict economic sanctions on Myanmar as a result of widespread allegations of human-rights abuses committed by the military junta.
ASEAN's policy of "constructive engagement" - seen by many human-rights activists as a justification for conducting lucrative trade with Myanmar - has been a divisive issue in US relations with ASEAN.
"The policy of ASEAN has been 'constructive engagement' but it was really profiteering," Jennifer Quigley, advocacy director at the US Campaign for Burma, told Inter Press Service. "Thailand and Singapore have been making loads of money off of this."
The Bush administration's policy of strict economic sanctions and no diplomatic engagement with Myanmar made it difficult to engage through the regional framework of ASEAN due to its inclusion of Myanmar.
The Obama administration's decision to engage the military junta diplomatically - while still enforcing strict economic sanctions - has been promoted by the US administration as both an opportunity for the US to participate in bringing about free and fair elections in 2010 and to engage ASEAN as a regional mediator in applying pressure to the ruling junta's leader, General Than Shwe.
"I mean, if we're able to encourage the Burmese leadership to meet in dialogue with representatives of various aspects of Burmese society, we hope that that can be encouraged by other nations and by ASEAN, maybe facilitated by ASEAN, because planning for these elections must be a priority, and how it is monitored is something to be discussed and analyzed," US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told reporters in Singapore on Wednesday.
The Obama administration's new policy towards Myanmar was put on show last week when Kurt Campbell, the US assistant secretary of state for East Asian affairs, and his deputy, Scot Marciel, made a two-day trip to Myanmar where they met with senior junta officials as well as imprisoned pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
Human-rights advocates have expressed optimism that the Obama administration's policy of diplomatic engagement with Myanmar could prove productive, but warn that no concessions on sanctions should be made until the military junta shows a commitment to credible elections in 2010.
"The biggest thing is the election next year. If [the ruling military junta] wants to move ahead with this election and have international support then they'll have to show some tangible results before the election," said Quigley. "The test will be what the regime can give before the elections next year."
Ultimately, the APEC summit and sideline meeting with ASEAN leadership next week are unlikely to bring any major surprises or agreements. However, experts in Washington are pointing to the administration's new emphasis on APEC as a negotiating forum - it was relegated to the back burner during the Bush administration. They also see the renewed diplomatic engagement with Myanmar as a sign that the Obama administration intends to put a bigger emphasis on engagement with its allies in Asia-Pacific.
"Re-engaging with APEC would have other benefits as well," wrote Joshua Kurlantzick, fellow for Southeast Asia at the Council on Foreign Relations. "It would show East Asian opinion leaders that Washington wants to play a more central role in Asia's integration, rather than just standing on the sidelines as it has over the past decade."
"And it would demonstrate that the administration understands that form, as much as substance, matters in Asia - a lesson China understands well," he wrote.
While a new policy of increased diplomatic engagement in the region will likely receive high marks both in the US and abroad, the staggering economic growth in Southeast Asia - its combined nominal gross domestic product more than doubled between 2004 and 2008 - are on the minds of senior administration officials who cannot have overlooked the flurry of trade agreements signed by China over the past decade in the region.
Last year, China overtook the US in becoming Southeast Asia's third-biggest trading partner - after Japan and the European Union - with US$193 billion in trade.
"For the time being, the Obama administration's increased attention to the region should restore some confidence in the US. If the administration can sustain the effort, this may reduce the sense of urgency in the region to find a new structure that bends to China's growing influence there, while trying to strike a balance with a distracted US," wrote the vice president for Studies, Douglas H Paal, at the Carnegie Endowment for Peace.
The Obama administration's new policy towards Myanmar was put on show last week when Kurt Campbell, the US assistant secretary of state for East Asian affairs, and his deputy, Scot Marciel, made a two-day trip to Myanmar where they met with senior junta officials as well as imprisoned pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
Human-rights advocates have expressed optimism that the Obama administration's policy of diplomatic engagement with Myanmar could prove productive, but warn that no concessions on sanctions should be made until the military junta shows a commitment to credible elections in 2010.
"The biggest thing is the election next year. If [the ruling military junta] wants to move ahead with this election and have international support then they'll have to show some tangible results before the election," said Quigley. "The test will be what the regime can give before the elections next year."
Ultimately, the APEC summit and sideline meeting with ASEAN leadership next week are unlikely to bring any major surprises or agreements. However, experts in Washington are pointing to the administration's new emphasis on APEC as a negotiating forum - it was relegated to the back burner during the Bush administration. They also see the renewed diplomatic engagement with Myanmar as a sign that the Obama administration intends to put a bigger emphasis on engagement with its allies in Asia-Pacific.
"Re-engaging with APEC would have other benefits as well," wrote Joshua Kurlantzick, fellow for Southeast Asia at the Council on Foreign Relations. "It would show East Asian opinion leaders that Washington wants to play a more central role in Asia's integration, rather than just standing on the sidelines as it has over the past decade."
"And it would demonstrate that the administration understands that form, as much as substance, matters in Asia - a lesson China understands well," he wrote.
While a new policy of increased diplomatic engagement in the region will likely receive high marks both in the US and abroad, the staggering economic growth in Southeast Asia - its combined nominal gross domestic product more than doubled between 2004 and 2008 - are on the minds of senior administration officials who cannot have overlooked the flurry of trade agreements signed by China over the past decade in the region.
Last year, China overtook the US in becoming Southeast Asia's third-biggest trading partner - after Japan and the European Union - with US$193 billion in trade.
"For the time being, the Obama administration's increased attention to the region should restore some confidence in the US. If the administration can sustain the effort, this may reduce the sense of urgency in the region to find a new structure that bends to China's growing influence there, while trying to strike a balance with a distracted US," wrote the vice president for Studies, Douglas H Paal, at the Carnegie Endowment for Peace.
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Khaleej Times Online - OPINION: Myanmar: Witnessing a Season of Hope at Last?
Anand Sagar
12 November 2009
For many long years in Myanmar the hopes and aspirations of its people have been brutally crushed by one of the world’s most repressive and abusive military regimes in power. But, for once, there is also a flickering glimmer of hope that the generals might free the country’s foremost pro-democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi…soon. Or so it seems.
It is, of course, an ironical use of the four-letter word “soon.” After all, how soon is soon enough—considering that Suu Kyi has already spent some 14 of the past 20 years under solitary detention!
However, for whatever it might be worth, the Director of Myanmar’s Foreign Ministry Min Lwin has hinted, “there is a plan to release her soon…so she can organise her party.” That he has pointedly refused to elaborate is hardly surprising. But if the dictatorial military junta headed by General Than Shwe does, to any degree, relax her restrictions and Suu Kyi is in a position to stand for election and/or freely campaign for her National League for Democracy (NLD) party in the 2010 polls, the country would certainly witness some dramatic results.
And that because Suu Kyi, as is well remembered, had won a landslide victory in the last 1990 polls with the NLD securing 394 of the total 489 seats in the fray. What is equally well remembered with much anger is that the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) had promptly annulled the poll results. Suu Kyi, along with about 2,000 of her supporters, was imprisoned. And the more than alarmed generals in Rangoon had quickly tightened their slipping grip on power.
That Suu Kyi definitely retains her ability and her charisma to make a stunning political comeback, despite her party being in much disarray and her supporters highly de-motivated, is hardly in doubt. But, given these obvious implications of her release, what is surprising is what Min Lwin has said about the possibility of her release.
One wonders how much this apparent shift in attitude is motivated by next week’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Singapore, where the US President Barack Obama will meet various leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) -– including Myanmar’s Prime Minister General Thein Sein. And although it is known that President Obama is hardly likely to talk directly with Thein Sein, the very fact that he may be willing to follow a policy of engagement with Myanmar (almost universally shunned by the West over its poor rights record and refusal to allow free elections) may lead to a very welcome change in a country overpowered by over-ambitious generals and ruled by coercion.
The change may come gradually and grudgingly. But come it will. And already, there are signs that the political ‘atmospherics’ in Myanmar too is beginning to change.
After refusing UN Secretary General Ban ki-Moon permission to meet Suu Kyi in July this year, the authorities did allow the US Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell and his deputy Scott Marciel to meet senior government officials, including Prime Minister Thein Sein, and Suu Kyi.
Many nations and prominent international leaders have over the years been appealing for Suu Kyi’s release and democratic reforms within the country. But the international community has obviously failed to influence the generals in any tangible fashion. In fact, Obama himself has asked Myanmar’s military leadership to release Suu Kyi and the other several thousand political prisoners. There has also been mounting criticism of the ruling military junta by Myanmar’s ASEAN neighbours. The United Nations, condemning the country’s human rights record, has urged national reconciliation and the International Labour Organisation (ILO) had at one point announced it will seek “to prosecute members of the ruling Myanmar junta for crimes against humanity,” at the International Court of Justice.
The sheer economic mismanagement and political repression has sparked a series of pro-democracy demonstrations throughout the country in recent years and the widespread unrest has been escalating. What is now required to “spur democratic reforms,” as Suu Kyi put it after her recent meeting with the two American envoys, is a catalyst.
One hopes that any (even informal) dialogue between Obama and Myanmar’s Prime Minister Thein Sein in Singapore provides just that. Obama has the clout and the confidence to back his convictions when it comes championing the cause of democratic freedom. At least that has been his political persona so far. Now is the time to prove it.
As far as Suu Kyi herself is concerned, she has already provided an extraordinary example of “civil courage” in Asia—as was cited by the Norwegian Nobel Committee while awarding her the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize. But, unfortunately, her struggle is far from over. Pressing for more pressure and sanctions against a discredited military regime is just one option. However, what might work better is Obama’s well-calibrated policy of engagement—a sharp departure from previous US administrations. At least that is the fragile hope that Suu Kyi and her supporters must now be nurturing. Therein lies the key to the country’s future and the raison d’etre for continuing to fight for it.
Anand Sagar is Khaleej Times’ Foreign Editor, Professor Emeritus of the Indian Institute of Journalism & New Media, Bangalore, and former Visiting Fellow, University of Oxford. He can be reached at anandsagar@khaleejtimes.com
Anand Sagar
12 November 2009
For many long years in Myanmar the hopes and aspirations of its people have been brutally crushed by one of the world’s most repressive and abusive military regimes in power. But, for once, there is also a flickering glimmer of hope that the generals might free the country’s foremost pro-democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi…soon. Or so it seems.
It is, of course, an ironical use of the four-letter word “soon.” After all, how soon is soon enough—considering that Suu Kyi has already spent some 14 of the past 20 years under solitary detention!
However, for whatever it might be worth, the Director of Myanmar’s Foreign Ministry Min Lwin has hinted, “there is a plan to release her soon…so she can organise her party.” That he has pointedly refused to elaborate is hardly surprising. But if the dictatorial military junta headed by General Than Shwe does, to any degree, relax her restrictions and Suu Kyi is in a position to stand for election and/or freely campaign for her National League for Democracy (NLD) party in the 2010 polls, the country would certainly witness some dramatic results.
And that because Suu Kyi, as is well remembered, had won a landslide victory in the last 1990 polls with the NLD securing 394 of the total 489 seats in the fray. What is equally well remembered with much anger is that the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) had promptly annulled the poll results. Suu Kyi, along with about 2,000 of her supporters, was imprisoned. And the more than alarmed generals in Rangoon had quickly tightened their slipping grip on power.
That Suu Kyi definitely retains her ability and her charisma to make a stunning political comeback, despite her party being in much disarray and her supporters highly de-motivated, is hardly in doubt. But, given these obvious implications of her release, what is surprising is what Min Lwin has said about the possibility of her release.
One wonders how much this apparent shift in attitude is motivated by next week’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Singapore, where the US President Barack Obama will meet various leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) -– including Myanmar’s Prime Minister General Thein Sein. And although it is known that President Obama is hardly likely to talk directly with Thein Sein, the very fact that he may be willing to follow a policy of engagement with Myanmar (almost universally shunned by the West over its poor rights record and refusal to allow free elections) may lead to a very welcome change in a country overpowered by over-ambitious generals and ruled by coercion.
The change may come gradually and grudgingly. But come it will. And already, there are signs that the political ‘atmospherics’ in Myanmar too is beginning to change.
After refusing UN Secretary General Ban ki-Moon permission to meet Suu Kyi in July this year, the authorities did allow the US Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell and his deputy Scott Marciel to meet senior government officials, including Prime Minister Thein Sein, and Suu Kyi.
Many nations and prominent international leaders have over the years been appealing for Suu Kyi’s release and democratic reforms within the country. But the international community has obviously failed to influence the generals in any tangible fashion. In fact, Obama himself has asked Myanmar’s military leadership to release Suu Kyi and the other several thousand political prisoners. There has also been mounting criticism of the ruling military junta by Myanmar’s ASEAN neighbours. The United Nations, condemning the country’s human rights record, has urged national reconciliation and the International Labour Organisation (ILO) had at one point announced it will seek “to prosecute members of the ruling Myanmar junta for crimes against humanity,” at the International Court of Justice.
The sheer economic mismanagement and political repression has sparked a series of pro-democracy demonstrations throughout the country in recent years and the widespread unrest has been escalating. What is now required to “spur democratic reforms,” as Suu Kyi put it after her recent meeting with the two American envoys, is a catalyst.
One hopes that any (even informal) dialogue between Obama and Myanmar’s Prime Minister Thein Sein in Singapore provides just that. Obama has the clout and the confidence to back his convictions when it comes championing the cause of democratic freedom. At least that has been his political persona so far. Now is the time to prove it.
As far as Suu Kyi herself is concerned, she has already provided an extraordinary example of “civil courage” in Asia—as was cited by the Norwegian Nobel Committee while awarding her the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize. But, unfortunately, her struggle is far from over. Pressing for more pressure and sanctions against a discredited military regime is just one option. However, what might work better is Obama’s well-calibrated policy of engagement—a sharp departure from previous US administrations. At least that is the fragile hope that Suu Kyi and her supporters must now be nurturing. Therein lies the key to the country’s future and the raison d’etre for continuing to fight for it.
Anand Sagar is Khaleej Times’ Foreign Editor, Professor Emeritus of the Indian Institute of Journalism & New Media, Bangalore, and former Visiting Fellow, University of Oxford. He can be reached at anandsagar@khaleejtimes.com
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Myanmar to host ASEAN farmers week in Yangon
www.chinaview.cn 2009-11-12 10:54:04
YANGON, Nov. 12 (Xinhua) -- Myanmar will host an ASEAN Farmers' Week in Yangon in the last week of this month, aimed at promoting exchange of views and experiences among farmers in member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), sources with the Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation said on Thursday.
Dozens of delegates from ASEAN member countries will attend the15th event running for five days from Nov. 23 to 27, the sources said.
ASEAN delegates are arranged to make study trip to agricultural museum and orchid farms in Yangon division, crop plantation farms in Bago division and fishery undertakings in Ayeyawaddy division, the sources added.
Myanmar has been striving for development of agricultural and rural economy as agriculture, livestock breeding and forestry are the main industries of the 70 percent of the nation's population.
The country is also working to ensure abundant supply of food by making the best use of the nation's favorable aquatic, terrestrial and climate conditions.
According to Myanmar's agricultural report, the country enjoyed 4.89 million tons of surplus rice annually after fulfilling domestic consumption.
The country generated about 30 million tons of rice out of 8.26million hectares of paddy cultivated in the fiscal year 2008-09 which ended in March.
During the year, it exported over 700,000 tons of rice, setting a new record high in the export with an earning of about 200 million U.S. dollars.
Myanmar has set a new target of producing 32 million tons of rice in 2009-10, of which 1.5 million tons of rice are to be exported.
Agricultural sector represents the mainstay of Myanmar's economy, contributing 40 percent to the country's gross domestic product.
www.chinaview.cn 2009-11-12 10:54:04
YANGON, Nov. 12 (Xinhua) -- Myanmar will host an ASEAN Farmers' Week in Yangon in the last week of this month, aimed at promoting exchange of views and experiences among farmers in member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), sources with the Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation said on Thursday.
Dozens of delegates from ASEAN member countries will attend the15th event running for five days from Nov. 23 to 27, the sources said.
ASEAN delegates are arranged to make study trip to agricultural museum and orchid farms in Yangon division, crop plantation farms in Bago division and fishery undertakings in Ayeyawaddy division, the sources added.
Myanmar has been striving for development of agricultural and rural economy as agriculture, livestock breeding and forestry are the main industries of the 70 percent of the nation's population.
The country is also working to ensure abundant supply of food by making the best use of the nation's favorable aquatic, terrestrial and climate conditions.
According to Myanmar's agricultural report, the country enjoyed 4.89 million tons of surplus rice annually after fulfilling domestic consumption.
The country generated about 30 million tons of rice out of 8.26million hectares of paddy cultivated in the fiscal year 2008-09 which ended in March.
During the year, it exported over 700,000 tons of rice, setting a new record high in the export with an earning of about 200 million U.S. dollars.
Myanmar has set a new target of producing 32 million tons of rice in 2009-10, of which 1.5 million tons of rice are to be exported.
Agricultural sector represents the mainstay of Myanmar's economy, contributing 40 percent to the country's gross domestic product.
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ABC Radio Australia - Australia considering extra aid for Burma
Updated 9 hours 45 minutes ago
In the wake of Hillary Clinton's call yesterday for ASEAN states to put more pressure on Burma to hold democratic elections, Australia's Foreign Minister Stephen Smith Smith says Canberra is considering extending development assistance to Rangoon. It would represent a step beyond existing humanitarian aid, and would aim to both assist impoverished Burmese, and send a signal to the military government about the benefits of international support.
Speaking on the sidelines of the foreign, trade and finance ministerial meetings of the Asia-Pacific Cooperation Forum in Singapore, Mr Smith also expressed concern about the deepening rift between Thailand and Cambodia.
Updated 9 hours 45 minutes ago
In the wake of Hillary Clinton's call yesterday for ASEAN states to put more pressure on Burma to hold democratic elections, Australia's Foreign Minister Stephen Smith Smith says Canberra is considering extending development assistance to Rangoon. It would represent a step beyond existing humanitarian aid, and would aim to both assist impoverished Burmese, and send a signal to the military government about the benefits of international support.
Speaking on the sidelines of the foreign, trade and finance ministerial meetings of the Asia-Pacific Cooperation Forum in Singapore, Mr Smith also expressed concern about the deepening rift between Thailand and Cambodia.
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ColomboPage - Visiting Myanmar leader falls ill
Thu, Nov 12, 2009, 07:35 pm SL Time, ColomboPage News Desk, Sri Lanka.
Nov 12, Colombo: The visiting leader of Myanmar General Than Shwe has fallen ill and a special medical team has been sent to the President's House in Kandy to treat him.
According to the sources General Shwe who arrived in the island this afternoon is suffering from a minor stomach ailment.
Two doctors and two nurses from the Kandy General Hospital were sent to treat General Shwe who is staying at the President's house in Kandy.
The Head of State and his delegation is to pay homage to the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic and participate in religious ceremonies tomorrow.
Thu, Nov 12, 2009, 07:35 pm SL Time, ColomboPage News Desk, Sri Lanka.
Nov 12, Colombo: The visiting leader of Myanmar General Than Shwe has fallen ill and a special medical team has been sent to the President's House in Kandy to treat him.
According to the sources General Shwe who arrived in the island this afternoon is suffering from a minor stomach ailment.
Two doctors and two nurses from the Kandy General Hospital were sent to treat General Shwe who is staying at the President's house in Kandy.
The Head of State and his delegation is to pay homage to the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic and participate in religious ceremonies tomorrow.
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The Irrawaddy - Is Than Shwe Seeking Military Advice in Sri Lanka?
By SAW YAN NAING, Thursday, November 12, 2009
Burma’s military dictator Snr-Gen Than Shwe may well seek tactical advice pertaining to the defeat and eradication of ethnic rebels during his state visit to Sri Lanka, observers say.
Than Shwe left his capital, Naypyidaw, on Thursday for a four-day trip to Sri Lanka, the first official visit to the country by a Burmese head of state since Gen Ne Win in December 1962.
A Theravada Buddhist nation like Burma, Sri Lanka was visited by previous Burmese statesmen, including Gen Aung San and former Burmese Prime Minister U Nu.
During his trip, Than Shwe and his family will pay homage at the temples of the Sacred Tooth Relic in the town of Kandy and will pay a visit to Sri Lanka’s ancient capital of Anuradhapura, according to a Xinhua report on Thursday.
Observers said Than Shwe’s trip to Sri Lanka highlighted the close relations between Sri Lanka and Burma, because the junta strongman seldom travels abroad.
Burma does not have many interests in Sri Lanka, except for military and religious aspects, said U Aw Batha, a Buddhist monk in Sri Lanka.
Some observers say Burmese generals were inspired by Sri Lanka’s military defeat of the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), more commonly known as the Tamil Tigers, in May after more than a quarter century of civil war.
Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa paid a two-day state visit to Burma on June 14-15, one month before his troops defeated the Tamil rebels. The Burmese regime made a cash donation of US $50,000 to the Sri Lankan government to assist internally displaced persons in the South Asian country.
A few days after the presidential visit, a joint force of Burmese government troops and the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army defeated the Karen National Liberation Army’s Brigade 7, overrunning its headquarters and causing more than 3,000 refugees to flee to Thailand.
A veteran Burmese politician in Rangoon, Chan Tun, said Than Shwe may be looking to tighten relations with the Sri Lankan government by way of exchanging information about their respective defeats of ethnic insurgents. His trip is also a reciprocal diplomatic response following Rajapaksa’s visit to Burma, he added.
Benedict Rogers, the co-author of a forthcoming book called “Than Shwe: Unmasking Burma's Tyrant,” said he was surprised that Than Shwe is visiting Sri Lanka because he seldom travels overseas.
Than Shwe has visited foreign countries in the past, including China, India and member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
“It is almost certain that Than Shwe is keen to learn from the Sri Lankan government's success in crushing the Tamil Tigers, so that his regime can apply any lessons learned to its efforts against the ethnic groups in Burma,” said Rogers.
In May, at the 8th Shangri-La Dialogue Meeting in Singapore, Burma’s Deputy Defense Minister Maj-Gen Aye Myint said the world had witnessed the successful end of the conflict in Sri Lanka, but had forgotten about the insurgency in Burma.
However, despite the fact both the Tamil Tigers and Burma’s ethnic rebels shared the goal of achieving freedom and ethnic rights, the Tigers were widely regarded as a ruthless terrorist organization, said Rogers.
The LTTE was often hated by the people it claimed to defend, and was notorious for conscripting child soldiers and using women as suicide bombers.
“It is very important that the international community does not equate Burma's ethnic resistance groups with Sri Lanka's Tamil Tigers,” said Rogers.
By SAW YAN NAING, Thursday, November 12, 2009
Burma’s military dictator Snr-Gen Than Shwe may well seek tactical advice pertaining to the defeat and eradication of ethnic rebels during his state visit to Sri Lanka, observers say.
Than Shwe left his capital, Naypyidaw, on Thursday for a four-day trip to Sri Lanka, the first official visit to the country by a Burmese head of state since Gen Ne Win in December 1962.
A Theravada Buddhist nation like Burma, Sri Lanka was visited by previous Burmese statesmen, including Gen Aung San and former Burmese Prime Minister U Nu.
During his trip, Than Shwe and his family will pay homage at the temples of the Sacred Tooth Relic in the town of Kandy and will pay a visit to Sri Lanka’s ancient capital of Anuradhapura, according to a Xinhua report on Thursday.
Observers said Than Shwe’s trip to Sri Lanka highlighted the close relations between Sri Lanka and Burma, because the junta strongman seldom travels abroad.
Burma does not have many interests in Sri Lanka, except for military and religious aspects, said U Aw Batha, a Buddhist monk in Sri Lanka.
Some observers say Burmese generals were inspired by Sri Lanka’s military defeat of the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), more commonly known as the Tamil Tigers, in May after more than a quarter century of civil war.
Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa paid a two-day state visit to Burma on June 14-15, one month before his troops defeated the Tamil rebels. The Burmese regime made a cash donation of US $50,000 to the Sri Lankan government to assist internally displaced persons in the South Asian country.
A few days after the presidential visit, a joint force of Burmese government troops and the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army defeated the Karen National Liberation Army’s Brigade 7, overrunning its headquarters and causing more than 3,000 refugees to flee to Thailand.
A veteran Burmese politician in Rangoon, Chan Tun, said Than Shwe may be looking to tighten relations with the Sri Lankan government by way of exchanging information about their respective defeats of ethnic insurgents. His trip is also a reciprocal diplomatic response following Rajapaksa’s visit to Burma, he added.
Benedict Rogers, the co-author of a forthcoming book called “Than Shwe: Unmasking Burma's Tyrant,” said he was surprised that Than Shwe is visiting Sri Lanka because he seldom travels overseas.
Than Shwe has visited foreign countries in the past, including China, India and member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
“It is almost certain that Than Shwe is keen to learn from the Sri Lankan government's success in crushing the Tamil Tigers, so that his regime can apply any lessons learned to its efforts against the ethnic groups in Burma,” said Rogers.
In May, at the 8th Shangri-La Dialogue Meeting in Singapore, Burma’s Deputy Defense Minister Maj-Gen Aye Myint said the world had witnessed the successful end of the conflict in Sri Lanka, but had forgotten about the insurgency in Burma.
However, despite the fact both the Tamil Tigers and Burma’s ethnic rebels shared the goal of achieving freedom and ethnic rights, the Tigers were widely regarded as a ruthless terrorist organization, said Rogers.
The LTTE was often hated by the people it claimed to defend, and was notorious for conscripting child soldiers and using women as suicide bombers.
“It is very important that the international community does not equate Burma's ethnic resistance groups with Sri Lanka's Tamil Tigers,” said Rogers.
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The Irrawaddy - Women Arrested for Holding Buddhist Prayer Services for Suu Kyi
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Rangoon special branch police have arrested Naw Ohn Hla and three other women who regularly hold Buddhist prayer services for Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and charged them in a special court in Insein Prison.
They are charged with inciting activities to undermine public order under section 505 (B) of the penal code, according to attorney U Kyaw Hoe.
He said the women, who were arrested on Oct. 3, regularly held religious services for Suu Kyi on Tuesdays. They are being held in Insein Prison. The case could be heard on Monday, he said.
If found guilty, the women could be sentenced to up to two years in prison.
Special branch police said Naw Ohn Hla was carrying a copy of the Kamavaca, a Buddhist scripture recited at monastic services, he said.
The other women arrested were Ma San San Myint, Ma Cho Cho and Ma Cho Wai Lwin. The women were arrested at San-Pya Market in Thin-Gan-Gyun Township in Rangoon while on their way home from a monastery after offering food to monks.
Naw Ohn Hla, a former National League for Democracy (NLD) member, has been frequently detained by authorities for her political activism.
Her attorney said the women were simply engaged in a private Buddhist religious ceremony.
"The Kamavaca is just a religious scripture, and there’s no reason for arresting people for having it," he said.
A monk in Rangoon, told of the arrests, said it was an infringement of religious freedom.
"I feel sorry to hear this news,” he said. “It is an extreme act that shows no respect for religious freedom in our country. It is a pure violation of religious freedom. Almost every Buddhist usually keeps an image of the Buddha, some mantra or religious teaching close at hand. The act was based on prejudice and it makes the government look bad in the eyes of the international community.”
The Thailand-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners-Burma says 2, 168 political prisoners are being held in Burmese prisons.
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Rangoon special branch police have arrested Naw Ohn Hla and three other women who regularly hold Buddhist prayer services for Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and charged them in a special court in Insein Prison.
They are charged with inciting activities to undermine public order under section 505 (B) of the penal code, according to attorney U Kyaw Hoe.
He said the women, who were arrested on Oct. 3, regularly held religious services for Suu Kyi on Tuesdays. They are being held in Insein Prison. The case could be heard on Monday, he said.
If found guilty, the women could be sentenced to up to two years in prison.
Special branch police said Naw Ohn Hla was carrying a copy of the Kamavaca, a Buddhist scripture recited at monastic services, he said.
The other women arrested were Ma San San Myint, Ma Cho Cho and Ma Cho Wai Lwin. The women were arrested at San-Pya Market in Thin-Gan-Gyun Township in Rangoon while on their way home from a monastery after offering food to monks.
Naw Ohn Hla, a former National League for Democracy (NLD) member, has been frequently detained by authorities for her political activism.
Her attorney said the women were simply engaged in a private Buddhist religious ceremony.
"The Kamavaca is just a religious scripture, and there’s no reason for arresting people for having it," he said.
A monk in Rangoon, told of the arrests, said it was an infringement of religious freedom.
"I feel sorry to hear this news,” he said. “It is an extreme act that shows no respect for religious freedom in our country. It is a pure violation of religious freedom. Almost every Buddhist usually keeps an image of the Buddha, some mantra or religious teaching close at hand. The act was based on prejudice and it makes the government look bad in the eyes of the international community.”
The Thailand-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners-Burma says 2, 168 political prisoners are being held in Burmese prisons.
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India urged to change policy on Burma
by Salai Pi Pi
Thursday, 12 November 2009 20:02
New Delhi (Mizzima) – The New York based Human Rights Watch has urged the Indian government to change its current policy towards Burma before its elections in 2010.
Brad Adams, Executive Director of HRW’s Asia Division said on Thursday that the world’s largest democracy, India should press Burma to release Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi and other political prisoners to usher in genuine political reforms in the country, instead of strengthening its cozy ties with the regime.
“We think the Indian government should reverse it policy and stand for democracy and human rights in Burma,” said Brad Adams in a press conference held in the Women’s Press Club in New Delhi.
Adams said India’s role is important in pushing the Burmese military leaders to hold a genuine election next year while the international community, including Southeast Asian countries criticizes Burma for its human right records and slow pace in restoring democracy.
“India should not accept the forthcoming 2010 election in Burma if the regime does not release detained Aung San Suu Kyi and other political prisoners,” he said, “No one will take the poll result seriously.”
After the Burmese regime rigged the referendum to approve the constitution in 2008, it announced holding elections next year, which Adam said, will entrench military rule in the country.
India had supported the Burmese pro-democracy movement in 1988 but it changed its policy to appeasing the Burmese regime after it adopted the ‘Look East’ policy in 1993.
Instead of pushing the Burmese regime to go for political reforms, India strengthened its bilateral relations on trade, military and economic sectors with Burma for over a decade to counter the influence of China on Burma.
“India made a big mistake by competing with China in the Burmese market, particularly for energy as it has hoped for a long time that it will be awarded with major oil and gas concession but for 15 years, China had increased its penetration into the Burmese market,” Adams said.
He added, “China got most of the major contracts but India got nothing. China had already won over the Burmese market and it will continue to win it.”
Adams said if India changes its position and becomes a human rights proponent, China will be isolated when it comes to the Burma issue.
After the China factor, India had increasingly sought the help of the Burmese regime to launch counter insurgency operations against India’s Northeast armed rebels, reportedly taking shelter in Sagaing Division, in the northwest region of Burma.
“In return India also helps Burma in flushing out Burmese armed groups based in India,” Adams said, “ but there is no cooperation from Burma so far.”
by Salai Pi Pi
Thursday, 12 November 2009 20:02
New Delhi (Mizzima) – The New York based Human Rights Watch has urged the Indian government to change its current policy towards Burma before its elections in 2010.
Brad Adams, Executive Director of HRW’s Asia Division said on Thursday that the world’s largest democracy, India should press Burma to release Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi and other political prisoners to usher in genuine political reforms in the country, instead of strengthening its cozy ties with the regime.
“We think the Indian government should reverse it policy and stand for democracy and human rights in Burma,” said Brad Adams in a press conference held in the Women’s Press Club in New Delhi.
Adams said India’s role is important in pushing the Burmese military leaders to hold a genuine election next year while the international community, including Southeast Asian countries criticizes Burma for its human right records and slow pace in restoring democracy.
“India should not accept the forthcoming 2010 election in Burma if the regime does not release detained Aung San Suu Kyi and other political prisoners,” he said, “No one will take the poll result seriously.”
After the Burmese regime rigged the referendum to approve the constitution in 2008, it announced holding elections next year, which Adam said, will entrench military rule in the country.
India had supported the Burmese pro-democracy movement in 1988 but it changed its policy to appeasing the Burmese regime after it adopted the ‘Look East’ policy in 1993.
Instead of pushing the Burmese regime to go for political reforms, India strengthened its bilateral relations on trade, military and economic sectors with Burma for over a decade to counter the influence of China on Burma.
“India made a big mistake by competing with China in the Burmese market, particularly for energy as it has hoped for a long time that it will be awarded with major oil and gas concession but for 15 years, China had increased its penetration into the Burmese market,” Adams said.
He added, “China got most of the major contracts but India got nothing. China had already won over the Burmese market and it will continue to win it.”
Adams said if India changes its position and becomes a human rights proponent, China will be isolated when it comes to the Burma issue.
After the China factor, India had increasingly sought the help of the Burmese regime to launch counter insurgency operations against India’s Northeast armed rebels, reportedly taking shelter in Sagaing Division, in the northwest region of Burma.
“In return India also helps Burma in flushing out Burmese armed groups based in India,” Adams said, “ but there is no cooperation from Burma so far.”
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Karen refugees told to leave Thai camps
Nov 12, 2009 (DVB)–Refugees who fled to Thailand in June after fighting broke out in eastern Burma’s Karen state have been told by Thai authorities to leave the makeshift camps they had been living in.
Up to 5,000 Karen civilians are thought to have crossed into Thailand, where many found shelter in makeshift camps along the border. The exodus began as Burmese troops launched an offensive against the Karen National Union (KNU).
An official at one of the settlements near to Nu Po village in Thailand’s western Tak province said that Thai authorities had asked the refugees to leave their makeshift settlements.
“The Thai authorities have given a deadline for the refugees to move to Mae La refugee camp within 15 days,” he said. “They said that those who didn’t want to move to the new refugee camp may go back home [to Burma].”
Many of the refugees that left Burma spoke of repeated instances of forced recruitment by the Burmese army’s proxy militia, the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA).
The official said only four of the 29 families have gone back to Burma while the rest remained in Thailand at the houses of Thai-Karen sympathizers.
“Also the [Thai officials] claimed that some people among the refugees had links with the KNU and that they would be arrested,” he said, adding however that no arrests had yet been made.
The official said that a school that had opened for 200 children in the settlement was also ordered to close by Thai authorities.
Around 150,000 Burmese refugees live in camps along the Thai-Burma border. The Thai government has voiced concern about an increase in refugees fleeing heavy fighting in the run-up to elections in Burma next year.
A Karen man living in the camp near to Nu Po said that it was unlikely he would stay there for much longer.
“We are only temporarily staying here because we are afraid to stay in our village [in Burma],” he said. “We have no choice but to seek shelter here, but are also facing threats from the Thai authorities. I want to leave here too but I don’t know where to go.”
Reporting by Naw Noreen
Nov 12, 2009 (DVB)–Refugees who fled to Thailand in June after fighting broke out in eastern Burma’s Karen state have been told by Thai authorities to leave the makeshift camps they had been living in.
Up to 5,000 Karen civilians are thought to have crossed into Thailand, where many found shelter in makeshift camps along the border. The exodus began as Burmese troops launched an offensive against the Karen National Union (KNU).
An official at one of the settlements near to Nu Po village in Thailand’s western Tak province said that Thai authorities had asked the refugees to leave their makeshift settlements.
“The Thai authorities have given a deadline for the refugees to move to Mae La refugee camp within 15 days,” he said. “They said that those who didn’t want to move to the new refugee camp may go back home [to Burma].”
Many of the refugees that left Burma spoke of repeated instances of forced recruitment by the Burmese army’s proxy militia, the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA).
The official said only four of the 29 families have gone back to Burma while the rest remained in Thailand at the houses of Thai-Karen sympathizers.
“Also the [Thai officials] claimed that some people among the refugees had links with the KNU and that they would be arrested,” he said, adding however that no arrests had yet been made.
The official said that a school that had opened for 200 children in the settlement was also ordered to close by Thai authorities.
Around 150,000 Burmese refugees live in camps along the Thai-Burma border. The Thai government has voiced concern about an increase in refugees fleeing heavy fighting in the run-up to elections in Burma next year.
A Karen man living in the camp near to Nu Po said that it was unlikely he would stay there for much longer.
“We are only temporarily staying here because we are afraid to stay in our village [in Burma],” he said. “We have no choice but to seek shelter here, but are also facing threats from the Thai authorities. I want to leave here too but I don’t know where to go.”
Reporting by Naw Noreen
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