Burma opposition make bid for Junta talks

Burma’s leading opposition party has issued a call for talks with the military regime following a bloody crackdown on pro-democracy protesters.

The military government has offered to meet with detained pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, but on condition she renounce calls for international sanctions against the military regime, which has been widely condemned for breaking up the protests last month.

“The success of a dialogue is based on sincerity and the spirit of give and take,” said the National League for Democracy statement, which was based on past speeches by Suu Kyi. “The will for achieving success is also crucial and there should not be any preconditions.”

“The will to meet and negotiate is the key to resolving the country’s dire problems,” said the statement – the party’s first since the junta’s offer to meet with Suu Kyi.

The statement appeared to be an attempt by the party to encourage the junta to engage Suu Kyi in talks, but without abandoning its platform.

The statement emphasised past statements by Suu Kyi, saying the party could make “adjustments” for the sake of dialogue.

The NLD made its move as the government mouthpiece the New Light of Myanmar newspaper printed an announcement on its front page saying that Deputy Labour Minister Aung Kyi had been appointed “minister for relations” to coordinate contacts with Suu Kyi.

Aung Kyi has a reputation among foreign diplomats, UN officials and aid groups as being relatively accessible and reasonable – a contrast to other top junta leaders who are considered deeply insular, suspicious and fiercely hostile toward Suu Kyi.

Protests erupted on August 19 after the government raised fuel prices and the rallies mushroomed into a national movement that was crushed when troops fired on demonstrators on September 26 and 27.

The regime said 10 people were killed, but dissident groups put the toll at up to 200 and say 6,000 people were detained, including thousands of monks who led the rallies.

Global outrage was directed at the junta, with the international community condemning the crackdown and calling for the release of the 62-year-old Suu Kyi, a Nobel peace laureate who has been under house arrest for 12 of the past 18 years without trial.

The government announced last week that the junta’s leader, Senior Gen Than Shwe, was willing to meet personally with Suu Kyi, but only if she met certain conditions. Than Shwe has only met with Suu Kyi once before, in 2002, and the talks quickly broke down.

Last night, the US Mission to the United Nations circulated a revised draft statement on Burma in which it “strongly deplores the violent repression by the government of Myanmar of peaceful demonstrations, including the use of force against religious figures and institutions”.

It also calls on the government to stop all forms of “repressive measures”, including the detention of protesters, and open a dialogue with the various political and ethnic groups in the country toward national reconciliation.

The statement will be reviewed further today and could possibly be revised further by other Security Council members.

While a presidential statement is not binding on members, it would be a step forward for the council to come to a consensus on one regarding Burma.

While many nations in the west have called for sanctions to punish the regime and force it to open up the political process, China – which has a veto on the UN Security Council – is arguing against sanctions.

“Sanctions or pressure will not help to solve the issue in Myanmar,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao told a regular news conference in Beijing yesterday.

He said China was encouraged that the situation in Burma was calmer now. “We hope this momentum can be maintained,” he said.

Russia also disagrees, saying the unrest in Burma is an internal issue and does not threaten regional security.

The junta has come under intense international pressure to enter talks with Burma’s democracy movement. The junta did not indicate when the new official might meet with the Suu Kyi.

It appeared, however, that Aung Kyi would coordinate Suu Kyi’s contacts with both the regime and the UN, which is seeking to end the political deadlock between democracy advocates and a military that has ruled since 1962.

His naming appeared to be a nod to the UN.

The world body’s special envoy, Ibrahim Gambari, suggested creating the Cabinet-level job during his visit to Burma earlier this month, the newspaper announcement said. It added that the junta had accepted the idea “in respect of Gambari’s recommendation and in view of smooth relations with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi”.

“Daw” is a polite term for addressing older women.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon talked to First Lady Laura Bush by phone yesterday morning, and the two discussed Gambari’s trip to Burma and his briefing on Friday to the Security Council, the UN spokesman’s office said.

The UN Human Rights Council’s head appealed to the junta yesterday to allow a visit by the council’s Burma specialist, Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, barred from Burma since 2003.

Romanian Ambassador Doru-Romulus Costea, who chairs council, said it had instructed Pinheiro to go to Burma as soon as possible to assess the human rights situation.

Costea met with Nyunt Swe, the top diplomat at the Burma Mission to UN offices in Geneva, and sent him a letter underscoring the request, officials said.

“I would appreciate receiving a reply to the council’s request at your earliest convenience,” Costea said.

The military presence has considerably eased in Rangoon’s streets in recent days.

There were no more barricades, except along the road going to Suu Kyi’s house, which has three layers of barbed wire barricades and sandbagged troops’ positions.

Yesterday, a few monks could be seen walking along the streets, holding begging bowls.

People crowded open-air food stalls in the evening, with the curfew called back to 10pm and ending at 4am.

Some residents, however, continued to feel uneasy despite the calm, fearing sporadic raids and possible arrests.

The current junta came to power after crushing a 1988 pro-democracy uprising by killing as many as 3,000 people.

Burma’s previous constitution was suspended in 1988. The junta then allowed elections in 1990, but nullified the vote after Suu Kyi’s party won.