The Hindu : Military unmoved in Myanmar

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Tuesday, Aug 05, 2003

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Military unmoved in Myanmar

By V. Jayanth

It may be in Myanmar's own interest to begin a genuine national debate on a democratic form of governance.

THE FUTURE of Myanmar and the pro-democracy movement led by the Nobel Laureate, Aung San Suu Kyi, remains at a crossroads despite years of intermittent efforts for a return to the democratic path. In the latest showdown with the military junta ruling Myanmar, Ms. Suu Kyi was `arrested' on May 30, following a clash between her supporters and some pro-junta groups. Ever since, there have been several attempts by regional groups and the international community to secure Ms. Suu Kyi's release and open the door for a fresh dialogue in Myanmar. The U.S. too has got into the act, slapping some economic sanctions on the regime in Yangon.

Now, under pressure from the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), of which it is a member, Myanmar has agreed to `resolve' the impasse before the next regional summit, or take Indonesia's help in doing that. Indonesia currently chairs ASEAN and its Foreign Minister, Hassan Wirajuda, discussed the controversy with his Myanmar counterpart, Win Aung, before securing this commitment.

It is eight years since Ms. Suu Kyi was released by the junta, in July 1995, after six years of incarceration — and 15 years since the military junta assumed power in what was then called Burma. But there has been no tangible progress on the path to democracy. Except for cosmetic changes, including in the renaming of the State Law and Order Restoration Council as the Peace and Development Council in 1997, not much has changed.

The problem really burst in the open with the uprising of the youth in 1988 against a military takeover. This was followed by a clampdown. Under international pressure, the junta conducted a general election in 1990, in which the National League for Democracy (NLD) led by Ms. Suu Kyi won a nearly four-fifths majority in parliament. But the election of Ms. Suu Kyi, daughter of Dow Aung San, popularly acknowledged as the `father of the nation,' was set aside by the junta which went on to assume complete power and control.

Periodically from 1990, the military rulers have come under pressure from the international community to at least open a dialogue with the pro-democracy forces and implement a package of political and economic reforms. To Ms. Suu Kyi's credit, it must be noted that from the day of her release in 1995, she has only asked for a dialogue. An ardent follower of Mahatma Gandhi, she remains committed to non-violence.

Through these trying times, Myanmar was isolated not just from its neighbours but the rest of the world too, though the United Nations periodically publicised the human rights violations that were being reported from the country by activists and opposition members. But during this phase of isolation, Myanmar turned to its `big' neighbour, China, for comfort and help which it received in plenty.

It was then that the ASEAN decided to initiate what it called "constructive engagement" with Myanmar. ASEAN's focus was not so much on human rights or on political reforms; some of its members are themselves practitioners of "guided democracy." This policy of engagement led to the inclusion of Myanmar in ASEAN in 1997, which resulted in significant economic cooperation. As an offshoot of its entry into the regional grouping, Myanmar shared a platform with two of its staunch critics — the U.S. and the European Union, who are Dialogue Partners of ASEAN.

With Ms. Suu Kyi's arrest two months ago, some of ASEAN's founder members have come under pressure from the West to show results on its policy of "constructive engagement." As a result, ASEAN may have started a rethink on its approach to Myanmar, without giving up the new relationship. The one-on-one that the Myanmar Foreign Minister had with both the Indonesian President, Megawati Sukarnoputri, and her Foreign Minister is seen as a clear signal from ASEAN to Yangon to get moving on political reforms, even if in a small way.

Indonesia has always been a model for the military junta. For about 10 years now, the military rulers have been trying to frame a new Constitution for Myanmar based on the earlier Indonesian concept of a `socio-political role' for the armed forces. This was a system that saw Gen. Suharto rule for over three decades, before his regime was virtually overthrown by a popular uprising across the archipelago. The armed forces had a 25 per cent share in parliament seats and controlled the elections to determine the composition of parliament. The President was elected by parliament.

Even after a decade, the ruling Generals in Myanmar have yet to come up with an acceptable Constitution for the country and have shown no signs of conducting an election. It may be in Myanmar's own interest to begin a genuine national debate on a democratic form of governance suited to the nation and announce a time-table for its implementation. Such a course will also prevent its further marginalisation.

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