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| Southeast Asia | |
| Burma's military rulers in 'sham' drive on constitution | |
| 2004-05-17 | |
| Burma's military rulers are reviving public debate today on a new constitution as part of a political "roadmap", which Rangoon unveiled last year following pressure from Asian allies to clean up its image. But with Aung San Suu Kyi, Burma's charismatic opposition leader, again under house arrest, and her National League for Democracy party (NLD) boycotting the talks, US politicians and human rights groups have already dubbed the so-called National Convention to rewrite the constitution a sham. Western diplomats say it appears to have been set up merely to provide a civilian face - and a veneer of respectability - to the perpetuation of military rule. In 1990, Burmese voters fed up with three decades of inept and oppressive military rule handed a landslide parliamentary election victory to the two-year old NDL, whose leader, Ms Suu Kyi, was also then under house arrest. Burma's stunned generals refused to cede power. Instead, they proclaimed the vote was only to elect delegates for a National Convention, which would write a new constitution before any political handover. The constitutional talks that eventually started as a result went on for three years, but were suspended in 1996 after NLD delegates walked out. The NLD said last Friday it would not attend the talks, because of the junta's refusal to guarantee free and open discussion, or to release Ms Suu Kyi. Rangoon's roadmap was charted largely to appease fellow members of the Association of South-East Asian Nations, which were embarrassed when Ms Suu Kyi was attacked and re-arrested last May, just a year after her freedom from house arrest raised hopes of change. Concerned that Asean's reputation was being hurt by the generals' intransigence, Asean countries have quietly told the junta to make progress towards reform by 2006, when Rangoon is due to take over the regional group's leadership. The national convention is supposed to be the first step towards "free and fair" elections. But ground rules for the talks already point to an outcome far short of real civilian government, as delegates are expected to complete, and endorse, the controversial draft constitution abandoned earlier. That draft's "guiding principle" - mandated by the junta - states that the constitution will guarantee the military's independence and pre-eminent political role.
The NLD's absence will not deter the generals from attempting a political makeover, analysts and diplomats say. The junta's quest will be to try to reach agreements with Burma's myriad ethnic minorities, which together account for around 35 per cent of the population. But if the generals can reach deals with ethnic groups, the junta is likely to present its constitution as a fait accompli, and try to move on to the next stage of the process, ignoring the complaints of the west, as long as their Asian allies do not complain, says the analyst. | |
| Posted by:Steve White |
| #3 tu writes sparingly, but always has a nominee for the classics. I bow before that one |
| Posted by: Frank G 2004-05-17 8:04:28 PM |
| #2 Classic RB style houmor tu. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2004-05-17 7:47:20 PM |
| #1 Burma! Get in there for Myanmar! |
| Posted by: tu3031 2004-05-17 6:16:14 PM |