UCGUB VIEWS UN TO BEGIN THE END-GAME FOR BURMA

By: THAUNG HTUN

Published: 27/12/2008 at 12:00 AM

The UN is willing to allow the Burmese military junta to ride roughshod over international standards of human rights, political practice, economic sustainability and foreign relations.

The global body is allowing the regime to push on towards a sham election in 2010, which will inevitably bolster their power and defer the development of democracy in Burma.

While the shortcomings of the UN indicate a global system that is failing Burma, the UN is not alone.

Regionally, a virtual free-for-all has erupted as investors from China, Russia, Korea, Thailand and elsewhere rush into Burma. A resources and energy assets boom has given the military regime an opportunity to open the flood-gates. Sanctions in place in the US and the EU have ensured Burma's neighbours have few serious competitors, or watchdogs.

The National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma, as the legitimate and mandated de jure government in Burma has outlined a step-by-step plan for more focussed and successful engagement with Burma.

The first vital and unavoidable step would be for Mr Ban to visit the country as soon as possible. This would be an opportunity to present and embody the international community's concern over widespread human rights violations and the volatile actions of the country's rulers.

Second, the UN Special Envoy, Ibrahim Gambari must go to Burma again to meet officials and establish infrastructure to:

a) ensure the release of all political prisoners;

b) facilitate open negotiations between Aung San Suu Kyi and the SPDC;

c) to set up a permanent liaison office in Burma to pursue the direct intentions of the Secretary-General; and

d) to bring solutions to Burma's economic crisis.

Third, a process on on-going engagement needs to be rolled out. The generals need to be obliged to meet and engage appropriately with the UN Special Envoy and must grant all relevant UN officers unlimited access throughout the country.

Fourth, the UN should kick-off a process of national reconciliation, capitalising on the work already done by the NCGUB in this direction. This process must be inclusive of all opposition parties, the military and all ethnic groups. This must take place before the proposed elections in 2010 to head-off the usual ruses of the generals to exploit international goodwill, to marginalise authentic opposition voices in Burma and to ensure the irrevocably flawed 2010 election can never take place.

Fifth, all such processes need to have the full-backing of the UN and have their agenda set by the UN. This needs the backing of the UN member states, who must stand up and act on Burma more than they are, and should be a priority as the run-in to the 2010 election looms closer.

Sixth, this process has to be fully open, the dialogue made public and the results known to all, so as to ensure full accountability and the good governance of the initiative.

These are concrete steps, not idle thoughts. Such a programme will have the means of bringing progress to Burma. The international community understands these mechanisms and can work within them. Yet, there is inaction; a sense the rhetoric is there to knit a veil for international leaders.

Recently, Mr Ban said the actions of the junta are "abhorrent and unacceptable" and called for "bold action" on the generals' part to move towards democracy. But, the words will sink quickly without being forcefully backed by Mr Ban himself.

This is not the time to be overly fastidious in the interests of protocol or Realpolitik, or to protect the perceived dignity of the secretary-general's office. Our people are in grave danger. They and the world will forgive Mr Ban should he try hard and fall short. History will look more harshly on not trying at all.

As Mr Ban considers the moment, Burma drifts further and further away.

Thaung Htun is the United Nations representative for the National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma.

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UN PASSES TO FIND OUT BURMA HUMAN RIGHTS AND CHINA GAINS BIG GAME

The resolution, which addressed the issue of human rights in Burma, was carried on Wednesday by 80 votes to 25, with 45 abstentions.

t urged the Burmese government to halt arrests of political activists and expressed concern about incidents of torture and sexual abuse and the crackdown on peaceful protesters in September 2007.

The resolution also voiced concern over the process of the junta’s so-called “seven-step roadmap” toward democracy, including the planned general election, noting the failure of the regime to include other political parties, members of Burma’s main opposition party, the National League for Democracy, and representatives of ethnic political organizations.

An unnamed Burmese UN representative later rejected the resolution and accused the UN Assembly of "blatant interference" in his country’s internal political affairs. He said that although Burma would not feel bound by the resolution it would nevertheless continue to cooperate with the UN and the Secretary-General’s good offices.

The Burmese representative maintained that his country had made major political strides and was now in the process of democratization by carrying out the so-called seven-step roadmap.

Four of Burma’s Asean partners—Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand—abstained in Wednesday’s vote, while Cambodia was not present. Brunei Darussalam, Laos, Malaysia and Vietnam joined China, India and Russia, together with countries ranging from Algeria to Zimbabwe, in voting against the resolution.

Burma’s top diplomat at the UN, Kyaw Tint Swe, said in a recent confidential report to his country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs that international pressure on Burma would increase within the UN Security Council, particularly from Western members. The envoy said Western influence within the Security Council would increase when Japan and Uganda replace Indonesia and South Africa in January.

Japan voted in favor of the resolution on Wednesday, while Uganda was not present for the vote.

In late November, Burmese junta chief Snr-Gen Than Shwe said in the state-run newspaper The New Light of Myanmar that the seven-step roadmap is the only way to smooth the transition toward democratic reform in Burma.

The fifth stage of the seven-step roadmap will be the general election, scheduled for 2010.

According to human rights groups, Burma has more than 2,100 political prisoners. About 215 political activists were sentenced last month to prison terms of up to 68 years.

Myanmar gas to export to China

The three parties are the China National United Oil Corporation(CNUOC), Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise, and a consortium led by the Daewoo International Group Corporation, sources with the CNUOC said Thursday.

Under the agreement signed on Wednesday evening, the Shwe gas will be transmitted through pipeline and partly tapped along the route in Myanmar's territory to promote the economic development of the region, the sources said, adding that the contract agreement is effective for 30 years and it is estimated to start supplying gas in 2013.

The Shwe gas project, located at A-1 block in the Rakhine offshore area, has been developed by the Daewoo consortium comprising South Korea Gas Corporation, India's ONGC Videsh Ltd and Gas Authority of India Ltd.(GAIL).

The Shwe field holds a gas reserve of 4 to 6 trillion cubic-feet (TCF) or 113.2 to 170 billion cubic-meters (BCM), while the Shwephyu 5 TCF and the Mya 2 TCF with a combined proven reserve of5.7 to 10 TCF of gas being estimated by experts.

Myanmar has abundance of natural gas resources in the offshore areas. With three main large offshore oil and gas fields and 19 onshore ones, Myanmar has proven recoverable reserve of 18.012 trillion cubic-feet (TCF) or 510 billion cubic-meters (BCM) out of89.722 TCF or 2.54 trillion cubic-meters (TCM)'s estimated reserve of offshore and onshore gas, experts said, adding that the country is also estimated to have 3.2 billion barrels of recoverable crude oil reserve.

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88 Generation leader is seriouly suffering in Sittwe Prison and all activists need to step up action on the Burma's regime now.

OPIUM CULTIVATED BY REGIME AND POLITICAL PRISONERCOMMITS SUICIDE IN BAGO PRISON

Ailong Khammwe, chairman of the Lahu Democratic Front (LDF), an ethnic militia group operating in the region said, while the Burmese Army is directly involved in growing poppy-opium they are also forcing local people to cultivate it.Khammwe, who is in Thailand told about poppy cultivation, has been on the rise in Mongsart and Mongtong in eastern Shan State as a result of the Burmese Army's involvement and encouragement of local villagers to grow poppy-opium."Burmese soldiers are forcing the local people to cultivate poppy and actively helping in producing drugs," Khammwe alleged.The Burmese Army is profiting by collecting taxes from the local people for their poppy-opium cultivation, he said.While Khammwe's accusation of the Burmese Army's involvement and forcing of local villagers to cultivate poppy-opium could not be independently verified, a Thailand based Editor of Shan Herald Agency for News, Khuensai Jaiyen, said 2008 saw the highest poppy cultivation in Eastern and Southern Shan state, which has been steadily registering a rise since 2005.Jaiyen, who extensively covered drug production in Shan State, said following the decline in cultivation of poppy-opium in Northern Shan state, mainly in Wa and Kokang special regions, the cultivation trend has shifted to southern areas of the state.Following the ethnic armed group United Wa State Army (UWSA)'s decision to stop cultivating poppy-opium in 2005, poppy cultivation in Northern Shan state had gone down relatively, Jaiyen said, but only to shift to the South of the state. "Local people said, the poor economic situation and difficulties in ekeing out a living were forcing them to cultivate opium," said Jaiyen, adding that forcible collection of taxes by local authorities, including the army has also worsened the situation for the people.But contrary to LDF's claim, a local villager in Mongsert Township told Mizzima that he is unaware of the Burmese Army forcing villagers to cultivate opium though admitting that poppy opium cultivation has drastically increased in recent years."I do not know about any forced cultivation at the behest of authorities but I am also not aware of any kind of restriction or prohibition on not to do it. So it means that the authorities are allowing people to cultivate," said the villager, who wished not to be named.He said he has witnessed the drastic rise in the cultivation of poppy-opium in the past 10 years but denied knowledge of the Burmese Army forcing the local people to cultivate.The authorities have been into drug trade and they do not need to force the people to cultivate as it provides mutual benefits, the villager said.However, Khammwe said, he is willing to prove his argument by taking anyone interested to areas in Mongsert and Mongtong to witness local villagers, particularly ethnic Lahu, who are being forced to cultivate poppy-opium."If the international community wants to go there and see for itself, we the LDF are ready to take them to the SPDC's opium fields in Mongsert and Mongtong area now," said Khammwe, referring the Burmese junta by its official name – the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC).

Political Prisoner Commits Suicide

Maung San committed suicide in a prison restroom, following the refusal of prison authorities to provide proper medical treatment outside the prison. He suffered from intestinal problems and liver disease, sources said.
A source said Maung San’s decision to take his own life stemmed from frustration over medical treatment, and his inability to talk freely with his family.
“He suffered from a serious illness, and he thought it would be better if he died instead of suffered,” said the source.
His family last visited with Maung San on Dec. 13 in Pegu Prison.
“When his family visited him in prison, his health condition was bad,” said the source. “He had asked prison authorities for proper medical treatment, but the authorities refused his request.”
Bo Kyi, joint-secretary of the Thailand-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (Burma), said “The health condition of political prisoners is worse day by day. We are very concerned that they don’t receive proper medical treatment.”
“By ignoring serious illnesses, the Burmese authorities are conducting murder,” Bo Kyi said. Sources said that Pegu Prison authorities impose many restrictions in dealing with political prisoners and their families.
In other prison news, in early December, Aung Kyaw Oo, a youth member of the opposition National League for Democracy who is serving a 19-year sentence in Pegu Prison, was savagely beaten and denied medical treatment, according to reports. When Aung Kyaw Oo’s wife visited the prison on Dec. 3, she was denied permission to see him. She was allowed to visit him on Dec. 13. On December 22, political prisoner Khin Maung Cho received an additional 5-year prison sentence. He is imprisoned in Yankin Township in Rangoon. He was sentenced under Immigration Act 13/1. On December 8, he was given 19 years imprisonment on a separate charge. There are more than 2,100 political prisoners in Burma, according to human rights groups.

NORK KOREANS ARRESTED IN BURMA

"They were arrested when they entered over the border in eastern Myanmar in early December," said the official, who did not want to be named as he was not authorised to speak to media.

"As they were arrested in our territory, we are taking action against them under the immigration act," he told AFP. "Their main reason (for leaving) was to go to South Korea to meet with their relatives or family members there."

Many North Koreans cross China and travel through Laos and Myanmar to try and reach more sympathetic countries such as Thailand with the hope of winning eventual resettlement in South Korea.

China repatriates North Korean defectors as economic migrants. The Myanmar police official said he was not sure if the 19 people would be returned and said the North Korean embassy in Yangon had not yet intervened.

Military-ruled Myanmar and hardline communist North Korea, which are both severely criticised internationally for human rights abuses, agreed in April 2007 to restore diplomatic relations.

Myanmar severed ties with Pyongyang in 1983 following a failed assassination attempt by North Korean agents on then-South Korean president Chun Doo-Hwan during his visit to the Southeast Asian nation.

The bombing killed 17 of Chun's entourage including cabinet ministers while four Myanmar officials also died.

Myanmar, which has been ruled by generals since 1962, and North Korea have been branded "outposts of tyranny" by the United States, which imposes sanctions on both.

humanitarian aid from EU as Christmas Present

Myanmar to receive humanitarian aid from EU AS Christmas Present

The European Commission (EC) has decided to provide an additional 40.5 million EUR (US$56.7 million) in humanitarian aid to Myanmar, hard hit by Cyclone Nargis earlier this year, the Vietnam news agency (VNA) reported Friday.
About 22 million EUR (US$31.4 million) of the aid has been allocated to help cyclone-hit communities in and around the Irrawaddy delta, while the remainder of US$18.5 million EUR (US$26.4 million) is being provided for a 2009 programme targeting other highly vulnerable populations inside Myanmar, as well Myanmar’s refugees in Thailand. According to the EC, the executive arm of the European Union (EU), around two million people are expected to benefit directly from this support. European Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid Louis Michel was quoted as saying that the EU has “progressively developed a very good cooperation with the authorities on humanitarian access in the Irrawaddy Delta in the wake of the Cyclone Nargis.” The EU has also promised to continue advocating for similar cooperation and access to other parts of the country, he added.

UN CHIEF CRIES FOR TWO NATIONS AND BURMA BLAMES FOR US

At a year-end news conference, the U.N. chief said 2009 "promises to be no less difficult" than 2008, with a worsening humanitarian situation in Afghanistan, the danger of anarchy in Somalia, a continuing global financial crisis and the need to reach an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement.
Ban said he has been frustrated by the failure to protect innocent lives, and the lack of resources and political will to tackle important issues such as poverty, conflicts and climate change.
Though the world came together to confront the global financial crisis, "I fear we are only at the end of the beginning," Ban said, stressing that "global solidarity" will be key to a solution.
Ban said he was pleased at the world's response to natural disasters, including the devastating cyclone in Myanmar and hurricanes that lashed Haiti.
"Yet I am disappointed by the unwillingness of the government of Myanmar to deliver on its promises for democratic dialogue and the release of political prisoners," he said.
In Zimbabwe, Ban said, "the humanitarian situation grows more alarming every day" and the country "stands on the brink of economic, social and political collapse."
The secretary-general said he told President Robert Mugabe "things need to change urgently" during a meeting several weeks ago on the sidelines of a U.N. conference in Doha, Qatar, and Mugabe agreed to receive his envoy, Haile Menkarios.
"Now we are told that the timing is not right," Ban said. "If this is not the time, when is?"
The Southern African Development Community has insisted on leading diplomatic efforts to address the crisis, but eight months of talks have produced few results, Ban said, adding that "a fair and sustainable political solution" must come quickly.
In Congo, Ban said, U.N. forces "have held the line" but have been unable to protect innocent people from violence.
"Our record on human rights is on trial — in many places, in many ways," he said. "In this 60th anniversary year, we must stand strong for the Universal Declaration of Human Rights."
In conflict-wracked Darfur, he urged Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir to fully cooperate with U.N. resolutions and lamented that the joint U.N.-African Union peacekeeping force still needs helicopters and will only be 60 percent deployed by the end of the year.
In Afghanistan, he said "a political surge and a clear change of direction are required" to deal with growing insurgent attacks and the worsening humanitarian situation.
While the U.N. responded well to the world food crisis, tackling the problem on a wide front including nutrition, agricultural production, trade and social protection, "it has not gone away" he said.
Ban said he was pleased with U.N. and international efforts to keep climate change high on the global agenda.
"2009 will be the year of climate change," he said, stressing the importance of reaching a global deal requiring nations to make mandatory cuts in greenhouse gases starting in 2013.

Myanmar blames "extravagant" Americans for crisis

"I dare say that our country does not need to worry about the global financial crisis," the article said.
Newspapers are tightly controlled by the military, which has reduced a once-promising economy and country to an impoverished international pariah after more than four decades of rule.
Noting that the financial crisis had been spawned in the United States, the article said: "Americans are a people who are extravagant and do not hesitate to buy an elephant if it is available on credit."
Some independent observers were less optimistic about Myanmar's ability to sail through the crisis.
Despite abundant natural gas, minerals and timber coveted by China, India and other regional neighbours, Myanmar is among the world's poorest countries due mainly to the failed policies of a reclusive regime.
"Our economy is already in very bad shape. So it couldn't be worse," said a retired professor, noting that the main city, Yangon , experienced 20-hour blackouts each day.
Returning migrant workers had little hope of finding work after losing their jobs in neighbouring countries such as Thailand, where factories are closing or cutting production due to the global economic slowdown.
A member of the Federation of the Chambers of Commerce and Industry said export industries were already feeling the pain of slowing demand.
"There has been a steep drop in orders for some major export items such as garments and rubber," the businessman said.
The global economic downturn is a further blow to a tourism industry struggling to recover in the aftermath of cyclone Nargis in May, and the junta's bloody crackdown on pro-democracy protests in 2007.
In the ancient capital of Bagan, home to 1,000 year-old temples on the banks of the Irrawaddy River, the lack of tourists in the traditional peak season is threatening many with ruin.
"The lacquerware industry depends on tourists, but it is now facing a critical condition," one hotel operator said, adding that many artists were abandoning the centuries-old industry.

Lawyer’s Testimony Highlights Distorted Justice

"The government locks up peaceful activists, sends them to remote prisons, and then intimidates or imprisons the lawyers who try to represent them," said Elaine Pearson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch. "This abuse of the legal system shows the sorry state of the rule of law in Burma."
Saw Kyaw Kyaw Min, a 28-year-old lawyer from Rangoon, fled to Thailand several days ago after weeks in hiding. In late October 2008, a Rangoon court sentenced him to six months in prison under Section 228 of the Burmese Penal Code for contempt of court. He failed to intervene, on the judge's order, after his clients turned their backs on the judge to protest the way they were being questioned.
Saw Kyaw Kyaw Min had been defending 11 clients, all members of the National League for Democracy (NLD). Three other lawyers - Nyi Nyi Htwe, U Aung Thein, and U Khin Maung Shein - were arrested and sentenced to terms of four to six months in prison on the same charges. Saw Kyaw Kyaw Min learned of the charges in advance and went underground.
He described to Human Rights Watch the secretive workings of the Burmese legal system and the way in which political prisoners are denied access to fair trials. He said political activists awaiting sentencing in prison can meet with their defense lawyers only at police custody centers with police and intelligence officers present. Trials are often shrouded in secrecy, with lawyers not informed when their clients are to appear in court. Lawyers representing political prisoners face arbitrary delays when requesting assistance from authorities or documents such as case files, he said.
Human Rights Watch has already documented problems with the current unfair trials, including lack of legal representation for political prisoners. Among the hundreds sentenced in recent months, in late November a Rangoon court sentenced prominent comedian and social activist Zargana to 59 years in jail for disbursing relief aid and talking to the international media about his frustrations in assisting victims of Burma's devastating Cyclone Nargis.
Many political prisoners have recently been transferred to isolated regional prisons where medical assistance is poor or nonexistent and food is scarce. During the past few weeks, authorities sent Zargana to Mytkyina Prison, in the far-north Kachin State; the '88 Generation Students leader, Min Ko Naing, was transferred to the northeast Kentung jail of Shan State; and internet blogger Nay Phone Latt, who was sentenced to 20 years in prison for posting anti-government material on his website, was sent to the far-south prison at Kawthaung, across from Ranong in Thailand.
The newly-in-force ASEAN Charter sets out principles such as adhering to the rule of law and protecting and promoting human rights to which all members states, including Burma, should adhere. But compliance provisions are weak. ASEAN faces a considerable challenge in addressing Burma's lack of respect for human rights in the lead-up to multiparty elections in 2010.
Human Rights Watch urges Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan of ASEAN to dispatch an independent legal assessment team to monitor the treatment of political prisoners in Burma's courts and prisons. Human Rights Watch said ASEAN should also address Burma's lack of respect for the rule of law when it holds its rescheduled ASEAN summit meeting in early 2009.
"This is a test for ASEAN," said Pearson. "If ASEAN lets Burma get away with this farce of justice, the ASEAN Charter really is worthless."
Saw Kyaw Kyaw Min's account to Human Rights Watch
Saw Kyaw Kyaw Min was admitted to the Burmese Bar earlier in 2008. Since 2007, he has played a lead role in trying to represent activists charged under a raft of spurious laws, and he has been arrested several times for his political activities.
On October 23, he and another lawyer were defending 11 clients, members of the NLD, in Hlaingtharya Court, Rangoon on a range of charges related to peaceful political activities in 2007. Some of the defendants turned their back on the judge, U Thaung Nyunt of the Rangoon Northern District Court, to protest the unfair way defendants were being questioned by the prosecution. The judge instructed the lawyers to stop the defendants' behavior. According to Saw Kyaw Kyaw Min: "We both said to the judge, ‘We don't want to forbid our clients from doing anything, because we are defense lawyers and we act according to our clients' instructions.' The judge stopped the proceedings and set another court hearing date."
The next day, court officials informed Saw Kyaw Kyaw Min that his contempt-of-court hearing was set for October 30. Days later, at the courthouse, he saw and overheard a police officer and an assistant judge conspiring to arrest him. He fled and went into hiding.

AK 47 MADE IN WA REAGION FOR FIGHT

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Sai Sheng Murng, the deputy spokesman of the rival Shan State Army-South (SSA) said, “For more than one year now, the UWSA has been manufacturing AK-47 rifles similar to those made in China.”Another source close to the UWSA said, “They (the UWSA) learned how to make arms from the Chinese.“The arms and bullets the Wa produce are not only for their own battalions. They sell the arms to their ethnic allies in Shan State,” he added.There are several armed ethnic groups in the northern region, including the Shan State Army, the Kokang, Mongla and Kachin.Currently, the munitions factory is situated in Kunma, the hometown of UWSA Chairman Bao You-xiang, in the Wa hills 125 kilometers (78 miles) north of the group’s headquarters at Panghsang on the Chinese border, said the source.According to a Jane’s security report on December 12, the UWSA has turned to arms production to supplement their income from arms and drugs trafficking. The report said that the UWSA facility marks the first time an insurgent group in the region has succeeded in setting up a small-arms production line.In May, Jane’s Intelligence Review reported that the UWSA were acting as traffickers and middlemen, buying from Chinese arms manufacturers, then reselling the weapons to Indian insurgent groups and the Kachin Independence Army, which has also signed a ceasefire agreement with the Burmese military government.The UWSA has an estimated 20,000 soldiers deployed along Burma’s borders with Thailand and China, according to Burmese military analyst Aung Kyaw Zaw, while an estimated 60,000 to 120,000 Wa villagers inhabit areas of lower Shan State.The UWSA signed a ceasefire agreement with the Burmese military in the early 1990s. Leaders of the group, including its commander Wei Hsueh Kang, are wanted by the US government for their roles in the region’s drug trade.

UN CHIEF VISIT WOULD HELP AND A FLEE LAWYER FROM BURMA

TOKYO (AFP) – The European Union's special envoy on Myanmar said Monday a visit by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to the military-ruled nation would have a positive impact and trigger dialogue with the opposition.
Ban, who in May made the first visit by a UN chief to Myanmar in almost 45 years, said Friday that the atmosphere was not right for a return trip.
EU envoy Piero Fassino, a former Italian foreign minister, said that a visit by Ban must be "carefully prepared."
"We believe that a personal initiative by Ban Ki-moon could prove positive in establishing a serious dialogue between the junta, democratic opposition and ethnic minorities, which has not yet taken place," Fassino told reporters on a visit to Tokyo.
Last week more than 100 former leaders wrote to the UN chief urging him to travel to Myanmar to secure the release of political prisoners including democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who has spent years under house arrest.
Leaders who signed the letter included ex-US presidents George H.W. Bush and Jimmy Carter, former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, ex-Australian premier John Howard, former Japanese prime minister Junichiro Koizumi and ex-Philippine leaders Fidel Ramos and Corazon Aquino.
Fassino, who has not travelled to Myanmar in the year since his appointment, was in Japan as part of a tour of Asian nations.
He called for the world to act now to ensure the fairness of elections that Myanmar's military regime says it will hold in 2010.
"We cannot afford to stay still. We have to act now to obtain democratic guarantees," Fassino said.
"We want Myanmar's society and citizens to decide their own future. We want the 2010 general elections to be held in a fair and free environment," he added.
Ban said on Friday that he was frustrated at the failure of Myanmar's military to restore democracy.
"At this time I do not think that the atmosphere is ripe for me to undertake my own visit there," he said.
But he added: "I am committed, and I am ready to visit any time, whenever I can have reasonable expectations of my visit, to be productive and meaningful."
The European Union and United States have both slapped sanctions on Myanmar, but most Asian countries have focused instead on dialogue. China is Myanmar's main ally, while Japan -- in a rare break with Western allies -- is a major donor to the country.
Fassino said he was visiting Asia in hopes of finding a united front on Myanmar.
"The main concern for Asian countries is to avoid the destabilisation of the region," Fassino said.
"The EU and the US have implemented sanctions to force the opening of dialogue. The assessment of the tools to obtain this objective can differ but the goal is the same," he said.
Fassino said Japan, with its historical ties to Myanmar, had a "very important role to play," especially from next month when it becomes a member of the UN Security Council.

Fresh pressure from junta on UWSA

A UWSA official in an interview with Mizzima said, Maj-Gen Kyaw Phyoe, a Regional Commander of the Burmese Army based in Keng Tung had literally stepped up efforts to persuade the armed rebels to give up armed struggle and 'exchange arms for peace' – an euphemism for surrender used by the junta. In early December, Kyaw Phyoe met an UWSA official and made renewed calls to halt armed rebellion and to turn the group into a political party in preparation for contesting the ensuing the 2010 general elections."Yes, they [junta's commanders] often ask us to stop pursuing armed struggle," said the UWSA official, who spoke on condition of anonymity as he is not authorized to speak to the press.But the official said, despite the mounting pressure, the UWSA's official position has not altered and reiterated that the group is not ready to abandon arms."Arms to us are akin to farmer's farming tools. If farmers do not have spades and shovels they cannot work in the fields, likewise we will be useless without our arms," the official said.He, however, added that the group does not aim to continue armed struggle 'forever' but will pursue it until it can reach the objective of having a separate homeland under a federal democratic system."We would definitely do away with arms, once there is peace and justice in Burma," the UWSA official said.With regard to the junta's pressure to transform the group into a political party and contest the upcoming general elections, the official said, the group has not taken any decision and would continue observing the situation and eventually decide."For now, we have not taken any decisions. We would like to observe further and see the situation as the election approaches," the official added.Meanwhile, reports said, at least 1,000 armed men of the UWSA are into military drills along the Thai-Burma border in response to the junta's pressure to disarm the group.The official confirmed the drills and exercises being carried out by the group, but, denied that the military exercises were in response to the pressure. He said, the group is preparing for its 20th anniversary celebration to be held in April 2009."We are soldiers, so we are always into military training. We need to be ready for any eventuality," the official said.Like the UWSA, several other ethnic armed groups including the Kachin Independent Organisation (KIO) have all come under renewed pressure from the Burmese military to change into political parties, abandoning armed struggle.Burma's military junta has announced that as the fifth step of its seven-step roadmap to democracy, a general election will be held in 2010, in accordance with the new constitution that was drafted and approved in a referendum in May.According to the new constitution, Burma will be reformed and governed by a civilian participatory government and would have only one armed force. Analysts said this will give way for the military to disarm all other armed rebel groups including those that have ceasefire pacts with the junta. Military campaigns are likely to increase on other armed groups that so far do not have any ceasefire pacts.But ceasefire groups including the KIO and UWSA have so far not decided on what course they would to take – whether to yield to the pressure or to continue armed struggle.Aung Kyaw Zaw, a Burmese military-analyst based on the Sino-Burmese border, said the pressure will lead the ceasefire groups to seriously rethink their position and their future course."All ceasefire groups are in a tight situation now, and they need to really think carefully the path they choose," Aung Kyaw Zaw said.He added that with neighbouring countries such as Thailand and China, on whose soils many armed rebel groups have bases, favouring the junta, it might be difficult for these groups to resume armed struggle.But he did not rule out the possibility that these groups would resume active armed struggle if they are constantly pressured.A source close to the Chairman of the UWSA Bao Yu-xiang, said the group so far has no agenda of surrendering its arms or to exchange 'Arms for Peace'. Rather, if the pressure from the junta mounts, there are possibilities that group will break their ceasefire pact."If there is further pressure or demands from the Burmese Army [to give up arms] then they [UWSA] will likely break the [ceasefire] pact and resume a vibrant armed struggle," the source, who did not wished to reveal his identity told Mizzima.

PEACE WINNERS CALL TO FREE DAW AUNG SAN SUU KYI IN PARIS

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Junta Releases Activist after 2 Months of Interrogation

Junta Releases Activist after 2 Months of Interrogation

Burma’s military authorities freed a prominent member of the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) party Thursday after holding him for two months for questioning.
Party spokesman Nyan Win said that Ohn Kyaing, a 64-year-old former journalist, was well after being sent home from Rangoon’s notorious Insein Prison.
He said Ohn Kyaing was asked about the party’s cyclone relief effort and how it was funded, as well as other matters. He had been chairman of the party’s relief committee set up after Cyclone Nargis devastated the country in May, killing more than 84,000 people and leaving another 54,000 missing.
“I am very happy that Ohn Kyaing was freed but it is very unfair that he was held in prison for such a long time without committing any crime,” Nyan Win said.
Ohn Kyaing joined the party led by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi after a long career in journalism and ran successfully for parliament in a 1990 general election.
The NLD came out first in the polls, but the ruling junta refused to honor the results and would not let Parliament convene. Instead they stepped up arrests and harassment of the opposition.
Suu Kyi, the party leader, has spent more than 13 of the past 19 years under house arrest.
Nyan Win said that since November more than 270 activists—more than half of them members of his party—have been given prison sentences ranging from two to 68 years.
Burma’s military, which has held power since 1962, tolerates virtually no dissent. It has ramped up its crackdown on dissent since Buddhist monks led pro-democracy protests in September 2007.
According to international human rights groups the government holds more than 2,100 political prisoners, up sharply from nearly 1,200 in June 2007, before the demonstrations.
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REGIME REJECTS FOR SUU KYI

Kyi Win said that his written request to meet with Suu Kyi was rejected by the security forces on Monday.

According to the correct procedure, I sent a written request to the Special Branch of Burma’s police on December 3,” Kyi Win said. “In the letter I requested a meeting with my client, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, over her pending case on December 9. However the Special Branch called me on December 8 and told me they could not permit me to meet with her.” Kyi Win said that it was imperative he meet with Suu Kyi to tell her that he has filed an appeal against her continued house arrest to the appeals court in Naypyidaw, the military junta’s new capital.The Rangoon lawyer said that, although he was denied, Suu Kyi’s doctor, Tin Myo Win, was able to visit her at her lakeside residence on December 4 for about four hours.Kyi Win insisted he would try again. “I will repeat my request for a meeting with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi to the appeals court,” he said. Kyi Win originally filed an appeal against Suu Kyi’s continued house arrest to the appeals court in October. Prior to that, he said he had met with her five times to discuss the case. After meeting with Suu Kyi in early September, Kyi Win said that the opposition leader had lost weight and was shunning her daily food deliveries until her right to receive personal mail, magazines and newspapers had been restored. At that time, visits by her doctor were also restricted.The Burmese junta caved in to Suu Kyi’s demands in mid-September. In return, the opposition leader agreed to accept deliveries of food and household supplies.Since July 1989, pro-democracy icon Suu Kyi has been placed under house arrest or put in jail three times. She has spent 13 out of the past 19 years in detention.

Junta Has Crushed Peaceful Dissent: Laura Bush

“Children are conscripted as soldiers, and families are forced to perform life-threatening labor,” Bush told a select audience at the Council on Foreign Relations, a New York-based think tank, speaking on the occasion of Human Rights Day.
Bush, who has taken a personal interest in the plight of Burma, has been instrumental in shaping US policy on the country during her eight years in the White House. She has spent a significant amount of time talking about the country, its people and the brutality of its military rulers.
“The women of Burma have responded to this brutality with inspiring courage,” she said, adding that she herself has been inspired by the leadership and courage of Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
Referring to her frequent interaction with Burmese, Bush recalled her visit to the Thai-Burmese border in August, where she met Dr Cynthia Maung, who operates the Mae Tao clinic.
Hundreds of patients pass through the clinic’s doors every day. Most are migrant workers or refugees from Burma, while many others make the dangerous cross-border journey to Thailand because they have no access to health care in Burma.
“At Dr Cynthia’s clinic, I saw an American doctor performing eye surgery removing cataracts, which let people who had had these very severe cataracts see again for the first time, and it was a really—it was a thrill to get to see that. And also I saw victims of land mines waiting for treatment in the clinic,” she said.
Dr Cynthia left Burma in 1988, joining thousands of others who fled to Thailand following the military’s crackdown on a nationwide pro-democracy uprising. She crossed the border and opened the clinic expecting to be there for a few months, but 20 years later, she’s still there.
“The ruling junta has labeled Dr Cynthia an insurgent and an opium-smuggling terrorist. But she continues her work to give the people of Burma the care their government denies them,” Bush said.
Observing that a single voice can be a great weapon against a regime that denies basic human rights, Bush said in April she presented the Vital Voices Human Rights Global Leadership Award to Charm Tong.
At the age of 17, Charm Tong stood before the United Nations Commission on Human Rights to describe the military campaign being carried out against women in Burma’s Shan State.
“She spoke unflinchingly of rape and abuse, though her audience included representatives of the regime she condemned. Charm Tong continues to speak out about the regime’s abuses, and she ministers to the needs of those who have fled Burma,” the first lady said.
Bush also recounted the heroism of another Burmese woman, Su Su Nway, who defied junta representatives who tried to force her and her fellow villagers to repair a road.
“She brought the local officials to court under a law prohibiting forced labor—and she won. But the government filed a complaint against Su Su Nway for ‘insulting and disrupting a government official on duty.’ This labor activist was sentenced to 18 months in jail. She was released in June 2006 and then returned immediately to advocate for human rights. Then she was arrested in … November 2007 after posting fliers near a UN official’s hotel. She has since been sentenced to 12 years.”
Bush said all these female dissidents were following in the footsteps of Aung San Suu Kyi, the world’s only detained Nobel Peace Prize winner.
As leader of the democratically elected National League for Democracy (NLD), Aung San Suu Kyi has spent most of the past two decades under house arrest. The NLD won the last countrywide election in 1990, but has never been permitted to take power.
“Her example of strength has earned support from around the world, including from here in the United States,” Bush said, recalling bipartisan expressions of solidarity for the detained democracy icon in the US Senate.
Bush also took aim at Snr-Gen Than Shwe, who heads the Burmese junta, for his ongoing campaign to silence opponents of the regime ahead of planned elections in 2010, despite promises of working toward a democratic transition for his country.
“Since the Saffron Revolution of 2007, the number of political prisoners in Burma has increased from around 1,100 to more than 2,100 now. Female activist Nilar Thein was forced to leave her newborn child and flee into hiding. After a year on the run, she was captured and jailed this September.

MIN KO NAING IS SUFFERING IN PRISON

His sister Kyi Kyi Nyunt, who visited the prominent student leader on Thursday, said Min Ko Naing is in solitary confinement in the Keng Tung prison. He is suffering from an eye problem and his condition is deteriorating. He needs the attention of an eye specialist."We have requested the prison authorities to allow him a check-up and medical attention by an eye specialist," Kyi Kyi Nyunt told Mizzima over telephone, adding that the student leader has been suffering from the eye ailment since his detention in Rangoon's Insein prison. Kyi Kyi Nyunt said that Min Ko Naing is kept in a separate cell all by himself and though the prison situation seems normal, the severe weather in Keng Tung is having an adverse affect on his health."It is like keeping him in a refrigerator," said Kyi Kyi Nyunt, adding that she had requested the prison authorities to allow him to walk around and be in the sun occasionally because he seems to be having difficulty in moving his hands and feet due to the severe cold.Prominent student leaders Min Ko Naing and Ko Ko Gyi, who were arrested in mid-August 2007, after leading a peaceful march in Rangoon for a roll back of fuel prices which had pushed up costs of essential commodities, were shifted to Keng Tung prison last month after being handed lengthy prison terms of 65 years.But after spending about two nights in Keng Tung prison, Ko Ko Gyi was transferred to Mai Sat prison in Shan State, she added.Burma's military rulers over the past few months have handed down lengthy prison terms to political activists and begun transferring them to far-flung prisons across the country, making it all the more difficult for family members to visit them."The prison authorities said, we could meet him [Min Ko Naing] once in two weeks. But I don't think we can go that often because it is too far away. We might only be able to visit him once in a few months," said Kyi Kyi Nyunt, who returned to Rangoon on Tuesday evening from Keng Tung. In much the same way, other prominent political activists including comedian Zargarnar and blogger Nay Phone Latt were all transferred to remote prisons across Burma. Zargarnar has been transferred to a prison in the northern most city of Myitkyina of Kachin state, while popular rapper Zeya Thaw was moved to a prison in Burma's southern most town of Kawthawng.

UN Urged to Expand Ability on Preventing Atrocities

The United Nations must put more effort into prevention of genocide through diplomacy and must also be prepared to defend civilians from mass killings when necessary, an anti-genocide group advised Tuesday.
The Genocide Prevention Project is focusing on the UN because it believes a multilateral approach is the best way to tackle the problem, said Jill Savitt, the project's director.
"If it doesn't address these situations, we have to take a look at what the UN is doing," she said. "This is the reason for its existence, these crimes."
The project recommends that the UN Secretariat and Security Council work more closely with the Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide, getting information on early warning signs to avoid a descent into mass killing.
It also recommends that member states appoint high-level officials to focus on genocide issues, and calls on the UN to again consider a permanent civilian protection force.
On the group's "red alert" watch list of the countries of most concern for genocide are Sudan, Burma, Somalia, Iraq, Pakistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Sri Lanka and Afghanistan.
The report comes as a task force headed by former US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and former Defense Secretary Bill Cohen, who both served in the Clinton administration, recommended that President-elect Barack Obama make preventing genocide a priority and called for Congress to provide $250 million a year to deter such atrocities around the world.
Tuesday is the 60th anniversary of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide and the 20th anniversary of the US ratification of the treaty.
The Genocide Prevention Project has grown from Dream for Darfur, a campaign that worked with actress Mia Farrow to draw attention to victims of genocide during the Beijing Olympics.
More than 200,000 people have been killed and more than 2 million displaced in the Darfur region of Sudan. The US has called the killings genocide.

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THE 60 ANNIVERSARY OF HUMAN RIGHTS' DAY IN FORT WAYNE AND ASIAN LAW MAKERS PUSH UN

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More than 240 Asian lawmakers have called for the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to press Burma’s junta for the release of all political prisoners in the country. The Asean Inter-Parliamentary Myanmar Caucus (AIPMC), which organized this campaign, said in a press release on Monday that a total of 241 parliamentarians from Cambodia, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand have sent a public letter to Ban urging him to ensure the release of all Burma’s political prisoners by December 31. It is believed to be the first time in history that a large group of Asian lawmakers have sent a public letter to the UN. Roshan Jason, the executive director of the AIPMC, told The Irrawaddy on Monday that the group of Asian representatives has chosen Burma’s political prisoner issue because it is an essential step in the process of national reconciliation in the country. “The most important human rights issue is the release of political prisoners [in Burma] now,” he said. In the letter to the UN secretary-general, the Asian lawmakers said that the Burmese junta has used prisoners of conscience as political pawns, releasing a handful during and after visits by UN envoys while avoiding a complete release that would allow pave the way for true national reconciliation. “The suffering of the people must not be allowed to continue and the world can no longer sit idly by and only assist them when there is a devastating natural disaster,” said Kraisak Choonhavan, president of the AIPMC and a member of parliament for Thailand’s Democrat Party. The Asian parliamentarians’ call followed a similar petition on December 3 by 112 former world leaders—including Corazon Aquino, Tony Blair, George H W Bush, Jimmy Carter, Mikhail Gorbachev, John Howard, Chandrika Kumaratunga, John Major, Margaret Thatcher and Lech Walesa—to the head of the UN, calling for the release of all political prisoners in Burma. However, Ban told reporters on Friday that he will not visit Burma in the near future unless political progress is evident in the country. “At this time, I do not think that the atmosphere is ripe for me to undertake my own visit there,” he said. "But I am committed, and I am ready to visit any time when I can have reasonable expectations my visit will be productive and meaningful.” Commenting on Ban Ki-moon’s response, Roshan Jason said that he should reconsider his decision of canceling the trip. “He should realize that he would perhaps create a greater impact and [bring discussions over the political prisoners to the forefront of negotiations] with leaders of the regime,” the executive director of AIPMC said. “It is better to see them (the Burmese generals) in person—there will be more opportunity to talk about this particular issue and he can show his commitment to making sure prisoners are released.” Meanwhile, analysts are skeptical of the impact of the international campaigns to free political prisoners in Burma. “The international community highlighting the Burma crisis, such as issuing statements and petitions, is good,” said Aung Naing Oo, a Burmese commentator based in Thailand. “But the junta will think of this kind of action as just shooting them with flowers.” Since early November, courts in Burmese prisons have sentenced more than 200 people—from pro-democracy activists to bloggers—with jail terms of up to 65 years imprisonment. Aung Naing Oo said the junta often uses long-term imprisonment as a tool of “pre-emptive repression” to deter dissident movements.

UN CHIEF COMPLAINS" IT IS NOT ENOUGH TO HUNDLE BURMA"

UNITED NATIONS — UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Friday his direct involvement was "not enough" to resolve the current political stalemate in Burma and all its neighbors must play a more assertive role.

"My good offices should not be seen as an end in itself, or as a justification for inaction,” he told reporters at the UN headquarters in New York. “In order to be able to pursue this role in an effective manner, it is necessary for all concerned parties across the spectrum to step up efforts to help my good offices move forward."

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, seen here, has expressed growing frustration at the failure by Myanmar's military regime to restore democracy and said the time was not right for him to pay a return visit to the country. (Photo: AFP)

After attending a meeting of the Secretary General's Group of Friends on Burma, Ban told reporters: "While I will continue my good offices role as mandated by the General Assembly, all the countries of the membership, particularly the Group of Friends countries, should use their influence, they should use whatever available leverage and tools to impress upon the Government of Myanmar [Burma] to implement their commitment."

Ban created the Group of Friends on Burma last year to aid and advise him on the various issues related to Burma, in particular how to proceed on a path of democratization and national reconciliation.

Members are Australia, China, the European Union, France, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Norway, Russia, Singapore, Thailand, Britain, the US and Vietnam.

The meeting was convened in the aftermath of a letter written to Ban by more than 100 former presidents and prime ministers urging him to work for the release of all political prisoners in Burma by the end of the year.

Ban said since the last meeting: "I sense not only a higher expectation but also a growing frustration that our efforts have yet to yield the results we all hope for. I share this sense of expectation and frustration."

Referring to a statement from the Burmese government that cooperation with the UN is a cornerstone of their foreign policy, he said: "We welcome it, and we look forward to continue, and we expect a concrete action by them to implement their commitment."

Giving a sense of the discussions during the meeting, Ban said: "I have taken note of the group's concern that recent actions by the Government of Myanmar risk undermining the prospects of inclusive national reconciliation, democratic transition, and respect for human rights, and more generally at the lack of sufficient response to the concerns of the United Nations and the international community."

The secretary-general urged the Burmese junta to "respond positively without further delay" to specific UN suggestions, as endorsed by the Group of Friends, in particular the release of all political prisoners, including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, and the initiation of a genuine dialogue with the opposition.

Ban reiterated that he would visit Burma only if there is a real expectation of tangible progress.

"I am ready to visit Myanmar again, to continue our consultations on various issues—humanitarian issues, and also political issues,” he said. “At this time, I do not think that the atmosphere is ripe for me to undertake my own visit there.

"But I am committed, and I am ready to visit any time when I can have reasonable expectations my visit will be productive and meaningful,” he said.

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He had low blood pressure and difficulty breathing so we sent him to Yangon Medical Centre in Yangon at 7.30 pm Thursday," a relative of Win Tin's told DPA.Win Tin was released Sep 23 after serving 19 years in prison.A central executive member of the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) party, Win Tin was released under a broad government amnesty that included more than 9,000 prisoners, most of them common criminals.Win Tin was a prominent journalist, before he was arrested in 1989 and spent 19 years in prison.Upon his release, Win Tin told a handful of journalists that the country's military rule must end, and he will "keep fighting until the emergence of democracy" in Myanmar.Win Tin was arrested in July 1989, and three months later was sentenced to three years, but in 1992 before his release he was sentenced to an addition 11 years.Long prison terms for politcal opponents of Myanmar's ruling junta are common. Myanmar has been under military rule since 1962.Myanmar's courts last month sentenced dozens of political activists to 65 years in jail for participating in demonstrations in August and September 2007.The country's main opposition leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, has spent at least 12 of the last 19 years under house arrest.

Zargarnar, Nay Phone Latt awarded 'Cyber-Dissident' Award

Both Zargarnar and Nay Phone Latt were given the award for their courageous activities to cull information from Burma, despite the ruling junta's severe repression during the September monk-led 2007 protests and in the wake of the deadly Cyclone Nargis, the RSF said.The military rulers, who have had a stranglehold on power since 1988, have sentenced Zargarnar to 59 years in prison, while Nay Phone Latt has been jailed for 20 ½ years.The junta on Wednesday night banished the popular comedian, who used his artistic talents to criticize the regime's activities. He was transferred to Keng Tong prison in eastern Shan State."We don't know how to feel at this juncture, because he has been transferred to a remote prison in Keng Tong. We are only thinking of how to reach there. I will inform him about the award when I meet him," a family member of Zargarnar (alias) Thura told Mizzima.Along with a memento, the Burmese comedian and blogger will receive a cash prize of Euro 2500, equivalent to nearly 4 million Burmese kyat. It is to be handed over by the Iranian Nobel Peace Laureate Shirin Ebadi during a ceremony in Paris on Thursday.But since, the two are currently being detained, and will not be available to receive the award, a London based artist, Htein Linn, will receive it on their behalf."The award is given to draw international attention to their case and to highlight that they are innocent," Vincent Brossel, RSF's Asia-Pacific spokesperson told Mizzima.Nay Phone Latt's mother said, she welcomed the award and is proud of her son. She thanked the RSF for choosing her son as it highlights the injustice done to her son and many other people in Burma."This award will explain that many youths in Burma are being punished wrongly. Though my son is named the winner of the award, I feel he is receiving it on behalf of many youths in the country," she added.She said, she will inform her son of the award when she visits him in Paan prison in Karen state

CORRUPT SERVENTS FREE FOREVER AND BAN DOES NOT HAVE PLAN TO GO

A local township clerk, caught selling relief materials donated for victims of Cyclone Nargis in Irrawaddy division has been removed from office but sources said no action has been taken against him so far.Kyaw Soe, a clerk of the Pyapon Township Peace and Development Council in Irrawaddy division, was reportedly caught selling about 1000 rice bags of aid donated by the Saudi Arabian government in Rangoon earlier in November."He has been suspended from his job but we don't know what punishment is in store for him if at all," an official at the Pyapon Township PDC office told Mizzima. He added that so far the accused has not been prosecuted nor tried in any court."All investigations were done by the Bureau of Special Investigations (BSI) so they will report to higher authorities in the divisional office for further action," he added.Kyaw Soe, who was caught selling the rice bags for over 10,000 kyat each, was arrested by the BSI in Pyapon town the official said. He added that since the BSI had arrested him, if any charges are pressed against him it will be by the BSI.A BSI official in Pyapon town, when contacted by Mizzima, said the clerk has not been arrested. But he declined to comment further saying he was not authorized to speak to the press."We are not authorized to talk about this. He [Kyaw Soe] is at home, he is not here," said the BSI official.Meanwhile a local rice merchant in Pyapon, said he had known that the clerk, prior to his arrest, had been selling aid materials for personal gain."This is not the first time he has done this. He has done this sort of thing earlier many times but evaded arrest," the merchant said.The merchant added that Kyaw Soe had earlier sold about 900 bags of rice at 18,000 kyat per bag. And he has been bailed out by his family members from the custody of the BSI.The merchant said, earlier the head of Pyapon Township PDC, Myo Myint Zaw, was also suspended from office for illegally selling 6000 to 7000 bags of chemical fertilizers but the case was not proceeded with and the accused till today has not been punished."We know there is a lot of corruption relating to aid supplies but we dare not reveal it, because the authorities are involved," said the rice merchant.In the aftermath of Cyclone Nargis, the Saudi Arabian government had donated at least 370 tons of relief supplies including tents, foodstuffs, blankets, medicines, ambulances, rescue equipments, electric generators, according to information released by the Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia (RESA) in Washington D.C.Cyclone Nargis struck Burma on May 2-3, leaving over 2.4 million devastated and more than 130,000 killed or missing.

Ban will not visit Burma, despite calls by former world leaders

In response to the call, Michele Montas, spokesperson of the Secretary General, on Wednesday said the world body chief has reiterated his commitment to remain engaged on the Burmese issue both personally and through his special adviser, Ibrahim Gambari, but will not make a visit unless there are "reasonable expectations of a meaningful outcome."Yesterday, 112 former presidents and prime ministers urged Ban Ki-moon to pay a visit to Burma and press the junta to release all political prisoners, including Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.Signatories to the petition, initiated by former Norwegian Prime Minister Kjell Magne Bondevik, include former U.S. Presidents George H.W. Bush and Jimmy Carter, former British Prime Ministers Tony Blair, Margaret Thatcher and John Major and former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev.But Montas on said the secretary general "said he would like to visit Myanmar [Burma] again to discuss a broad range of issues but that he will not be able to do so without reasonable expectations of a meaningful outcome."She also said Ban's special envoy to Burma would not revisit the Southeast Asian nation "unless there was a real possibility of moving forward there."Ban visited military-ruled Burma in May, in the wake of deadly Cyclone Nargis, to convince its rulers to allow increased access for international aid workers and relief materials to help cyclone survivors. The cyclone left at least 130,000 dead or missing and devastated the lives of 2.4 million people in Burma's Rangoon and Irrawaddy Divisions.Ban on Wednesday received the letter and a phone call from former Norwegian Prime Minister Bondevik, the architect of the letter. The petition urged the world body chief to push for the release of all political prisoners in Burma, even if he chose not to return to the country.The petition and the response of the UN chief come amidst the Burmese junta's continued sentencing of dissidents to long prison terms and transferring them to remote prisons across the country.On Wednesday, the junta transferred a popular hip-hop singer, Zeya Thaw, arrested for his involvement in last year's protests, to a prison in Burma's southernmost town of Kawthaung.
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2009 UN HAS TO SAVE BURMA AND CHINA TIES WITH REGIME FOR MILITARY

There was no immediate reaction from the office of the secretary-general to the letter, which is an initiative of Kjell Magne Bondevik, the former prime minister of Norway.
“We urge you to make it clear that all political prisoners in Burma must be released by the end of this year, regardless of whether you travel to Burma,” said the letter dated December 3.
“If the Burmese junta continues to defy the United Nations by refusing to make these releases by the end of the year, we urge you to encourage the Security Council to take further concrete action to implement its call for the release of all political prisoners,” the world leaders said.
Ban was initially scheduled to go to Burma this month, but with no progress in sight since his last visit in May—in fact, the situation appears to be worsening—the secretary- general has said that he is unlikely to return to the country in the near future.
“We encourage this trip because it would illustrate for the world whether or not the Burmese military regime is serious about making changes called for by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and your good offices,” said the letter.
The world leaders said they are heartened that Ban has taken up this issue and that he has reiterated in his budget request for the office of his special envoy to Burma that a key benchmark to measure progress in the country is whether all political prisoners, including opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, are released by December 31, 2008.
Observing that the Burmese military junta’s continuing crackdown on dissidents is in defiance of the international community and the UNSC, the letter said: “The Burmese people are counting on the United Nations to take the required action to achieve the breakthrough they desperately need to both restore democracy to their country and address the serious humanitarian and human rights challenges that they face.”
Among important signatories to the letter are Corazon Aquino, Tony Blair, George H W Bush, Jimmy Carter, Mikhail Gorbachev, John Howard, Chandrika Kumaratunga, John Major, Margaret Thatcher and Lech Walesa.
“This is a historic outpouring of global support for the people of Burma, and I am pleased that so many have joined me in spotlighting this important issue,” Bondevik said in a statement.
“Today we unite to call on the United Nations to take action. The first step towards achieving national reconciliation in Burma is creating a firm deadline for the release of all political prisoners,” he argued.
Bondevik is also president of the Oslo Center for Peace and Human Rights.
Meanwhile, as the Security Council met Tuesday to discuss their agenda for the month of December, it became evident that there are no takers for the cause of the people of Burma inside this powerful 15-member UN body.
For two months now, Burma has been reduced to a footnote on the agenda of the UNSC.
While persecution of democracy advocates in Burma has intensified, with more than 200 dissidents receiving lengthy prison sentences in recent months for their involvement in protests last year, no country has come forward to raise the issue before the Security Council.
“On Myanmar [Burma], no delegation gave any comment. But it is in the footnotes and could be raised anytime during the month of December,” said the UNSC president for December, Ambassador Neven Jurica of Croatia.
However, informed sources indicated that the is unlikely to be raised, as the main supporters of the people of Burma inside the UNSC—in particular permanent members Britain, France and the US—are preoccupied with other issues, including terrorism, the global financial crisis and conflicts in Somalia.
The silence of the US—which has always taken the lead in highlighting the need for action on Burma in the past—is also due to the political transition in Washington, where a new administration is preparing to take power in January.
This may explain why the US mission to the UN has not taken up the issue even after the White House in a statement urged the UNSC to act on the issue of Burma.

China, Burma take steps to strengthen military cooperation

Chinese and Burmese senior military officials on Saturday agreed to boost bilateral cooperation in various fields including military ties, a move observers said is meant to ensure the Burmese junta international support. Burma's third highest ranking military official, General Thura Shwe Mann, and his counterpart, Chen Bingde, Chief of the General Staff of China's People's Liberation Army (PLA), on Saturday agreed to enhance military relations."The two countries should enhance military and state-to-state exchanges to promote regional peace, stability and prosperity," reports quoted Chen as saying.The agreement also includes the signing of a series of pacts on cooperation in the areas of economics, trade, culture, education, health, technology and tourism.However, Burmese military observers believe the two senior military officials also agreed on joint military exercises, in addition an agreement for Burma to purchase new military hardware as well as spare parts for the maintenance of earlier purchases. "It is very possible that they discussed and agreed on an arms deal, joint military exercises and the buying of some peripheral equipment for military hardware such as helicopters, jet fighters and warships that Burma earlier bought from China," Aung Kyaw Zaw, a Sino-Burmese border based military analyst said. Aung Kyaw Zaw added that both countries might have included the issue of ethnic ceasefire groups, referring to groups including the United Wa State Army (UWSA), Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) and Kokang rebels, who operate along the Sino-Burmese border.Burma, according to Aung Thu Nyein, another Burma analyst based in Thailand, is currently faced with a shortage of spare parts for maintaining Chinese made jet fighters, warships and artillery earlier bought."Apparently, that is the reason Burma is seeking closer ties with China," Aung Thu Nyein said.However, another Burmese analyst believes that the close Sino-Burmese relationship is driven by China's economic interest in Burma and Burma's interest in obtaining political support."It is also a part of Burma's policy toward China, as China defends the Burmese regime in the international arena," said Nyo Ohn Myint, in-charge of Foreign Affairs for the National League for Democracy-Liberated Area.China and Russia, two veto wielding countries at the United Nations Security Council, in January 2007, rejected a draft resolution on Burma introduced by the United States and supported by the United Kingdom and France.Following the objection of the resolution on Burma by China and Russia, the Burmese junta announced its decision to sell its much sought after offshore gas in the Bay of Bengal to China. Rights to the gas from the Shwe fields had been contested by India, South Korea and Thailand.Similarly, in October, Burma agreed to allow China to build oil and gas pipelines that will link China's Yunnan province with Burma's western seaport of Sittwe in Arakan state. The proposed pipeline will be a major route through with China will import oil and gas from the Middle East and Africa.Critics further believe that the Burmese regime plans to accept new military hardware from China in exchange for the gas."The Burmese regime plans to accept military hardware from China in exchange for supplying gas," Aung Thu Nyein speculated.China, a close ally of Burma, has continued to supply military hardware and equipment to Burma even while the United States and European Union maintain an arms embargo against Burma's military's rulers in response to their appalling human rights record and failure to implement political reform.