Minister for Foreign Affairs Welcomes Burma Parliamentary Congress to Ireland

http://foreignaffairs.gov.ie/home/index.aspx?id=80905


20/01/2009
The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Micheál Martin, TD, today welcomed Members of the Parliamentary Union (MPU) of Burma, the National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma (NCGUB) and its Prime Minister, Dr Sein Win, who are in Ireland to hold a Congress and consultations with other representatives of Burmese civil society and ethnic groups.


The MPU Congress will elect a new government-in-exile for the next four-year period. The Department of Foreign Affairs has provided financial support to enable this four-yearly Congress and associated meetings to be held in Ireland. Similar support was provided for a Congress here in 2000.


The Minister said: “This year’s MPU Congress is taking place against the backdrop of a country ravaged by more than 18 years of brutal military dictatorship; the detention and suppression of Aung San Suu Kyi and all those seeking justice and democracy; decades-long sentences on political opponents; flagrant infringements of human rights and fundamental freedoms; wars against the country’s many ethnic groups; the plundering of the country’s wealth and natural resources to fund their brutal regime and for their personal gain; and a deeply flawed Road Map political process, which is to culminate in elections scheduled for next year.”


Minister Martin also paid tribute to Burma Action Ireland for its long-standing support for the cause of the Burmese people and its role in preparations for the Congress.

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20th January 2009
Press Office