News & Articles on Burma-Sunday, 16 January, 2011

News & Articles on Burma
Sunday, 16 January, 2011
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Southeast Asian nations call for Europe, US to lift Myanmar sanctions
Indonesia Urges Lifting of Sanctions on Burma
Myanmar ethnic parties call for sanctions lift
ASEAN to push Myanmar on democracy, wants sanctions lifted
ASEAN to keep pushing Myanmar for democracy progress
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International Relations | 16.01.2011
Southeast Asian nations call for Europe, US to lift Myanmar sanctions

Member of the Guard of Honor blows a horn with the Myanmar flag in the background
Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Politicians in and outside Myanmar want sanctions lifted
A group of southeast Asian nations say they hope the release of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi will act as springboard for democracy, and have called on the West to lift economic sanctions against Myanmar.

The 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have called for the European Union and the United States to lift economic sanctions after the release of Aung San Suu Kyi, an opposition leader held in Myanmar under house arrest for most of the last two decades.

A joint declaration released Sunday said sanctions imposed by the United States and European countries "are causing many difficulties in the important areas of trade, investment and modern technologies for the development of ethnic regions."

"ASEAN leaders again urge, especially after the release of Aung San Suu Kyi and the elections, that the policy on sanctions against Myanmar be reviewed as they have an impact on development in Myanmar," Indonesia's Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa said.

Aung San Suu Kyi Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Suu Kyi was released from house arrest in November

Myanmar, also known as Burma, is an ASEAN member. The group maintains policy of non-interference in members' domestic affairs and has engaged with Myanmar's government rather than imposing sanctions.

The association's call followed a statement by Myanmar's main ethnic minority political parties Sunday, urging that the economic sanctions be lifted as ahead of the first meeting of the country's new parliament at the end of January.

Contested election

All five ethnic groups that won seats in Myanmar's controversial elections in November signed the statement. The largest of the groups, the SNDP, will have 57 seats when parliament and regional legislatures convene on January 31.

Myanmar's November election resulted in a landslide win for government-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party, which won 882 of 1,160 seats amid allegations of fraud and voter intimidation.

US President Barack Obama's administration began a dialogue with Myanmar's military rulers in 2009, but has said sanctions will only be lifted in return for progress on democracy and other concerns.

One of the poorest countries in the world, Myanmar has been ruled by the military since 1962 and has been subject to Western sanctions because of the junta's human rights abuses.

Author: Sarah Harman (AP, AFP)
Editor: Sean Sinico http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,14769760,00.html?maca=en-rss-en-eu-2092-rdf
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Indonesia Urges Lifting of Sanctions on Burma
January 16, 2011

Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa, pictured, says ASEAN is appealing for the lifting of international sanctions against Myanmar and will push for reconciliation between Burma’s military-controlled government and recently released democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi. Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa, pictured, says ASEAN is appealing for the lifting of international sanctions against Myanmar and will push for reconciliation between Burma’s military-controlled government and recently released democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi.

Lombok, Indonesia. Foreign ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations are appealing for the lifting of international sanctions against Burma, which held its first elections in two decades in November.

Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa also said Sunday that ASEAN will push for reconciliation between Burma’s military-controlled government and recently released democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi.

He was speaking on the sidelines of a meeting of ASEAN foreign ministers on Indonesia’s resort island of Lombok.

The United States and some other Western nations have imposed political and economic sanctions to punish Burma’s junta for its poor human rights record and slow move toward democracy.

Associated Presshttp://www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/indonesia-urges-lifting-of-sanctions-on-burma/417288
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Jan 16, 2011
Myanmar ethnic parties call for sanctions lift

YANGON - MYANMAR'S main ethnic political parties called on Sunday for Western nations to lift economic sanctions on the country as its new parliament prepares to convene for the first time.

A joint declaration said sanctions imposed by the United States and European countries 'are causing many difficulties in the important areas of trade, investment and modern technologies for the development of ethnic regions'.

'We ethnic parties together request that the United States and European countries lift sanctions,' the minority parties said.

The declaration was signed by the Shan Nationalities Democratic Party (SNDP), the Rakhine Nationalities Development Party, the Chin National Party, the All Mon Region Democracy Party and the Phalon-Sawaw Democratic Party.

All five groups won seats in Myanmar's controversial elections last year, with the largest ethnic winner being the SNDP, which will take a total of 57 seats when parliament and regional legislatures convene on Jan 31.

The government-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party claimed an overwhelming majority in the polls, winning 882 seats amid allegations of fraud and intimidation, plus the exclusion of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi. -- AFP http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/SEAsia/Story/STIStory_624793.html
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ASEAN to push Myanmar on democracy, wants sanctions lifted
Credit: Reuters/Foreign Ministry Documentation/Rudi Hartanto/Handout
SENGGIGI, Indonesia | Sun Jan 16, 2011 4:18am EST

SENGGIGI, Indonesia (Reuters) - The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) wants the U.S. and Europe to lift sanctions against member Myanmar after its recent elections and release of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, it said on Sunday.

The moves by Myanmar, a politically isolated state that has often been an international embarrassment to the region, have given it a veneer of democracy but have not loosened its military rulers' firm grip on power.

ASEAN will keep pushing Myanmar to build on the release of Suu Kyi by including her in the political system, but countries which uphold sanctions against the country should recognize progress made so far, said Marty Natalegawa, foreign minister of Indonesia and ASEAN chair this year.

ASEAN advocates "the immediate or early removal or easing of sanctions that have been applied against Myanmar by some countries," Natalegawa told reporters on the sidelines of a meeting of ASEAN foreign ministers on Lombok island in Indonesia.

The release of Suu Kyi should act as springboard for greater progress toward democracy, Natalegawa told Reuters.

"She is some part of the solution not the problem," Natalegawa told Reuters during a meeting of Southeast Asian foreign ministers on Lombok island in Indonesia. "Developments must not be allowed to dissipate."

The Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), whose 10 members include Myanmar, has a policy of non-interference in member's domestic affairs and has tried engaging with Myanmar rather than imposing sanctions as the West has done.

Myanmar's November election, resulting in a landslide win for an army-backed party after allegations of fraud, left Suu Kyi with no political role, though analysts say she may now be more of an asset for the generals in efforts to ease international sanctions.

Indonesia, chair of ASEAN in 2011, wants progress this year, Natalegawa said, after the topic was among the first to be discussed at the three-day meet.

Regional ASEAN summits, aimed at building an economic community by 2015 that would encompass some 500 million people and some of the world's fastest growing economies, have often been overshadowed by controversy over the Myanmar junta.

"We have been promised that Myanmar will cease to be a problem for ASEAN in its engagement with the international community," said ASEAN Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan, after talks between ministers. He said ASEAN was seeking greater access to Myanmar's leaders.

Pitsuwan said Myanmar would like to take the chairmanship of ASEAN in 2014, though for that to happen there would need to be international confidence in its stability.

Greater integration with Myanmar would also lead to investment, he said, with the group eyeing areas such as a road link to India, food production, energy generation, and tourism.

(Reporting by Neil Chatterjee; Editing by Daniel Magnowski) http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE70F0D320110116?rpc=401
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ASEAN to keep pushing Myanmar for democracy progress
Reuters

Southeast Asian nations want to push Myanmar this year to build on its recent election and release of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi by including her in the political system, they said on Sunday. Skip related content
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ASEAN foreign ministers pose during a group photo before the opening of the ASEAN Foreign …More Enlarge photo

The moves by Myanmar, a politically isolated state that has often been an international embarrassment the region, have given it a veneer of democracy but have not loosened its military rulers' firm grip on power.

The release of Suu Kyi should be a precursor for moves towards greater democracy, said Indonesia's Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa.

"She is some part of the solution not the problem," Natalegawa told Reuters during a meeting of Southeast Asian foreign ministers on Lombok island in Indonesia. "Developments must not be allowed to dissipate."

The Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), whose 10 members include Myanmar, has a policy of non-interference in member's domestic affairs and has tried engaging with Myanmar rather than imposing sanctions as the West has done.

Myanmar's November election, resulting in a landslide win for an army-backed party after allegations of fraud, left Suu Kyi with no political role, though analysts say she may now be more of an asset for the generals in efforts to ease international sanctions.

Indonesia, chair of ASEAN in 2011, wants progress this year, Natalegawa said, after the topic was among the first to be discussed at the three-day meet.

Regional ASEAN summits, aimed at building an economic community by 2015 that would encompass some 500 million people and some of the world's fastest growing economies, have often been overshadowed by controversy over the Myanmar junta.

"We have been promised that Myanmar will cease to be a problem for ASEAN in its engagement with the international community," said ASEAN Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan, after talks between ministers. He said ASEAN was seeking greater access to Myanmar's leaders.

Pitsuwan said Myanmar would like to take the chairmanship of ASEAN in 2014, though for that to happen there would need to be international confidence in its stability.

Greater integration with Myanmar would also lead to investment, he said, with the group eying areas such as a road link to India, food production, energy generation, and tourism. http://uk.news.yahoo.com/22/20110116/tpl-uk-asean-43a8d4f.html