Pressure, patience and aid should be used to tame Myanmar's junta: Envoy

Thu, 02/21/2008 12:09 PM | World

British Ambassador to Myanmar Mark Canning, is in Indonesia to share his views and experiences in Myanmar with Indonesian officials and people. He aims to encourage the Indonesian government to continue efforts to bring about solutions to the problems in that country. The Jakarta Post's Abdul Khalikinterviewed Canning on Wednesday. The following are excerpts from that interview.

Question: The junta set a schedule for the referendum and general elections, but the international community have questioned if both processes will be inclusive and transparent enough. How do you see these planned processes?

Answer: Well, you put your finger right on the problems.

It's true that the junta has announced they will hold a referendum in May and a general election in 2010. But you need to look beyond that headline to understand the problems.

The referendum is being held in a few-weeks time, on a document that nobody has seen, for the draft constitution.

Nobody has seen it, and nobody understands the referendum process. Some people say it may be like the 1974 referendum, but we don't know.

People have not been offered any information on what the thing is all about.

The election has been announced which presupposes the results of the referendum, so, it is presupposing that the referendum will come out with a 'yes' answer.

As you say, the announcement of a time table is only as useful as the underlying conditions. One of the points that I have been making here is that you need to look at what the international community has been asking from Myanmar.

What does the international community expect from the military junta?

The UN Security Council in October asked three things. They asked for the start of inclusive dialog to bring the government, opposition and ethnic minorities together. They called for action on the detainees, as more than 2,000 people were arrested following the September riots last year.

Many of them have been released, but there is an estimate that around 500 to 1,000 people are still in captivity.

In addition, there are more than 1,000 political prisoners who have been there for many years.

And then the third thing the international community has asked for was cooperation with the UN's mission of Prof. (Ibrahim) Gambari, who has not been permitted to return to Myanmar since November.

We hope very much he will return to Myanmar very soon. I think he's in China this week, and then Indonesia also this week.

We believe he should be able to go back to Myanmar when he chooses, and stay as long as he choices.

So you need to, in a way, forget about the headline of the time able. You need to look beyond it, and you need to understand the extent to which those requests of the international community have or have not been met. The answer is they have not been met.

What kind of role can Indonesia play to help solve the problems?

One of the reasons I'm very pleased to be back here in Jakarta is that your country has achieved a phenomenally successful transition from an authoritarian military structure to a vibrant and thriving democracy. So, you have a very relevant experience to share.

You also have another relevant area of expertise, which is holding together a country that has tendency to centrifuge. And you have done that very successfully by giving a greater degree of autonomy to certain regions.

So we believe that Indonesia -- also because it is a member of the Non-Aligned Movement, it's on the Security Council, and it always plays central role in ASEAN -- has a very important role to play in this issue. We are very pleased that Indonesia has always backed UN efforts.

Ban Ki-moon (United Nations Secretary-General) has asked the President to consider other ways Indonesia might be able to help.

I'm very pleased to say, when I met people at all levels here, there were real interests and understanding that the setting of the time table can only be as useful as the underlying conditions.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has expressed Indonesia's position on the junta's time table for reforms. What is your comment?

Obviously, I can't speak for your President's views. But as a general observation, I can understand people that say 'good, we have a time table'.

Previously, the roadmap was leading to ... no one knew where it was going and no one knew when it was going to finish. But I think, as a number of ASEAN governments have also said, that is only good if you create a condition to monitor the process.

A process like that can either be a healing and unifying experience or can be the opposite.

If you look at how the roadmap so far has been conducted, it is not encouraging. So if people say, for example, we believe we should give Myanmar the benefit of the doubt, I think my answer for the government to that would be maybe. But let's look at the evidence so far.

I think the lesson of this issue is that there is a role for pressure, a role for patience diplomacy, and also at the same time trying to help the people of Myanmar themselves.

The UK is a leader in that field. We are the second largest donor for humanitarian assistance with a total value of US$36 million. We have put $14 million into health to fight TB, Malaria and HIV-AIDS. We are trying to help people while at the same time create political and economic conditions that are more sustainable.

Do you think the September riots could happen again?

I think the answer is really to say well, what caused the September riots. And the answer is two things. The first was a really deep economic hardship and the lack of social provisions, with 50 percent of children not progressing beyond primary school. And the other thing that caused it was deep political frustration.

Now, is it going to happen again? I think you have to determine whether the causes have gone away or are getting worse. And they are getting worse.

In this regard, how do you see Gambari's mission can effect the process of dialog between the junta and the opposition?

It's a difficult mission. No one underestimates the difficulties, but the UN have been working very hard at this. I know that the UN Secretary-General spoke recently with the Indonesian President. We believe that the UN's mission is the key to moving the situation in Myanmar in a more sustainable direction.

There is a very high degree of international backing for Prof. Gambari's mission. And that includes the countries of ASEAN, important neighbors like China and India, and of course the EU. So, it has a lot of weight behind it, and that's important to remember.

We believe the key element is to release Aung San Suu Kyi or certainly initially to relax the condition on her house arrest.

Also, the various elements in the opposition should be allowed to meet and form their position, and to start talking to the government, and that includes the minority ethnics.

It's very important to remember that the opposition has made crystal clear it is willing to work with the military government.

They have said they understand that the military is a fact of life. It's been there for many years and the solution needs to be gradual and stable.

Suu Kyi herself has also said she is not interested in retribution but wanted to look forward. So, they are taking a very constructive and compromising position.

This is a very difficult problem, and everyone understands that it might not be a success, but it is much more difficult for the outside world to understand a failure to try.

We understand the frustration, but Myanmar is part of ASEAN, and can't be wished away. So, we hope that ASEAN continue to remind Myanmar to do what the international community has asked.

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