Hun Sen and KN - the Evil Twins
Tin Htet Sein
Asem summit at risk of collapse
Asean's position on Burma will only allow the pariah state to pursue
its dark aims
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, probably biting his tongue, has said
that Cambodia would boycott the Asia-Europe Meeting in Hanoi in
October if the Europe did not allow Burma to attend. It was a classic
example of doublespeak. Even though Europe would like to go ahead with
the summit, the political situation in Burma stands in the way. At the
moment, it looks as if Rangoon might downgrade its delegation to lower
than the head of state to save the meeting. But this will not change
anything in Burma. Many EU leaders will not take part in the meeting
anyway.
If that is the case, it would be better not to proceed with the
summit. Imagine how the leaders, particularly of the host country,
will feel if there are too many absentees. Cambodia recently said it
should be allowed to become a member of Asem regardless of the
situation in Burma. That was a veiled criticism of Asean because the
grouping wants Europe to admit Burma, Laos and Cambodia in a package
in exchange for the membership of the 10 new members of the European
Union. Cambodia knows that it will be a very long time before the EU
even considers allowing Burma to enter the grouping so it wants to
move ahead.
The EU has reiterated that the situation in Burma must improve, that
democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi must be released and that her party,
the National League for Democracy, must be allowed to take part in the
national convention in Burma. None of these has happened since the
convention began in mid-May. Burma promised to release her on April
17, but failed to do so.
At the just concluded Asean meeting in Jakarta, the Southeast Asian
grouping chose to defend Burma. It seemed at the time that there was
no way out of this quagmire, so the Asean foreign ministers expressed
support for the ongoing process in Burma, including the national
convention. It was folly to do so. Asean has been trapped and will
remain so for the foreseeable future. The countries of Southeast Asia
should urge the military rulers in Rangoon to release Nobel laureate
Suu Kyi as soon as possible and let the NLD take part in the
convention.
Burma sees its current position within Asean as win-win. For one
thing, the NLD tried to avoid the convention because it fears that its
presence would be tantamount to recognising the regime that stole its
electoral victory in 1990. On the other hand, the regime will continue
with its discredited process to draft a constitution, hoping to gain
more legitimacy, both within the country and internationally, once the
constitution is finished and ready for implementation. The regime will
then set a date for an election as soon as possible, ahead of its
hosting of the 2006 Asean meeting. If that happens, it will be a fait
accompli for Burma, a reward for its longstanding intransigence. Asean
knows that very well, which explains why it continues to back Burma.
They think it is better to have a besieged Burma as a member than a
democratic one, which could strengthen the democratic forces inside
Asean. It is a shame for all of us that Burma can get away with
remaining a pariah state, exerting its dark influence over Asean.