UN Chief Convenes Burma Meeting

FREEDOM TO DEMOCRACY IN BURMA

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon on Wednesday convened a meeting of his “Group of Friends” on Burma to discuss the situation arising out of the Burmese military government’s unilateral decision to hold a referendum on its draft constitution followed by general elections.

This was the second meeting of the Secretary-General’ s “Group of Friends” on Burma, the first being in December.
The group comprises 14 members, including Burma’s neighbors India, Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore and Vietnam. The permanent members of the Security Council—China, the US, Britain, Russia and France—were also involved, as was Slovenia, in its capacity as European Union president, as well as Australia, Norway and Japan, the largest donor country to Burma.

While details of the meeting held at the UN headquarters were not immediately available, it is understood that some of the key international players, such as the US, France and Britain, observed that such an announcement coming from the Burmese military regime is in “open defiance” to the view of the international community.

In October, in a presidential statement, the UN Security Council urged the Burmese junta to initiate dialogue toward the restoration of democracy in the country with Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League of Democracy and the ethnic groups. The statement also called for the immediate release of all political prisoners and an all-inclusive and transparent process toward a new democratic constitution and the protection of human rights.

The US, Britain and France are believed to have argued the case for stronger UN intervention and a binding Security Council resolution in this regard. They also urged countries like India and China, which hold a considerable degree of influence over the military regime, to play a more assertive role.
On the other hand, countries like China, India and Thailand are understood to have taken the stance that the Burmese junta’s announcement must be respected and that this is the first step toward the restoration of democracy in the country.

Addressing the representatives of the 14 countries, Ban Ki-moon is believed to have said that, at this juncture, it is important that UN special envoy Ibrahim Gambari visits the country as soon as possible.
According to the official Chinese news agency, Xinhua, Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi and Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday exchanged views by telephone regarding a planned visit to China by Gambari.
Ban informed the “Group of Friends” that the special envoy is scheduled to visit Beijing from February 18 to 19, followed by trips to Jakarta and Singapore.