Chiang Mai (Mizzima) – The Burmese government is campaigning to be appointed 2014 chair of Asean, while the nongovernmental Asean Peoples’ Forum and other organizations are urging Asean not to honour the request, citing the government’s lack of democracy and human rights abuses.
More than 1,300 nongovernmental delegates are attending a three-day Asean Civil Society Conference and Asean Peoples' Forum 2011 meeting, which opened on Wednesday in Jakarta.
The 18th Asean Summit will meet on Saturday and Sunday. Burmese President Thein Sein left Naypyitaw for Jakarta on Thursday to attend, according to the Xinhua news agency.
The Burmese government has appointed its own delegates to attend the nongovernmental conference including Ko Ko Hlaing, Dr. Nay Zin Latt and Ye Tint, who are newly appointed presidential advisers on politics. A total of 18 nongovernmental delegates from Thailand-based Burmese pro-democracy groups including the Burmese Women’s Union, Women’s League of Burma, Assistance Association for Political Prisoners-Burma and Human Rights Education Institute of Burma (HREIB) are also attending the conference.
The Asean People’s Forum has chosen 10 delegates to meet with Asean leaders on May 7, but the names of the delegates have not been released.
In the nongovernmental forum, delegates from Naypyitaw did not support pro-democracy activists to be elected as delegates to meet with Asean leaders, and they in turn were opposed by pro-democracy delegates.
'They [state-appointed delegates] cannot advise Asean’, Aung Myo Min, the director of HREIB, toldMizzima. ‘Far from it. There are still many political prisoners in Burma. And the refugees cannot go back to Burma. The government is reluctant to hold a political dialogue. We want to urge Asean to put the Burmese government under pressure and to support a commission of inquiry into the allegations of crimes against humanity by the Burmese junta’.
A letter urging Asean not to appoint Burma chair will be sent to Asean leaders on May 7, he said.
Also opposing Burma’s assumption of the chair was the Asean Inter-Parliamentary Myanmar Caucus, which released a statement saying real democratic changes and human rights reforms have not been made by the Burmese government and the appointment would lack credibility and weaken Asean’s international image of regional leadership.
