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Gambari happy with Indian response
Junta invites human rights official to Burma
Gambari should question Indian PM on Burma policy: IPFDB
INSIDE BURMA
Two locals arrested in place of key activist
Detained NLD spokesperson’s health deteriorates
Gambari happy with Indian response
Mungpi
Mizzima News (www.mizzima.com)
October 23, 2007 - The UN Secretary General’s special adviser on Burma is ’very satisfied’ at the response of Indian authorities but he urged the largest democracy in the world to do more to pressurize the Burmese military junta for political changes.
Ibrahim Gambari during a press conference on Tuesday said that he has asked Indian authorities to exert pressure on the junta for the immediate release of political detainees including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and start a more broad based dialogue for national reconciliation.
“I believe that India will do whatever it can to encourage the Burmese government to bring changes in Myanmar [Burma ],” Gambari told reporters.
The Nigerian diplomat said he had a ’good and detailed meeting and exchange of views’ with the Indian Foreign Secretary, Minister of External Affairs and the Prime Minister of India. He visited Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand and he will leave for Beijing tonight. However, no details were divulged about his meeting.
Mr. Gambari reiterated the need for regional countries to do more on Burma.
“It is up to the countries what policy they want to have on Myanmar [Burma ], but the UN Secretary General’s good offices is seeking more results to be shown in Burma,” he said.
While India, a neighbouring country had earlier stated that it wants to see Burma’s political problems resolved peacefully through an inclusive and broad based dialogue, it avoided harsh criticism against the junta saying it is engaged in ’non-condemnatory’ and ’silent diplomacy’.
The military junta has invited the UN envoy to revisit in mid-November when he had earlier requested to visit in the first week of November.
Mr. Gambari last visited Burma in late September amidst mounting protests led by Buddhist monks followed by the brutal crackdown by the junta. He met junta brass, including Snr. General Than Shwe and visited detained Burmese democracy icon Daw Aung San Suu Kyi twice.
The regime responded by appointing a liason officer for Senior General Than Shwe to negotiate with the opposition leader but there has been no progress so far.
In a follow up action of the UN’s initiative to push for changes in Burma, Gambari is consulting leaders in Thailand, Malyasia, Indonesia, India, China and Japan on Burma.
Junta invites human rights official to Burma
Mizzima News (www.mizzima.com)
October 23, 2007 - The Burmese regime has formally invited the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights, Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, to visit Burma in the upcoming weeks.
The invitation, made Friday in a letter addressed to United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon from Burma’s Foreign Minister Nyan Win, requests that Pinheiro’s visit be made prior to November 17th, the date of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit.
One of the issues looming on ASEAN’s agenda concerns further talks on an ASEAN Charter, a component of which is to be a human rights monitoring mechanism.
The offer comes on the heels of the regimes widely condemned violent crackdown on protestors and represents the first time in some four years that such an invitation has been forthcoming.
Earlier this month the United Nations Human Rights Council voted to condemn the actions of the regime against demonstrators, which led to the deaths of a probable few dozen individuals and the detainment of thousands more.
Spokesperson for the Secretary General, Michele Montas, confirmed on Monday that the Secretary General had personally phoned both the Chinese Foreign Minister and Indian Prime Minister on Saturday to discuss the situation in Burma.
Both China and India, who maintain substantial vested economic interests in Burma, have come under increasing pressure to play a stronger role in pushing Burma’s generals down the road of reform.
Gambari should question Indian PM on Burma policy: IPFDB
Mungpi
Mizzima News (www.mizzima.com)
October 22, 2007 - Mr. Ibrahim Gambari, UN Secretary General’s special envoy, should demand that India alter its foreign policy on Burma and adopt a proactive stance to push for democratic reforms in the Southeast Asian country, an Indian Parliamentary forum urged today.
The Indian Parliamentary Forum for Democracy in Burma (IPFDB) on Monday said, Gambari, who is visiting India on a six-nation consultation tour on Burma, should ask India about its stance as a democratic nation and should urge ot to take a proactive role in Burma’s democratization.
Robert Kharshiing, convener of the IPFDB, said, “Gambari should question the effectiveness of Indian engagement policy with the Burmese military junta to the Prime Minister of India, when they meet.”
According to the UN information centre in New Delhi, Gambari, who arrived in the Indian capital on Sunday, will meet Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh and Minister of External Affairs Mr. Pranab Mukherjee on Tuesday.
Kharshiing said, the PM should take the opportunity to tell the international community of its commitment for democracy and tell Gambari of its support on the UN initiative on Burma.
“Besides, India should come up with a concrete plan of its own to bring about changes in Burma,” Kharshiing added.
Gambari, who is in New Delhi after his visit to Indonesia, will be heading for China and Japan for further consultations as a part of the United Nations initiative to push for changes Burma.
Gambari said that he will be re-visiting the Southeast Asian nation in mid-November to further facilitate talks between the junta and detained pro-democracy leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.
Burma attracted international condemnation after the junta’s brutally crushed peaceful protests monks and common people last month. And with India maintaining a neutral stance it has drawn considerable criticism against its policy on Burma.
India, in response to international calls, has issued a statement calling on a broad based dialogue for national reconciliation but avoided harsh criticism against the junta saying it is engaged in ’non-condemnatory’ and ’silent diplomacy’.
However, Abani Roy, a Member of Parliament of the upper house [Rajya Sabha], said India, being a democratic country, is making a serious mistake in abandoning its ideals and engaging with the Burmese junta.
“We are really sorry that our government has taken the side of the generals, but I can assure that most parliamentarians are with the Burmese people,” Kharshiing said.
“If today there is a vote in parliament on Burma, I am sure most parliamentarians will support the Burmese people and not the generals… it is sad that the country where Lord Buddha and Mahatma Gandhi were born is not supporting eternal values but is going for temporal gas and oil,” he added.
However, he expressed optimism about the meeting on Tuesday between Gambari and the Prime Minister of India, and appreciate the UN initiative to engage regional countries for changes in Burma.
“I am on the positive side, I am very happy that UN now is putting pressure on both China and India to put more pressure on Burma. We cannot afford to see another Sudan or Darfur in Burma,” added Kharshiing.
Two locals arrested in place of key activist
Mizzima News (www.mizzima.com)
October 23, 2007 - Two locals were arrested in Pakhokku town in Magwe division of central Burma on suspicion of having helped a key activist evade arrest, local residents said.
Local residents said, Chan Zaw Myo (25), and Tun Naing (34) both residents of Pakhokku were summoned by local police on October 17 for interrogation. While Chan Zaw Myo was released the next day, Tun Naing continues to be detained.
Police have been searching for an activist, Zarni, suspected of planning and participating in the recent protests in Pakhokku. They have accused Tun Naing of helping Zarni to evade arrest.
The recent protests, which began with the agitation over the junta’s sudden hike in fuel prices in mid August, snowballed when monks in Pakhokku were ill-treated by local authorities during their initial peaceful march joining other people calling for a roll back in fuel prices.
Enraged over the ill-treatment of monks in Pakhokku, monks across Burma boycotted the ruling junta and demanded the authorities apologize. The junta’s failure to apologize led the monks to overturn their alms bowls and the protest gradually took a political turn, posing a direct challenge to the junta’s dictatorial rule.
“Neither of them [Tun Naing and Chan Zaw Myo] are involved in politics. We saw Chan Zaw Myo being released. But Tun Naing, continues to be detained on the accusation that he knows of the escape of Zarni,” a local resident told Mizzima.
“Zarni has been accused of playing a key role in the recent protests and authorities are in hot pursuit of him now. We even heard concerned officials have been warned that they will be stripped off their position if they cannot arrest Zarni,” added the locals.
Detained NLD spokesperson’s health deteriorates
Mizzima News (www.mizzima.com)
October 23, 2007 - The health condition of Myint Thein, spokesperson of the National League for Democracy incarcerated in Insein prison has deteriorated, family members said.
The Insein prison authorities, however, have denied the presence of Myint Thein, and refused to accept all medical supplies for the detainee brought by the family.
“Prison authorities have refused to accept medical supplies for him [Myint Thein] saying he is not in the jail. But we were told by people who were recently released from the prison that he [Myint Thein] is being detained there,” a family member told Mizzima.
Myint Thein was arrested along with several other NLD members, monks and ordinary people on September 27, for taking part in protests against the regime.
Swe Swe Thein, wife of Myint Thein, told mizzima that the NLD leader has been suffering from high blood pressure and acute stomach ache and had been under strict diet avoiding all rich food.
“I am very worried about his health and he needs immediate medical check up,” she added.
According to the NLD, the Burmese authorities have so far arrested at least 276 of its members across the country in connection with the recent protests led by Buddhist clergy.
Han Thar Myint, another spokesperson of the NLD, said the junta has to date released 16 of its members from detention.
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