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SEANET Statement





******************* Posted by BurmaNet ***********************
"Appropriate Information Technologies, Practical Strategies"
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SEANET: Southeast Asia Human Rights Network
Combined Statement
RE: ASEAN's Constructive Engagement Policy Towards Burma

21 July, 1994 at the WETRAIN Centre, Bangkok Thailand


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Addressed to the participants in the ASEAN Regional Forum.

Your Excellency,

As representatives of human rights and pro-democracy organisations and other
individuals who share a concern and work closely with those struggling for
peace and democracy in Burma, we well understand the great suffering and
environment of our neighboring country.

Those that advocate "Constructive Engagement" state that by engaging the
SLORC economically and politically, this military regime will gradually be
transformed into a more open and democratic one.  Some of the false
assumptions behind this belief are that the SLORC is the only organisation
that can contain the political turmoil in Burma, that the SLORC is sincere
about reforms and that real reform is already taking place.  Those who
advocate "Constructive Engagement" also state that economic relations with
the SLORC will help to develop Burma's infrastructure and prosperity and that
the benefits of this development will flow on to the Burmese people.

In fact, the SLORC is the root cause of the political turmoil in Burma.  It
has prolonged and intensified the civil war and intensified ethnic divisions. 
Its divide and rule strategy supported by the Thai National Security Council
and other sections of the Thai administration under the guise of
"Constructive Engagement", is aimed at further dividing ethnic minority
groups.  This tactic, in which ethnic nationality groups are forced into
separate ceasefire talks with the SLORC, at which no discussion of political
reform, safeguards for refugees or regional development is allowed, can never
lead to stability in Burma.  The fact that the only item allowed in such
talks is the demarcation zones within which ethnic groups can hold arms will
create a situation similar to that which led to the disintegration of the
former Yugoslavia.

Human rights abuses, the gap between the military elite and the ordinary
people and the resulting displacement of millions of Burmese people (both
internally and externally) continue to increase.  Investments under the
policy of "Constructive Engagement" (as well as investments by western
transnational corporations) has led to an increase in the level of
conscripted slave labour, environmental destruction and militarisation,
particularly in ares where ethnic minority groups have already signed
ceasefire agreements with the SLORC.  While roads, railways and other
infrastructure projects are being developed with the use of slave labour,
education, health and other social services are in a total state of collapse,
especially in rural areas.

The SLORC has initiated several token gestures of reform, none of which can
lead to the peace that Burmese people meeting with Aung San Suu Kyi is
calculated to distract attention from her continued detention which according
to the SLORC's own rules is illegal after 20th July, 1994.  The SLORC's
National Convention, yet again in recess, is designed only to extend SLORC
rule and eventually legitimate the SLORC's involvement in both in terms of
number and armament, creating a definite threat to regional security as does
the increased involvement by the SLORC in the booming production and
trafficking of heroin to neighboring countries.

Distressed at the magnitude of human rights abuse in Burma, the undersigned
organizations and individuals urgently request participants in the ASEAN
Regional Forum to begin dialogue on pressuring the SLORC to immediately and
unconditionally:

-end all military offensives in the ethnic minority states and release Aung
San Suu Kyi and all political prisoners in Burma.

-engage in broad political dialogue with minority and other democratic
leaders about representation and participation in the governance of Burma.

-recognise the 1990 general election results and cede power to the popularly
elected civilian government.

-respect the rights of non-combatants living in Burma's civil war zones, with
particular reference to well documented patterns of forced portering,
execution, torture, rape, forced relocation of villages, creation of "free-
fire" zones and conscripted slave labour.

-replace the current economic growth development model with a program of
people centred development that respects Burma's diverse ecological,
cultural, linguistic and religious heritage.

These objectives, benefitting the people, can only be achieved by replacing
the current form of "Constructive Engagement" with a policy of "Instructive
Pressure", comprising a coordinated program of international arms and trade
sanctions and international mediation of political conflict in which regional
nations can play a key role.

Burma's strife is a regional catastrophe, involving huge refugee populations,
large scale environmental degradation, military expansionism and complete
disregard for popular participation in government.  By acting on behalf of
the people of Burma, governments participating in the ASEAN Regional Forum
will in fact safeguard the welfare of their own peoples as well as that of
the larger global community.

Signed by,

Justice and Peace (Thailand)
Youth Training Program (Thailand)
Union of Civil Liberties (Thailand)
People's Democratic Union (The Philippines)
Asian Committee for People's Participation (Hong Kong)
People's Council for International Solidarity and Peace
NGO Federation of Nepal
Empowering Women of Burma 
Singapore Democratic Party
Suara Rakyat Malaysia
OutReach (Cambodia)
Adhoc (Cambodia)
Law Asia Human Rights Committee (The Philippines)
Philippines Alliance of Human Rights Advocates
Asian Cultural Forum on Development (Thailand)
Human Rights Task Force (Cambodia)