[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index ][Thread Index ]

Reuter: Military Rulers Will Not Th



Subject: Reuter: Military Rulers Will Not There For Life

 Military Rulers Will Not There For Life -- Ohn Gyaw

  JAKARTA, July 23 (Reuter) - Burmese Foreign Minister Ohn Gyaw assured a
security meeting of Asian and Western powers on Tuesday that his country's
military rulers had no intention of holding power indefinitely, sources at
the meeting said.
     Western criticism of Burma's suppression of its democracy movement has
dominated the annual gathering of Southeast Asian foreign ministers and the
subsequent ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) security meeting.
     Sources at the conference said the one-day ARF meeting had opened with
delegates accepting new criteria for membership in the 21-nation group and
had approved an upbeat report by the chairman, Indonesian Foreign Minister
Ali Alatas.
     They said U.S. Secretary of State Warren Christopher set the scene on
Burma at an informal dinner on Monday evening, at which he warned fellow
foreign ministers of grave U.S. concern over Burma and the possibility of
future sanctions.
     In his address to the ARF session, Christopher spoke of the potential
for bloodshed if Rangoon refused to change its policies.
     Alatas invited Ohn Gyaw to address the first closed session of the
ARF. The sources said the minister, speaking off the cuff, gave the longest
address of the session, explaining his government's policy on such issues
as political detentions and the pro-democracy movement headed by Aung San
Suu Kyi.
     "He said the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) -- the
country's military rulers -- had no intention of staying in power and was
preparing for a presidential-style government," one source said.
     He gave no time frame, however.
     ASEAN sources said there had been no challenge to Burma joining the
ARF. Some diplomats said the European Union had contemplated such a
challenge at one stage, but had backed off.
     The sources said this in turn had saved the European Union from being
challenged. ASEAN officials have said there was an undercurrent of
resentment, irritation and frustration towards the EU over criticism of
Southeast Asian nations by some of its smaller members.
     Under the new ARF guidelines, only sovereign states with security
interests in Southeast and East Asia would be considered for membership.
     Sources said other participants at the meeting had welcomed Ohn Gyaw's
statement on the SLORC and there had been no debate.
      ASEAN -- the Association of Southeast Asian Nations -- includes
Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Philippines and Brunei,
with Laos and Cambodia due to join next year, and Burma sometime in the
future.
  REUTER
KT
ISBDA