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Official View and Position of Thai



Subject: Official View and Position of Thai and Burmese Students on  Burma's Impending Acceptance into ASEAN

        For General Release

        Date: 30th May, 1997.

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The Offical Views and Positions of Thai and Burmese Students on Burma's
Impending Acceptance into ASEAN.
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The recent ASEAN ministerial meeting has clearly shown that the member
countries of the regional grouping are now working hard to accept Burma as a
new member, and to recognise the SLORC as the legitimate government of Burma.

SLORC rulers of Burma have continually shown to the world that they are
among the most brutal and cruel regimes of all times in human history. They
took national power by brute force, abolished the political, social and
personal freedoms of the Burmese people, ruled the country at gun-point and
in utter cruelty and destroyed the nationa's economy. 

The efforts of ASEAN governments to legitimize the SLORC is tantamount to
prolonging military rule in Burma and delaying a return to democractic rule.
The effort of ASEAN nations in support of SLORC will also serve as support
and encouragement for new dictors and military regimes emerging elsewhere in
the world.

If ASEAN governments are trying to promote the economic and social
prosperity of the Burmese people by drawing SLORC into the regional
grouping, such governments should first apply all possible pressure upon
SLORC to recognise the results of the 1990 general elections and to hand
over power to the democratically elected government.

We do not belive that ASEAN can achieve regional economic and social
prosperity and peace without recourse to the principles of human rights and
democracy. Burma, under SLORC, lacks the recouse to such principles in their
style of rule, bringing Burma into ASEAN would not benefit the Burmese
people or the regional grouping. For this reason we believe that movements
towards the restoration of human rights and democracy in Burma should be the
condition upon which Burma's membership is based.

We therefore urge the leaders of ASEAN nations the delay the acceptance of
Burma as an ASEAN member state until such a time as SLORC has transferred
political power to the democratically elected government and human rights
records are drastcially improved.

We further urge governments to;

        *apply pressure to SLORC to provide the NLD, who won over 80% of the
people's vote in 1990

        *completely delay the entry of Burma into ASEAN

        *conpletley abandon the 'constructive engagement' policy on Burma
adopted by ASEAN.

        *impose economic, trade and investemtn embargos against Burma unitl
such         a time as the SLORC has transferred power to the democratically
elected         government.


Signed by

ALL BURMA BASIC EDUCATION STUDENTS' UNION (THAILAND)
OVERSEAS NATIONAL STUDNETS ORGANISATION OF BURMA 
RAMKHANHENG UNIVERSITY STUDENTS ORGANISATION FOR DEMOCRACY (THAILAND)
INDEPENDENT KAREN NATIONAL STUDENTS ORGANISATION (THAILAND)