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France joins Burma talks boycott
- Subject: France joins Burma talks boycott
- From: moe@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Fri, 19 Feb 1999 00:30:00
Australian News Network
France joins Burma talks boycott
By PETER ALFORD
18feb99
BURMA'S diplomatic isolation has deepened with France's decision to join the
spreading international boycott of next week's Interpol heroin conference in
Rangoon.
France, the country that has most resisted toughening of European Union
sanctions against Burma's military regime, had planned to attend the
conference, but this week bowed to pressure from its neighbours and Burmese
opposition groups.
The State Peace and Development Council's campaign to improve Burma's
international respectability faces another serious setback as Association of
South East Asian Nations diplomats resign themselves to "indefinite
postponement" of the ASEAN-EU ministerial summit planned for March 30.
Britain and Scandinavian EU members have effectively blackballed Burma's
involvement and attempts last week by Thailand and Germany, the current
European Union president, to negotiate a compromise appear to have come to
nothing.
The ASEAN-EU breakdown and the success of the campaign against the Interpol
conference indicates the US-led strategy of isolating the SPDC by diplomatic
and political sanctions is gaining strength, rather than fading, as Burma
and its neighbours had hoped.
While the continuing suppression of Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for
Democracy has strengthened the SPDC's internal political control, this has
only hardened attitudes in the West.
Although the Rangoon conference on heroin production and trafficking has no
diplomatic status Interpol's charter forbids it from involvement in
political matters the boycott has clearly become part of the sanctions
campaign.
France's Foreign Minister Hubert Vedrine cited Burma's "peculiar conditions"
in announcing that his Government had decided against sending a delegation
to the conference, scheduled to start on Tuesday.
France joins the US which until last week had also been expected to attend
Britain, The Netherlands, Italy, Belgium, Denmark and Luxembourg in
boycotting the conference. Of the major EU countries, only Germany has yet
to announce a decision and, as EU president, must be under pressure to adopt
the majority position.
The fact that France is also the home of the Interpol secretariat heightens
the embarrassment of the 176-member international police intelligence group.
It is understood fewer than 25 countries including Australia, New Zealand,
Japan, China and the ASEAN countries have agreed to attend.
Interpol officials have refused to comment on the boycott, but diplomatic
sources say the organisation is under strong pressure from the US and other
countries to postpone the conference and move it to a less controversial
venue.
The National Council of the Union of Burma, representing exiled Burmese
politicians and opposition groups, has backed that position, accusing the
regime of protecting drug barons and profiting from heroin and amphetamine
"factories".
Burma's new Foreign Minister, Win Aung, this week embarked on a tour of
Brunei, Indonesia, Singapore and Thailand to shore up relations with ASEAN
neighbours.