Tuesday, March 29, 2005
Southeast Asian lawmakers to call for censure of Myanmar (3:00 p.m.)
MANILA -- Southeast Asian lawmakers will meet next week to discuss how to pressure military-ruled Myanmar into speeding up democratic reforms and may urge the region's main economic bloc to deny the country its chairmanship next year, Philippine officials said Tuesday.
Senate President Franklin Drilon said Myanmar isn't on the official agenda for the April 3-9 Inter-Parliamentary Union, but host Manila will propose the issue be added as an emergency item.
"We have not seen any progress in the effort to craft a constitution in Myanmar, we have not seen any effort to address the human rights issues," he said.
Drilon's comments come amid growing frustration at Myanmar's military government. Although members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations have been reluctant to criticize Myanmar for its poor human rights record and continued detention of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, some countries worry that Myanmar tarnishes the group's reputation.
Drilon told reporters that lawmakers from eight of the 10 Asean members will gather Saturday to discuss how to "compel Myanmar to have a definite timetable" for democratic reforms and resolutions to "put pressure on Myanmar."
Also, a resolution is pending before the Philippine Senate to block Myanmar's chairmanship of Asean in 2006 unless Yangon improves its human rights record and sets a timetable for democratic reforms.
Malaysian lawmakers said last week they also plan a similar motion in their parliament unless Suu Kyi is released.
"We will be informing Asean parliamentarians of this resolution, and maybe together with Malaysia, we can take a common stand among Asean," Drilon said.
Asean should send a signal to Myanmar that it is "prepared to take some drastic action," he said.
Meanwhile, Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong will visit Myanmar this week, meeting with Gen. Than Shwe, the head of the ruling junta.
Asean's members are Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.
Myanmar, also known as Burma, has been ruled by the military since 1962. The current junta called elections in 1990, but refused to hand power when Suu Kyi's party won a landslide victory. Suu Kyi, a Nobel peace laureate, has been under arrest since May 2003. |
