Aung San Suu Kyi calls for vigilance on Myanmar’s political changes
by Yaung Ni Oo
The opposition leader confirms the beginning of change in the country, but warns that “Change is not always for the better”. For her, the international community must contribute to a solution. The United States is cautiously optimistic about the situation. After many years, some websites are unblocked but the Burmese are still focused on an important dam in Kachin state.
Yangon (AsiaNews) – “It is the beginning of the beginning,” Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi said about her country’s political evolution. “Change is not always for the better,” she added. Her words take a bit the sail out of the “winds of change” described by US diplomat Kurt Campbell, who is set to meet Myanmar’s foreign minister shortly.
U Khin Aung Myint, speaker of the Amyotha Hluttaw, Myanmar’s Upper House, recently said that Aung San Suu Kyi is welcome in parliament.
Myanmar, a nation in “full evolution”, is currently undergoing major changes, including a switch from military dictatorship to “civilian government” elected by parliament, which however is still linked to he country’s military leadership and influenced by international finance.
In a video link from her home in Yangon, Aung San Suu Kyi spoke to the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) in New York. Welcomed by a long applause, the leader of the National League for Democracy (NLD) said the international community “needs to know what's going on in Burma. [. . .] What we really need is awareness of what is going,” the Nobel Prize laureate said, because, although changes are taking place, “Change is not always for the better” or “it's not always sustained”.
The situation in Burma cannot be compared to the Arab Spring in the Middle East and North Africa, she said. In fact, the Internet and social media do not have the same presence in Burma.
Even though economic and trade sanctions remain in place, a cautious optimism about Myanmar prevails in the United States. Ahead of a crucial meeting with Burmese Foreign Minister Wunna Maung Lwin in New York, Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Kurt Campbell said that “winds of change are clearly blowing through Burma”. Their extent though is not yet known. In the meantime, US officials will be holding a series of meetings with Burmese officials over the next days.
Recent signs of openness by the Myanmar government, including statements by the speaker of the country’s upper house, are an attempt to gain credibility and prestige at the international level, sources in Myanmar told AsiaNews. For the country’s leader, they are crucial if Myanmar wants to take the helm of the ten-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) next year.
Aung San Suu Kyi’s return to active politics could instead favour a second Panglong agreement with the country’s ethnic minorities, like the one signed by Aung San, Aung San Suu Kyi’s father, in 1947, which gave birth to the Union of Burma.
Meanwhile, Yahoo, YouTube, MSN and certain political blogs are now accessible after being blocked for many years.
At present, the Burmese are confident that they can hope in a better future for the first time in a long while.
Most people are focused however on the fate of the Irrawaddy River dam, which is located in Kachin territory. Environmentalists and experts believe that if it is built it could “disrupt” the local ecosystem as well as that of the entire country.
U Khin Aung Myint, speaker of the Amyotha Hluttaw, Myanmar’s Upper House, recently said that Aung San Suu Kyi is welcome in parliament.
Myanmar, a nation in “full evolution”, is currently undergoing major changes, including a switch from military dictatorship to “civilian government” elected by parliament, which however is still linked to he country’s military leadership and influenced by international finance.
In a video link from her home in Yangon, Aung San Suu Kyi spoke to the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) in New York. Welcomed by a long applause, the leader of the National League for Democracy (NLD) said the international community “needs to know what's going on in Burma. [. . .] What we really need is awareness of what is going,” the Nobel Prize laureate said, because, although changes are taking place, “Change is not always for the better” or “it's not always sustained”.
The situation in Burma cannot be compared to the Arab Spring in the Middle East and North Africa, she said. In fact, the Internet and social media do not have the same presence in Burma.
Even though economic and trade sanctions remain in place, a cautious optimism about Myanmar prevails in the United States. Ahead of a crucial meeting with Burmese Foreign Minister Wunna Maung Lwin in New York, Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Kurt Campbell said that “winds of change are clearly blowing through Burma”. Their extent though is not yet known. In the meantime, US officials will be holding a series of meetings with Burmese officials over the next days.
Recent signs of openness by the Myanmar government, including statements by the speaker of the country’s upper house, are an attempt to gain credibility and prestige at the international level, sources in Myanmar told AsiaNews. For the country’s leader, they are crucial if Myanmar wants to take the helm of the ten-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) next year.
Aung San Suu Kyi’s return to active politics could instead favour a second Panglong agreement with the country’s ethnic minorities, like the one signed by Aung San, Aung San Suu Kyi’s father, in 1947, which gave birth to the Union of Burma.
Meanwhile, Yahoo, YouTube, MSN and certain political blogs are now accessible after being blocked for many years.
At present, the Burmese are confident that they can hope in a better future for the first time in a long while.
Most people are focused however on the fate of the Irrawaddy River dam, which is located in Kachin territory. Environmentalists and experts believe that if it is built it could “disrupt” the local ecosystem as well as that of the entire country.
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