Washington removes some sanctions and appoints an ambassador to Myanmar
Yangon (AsiaNews
/ Agencies) - U.S. President Barack Obama said he had opened a "new
chapter" in relations between the U.S. and Myanmar, loosening sanctions on
investment and trade with Burma and appointed the first ambassador in 22 years of recent history. The
decision, says the head of the White House, is the result of democratic reforms
initiated by the South-East Asian nation from late 2010 to today, including the
release of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi - today a member of Parliament - the
peace agreement with some ethnic minorities and the release of hundreds of
political prisoners.
President
Obama has explained that a greater commitment to help the Burmese economy and
internal reform will help the country advance on the path of democratic change.
In
this regard, he cited the election of Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi to
the National Assembly, after having spent 15 of the last 22 years under house
arrest by order of the former military junta led by General Than Shwe.
However,
the U.S. has decided to keep "targeted sanctions" against individuals
accused of human rights violations. After
the meeting with Myanmar Foreign Minister Wunna Maung Lwin (pictured), the Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton also said that there are still some types of sanctions, to
prevent possible "backward steps" by the leadership in Naypyidaw. "Today
we say to American investors - said the head of U.S. diplomacy - to invest in
Burma, and to do it responsibly."
In
November 2010 the first elections in two decades marked the first, faint change
in the wake of greater democratization of Myanmar. Following
the vote, the junta also ordered the release of Aung San Suu Kyi because the terms
of her house arrest had expired. In
the following months there was the transition from military rule to the
appointment of a civilian government, elected by a Parliament in which the
military still remains the absolute master (25% of seats are reserved for army
officials and almost all of the remaining 75% are in the hands of the party of
the military). However,
by-elections last April marked the entrance of the opposition leader in the
Assembly, along with 42 other members of the National League for Democracy (NLD).
The
White House has also approved the appointment of the U.S. ambassador in
Myanmar, the first in over two decades. Derek
Mitchell, one-time coordinator of U.S. policies in the country for the
Department of State will lead U.S. diplomacy in the former Burma. Finally
Barack Obama has stated that "concerns remain" on some points,
including political prisoners still in jail, conflicts against minority groups
(above all with Kachin in the north) and the persistent violation of human
rights in some areas occupied
by ethnic minorities.
In
recent weeks, the European Union has also suspended most of the trade sanctions
on Myanmar, a decision supported by the Nobel Laureate. An
embargo on arms sales remains in force for Washington and Brussels.
.png)
17/03/2021 13:08
