The Junta's Perspective of Constructive Engagement

(Prof. Kanbawza Win)

An international laughing stock of Constructive Engagement by the ASEAN has served the Burmese Junta well for its longevity in one and half decades. The Generals too has their own hidden agenda of Constructive Engagement towards ASEAN. The fact that the Junta has accepted the ASEAN fact-finding team headed by Malaysian Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar, reveals that nothing will come out of the visit even though he may be allowed to visit Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. How did the crafty Generals ploy to pacify ASEAN and the international community may be of interest.

The story is that when the Burmese Generals realized that that something nasty that cannot be avoid is coming out in the ASEAN summit in Kuala Lumpur, the Junta through its ambassador in Bangkok approached the Thai government. So it was no wonder when Prime Minister Thaksin made an unprecedented public stunt of his displeasure over recent political developments in Burma and of how he is uncomfortable with the regime’s failure to keep ASEAN nations informed about the shifting of the capital from Rangoon to Pyinmana, about the slow progress on National Convention, and the extension of solitarily confinement of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the Burmese Nobel laureate in her house. This announcement compels or rather trick the other ASEAN members to construe that they are unanimous in their unprecedented decision to intrude in the internal affairs of Burma, which they have so far refrained. Hence the fateful decision was made to send its team to Burma on January 4th.2006 that will coincide with Burma's 57^th anniversary of independence from Britain.

Although Burma was admitted to ASEAN in 1997, it has never voluntarily share meaningful information concerning its domestic developments with other members But when she need support it has to rely on ASEAN or otherwise she just ignored them as if it does not exist. Now ASEAN has been hard pressed with Burma's worst human rights violations becoming too vociferous to ignore and more by a deeper sense of guilt and hopelessness as Burma continues to show stubbornness. They see the writings on the wall that ASEAN charter, incorporated with guidelines of the elements of the UN charter, international instruments and bills of rights and how to suspend or expel an unruly ASEAN member will come to a halt have become desperate. In other words the future of ASEAN and its charter are inevitably at the mercy of the Burmese Junta. The Generals knew too well that once they got out of the grouping, ASEAN stands no chance in the balance of power vis a vis China and India.

"The National Convention will have drawn up a new constitution in the near future and it will be put to a referendum sometime in 2006," said a senior Chinese diplomat as the regime insists it's following its roadmap to democracy as the first phase of piggybacks of National Convention takes place. The Chinese have been advising the Junta to adopt Pakistan's General Musharaff's political model which would mean the main political parties would be banned from the election because they would threaten the country's stability. Obviously the Generals have shown little inclination to hasten political reform or free Aung San Suu Kyi lest they may loosen their grip on power.

It must be remembered that the first Bangkok Process initiated by Prime Minister of Thailand in 2003 brought together delegates from 12 nations, including the UN Special Envoy to Burma, Razali Ismail and this was the first time that Burma had sent representatives to an international meeting to discuss the country’s political situation. A second summit scheduled for April 2004, broke down when the Burmese officials withdrew at the last moment.

So when Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra announced the continuation of the Bangkok process again, the Junta, as secretly agreed upon, jump at the offer for it give them a chance to ignore the ASEAN team headed by Hamid Albar. The Junta knows that it could count on Thailand and of course Singapore, which has employed an army of Junta's sympathizers from its various institutes (jokingly referred as intellectual mafia) to justify the Junta's seven points road map. This is how the Junta in cooperation with Thailand and with the backing of Singapore is in a position to swindle the bulk of ASEAN countries in the coming New Year

. “The new attempt at a Bangkok Process is not necessary an attempt on Burma’s democratization,” remarked Pornpimol Trichot, from the Institute of Asian Studies of Chulalongkorn University. While many people will share the view of Prof. Chanwit Kasetsiri of Thammasat University who declared that both the Thai and the Burmese governments are not sincere in solving the problem. The Junta has slyly able to use its version Constructive Engagement both on the ASEAN and the international community not to mention the people of Burma. 

Prof. Kanbawza Win

Singapore