Encouraging Signs in Burma, but Concerns Remain, Clinton Says
By Stephen Kaufman
Staff Writer
Washington - Real changes appear to be taking place on the ground in Burma, but Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton called for the Burmese government to pursue further human rights and democratic reforms, pledging that it will find a partner in the United States as its citizens enjoy genuine and lasting freedoms.
"We believe that the Burmese people share the same universal values that all people are entitled to, and therefore we want to see the encouraging signs continue and strengthen a transition to a broader political dialogue and eventually the kind of democratic and open society that we think would benefit the people of Burma," Clinton said.
The secretary was speaking in a November 11 press availability that took place after ministerial-level meetings were held at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Hawaii.
Clinton cited reports that there is "a substantive dialogue under way" between the Burmese government and Nobel Peace Prize laureate and democratic opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi. She also said the Burmese government is taking important legislative initiatives, including a new labor law that will allow unions to be formed and workers to strike, and changing its political party registration law to permit opposition parties, including Suu Kyi's formerly banned National League for Democracy (NLD).
"It appears that there are real changes taking place on the ground, and we support these early efforts at reform. We want to see the people of Burma able to participate fully in the political life of their own country," she said.
But Clinton said "there must be much more done." The United States remains concerned over the human rights situation in the country, she said, including the fate of political prisoners who have been held in long-term detention.
"We continue to call for the unconditional release of all political prisoners and an end to the violence in ethnic minority areas," she said.
She also called upon Burma's Naypyidaw-based government to "be more transparent in its relationship and dealings with North Korea." The United States and Burma's neighbors have had long-standing concerns over reports of military cooperation between Burma and Pyongyang, which has an active nuclear weapons program.
Both Special Representative for Burma Derek Mitchell and Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor Michael Posner visited Naypyidaw and Rangoon in early November, and Clinton said they had been able to meet with senior government officials, opposition leaders and representatives of civil society.
"We are encouraging Naypyidaw to take steps toward political reform, to bring more openness and transparency," she said.
In a November 10 speech to the East-West Center in Hawaii, the secretary said people are "witnessing the first stirrings of change in decades" in Burma, and that if the government pursues "genuine and lasting reform for the benefits of its citizens, it will find a partner in the United States."
A senior State Department official who asked not to be identified told reporters November 10 that Clinton and Australian Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd had met earlier in the day and "compared notes on our respective approaches to Burma" and "how far the initial reforms have gone."
U.S. and Australian officials "talked a little bit about the dialogue with Aung San Suu Kyi, some of the discussions about political developments inside the country, and what was the appropriate kinds of responses to encourage these efforts that could be taken by international partners and others," the official said.
Both ministers "underscored that we thought some of the changes taking place were real and significant" and "need to be continued."
The official also said if there is "a real determination to see reform through in Naypyidaw," then "both Australia and the United States would be there to support that process going forward."
(This is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State.)
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