Engaging Myanmar’s Junta

By Doug Bandow

The trial of Nobel laureate and Myanmarese (Burmese) democracy advocate Aung San Suu Kyi concluded as expected: with an extension of her term of house arrest.

Unexpected was the visit to Myanmar (Burma) by Sen. Jim Webb (D ― Va.), which resulted in meetings with Suu Kyi and military junta leader Gen. Than Shwe, and the release of imprisoned American John Yettaw.

The Obama administration should follow up on the small diplomatic opening that has resulted.

Unlike North Korea, Myanmar poses no security threat to America. As a result, Myanmar has never been ― and is never likely to be ― high on Washington's agenda.

Nevertheless, Webb has created an opportunity for the administration to press the Myanmarese junta to improve, even if modestly, its treatment of the Myanmarese people.

The Myanmarese military junta is one of the worst governments on earth. The regime continues to imprison Suu Kyi, as well as more than 2,100 other people for opposing its policies.

Suu Kyi's party won the last free poll in 1990, which then was voided by the military. She has spent 14 of the last 20 years under arrest. With elections scheduled next year, the regime would almost certainly have found another excuse to keep Suu Kyi imprisoned had Yettaw not made his unexpected appearance to her home.

The election will be a farce without her participation. (The regime's new constitution also bars her candidacy because she married a foreign citizen.) But that is the junta's intent: to produce a pliant assembly while creating the veneer of democracy.

Suu Kyi's heroic struggle has received the most international attention, but the regime's depredations extend to its brutal war in the east against multiple ethnic groups, such as the Karen and Shan.

Civilians have been murdered, raped, and conscripted as porters by the Myanmarese military. The conflict has displaced millions of people within Myanmar and driven hundreds of thousands of refugees into Thailand. Although the regime has reached peace agreements with some people, it is the peace of the graveyard.

Dramatic reform in Myanmar obviously is desirable. But Washington has been attempting to pressure the government for years, without effect.

America's options are limited. The U.S. and European Union already apply economic sanctions against Myanmar, including controls targeted against regime elites and cronies.

Unfortunately, China has exhibited no similar scruples, both blocking (along with Russia) U.N. sanctions and becoming the junta's strongest backer. India, Thailand, Singapore, Japan, South Korea, and other nations in the region also invest in and trade with Myanmar.

Abuses by the previous State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) failed to increase international support for tighter economic controls. So any attempt to expand general sanctions is likely to fail and, even if successful, would hurt Myanmar's vulnerable people more than regime elites.

Instead, the U.S. and Europe should press Myanmar's neighbors to adopt limited sanctions targeted against junta leaders and their economic allies.

Moreover, Washington should engage Beijing over the issue, indicating that promoting political reform in Myanmar would enhance China's international reputation and claim to global leadership.

At the same time the U.S., along with its Asian and European friends, should offer a positive package of economic and diplomatic benefits in case the junta improves human rights and opens Myanmarese society.

In fact, in June, Kurt Campbell, the assistant secretary of state for East Asia, stated that the Obama administration is "prepared to reach out" to Myanmar.

Washington's expectations should be limited. However, the junta might decide that the benefits from more limited reform are worth the risk of change.

Admittedly, some human rights advocates view such an offer as appeasement or worse. However, Washington's present course has failed for years to help the Myanmarese people.

In contrast, limited engagement might lead to an improvement in human rights. For instance, the regime's response to Cyclone Nargis, though initially criminally callous, improved over time, leading the International Crisis Group to conclude that "it is possible to work with the military regime on humanitarian issues."

He added, "By and large, the authorities are making efforts to facilitate aid, including allowing a substantial role for civil society." In some international situations, such as Myanmar, there is no solid answer. And good intentions are not enough.

The present U.S. policy of isolating Myanmar has failed. While Washington should continue to highlight the regime's brutal repression and work with other states to win greater backing for punitive measures, the administration also should develop a positive package to reward the regime for liberalizing Myanmarese society.

The chances of success are slim, but are still better than the likelihood of Washington's current strategy working.

Doug Bandow is a senior fellow at the Cato Institute. A former special assistant to President Ronald Reagan, he is the author of several books, including "Foreign Follies: America's New Global Empire" (Xulon). This article is adapted from the National Interest. He can be reached at ChessSet@aol.com.