June 16, 2011 – The European Union is sending a
senior delegation for talks with Burmese leaders and democracy icon Aung San
Suu Kyi this weekend, the highest ranking team to visit the Southeast Asian
state since Burma's generals seized power 22 years ago, officials said.
the visit marks a shift in EU policy, a change that was initiated in response
to last year’s Burmese elections and the introduction of a quasi-civilian
government.
The team from the European Commission in Brussels is headed by the Director
General for Political Affairs, Robert Cooper. He will be accompanied by the
EU’s special envoy for Burma, the Italian politician Piero Fassino.
They are due to arrive in Burma's former capital Rangoon on June 19, when Aung
San Suu Kyi will celebrate her birthday, the first time she has been able to
mark the event with supporters in eight years following her release from house
arrest in November.
In April, the EU lifted its visa ban on certain Burmese senior government
officials, including the Burmese foreign minister, but decided to maintain its
economic sanctions against Burma.
“We want to engage with the regime at the highest level,” the EU
representative for the region, David Lippman, told RFA last week.
"To help facilitate that, we reduced the visa restrictions on some
ministers–especially the foreign minister, Wunna Maung Lwin, who is
expected to be the main interlocutor in any future dialogue," he said.
Sham elections
Although the elections in November last year were regarded by rights groups and
opposition leaders as a sham, many diplomats in Europe believe that small
changes have occurred and that the process needs to be encouraged.
Lippman was at pains to point out that the lifting of the visa ban on
nonmilitary ministers and a suspension of an asset freeze–for the next 12
months—represents only a small change in policy, introduced in order to
engage the authorities.
“Any future changes will depend on the new government’s
performance,” he said. Not unexpectedly, the release of political
prisoners and economic reform are high on the agenda, he confided.
About 2,200 political prisoners still languish in Burmese prisons, and Burma's
new government has not responded to a deluge of calls from foreign governments
and rights groups to show seriousness in introducing political
reforms.
Lippman insisted that the EU policy is not a carrot-and-stick approach.
Humanitarian aid and other financial assistance will continue and increase on
the basis of need, he said, adding that political and economic changes will
certainly improve the relationship.
Well received
Cooper, a veteran British diplomat who knows the region well, is expected to be
well received in Naypyidaw, Burma's capital.
More than a decade ago, Cooper made a relatively secret visit to Burma where he
met Aung San Suu Kyi while he still worked as diplomat for the British
government.
During the upcoming trip, he is expected to meet the opposition leader,
representatives of the national minorities, and government ministers. The
Burmese foreign minister is likely to be his host, but he hopes to meet a range
of other ministers including those responsible for commerce and planning.
Whether he will make a call on Burmese President Thein Sein is still unclear.
If he does, this may be a sign that the visit will be more successful
than many European diplomats believe.
Thein Sein and his hard-line vice president Thira Aung Mying Oo are believed to
be locked in a personal power struggle, and experts believe that Burma's
political opposition and the international community should look for ways to
strengthen the president’s hand without tipping their own.
“Nothing will come out of this trip,” said a central European
diplomat based in Bangkok who is also responsible for Burma. “The best we
can hope for is that it is the start of a process of dialogue and
engagement.”
New EU special envoy?
It is also unclear if the EU will replace Fassino with a new envoy now that the
United States has appointed an envoy and the U.N. is considering a top-level
envoy of its own.
This will be Fassino's first trip to Burma—and possibly his last, as he
is set to become mayor of the Italian city of Turin.
At present, Lippman, the EU representative in Bangkok, seems to be running the
show, eager to visit Burma once a month and meet Aung San Suu Kyi on those
occasions.
Although Aung San Suu Kyi may be free and able to celebrate her birthday with
family friends and supporters, this is a critical time for her.
She plans to make her first trip up-country to Mandalay in the coming days, and
all eyes will be on how Burma's government reacts and what kind of reception
she gets.
Aung San Suu Kyi’s youngest son Kim Aris is also due in Rangoon from
Britain in the next few days to be with her on her birthday.
He has already picked up his visa. This will be his third visit to Burma since
his mother was released from house arrest nearly seven months ago.
Reported by Larry Jagan for RFA’s Burmese service.
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