Wooing a military junta

BY ROLLING OUT the red carpet to the Myanmar military junta's senior leader, Gen. Maung Aye, the Vajpayee Government has signalled an uncalled for warmth in relations with Myanmar but the rationale for such an enthusiastic gesture is not really clear. It is a reversal of a long-standing policy of supporting the forces of democracy in a land that has suffered most of its independent years under one military junta after another. There might be some merit in keeping any regime in Yangon engaged rather than ostracising it, particularly since sanctions have tended to penalise the innocent civilians without really hurting the repressive regimes against which they are directed. Yangon's cooperation in tackling insurgency in the Northeast and stepping up security along the vital sea lanes and its role as a gateway to the Southeast Asian region have been cited for the initiative to step up cooperation with the regime. New Delhi had by the mid- 1990s recognised these and begun to engage the junta, also mindful of the reality that other powers have been more than willing to fill the vacuum in a strategically vital neighbourhood.

The pursuit of the national interest should not however come at the cost of the basic principles for which the country has stood the past half a century. For, whatever the merits of the change of policy direction, the cozying up to the military regime in Yangon is bound to have the effect of undermining the valiant struggle the Nobel laureate, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, has been waging under extraordinarily trying circumstances in Myanmar. New Delhi had been one of the staunchest supporters of the decades- long democracy movement in Myanmar led by Ms. Suu Kyi. After a brief respite, she is again under house arrest. But the junta has failed to break her spirit or silence the voice of protest despite feverish attempts. In its efforts to gain global legitimacy, the regime won a major victory when the ASEAN granted it membership after a long internal debate. The current eagerly sought endorsement from New Delhi would unfortunately reinforce that legitimacy but comes at an inauspicious time, close on the heels of a major defeat suffered at the International Labour Organisation which has decided to impose sanctions.

The decision to embrace Gen. Maung also exposes New Delhi's doublespeak. Hardly six months ago, the country's representatives had argued vehemently at the forum of the Non-Aligned Movement for expulsion of military regimes that had seized power by ousting democratic Governments. The target then was Pakistan. What was - and continues to be - applicable to the neighbour to the west is apparently not thought applicable to the newfound friend in the strategic east. Here is a junta that has defied international opinion by continuing its repressive measures. Instead of legitimising the regime, New Delhi must redouble the effort to help Myanmar return to democratic rule. India's national interest will be better served by engaging a democratic society that observes the rule of law and not by courting a repressive regime. Any engagement of Yangon must have but one goal: lessen the military's hold on the impoverished society and move that country towards democracy.

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