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BURMA: New Thai Policies Not Junta-Friendly
By Marwaan Macan-Markar, IPS December 30, 2008
BANGKOK, Dec 30 (IPS) - If Burma's military regime is showing signs of
worry about the change of guard that has taken place in neighbouring
Thailand, there are good reasons.
Thailand's new coalition government in Thailand, headed by the Democrat Party, plans to unveil a Burma policy that is expected to be a break from what has largely prevailed since 2001 -- where Bangkok pampered the junta with diplomatic niceties and offered a protective shield against international criticism.
Kasit Piromya, the new foreign minister, spelled out what the Burmese
junta could soon expect during a conference for academics and diplomats
held at a university here on the eve of his appointment. ''We are a
democratic society, an open society, and our foreign policy should
reflect this,'' said Kasit, a veteran diplomat who has served in major
capitals, including Washington D.C. and Tokyo.
''No personal business deals will shape our foreign policy. Our
government will not mix business and politics,'' he added. ''When there
are no business deals with the military junta, we can talk. We will not
be blackmailed by economic interests.''
Kasit also asserted that Thailand will observe human rights and environmental concerns. ''We shall treat the Burmese as we do Thais. We will not do
anything to jeopardise the Burmese community.''
Such language is rooted in the diplomatic policies of previous
governments headed by the Democrat Party, the last of which was from
1997 till 2000. ''When the Democrats were last in power, their foreign policy was firm and had a clear direction aimed to be in accordance with international norms,'' says Kavi Chongkittavorn, a senior editor and
columnist on regional affairs at 'The Nation,' an English-language daily.
The last Democrat-led coalition maintained Thailand's support for
democracy in Burma, Kavi told IPS. It was also during that period
that Thailand became one of the few countries that placed human rights
as a pillar of its foreign policy.
In fact that government, headed by former prime minister Chuan Leekpai,
did not conceal its reservations towards the Burmese junta known for its
oppressive rule and human rights violations.
On one occasion, the Chuan administration refused to fall in line behind
Burma's military leaders following a 1999 attack by Burmese dissidents
on the country's embassy in Bangkok. The Thai government described the
dissidents as students fighting for democracy, much to the rage of
the Burmese generals who had condemned them as terrorists.
Another piece of symbolism was the refusal by Chuan to visit
Burma during his term in office. Such coldness towards an immediate neighbour contrasted with the customary visits he made to other members of the regional, 10-member Association of South-east Asian Nations (ASEAN).
In fact, the Chuan administration took the lead in pursuing a Burma
policy aimed at influencing democratic change, which, at the time,
appeared more assertive than the ASEAN approach. This policy, unveiled in mid-1999, was dubbed flexible engagement.
On the other hand, ASEAN, whose members include Brunei, Cambodia,
Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam, in
addition to Thailand and Burma, was more content with a policy of
constructive engagement. This regional policy served to cushion
Burma from international criticism and was defended in South-east Asian
capitals as a more prudent way of prodding the Burmese military towards
democratic reform.
But a new foreign policy chapter between Thailand and Burma, or Myanmar
as the junta renamed the country, emerged in 2001. It came with the
electoral triumph that year of the Thai Rak Thai (Thais Love Thai TRT)
party, led by the billionaire telecommunications tycoon Thaksin Shinawatra.
Within months Thaksin, the new premier, revealed his affinity for
business opportunities in Burma at the expense of pushing for democratic
reforms and strengthening human rights. Bangkok's warmer ties towards its
neighbour were described as forward engagement.
This shift paved the way for high-level visits between the leaders of
the two countries, new business ventures in Burma with investments
coming from Thailand and a more assertive defence of Burma's
international critics by Bangkok. Burma, in fact, was described as
Thailand's best friend by a ranking member of the Thaksin government
early in this relationship.
Such ties did not fray during the over five years of the TRT
administration, when, on many occasions, human rights violations by the
Burmese regime were condemned by the rest of ASEAN. In 2003, the Thaksin
administration was the only government in South-east Asia that came to
the junta's rescue following its brutal assault and subsequent detention
of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
A similar defence of the junta was mounted in early 2008 by Samak
Sundaravej, the prime minister who headed a coalition government led by
the People Power Party, a successor to the TRT, which was dissolved due
to election malpractice in 2007. When interviewed on a Thai television
channel about the brutality in Burma, Samak shot back: ''Killings and
suppression are normal there''.
The end of such a policy of appeasement is going down well with Burma's
pro-democracy activists living in exile in Thailand. ''It would mean a
lot if Thailand helps with the democratisation process in Burma after so
many years,'' says Soe Aung, spokesman for the Forum for Democracy in
Burma, a network of Burmese political activists living inside the
military-ruled country and beyond.
''We welcome the principled stand of the new Thai government towards
Burma,'' he added in an interview. ''The junta must be having nightmares
after learning that the Democrat Party is now in power.''
(END/2008)
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