New Delhi (Mizzima) – The 32nd General Assembly of the Asean Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) held in Phnom Penh promoted Burma from an observer status to a full AIPA member. Fourteen Burmese MPs including seven MPs from the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party attended the one-week conference that ended on Saturday.
Lawmakers discussed topics ranging from politics, economics, social affairs, forming institutions, women’s affairs, drug trafficking and migrant workers’ affairs during the conference. Mizzima correspondent Te Te talked with Dr. Aye Maung of the Rakhine Nationalities Development Party about Asean’s attitude towards Burma, whether it is appropriate for Burma to take the Asean chair or not and other issues.
Question: Please describe the nature of the AIPA assembly.
Answer: Four topics were discussed in the AIPA. I attended the committee meeting related to organization. They did not ask about Burma. At the opening ceremony, AIPA read out a statement and the countries attending as observers also read out their statements. Most of the countries welcomed us. Canada said strong words. It used the word “political prisoners.” It also talked about [economic] sanctions. It expressed its opinions regarding human rights and urged [the Burmese government] to release all political prisoners. It’s hard to say whether its opinions are good or bad. As for me, I can accept their opinion. The issue regarding political prisoners needs to be reviewed according to current circumstances.
Q: What did other countries say?
A: They said Parliament should be able to make the voice of the people heard and urged the government to release political prisoners. That’s what I remember about their views.
Q: What did you learn from MPs from other countries?
A: In the AIPA, we didn’t have deep talks with other MPs one by one.
Q: Did you discuss the issue of whether to appoint Burma as Asean chair in 2014?
A: They did not ask anything. We did not discuss [it].
Q: Burma is now a permanent member of AIPA. Do you think that can have an impact on the decision as to whether Burma will be appointed as the Asean chair in 2014?
A: No, I don’t. To speak frankly, Burma should dare to do “give and take” (if it wants to takes chair of Asean in 2014). If Burma takes the chair, international journalists will enter the country and observe its human rights and standards. They will observe our Parliament too. They will explore issues about the government. When they come [here], they will know the real condition and can compare what they heard [about the country] from outside the country. So, I think that is a positive for the country. If the government cannot handle it, it [the government] will lose.
Q: AIPA is an Asean-related organization and Burma has become its permanent member. Can that support Burma to be appointed as the chair of Asean?
A: No, it cannot. All Asean countries are democratic countries. Burma is a member of Asean. So Asean could give the position under the circumstances. But only a country that deserves the rank should take it. How much we can open up will decide the question.
Q: Do you think that Burma should be appointed as the chair of Asean? You said Canada pointed out the affair regarding political prisoners in Burma.
A: I think it should be appointed. Then they should come to Burma to observe. Other countries should monitor carefully whether the Burmese government follows the path that they [other countries] want in order to put pressure on Burma to follow the path quickly. Regarding the affair of political prisoners, we accept there are political prisoners in our country. That’s our party’s attitude. The government needs to admit that there are political prisoners for the sake of the development of the country.
Q: The government has denied that there are political prisoners. What do you think about that?
A: It needs to admit that there are political prisoners. The country should not step back to its original condition. We must know what we should change, what the government should do and what the Parliament needs to do. Our aim cannot be achieved just by urging [other countries] to lift sanctions [against Burma]. The government must change all the things that need to be changed. They should know what they need to change. It [the government] needs to admit that there are political prisoners and release them. That’s our attitude. Both the Parliament and the government need to try to establish human rights.
Q: To make Burma qualified to deserve the Asean chair, what should the government do?
A: If Burma aims to take the Asean chair in 2014, it needs to take the responsibility to do things in accordance with the Asean countries and what the world demands. It needs to admit there are political prisoners. That’s our view.
Q: How do you view the conditions in Cambodia compared to Burma?
A: Cambodia has advanced [more than Burma]. We have many resources and our population is about five times larger than Cambodia’s. They encountered serious civil war in which more than two million people were killed, but they could achieve national reconciliation. So why can’t we do it? We have many ethnic people. Despite more than 60 years, the country is still in the same condition.
