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| Southeast Asia |
| Myanmar blames West, foreign media for protests |
| 2007-10-12 |
| Myanmar’s ruling military angrily accused Western powers and foreign media Thursday of inciting recent protests that were crushed by soldiers, and China urged the world to back UN mediation efforts to reconcile the junta and the pro-democracy movement. The state-owned New Light of Myanmar newspaper dismissed the protesters, who are still being hunted down in raids across the impoverished country, as “stooges of foreign countries putting on a play written by their foreign masters.” The paper singled out “big powers” and radio stations - the British Broadcasting Corp., Voice of America and Radio Free Asia - as behind the demonstrations, which were violently put down Sept 26-27 in clashes condemned by nations around the world. The United States and other countries have pressed for wide international sanctions against Myanmar, to pressure the junta to allow democratic reforms, but China on Thursday said only a more conciliatory approach would work. “We believe that the situation there is relaxing and turning in a positive direction,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao said. “The international community should help in a constructive way to help Myanmar to realize stability, reconciliation, democracy and development.” Arms embargo: A series of groups have come out in recent days calling for moves against the regime. Human Rights Watch, for instance, urged the UN Security Council to impose and enforce an arms embargo on the country. India, China, Russia, and other nations are supplying Myanmar with weapons that the military uses to commit human rights abuses and to bolster its power, the group said. “It’s time for the Security Council to end all sales and transfers of arms to a government that uses repression and fear to hang onto power,” Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement issued Wednesday in New York. The Jewelers of America, meanwhile, sent letters to the US Congress to expand a ban on imports from Myanmar to include gemstones mined in that country, the group said Wednesday. Myanmar exports at least US$60 million a year worth of gems including rubies, sapphires, pearls, and jade. The top US diplomat in Yangon said the international attention being showered on Myanmar will pressure its rulers to open the country. “That the international community is paying more attention is hopeful,” Shari Villarosa told reporters in Honolulu on Wednesday. “Hopefully this will help mobilize pressure not only from the United States but from all the countries in the region.” |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #1 It wasn't the Jooos? It could be the media - same as here. Unfortunately, we're too 'civilized' to crush our protests they way you do, which makes more news, which makes more protests, etc. |
| Posted by: Bobby 2007-10-12 06:15 |