SPEAKING
FREELY A
chance to mend Indo-Myanmar
ties By Nehginpao Kipgen
Speaking Freely is an Asia Times
Online feature that allows guest writers to have
their say. Please
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Aung San Suu Kyi,
leader of the Myanmar opposition and the National
League for Democracy (NLD), is in India after a
gap of nearly 40 years at the invitation of Sonia
Gandhi, leader of the United Progressive Alliance
in her capacity as chairperson of the Nehru
Memorial Fund.
Suu Kyi spent part of her
life in India when her late mother, Khin Kyi, was
appointed ambassador to India and Nepal in 1960.
She studied at Convent of Jesus and Mary School,
and graduated from
Lady Shri Ram College in
New Delhi with a degree in politics in 1964.
Her itinerary on the visit, from November
13 to 18, included delivering the Jawaharlal Nehru
Memorial lecture in New Delhi and meeting with
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on November
14. She will visit her old college on November 16.
My use of the term "mend" to describe the
purpose of Suu Kyi's visit may triggers different
interpretations. Some may agree with its
relevancy, while others may argue that there is no
need for mending the bilateral relations when both
nations have been engaging.
First, one
must understand that Suu Kyi accepted the
invitation partly because she was conferred the
Jawaharlal Nehru Award for International
Understanding in 1992. Second, one has to look at
the sequence of Indo-Myanmar relations not just
with the ruling government, but with the
opposition as well.
The nature of
engagement between Myanmar and India has shifted
dramatically in the last two decades. During the
1988 pro-democracy uprising when thousands of
Burmese were killed and several thousands fled,
India was one of the first nations to welcome
refugees into its own territory.
India
provided provisions and other necessary privileges
for Burmese in exile to continue their
pro-democracy activities within India. New Delhi
was also vocal about human rights and democratic
reforms, by openly criticizing the State Law and
Order Restoration Council (SLORC), the
then-military regime.
India's support for
Myanmar's democracy movement faded with the
introduction of India's "Look East" policy,
shifting from pro-democracy to pro-military. The
policy shift began during the Congress government
of prime minister PV Narasimha Rao in 1991, and
augmented under the premiership of Atal Bihari
Vajpayee from1998-2004.
The salient
features of Indian foreign policy vis-a-vis
Myanmar during the military regime can be
summarized under three main objectives: seeking
Myanmar's help in tackling insurgency problems in
northeast India, countering China's growing
influence in the region, and expanding its
international market in Southeast Asia via
Myanmar.
By engaging Myanmar, India plans
to maximize its security and national interest.
Myanmar, the only Southeast Asian country to share
a border with four northeast Indian states (1,643
kilometers long) and a maritime boundary, serves
as India's gateway to the other 10-member states
of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
Because of Myanmar's strategic location and
proximity to China, it is crucial for India to
befriend Myanmar.
When every nation on
gives priority to its own national security
and interest in establishing relations with other
nations, India may have pursued the right policy in
its own perspective. However, as the largest
democratic nation in the world in terms of
population, India was criticized for engaging the
Myanmar military generals and neglecting the
pro-democracy movement.
India had also
received criticism from Western nations and
Myanmar opposition groups, including NLD, the
party of Aung San Suu Kyi, for not speaking out on
human-rights violations committed by the SLORC and
State Peace and Development Council governments.
While India had not severed its diplomatic
ties with Myanmar during the past two decades, New
Delhi's relationship with the Myanmar opposition
and the exile democratic groups was at its lowest
ebb.
The present Myanmar government led by
the Union Solidarity and Development Party is
dominated by former military generals, but has
initiated certain democratic reforms. Although
national reconciliation has yet to be achieved,
the government appears to be moving in that
direction.
Aung San Suu Kyi's visit to
India should serve as an opportunity for both
India and Myanmar to mend and strengthen bilateral
relationship between the two neighbors, which have
shared cultures, and the same communities settling
in both sides of the international borders,
including the Kukis and the Nagas.
During
this trip, Aung San Suu Kyi must seriously
consider, among other things, paying tribute to George
Fernandes, former Indian defense minister, who is
suffering from Alzheimer's and Parkinson's
diseases. He deserves such respect from every
Burmese who has worked for democracy and human
rights.
Nehginpao Kipgen is
general secretary of the US-based Kuki
International Forum. He has written numerous
academic (peer-reviewed) and nonacademic
analytical articles on the politics of Myanmar and
Asia that have been widely published
internationally.
Speaking Freely is
an Asia Times Online feature that allows guest
writers to have their say.Please
click hereif you are interested in
contributing. Articles submitted for this section
allow our readers to express their opinions and do
not necessarily meet the same editorial standards
of Asia Times Online's regular contributors.
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