Call for change

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's three-day visit to Myanmar, billed as a fact-finding trip, has taken observers and analysts by surprise.

"However, we're happy about it," said Jennifer Quigley of the non-governmental organization US Campaign for Burma. "Anything that puts Burma at the center of discussions is good."

Clinton's visit comes after US President Barack Obama got personal approval for the diplomatic mission from Nobel Peace Price-winning opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

A string of reforms

Suu Kyi's party won elections in Myanmar in 1990. But the pro-democracy activist was confined to more than a decade of house arrest by the country's military leadership, and was only released last November.

Myanmar has surprised observers with a series of reforms ever since Thein Sein - a former military commander - was appointed president in March. The changes have included relaxing restrictions on the media, a partial release of political prisoners and the legalization of labor unions.

Quigley, whose organization includes some 68,000 US citizens and Burmese in exile, pointed out that Suu Kyi herself had said that her discussions with the current government, including new President Thein Sein, were much more substantive than in the past.

The democracy advocate also plans to stand in coming by-elections after her banned National League for Democracy (NLD) decided to register as a legitimate political party. The move comes after changes to a law allowing candidates with previous criminal records to contest elections.

Changes don't go far enough

But observers point out that the fledgling reforms in Myanmar are still confined to the central swath of the country.

But beyond this area "things have become much worse," Jennifer Quigley said. "Last year saw the biggest forced relocation of ethnic minorities in the last decade."

A series of new reports released in recent days document human rights abuses in the country, especially in areas controlled by ethnic insurgent groups that have fought on-again, off-again wars with Myanmar's military for years.

Quigley said armed conflicts were on the rise, rape was being used as a weapon of war in some areas and people were being forced to clear minefields. There are reports of forced labor, destruction of property, torture and murder, Quigley added.

"But it's all happening, not on the streets of Yangon (formerly Rangoon), and that's why people don't pay much attention to it," she said.

Human rights groups say many of the reforms, including the partial release of some political prisoners by the new government, don't go far enough.

"That's not a sign of political reform for us because the regime in Burma uses political prisoners as a trick," Quigley noted. She pointed out that the released prisoners weren't given an amnesty which means that they could be arrested again at any time.

Quigley worried that the emerging thaw between US leaders and Myanmar's government is moving too fast. The trip by Clinton could end up legitimizing human rights abuses by the regime, she said.

Limiting China's influence

US policy on Myanmar is marked by a two-fold approach. On the one hand, the US has imposed tough economic sanctions imposed in stages since the late 1990s. On the other hand, it's shown a willingness to engage in dialog with Myanmar.

This strategy so far has led to little apart from a few positive steps, Quigley said.

"For us it's clear that the regime hasn't changed its mentality," she said. The military rulers of the country – the real force wielding power for the last 50 years – have so far shown little willingness to pass reforms, Quigley said.

Washington's cautious rapprochement with Myanmar comes weeks after President Barack Obama vowed to deepen US military involvement in the Asia Pacific region.

Myanmar is rich in natural resources including gas and hydro power. The country is already being wooed by Asian giants India and China. Beijing, one of Myanmar's closest allies, has stepped up investment in the country. Beijing is also reportedly interested in building an oil pipeline through Myanmar.

But Myanmar is clearly avoiding taking sides in the scramble for influence and access to resources in the strategically important Southeast Asian region. The country has cancelled a planned Chinese dam project, angering Beijing.

Opening up to the US

What is clear however is that Myanmar is clearly interested in opening up and improving ties with Washington.

In an article for the Washington Post in mid-November, Zaw Htay, a close aide to the government, drummed up support for his country's reformist drive, calling President Thein Sein a "strong political reformer."

Myanmar must "concentrate on overhauling the old system while it builds a society which the international community has long been waiting for," he wrote.

Myanmar needs help and trade and direct investment, Zaw Htay wrote, calling for sanctions on his country to be lifted.

The West must recognize that it needs Myanmar in the current geopolitical situation, he wrote, particularly in the face of China's rising ambitions.

China, for its part, is closely following US overtures to Myanmar. Shortly before Clinton's visit, Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping met with Myanmar's military chief Ming Aung Hlein in Beijing and vowed to improve relations between the two nations.

A long way to go

The US government is aware that Myanmar has a long way to go before there is talk of deep and real reform.

The US special envoy to Burma, Derek Mitchell, pointed out in October in Washington that there was no progress in relations between Myanmar's government and ethnic minorities and that human rights abuses against women and children were continuing.

"We've made it very clear that we cannot change the relations between the US and Myanmar as long as we continue to receive credible reports about abuses and as long as there is no dialog with these groups and the opposition," Mitchell said.

Responding to a question about whether there was a "real democracy" in Myanmar, Mitchell said: "It's still to early to judge that."

Author: Christina Bergmann / sp
Editor: Michael Knigge