Burmese dissidents and human rights observers say President Barack
Obama’s upcoming visit to Burma may confer undue legitimacy on a
non-democratic government that continues to restrict freedoms and engage
in ethnic cleansing.
Obama is scheduled to visit Burma on Monday during a tour of Asian nations that begins this weekend. He will become the first sitting United States president to visit the fledgling nation, which recently embarked on a pro-democracy push that many view as a superficial attempt to appease Western governments.
The regime of Burmese President Thein Sein continues to keep hundreds of political opponents in prison and has stood by as ethnic minorities were butchered by pro-government militias across the country.
Burmese opposition leaders say Obama’s visit is woefully premature. They are worried the presence of the American president will provide the Burmese regime a credibility boost it does not deserve.
“This trip will bring little or no benefit to the people of Burma but just further legitimize the Burmese regime’s power,” said human rights activist Myra Dahgaypaw, who fled the ethnic cleansing in Burma’s northern Kachin State.
“Ongoing human rights abuses including, but not limited to, rape, forced labor, forced relocation, extortion and looting, torture and extrajudicial killing, and land confiscation are happening all over the ethnic minority areas,” added Dahgaypaw, who serves as a campaigns coordinator at the U.S. Campaign for Burma.
Read more: http://freebeacon.com/burma-blunder/
Obama is scheduled to visit Burma on Monday during a tour of Asian nations that begins this weekend. He will become the first sitting United States president to visit the fledgling nation, which recently embarked on a pro-democracy push that many view as a superficial attempt to appease Western governments.
The regime of Burmese President Thein Sein continues to keep hundreds of political opponents in prison and has stood by as ethnic minorities were butchered by pro-government militias across the country.
Burmese opposition leaders say Obama’s visit is woefully premature. They are worried the presence of the American president will provide the Burmese regime a credibility boost it does not deserve.
“This trip will bring little or no benefit to the people of Burma but just further legitimize the Burmese regime’s power,” said human rights activist Myra Dahgaypaw, who fled the ethnic cleansing in Burma’s northern Kachin State.
“Ongoing human rights abuses including, but not limited to, rape, forced labor, forced relocation, extortion and looting, torture and extrajudicial killing, and land confiscation are happening all over the ethnic minority areas,” added Dahgaypaw, who serves as a campaigns coordinator at the U.S. Campaign for Burma.
Read more: http://freebeacon.com/burma-blunder/
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