Senior US diplomat in Myanmar to meet new gov't

May 18, 2011 04:56 AM EST | AP

YANGON, Myanmar â A senior U.S. diplomat was in Myanmar on Wednesday for talks with
the new nominally civilian government and de facto opposition leader Aung San Su
u Kyi, as Washington ponders the prospect for democratic change in the Southeast
Asian nation.
The four-day visit by Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pac
ific Affairs Joseph Y. Yun comes as the U.S. and other countries consider their
policies after Myanmar's recent transition from straight military rule.
The country's first civilian government since 1962 took control at the end of Ma
rch, after an election last November, but critics charge the change is simply co
smetic and the army will continue to hold supreme political power.
Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy â which won the last elections in 1988 but w
as blocked from taking power by the military â boycotted the poll, claiming it was h
eld under unfair conditions.
Some countries, like the U.S., that had previously shunned Myanmar's military ju
nta have recently been seeking ways to engage the government to promote change.
Others maintain that Myanmar has not reformed enough to be welcomed back into in
ternational circles.
One sticking point is Myanmar seeking the annual chairmanship of the 10-member A
ssociation of Southeast Asian Nations in 2014. Fellow members have not raised an
y objection but have urged it to continue taking steps to realize long-unfulfill
ed promises to fully democratize.
The British government, however, has cautioned Southeast Asian countries not to
allow Myanmar to take the leadership post. It said Wednesday that Myanmar will n
eed to show "enormous political progress" to deserve the prestigious role that i
t now seeks.
"The UK has yet to see the positive change in Burma that the international commu
nity is calling for," the government said in a statement referring to Myanmar by
its previous name. "It is hard to envisage ASEAN countries led by a government
so strongly criticized by the UN."
U.S. Ambassador to ASEAN David Carden has said it's up to ASEAN to decide on Mya
nmar's leadership role but Washington hopes it will take seriously the regional
bloc's new charter, which includes promotion of human rights.
Yun last visited Myanmar in December when he met the members of the then-ruling
military junta and representatives of political parties, as well as Suu Kyi.
The U.S. State Department said Yun will once again meet with political leaders,
as well as ethnic minorities and businessmen. Nyan Win, a spokesman for Suu Kyi'
s political group, confirmed that Yun will meet the pro-democracy leader at her
home on Thursday evening.
President Barack Obama ended Washington's isolation of Myanmar in favor of dialo
gue with the junta, launching a policy of engagement in hopes of coaxing democra
tic change. Washington still insists that the government release political priso
ners, estimated at more than 2,000 by the U.N. and human rights agencies.
___
Associated Press writer Jim Gomez in Manila contributed to this report.