The conditions set by Burma's opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) for its participation in the election planned for 2010 won the support of around 400 participants in a symposium in Tokyo on Monday.
The conditions, contained in the so-called Shwegondaing Declaration of April 2009, include the unconditional release of all political prisoners; a review of the provisions in the 2008 Constitution “not in accord with democratic principles”; and an all-inclusive free and fair poll under international supervision. The declaration is named after the Rangoon district where the NLD has its headquarters.
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| About 400 participants attended the International Symposium on Burma 2009 in Tokyo. (Photo: http://nldlajb.blogspot.com) |
About 400 Burmese dissidents, regional activists, foreign diplomats, Japanese government ministers and parliamentarians attended the Tokyo symposium.
Several Burmese dissidents contacted by The Irrawaddy on Monday said the Shwegodaing Declaration is the only gateway to reach genuine national reconciliation in Burma. They urged the Japanese government not to support the 2010 election and called for a boycott of the poll if the declaration's conditions were not met.
Tin Win, a Burmese dissident living in Tokyo and one of the organizers of the symposium, said the international community, including Japan, should give a clear message to the Burmese regime that they won't recognize the result of the 2010 elections if the junta fail to respond to the demands of the NLD.
The symposium was also attended by regional activist groups such as the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Myanmar Caucus, People Forum of Burma, members of the Japanese Trade Union Confederation and 26 representatives of Burmese opposition and ethnic groups, mostly based in Japan.
Tin Win said Japan government ministers attending the symposium promised the Burmese dissidents to undertake a serious review of Japan's Burma policy. He said it was especially encouraging that ministers from the newly-elected Democratic Party of Japan and Japanese scholars had been actively involved in the symposium.
Burma watcher Jeff Kingston, director of Asian Studies at Temple University’s Japan campus, said Japan's Democratic Party was a stronger supporter of human rights in Burma than the outgoing government. Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama and Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada are both members of a parliamentary Burma study group and are therefore well-informed and sympathetic about the plight of the Burmese and political prisoners, Kingston said.
“If Aung San Suu Kyi is to play a role in lifting sanctions, the junta has to create conditions that will enable her to so do and that means restoring her political rights, allowing free and fair elections and respecting the outcome even if military proxies do not prevail,” said Kingston.
