EU Eases Burma Sanctions
by Lori Keong
The European Union agreed on Monday to ease some of its sanctions on the government of Myanmar, formerly Burma, after the nation showed increasing efforts at progress and reform.
The EU made this decision to lift travel bans on Burmese officials more than a week after the government under President Thein Sein granted amnesty to 651 prisoners. State media reported that the amnesty was meant to ensure national stability and lay a foundation for reconciliation between the people and its government. At the time the release was announced on January 13, it was uncertain how many of the hundreds of detainees were “prisoners of conscience,” jailed for their political activism.
The prison release came amidst peace talks between the Burmese military and ethnic rebels. Since June, a ceasefire agreement between the Kachin Independence Army and the Burmese military has been breached, embroiling the northern regions of Myanmar in a bloody civil war. At least 60,000 civilians have been displaced in the region, with thousands seeking refuge in neighboring China.
With all eyes trained upon Myanmar including those of its powerful ally China, the government has been making efforts to reach ceasefire agreements with the 11 groups in conflict with the Burmese military. The Kachin Independence Organization and the government agreed in a joint statement this week to continue working toward a final truce.
Other important signs of change after decades of repressive military rule include a spike in political discussion among civilians, an easing of restrictions on media and civilians and the release of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi. The United States, which has been monitoring the fledgling civilian government since its creation ten months ago, saw the recent effort to reform the country as a sign of better things to come. However, the Obama administration is still tentative to lift its own sanctions, including a ban on trade and investment, until it has seen definitive progress in the way of democracy.
National intreests, Realist world politics. Uh…Myamar is at the pivotal place for world most populous Courntries and region (ASEAN).China is seeking a secure route to India Ocean and India to have a secure link with ASEAN.So what is the US interest on Burma and Burma’s?Myanar is not only resourceful courty that persuade all world powers but also a strategic point in rising Asian Courntries. It sooner seems that there will be a intersting power-game in 21st Century at the common door of ASEAN,China and India…..