October 05, 2007

Myanmar Unrest Sets Stage For Another U.N. Face-Off

As the U.S. and its allies lay the groundwork for possible U.N. action against the military dictatorship that rules Myanmar, China and Russia are forming an axis of opposition to the endeavor.

China is one of Myanmar's most generous benefactors, and in a meeting of the U.N. Security Council, warned members not to interfere in the junta's crackdown on an army of monks.

"It is quite understandable for the outside world to express concern and expectation regarding the situation on the ground, however, pressure would not serve any purpose or would lead to confrontation or even the loss of dialogue and cooperation between Myanmar and the international community, including the United Nations," said the Chinese ambassador, Wang Guangya. "If the situation in Myanmar takes a worse turn because of external intervention, it would be the people of Myanmar who will bear the brunt."

According to the New York Times, Russia and China are arguing that "the crisis does not constitute the kind of threat to international peace and security that calls for the involvement of the Council."

China's obstinance in particular is riling other nations, some of whom were already hearing calls for a boycott of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. The junta admitted today to having rounded up hundreds of monks. About 109 are still in custody. The regime also announced that it is searching for four monks it believes led the massive street protests last month.

The world is aghast at the thought of soldiers beating, torturing and killing peace-loving Buddhist monks. But their uprising may already have done lasting damage to the junta. The New York Times' Seth Mydans wrote last weekend that the regime's legitimacy comes from the monks. Because the monks, whose numbers match those of the military, broke with the junta to stand for the people, there may now be a widespread understanding among the religiously devout population that the regime has lost legitimacy.

The junta, of course, is going to violent extremes in order to keep its hold on power. Should the U.N. do as China advises and sit back and watch the slaughter? Of course not, writes James Fallows in the Washington Post. Countries should keep up the pressure, he argues, and "look for any solution that will lead to getting these tyrants out of office and out of Burma, including, if necessary, letting them keep much of the loot they have plundered."

Fallows is The Atlantic's national correspondent, and has reported extensively from China. Not only are the Olympic boycott threats empty, but humiliating China may only backfire, he argues. Instead, nations should impress upon China that if it wants to be treated like a 21st century superpower, it better start behaving like one.

"Welcome to the big leagues! This is the kind of responsibility you take on when you have more influence in the world. And you’re going to look bad in everyone’s eyes, and have your long drive toward respect and trust and influence be damaged," Fallows writes.

That may be, but there is growing evidence that China simply doesn't care. And as Fallows points out, the Chinese media isn't flooding the airwaves with images from Myanmar, so the populace wouldn't understand why the rest of the world is ganging up on Beijing.

See our reporting on China's lax attitude toward Sudan here. The Atlantic's Robert Kaplan looks to a post-junta Myanmar and sees the potential for ethnic strife. In other developments, the U.S. today rejected the regime's conditions for seeing pro-democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, and Japan is threatening to cut off badly needed aid to the impoverished country.

Posted at 3:30 PM
Posted to: Africa, Asia, China, Sudan, U.N.
Share via