Editorial: Rubber-stamp Convention

This week, Burma's military regime resumed their, so called, National Convention to draft a constitution for a disciplined/controlled democracy with perpetual involvement of the military in civilian affairs.

That Convention is boycotted by the main pro-democracy parties, National League for Democracy (NLD) and Shan National League for Democracy (SNLD). It is also opposed by leaders of almost all ethnic groups in Burma. The US, UK and EU have all announced that they will not recognize that notorious Convention and any constitution drafted by that Convention.

The leader of NLD party, Aung San Suu Kyi (winner of 1990 Nobel Peace Award) is serving her eleventh year of house arrest_ and the military generals have very recently confirmed that they will keep her under detention at least they have finished their rubber-stamp National Convention.

All active deputies of Aung San Suu Kyi are in jail. Leaders of SNLD party are also in prison. And the leaders of ethnic groups which oppose that Convention are recently given very long prison sentences. Tens of thousands of political prisoners are suffering under inhumane ill-treatment and torture in many detention and interrogation centres all over the country.

On the other hand, the regime is founding a semi-political organization (USDA), and forcing all civil servants, students, business-men, lay-men and house-wives_ everybody under the sun_ to join that organization. And authorities of that organization have already made it clear that all their members MUST support the military regime, support military regime's policies, support their Convention and finally support any constitution drafted by the Convention.

The main points of the new constitution they are drafting are_

* the future Presidents must have military experience/ served in military_ only the military Generals and ex-Generals will ever become Presidents

* the military's role in the national politics will permanently be enshrined

* only a disciplined/controlled democracy will be allowed

* no federalism/autonomy will ever be allowed for ethnic minority people

* no mention what-so-ever about human-rights and labour-rights

Burma will very soon get a fake democracy with a puppet civilian or semi-civilian government and a controlled parliament under a pro-military constitution drafted by a rubber-stamp Convention. The military Generals will go on interfering in civilian affairs, taking bribes and stealing public funds and international humanitarian aid money. The people will go on starving and serving as forced labourers in military construction projects, while pro-democracy activists are rotting in jails and being brain-washed in interrogation cerntres.