YANGON (Reuters) - Barack Obama became the first serving U.S.
president to visit Myanmar on Monday, trying during a whirlwind six-hour trip
to strike a balance between praising the government's progress in shaking off
military rule and pressing for more reform.
Obama's first stop was a meeting
with President Thein Sein, a former junta member who has spearheaded reforms
since taking office in March 2011.
"I've shared with him the
fact that I recognise this is just the first steps on what will be a long
journey," Obama told reporters, with Thein Sein at his side.
"But we think a process of
democratic and economic reform here in Myanmar that has been begun by the
president is one that can lead to incredible development opportunities,"
he said, using the country name preferred by the government and former junta,
rather than Burma, normally used in the United States.
Thein Sein, speaking in Burmese
with an interpreter translating his remarks, responded that the two sides would
move forward, "based on mutual trust, respect and understanding".
"During our discussions, we
also reached agreement for the development of democracy in Myanmar and for
promotion of human rights to be aligned with international standards," he
added.
Tens of thousands of
well-wishers, including children waving tiny American and Burmese flags, lined
Obama's route to the old parliament in the former capital, Yangon, where he met
Thein Sein.
Some held signs saying "We
love Obama". Approaching the building, crowds spilled into the street,
getting close enough to touch Obama's vehicle.
Obama moved on to meet fellow
Nobel Peace Prize laureate and long-time opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi,
who led the struggle against military rule and is now a lawmaker.
On the way, Obama made a surprise
stop at the landmark Shwedagon Pagoda, where the president, Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton and their entire entourage, secret service agents included,
went barefoot up the giant stone staircase.
As two monks guided Obama around,
the security team fanned out, talking quietly into their radios.
Obama's trek to Myanmar is meant
to highlight what the White House has touted as a major foreign policy
achievement -- its success in pushing the country's generals to enact changes
that have unfolded with surprising speed over the past year.
But some international human
rights group object to the visit, saying Obama is rewarding the government of
the former pariah state for a job they regard as incomplete.
Speaking in Thailand on the eve
of his visit, Obama denied he was going to offer his "endorsement" or
that his trip was premature.
"I don't think anybody is
under the illusion that Burma's arrived, that they're where they need to
be," Obama said. "On the other hand, if we waited to engage until
they had achieved a perfect democracy, my suspicion is we'd be waiting an awful
long time."
Obama's Southeast Asian trip,
less than two weeks after his re-election, is aimed at showing how serious he
is about shifting the U.S. strategic focus eastwards as America winds down wars
in Iraq and Afghanistan. The so-called "Asia pivot" is also meant to
counter China's rising influence.
FREEING PRISONERS
Aides said Obama was determined
to "lock in" democratic changes already under way in Myanmar, but
would also press for further action, including freeing remaining political
prisoners and stronger efforts to curb ethnic and sectarian violence.
A senior U.S. official said Obama
would announce the resumption of U.S. aid programmes in Myanmar during his
visit, anticipating assistance of $170 million in fiscal 2012 and 2013, but
this, too, would be dependent on further reforms.
"The president will be
announcing that the United States is re-establishing a USAID mission in Burma,
which has been suspended for many years," the official told reporters in
Bangkok, declining to be named.
The United States has softened
sanctions and removed a ban on most imports from Myanmar in response to reforms
already undertaken, but it has set conditions for the full normalisation of
relations, such as the release of all political detainees.
Asked if sanctions could be
lifted completely at this stage, a senior administration official insisted they
could not. "All these things are reversible," he said.
In a move clearly timed to show
goodwill, the authorities in Myanmar began to release dozens of political
prisoners on Monday, including Myint Aye, arguably the most prominent dissident
left in its gulag.
Some 66 prisoners will be freed,
two-thirds of them dissidents, according to activists and prison officials.
The government will also let the
International Committee of the Red Cross resume prisoner visits, according to a
statement late on Sunday, and the authorities plan to "devise a
transparent mechanism to review remaining prisoner cases of concern by the end of
December 2012".
In a speech to be given at Yangon
University to an audience that will include several high-profile former
prisoners, Obama will stress the rule of law and allude to the need to amend a
constitution that still gives a great role in politics to the military,
including a quarter of the seats in parliament.
"America may have the
strongest military in the world, but it must submit to civilian control. As
President and Commander-in-Chief, I cannot just impose my will on our Congress,
even though sometimes I wish I could," he will say.
He looks forward to a future
"where national security is strengthened by a military that serves under
civilians, and a constitution guarantees that only those who are elected by the
people may govern".
ETHNIC STRIFE
Violence between majority
Buddhists and the Rohingya Muslim minority in western Myanmar is a top concern,
and Obama's aides said he would address the issue directly with Myanmar's
leaders.
Myanmar considers the Rohingya
Muslims to be illegal immigrants from neighbouring Bangladesh and does not
recognise them as citizens. A Reuters investigation into the wave of sectarian
assaults painted a picture of organised attacks against the Muslim community.
At least 167 people were killed
in two periods of violence in Rakhine state in June and October this year.
Obama did not refer to this in
the excerpt of his speech released to media ahead of delivery, but he will
recall the sometimes violent history of the United States, its civil war and
segregation, and say hatred could recede with time.
"I stand before you today as
president of the most powerful nation on earth, with a heritage that would have
once denied me the right to vote. So I believe deeply that this country can
transcend its differences, and that every human being within these borders is a
part of your nation's story," he will say.
Thein Sein, in a letter to U.N.
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon last week, promised to tackle the root causes of
the problem, the United Nations said.
Despite human rights concerns,
the White House sees Myanmar as a legacy-building success story of Obama's
policy of seeking engagement with U.S. enemies, a strategy that has made little
progress with countries such as Iran and North Korea.
Obama's visit to Myanmar, sandwiched
between stops in Thailand and Cambodia, also fits the administration's strategy
of trying to lure China's neighbours out of Beijing's orbit.
Matt Spetalnick and Jeff Mason
Business & Investment Opportunities
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