Burma Boasts Nobel Laureate Not On Hunger Strike

by Marwaan Macan-Markar

Rangoon's junta is diving into its verbal armory to launch insults at Washington, including calling it "irresponsible and self-centered" in the wake of the much-publicized U.S. claims that Burma's most famous political prisoner, Aung San Suu Kyi, was on a hunger strike.

Burma's outburst of anger at the superpower comes after it emerged during the weekend that Washington's claim about Suu Kyi was not true

Representatives from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) reported after visiting Suu Kyi for half an hour that the pro-democracy leader was not going hungry.

"On Saturday afternoon, the ICRC paid a visit to Daw Aung San Suu Kyi to deliver family messages. According to the ICRC, they found her well and also that she was not on a hunger strike as alleged by some quarters," said a statement by the junta.

Washington's initial claim, made two Sundays ago, was followed up by equally forceful comments when Rangoon denied the charge. Midway last week, the U.S. government upped the ante by pooh-poohing Burma's denials because it did not offer convincing evidence about the state of Suu Kyi's health.

"A lot of people were convinced that the U.S. was correct," Aung Zaw, editor of 'The Irrawaddy,' a news magazine published in Thailand by exiled Burmese journalists, told IPS. "Also, the revelations about the hunger strike got so much attention."

In a country where independent conformation is virtually impossible to come by, due to the oppressive measures of the Burmese regime, Washington's charge was seen as credible following the lead it took in breaking the news about the May 30 attack on Suu Kyi.

The U.S. government had disclosed that the attack in a town north of Rangoon, where Suu Kyi and members of her political party, the National League for Democracy, were out campaigning, was the work of thugs linked to the military dictatorship.

"By divulging such proof about the May 30 attack, the U.S. government was seen by people inside and outside Burma as being in the know about what happens in the country," added Aung Zaw. "That is why people felt the hunger strike story was correct."

But now that the ICRC has proved that the U.S. government got it wrong, voices are being raised about the credibility of U.S. intelligence.

Some are saying that the blunder over Burma will be a boost for critics of Washington's foreign policy who say that more 'political spin than accuracy' is the order of the day, as seen in the fiasco over the much-hyped weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.

"The U.S. is supposed to know what is going on due to its superior resources. But for them to say something that is so blatantly incorrect as is the case with Suu Kyi's hunger strike will have an impact on its credibility," said a South Asian diplomat who spoke to IPS on condition of anonymity.

It would be even worse if media reports that Washington's allegations about Suu Kyi being on hunger strike were not based on fact, but part of the U.S. government's strategy to force the military government to permit independent verification of Suu Kyi's health, the diplomat added.

The recent pressure the U.S. government put Rangoon under came as Suu Kyi marked 100 days of being held incommunicado since she was taken into 'protective custody' on May 30.

After her arrest, Suu Kyi had only had two contacts with the outside world till the weekend visit by the Red Cross. The first was in June, when UN special envoy on Burma Razali Ismail saw her, and then when she met Red Cross representatives in July.

The Nobel peace laureate's current captivity comes after she gained freedom in May last year following a 19-month period under house arrest.

According to human rights monitors, the May 30 attack on Suu Kyi and her political supporters resulted in an estimated 70 people being killed and over 100 NLD members being injured or deemed "missing."

A report this week from Radio Free Asia quoted a pro-government activist "hired" to take part in the attack as saying that as many as 100 persons were killed in the violence in Depayin.

The junta, however, said that there were four deaths and 50 people were injured due to the attack.

This incident, which triggered universal condemnation, resulted in the United States leading the way to slapping down the harsher sanctions on Burma that took effect in August.

The sanctions include a ban on imports from the Southeast Asian nation, a freeze of assets in the United States belonging to the regime and its leaders, and Washington's determination to oppose any loans to Burma from international financial institutions such as the World Bank.

Already there are reports from Thai towns along the border with Burma of a spike in cross-border trade due to a slump in Burmese exports following the new sanctions.

Burma is attempting to boost "border trade with Thailand and other neighbors to compensate for an export slump resulting from economic sanctions imposed by Western countries," the 'Bangkok Post' newspaper reported Sunday.

The impact of the sanctions explains the "rage against the U.S." of the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), as the Burmese military government is known, Teddy Buri, head of a group of Burmese parliamentarians in exile, told IPS.

"It is obvious that the SPDC is using the ICRC's revelation to score some points over the U.S." he added. "But I don't think the U.S. government is naive. It has sound intentions behind what it does."