Myanmar might be a small country in South Asia and might lack nuclear and monetary power but the military junta there is all out to defy all such shortcomings and international pressure. The expel of the U.N. resident coordinator Charles Petri comes as a blow in the face for all international observers who were hoping on collective unity to confront the dictatorial military regime in Myanmar.
UN’s special envoy, Mr. Ibrahim Gambari, is scheduled to visit the troubled nation in a few days’ time and the virtual kicking out of Mr. Petri is a worrying sign. The military junta in Myanmar has increasingly stepped up its violent clampdown on the Buddhist monks protesting for democracy in spite of severe international pressure.
The announcement of the second visit in just over a month by Mr. Gambari to Myanmar was being perceived as a healthy sign to restore peace in the nation but one ruthless move by the military junta has blown apart the hope and expectation.
The military regime’s persistent eagerness to work closely with the United Nations now appears to be hollow: if the military junta indeed wanted to foster closer and healthier ties with the UN, it wouldn’t have asked Mr. Charles Petri to pack his backs and leave the country.
Yet the UN is disinclined to lose commitment or optimism. Mr. Gambari is confident that his visit to the volatile and secretive Asian country will bear fruits and that diplomatic solutions are still possible to unearth in the Myanmar crisis. But for peaceful negotiation, both parties ought to be stretch out their hands. In this matter, Myanmar appears to be withdrawing its hand.
Image Source: ABC News
Source: CNN
