A special UN envoy was in Tokyo yesterday to discuss the release of Myanmar's pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi after a Japanese diplomat returned from the country in a failed bid for her freedom.
Japan is one of the few developed countries in direct talks with Myanmar's military government and is the impoverished country's largest aid donor.
Tokyo hopes to share its findings from the recent diplomatic mission with the UN as international pressure builds for Suu Kyi's release, said Masami Tamura, deputy director of the Foreign Ministry's Southeast Asia division.
Senior Vice Foreign Minister Tetsuro Yano met the junta's No. 3 leader, General Khin Nyunt, Monday in Yangon and warned that Tokyo may rethink its aid if Suu Kyi is not freed.
UN envoy Razali Ismail, the only outsider to see Suu Kyi since her May 30 arrest, arrived Tuesday in Tokyo. He was to meet with Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi yesterday evening.
The two were not expected to announce decisions on withholding aid, Tamura said, adding that Tokyo was still assessing the internal situation in Myanmar.
Suu Kyi has been under detention since a clash between members of her party and a pro-government mob in northern Myanmar on May 30. The government said four people were killed in the violence, but unconfirmed reports from dissidents put the number at 70.
Some feared Suu Kyi may have been injured because the government has refused to let her appear in public. But Razali met Suu Kyi June 10 and said she was unhurt and in good spirits.
Myanmar's military rulers insist that they are holding her for her own protection.
Khin Nyunt told Yano during Monday's meeting that he took Japan's concerns "very seriously" and would make "every effort to resolve the situation as quickly as possible," according to a Japanese Foreign Ministry statement.
Suu Kyi's detention has provoked international outrage. The US, the EU and Britain have initiated sanctions to press for her release.
Japan has generally taken a softer line than other nations toward Myanmar's military government, by continuing lines of aid and dialogue as a means of exercising influence.
RSS