UN special envoy Ibrahim Gambari was “wasting his time” in Myanmar because he did nothing to end the political stalemate in the country, the opposition party of democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi said yesterday.
The unusually harsh criticism comes a day after Gambari ended his six-day mission to Myanmar without meeting Aung San Suu Kyi or the country’s top general.
Gambari left for Singapore on Saturday.
PHOTO: AFP
He told diplomats on Saturday that it was Aung San Suu Kyi and not the government who refused the meeting.
The news adds to speculation that the Nobel Peace Prize laureate may be dissatisfied with the UN’s unsuccessful efforts to bring about change in the military-ruled nation.
The spokesman for Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD), Nyan Win, had little good to say yesterday about Gambari’s mission.
He criticized Gambari for failing to meet the country’s leader, General Than Shwe, and being unable get any commitments from the regime to start talks with the opposition toward a national reconciliation.
He also criticized Gambari for offering to help the junta prepare for a 2010 election. The NLD has criticized the planned polls, which will come as a result of a constitutional referendum earlier this year that critics say was neither free nor fair.
“We have made very clear to the UN envoy that the mission should not discuss the upcoming 2010 elections as the NLD does not recognize the military-backed Constitution,” Nyan Win said. “The UN envoy was wasting his time on matters that he was not supposed to deal with.”
Diplomats who met with Gambari echoed the concerns of the NLD, saying that he has achieved very little.
Aung San Suu Kyi’s refusal to meet Gambari is the latest stumble in his bid to promote democracy in Myanmar and secure her release from house arrest.
Gambari has met with Aung San Suu Kyi on previous visits, but his trips have resulted in little more than photo opportunities.
Gambari’s troubles are part of a larger struggle by the UN to convince the junta to change its ways. The military has ruled the nation since 1962 and has been widely criticized for suppressing basic freedoms.
UN envoys have visited the country nearly 40 times since 1990, along with other senior officials, while the UN General Assembly has passed numerous resolutions calling for change.
Myanmar has been in a political deadlock since 1990, when Aung San Suu Kyi’s party won general elections with an overwhelming majority of votes, but was not allowed to take power.
The regime has promoted a democratic road map that will culminate with the 2010 elections.
But the new Constitution guarantees 25 percent of parliamentary seats to the military and allows the president to hand over all power to the military in a state of emergency.
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