Criticism poured in for Myanmar yesterday over the sentencing of Aung San Suu Kyi as the EU promised more sanctions and one of its key regional partners called for the democracy icon's immediate release.
After the authorities ordered the Nobel laureate to remain under house arrest for a further 18 months following a trial in Yangon, protesters rallied outside Myanmar's diplomatic missions to denounce the outcome.
With the sentence effectively ruling out any possibility of the 64-year-old standing in polls next year, there were immediate calls for a hardening of sanctions against the military rulers who prevented Suu Kyi from taking power after her party won elections in 1990.
“The EU will respond with additional targeted measures against those responsible for the verdict,” the EU's Swedish presidency said in a statement on behalf of the 27-nation bloc.
European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said Suu Kyi's continued detention is “unjustified and unacceptable on all accounts.”
An EU source said a “written procedure” had been launched to beef up the sanctions which will be able to come into force on Friday, as long as there is no opposition from the bloc's members.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy said any new EU sanctions had to hit the junta where it hurt.
The new measures “must in particular target the resources that they directly profit from, in the wood and ruby sector,” a statement from his office said.
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said he was “saddened and angry” at the verdict in the “sham trial.”
Brown said her “monstrous” prosecution, designed to stop her from taking part in next year's planned elections, meant the poll would have no legitimacy.
He said it was time an arms embargo was slapped on the junta by the UN Security Council, whose permanent members include Myanmar's traditional ally China.
Criticism was more muted closer to home, but Malaysia's foreign minister said Suu Kyi should be released immediately and called for an urgent meeting of the ASEAN.
“We were hoping that the junta will release her unconditionally and will hold an election to enable Suu Kyi and other political detainees to participate in that election,” Anifah Aman said.
Fellow ASEAN member Indonesia also expressed concern, with the foreign ministry saying it was “very disappointed” at the verdict.
ASEAN last month rejected US calls to expel Myanmar and opposed sanctions on Myanmar.
Australia also called for tougher sanctions, expressing “dismay” at the conviction and urging the junta to release Suu Kyi.
MORE VISITORS: The Tourism Administration said that it is seeing positive prospects in its efforts to expand the tourism market in North America and Europe Taiwan has been ranked as the cheapest place in the world to travel to this year, based on a list recommended by NerdWallet. The San Francisco-based personal finance company said that Taiwan topped the list of 16 nations it chose for budget travelers because US tourists do not need visas and travelers can easily have a good meal for less than US$10. A bus ride in Taipei costs just under US$0.50, while subway rides start at US$0.60, the firm said, adding that public transportation in Taiwan is easy to navigate. The firm also called Taiwan a “food lover’s paradise,” citing inexpensive breakfast stalls
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
CROSS-STRAIT: The vast majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the ‘status quo,’ while concern is rising about Beijing’s influence operations More than eight out of 10 Taiwanese reject Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework for cross-strait relations, according to a survey released by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday. The MAC’s latest quarterly survey found that 84.4 percent of respondents opposed Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for handling cross-strait relations — a figure consistent with past polling. Over the past three years, opposition to the framework has remained high, ranging from a low of 83.6 percent in April 2023 to a peak of 89.6 percent in April last year. In the most recent poll, 82.5 percent also rejected China’s
PLUGGING HOLES: The amendments would bring the legislation in line with systems found in other countries such as Japan and the US, Legislator Chen Kuan-ting said Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Kuan-ting (陳冠廷) has proposed amending national security legislation amid a spate of espionage cases. Potential gaps in security vetting procedures for personnel with access to sensitive information prompted him to propose the amendments, which would introduce changes to Article 14 of the Classified National Security Information Protection Act (國家機密保護法), Chen said yesterday. The proposal, which aims to enhance interagency vetting procedures and reduce the risk of classified information leaks, would establish a comprehensive security clearance system in Taiwan, he said. The amendment would require character and loyalty checks for civil servants and intelligence personnel prior to
RSS