Here we go again. Foreign Minister Surakiart Sathirathai has slammed the United States for saying that Burma's jailed opposition leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, was on a hunger strike. Any person in a right frame of mind would know immediately that the Thai foreign minister was presenting a curious spectacle. The US State Department had expressed concern over the health of the Nobel Peace Prize laureate, who has been under detention for the past three months. Why do Thai authorities continually refuse to deride whatever the Burmese junta leaders are doing?
When the newly-elected Prime Minister Lt-General Khin Nyunt came out with his own version of a roadmap for democracy at the end of August, only Thailand's leaders, especially Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, hailed the statement while the rest of the world expressed strong scepticism. Then, when the Burmese junta dismissed the report of a hunger strike, the Thai leaders denied it too. It used to be Burma which lacked creditability. Increasingly, Thailand is joining the same league.
The Thai government seems to believe that by supporting the junta, it will help bring democracy to the long suffering nation. But as long as Suu Kyi is in detention, it will be difficult to have a meaningful dialogue. If the reshuffle and the appointment of Khin Nyunt as premier is to have a positive bearing, as the Thai leaders strongly believe, this must be made visible by now.
The danger is that a cosmetic change enables Burma to buy time, knowing full well that the Asean summit is approaching. With Khin Nyunt attending the summit, the Asean leaders might embrace Burma again.
Standing out like a sore thumb, Thailand has lost its standing as an honest broker. When the Foreign Ministry talked about its roadmap in July, it was aiming to rekindle the stalled dialogue of national reconciliation. At that time, the international community gave Thailand the benefit of the doubt.
Not any more. Thailand's roadmap has been consigned to the dustbin. In coming weeks, international pressure will continue and certainly will increase as the UN General Assembly meets. As in previous years, the UN special rapporteur, Paulo Pinheiro, will present his report to the assembly in early November. He will detail flagrant violations of human rights inside Burma.
Reaction this year will be stronger following much publicised reports on the Burmese military's systematic rape of ethnic women. The UN wants to conduct an investigation, but the Burmese junta has yet to give permission. Rangoon had carried out its own investigation and dismissed the allegations.
Apparently, as long as Suu Kyi is still in detention, things will get tougher for Burma at the UN. The UN special envoy for Burma, Tan Sri Razali Ismail, will be briefing the UN Security Council soon on the current situation. His presence is significant as it will draw the attention of the UNSC to the plight of Suu Kyi and political oppression inside Burma.
Thailand has bet on Burma and its military junta, believing that positive changes will come because of close connections between their leaders. Apparently, Thailand has never bothered to learn from history that none of the Burmese generals trust the Thai leaders and that they could not care less. It would be a wishful thinking that they would now decide to comply with the Thai wishes.