RSS  |  Samvad  |  Vital Infotech Ltd.

December     Last updated: December 23 : 7:00 p.m.

The Moving Finger Writes
M. V. Kamnath

Making up with Myanmar

The Government of India did just the right thing in inviting Gen. Maung Aye, the second in command in the Myanmar (Burma) government to Delhi for talks. That was an act of statesmanship. Myanmar has been treated too long as a near-pariah, even for the right reasons. But for every policy there is a cut-off point beyond which it becomes counter-productive. It is true that the Myanmar Armed Forces ousted the legitimately elected Government of Aung San Suu Kyi. India expressed its displeasure at this blatant anti-democratic act of the Armed Forces by bestowing on Aung San Suu Kyi the prestigious Jawaharlal Nehru Prize for Peace and Understanding. But that is so much water under the bridge. By being indifferent towards our close neighbour we help neither the country nor its people. Worse, we allow it to develop better relations with China, which is not to our benefit. India has a continuous 1,600 km border with Myanmar. It is porous. The Kachin area in Myanmar which is situated next to India's eastern boundary touching parts of Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Manipur has been used by insurgents for receiving arms and training to fight secessionist wars with India. The United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) has also used Kachin for its own nefarious purposes.

To treat Myanmar, then, as out-of-bounds for India makes no sense. India's place in Myanmar hearts has been sought by China with varying degrees of success. Beijing, for example, was given permission to mount a 250 km range surveillance radar on Myanmar's Coco Islands, just north of the Andamans. That outfit has since then been upgraded as recently as March-April this year, to Delhi's annoyance. China has assisted Myanmar in building its Haiggyi Naval Base that was completed in 1996 and which has the potential to accommodate corvette class patrol boats and small ships. Beijing's hand is also seen in the on-going construction of Za Det Kyi Naval Dockyard and air base. According to one assessment, China has aided Myanmar in excess of $2.5 billion that includes $60 million in military aid. That is not a small sum. Delhi, in the circumstances, has to make up its mind to make a choice between high-minded idealism and national security. It has wisely chosen the latter. Myanmar—formerly Burma—has had a long history of close relationship. Myanmar, it may be remembered, was once part of the Indian Empire and Indian civil servants used to be posted there.

Myanmar went through a difficult period during the Second World War when Japanese forces over-ran it. India had great respect for the founder of modern Myanmar, Gen. Aung San, father of Aung San Suu Kyi. Jawaharlal Nehru had paid a visit to Myanmar in 1946. It was only after the Myanmar Armed Forces took over power in Yangon (Rangoon) that Indo-Myanmar relations soured. But now relationships are on the mend, and both countries seem anxious and willing to make up for lost time. During his meeting with External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh, Gen Aye sought Indian assistance for the 750 MW Yeywa Hydro-electric Project, a request that is being sympathetically considered. India has already taken up as a joint venture in the development of Tamanthi Hydel Project located north of Tamu on the Chindwin River which, when completed, is expected to generate 110 MW of electricity of which 75 per cent is supposedly to be utilised by India. And, as a sign of the warming bilaterial ties, New Delhi has extended a credit of $15 million to Myanmar to puchase industrial and electric equipment from India. India's gestures have been reciprocated.

Thus, Myanmar's Foreign Minister Win Aung, accompanying his leader, emphasised on their last day in Delhi, “with all the authority” at his command, that his country will not let any part of his country, whether mainland or island, to be used as a military base by any power against India. There had been fears in Delhi that China could use Coco Islands as missile pads against specific Indian targets. That fear has now been allayed. On its part India has offered assistance to Yangon in the form of upgrading road communication and railway system in Kachin and Chin states. It has expressed willingness to assist in development of inland water transport facilities in Chindwin and Kaladan rivers, besides helping in building seaport facilities. It is five years since India opened its borders for trade with Myanmar and it is expected that the 160 km Tamu-Kale Kalewa road connecting India with Mandalay will be inaugurated in January 2001. Almost by way of response, General Saw Lwin, Myanmar's Tourism Minister has publicly announced his support to a linkage between India and South East Asia through Myanmar, the only land route possible. The truth of the matter is that Myanmar wants to come closer to India which is its natural friend. Unlike Pakistan, Myanmar has no enmity towards India. It is true that at one time Myanmar took a dim view of some of the money-lenders of Indian origin doing business there, but that is old history. Presently Myanmar wants to catch up with the rest of the world and the first country it can naturally look to is India.

It needs to be stressed at this point that both nations have a natural interest in putting down insurgencies. Indeed, the past five years have seen a number of successful Indo-Myanmar joint military operations against separatist movements both in Myanmar and North-East India. New Delhi has helped Yangon against Kachin separatists and others while Myanmar has helped India in fighting Naga separatists. That was acknowledged by India's Home Minister L.K. Advani when he said that five camps belonging to the Khaplang faction of Naga insurgents had been destroyed by the Myanmar Army this year at the cost of many casualties. Apart from anything else, the Vientiane Declaration calls upon cooperation between India, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. The Mekong-Ganga Initiative envisages cooperation in such areas as tourism, culture, education and information technology.

There is much that India can give and there is willingness on the part of South Asian countries to receive it. Links between India and South East Asia go back to centuries. They were cruelly cut off by European nations (Britain, France and Holland) for over a hundred years. Those links must now be fully restored. In this Myanmar has a vital role to play. Culturally the South-East Asian nations are closer to India than to China. Buddhism is a common cultural link. It is for this reason that one has to congratulate the BJP-led Government for opening its emotional doors to Myanmar. Everything else follows. India has now taken the first step in its thousand mile journey. There should now be no looking back. A strong Indian presence in South East Asia is a guarantee of peace and of enrichment in all fields of endeavour.