Washington, DC (December 9, 2003): The Burma Strategy Group, the intellectual wing of the Washington, DC-based Free Burma Coalition
http://www.freeburmacoalition.org issued a statement today welcoming cautiously the National Convention proposed by Burma's ruling State Peace and Development Council (SPDC). The coalition's statement acknowledges that the proposed convention is "a first step in the right direction" if it fosters a climate of openness and fairness.

Burma has been in the grip of South East Asia's longest-running military dictatorship since 1962. The current military rulers came to power after crushing a nationwide pro-democracy uprising in 1988. It held multiparty elections in 1990 in which Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy won by a landslide. The SPDC has jailed more than 1,500 pro-democracy activists and has kept the NLD
leaders including Aung San Suu Kyi in captivity and under strict conditions of house arrest.

The FBC is one of the first and largest Internet-based human rights campaigns with its headquarters in Washington. It has also been instrumental in building the international sanctions campaigns against Burma.

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The Free Burma Coalition Statement
On the State Peace and Development Council’s Proposal for a National Convention

Motivated solely by our common desire for solving Burma’s decades-long political problems in a peaceful manner, we welcome, in principle, Prime Minister Khin Nyunt’s proposal to convene a National Convention.

We sincerely believe it is a first step in the right direction for our country, which has long been devastated by political conflicts, economic decay and ethnic discontent.

The proposed National Convention, which, in theory, could amount to a national dialogue among people’s delegates and the military rulers, holds out the promise of bringing about urgently needed reforms. However, this dialogue must, in practice, be conducted in a manner which fosters open and free exchange of diverse ideas, views and opinions as to what serves the best interests of the people in whom our nation’s sovereignty resides.

Diversity is Burma’s strength to cherish, not a weakness to be suppressed.

As our beleaguered nation stands at a crossroads and her people cry out for reconciliation and nation re-building, we hope that the State Peace and Development Council or SPDC will demonstrate its sincerity and willingness to work together with people’s representatives and community leaders in seeking lasting solutions to our problems.

In addition to the already invited leaders of ethnic nationalities and communities, the

SPDC must unequivocally include Daw Aung San Suu Kyi-led National League for Democracy. The NLD remains a legitimate voice of the people as mandated by the military-sponsored multiparty elections of 1990.

However, we wish to emphasize that our welcome statement here is not to be misconstrued as a full embrace of Prime Minister General Khin Nyunt’s seven-point road map. Burma’s problems require careful and collective examination by all the stake-holders in our national politics. It would be neither democratic nor fair for one stake-holder, be it the SPDC or the NLD, to exercise the right exclusively to shape the future course of our nation.

We acknowledge the Thaksin Administration of Thailand for hosting the upcoming International Conference on Burma in Bangkok (December 15, 2003) and for exercising its neighbourly duties so that Burma may move closer toward a genuine transition, preferably before the year 2006 when Burma presides over the ASEAN.

Finally, we urge the international community, especially democratic governments the world over, to ensure that the National Convention goes smoothly and results in Burma’s desperately needed transition to a modern, developed and democratic nation in the foreseeable future.