EU lawmakers vow to block free-trade deal with ASEAN without reforms in Myanmar
International Herald Tribune
EU lawmakers vow to block free-trade deal with ASEAN without reforms in Myanmar
The Associated Press
23 November 2007
MANILA, Philippines: The European parliament will oppose any free-trade deal between Europe and Southeast Asia unless Myanmar makes democratic reforms, visiting parliamentarians warned Friday.
"Without any change in Myanmar, there will be no agreement from the European parliament on the FTA" with the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations, German lawmaker Hartmut Nassauer told reporters.
Nassauer, head of a nine-member European parliament delegation visiting the Philippines, rejected suggestions by some ASEAN members that sanctions should not be imposed on the military-led country. Europe will maintain sanctions and isolate Myanmar as long as reforms are not put in place, he said.
At the very least, Nassauer added, Myanmar should release long-detained pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and all political prisoners.
"(Myanmar) erodes the credibility of ASEAN as a whole," Nassauer said, urging the group to take its own measures against the country.
During discussions Thursday among trade ministers of ASEAN and the 27-member European Union in Singapore, both sides confirmed that Myanmar would not be excluded in negotiations for a free-trade agreement between the regional blocs.
Questions had been raised about whether the EU would try to block Myanmar’s inclusion after its junta crushed pro-democracy protests in September, killing at least 15 people.
EU foreign ministers on Monday approved several new sanctions against Myanmar, including a ban on imports of timber, gemstones and precious metals. Those were on top of an existing travel ban on Myanmar officials, an arms embargo and a freeze on Myanmar assets in Europe.
Nassauer also praised Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo for her public criticism of Myanmar at the just-concluded ASEAN summit in Singapore.
But he also urged her to stop a wave of killings of left-wing activists blamed on Philippine government forces, saying perpetrators should be convicted in court to prove that steps are being made to end the murders.
