Naga group asks China to stop supporting the Burmese junta   

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_ By Nava Thakuria 

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The voices against the military junta of Burma (Myanmar) are gaining momentum. From US to EU and UN to civil society groups of the globe, everyone remains critical of the present regime in Burma. Ruled by a group of Generals, Burma receives media headlines for abundant human rights violation, forced labour and more precisely on prolonged detention of Nobel Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi. The pro-democracy icon has been kept under house arrest for the last four years in Rangoon.  

Now here comes the Naga International Support Center (NISC), a human rights organization, which has called upon the Chinese government to withdraw its support from the junta. The Amsterdam based rights body has also appealed Beijing to stop supplying weapons to the junta. In press statement, issued on August 11 (2007), the NISC argued that the military junta of Burma was using the weapons against its own people like the indigenous Nagas.

“After the resurrection in 1988 and the general election in 1990 the Burmese junta could maintain its control over the nation, because China helped the junta going on. China continues to support the Burmese military rulers with weapons and funds,” said in the statement.

Chinese interest in Burma is guided by primarily three reasons. If the mentality of imperialism by China is first reason,   preventing India’s influences in Burma remains another important concern for Beijing. Moreover, China finds Burma as a cheap source of natural resources.

NISC appeals the Chinese government to show a humane face so that the indigenous people of Burma, including the Nagas, could set free and pursue their destiny.

It may be mentioned that Naga people living both in Burma and India are pursuing for a greater Nagalim. Nagas are divided in various tribes and they even use different dialects. But for a greater homeland for Nagas, they have erased all their differences and arrived in a conscious notion in respect of the Nagalim. Their dreamed homeland includes many parts of northern Burma and some areas of Northeast Indian states like Arunachal Pradesh, Assam and Manipur.

In fact, driven by the growing need for energy, both China and India are spending money for the development projects in Burma. India is also appeared determined to enhance its strategic ties with the Burmese junta to avoid conceding ground to China. On the other hand, the junta known as the State Peace and Development Council have found a lucrative game: playing India off against China and winning projects from both.

“China, without having its own seaports for access to the Indian Ocean, would dearly love to get Indian Ocean access via Burma’s rivers and seaports. The fact that both of the two regional powers, India and China, want exactly the same thing from Burma puts them in a position very vulnerable to be exploited by Burma’s streetwise generals,” said an exiled Burmese journalist.

India too, though facing criticism from international communities for maintaining relationship with the present regime of Burma is not convinced to snap ties primarily for three reasons. First, Burma can play an important role in realizing India’s Look East policy, where New Delhi proposes land connectivity with various South East Asian countries like Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam (through Burma) for trades. Secondly, the government of India is very much concerned with the presence of Northeast based insurgents in northern Burma. It believes that many armed outfits namely NSCN (both K and IM factions), ULFA, PLA, PREPAK, UNLF, KYKL, KCP etc run their training camps inside Burma and also use the neighbouring country as their safe hide outs.   Thirdly, New Delhi also remains equally concerned with more and more Chinese presence in Burma. With an aim to prevent China’s involvement in that country, New Delhi wants to involve the military rulers in the greater economic cooperation.