US asks China, India to join hands on Burma

From Lalit K Jha
Washington, June 2 (PTI) The US Thursday asked India
and China to join hands with it to achieve true democracy in
Burma and protection of human rights of its people, saying the
two Asian nations "remain important" for engaging the Burmese
regime.
"We will continue to call on China and India and other
neighboring countries to cooperate with us on this issue," Joe
Yun, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Bureau of East Asian and
Pacific Affairs, said at a Congressional hearing.
The United States alone cannot achieve progress in
Burma, he told lawmakers.
"We are tirelessly working with our European allies
and our ASEAN and regional partners to urge the Burmese
government to constructively engage with the international
community and address these long-standing issues," he said.
"India and China remain important to this issue and we
regularly discuss our concerns with them about the Burmese
regime," Joe said, adding that the Administration is in
complete agreement with the Congress Act that call for a
unified and comprehensive approach to promote long-overdue
change for the Burmese people aspiring for genuine and
meaningful progress.
Noting that challenges in Burma remain daunting and
the human rights situation deplorable, he said though Aung San
Suu Kyi is free, over 2,000 political prisoners languish in
detention, the conflicts and the attacks against civilians
continue in the ethnic minority areas, and millions of Burmese
citizens are denied basic rights including freedom of speech,
assembly, and association.