Burmese government land grab: Farmers without rights

Burmese government land grab: Farmers without rights

Mark C. Toner
Acting Deputy Department Spokesman
Daily Press Briefing
Washington, DC
September 24, 2010
BURMA
U.S. View is that November 7 Elections are Going to Lack Legitimacy / U.S. Urges the Release of All Political Prisoners Including Aung San Suu Kyi / U.S. Position is for Burmese Authorities to Begin a Genuine Political Dialogue
QUESTION: Apparently, Aung San Suu Kyi is going to be allowed to vote in the elections. I wonder if you see that as legitimizing to some extent, or it’s just window dressing.
MR. TONER: Look, we’ve made it clear all along that we think the November 7 elections are going to lack legitimacy. We obviously remain concerned about the oppressive political environment in the country and we urge all of the authorities to release all the political prisoners, including Aung San Suu Kyi, and I believe there’s 2,100 additional political prisoners. We don’t believe those elections can be free or fair, and we continue to urge the Burmese authorities to begin a genuine political dialogue with the democratic opposition as a first step, and also the ethnic minority leaders, as a first step towards national reconciliation.
QUESTION: Would you recognize the government which is formed after the election, because you are saying that it is illegitimate?
MR. TONER: Well, if we say the elections lack all international legitimacy, I don’t certainly want to predict what the outcome might be. But no, we don’t have a lot of confidence in any government that might be formed through illegitimate elections.
QUESTION: Are you saying allowing her to vote is just sort of a political stunt – allowing her to vote is sort of a political stunt?
MR. TONER: Your words not mine, but we don’t think it has any merit.
http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/dpb/2010/09/147934.htm