Minister for Foreign Affairs Welcomes Burma Parliamentary Congress to Ireland
The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Micheál Martin, TD, today welcomed Members of the Parliamentary Union (MPU) of Burma, the National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma (NCGUB) and its Prime Minister, Dr Sein Win, who are in Ireland to hold a Congress and consultations with other representatives of Burmese civil society and ethnic groups.
The MPU Congress will elect a new government-in-exile for the next
four-year period. The Department of Foreign Affairs has provided
financial support to enable this four-yearly Congress and
associated meetings to be held in Ireland. Similar support was
provided for a Congress here in 2000.
The Minister said: “This year’s MPU Congress is taking place
against the backdrop of a country ravaged by more than 18 years of
brutal military dictatorship; the detention and suppression of Aung
San Suu Kyi and all those seeking justice and democracy;
decades-long sentences on political opponents; flagrant
infringements of human rights and fundamental freedoms; wars
against the country’s many ethnic groups; the plundering of the
country’s wealth and natural resources to fund their brutal regime
and for their personal gain; and a deeply flawed Road Map political
process, which is to culminate in elections scheduled for next
year.”
Minister Martin also paid tribute to Burma Action Ireland for its
long-standing support for the cause of the Burmese people and its
role in preparations for the Congress.
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20th January 2009
Press Office
