Burmese activists in Delhi label Than Shwe a war criminal

Tuesday, 27 July 2010 13:04 Myint Maung

New Delhi (Mizzima) – Instead of rubbing shoulders with Indian leaders, Burma’s military strongman should be on trial at the International Criminal Court for crimes committed against his own people, contend members of the Burmese Diaspora community in New Delhi.

More than 300 Burmese activists in India’s capital yesterday protested against the visit of Burma’s military leader, Than Shwe, who arrived in News Delhi on Monday.

The protesters waved banners reading “Than Shwe get out of India”, “Wanted: Than Shwe for crimes against humanity and war crimes”, “Please support an ICC referral for General Than Shwe” and “Than Shwe go to hell”.

Senior General Than Shwe and his party arrived at the ITC Maurya Hotel in New Delhi at around 7 p.m. on Monday and will today meet with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, President Pratibha Patil and other ministers, according to the Foreign Ministry of India.

On Wednesday, the Senior General and his party are scheduled to travel to Hyderabad, capital of Andhra Pradesh and home to a TATA motors factory.

“India is trying to seek stronger business ties with Burma. We worry for that. Under the military dictatorship, even if international trade and foreign investment in Burma are increased it may not affect the lives of the Burmese people,” Dr. Tint Swe, a minister with the exile-based National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma (NCGUB) said.

Protesters insist they will continue with their campaign until the Burmese delegation leaves India. Than Shwe and company are scheduled to return to Burma on Thursday.

“We stuck posters that read ‘Wanted: Than Shwe for crimes against humanity and war crimes’ on trees. We will put up the posters on walls in downtown Delhi. We will also stick them up on the walls of the hotel where the junta is staying,” voiced Thin Thin Aung, a protester and board member of the Women’s League of Burma.

Indian political activist Jaya Jaitly agrees with the stance of the Burmese activists and insists India should not invest in Burma.

“I want to urge TATA not to invest in Burma, especially in information technology. Burmese people including Aung San Suu Kyi don’t have the right to freely express themselves. Under the circumstances, if we invest in information technology in Burma it’ll be a crying shame,” emphasized Jaya Jaitly.

Senior General Than Shwe and his party, more than 80 in all, arrived in Bodhgaya on July 25, where they visited the popular temples prior to moving on to the Indian capital.