Dead silent they may be when it comes to North Korea, but don’t blame Seoul for refusing to take a stand against human rights violations in Myanmar:
The Korean Foreign Ministry expressed concern Thursday (Sept. 27) over the violent suppression of peaceful protests by Myanmar’s military regime, amid widespread international condemnation of the violence.
“The Korean government urges the Myanmar government to refrain from suppressing the protesters and not to exacerbate the situation,” the foreign ministry said in a statement. “We call on the Myanmar government and people to achieve democracy and development in a peaceful way.”
Hey, even progressive human rights groups were getting into the act by calling on Seoul to impose sanctions on Yangon:
Minkahyup, a human rights group, demanded the Korean government to participate in moves by the international community to impose sanctions on the military regime.
“The Korean government should stop break the silence on the Myanmar issue and actively get involved in it.”
Rather strange for a group that was one of 62 organizations that signed a statement opposing sanctions on North Korea (but perhaps not so strange for a group that signed something like this).
This all reminds me, of course, of Kim Dae-jung condemning human rights abuses in Burma, even at a meeting of Nobel Peace Prize laureates in Gwangju that called on the US to ease up North Korea.
Must be those snazzy monk robes.
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5 Comments
. . . yet actions speak louder than words (and even blogs).
the koreans never cease to amaze do they?
Don’t get me wrong; I think it’s a good thing Seoul has condemned the ruling junta in Burma. But just as the US gets called on condemning human rights in certain countries but turning a blind eye in others, so must South Korea.
is that all you got to say, elgin?
There’s nothing remarkable about South Korea calling for restraint. Even China and ASEAN are doing the same.