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| Aung San Suu Kyi (Image: Wiki Commons) |
By Yun Sun
The NLD victory in Myanmar’s general election has China wondering if it needs to change its diplomatic approach.
With the National League for Democracy’s (NLD) landslide victory in the general elections in November, China expects a new page in Myanmar’s domestic politics and foreign policy under the new government to be inaugurated at the end of March 2016. The NLD’s yet-to-be-clarified policy direction has led to a major sense of uncertainty in the Chinese policy community, giving rise to heated discussion about whether (and if so, how) China should once again adjust its policy toward Myanmar. While the change of government in Myanmar does not alter China’s overall goals in its relations with the southwestern neighbor, China nonetheless hopes to start a new era in its relations with Myanmar. For the foreseeable future, however, the details of China’s policy will be determined by the positions and policies of the NLD government.
China’s Complicated Relationship with Aung San Suu Kyi
China’s relationship with Aung San Suu Kyi was largely suppressed under the military government. It was a decision of expediency and necessity given the political reality of in Myanmar between 1990 and 2011. When Aung San Suu Kyi and NLD won in the 1990 elections, the then-Chinese ambassador was among the first to send her a letter of congratulations. The military government, which rejected the results of the election, allegedly did not take kindly to China’s initiative toward the NLD. This incident affected bilateral ties, leading China to recall its ambassador from Yangon from mid-1990 until July 1991. To avoid a similar situation during the 2010 elections, China left the ambassador position open from September to late December.
During the 20 years of military rule in Myanmar, Beijing minimized contact with Suu Kyi and the NLD out of consideration for the military government’s sensitivity. As a result, Chinese diplomats, officials, scholars and businesses had almost no relationship with the democratic opposition. This policy was cost-free because the NLD and its leader Suu Kyi had little influence over Myanmar’s domestic and foreign policy decision process under the military government and China could pursue its political and economic agendas by working with the government alone.
Lack of contact with Suu Kyi and NLD therefore did not present a major problem for China in the past. But with the political reform adopted by the Thein Sein government since 2011, Suu Kyi’s reemergence and prominence in Myanmar domestic politics made the absence of relations with the NLD no longer a sensible or practical strategy. China therefore took pains to build ties almost from scratch. Since 2011, three consecutive Chinese ambassadors (Li Junhua, Yang Houlan, and Hong Liang) have met regularly with Aung San Suu Kyi, and Chinese officials, scholars, journalists, and businesses have frequented NLD headquarters in Yangon. Chinese authorities invited several NLD delegations to China to build relations and to display the achievements of the Chinese government and express its desire to maintain a friendly relationship with Myanmar.
Read the full story at The Diplomat