Two of the more memorable Asians on the world stage are from Burma, U Thant and Aung San Suu Kyi.

Sithu U Thant was the only Asian to serve as the United Nations Secretary-General from 1961-1971, during which Asian and African decolonisation movements were moving in fifth gear amidst new skirmishes and wars across the globe. Some of the events which took place at that time were the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia, the Six-Day War, the civil war in Congo, the Cuban Missile crisis and the Indo-Pakistan war that led to the formation of what is known as Bangladesh today.

U Thant ruffled a few feathers along the way. The Johnson administration was displeased when he openly criticised the Vietnam War and pulled UN troops out of Sinai. He was a staunch opponent of the apartheid system in South Africa. He was also credited for preventing a greater catastrophe in the Middle East he made an emergency flight to Cairo to talk President Nasser out of a possible Egypt-Israel war.

At the time of his death in 1974, Burma was already in the hands of a military-dominated party, the Burmese Socialist Programme Party (BSPP). The government largely ignored U Thant's death, as he was too closely associated with U Nu, a democrat at that time.

The BSPP ruled with an iron-fist from 1962-1988. Burma became increasing isolated. The economy deteriorated to a point where one of the wealthiest nations in Southeast Asia was facing food shortages. Democracy and rule of law was non-existent.

The boiling point came on 8th August 1988 (or 8-8-88). Hundreds of thousands of people marched down the streets demanding elections and a civilian government. The response from the military was expectedly brutal thousands were killed, many more missing or arrested.

Arrested without trial

Aung San Suu Kyi, daughter of martyred independence hero Aung San, had just arrived in Rangoon to nurse her mother.

She made her first political speech at a subsequent rally in front of half a million people at Rangoon's Shwedagon Pagoda. She formed the National League for Democracy (NLD) but less than a year later, she and the rest of the NLD leadership were arrested without trial.

Despite these setbacks and crushing weight of martial law, NLD won an astounding 392 (81%) of the parliamentary seats at the first general election in decades. Ethnic-based political parties won 65 seats whereas the military-aligned National Union Party collected only 10.

NLD was never to form government after their victory on 27th May 1990, and there has been no election since. The military refused to recognise the election results and set out to arrest, harass and imprison NLD-parliamentarians-elect and party activists. Some Burmese parliamentarians went into exile abroad, some died in detention and a number of them were imprisoned. Today, 15 members of Parliament remain in detention.

Nothing has changed in the past 15 years, save the faces of generals. The military junta still rules Burma in a different outfit, the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC). At the Asean Foreign Ministers Meeting held in 1997 at the Regent Hotel, Kuala Lumpur, Burma (now known as Myanmar) was finally allowed to join the club.

Suu Kyi has been under detention with trial for a total of 10 years since 1989. She is the only Nobel Peace Laureate who is a political prisoner, and possibly the most recognised Asian personality today.

Today, June 19, she celebrates her 60th birthday. Alone.

The frustration shared by many of us is this: - why does Asean continue to engage with and make excuses for the last remaining despotic military junta left in the 21st century?

The last we saw of Suu Kyi, mobbed by thousands who defied the junta, was during her nationwide tour in 2003 before she was arrested.

Expel Burma

The reaction from Asean leaders at that time was unprecedented; then Malaysian prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad said the matter had placed the region in a dilemma, "We have made our stand known that Aung San Suu Kyi is to be released immediately."

When there was still no sign of the change in the junta's attitude, Mahathir went as far as to threaten Burma with expulsion, though the issue was quickly forgotten over time.

UN Special Envoy to Burma Razali Ismail put it quite bluntly,"Asean should be very embarrassed at what is happening. Burma is going to be the chair of Asean in 2006. How can you have a military dictator chair Asean?"

Parliamentarians in the region did take notice. For the past six months, Malaysian parliamentarians have led the charge. Parliamentary caucuses were formed in Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, and Philippines, even Singapore. While this has shaken and surprised the junta in Rangoon, our governments continue to coddle and protect Senior General Than Shwe and his men, even to the extent of attempting to block parliamentary motions on Burma.

Philippines Foreign Secretary Blas Ople once said, that the goal is not merely the release of Suu Kyi, but the release of the entire people of Burma from a regime of oppression and repression.

Come July, when the Asean Ministerial Meeting convenes in Laos, we must take each and every one of our governments in Asean to task.

For the past eight years, Asean has allowed the SPDC to operate with impunity in the name of constructive engagement, while the junta engages in destruction and refines its babble of broken promises.

The Asean chair

Even the act of denying Burma's turn as the chair of Asean in 2006 may only dent their ego ever so slightly. Already diplomats talk of being 'successful' in persuading SPDC not to take up the Asean chairmanship so long as they are not asked to free Suu Kyi. Academicians in establishment think-tanks act as apologists for the military, warning us of impending chaos if we allow Suu Kyi to run free. Even the so-called Asean People's Assembly, which claims to be the voice of civil society, couldn't muster the courage to mention Burma in their conference text, for fear of offending the junta.

Which is why, more than ever, we must act to free Suu Kyi. She is the linchpin to genuine democratic change in Burma, and the only hope for its future.

We know we are on the right track when despots and their ventriloquist dummies tell us what we shouldn't do or say. If the junta is nonchalant over missing out on prestige of being the chair of Asean, then it's time to up the stakes.

For starters, Asean should suspend Burma's membership.

Suu Kyi has asked us to use our liberty to promote theirs. The best birthday present she could possibly receive from us is our effort to secure the freedom that she and the good citizens of Burma long deserve.