New attempt to debate travel ban on junta

When John Yettaw boarded a plane out of in Yangon early yesterday, the American senator who secured his release hailed the moment as a possible first step towards better relations between Myanmar and the West.

But as the man whose exploits gave the junta an excuse to further detain Aung San Suu Kyi headed away from the notorious Insein Prison, a fresh debate began on whether the West should pursue greater engagement with the country.

The haggard-looking 53-year-old, whose night-time swim to Suu Kyi's lakeside house was used as an excuse to extend the democracy leader's detention, headed to Thailand with United States Senator Jim Webb.

Webb, the first congressman to visit Myanmar for a decade, had secured Yettaw's release after meeting Senior General Than Shwe. He was also allowed to spend 45 minutes with Suu Kyi, who was sentenced last week to a further 18 months under house arrest.

After Webb arrived with Yettaw in Thailand, the senator said he had asked the junta to release the Opposition leader before an election scheduled for next year. "I'm hopeful as the months move forward they will take a look," he said. "With the scrutiny of the outside world judging their government very largely through how they are treating Aung San Suu Kyi, it's to their advantage that she's allowed to participate in the political process. I believe it will be impossible for the rest of the world to believe the elections were free and fair if she was not released."

Months ago, President Barack Obama extended a ban on US investment in Myanmar imposed in 1997. Yet there are a few voices who believe that closer engagement, including the lifting of a de facto travel boycott, would achieve more.

Derek Tonkin, a former British ambassador who chairs the Myanmar Network, said Webb believed that sanctions had been counter-productive, a view he shared.

"His view is that sanctions have been harmful. He believes the policy has had the opposite outcome than was intended."

Since 2003, when Suu Kyi said it was not the right time for tourists to visit Myanmar, there has been a strong campaign among activists in the West to deter travellers from visiting the country, arguing that such trips provide money to the regime and benefit only a small number of ordinary citizens.

It was reported at the weekend that the Opposition leader had since reversed her view on the travel boycott, though campaigners said there was no evidence to support this.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton recently said America's relationship with Myanmar could only improve once the Nobel laureate and 2000 other political prisoners were released from jail.

- INDEPENDENT