What Burma desperately needs now is a solution to its civil crisis based on the concept of the golden mean, originated by the Greek philosopher Aristotle (384 BC – 322 BC). It recommends finding a workable middle ground that lies between the extremes of excess and deficiency.
 
Burma has been governed by extremes for more than two decades.
 
A middle ground has never been achieved when it comes to Burmese politics. Inside Burma, there is no middle ground between the powerful people and the powerless people. In international diplomacy, there’s never been a middle ground.

To find a middle ground, there must be a dialogue between the military government and pro-democracy groups led by detained Aung San Suu Kyi.

On Monday, the NLD party responded to a comment of the junta’s Foreign Minister Nyan Win, who told his counterpart in Singapore that under the government’s planned elections in 2010, Suu Kyi would not be allowed run in accordance with the 1974 constitution because she was married to a foreigner—referring to her late British husband, Michael Aris. 

The NLD statement said his remark was a “personal and political attack” against her.

Actually, before the 1990 elections, a government court ruled that Suu Kyi couldn’t contest that election since she was supported by a foreign husband.
 
Han Thar Myint, a spokesperson of the NLD, said on Monday that there wasn’t such an act in the 1974 constitution. 

But even without Suu Kyi, the NLD contested the elections in 1990, and it won by a landslide. However, some NLD leaders had anticipated their victory wouldn’t lead to a handover of power.

The leadership believed that such a victory would be a catalyst for a genuine dialogue. It won as expected, but— twenty years and counting—the dream of dialogue has never been achieved.

When you look at the diplomacy of the East and West on the Burma issue, again you see extremes. While the West has promoted a pro-sanction policy, the East has stuck to a pro-engagement policy. 

On Monday, the US announced more economic sanctions against two key financial operatives who have close connections with the generals. The targeted cronies are Steven Law, known as Tun Myint Naing, and his father Lo Hsing-han, known as the “Godfather of Heroin,” and Steven Law’s wife, Cecilia Ng, who is a Singapore citizen. Their 10 companies based in Singapore and four companies based in Burma are now under sanctions.  

Meanwhile, expressing the other extreme, Thailand’s new Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama, said on Monday, “In the past, we had constructive engagement and flexible engagement, but they never took us anywhere. Now, we will adopt another approach, neighbor engagement.”

What is “neighbor engagement”? It’s same old policy of appeasement.

“We will talk to them in a friendly manner on subjects that they are comfortable with,” the foreign minister said. “The policy of non-interference remains a sacrosanct principle, not only for Asean but also the international community.”

We have never found a middle ground between East and West foreign policies. China, India and Asean countries protect and support the Burmese regime. The US-led Western countries impose sanctions.   

Actually, the international community, including the UN, is seeking a middle ground when it calls for an inclusive “road map” to democracy. When the junta announced its referendum in May and elections in 2010, the UN special envoy called it a significant development but reiterated it must be inclusive—implying the need to find a middle ground. 

The planned May referendum and elections in 2010 are the junta’s “road map” to democracy, but it’s clearly a one-way road. 

Because Burma has failed to find a middle ground for more than 20 years, we had another bloody uprising in September 2007. 

Suu Kyi recently told her NLD colleagues, “Let’s hope for the best, but prepare for the worst.” 

Her words seem to confirm that without a middle ground, we’ll have more of the same. Burma’s political future is darkly ominous, similar to 1988 when 3,000 were killed by the junta.

If the country can’t find a workable middle ground, we can expect more frustration, more protest and more blood.