of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Jakarta, Burma made a request to hold the 2014 ASEAN chairmanship. Observers are debating whether Burma deserves the chairman- ship or not. Why is it important for the Burmese government? The chairmanship position, which is rotated among ASEAN member states every year, is cur- rently chaired by Indonesia. Cam- bodia is set to chair in 2012, which will be followed by Brunei in 2013. The Burmese president Thein Sein (former military leader and prime minister under the State Peace and Development Council govern- ment) sought the support of other ASEAN leaders. Burma was forced to skip the 2006 chairmanship because of pressure from within ASEAN and from the Western democracies. While the United States and the European Union threatened to boycott ASEAN meetings if Bur- ma was to assume the role of chair, some ASEAN members (Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore) feared that it would damage the image of ASEAN internationally. The debate surrounding Bur- ma’s chairmanship stems from the question of human rights. The idea of creating an ASEAN human rights body was first deliberated in 1993 by the then-foreign minis- ters of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand during the 26th ASEAN ministerial meeting in Singapore. However, the rights body was for- mally established only when the ASEAN Charter was adopted in 2007, and ratified by all members in 2008. Burma was given ASEAN observer status in 1996 and full membership in 1997. Because of its suppression of the democracy uprising in 1988, the detention of Aung San Suu Kyi in 1989, and the nullifying of the 1990 gen- eral election result, Burma was under heavy pressure from the Western democracies to restore a legitimate government or face sanctions. In the past few months, the Burmese government has taken some symbolic initiatives toward democratic and human rights reforms. In November 2010, the government held a general elec- tion and released Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest. The election was, however, held with a win-win situation for the military-backed Union Solidar- ity and Development Party. Suu Kyi was released only after the election. Subsequently, the new government was formed in March this year and is headed by none other than former military gener- als in civilian clothes. These developments make many to believe that Burma is moving toward a stable democratic society, a move welcomed by members of ASEAN and Burma’s big trading partners such as China and India. The new developments have also convinced the European Union, in April this year, to lift travel and financial restrictions on four ministers, including the foreign minister, for one year. In spite of these symbolic devel- opments, human rights remain a fundamental problem. There are still over 2,000 political prisoners across Burma; forced labor is still widespread; ethnic minorities still do not find peace and security in their own territories. With recent developments inside Burma, it is possible that majority of the 10-member states, if not by consensus, will endorse Burma for chairmanship. This was echoed by a joint communiqué issued at the end of the two-day ASEAN summit, which stated, “We considered the proposal of Burma that it would host the ASEAN summits in 2014, in view of its firm commitment to the principles of ASEAN.” If substantive steps are taken to improve human rights condi- tions, by releasing political pris- oners unconditionally, ceasing forced labor, arbitrary arrests, and torture, and beginning to build mutual trust with ethnic minori- ties, Burma deserves its right- ful place like any other ASEAN member. As ASEAN is keen on improving ties with Western democracies, especially with the goal of achiev- ing a European-style community by 2015, the voices of both the United States and the European Union will be a significant factor in the final decision-making of awarding the chairmanship to Burma. Awarding chairmanship can in fact help Burma’s claim to legiti- macy and probably boost inter- national recognition. However, doing so without any realistic improvement on human rights conditions will be tantamount to a mockery of the ASEAN human rights body. It is imperative that the Bur- mese government seeks legiti- macy and recognition not only from the international commu- nity, but also from the different ethnic groups of the country. ASEAN has a chance to prove that it is seriously working to resolve human rights problems within ASEAN institutions, as stated in its Charter. ASEAN can use the chairmanship position as a leverage to improve human rights condition inside Burma. By chairing ASEAN, the Burmese government hopes to gain domes- tic and international approval. Moreover, ASEAN chairmanship will give Burma the opportunity to host leaders of the Western democracies, who otherwise will not visit the country. It also has the possibility of easing Western sanctions. Nehginpao Kipgen is a research- er on the rise of political conflicts in modern Burma (1947-2004) and general secretary of the U.S.- based Kuki International Forum (www.kukiforum.com). Widely published in five continents— Asia, Africa, Australia, Europe, and North America, Kipgen currently pursues a Ph.D. in political science at Northern Illinois University.