Chinese State Media: Democracy No 'Panacea' for Burma
Muslims burn a picture of Burma's president Thein Sein as they protest in front of Burma's embassy in Bangkok, June 21, 2012.
Chinese state media are warning against "excessive and hasty" democratic change in Burma, saying democracy alone cannot solve all of the Southeast Asian country's problems.
A commentary in the Communist Party-run Global Times acknowledged that the recent reforms by Burma's new quasi-civilian government are bringing "unprecedented hope for the nation's prospects."
But it also warned Burma of the dangers of what it called "Western-style democracy," saying too hasty of reform could "provide chances for all kinds of extremists."
In particular, it mentioned the recent conflict between Buddhists and Muslims in western Burma that has left dozens dead and tens of thousands displaced.
The article, entitled "Democracy no panacea for Myanmar's woes," said such conflicts "may get worse and run out of control" if Burma is too heavily influenced by the West or excessively relies on Western models of government.
China has been a long-time ally of Burma's former harsh military leadership, which stepped down last year and ceded power to a nominally civilian government that has since enacted a series of political and economic reforms.
The editorial also used the recent unrest in Egypt as an example of what can happen when a country enacts democratic reforms, saying elections there "may further split the society and even trigger more religious conflict."
It said Burma's ethnic problems cannot be fixed by "the appearance of one or two democracy leaders," in apparent reference to democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, who was released from house arrest in 2010 and recently elected to parliament.
Burma's Aung San Suu Kyi on Tour of Europe
1/18Aung San Suu Kyi and British Prime Minister David Cameron walk in the Rose Garden at the Prime Minister's country residence Chequers, near Ellesborough, Buckinghamshire, England, June 22, 2012.
Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is on a more than two-week Europe tour, which takes her to Switzerland, Norway, Britain, France and Ireland. During her first trip to Europe in 24 years, she accepted the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to her more than two decades ago.
2/18Burma's opposition leader makes an address to a joint session of both Houses of Parliament, in Westminster Hall, in London, June 21, 2012.
Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is on a more than two-week Europe tour, which takes her to Switzerland, Norway, Britain, France and Ireland. During her first trip to Europe in 24 years, she accepted the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to her more than two decades ago.
3/18Aung San Suu Kyi, Britain's Prince Charles and Camilla Duchess of Cornwall in the gardens of Clarence House, in London, 21 June 2012
Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is on a more than two-week Europe tour, which takes her to Switzerland, Norway, Britain, France and Ireland. During her first trip to Europe in 24 years, she accepted the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to her more than two decades ago.
4/18Aung San Suu Kyi greets British Prime Minister David Cameron at 10 Downing Street in London, June 21, 2012.
Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is on a more than two-week Europe tour, which takes her to Switzerland, Norway, Britain, France and Ireland. During her first trip to Europe in 24 years, she accepted the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to her more than two decades ago.
5/18Burmese opposition leader leaves through The Great Gate after receiving her honorary degree at Oxford University, in Oxford southern England, June 20, 2012.
Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is on a more than two-week Europe tour, which takes her to Switzerland, Norway, Britain, France and Ireland. During her first trip to Europe in 24 years, she accepted the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to her more than two decades ago.
6/18Aung San Suu Kyi, center, meets with people at a reception in Oxford, England, June 19, 2012.
Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is on a more than two-week Europe tour, which takes her to Switzerland, Norway, Britain, France and Ireland. During her first trip to Europe in 24 years, she accepted the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to her more than two decades ago.
7/18Burma's political leader is given a picture of her father for her birthday at The London School of Economics and Political Science in London, June, 19, 2012.
Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is on a more than two-week Europe tour, which takes her to Switzerland, Norway, Britain, France and Ireland. During her first trip to Europe in 24 years, she accepted the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to her more than two decades ago.
8/18Aung San Suu Kyi accepts the Amnesty International Ambassador of Conscience Award from Amnesty International Secretary-General Salil Shetty (L) and singer Bono (R), Dublin, Ireland, June 18, 2012.
Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is on a more than two-week Europe tour, which takes her to Switzerland, Norway, Britain, France and Ireland. During her first trip to Europe in 24 years, she accepted the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to her more than two decades ago.
9/18From left, Aung San Suu Kyi, Norway's Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere and Irish singer and activist Bono address the media after attending a conference of the Oslo Forum, Norway, June 18, 2012.
Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is on a more than two-week Europe tour, which takes her to Switzerland, Norway, Britain, France and Ireland. During her first trip to Europe in 24 years, she accepted the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to her more than two decades ago.
10/18Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi (L) meets Naw Star Ri during a meeting with the Burmese community in Bergen, Norway, June 17, 2012.
Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is on a more than two-week Europe tour, which takes her to Switzerland, Norway, Britain, France and Ireland. During her first trip to Europe in 24 years, she accepted the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to her more than two decades ago.
11/18Norway's Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Store, left, welcomes Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi at the Foreign Ministry for a meeting in Oslo, June 17, 2012.
Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is on a more than two-week Europe tour, which takes her to Switzerland, Norway, Britain, France and Ireland. During her first trip to Europe in 24 years, she accepted the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to her more than two decades ago.
12/18Aung San Suu Kyi signs a book at the Nobel Institute after a meeting with the Norwegian Nobel Committee in Oslo, June 16, 2012.
Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is on a more than two-week Europe tour, which takes her to Switzerland, Norway, Britain, France and Ireland. During her first trip to Europe in 24 years, she accepted the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to her more than two decades ago.
13/18Burma's pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi speaks to a large audience outside Oslo's City Hall, Norway, June 16, 2012.
Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is on a more than two-week Europe tour, which takes her to Switzerland, Norway, Britain, France and Ireland. During her first trip to Europe in 24 years, she accepted the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to her more than two decades ago.
14/18Aung San Suu Kyi, holds her speech during the Peace Nobel Prize lecture at the city hall in Oslo, June 16, 2012. She formally accepts the prize that thrust her into the global limelight two decades ago.
Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is on a more than two-week Europe tour, which takes her to Switzerland, Norway, Britain, France and Ireland. During her first trip to Europe in 24 years, she accepted the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to her more than two decades ago.
15/18Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi is greeted by Norwegian King Harald and Norway's Queen Sonja (L-R) at the Royal Castle in Oslo, June 16, 2012.
Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is on a more than two-week Europe tour, which takes her to Switzerland, Norway, Britain, France and Ireland. During her first trip to Europe in 24 years, she accepted the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to her more than two decades ago.
16/18Aung San Suu Kyi attends a news conference with Norway's Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg in central Oslo, June 15, 2012.
Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is on a more than two-week Europe tour, which takes her to Switzerland, Norway, Britain, France and Ireland. During her first trip to Europe in 24 years, she accepted the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to her more than two decades ago.
17/18Burma's pro-democracy leader signs autographs outside the Swiss Parliament in Bern, Switzerland, June 14, 2012.
Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is on a more than two-week Europe tour, which takes her to Switzerland, Norway, Britain, France and Ireland. During her first trip to Europe in 24 years, she accepted the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to her more than two decades ago.
18/18Burma's pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi delivers a speech during the last day of the 101st session of the International Labor Conference of the International Labor Organization in Geneva, Switzerland, June 14, 2012.
Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is on a more than two-week Europe tour, which takes her to Switzerland, Norway, Britain, France and Ireland. During her first trip to Europe in 24 years, she accepted the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to her more than two decades ago.
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The Global Times questioned whether Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy could help achieve ethnic reconciliation in Burma, saying the Nobel laureate "didn't seem to have a solution" for the recent violence there.
The paper said a "weak, divided government" is not able to solve complex ethnic problems, which it said were "directly related to the legacy of British colonial rule" in Burma, which ended in 1948.
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