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Blog Posts by Sean Garcia

Burma: Rohingya A Year Later
January 19, 2010 Sean Garcia Burma

One year ago, the travails of Rohingya from Burma shocked people around the world. Boat after boat of refugees, fleeing abuse and oppression in Burma, were intercepted at sea by the Thai army, who then proceeded to detain them without trial. After days in outdoor detention, the Rohingya refugees were loaded back on to their boats, and the Thai army proceeded to tow them out to sea where they were abandoned with little food or water and no motors to power their boats.
Burma: Opening the Door
November 04, 2009 Sean Garcia Burma, U.S. Administration
The dialogue is changing. Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell and his deputy Scot Marceil visited Burma and held talks with Burmese officials and Burmese dissident Aung San Suu Kyi. It is the highest-level visit to Burma in more than a decade, and follows the State Department’s September announcement of its Burma Policy Review, which began shortly after President Obama took office. 
Burma: A Better Future for All Burmese
September 30, 2009 Sean Garcia Burma, Congress, U.S. Administration, Humanitarian Response, Neglected Crises
Earlier today the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on East Asia and the Pacific held a hearing on US policy towards Burma. The hearing was held in the interest of exploring options for dialogue and engagement with the government of Burma, and was long-overdue in a Washington policy context that has been dominated by debate over sanctions. Today’s hearing will be followed up next week by a similar hearing in the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and also echoes the recently-released State Department Burma policy review which makes engagement the policy of the day. 
Thailand: Few Options for Burmese Refugees
August 25, 2009 Sean Garcia Burma, Thailand, Neglected Crises
In the first days of June, a new Burmese government offensive began in the eastern parts of Karen State, which borders Thailand, against the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA).  The offensive, which is being conducted by proxy through the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA), has since displaced over 4,000 people to Thailand. The Thai government has generously given refuge to these new waves of displaced people, and new refugee settlements have sprung up overnight alongside rice paddies and cornfields that overlook the river border with Burma. Despite the familiarity of this situation --Thailand already hosts over 150,000 Burmese refugees -- many questions remain as to the long-term safety of these new refugees.
Burma: Ban Ki-Moon Misses the Mark
July 10, 2009 Sean Garcia Burma, United Nations

This past weekend, United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon visited Burma for a second time. During his first trip there in May of 2008, he was highly successful in paving the way for humanitarian assistance to flow into the cylone-ravaged delta region. This second visit was less successful, and the only big “ask” made by Mr. Ban – to speak with imprisoned democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi – was denied. I believe that the key reason for his failure lies in his straying from a growing international consensus the best way to engage the Burmese government is to discuss to a broad range of issues, including humanitarian ones,instead of focusing solely on human rights.