Dialogue is in progress on multiple levels to resolve the various issues related to Myanmar. This project sought to promote the dialogue on two levels: regional dialogue between Myanmar and its partners in ASEAN and dialogue within Myanmar between the government, represented by the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), and the opposition, notably the National League for Democracy (NDL).
In the first year the Asia Innovation Forum, which was held on Bali, drew 55 participants from 10 countries including Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore as well as Myanmar, and a lively exchange among ASEAN's members took place. Neither the SPDC nor the NDL took part in this meeting, but other participants from Myanmar contributed actively to the discussion, which helped build relations of trust. The report on the forum was distributed widely to all concerned quarters.
In the second year the Asian Dialogue Society was formed, with Thai Member of Parliament Sukhumbhand Paribatra serving as its chair, and it produced a fairly specific set of policy proposals based on the "road map" unveiled by the Myanmar government. This document was handed to Senior General Than Shwe, chairman of the SPDC, and then-Prime Minister Khin Nyunt, and it was also published on the website www.asiandialogue.com. The society has put effort into public relations activities. For instance, its members visited Japan when an ASEAN summit was held there so as to take the opportunity to publicize their proposals. They made a presentation to House of Councillors member Keizo Takemi and held a seminar to report on their proposals. Owing to conditions on the Myanmar side, however, the Myanmar Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials attending the summit were unable to join the members of the Asian Dialogue Society in a meeting that had been planned to discuss implementing the proposals and promoting dialogue.
This year, the project's last, members of the Asian Dialogue Society and other concerned people gathered in two sets of informal meetings, one with the theme "Building a Better Asia: Dialogues on Culture and Human Security" (February 11-17, 2005, in Goa, India) and the other with the theme "China-Southeast Asia Relations with a Focus on Myanmar" (April 29-30, 2005, in Kunming, China). Among the issues treated were security among the three countries of China, India, and Myanmar; economic, social, and cultural relations between China and Southeast Asia; and common concerns of ASEAN and China vis-à-vis Myanmar. An informal dialogue was planned in Mandalay to bring Myanmar political figures together with ASEAN opinion leaders, but it had to be canceled because of developments within Myanmar, including Khin Nyunt's removal from office.
Appeals were made to the Myanmar government throughout the three years to open a dialogue between the SPDC and the NLD. Owing to changes in the circumstances in and around the country, however, this effort did not bear fruit during the project period.