UNITED NATIONS, May 12 (UPI) -- As reports on human rights abuses by the ruling government pile higher, a senior U.N. official will meet with authorities in Myanmar for the first time in years.
U.N. Undersecretary-General for Political Affairs Ibrahim Gambari will pay a visit to the Southeast Asian country "in the near future, with emphasis on near," Stephane Dujarric, a U.N. spokesman, said Friday.
Without giving further details on the visit or the issues to be discussed, which "are still being finalized," Dujarric confirmed Gambari is scheduled to meet with authorities in Myanmar shortly.
"The United Nations is committed to encouraging a return to democracy and respect for human rights in Myanmar," he said. "The visit of Undersecretary-General Gambari will seek to further those objectives."
The visit coincides with media reports about increasing human rights abuses in Myanmar, in particular against the Karen ethnic minority. According to the reports, Karen have been attacked by government forces.
"The (Myanmar government) has committed horrific attacks against minorities," said Sophie Richardson of Human Rights Watch, adding that the organization has urged for further inquires into the situation.
The upcoming visit is a rare opportunity for a high-level U.N. official to meet with Myanmar authorities, who have a history of refusing visits by U.N. representatives. U.N. Special Rapporteur Paulo Sergio Pinheiro and former U.N. Special Envoy Razali Ismail were refused entry to the country for two years. Ismail, a Malaysian diplomat, resigned in early January, expressing pessimism over prospects for change in Myanmar.
The last visit by a U.N. representative took place in August last year, when one of Annan's envoys for U.N. reforms, Ali Alatas, met with Foreign Minister U Nyan Win in the capital Yangon.
"We hope the U.N. representatives put human rights concerns at the center of their agenda," said Richardson.
Myanmar, formerly Burma, has been under international criticism for its human rights record for many years. The U.N. General Assembly and the U.N. High Commission for Human Rights together have passed nearly 30 resolutions calling for the ruling military junta to acknowledge the political rights of their opponents and to free political prisoners, who amount to about 1,100, according to human rights groups.
U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton, who first revealed the undersecretary-general's plans to visit Myanmar, said he had spoken with Gambari in preparation for his trip. "We agreed on the condition that the concern for Aung San Suu Kyi be raised in all these meetings," Bolton said, referring to the Nobel Peace Prize laureate Suu Kyi, leader of the democratic opposition in Myanmar, who has been under house arrest in the capital for more than a decade.
Another condition for the visit, Bolton said, was that "the concerns expressed in the (U.N. Security) Council be clearly conveyed by the undersecretary-general."
The deteriorating situation in Myanmar was raised in the council last December. In a closed and informal briefing, which came as a result of U.S. pressure, Gambari addressed the 15 council members on conditions inside the country.
Bolton said it would be appropriate for the undersecretary-general to hold a briefing in the council upon his return.
Gambari, of Nigeria, was appointed by Annan to the post a year ago. He will serve until the end of the secretary-general's term, which expires this year.
