Bush slaps new sanctions on Myanmar rulers

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US President George W. Bush addresses the 62nd UN General Asssembly at the United Nations. Bush on Tuesday imposed new US sanctions on Myanmar's military rulers and their supporters, and urged global support for efforts to advance democratic reforms there.

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UNITED NATIONS (AFP) — US President George W. Bush on Tuesday unveiled new sanctions on Myanmar's military rulers and urged global pressure for democratic reforms to end the junta's decades-old "reign of fear."

As world powers warned the generals in Yangon against using force to break up the biggest protests in two decades, Bush called on the UN General Assembly to side with the demonstrators and "help bring peaceful change" there.

"Americans are outraged by the situation in Burma, where a military junta has imposed a 19-year reign of fear," he said. "The ruling junta remains unyielding, yet the people's desire for freedom is unmistakable."

After he spoke, the junta imposed a dusk-till-dawn curfew on Yangon effective Wednesday and declared the entire city a military "restricted" area -- a term normally reserved for military or conflict zones.

The restrictions will be in place for 60 days, and a similar order was imposed in the second city of Mandalay, according to an official announcement that warned against gathering in groups of more than five people.

Earlier, the military sped at least 200 armed soldiers and riot police in downtown Yangon, after Buddhist monks defied warnings of a crackdown and led 100,000 people in another day of peaceful protests against the regime.

This week's protests are the biggest public show of dissent since student-led rallies in 1988 were brutally repressed with hundreds, if not thousands, of lives lost.

"The United States will tighten economic sanctions on the leaders of the regime and their financial backers. We will impose an expanded visa ban on those responsible for the most egregious violations of human rights, as well as their family members," Bush said.

"We will continue to support the efforts of humanitarian groups working to alleviate suffering in Burma and urge the United Nations and all nations to use their diplomatic and economic leverage to help the Burmese people reclaim their freedom."

He noted the military had detained Myanmar democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, whose opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) won elections in 1990 that the military never recognized. She has spent most of the past 18 years under house arrest in Yangon.

The military has held power in Myanmar in one form or another since 1962, but tightened its grip in a 1988 crackdown, and refused to accept Aung San Suu Kyi's electoral victory.

Bush's remarks came as European ambassadors were Tuesday to hold their first talks on Myanmar since the latest protests began, an EU spokesman said, and as Britain called for a tougher stance against the regime.

But it was unlikely that any decision would be made during the day to toughen up EU sanctions, which were reinforced in April, said one participating European diplomat.

Burma Campaign UK assistant director Mark Farmaner praised Bush for showing the world the way to deal with the regime.

"It will certainly do good," he told AFP. "Once again the US is miles out in the lead in terms of supporting Burma's democracy movement, putting the rest of the world to shame."

Farmaner, citing existing US investment and imports bans, praised both Bush and his predecessor Bill Clinton for resisting intensive lobbying from US petroleum countries for them to ease the restrictions.

In contrast, Farmaner said the EU's sanctions were ineffective and had not restricted oil and gas revenue for the regime but instead targeted state-owned companies, including a pineapple juice factory and tailor's shops.

The so-called "pineapple sanctions" include a visa ban, but officials travelling to Europe on diplomatic missions are exempt, he said.

"What we need is a combination of economic and political pressure. The EU has no strategy towards Burma. It is divided," he said, calling for "targeted, smart sanctions" to hit the regime where it hurts -- in the pocket."

In his speech, Bush also scolded the United Nations for not doing enough to challenge repressive governments, citing Belarus, North Korea, Syria and Iran, as well as Cuba, Zimbabwe and Sudan.

Bush also called for overhauling the UN human rights council which, he charged, overly criticizes Israel while turning a blind eye to abuses elsewhere.