A caucus of Southeast Asian lawmakers says nations in the region should deny Burma its turn as the group's chairman if it cannot be persuaded to withdraw.
The Inter-Parliamentary Caucus on Democracy in Burma said in a statement Monday that members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations had been working hard to get Burma to step aside until it makes genuine reforms.
Burma's ruling junta is widely expected to announce during talks in Vientiane this week that it will not take up the ASEAN chairmanship at this time, but members of the Inter-Parliamentary Caucus say there has been no copnfirmation that will occur.
A Burmese foreign ministry official Thaung Tun hinted at a withdrawal Sunday, saying his country did not want to put ASEAN in a difficult position.
Information for this report is provided by AFP.
