A senior member of the Burmese government-in-exile wants Malaysia to take Petronas out of Burma's oil and gas industry, stating that such business dealings would only help put money into the military regime's coffers.

Dr Sann Aung, a minister with the National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma, told malaysiakini in an interview that Petronas is still investing in the oil and gas industry when several other foreign companies have left.

Sann said Petronas, which is owned by the Malaysian government, has replaced Primer, a British oil company that first discovered oil in the Yetagun Field in 1992

Primer withdrew from Burma in 2002 after an international campaign was mounted against the company for its unethical investment practices. However, its operations in Burma were taken over by Petronas and New York-based Amerada Hess.

"All business and trade (in natural resources extraction) are helping the military (junta). All joint ventures have to go through them," said Sann, who is in Kuala Lumpur for the Asean Inter-Parliamentary Caucus meeting on Burma.

"The money would only harden their stand. Any country which would like to help Burma should not do business with the military regime," he said.

Sann urged the Malaysian government to continue engaging with the Burmese people and the military regime and pressure the generals for dialogue.

The junta crushed pro-democracy demonstrations in 1988 and, two years later, rejected the results of national election won by Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy. Sann was one of the NLD politicians elected as a member of Parliament.

Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace laureate, has spent 10 of the past 17 years under detention.

The meeting of the Asean Inter-Parliamentary Caucus - comprising Southeast Asian parliamentarians and headed by Malaysian MP Zaid Ibrahim - coincides with the Asean foreign ministers meeting.

This will be followed by Asia's top security meeting - the Asean Regional Forum (ARF) - which will kick off tomorrow.

Ministers from 26 nations including Australia, China, Japan, North Korea, Russia and South Korea as well as United States secretary of state Condoleezza Rice are expected to attend ARF. The impasse in Burma is to be a key topic of discussion.

Asean stand 'disappointing'

Sann also said the Asean stand on Burma has been "disappointing" and that it should hold a consistent position on Burma.

On Malaysian Foreign Affairs Minister Syed Hamid Albar's recent statement on getting the United Nations to take up the issue, Sann said it appears that Malaysia is passing the buck.

"We cannot accept this view. Burma is a member of Asean," he said.

However, he said the Burmese government-in-exile does not want Asean to expel Burma, although this is the demand of a number of international human rights organisations.

"We feel that Asean, as a democratic organisation, should engage Burma individually and as a whole. (There is a need) to engage China and India as well so they can come up with a solution on Burma," he said.

He said that it was important for countries to have a coherent approach, and that they should consult each other before airing any different views.

"One of the reasons why they (the generals) are still in power up to now is that the regime is playing one side against another," he claimed.

Sann said he would prefer selective or 'targeted' economic sanctions targeted at industries controlled by the military, as this approach would not punish the Burmese people.

"Gas, for example, is under the total control of consortiums that deal with the military. There should be sanctions against extraction of natural resources. The money goes into the pocket of the military to buy weapons," Sann alleged.

Malaysia had expressed interest in finding an alternative source of natural gas in 1998 when then prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad was said to be vacationing in Yetagun, where there is no known resort or hotel. At the time, US firm Atlantic Richfield had just pulled out from the area.

Petronas has been criticised by groups for having done business with governments that have a poor human rights records such as Sudan, Chad and Burma.