WASHINGTON D.C. – Sen. John Kerry made the following statement today, during a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on Burma’s Saffron Revolution. The hearing included witnesses from the State Department, Human Rights Watch, the Center for Strategic and International Studies and the U.S. Campaign for Burma.

Senator Kerry’s Opening Statement, as prepared:

The last few weeks we’ve witnessed firsthand the incredible courage of the Burmese people standing up against one of the world’s most repressive regimes. After years and years of oppression, what began a month ago as modest, impromptu protests mushroomed into a nation-wide, peaceful democratic groundswell with tens of thousands of students joining Buddhist monks in what became the Saffron Revolution.

We’ve been here before. This is the second time in twenty years there’s been blood shed on the streets of Burma in response to peaceful protest. The democratic uprisings of 1988 and the repression that followed show the horrible human toll of our collective failure to act. Back then, the United States and the world spoke out – and then lost focus. And so here we are again.

The question – more important than why now, is what’s next?

I’m glad the Senate has spoken by unanimously passing a bipartisan resolution that I introduced condemning the military crackdown. But we won’t end the oppression in Burma, restore democracy, and honor these courageous protests just by resolutions expressing our disapproval – it takes a concerted policy, it takes a strategy, and most of all it takes focus and it demands ongoing pressure.

So, the question that remains is whether the United States is serious about leading the world in making certain that the end of these protests marks only the beginning of a renewed effort to spur democratic reform in Burma. We must finish what the people of Burma have started by leading the international community in pressuring the military junta to release all political prisoners, starting with Aung San Suu Kyi, and take steps down the path towards political reform.

The President’s decision last week to target the top generals for financial sanctions sent an important message — but U.S. sanctions alone are not enough, and they alone will not solve the problem.

The United Nations mission to Burma, led by Special Envoy Ibrahim Gambari, showed some promise, meeting with Than Shwe, the leader of the junta, and twice with Aung San Suu Kyi. But Ambassador Gambari has now left the country without any tangible signs of progress. I believe that the United Nations must reinforce its commitment to playing a meaningful role in moving the political dialogue forward – and the United States should be leading the effort to make that happen.

We also need to demand a lot more from those countries that are best positioned to pressure the regime: China, India, Russia, and the ASEAN nations. The President and the United Nations must engage in strenuous diplomacy with Beijing — which carries the most sway with Burma’s generals — and urge the Chinese to press for political reform.
China has in its grasp a momentous opportunity to demonstrate leadership commensurate with its growing power and status. This is an important test. The world is watching. Yesterday, I joined a group of senators in what was a frank -- and I believe productive -- meeting with the Chinese Ambassador to convey this message.

As the international community exerts greater pressure on the military junta, it must also reach out more aggressively with humanitarian assistance. Many of Burma’s 52 million people live in abject misery. About one-third are mired in poverty. Malaria and tuberculosis are widespread, and mortality rates in Burma are among the highest in Asia. At least 37,000 died of HIV/AIDS in 2005, and over 600,000 are infected with HIV.

The international community must respond to this ongoing tragedy by pressuring Burma’s military junta to lift all restrictions on humanitarian aid delivery and then allow humanitarian aid groups to work to alleviate human suffering. The resilient and brave Burmese people have shown they are more than worthy of our support and compassion.

A peaceful, pro-democratic outcome in Burma is within reach: the UN, ASEAN, India, Russia, and especially China must stand with America in solidarity with the Burmese people. The people of Burma have risked their lives and endangered their safety to be free, and they have a chance to succeed, but only if the international community maintains its vigilance and stands with them in their hour of need.