For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
August 1, 2006

President Renews Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act of 2003

President Bush has signed today a bill renewing the Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act of 2003 and extending import restrictions against the regime, as a sign of his serious concern about the Burmese regime's continuing refusal to act on its professed commitment to democratization. Instead, the country slides deeper into self-imposed isolation and misrule, the democratic opposition and ethnic minority groups continue to be shut out of the political process, and Aung San Suu Kyi remains under house arrest.

The United States watches in deep dismay as a country of Burma's beauty and potential deteriorates under the oppressive weight of the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) military junta. Burma's neighbors in the Association of Southeast Nations have also recently condemned the regime's lack of tangible progress in returning to the democratic path.

The President calls on the international community and the United Nations to join the United States in support of the people of Burma.

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