U.N. envoy sees progress in Burma, as China warns of potential chaos

"We control the situation," he said of the ruling junta. "We take in some people for questioning, but most are released."

Although Asean has sharply criticised Burma, the grouping has made it clear it was not expelling or suspending the country as many human rights groups would like.

"Nobody can understand Myanmar better than the government," Aye Myint said, using the military regime's name for Burma.

"We are looking for understanding from Asean, other countries and the United Nations," he added.

Reuters reported Wednesday that China reiterated its strong opposition to sanctions on Burma, its close ally, in a blunt statement from a senior diplomat. Assistant Foreign Minister He Yafei said Burma was heading in the right direction after the mass protests.

Noting recent visits to Myanmar by U.N. special envoy Ibrahim Gambari and contacts between the imprisoned opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and the ruling generals. He said now was the time for "encouragement", not sanctions.

"We should be patient," the Chinese diplomat told a news conference about a summit of Asian leaders in Singapore next week. "We especially disapprove of sanctions. Sanctions cannot solve the problem, and will only make matters worse."

China believed stability was paramount for Myanmar to achieve "democracy and economic development", the senior official said.

"We cannot permit Myanmar to fall into chaos, we cannot permit Myanmar to become another Iraq. No matter what ideas other countries have, China's stance on this is staunch."

However, Canada has decided to tighten its sanctions on Burma over its repression of the pro-democracy movement, VOA News reports. "The new sanctions include a ban on Canadian investment, trade and transfer of technical data to Burma" but are mostly symbolic as trade between the two countries was only $9 million in 2006.

Gems are among Burma's most valued exports, but buyers are worried by government sanctions and calls for corporate boycotts in Western markets, said the International Herald Tribune. In the past, Burma has auctioned jade and rubies for much-needed hard currency, but the latest auction that began Wednesday may be less successful. Last month the European Union imposed a ban on Burmese gems.

Some of the world's largest and best-recognized jewelers, including Cartier and Tiffany, have told their suppliers they will no longer buy gems of Burmese origin.

A bill in the U.S. Congress backed by Jewelers of America, an industry association, seeks to bar the import of Burmese gems that are polished or cut in a third country before being shipped to the United States.

Gem dealers long accustomed to dealing with the authoritarian government in Myanmar say business uncertainties, more than moral imperatives, make them reluctant to buy Burmese gems.

Adisak Thawornviriyanan, director of the Gems and Jewelry Traders Association of Chataburi, a province east of Bangkok that is a major center for cutting and polishing Burmese gems, has taken part in auctions for the past four years. But he decided not to attend this Gems Emporium, the first since the government's crackdown on demonstrators in September.

"We will wait and see if we can sell our old stock, but I wouldn't dare buy more," Adisak said. "We don't know how strong the U.S. ban will be."

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