China, being the biggest investor and nurturing a close relationship with Burma, should immediately initiate concrete steps to help end state repression in the Southeast Asian country, US based Human Rights Watch said.

HRW, in a letter to the Chinese President Hu Jintao on Wednesday, urged China to make use of its influence to pressure the Burmese military junta to end its unabated crackdown on monks and activists.

“As one of Burma’s neighbours, its biggest investor, and its main supplier of weaponry, China indisputably wields the power to positively influence this situation,” Ken Roth, Executive Director of HRW said in the letter.

China, which vetoed a draft UN Security Council resolution on Burma along with Russia earlier this year, reportedly has signed over 200 MoUs with the Burmese junta in various business sectors.

HRW criticized China for failing to condemn the Burmese junta for its recent brutal crackdown on protesters.

“Public criticism from China would have had an immediate effect in Burma,” said Roth citing that even ASEAN countries, which traditionally practices non-interference in internal matters of member states, has voiced concern and publicly condemned the junta for its acts.

HRW called on China to immediately place an arms embargo that will halt all weapon transfers from China to Burma and suspend all military training, transport, assistance, and cooperation, and to support or abstain from vetoing UN Security Council resolutions calling for sanctions or other collective action to address the crisis in Burma.

The human rights watchdog also called for the suspension of involvement by state-owned China National Petroleum Corporation and Sinopec, which are both official Olympic partners, in the proposed Burma-China oil and natural gas pipelines.

The Rights group also called on President Hu to instruct Chinese firms, including stated-owned firms, with business ties in Burma to publicly and fully disclose all payments made to the Burmese military, directly or through the entities it controls.

Roth said August 8, 2008, the official opening day of Beijing Olympic, also coincides with the 20th anniversary of the 1988 pro-democracy protests in Burma, during which an estimated 3,000 people were killed.

“Recent events in Burma mean that the spotlight on that date will also be on the continued suffering of the Burmese people,” Roth said.

“If China takes a strong stand on Burma now, it will be credited rather than criticized on 08-08-08 ,” added Roth. “Doing so isn’t just right; it’s also in China’s self-interest.”