Obama to promote rights on Asia trip President Barack Obama leaves on Saturday for a four-day trip to southeast Asia which will set the tone for his approach to promoting human rights and democracy in his second term, including with regard to China. Mr Obama visits Thailand, attends a regional summit in Cambodia and makes the first visit by a sitting US president to Myanmar, underlining two years of dramatic political change in the once-isolated country. At the start of Mr Obama's first term, the administration was accused of playing down human rights and democracy in Asia, in an attempt to forge a stronger relationship with China and as it sought urgent solutions for the global economic crisis. Similar criticisms were levied at its policies in the Middle East. Buoyed by Mr Obama's re-election victory, the White House has indicated a change of emphasis, with officials promising robust support for political reforms and for greater protection of human rights. "The president is sending a signal to other countries where reform either is not happening or repression is happening . . . we will meet you action for action," said Samantha Power, a senior official at the National Security Council with responsibility for human rights. Needless to say, there are a lot of countries around the world where we would very much like other leaders to take this message. Mr Obama will face difficult political issues in each of the three countries. In Myanmar, the political process is still tightly controlled by the government despite reforms, and violence against the Rohingya population has highlighted the problems facing ethnic minorities. The White House admitted that restrictions on civil society have been on the increase in authoritarian Cambodia, while Thailand's democracy has also faced serious problems in recent years. In the context of an Asia strategy that is partly aimed at addressing the rise of Chinese influence in the region, there has been considerable debate in Washington about how to treat human rights. While some observers believe that too much US pressure for reform will push countries towards China, others suggest US interests are better served by encouraging more democracy. "In all three countries, China has taken advantage of our correct position on human rights and democracy, so it is fascinating to me . . . how does the president frame the issues of human rights and democracy," said Michael Green, a former Asia director at the NSC and now at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank. In the long run, Beijing is on the wrong side of a lot of these issues. Danny Russel, the current NSC Asia director, insisted that the Myanmar leg of the trip was "not a victory celebration" for the reforms, which have coincided with a reduction in Chinese influence in the country. "We believe that the Burmese leaders have put their feet on the right path and that it is critical to us that we not miss a moment to influence them to keep going," he said, using the old name for the country. During his visit to Myanmar, Mr Obama will meet President Thein Sein, opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and members of civil society, as well as giving a speech at Yangon University. He will confine his trip to Yangon, avoiding the capital, Naypyidaw. Diplomats say the decision was in response to concerns expressed by Ms Suu Kyi, who echoed the warnings of some human rights groups that it was too soon to reward Myanmar's leaders with a US presidential visit.