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BurmaNet News: December 6, 1995 #29
- Subject: BurmaNet News: December 6, 1995 #29
- From: strider@xxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Wed, 06 Dec 1995 10:01:00
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Date: Wed, 6 Dec 1995 10:01:45 -0800
Subject: BurmaNet News: December 6, 1995 #296
------------------------ BurmaNet ------------------------
"Appropriate Information Technologies, Practical Strategies"
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The BurmaNet News: December 6, 1995
Issue #296
Noted in Passing:
The kings of Myanmar were known for their cruelty towards
their subjects, but were also famous for their great merit-making
activities such as the building of large numbers of pagodas.
(see: MYANMAR WEBSITE: SLORC HISTORY EXCERPT)
HEADINGS:
=========
MYANMAR WEBSITE: SLORC HISTORY EXCERPT
REUTER: NAGA REBELS KILL NINE INDIAN TROOPERS IN AMBUSH
MAINICHI DAILY NEWS: LETTER FROM BURMA
ORGANIZING COMMITTEE: MESSAGE OF FELICITATION
SYDNEY MORNING HERALD: THALIAND SNUBS EVANS OVER BURMA TIES
THE NATION: SUU KYI VOWS TO PURSUE DEMOCRACY CAMPAIGN
THE NATION: GARETH EVANS SEES BURMA'S BEST PATH TO DEMOCRACY
BKK POST: RANGOON PRESSES AHEAD WITH RUINOUS POLICIES
BKK POST: KAREN RENEGADES SHOOT MISSIONARY DEAD
NATION: BURMA CONFIRMS DECISION TO SIGN ASEAN NUCLEAR-FREE TREATY
BKK POST: OBSERVERS TAKE CONTRASTING LINES ON BURMA'S CONVENTION
BURMESE JUNTA SAYS IT HAS MASS SUPPORT
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MYANMAR WEBSITE: SLORC HISTORY EXCERPT
>From the Myanmar.com website:
December 3, 1995
(Editor's Note: Is this perhaps meant to be a justification of the SLORC's
present use of forced labor?)
Having been expressly told since childhood that the Five Precepts should be
observed as strictly as possible, Buddhists are generally reluctant to break
these precepts. So when they cannot avoid breaking them, it seems that they
will be sure to follow up with meritorious deeds. For example, the kings of
Myanmar were known for their cruelty towards their subjects, but were
also famous for their great merit-making activities such as the building of
large numbers of pagodas, their assistance to the Sangha, the body of monks,
and construction of reservoirs and lakes.
(http://www.myanmar.com/myanmar/gov/tourist/rel.html)
********************************************
REUTER: NAGA REBELS KILL NINE INDIAN TROOPERS IN AMBUSH
December 4, 1995
NEW DELHI, India (Reuter) - At least nine Indian paramilitary troopers were
killed and six injured when Naga guerrillas attacked a patrol in the
northeastern state of Nagaland, a local news agency said Monday.
The government's Central Industrial Security Force troopers were attacked
while carrying state funds through rugged terrain on Dec. 2, the United News
of India quoted an official statement as saying.
Naga militants have battled New Delhi's rule in Nagaland for 10 years,
demanding a separate homeland at the Burmese border.
*****************************************************
MAINICHI DAILY NEWS: LETTER FROM BURMA
December 4, 1995 By Aung San Suu Kyi
Glimpses of history and untamed beauty
ROAD TO THAMANYA (2)
The country we had been going through was rocky. At
Mokpalin we had passed a rock quarry where, I was told,
convicts were usually to be seen working. We saw none on
our way to Thamanya, but on our way back we saw two men in
white with chains on their legs trotting along the roadway,
shouldering a pole from which hung large baskets full of broken rock.
In the vicinity of Kyaik - hto is the Kyaik - htiyoe pagoda.
It is only 15 feet in height but it is one of the most famous
religious monuments in Burma because it is built on a large
skull shaped rock amazingly balanced on the edge of a
jutting crag 3,600 feet above sea level. Its perch is so
precarious that the push of one strong man can set it
rocking gently. Yet it has managed to maintain its
equilibrium over many centuries.
There are rubber plantations all along the route from the
Sittang bridge until the town of Thaton, a straggling place
with a slightly battered air. When we were schoolchildren
we were taught that rubber was one of the main export
products of Burma. But over the last few decades our
rubber industry gradually went downhill and now rubber no
longer features among our important natural assets.
Once upon a time Thaton with its twilight air was a thriving
capital and a famous center for Buddhism, ruled over by the
Mon King Manuha, a monarch who commanded the respect
of friend and foe alike. Although he was defeated in battle
and carried away as a captive by King Anawratha of Pagan,
Manuha's personal stature remained undiminished. Popular
Burmese history has it that even in defeat his glory was so
manifest, every time Manuha made obeisance to Anawratha,
the victor king broke out into a goose flesh of fear. In the
end, it is said, Anawratha managed to destroy Manuha's
glory by underhanded means.
In Pagan today there still remains the Manuha stupa with
dedication by the captive king praying that he might never
again, in any of his future lives, be defeated by another. The
sympathetic account given of King Manuha is one of the
most admirable parts of Burmese history, demonstrating a
lack of ethnic prejudice and unstinting respect for a noble enemy.
>From Thaton we continued to travel in an easterly direction
and at about eleven o'clock we entered the state of Karen.
The state capital Pa-an lies on the east bank of the river
Salween which we crossed by car ferry. Pa-an is a spacious
town, quiet and pleasantly countrified. We did not stop
there as we had made arrangements to meet members of the
Karen State NLD only on the way back from Thamanya.
There is an untamed beauty about the lands around Pa-an.
The area is notable for its striking hills that rise sheer from
the ground. In some of the hills are caves in which old Mon
inscriptions, images and pagodas have been found. It was in
one of these caves that a queen of Manuha took refuge after
the defeat of her husband. It is believed that this queen later
moved, for greater security, to the foot of "Paddy Seed Hill" and
that it was she who had the two pagodas constructed on its summit.
As we approached Thamanya, the quiet seemed to deepen.
It was difficult to imagine that we were close to areas which
have served as battlefields for most of the last 50 years.
Fighting had broken out between government troops and
Karen insurgents almost as soon as Burma was declared an
independent nation in January 1948. And there has not yet
been a political settlement that could bring permanent peace
to this land with its wild, magical quality.
The Hsayadaw of Thamanya is a vegetarian and only
vegetarian food is served in his domain. It is customary for
those making the journey to Thamanya to start eating
vegetarian food at least the day before they set out. We too
had been eating vegetarian food and we felt full of health
and calm self - satisfaction as we covered the last lap of our
journey. Suddenly it occurred to us that the quietness and
feeling of ease had to do with something more than the
beauties of nature or our state of mind. We realized that the
road had become less rough. Our vehicle was no longer
leaping from crater to rut and we were no longer rolling
around like peas in a basin.
As soon as we passed under the archway that marked the
beginning of the domain of Thamanya, we noted that the
road was even better, a smooth, well - kept black ribbon
winding into the distance. The difference between the road
we had traveled and the road on which we now found our-
selves struck all of us. This road had been built and
maintained by the Hsayadaw for the convenience of the
villagers who lived around the hill and of the pilgrims who
came in their tens and thousands each year. It was far
superior to many a highway to be found in Rangoon.
(This is the second in a yearlong series of letters, the
Japanese translation of which appears in the Mainichi
Shimbun the same day, or the previous day in some areas.)
****************************************************
ORGANIZING COMMITTEE: MESSAGE OF FELICITATION
December 4, 1995
75th anniversary(Diamond Jubilee) of Rangoon University celebration
MESSAGE OF FELICITATION BY ORGANIZING COMMITTEE
1st Dec.' 95 marks the occasion of the 75th anniversary (Diamond Jubilee)
of Rangoon University. Rangoon University was founded in 1920, and since
then it has given birth to a numerous outstanding persons. One can see in the
national record the history of outstanding leaders whom the Rangoon
University gave birth to during 1920-95 period.
With the untiring efforts of our forebrothers, national colleges and
universities were founded all over the country during the reign of British
Colonialists. After sometimes, Rangoon university, which had been kept
under Calcutta University, became an independence university. This struggle
fostered nationalist spirit among Burmese people. Leaders of Rangoon
University were never reluctant to sacrifice their lives for the sake of the
nation. Thakhin Aung San, Thakhin Nu, etc.,who had steadfastly fought
against British imperialist till they could retrieve the lost independence for the
people, are good examples.The campus of Rangoon University is the auspicious
place where the nationalists spirit originated. This University which has given
birth to a numerous precious statesmen, has now completed 75 years.
Our forebrothers have fulfilled their duties for the country. Now is the
time for today's students to shoulder the national responsibilities. It is our duty
to receive legacy handed down by our forebrothers. May this precious legacy
be well-maintained and last forever.
*************************************
SYDNEY MORNING HERALD: THAILAND SNUBS EVANS OVER BURMA TIES
December 4, 1995
BANGKOK, Sunday: Thailand has bluntly rejected a plea by the Australian
Foreign Minister, Senator Gareth Evans, for countries in the Association of
South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) to slow their rapidly expanding ties with
the military regime in Burma.
The Thai Foreign minister, Mr. Kasem Kasemsri, told Senator Evans: "We are
here, we have to deal with our nighbours and we will not change in order to
please anyone."
Mr. Kasem said Thailand - which shares a troubled border with Burma - and the
other members of ASEAN had no right to interfere with the internal affairs
of other States.
In a meeting with Mr Kasem on Friday, Senator Evans appealed for continued
restrictions on regional economic and political links with Rangoon while the
regime there continued to refuse to open a dialogue with the Burmese
democracy leader, Ms Aung San Suu Kyi.
He also said that Australian companies should avoid trade and investment in
Burma until there was evidence of reform.
Thailand and other regional nations are leading an investment push that has
been about $4 billion in new deals signed with the Burmese regime in the
past two years.
The head of the Burmese regime, General Than Shwe, has been invited to
attend the ASEAN leaders' summit in Bangkok late next week, and preparations
are being made for Burma to become a full member of the regional alliance.
About 30 Australian companies are believed to be involved in mostly
small-scale investments in Burma, and Australian investment in the country
totals about $40 million. A number of big companies, including BHP,
Transfield and CRA, have been exploring new investment opportunities.
Senator Evans said the Australian Government's policy continued to be to
neither encourage nor discourage private business dealings with Burma, but
he appeared to question the integrity of companies dealing with the regime.
****************************************************************************
THE NATION: SUU KYI VOWS TO PURSUE DEMOCRACY CAMPAIGN
December 4, 1995
Reuter, United Press International
RANGOON- Burmese democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi vowed to
continue her struggle for a popular political system in
military-ruled Burma and rejected government suggestions she
was inciting the people to take to the streets.
Suu Kyi, speaking to a crowd of up to 5,000 people outside
her Rangoon home late on Saturday afternoon, said if anyone
would suffer in the fight for democracy in Burma it would be
her and other leaders of her group, not the ordinary people.
"Since the founding of the National League for Democracy
(NLD) we decided to strive in a dignified and just way by
making sacrifices for the emergence of an administration and
political system as desired by the people. We will keep on
working according to that decision," she said.
Last week Suu Kyi pulled the NLD out of a government-
organized convention drawing up the guidelines of a new constitution.
The NLD's boycott of the national convention, which has been
meeting intermittently since January 1993, was the pro-
democracy party's most significant act of defiance since Suu
Kyi was released from six years of house arrest in July.
Apparently referring to articles in state-run newspapers
suggesting she was trying to incite the people to take to
the streets, Suu Kyi said she would never use such a tactic.
"Some accuse us of inciting the people to protest on the
streets. We will never use the method of sacrificing the
people. If anyone is to suffer we will go to the front to
suffer first," she told the crowd.
In her regular weekend meetings with the crowds outside her
home, Suu Kyi has repeatedly called for patience and
restraint in the campaign to end 33 years of military rule.
The NLD won more than 80 per cent of the seats in a 1990
election but the military ignored the result, insisting that
a new constitution be drawn up before any transfer of power
to a civilian government could be considered.
The government has insisted that delegates at the national
convention, the large majority of them hand-picked, include
a clause in the new constitution which would guarantee the
military a "leadership role" in politics.
Suu Kyi said the NLD pulled out of the convention after the
chairman declined to discuss the party's assertion that the
national convention was not, in its present form, capable of
assisting in national reconciliation, genuine multi party
democracy and a state constitution because there was no
discussion and dialogue.
Suu Kyi said the NLD delegates attended the Nov 28
convention session expecting to hear the chairman's reaction
to the party's latest statement.
But they heard nothing, despite the fact the convention
allows free discussion of issue by the delegates, she said.
Two days later, the NLD was expelled from the convention for
being absent for two consecutive days without the permission
of the chairman.
"But it was not true the delegates absented themselves without
permission," she said, explaining the delegates sent a letter to
the convention chairman on Nov 28 to outline their stand.
Before her explanation, Suu Kyi elicited a laugh when she
noted that the space outside her home had not become
narrower, but that the crowd had become larger. "So will
those at the front please sit down so that those at the rear
can equally see and hear me?" she said. "This is a
democracy, you know." (TN)
**************
NATION: GARETH EVANS SEES BURMA'S BEST PATH TO DEMOCRACY
IS VIA PROSPERITY
December 4. 1995 Rita Patiyasevi
DESPITE Australia's resentment towards the Burmese ruling
junta and its desire to see democracy flourish, Australian
Foreign Minister Gareth Evans has succumbed to the
realization that change would not come without a painstaking
mixture of principles, pragmatism and patience.
Evans said at the Pacific Rim Forum in Bangkok on Friday
that while it was important to continue to emphasize the
"universality of the value of human rights", and not as a
product of western paternalism or patronization, these
issues need not become major barriers to the kind of cooperative
environment that countries were trying to create in the region.
"If we emphasize the universality and values, it would be
easier in the lone run to develop a region-wide sensitivity
to it, as we can already see happening. The reasons for this
were being patient and letting the process of economic
liberalization translate itself into political
liberalization," he said.
He cited the changes in South Korea and Taiwan from an
extremely authoritarian political structure to a dramatically
moderated one over a number of years as a result of "a very
successful economic liberalization programme" which carried
within itself their own political logic.
The minister said it was hard to sustain such strict
policies once the momentum of economic progress began
because, in such a processes, people tend to become
wealthier, and whether by education or otherwise, become
more sensitive towards economic survival and less preoccupied
with just looking towards the quality of their lives.
He said the people then start to demand some kind of input
over decision-making that affects their lives and, thus,
makes it easier to move towards democracy.
Therefore, aware of the way the dynamics operate, he
suggested that the West try to be less impatient about
trying to force the pace of change in Burma. However, he
said that was not saying counties should not speak out
against the situation in the country.
He said it was important to keep the "pot bubbling" and let
the sense of universal values be made not just apparent but
equally obvious.
Evans said the willingness to be patient and allow
development to take place as its own pace would eventually
let economic liberalization become political liberalization.
"In the past, it has been a mixture of principle, pragmatism
and patience," he said.
The Australian foreign minister had on Friday cautioned
Asean about welcoming the Slorc into its realm.
Burmese Prime Minister Gen Than Shwe was to attend the 10
Southeast Asian nations meeting in Bangkok this month being
held in parallel with the 5th Asean summit.
Evan's caution came as new political tension was building in
Burma. Burmese democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi has pulled
out her political party from junta organized national
convention to draft a new charter and has vowed to continue
her struggle for a popular political system in military-
ruled Burma.
In response, the Burmese government revoked the status of
Suu Kyi's part as a participant in the constitutional
convention and suggested she was inciting the people to take
to the streets.
Evans said Asean could exercise some leverage, especially in
welcoming Slorc, because the Burmese junta were eager to
gain respectability from the association.
He said Australia and other countries have little leverage
because of the isolation of Burma, the traditional
unwillingness to take other countries' domestic concerns
seriously, and the ineffectiveness of using the United
Nations to apply sanctions because of China's ability to veto.
***************
BKK POST: RANGOON PRESSES AHEAD WITH RUINOUS POLICIES
December 4, 1995
It is increasingly difficult to fathom the Rangoon regime and
its refusal to consider solutions to the serious problems of
Burma. The State Law and Order Restoration Council (Slorc)
continues to push its constitutional convention. This meeting
seeks to legalise the military rule of the country, and to
perpetuate it. In addition, it will put into law the Slorc's
policy that a Burmese woman with a foreign husband cannot lead
the nation. Regime spokesman surely cannot believe they are
fooling anyone with this charade.
Burma's leaders have two targets in mind at the convention.
The first is the country's democratic movement, which has not
died despite years of arrests, killings and torture. The other
is Aung San Suu Kyi, by far the most prominent democrat in
Burma, and undeniably a serious and festering thorn in the
side of the junta.
During the past seven years, Ms Suu Kyi has organised and led
a pro-democracy movement, won an election, and gained both a
Nobel Peace Prize and fame in her own country and abroad. In
contrast, Slorc has arrested her, denied her the election win,
criticised the Nobel committee, and instructed its media to
attack her as_among other disparaging descriptions_a whore.
This last action says much, although is says nothing about Ms
Suu Kyi herself. On the contrary, the attack says quite a lot
about the regime. It is, in fact, an interesting attack on the
leader of the National League for Democracy (NLD).The Slorc
maintains that its constitutional convention is to bring
together the various peoples of Burma. But its description of
the married mother of two is applied to MS Suu Kyi because her
husband is not Burmese. When the junta gets its way at the
constitutional convention, which it undoubtedly will, the law
will forbid Ms Suu Kyi from being leader of the country for
this unique reason.
The two factions in Burma Ms Suu Kyi and the democrats, and
the military government appear to be on a collision course.
Each has walked carefully on a political tightrope for more
than a year. Rangoon held talks with Ms Suu Kyi while she was
under house arrest, but these had no results.
The generals then freed her, but it is clear now that their
aim was only to reduce the foreign pressure on Burma to move
towards democracy and national reconciliation. Since the
release of "the lady" last July, the government has refused
both proposals and demands to discuss the future of Burma with
any eye to national reconciliation. It has actually tightened
restrictions on MS Suu Kyi and her followers.
Last week, the NLD began a boycott of the new session of the
constitutional convention. Ms Suu Kyi herself stated publicly
that the process to write a new charter is "totally
unacceptable." The government warned, ominously, that the army
"will not tolerate any attempt to disrupt or destroy the
progress and achievements made so far," even though few
observers were able to see any progress or achievements at
all. There were fears inside and outside Burma a confrontation
may be inevitable.
Such a clash is unthinkable to many. The memory of the brutal
military crackdown on pro-democracy forces in 1988 is still
fresh. Unfortunately, it appears Slorc intends not only to refuse its
duty to avoid a confrontation, but may relish the thought.
In this situation, only the leaders in Rangoon have the power
to exercise statesmanship. Time and again, MS Suu Kyi and
other Burmese democrats have asked for discussions on the
future of the country. There is still ample time for the
Rangoon leadership to achieve true national reconciliation in
Burma. As Ms Suu Kyi has said, "We have repeatedly asked for
dialogue. "Friends of Burma should counsel the Slorc to
consider seriously such calls. The future of the nation must
be settled by the citizens of Burma, to be sure. But it is in
the interests of Burmese and their neighbours that changes
take place in a healthy and peaceful atmosphere. Another
direct confrontation would affect Burma's trade and foreign
policy as well as its own people. The action of the Rangoon
regime to freeze democratic forces out of the process of
writing a new constitution is unhelpful. Burma's leaders
should take all views of citizens into serious account. If it
refuses to consider true reconciliation among all Burmese, the
regime may have to pay a heavy price. (BP)
*********************************************
BKK POST: KAREN RENEGADES SHOOT MISSIONARY DEAD
December 4, 1995
A MISSIONARY was shot dead on Saturday night when about 50 troops
from the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army attacked Karen refugees
in the Sho Klo Camp.
A Border Patrol Police source said yesterday the DKBA
forces, armed with M16, AK47 and grenade launchers and led by
Capt Pa kale and Sergeant Myo Aung struck at around 9.30 p.m.
The missionary, Pastor Saw Wah, 45, was killed instantly
after he was shot during the three-pronged attack.
The DKBA is an offshoot of the mainly Christian Karen
National Union, a rebel organisation, which broke off from KNU
and defected to the Rangoon government side.
In April this year DKBA forces crossed the border and burned
down several Karen refugee camps. This resulted in clashes with Thai
forces and Thai protests against the Rangoon government for allowing
the incursion.
The source said three soldiers from the Karen National Union
were also taken across the border yesterday after DKBA withdrew
its forces from the refugee camp.
The three Karens include Aung Nyunt, 28, from the 7th division's 21st
battalion Saw Nu Wah, 35, from the 19th battalion and Par Chit, 25.
_About 10,000 Karen refugees live in the Sho Klo Camp, located at
kilometre marker 104-107 on Tha Song Yang - Mae Sariang Road.
Meanwhile, Lt Sein Pit, a DKBA officer, denied DKBA forces
were directly involved in an attack on tourists on the Thai side
of the border.
He said his mission was to put pressure on Karen refugees in
a bid to get them to return to Burma. He said there was no policy
to harm innocent Thais living along the border.
**************************************************************
NATION: BURMA CONFIRMS DECISION TO SIGN ASEAN NUCLEAR-
FREE TREATY December 5, 1995 (abridged)
JAKARTA Burma has confirmed that, along with nine other
countries, it will probably sign a treaty during the fifth summit
of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations next week that will
make the region a nuclear weapons-free zone.
Besides Burma, the nine are the seven member nations of
Asean Brunei Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore,
Thailand and Vietnam plus Cambodia and Laos.
"We are very interested in the treaty, so of course we will sign it," a
Burmese diplomat, who asked not to be named, said at the weekend.
Southeast Asian countries want to use the treaty the result
of nearly 10 years of negotiations to guarantee their rights to
use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, while expressing their
wish not to develop or possess nuclear weapons.
The draft treaty, obtained by Kyodo, says that signatories
should not "provide source or special fissionable material, or
equipment or material especially designed or prepared for the
processing , use or production of special fissionable material"
to any non-nuclear state, except under conditions subject to the
safeguards required by an article of the Nuclear NonProliferation
Treaty, or any nuclear weapon state, except in conformity with
applicable safeguard agreements with the International Atomic
Energy Agency (IAEA).
"It is left to each country [signatory] to accept or
refuse," said Indonesian Foreign Minister Ali Alatas.
The treaty will allow some nuclear countries outside
Southeast Asia to sign a supplementary protocol.
The protocol is directed at the five declared nuclear
countries, which are also members of the United Nations Security
Council, in the hope that they will contribute to efforts to
achieve general and complete disarmament to ensure international
peace and security.
" This protocol shall be open for signature by France, the
People's Republic of China, the Russian Federation, the United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United
States of America," the protocol said.
The protocol says that signatories should not "use or threaten to
use nuclear weapons against any state party to the treaty".
It also says that each signatory, in exercising its national
sovereignty, will "have the right to withdraw from this protocol
if it decides that extraordinary events, related to the subject-matter
of this protocol, have jeopardized its supreme national interests".
*************************************************************
BKK POST: OBSERVERS TAKE CONTRASTING LINES ON BURMA'S CONVENTION
December 12, 1995 (abridged)
THREE KEY Countries differ over Burma's national convention that
reconvened last week.
The United States and Japan asked Rangoon to talk with prodemocracy
elements, while Thailand distanced itself from the issue.
The US statement, issued in Dublin where President Bill
Clinton was on an official visit, called Burma's ruling junta to
stop threatening the opposition National League for Democracy
[NLD]and engage in peaceful dialogue.
Meanwhile, Japanese Foreign minister Yohei Kono took a
softer tone, urging Burma's rulers to listen to "various" opinions
from pro-democracy camp when drawing up the constitution.
" I hope the government will achieve national reconciliation
listen to various views in the country, " Mr Kono said on Friday.
" I want many people to voice various opinions. But maybe I
cannot say so heedlessly, considering the situation people are in
under the present administration," he said.
Observers said the NLD, which recorded a landslide win in
the l990 election, was trying to push the junta into holding talks.
The US statement, expressing concern at recent events in Burma,
said: "We and other governments have noted that under current
circumstances, the National Convention convened by the Burmese
authorities does not offer the opposition a meaningful
opportunity to participate in the crucial decisions that will
determine Burma's political future.
"We understand that the National League for Democracy
withdrew from the convention after its repeated requests for
dialogue with the authorities were rejected, triggering a harsh
and threatening response by the authorities.
The US urged the junta to recognise public discussion in an
environment free of intimidation.
"We further urge the authorities to avoid threats or other
measures against those who seek to express their views freely. We
continue to believe that it is only through peaceful dialogue
between the SLORC and recognised democratic leaders that national
reconciliation will take place in Burma," the statement said.
However, Foreign Minister Kasem S. Kasemsri told his
Australian counterpart Gareth Evans that Thailand, in line with
ASEAN's stance, respected the internal affairs of others.
"We prefer diversity and, since we have to live with Burma as a
neighbouring country, this is not a matter of experimenting," he said.
Despite their different views all three countries benefit
from economic links with Burma which is rich in natural resources.
According to Burma's Ministry of National Planning and
Economic Development, the United States, as of July ranked fourth
among foreign investment countries with almost seven billion baht
of the total capital investment, followed by Thailand with 6.6
billion baht and Japan, which ranked eighth, with 1.67 billion baht.
Japan this year has granted large sums as "humanitarian
assistance" to Rangoon. In March it provided a 290-million-baht
aid package to develop Burma's border areas.
Last month, Japan agreed to provide 1.25 billion baht as
relief to cover a loan to Burma. The money will be used to buy
machinery, raw materials and spare parts.
**************************************************************
BURMESE JUNTA SAYS IT HAS MASS SUPPORT
December 5, 1995 (Nation or Post - sorry, lost the citation)
RANGOON- The Burmese junta said yesterday that thousands of
people across Burma had rallied over the weekend in support of a
constitutional convention which has been boycotted by the opposition.
The official press reported that some 5,000 people rallied
in two major districts in central Burma at Magwe and Monywa to
"express unanimous support for the successful conclusion of the
National Convention".
The Magwe rally on Sunday was attended by some 30,000
people, mainly members of the Union Solidarity and development
Association (USDA), state school students and teachers, as well
as public service employees, newspapers reported.
The USDA was formed by the ruling junta as a social
organization, but analysts here see it as an eventual political
power base for the military.
In MONYWA some 55,000 people, comprising USDA members,
government workers and local residents, marched on Sunday, shouting
slogans in support of the National Convention, the newspapers said.
The reports were aimed at drumming up public support for the
convention, which opened last week to draw up a new constitution,
but was boycotted by Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for
Democracy (NLD), analysts said.
Aung San Suu Kyi, speaking at one of her weekend public
addresses outside her house on Sunday, said she had received a
letter from Monywa which said the public had been coerced into
attending the mass rally.
" On Saturday, motor vehicles equipped with loudspeakers
roamed the streets of Monywa, saying that one person from each
household must attend the Sunday rally or face the consequences,"
she quoted the letter as saying.
It also said that local authorities had made house calls to
remind people they would face fines if anyone refused to show up.
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