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Burmanet News May 10, 1996
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Date: Fri, 10 May 1996 08:32:13 -0700 (PDT)
------------------------ BurmaNet ------------------------
"Appropriate Information Technologies, Practical Strategies"
----------------------------------------------------------
The BurmaNet News: May 10, 1996
Issue #404
Noted in Passing:
As long as Pepsi makes a penny out of Burma,
we're going to continue to fight. - Zarni, Free
Burma Coalition
(see CHE: SOME STUDENT ACTIVISTS SAY
THEIR PEPSI-COLA BOYCOTT WON'T END)
HEADLINES:
==========
BURMANET: LETTER TO THE EDITOR OF THE ASIA TIMES
THE STRAITS TIMES: ADB TOLD NOT TO LINK LOANS TO GOVERNANCE
THE CHRONICLE OF HIGHER EDUCATION: SOME STUDENT
BURMA ISSUES: POLITICS - USING FISH OIL TO FRY FISH
THE NATION: DRUG WARLORD KHUN SA HELD IN 'MILITARY CAMP'
THE NATION: BURMESE MINISTER VOWS TO CHECK NARCOTICS
THE NATION: EU-ASEAN TO FORGE NEW COOPERATION TREATY
BKK POST: CEASEFIRE TALKS SAID TO FURTHER KNU DRIVE
AP-DOW JONES: THAILAND BUSINESSMAN TO RENT BURMA ISLAND
BURMANET BRIEF BUSINESS REPORTS
BRC-J: POSTCARDS AND T-SHIRT
FREE BURMA: WELCOME TO BURMAARTNET
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BURMANET: LETTER TO THE EDITOR OF THE ASIA TIMES
May 10, 1996
(Below is the full text of the letter sent to the Asia Times on May 10th.
We hope they will print it next week.)
Letter to the Editor of the Asia Times: Re: Burmanet
from the Editor of the BurmaNet News
May 10, 1996
Thank you for addressing burmanet both in in an open letter from Stephen
Brookes and in an editorial on May 6, 1996. We at the BurmaNet News
are delighted to learn that the postings on burmanet are so avidly read by
the staff of the Asia Times.
Nevertheless, we feel that we must clarify a few points.
First, the technicalities. The BurmaNet News is an electronic newspaper
which goes to two lists of subscribers, burmanet-l and burmanews-l, as
well as to other locations on the internet, namely the newsgroup
soc.culture.burma and Burma web pages. The BurmaNet News includes
articles, reports, announcements, independent commentaries and editorials
put together by the BurmaNet staff. We do not know how many
people read the BurmaNet News, but we would be overjoyed if Stephen
Brookes' estimate of 50,000 were accurate.
Burmanet-l is a discussion group with approximately 500 subscribers. All
subscribers are free to post whatever messages they like, and there is no
way for the list moderator to control what is posted except by
unsubscribing a user (something we have never done).
In "An Open Letter to Burmanet" Brookes' states "I found myself under
attack by Burmanet". This is completely inaccurate. Certain individuals
on burmanet-l did post critiques of Brookes' analysis of the current
political situation in Burma, but those individuals do not necessarily
represent everyone on burmanet-l.
It is true that the editorial slant of the BurmaNet News is pro-democracy
and that most of the people posting articles and ideas on burmanet believe
that the will of the Burmese people, as expressed in the 1990 election,
should be respected. Nevertheless, we also post articles from the SLORC
newspaper, the New Light of Myanmar, as well as articles by foreign
journalists like Brookes who apparently are not disturbed by the oppressive
policies of the military regime.
Perhaps Brookes has spent too much time in Burma and has forgotten
that in a democracy there are many voices and criticism from all perspectives
is allowed and even encouraged. Burmanet-l and other lists are democratic
institutions in which everyone has the right to express their opinions.
Brookes is equally welcome to post his rebuttal and we look forward to
continuing this discussion on burmanet-l.
The May 6, 1996 editorial, "Burmanet warriors", offers bizarre advice. After
suggesting that armed resistance by students to the military dictatorship in
Thailand in the 1970s achieved nothing, the editor urges burmanet subscribers
to join ethnic insurgencies in Burma.
Then, the editor accuses burmanet subscribers of prompting "naive and
idealistic young people" in Burma to take up arms. Burmanet subscribers
have done nothing of the sort. What would be the point anyway since
no Burmese in Burma have access to burmanet-l.
The editor's accusation of burmanet's "Hemingwayesque romanticism"
belittles the widescale and systematic abuses that so many residents
of Burma are presently experiencing under the SLORC. While the
junta's appalling mistreatment of its population may not be visible to
the casual visitor to Rangoon, frequent verified reports from all over the
country indicate that forced labor, forced relocation, forced conscriptions,
expropriation of land, and extortion are rampant. These reports can be
found on burmanet-l, and we would encourage all readers of the Asia Times
to look for themselves. And in case you were wondering, burmanet is free,
in both senses of the word.
BurmaNet Editor
**********************************************************
THE STRAITS TIMES: ADB TOLD NOT TO LINK LOANS TO GOOD GOVERNANCE
May 6, 1996
MANILA -- Chinese and Malaysian protests over a new policy
linking loans to good governance at the Asian Development Bank (ADB) annual
meeting here have highlighted an ideological rift between Asia and the
West, analysts said.
Delegates from the bank's industrialised member countries
praised the policy -- approved last year -- which aims to instil.
responsibility in borrowers by wrapping accountability into lending
programmes and consultation with those affected by ADB-funded projects.
A senior Asian delegate said the dispute stemmed largely from
a "distrust" by Western democracies of strong, central Asian leaderships
credited for the region's economic boom and blamed for dispensing with
civil liberties. A European delegate to the three-day meeting that ended on
Thursday said: "China is setting a bad example that does not augur well for
closer co-operation." He noted that many Asian nations had publicly
endorsed the policy. Bank of Japan governor Yasuo Matsushita said: "Good
governance and sound development management in developing member countries
must accompany development assistance from the bank in order to ensure its
impact."
US Treasury Department under-secretary Jeffrey Shafer said Washington
would continue opposing Myanmar's access to ADB loans unless
the government there undertook "very serious reforms".
The ADB has 56 members -- 40 from the region and 16 from Western Europe
and North America. -- AFP.
******************************************************
THE CHRONICLE OF HIGHER EDUCATION: SOME STUDENT
ACTIVISTS SAY THEIR PEPSI-COLA BOYCOTT WON'T END
May 3, 1996 by Julie Nicklin
Student groups nationwide that advocate socially responsible investing have
boycotted Pepsi products in recent months, urging their colleges to stop
investing in Pepsico because it does business in Burma, which has been
accused of human rights violations.
Pressured by such protests, Pepsico last week announced that it would sell
its 40-per-cent stake in a bottling operation in that country. But it
would supply franschisers in Burma with cola syrup, and allow them to use
the Pepsi trademark.
Zarni, a Burmese student who belongs to the Free Burma Coalition at the
University of Wisconsin at Madison, said Pepsico's [artial pullout was a
positive step, but one that didn't go far enough. "As long as Pepsi makes
a penny out of Burma, we're going to continue to fight."
Two weeks before Pepsico's announcement, student activits at Madison staged
a symbolic "Pepsi dump" to illustrate what they believed the system's Board
of Regents should do with investments in that company.
Members poured water out of Pepsi cans onto sidewalk, and handed out other
brands of soda.
********************************************************
BURMA ISSUES: POLITICS - USING FISH OIL TO FRY FISH
April 1996
Compiled by N. Chan
Since the popular uprising in 1988, the Burmese military has been
pushing hard to modernize and to expand its strength to 500,000 soldiers.
Reports suggest that, in order to reach this strength. the military is
recruiting a growing number of young, poor and poorly educated
men and sending them to the frontline with very little training or
preparation.
The success of this strategy relies on the military's ability to maintain a
very large pool of people with little or no chance for paying jobs and
no other potential source of income. Desperately in need of money for
survival these young men often carry out duties, not because they
respect and support the military, but because they fear losing the only
paying job available to them
Win Zaw, an 18 - year - old Burmese soldier from Mandalay, places the
situation in a fairly clear context. "As the economic situation in Burma
continued to deteriorate, my high school education came to an abrupt end.
My family's economic situation was extremely serious and I feared that my
younger siblings would also have to drop out of school because of the
lack of money. The rumour around our community was that if we joined the
military we would receive our food rations, a place to live, plus 600 kyats
per month (approximately US$4 50). I thought that if I could save that 600
kyats each month I could send it to my family and my younger brothers
and sisters would be able to continue their schooling. So I joined the army.
There were no other jobs to select from. I was 16 at the time."
The promise of even 600 kyats a month is rarely reality. According to some
of these young recruits, who have deserted their units and fled to the border
areas, officers continually deduct items from their pay, leaving them with
barely enough for their own survival at the end of the month. Win Zaw
recounts his experience while serving with the Burmese military in Chin
State. "Every month the officers would deduct 1 kyat as a donation of some
kind, 5 kyats for the Buddhist religious fund, 100 kyats for a savings
program, 10 kyats for social welfare, and 40 kyats for the Battalion
Commander's birthday gift. With the remainder of the money, we had to
purchase our own uniforms. We would have to save for three months to
purchase either a shirt or a pair of pants. Because of living in the jungle,
our shirts and pants would usually only last about 3 months ...
we never had anything left to send home to our families.''
The military provides alternatives for the young soldiers to earn extra cash.
Recruits sent to Chin State are generally young and unmarried. According
Win Zaw, the soldiers are urged to marry young Chin women (most of
whom are Christian) and convert them to Buddhism. If they are successful in
this, they can receive promotions and other privileges. If they fail in this
task, and themselves convert to Christianity, they would be given an
unlimited prison sentence. Another young defector, Kyaw Han, confirms
this and says that this policy is an attempt by the military to Burmanize and
assimilate the Chin ethnic group.
Other recent defectors verify other kinds of military abuses which villagers
have commonly claimed the military regularly carries out against them. San
Lin, a 22 year - old soldier described how civilians were always taken along
with military columns as porters and as human shields. "Whenever we went
on operations, each soldier took one civilian as a porter. As we walked, our
column would consist of one soldier, one porter, one soldier, one porter, and
so on. Then, if the insurgents were to attack, the porters would also be killed."
Military units rarely worry about receiving supplies from the rear. Food
is taken directly from the people and young recruits are often encouraged to
take whatever they want from the villagers. When officers order the recruits
to torture and beat the villagers, the recruits obey out of fear of their superiors.
"For example, when our platoon was in the Hai Mual village, one of the
forced laborers was sick. My platoon commander ordered me to beat him up.
I hit him four times on his chest with my gun. He no longer had the
strength to stand up by himself. I still feel terrible about hitting him like that,
but in the army an order is an order and we have to obey." (Win Zaw)
A military regime, such as the one in Burma, depends to a large extent for
its survival on being able to prevent the poorest people within its control
(usually the majority) from uniting. One way to do this is to create an
economic crisis, so the poor end up joining the very military system which is
harassing and oppressing their families and communities. Through such a
system the military leaders can sit back and watch the oppressed abuse
each other. The Burmese call this "Using fish oil to fry fish."
Military life is extremely difficult for these new recruits. It is only out of
serious necessity that they will risk this kind of life for a meagre 600 kyats
per month. If the military were to release its hold over the economy of the
country and allow some of the profits gained from foreign investments to
trickle down to the poor, they would not be able to recruit the numbers they
need to reach their target.
Source: Chin National Front
***********************************************************
THE NATION: DRUG WARLORD KHUN SA HELD IN 'MILITARY CAMP'
May 9,1996
Aye Aye Win, Associated Press
Surrendered opium warlord Khun Sa is in a military camp
awaiting a decision on his fate, and the government has not
helped him set up any business, a senior military officer said yesterday.
Khun Sa surrendered to Burmese authorities in early January
after leading an opium-funded insurgency against the
government in Rangoon for nearly 20 years.
Nearly 12,000 of Khun Sa's soldiers also laid down their
arms, but reports received in Bangkok say 2,000 or more of
his former troops are still fighting the government from the
hills of the isolated and opium-rich Shan state.
Khun Sa has rarely been seen since his surrender and his
whereabouts remain a source of speculation. The officer said
Khun Sa will still being held in a military security camp in
Rangoon, and that media reports that he is engaged in the
transportation and mining business were untrue.
"How can he do business while he is in military security
camp?" said the officer, who demanded anonymity. "Rumours
that he is living in a lakeside villa are not true."
The officer scoffed at reports that Khun Sa paid Bt5 trillion to Burmese
authorities to be allowed to surrender and live in peaceful retirement.
"It was absolute nonsense," the officer said. "It was an
unconditional surrender. He is in the process of being
debriefed. The government, is yet to decide about his future,
though it had decided against extraditing him to any country."
The United States has offered a reward of Bt50 million (Bt
1.25 billion) for information leading to the arrest and conviction of
Khun Sa. About 60 per cent of the heroin sold on the streets of
America is believed to come from his former area of operations.
Khun Sa has been indicted in a New York court on 10 counts
relating to heroin trafficking. Last week, US Ambassador to
Thailand William Itoh said Khun Sa "should be held
responsible for the lives he's ruined."
Itoh added that the Burmese government's treatment of the
opium warlord would be a "critical test" of that government's
professed commitment to fighting the drug trade.
There have been few official statements from the Burmese
government about Khun Sa since his surrender. Foreign Minister
Ohn Gyaw said in February that Khun Sa would not be extradited to
the United States and would be dealt with according to Burmese law.
In February, Khin Nyunt, head of Burma's secret police,
referred to Khun Sa and his followers as "our own blood
brethren", and pledged to "look after them well on
humanitarian grounds for the sake of national spirit."
In official state media, where was routinely called a narco-
terrorist and a traitor, Khun Sa is now referred to as U Khun Sa.
***************
THE NATION: BURMESE MINISTER VOWS TO CHECK NARCOTIC
PRODUCTION
May 9, 1996, Reuter
A Burmese government minister said yesterday he was confident
that narcotics production and trafficking can gradually be
eradicated in his country.
Minister for Home Affairs Lt-Gen Mya Thin told an
international conference on drug control that narcotics
production and smuggling had in the past thrived in Burma due
to insurgent control of opium-growing regions.
"In the past, due to the presence of insurgents, the illicit
production and trafficking of narcotic drugs thrived in our
country," Mya Thin, who is also chairman of Burma's central
committee for drug abuse control said.
But the surrender of opium warlord Khun Sa and his rebel army
earlier this year had changed that situation, he added. "We
are confident that we will definitely be able to gradually
eradicate drug production and trafficking," he said.
Burma is the world's largest producer of opium and its
refined form, heroin. International narcotics suppression
officials estimated that Khun Sa, who surrendered to the
government in January, was responsible for approximately half
of Burma's annual crop of more than 2,000 tonnes of opium,
enough to produce more than 200 tonnes of heroin.
US government officials have said it is too early to see what
impact Khun Sa's surrender will have on Burma's drug output
but it had given Rangoon the opportunity to prove its
professed commitment to eradication.
"This is an opportunity to see whether or not the rhetoric is
matched by action," US Ambassador to Thailand William Itoh
said in Bangkok last week.
"The fact that the Burmese military now controls that section
of the [Thai-Burmese] border previously controlled by [Khun
Sa] will be an interesting test in the future to see whether
the Burmese government will live up to its professed
declarations," Itoh said. US officials have doubted Rangoon's
commitment to drug suppression.
"Burma lacks the resources and commitment for effective drug
control and is likely to remain one of the world's major
sources of drugs for many years to come," the US State
Department's Bureau for International Narcotics and Law
Enforcement Affairs said in a report in March. (TN)
*************************************************
THE NATION: EU-ASEAN TO FORGE NEW COOPERATION TREATY
May 9,1996
Jeerawat Na Thalang
The European Commission and Asean plan to replace the existing
cooperation treaty between the two regions with a new one which
will establish the direction to be taken to ensure closer relations.
According to Michael Caillouet, the new ambassador to the Delegation
of the European Commission in Thailand, the new agreement will partly
be responsible for the changing relationship between the EU and the
Association of Southeast Asian Nations following the inaugural Asia-Europe
Meeting (Asem) held in March in Bangkok.
"It was very clear during Asem that we are looking for an
equal partnership between Asia and Europe. We would like to
work towards this," he said earlier this week.
The existing cooperation agreement was signed in 1980 when
Asean was only comprised of five members. Bilateral relations
have expanded considerably, except for a stumble in 1991 when
both sides were at loggerheads over approaches on human rights issues.
Since 1994, the strained relations have taken a new direction
as the European partners agreed to separate human rights
issues from trade. The EU is also engaged in a security
dialogue under the Asean Regional Forum (ARF).
Asean last year accepted Vietnam into its grouping and hopes
to also include Laos, Cambodia and Burma by the turn of the century.
Caillouet, who, was born in Paris, said the content of the
existing agreement is outdated and that the EU has realised
they have to deal with Asean in a different context then previously.
Caillouet, who will also look after Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia
and Burma, declined to give more details on the new treaty
but added that at the moment the European Commission was
drafting the treaty which should be approved by the European
Council of Ministers in the near future.
The commission hopes to begin negotiations on the new
agreement before the end of the year. The substance of the
new treaty is a strategy to promote cooperation between Asean
and the EU. "There are a lot of areas ready for action, for
example, customs and the environment, which are global
problems," he said.
Caillouet also implied the European Commission will follow
Asean's lead on regional forum membership. Observers said the
EU has recently toned down its criticism against certain
Asian countries on, for example, human rights issues.
Thai Foreign Minister Kasem S Kasemsri said earlier that the
Kingdom would agree to accept Burma as a member of ARF.
Asked if the EU has any objection, Caillouet said, "The
European Commission is a part of the ARF process. But it's up
to Asean. It is their right to accept or take note of potential new
members. We have no major difficulties when it comes to seeing
what the most convenient composition of the ARF is."
Apart from an emphasis on an equal partnership, he said the
EU strategy towards Asean has to change from the concept of a
seven-state Asean to accept and determine what the approach
should be in the future when Asean membership rises to 10 as
Cambodia, Laos and Burma join.
Asean will face a big challenge when embracing all the
countries in Indochina because of their differences in
development. Nonetheless, he noted that the Mekong will
become the "region of the future".
Caillouet said the EU, however, has already prepared itself
to participate in the development of the Mekong region. For
instance, half of the funding for the development of the
Mekong, under the supervision of the United Nations Development
Programme, is financed by the EU, especially France.
Although some critics said the first Asem meeting
concentrated too much on from rather than substance,
Caillouet said that a series of follow-up activities are
already under way. "There is a political will on both sides
to produce concrete results before the second Asem takes
place in Britain in 1997," he said.
To meet this goal, the finance and foreign ministers of Asia
and the EU will have their first meetings organised
separately next year. Before that, senior officials from both
regions will meet to promote two-way trade and investment at
the end of July. A forum for highlevel Asia-EU businessmen
will be held in Paris this October.
Today is also Europe Day, falling on the anniversary of the
famous "Schuman Declaration" which was the inspiration for
the origins of the EU, whose ultimate goal is to have common
policy on politics and security. It succeeded in creating a
blueprint for a single market in 1992.
The process has yet to finish. The next stage of the
integration will be worked out at an upcoming inter-
governmental conference.
According to Caillouet, the challenges facing the EU are
first increasing its membership to include the Czech
Republic, Poland, Hungary and Rumania and second, how the EU
will develop its internal functioning to include majority voting, or
"voting quality", to create a better consensus among members.
In addition, EU members have an objective to ensure common
and security policies have only once voice in the EU. On the economic
front, EU members are working to create a common currency by 2002.
Although critics question the ability of some EU member
countries especially France and Germany, to meet the criteria
to create a common currency, Caillouet said that the plan
must continue as EU-member leaders agreed to create the
political will to create such a currency.
He admitted that some member countries might face certain
difficulties. "We are facing a big challenge on this issue," he said.
***************
BKK POST: CEASEFIRE TALKS SAID TO FURTHER KNU DRIVE FOR
FREEDOM
May 9, 1996
(Burmanet Editor: We are awaiting a confirmation of this report from the
KNU.)
Burma's ruling State Law and Order Restoration Council has
agreed to give the Karen National Union full autonomy in the
areas it controls, according to a KNU official.
However, the Burmese government wants to survey the areas and
population before taking any such step, said the source. He
said Slorc also agreed to halt its offensive against the KNU.
The agreement was reached during ceasefire talks between both
sides late last month in Rangoon. The third official round of
talks were attended by four representatives of Slorc led by First
General-Secretary of Slorc Lt-Gen Khin Nyunt and six KNU officials led
by Fourth Army Division senior officer Lt-Col Saw Nay Soe.
The signing of the agreement is expected after the next round
of talks, the source quoted the Rangoon side as saying. In the next
meeting for which a date has yet to be set, KNU President Gen Bo
Mya is expected to confer with Slorc Chairman Gen Than Shwe.
Earlier last year Slorc representatives including Lt Khun
Mya, Saw Tun Aung Chaing, Saw Aye Soe Myint, Saw Henson
Tardaw, Rev Saw May Gay Gyi and Saw Richard met unofficially
with KNU officials several times.
The last of the unofficial meetings took place at Ban Mae Klong in
Tak's Umphang District in mid-August last year, said the source.
Since then Slorc and the KNU have held two rounds of official
truce talks, the first in Moulmein, the capital of Mon State,
during December 13-23 last year, and the other in Rangoon in
mid-February this year. (BP)
****************************************************
AP-DOW JONES: THAILAND BUSINESSMAN TO RENT BURMA ISLAND
May 8, 1996
BANGKOK (AP-Dow Jones)--Thai entrepreneur Vikhom Aisiri is paying the
Burmese government more than $1 million per year to rent an island in the
Andaman Sea, where he has built a new resort hotel, the Andaman Club, the
Far Eastern Economic Review reports in the Intelligence section of its latest
edition Thursday.
Vikhom has signed a 35-year lease for Thahtay Kyun Island, which he
hopes will become a popular tourist destination. The Thai businessman plans
to add an 18-hole golf course and facilities for boating and other water sports.
In the meantime, guests at the 205-room hotel can entertain themselves by
playing the slot machines in two floors of game rooms or shopping in a
well-stocked duty-free shop.
**********************************************************
BURMANET BRIEF BUSINESS REPORTS
May 7, 1996
from information provided by mbeer@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
J. RAY MCDERMOTT WINS CONTRACT WITH TOTAL
J. Ray McDermott recently announced that it has accepted a letter of award,
valued at about $ 180 million, from Total Myanmar Exploration and
Production for theYadana Development Project.
The contract is for the management, engineering, supply, construction,
installation, hook-up and commissioning of two wellhead platforms, and
quarters, flare and production platform facilities to produce about 900 million
cubic feet of gas a day. Work is expected to be completed by May 1998.
20,000 TONS OF AGRO-PRODUCTS TO BE EXPORTED IN MAY
Burma will export 20,000 tons of beans and pulses during the month
of May. The Ministry of Agriculture has signed contracts with foreign
countries for the exports and plans touse the returns from this transaction
to import chemical fertilizer. The export of beans and pulses was recorded
at 260,300 tons in 1995 according to the official statistics. Burma's agriculture
contributes 35 percent to exports, 40 percent to foreign exchange earnings and
40 percent to the gdp. The annual growth rate of agriculture in the last four years
(1992-93 to 1995-96) ending on march 31 stood at 8.8 percent and it is targeted
at 5.4 percent in the next five years (1996-97 to 2000-2001).
JAPAN TO BUILD HYDROPOWER STATION
Japan's newjee consultant group of Kajima Corporation has signed a contract
with Myanmar to build two diversion tunnels of the 280-megawatt hydropower
station in Paunglaung. The contract was signed between the state-run Myanmar
Electric Power Enterprise (MEPE) of the Ministry of Energy and the Japanese
firm. Myanmar is also speeding up construction of gas power stations including
one that will be operating with gas from the yadana gas field, the minister
disclosed, adding that plans are under way to build more large-scale hydropower
stations in Yeywa and Bilin areas to meet further demand. A memorandum of
understanding has also been signed between the Myanmar Ministry of Energy
and Unocal Corp of the United States, Total Co of France and Mitsui of Japan to
build a 200-megawatt natural gas power station in Yangon and a urea fertilizer
factory.
MALAYSIA WILL HOLD 5 DAY EXHIBITION IN MYANMAR
Malaysia will hold a five day exhibition of Malaysian products. The exhibition
will display automobiles, components, parts and accessories, building materials
and supplies, electronic and electrical items, furniture and fittings, garments,
houseware, oil and lubricants, office automation, pharmaceuticals, rubber and
plastic products, and food products.
*********************************************************
BRC-J: POSTCARDS AND T-SHIRT
May 5, 1996
Burmese Relief Center--Japan follows closely the progress of the boycotts
and campaigns of Free Burma Coalition and all groups involved with the
restoration of Democracy in Burma.
Two of the campaigns that we have been very much involved with are "Stop the
Gas Pipeline" (Unocal and Total) and "Boycott Visit Myanmar Year 1996."
Regarding these two campaigns, BRC-J has created postcards and T-shirts with
striking graphics. We feel they would be effective for all groups and
individuals promoting these campaigns. The postcards can be used as picture
postcards and sent to friends, or they can be sent as protest messages to
the companies involved. The T-shirt can be worn as a protest of its own, as
a uniform for a group organizing a rally, or simply as a great shirt in its
own right.
To anyone who in interested we can send these graphics as a simple
attachment to an e-mail message, which the receiver can view in a graphics
program or as a graphic in a word-processing program such as WordPerfect or
Word. If you would like to view the cartoons (all drawn by the talented
ABSDF artist Saw Ngo), please send us a message, and we will send the images
in TIFF format. We will not post them on BurmaNet because they are very big
files which take a bit of time to download, so that any who have to pay for
online time would not appreciate receiving them if they have not asked for
them and cannot use them.
If you are interested in purchasing any of these products, we have them for
sale and would be happy to mail them to you or your group. Please e-mail
your order to us. We will immediately ship the goods and send information
for the remittance of the cost. (All proceeds from the sale of these goods
go to support the students and refugees on the Thai/Burma border.)
Prices include AirMail postage
Postcard (Set if 10, 5 of each design, US$8.00 )
Stop the Pipeline (Red lettering on Black and White drawing)
Boycott Visit Myanmar Year 1996 (Black and White drawing)
T-shirt ($25 each, special discount on orders of ten or more)
Don't Visit Myanmar Year 1996 (Full-color cartoon on front, plain back)
Support Democracy, Support the Campaigns, Support the Refugees, Support
those fighting for Democracy!
*********************************************************
FREE BURMA: WELCOME TO BURMAARTNET
May 8, 1996
Dear Friends of Burma,
BurmaArtNet is up on the Web!!!
(Its URL is: http://members.aol.com/freeburma/)
The BurmaArtNet gallery is dedicated to the people of Burma,
especially to those who gave their lives for peace and freedom,
and those who are still struggling for the cause. With the aspiration
to preserve and promote our culture, heritage, paintings, cartoons,
music, and other art works, this web page, created by distinguished
Burmese artists, musicians, and cartoonists, is open for the enjoyment
of all.
Aside from exhibiting works of established artists, another function of
the page is to provide exposure for little known but very talanted
artists. Because of the country's isolation under the military
dictatorship, artists remained unknown and could not have their work
enjoyed nor the chance to participate in the world's artistic community.
This is an ongoing effort and acknowledgement of ever-growing prominence
of artists in Burmese national life. The presentation shown in this
page shall seek constant revision and the best coverage of all important
artworks of Burma across the board. Please enjoy your visit to BurmaArtNet.
In peace and justice,
Free Burma
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BURMANET SUBJECT-MATTER RESOURCE LIST
BurmaNet regularly receives enquiries on a number of different
topics related to Burma. If you have questions on any of the
following subjects, please direct email to the following volunteer
coordinators, who will either answer your question or try to put you
in contact with someone who can:
Campus activism: zni@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Boycott campaigns: [Pepsi] ai268@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Buddhism: Buddhist Relief Mission: brelief@xxxxxxx
Chin history/culture: [volunteer temporarily away]
Fonts: tom@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
High School Activism: nculwell@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
History of Burma: zni@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
International Affairs: Julien Moe: JulienMoe@xxxxxxx
Kachin history/culture: 74750.1267@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Karen history/culture: Karen Historical Society: 102113.2571@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Mon history/culture: [volunteer needed]
Naga history/culture: Wungram Shishak: z954001@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Burma-India border [volunteer needed]
Pali literature: "Palmleaf": c/o burmanet@xxxxxxxxxxx
Resettlement info: an400642@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Rohingya culture volunteer needed
Shan history/culture: Sao Hpa Han: burma@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Shareholder activism: simon_billenness@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Total/Pipeline Dawn Star: cd@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Tourism campaigns: bagp@xxxxxxxxxx "Attn. S.Sutcliffe"
volunteering: an400642@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
World Wide Web: FreeBurma@xxxxxxxxx
[Feel free to suggest more areas of coverage]
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The BurmaNet News is an electronic newspaper covering Burma.
Articles from newspapers, magazines, newsletters, the wire
services and the Internet as well as original material are published.
It is produced with the support of the Burma Information Group
(B.I.G) and the Research Department of the ABSDF {MTZ}
The BurmaNet News is e-mailed directly to subscribers and is
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For the BurmaNet News only: in the body of the message, type
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For the BurmaNet News and 4-5 other messages a day posted on Burma
issues, type "subscribe burmanet-l"
Letters to the editor, comments or contributions of articles should be
sent to the editor at: strider@xxxxxxxxxxx
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