[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index ][Thread Index ]

BurmaNet News February 2, 1997





------------------------ BurmaNet ------------------------
"Appropriate Information Technologies, Practical Strategies"
----------------------------------------------------------

The BurmaNet News: February 2, 1997
Issue #626

HEADLINES:
==========
BURMA ISSUES: UPDATE ON KAREN REFUGEE CAMPS 
NEW YORK TIMES: UNOCAL SIGNS BURMESE GAS DEAL
THE NATION: KAREN REBELS FIRE AT THAI MILIARY JET
THE NATION : US CONDEMNS BURMA FOR ROLE IN CAMP ATTACKS
REUTER : THAI PTTEP PTTE.BK UNIT IN NATGAS DEAL WITH BURMA
VOA: BURMA- HUMAN RIGHTS
AFP: THAI GOVERNOR FLAG ORDER
VOA: BURMA CONFERENCE/AMERICAN UNIVERSITY
ASSOCIATED PRESS  : BURMESE REBELS CELEBRATE REVOLT
BRC-J: AN URGENT APPEAL FOR HELP
DOS: BURMA REPORT ON HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES FOR 1996
REQUEST: WILL INDIA BUY BURMESE GAS?
------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

BURMA ISSUES: UPDATE ON KAREN REFUGEE CAMPS 
February 1, 1997

Report #2
1 Febuary 1997  5:00 pm Thailand time

The following report has been confirmed by several of our staff who
returned from Mae La (Beh Klaw).  They indicated that there were from
300-500 soldiers on the Thai side.  Several thousand refugees have moved
across the road into the jungles and mountains that lie deeper in Thailand
to seek safe refuge for the night.  There are only about 30 Thai border
patrol officers near the camp and our friends expect that they will move
out when the shelling begins.  So far the Thai military has been reluctant
to interfere with Burmese military incursions that are directed against
the refugees.  The situation is currently very tense, and our staff were
urged to leave the area later this afternoon.  Other friends went further
north and will provide more information when they return later today.

 1 Febuary 1997  2:30pm Thailand time.
 
 Friends from our border office have been discussing the current situation
 with people from the nearby camps and have forwarded the following
 information to us.  Most of is was obtained from intercepted radio
 transmissions.  
 
 Last night units of soldiers crossed the Moi River from Burma into
 Thailand, near Mae La (Beh Klaw) camp (population approx. 25,000).  The
 southern group is predominantly DKBA while the northern group consists of
 Slorc soldiers.  While entering Thailand, the southern group met Thai
 soldiers and they exchanged fire, but the Thai soldiers pulled back.
 Currently both groups are hiding in the mountains between the border and
 Mae La (Beh Klaw) camp.  The two groups combined have a total of 400-500
 soldiers.  
 
 Tonight, a third group of soldiers located along the Burmese bank of the
 Moei River plan to initiate the attack by  shelling Mae La (Beh Klaw)
 camp, after which the two groups will attack from the north and south.
 Currently residents of Mae La (Beh Klaw) are moving across the road and
 into the Thai jungles on the other side.  For those not familiar with the
 geography it looks like this:
 
 
 	|M|		^		: :	^
 	|O|	T	^		: :	^
 B	|E|	H	^	C	:R:	^
 U	|I|	A	^	A	:O:	^
 R   	| |	I	^	M	:A:	^
 M	|R|	L	^	P	:D:	^
 A	|I|	A	^		: :	^
 	|V|	N	^		: :	^
 	|E|	D	^		: :	^
 	|R|		^		: :	^
 
 Several of our staff will be returning from Mae La (Beh Klaw) and will be
 able to confirm current situation there.  The KNU has been moving troops
 into the area, but we do not know to what extent.  We also do not know
 what the Thai authorities are doing although one of our staff saw a
 several trucks carrying Thai soldiers, dressed in black (perhaps a one or
 more ranger units), in Mae Sot.  They might be mobilizing to head north to
 Mae La (Beh Klaw).
 
 If the camp gets attacked tonight, the already serious refugee problems
 will be escalated significantly.  

Report #3
1 Febuary 1997  8:30 pm Thailand time

The residents of Bay Klaw have been digging trenches to bury clothing and
material goods.  Despite the tense situation, many people are actively
organizing and preparing ways to save their possessions and protect their
families.  

Some residents of Bay Klaw also organized an effort to gather extra
clothing to send to Huay Kalok and Huay Bone camps which have suffered
extensive damage from the past weeks raids.  It's amazing to hear that
people who fear an imminent attack have taken time to help out their
friends to the south.  We have contact with a cellular phone that has been
stationed in Bay Klaw camp and will try to keep as up-to-date as possible
on the developments there.

Sho Klo camp is north of Bay Klaw camp and had previously been difficult
to attack due to a larger Thai military presence there.  However, Sho Klo
is also one of the most vulnerable because it is located so close to the
boarder.  Residents of Sho Klo report that the Thai military have pulled
away from the camp leaving it exposed to attack by the Slorc troops who
are currently just north of Bay Klaw.  

There are very unconfirmed reports that other camps along the boarder fear
attacks and we are trying to confirm them.  Contacting most of these camps
will take at least one day's travel.  

There are worries that the Burmese military will try to launch offensives
along most of the boarder in an effort to straife as many camps as
possible.  There are questions as to whether or not the troops near Bay
Klaw will wait another night before they attack or not.  

Report #4
2 Febuary 1997  8:45 am Thailand time
 
At 9:30 pm Feb. 1, one of our staff spoke to her friend at the Nai
Amphur's office in Tha Song Yang near Sho Klo camp.  Sho Klo camp was
being shelled and rangers have returned to positions near Sho Klo and Mae
Tan.  She is currently enroute to the office to speak with the officials
there.  

********************************************

NEW YORK TIMES: UNOCAL SIGNS BURMESE GAS DEAL; U.S. MAY BAN SUCH PACTS
February 1, 1997
David E. Sanger

WASHINGTON -- As the Clinton administration weighs whether to impose a ban
on new U.S. investment in Myanmar because of its human rights abuses, Unocal
Corp. has signed a deal with the Burmese government to greatly
expand its rights to explore and develop gas fields off the coast.

The agreement was announced by Unocal on Thursday, the same day the State
Department, in its annual human rights review, condemned the killing and
torture of dissidents and ethnic minorities in Myanmar, formerly Burma.

Though Unocal's statement made no mention of it, company officials confirmed
Thursday that the Burmese government was paid a signing bonus of several
million dollars.

In recent weeks, administration officials say, there has been growing
discussion in the White House and at the State Department about banning new
investment in Myanmar by U.S. companies; a new law empowers President
Clinton to impose sanctions if repression there worsens or if Daw Aung San
Suu Kyi, the Nobel peace laureate and opposition leader, is detained again.

The State Department report notes that in recent months, Ms. Aung San Suu
Kyi "has been severely restricted in her ability to receive visitors," and
that at least 147 members of her party have been arrested.

Unocal would be a major target of that ban, because it is already the
largest American investor in Myanmar. Another major U.S. company that once
operated there, Pepsico Inc., announced earlier this week that it would join
a growing list of companies that are pulling out, partly because of protests
by rights groups.

Unocal denied Friday that it had acted quickly to strike the deal before
any investment ban.

"We do not believe that the sanctions are about to be implemented, and
we hope they won't be," Barry Lane, a spokesman for the
company, said Friday. "We believe sanctions are not good policy, and the
best policy is engagement."

Lane added: "We would never enter into a contract in haste.
We have been negotiating the terms of this contract for six or nine
months, and the Ministry of Energy in Myanmar set the date for the signing
ceremony."

Unocal's decision puts the administration in much the same position it
found itself in early 1995, when Conoco Corp. announced a major deal
with Iran. President Clinton ultimately ordered the company to void the
contract and barred U.S. companies from investing in Iran. Conoco's
deal was picked up by the French oil company Total, Unocal's
partner in Myanmar.

 But some in the administration, including in the National Economic
 Council, have argued that a similar ban on investment in Myanmar
 would be useless because other nations are eager to trade there. This
week Japan protested to the State Department about a Massachusetts
law that prohibits the state from doing business with any company that
does business in Myanmar; those companies include Sony and many of
 Japan's automakers.

Others in the administration fear that a ban on doing business with Myanmar
in the name of human rights would open the White House to more criticism of
its China policy. That policy, reiterated by President Clinton just a few
days ago, holds that continued trade and investment in China will ultimately
bring freedom to the country.

 "There's a struggle on to come up with a way to differentiate China
policy from Burma policy," one of Clinton's top economic aides said
recently. "And here's what it comes down to: China's too rich to mess
 with, and Burma isn't."

Unocal and Total are already partners in developing theYadana gas field,
a $1.2 billion project that includes a pipeline to pump gas to Thailand. 
The new contract calls for the exploration of an adjacent field that
covers more than 4,200 square miles.

 The Yadana project has been a constant source of lawsuits, protests and
problems for Unocal.

The International Labor Organization has accused Myanmar of using
forced labor to guard the pipeline, and State Department officials say
there is credible evidence that the Burmese military has leveled towns
in the path of the pipeline construction. Villagers either are told to go
elsewhere or are pressed into work for the military, the officials say.

Unocal says it does not have evidence of any such abuses, and notes that
all of the Burmese it employs are well paid. The State Department
report confirmed that, saying, "The preponderance of evidence indicates
that the pipeline project has paid its workers at least a market wage."

*************************************************

THE NATION: KAREN REBELS FIRE AT THAI MILIARY JET
February 1, 1997
Yindee Lertcharoenchok

A THAI military plane flying on a reconnaissance mission over
northern Tak province was fired upon on Thursday by Burmese
backed Karen rebels, who earlier this week entered Thailand and
burned down three border refugee camps in the area.

The attack in Tha Song Yang district, prompted the OV-10 Bronco
aircraft, which narrowly avoided being hit, and Thai ground
forces to return fire. Although no one was injured during the
Karen attack, it is the first time the Democratic Karen Buddhist
Army (DKBA) has opened direct fire on a Thai military aircraft.

The plane was part of military reinforcements sent in to secure
the long Thai-Burmese border in Tak after armed DKBA forces
launched lightning raids on Tuesday night on Karen refugee camps
in three districts, killing one Thai man, an elderly Karen Woman
and a three year old Karen child. 

Relief workers on the ground expressed concern yesterday for the
refugees' safety after armed DKBA forces were spotted returning
to Baan Huay Kalok, or Wangka camp, in Mae Sot district, which
was almost completely razed during the raid.

"They (DKBA) came in to assess their work. After finding out that
a number of houses in Wangka survived the fire, they threatened
to make another incursion to destroy what remained. The situation
is very very tense," one worker said.

The relief workers questioned whether Thai forces, who were said
to have been posted to the area, had in fact been mobilised to
deter further incursions.

A senior Thai Army officer said yesterday that the Third Army
Region Command, which is responsible for the northern region, was
instructed by Army Commander in Chief Gen Chettha Thanajaro to
take preventive measures against new incursions and to take
action against any foreign intruders.

He said Thai forces are on a constant patrol of the 100 kilometre
long frontier, but admitted that it is difficult to spot the
intruders, who are always on the move.

During a trip to Chiang Rai yesterday, Chettha held a meeting
with all senior commanding officers responsible for security in
Tak to conduct a briefing on the situation on the ground.

Another Thai official, who has been monitoring the situation ,
said that the Thai army had learned of a fresh deployment of more
Burmese troops to the frontier area opposite Mae Sot, Umphang and
Phop Phra districts.

Relief workers said that Mawke camp in Phop Phra, which houses
about 8,300 Karen refugees, and Shoklo in Tha Song Yang, which
contains about 7,300 are at serious risk of coming under violent
attack from the DKBA.

They said that in the past few months DKBA forces have repeatedly
entered the camps and warned refugees there to return to Burma or
face forced eviction. The group gave similar threats over the
past six months to residents of the three camps attacked on
Tuesday.

The DKBA has been attacking refugees taking asylum in Thailand
since it broke away from the main Karen National Union (KNU) over
two years ago.

Foreign Minister Prachuab Chaiyasan said yesterday that Thailand
has to introduce decisive measures to stop the incursions.

Foreign Ministry Spokesman Surapong Jayanama said on Thrusday
that the DKBA's "blatant violation of Thai sovereignty" clearly
showed the "breakdown of Thai intelligence" and that responsible
Thai military and security agencies need to send "a strong and
clear signal" to the DKBA that Thailand will no tolerate further
acts of violence and aggression.

Relief workers and the KNU have accused the Burmese junta of
being involved in the attacks.

*******************

THE NATION : US CONDEMNS BURMA FOR ROLE IN CAMP ATTACKS
February 1, 1997

WASHINGTON - The United State on Thursday deplored this week's
attacks on refugee camps in Thailand by Burmese-backed Karen
rebels and called on Rangoon to cease its support for the
repression.

The attackers from the Democratic Karen Buddhist Association
(DKBA) set fire to two of the camps, destroying the homes of more
than 10,000 ethnic Karen refugees on Jan 28 and Jan 29, the State
Law Department said.

"We all on the government of Burma to cease its support for
repression and violence against the ethnic minorities and to
respect international humanitarian principles and obligations
towards refugees," the State Department said in statement.

Thai relief workers and media accused the Burmese military's
State Law and Order Restoration Council (Slorc) of being behind
the raid, noting that there are Burmese bases within a few
kilometres of the camps.

Rangoon has denied any control over the actions of the DKBA,
which has launched numerous intrusions against refugee camps in
Thailand over the past year-and a half.

The Slorc yesterday said that the pro-Rangoon rebels attacked
refugees as a retaliatory  measure. A statement issued by the
Slorc and obtained by Reuter said that the DKBA, a break-away
faction of the ethnic Karen rebel group, was responsible.

It said members of the Karen National Union ( KNU) - the armed
group fighting for autonomy from Rangoon had entered Burma from
Thailand in December and killed six people in an attack on a DKBA
village.

"On the 28th of January some members from the DKBA retaliated by
attacking some KNU camps," the statement said. 

KNU officials could not immediately be reached for comment on the
December attack.

The DKBA was formed in 1995 after a mutiny within the
predominantly Christian KNU. It is supported by Rangoon's
military government, rebel sources say.

The KNU was formed in 1948 to fight for autonomy from Rangoon
shortly after Burma gained independence from Britain. The KNU is
one of the only remaining armed rebel groups still fighting
Burma's military government.

Since their 1995 breakaway, DKBA troops have entered Thailand and
attacked camps housing about 70,000 refugees on the border
several times. Scores of KNU members and members of their families
have been killed or wounded over the past two years.

Yesterday, the KNU condemned the "atrocities" committed by the
DKBA and accused Rangoon of being behind the attacks.

The KNU said in a statement that DKBA attacks on refugee camps
had been launched with the aid of the Burmese government.

At least two people were killed when the DKBA burned and looted
two refugee camps housing more than 10,000 Karen refugees, border
sources said.

An attack on a third camp housing more than 25,000 refugees was
turned back by Thai troops before dawn on Wednesday, the sources
said.

"We strongly and unequivocally condemn these atrocities by the
DKBA against the innocent and the weak," the KNU statement said.

The attacks were launched simultaneously against the Wangka and
Don Pa Kiang refugee camps, just north of Mae Sot in western
Thailand.

"These attacks are acts of collaboration between the Slorc and
the DKBA," it said.

"The Slorc must bear the main responsibility for these barbaric
acts."

*******************************************

REUTER : THAI PTTEP PTTE.BK UNIT IN NATGAS DEAL WITH BURMA
January 31, 1997

BANGKOK, Jan 31 (Reuter) - PTT Exploration and Production Plc (PTTEP) said
its unit PTTEP International Co Ltd on Friday signed an agreement to develop
and produce natural gas in Burma.

PTTEP said in a statement to the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) that under
the farm-in agreement, PTTEP International will develop, produce and
transport natural gases under the Yetagun Project in Burma's Andaman Sea.

PTTEP International will hold 14.1667 percent stake in the investment. Other
partners include Texaco Inc , Premier Petroleum Myanmar Co and Nippon Oil
Exploration (Burma), a unit of Nippon Oil 5001.T .

The farm-in agreement will be effective after PTTEP signs a contract with
the state-run Petroleum Authority of Thailand to trade natural gas from the
Yetagun source and on the approval of the Thailand Burmese governments, the
statement said.

*********************************************

VOA: BURMA- HUMAN RIGHTS
Gary Thomas
February 1, 1997

Intro:  Burma's military government has reacted to the US state
Department's annual report on human rights.  The report says
repression of democracy activists has increased in Burma.   VOA
Correspondent Gary Thomas reports from Rangoon the reaction was a
surprisingly mild one.

Text:  Foreign minister Ohn Gyaw gave what analysts say was a
surprisingly muted reaction to the state department's criticism
of burma's human rights record.

Speaking at the government's monthly news conference Saturday,
Ohn Gyaw called the report misleading, however Ohn Gyaw at the
same time, praised the US charge d'affairs in Rangoon, Kent
Wiedemann.

                       // Ohn Gyaw act //

         We have a new charge d'affairs in the United States
         embassy and we hope that with this critical and
         pragmatic approach to the situation in our country,
         gradually the report -- which is a misleading one issued
         by the state department -- will eventually improve.

                          // end act //

Mr. Wiedemann however says he rejects the notion that any change
in the annual report will come about because of him.  He says
that is the responsibility of burma's rulers -- the state law and
order restoration council --  not  him or the united states
government.

                       // Wiedemann act //

         To the extent that the foreign minister described me as
         being pragmatic, I would accept that compliment if it
         means that, uh, he sees me as being here to help solve
         problems.  And, indeed, that is my role.  But he must
         understand that from the united states perspective the
         principle -- most fundamental problem -- is human rights
         and the need for the government fulfilling its promise
         to move towards democratization and pluralistic
         government.  And it is that problem we need to work
         together to solve.

                          // end act //

The charge d'affairs is the highest ranking US diplomat in
Rangoon.  The United States has declined to send an ambassador to
Burma as a measure of its disapproval of the military government.
The slorc was  not  well disposed towards the previous charge
d'affairs -- Marilyn Meyers.

The government's most recent crackdown came in December when
students took to the streets to protest police brutality and
demand the right to form a student union.  Hundreds of people
were detained.  Although most have been released, 34 people were
sentenced in January to prison terms of seven years each for
their role in the protests.  A spokesman said saturday there are
no  more people in custody awaiting trial.

Asked why the trials are closed to public scrutiny, the official,
who was  not  identified, says it is because of what he terms
security reasons.

                       // official act //

         However for security reasons there are time when we
         cannot allow other people in the court room other than
         those who are connected to the case,  I would like to
         stress that the proceedings are being done in accordance
         with the law.

                          // end act //

The universities and even some secondary schools were closed
after the protests and remain shut.  Asked when they might
re-open, an official would only say when it is appropriate.
meanwhile the barricades in the streets around pre-democracy
leader Aung San Suu Kyi's house remain up keeping all visitors
including the media away.  (signed)

***************************************

AFP: THAI GOVERNOR ORDERS BORDER OUTPOSTS TO FLY THE THAI FLAG AT ALL
February 1, 1997

     FLAG ORDER: A Thai provincial governor has ordered border outposts to
fly the flag at all times to avoid giving Myanmar the impression that Thailand
had abandoned the territory.

     Mae Hong Son governor Pakdi Chomphuming said that the move was to
ensure Myanmar recognised Thailand's sovereignty over the province. -- AFP.

******************************************************

VOA: BURMA CONFERENCE/AMERICAN UNIVERSITY
February 1, 1997

Intro: A four-day burma conference has opened at Washington's
American University.  It is sponsored by the Free Burma Coalition. Khin
Maung Htay of  VOA's Burmese service was there to File this report.

Text: Attended by some 250 people including Burma activists and
Friends of Burma from all over the United States, the  conference came just
one week after the university conferred a doctor of
Laws degree in absentia on burma's democracy leader and nobel
Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.  The degree was accepted and the
Commencement speech given on her behalf by her husband, Dr.
Michael Aris, a british academic.

American University president Dr. Benjamin Ladner, in welcoming the guests
to the conference on saturday, spoke about the ideals and mission of his
university in furthering justice and equality everywhere in the world. In
responding to burmese press reaction to the American University's
presentation of an honorary degree to Aung San Suu Kyi as being "a poison",
Dr. Ladner has this to say about it.

                        //    Ladner act  //

         This university has a long history of being on the right
         side of the right activities and the right events.
         (applause) The situation in burma is our event.

                          //    end act  //

Zarni is the founder of the Free Burma Coalition, a grass-roots
organization based at the university of wisconsin in madison
where he is studying for his doctorate in political science. The
Coalition has a world-wide network especially on college
campuses. It is inspired by and modeled after the anti-apartheid
movement against South Africa.  Hence the official name of the
Conference : Burma: The South Africa of the 1990's - A Conference

On activism and human rights.

Zarni underscored the many successes gained by his organization
including the latest one of a decision by the pepsi corporation
to completely pull out of burma by may 31.

                         //   Zarni act  //

         It sent a very strong signal to lawmakers around the
         world that this campaign enjoys a popular support not
         just within the country under Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's
         leadership but around the world as well. It's a very
         significant achievement.

                           // end act //

Among the speakers on the first day of the conference was Dr.
Sein Win, a cousin of Aung San Suu Kyi and prime minister of the
National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma (government
in exile). He said that because of the many repressive measures 
by the state law and order restoration council (slorc), the
military government, against Aung San Suu Kyi's party - the
National League for Democracy -- congress should now pass a bill
that will impose full sanctions against Burma.  The United States
Congress has already passed a conditional sanction against Burma
and intends to impose in full measure if the burmese military
government re-arrests Aung San Suu Kyi and harasses her party and
its members. Dr. Sein win says that the slorc knows what it
should do to avoid full US sanctions.

                            //  Win act //

         What they want is that they want the NLD party to
         exist legally but put so much restrictions and also put
         certain members of the NLD party in prison so that the
         NLD party could not function as a political party.

                         //  end act //

Another speaker Dr. Mya Maung, professor of finance at Boston
College rejects the burmese foreign minister U Ohn Gyaw's claim
at the United Nations recently that the national economy is
growing at eight-and-a-half per cent annually in Burma. He says
that, on his recent visit to south east Asia, he found out that
there are fifty thousand illegal burmese workers in Singapore and
ten thousand in Malaysia. This reflects the adverse economic
situation in Burma, Dr. Mya Maung said.

                             // Maung act //

         So you can see what the burmese called the land has
         become the land unfit for human beings to live. There
         was a young minister of the eleventh century, pinya
         dynasty, spoke of such a land : a land where there are
         no doctors to take care of the sick; a land where there
         are no wisemen to teach the children how to learn and a
         land where there is no rule of law. This is just
         precisely what is happening in Burma.

                                 // end act //

U Maung Maung, general secretary of the Federation of the Trade
Unions of Burma and Dr. Maran Laraw, executive director of the
Kachinland project usa also spoke about labor and ethnic affairs.

U Tin Wynn, the burmese ambassador in Washington, denied the
factual content of  Dr. Sein Win and Dr. Mya Maung's remarks when
contacted by phone. He said, in effect, that they are way off the
mark from reality. The burmese ambassador, however, refused to go
on tape for his response. (signed)

Neb/sds

*******************************************

ASSOCIATED PRESS  : BURMESE REBELS CELEBRATE REVOLT
 Jiraporn Wongpaithoon
January 31, 1997

TEAKAPLAW, Burma (AP) -- Burma's ethnic Karen rebels  marked 48 years of
revolt Friday, but celebrations were muted because thousands of refugees who
were burned out of their homes this week feared new attacks.

The Karen National Union, backed by most ethnic Karens living along the
rugged border with Thailand, accused Burma's military government of taking
part in Tuesday night's attack, which left two Karen refugee camps in
Thailand in ashes.

Gen. Bo Mya, the Karen National Union's commander, said Burma's State Law
and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) had planned and supported the
operation carried out by the rival Democratic Karen Buddhist Army.

``That night, it was not only DKBA forces who came to burn and kill, but
also Burmese soldiers,'' Bo Mya told reporters. ``Mortars were fired from
Burma into Thailand. Only SLORC can do that.''

At least 7,000 people were left homeless by the raids on the camps at Huay
Kalok and Huay Bong in Thailand, where hundreds of houses burned. A Thai
merchant and two refugees were killed.

Though cross-border raids into Thailand are common, the scale of Tuesday's
raid was unprecedented.

Thousands of Karen refugees were camped on rattan mats by the
roadside near Huay Kalok on Friday, and planned to move deeper into the Thai
jungle for safety.

Thailand has moved in military reinforcements, including armored
personnel carriers, to defend the area against further intrusions.

Heavy security was in place at Mae La, a third camp that was shelled
Wednesday morning after Thai defense forces repelled a ground attack. The
camp holds 25,000 people.

At his headquarters in Teakaplaw, just inside the Burmese border
from Thailand, Bo Mya stood in a jungle clearing Friday and  saluted a
100-man color guard and the Karen flag. Women and children sang patriotic songs.

The 69-year-old general told reporters that cease-fires arranged by the
government with 15 other insurgency groups over the past few years were
unraveling.

Three of them -- representing the Karenni, Shan and Mon groups-- recently
have broken ranks and resumed fighting alongside the Karen, he said. Recent
negotiations between the government and the rebels have gone nowhere.

``We have talked to SLORC four times already,'' Bo Mya said.``We hope that
we can negotiate with them, but so far nothing has changed.''

More than 70,000 people from Burma live in refugee camps in Thailand. The
ethnic minorities who live in Burma's border areas face harsh treatment from
the Burmese military.

The U.S. State Department has condemned the attacks and called on Burma to
end its support ``for repression and violence against the ethnic minorities.''


****************************************

BRC-J: AN URGENT APPEAL FOR HELP
February 1, 1997

On January 28th, three Burmese refugee camps in the Mae Sot area were attacked.

The attacks were violent.  Families were forced to escape from their burning
homes.  They were not allowed to take any personal belongings.  Hundreds of
houses were burned to the ground, leaving thousands homeless and destitute.  

Over ten thousand Karen refugees have sought safety in the forests and
fields outside their smoldering camps.  They have no shelter, no blankets,
no extra clothing, no food and no potable water. 

Even as we make this appeal, Burmese soldiers are in the area and other
camps are under threat of shelling and attack.  We fear the circumstances
may even worsen. 

Burmese Relief Center--Japan is accepting donations to assist these refugees
by purchasing food, blankets, medicine, and basic household necessities with
the cooperation of NGO workers on the scene.  

In Japan, contributions can be made by postal transfer (yubin furikae):
Number: 01030-2-68650; Name: Ken Kawasaki (in Romaji)

Outside Japan, checks in US dollars, payable to "Burmese Relief
Center--Japan" can be mailed to: 

Burmese Relief Center--Japan, 
266-27 Ozuku-cho
Kashihara, Nara 634 
Japan

or

Burmese Relief Center--Japan
2001 Missouri Ave.
Flint, MI 48506
U.S.A.  
(If you send your donation to the U.S. address, please inform us of it via
e-mail, if possible.)  

All donations will be promptly receipted.

You can send used clothing directly to Thailand.  Please contact BRC--J for
the address. 

Thank you for your generosity and your concern.  

Burmese Relief Center-- Japan
266-27 Ozuku-cho 
Kashihara-shi
Nara-ken 634
Japan
Tel: (07442) 2-8236 
Fax: (07442) 4-6254
e-mail:brelief@xxxxxxx

http://www2.gol.com/users/brelief/Index.htm

********************************************

DOS: BURMA REPORT ON HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES FOR 1996
January 31, 1997

Re:  Burma Report on Human Rights Practices for 1996 by U.S. Department of
State
----------------------------

This report is now available at the following internet sites.  If you want to
receive it by email, please send me a note.

URL:          http://www.clark.net/pub/burmaus/     (Burma and U.S. Congress)
URL:          http://www.state.gov/    (Department of State)
FTP SITE:   ftp://128.248.153.232/pub/1996 HRC Report
GOPHER:   gopher://gopher.state.gov:70/

******************************************

REQUEST: WILL INDIA BUY BURMESE GAS?
January 31, 1997

              IS INDIA PLANNING TO BUY BURMESE GAS?
 
The recent reports about Total/Unocal's new contract to
explore Block 8 (the most south-westerly of the offshore
exploration blocks in Burmese waters) set me thinking about
stories I heard in India last December that Unocal and another
company were proposing to pipe Burmese gas to India. The way I
heard it, India is worried about security of supplies from the
Gulf and was thinking seriously about the proposal, but had
not decided. I imagine if India did agree to buy, that might
encourage further exploration. Conversely, if India were
persuaded not to buy, it might generate a healthy depression
in some quarters.   
 
Could our friends in India and/or those with inside
information and/or an inclination for digging check this out,
and put the information with as many details as possible on
the net or pipe it to darnott@xxxxxxxxxxx
 
David Arnott, Geneva, 31/1/97 

*********************************************