The BurmaNet News February 10, 1997

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------------------------ BurmaNet ------------------------
"Appropriate Information Technologies, Practical Strategies"
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The BurmaNet News: February 10, 1997
Issue #634

HEADLINES:
==========
BKK POST: KAMNAN- REFUGEE RELOCATION DRAINS RESOURCES
SLORC: INFORMATION SHEET NO A- 0019
BKK POST: KHUN SA REGRETS HIS SURRENDER DECISION
THAILAND TIMES: BRITISH AND JAPANESE WAR VETS RECONCILE
BUSINESS NEWS :AUTO ASIA BUILDS $15M NEW FACILITY
RANGOON KYEMON: DESTRUCTIVE ACT OF WESTERN MASS MEDIA
THE HINDU: U.S. CAN AFFORD TO ACT AGAINST MYANMAR
BKK POST: APPLYING THE STICK HAS ITS REWARDS
BKK POST: THE RETURN OF THE STOLEN DAUGHTERS
ANNOUNCEMENT: ALTERNATIVE ASEAN NETWORK
------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

BKK POST: KAMNAN TO CHETHA: REFUGEE RELOCATION DRAINS RESOURCES
February 9, 1997
Suphamat Kasem
Mae Sot, Tak

Army Commander in Chief Gen Chettha Thanajaro was yesterday cautioned by a
local kamnan about his proposal to relocate Karen refugee camps deeper
inside Thailand.

He was told the move would drain national resources and lead to the possible
fouling of a reservoir used by villagers.

Sumsak Kong-ieam, the village head from Tambon Mae-pa who supervises Huay
Kalok village, said villagers in the Tambon would suffer if the Interior
Ministry agreed to use the area above Huay Nam luek reservoir as a new
refugee camp.

The kamnan asked who would be  responsible if thousands of Karen refugees
moved there and then discarded their waste into the stream which flowed into
the reservoir. This was the only water source for local villagers in Mae-pa,
he said.

"The refugees should stay where they are but local official should step up
security measures to help guarantee their safety." suggested Mr Somsak.

Gen Chettha had proposed moving refugee camps at least 10 km inside the
country in an effort to protect them from cross border attacks from the
Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA).

In 1995 the government wanted to move Karen refugees from Sho Kla and Kawma
Leko camps to a site located along the Mae Ramat Ban Tak highway after the
camps were destroyed. However, the plan was delayed when locals strongly
opposed the idea.

Mary Ohn, a leader at Huay Kalok camp, also voiced opposition to the
proposal saying that even if the camps were moved deeper into Thailand they
would still be attacked unless security was tightened.

Soldiers with the 4th Regiment have been deployed along the border following
recent cross-border assaults by the DKBA on two refugee camps in the province.

Civilians have been prohibited from approaching the Thai-Burmese border in
Tha Song Yang district since four Thais were  injured by anti-personnel
mines laid there by Burmese rebels on Friday.

Tha Song Yang district chief Veera Phothisook yesterday issued an order
forbidding civilians from entering all border areas to prevent them from
getting killed or maimed by landmines planted by intruding renegade Karens.

The move came after two Thai officers from Border Patrol Police 344 and two
Thai villagers stepped on mines laid in Ban Kawma Lekho of Tambon Mae Tan on
Friday.

Commander of BPP 344 Pol Maj Anurak Sutsom said DKBA rebels had earlier told
Thai border officials their enemies were responsible for the mine laying.

The DKBA troops recently threatened to attack many refugee camps in Tak to
press Karen refugees to return to Burma.

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

SLORC: INFORMATION SHEET NO A- 0019
February 9, 1997

        On the late afternoon of the 8th of February, a group of Pao
nationals comprising mostly young women were seen coming in with a truck and
this vehicle stopped for inspection at the customs and immigration post at
the outskirt of Yangon before entering the city.
        During inspection at the customs and immigration post U Khin Maung
(member of  Thaton Township, National League for Democracy) reported to the
officer-in -charge at  the post that he was taking this Pao nationals to
Yangon to perform cultural dances at Mrs.Aris'compound on the Union Day
which falls on the 12th of February. It was later learnt that the Pao
nationals become very angry after overhearing the conversation between U
Khin Maung and the officer-in-charge at the post.  The Pao nationals then
reported to the same officer-in-charge at the post that they were from
Taung-Gyar village of  Thaton township (A city of Mon State).  They also
said that some Pao farmers from the Taung-Gyar village was approached by U
Khin Maung of Thaton township NLD.  They recounted that U Khin Maung has
promised them that he will take a group of Pao maidens to Yangon for
Pilgrimage and that all expenses will be free of charge.In return they were
requested to perform a Pao national dance at one cultural performance show
in Yangon.
        The Pao nationals also revealed that they were aware of the true
situation only after overhearing U Khin Maung's conversation at the post.
Thay  then realized that they were being tricked into performing  a dance at
Mrs. Aris' compound on the Union Day and the pilgrimage tour being promised
to them was a political exploitation in disguise.  The group then demanded
to U Khin Maung to take them back to their township and left for Thaton on
the 9th February.

Source: Myanmar Authority Concerned

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

BKK POST: KHUN SA REGRETS HIS SURRENDER DECISION
February 9, 1997
Cheewin Sattha 
Mae Song Son

Former drug kingpin Khun Sa regrets his decision to give in to the Burmese
government and abandon his troops and people, says a Shan source with access
to the former Shan leader.

The source, who recently visited Khun Sa in Rangoon, said the ex- drug
kingpin was physically strong, but appeared to suffer from stress and
psychological problems.

He said Khun Sa, normally talkative and joyful, had become very quiet and
refused to talk with people, even his own aides.

Sometimes, he said, Khun Sa would vent his frustration on his own aides.

Since his surprise surrender to Rangoon in January last year, the ex-drug
kingpin is held in house arrest at a barracks in Rangoon, the same compound
as General Than Shwe, Slorc chairman and Burmese prime minister.

The source said although Khun Sa had 10 aides who followed him from his
former head-quarters in Ho Mong to look after him and four cars for use in
Rangoon, he could not travel freely without a military escort "for his own
protection." 

He said that if the former Shan leader wanted to eat out at a restaurant,
Burmese troops would close the restaurant to other customers.

To look after his health, especially diabetes, Slorc has arranged for a
doctor from Taiwan to be posted at his house, said the source, adding that
Khun Sa normally exercised by driving golf in the barracks where he was held
on house arrest.

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

THAILAND TIMES: BRITISH AND JAPANESE WAR VETS RECONCILE IN BURMA
February 9, 1997
AFP

Rangoon - British and Japanese World II veterans met yesterday for the first
time on Burmese soil to reconcile their former enmity and honor their dead,
diplomatic sources here said.

Five British and 25 Japanese veterans of the war in the Burma came together
to pay respects to Japanese war dead at Kyaw daw in Rangoon and later at the
allies " Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Htauk Kyant, outside the city.

The group of now elderly Burma veterans, from opposing sides in the
conflict, were accompanied by 14 other former fighters form both sides who
had served elsewhere during the war.

Kyandaw, the last large cemetery in Rangoon, is the final resting place for
people of all races and religions, but has been sold off to an unnamed investor.

The prayers for the Japanese at Kyandaw, led by five Burmese Buddhist monks,
were the last rites to be held at the site before the remains of the dead
are moved to a new cemetery at Yawway, 20 miles (30 kilometers) north of the
city, the source said.

Some 190,000 Japanese died in Burma during the war, as well as 37,000
Britain, many of them allied prisoners who perished building the Japanese
imperial army's "death railway" from the Gulf of Thailand across mountainous
rainforests into Burma.

The military regime in Japan needed the rich resources of Burma to sustain
the war efforts and their vast but briefly held empire, as supply lines were
cut off by the allies at sea.

Japan was defeated by the allied forces at the end of the war in 1945 and
Burma and other areas of Southeast Asia seized by Tokyo during the conflict
were liberated.

Veterans groups from the two sides met 10 times in Britain and Japan to
organise the joint events, the sources said.

An informed source said the reconciliation was organised by the Burma
Campaign Fellowship Group of former British prisoners of war, and the All
Burma Veterans Association of Japan.

Some veterans groups in Britain opposed joint services prior to receiving a
formal apology from Japan for abuses committed in the conduct of the war, he
said.

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

BUSINESS NEWS :AUTO ASIA BUILDS $15M NEW FACILITY
February 8, 1997
By Christopher Tan

FIAT and Lancia dealer Auto Asia, one of the few private car agencies here,
is spending $15 million on a new facility that will double as a launch pad
for its regional plans.

Auto Asia will also assemble car body kits and airconditioning systems that
may be exported to regional markets.

"Fiat is very impressed with our aircon assembly, which we fabricate
completely on our own," said Auto Asia director of operations Lee Chui San.

Besides overseeing the day-to-day running of the company, Mr Lee -- formerly
in charge of business development for Inchcape Motors International -- will be
instrumental in taking Auto Asia regional.

The company is now looking to set up distributorships in Myanmar and parts
of China, said Auto Asia managing director David Koh.

It is also in an advanced stage of talks with two high-end motorcycle makers
for dealership rights here.


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

RANGOON KYEMON: DESTRUCTIVE ACT OF WESTERN MASS MEDIA
January 30, 1997 (translated from Burmese, abridged)
Mya U

Half of countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America were enslaved from
18th-19th century up to the mid 20th century by Europe or Western Bloc in
present day parlance. The Western Bloc countries no longer have to use their
naval might and weapons after the mid 20th century to enslave these
countries; they employ new methods to enslave the small countries. One of
the methods is the use of mass media. 
One very fortunate factor for the Western Bloc nations is that they own
almost all mass media equipment,including satellites. The Western Bloc
nations inundate these targeted countries with materials aimed at creating
impressive views of Western nations and making one to look down on one's own
country. It is very much like what the BBC and the VOA are doing today, or
rather like Rambo movies.
Actually the problem is not quite small because university graduates are
among those who think highly of lies from the Western mass media and who
look down on one's own country. 

Let me present my personal experience. 
On 10 January, I was at one of the major bookstores on 33d Street when a
young man came in his car with the January issue of Myetkhin Thit [New Lawn
published by the Military Intelligence Department] magazine and asked the
owner how many copies he wanted. The owner did not answer immediately and
did not appear to show interest. The young man waited patiently and asked
him again. Then only the owner told him to leave about 20 copies. There are
bookshops which are reluctant to sell the magazine which is exposing and
fighting the destructive elements at the forefront. I attended talks on
literary topics three times during 1996. The speakers were veterans and the
audience was rolling with laughter. One thing I noticed was their ability to
make the audience laugh, but there was no indirect reference whatsoever to
the cause to crush destructive elements. 
In reality, those working in mass media are either well versed in writing or
giving talks and they are in touch with their audience. If they explain the
people's sentiments wherever they go, the people will be able to have much
clearer view of the threat of lies from the air and on the pages emanating
from the West. They will also take a more active role in endeavors for
national development and defense. 
It will be necessary to inform the Myanmar masses of the despicable scheme
of the major Western nations in using the mass media in place of military
might to enslave the small countries and install their puppet governments. A
counter offensive against the Western media would be necessary. Personnel
and technocrats working in the mass media throughout the country are
therefore urged to relentlessly work with initiative to implement Sr. Gen.
Than Shwe's instruction to carry out extensive information work on the four
people's sentiments. 

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

THE HINDU: U.S. CAN AFFORD TO ACT AGAINST MYANMAR
February 4, 1997
>From Sridhar Krishnaswami

WASHINGTON, Feb. 3.
With the Clinton administration emphasising that human rights will be a
central component of American foreign policy, there is the unmistakable
impression that this would present Washington with many problems,
especially as it related to the Asia Pacific.  It is not merely a case of
singling out allies and adversaries on where things have gone wrong in
the realm of rights and democracy or where, the shortcomings are to be
met by pursuing a sanctions approach that will strengthen the hands of
those calling for an even handed approach.

A case in point is Myanmar where on the day the State Department came out
with its 1996 Human Rights Report. a major American oil corporation,
Unocal, announced that it had signed on for the exploration and
development of gas fields.  New York Times, quoting Unocal company
officials, reported that several million dollars had been paid to the
military junta in Yangon by way of a signing bonus.  It is not the first
project that the Unocal has been involved in Myanmar: and the company has
brushed aside allegations that one of its major projects involved the use
of forced labour or people pressed into work by the military government.
The State Department has also taken the line that there is no sufficient
evidence to confirm forced labour has gone to make point that workers at
the Yadana Gas Field are being paid at least a market wage.

The White House and the administration are under increasing pressure to
tighten the screws on the military regime; and the focus is on whether
the President, Mr. Bill Clinton, can slap an existing law that would ban
investments by American companies in Myanmar.  Some will make the point
that one reason why Unocal rushed into initialling the deal was to escape
the Presidential directive; but others will argue that the White House
and the administration will have to think over several times before
signing on to the new law.

The common refrain of human rights activists and groups with respect to
Myanmar is that Western multinationals doing business with Yangon are
only prolonging the shelf life of the State Law and Order Restoration
Council. A valid, point has been made that the generals running the tight
fisted show are being rewarded millions of dollars through bonuses,
royalties and, of course, taxes -- all of these keeping the brass hats
going and things that do little to enhance the lot of the people in the country.

The real question is if an investment ban on American companies doing
business with Myanmar is going to work or in any way help the cause of
Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi.  In fact Washington has had to hear criticism of
allies like Japan that some of the requirements of specific states, as
for Instance Massachusetts, vis-a-vis Myanmar, are hurting the business
environment.  Some states have taken the lead in bringing about
legislation prohibiting the state from doing business with a company that
has a Myanmar link.  Not too long ago PepsiCo pulled out of its Myanmar
operations because of protests from groups -- notably the student
community -- who have threatened to boycott the company's products.

The ban on investments using human rights as the core issue is not going
to be an easy decision for there is nothing to indicate even within the
administration any broad consensus on the subject.  It has been pointed
out that some of Mr. Clifton's advisors in the Economic Council have
apparently argued that a unilateral move by the United States would not
get anywhere because there were several nations that do business with
Myanmar.  Piling pressure on other countries to do likewise would get
nowhere for the simple reason many have already informed Washington of
where they stand on economic and investment sanctions.

What the Clinton administration must be really apprehensive about
investment sanctions against Myanmar is the implications of this in a
larger sense.  As it is there is the criticism that the Clinton
administration is able to talk tough to Myanmar because the country is
small and the scope of American investments limited; and that the U.S. is
unable to advance the same lecture to China is because of the
extensiveness of economic contact between the two countries.

Keeping trade and the opportunities of the mega market in mind the
Clinton administration has turned a blind eye on not only issues of human
rights in China -- the same goes as far as Beijing's dubious peddling in
nuclear weapons technology and outright missile sales or missile
technology to countries like Iran and Pakistan.  Now if the
administration moves in against Myanmar on human rights why cannot it
take the same line with respect to China? That is a question which will
be asked in Capitol Hill and one that cannot be shrugged off easily.

Thus far the strategic reasoning has been heard little of, but the
Clinton administration cannot be totally ignorant even of that.

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

BKK POST: APPLYING THE STICK HAS ITS REWARDS
February 5, 1997
Commentary, by Veera Prateepchaikul

Several government and human rights organisations have already condemned
last week's attacks on three Karen refugee camps in Tak province by members
of the renegade Democratic Karen Buddhist Army, which is known to be
supported and armed by Rangoon.

Many suspect this latest act of terrorism had the blessing of the Burmese
military junta known as Slorc.

Surprisingly, the reaction to the attacks and other intrusions on Thai soil
from the Thai government has been conspicuously mild and low-key.

As Burmese Ambassador Hla Maung said following his meeting with the prime
minister Monday, only the Thai media are concerned about the border situation.

The envoy could not be more correct in feeling the pulse of Thai authorities.

The Thai Foreign Ministry yesterday handed an aide memoire to Mr Hla Maung
at the ministry to protest the incidents - almost a week after the attacks
took place.

Instead of talking tough after meeting the envoy Monday, Prime Minister
Chavalit Yongchaiyudh urged Thailand and Burma to sit down for talks to
settle their differences, warning that "third hand" elements might try to
sour relations between the two countries.

The claim of complicity involving the spooky "third hand" elements in
subversive activities or dirty tricks is a convenient excuse for authorities
to avoid accepting any responsibility.

These mysterious entities make the perfect scapegoats when officialdom finds
itself unable or unwilling to come up with the real culprits.

The reference to "third hand" involvement reminds me of long ago when M.R.
Kukrit Pramoj made fun of a political bigshot who was always blaming "third
hand" elements for each and every incident in which no culprits could be
identified.

The late premier asked jokingly why no "third hand" was ever present when he
wanted to satisfy his sexual urges.

One cannot help being amused by the prospect of elusive and shadowy "third
hand" elements emerging from their lairs to undermine Thai-Burmese ties.

After all, there is no need for these obsolete and imagined subversives to
carry out their dirty work.

The DKBA and its masters have proven themselves quite capable of doing the
job themselves.

More than enough fingerprints and footprints were found at the two refugee
camps which were torched and the third which fortunately managed to escape
the worst of the damage.

Prime Minister Chavalit is not the kind of person to reprimand someone in
public no matter what their behaviour. He also might not want to offend
Burma in the lead up to his planned visit to Rangoon some time in the near
future.

But as the government leader and defence minister, the public is entitled to
expect some form of strong leadership and the right message to be conveyed
to the Burmese junta that this country cannot allow its sovereignty to be
continually violated without risk of a proper response in kind.

Apparently, the prime minister sent the wrong message to the Burmese envoy.
Or the ambassador might have misinterpreted the message, which is very
possible given the premier's unusual knack for making ambiguous or
conflicting statements.

Whatever the case, Slorc is not the type to appreciate decency or diplomatic
niceties, as can be seen by its mistreatment of its own people.

Instead of just offering carrots, the government should understand that
sometimes the stick has to be applied to show we also mean business.(BP)

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

BKK POST: THE RETURN OF THE STOLEN DAUGHTERS
February 3, 1997

Nusara Thaitawat and Anucha Charoenpo
Chiang Mai

'Parents of Sien Sien (assumed name), please listen. Your daughter who
disappeared three years ago has been found. She is well and wants to go
home. Please meet her at the border crossing in Tachilek in three weeks."

The gentle but firm voice of a hilltribe disc jockey, speaking in her own
language, repeated this short announcement over the airwaves a few times to
make sure Sien Sien's parents, relatives or friends living somewhere in the
remote hills of Burma's Shan State, could hear and come to take her home.

No further details of the 13-year-old girl's identity, nor that of her
parents, were given to protect them from both Thai and Burmese authorities
who see girls like Sien Sien as illegal immigrants.

Under Thai law, she could be prosecuted for illegally entering and working
in the kingdom, even though she was abducted and sold into prostitution.

To Burmese authorities, she could be a spy for one of the ethnic groups
which are still fighting for freedom and democracy in Burma, or she could be
carrying the deadly Human Immuno-deficiency Virus which causes Aids. Or she
could be from Thailand, which is home to a number of hilltribes of the same
ethnic origin as those in Burma.

As little information as possible is given also to protect Sien Sien from
organised criminal gangs which prey on hilltribe girls to sell them into
prostitution in Thailand.

The three weeks given to her parents to travel to the meeting point at
Tachilek seemed like forever for Sien Sien who was kidnapped when she was
only 11, smuggled in a sack across the Thai-Burmese border, and sold to a
brothel in Chiang Mai.

It's hard for her to describe her feelings when she saw her parents on the
other side of the border and ran to greet them in tears.

This moving reunion between parents and the child they thought they had lost
forever is one of a hundred or so similar reunions made possible by the New
Life Centre in Chiang Mai and a special radio programme broadcast in six
different hilltribe languages 18 hours a day by Radio Thailand in Chiang Mai.

The programme was initially designed in 1964 as an anti-communist propaganda
tool by the Internal Security Operations Command with funds from the
American government.

Over the past few years, as more girls from neighbouring countries have been
lured into prostitution in Thailand, the programme has become the last hope
for many parents to be reunited with their stolen daughters.

This is because official repatriation to Burma and China is difficult, even
though governments in the region claim they recognise the need to formulate
the appropriate immigration mechanisms to ensure the safe return of their
citizens.

Thailand and Burma have no official labour agreement under which these young
girls, as well as other workers, could be protected. Demarcation of the
1,400-kilometre-long common border is yet to be completed, which means that
there is no formal immigration procedures or checkpoints on the border.

The Burmese embassy in Bangkok said the priority of the Burmese government
is border demarcation, and recommended that while the long and difficult
process is being carried out, temporary procedures could be worked out to
help resolve all problems arising from illegal immigration.

"We hope it may also help in reducing the plight suffered by Myanmar illegal
immigrants, such as fear of being arrested, labour exploitation, and lack of
fair treatment," the statement said.

According to a senior Thai army intelligence officer who held several rounds
of talks with the Burmese government on illegal immigrants, Rangoon welcomes
back its citizens, but they must have proof of their identity.

"But most hilltribe girls don't have identity cards," he said.

Allegations that girls repatriated have been killed after crossing into
Burma have never been substantiated, and have even been dismissed by certain
observers.

But according to Mrs Cholada Montriwat, assistant director of the New Life
Centre in Chiang Mai, they cannot afford to take risks with the girls lives.

"Whether or not the allegations are true, we don't take any risks. We will
continue to use the hilltribe language programme to locate the girls'
parents," she said.

The centre has never contacted the Chinese and Burmese embassies in
Thailand, "because we don't think we can work something out," she said.

But more importantly, she is concerned about centuries old customs and
traditions of the hilltribes.

"Girls repatriated through official channels could be subjected to public
denouncement and rejection by their communities. If government officials
bring them back, the whole village will know, and not only will the girls be
rejected, but their parents, brothers, sisters and close relatives as well,"
she said.

As for hilltribe girls from Yunnan's Xishuangbanna in China, Mrs Cholada
explained that they were usually met in Tachilek by members of a Christian
group, then transferred from point to point until they reached the
Shan-Yunnan border where they were met by their parents. Communist China
does not like to welcome back prostitutes.

Mrs Cholada said that for the last two years, no girls from Yunnan have been
sent to the centre. Shan girls represented the majority. This,
unfortunately, does not mean that fewer Yunnanese girls are being lured into
prostitution in Thailand, but that they may be sent to other charity
organisations.

"More than half the Shan girls who come to centre test positive for HIV,"
she said, adding that the centre provides medical treatment for the girls,
but attempts to explain to their parents what AIDS is have been futile.

"It's difficult for the parents to understand what AIDS is. We can only tell
them that their child is sick from a fatal disease," she said.

The New Life Centre, a Christian charity, was first opened in Chiang Mai in
1987, primarily aimed at providing shelter for young tribal women,
vocational training, and a chance for sexually-exploited girls to regain
their dignity and self-confidence. Eighteen girls were admitted at the
beginning, and now more than 100 girls and young women aged 11-30 are
sheltered in the centre's three houses.


Three categories of residents live at the centre: 1. "Crisis cases" - Girls
and young women who have been rescued from brothels or abusive situations,
and who are in need of emergency care.

2. "At-risk cases" - Young tribal women and girls who are at risk of being
tricked or sold into prostitution. According to the centre, risk factors
include: opium-addicted parents, no parents, and living in areas where
tribal leaders are heavily engaged in the business of selling girls. More
than 60 percent of the young women at the centre fall into this category.

3. "Leadership development" - Young women with demonstrated leadership
potential are further educated to enhance their skills, so that when they
return to their villages, they can exert influence in a significant way.

So far, so good. More than 100 girls have been sent home through the radio
programme over the past five years, and none have been arrested by either
the Burmese or the Chinese authorities, even though it is understood they
monitor the programme.

"Parents or relatives always come to the right place, at the right time. We
believe most of the girls are safe," said Mrs Cholada, adding that a staff
member from the centre would approach the parents first, while another
stayed with the girl on the Thai side of the border, just in case.

"Most of the time, the girls recognise their parents and run to them in
tears," she said.

The programme is most effective when very young girls are involved. Some
were as young as five years old when they were kidnapped or their parents
gave them away to seemingly respectable persons with ties to the community,
thinking their daughter would be taken to school and have a better life.

One young girl who could not be helped by the radio programme was so young
when she was brought to Chiang Mai - first to work as a servant in a family,
and later as a child prostitute - that she lost her mother tongue and could
not remember which tribe she was from. "She only knew that she was from the
hills," Mrs Cholada said. Mrs Cholada, an ethnic Lahu from Chiang Rai, said
racial discrimination against hilltribe people is still evident in Thailand.
"Some Thais seem to think that they can do anything to us because we are
hilltribe people," she said.

According to the Hilltribe Research Institute in Chiang Mai, part of the
Public Welfare Department, less than one percent of Thailand's 740,000
hilltribe people from nine different ethnic groups, have a Bachelor's degree.

The situation is worse in Burma where various ethnic groups continue to
fight for freedom against what they say is Burmese domination.

Mrs Yaranee Ruengyos, head of the hilltribe section of Radio Thailand in
Chiang Mai, remembers the early years when the programme was refocussed from
political propaganda to development in response to a new strategy against
communism.

The now famous 66/23 order issued by then prime minister Gen Prem
Tinsulanonda in 1980 called for the application of a dual approach to
combatting communist insurgency: military and political.

At that time, hilltribe people would travel from their villages to Chiang
Mai, a trip that sometimes took several days, to place an announcement on
the radio programme.

"Often they had no place to sleep and we had to allow them to sleep in the
halls of the station," she said.

Their announcements included deaths, births, weddings, and social or
cultural events in their villages. Nowadays, they send letters or phone the
programme.

The six languages broadcast are Karen, Yao, Mong, Lahu, Lisu, and Akha. Shan
is expected to be added in the near future in response to a demand by the
20,000-strong Shan community in Chiang Mai.

The programme, which is run by hilltribes DJs under the supervision of a
Thai team, include local and international news, and talks on development,
crop substitution, water resource management, the environment, public
health, and education. There is also hilltribe culture and music.

"This programme plays a significant role in helping preserve the language,
culture and history of the hilltribes," said Mrs Yaranee.

The hilltribe DJs are given the chance to initiate their own programmes, but
they remain shy and still follow the script written by Thai staff members.

Even though times have changed, the Border Patrol Police, who have hilltribe
language specialists, still monitor the programme just in case anti-Thai
elements are added.

With a capacity of 50 kilowatts, the broadcast reaches most of the Asian
region and also parts of Europe. It has even been heard as far away as
Finland from where letters were received by the station.

"As in the 1960s when the programme was started, radio remains the cheapest
way to reach remote villages where there is no electricity and the people
are illiterate," said Mrs Yaranee.

Even hilltribes in Burma's Shan State and Yunnan's Xishuangbanna have radios
and listen on to the programme.

Sien Sien, who is now back with her parents in the Shan State and starting a
new life, vividly recalls the day she was abducted.

It was a day like any other as she dutifully kept watch over her family's
buffaloes in a field near her home. At the tender age of 11 and carefree,
she teased the buffaloes as they grazed, then watched them cool themselves
in the mud-thick ponds of the field, and she dozed off under the warm sunshine.

Suddenly, this peaceful vision disappeared, and it was total darkness.

The next thing she knew, she was in a dirty small room in a brothel in a
place called Chiang Mai in Thailand where she was to spend two years in
unspeakable pain before being rescued by the police.

She lived for a few months at the New Life Centre, taking lessons in reading
and writing, and other basic skills, before calling out to her parents
through Radio Thailand's hilltribe language programme to meet her in
Tachilek. (BP)

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

ANNOUNCEMENT: ALTERNATIVE ASEAN NETWORK
February 8, 1997
chalida@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

PLEASE NOTE THIS IS FOR RELEASE ON FEB. 12
1. ASEAN-BURMA POSTER LAUNCH

ASEAN-based activists will launch a poster opposing Slorc's proposed
membership in ASEAN on February 12, Burma's Union Day.  It will also be the
eve of the ASEAN-EU Ministerial Meeting in Singapore.

The regional launch of the poster will take place in the Philippines, to tie
in with the launch of their national campaign.  The poster will also be
launched at activities in Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore.

If you are opposed to Slorc's membership in ASEAN, please send a copy of the
poster to the diplomatic mission every ASEAN member state in your country,
with a polite letter stating your opposition.  We can afford to post you
small numbers of the poster if you email us at <chalida@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>.
Even better, you may try to organise an appointment with the diplomatic
missions for
an INFORMAL meeting to discuss the matter.

ASEAN member states are: Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore,Brunei,
Philippines and Vietnam. Observer states: Laos, Cambodia, Burma.  Malaysia
and Indonesia are the strongest supporters of Slorc membership.

2. OPEN LETTER TO PARTICIPANTS OF ASEAN-EU MINISTERIAL MEETING, FEB. 13-14,
SINGAPORE
Attached is the text of the Open Letter sent by the Alternativ ASEAN Network
on Burma, representing 50 ASEAN-based organisations which support peace,
human rights and democracy in Burma.

3. ABOUT THE ALTERNATIVE ASEAN NETWORK ON BURMA
The Network was formed out of the Alternative ASEAN Meeting on Burma last
October in Bangkok.  Participants at the Meeting came from more than 45
organisations from 20 countries.
While the Network is mainly focused on mobilizing support from ASEAN-based
organisations, it is open to organisations and individuals from other
regions who support human rights and democracy in Burma, and who have an
interest in Burma in the context of ASEAN.  Just email us with your details
if you wish to
be considered a member.
-------------------------------------------------
ALTERNATIVE ASEAN NETWORK ON BURMA
tel: 66 2 276 9846 - 7 fax: 66 2 276 2183
<chalida@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
c/o FORUM-ASIA  109 SUTHISARNWINICHAI RD  SAMSENNOK  HUAYKWANG 
BANGKOK 10320
-------------------------------------------------

Open letter to Participants of the 12th ASEAN - EU Ministerial Meeting

Your Excellencies,

The Alternative ASEAN Network on Burma, comprising individuals and 50
organizations from Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore
and Thailand, respectfully urges the participants of the 12th ASEAN-EU
Ministerial Meeting to work in focused cooperation for an immediate
cessation of human rights violations by Burma's State Law and Order
Restoration Council
(SLORC).

The latest documented violations took place only last week on January 28th,
when Slorc and the Slorc-organized Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA)
violated Thailand's borders and attacked 3 Karen refugee camps, in the Thai
border area near Mae Sot.  They killed a Thai national and a Karen baby,
robbed the refugees and burned their homes, clinics and schools.

This action follows on the January 3rd mortar attacks and military raid on
the Karenni refugee and student camps near Mae Hong Son, on the North-West
border of Thailand.  Two people were killed and many injured.  More attacks
are expected.

These human rights abuses violate the very spirit and letter of Burma's
Union Day national holiday, which falls on February 12th.  Union Day marks
the anniversary of the 1947 Panglong Agreement between ethnic nationality
leaders and independence hero Aung San to form a Union of Burma, which
recognized the equality and integrity of the ethnic nationalities.

In reality, there is not much for the peoples of Burma to celebrate on Union
Day.  The Slorc has severely abused the Panglong Agreement, by violating the
human, civil and democratic rights of ethnic nationality people, as well as
majority Burmans and religious minorities.  The program of harassments,
extra-judicial
killings, military attacks, rapes, torture and other forms cruel and inhuman
treatment, as well as forced labour and forced relocations, have been
well-documented by international organizations, including agencies of the
United Nations.

It is extremely urgent that the participants of the 12th ASEAN - EU
Ministerial Meeting use their good offices in both formal and informal
meetings, to effect the Slorc's immediate cessation of human rights atrocities.

In the spirit of Burma's 50th Union Day on February 12th, we call upon
member states of ASEAN and the EU to give their strongest encouragement to
the commencement of dialogue between Slorc, the democracy movement led by
Aung San Suu Kyi and ethnic nationality leaders, to achieve the peaceful
resolution of the long-term crisis plaguing Burma.  It is only after this
that Burma should be welcomed as a member of ASEAN and the world community.

Thank you for your kind attention.

Yours in solidarity with the peoples of Burma,

Debbie Stothard
Coordinator

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