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The BurmaNet News, March 14, 1997




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

The BurmaNet News: March 14, 1997
Issue #666

HEADLINES:
==========
KNU REPORT: HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS UPDATE  
THE NATION: CHETTA GETS WARM WELCOME AT BRIDGE SITE
BKK POST: KARENS FIND NO SANCTUARY IN WATERSHED
ROME L'UNITA:AUNG SAN SUU KYI CALLS FOR US SANCTIONS
AP-DOW JONES: FRANCE BACKS TOTAL'S PROJECTS
ASIATIMES: UK ON ITS OWN OVER MYANMAR STANCE
KYODO: CONSORTIUM SIGNS MYANMAR GAS SALE ACCORD
KYODO:CHINESE FIRM EXTENDS 50 MIL. DLR LOAN 
SLORC:INFORMATION SHEET NO. A-0028
AP:CONGRESSIONAL TRIP-TAX-EXEMPT FACT-FINDING?
THE FINANCIAL TIMES: BURMA GROWTH LIKELY TO SLOW
SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST: TRAVELLERS LOOK ELSEWHERE
BKK POST: THAIS TO SOLVE PROBLEMS WITH NEIGHBOURS
ASIA TIMES: SHAN PARTNERS DROVE HIM INSEIN
THAILAND TIMES:CAPTAIN OF SEIZED WEAPONS SHIP 
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL:REFOULEMENT UPDATE
ANNOUNCEMENT: FACE-OFF WITH THE NAM ON CAPITOL HILL
SYCB:STATMENT ON BURMA'S HUMAN RIGHTS DAY, MARCH 13
ANNOUNCEMENT:NETHERLANDS BURMA ROUND TABLE 
ANNOUNCEMENT: NEW AUNG SAN SUU KYI BOOK
------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

KNU REPORT: HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS UPDATE  
March 12,1997

KNU No. 3 Brigade   Naung Lin Bin District

On February 22,1997 at 9 am, SLORC Light Infantry Battalion 350 ntered
Shwegyin township, Meh Yeh Hta village, captured an old villager, Saw Ta
Lay, age 80 and took him away with them. On the way, when this old villager
could no longer walk, they stoned him to death.

KNU No. 7 Brigade Area   Paan District

The SLORC troops in the area issued an order that all the villages at the
foot of Dawna Mountain must be relocated to a designated place. If the
villagers were still seen in the villages or seen hiding in the jungle after
the dead line of 6th March, they would be shot to death. There is not
sufficient water for the villagers at the designated place let alone food.
Now these villagers are living under the trees exposed to the elements.
Their cattle, pigs and poultry are all appropriated by the SLORC soldiers.
The young girls are violated and then killed .
These villagers are in great fear and misery. Their situation is totally
veiled from the outside world. 

When some KNU soldiers met a group of elderly women fleeing from the SLORC
soldiers, they wailed and related their sad experiences, " Isn't there
anyone to deliver us from our miserable life? It would be better for us to
die than go on living this kind of existence." The KNU soldiers could
accomplish very little for the security of these villagers because they are
greatly outnumbered.

KNU Information Center

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

THE NATION: CHETTA GETS WARM WELCOME AT BRIDGE SITE
March 13, 1997

MAE SOT, Tak ­ Thai Army Chief Gen Chettha Thanajaro received a hero's
welcome from locals yesterday after he negotiated the resumption of the
Thai-Burmese bridge's construction with Burma's ruling junta ­ the State Law
and Order Restoration Council. 
	With the work now continuing, top Thai Army leaders believe Thailand's
dream of establishing transportation links with South Asia will become a
reality via a new 400-kilometre Myawaddy-Rangoon highway to be constructed
in the future. 
	About 1,000 people from Tak province, including local merchants and
businessmen, turned up to present flowers to Chettha and thank him for his
efforts. 
	However, a number of locals questioned how much Thailand gave in exchange
for Burma agreeing to resume construction of the bridge. 
	The people also thanked Burmese junta leader and Army Chief Gen Maung Aye,
who ordered that the construction be halted shortly after he visited the
site in early 1995. 
	Chettha and Maung Aye made an official appointment to meet on the bridge
yesterday and warmly embraced on arrival. 
	Maung Aye was accompanied by a number of top Burmese leaders and generals ­
including Lt Gen Khin Nyunt, Lt Gen Maung Thit, minister in charge of border
development, and Maj Gen Khet Sein, commander of the Burmese army's southern
command. 
	Upon arrival in Mae Sot, Chettha and his high-level Army delegation were
briefed on the progress made in the dredging of the Moei River's water
channel near the bridge. 
	The Burmese side had accused Thailand of claiming land by expanding the
Moei River bank on its side. Burma demanded that Thailand dismantle its work
and return the river to its original course before it would agree to resume
the construction. 
	After the greeting on the bridge, Chettha and Thai delegates crossed over
to the Burmese town of Myawaddy to discuss outstanding issues including the
repatriation of ethnic refugees from Burma and the construction of a 400-km
road from Myawaddy to Rangoon. 
	Chettha later told reporters that the Thai and Burmese leaders wanted the
bridge to be completed as early as possible, probably within two months. 
	Once the bridge is finished, a 300-400 metre road from the bridge into
Myawaddy will be constructed to facilitate communication and transportation. 
	Thai officials said Chettha and Maung Aye shared a common view that the
bridge will help improve the countries' economies and the standard of living
of people residing on both sides of the river. 
	The leaders also believed that Mae Sot and Myawaddy will become more
prosperous than the two other border crossings at Tachilek-Mae Sai and
Kawthaung-Ranong, the officials said. 
	They said the two army chiefs also discussed the construction of a 400-km
highway from Myawaddy to the Burmese capital ­ a road which would make it
possible to transport goods from Thailand to Bangladesh via the Moei River
bridge. 
	According to Chettha, Maung Aye reiterated Burma's readiness to welcome
home the refugees who have been taking shelter in over a dozen camps along
the Thai-Burmese border. 
	However, the Burmese general insisted that the returnees must be of Burmese
nationality with identifiable residence in Burma and asked Thailand to help
screen them. 
	Chettha said the Interior Ministry will register and screen all the
refugees, but that the start of any major repatriation would need his
permission. He added that the returnees could always flee back to Thailand
in case of fighting in Burma. 
	The decision to send back over 100,000 Karen and Karenni refugees was
reached during a meeting on Tuesday of the National Security Council chaired
by Prime Minister Gen Chavalit Yongchaiyudh and attended by top military and
government leaders.  (TN)

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

BKK POST: KARENS FIND NO SANCTUARY IN WATERSHED
March 13, 1997

Mae Sot, Tak

Eleven thousand Karen refugees moved to a camp in Ban Nu Pho in Umphang will
have to be moved again after the government objected to them living in a
wildlife sanctuary.
	Tak Governor Pongphayom Wasaphuti yesterday said that a meeting on Tuesday
of various agencies had decided that a camp should not be established there
in order to protect the area, which is first-class watershed.
	The meeting, which was chaired by Prime Minister Chavalit Yongchaiyudh, was
attended by representatives from the Interior and Defence ministries, the
National Security Council, and Tak provincial authorities.
	The provincial authorities want to reduce the number of refugee camps in
the border districts of Tha Song Yang, Mae Sot, Phop Phra, and Umphang from
eight to four. This would mean moving refugees from Mae La, Huay Kalok,
Mawkier and Ban Nu Pho camps.
	Last Sunday, the Tak authorities and the 3rd Army Region moved 10,964
refugees from No Ka Thaw Wah and No Pado camps to the new site in Ban Nu
Pho, which is 13 km from the border. They will now have to be moved to a new
site. (BP)

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

ROME L'UNITA:AUNG SAN SUU KYI CALLS FOR US SANCTIONS AGAINST BURMA 
(translated from Italian, abridged)
March 8, 1997

Interview with Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi by Gabriel
Bertinetto in Rangoon

Rangoon -- [passage omitted] [Bertinetto] What is your assessment of
the way in which the governments of other countries handle their relations
with the military junta in power in Rangoon?
[Suu Kyi] I think that many countries could do more.  It is not
sufficient to vote in favor of the UN General Assembly's resolutions
calling for dialogue between the sides or for a swift return to democracy
unless that vote is followed up with action to ensure that those
resolutions are implemented.  Europe as a whole is less active than it
could be.  I am referring in particular to countries like France which,
with its Total company busy building a gas pipeline commissioned by SLORC
[State Law and Order Restoration Council], neglects initiatives that could
be useful for the democratic process in Burma.  Also, the United States has
a law which allows its President to enforce sanctions whenever he feels that
the right moment has come to do so.  We are waiting to see when he feels
that that moment has come.

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

AP-DOW JONES: FRANCE BACKS TOTAL'S PROJECTS
March 13, 1997
 
   RANGOON (AP-Dow Jones)--Paris has provided investment guarantees for
French oil giant Total SA's (F.ITL) projects in Burma, reports the Far
Eastern Economic Review in its latest edition published Thursday. 
   The move was prompted by the threat of U.S. and European Union sanctions
against Rangoon. Total operates a billion-dollar natural gas project in
Burma, including exploration in the Gulf of Martaban and a pipeline to
Thailand. 
   The French company owns 31.24% of the project, while U.S.-based Unocal
has 28.26%, the Petroleum Authority of Thailand 25.5% and Burma's
state-owned Myanmar Oil & Gas Enterprise 15%. 
   Investors expect to earn $400 million a year from the project, which is
scheduled to go into operation by mid-1998. Some 50% of the revenue would go
to Rangoon and 50% to the foreign partners. 
   But strong lobbies in the U.S. and the E.U. are pressing corporations to
withdraw from Burma to protest against human-rights abuses in that 
country. The recent French move indicates that such sanctions may be imminent. 

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

ASIATIMES: UK ON ITS OWN OVER MYANMAR STANCE
March 13 1997

Britain, which swears blind that it is tough on Myanmar's ruling generals,
is likely to be the only country to abstain when the European Union votes
later this month to suspend trade privileges for Myanmar.  (AT)

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

KYODO: CONSORTIUM SIGNS MYANMAR GAS SALE ACCORD WITH THAILAND
March 13, 1997

     YANGON, March 13 Kyodo - An international consortium of oil and
gas developers signed an agreement Thursday with the Petroleum Authority of
Thailand (PTT) for the sale of gas to PTT from the
Yetagun offshore gas field in the Gulf of Martaban.
     The Yetagun gas field is being developed by the consortium comprising
Texaco Inc. of the United States, Premier Oil of Britain, Nippon Oil Co. of
Japan, and the Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise (MOGE).
     Petroleum Authority of Thailand Exploration and Production PLC,
a wholly owned subsidiary of PTT, also joined the developers, taking
a 14.17 percent stake on the day the agreement was inked in Yangon.
     The 30-year agreement was signed by representatives of the
companies concerned in the presence of Thai Deputy Prime Minister and
Industry Minister Korn Dabbaransi, Myanmar Energy Minister Khin Maung Thein
and Lt. Gen. Tin Oo, a secretary of the ruling junta.
     The developers will transmit 200 million cubic meters of gas per
day through a pipeline to power generators in Kanchanaburi in
Thailand, starting in late 1999.

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

KYODO:CHINESE FIRM EXTENDS 50 MIL. DLR LOAN TO MYANMAR RAIL
March 12, 1997

     YANGON, March 12 Kyodo - A Chinese company has signed an
agreement to extend a 50 million dollar loan to the state-owned
Myanmar Railways, state-run newspapers reported Wednesday.
     The agreement was signed in Yangon by Lin Zou You, president of
Yunnan Machinery and Equipment Export-Import Corp. of China, and
Thaung Lwin, managing director of Myanmar Railways, in the presence
of Rail Transport Minister Win Sein and Chinese Ambassador Chan Bao
Lieu.
     The loan will be used to purchase railway engines, rails and
coaches from China, the reports said.

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

SLORC:INFORMATION SHEET NO. A-0028
March 13, 1997

(1)             (67) KNU troopers led by Company Commander, Phar Kha
(a) Sein Hlaing of the 6th Brigade of the Kayin National Union insurgent
organization traded arms for peace today.
(2)             The U.S Opium Yield Survey Team arrived in Myanmar on
the 8th of March 1997 and is jointly conducting yield survey with
Myanmar counterparts. There has been (2) surveys conducted jointly by
the U.S and Myanmar in Feb 1993 and Feb 1995. The joint survey
teams have conducted yield surveys in various parts of the Shan State it
is learnt.

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

AP:CONGRESSIONAL TRIP TO BURMA -- TAX-EXEMPT FACT-FINDING OR LOBBYING?
March 13, 1997

      WASHINGTON (AP) -- When four senior House Republicans landed in Burma
three months ago as guests of the country's military dictators, their
official mission was to inspect drug interdiction efforts. But that was not
the only agenda.
      During part of the trip, Rep. Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., and an aide flew
by helicopter over the remote area where a U.S. oil company, Unocal, and its
French partner, Total, are building a natural gas pipeline.
      That $1.2 billion project, Burma's largest foreign investment deal,
could be in jeopardy because of possible U.S. sanctions against the
southeast Asian country.
      The trip by Hastert, House Majority Whip Tom DeLay of Texas, New York
Rep. Bill Paxon and Ohio Rep. Deborah Pryce was paid for by the Asia Pacific
Exchange foundation, a tax-exempt organization in Washington.
      The group's president, Richard G. Quick, declines to say where its
money comes from. But Unocal acknowledged it is among the foundation's sponsors.
      By donating to Quick's foundation, Unocal could claim a tax deduction
for underwriting a congressional fact-finding trip to its pipeline, in
effect using a taxpayer subsidy to lobby against U.S. government policy.
      Congressional aides who went on other trips the foundation sponsored
last year said they included meetings with Chinese automakers and a tour of
an aircraft plant that is a joint venture between China and Boeing. Ford
Motor Co. and Boeing both are sponsors of the foundation.
      In an interview Quick denied his group, which has the tax status of a
charity, is a lobbying arm for its corporate donors.
      Itineraries for trips are set to meet the interests of the lawmakers
and their aides, he said. "If that coincides with the interests of one of the
contributors, so be it,'' he said.
      Frances Hill, a University of Miami law professor who specializes in
tax-exempt groups, said it appeared that the foundation was used to "put
some distance'' between lawmakers and the corporate sponsors of a lobbying trip.
      "What this reveals is that there are a lot of ways to lobby,'' she said.
      The Clinton administration is considering whether to cut off
investments in Burma, where generals canceled the democratically elected
government in 1990 and put its leader, Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu
Kyi, under house arrest. A law Congress passed last year permits sanctions
if repression worsens.
      Unocal spokesman Barry Lane declined to say how much the company has
paid to Quick's foundation. The donations make business sense because "part
of their charter is to improve relations, and we're very heavily involved in
Asia,'' Lane said.
      Unocal has put much of its energy into expanding business ties in
Burma, and would be the most affected by any ban on U.S. investment. The
pipeline would move natural gas from offshore wells across a mountain range
to Thailand.
      In addition, the company announced three weeks ago it had signed a
deal with Burma's rulers to greatly expand its offshore gas development,
paying them several million dollars as a signing bonus.
      The State Department and human rights groups say Burma's military
rulers are guilty of widespread repression and human rights violations,
including use of forced labor to build the pipeline. The oil companies deny
the charge.
      At the sites he was shown, Hastert said, he saw no evidence of human
rights abuses. Instead, there were well-paid villagers operating heavy
equipment.
      "It was a good insight for me,'' he said.
      Founded in 1987, Quick's foundation has become known on Capitol Hill
for its Asia trips. It raised $576,000, the bulk from corporate sponsors, in
1995, the most recent year for which figures are available.
      Last year, the group sent at least 30 lawmakers and aides on trips to
China, Japan, Hong Kong and other Asian destinations, at a cost of $162,000,
making it one of the most active sponsors of private congressional travel.
      Quick is a former congressional aide, a businessman, and a brigadier
general in the Army Reserve who carefully guards his privacy. His phone
number is unlisted, and his group's name is missing from the building
directory where he rents office space.
      The Burma trip was front-page news in the state-controlled newspaper.
A photo showed the delegation meeting with top generals. The government
sponsored a dinner for the group, which included the spouses of DeLay and
Pryce and two aides, and they stayed at a government-owned hotel.
      The State Department was given no advance notice of the trip, which
came at a tense time of student unrest. The department had issued a travel
warning on Dec. 9 because of the potential for street violence.
      The group made no effort to meet with opposition leaders, Quick said,
because the lawmakers expressed no interest. Another lawmaker, Rep. John
Porter, R-Ill., was denied a visa when he sought a visit at about the same
time to explore human rights issues.
      Once there, the group did invite a U.S. Embassy official to go along
on its pipeline and drug interdiction forays, Quick said.

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

THE FINANCIAL TIMES-LONDON: BURMA GROWTH LIKELY TO SLOW
March 13, 1997
Ted Bardacke

   Economic growth in Burma is slowing and the economic situation is likely
to worsen over the next several years, according to a confidential report
prepared by the International Monetary Fund. The growth rate in the fiscal
year 1996-97 was 6.1 per cent, down from an average of 8.25 per cent in the
four previous years.  
   Continued reliance on an overvalued official exchange rate and large
fiscal deficits has caused the economic situation to take "a marked turn for
the worse since April 1996", the report says. Foreign exchange reserves have
fallen to $213m (L130.6m), the lowest since the 1988 military coup, while
debt service arrears accumulation left over $ 1.5bn outstanding at the end
of the fiscal year.
   Without a one-off devaluation of the currency by more than 2,500 per
cent, coupled with structural reforms, growth would fall to 4 per cent by
2000, the current account deficit would increase by 14 per cent and foreign
exchange reserves would cover just over one month of imports, the IMF
predicts. Ted Bardacke, Bangkok

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

SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST: TRAVELLERS LOOK ELSEWHERE
March 12, 1997
William Barnes 

Only about a fifth of the number of tourists expected by the military regime
will visit Burma this year, predicts a travel expert.

	Instead of the 500,000 visitors the generals expected would want to see a
country only recently released from three decades of self-imposed isolation,
the reality will be about 100,000.
	The State Law and Order Restoration Council, as the junta is called,
stretched the start of "Visit Myanmar 1996" to last November to cover up a
disappointing launch.
	Although the generals expected a welcome injection of hard currency from
tourists, their stepped up harassment of charismatic opposition leader Aung
San Suu Kyi and mass student protests told against them.
	Even though Burma tourist officials lowered their visitor target to between
200,000 and 300,000 last year, this was still too optimistic, travel
industry observer Robin Dannhorn admitted yesterday.
	"But, whether the West likes it or not, I do think that Burma's membership
of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations this summer will improve
matters by giving the place more respectability," he said.(SCMP)

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

BKK POST: THAIS TO SOLVE PROBLEMS WITH NEIGHBOURS
March 13, 1997

The Foreign Ministry will invite the ambassadors of Laos, Burma, Vietnam and
Cambodia to discuss problems which may hamper their relations with Thailand
on March 26.
	This was agreed at yesterday's meeting of security-related agencies chaired
by Prime Minister Chavalit Yongchaiyudh.
	Also present were Supreme Commander Mongkol Ampornpisit and the three armed
forces chiefs, Interior Minister Sanoh Thienthong, Foreign Minister Prachuab
Chaiyasarn and Police Director-General Pracha Promnok.
	Mr Prachuab said after the meeting information given by the ambassadors
would be reported to the security meeting. (BP)

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

ASIA TIMES: SHAN PARTNERS DROVE HIM INSEIN
March 13, 1997
Supalak Ganjanakhundee, Indochina Information Center, Bangkok,

Thai business tycoon Karin Tongpatchote is no stranger to fishing in
troubled waters, but he would never have imagined that a bunch of former
guerrillas in Myanmar could put him behind bars. 
	Karin, who owns a construction company and other businesses in Thailand,
has been "counting the days" for almost six months in Yangon's Insein Prison. 
	Arrested in September last year on charges of breach of trust and fraud
filed against him by a business front of the Shan State Army, Karin's case
is unique in the saga of Thai investment in Myanmar. 
	Along with Singapore, the United Kingdom and the United States, Thailand is
one of the largest investors in the slowly liberalizing Myanmar economy. 
	Karin's woes began in early 1995 when he formed a joint venture with
Myanmar's Fishery Department. 
	The launch party for the company boded well for its future. It was attended
by several Cabinet members, including Deputy Prime Minister Maung Maung Khin
and Foreign Minister Ohn Gyaw. 
	But in August 1995, following the murder of two Myanmar crew members aboard
a Thai trawler, the Myanmar government closed territorial waters to all
Thai-Myanmar ventures and the US$400 million fishery project failed to
materialize. 
	Undaunted, Karin's California-based company Bangkokman Import & Export had
within four months entered into a fishing venture with the Shan State
Development General Trading Company. 
	Shan State Development General Trading is a business outfit launched by the
Shan State Army, one of Myanmar's many ethnic forces, after it signed a
ceasefire agreement with the Myanmar government on June 26, 1995. 
	The company's activities include gem mining, logging, fishing and agriculture. 
	Under the agreement, signed on December 2, 1995, the Shan company would
receive 20 percent of the venture's revenue. In return, it would obtain
necessary permits and clearances and acquire fishing vessels from the
Myanmar government, provide manpower and be responsible for fishing activities. 
	Karin's company would provide financial support. 
	The venture soon ran aground and Shan State Army chairman Sao Sai Naung
blamed Karin for his company's failure to pay rental fees for the fishing
vessels as well as for the theft of one of the company's five boats. 
	Karin has rejected the charges and has said his Thai partner Thanu Yamsri
and Sao Sai Naung conspired to take over his business by having him imprisoned. 
	Questioned by Myanmar police officials, Karin accused his Thai partner of
stealing company property and funds. 
	"I've learned that a sum of 50 million kyat [US$300,000 at unofficial
rates] has already been paid as rental fees for five trawlers, but the
owners of vessels have received only half the amount. Sao Sai Naung and
Thanu have taken the rest," Karin said. 
	He said that under the agreement, the Shan State Army was responsible for
providing security during fishing operations. "They are not able to protect
the property and blame me instead. 
	"They want to put me in jail and take over the business." 
	Speaking in Yangon, the Shan company's managing director, Ashley Hla, said
it was Karin who had cheated his Thai partners. 
	The matter is in court now, and Karin awaits judgment in jail. His request
for bail from the Hlaing Township Court has been denied. 
	Due to the involvement of the former guerrillas in the case, Karin's
connections with Myanmar military leaders have been of no help. 
	According to an official at the Thai Foreign Ministry's Office for the
Protection of Thai Nationals Abroad, Thai authorities would not intervene in
Myanmar's justice process. 
	"The Royal Thai Embassy in Yangon sent an official to talk with Mr Karin to
ask him whether he needed a lawyer. That's all what we can do," he said.
	Although Karin is the only well-known Thai businessman in a Myanmar jail,
another 200 Thai prisoners in Insein Prison were crew members of fishing
boats caught trespassing in Myanmar waters. 
	The Indochina Information Center collects information for the Manager Media
Group, an Asia Times sister company.  (AT)

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

THAILAND TIMES:CAPTAIN OF SEIZED WEAPONS SHIP LINKED TO BURMESE PIRATES
March 13, 1997

RANONG : The captain of the ship captured on Tuesday along with a massive
consignment of arms apparently bound for Sri Lanka had links to a group of
Burmese pirates who regularly rob foreign vessels in the Andaman Sea, a
local police officer said yesterday.
	Po Lt Col Paisan Panchinda, Ranong's deputy investigative
superintendent, said captain Mo Bin Sigr, a Burmese soldier, used
to advise the notorious Moyaza pirates who pillage foreign
fishing vessels in the waters between Thailand and Burma.
	Allegations abound that Burma's ruling State Law and Order
Restoration Council (Slorc) is linked to the Moyaza group, and demand
protection money from foreign vessels so that the pirates leave them alone.
	On Tuesday Mo Bin Sigr was one of the 10 men arrested after the
Thai Navy seized a large number of weapons, reportedly destined for the
SriLankan separatist Tamil Tigers, just off the coast of Ko Chang.
	Paisan said more weapons including two anti-tank rocket launchers, four RPG
guns, and a large number of hand grenades have now been retrieved from the
seabed where the arrested men had hurriedly dropped them.
	Mo Bin Sigr, an expert n explosive devices, was stationed with a
military unit in Burma's southern town of Tavoy. Thailand has not yet been
contacted by Burmese authorities regarding the matter.

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

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL:REFOULEMENT UPDATE
March 12, 1997
                                                    
Further information on EXTRA 26/97 (ASA 03/02/97, 26 February 1997) - Fear
for safety / Fear of refoulement 
 
Amnesty International is gravely concerned that the Royal Thai Government
has continued to forcibly return Karen refugees back to Myanmar, in spite of
widespread international protests. The organization fears that the Thai
authorities may repatriate all Karen refugees once fighting between the
Karen National Union (KNU, the last major ethnic minority armed insurgency
group) and the Burmese army has stopped. If such a Thai Government policy
change is implemented, some 100,000
Karen refugees would be pushed across the border to face serious human
rights violations at the hands of the Burmese army. For the last nine years
Amnesty International has documented a clear and persistent pattern of
torture, ill-treatment, and extrajudicial killings of Karen civilians
by the Burmese military. 
 
In the past the Thai Government has allowed refugees from Myanmar to seek
asylum inside Thai territory; however, recent reports indicate that there
may be a shift in official Thai policy. Amnesty International appeals to the
Royal Thai Government to allow all refugees to remain in Thailand until such
time as they will no longer be at risk of human rights
violations in Myanmar. A halt in armed conflict does not in any way
guarantee that the Burmese army will stop ill-treating or killing Karen
civilians. In ceasefire areas the army continues to seize civilians for
forced portering and other labour duties and to forcibly relocate them under
threat of death. 
 
On 25/6 February around 900 mostly women and children Karen refugees who had
sought refuge at Ban Pu Nam Rawn were forcibly repatriated to an area around
Htaw Ma Pyo and Paw Ma Pwu villages five kilometres inside Myanmar. The
repatriation was widely criticized by human rights and refugee
organizations, as well as the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
(UNHCR) and the United States Government. In response to this widespread
criticism, General Chetta Thanajaro, Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Thai
Army, ordered an immediate halt to All movements of Karen refugees. At the
same time, some Thai military sources are reported to have denied that any
refugees had been involuntarily repatriated.
 
On 9 and 10 March, some 3,300 recently-arrived Karen refugees in
Kanchanaburi province, Thailand, were returned to Myanmar by the Thai army.
It is unclear whether this repatriation was voluntary, and Amnesty
International is seeking further information about it.  While the current
situation on the Thai-Myanmar border remains unclear, reports indicate that
thousands of displaced Karen civilians are still gathering at unsafe
locations inside Myanmar close to areas of armed conflict between the KNU
and the Burmese army. 
 
Amnesty International is also concerned that those refugees who remain in
Thailand are at risk of cross-border attacks by the Burmese army and by a
breakaway Karen armed group, the Democratic Kayin Buddhist Army (DKBA). On
28 January DKBA troops crossed into Thailand and burned down Wangka and Don
Ma Piang, two refugee camps, leaving some 10,000 people homeless. Since that
time the DKBA has threatened to attack other camps unless refugees agree to
return to Myanmar. On 11 March refugees from Don Pa Kiang Camp were
relocated to join other
homeless refugees at the site of Wangka Camp, where they are clearly still
at risk of further attacks. In light of this development, Amnesty
International urges the Thai authorities to provide adequate protection and
security for these refugees and others seeking safety along the Thai-Myanmar
border. 
  
FURTHER RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send telegrams/ telexes/
faxes/express/ airmail letters in English or in your own language:
- noting that the Royal Thai Government is bound by the
internationally-recognized principle of non-refoulement, which prohibits
states from returning refugees against their will to countries where they
risk serious human rights violations;
- noting that the Thai authorities have already provided safety and
protection to tens of thousands of Burmese refugees fleeing conflict and
human rights violations;
- asking the Thai authorities to provide safe and secure locations to all
refugees from Myanmar, and to allow such refugees to remain in Thailand
until they are no longer at risk of human rights violations when they
return.  Noting that a halt in the current fighting in Myanmar will not in
any way mean that this risk will be diminished. 
 
APPEALS TO:
 
1.  General Chaowalit Yongchaiyut
Prime Minister
Office of the Prime Minister
Government House
Nakhorn Pathom Road
Bangkok 10300, Thailand
Telegrams: Prime Minister, Bangkok, Thailand
Faxes: + 66 2 280 1443; 282 5131; 281 2536
Salutation: Dear Prime Minister
 
2.  Sanoh Thienthong
Minister of Interior
Ministry of Interior
Asdang Road
Bangkok, Thailand
Telegrams: Interior Minister, Bangkok, Thailand
Faxes: + 66 2 223 8851
Salutation: Dear Minister
 
3. General Chetta Thanajaro,
Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Thai Army 
Army Headquarters
Thanon Sanam Chai
Bangkok 10200, Thailand
Telegrams: Commander-in-Chief, Royal Thai Army, Bangkok
Salutation: Dear General
 
COPIES TO: diplomatic representatives of Thailand accredited
to your country.
 
PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY. Check with the International Secretariat,
or your section office, if sending appeals after
15 April 1997.

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

ANNOUNCEMENT: FACE-OFF WITH THE NAM ON CAPITOL HILL ON MARCH 19
March 13, 1997

Greetings all, 

Please spread this message to our friends and encourage them to attend.
  This is a good opportunity to see who NAM is using on their WTO offensive
and to support our side of the argument.  

The event is:"Trade, Human Rights, and U.S. Foreign Policy"
on Wednesday, March 19, 1997
at Room 215, Dirksen Senate Office Building

featuring 

Mario Marcich
National Association of Manufacturers

Mike Jendrzejczyk
Human Rights Watch/Asia

Stuart Anderson 
Cato Institute

to register (its free), call Heather Anttila at (202) 789-5229, or fax her
(202) 842-3490 or email to hantilla@xxxxxxxx

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

SYCB:STATMENT ON BURMA'S HUMAN RIGHTS DAY, MARCH 13
March 13, 1997

    March 13th is the Human Rights Day of Burma. On that date in
1988, then Burma Socialist Programme Party (BSPP) Government
suppressed the peaceful student demonstration in protest of police
brutality and atrocity against them by violent means. Security forces
surrounded Rangoon Institute of Technology (R.I.T) campus stealthily
and dispersed the students with water cannon and tear gas canisters
without prior warning. When the students fled away from the scene
they fired the students arbitrarily from the back. In this incident,
Ko Phone Maw, fifth year civil engineering student died instantly and
another student Ko Soe Naing, third year metallurgy student died in
hospital next day.
    Outraged by this unlawful atrocities and excessive use of force,
the fellow students from almost all universities and colleges in
Rangoon took part in this peaceful demonstration. And again in 16th
March 1988, the security forces blocked the student procession along
the Prome Road near the Rangoon University campus and made pincer
attack from both ends. The security forces cornered the students on
the embankment of beautiful and scenic Inya Lake and beat the
students on their heads in ruthless manner. Many young female students were
beaten and their jewellery and personal belongings were looted. And
then their unconscious bodies were thrown away in the lake and
drowned. Many were arrested and herded into the police vans and were
gang-raped by the security forces in concentration camps and jails
later. The terrace of the Inya Lake popularly known as white bridge
was stained with blood, sweat and tears of the students and turned it
to the "Red Bridge". From the 1988 democratic struggle onwards, 13th
of March has been honoured and observed as the Burma's Human Rights Day.
    These two incidents sparked the glorious nationwide uprising and
toppled the BSPP Government popularly known as 8.8.88 uprising. But
the present military regime took power by coup de'tat on 18th
September 1988.
    The students are sons and daughters of the people. We always
stand steadfastly with the oppressed people of Burma and maintain the
fine tradition of fighting along with the people against all the
reactionary Governments and colonial rulers. The University Students
Union is the symbol of this struggle. Many veteran politicians and
statesman including our independence hero General Aung San, the
father of Nobel Peace Laureate Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and U Nu, the
first Prime Minister of independent Burma emerged from this glorious
Students Union and same Alma Mater, the Rangoon University.
    The military junta led by General Ne Win took power by coup
d'etat from the duly elected civilian Government led by U Nu on 2nd
March 1962. The University Students Union staged a series of  protest
against the military regime. The military clique crushed the student
demonstration by shooting them with automatic assault rifle and
dynamited the national and historical heritage of students Union
building along with wounded students took refuge in it on 7th July
and the early morning of the 8th July of 1962. Since then, the
Student Unions have been banned and outlawed.
    Like our brothers and sisters, we shall stay forefront in our
democratic struggle along with all democratic forces at home and
abroad. We shall fight the military regime by all means to restore
democracy and human rights in Burma. We shall never betray our fallen
martyrs and carry on their unfinished struggle until their
aspirations of  Human Rights, democracy, national reconciliation and
peace are fulfilled.
    We entreat the international community to show sympathy and support to
our democratic struggle and condemn the present military regime for
its gross violation of  Human Rights in Burma including holding power
against the will of the people which was clearly shown in 1990 May
27th general election. The National League for Democracy (NLD) led by
Daw Aung San Suu Kyi won landslide victory with over 80% of seats in
this election and the military regime still refuses to transfer power
to the duly elected civilian Government.

        Down with the military dictatorship.
        Restore democracy, Human Rights and peace in Burma.

Student Youth Congress of Burma.
(New Delhi)

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

ANNOUNCEMENT:NETHERLANDS BURMA ROUND TABLE 
March 11, 1997

In the Netherlands a Burma Round Table has been formed in early January 
1997.  The meetings will take place on a Saturday once in every two months
(for dates see below) , and are open to everyone. 

Goal-The goal of the meetings is to update those organisations and
individuals present on current events and activities on Burma.

Meeting dates 1997:
        25-01       22-03        24-05        26-07
        27-09        22-11
Time:14:00-16:00 hrs
Venue:
        BCN
        Paulus Potterstraat 20
        1071 DA AMSTERDAM
        020-6716952 (tel)
        020-7613513 (fax)

BCN
Paulus Potterstraat 20
1071 DA AMSTERDAM
THE NETHERLANDS
(31)20-6716952 (tel)
(31)20-6713513 (fax)

BURMA WEB RESOURCES-Just remember one website:
http://FreeBurma.org
This single page serves only as an easy to remember URL and departure
point to resources promoting the establishment of democracy in Burma.

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

ANNOUNCEMENT: NEW AUNG SAN SUU KYI BOOK
March 11, 1997

Aung San Suu Kyi: Fearless Voice of Burma

128 pages, color and black & white photos, hardbound, retails
for $17.95 in bookstores. ISBN: 0-8225-4931-X
Order through any book store or call Lerner Publications
directly at 800-328-4929 or 612-332-3344, fax 612-332-7615

Whitney Stewart
author

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