Stabbed in the Back (Article fr The

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1. Whitewashed
2. Stabbed in the back



1.WHITEWASHED!

The defence minister is caught tampering with evidence

 The speedboats and trawlers used by the so-called "gunrunners" stood
tied to the jetty at the FDN (Floating Dry Naval) Dock at Port Blair in
the Andamans. They had been impounded by the defence forces in the
Operation Leech and were crucial pieces of evidence which the A&N
Fortress Commander had, in his FIR, promised to hand over to the A&N
Police whenever directed by the court.
 The boats were beyond bounds for lay civilians. They were kept under
strict security by the defence authorities. But did manage to get close
to them at 11:30 am on 10th March and even take some photographs.
 And when the prints came, something unbelievable came to light: the
speedboats were actually being painted by a man in olive green fatigue.
 Did this amount to tampering of evidence? We got in touch with lawyers
to find out. And they were unanimous in saying, "yes". Moreover, the
offence, they added, was "criminal".
 Why were the defence authorities so keen to give the speedboats a fresh
coat of white paint, when the CBI had already begun investigating the
case?  When a charge sheet against the "foreign nationals" "waging war"
against India had to be framed? And trial begun in a court of law?
 Was it an attempt to hide something that could give away the real
story?


2. STABBED IN THE BACK
The Arakanese struggle for freedom suffers a serious blow

 Operation Leech comes as a setback to the Arakanese, who are waging a
200-year-old war for freedom. They have been trying to regain their
independence ever since their kingdom fell to the Burma invasion in
1784.
 The Arakan stateon the southwestern part of Myanmar and contiguous to
Mizoram in Indiais one of underdeveloped Myanmar's more backward
regions. It has hardly any roads, schools or hospitals. But to the three
districts of this state comprising mountains and coastal plains, the
Myanmarese military junta has despatched 40 battalions of armymen to
stamp out the sense of pride and yearning for freedom among a
4-million-strong Arakanese population. Five years ago there were only
three battalions.
 Or, are there deeper and more sinister designed behind the junta's
recent thrust?
 Tales of horrendous atrocities by the Myanmarese army are already being
told in world forums by fleeting Arakanese refugees. Many of them have
taken shelter in India, especially in the northeastern state of Mizoram
and in Delhi. About 400 families are already staying at the Parba area
of Chhimtuipui district of Mizoram. Overall, close to four lakh
Arakanese are believed to have been forced to leave their land because
of economic and political reasons.
 Refugees sources have told SUNDAY that people in the Arakan Hills are
being subjected to forced labour by the Myanmarese army, whose brutality
is said to equal that of the Japanese occupation forces during World War
II. People are being herded at gunpoint to road-building sites. Refusal
invites flogging and even summary executions. Roads are being built, say
the Arakanese, to facilitate the movement of troops and strengthen the
army's hold.
 To fight the Myanmarese junta, different political forces of Arakan
coalesced to form one political organization on 5 January 1994the
National United Party of Arakan (NUPA), and also its military wing, the
Arakan Army (AA).
 The NUPA is championing the interests of 13 ethnic groups such as the
Mro, Khami, Chin, Anu, Khaungso, Chakma, Daingnuk, Shandoo, Lunkay,
Chaw, Maramagree, and Kaman, who have been living in the region for
centuries.
 The party is pitted against the Myanmarese junta, which refused to
relinquish power despite being trounced in the elections of 1990 and put
Aung San Suu Kyi, whose National League for Democracy (NLD) won a
resounding victory, under house arrest. NUPA also has ties with
anti-Yangon forces in seven other Burmese states dominated by
non-Burmese ethnic groups.
 The Arakanese movement had all along been sympathetically viewed by
India, whichat least outwardlyupholds democratic principles and
opposes repressive dictatorial regimes. This is one reason why Arakanese
refugees have found shelter here.
 The other reason is of strategic significance. The Arakanese movement
has so far acted as a counterpoise to the penetration of the Myanmarese
junta and, by extension, of its Chinese allies, into an area that is
uncomfortably close to Mizoram and Bangladesh. The Chinese are already
said to have a presence in the Coco Islands in the Coco Channel off the
Arakan coast. And a strong Arakanese movement should normally have been
to India's advantage.
 But obviously, India's priorities are now changing. There is even talk
of Indo-Myanmarese military cooperation. And with top men of the Arakan
army believed to have been shot dead by Indian defence personnel in what
the captives say was a fake encounter, the Arakanese movement is sure to
suffer.
 The building of roads by the junta is going to be hastened as a result.
And the communication network is only likely to bring the Myanmarese
army and its allies closer to India by offering them an open seaboard
all long the 450-km-long Arakan coast.
 Operation Leech, therefore, raises a disturbing question. Has the
Myanmarese military staged a coup by getting Indian defence personnel to
do its bidding?


"SUNDAY" WEEKLY MAGAZINE
31MAY-6JUNE 1998.
VOLUME 25
ISSUE 22