Reuters-FOCUS-Myanmar military pres

[hlaing@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx]

FOCUS-Myanmar military pressed from all sides 
02:44 a.m. Aug 13, 1998 Eastern 

By Aung Hla Tun 

YANGON, Aug 13 (Reuters) - Myanmar's military rulers faced new pressures
from inside and outside the country on Thursday as a roadside standoff
between opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and security guards entered its
second day. 
Government sources said the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize winner, a member of her
National League for Democracy (NLD) and two drivers were still in their van
at Anyarsu, 32 km (20 miles) southwest of the capital. 
The four were stopped by police on Wednesday on their way to see supporters
in Pathein, 190 km (120 miles) west of Yangon. The trip was a repeat of a
visit in late July that led to a similar standoff that lasted six days. 
``She is still at the checkpoint on the road, we hear,'' said one
government source, who declined to be identified. 
A local source said the van had been halted at a small bridge on the way to
Nyaungdoun, the crossing point over the Irrawaddy River, which bisects
Myanmar from north to south. 
It was unclear whether Suu Kyi was still in the van. One unconfimed report
said the vehicle had been moved off the road. 
International pressure on the ruling military was stepped up Thursday as a
U.S. lawmaker headed for Asia to try to secure the release of 18 foreign
activists detained in Yangon on Sunday for distributing pro-democracy
leaflets. 
New Jersey Republican Representative Chris Smith, chairman of the House
Sub-Committee on International Operations and Human Rights, flew to Bangkok
vowing to ``make every effort'' to get into Myanmar and help secure their
release. 
``The purpose of my trip is to verify the safety and help secure the
release of all 18 detainees,'' he said. 
The government has not said if it will prosecute the detainees -- six
Americans, an Australian, three Thais, three Malaysians, three Indonesians
and two Filipinos -- or deport them. 
Government-run newspapers have accused the activists of being part of a
plot to destabilise the country and said the authorities would take
``necessary actions against them.'' 
The government says the legal process is being prolonged because a few of
the activists are not fully cooperating. 
In Bangkok, Thai Foreign Minister Surin Pitsuwan said Thailand would not
press Myanmar to release the detainees because it did not interfere in the
affairs of other countries. 
``But as a democratic country we also praise and support anyone who acts in
favour of democracy and human rights,'' he said. 
The government has stepped up action against the NLD since the party set an
ultimatum in June for the government to convene a parliament by August 21
of members elected at polls in 1990. 
The NLD swept those elections. But the military government has ignored the
result and rejected demands for democracy, saying the nation is not ready
for it. 
This is the fourth time Suu Kyi, daughter of independence hero Aung Sang,
has left home in an attempt to visit supporters in recent weeks. 
Released from six years of house arrest in July 1995, Suu Kyi is severely
restricted in her movements by the military and her visitors are monitored.

An NLD statement said Suu Kyi was making her latest trip ``to encourage the
NLD elected representatives against whom action has been taken by the
government.'' 
Diplomats said she and her companions appeared better prepared this time
than on their trip in July. 
Their minivan was full of food and water and the trip looked as if it had
been well planned, local sources said. 
Suu Kyi's previous trip was ended on July 29 when security personnel
forcibly took her back to Yangon. 
She became severely dehydrated during the standoff and spent several days
recuperating. 
The government said it a statement late on Wednesday Suu Kyi and her
companions were free to return to Yangon or stay on the roadside ``as long
as the conditions remain safe.'' 
But it said the group's trip was made ``without proper security
arrangements'' and asked them to return home. 
Eight leading nations began a concerted action on Wednesday to press
Myanmar to lift restrictions on Suu Kyi and open a dialogue with the NLD.