Bangkok Post News (11/9/98)

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<center>Economics, ethics dividing opinion over Rangoon

</center>

<center><italic>Junta,s intransigence has foreigners at odds

</italic></center>

A crude but effective response by Burma's military to an opposition vow
to call parliament has left policy makers abroad wondering how best to
push the ruling generals towards democracy.

The opposition National League for Democracy, led by Nobel Peace Laureate
Aung San Suu Kyi, said on Wednesday the military government had detained
328 of its members since Sunday, including 71 elected representatives.

These and earlier detentions and harassment mean the NLD, the landslide
winner of Burma's last election eight years ago but never allowed to
govern, would be able to muster only a handful of representatives if it
tries to call parliament this month.

"As far as I know, they're sticking to their plan," said one Rangoon
based diplomat. But who's going to go? I don't know - who's going to be
left?"

The United States has said it was greatly concerned and was seeking ways
to increase pressure on Burma.

Similarly, Britain said it was exploring with its European Union partners
ways to put pressure on the generals and wanted the rest of the EU, at a
minimum, to adopt Britain's position that trade of investment with Burma
should not be encouraged.

Washington already maintains strict formal sanctions on the South-east
Asian state and has urged other states to follow suit, but they have been
reluctant to do so.

Complication the issue is a dispute between the European Union and Japan
on one side and the US state of Massachusetts on the other, over its law
on business with Burma.

The 15-nation EU strongly objects to the law, which sets a pricing
penalty on purchases of goods by state authorities from companies that do
business with Burma.

However the dispute did not primarily reflect disagreement over Burmese
policy, but was rather a move to convince the United States of its
international obligations to the WTO, a European commission source said
on Wednesday.

"This is not a question of policy towards Burma. It could be any country.
It's a question of the US failing to meet its international obligations
in terms of the WTO," he said.

An EU ambassador in Bangkok said Europe already maintained a de facto
embargo on Burma at the official level, but added: "You cannot force
private businessmen to stop doing business there.

"The last time I was in Rangoon, I saw American businessman, I saw Korean
and Japanese businessmen, I saw Italian and British businessmen," he
said.

He dismissed the British suggestion that the European Union send a
"troika" of ministers comprising the last, present and next holders of
the rotating EU presidency - to Rangoon to see Mrs Suu Kyi and other
opposition leaders.

"It's the third time they've talked about such a nonsense. The Burmese
won't accept such a troika, so that's the point of sending one?"

"We can only tell the generals we don't agree with them, but experience
shows that whenever the military is in power in a country they follow
introverted types of policies and could not care less about public
opinion," he said.


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