CHRONOLOGY OF SEPTEMBER STUDENT PRO

[bakatha@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]

CHRONOLOGY OF SEPTEMBER STUDENT PROTESTS AND OTHER SUITUATION.

 Monday, August 24, 1998	

· The statement of ABFSU about the educational crisis, social crisis and
political crisis were distributing in Rangoon.
· Daw Aung San Suu Kyi returns home from 10 days of standoff, trying to
travel to Bassein.
· 2 NLD CEC members U Than Tun and U Soe Myint meet with SPDC Minister for
Home affairs Col. Tin Hlaing: NLD Chairman U Aung Shwe previously had met
with Gen.Khin Nyunt on 18 August.

· At 12:30 p.m. 150 students, 1,000 on-lookers gather at Hledan
intersection (near Rangoon University); leaflets and slogans called for an
end to military rule and called for the convening of parliament.  The
protest lasted about 90 minutes; dozens "rounded up"; intersection sealed
off by authority. Riot polices truck came there and student dispersed.

· At 7:00 p.m. 100 students at Rangoon Institute of Technology (RIT) stage
demonstration, including throwing rocks at riot police. Some students were
captured and detained.
 
· At night, the military intelligent arrested the prominent student
activists and the former students' leaders. Some are able to escape. 


 Tuesday,August 25
	
· Riot police stationed throughout Rangoon
· Small anti-SPDC protests occur in Haka (Chin State)
· Some student were released and forced to sign not to participate in the
movements. Some still detained.


Wednesday, August 26
	
· SPDC closes off Shwe Dagon Pagoda on the 10th anniversary of DASSK's
famous speech which drew over 700,000
· Lt.Col.Hla Min meets with 14 foreign military attaches to announce that
it will neither allow to convening of Parliament nor enter into talks with
ASSK.


 Thursday, August 27	

· Shwe Dagon re-opens

Friday, August 28	

· ABFSU,  had requested the international community, the governments and
students to
1. put pressure upon the military regime, SPDC for a democratic environment
in Burma
2. push for open dialogue between the democratic forces including Daw Aung
San Suu Kyi and SPDC.
3. support the current student movements inside Burma.

That is already announced by the foreign affairs' committee of ABFSU.

· RIT, closed since demonstrations in December, 1996, re-opens for short
courses in preparation for September 7 exams


Saturday, August 29

· DASSK announces to 500 NLD members gathered at her house that Parliament
will be convened in September.
· SPDC threatens to dissolve NLD if it attempts to convene Parliament.


Sunday, August 30

· Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, through foreign radio broadcasts appeals to
soldiers to support the convening of Parliament.
 

Tuesday,  September 1.

· Three journalist- an Australian, a Canadian and a Japanese- were detained
the Rangoon, as they prepared to interview with opposition leader, Daw Aung
San Suu Kyi.  Rising political tensions have focussed attention on Burma in
recent weeks and several foreign journalists travelling on tourist visas
have been briefly detained or questioned by security forces. However junta
officials have generally taken a tolerant line and a spokesman said the
journalists would be left alone but could not expect to be allowed to
return to Burma as they had been easily identified during their trips. Two
other foreign journalists -- one French and one Italian - were deported
last month.( AFP)

· Ericsson pulls out of Burma.





Wednesday, September 2	

· Burma's military authorities have ordered the closure of more than 120
Mon National Schools in Mon State in southeast Burma, breaking an agreement
with a Mon cease-fire group. The 123 Mon National Schools are operated by
the New Mon State Party (NMSP) which signed a cease-fire agreement in 1995
with the military authorities. Under the agreement, the NMSP was allowed to
operate the Mon National Schools. Apart from the 123 Mon National Schools
in Mon State, a further 170 schools are jointly administered by the NMSP
and the military authorities. In 1997, the authorities advised that the
teaching of Mon language would no longer be permitted in the 170 jointly
administered schools. However, there has been significant resistance from
the Mon people to this new policy.  As a result of this new language
policy, and because of increasing education expenses and teacher shortages,
Mon students have begun transferring from the 170 jointly administered
schools to the Mon National Schools. As a result, the military authorities
have ordered the closure of the Mon National Schools.  (According to the
NCUB statement)

· 3,000 students at RIT and Rangoon University Main campus hold
demonstrations.  Riot police seal off both campuses. Demands center on
freeing student political prisoners and delaying exams. Slogans included
protests that the government plans to split up their campus and relocate
future classes for undergraduates (the traditionally activist population)
far from the existing northern Yangon site.  Anti-government slogans and
flyers are included.  Teachers help negotiate for some students return to
their hostels. 100-150 students remain and continue demo.  At 10pm, riot
police raid and students disperse.

· Another demonstration from 12 noon to 1 pm takes place at Government
Technical Institute, Insein. 50-70 students gathered and shouted slogans,
and then dispersed. 

· ``This government always believes in violence and the use of force to
resolve problems,'' the Nobel Peace Prize laureate told journalists. ``They
never think of resolving problems through negotiations, through reasonable
give and take.'


Thursday, September 3	

· At 6:30 p.m., 1,200 students at Hliang campus launch demonstration.
Authorities seal off roads to campus.

· A serious and momentous request to the State Peace and  Development
Council and the National League for Democracy from Bohmu  Aung and his
political associates.





Friday, September 4	

· The World Bank on Friday cut financial ties to Burma, saying it would not
consider giving the government any more money because it had failed to make
repayments on past loans. Burma has borrowed more than $700 million from
the World Bank since 1956. But no loans have been made since July 1987.
``The bank does not have an active lending program and does not have plans
for one,'' a World Bank official said.  ( according to the Reuters news)

· Demonstration at the Hlaing campus continues; security tightens - the
police trucks and full equipment police units are standing around the campus. 

· At Rangoon University (main) all gates are closed.  Students continue to
distribute pamphlets. Some students inside the hostile are shouting slogans
and singing the student songs and marching.
 
· Mandalay - 200 Buddhist monks gather near Phaya-Gyi Kyaung-tite monestry
to protest against the military government.  12 monks are arrested.
Buddhist monks from Zaw-Ti-Ka Ywer-Ma Kaung-tite monestry of Mon-Ywer
Township in Upper Burma stage a demonstration.
· The Karenni Nationalities Peoples' Liberation Front  (KNPLF), the Kayan
Newland Party (KNP) and the Shan Nationalities Peoples' Liberation
Organization (SNPLO) -- all cease-fire groups -- called on SPDC to enter
into tripartite dialogue with NLD and the representatives of the ethnic
groups.


Saturday,September 5	

· There is no sign of confrontation at the Hlaing campus demonstration. The
police are standing guard outside, the students are inside of the compus
and hostile.

· The demonstration occurred since Sept 3 evening in Hlaing Campus RC2, has
been continuing. The three roads, namely Min Dhamma Road, Insein road, Pyi
road, to the RC2 campus have been barred. At the entrances of each road to
the campus, there are three or four riot police trucks and at least fifty
riot police with full equipment are standing around the entrances. Besides
that, there is one riot police who is stationed every roadside light-pole
around the campus.
 
· Inside the campus the numbers of students, who have been blocked for two
days there, are between 1000 and 1500. They have been still marching,
chanting slogans, singing democratic songs and hostels are preparing foods
for the students. And Military Intelligent let the students inside campus
know through teachers that they will take action against this demonstration
because there are many students, who are not residents staying in the
hostels, and have been involved actively. (All these hostels are for the
students who come from province areas.) It is supposed that riot police may
raid the campus this evening or tomorrow by giving excuse of non-resident
students' involvement.

· At the same time in the RIT (Rangoon Institute of Technology) campus
teachers haven't been able to continue the short course classes opening for
RIT students because of the successive demonstrations. Unless authority
will meet their demands, mainly to release political prisoners and to
postpone the exam that will hold on Sept 7, they will boycott the exam and
come out to the street so as to stage widespread mass mobilization, RIT
students vowed.

· In Rangoon University (main) campus all doors are closed except the main
gate. The situation in Rangoon University is also tense. Military
Intelligent often instructs the teacher to stop or postpone some sections
of master classes as preventive action.

· Recently at least 40 currency dealers have been arrested with an act of
5-J, the same law applied for political activists. Anybody who tries to buy
dollar paying more than 220kyats per dollar will be arrested now. Recently
the exchange rate is going up to over 400 kyats per dollar but yesterday
and today it has reduced to 368 and 350 kyats per dollar because of the
regime's attempt to have forcibly brought the exchange rate even in black
market down by arresting the dealers. Most detained people are the owners
of some gold shops from Bogyoke Market and from some private exchange rate
companies.

· Foreign companies (especially construction companies), that had saved
their money at the MICB (Myanmar Investment and Commercial Bank), now tried
to draw some of their money back but the Bank refused to take it out even
as FEC notes. A small construction company normally saves at least 2
million dollars. Now companies are facing the difficulties of buying the
necessary things for their works or business. The other thing is that the
companies cannot pay the salaries for their staff and some companies
circulated the why-explanation pamphlet within the companies.

· Police locked the gates to the campus, with some 1,000 students remaining
inside.

· High school students also staged small strike chanting anti-regime
slogans and asking for democracy. Some demonstrations were hit and run.


Sunday, September 6	
· Hliang demonstration continues
· Members of Parliament- Elected  arrested on the night of 6th September in
Rangoon. There are arrests countrywide. More than 120 MPs were detained
Others are NLD organizers.



Monday, September 7	
· An authority at the Yangon Institute of Technology (YIT) said final term
examinations for first-, second- and third-year students started at 8.30 a.m.

· Scheduled exams ? students were sent to YIT forcibly and only 10% of
students refused to sit exam. Around 50 GTI students were arrested after
being separated from YIT students at the Hliang campus when riot police
raided there on the morning.

· Almost all member of NLD MP are arrested estimating in total 86 (over
80). More than 100 NLD Divisional/Township Organizing members and NLD Youth
are arrested. Military regime forces the detained elected MP to sign on the
letter which mention their disagreement to NLD's call on Parliament. 

· Some factories at industrial zones particularly Hliang Tharyar, Dagon,
Shwe Pyithar are forced to closed down by the regime for temporally (7 to
10 days) in order to keep the workers away from students and NLD movements.
Some factories are allowed to continue under the conditions of forcing the
workers to sign the letter in which they promise not to involve in politic.
They allow some construction companies to withdraw twenty thousands US
dollars.


· The update situation of the student hostels in Rangoon

The authorities have sealed off the Inlay hostel with barbed wire and by
erecting a gate, as they did the Rangoon University campus. Barbed wire
barricades and gates have also been put up on Mingaladon road, Sule roads
and near Hlaing campus signboard.
The regime also blocked the roads to Min-Dhama, Pagoda bus stand, Thamaing
junction and Inya Lay and stationed the riot police trucks and police vans. 
The MIS also infiltrated into the student mass. Their intention was to act
violently as if some excited students broke the glasses of hostels and cut
off the electric fuses. 
Some MIS guys went to the public quarter opposite of Sinku hostel and
started burning the houses of the local people. 
They also tried to provoke tension between local people and the students. 
Some MIS, merged with the students and by holding the knives, screamed
against the military so that the students would be defamed.   
The MIS, by pretending that their parents were worried, called some
students from Sinku, Inlay, Zewaka, Poppa and Duya to come to the warden
office to meet with the rector. But the MIS arrested them. The parents from
the outside Rangoon were also ordered by local authorities to ask their
sons and daughters to return home. They were threatened with arrest if they
failed to call their children. The rector of Mandalay University has a bad
name among them that abuses the parents of the students.
A secret camp, called counter students' demonstration was set up in the
stadium near Ohndaw hostel. The MIS people in civilian clothes came to the
warden of Poppa hostels, U Soe Lwin and inquired the student activities
every night.
The students pointed out the despairing education system, and demanded (1)
to release their brothers who were arrested during 1996 December student
demonstration, (2) the adjournment of their exam, and (3) to establish the
Student Union. They also chanted  -- "Are we, the students united - United
- United!  -- These chanting are shouted from every hostel. 
The people who came to the tea stalls near Oak-kyin bus stand and U Pho
Hman road and read the leaflets tried to join with the students inside the
campus. The MIS came to notice and authorities ordered to close the food
shops and tea stalls near the college campuses. The students from Thiha,
Zaya and other hostels in front of the RIT and near BPI bus stand gathered
together and discussed. 
The, ABBESU (All Burma Basic Education Students' Union), also wrote,
"Support the brother students" on the walls of their bathrooms.
On Friday night, a group of 30 students from RASU (Rangoon Art and Science
University) started a guerilla strike at Hledan junction and chanted
anti-government slogans such as   "Down with Military regime!"  And  "We
want Democracy!".  When the MIS came to know that, Chinma tea stall and a
restaurant near Khawaijan were closed and riot police were stationed near
the apartments of railway workers near Gyogon junction.
On the night of September 6, 1998, 10 MPs from NLD including Thakhin Khin
Nyunt were arrested by the military regime. (Detail list will be updated
later)

On the morning of September 7 at about 7:30, the vehicles from Education
Ministry arrived in front of Thamine Hostel and the teachers asked the
students to sit the exam. When the students denied, the teachers who were
under the orders of the ministry forced the students to sit for the exam.
Those vehicles were seen heading from Mindhama road to RIT (Rangoon
Institute of Technology) and about 50 students were arrested. Some of them
were from Insein GTI (Government Technical Institute) not RIT students.
Some of the students are continuing their struggle in RC-II.



Tuesday,September 8

· High schools in some townships Magwe Division (Yae Nan Gyong or Pa Khoat
Ku) are closed down.
· The cars transportation in Rangoon are slowing down and many car drivers
stop driving their cars due to the high prices of patrol.

Wednesday, September 9

· Sept 9 (AFP) - Japan urged Myanmar's ruling junta Wednesday to
immediately free parliamentarians and other opposition members it has
detained since the weekend.
· High school students from BEHS No.1, 5 and others are marching to the
Tamwe market and students from two high schools of Botahtaung join with them.
· Military government has arrested 303 members of pro-democracy leader Aung
San Suu Kyi's political party in recent days, the party said Wednesday.
Among those arrested in the crackdown that began Sunday were 129 members of
parliament, said Tin Oo, vice chairman of Suu Kyi's National League for
Democracy.
· There are some protests occurring at the garment factories in Hliang
Tharyar and Insein (Joint Venture with Korea) and authority arrested two
workers. At Industrial Zone of Mandalay (near Kyal Si Kan), quell happening
between the owner and the workers leading toward the anti-regime protest.

Thursday, September 10

· Some sources confirm that Ko Soe Htun (a prominent leader of RIT student,
arrested in 1997) and U Ohn Myint are moved to other prisons from Insein.
It can be Monywa or Shwe Bo prison.


Foreign Affairs' Committee
All Burma Federation of Student Unions.