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Myanmar tourism chiefs brush aside



Myanmar tourism chiefs brush aside rights concern, predict bright future

Tue 15 Sep 98 - 11:12 GMT

BANGKOK, Sept 15 (AFP) - Myanmar tourism authorities and operators Tuesday
brushed aside concerns about human rights and political turmoil in the
isolated military-run state and predicted their industry had a bright
future.

"I see it as a very positive destination," said Detlef Meisslein, general
manager of Yangon's luxury 356-room
Sedona Hotel, during a short break from his sales pitch at the Myanmar
Travel Show in Bangkok.

Although plainly frustrated and uncomfortable with the junta's image as one
of the world's most oppressive regimes, the German national said he was sure
Myanmar would emerge as one of the world's premium travel destinations. "The
perception of Myanmar is a problem," he told AFP.

"It will take time, but once they settle the political situation it is a
very positive destination. It has more potential
than Thailand."

The travel show opened here Monday and coincided with a renewed call by
Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi's main opposition National League for
Democracy (NLD) party in Yangon for the junta to convene a parliament.

The NLD-led opposition won 1990 polls in a landslide, but the military has
refused to hand over power and
rejected repeated calls for parliament to be convened.

More than 700 party members have been detained in recent weeks, according to
the NLD, as it vowed to convene parliament by the end of September.

Yangon this month also experienced the biggest student demonstrations in
nearly two years when thousands gathered outside campuses in the capital.

Overseas criticism of the arrests and the junta's human rights record has
been fierce. The United States said last week it "deplores in the strongest
of terms" the detentions, while Britain said it "wholly condemns" the
arrests.

London also urged its EU partners to discourage tourism, trade and
investment in Myanmar.

Germany condemned "the fresh wave of repression and intimidation" by the
junta, while Japan called for the
detainees to be freed.

The tourism promotion here showcased displays for hotels, resorts and
unspoiled historic sites.

But international tourist arrivals at the official Yangon entry point last
year amounted to less than 200,000, making Myanmar one of the least visited
countries in Southeast Asia, according to government figures.

Income generated from those visitors ammounted to just shy of 33 million
dollars, a marginal increase on the 30
million dollars generated in the 1996-1997 financial year.

By comparison, neighbouring Thailand's highly developed tourism industry
generated 219.4 billion baht (5.36
billion dollars) in 1996 from more than seven million tourists.

Regular headline-grabbing confrontations between the ruling military and
non-violent resistance, in addition to an
economic crisis-driven slowdown in the regional travel business, has made
the task of selling Myanmar more
difficult.

"Always the opposition exaggerate, saying all tourism income is going to the
government," said ministry of hotels
and tourism director-general Khin Maung Latt at the tourism promotion.

"They concentrate only on our mistakes, always oppose the government."

Nyunt Nyunt Than, the ministry's director of tourism promotion, manning the
ministry's booth at the show, said fears about visiting Myanmar were
unfounded.

"Tourism is not concerned with politics," she added, in response to
questions about the impact of the junta's
heavy-handed suppression of all political opposition.

"If the situation is stable people can come and see the beautiful landscape.
There are no demonstrations in the
 streets. Trouble makers are only a few percent and confined to campuses."


)AFP 1998