NEWS - As Was Expected, the Opposit

[Rangoonp@xxxxxxx]

Subject: NEWS - As Was Expected, the Opposition was Blamed Again.

As Was Expected, the Opposition was Blamed Again.  But it is typical
for the SPDC/SLORC to create a situation, such as religious riot, a bomb
, et.al.  The SPDC bombed its own embassy in Tokyo about 3 years ago
blamed activists.  In Thailand another SLORC/SPDC exploded bomb was
blamed on demonstrators and many were arrested for that.  That same
so-called ambassador at the time is now in Washington, D.C.  He accussed
demonstrators of posting threatening messages. Luckily, the Secret
Service didn't entirely believe them and there was no evidence presented
for proof.
____________________
Commentary Hints Opposition Behind Myanmar Arson

               Reuters
               13-APR-99

               YANGON, April 13 (Reuters) - A commentary in state-owned
               newspapers suggested on Tuesday opponents of
               Myanmar's military government were behind a suspected
               arson attack on the country's holiest Buddhist shrine. 

               Myanmar's official news agency said on Monday a fire
broke
               out at the weekend in a ceiling of Yangon's Shwedagon
               Pagoda but was quickly extinguished. It said arson was
               suspected. 

               A commentary in Tuesday's Kyemon and Myanma Alin
               newspapers said officials had carried out a thorough
               investigation. 

               "It can be speculated as to who is responsible. It is
those
               who have committed similar things a number of times. 

               "They attacked the sacred tooth relic of Buddha with a
bomb
               on the evening of Christmas Day, 1996," it said in
reference
               to an attack on a temple housing a relic loaned by China. 

               The government blamed the Karen National Union
guerrillas,
               a dissident exile group the All Burma Students'
Democratic
               Front, and "above-ground destructive elements" for that
               attack, which killed five people and injured 17. 

               The latter term is usually used by the authorities to
refer to
               the National League for Democracy (NLD), Myanmar's main
               opposition party. All the opposition groups denied
               involvement in the 1996 attack. 


               No member of the NLD was available to comment on the
               newspaper article and government officials were not
               available to say whether the commentary reflected
               government opinion. 

               In the past the government has said commentaries in the
               state press do not always reflect official opinion.