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Reuters-Myanmar says traitors under



Subject: Reuters-Myanmar says traitors undermining tourism 

Myanmar says traitors undermining tourism
06:06 a.m. May 20, 1999 Eastern
YANGON, May 20 (Reuters) - Myanmar said on Thursday fewer than half a
million tourists visited the country over the last year and it accused
``traitors'' of keeping tourists away.

The official Myanma News Agency quoted Minister for Tourism Saw Lwin as
saying 477,362 tourists visited Myanmar during its April-March 1998/99
financial year, bringing in $63.63 million and 875.42 million kyat ($2.50
million).

He said just over 200,000 visitors arrived by air through Yangon airport and
the rest through the border.

The news agency quoted the powerful Secretary One of the ruling State Peace
and Development Council, Khin Nyunt, as saying ``deserving progress'' had
not been achieved in tourism.

``National traitor destructive elements are spreading fabricated news on
Myanmar in collaboration with some foreign broadcasting stations and so
tourism has not developed as it should be due to their plot to belittle the
dignity of the state,'' the agency reported him as saying.

Myanmar's opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) led by Nobel Peace
Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi and international pressure groups have called
for a boycott of Myanmar in order to press for democracy.

The ruling generals say the country is not yet ready for democracy.

Khin Nyunt said some foreign investment projects had stagnated due to the
economic crisis in Southeast Asia.

Some $1.1 billion had been invested in 29 hotel projects for 6,668 hotel
rooms by the end of April 1999 and 17 projects with 3,593 hotel rooms had
been completed at a cost of $482.4 million.

He said it was necessary to provide help to 12 unfinished hotel projects
until they were finished but did not elaborate.

($1 - approx 350 kyat at free market street rate)