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Top Myanmar general threatens to ''annihilate'' opposition  
 
ASSOCIATED PRESS 
 
YANGON, Myanmar, Aug. 21 ? The No. 2 leader of Myanmar's military regime
threatened in reports published Saturday to ''annihilate'' opponents calling
for an uprising next month. 
       Both sides are waging a propaganda war before Sept. 9, when the
opposition has urged Myanmar's people to rise up against the military, which
has ruled for nearly four decades.  
 
 
 
   
       Any increased preparedness by security forces has been discreet, but
officials have announced the arrest of at least 36 people accused of
involvement. 
       Gen. Maung Aye, army commander and vice chairman of the ruling State
Peace and Development Council, was quoted in official newspapers as saying
that ''internal subversive elements'' were losing ground to the Tatmadaw, or
armed forces 
       ''The Tatmadaw today is superior, stronger and more consolidated
compared to the Tatmadaw in 1988,'' Maung Aye said. ''Joining hands with the
people, we are able to remove any danger that might fall upon the country.'' 
       The army crushed pro-democracy protests launched on Aug. 8, 1988. But
the demonstrations led to the end of a quarter-century of socialist
isolation imposed by now-retired strongman Ne Win and vaulted Aung San Suu
Kyi to the forefront of the opposition. Suu Kyi won the Nobel Peace Prize in
1991. 
       The new generation of generals has opened up the economy to market
forces but keeps a heavy lid on dissent. Opponents hope the so-called 8-8-88
rebellion will be succeeded by a more successful one on Sept. 9, or 9-9-99. 
       Numerology is widely believed in Myanmar, also known as Burma, but
there has been little indication the masses are again ready to face the
military. 
       Maung Aye declared that the armed forces ''would resolutely
annihilate those who disturb the interests of the nation.'' 
       High on their list would be the All Burma Students Democratic Front,
a dwindling band of former students who fled the country after the failure
of the 1988 uprising. 
       The front claimed Saturday from its base in Thailand that authorities
had been tightening control over high schools in several areas to prevent
their use as staging areas for protests. The universities have been closed
since demonstrations in 1996. 
       On Thursday, the group said, students from two high schools in Tamwe
township near the capital, Yangon, shouted slogans, set off firecrackers and
banged desks to protest a visit by Dr. Khin Win Shwe, wife of the
government's No. 3 man, Lt. Gen. Khin Nyunt. 
       The students reportedly sang pro-democracy songs, called for an
uprising on 9-9-99, and complained of excessive tuition and a shortage of
educational supplies and facilities. 
       Seven students were detained and handed over to their parents after
being threatened with dismissal, the front said. 
       The government called the report a ''fabrication.'' 
 
 
© 1999 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be pub