The BurmaNet News: September 13, 19

[strider@xxxxxxxxxxx]

Subject: The BurmaNet News: September 13, 1999

---------------------- BurmaNet ------------------------
 Catch the latest news about Burma at www.burmanet.org
--------------------------------------------------------

The BurmaNet News: September 13, 1999 
Issue #1357

Noted in Passing: "People living in glass houses should not throw stones."
- SPDC Statement (see AP: MYANMAR DENIES RELIGIOUS RESTRICTION)

HEADLINES:
==========
THE NATION: SPORADIC PROTESTS GREET CALL FOR UPRISING 
NCUB: EVENTS LEADING UP TO 9-9-99 
NLD: FOR US, EVERY DAY IS A SPECIAL DAY FOR DEMOCRACY 
AP: MYANMAR DENIES RELIGIOUS RESTRICTION 
AFP: MYANMAR GRANTS ACCESS TO DETAINED ACTIVIST 
RADIO AUSTRALIA: TWO AUSTRALIANS RELEASED FROM JAIL 
THE NATION: KAREN BLOW UP GAS PIPELINE 
XINHUA: ASEAN BECOMES LARGEST TRADING PARTNER 
****************************************************************

THE NATION: SPORADIC PROTESTS GREET CALL FOR 9-9-99 
10 September, 1999 

RANGOON - Exiled Burmese in Australia and Thailand joined forces in
protesting against the Burmese junta, while the Burmese capital faced
sporadic hit-and-run protests despite the regime's deployment of riot
police to prevent potential outbreaks of political unrest.

According to Burmese dissident groups, a number of a "hit-and-run" protests
were carried out just outside Rangoon. About 30 to 40 people took part in
each of the protests at Dagon, Okkalapa and Pazundung townships.

The largest demonstration was in the city of Meiktila in central Mandalay
Division where about 1,000 people took part in n a demonstration. The
number of arrests could not be confirmed.

In Canberra, Australia, about 100 protesters broke into the Burmese Embassy
after smashing fences and overpowering police.

One police officer was injured when a clod of dirt was thrown into his eye
and another was kicked in the groin. Several police received minor cuts and
bruises in the skirmish.

The protest followed a worldwide call from exiled Burmese dissidents for an
uprising against the military junta in Rangoon on  "four nines" day.

Sept 9, 1999 was chosen for its numerical significance after the first
uprising 11 years ago on Aug 8, 1988 [during] which thousand of
pro-democracy demonstrators were killed.

In Melbourne, about 90 people, mostly Burmese exiles with red armbands,
chanted and sang on the steps of Victoria's state parliament.

In Bangkok, about 400 Burmese dissidents staged noisy protests demanding a
transfer of power to the National League for Democracy (NLD), winner of the
May 1990 general elections which has never been allowed to govern.

They shouted slogans and burnt the Burmese flag at nine minutes past nine
in the morning.

"We are gathering here because we think not many people can protest in
Rangoon because there are too many troops," said Yai Min Aung, protesting
at the embassy in Bangkok.

On the Thai side of the Moei River about 200 exiles wearing red
pro-democracy head bands shouted slogans at stony-faced Burmese soldiers on
the other bank. Customs and soldiers on the nearby Thai-Burma Friendship
Bridge, which links the towns of Mae Sot and Myawaddy, were conducting
thorough body searches as a security precaution, but tradesmen were still
crossing the span. Thai military units have stepped up security along the
western border with Burma, where over 100,000 refugees from Burma live in
bamboo-shack camps close to the frontier.

In Rangoon, the junta deployed extra police, including riot-control units,
bracing for an uprising called by exiled dissidents.

But there were no signs of the street protests the dissidents had called
for. Authorities shut the road running past the headquarters of 1991 Nobel
Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi's NLD, which had planned to distribute rice
to the poor.

Diplomats estimated that more than 100 people have been arrested in the
past month in Rangoon and in the provinces. An unofficial night curfew has
been imposed in provincial towns and parts of the capital.

"Everyone knows today is a special day. But we weren't expecting anything
to happen because I think people are too scared and because this movement,
it is a movement, is too disorganised because the government has too many
military intelligence operatives out there who can stop things," said a
diplomat in Rangoon.

Burmese generals have vowed to "annihilate" any agitator and there is
little sign that the population of Burma is ready to ask a repeat of the
bloody clampdown 11 years ago, when an estimated 3,000 were gunned down.

High schools, which are the potential hotbed of anti-government action,
were closed for the Buddhist sabbath. Most universities have been shut
since the last major student protest in late 1996

Meanwhile, the Burmese junta has postponed a visit by a senior United
Nations official which was aimed at encouraging political liberalisation in
the country.

The Rangoon-based source said Assistant Secretary-General Alvaro deSoto,
the UN's second-ranking official for political affairs, had been due in
Burma around the middle of this month.

"The mission has been postponed by the, government. I wouldn't say
cancelled they want him to come at some later date," said the source, who
did not want to be identified, adding that no explanation had been given
for the decision.

The Rangoon government did not immediately respond to a request for comment
on the issue. 

****************************************************************

NATIONAL COUNCIL OF THE UNION OF BURMA: EVENTS LEADING UP TO 9-9-99
10 September, 1999 

Burmese people have called for the 9999 people power movement to remove the
military dictatorship, to restore democracy and to build a genuine federal
union.  The National Council of the Union of Burma (NCUB) regards the
events leading up to the 9999 movement as very encouraging and positive.
The NCUB views the 9999 action call not merely as a fixed appointment but
as a momentum-building process to increase mass participation even under
the harsh restrictions imposed by regime.  The NCUB considers that recent
developments show gaining momentum and this will spill over into the
immediate future.  Analysis by the NCUB when reviewing the past activities
of Burmese people up to yesterday (9-9-99) as below, indicates an
accumulation of confidence and courageous readiness to take more
consecutive steps forward.  
    
First week in August: Approximately 160 high school students staged a
demonstration in the town of Ye.

12 August:  An hour long demonstration took place in front of No. (1) high
school in Mergui.  Several small-scale protests occurred in Pegu. Massive
arrests followed in both cases.

16 August: A further demonstration occurred in Mergui.

Mid-August: Demonstration by high school students in Tavoy.

19 August: High school students from Basic Education High School No (1) and
(5), Tamwe, protested against the visit of Dr Khin Win Shwe who is the wife
of Lt. Gen Khin Nyunt.  The students staged demonstrations and was followed
by students being detained and threatened with expulsion from the schools.

26-27 August: Students from Dawbon and Thar Kay Ta made pamphlets for
distribution and held a hit and run demonstration.  This was followed by
arrests.

27 August: Seven junior military officers were arrested in Pa Pon township,
Karen State, for their distribution of pro-democracy posters and leaflets.

29 August: In Dala township, students were arrested because they took part
in a poster and pro-democracy leaflets distribution before staging a
small-scale demonstration.

1-8 September: The British citizen, James Mawdsley, was arrested in Ta Chi
Laik, border town adjacent to Mae Sai of Thailand, for distribution of pro-
democracy pamphlets.  Later, he was given 17 years imprisonment.

In South Okklapa of Rangoon, students distributed pro-democracy pamphlets
and made small-scale demonstration. On the Bo Aung Kyaw street, Rangoon,
youths distributed pamphlets asking people to participate in a popular
movement.

Since the beginning of September, people who managed donation of rice to
poor people in Mon Ywa were banned by the authorities.  A crowded
confrontation and disagreements took place. Later, some people were arrested.

During this period, three junior military officers from LIB 101 were
arrested in Pa Kokku, Magwe Division, for discussing and debating the 9999
popular movement in the military arena.

In Dawbon, Thar Kay Ta and Dagon Myo Thit townships, curfews under Section
144 of the Criminal Procedure were enforced.

 Pamphlet distribution occurred in the following places; Taung Gyi, Si
Saing, Ka Law, Moe Beyl and Aung Ban in Shan State; Loikaw in Karenni
State; Ba Maw, Shwe Ku and Moe Mauk in Kachin State; Many Places in Pegu
division; Pakokku in Magwe division

5 September: In Mandalay, monks demonstrated in the Ma Soe Yein monastery
compound.  This compound was then closed by the authorities.

7 September: The 28-year-old London woman, Rachel Goldwyn, was arrested by
the military police at 5:30 pm Burmese time after singing an outlawed
revolution song and demanding civil rights in a busy Rangoon market place
at the corner of Ahnaw-ra-hta Road and Barr Street. 
  
8 September: During the late afternoon, leaflets were produced by the Union
of the Civil Servants from Universities and were distributed in Gyo Gone of
Insein and North Okkalapa.  Also, pamphlet distribution was carried out in
North Okkalapa Medical Institute No2 and Rangoon Institute of Technology,
Insein.  Pamphlets were also distributed in Tamwe township.  

9 September: Military trucks, police trucks and fire brigade trucks
circulated around Rangoon for the entire day.  TV-Myanmar broadcast footage
of military parades and operations.

10.00am A small-scale demonstration and pamphlet distribution took place in
the near Tamwe market, Tamwe Township. 
  
10.00am A small-scale demonstration with around 30 students occurred in
South Okkalapa township.

10.30am A demonstration with an estimated 1,000 people was carried out in
the town of Meiktila, upper Burma, Mandalay Division.  The town contains
the airforce command base for upper Burma. 

10.30am A demonstration and sit-in strike was carried out in Hlaing
Township. About 350 people chanting anti-government slogans and songs
sat-in until around 4 pm.  Some activists were arrested. 
 
10.30 am Some 200 people demonstrated at Hledan Junction, Rangoon.

10.40am Small-scale hit-and-run protests happened in Kaba Aye of Mayanggone
Township, Rangoon.

11.00 am Small-scale demonstration in North-Dagon satellite township, in
front of Dagon University. Approxmately 30-40 university students involved. 

12 noon Some 200 people demonstrated in Pazundaung township, downtown
Rangoon.  The demonstration started in the market with people from Daw Pon
and Thar Kay Ta joining in.  The demonstration moved to the centre of
downtown Rangoon. 
  
1.20pm Demonstration occurred in Taunggyi, Shan State.

1.30pm Pamphlet distribution and a demonstration took place near to the
Insein Market.

2.00pm In Dawbon township, Rangoon, around 20 students riding bicycles
threw red paint at the bridge to signify the blood spilled during 1988.
They also threw red chili paste at the government's propaganda boards. 

Information Committee, National Council of the Union of Burma 

****************************************************************

NATIONAL LEAGUE FOR DEMOCRACY: FOR US, EVERY DAY IS A SPECIAL DAY FOR
DEMOCRACY 
September, 1999 

Released courtesy of World Voices Campaign & Burma Campaign UK

Statement by NLD Secretary General Aung San Suu Kyi September 1999

I'd like to thank all of you for gathering here today to support our
movement for democracy in Burma. As I am sure most of you are aware, the
situation here has been deteriorating by the day. Since the National League
for Democracy called for the convening of the People's Parliament last
year, the military authorities have increased their oppression and tried
their best to break up the movement for democracy.

At this very moment, people are being arrested all over the country,
supposedly for the part that they are taking in trying to make the 9th of
September 1999 a day for democracy. I myself am not aware why the 9th of
September should be a special day for democracy. For us, every day is a
special day for democracy. But if the whole world were to rally around and
help us to achieve our goal, which is basic human rights and democratic
rights for the people of Burma, we shall get there much faster than we
would on our own. We rely on our allies all over the world to help us,
because we are involved in an issue that is a human one. It is not
particularly a national issue. It is a national issue because it has to do
with democracy in Burma. But it is (also) a human issue because democracy
is linked to human rights, and human rights concerns everybody all over the
world.

We of the National League for Democracy hesitated before endorsing the
movement for economic sanctions several years ago. We felt that we wanted
to give the military authorities a chance to prove that they were sincere
in their claim that they too were working for democracy. However, as it
became obvious that the military authorities were not interested in
bringing democracy to Burma, but simply in strengthening their own
position, and using economic means to strengthen their position, we decided
that economic sanctions were necessary.

We would like the world to know that economic sanctions do not hurt the
common people of Burma. When Burma was opened up to what they called the
market economy a decade ago, it did not open a door for the common people
of Burma. What it did was to give the military authorities and those
connected with them a chance to consolidate their economic position in the
same way in which they had consolidated their power base. This is why we
think that economic sanctions are good and necessary for the fast
democratization of Burma.

We would like the European Community, the United States, and the rest of
the world to be aware that sanctions do help the movement for democracy in
Burma. And we would like them to be aware of the fact that unilateral
sanctions are better than no sanctions at all. The best, of course, are
multilateral sanctions, and we would like the whole international community
to join in a movement aimed at bringing democracy soon to Burma.

We need to get democracy soon because our people are suffering by the day.
Prisoners of conscience in the prisons of Burma are just not serving out a
particular sentence. With many of them, it is as though they were serving a
death sentence. Conditions in Burmese prisons are so bad that without
sufficient medical aid, our prisoners are liable to die before the time is
right (served). Because of that, the need for democracy in Burma is very
urgent for some of us. And it is urgent for the rest of us too, not just
for those of us who are dying in jail, because Burma itself is like a huge
prison with a military dictatorship holding the keys and locking us away
from freedom. That is why we would like to call upon all of you to help us
open the door of our prisons and to join the democratic world in spreading
human rights around the world.

In Burma, we believe that we have to work for our own liberty, and we are
determined to do so. We are not depending on the international community to
bring democracy to Burma. We are simply asking for the assistance in
bringing democracy to Burma quickly. It is only natural that the more help
we have, the sooner we shall reach our goal. For this reason, we welcome
all international help, and we urge all of you to keep in mind that this is
a time of great suffering for the people of Burma.

This is a time when the military authorities are more oppressive than they
have ever been. This is a time when all those who believe in human rights
and democracy should rally together to help the oppressed. I would like to
thank you once again for gathering here to show your support and
solidarity. And I hope very much that this support will be increased as the
days go by, and that before too long, we shall all be able to celebrate the
victory of democracy in Burma.

Thank you.

For further information, please contact The Burma Campaign UK
<bagp@xxxxxxxxxx> 

****************************************************************

ASSOCIATED PRESS: MYANMAR DENIES RELIGIOUS RESTRICTION 
11 September, 1999 by Grant Peck 

BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) -- The government of Myanmar on Saturday dismissed
as unfounded charges by the U.S. State Department that it uses force to
propagate Buddhism, the dominant religion, and denies human rights and
political freedom to some Buddhist monks. 

The charges were made Thursday in the State Department's Annual Report on
International Religious Freedom, published for the first time this year to
meet the mandate of a new law. 

The government ``systematically restricted efforts by Buddhist clergy to
promote human rights and political freedom, and, according to multiple
detailed credible reports, government authorities in some ethnic minority
areas coercively promoted Buddhism over other religions,'' said the
report's section on Myanmar, also called Burma. 

A statement by the Myanmar government spokesman said it ``is regretful that
the U.S. State Department is not aware that Buddhism does not force-promote
its faith.'' 

``It is against the fundamental belief of Buddhism to do such things and in
Myanmar, Buddhism is practiced devotedly,'' said the statement, faxed to
The Associated Press in Bangkok, Thailand. 

It also said that under Buddhist law, monks are supposed to refrain from
political and commercial activities. 

The State Department took particular note of allegations of abuses against
the Christian Chin ethnic minority. 

``Government security forces continued efforts to induce members of the
Chin ethnic minority to convert to Buddhism and prevent Christian Chin from
proselytizing by highly coercive means, including religiously selective
exemptions from forced labor, and by arresting, detaining, interrogating,
and physically abusing Christian clergy,'' it said. 

It also claimed that members of the Muslim Rohingya minority in Arakan
State, on the country's western coast, ``continued to experience severe
legal, economic, and social discrimination.'' 

The Myanmar government statement charged that ``without substantial
evidence, it is improper to accuse other nations or governments just based
on hearsay. There is an American idiom which is quite appropriate for this
case: `People living in glass houses should not throw stones,''' it said.

****************************************************************

AFP: MYANMAR GRANTS ACCESS TO DETAINED ACTIVIST 
10 September, 1999 

LONDON, Sept 10 (AFP) - Myanmar's military government has finally allowed
British diplomats to have access to one of two detained British human
rights activists, the Foreign Office here said Friday. 

A spokesman said authority had been granted to visit James Mawdsley, who
was jailed for 17 years last week. 

A second request, to visit Rachel Goldwyn, who was arrested after singing
revolutionary songs in a Yangon market Tuesday, is still being processed. 

The spokesman said officials hoped to visit Mawdsley on either Tuesday or
Wednesday next week. 

Permission was granted after Myanmar's ambassador to Britain, Kyaw Win, was
summoned to a meeting here Thursday with British junior foreign minister
Baroness Scotland to be told the situation was "unsatisfactory." 

The access visit to Mawdsley, 26, will be the first official contact with
him since he was jailed earlier this month for entering Myanmar illegally
and carrying anti-government literature. 

It is still not known whether Mawdsley, who holds British and Australian
citizenship, received legal representation during his one-day trial, and no
details were available on his or Goldwyn's condition. 

Mawdsley was jailed after he was arrested in Myanmar for the third time in
two years. 

His father, in England, says he is worried that authorities are reluctant
to grant consular access because his son is being tortured. 

It is unclear what charges Goldwyn, 28, is facing. 

British officials attempted to visit her in a police station following her
arrest but were turned away. 

"We will keep trying until we get (access)," the Foreign Office spokesman
said.

****************************************************************

RADIO AUSTRALIA: TWO AUSTRALIANS RELEASED FROM JAIL IN BURMA
11 September, 1999 

The Authorities in Burma have released two Australians from prison. 45-year
old businessman, Robert Gregurek, and 53-year old Jean Mellican had been
serving 10-year sentences.

Mr Gregurek was sentenced earlier this year after a house that he was
staying in was raided and an amount of heroin was discovered.

Ms Mellican was sentenced several months ago for failing to declare
five-thousand-dollars in jewellery when leaving the country.

The Department of Foreign Affairs says both are returning to Australia and
consular access has been granted to jailed democracy activist James
Mawdsley who holds Australian and British citizenship.

He was jailed for 17-years last week after he was arrested in Burma for the
third time in two years.

****************************************************************

THE NATION: KAREN BLOW UP GAS PIPELINE
10 September, 1999 

AFP - KAREN rebels blew up a natural gas pipeline in southern Burma,
temporarily halting supplies to a number of factories, official and
guerrilla sources said.

The attack near the town of Bilin in Mon State occurred on Sunday, shutting
down supplies for about 24 hours to some industries, including a
French-built cement factory and a gas-powered turbine.  [BurmaNet Editor's
Note: This is not the Unocal/Total/PTT Yadana pipeline which has received
much media attention.  The Yadana pipeline runs through Tenasserim
Division.  The pipeline near Bilin is a smaller pipeline supplying energy
to local rubber factories and a cement factory.]

"We did it, we are responding with guerrilla operations to our enemy (the
junta) which has launched an offensive against the Karen people in that
area," Karen National Union spokesman Pado Mahn Sha told AFP by telephone
from the Thai-Burmese border.

He said more attacks were planned and accused the Burmese troops of
looting, killing and raping in villages in Karen State.

Official sources said the attack had taken place but stressed all damage
had been fixed quickly.

The Karen National Union is the main ethnic minority rebel group yet to
sign a cease fire with the ruling military in Rangoon.

****************************************************************

XINHUA: ASEAN BECOMES MYANMAR'S LARGEST TRADING PARTNER 
9 September, 1999 

YANGON (Sept. 9) XINHUA - The Association of Southeast Asian Nations
(ASEAN) has become Myanmar's largest trading partner, show the latest
figures of the country's Central Statistical Organization. 

According to the figures, Myanmar's bilateral trade with ASEAN member
countries reached 1.904 billion U.S. dollars in fiscal 1998-99 which ended
in March, accounting for 47.66 percent of the country's total foreign trade
in the fiscal year which was 3.995 billion dollars. 

Of the total bilateral trade, Myanmar's imports from ASEAN member countries
amounted to 1.636 billion dollars, representing 58.13 percent of the
country's total import which was 2.815 billion dollars, while Myanmar's
exports to these countries stood at 267.87 million dollars, making up 22.7
percent of the country's total export which was 1.18 billion dollars. 

After joining the ASEAN on July 23, 1997, Myanmar's bilateral trade with
fellow member countries increased sharply. 

Trade volume in 1996-97 before Myanmar's joining the grouping was only
1.175 billion dollars, whereas it rose to 1.564 billion dollars in 1997-98
and 1.904 billion dollars in 1998-99, increasing by 33.09 percent and 61.95
percent respectively from the 1996-97 figure. 

Among the ASEAN member countries, Singapore has the largest bilateral trade
volume with Myanmar, followed by Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia. 

Myanmar's other main trading partners are China, Japan, South Korea, the
United States and India. 

****************************************************************