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Subject: [theburmanetnews] BurmaNet News: March 13, 2000
__________________ THE BURMANET NEWS ___________________
/ An on-line newspaper covering Burma \
\___________________ www.burmanet.org _____________________/
Monday, March 13, 2000
Issue # 1485
To view the version of this issue with photographs, go to-
http://theburmanetnews.editthispage.com
_________________________________________________________
NOTED IN PASSING:
"ON THE GENERAL ISSUE OF THE CLOSE WORKING RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN
TOTAL/UNOCAL AND THE BURMESE MILITARY, ROBINSON HAD NO APOLOGIES TO
MAKE. HE STATED FORTHRIGHTLY THAT THE COMPANIES HAVE HIRED THE
BURMESE MILITARY TO PROVIDE SECURITY FOR THE PROJECT AND PAY FOR THIS
THROUGH THE MYANMAR OIL AND GAS ENTERPRISE."
A recently declassified 1995 cable from US Embassy Rangoon quoting
Joel Robinson, Unocal executive in charge of the Yadana pipeline.
Unocal has repeatedly claimed that it does not pay the Burma army and
whatever abuses it may commit in the pipeline area have nothing to do
company. (See US STATE DEPT: DECLASSIFIED CABLE--'PROSECUTION AND
DEFENSE SQUARE OFF OVER THE BURMA GAS PIPELINE')
_________________________________________________________
*Inside Burma
THE NATION: RANGOON DENIES RELOCATING REFUGEES
MIZZIMA: OVER THIRTY THOUSAND ARAKAN NATIONALS ARE DENIED
NATIONAL IDENTITY CARDS, SAYS A DISSIDENT GROUP
*International
NPR: UNOCAL PIPELINE LAWSUIT
UNOCAL: UNOCAL CITICIZES INACCURATE REPORTING BY NATIONAL PUBLIC
RADIO ABOUT
THE YADANA PROJECT IN MYANMAR
US STATE DEPT: DECLASSIFIED CABLE--'PROSECUTION AND DEFENSE SQUARE
OFF OVER THE
BURMA GAS PIPELINE'
*Opinion/Editorial
THE NATION: REGIONAL PERSPECTIVE: BURMA NEEDS MULTILATERAL DIPLOMACY
PUSH
____________________ INSIDE BURMA _______________________
THE NATION: RANGOON DENIES RELOCATING REFUGEES
March 13, 2000
RANGOON - The military government has denied claims by
some 700 Karenni refugees who have entered Thailand from
Burma in recent day s that they are the victims of
forcible relocation.
The refugees have told Thai authorities that they were
seeking shelter in Thailand to escape forced relocation
by Burmese troops from southern Karen state to a drought-
stricken area in northern Burma.
A spokesman for the military government said on Saturday
that no such relocation was under way.
The Thai border with Burma is strung with camps holding
some 120,000 refugees.
Associated Press.
Related links: Karen Human Rights Group reports on Karenni forced
relocations
http://metalab.unc.edu/freeburma/humanrights/khrg/
archive/khrg96/khrg9624.html
http://metalab.unc.edu/freeburma/humanrights/khrg/
archive/khrg97/khrg9701.html
http://metalab.unc.edu/freeburma/humanrights/khrg/
archive/khrg98/khrg9806.html
_________________________________________________________
MIZZIMA: OVER THIRTY THOUSAND ARAKAN NATIONALS
ARE DENIED NATIONAL IDENTITY CARDS, SAYS A
DISSIDENT GROUP
New Delhi, March 11, 2000
Mizzima News Group
More than thirty thousand Arakan nationals are
deprived of citizens' rights as the government
refused to issue National Identity Cards to
them, according to an exiled group which is
monitoring human rights violations in Arakan
State of Burma.
India-based Arakan Human Rights Watch (AHRW)
today says that about thirty thousand Arakan
nationals living in and around Sittawe (Capital
of Arakan State) have no national identity
cards as the government refused to issue new
identity cards to them.
After it came into power in 1988, the present
military government in Burma issued new
National Identity Cards for the citizens after
abolishing existing identity cards.
"In Burma, you cannot do anything without
identity card. You cannot travel to city to
city, you cannot join colleges and
universities. You cannot do business. So,
thousands of these Arakan nationals are denied
of their basic citizen rights while staying in
their own country. They cannot even visit to
their relatives when someone of their relatives
died in Mandalay or Rangoon. They are in fact
like under house arrest in their own places,"
said Khaing Aung Kyaw from Arakan Human Rights
Watch.
Hundreds of Arakan nationals are also staying
without identity cards in other parts of the
State, he added. These include Maung Taw
township, Buu Thee Taung township and Paut Taw
township.
Though they have written many times to the Home
Ministry on the issue, there has been no reply
so far from the government. Some Arakan
nationals in 1990 even formed a political party
and entered the elections with the promise of
getting back identity cards to these
unfortunate Arakan nationals.
____________________ INTERNATIONAL ______________________
NPR: UNOCAL PIPELINE LAWSUIT
***
Listen to this piece in RealAudio at:
http://www.npr.org/ramfiles/atc/20000310.atc.06.ram
http://www.npr.org/ramfiles/atc/20000310.atc.07.ram
***
>From National Public Radio's "All Things Considered"
Friday, March 10, 2000
HOST LINDA WIRTHEIMER: Recent protests over the
globalization of business have raised questions about the
responsibilities of American corporations that operate
overseas. U.S. executives are looking nervously at a
landmark court case. It marks the first time that a
judge has allowed a lawsuit against a U.S. firm on the
grounds that it's violating human rights in another
country.
Human rights groups have sued Unocal, formerly Union Oil
of California. They charge that since the early 1990s,
Unocal has joined hands with the military dictators of
Myanmar or Burma and turned thousands of people there
into virtual slaves. NPR's Daniel Zwerdling traveled to
Southeast Asia for American Radio Works. He has this
report.
DANIEL ZWERDLING: You'll find some of the key evidence
in this case in a refugee camp which straddles the border
between Myanmar and Thailand. Hundreds of thousands of
people have escaped from Myanmar in recent years, and now
some of them are living in a sea of shacks, all jammed
together in a ravine. Relief workers drive into the camp
one morning in a pickup to hand out rice and blankets.
They pass the time listening to Thai rap music.
RELIEF WORKER: So it's totally nearly 10,000 population
in this border area.
DZ: These refugees have abandoned their homes in Myanmar
for all kinds of reasons. Some are backing the movement
for democracy. They saw Myanmar's army torture
dissidents and kill protesters in the streets. Others
were caught in the crossfire between the government army
and rebel groups. And the relief worker figures that
more than a thousand of the refugees in just this one
camp alone have come here to escape the slave gangs.
Call this man Nyi Road. The refugees say it's too
dangerous to use their real names. The way he tells his
story, he used to raise cashew trees and betel nuts on a
small farm in Myanmar's hills. But then one day a
battalion of government soldiers rolled into his village
and the soldiers rounded up dozens of men and basically
said, "You're coming to work for us now, folks. You'll
have to leave your families and farms behind." And the
soldiers hauled the men off to the jungle and forced them
to chop it down--at gunpoint. Nyi Road speaks through my
interpreter.
NYI ROAD: It's like that, he's pointing to the bamboo
and bushes there, thick vegetation. Thicker than that.
DZ: Did the army tell you why they were ordering you to
clear the jungle?
NYI ROAD: They told us we need to clear that jungle for
the gas pipeline. That's the only thing I know.
DZ: If you visited Myanmar back then, back in the early
1990s, you might have heard government officials boasting
about their gas pipeline project. The military rulers
announced they were joining hands with two famous foreign
companies, the French firm called Total, and Unocal from
the United States. They were building a pipeline that
would pump natural gas from way out at sea all the way up
on land. This project would take thousands of workers.
And Nyi Road says he and the other men from his village
were forced to work on it for free. In fact, he said,
the soldiers were so worried that the villagers might try
to escape that the soldiers locked them up at night
inside stockades, and they tied each man's wrist to the
man next to him.
NYI ROAD: One after another, we were roped together.
Every night we were tied up like that. There were about
hundred, more than hundred people inside that cage, and
so we couldn't lie down to sleep. We just have to sit
like that and then doze off.
DZ: Nyi Road says he finally did manage to escape. He
walked through the jungle and over the mountains to the
refugee camp. And now he's at the center of that
extraordinary lawsuit against Unocal. Lawyers in the
case estimate that Myanmar's army turned as many as
10,000 villagers into slaves to work on the pipeline
project. But sagas like Nyi Road's suggest that poor
people from a little known country can take on a
multinational giant and make legal history.
This story really begins, in a way, on the other side of
the ocean, in a bland office building near Los Angeles.
This is Unocal's headquarters. There are palm trees in
the atrium and fountains. Unocal has its own private
elevator. It won't move until the invisible receptionist
beams you up.
ACTUALITY, RECEPTIONIST'S VOICE: Good morning, sir. May
I help you?
DZ: When you read Unocal's literature, they describe
themselves as the largest independent energy company in
the world. And the way John Imle describes Unocal, it's
one of the more public-spirited companies in the world.
Imle's winding up his term as vice chairman of the
company. He'll tell you right off what he thinks of
those stories about the pipeline.
JOHN IMLE: I, I don't believe those charges. I, I
wouldn't call them lies. I, maybe confusion about, about
what has been going on where. I mean, I've heard stories
that, that I, I just, I just don't believe those stories.
DZ: Imle says when he and fellow executives decided to
get into the pipeline project with Myanmar's government,
their first goal was to make a profit. After all, he
says, they're a business.
JOHN IMLE: But right behind that, and as a condition,
always a condition of that investment, we will only
invest in places where we can improve the lives of
people.
DZ: And Imle says the gas pipeline will improve lives
across the region. The project is pumping gas across
Myanmar to a power plant inside Thailand, and that'll
help bring electricity to people who still cook with
firewood and light up their homes with kerosene lanterns.
Still, Imle says, he and his colleagues realize that
they'd caused controversy when they formed a partnership
with the military rulers in Myanmar. They know that
everybody from U.S. presidents to human rights groups to
United Nations officials, all these people have
repeatedly denounced Myanmar's dictators as some of the
most brutal on the planet. And Imle says he realized
that Myanmar's government is infamous for using what some
people call "forced labor" or "conscripted labor."
According to widespread evidence, the military routinely
rounds up citizens and forces them to build projects from
bridges to railroads.
JOHN IMLE: I, I accept that conscripted labor is used
broadly in civil projects in, in that country, in
Myanmar.
DZ: But Imle says he was determined to make their
pipeline project a model of the ethical way to do
business. Maybe they'd even nudge the dictators toward
democracy.
The project was set up like this: Unocal would invest
hundreds of millions of dollars to help finance the
project. Then the French company Total would actually
build the pipeline in place. And finally, we come to the
Myanmar military's role, and this is one of the key
issues in this entire case. The way Imle describes it,
Myanmar's army would patrol the pipeline route and
provide security. That's it. He says company executives
wouldn't tolerate it if the military forced villagers to
work on the project against their will.
JOHN IMLE: We've worked very hard, and Total as well, to
determine that we would be able to conduct our business
in a, in an absolutely ethical, honest and, and moral
manner.
DZ: And you feel, deep down inside, convinced that the
military did not abuse workers in any way connected to
the pipeline?
JOHN IMLE: I'm not in a position to know that much about
the conduct of, of the military on the ground. But I, I,
I guess what I'm trying to say is the, their was no
contractual relationship with the military. We were not
in any way in control, and I don't believe Total was in
any way in control, of their activities, and, but the use
of conscripted labor in connection with this project was,
was a non-starter from the beginning, and everyone knew
that. Now, what the military may or may not have done,
nobody knows about, I, I can't address, but whatever
happened in the area of this pipeline, I, I, I don't
think those things happened in my heart of hearts, I
really don't.
DZ: That's Unocal's public version of events. Other
Unocal sources paint a different picture. They suggest
that from the very beginning of this project, Unocal and
Myanmar's military had a close relationship. For
instance, NPR has obtained an internal State Department
cable, and it describes a private meeting a few years ago
between American diplomats and Unocal's representative in
Myanmar. According to this cable, Unocal's point man
told the diplomats that Unocal and Total had actually
hired Myanmar's military to work for the companies. I
read an excerpt of this cable to Imle, asked him if he
could explain it.
DZ: According to the detailed notes of the meeting, he
stated forthrightly that the companies have hired the
Burmese military to provide security for the project.
VOICE OF UNOCAL LAWYER OVER TELEPHONE: John, I'm going
to have to ask you, because it's commenting on, on
testimony of, of someone who's in the, in the case, that,
that you not comment on that.
JOHN IMLE: All right. All right, I agree with that ...
DZ: That was the voice of the Unocal lawyer. He was
monitoring the interview from another room.
And consider this: According to company sources, Unocal
hired a former Pentagon analyst to investigate whether
the army was abusing human rights along their pipeline,
and he warned Unocal executives that Myanmar's military
was committing egregious human rights violations.
According to company sources, the consultant flatly told
executives that when they keep insisting that slave labor
is not being used to support the project, they appear at
best naive and at worst a willing partner in the
situation.
I wanted to visit the pipeline to see the situation
firsthand, but the government of Myanmar blocked the way.
When I told them I was reporting on the pipeline project,
they refused to give me a visa to enter the country. And
so I traveled to the border between Myanmar and Thailand
to meet with refugees near this lake. It's a spectacular
lake. It's called Lake Baykee (phonetic sp.). It's
flanked by jagged mountains like worn shark's teeth, and
the boatman points out Buddhist temples along the banks.
One of the first refugees I meet says he used to be a
soldier in Myanmar's army, and he contradicts just about
everything about that John Imle says. Call this man
Kyaw.
Kyaw says he enlisted in Myanmar's army when he was 18
years old, and he made good money. But Kyaw says he
deserted the army a couple years ago because he couldn't
stand the way that they were virtually kidnapping
villagers and forcing them to work on Unocal and Total's
pipeline project.
KYAW, THROUGH INTERPRETER: We went by army truck, and
then when we got to a village, we seize any men that we
should find on the road, and then we brought them back to
the truck and then make them work for us. He couldn't
refuse, and he would be beaten by us if only he refused.
DZ: Over the next few days, more refugees tell their
stories along the shores of this beautiful lake. They're
too skinny. Some have rotten teeth. And the more they
talk about the pipeline project, the more it sounds like
Bible tales about the slaves in ancient Egypt. The way
they describe it, there were two kinds of workers along
the pipeline. One group was lucky. They got real jobs.
They laid the pipes and welded them together. And Total
and Unocal paid them high wages. But then there was a
vast second group of workers like these refugees, and
they generally got the area ready so the paid
construction crews could move in. They say the soldiers
made them haul rocks and build dirt roads. They had to
carry the army's supplies. And they say the soldiers
punished them for the slightest problem.
This man says he reached his breaking point just last
summer. He says the soldiers who work on Unocal and
Total's pipeline project were forcing him to haul their
food and ammunition. When he told them he needed time
off because he was sick, they tied his hands behind his
back and tortured him. The local relief worker
translates.
ANONYMOUS REFUGEE: They beat him and they put, they pour
some water in his nose and they immerse him in water.
And they put water in a jar and they pour it in, in his
nose for several minutes.
DZ: Most of the refugees who say they escaped from the
labor gangs used to be poor farmers. A lot of them can't
read or write. Yet they've managed to transform their
grievances into a landmark lawsuit in the American
courts.
LINDA WIRTHEIMER: Daniel Zwerdling continues his report
in a minute with the story of how the refugees took their
grievances to a federal court in Los Angeles.
LINDA WIRTHEIMER: Refugees from Myanmar or Burma have
filed an unprecedented lawsuit against the U.S. company
Unocal. They allege that the energy company worked with
the military dictators of Myanmar to build a pipeline
using thousands of slave workers. The suit could set new
standards for corporate accountability. NPR's Daniel
Zwerdling picks up the story.
DZ: Most of the refugees who say they escaped from the
labor gangs used to be poor farmers. And the rest of the
world might have never heard their stories, and Unocal
wouldn't be in court, if they'd been left to their own
devices. But a couple of prominent activists from
Myanmar seized on their case as a way to pressure the
country's dictators. One of them's named Maung Maung.
MAUNG MAUNG: We have noticed that in America, there is
justice.
DZ: Maung Maung's sipping tea at an outdoor restaurant
near the refugee camps along the Thai-Myanmar border. He
used to work for Myanmar's government in their mining
department. Then he got in trouble when he tried to
organize a union of government employees, and that's why
he had to flee. But Maung Maung says he really got angry
when he heard other refugees talking about the pipeline.
And he says the more he thought about it, the more he
wanted to force Unocal and Total to take responsibility
for spreading misery. He'd read in the newspapers how
ordinary people in America can have their day in court.
MAUNG MAUNG: A lady who, who was going on, between two
tall skyscrapers, her was caught in a very strong wind.
She fell, and she sued the buildings, the building
owners, and she got compensation. There was this,
there's people, person who shot another man's dog in
other, other side of a fence, and he had to give
compensation. Like I explained before, you can speak
out, and if you have grounds, then you are listened to.
SOUNDS OF PROTEST: Out of Burma! Unocal! ...
DZ: Maung Maung and other activists from Myanmar started
telling the refugee stories to human rights groups and
soon American activists were organizing protests like
this one outside Unocal headquarters in California. And
they convinced more than 20 city councils across the
country, along with the state of Massachusetts, to pass
laws shunning business with companies like Unocal that do
business in Myanmar. The Massachusetts law was
overturned a few months ago, and the case is heading for
the Supreme Court.
SOUNDS OF PROTEST: ...Unocal has got to go! Hey, hey!
Ho, ho! Unocal has got to go ...
DZ: But meanwhile, the activists from Myanmar started
thinking maybe they could put Unocal and Total on trial.
That was a long shot, because people have always had to
sue a company in the country for the company's allegedly
breaking the law, and in the pipeline case, that would be
Myanmar. But lawyers and human rights groups in this
country found a strategy in a law passed in 1789. That's
back when George Washington was president and pirates
plundered ships at sea. The law's called the Alien Tort
Claims Act. It said in effect that if anybody violated
your human rights anywhere in the world, you could sue
them here in America if you could find them on American
soil. Paul Hoffman's one the attorneys on the case. He
teaches civil rights law at various universities.
PAUL HOFFMAN: If you were, say, a British person and you
were subjected to piracy on the high seas, whether by an
American or by anybody else, if you could find that
person within the United States, you would be able to
bring a civil action against them.
DZ: The law was pretty much forgotten until the 1980s.
But then Hoffman and other lawyers dusted it off to use
against modern political pirates. They sued despots like
Ferdinand Marcos, the deposed president of the
Philippines. The moment he stepped foot on American
soil, the lawyers charged him with committing murder and
torture in his own country. So when these lawyers heard
about the pipeline, they sued Unocal. And it's a
landmark case. It's the first time that a judge has
allowed people to sue a corporation in an American
courtroom on the grounds that the company is trampling
human rights in another country.
Lucien Doogy's (phonetic sp.) been watching industry
executives react to the Unocal case. He teaches business
law at the University of the Pacific.
LUCIEN DOOGY: I think this case is potentially very
important to multinational corporations. It certainly
sends the message that when you do business with a
thuggish regime, you need to be careful or cognizant that
there are consequences that flow from that.
DZ: And Doogy argues that the case against Unocal sets a
dangerous precedent. Specifically, the refugees are
charging through their lawyers that Unocal has broken
international treaties that prohibit slavery. The
plaintiffs can't Total, because the company doesn't
operate much in America. And Doogy echoes what other
people are saying in the business world. He says no
matter how much you might want to punish Unocal, if it
really did what the refugees claim, an American courtroom
is the wrong place to do it.
LUCIEN DOOGY: I have some very serious concerns here,
because this opinion is the first case that says American
companies have an obligation to conform their conduct to
human rights treaties. Before, you know, treaty
obligations are between states. Now we have a court
telling us that in certain instances that these treaty
obligations will apply to private transactions. I think
there is a concern here that the court crosses into the
political realm, the foreign relations realm, and that
area clearly belongs to the President and the Congress.
DZ: The case against Unocal has already made history.
That happened when the judge ruled that people can sue a
company for violating human rights overseas. Now the
judge has to decide if there's actually enough evidence
against Unocal to force the company to stand trial. If
the case does go to trial, refugees from Myanmar could
theoretically win millions of dollars in damages. And
the trial would be one of the more unusual spectacles in
legal history. The plaintiffs are planning to take the
stand. You'd see poor farmers and fishermen from the
nation of Myanmar sitting in a Los Angeles courtroom.
They'd tell stories like this man told me back at the
lake near the refugee camp.
He says they were working on the pipeline project that
(indiscernible) into the mountains, and a villager named
U San Hti (phonetic sp.) got in trouble.
ANONYMOUS REFUGEE THROUGH INTERPRETER: U San Hti was
already old and very tired, and as he couldn't carry his
load as well as us, he couldn't follow us, the soldiers
beat him, because he was, they thought that he was just
putting up a sham and that he was pretending to be tired.
He was beaten by about, a bamboo about six feet long, and
that old man was shouting for help. He was calling out
his mother's name, "Mother, please help me! God, please
help me!" That was the way he shouted. And then
finally, the voice asking for help died down, and then he
died, too.
DZ: And then John Imle would probably take the stand for
Unocal. And if Imle tells the court what other company
officials told me on background, he'll suggest that
radical activists are goading the refugees to make up
lies to discredit Myanmar's rulers. In fact, Imle says,
it's too bad that the government of Myanmar refused to
let me see the pipeline. Because the companies haven't
just laid a bunch a pipe. He says they've launched
social development projects in the villages around it.
He went to visit.
JOHN IMLE: What I saw taking place there was the
construction of clinics, the injection of, of 19 doctors
into an area which used to have none. I see the children
in school at, at double the national rate because of
educational facilities and larger classrooms that we've
provided.
DZ: So when you walk along the pipeline route, you feel
proud to be from Unocal and to be a part of it?
JOHN IMLE: Absolutely. And in terms of looking back on
36 years in this business, investments like this are the
things I look back upon with the most pride.
DZ: The federal judge will probably rule in the next two
months whether Unocal has to stand trial. I'm Daniel
Zwerdling, NPR News and American Radio Works.
Related links:
www.americanradioworks.org
http://www.americanradioworks.org/features/burma/index.html
www.unocal.com
http://www.unocal.com/myanmar/index.htm
http://www.total.com/us/cahier/first.html
http://www.burmafund.org/Research_Library/yadana_n
atural_gas_pipeline_proj.htm
_________________________________________________________
UNOCAL: UNOCAL CITICIZES INACCURATE REPORTING BY NATIONAL PUBLIC
RADIO ABOUT
THE YADANA PROJECT IN MYANMAR
March 10, 2000 (From Unocal's website: www.unocal.com)
On Friday, March 10, National Public Radio's "All Things Considered"
broadcast a segment on lawsuits filed against Unocal alleging that
human rights violations have occurred in connection with the Yadana
Natural Gas Pipeline Project in Myanmar (Burma), in which the
company is an investor. This program gives a very one-sided and
inaccurate picture of the Yadana Project.
The broadcast was poorly researched, despite our active efforts to
provide factual information. Two of our employees, including John
Imle, senior advisor and former vice chairman, participated in
lengthy interviews with the reporter. Very little of their material
was used.
Instead, the program repeats the reckless and unfounded allegations
that slave labor was used to build roads and clear the right of way
for the pipeline project. These allegations are absolutely false and
clearly absurd to anyone familiar with the project. In reality, the
pipeline was constructed by paid, voluntary workers under the
direction of Totalfina, the project operator, and its contractors.
After rigorous and impartial scrutiny, which included the review of
thousands of pages of documents and many hours of depositions, the
judge in this case stated in open court that he had not seen any
evidence indicating that any of the plaintiffs had actually worked
on the Yadana pipeline, let alone been forced to do so. This was
part of the court record available to NPR.
The U.S. State Department wrote, in its 1996 Human Rights Report for
Burma, that "during 1996 there were repeated allegations that forced
labor was used on a project to build a pipeline across the
Tenasserim Region. The preponderance of the evidence indicates that
the pipeline project has paid its workers at least a market wage."
Through employment opportunities, job training, and a variety of
socioeconomic programs, the Yadana Project has measurably improved
the quality of life of the 40,000 people who live in the pipeline
region. We are proud of our investment in this project and the
tangible benefits it is providing to thousands people in this
impoverished and long-isolated country.
_________________________________________________________
US STATE DEPT: DECLASSIFIED CABLE--'PROSECUTION AND DEFENSE SQUARE
OFF OVER THE
BURMA GAS PIPELINE'
March 13, 2000
BurmaNet Editor's note: This May 1995 cable was declassified
at the end of 1999 in response to a request by Unocal for
all State Department documents bearing on two lawsuits against
Unocal for human rights abuses caused by its pipeline in Burma.
The original is stamped "Confidential," a fairly low level
of classification. The released version has the classification
markings lined out and is restamped "UNCLASSIFIED." This text
is a scanned/OCR version of the cable. The scanning process
may have introduced typos not in the original. Explanatory
text is inserted in brackets [].
The significance of the cable, as noted above by National Public
Radio, is that it casts serious doubt on Unocal's central legal
argument in the lawsuits. Unocal concedes the Burmese military
may be doing bad things in the pipeline area but maintains the
company is not liable for those abuses because they are unconnected
with the Unocal/Total pipeline. The cable indicates an
employer/employee or principal/agent relationship between
the companies and the Burmese military. Under US tort law,
principals are generally liable for the wrongs committed by their
agents, especially where it was foreseeable that the agent
would commit wrongs in the course of accomplishing the principal's
ends. The cable's concluding observation also disposes of the issue
of whether it was foreseeable that the Burmese military would
commit wrongs while providing security for the pipeline: "it
is impossible to operate in a completely abuse-free environment
when you have the Burmese government as a partner."
*******
[Distribution list]
FM AMEMBASSY RANGOON [From American Embassy Rangoon]
TO SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 1134 [To Secretary of State, Washington,
DC]
INFO AMEMBASSY BANGKOK PRIORITY
USCINCPAC HONOLULU HI [CINCPAC=Commander in Chief Pacific]
AMCONS'.JL CHIANG MAI [AMCONS=American Consulates]
USMISSION USUN NEW YORK
AMEMBASSY CANBERRA
USMISSION GENEVA
AMEMBASSY PARIS
AMEMBASSY LONDON
USDOC WASHDC [USDOC=US Department of Commerce]
USEU BRUSSELS [USEU=US mission to the European Union]
AMEMBASSY TOKYO
SECTION Ol OF 09 RANGOON 002067
CINCPAC FOR FPA AMB. SALMON
E.O. 12356: DECL:10 YEARS AFTER GOB RETURN TO DEMOCRACY
TAGS: PHUM, ELAB, EPET, EINV, SENV, EAID, ASEC, BM
SUBJECT: PROSECUTION AND DEFENSE SQUARE OFF OVER THE BURMA GAS
PIPELINE
REF: A) FBIS BANGKOK BK1005051495 (NOTAL)
B) FBIS BANGKOK BK0805112295 (NOTAL)
C) FBIS BANGKOK BK0805101995 (NOTAL)
D) FBIS BANGKOK BK0805100795 (NOTAL)
E) 94 RANGOON 04442 (NOTAL)
F) RANGOON 01121
[BurmaNet Editor's note: This Reftel or
"reference telegram" section notes
previous cables on the same or closely
related subject. The NOTAL denotes
"not all" or a limited, usually informal
distribution.]
1. SUMMARY: IN SEPARATE CONVERSATIONS LAST WEEK
WITH UNOCAL'S MANAGER FOR SPECIAL PROJECTS JOEL
ROBINSON AND AMERICAN FREELANCE JOURNALIST (AND
OUTSPOKEN SLORC OPPONENT) DOUG STEELE, WE WERE
PRESENTED WITH STARKLY CONTRASTING VIEWS OF THE
TOTAL/UNOCAL GAS PIPELINE PROJECT CURRENTLY UNDERWAY
NORTHERNMOST TENASSERIM STATE. STEELE, THE AUTHOR OF
SERIES OF ATTENTION-GETTING ARTICLES IN THE MAY 7
BANGKOK SUNDAY POST, STUCK BY HIS CONTENTION THAT
USLAVE LABORU IS BEING EMPLOYED AND VILLAGERS' LAND IS
BEING CONFISCATED FOR THE PIPELINE. HE ALSO REPEATED
THE CHARGE THAT TOTAL HAS PROVIDED THE BURMESE MILITARY
WITH INTELLIGENCE FOR ITS DRIVE AGAINST THE KNU.
ROBINSON DENIED THE CHARGES, PROVIDED CLARIFICATION ON
MANY POINTS, AND ~ESCRIBED IN GREAT DETAIL THE EFFORTS
TOTAL/UNOCAL HAVE BEEN MAKING TO AVOID HUMAN RIGHTS
ABUSES AND ENVIRONMENTAL DAMAGE. WHILE ROBINSON MADE A
CONVINCING CASE ON A GREAT MANY POINTS, EVEN HE SEEMED
TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT, WITH THE BURMESE MILITARY AS A
PARTNER, IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO ELIMINATE ALL POTENTIAL
FOR ABUSE. END SUMMARY.
HEARING OUT BOTH SIDES
2. ~BY HAPPENSTANCE, WE HAVE JUST HAD AN
OPPORTUNITY TO HEAR OUT BOTH SIDES IN THE ONGOING
PUBLIC DISCUSSION OVER ALLEGED HUMAN RIGHTS
ABUSES/ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION RELATED TO THE
TOTAL/UNOCAL GAS PIPELINE PROJECT. DOUGLAS STEELE, AN
AMERICAN FREELANCE JOURNALIST WHO, ALONG WITH THE
NATIONAL COALITION GOVERNMENT OF THE UNION OF BURMA'S
WASHINGTON OFFICE, ADMINISTERS INTERNET'S BURMANET,
CALLED ON POLOFF [Political Officer] MAY 5, JUST TWO DAYS BEFORE
STEELE'S ARTICLES ON THE PIPELINE APPEARED IN THE BANGKOK POST,
AND LATER SPOKE WITH OTHERS AT THE EMBASSY. HIS
ARTICLES HAVE ATTRACTED A GREAT DEAL OF ATTENTION - -
INCLUDING FROM UNOCAL - - BECAUSE THEY ARE APPARENTLY
THE FIRST TO ALLEGE HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES ON THE PIPELINE
PROJECT ITSELF (AND NOT JUST ON THE YE-TAVOY RAILWAY
PROJECT) BACKED BY WHAT HE CLAIMS TO BE EYEWITNESS
ACCOUNTS FROM PERSONS DIRECTLY INVOLVED. THE ARTICLES
PROVOKED A STRONGLY WORDED LEAD EDITORIAL IN THE
BANGKOK POST ON MAY 10 DENOUNCING FOREIGN CORPORATIONS
FOR DOING BUSINESS WITH THE SLORC (REF A).
3. ~~AS LUCK WOULD HAVE IT, ON MAY 8 AND 9 JOEL
ROBINSON, UNOCAL'S CALIFORNIA-BASED MANAGER FOR SPECIAL
PROJECTS, MET WITH CHARGE, A/DCM [Assistant Deputy Chief
of Mission], AND EMBOFFS [Embassy officers] TO EXPLAIN WHAT
TOTAL/UNOCAL HAVE BEEN DOING TO TRY TO ENSURE THEIR
PROJECT IS ABOVE REPROACH. WE USED THE MEETING WITH
ROBINSON TO ASK HIM ABOUT STEELE'S CHARGES.
ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS
WHILE STEELE H IMSELF DID NOT RAISE THE
ENVIRONMENTAL QUESTION IN HIS ARTICLES
OR IN OURMEETINGS, THE BANGKOK POST DID,
SUGGESTING INTERNATIONAL CORPORATIONS
PREFER DEALING WITH DICTATORIAL REGIMES
ABLE TO OVERRIDE PUBLIC CONCERN
FOR THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT OF PROJECTS
LIKE THE PIPELINE.THE DEMOCRATIC ALLIANCE OF BURMA
( DAB) AND THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC FRONT (NDF) HAVE
BOTH REPORTEDLY CHARGE THAT THE PROJECT WILL
DAMAGE THE TENASSERIM RAIN FOREST.
5. UNOCAL'S ROBINSON DIRECTLY ADDRESSED THESE
CONCERNS. HE NOTED THAT TOTAL HAD BEEN CONSIDERING
THREE ROUTES FOR THE PIPELINE, INITIALLY FAVORING A
PATH ALONG THE ZINBA RIVER, BUT IN THE END OPTED FOR
THE NORTHERNMOST ROUTE. THIS DECISION WAS TAKEN AFTER
TOTAL SENT TROPICAL RAIN FOREST EXPERTS TO "WALK" THE
ROUTES IN ORDER TO ASSESS THEM. THESE EXPERTS ADVISED
TOTAL TO CHOOSE THE NORTHERN ROUTE IN ORDER TO AVOID
BOTH "HIGH QUALITY" RAIN FOREST THAT HAD HAD LITTLE
CONTACT WITH HUMANS AS WELL AS ENVIRONMENTALLY
SENSITIVE AREAS- ALONG~ THE ZINBA RIVER. ROBINSON ADDED
THAT UNOCAL WOULD LIKE TO SEE THE HIGH QUALITY TROPICAL
RAIN FOREST SO~~~/ OF THE PIPELINE DECLARED A NATURE
PRESERVE, "BUT THAT TAKES MONEY." ACCORDING TO TOTAL'S
ENVIRONMENTAL EXPERTS, THE- NORTHERN ROUTE LOOKED
ENVIRONMENTALLY IMPORTANT~ FROM THE AIR, BUT A CLOSER
INSPECTION REVEALED IT ALREADY BORE DAMAGE FROM HUMAN
ACTIVITY, INCLUDING LOGGING, HUNTING, AND SLASH AND
BURN AGRICULTURE. ROBINSON NOTED THAT ENGINEERS ALSO
CONCLUDED THAT THE NORTHERN ROUTE WAS THE CHEAPEST.
6. MAINTAINED THAT NONE OF THE CHOSEN
PIPELINE ROUTE IN BURMA GOES THROUGH "QUALITY TROPICAL
FOREST." AFTER INITIALLY TRAVERSING HEAVILY SETTLED
AGRICULTuRA~ LAND, THE MIDDLE SECTION GOES THROUGH
MIXED DECIDUOUS EVERGREEN FOREST, AND THE FINAL PART
GOES THROUGH TROPICAL LOWLAND HUMID FOREST. (NOTE:
ROBINSON PROVIDED COPIES OF ROUGH MAPS/SKETCHES OF THE
ROUTE, WHICH WE HAVE POUCHED TO EAP/TB. A MORE
DETAILED MAP HE SHOWED US INDICATED THAT A PORTION OF
THE FIRST SECTION OF THE PIPELINE ROUTE IS SLIGHTLY SOUTH
OF THE ROUTE SHOWN IN THE POUCHED SKETCHES. END NOTE.)
AS ROBINSON EXPLAINED IT, THE PIPELINE WILL COME ASHORE
BETWEEN THE VILLAGES OF DAMINZEIK AND HPAUNGDAW,
THEN PROCEED NEAR ONBINKWIN, SKIRT THE HEINZE CHAUNG
(A BAY AND ESTUARY), CROSS IT ALONG A BRIDGE NEAR KANBAUK,
TURN NORTHEAST, GO STRAIGHT OVER THE THIKA TAUNG PASS,
TURN SOUTH, GO ALONG THE NORTH SIDE OF THE ZINBA RIVER
WITHOUT CROSSING IT, TURN DUE EAST, AND FINALLY GO UP
STEEP HILLS TO BAN-I-TONG NEAR THE THAI BORDER. HE SAID
UNOCAL'S RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ROUTE ENDED AT THE THAI
BORDER.
7. ACCORDING TO STEELE'S ACCOUNT OF INTERVIEWS
WITH REFUGEES IN THAILAND FROM THE VILLAGE OF
HPAUNGDAW, WHERE THE PIPELINE WILL COME ASHORE, BURMESE
VILLAGERS ARE BEING FORCED "TO CLEAR A 300-FOOT-WIDE
RIGHT-OF-WAY FOR THE PIPELINE AND ACCOMPANYING
ROADWAY." IN OUR TALKS WITH STEELE, HE REITERATED HIS
CONFIDENCE IN WHAT THESE REFUGEES TOLD HIM DIRECTLY.
ROBINSON, ON THE OTHER HAND, CLAIMED TOTAL/UNOCAL HAD
"LOOKED INTO" THE CHARGES AND THAT THEY COULD BE TRACED
TO ONE REFUGEE WHO HAD BEEN "CONFUSED" AND FRIGHTENED
BY WHAT LOCAL AUTHORITIES HAD TOLD HIM ABOUT THE
PROJECT, AND HAD CONVEYED HIS CONCERNS TO OTHERS IN THE
VILLAGE AND TO REFUGEES. IN AN ATTEMPT TO CAST DOUBT
ON THERELIABILITY OF THE SOURCES, ROBINSON SAID THE
ARTICLES REPEATEDLY REFERRED TO A VILLAGER NAMED KYAW
THAN, WHO APPEARED TO BE A CONFUSED MIXTURE OF TWO
PEOPLE IN HPAUNGDAW VILLAGE.
8. WHILE WE CANNOT COMMENT ON THE RELIABILITY OF
STEELE'S AND ROBINSON'S SOURCES, ROBINSON OFFERED
SEVERAL OTHER POINTS TO REFUTE THE CHARGES. HE SAID
THAT NO LAND WILL BE CLEARED FOR THE PIPELINE UNTIL
EARLY 1996, AND AT THAT TIME, BOTH BECAUSE OF COST AND
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT, THE WIDTH OF THE CUT BEING MADE
FOR THE LINE IS BEING KEPT AS NARROW AS POSSIBLE - -
18-20 METERS FOR MOST OF THE ROUTE, INCLUDING THE ROAD
ALONGSIDE THE PIPELINE, THE PIPELINE ITSELF, AND THE
AREA TAKEN UP BY THE PILE OF DIRT TO BE USED TO BURY
THE PIPELINE ONCE IT IS COMPLETE (THE PIPELINE WILL BE
BURIED ONE-AND-A-HALF-TO-TWO METERS DEEP TO IMPROVE
SECURITY AND REDUCE THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT) (SEE ALSO
PARA. 25, BELOW). ROBINSON DID ADMIT THE CUT MUST BE
WIDER IN AREAS OF STEEP TERRAIN OR IN PLACES FOR
MARSHALLING PIPE OR FOR TRUCKS TO TURN AROUND, BUT HE
CLAIMED LESS THAN ONE PERCENT OF THE CUT WILL BE WIDER
THAN 30 METERS. HE ALSO I!~ICATED 20-30 HECTARES OF
LAND ARE BEING CLEARED NEAR WHERE THE PIPELINE COMES
ASHORE FOR STORING PIPE, AND A FEW MILES AWAY DREDGING
HAS BEGUN AND A WHARF WILL BE BUILT IN HEINZE CHAUNG SO
BARGES CAN LAND EQUIPMENT. COMMENT: THIS ACTIVITY
MIGHT EXPLAIN THE CONFLICT IN THE STEELE/ROBINSON
ACCOUNTS, ALTHOUGH ROBINSON CLAIMED NONE OF THIS
CLEARING HAS BEEN DONE WITH FORCED LABOR. ROBINSON
NOTED THAT THE MILITARY HAS BUILT HELICOPTER LANDING
PADS AT VARIOUS POINTS ALONG THE ROUTE, AND THAT IN THE
HILLS NEAR THE THAI BORDER, THE TOP OF A KNOLL WILL BE
CUT OFF AND TWO-THREE HECTARES WILL BE CLEARED FOR A
METERING STATION.
9. ON THE ADVICE OF A WILDLIFE BIOLOGIST WHO STUDIED
THE ROUTE, TOTAL WILL INSTALL NETS BETWEEN
LARGE TREES AT VARIOUS POINTS TO ENSURE THAT ANIMAI,S
LIVING IN THE TREES CAN CROSS THE ROUTE WITHOUT HAVING
TO TOUCH GROUND.
10. ~ ROBINSON SAID TOTAL IS BUILDING AN
ALL-WEATHER GRAVEL AND MACADAM FINISH ROAD ABOUT 15
FEET WIDE ALONG MOST OF THE ROUTE. ALTHOUGH THE ENERGY
MINISTER TOLD EMBOFFS THAT THIS ROUTE WILL GO THROUGH
TO THAILAND TO ENABLE THAI TOURISTS TO REACH BURMESE
BEACHES, ROBINSON SAID THE ROAD MIGHT NOT GO THROUGH
THE LAST ONE OR TWO KILOMETERS TO THAILAND BECAUSE THE
MOUNTAINS ARE TOO STEEP. INSTEAD, TOTAL IS CONSIDERING
BUILDING A KIND OF SKILIFT TO ALLOW WORKERS TO SERVICE
THE PIPELINE. HE ACKNOWLEDGED THAT THE GOB MAY DECIDE
TO COMPLETE THE ROAD TO THAILAND ON ITS OWN BUT NOTED
THAT THIS AREA GETS 300-450 INCHES OF RAIN A YEAR,
MAKING ROAD MAINTENANCE DIFFICULT AND COSTLY.
11. THE REAL EXTENT OF THE ROAD'S IMPACT ON THE
ENVIRONMENT WILL DEPEND ON HOW IT IS USED, SOMETHING
ROBINSON SUGGESTED IS BEYOND TOTAL/UNOCAL'S
RESPONSIBILITY. HE READILY ADMITTED THE ROAD COULD
OPEN UP THE AREA OF THE PIPELINE TO NEW SETTLEMENT AND
SO THREATEN THE ENVIRONMENT. (COMMENT: IT CAN, OF
COURSE, ALSO FACILITATE THE MOVEMENT OF TROOPS IN THIS
INSURGENCY-PRONE AREA.) IN ORDER TO LOWER ROAD
MAINTENANCE COSTS, TOTAL/UNOCAL WOULD PREFER THAT THE
MILITARY KEEP PEOPLE OFF THE ROAD, BUT ROBINSON
CONCEDED HE DOES NOT REALLY KNOW HOW THE ROAD WILL BE
ADMINISTERED, AND EVEN IF HE DID, HIS COMPANY WOULD NOT
BE IN A POSITION TO OPPOSE GOB PLANS FOR ITS USE.
12. ACCORDING TO STEELE, LAND SEIZURES ARE
ALREADY GOING ON AT LEAST TO A LIMITED EXTENT FOR THE
PIPELINE. HE RECOUNTED HIS CONVERSATION WITH ONE
VILLAGER WHO WAS INCENSED AT NOT ONLY LOSING HIS LAND
BUT BEING FORCED TO CLEAR IT BEFORE HE LEFT.
13. ROBINSON CLAIMED THAT NO LAND HAD BEEN
SEIZED FOR THE PROJECT, BUT ADMITTED THAT SURVEY CREWS
HAD OCCUPIED TINY AMOUNTS OF FARMLAND FOR A FEW HOURS
AT A TIME TO PLACE THEIR EQUIPMENT, AND THAT EVERY 500
METERS ALONG THE INITIAL SECTION OF THE ROUTE, CREWS
ALSO INSTALLED A METAL CYLINDER 10 CENTIMETERS (CM) IN
DIAMETER AND 30 CM HIGH. ROBINSON SUGGESTED THERE WAS
NOTHING TO PREVENT FARMERS PLANTING THEIR CROPS AROUND
THESE SMALL CYLINDERS. (COMMENT: CONSIDERING THE
IMPORTANCE OF THIS PROJECT TO THE SLORC AND THE BURMESE
MILITARY'S HEAVY-HANDED METHODS, FARMERS MIGHT
NONETHELESS PREFER TO KEEP THEIR DISTANCE.) ROBINSON
SAID A ONE-TO-TWO METER WIDE PATH HAS ALSO BEEN CLEARED
THROUGH JUNGLE IN THREE SECTIONS OF THE ROUTE. ACCORDING TO
ROBINSON, SURVEY CREWS HAVE TEMPORARILY
TAKEN LAND NOT BEING FARMED FOR USE AS CAMPS, TO DRILL
CORE SAMPLES, ETC., AND IN AT LEAST ONE CASE RENTED A
SHACK AT ONE OF THESE SITES. TOTAL ESTABLISHED ITS
LARGE BASE CAMP AT AN ABANDONED MINING SITE.
TOTAL/UNOCAL ARE CURRENTLY IN THE PROCESS OF CLOSING
DOWN THEIR SURVEY OPERATIONS UNTIL AFTER THE RAINY
SEASON. (COMMENT: GIVEN THAT THE GOB REGULARLY
SEIZES LAND FROM FARMERS, IT CANNOT BE RULED OUT
ENTIRELY THAT SOME OF THIS LAND "NOT BEING FARMED"
COULD HAVE BEEN SEIZED BY THE GOB, AND ORDERED TO BE
CLEARED BEFORE TOTAL SURVEY CREWS ARRIVED.)
14. ROBINSON SAID THAT, WHEN PIPELINE CONSTRUCTION
PROCEEDED, FARMERS WOULD HAVE TO GIVE UP LAND. IN
GENERAL, HE INSISTED THAT THE MINIMUM AMOUNT OF LAND
NEEDED TO CARRY OUT THE PROJECT WILL BE TAKEN.
ROBINSON SAID TOTAL WOULD COMPENSATE PEOPLE FOR THE
LAND AT TRUE MARKET RATES, AND WAS HAVING A TEAM OF
ENGINEERS, A HYDROLOGIST, AND BURMESE GOVERNMENT
AGRICULTURAL EXPERTS CONDUCT AN ACCURATE VALUATION
OF ANY LAND TAKEN. HAD TOTAL RELIED ON STANDARD
BURMESE GOVEPNMNT ESTIMATES, HE SAID, COMPENSATION
FOR THE LAND WOULD HAVE BEEN GREATLY REDUCED. HE
SAID THE COMPANY ALSO -PLANS TO OFFER JOBS TO THE
PEOPLE WHOSE LAND IS TAKEN AND PROVIDE IRRIGATION
CONNECTIONS SO THAT A FIELD SPLIT BY THE PIPELINE
CAN STILL BE WATERED.
15. ONE OF HIS BANGKOK POST ARTICLES,
STEELE SUGGESTS THE PIPELINE WILL PASS THROUGH
SEVERAL KAREN AND MON VILLAGES. ROBINSON, BY
CONTRAST, TOLD US THE PIPELINE WILL GO THROUGH ONLY
ONE VILLAGE LOCATED AT THE START OF THE ROUTE, AND
EVEN THEN IT WILL REMAIN AT A DISTANCE OF 500 METERS
FROM THE BUILT-UP AREA. HE SAID HE HAD FLOWN OVER
THE ENTIRE PIPELINE ROUTE 12 TIMES LOOKING FOR SIGNS
OF MAN AND HAD SEEN HUNTING CAMPS AND FISHING SITES
AND LITTLE ELSE.
FORCED RELOCATIONS
16. STEELE CONTENDED THAT WHOLE VILLAGES HAVE
BEEN RELOCATED ON ACCOUNT OF THE PIPELINE. HE
POINTED TO AN APRIL 17 ADVERTISEMENT IN THE BANGKOK
PRESS PLACED BY THE ELECTRICITY GENERATING AUTHORITY
OF THAILAND (EGAT) WHICH REFERS TO THE RELOCATION BY
THE SLORC OF 11 KAREN VILLAGES ON ACCOUNT OF
CONCERNS FOR THE PIPELINE'S SECURITY. (COMMENT: WE
HAVE HEARD OTHER CLAIMS THAT THIS KIND OF
RELOCATION SOMETIMES TAKES PLACE BEFORE FOREIGNERS
ARRIVE ON THE SCENE TO WITNESS SUCH ABUSE.)
17. ROBINSON HIMSELF TOLD US HE HAS SEEN NO
EVIDENCE THAT VILLAGES HAVE BEEN MOVED, DESPITE
CONSIDERABLE LOW-LEVEL FLYING OVER THE PIPELINE
ROUTE. HE WAS AWARE OF THE EGAT ADVERTISEMENT AND
IS SEEKING CLARIFICATION FROM EGAT CONCERNING THE
SOURCE OF ITS INFORMATION. HE ACKNOWLEDGED THAT THE
GOB MOVED THE KAREN VILLAGE~OF MIGYAUNGLAUNG IN
1991, ALLEGEDLY BECAUSE OF ITS INSURGENT SYMPATHIES,
BUT THE UNOCAL SPECIAL PROJECTS OFFICIAL POINTED OUT
THAT THAT WAS BEFORE TOTAL/UNOCAL DISCOVERED GAS.
AFTER THE MARCH 8 ATTACK ON A TOTAL/UNOCAL SURVEY
TEAM, SOME BURMESE MILITARY OFFICIALS FINGERED THE
EINDAYAZA VILLAGE, WHICH IS OVERWHELMINGLY KAREN,
WITH INVOLVEMENT IN THE ATTACK AND SO WANTED TO MOVE
IT. ROBINSON INDICATED THAT TOTAL/UNOCAL PROJECT
OFFICIALS TOLD THE LOCAL TACTICAL COMMANDER THAT IT
WAS A MILITARY CALL, BUT THAT THE OIL COMPANIES DID
NOT WANT THE VILLAGE MOVED ON THEIR ACCOUNT BECAUSE
IT WOULD CAUSE LOCAL RESENTMENT. ROBINSON SAID THE
VILLAGE HAS NOT BEEN MOVED TO DATE, BUT MILITARY AND
TOTAL OFFICIALS HAVE DISCOURAGED HIM FROM VISITING,
CITING SECURITY CONCERNS.
FORCED LABOR
18. THE MOST ATTENTION-ARRESTING OF STEELE'S
CHARGES IS HIS CONTENTION, AGAIN BASED ON INTERVIEWS
WITH PERSONS SAID TO HAVE BEEN DIRECTLY TARGETED,
THAT FORCED LABOR IS BEING USED ON THE PIPELINE
PROJECT. THIS RUNS DIRECTLY COUNTER TO.
TOTAL/UNOCAL'S REPEATED STATEMENTS THAT IT DOES NOT
USE FORCED LABOR; IT ALSO GOES BEYOND EARLIER
ATTEMPTS BY SOME HUMAN RIGHTS ACTIVISTS TO LINK THE
TWO COMPANIES INDIRECTLY TO FORCED LABOR WITH THE
ARGUMENT THAT THE PIPELINE PROJECT WILL BE SUPPORTED
BY THE YE-TAVOY RAILROAD, WHOSE CONSTRUCTION IS
WIDELY BELIEVED TO EMPLOY FORCED LABOR. IT IS WORTH
NOTING IN THIS CONTEXT ROBINSON'S STATEMENT TO US
THAT TOTAL/UNOCAL HAS PLEDGED NOT TO USE ANY PART OF
THE YE-TAVOY RAILROAD. ROBINSON SAID MUCH OF THE
MATERIAL FOR THE PIPELINE WILL BE BROUGHT IN BY
BARGE, AND THAT NONE WILL COME VIA RAIL. HE MADE NO
COMMENT WHEN WE NOTED THE ADDITIONAL ARGUMENT MADE
BY SOME THAT THE YE-TAVOY RAILROAD WILL INDIRECTLY
SUPPORT THE PIPELINE THROUGH SERVICING THE MILITARY
SENT TO PROTECT TOTAL/UNOCAL'S GAS LINE.
19. BEYOND DENYING CHARGES OF FORCED LABOR,
ROBINSON WENT INTO GREAT DETAIL ON JUST WHAT STEPS
TOTAL/UNOCAL ARE TAKING TO TRY TO ENSURE FORCED
LABOR IS NOT USED ON THEIR PROJECT. ROBINSON
PREDICTED THAT BY 1996-97, TOTAL WILL HAVE 1,000
EMPLOYEES WORKING ON THE PROJECT, 90 PERCENT OF WHOM
WILL BE BURMESE. CONSISTENT WITH WHAT WE HAD BEEN
TOLD PREVIOUSLY (REF E), THE UNOCAL SPECIAL PROJECTS
MANAGER INDICATED TOTAL WILL CONTROL THE LABOR
CONTRACTING FOR BOTH THE ROAD AND THE PIPELINE. HE
SAID TOTAL WILL PAY A DAILY WAGE OF 200 KYATS (ABOUT
US$ 2 AT THE UNOFFICIAL FREE MARKET EXCHANGE RATE)
FOR UNSKILLED LABOR, 250 KYATS FOR SEMI-SKILLED, AND
300 KYATS FOR SKILLED LABOR. (COMMENT: THESE WAGES
ARE LAVISH BY BURMESE STANDARDS, WHERE A SENIOR
CIVIL SERVANT EARNS 3000 KYAT PER MONTH.) HE SAID
TOTAL/UNOCAL PLAN TO DRAW WORKERS FROM 13 VILLAGES
AND HAVE CALCULATED SPECIFIC PERCENTAGES OF WORKERS
TO COME FROM EACH, BASED ON THE SIZE OF THE VILLAGE
AND ITS PROXIMITY TO THE PIPELINE. FOR THE LIMITED
LAND CLEARING WORK DONE TO DATE IN CONNECTION WITH
SURVEYING, ROBINSON INSISTED ALL WORKERS HAVE BEEN
PAID. HE DENIED ANY TOTAL/UNOCAL LINK. TO THE
REPORTED LABOR CAMP AT ZINBA (ABOUT FIVE MILES FROM
THE ROUTE OF THE PIPELINE), SUGGESTING INSTEAD THAT
IT WAS USED TO BUILD THE YE-TAVOY RAILROAD.
20. ROBINSON ACKNOWLEDGED THAT ARMY UNITS
PROVIDING SECURITY FOR THE PIPELINE CONSTRUCTION DO USE
CIVILIAN PORTERS, AND TOTAL/UNOCAL CANNOT CONTROL THEIR
RECRUITMENT PROCESS ROBINSON SAID TOTAL MEETS THE
PORTERS AT THE MARSHALLING CAMP, WHERE A TOTAL DOCTOR
GIVES THEM A PHYSICAL EXAM. SOME ARE SENT HOME DUE TO
THEIR POOR PHYSICAL CONDITION (THE COMPANIES ACCEPT
ONLY MALE PORTERS BETWEEN 18-45 YEARS OF AGE).
ROBINSON SAID TOTAL KEEPS CAREFUL RECORDS OF THE
PORTERS TO ENSURE THEY ARE PAID. HE SAID THESE RECORDS
OF WORKERS AND PORTERS SHOWED THAT THEY HAD NOT BEEN
OVERLY DRAWN FROM JUST ONE VILLAGE, IN FACT, THE MOST
THAT HAD BEEN DRAWN FROM A PARTICULAR VILLAGE SO FAR
WAS THREE.
21. ROBINSON SAID TOTAL INSPECTS THE WORKING
CONDITIONS OF THE PORTERS, ISSUES THEM A PHOTO ID, AND
COUPONS FOR EACH DAY OF WORK, AND RECORDS THE NUMBER OF
DAYS THE PORTER HAS WORKED, SO THAT AT THE END OF HIS
SERVICE (SOME PORTERS SERVED FOR AS LONG AS TWO-THREE
MONTHS) THE PORTER HIMSELF CAN COME TO A TOTAL CAMP AND
COLLECT HIS WAGES OF 200 KYAT/DAY. HE EXPRESSED
THEIR PART IN GETTING THE PROPER WAGES TO THESE WORKERS
DIRECTLY, BUT CANNOT TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR WHAT MIGHT
HAPPEN AFTERWARDS IF SOME OR ALL OF THE WAGES ARE TAKEN
BY THE MILITARY OR OTHERS. (COMMENT: WE HAVE NOT
HEARD THAT THIS HAS IN FACT HAPPENED.)
22. COMMENT CONTINUED: ALL OF WHAT ROBINSON
DESCRIBES THE COMPANIES DOING FOR THE BENEFIT OF
WORKERS ON THE PROJECT PRESUMABLY APPLIES TO WORKSITES
IN AREAS SECURE ENOUGH FOR TOTAL TO VISIT WITH MILITARY
ESCORT. ROBINSON INDICATED AT ONE POINT IN THE
DISCUSSION THAT THE MILITARY HAD NOT GIVEN TOTAL/UNOCAL
FOREIGN STAFF ACCESS TO HELIPAD SITES WITHIN MANY MILES
OF THE BORDER DURING THE PERIOD OF THEIR CONSTRUCTION,
BUT HAD ALLOWED ACCESS AFTER THEY WERE BUILT. WHAT HAS
GONE ON AT THOSE SITES IS PERFORCE OUT OF VIEW OF
EXPATS. GIVEN THE EASIER ACCESS OF VILLAGERS FROM
THESE AREAS TO THAILAND, IT IS POSSIBLE THAT SOME OF
THOSE COMPLAINING OF ABUSES TO JOURNALISTS AND HUMAN
RIGHTS GROUPS MAY BE FROM SUCH AREAS WHERE THE BURMESE
MILITARY MIGHT HAVE HAD A FREER HAND OUT OF RANGE OF
THE DIRECT OVERSIGHT OF THE OIL COMPANIES.
23. COMMENT CONTINUED: SOME OF THE CHARGES OF FORCED
LABOR NEAR HPAUNGDAW MAY STEM FROM THE MILITARY'S
ORDER, AFTER THE MARCH 8 ATTACK OF THE TOTAL SURVEY
CREW, THAT VILLAGES CLEAR 20-30 METERS ON EITHER SIDE
OF THE ROAD (WHICH PRE-DATED THE PIPELINE PROJECT) THAT
RAN NEAR THE FIRST PART OF THE PIPELIN ROUTE.
ROBINSON ADMITTED THAT VILLAGERS WERE NOT PAID FOR THIS
WORK, WHICH INCLUDED REMOVING BOULDERS AND LARGE TREES
(NOTE: SIMILAR TO THE WORK DESCRIBED IN STEELE'S
ARTICLES. END NOTE). HE CLAIMED THAT TOTAL/UNOCAL ARE
NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE PEOPLE FORCED TO DO THIS WORK
BECAUSE THE ARMY DECIDED "FOR ITS OWN PURPOSES" THAT
THE ROADSIDES SHOULD BE CLEARED. TWO-THREE MONTHS
EARLIER, HE RECALLED THE MILITARY BELIEVED THE
ROADSIDES DID NOT NEED TO BE CLEARED. (COMMENT: THIS
WOULD SEEM TO RAISE THE PROSPECT OF THE BURMESE
MILITARY COMING TO FEEL THE SAME NEED FOR HEIGHTENED
SECURITY ALONG THE PIPELINE ROAD - - WITH SIMILAR
CONSEQUENCES WITH REGARD TO FORCED LABOR AND THE
ENVIRONMENT.)
SECURITY/RELATIONS WITH THE MILITARY
24. ACCORDING TO ROBINSON, THERE HAVE BEEN NO
RECENT THREATS AGAINST THE PIPELINE, BUT LAST YEAR THE
KNU THREATENED TO TURN IT INTO A "LINE OF FIRE" (NOTE:
HE MADE NO REFERENCE TO THE REPORTED INTEREST OF THE
KNU IN RECEIVING A SHARE OF THE PIPELINE'S REVENUES,
PRESUUABLY IN EXCHANGE FOR LEAVING THE PIPELINE ALONE.
END NOTE). ROBINSON EXPLAINED THAT AN ATTACK WOULD -
PROBABLY CAUSE ONLY LIMITED DAMAGE BECAUSE THE PIPELINE
(WHICH WILL BE UNDERGROUND) WILL BE EQUIPPED WITH A
RAPID DECOMPRESSION SYSTEM, RESULTING IN A QUICK
FLAREOUT AND LITTLE ELSE. HE SAID HE HOPES TOTAL WILL
INSTALL VALVE BLOCKS TO MAKE THE SHUTDOWN AUTOMATIC, IN
ORDER TO SPEED THE PROCESS.
25. (AS A RESULT OF THE MARCH 8 ATTACK (REF F),
ROBINSON SAID SURVEY WORK HAD TO BE HALTED FOR
ABOUT THREE WEEKS. TOTAL HAD HOPED TO COMPLETE
SURVEYING OF THE ENTIRE ROUTE THIS DRY SEASON BUT IN
THE END CONFINED ITS WORK TO ONLY THE INITIAL SEGMENT.
HE NOTED THAT TOTAL- PAID COMPENSATION TO THE FAMILIES
OF THE VICTIMS OF THE ATTACK. AS TO THE FUTURE,
ROBINSON SUGGESTED THERE WILL PROBABLY BE ONE-TO-FIVE
AMCITS INVOLVED IN THE CONSTRUCTION PHASE, MOST
RESIDING IN RANGOON AND VISITING THE SITE. HE
PREDICTED THERE WILL BE NO AMCITS IN THE AREA WHEN
PRODUCTION STARTS IN 1998. AT THE SAME TIME, HE
ADMITTED HE HAS NO IDEA HOW MANY AMCITS MIGHT BE
BROUGHT IN BY CONTRACTORS WORKING ON THE PIPELINE.
26. STEELE'S CHARGES THAT A TOTAL
HELICOPTER FERRIED A BURMESE TACTICAL OPERATIONS
COMMANDER TO INSPECT AN AREA OF BA FIGHTING AGAINST THE
KAREN IN EARLY MARCH AND THAT TOTAL SHARED AERIAL
PHOTOGRAPHY OF THE BATTLEFIELD SITE WITH THE BURMESE
MILITARY, ROBINSON ADMITTEO HE DID NOT HAVE FIRSTHAND
KNOWLEDGE TO REFUTE THIS. FROM HIS GENERAL KNOWLEDGE
OF PROCEOURES, THOUGH, HE SUGGESTED THERE IS PROBABLY
LITTLE FIRE BENEATH THE SMOKE OF THE CHARGES. IF TOTAL
HAD AN EMPTY SEAT IN ITS HELICOPTER TRAVELLING TO A
BORDER AREA HELIPAO ALONG THE PIPELINE ROUTE, THE
COMPANY WOULD NOT HESITATE TO GIVE IT TO A COMMANDER
UPON WHOM THE COMPANY DEPENOS FOR ITS OWN SECURITY.
WHAT HE DID THINK UNLIKELY, THOUGH, IS THAT THE FRENCH
PILOTS WOULD VEER OFF THE IMMEDIATE ROUTE OF THE
PIPELINE TO ACCOMMODATE THE WISHES OF THE LOCAL
COMMANDER BECAUSE THE PILOTS ARE ALREADY SKITTISH ABOUT
OPERATING IN SUCH A DICEY SITUATION AND ARE INSTRUCTED
TO KEEP OPERATING COSTS DOWN FOR THE HELICOPTER, WHICH
IS BEING RENTED BY THE HOUR.
27. ON THE AERIAL INTELLIGENCE QUESTION,
ROBINSON INDICATED IT WOULD HARDLY BE SURPRISING FOR
THE BURMESE MILITARY TO HAVE ACCESS TO THE COMPANY'S
-AERIAL PHOTOS, PRECISION SURVEYS, AND TOPOGRAPHY MAPS
SINCE TOTAL/UNOCAL USES THESE TO SHOW THE MILITARY
WHERE THEY NEED HELIPADS, BUILT AND FACILITIES SECURED.
HE SAID THE INFORMATION IS OF LITTLE MILITARY USE-
BECAUSE IT IS CONFINED TO THE PIPELINE ROUTE.
28. ON THE GENERAL ISSUE OF THE CLOSE WORKING
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN TOTAL/UNOCAL ANO THE BURMESE
MILITARY, ROBINSON HAD NO APOLOGIES TO MAKE. HE STATED
FORTHRIGHTLY THAT THE COMPANIES HAVE HIRED THE BURMESE
MILITARY TO PROVIDE SECURITY FOR THE PROJECT AND PAY
FOR THIS THROUGH THE MYANMAR OIL AND GAS ENTERPRISE
(MOGE). HE SAID THREE TRUCKLOADS OF SOLDIERS ACCOMPANY
PROJECT OFFICIALS AS THEY CONDUCT SURVEY WORK AND VISIT
VILLAGES. HE SAID TOTAL'S SECURITY OFFICIALS MEET WITH
MILITARY COUNTERPARTS TO INFORM THEM OF THE NEXT DAY'S
ACTIVITIES SO THAT SOLDIERS CAN ENSURE THE AREA IS
SECURE AND GUARD THE WORK PERIMETER WHILE THE SURVEY
TEAM GOES ABOUT ITS BUSINESS.
WINNING HEARTS AND MINDS
TWO OF THESE, BUT FOR THE OTHERS, THE MILITARY ESCORT
ACCOMPANYING ROBINSON AND THE OTHER TOTAL/UNOCAL
OFFICIALS SECURED ThE PERIMETER OF THE VILLAGE BUT
STAYED OUT OF EARSHOT OF THE MEETING. HE SAID THE
VCC'S WILL CONTINUE TO MEET FOR THE LIFE OF THE
PROJECT. AT THE MEETINGS, ROBINSON SAID TOTAL
OFFICIALS HAVE DISCUSSED SUCH MATTERS AS LABOR SUPPLY
FOR THE PIPELINE, PROCEDURES FOR PAYING PORTERS,
ACQUISITION OF LAND FOR THE PIPELINE, AND
TOTAL/UNOCALDONATED VILLAGE AID. HE~SAID THE VCC'S
HAVE SUGGESTION BOXES WHERE PEOPLE CAN ANONYMOUSLY LET
TOTAL KNOW IF THEY "ARE DOING ANYTHING WRONG."
30. COMMENT: SETTING UP VCC'S IS NO DOUBT A WELL
INTENTIONED MOVE, BUT OUR KNOWLEDGE OF GENERAL
CONDITIONS HERE LEAVES US TO QUESTION HOW FRANK THE
FEEDBACK FROM VILLAGERS WILL BE. INTERNATIONAL NGO'S
HERE HAVE TOLD US! IT IS WELL NIGH IMPQSSIBLE TO
ESTABLISH A PRODUCTIVE RELATIONSHIP WITH VILLAGERS WHEN
OUTSIDERS ARRIVE ACCOMPANIED BY A MILITARY ESCORT.
THIS WOULD SEEM ESPECIALLY LIKELY TO BE TRUE IN ETHNIC
MINORITY AREAS, WHERE THE BA IS VIEWED AS A FORCE NQT
JUST OF OPPRESSION BUT OF OCCUPATIOg.
31 ROBINSON EXPLAINED THAT TOTAL HAS DONE A
CENSU~AS WELL AS SOCIO-ECONOMIC AND ETHNOGRAPHIC
SURVEYS OF VILLAGES ALL ALONG THE ROUTE TO HELP ASSESS
THEIR HEALTH, EDUCATION, AND OTHER NEEDS (WE HAVE
POUCHED A MAP SHOWING SOME OF THIS SURVEY DATA TO
EAP/TB). HE SAID THE VCC'S WOULD BE ASKED TO KEEP
TRACK OF SOME OF THIS DATA (IN EXCHANGE FOR AID) OVER
THE 30 YEAR LIFE OF THE PROJECT, SO THAT THE COMPANY
CAN ASSESS ITS IMPACT.
32. AS ANOTHER GOODWILL GESTURE, TOTAL HAS
BROUGHT A DOCTOR TO CONDUCT IMPROMPTU CLINICS IN
VILLAGES WHERE VCC MEETINGS ARE TAKING PLACE. THE
COMPANY HAS ALSO ASKED EACH VCC TO PROVIDE A WISHLIST
OF ITS COMMUNAL NEEDS, AND IN RESPONSE RECEIVED A
NUMBER OF MODEST REQUESTS, SUCH AS "FLY-FREE" LATRINES,
SCHOOL MATERIALS, OR MECHANIZED TILLERS, ALL OF WHICH
TOTAL SUPPLIED WITHIN A MONTH.
33. TO BRING LARGER-SCALE ASSISTANCE TO THESE
VILLAGES, TOTAL PLANS TO WORK THROUGH THE GOB.
ROBINSON SAID IT HAS NOT BEEN POSSIBLE TO LOCATE A
SUITABLE NON-GOVERNMENTAL ALTERNATIVE, AND THAT THE GOB
HAS THE CAPACITY TO PROVIDE SUCH ASSISTANCE, TO BE
FINANCED BY TOTAL/UNOCAL. HE CITED AS EXAMPLES
BRINGING A VETERINARIAN FROM THE LIVESTOCK BREEDING AND
FISHERIES MINISTRY TO ASSESS THE HEALTH OF LOCAL
LIVESTOCK, OR BRINGING FORESTRY MINISTRY OFFICIALS DOWN
TO STUDY SETTING UP A WILDLIFE PRESERVE. ACCORDING TO
ROBINSON, UNOCAL BELIEVES SUCH AID IS NEEDED TO
COMPENSATE FOR THE NEGATIVE SIDE-EFFECTS THE PIPELINE
PROJECT BRINGS WITH IT, INCLUDING INFLATION AND INCOME
DISPARITY. HE SAID UNOCAL DOES THIS TYPE OF WORK IN
OTHER COUNTRIES, BUT BECAUSE OF THE ADDITIONAL PUBLIC
RELATIONS PROBLEM~ OF WORKING IN ~ THE COMPANY IS
"BENDING OVER BACKWARDS" TO ENSURE THAT ITS PRESENCE
HELPS THE LOCAL PEOPLE.
34. COMMENT: ALTHOUGH THERE ARE SEVERAL
INTERNATIONAL NGO'S ALREADY IN THE COUNTRY EAGER TO DO
MORE WORK, AND OTHERS ARE TRYING TO GET IN, ROBINSON
SAID TOTAL/UNOCAL COULD NOT FIND~A SUITABLE ONE WILLING
TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH THE CONTROVERSIAL TOTAL PROJECT.
ROBINSON ALSO SAID ThE GOB WAS NOT EAGER TO HAVE
INTERNATIONAL NGO'S IN THIS SENSITIVE BORDER AREA.
BEYOND THIS, AND WITHOUT GAINSAYING ANY EFFORT MADE TO
BRING SOME MATERIAL ASSISTANCE TO SUCH TERRIBLY
DEPRIVED PEOPLE, WE CANNOT HELP BUT NOTE OUR OWN POLICY
OF DISCOURAGING THE CHANNELING OF AID THROUGH THE GOB,
WHICH IN SIMILAR CONTEXTS ELSEWHERE IN THE COUNTRY IS
USING AID AS A POLITICAL INSTRUMENT TO SOLIDIFY ITS
CONTROL.
COMMENT AND CONCLUSION
35. WITH ITS SHAREHOLDER MEETING COMING UP ON
MAY 22, ROBINSON SAID UNOCAL WANTS TO BE "AS APOLITICAL
AS IT CAN AND TRY TO TREAT PEOPLE FAIRLY AT THE LOCAL -
LEVEL." JUDGING BY WHAT ROBINSON LAID OUT FOR US, THE
COMPANY SEEMS TO BE GOING TO EXTRAORDINARY LENGTHS TO
MEET ITS OBJECTIVE. BUT THE FACT THAT TOTAL/UNOCAL
HAVE TO UNDERTAKE SUCH MEASURES, AND STILL FIND
THEMSELVES TARRED BY UNACCEPTABLE GOB ACTIONS, SAYS
MUCH ABOUT THE DIFFICULTIES AND POTENTIAL PERILS OF
WORKING WITH THE SLORC.
36. WE HAVE NOT YET BEEN ABLE TO TRAVEL TO THE
AREA CQNCERNED (WHEN WE RECEIVED GOB PERMISSION TO GO
TO TAVOY, THE FLIGHT WAS CANCELLED), SO ARE NOT IN A
POSITION TO OFFER AN INDEPENDENT ASSESSMENT OF THE
FACTS AS PRESENTED BY STEELE AND ROBINSON. IN SOME
INSTANCES, LIKE THE SHARING OF ACCESS TO AERIAL
PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE PIPELINE ROUTE, IT SEEMS THE SAME
FACTS CAN TAKE ON QUITE DIFFERENT IMPLICATIONS,
DEPENDING ON THE VIEWER'S VANTAGE POINT. AT THE SAME
TIME, THERE CERTAINLY IS NO DENYING THAT TOTAL/UNOCAL
ARE WORKING HARD TO PREVENT ABUSE. ROBINSON REJECTS
THE NOTION, HOWEVER, THAT TOTAL/UNOCAL BEAR
RESPONSIBILITY FOR VARIOUS DEMANDS FOR FORCED LABOR
IMPOSED BY THE MILITARY OUTSIDE THE FRAMEWORK OF THE
PIPELINE PROJECT. AS HIS DENIAL OF COMPANY
RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE FORCED ROAD-CLEARING ATTESTS, IT
IS IMPOSSIBLE TO OPERATE IN A COMPLETELY ABUSE-FREE
ENVIRONMENT WHEN YOU HAVE THE BURMESE GOVERNMENT AS A
PARTNER
MEYERS [Marilyn Meyers,
then Charge d'affairs at the Embassy]
__________________ OPINION/EDITORIAL ____________________
THE NATION: REGIONAL PERSPECTIVE: BURMA NEEDS MULTILATERAL DIPLOMACY
PUSH
March 13, 2000
In Seoul last week, major players involved in the Burma
situation from East and West agreed to disagree once
again on the best way to break the stalemate in the
country.
Despite the lack of consensus, the good and firm
exchanges among them have strengthened the so-called
Chilston Park forum spirit. These players are learning
from one another and are increasing their coordination to
bring about positive changes inside Burma that would
recognise the inspirations of the Burmese people.
It has been more than a decade since the crackdown on the
pro-democracy elements, and the international community
is still grappling with the worsening political and
economic situation there. Members of the Chilston forum
want to adopt measures that can push forward the dialogue
process without giving up their much stated principles of
human rights and democracy. But it is easier said than
done.
The United States, the United Kingdom and other countries
in the European Union continue to maintain that the hard-
line approach is still the best way to deal with the
Rangoon junta. To them, there is a prerequisite of
political changes in Burma before there can be economic
assistance. They are maintaining sanctions and continuing
to avoid contacts with the Burmese dictators.
Conversely, Japan, Australia and South Korea want a
softer approach that produces results. They want to end
Burma's isolation and provide aid now without any
conditions. They feel that alleviating the suffering of
the Burmese people is the ultimate objective.
Tokyo and Canberra have been coordinating their
diplomatic efforts on Burma, trying to provide incentives
to the junta leaders in such ways that they would open up
their country a bit further. Their approach has not
produced results, yet they are willing to stick with it.
South Korea is a newcomer on the Burma because of the
personal interest of President Kim Dae-jung.
Japan has become very active in searching for a workable
solution in the past few years, juggling several non-
confrontational approaches. The Burmese opposition leader
Aung San Suu Kyi has harshly criticised the policy of the
Japanese government in cajoling the junta leaders to open
up.
Early this month, a senior Foreign Ministry official went
to Burma and agreed to set up a task force of experts
from both countries to identify areas of needed reforms,
including economic restructuring models. As part of the
task force, Japan will send a team of experts to Rangoon
in May to work with Burmese experts. Japan will also
offer training to the Burmese.
The task force will produce a report in the near future
that will assess the required humanitarian assistance for
Burma and provide information on other areas. Tokyo has
been using a similar formula in Vietnam and Laos. Its
recent effort in Laos is producing some results to
further promote openness and liberalisation in the land-
locked country.
Nobody knows if this approach will work in the case of
Burma, but Japan insists that this more pragmatic
approach is definitely more desirable than the West's no-
change, no-aid mentality.
The Chilston Park group, which will continue to meet in
the future, has by now become a multilateral diplomatic
tool that is gathering force. Together with
representatives of the United Nations and World Bank, the
group's members want to make sure their increased
coordination and consultation will continue to assert
pressure on Burma. They also want to see that the UN
annual resolution on Burma gets implemented.
Certainly, the junta leaders have been very nervous about
the potency of the Chilston Park group. Burmese Foreign
Minister Win Aung's letter of Feb 21 to Foreign Minister
Surin Pitsuwan urging Thailand not to attend the
discussion showed a high sense of ambiguity. Rangoon's
criticisms that followed the meeting were even worse.
In Seoul, the forum's members want the UN to take a
proactive role in Burma - not just sit and wait for a
visa. They have proposed that the new UN special
representative for Burma must work harder with more
responsibilities. In the past, the special UN envoy's
main function was to visit Burma to prepare a report for
the UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. Now, the new special
envoy will work "for" Burma. Annan has already appointed
former Malaysian UN ambassador Tan Sri Razalieh as the
new envoy. His main task will be to find ways to
implement the annual resolution on Burma, which Rangoon
does not care two hoots about.
The Seoul meeting has direct implications for Thailand,
which has been on the receiving end of Burma's repressive
policies. Thailand wants Burma to enforce agreements
along the 2,400-kilometre border. Bangkok has urged
Rangoon to allow international humanitarian organisations
to have access on the Burmese side. So far, the onus
rests with Thailand.
There will be crucial votes in months to come related to
the situation in Burma within the UN frameworks,
including at the International Labour Organisation, in
which Thailand has to prove its mettle. Bangkok's bid to
join the Commission on Human Rights is gaining momentum.
By May, Bangkok will know the outcome.
To supplement the ongoing international diplomatic
effort, Thailand must remain firm and sustain the
solidarity of its concerned authorities along the border
area. Together, they can bring the desired changes in
Burma.
BY KAVI CHONGKITTAVORN
_________________________________________________________
________________
The BurmaNet News is an Internet newspaper providing
comprehensive coverage of news and opinion on Burma
(Myanmar).
For a subscription to Burma's only free daily newspaper,
write to: strider@xxxxxxx
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