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Subject: [theburmanetnews] BurmaNet News: Weekend of April 8-9, 2000
______________ THE BURMANET NEWS ______________
An on-line newspaper covering Burma
________________ www.burmanet.org _________________
Weekend of April 8-9, 2000
Issue # 1504
This edition of The BurmaNet News is viewable online at:
http://theburmanetnews.editthispage.com/stories/storyReader$282
*Inside Burma
APP: MYANMAR- KAREN NATIONAL UNION PEACE TALKS FLOP AMID
BLOODY FIGHTING
AP: MYANMAR DESTROYS VIDEOTAPES
BURMA COURIER: HARASSMENT OF BURMA LAWYERS CHRONICLED ON
WEBSITE
AFP: NEW MYANMAR PAPER SHAKES UP LOCAL PRESS
MTBR: HIGH RETURNS FOR THOSE IN THE USED CAR TRADE
MTBR: AN INSOMNIAC'S JOURNEY TO DISCOVER YANGON'S BEST
COFFEE
*International
BANGKOK POST: TRYING AFRESH FOR REFORM IN BURMA
SYDNEY MORNING HERALD: AUSTRALIA JOINS BURMA IN HEROIN FIGHT
BANGKOK POST: ARMY URGES OFFICIAL APPROACH TO BURMA
BANGKOK POST: WATERWAYS PACT TO BE SIGNED SOON
*Opinion/Editorials
BURMA COURIER: MYANMAR ECONOMY ABOUT TO TAKE OFF,
GENERALS PREDICT
*Other
BURMANET: COMMUNITY MEETING WITH MYANMAR AMBASSADOR IN
OTTAWA
___________________ INSIDE BURMA ______________________
APP: MYANMAR- KAREN NATIONAL UNION PEACE TALKS FLOP AMID
BLOODY FIGHTING
..........MAE SOT. AP (April 8) : Myanmar's junta and the leader of
the last major rebel force fighting military rule said on Friday efforts to hold peace talks had flopped.The announcement came amid fresh flows of refugees and bloody clashes between Karen National Union (KNU) fighters and government
troops along the eastern border with Thailand.
KNU leader Saw Ba Thin told reporters near the border there would be
no further dialogue with Yangon, despite his announcement in January
that the Karen were ready to talk peace "Talks between the Karen and Myanmar
government have so far been a total failure because Myanmar was not
sincere in talks," he said.
..........Saw Ba Thin said the junta had stepped up its attacks on
the rebels in recent weeks and he urged the international community to take note of the plight of the ethnic Karen minority in Myanmar. Junta spokesman Hla Min in a fax to AFP on Friday slammed the notion that the KNU were interested in peace. "While the KNU superficially has been advocating peace, regretfully reality indicates that they are still not serious in making peace with the government".
..........Karen rebels and the junta spokesman said the KNU had
overrun a Myanmar army outpost opposite Thailand's Tak province after heavy
fighting which forced thousands of refugees to flee into Thailand. The KNU,
who have been fighting the ruling military for more than 50 years, said that
at least 10 junta troops were killed and dozens wounded in a clash earlier this
week. "Not only were the 10 corpses left behind of Myanmar soldiers, we also seized a large number of small and heavy arms," said KNU spokesman David Tarkapao in a telephone interview. He said two KNU fighters were injured as well as 21 junta troops.
..........Hla Min confirmed a clash had occurred and that rebels had
briefly overrun a military task force, resulting in an undisclosed number of
government casualties. The base camp from which the task force operate was taken over by the KNU for a short period of time. The task force did suffer some casualties from the attacks," he said.--APP
..........Copyright 2000 APP (Published under arrangement with a
Associated Press
of Pakistan)
/_______________________________________________________/
AP: MYANMAR DESTROYS VIDEOTAPES
Sat 8 Apr 2000
YANGON, Myanmar (AP) ? ? '? ·'? · Saying Myanmar's culture was at risk,
authorities
have destroyed thousands of videotapes, videodiscs and frowned-on
fashions ahead of the traditional New Year next week.
The military government's official newspapers reported today that
14,305 videotapes, 36,132 videodiscs, and other items, including flags and
masks, were put to the torch Friday in a police compound while high level
officials of the military regime looked on.
Youths in recent years have taken to wearing Halloween masks and
wrapping themselves in U.S. and British flags during the holiday. The United
States and Britain are two of the countries pushing hardest for Myanmar to give
up military rule for democracy.
Col. Than Tun, head of the Office of Strategic Studies, part of
military intelligence, said that illegally imported tapes and disks might
inspire youths to copy bad behavior and harm Myanmar's culture.
The newspapers said the destruction was aimed at protecting Myanmar
traditions during the New Year's festival April 12-15, customarily a rowdy time
when Myanmar's people douse each other with water.
Over the past week, newspapers have carried warnings to preserve
``national culture'' and avoid ``decadent culture.'' They have also warned
against throwing ice packs during the holiday that can injure people and damage cars.
In last year's festival, authorities confiscated flags and masks and
detained some teen-agers for 24 hours.
/_______________________________________________________/
BURMA COURIER: HARASSMENT OF BURMA LAWYERS CHRONICLED ON
WEBSITE
GENEVA, April 5
(Thanks to Anja van Dyjk) -- The Centre for the
Independence of Judges and Lawyers (CIJL) has posted information on
their website about forty lawyers from Burma who have suffered reprisals
for carrying out their professional duties. The names and details of their cases are posted on a website where the CIJL keeps a permanent record of law
professionals who are at risk because of their dedication to justice and the rule of law in the countries in which they have licensed to practise. The ninth edition of the Centre's annual report, entitled 'Attacks on Justice', catalogues the cases of 873 jurists worldwide that were reported as suffering reprisals between March, 1997, and February, 1999. Of these 53 were killed, 3 disappeared, 272 were prosecuted, arrested, detained or even tortured, 83 were physically attacked, 111 verbally threatened and 354 were professionally obstructed and/or sanctioned. The Centre says it received reports of an additional 508 jurists who suffered reprisals in 1997 and 1998 which it was unable to conclusively confirm.
The Burma case list includes the names of forty lawyers who
have been disbarred for political reasons over the last ten years.
Many of those listed have served or are serving prison terms,
including ten who were elected as Members of Parliament
in the 1990 elections.
Two of those on the CIJL Burma list have died in prison.
One of them was U Tin Shwe, a well known author and intellectual, who
played a leading role in organizing the NLD election campaign in 1990. He was
arrested and charged on allegations of forming a parallel government.
Initially sentenced 10 years imprisonment on 15 May 1991, he was later given an
additional 5 years.
His family was not even informed which prison he was detained in. In
April, 1997,
when U Tin Shwe was suffering from serious heart disease, his family
requested
that he receive treatment in Rangoon General Hospital but the request
was
ignored. The Chairman of the NLD wrote to General Than Shwe urging
that U
TIn Shwe be allowed proper medical treatment.
No response to this letter was
ever received. U Tin Shwe died on 6 June 1997 of a heart attack at
his cell in
Insein prison. A second lawyer who died in prison was U Hla Than,
author and
elected NLD representative for the Coco Islands, who was sentenced to
25 years imprisonment for political offences in 1991. He died in Rangoon
General Hospital in August, 1996, while under detention. Check out this report at
http://www.icj.org/attacks/attacks.htm
_______________________________________________________
AFP: NEW MYANMAR PAPER SHAKES UP LOCAL PRESS
by Philippe Agret
YANGON, April 7 (AFP) - Myanmar's first private newspaper in over
three decades, the Myanmar Times, has shaken up Yangon's ossified press,
but some critics argue it is little more than "sophisticated propaganda."
Launched on March 6, the full-colour weekly
promised "independence, authority, and integrity" in reporting, exciting Myanmar residents used to a one-sided and heavily censored presentation of news.
Myanmar "needs more professional media ... more sophisticated
media," Ross Dunkley, the Australian managing editor of the Myanmar Times et
Business Review, told AFP.
"I want to bring more balance to local reporting ... to use the
paper as a forum to discuss issues."
Yangon's local media has for years consisted of state-owned
publications like the daily New Light of Myanmar that reflect the junta's views
and characterise opponents of the regime as traitors.
In its first month of publication, the Myanmar Times has run in-
depth business analyses, a range of international news stories, and limited
investigative reporting of infrastructure breakdowns and other
problems in Yangon.
The New Light and other state offerings, published by the Ministry
of Information, usually have only basic coverage of international news.
But critics charge that the "MT" is closely tied to the ruling
junta and just as guilty of biased coverage of Myanmar issues as other local
papers on Yangon newsstands.
Sonny Swe, 30-year-old son of Colonel Thein Swe of the Ministry of
Defense's Office of Strategic Studies (OSS), is a partner in the
Times. The OSS is under the direct control of powerful and pragmatic
intelligence chief General Khin Nyunt.
Some Yangon-based diplomats have suggested elements in the junta
are using the Myanmar Times to improve international acceptance of the country
and to isolate the more hard-line generals in the government.
The Myanmar Times is "little more than sophisticated propaganda,"
said one Western diplomat in Yangon.
Dunkley, who gained experience managing papers in tightly-
controlled societies as editor of the Vietnam Investment Review, insisted the
Myanmar Times will be more transparent in local reporting than its
competitors.
"Officially we go through military scrutiny, but the reality is
that we have an amicable dialogue, and 95 percent (of the paper) is not
subject to censorship," Dunkley said.
"People are prepared to treat me fairly ... I have some synergy
with (the government) ... I just report the facts."
"I was mentally drained from Vietnam, frustrated by the censorship
and disillusioned... It's a different reality here, incredibly easy as it
was mine warfare in Vietnam," he added.
Although Dunkley said that an interview with opposition leader
Aung San Suu Kyi "would not be appropriate now," in the future the Myanmar
Times might run stories about the opposition.
Critics also charge that the Myanmar Times' high price of two
foreign exchange certificates (two dollars) will keep it from being widely
read.
The newspaper claims a circulation which currently stands at
10,000 per issue and a readership triple that.
Dunkley, a self-described "free marketeer," hopes to expand the
Times' staff of 25 and eventually move into the vernacular press, radio,
television and possibly the Internet.
_______________________________________________________
MTBR: HIGH RETURNS FOR THOSE IN THE USED CAR TRADE
THE MYANMAR TIMES & BUSINESS REVIEW
April 3 - 9 ,2000
Volume 1, No.5
BIDDING wars and profits to rival many business investments is making
the used car trade one of the hottest enterprises in Myanmar, but
shonky dealers should make buyers wary.
Sunny Super Saloons and Toyota vans lead the market with vehicles
bought for K520,000 in 1995 now fetching up to K1.95 million. Though
Myanmar's commercial activities, like those of its Asian neighbours,
suffered during the recent financial crisis, the returns on car
investment have been five to ten times higher than bank interest
rates, and markedly more than those from say, running a convenience
store.
Though the actual price of transactions is not mentioned in the
contract or made public, the total revenue in the used car market is
estimated at about K113.75m a week. Price rises and extraordinary
appreciation in the used car market have been attributed to several
factors including the unfounded 1996 rumours that the K500 notes were
to be taken out of circulation. This incited high demand for both
movable and immovable properties.
Similarly, many families see the purchase and reselling of cars as a
convenient and simple way to make large profits. When the Department
of Human Settlement and Housing Development removed wards
inconsistent with municipal regulations, each household was
compensated K500,000 which was widely invested in car purchase.
Despite rumours of its imminent collapse, the industry continues to
thrive with businesspeople from various fields coming into the market,
cashing in when control over car import permits is loose. Limits
imposed on car import permits are also regarded as one of the
main reasons that prices of the existing used cars can soar.
Locally assembled cars like Suzuki do not have a considerable market
share, though they are competitive in quality and fuel consumption.
Though it is thought their popularity will increase in the future,
currently it is rare buyer who particularly desires those models.
Official used car brokerage centres in Yangon, which collect K60 per
car, are at Hanthawady in the northwest and Sanpya Flyover in the
northeast. There are also five more illegal centres.
A broker can enjoy a commission of two to four percent sometimes
receiving half of this from the buyer and half from the seller.
Long-time brokers are well versed in the world of motor cars, many are
trained mechanics, however since 1995 a new breed of brokers has
appeared equipped less with technical knowledge and more with a
burning desire to enjoy the immediate benefits. The motto of these
brokers is appropriately, Hit and Run. Spontaneous auctions can occur
when more than one buyer is interested in a car. The broker will
initiate an auction style transaction by rejecting the first offer
made a tact that can backfire on a greedy dealer.
There is no protection for the inexperienced buyer who could end up
with a gyotu, a car that has been reconditioned after damage to the
front. An industry professional recommends that new buyers try to
cultivate friendship with reputable dealers in the business.
About 40pc of the brokers are neat and smart, and they never let down
a buyer in view of keeping their good business images, said Khin Maung
Wai, a broker with ten year long experience in used-car market.
These days, a person who has K1.95m may buy a car, but it is not
necessarily a good car, said one potential buyer at a brokerage
centre.
In order to sell a car, an owner must first get it graded at a
workshop according to aspects such as body appearance, windscreen and
the originality of its liner, frame, floor, tires, bonnet and bumper.
Buyers benefit by way of knowing the detailed condition of those
aspects. A well-experienced broker can evaluate how many times a used
car has been painted, even at first sight, said Aye Myint, another
broker.
The used car market is divided into three categories; under K487,500,
up to K2.925m and over K2.925m, the latter being the most lucrative,
with a turnover rate of 70pc.
_______________________________________________________
MTBR: AN INSOMNIAC'S JOURNEY TO DISCOVER YANGON'S BEST
COFFEE
THE MYANMAR TIMES & BUSINESS REVIEW
April 3 - 9 ,2000
Volume 1, No.5
FINDING the best cof fee in Yangon is no easy task. This assignment
requires long nights, little sleep and massive doses of caffeine ? ? '? ¶ a
job this writer is well equipped to handle. Actually Myanmar has never
been a traditional coffee drinking country it was always a tea culture
that flourished and survived, probably due to the influence of the
Indians during the times of Myanmar's British colonialism. People
generally drink tea and men will often walk two or three miles to
savour their favourite cup of tea, brewed to perfection (see MT #4).
Coffee was always an intellectual's drink until recent years when the
age of consumerism first arrived in the nation. Nevertheless, coffee
is enjoyed here and now it is making inroads at the corner teashop. My
first stop for this report was at 1.30am ? ? '? ¶ to Equatorial Hotel's all
night coffee shop.
"Sorry, madam, the expresso machine has broken down, and the one in
the lobby has been locked away." Cakes? "Sorry, madam, that counter
is lready locked." So what else is not under lock and key, at 1.30 a
of m? "Nescafe coffee, madam." Hurried exit. Next stop the same night,
a small dingy little shop on Strand Road called "Shwe Wa"...Golden
Yellow. Several container trucks are parked nearby, and trucksters
were sitting at tables on the sidewalk, eating rice and curry,
nibbling on chips, drinking what one can safely assume not to be
coffee. Do they have coffee, the real kind, not the instant or
pre-mixed? "Sure do". Are you sure ?
"Oh yes, quite sure." The tables on the pavement are tiny square
wooden tables and you sit on tinier wooden stools. The coffee came 10
minutes later in a tiny cup, made without sugar but with thick
sweetened condensed milk. Not at all aromic, but still rich, and with
high caffeine content. (K30). By 6.30am, a corner eatery at the
junction of Anawratha and Wadan streets is busy with customers. The
coffee here is more fragrant, made thick with condensed milk, also
K30. This shop has excellent Mohinga, THE breakfast dish of the
nation. The next place visited, at a more reasonable time of day, was
Cafe Aroma on Sule Pagoda Road.
It's a veritable oasis after the hot pavements underfoot and hotter
sun overhead. It was not just the air-conditioning, it was the upscale
decor, good service and the mood of the place which made you feel you
have arrived where quiet chic is the norm and not an exception.
Certainly, it's the most up-market place in the capital ? ? '? ¶ equal to
anything in Italy, Paris or Amsterdam. A "double shot expresso" (K400)
shoots you up with enough energy to brave the 35C heat again. It is
deliciously strong, and goes perfectly well with the cheese cake (K400
per slice)
. The cakes and pastries come from the Nawarat Hotel bakery with a
good variety of chocolate-coconut-jam-cream concoctions on sale. Cafe
Aroma also offers fat free, home made ice cream, pizzas, a whole
variety of snacks, and coffee upon coffee with diverse origins and
flavours.
A row of high stools face the plate glass windows looking out to the
pavement, where one can watch the country, if not the world, go by.
One can also stare at the imposing facade of Traders Hotel just across
the road.
Magazine and newspapers in the racks give you the excuse to linger....
and linger. They have the Myanmar Times, which one tourist, out of the
five I saw there, immediately grabbed. He was still deep in it when I
left half an hour later.
This outlet is the biggest and best of the three Cafe aroma shops; the
other two are at Bogyoke Aung San Market and Yuzana Plaza. Fuji Coffee
House is another of the few upscale coffee shops. It is way out on
University Avenue, not far from Inya Road. Situated in a neat
bungalow, there is a small pretty garden at the back. Next to it is a
golf green where you can practise your putting if you feel so
inclined.
The shady umbrellas and shadier trees over white-painted garden chairs
are very inviting especially in the summer heat. Unfortunately, the
tables are set very near the kitchen, where the happy staff express
their exuberance in joyful song. Ah well, back inside. There are also
cosy private rooms apart from the tables set up between the counter
and the cake glass case. Double Expresso here is K500. Unlike the Cafe
Aroma, they served evaporated milk instead of pure milk. When asked if
they have no other kind of milk, the helpful and concerned waiter
wanted to know if I wanted to drink milk instead of coffee.
The cakes here are also from the Nawarat Hotel. But, their own
creations are worth menting, in particular the Fruit Sandwich: pieces
of fruit and cream instead of peanut butter or tuna, but why not?
Perfect for a warm day. (Four pieces for K600). Another cool
concoction is coffee jelly.
(K500). It would have been great to sit and sip coffee under the trees
without the serenade, although it speaks well a place when the staff
are happy. A very new place, barely six months old, is Cafe de Mio on
Baho Street, not far from the Sakura Hospital of Sanchaung Township.
It is located on the ground floor room in a block of flats, so the
neighbourhood is not that great.
Inside, it is pretty and cute Italian decor - all the way. The mood is
somewhat marred by loud Myanmar pop songs. Imported pure fruit syrups,
olive oil, wines etc are als o available. Caf? ? é de Mio have a menu of
15 different pasta dishes at prices ranging from K600 to K900. Double
Expresso at K380 is the cheapest out of all coffee houses, but should
be good, since the Brazilian Coffee I tried was excellent. (K300). The
bacon and mushroom omelet (K350) could have had the
bacon more crisp, but the tiny mushrooms were delicious, nestled in
the light omelete which was creamy inside, crisp outside.
Cappuccino is the "in" coffee with the Myanmar yuppies, and this place
has six varieties....among them, strawberry cappuccino, caramel,
apple-cinnamon. They serve fragrant green tea as a chaser, for
apparently the customers still demand this traditional Myanmar touch.
They have a magazine rack, but NO Myanmar Times.
The hotel cafes are also places where one can sip and chat quietly and
if they offer buffet high teas, and a good chance to stuff yourself.
The Inya Lake Hotel has one from 2:30pm to 5pm. Unfortunately I went
on a Friday, and the highly popular seafood lunch buffet was not quite
over. This buffet could not be cleared away since some of the lunchers
were still not done, so it was disconcerting to see platters of crab
claws set out where you are expecting to see bread pudding. Finally I
spied the tea buffet is being served in one far corner.
They do have delicious bread pudding. Also eight kinds of fruits,
including Kiwi Fruit and air-flown strawberries which you seldom see
in other hotels; 10 kinds of cakes and trifles, six kinds of ice
cream, two hot dishes, samosas and satay. And the coffee is delicious.
The milk is simple milk, praise be. With service tax, Tea for Two came
to $7.28. or, in Myanmar currency, K2402. Expensive I suppose for
locals. Traders Hotel has the city's best high tea buffet, at $5
(including service tax) for one, and it is served in the cosy lobby.
There are two kinds of dim sum, curry puffs, sausage rolls and spring
rolls, tuna and egg sandwiches, two kinds of scones, one made with
chocolate rice (which may be the Brit retaliation to chocolate chip
cookies), a cream cake, fruit tarts, marble cake and two kinds of
chocolate cake. The best of all these goodies is a very smooth, rich
chocolate cake that was worth the irritation of a vacuum
cleaner.
___________________ INTERNATIONAL _____________________
BANGKOK POST: TRYING AFRESH FOR REFORM IN BURMA
April 8, 2000
Razali Ismail, who served as Malaysia's ambassador to the United
Nations from
1988 to 1998, urged reform of the United Nations Security Council
when he was
president of the 51st UN General Assembly during 1996-97.
Though no end is in sight to the debate, the United States earlier
this week
indicated that it was coming round to his call for the decision-
making body to
expand from 15 to 24 members, by saying that it was now ready to
consider
"slightly" more than the 21 members it proposed years ago.
In appointing Mr Razali as special representative to Burma on
Tuesday, the UN
Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, paid tribute to his "exemplary
leadership role"
with the General Assembly 14 years ago.
Others have described Mr Razali as outspoken, and his current
position as
special adviser to Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad attests
to his
boldness and acumen.
Burma's Foreign Minister Win Aung, who passed through Bangkok the day
after
Mr Razali was appointed, welcomed the idea of having a fellow Asian
in this
position, saying an Asian should "understand" the problems of Burma
better than
someone from outside the region.
Thailand also should welcome the appointment of an individual from a
fellow
member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, as well as
prepare for
consultations Mr Razali is likely to seek as a next-door neighbour
who knows
Burma well and is most affected by its thinking.
Mr Razali replaces Alvaro de Soto of Peru, who met Burmese opposition
leader
Aung San Suu Kyi as well as members of the ruling military junta
during visits to
Rangoon over the past two years.
The UN Secretary-General expressed hope that Mr Razali would be able
to visit
Burma "shortly" in order to "facilitate" implementation of a UN
resolution last
December that decried continuing human rights abuses in the country.
The resolution also urged the junta to allow the UN special
rapporteur on human
rights, Rajsoomer Lallah, to conduct a field trip to the country.
While Mr Win Aung affirmed that Rangoon would "consider" any request
from Mr
Razali to visit the country, the minister held out against a trip by
Mr Lallah, citing
"suspicion" that the judge from Mauritius would use it simply to add
credibility to
his work, but in fact draw up a report based on preconceived notions.
Such discrimination does not help Rangoon, especially when grounded
on fear,
and Mr Razali will have to help dispel such thoughts through a great
deal of
confidence building.
Although Burma is in dire straits as a result of its own policies and
sanctions from
abroad, neither the soft, engagement approach of Asean nor the
hardline
isolation strategy of Western countries has succeeded yet in
convincing its
leaders to talk with its political opponents.
Hence the unwritten agreement in Seoul last month to pursue a UN
process to
break the deadlock.
Mr Razali's task is not easy, as Burma argues for help to bolster
economic well-
being before introducing political reform, while most members of the
international
community insist on the latter being in place first.
But while reiterating Burma's argument, Mr Win Aung , during the
meeting in
Bangkok in February of the United Nations Conference on Trade and
Development, did admit that his country needed international
financial aid.
Mr Razali can draw on this admission of need as well as significant
affinities-like
being a national of the same Asean club, of an ex-British colony,
besides being a
fellow Asian-to start a dialogue with the junta on a new course of
exchanges
towards benefit for all concerned.
_______________________________________________________
SYDNEY MORNING HERALD: AUSTRALIA JOINS BURMA IN HEROIN FIGHT
April 8, 2000.
By CRAIG SKEHAN, Herald Correspondent in Bangkok
Australia is co-operating with Burma's military rulers to challenge
drug lords who
are dumping cheap heroin on Australia's east coast, despite claims
that elements
of the regime are themselves linked to major traffickers.
The move aims to encourage the Burmese Government to tackle the heads
of
drug empires which are based in the opium growing region of the
country's far
north.
Despite a recent drop in opium production because of poor weather in
Burma,
the price of heroin continues to fall worldwide and purity has
increased as
Mexican and Colombian producers flood the United States market.
NSW police say heroin purity is already at an all-time high. "If you
got a foil
[about a gram] 10 years ago you'd anticipate the purity would be
about 10 per
cent," said a senior officer. "We would regard that as pretty good
gear. Now it's
common to get a foil of almost full purity, around 75 per cent."
As part of Canberra's new policy, the Australian military has stepped
up its
contribution to wider intelligence gathering, which includes the
stationing of a
Federal Police agent in Burma for the first time.
One immediate goal is to get tip-offs on major heroin shipments from
Burma to
Sydney, Melbourne and the Gold Coast.
The same region is also smuggling speed-like methamphetamine into
Thailand
and there are concerns that these drugs will be sent on to Australia.
The methamphetamine boom is having a major impact on once isolated
rural
villages in the "Golden Triangle" which are studded with new hotels
and casinos.
Australian anti-narcotics operatives were recently in Mong La to be
briefed on
efforts to stem the drug trade. But the production of tonnes of
heroin and
methamphetamines continues largely unabated in the outlying areas of
Shan
State.
Critics are cynical about collaboration between Australia and Burma.
The US and
the Thai military have accused Burma of tacitly allowing the
development of mini
"narco-States"
_______________________________________________________
BANGKOK POST: ARMY URGES OFFICIAL APPROACH TO BURMA
(April 9, 2000)
Junta's co-operation vital, says Surayud
Army chief Gen Surayud Chulanont has urged the Foreign Affairs
Ministry to hold urgent talks
with the Burmese military government on co-operation in drug
suppression.
Gen Surayud said although he has personal relations with Burmese
military leaders he would
rather leave the task to the appropriate agency.
Soldiers would not interfere in foreign affairs.
"No matter what Burma thinks about Thailand in the area of drug
suppression, we must be patient
and try to win its co-operation. By doing this they will see our
sincerity," Gen Surayud said.
The army commander-in-chief also said the military would work with
Phnom Penh authorities to
verify reports of drug factories emerging along Thailand's border
with Cambodia.
Gen Surayud said the army was also ready to support any project on
drug suppression and
prevention among the youth, especially in Bangkok slums.
However, it must first consult with the city administration and other
agencies, the
army commander-in-chief said.
_______________________________________________________
BANGKOK POST: WATERWAYS PACT TO BE SIGNED SOON
April 9, 2000
Transport ministers to meet in Tachilek
Saritdet Marukatat
A landmark agreement on commercial navigation on the Mekong river
will be signed within
weeks, a senior Burmese foreign ministry official said.
Kyaw Tint Swe, director-general of the International Organisations
and Economic Department,
said the transport ministers of Burma, Thailand, Laos and China would
meet in Tachilek-the
Burmese border town opposite Mae Sai district in Chiang Rai-in late
April or early May to sign the
agreement.
After years of negotiations, senior officials meeting in Rangoon last
month agreed on the draft
agreement, which aims to promote trade in the Mekong region.
The pact is part of the Greater Mekong Sub-region plan to open water,
land and air links within
the Mekong region, which also comprises Cambodia and Vietnam.
The Burmese official said the agreement would benefit cargo and
passenger transportation
between Burma, China, Laos and Thailand.
The agreement was time-consuming because the four countries needed to
produce regulations to
ensure safety standards for water navigation, he added.
Burma was assigned by the four countries to follow up progress of the
draft agreement on
commercial navigation on the Lancang/Mekong river.
The Mekong river is called Lancang in Chinese.
_________________OPINION/EDITORIALS___________________
BURMA COURIER: MYANMAR ECONOMY ABOUT TO TAKE OFF,
GENERALS PREDICT
Based on articles in NLM and MTBR: Updated to April 5, 2000
RANGOON -- Myanmar generals are nervously breathing optimism once
again
over the state of the country's fragile economy and predicting that
Burma is
poised to join other southeast Asian countries in regaining momentum
lost during
the regional recession of the last two years. Speaking to members of
the
Singapore Association in Myanmar last Sunday, General Khin Nyunt of
the ruling
military council said that he and his colleagues were "fully
confident" that
Myanmar was "on the verge of an economic takeoff stage in the very
near
future". He said that preliminary figures obtained for the fiscal
year that ended on
March 31 showed that the planned target of 6 per cent growth in the
country's
domestic production for 1999-2000 would "surely be surpassed".
The general
attributed the turn around in the Myanmar economy to the "correct
policies"
followed by the country's SPDC military regime in coping with the
regional
economic crisis. He said that his government's austerity campaign,
productivity
drive, export promotion and diversification and import substitution
measures, as
well as the "vigorous implementation of projects", and "support for
private
initiative" had "created the necessary conditions for economic
growth" in
Myanmar.
Predictions by "so-called experts from some western countries and
institutions'" that the Myanmar economy was "on the verge of
collapse" showed a
lack of understanding of the country's actual situation, General Khin
Nyunt said.
"Clouded by political bias and basing their data on wrong, outdated
statistics and
false information supplied by unscrupulous sources, they have arrived
at very
negative and mistaken conclusions." It was not immediately clear
what experts
and predictions the general was referring to. The most recent
exhaustive study of
the country's economy was undertaken by the World Bank in 1999 and
was
largely based on statistics provided by the Myanmar government's
Central
Statistical Organization. The WB study concluded that Myanmar's
economy had
great "potential" for growth, but that prospects for realizing the
potential were "not
good under the current policy regime" and that "continuing lacklustre
economic
performance "could have devastating consequences for poverty, human
development and social cohesion in Myanmar." Joining General Khin
Nyunt on
the optimistic chorus line was the country's investment guru, General
David Abel
of the SPDC State Chairman's Office.
In an interview with the English language
weekly, the Myanmar Times and Business Review, he predicted the new
fiscal
year would bring "a GDP growth rate of 6.6 per cent -- or even
more". David
Abel views the country's emerging middle class as the key to a turn-
around in the
country's economy. "People are becoming affluent in Myanmar," he told
MTBR.
"They are very important to us and are the leaders in commerce. ? ? '? ¥'? ¥ We
used
to have a large and successful business community. ? ? '? ¥'? ¥
Today we have a
burgeoning private sector. ? ? '? ¥'? ¥ Give us five years and you will see,"
he said "We
have immense natural resources and a strong hinterland," he reminded
the
Times. "These factors will help us in the future. We'll move
ahead." In fact, the
Minister, whose Cabinet responsibilities include ASEAN affairs, even
ventured to
suggest that Myanmar may surpass some of its neighbours in the
southeast
Asian nation bloc. "To tell the truth our thoughts are liberal,
perhaps far more
liberal than our ASEAN cousins. We are willing to act and promote
trade and
investment despite an economic disparity compared to our neighbours.
Don't
forget we are part of the new brigade.
The original six members of the group had
and have a greater wealth. But we've got conviction. Myanmar has a
long history
with a culture stretching back thousands of years." Contrary to the
usual line
dished out by his bosses in the inner circle of the State Peace and
Development
Council, the investment minister even had something positive to say
about the
country's 'colonialist' heritage.
"We were once a British colony and have similar
codes of law as many of our ASEAN friends. That means we understand
Common Law principles. The ex-French colonies have found the system
more
rigorous," he said. "Especially some of the younger types from
countries like
Malaysia and Thailand were taken quite aback with our lucidity and
how quickly
we grasped concepts and responded in an articulate manner."
_______________________ OTHER _________________________
BURMANET: COMMUNITY MEETING WITH MYANMAR AMBASSADOR IN
OTTAWA
April 8, 2000
BurmaNet has an unconfirmed report that there will be a Burmese
Community
meeting with the Myanmar Ambassador to Canada at 46 Deanvar Ave.
(Scarborough),
Ottawa, at 7PM, April 15th.
________________
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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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