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[theburmanetnews] BurmaNet News: Ap
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Subject: [theburmanetnews] BurmaNet News: April 14, 2000
______________ THE BURMANET NEWS ______________
An on-line newspaper covering Burma
______________ www.burmanet.org _______________
April 14, 2000
Issue # 1509
This edition of The BurmaNet News is viewable online at:
*Inside Burma
KNU: BURMA ARMY INCREASES ARMED FORCES SALARIES
ARNO: NEWS FROM ARAKAN STATE
*International
BANGKOK POST: WAR GAMES TO BE HELD NEAR BURMESE BORDER
BANGKOK POST: KAREN HELD AFTER JUNTA SEIZES BASE
MTBR: AFTER HALF A CENTURY MYANMAR ART MAKES A COMEBACK IN BRITISH
CIRCLES
*Opinion/Editorials
BANGKOK POST: GOOD NEIGHBORS HELP ONE ANOTHER
THE ATLANTA JOURNAL AND CONSTITUTION: MASSACHUSETTS AND MYANMAR: DO
STATES' RIGHTS EXTEND TO MAKING FOREIGN POLICY?
FINANCIAL TIMES (LONDON) : AN ETHICAL MILLSTONE AROUND THE FOREIGN
SECRETARY'S NECK
___________________ INSIDE BURMA ______________________
KNU: BURMA ARMY INCREASES ARMED FORCES SALARIES
INFORMATION RELEASE KNU Mergui-Tavoy District Information Department
April 14, 2000
05/00
Burma army increased its arm personal salaries
Tenasserim Division, BURMA: According to a military source, on March
28, 2000, Burma army's Office of Ministry of Defense (Infantry) has
ordered its arm forces: Infantry, Air forces, Navy and all Operation
Commanding HQ to increase their arm personal salaries from the start
of April 1, 2000.
According to the ordered, the salary of a private increased from 700
kyat to 3000 kyat.
The new salaries for the armed personal are as follow.
1. Brigadier General 15000-20000 kyat per month
2. Colonel 15000-16000
3. Lt. Col. 14000-15000
4. Major 13000-14000
5. Captain 10400-11400
6. Lieutenant 9200-10200
7. 2nd Lt. 9000-10000
8 Sergeant major 1st class 7100-7600
9. Serg. maj. 2nd class 6500-7000
10. Sergeant 5300-6000
11. Corporal 4700-4800
12. 1st class private 3500-4000
13. Private 3000.
>From private to Brigadier General could have and extra 1000 kyat for
their hard work and take responsibility or involved in USDA, Union
Solidarity and Development Association.
Concerning Burma army or State Peace and Development Council SPDC
increasing its arm personal salaries, an observer from Burma ethnic
resistance group has analysis: "With the help of China's military
material and technical assistance junta's wealth have increased and
with cooperation of international companies and business, the economy
status still could maintain their power they siege from the people.
With the humanitarian assistance from UNDP and some other foreign
countries, SPDC could neglect the expenditures for health, education,
and communication so that they could use almost all the national
income for their military might. That was why in 1st April of year
2000 they could released an order to minimized their "in military"
problems by increasing the salaries of the armed personals in their
(Tamadaw) who were paid and maintained poorly. (An ordinary soldiers
was paid 700 kyat a month when one US$ worth 300-400 kyat in actual
market places.) Now with the sympathetic and cooperation form
international the military junta could increase the salary of their
power supporters 5-6 time more and expected to implement their
planned strength 500,000 men in the near future."
Burma army (Tamadaw) is an arm forces to support the power elongation
of military junta of Burma. Since the military took over state power
from the people elected government in 1962 the junta had increased
its military power with decision to able maintain their power against
the will of people in the country.
As the military power increased, people in all over the country have
to suffer more oppressive, destructions, tortures, and abuses
cruelly. Especially in the remote ethnics' territories, the
atrocities are in massive. It also became awareness and worry for the
neighboring country's security.
Note:
Kyat: Burma currency
USDA: An SPDC backup mass organization
_______________________________________________________
ARNO: NEWS FROM ARAKAN STATE
News and Analysis of the Arakan Rohingya National Organisation,
Arakan (Burma)
Volume: 2, Issue-2 February, 2000
14 Ulema arrested for re-construction of Mosque
On 25th February 2000 the commanding officer of the NaSaKa 4 Area had
arrested 14 Ulema (religious leaders) from Ziban Chaung (Ziban Khali)
village under Bawlibazar township for alleged reconstruction by the
villagers of their age-old village mosque. The arrested persons
include Moulvi Khaled son of Moulvi Sayed and Moulvi Rashid. The
military prohibits building or repairs of any mosques or Muslim
institutes particularly in Arakan. But the military subject the poor
Rohingya villagers to provide compulsory forced labour day, in day
out for the erection and building of new and increased Buddhist
pagodas and monasteries.
One refugee killed in Bangladesh Camps
On March 7th 2000 Gul Mohammad, a 70 year old Rohingya refugee housed
in shed No. 72, Room No. 6, Block C, of the Nayapara refugee camp 1
of Bangladesh was killed by a Magistrate of the camp. According to
the refugees of the camp Gul Mohammad who consented to be repatriated
to Arakan from Bangladesh was beaten to death when he approached the
camp authorities for the quota he deserves to get as a returnee. The
incident was said to have occurred before the UNHCR staff. There have
been reports of many untoward incidents in the Rohingya refugee camps
in Bangladesh in the past too.
Arrest of Buddhist Monks with Arms
On the night of 4 March 2000, the NaSaKa personnel belonging to Area
No.14 had arrested two Buddhist monks for alleged possession of
sophisticated pistols and anti-SLORC propaganda leaflets. The two
monks were taken to the Tactical Operation Command headquarters where
they were disrobed and tortured. Later the SPDC authorities alleged
them as the members of the armed opposition group. It is not known
whether the case have been fabricated. Under SPDC rule religious
personalities have been humiliated and insulted, particularly the
Muslims Ulema have become the main target of the military.
Na Sa Ka Killed One Rohingya
On 12 February 2000, one Abdul Kalam (42) son of Abdul Hashim of
Kranthama Palaytaung village (Maghbil) under Buthidaung township was
arrested and tortured to death by the NaSaKa forces for resisting the
order of the No. 522 battalion commander to demolish his house when
the whole villagers have been ordered to vacate their village and
lands for the settlement of the hostile new Buddhist settlers. The
following day, the dead body was buried by NaSaKa themselves without
giving information to the family of the deceased. Rather, NaSaKa
forces had forcibly demolished his house on the same day.
Arakan nationals are denied National Identity Cards says A.H.R.W.
More than 30,000 Arakan nationals are deprived of citizen's rights as
the government refused to issue National Identity Cards to them
according to an exile group which is monitoring human rights
violation in Arakan state of Burma. On 11.3.2000 the India-based
Arakan Human Rights Watch (AHRW) said that about thirty thousands
Arakan nationals living in and around Sittwe (Akyab), capital of
Arakan have no national Identity Cards as government refused to issue
new ID cards to them. After it came to 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 college, 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 died in Mandalay and Rangoon. They are
in fact like under house arrest in their own places." Said Khaing
Aung Kyaw from AHRW. Though they have written many times to the Home
Minister on the issue, there has been no reply so far from the
government. They have their own political parties formed and even
contested in the 1990 elections and have elected as Members of
Parliament.
More Buddhist settlements
More lands are being confiscated from the Rohingya in recent days to
establish more Buddhist settlements in northern Arakan. The District
Peace and Development Council Chairman and Tactical Operation Command
of Na Sa Ka has ordered to confiscate more lands for the construction
of new Buddhist cluster villages. On 22.2.2000 the authorities seized
more than 20,000 acres of arable land from the following Rohingyas
villages in Buthidaung township:
(1) Maung Gyi Taung village 400 acres
(2) Mi Gaung Ze village 4000 acres
(3) Dabain Chaung village 400 acres
(4.) Nan Ra Gon village 400 acres.
These villagers have now become homeless, shelterless and jobless.
___________________ INTERNATIONAL _____________________
BANGKOK POST: WAR GAMES TO BE HELD NEAR BURMESE BORDER
April 14, 2000
Gunners and cavalry units to take part
Armored infantry and artillery units will take part in the military's
first joint exercise kin Mae Sot district, Tak, near the sensitive
Burmese border, later this month.
The exercise, from April 23-27, will involve the 2nd Cavalry Division
from Bangkok, the Artillery Battalion from Lop Buri, and the 4th
Infantry Division based in TAk, an army source said.
"If the situation along the border becomes tense, troops from Bangkok
and Lop Buri have to act as back-up. So training is needed to ensure
they are prepared," the source said.
The media would not be allowed to observe the exercise because the
area was sensitive. Border disputes and incursions are common in the
district.
A source in the Supreme Command said yesterday next year's Thai-US
joint military exercise would be held in the Third Army Region, which
includes the northern border.
This year's exercise will be held in the southern provinces next
month.
The army will consider amending a conscription law and ministerial
regulation to enable tribespeople, including Sagai nomads, to join up.
Maj-Gen Saksin Thipayakesorn, chief of the Army's Reserve Affairs
Department, said the planned amendments would allow tribesmen from
all ethnic minority groups living in the country to enlist.
The 45th ministerial regulation, which was jointly drafted by the
Defence Ministry and the Interior Ministry and Article 13 in the 1954
Conscription Act prohibit tribespeople living in 500 villages in 26
border provinces of Thailand from entering military service.
He said the Secretariat Department has been assigned to study the
planned amendments of the two laws and forward them to the defence
minister for consideration.
_______________________________________________________
BANGKOK POST: KAREN HELD AFTER JUNTA SEIZES BASE
April 14, 2000
Tak
Two Karen National Union rebels were arrested yesterday when fleeing
across the border after their base was overrun by Burmese troops.
The Karen were disarmed by police and handed to the Fourth Infantry
Regiment Task Force in Mae Sot.
At dawn, about 200 Burmese troops attacked a base which is under
KNU's Sixth Division opposite Ban Tha Lor, tambon Mae Ramat.
Karen fighters led by Lt-Gen Htay Maung fought back but were
overpowered and forced to abandon the base, sources said. During the
fighting, three mortar rounds fell on Thai soil but did not explode.
The fighting prompted border patrol police to step up security near
the Moei River to prevent intrusions.
Col Chainarong Tahnaroon, the task force chief, later beefed up
security by sending troops and heavy weapons to the areas opposite
the battle zone.
According to border sources, KNU rebels were expected to attempt to
regain the base.
- Authorities in Mae Hong Son have been told to keep a close watch on
the movement of Burmese students in four refugee camps ahead of the
annual meeting of the Asian Development Bank.
Security would be tightened at four refugee camps in Muang, Khun
Yuam, Mae Sariang and Sob Moei districts to prevent protests during
the meeting in Chiang Mai. The camps shelter about 34,000 Burmese and
Karen refugees.
Bangkok Post (April 14, 2000)
MTBR: AFTER HALF A CENTURY MYANMAR ART MAKES A COMEBACK IN BRITISH
CIRCLES
THE MYANMAR TIMES & BUSINESS REVIEW
April 10 - 23 ,2000
Volume 1, No.6 & 7
Cover Story
HALF A century after Myanmar artists vanished from the UK scene they
are tentatively stepping back into the arena and promoting the unique
characteristics of their talent to a larger, global audience. An
exhibition, which has just opened in Wales, is raising eyebrows in the
highbrow art scene of Britain, but talent is clearly showing through.
The history of Myanmar art in the UK stretches back to the turn of
the century. Before the second World War Myanmar famed artists U Ba
Nyan (1897-1945) and U Ba Zaw (1891-1943) went to England to study
western art and its techniques. U Ba Nyan was not only able to
continue his art studies, but also achieved eminence in England and
across Europe. After the war U San Win (1904-1981), U Khin Maung
(Yangon) (1919-1999), U Ba Kyi (1914 -) and U Saw Maung (1900- 1969)
also journeyed to England to further their studies. U San Win, U Ba
Kyi and U Khin Maung were able to display their works at art
exhibitions held in England ? '¶ with great success and critical acclaim.
Certainly they were leading artists who had achieved fame in Myanmar
art circles. But after these masters, none followed in their
footsteps and work was not exhibited publicly in England and Europe
for more
than four decades. Only in 1999, did a single Myanmar artist emerge
to have his work displayed in England. That artist was Min Wae Aung,
a creative spirit, well and truly alive and still in his prime. He
was able to exhibit 25 of his paintings at a one-man exhibition
entitled
? '³Moving Through Landscapes? '´.
The exhibition was held at the Motcomb Art Gallery in Knightsbridge,
London late last year. Nineteen of his 25 paintings were purchased by
collectors. Following on the heels of this success another is
currently being held in Gwynedd, Wales. The exhibition by six Myanmar
artists is called ? '³In Search of Tranquillity? '´ and is on show at the
Art Gallery of EDISON Mission Energy? '²s Electric Mountain in Llanberis
The six Myanmar artists displaying their works are Maung Maung
Yay,Min Wae Aung, Win Pe Myint, Soe Moe, Kyaw Shein and Khin Thaung.
The 103 paintings include watercolours, oils, and acrylic. The
exhibition runs from 2nd April to 30th June. ? '³To be able to hold an
art exhibition in England, in a large city like London, is not
something you can do alone. The expense is enormous. So we have to
make a trial run in places like Liverpool or in a province like
Wales,? '´ said\ Min Wae Aung. ? '³There are artists from the Southeast
Asian region who are doing shows in England. The Vietnamese
especially have made a good head start and have become established.
So it is up to Myanmar artists like us to try and make a place and a
name for ourselves on the international scene. We? '²re planning
a ? '³Travel Exhibition? '´ in England.? '´
The paintings shown at the exhibition depict Myanmar manners, customs
and scenes. The warm and vibrant colours that dominate the paintings
are certain to attract the eyes of European art lovers, said local
art critics.
____________OPINION/EDITORIALS_____________
_______________________________________________________
BANGKOK POST: GOOD NEIGHBORS HELP ONE ANOTHER
April 14, 2000
Good neighbours make for good fences. That principle underlies Thai
foreign policy, particularly with regard to Burma. It is why Thailand
braved an international boycott of the Rangoon junta to
champion "constructive engagement" and finally brought Burma into
Asean. But with billions of methamphetamine pills pouring into
Thailand from across the border in recent years, Burma's credentials
as a good fence are looking especially suspect.
The situation has reached the point where normally restrained Thai
security authorities-the military and the National Security Council-
have accused Rangoon of pursuing a "two-faced" policy in relation to
Thailand. They also feel it may have been a mistake to admit Burma
into Asean and have called for a change in Thai policy.
A decade ago methamphetamines were used almost exclusively by truck
drivers to stay awake on long hauls. Today they have found their way
into our schools and an alarming number of Thai children and youths
have become hooked. Methamphetamine cases have jumped from 1.8% to
67.3% of drug-related court cases in 10 years. This year, it is
estimated that 600 million speed pills, produced in 55 border
factories each capable of churning out a million pills monthly, will
flood Thailand.
No matter how hard Thailand works to suppress the drug inside our
borders, the effort is doomed to failure. As the military and the NSC
point out, the root of the problem lies on the other side of the
border. The bulk of the methamphetamines sold in Thailand are made by
the United Wa State Army which dominates areas opposite our northern
provinces. The UWSA is the largest producer of both heroin and
methamphetamines but enjoys an especially cordial relationship with
the Burmese junta. Late last year, the first-secretary of the State
Peace and Development Council even visited Mong Yawn, the Wa
stronghold in Shan State.
The Burmese junta says it can do nothing to help Thailand suppress
drug trafficking since the area is not under its control. The Wa are
former insurgents who made peace with the junta in 1989 in an
agreement that allows them to retain their weapons and exercise
control over large areas bordering Thailand and China. This,
compounded by other border problems such as refugees, cross border
shelling, troop incursions and the unilateral closure of the border
by Burma, has convinced the Thai military the SPDC is out to
destabilise Thailand. It also suspects the junta is reluctant to
crack down on the Wa because it is paid drug money. And with
international trade sanctions, supporting the illegal drug exports
earns Rangoon much needed revenue.
In its defence, the junta points to its crop substitution and drug
suppression co-operation with Thailand and other countries. It points
to a significant drop in poppy acreage last year. The junta says it
is committed to eradicating drugs from Burma within 15 years, with
the biggest areas being taken out of production by 2005. However, its
efforts do not bear out this promise. The drop in acreage last year
was largely due to bad weather. More importantly, the decline in
poppy cultivation is more than made up by methamphetamine production.
And the Burmese government has yet to do anything about that.
Thailand cannot wait 15 years until Burma removes all sources of drug
production. In the meantime, as a good neighbour, Burma must help
Thailand in its efforts to stop the drug production, especially of
methamphetamines-the number one drug threat to Thai society. Failing
to do so will have dire consequences for both countries. The Thai
military is even pondering unilateral military options to eliminate
the drug threat. Hopefully it will not come to that but the fact that
the option exists at all says a lot about how dangerous it could be
if neighbours do not choose to act as good fences for one another.
_______________________________________________________
THE ATLANTA JOURNAL AND CONSTITUTION: MASSACHUSETTS AND MYANMAR: DO
STATES' RIGHTS EXTEND TO MAKING FOREIGN POLICY?
April 13, 2000, Thursday,
Richard Matthews, Staff
Let's face it: Nobody is going to be much interested in news from the
great state of Massachusetts unless Ted Kennedy is driving. It's even
less likely that people will become engrossed in a story about an
effort by Massachusetts to dictate how people somewhere else ought to
live their lives, because that's hardly news. (Don't their license
plates read " Massachusetts --- the Holier-than-Thou State"?) Still,
news that fits that description perfectly caught my attention the
other day, prompting some serious thinking --- not because of what it
means for one state, but because the arguments swirling around it may
have serious implications for America's attempts to remain an
important force for change in the world.
Here's the story, briefly: The U.S. Supreme Court last month heard a
challenge to a Massachusetts law that restricts state contracting
with companies that do business with Myanmar, the military
dictatorship formerly called Burma. Companies object because it
affects their freedom of action in the international arena. The U.S.
government objects because, it contends, the state is interfering
with American foreign policy by trying to exert its own influence on
the actions of another country. "It has created considerable
discomfort with trading partners and allies," Solicitor General Seth
Waxman argued before the high court.
"Instead of conversations with traders about what to do with Burma,
our conversations now are what to do with Massachusetts." No one can
reasonably defend the military regime that keeps the people of
Myanmar enslaved. The question is not whether it should be opposed,
but how -- - and whether a state can take a course in that regard
that is separate, and different, from that chosen by Washington.
Almost certainly that can cause difficulties for the federal
government (although it's not clear that it confuses the generals in
Myanmar as much as it irritates the American business community).
Surely it would be better, from a practical view, if U.S. foreign
policy were always seen as uniform and consistent. (Achieving that
might mean having a long, hard talk with the Commerce, Defense and
State departments, however.)
The problem comes when the challenge to the Massachusetts law is
couched in the terms argued before the justices last month: that it
is an effort to interfere with the nation's foreign policy. What's
troubling is how similar that is to the protests from other
countries, such as China, about U.S. criticism of human rights abuses
and other offensive behaviors. "
These are internal matters," other governments insist. "America has
no right to interfere with what happens within our borders." The one
answer that completely justifies the U.S. actions is this: We are not
necessarily telling you what you ought to do or must do. But we have
an absolute right to determine how we spend our money, whom we wish
to do business with, and whom we select as our friends. Those things
are our internal matters, and no other country can tell us that we
cannot make those decisions for ourselves.
That being the U.S. position, isn't it disingenuous for Washington to
tell Massachusetts that it can't decide how to spend its money, or
whom to do business with? Richard Matthews is a member of the
JOurnal's editorial board. His column runs in the Journal on
Thursday. rmatthews@xxxxxxx
_______________________________________________________
FINANCIAL TIMES (LONDON) : AN ETHICAL MILLSTONE AROUND THE FOREIGN
SECRETARY'S NECK
April 14, 2000, Friday
Andrew Parker and Andrew Ward report on the accusations of government
hypocrisy in policies towards China and Burma
By ANDREW PARKER and ANDREW WARD
When Robin Cook proclaimed shortly after Labour's 1997 election
victory that the new government would bring an "ethical dimension" to
its foreign policy, the foreign secretary did not appreciate the
millstone he had placed around his own neck. The latest embarrassment
came on Tuesday, when Premier Oil said it did not intend to heed a
call by the government to abandon its activities in Burma.
The Foreign Office wants British companies to pull out of Burma to
increase pressure on Rangoon's military government. The government's
unprecedented request to Premier, which angered the Confederation of
British Industry, also coincided with confirmation that Britain would
not back a US motion of censure on China's human rights record at the
United Nations for the third year running.
This contrast in the government's approach to Burma and China risks
increasing public cynicism about the "ethical" foreign policy. The
public's impression of the policy is rooted in two main events. In
July 1997 the government allowed the sale of British Hawk military
aircraft to Indonesia, despite the Suharto regime's human rights
abuses in East Timor. Last October police cracked down on protests
during the state visit by Jiang Zemin, the Chinese president. The
trip was followed by new concessions for British banks operating in
China. Peter Hain, the Foreign Office minister responsible for human
rights issues, responds to criticism by stating the government should
not operate by the dictum "if you cannot do everything, you do
nothing". He tacitly admitted this month there was a mistake in
promising an ethical dimension to foreign policy. He told the New
Statesman the policy was presented "as if we could have perfection".
Lord Hurd, the former Conservative foreign secretary, suggests the
ethical dimension was initially given so much prominence because it
delighted Labour party activists.
He believes Mr Cook will now regret his May 1997 statement. "He got
carried away. What you can say is it's horses for courses. With China
we do talk about human rights, and we hope it will have some effect.
With Burma you can do something more direct. That is double
standards. It's applying different things to different people. It's
realpolitik." During Labour's first year in office human rights were
accorded a high priority. The government's criteria for approving
arms sales were tightened, and Britain played a leading role in
persuading the European Union to adopt a code of conduct on arms
exports.
But after an initial honeymoon period, human rights organisations
began to criticise the government. They questioned
Britain's "constructive engagement" with countries with poor human
rights records. Amnesty International is disappointed Britain has not
publicly rebuked countries where the UK has strong commercial
interests, such as Saudi Arabia. The Commons foreign affairs
committee concluded in December that the princi ples behind
constructive engagement "do not appear to have solid ethical
foundations". It pointed out the countries where Britain has taken
tough action to safeguard human rights - Burma, Iraq and Serbia - "do
not pose really hard choices for us as they are all countries with
which the UK now has minimal trade and which are viewed as pariah
states by the majority of the international community". Business,
nevertheless, is angry at the government's request to Premier to pull
out of Burma.
The chief executive of a large oil company said his organisation had
been encouraged by the government to "engage" in the economies of
countries which might be considered to have poor human rights
records. He added: "The ethical foreign policy would be acceptable if
it was applied everywhere equally and if companies were compensated
for pulling out of places like Burma. But there are clear
inconsistencies." However, business can rest assured that the Foreign
Office is unlikely to target any other countries. It will not, for
example, be focusing on Russia, despite evidence that the conflict in
Chechnya has been as devastating as Serbia's military action in
Kosovo. The Foreign Office will instead be hoping that next week's
visit by Vladimir Putin, Russia's president elect, does not become
embroiled in the controversy that marred Mr Jiang's trip.
________________
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