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______________ THE BURMANET NEWS ______________
        An on-line newspaper covering Burma 
______________ www.burmanet.org _______________

June 23, 2000

Issue # 1562


The BurmaNet News is viewable online at:
http://theburmanetnews.editthispage.com


NOTED IN PASSING:

"Whatever its regime may proclaim, Myanmar seems to be relying on 
ever more horrible methods to sustain an indefensible export trade."

The Economist magazine. (See THE ECONOMIST: DRUGS AND SLAVERY IN 
MYANMAR)
	
*Inside Burma

THE ECONOMIST: DRUGS AND SLAVERY IN MYANMAR

FAR EASTERN ECONOMIC REVIEW: IF THAN SHWE HAS GONE, EXPECT A LONG-
STANDING POWER STRUGGLE BETWEEN MAUNG AYE AND KHIN NYUNT

MYANMAR INFORMATION COMMITTEE: JICA AND MAPT DISCUSS ENERGY SECTORS 
FOR RURAL DEVELOPMENT 

NEW LIGHT OF MYANMAR: MINISTER MEETS OFFICIALS OF UPM OF MALAYSIA


*Regional

BANGKOK POST: BURMESE GOVERNMENT WAS THE ONLY COUNTRY IN ASEAN 
EXPORTING PROBLEMS TO OTHER MEMBERS--NON-INTERVENTION IS NO LONGER 
RELEVANT

*International

THE JAPAN TIMES: REFUGEE ATTACKS JAPAN'S ASYLUM PROCESS--U.S. 
WELCOMED ACTIVIST 


*Economy/Business

FP: TOTALFINA-ELF CHAIRMAN DEFENDS MYANMAR INVESTMENT DECISION 
			
*Opinion/Editorials

EARTHRIGHTS INTERNATIONAL:  SUPREME COURT DECISION HURTS DEMOCRACY 
MOVEMENT IN BURMA AND U.S. 

*Other

JOINT ACTION COMMITTEE: BURMESE LITERATURE TALK IN DC

TREND MICRO US VIRUS RESEARCH GROUP: NEW VIRUS ALERT00VBS_STAGES.A 
(A.K.A. SCRAPWORM AND LIFESTAGES)





__________________ INSIDE BURMA ____________________
	

THE ECONOMIST: DRUGS AND SLAVERY IN MYANMAR

June 24, 2000 , U.S. Edition


    A MEASURE of the fear and repression in Myanmar can be readily 
found by talking to its refugees in neighbouring Thailand. About 1m 
have fled to border towns like Mae Sot to avoid economic collapse and 
repression by a brutal military regime. Many have found their way 
into the growing Thai economy, but some 90,000 refugees remain in 
camps on the border. Among the more worrying stories they tell are of 
a homeland that increasingly relies on slavery.

To judge by the reports of recent refugees, slavery seems 
particularly widespread in such states as Shan and Karen. Myanmar's 
army only recently took full control of these remote border areas. 
The regime,   which ten years ago ignored an unambiguous election 
victory by the opposition National League for Democracy, has arranged 
ceasefires with most of the rebel ethnic groups, but keeps control 
only by using slaves to build defences, roads and bridges. Locals are 
forced to clear land, act as porters for the army and provide food 
and housing. Refugees claim that forced labourers are even made to 
march along roads that have been mined by rebels.

"It is a matter of life or death. Now we have people coming from deep 
inside Burma [Myanmar], not just the border," explains the leader of 
the Um Phiem refugee camp, on a muddy, crowded hillside on the Thai 
border. Their stories, and other accounts collected clandestinely 
inside Myanmar, tell of horrific forced labour. Sometimes they 
involve  prisoners, even petty criminals. One man says he was plucked 
from a train for not  having a ticket and forced to work for the army 
on a starvation diet. 

In this deeply Buddhist country, the army usually describes the work 
demanded of forced labourers as a traditional merit-earning activity. 
Unfortunately,  the
800,000 or so people who are thought to be exploited in this way have 
little say about it. Their numbers have been estimated by groups 
compiling evidence for the UN's International Labour Organisation. In 
a conference in Geneva last week, the ILO urged that Myanmar should 
face further international isolation because of its use of forced 
labour. The regime, which has lately been making renewed efforts to 
gain recognition abroad and to woo foreign investors, has responded 
angrily, denying that it uses forced labour and  giving warning that 
foreign meddling would "only impede the process of  democratisation".

This is not a process, however, that has been much in evidence.  The 
army has about 400,000 men and takes the lion's share of government 
spending. Even so, its soldiers are ill-equipped. Most of them are 
frightened conscripts, of whom many are also forced to work unpaid 
for the various businesses run by their officers. These may be as 
innocuous as, say brick making. Or they may involve illegal logging, 
smuggling or Myanmar's  flourishing drugs industry.

The United States has condemned Myanmar as the biggest producer of 
opium after Afghanistan. The Thais are concerned about the quantities 
of what are called yabba flowing across the border. These potent 
amphetamines are increasingly being manufactured in Myanmar's border 
region. Whatever its regime may proclaim, Myanmar seems to be relying 
on ever more horrible methods to sustain an indefensible export trade.





____________________________________________________


FAR EASTERN ECONOMIC REVIEW: IF THAN SHWE HAS GONE, EXPECT A LONG-
STANDING POWER STRUGGLE BETWEEN MAUNG AYE AND KHIN NYUNT.  

Issue cover-dated June 29, 2000

BURMA'S GEN. THAN SHWE never wished to become head of the country's 
military junta. As deputy chairman he was forced into the role in 
1992 after his late predecessor, Gen. Saw Maung, was forced to step 
down on health grounds. But in light of recent reports that Than Shwe 
himself is now seriously ill, attention is shifting to his two 
closest underlings, army commander Gen. Maung Aye and intelligence 
chief Lt.-Gen. Khin Nyunt. If Than Shwe goes, diplomats in Rangoon 
expect a long-standing power struggle between the two to spill into 
the open.  The significance of such a development is more than a 
matter of domestic concern. A power struggle could change 

Rangoon's relationship with the outside world, most notably with 
China and its main strategic rival in the region, India. Khin Nyunt 
is seen as pro-Chinese. Maung Aye, however, is said to be concerned 
about Burma's heavy dependence on arms supplies from China, and 
Chinese migration into northern parts of the country. While senior 
Indian officials are reluctant to characterize Maung Aye as anti-
Chinese, New Delhi has nonetheless been conducting a charm offensive 
to encourage him to take a more independent foreign-policy stance.  

Signs that Maung Aye is preparing for the post-Than Shwe era are 
already evident. Thai intelligence officials say he recently visited 
the Mong Yawn base of the United Wa State Army, where he informed 
combatants that in future they would have to report to him. The UWSA, 
a former rebel army of 10,000-20,000 fighters that made peace with 
the government in 1989, has so far been close to Khin Nyunt. It 
controls most of the Golden Triangle's lucrative drugs trade and has 
close ties with China.  

India's main concern in Burma has long been China. New Delhi has 
sought to counter Beijing's influence by supporting Burma's pro-
democracy forces. But since 1993, India has shifted its strategy out 
of concern that its policies had achieved little while pushing Burma 
closer to Beijing. "While our hearts are with the pro-democracy 
movement, we can't wait for them to come to power," says an overseas-
based Indian diplomat, who asked not to be identified. "We have to 
counter China's influence here and now."  

INDIA REAPS ECONOMIC BENEFIT 

Swaran Singh, a Burma expert at New Delhi's Institute for Defence 
Studies and Analyses, says that in the early 1990s, Burma was seen as 
another province of China. "Today," he says, "it is completely 
different. Asean [the Association of Southeast Asian Nations] and 
India have also moved in."  

Part of that new policy appears to be to exploit the rift between 
Maung Aye and Khin Nyunt. In January this year, Maung Aye paid a 
highly publicized visit to India--notably without Khin Nyunt. Since 
then it has emerged that he offered military cooperation to help 
tackle cross-border insurgencies in India's volatile northeastern 
states. Government officials in New Delhi say India has been 
supplying nonlethal military aid to Burma in return, including boots 
and combat gear for soldiers. India has also leased helicopters.  

Indian companies have also begun to promote trade and investment in 
Burma. In late May, Bombay industrialist G.L. Goenka headed a 
business delegation to Rangoon. The visitors discussed projects from 
copper exploration near the Indian border to a natural-gas pipeline 
from Burma to India. Government officials in New Delhi say talks are 
at an advanced stage on a 1,000-megawatt hydroelectric project on the 
Chindwin River that would supply power to both countries.  

Maung Aye also played a tough negotiator during a trip to Beijing 
this month. China and Burma had been expected to conclude an accord 
during the trip, providing China's southwestern provinces with access 
to the Indian Ocean via the Bhamo river port in northern Burma. But a 
firm deal wasn't reached. "While China will get some concessions, it 
won't get all that it asked for," says a Thailand-based Asian 
diplomat.  

For Burma's pro-democracy movement, the emerging power struggle and 
the big-power games being played out in back rooms during foreign 
visits are bad news. "It shows that more and more countries in the 
region now believe that the junta is there to stay," says the 
Thailand-based diplomat. And Maung Aye, a military hardliner, may be 
better poised to ensure this state of affairs prevails than the 
relatively more outgoing and mundane Khin Nyunt. 




____________________________________________________


MYANMAR INFORMATION COMMITTEE: JICA AND MAPT DISCUSS ENERGY SECTORS 
FOR RURAL DEVELOPMENT 

YANGON

Information Sheet
N0. B-1419 (I)                  23rd   June, 2000

    A delegation led by Director Mr. Yuji Otake of Energy and Mining 
Development Study Division of Japan International Cooperation Agency 
(JICA) met a Myanmar Delegation led by Managing Director of Myanma 
Agricultural Produce Trading at the meeting hall of MAPT on 22 June. 
They discussed matters related to energy sector for the development 
of rural areas in Myanmar.

[BurmaNet adds: The Japan International Cooperation Agency is the 
Japanese government agency involved in sponsoring the feasibility 
study for the Salween dam project in Burma's Shan State.  The 
feasibility study is either completed or all but completed.  One 
diplomat from a country urging Japan not to fund the dam told 
BurmaNet that "crunch time" comes once the feasibility study is 
finished and Japan has to decide whether to go forward.  That time is 
essentially now.]



____________________________________________________


NEW LIGHT OF MYANMAR: MINISTER MEETS OFFICIALS OF UPM OF MALAYSIA

YANGON, 22 June- Minister for Livestock and Fisheries Brig-Gen Maung 
Maung Thein met Dean Dato  Dr Sheikh Omar Abdul Rahman of UPM of 
Malaysia and party at his office at 5 pm today. 

Also present were Deputy Minister U Aung Thein, Director-General U 
Kyaw Lwin of Directorate of Livestock and Fisheries, Director-General 
U Maung Maung Nyunt of Livestock Breeding and Veterinary Department, 
Director-General U Than Tun of Fisheries Department and Head of 
Office U Myint Shwe



___________________________ REGIONAL ___________________________


BANGKOK POST: BURMESE GOVERNMENT WAS THE ONLY COUNTRY IN ASEAN 
EXPORTING PROBLEMS TO OTHER MEMBERS--NON-INTERVENTION IS NO LONGER 
RELEVANT

 June 22, 2000.


Bhanravee Tansubhapol


Asean's policy of non-interference in the affairs of member states is 
no longer relevant, Deputy Foreign Minister Sukhumbhand Paribatra 
said yesterday.  Asean must become more responsible for its own 
affairs, he told a seminar on the future of the regional bloc.  
Adjustment was necessary to strengthen the grouping internally to 
cope with future challenges and prevent outside interference. 

Global and regional integration were two challenges for Asean. It 
needed to be alert and well prepared for economic, political, 
environmental, health and human rights issues, M.R. Sukhumbhand 
said.  Member states must improve the quality of their political, 
economic and social institutions, to allow the people more political 
participation, and to have transparent rules and accountable 
governments.  He praised Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia, all new members, 
for their co-operation with other members. 

Surapong Jayanama, director-general of the East Asian Affairs 
Department, said a collective approach to problems was needed, 
including reconsideration of the policy of constructive engagement 
with Burma. 

Asean should modify its non-intervention policy so it could tackle 
problems which had a political and security impact on the region, he 
said.  Failure to do so could provide a loophole for interference by 
countries outside the region.  Vittaya Sucharithanarugse, former 
director of the Asia Studies Institute, said the Burmese government 
was the only country in Asean exporting problems to other members. 
The Rangoon junta was building up its internal security, but that was 
affecting the security of Burma's neighbours, he said. 

__________________ INTERNATIONAL __________________
		

THE JAPAN TIMES: REFUGEE ATTACKS JAPAN'S ASYLUM PROCESS--U.S. 
WELCOMED ACTIVIST 


June 23, 2000

By TAKUYA ASAKURA 
Staff writer 

Over 10 years have passed since Myanmar democracy activist Than Htay 
fled to Japan from his military-ruled motherland on May 26, 1990, the 
day before a general election whose results were nullified by the 
junta. His life in Japan, however, has been a bitter experience 
because Japanese authorities refused to recognize him as a political 
refugee. 

His anger at the Japanese government has been exacerbated since the 
United States granted him asylum status after his application last 
September, thus allowing him to become actively engaged in political 
activities in that country without fear of deportation. 

"My wife and I have been deeply hurt in Japan during the last 10 
years," said Than Htay, who served as vice president of a democracy 
advocacy group, the Burmese Association in Japan, for three years. 

Than Htay first applied for asylum here in winter 1992, with the help 
of a lawyer he met during a Japanese conference on democracy in 
Myanmar. He recalled several interviews with immigration officers 
during which he was treated like a criminal suspect. 

"They sometimes yelled at me, accusing me of over-staying my visa," 
he recalled. 
One of his most telling memories of the interviews are of the 
immigration officers serving tea only for themselves during the all-
day interviews, which only had a short lunch break. 
Nearly two years after he applied for refugee status, his application 
was denied because it had not been filed within 60 days of his entry, 
as stipulated by law. 

He immediately appealed the decision to the Justice Ministry. 

Because Than Htay and his wife were placed under provisional release 
from deportation procedures, for years they had to travel every month 
to the immigration office in Tokyo's Kita Ward from their residence 
in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture. 
In March 1999, after waiting for more than six years under unstable 
conditions and fear of deportation, Than Htay received his final 
denial for a refugee visa. 
Then later that month, as if by way of consolation, the justice 
minister granted him special residency permission, which is usually 
given only to a foreigner married to a Japanese or to a permanent 
resident here. 

"I can work as long as I have the special residence permission," Than 
Htay said. "But my pride (as a leading democracy activist) was hurt." 

His experience with U.S. immigration authorities provided a striking 
contrast to his experience in Japan. 

He was treated "as a human with respect" in the U.S., where he sought 
asylum during a visit to attend a seminar last September. 

An immigration officer who introduced himself as "Thomas" knew a lot 
about Myanmar, he said. "And my cup was filled with tea and his cup 
was filled, too."  
When he spoke about his 17th birthday, which he spent in a concrete 
prison cell in Myanmar because of his political activities, the 
American immigration officer listened with tearful eyes, he said. 

At the end of the 90-minute interview, Thomas saw him off by shaking 
his hand, Than Htay recalled, noting that it took only about three 
months for the U.S. government to officially grant him asylum. 

Nevertheless, Than Htay said, he and his wife now feel too tired to 
think of starting a new life in another country, where he would have 
to deal with a new language, different customs and hunt for a job. 

"My wife said she neither wants to stay in Japan nor go to America," 
he said in fluent Japanese. 
He said he felt especially stressful when high-ranking officials of 
Myanmar's junta were invited to Japan by the same government that 
treated him as an offender. 

"I believe that Burma will be democratized in the coming few years," 
Than Htay said. "Considering the future relationship between Japan 
and Burma, the Japanese government should support us instead of 
hurting us." 

Japan, which he describes as a major financial supporter of the 
military junta, can play a more active role in the effort to bring 
democracy to Myanmar, he said.
 
Tokyo-based lawyer Shogo Watanabe, who has supported many asylum-
seekers, said Than Htay's case proved the government has been failing 
to fulfill its obligation to appropriately protect refugees. "It is 
against the international convention on refugees," he said. 

Like Than Htay, there have been a number of cases in which asylum-
seekers in Japan failed to meet the "60-day rule" of application or 
never dared to even apply for refugee status. 
While some claimed a lack of knowledge about the application process, 
others said they were so afraid of being denied asylum and sent back 
home that they could not turn to the authorities. 
"I really like the people of Japan," Than Htay said. "But I think the 
way the Japanese government and the Justice Ministry treat us is 
wrong." 




_______________ ECONOMY AND BUSINESS _______________
 
AFP: TOTALFINA-ELF CHAIRMAN DEFENDS MYANMAR INVESTMENT DECISION 

   PARIS, June 22 (AFP) - The chairman of French oil giant TotalFina-
Elf, Thierry Desmarest, has defended his company's decision to invest 
in Myanmar, a country ruled by a military junta.

   Speaking to the foreign affairs commission of the French 
parliament, the National Assembly, Desmarest argued that the politics 
of the embargo had never produced results.

   It was not up to private enterprises to judge whether or not 
countries were behaving in accordance with internationally accepted 
norms, he said.    Responding to deputies' questions Wednesday, 
Desmarest said that he "did not regret the decision to invest in 
Myanmar" and added that the country's people would benefit directly.

   But the parliamentary commission chairman, the Socialist deputy 
Francois Loncle, said the company's presence in Myanmar "balckened 
its image, as well as that of France".

   In May, Myanmar opposition leader and Nobel peace prize winner 
Aung San Suu Kyi criticised what she termed the support shown by the 
French oil giant forthe military junta.

   Only the military and a small group of businessmen would profit 
from the investment, she said.

   French Foreign Minister Hubert Vedrine said in April that 
TotalFina-Elf could go ahead with its Myanmar investments, providing 
it worked to improve living conditions for the local population.

   The company was doing its best to make a contribution, but it was 
not reasonable to expect it to organise the development of a country 
of 40 million people, Desmarest said.


_________________OPINION/EDITORIALS________________


EARTHRIGHTS INTERNATIONAL:  SUPREME COURT DECISION HURTS DEMOCRACY 
MOVEMENT IN BURMA AND U.S. 

June 22, 2000

On June 19th, the U.S. Supreme Court announced a decision that 
amounts to a slap in the face of the democracy movement in Burma and 
its supporters in the U.S. The decision stings for a moment, but it 
does not gravely injure the movement, nor will it stop its progress.  
The unanimous decision struck down the Massachusetts Burma law, which 
effectively prohibited Massachusetts from purchasing goods or 
services from corporations with investments in Burma.  This selective 
purchasing law was modeled after similar measures to discourage 
companies from doing business in South Africa, measures widely 
credited with helping to end apartheid. 
The Massachusetts law had an impressive array of supporters. Among 
them were religious leaders, socially conscious investors, the 
student-led Free Burma Coalition, 78 Members of Congress, and Aung 
San Suu Kyi, leader of the party that won democratic elections in 
Burma ten years ago. (Ironically, the Supreme Court decision was 
announced on her birthday.) These groups are already adjusting their 
plans, and are now preparing a new legislative campaign for selective 
purchasing laws that will not be affected by the Supreme Court ruling.

Meanwhile, big business is celebrating the decision. The National 
Foreign Trade Council (NFTC), a business group which filed the 
challenge to Massachusetts Burma law,  called it a "victory for the 
the U.S. Constitution."  Their celebrations should be muted, however. 
The Supreme Court did not rule on the most significant constitutional 
issues, but rather issued a narrow decision that does not affect most 
other selective purchasing laws. 

To a large extent, the decision comes about as a result of the 
special history and circumstances of the Massachusetts Burma law. The 
landmark legislation  was passed in 1996, and about two dozen 
municipalities and counties around the U.S. followed suit with 
selective purchasing laws of their own. 

Soon after the law was enacted, Congress passed its own sanctions law 
against Burma, allowing the President to prohibit U.S. corporations 
from new investments in Burma. (Already existing investments, 
including Unocal's Yadana gas pipeline project were "grandfathered" 
in under that law.)  
In 1998, the NFTC challenged the law on a number of grounds, and 
after the lower courts  struck down the law, the case went to the 
Supreme Court. The Supreme Court's ruling is based on their finding 
that Congress had intended federal sanctions to be the sole means by 
which the U.S. exerted economic pressure on the Burmese miitary 
regime. 

This interpretation is dubious, for two reasons. First, the federal 
sanctions law of 1996 does not mention the Massachusetts law, even 
though it was enacted three months before the federal law. Second, 78 
Members of Congress signed an amicus brief stating they understood 
the federal law was designed to complement, rather than supplant, 
state and local laws. However, the Massachusetts law did have a few 
differences from the federal law:  it affected all corporations, not 
just U.S. companies, it did not give the President authority to 
revoke it at any time, and did not grandfather in current investors. 
These differences were enough for the Court to find that the 
Massachusetts law conflicted with federal sanctions. (For a thorough 
legal analysis of the decision, click here.) [- link to Stumberg memo]

The NFTC and the corporations it represents claim the decision 
represents a move toward a single, coherent foreign policy. But even 
a cursory look at the  webpage of the NFTC's lobbying arm, 
USA*ENGAGE, reveals their true agenda. These corporations  want no 
sanctions, no selective purchasing laws, no interference whatsoever 
with their business plans in any part of the world at any time. Give 
them credit for consistency: they oppose sanctions on Cuba, Burma, 
Iraq, China,  Indonesia.  They even oppose the federal sanctions 
policy they were "protecting" from interference by the Massachusetts 
law! For U.S. big business, the issue of foreign policy coherence is 
not a cherished principle but a  pretext for challenging a law they 
just don't like. 

For the companies that make up NFTC and USA*ENGAGE, there has never 
been a regime so heinous as to make sanctions appropriate. According 
to these companies,  "constructive engagement" is always the best way 
to deal with repressive regimes, environmental destruction, and 
violations of human rights. The mere presence of American business, 
they seem to suggest, promotes freedom and democracy and improves 
lives.  

The Burmese people, like the South Africans, know better. They know 
that Unocal's investment in the Yadana gas pipeline, for example, 
benefits the generals, while harming local villagers. Aung San Suu 
Kyi says that "the real benefits of investment now go the military 
regime and their connections." Even some U.S. companies have 
recognized that you can't do business in Burma without violating 
human rights, and have pulled out. But Unocal has stayed in, and not 
coincidentally, is one of the main forces behind the USA*ENGAGE and 
NFTC offensive against the Massachusetts Burma law. 

The real question behind the debate over the Massachusetts law is 
what will be the role of U.S. citizens and local governments in the 
age of corporate globalization. If the NFTC has its way, business 
will trade and invest around the world with no impediment, 
irrespective of the consequences for human rights. If citizen 
movements have their way, local efforts to restrain corporate 
activities abroad as well as at home will gain momentum. These 
movements are asking a simple question: If we can choose to shop with 
a conscience when spending our money at the mall,  why not when our 
city, county or state is spending our money? 

Fortunately, the Supreme Court decision does not interfere with the 
principle of citizen power behind selective purchasing laws. Byron 
Rushing, the Massachusetts legislator who sponsored by Burma law, 
says "It is a shame we no longer have available one of the strategies 
that helped end Apartheid." But, says Rushing, "the Court's decision 
does leave room for state and local governments to heed moral 
concerns in the way they do business in the global economy.  I want 
all advocates for human rights and democracy, especially in Burma, to 
be assured that the campaign for human rights and democracy is 
redirected, not blocked."


_____________________ OTHER  ______________________


JOINT ACTION COMMITTEE: BURMESE LITERATURE TALK IN DC

June 21, 2000

Announcement
Joint Action Committee

Contact: U Tin Maung Thaw ((703) 834-5670)
                Ko Aung Kyaw Oo (301) 762 0006
                Ko Thein Htike Oo (301) 984 7599


Literature Talk To Be Held in DC

Rockville, MD_The Joint Action Committee and Burmese community in 
Washington D.C. metropolitan area have decided to have a Burmese 
literature talk in the community meeting held on last Sunday. Burmese 
community had such a similar literature talk in last year as 
literature talks were a kind of knowledgeable social appetite in 
Burmese society. Although the details of the program are still under 
the process, the following is the information related to the talk. 
Date:    Sunday, July 23, 2000 

Time:    1 p.m. to 6 p.m.

A temporary committee was formed to make arrangements for the 
literature talk. The details of the arrangement will be discussed in 
the next meeting at Ko Thein Htike Oo's house 3 p.m., June 25. 
Everyone interested in this event is welcomed to the meeting. Please 
contact the listed persons for more information


____________________________________________________


TREND MICRO US VIRUS RESEARCH GROUP: NEW VIRUS ALERT00VBS_STAGES.A 
(A.K.A. SCRAPWORM AND LIFESTAGES)

June 23, 2000

[BurmaNet adds?This message has no Burma related content but is 
included because if you are receiving this as email, you are by 
definition vulnerable.  Use anti virus software and keep it updated!]

VBS_STAGES.A is a new worm, which was first reported last week. Since 
then it has infected many systems in North America, Europe, Asia, and 
South America. VBS_STAGES.A arrives in an email attachment named 
LIFE_STAGES.TXT.SHS.  Once executed, it displays a text file and then 
attempts to spread itself via Microsoft Outlook, PIRCH, mIRC and 
mapped network drives. Infected outgoing messages have one of the 
following subjects: "Funny ","Fw:Funny", "Life stages text", "Funny 
text", or "Fw:Funny text" 
The message body always reads:
"   The male and female stages of life   "   or
"   The male and female stages of life. Bye.   "

To read more about Microsoft scrap (.SHS) files and this virus, 
please visit our website at: 
http://www.antivirus.com/corporate/media/2000/pr061900.htm and 
http://www.antivirus.com/vinfo/virusencyclo/default5.asp?
VName=VBS_STAGES.A 


________________


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