BurmaNet News: February 15, 2001

[strider@xxxxxxxxxxx]

______________ THE BURMANET NEWS ______________
        An on-line newspaper covering Burma 
         February 15, 2001   Issue # 1737
______________ www.burmanet.org _______________

NOTED IN PASSING: 

"We cannot be certain of anything about Burma. My opinion is that all 
Burmese unit commanders who caused the conflict should brought before a 
firing squad." 

Lt-Gen Wattanachai Chaimuanwong, Commander of Thailand?s Third Army See 
Bangkok Post: Army Alert for Wa Infiltrators

INSIDE BURMA _______
*Bangkok Post: Rangoon Inadvertently Admits Guilt in Plea for 
Compensation
*The Nation: Shan Army Denies Starting Border Clash
*Unity: Monthly Human Rights Situation Report?Mergui Tavoy

REGIONAL/INTERNATIONAL _______
*The Nation: We'll Get Tough, Thaksin Warns
*Bangkok Post: Army Alert for Wa Infiltrators
*Bangkok Post: Guns Fired to Repel Raiding Junta Troops
*AIDSonline: Manipur and AIDS

ECONOMY/BUSINESS _______
*Burma Courier: for Sale-- 52 Slightly Used State Enterprises

OPINION/EDITORIALS_______
*Bangkok Post: Time to move forward
*Restoration Council of the Shan State: On the fighting at the Kaeng 
Tung front
*Myanmar Information Committee (SPDC): Time to Substitute Buffers 
between Nations With Friendship,  Trade and Mutual Cooperation 

OTHER______
*PD Burma: Calendar of events
		

__________________ INSIDE BURMA ____________________



Bangkok Post: Rangoon Inadvertently Admits Guilt in Plea for 
Compensation

Thursday, February 15 2001


Burma told to show proof of damage

Post Reporters And Reuters

Burma has effectively admitted its troops trespassed into Thai territory 
and will have to show proof of damage if it wants compensation from 
Thailand, the Foreign Ministry said yesterday.

Pradap Pibulsonggram, the ministry spokesman, cited part of the Burmese 
aide memoire: "Myanmar

[Burma] forces had not intentionally crossed over into Thai territory or 
attacked Thai targets."For Mr Pradap, the allusion to absence of 
intention was "tantamount" to admitting that Burmese troops trespassed 
into Thai territory.

The Burmese protest note demanded compensation for damage, and urged the 
Thai military to refrain from returning fire.

To secure compensation, Burma would have to produce proof of damage, Mr 
Pradap said. There was solid evidence of damage on the Thai side. 
Both sides have demanded compensation for loss of lives and property in 
their respective border towns, Mae Sai and Tachilek, on Sunday. 
Burma said it suffered three dead, against Thailand's three. 
Burma yesterday denied its troops had fired shells at Mae Sai on Sunday. 
It claimed ethnic Shan guerrillas had carried out the attack to damage 
relations between the two countries, in a government statement Reuters 
received in Bangkok.

Burma accused Thai troops of giving morale and military support to the 
Shan guerrillas, who Rangoon says are the major drug producers and 
smugglers in the region.

"It is...sad to learn that there were civilian casualties on the Thai 
side and that the Thai army leaders were coming up with strong 
statements against Myanmar because two civilians were killed and eight 
wounded," the statement said.

"It is very clear that the direction of the shells that fell into Mae 
Sai was not in the direction of where the actual fighting was taking 
place on the Myanmar side. It is a totally different direction and only 
someone with vested interests can deliberately do it."Senior Thai 
soldiers say the Burmese military is heavily involved in the drugs trade 
and accuse the United Wa State Army of being behind most of the 
methamphetamines flooding Thailand.


Burma insists it is trying to stamp out the drugs trade, and blames the 
Shan for drug production in the area.

"To effectively stop the drug menace threatening both Myanmar and 
Thailand, it is of utmost importance for both countries to join forces 
and seriously co-operate with each other," the Rangoon government said 
in the official statement.

"Without co-operation from Thailand, especially in the field of 
preventing essential chemicals from falling into the hands of organised 
crime syndicates and refraining from giving sanctuary and support to 
armed criminal organisations...any endeavour would be in vain."



___________________________________________________


The Nation: Shan Army Denies Starting Border Clash

Thursday, February 15, 2001


JEERAPORN CHAISRI
DON PATHAN


MAE SAI - The Shan State Army (SSA) yesterday denied accusations by 
Burma's military government that it had instigated the recent clashes 
between Thai and Burmese troops, saying Rangoon was looking for a 
scapegoat. 

"This is not true. We did not shell the town of Mae Sai or other Thai 
positions. [The Burmese] did it and are trying to blame us for it," said 
Sao Aung Mart, vice chairman of the Restoration Council of Shan State, 
the SSA's political wing.

Aung Mart also told The Nation that the junta's claim that the Thai Army 
and the SSA have joined hands to attack Burmese positions is groundless. 

"They want to divide the moral support that the ethnic Thais have for 
the [Shan]," he said.
SSA leader Colonel Yawd Serk was expected to make a public statement on 
the allegation today, he said.

Thai and Burmese troops engaged in heavy fighting on Sunday following 
the latter's refusal to depart from a Thai Ranger base camp at Doi Pang 
Noon, which the Thai Army said Burmese troops had overtaken by force. 

The fighting spread to other areas, including Mae Sai district and town, 
where two people were killed and scores of area residents and soldiers 
were injured. Local residents soon deserted the area, turning the 
normally vibrant border outpost into a ghost town.

A breakthrough came yesterday, said Maj General Chamlong Phothong, 
deputy commander of the 3rd Army Region, who said The Township Border 
Committee will reconvene today in Tachilek to discuss the clashes. The 
committee agreed to meet in the afternoon.

Details for the discussions were not disclosed but Chamlong said, "we 
will listen to what they have to say."

"We're not the guilty party here. [The Burmese troops] were the ones who 
started the whole incident," he said.

The Township Border Committee is a joint body of civilians and military 
from both countries that is designed to resolve border disputes at the 
local level. The mayor of Mae Sai town will be the co-chairman of the 
meeting, Chamlong said.

The entire Mae Sai district was tense again yesterday, with Thai 
military troops and tanks an ominous presence. Only a few tourists 
ventured to the border market, while a few girls were brave enough to 
give roses to the soldiers guarding the border.


Meanwhile, more troops from both sides moved into the area. Six more 
heavy artillery guns were headed towards Mae Sai town and later 
dispersed to various locations along the border.

The nearby Mekong River Operation Unit, a naval unit in Chiang Rai, also 
beefed up its patrol in the Golden Triangle area for fear that fighting 
could spread, an official said.

Officers in a border police unit at Doi Chang Moob, just outside the 
Royal Project at Doi Tung, were seen digging into their positions along 
an unmarked border area to prevent nearby Burmese troops from 
positioning their men there. Just a stone's throw away, across a paved 
road that links Doi Tung to Mae Sai, was an outpost manned by nine 
Burmese soldiers, who, when visited by The Nation, declined to answer 
questions or comment on the conflict.

"The Thai villagers, who use to sell [the Burmese troops] food and other 
goods have stopped doing it ever since the clashes," said a Thai border 
patrol police officer manning an M-60 machine gun and keeping a close 
eye on the nearby Burmese unit. "It's a little tense right now but 
hopefully the situation will improve soon."

Meanwhile, General Bo Mya, leader of the Karen National Union, a rebel 
group fighting for autonomy, said the Burmese government is seeking to 
control the border because it wants the area reserved for the United Wa 
State Army's narcotics activities. The general said the Burmese attacks 
on his stronghold caused injuries and damages to his forces and 
properties. 
"However, in the fighting with my forces, the Burmese troops were also 
injured and killed. In many hospitals, they are packed with wounded 
Burmese soldiers," Bo Mya said.

Bo Mya's stronghold is opposite Tak province's Mae Sot district.

___________________________________________________


Unity: Monthly Human Rights Situation Report?Mergui Tavoy


[Covering January 2001.  Abridged]


Karen National Union

 

EXTRA JUDICIAL KILLING        
 

On January 11, 2001 a column from Burma Army's Light Infantry Battalion 
101, led by Major Aung Myint Oo arrived to Taket Lor village in 
Tenasserim township, Mergui District, Tenasserim Division, Southern 
Burma, and opened fire on the villagers. Four were wounded.  
 

After opening fire on the villagers the troop had captured a villager 
Naw Theh Satin, 20 yr., daughter of Saw Pe Lo and Naw Pi. They took her 
to a house and raped her severely and stabbed her to death afterward. 
The next day, that troop cleared the area and took away the properties, 
which the villagers have abandoned.
 

On January 22, 2001 a troop from Burma Army's Light Infantry Battalion 
402 led by Kyaw Kyaw entered to Wah Shu Ko (Seikphyone) village, in 
Tavoy Township, Tavoy District and shot dead a villager.
 

RAPE
 

Lieutenant Thein Myint Zaw form Burma Army's Infantry Battalion 104 
raped a traveling villager and took away all her money on January 28, 
2001 night.  According to villagers from Tavoy Township who arrived to 
the border, Ma Aye Aye Khaing (daughter of U Chit Tin) who worked in a 
Thai border town Htong Hpa Hpon was traveled back to her home village in 
Kyet San Pyin, in Tavoy Township. On January 28 evening she arrived to a 
Burma Army camp at Thuka border check point, opposite to Thailand's 
Kanchanaburi province. Lt. Thein Mhint Zaw a company commander in that 
camp summoned her to his hut and said that he need to check her. 
Afterward Lt. Thein Myint Zaw forcibly raped her in his hut and let her 
go the next morning.  
 

After raping her, Lt. Thein Myint Zaw took away 10,000 Thai Baht form 
her. The next day (29.1.2001) Thein Myint Zaw gave her 1,000 Baht for 
her traveling expenditure and set her free. 
 

LOOTING
 

On January 5, 2001 a group of Pye Thu Sit (People Militia, back up by 
Burma Army) led by Ye Win entered to Taket village, in Tenasserim 
township, Mergui District and confiscated some cattle from Saw Hto Gay. 
After confiscating the cattle the militia leader demanded 30,000 kyat as 
compensation from the Saw Hto Gay. 
 
On January 8, 2001 a group of soldiers led by 2nd Lieutenant Nyi Nyi Soe 
from Burma Army's Light Infantry Battalion 402 who operated in Ka Mo 
Thwey area, in the east of Tavoy Town have stolen some properties of 
local villagers in Kler Pu (Nyaungdon). 

On January 4.1.2001 a troop from Burma Army's Infantry Battalion 101, 
Column No.2 led by Column Commander Kyaw Thet Naing entered to Taket 
village, in Tenasserim Township, Mergui District and shot dead a buffalo 
of Saw Htun Pe for their meal.  On January 10, 2001 an unidentified 
troop of Burma Army entered to Panamee (Duyinbinshaun), in Palaw 
township, Mergui district and slaughter 5 buffaloes belong to Saw Aung 
Kyi. 
 

BURNING and DESTRUCTION
 

On January 8, 2001 a combined column of IB 101 led by Aung Myint Oo and 
Kyaw Thet Naing burnt down 7 houses in Wah Thu Hta village, Taket 
village tract. The troop burnt down: 

On January 18, 2001 a troop of 12 men from Burma Army's Light Infantry 
Battalion 402, led by Company Commander Kyaw Sein Oo has destroyed a 
villager's house in Sa Ta Lone village, Tavoy township, Tavoy District.

TORTURE

On January 11, 2001 a troop of 30 men from Burma Army's Light Infantry 
Battalion 544 led by Major Aung Aung arrived to Myo Haung village and 
captured four villagers. They accused the villagers of sending food for 
Karen resistance group and beaten them seriously. After beaten them, the 
troop demanded 4,000 Kyat from them.
 

FORCED LABOR
 

On January 18, 2001 Battalion Commander Than Sein from Burma Army' Light 
Infantry Battalion 401 which based in Htu ler (Kyauk Htu) village (in 
the east of Theyetchaung township, Tavoy District) ordered 15 villagers 
from Kaw Htee (Thabyuchaung) to served as porter to Maw Taw Hta. It was 
three days walk journey on foot from Htu Ler to Maw Taw Hta. If the 
demanded porters do not want to go by foot, they have to transport the 
military supply by boat, and the villagers themselves have to pay the 
expense of the transportation.  
 
>From January 20 to 30, 2001 Burma army forced the villagers in Htu Ler, 
Kaw Htee, Hta Me Hta, Kanekaw (Pyathachaung), Katawnni and Pawtaw, (in 
the east of Theyetchaung, Tavoy township, Tavoy district) to transport 
the military food supplies from Pawtaw to Htu Ler. Htoo Ler and Kaw Htee 
villages were forced to transport 102 sack of rice, Ta Me Hta 36 sack of 
rice, Ka Htaw Ni, Kanekaw and Pawtaw 102 sack of rice etc.. The 
villagers have to pay the cost of boat transportation by themselves. 
 
On January 28, 2001 Column Commander Nanda Aung from Burma Army's Light 
Infantry Battalion 401, which based in Htu Ler village (in the east of 
Theyetchaung township, Tavoy district) ordered Ta Me Hta and Kanekaw 
villagers to construct a road between their villages and have to finish 
it within 5 days. The road should be available for the bullock carts.





___________________ REGIONAL/INTERNATIONAL___________________
				


The Nation: We'll Get Tough, Thaksin Warns


Thursday, February 15, 2001



THAILAND would be forced to take unilateral action to stem the flow of 
illegal drugs from Burma if Rangoon failed to resolve the problem 
amicably, Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra warned yesterday.

"We must discuss the issue as neighbours, but if the talks do not settle 
the problem, we will have to deal with it in our own way, and this is an 
assertive policy," Thaksin said.

Thaksin, who had been expected to take a softer line on Burma than the 
previous administration, bluntly criticised Rangoon's failure to stamp 
out massive drugs production within its borders.

"We are not pleased at the way Burma has allowed ethnic minorities to 
produce drugs along the border area and we have to be decisive on this 
issue," the new PM told reporters.

Thaksin's statement followed hot on the heels of the latest tirade 
between the government and Rangoon over border clashes at the weekend 
and accusations of support for drug traffickers.

In a statement received in Bangkok, the Burmese government accused Thai 
soldiers of giving moral and military support to Shan guerrillas, who 
Rangoon claims are the region's major drug producers.

Rangoon insisted it was trying to stamp out the drugs trade and said 
that serious cooperation from Thailand would be an effective approach to 
ending the problem.

"Without cooperation from Thailand, especially in the field of 
preventing essential chemicals from falling into the hands of organised 
crime syndicates and refraining from giving sanctuaries and support to 
armed criminal organisations ... any endeavour would be in vain," the 
statement said.

It also repeated a denial by the Burmese Army on Tuesday saying its 
troops had not fired shells at the border town of Mae Sai on Sunday. It 
blamed the attack on ethnic Shan rebels looking to damage relations 
between the two countries.

The Burmese Foreign Ministry, in an aide-memoire handed to Thai 
Ambassador Oum Maolanon on Monday, demanded that Thailand cease support 
for armed insurgents and not harm the "existing friendship" between the 
two countries. 
Details of the memoire were published in the state-run New Light of 
Myanmar yesterday.
Thaksin had planned to visit the border town yesterday, but his trip was 
postponed. He said later he planned to visit Burma as soon as possible 
to iron out all related problems amid strong opposition from several 
quarters, including the outgoing administration and the House foreign 
relations committee.


Relations with Burma were more problematic than with any other neighbour 
and required urgent attention, Thaksin said.

"I don't see going there as kowtowing to Rangoon. We have serious 
problems, so we need to talk things out," he said.

Meanwhile, chairman of the Senate Military Committee Gen Harn Leelanon 
yesterday suggested the moribund Internal Security Command should assume 
control of the country's efforts to eradicate problems related to 
narcotics. 
The former Fourth Region Commander said the Internal Security Command 
should be directed solely by the prime minister to ensure a higher level 
of efficiency. And military officers should be used in dealing with the 
Burmese junta.

"They don't like to talk to politicians because they believe the words 
of military officers to be more credible," he said.


___________________________________________________


Bangkok Post: Army Alert for Wa Infiltrators

 Thursday, February 15 2001



Military says junta wants strike excuse

Subin Khuenkaew, Wassana Nanuam and Cheewin Sattha

The Burmese plan to send United Wa State Army strike teams into Chiang 
Rai to stir up trouble and justify further cross-border military action, 
Thai intelligence sources said.

The continuing build-up of junta forces opposite Chiang Rai indicated 
Rangoon was determined to crush the Shan State Army and needed a 
pretext. 

The army yesterday reinforced its troops in Mai Sai, opposite Tachilek 
in Burma, with 20 Scorpion and Stingray light tanks sent from cavalry 
bases in Chiang Mai and Petchabun.

"The situation at the border town could turn militarily explosive any 
moment," said an army intelligence officer.

Pha Muang Force commander Maj Gen Somboonkiat Sithidecha and 3rd Cavalry 
Regiment commander Col Akaradet Songworawit, who is in charge of 
security at Mae Sai district, were briefed by military intelligence in 
Bangkok yesterday.

Hundreds of Wa troops were reported poised for an assault on the Shan 
State Army's military base, commanded by Jao Gong Juen, opposite Ban 
Pang Noon, Mae Fah Luang district, Chiang Rai.

"There will certainly be fierce fighting in that area in the next few 
days," said an officer from Pha Muang Task Force.

In Chiang Rai, Lt-Gen Wattanachai Chaimuanwong, the Third Army 
commander, said the closure of border checkpoints in Chiang Mai and 
Chiang Rai was to prevent logistic supplies and war materials from 
reaching Burmese troops. 

"Burmese troops are gearing up for assaults. They are hoarding rice and 
banning the sale of fuel to the people. While it is still uncertain 
whether there will be combat, it is necessary to take this step-to block 
logistical supplies from reaching the Burmese troops," he said.

The Third Army chief dismissed an accusation by army retirees that he 
was thirsty for war, saying he had a duty to protect the country's 
interests. 

"There is no fighting yet between the two countries. The presence of 
forces on both sides of the border will continue until the conflict is 
settled. Fighting will not occur until someone violates the ceasefire," 
said Lt-Gen Wattanachai.


"We cannot be certain of anything about Burma. My opinion is that all 
Burmese unit commanders who caused the conflict should brought before a 
firing squad," Lt-Gen Wattanachai said.

Talks began on Monday and Tuesday to start talks to end the conflict, 
but the two sides could not reach an agreement over the venue. They were 
to meet again yesterday.

The military yesterday warned motorists to avoid highways Nos 1, 1089, 
1130, 1234 and 1149 as military movements in the area could cause 
inconvenience.

Residents in Mae Sai have been advised to stay in their homes at night. 
Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra said he wanted to go to Burma for 
talks on the drug and border problems, but warned that if they did not 
yield results Thailand would take unilateral "decisive action".

"We must discuss the issue as neighbours, but if the talks do not settle 
the problem we will have to deal with it in our own way," Mr Thaksin 
said. 
Mr Thaksin said Gen Chavalit Yongchaiyudh, the probable defence 
minister, planned to use his personal contacts with Burmese officers to 
settle the problem.

"His main duties will be to help me on the issues of security, the 
border, and the military," Mr Thaksin said.



___________________________________________________


Bangkok Post: Guns Fired to Repel Raiding Junta Troops

Thursday, February 15 2001



Not cover fire for Shan, says army

Sermsuk Kasitipradit

Thai artillery fired across the border to repel intruding Burmese 
forces, and not to provide cover for Shan rebels, the army spokesman 
said yesterday. 
Col Somkhuan Pattaranetr was countering charges made by Col Kyaw Thein, 
of Burma's Office of Strategic Studies, who accused the Thai army of 
helping the Shan State Army rebels.

Col Kyaw, quoted by the state-run New Light of Myanmar, also said a Thai 
military camp had provided the SSA with heavy weapons.

"We fired artillery shells after Burmese troops had encroached on our 
sovereignty by seizing our forward outpost," said Col Somkhuan. 
Col Kyaw's comment was misleading and aimed at causing public confusion. 

The outpost, heavily shelled and recaptured by Thai troops on Saturday, 
was located about 1km inside Chiang Rai's Mae Fah Luang district. 
Col Somkhuan said if the Burmese government wanted to attack the SSA it 
was their own affair, as long as the operation did not encroach on Thai 
sovereignty.

At least 200 Burmese soldiers had seized Ban Pang Noon outpost on the 
night of Feb 8, after Thai troops based there had rejected their request 
to use the camp as a springboard to attack SSA forces.

"It was quite unlikely they could root out SSA rebels in that border 
area, since the Shan base was in rough terrain. That was the reason why 
they eventually decide to seize the outpost, which at the time was 
manned by only 19 paramilitary troops," said Col Somkhuan.

The colonel said Burmese army commander Gen Mong Aye had been in contact 
with army chief Gen Surayud Chulanont and had pledged to swiftly 
withdraw all Burmese forces from Thai territory.

"We do not know what was really happening inside the Burmese army, but 
the intruding forces were still on Thai soil on Feb 9. They had also 
detained our troops as hostages for fear that we would fire at the 
outpost," said Col Somkhuan.

After the 19 Thai soldiers escaped unharmed, the army had no choice but 
to use decisive force to repel the intruders on Saturday morning, Feb 
10, between 1am and 4am.

Col Somkhuan said the shelling of Mae Sai town was closely linked to the 
fighting at Ban Pang Noon, where a number of Burmese soldiers were 
killed. 
"They suffered a lot there, so they took revenge by firing at our border 
town," he said.


According to New Light of Myanmar, Col Kyaw said: "We intended to 
dislodge the SSA rebel camps and had no intention to encroach upon Thai 
territory."Col Somkhuan said the incident at Ban Pang Noon clearly 
showed "Burmese forces intentionally encroached upon our sovereignty". 
"Evidence left at the outpost clearly shows whether it was intentional 
or not," said the army spokesman. The bodies of seven Burmese soldiers 
were found at the camp.

He said Col Kyaw's allegation that Thai forces helped to defend the SSA 
by firing heavy weapons into Tachilek was incorrect.

The army had decided to fire back only after Burmese forces fired shells 
into Mae Sai, killing three Thai villagers and injuring seven Thai 
soldiers. 
Col Kyaw's claim the SSA was responsible for the attack on Mae Sai was 
also wrong. "There was no SSA movement around the border town," Col 
Somkhuan said. 
Burmese forces posted at Tachilek were directly responsible for last 
Saturday's shelling of Mae Sai, he said.


___________________________________________________



AIDSonline: Manipur and AIDS

[February 9, 2001]

Manipur is a small land-locked State in the north-east of India. Its 
borders include the Indian states of Nagaland to the north, Assam to the 
west, Mizoram to the south, and a 358 km border with Burma to the east. 
The Burmese border includes the large Sagaing Division and a section of 
the northern Chin Hills. Manipur is one of the poorest and least 
developed regions in India, with a 1996 per capita income estimated at 
3500 rupees/year, about one-third of the Indian national average. 
Manipur has been governed under Indian security laws since the 1950s, 
and is currently patrolled by five Indian military services, in addition 
to two Manipuri security agencies. The political situation is complex, 
with a large and long-standing insurgency seeking autonomy, many smaller 
ethnic insurgencies, numerous armed groups, and several thousand 
political and economic migrants and refugees from Burma. A state of 
low-intensity chronic civil war pervades, and armed clashes, human 
rights abuses, and violence are endemic.  

Manipur appears to have no significant indigenous tradition of opium 
poppy cultivation. Local officials and drug users are consistent in 
reporting that heroin form Burma, called locally æNumber 4Æ, began to 
appear in Manipur in 1982-84. After 1984 the availability and use of 
heroin increased steadily, reaching epidemic proportions after 1990. 
Although precise numbers of addicts are difficult to assess, a 1991 
estimate was 15000 IDU (Injecting Drug Users), it is clear that heroin 
use is common and has been attributed to widespread availability of 
Burmese exports (Note: Burma produces approximately 60% of the worldÆs 
heroin.)  

Nearly all heroin users studied were injectors. Needle sharing appears 
to have been common until quite recently; this has begun to change in 
the last 2-3 years among addicts seeking care and those involved with 
local information networks.  

Local heroin use, however devastating for local people, is only a small 
fraction of the heroin trade in the state. Since the early 1990s, 
Manipur has increasingly become a major trade route for Burmese heroin, 
particularly across the border zone of Moreh (Indian side)-Tamu (Burma 
side). According to local traders and official, the bulk of heroin 
moving across the Moreh border is from north-east Burma, from the Shan, 
Wa, and Kokang growing and manufacturing areas to Mandalay, then across 
the Sagaing Division to Tamu and inland to Mandalay to purchase heroin. 
They also report æself-testingÆ heroin, and consequent needle sharing 
with traders in Mandalay as part of their drug purchasing behaviors. 
æSelf-testingÆ is the injection use of heroin by the prospective 
purchaser to assess the potency and quality of the drug through its use. 
Key informants in Manipur reported that sharing of both drugs and 
injection equipment among buyers and sellers was a common feature at 
these exchanges.  

The first HIV infection in the state was detected in an IDU in 1989, the 
same year that HIV became an epidemic among injectors in Burma and 
Thailand. Between 1990 and 1991, the HIV prevalence rose form under 1% 
among addicts to over 50%, and reached 80.1% by 1997. HIV spread to 
other risk groups has since been remarkable rapid; after the epidemic 
among injectors, there has been subsequent spread to their sex partners, 
wives and children. Although the data are far form complete, a 
comparison of Manipur with the rest of India is illustrative: Manipur 
has about six times the HIV prevalence of the next most affected state, 
Maharashtra, and 20 times the HIV rate of the IndiaÆs third most 
affected region, Tamil Nadu. An estimated 2% of pregnant women were HIV 
infected in 1997, and 14.4% of tuberculosis patients in 1996, a figure 
which had risen form 3.3% only 2 years earlier. Using cumulative data 
form 1990, however, 73.9% of known HIV infections have occurred among 
injecting drug users. Surveillance data suggests that the bulk of cases 
are in the capital, Imphal (69%). However, this is likely to be an 
artifact of increased screening and testing facilities.  

(From AIDS û http://www.AIDSonline.com -, Vol. 14, No. 1, January 7, 
2000)    



______________ ECONOMY AND BUSINESS _______________
 


Burma Courier: for Sale-- 52 Slightly Used State Enterprises

February 2001

Based on an article in the Myanmar Time and Business Review:  January 5, 
2001

RANGOON - The privatization of state-owned assets is set to accelerate 
with increasing numbers of enterprises planned for sale by the military 
government.

According to Minister David Abel of the junta's investment commission, 
current plans call for the sale of 52 state-owned companies or business 
operations from 18 ministries.  The money generated from the sale was 
not as important to the government as the chance to promote investor 
confidence, Abel told the Myanmar Times last week.  "Without having a 
business environment in Myanmar conducive to greater profitability, 
investors will not want to buy these enterprises at high prices," he 
said." 
Profitability has certainly not been the hallmark of Burma's unwieldy 
mishmash of state-owned companies.  A World Bank study in 1999 found 
that the approximately 1,600 state owned businesses were responsible for 
85 percent of the total government budget deficit.  And it estimated 
that this would increase to over 95 per cent of the deficit in the 
1999-2000 fiscal year.  Even at that, losses were understated since 
state enterprises carry no debt and pay no interest, the WB reported.  
They also enjoy many import advantages and access to fuel, electricity 
and other services at highly subsidized rates.

Abel didn't spell out the specificd of the enterprises to be sold off, 
but all signs are that they are along the lines of the older, well-worn, 
small businesses such as cinemas, provincial hotels, ice factories and 
saw mills that have been sold off up to now.

"In the future we will also sell newly-built factories, such as sugar 
mills, either by means of privatization or corporatization," Abel said. 
"Hopefully, in the long run, local entrepreneurs will have the ability 
to buy and run larger state-owned schemes such as sugar mills and 
textile factories."

The government's economic guru didn't hazard a guess as to when the 
"business environment" would be sufficiently improved to warrant putting 
the juiciest plums from the state corporations' bundle of losing 
propositions on the market.

______________OPINION/EDITORIALS_________________




Bangkok Post: Time to move forward

Sat, 10 February 2001

Stagnating in a stalemate has not taken, and will not take, Burma 
anywhere-politically or internationally. 

Tin-Maung Than


The European Union delegation rightly pointed out last week that trust 
building is a keyword in the Burmese dialogue between Daw Aung San Suu 
Kyi, the Nobel Peace laureate and leader of the majority of the people's 
representatives; and Lt-Gen Khin Nyunt, Secretary (1) of the military 
government and chief of military intelligence. 
Since it has been agreed the meeting will be strictly confidential, we 
do not have any hint how the dialogue is going on. 

In the media, the EU troika did not suggest any idea how international 
community could help the trust building process. At the moment, it seems 
there is nothing the EU, United States, Japan or Asean can do but simply 
wait and watch. 

After an exhausting and vain conflict for more than a decade, building 
trust is a tough job. Yet, both parties can enrich their political life 
in the process. I think three elements are essential in the current 
pre-negotiation stage: to close the communication gap; to adopt a 
systematic approach; and to see politics in a future perspective. 

The communication gap: When one does not receive the other's intended 
message, there is a gap in communication between two persons. The gap is 
usually immense in politics. In a conflict, the gap is too enormous to 
reflect each other rightly in one's imagination. So, both sides are 
working on their own interpretations and assumptions without realising 
their visual defects, which are perpetually aggravated by their 
political prejudices along with the punches and pain in the ring. 

That was what happened between the opposition and the military. One of 
the political events that widened this gap between them was the 
opposition's demand for an interim government in 1988. 

The ruling socialist group at that time went along with the opposition 
to hold multi-party elections, but refused to form an interim 
government. The opposition's concern was fairness in elections. 

As for the ruling group, it did not see any point in accepting the 
demand since it had already given its word that the members of Central 
Executive Committee and the government would not compete in the 
elections. 

Each group did not get the other's intended message and saw the demand 
or rejection as a deceit. Thus each framed the other in moral context, 
honesty and integrity-and both were trapped in distrust. 

Identifying and explaining such events are necessary in building trust. 
Without closing the gap in communication, both sides may find it hard to 
hammer out real political differences. 

A systematic approach: Politics tends to give us a complete run-down on 
the good-guy/bad-guy scenario. In the international media, the generals 
were monsters, while Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and democrats were villains in 
the state-controlled press. 
Lack of a mechanism to express discontent and dissenting opinions made 
people think in black and white. An authoritarian system never allows 
its people to view various perspectives. 

The systematic approach focuses on the system only in the context of the 
underlying system. Moreover, the approach sees events as an interaction 
of forces rather than a singular event as a cause. In other words, it is 
the explanation of the circular cause and effect. The systematic 
approach says that it is we all, not you or I, who are responsible for 
any good or bad results. In the Burmese context, the military, the 
opposition and the people were responsible for what happened in the 
country. 

Future perspective: We need to save our future because we would have 
already lost it if we remain in the current state of affairs. 

The paradigm of past reactive policies on both sides centred on each 
other. 

Paradoxically, they were not free at all because they were bound to each 
other, so that when one caught the other in a corner, the hunter found 
himself in the same corner too. 

At the dialogue, talking about controversial Burmese past and present 
scenarios without a systematic approach, may result in a vicious circle 
of blaming each other. 
Now it is time for the leaders to project themselves into the future in 
both the regional and international perspective. 

Comparative regional projection may further reveal the backwardness of 
Burma relative to its Asian neighbours. The idea is to turn the 
negative, that is, poverty and backwardness, into a political asset. 
Separation of the future from the past and present may need intellectual 
and imaginative efforts. 

When the political focus is shifted to the future and other countries, 
the space for policy becomes larger for both parties. The thinking 
becomes global; the outlook becomes outward. 

The politics of manipulating each other is compressed. The objective 
becomes competition with foreign countries and this would be nationalism 
in a globalised technological age, which will hopefully release the 
military from its defensive, preventive and isolated nationalism. 

Furthermore, the future perspective will also bring a sense of 
competency into the Burmese political forces, which is, traditionally, 
highly personal. 

International academic support: The international community can enhance 
the process of trust building by sponsorship of research and seminars. I 
think they can go parallel with the dialogue. It might be an academic 
interest to do research in the systematic approach to see how 
misunderstanding is generated between both sides. The academic community 
may also hold a seminar on "The Future of Burma". It may be best if it 
is held in Rangoon, with the participation of leaders from various 
political interest groups in the country. 

The seminar should offer as much information in detail as possible so 
that participants are really able to live in the future. 

The objective is to stimulate their nationalism and give them sense of 
urgency in the future perspective and thus release them from their 
professional bias. 
I am hopeful that the image of both parties in the public's eyes becomes 
neutral and positive after the dialogue and seminar because the frame of 
reference is not each other. 

The vital strategy at the moment is to release both sides from the past 
and to look for "an area of least resistance and common interest". 

The writer is a former editor of the recently banned Thintbawa (Your 
Life) magazine. 



___________________________________________________




Restoration Council of the Shan State: On the fighting at the Kaeng Tung 
front

Statement No. 2/2001

Date: 14th February 2001

1. On the 5th February, SPDC troops staged an offensive against SSA 
troops of the Kaeng Tung Front at Loi Kaw Wan, Murng Karn tract, 
Tachilek township. The battle has been continuing until 13th February 
2001, with no sign that it will end. In this battle at least 35 SPDC 
troops have been killed and more than 60 of them have been wounded. SSA 
troops have captured a large number of arms and ammunition. And now SPDC 
troops have received and order to station 10 battalions (including UWSA 
troops) along the Thai border.

2. SSA troops did not take part and were not present during the border 
conflict at Mae Sai, on 11th February 2001. SPDC broke international 
rules and crossed the border into Thai territory. The Thai anti-narcotic 
drugs policy had hurt their drug trade so much that the SPDC troops were 
looking for revenge. That is why they forced 19 Thai rangers to 
surrender at Loi Pang Noon, which caused the border conflict between 
Thai and SPDC troops. 

3. In the meantime SPDC are using UWSA against SSA troops with an 
intention to create an ethnic war between the Shan and Wa. It is part of 
their ethnic cleansing process. RCSS, the council leading SSA troops, 
has no policy to fight against our own indigenous people. SSA is 
fighting to free our people and will never become an instrument of any 
another group or country. 

4. With regard to narcotic drugs, it is not only the Wa who are trading 
in drugs. In every nation there are those who are good and those who are 
evil, so there are drug runners in every ethnic group. SSA has been 
carrying out our policy to eradicate narcotic drugs in our land and will 
fight against whoever trades in and is involved in drugs. Our targets 
are drug dealers not particular ethnic groups.

Yawd Serk
Chairman
Restoration Council of the Shan State. 


___________________________________________________





Myanmar Information Committee (SPDC): Time to Substitute Buffers between 
Nations With Friendship,  Trade and Mutual Cooperation 


Information Sheet  No. B-1711(I/L)     14th February, 2001 

[Abridged.  BurmaNet adds?The regime appears to refer to the Shan State 
Army (SSA) as the Shan United Revolutionary Army.  SSA is the 
abbreviation commonly used in the English language press and the SSA 
refers to itself as the Shan State Army in its own English language 
publications.]

On the 12th of February a press conference was held in Yangon to clarify 
some  points on the military operation that had taken place on the 
Myanmar side of  the Myanmar-Thai border in the Triangle Region Command. 
It was an operation  carried out to protect the local population from 
the threat and harm of  various armed terrorist groups as well as to 
stop the illegal drug  trafficking along that border. 

Since the operation was carried out along and on the borders of both 
Myanmar  and Thailand the appropriate and responsible Thai military 
officials were  timely informed and measures were underestandingly 
coordinated so that  unnecessary complications and misunderstandings 
might not arise later.  

 ...In this regard, the Myanmar anti-narcotic officials have  been 
monitoring the activities of Ywet Sit and his armed drug trafficking  
group called SURA (Shan United Revolutionary Army). 

It is quite interesting to learn that the way Ywet Sit is implementing 
today  is a carbon copy of the tactics Khun Sa used before his surrender 
to the  Myanmar Government. It is also regrettable to learn that certain 
Thai media  have portrayed Ywet Sit as a Shan leader fighting for 
freedom and helping the  Thai army to interdict drugs coming out of 
Myanmar to Thailand. In fact, news  mentioning how SURA supposedly 
ambushed a drug convoy coming from Myanmar  side and fought against all 
the evil-armies trafficking drugs, were  constantly highlighted while 
some even committed to the extent of reporting  that the SURA destroyed 
or even handed-over the captured drugs to the Thai  officials. 
Logically, if this story is to be taken as truth, then we all  shall 
have to come to accept that the originator of this pretext, Khun Sa,  
was also sincere when he portrayed himself as a selfless freedom fighter 
 trying to liberate the Shan people from the clutches of the evil Bamar 
race.  

Yet, it is more regrettable that the Thai Army is treating Ywet Sit like 
a  partner and giving the SURA not only morale support but physical 
assistance  as well. The SURA has been given not only bases and 
sanctuaries inside  Thailand but also the artillery support against the 
Myanmar troop positions.  This scenario is also a repetition of what had 
been occurred during March of  1995 when Khun Sa attacked a border town 
on Myanmar side called Tachileik. In  both cases, the leader of MTA in 
1995 and the leader of SURA in 2001 were  both allowed to use their 
territory in the mobilization of their troops and  their wounded were 
given medical treatment there as well. Both incidents were  quite 
obviously orchestrated. During the first incident, even some of the  
Bangkok-based foreign media have already taken position on a nearby hill 
and  recorded the fighting as it took place. They managed to record the 
MTA  attacking and destroying the houses of innocent civilians while a 
handful of  local police and soldiers fought back to protect the 
civilian population  there. Even in the midst of the shootings it was 
recorded on one of the  foreign T.V. news showing the Myanmar security 
officials taking great care  and making sure their bullet might not go 
astray into the Thai territory.  They even went to the extent of 
avoiding to shoot back at the MTA troops  positioned on the Thai side of 
the territory. According to the informed  sources and the MTA officials 
who are now under the custody of the Myanmar  Government, it is 
regretfully learnt that the attack was being coordinated by  MTA and 
assisted by the Thai army. Similarly, in this week incident Tachileik  
has been attacked by the armed narco-terrorists from the same 
organization  but now using a different name SURA. Due to the artillery 
fire from the Thai  territory, 3 townspeople were killed while 15 
wounded and 7 houses, 1  Buddhist monastery, 1 church, 3 motor-vehicles 
damaged. Coincidentally, the  shots that were fired from the Thai 
territory were from the same place and  position as similar as that of 
the 1995 incident. 

It is also sad to learn that there were civilian casualties on Thai side 
and  that the Thai Army leaders were coming up with strong statements 
against  Myanmar side because 2 civilians were killed and 8 wounded.  

Past experience and recent fighting tactics employed by such armed 
terrorist  groups indicated the fact that those shells that exploded in 
Maisai on the  Thai side of the border could be SURA?s deliberate 
attempt to create  misunderstanding between the two neighbouring 
countries. It is very clear  that the direction of the shells that fell 
into Maisai is not in the  direction of where the actually fighting was 
taking place on the Myanmar  side. It is a totally different direction 
and only some one with vested  interests can deliberately do it. 

However, to effectively stop the drug menace threatening both Myanmar 
and  Thailand, it is of utmost importance for both countries to join 
forces and  seriously cooperate with each other. Myanmar is in the 
process of eradicating  opium-based drugs inside the country and also 
having to face another kind of  threat which is the synthetic stimulant 
drugs. Without the cooperation from  Thailand, especially in the field 
of preventing essential chemicals from  falling into the hands of the 
organized criminal syndicates and refraining  from giving sanctuaries 
and support to armed criminal organizations of  various neighbouring 
countries, otherwise our fight against the narcotic  drugs and also 
nurturing the borders between the nations peaceful and stable  would not 
be effective and any endeavour would be in vain. It is time that we  
sincerely work together to reach our common objective of having our 
borders  free from drugs and from any kind of armed anti-government 
organizations from  neighbouring countries. Our trade flourishes and 
friendship thrives then and  there. 


______________________OTHER______________________



PD Burma: Calendar of events

February 15, 2001

╖ February 12th-15th : Mr. Jaswant Singh, Indias Foreign Minister, 
will visit Burma. 

╖ February 15th  : Conference on Burma, Stockholm. Oluf Palme 
International Center and Swedish   NGO. Foundation for Human Rights


╖ February 15-16th : Burma Donor Meeting, Sweden 

╖ February 20-22nd : Dr Sein Win, Prime Minister in exile to 
address the Italian Senate's Foreign Commission, Rome  More info., 
contact r.brusadin@xxxxxxxxxxxxx 

╖ February (end)  : International Trade Union conference on 
ôSolidarity with Burmaö, Tokyo 

╖ March 8th  : Award ceremony for the Internatinal Student Peace 
Prize to Min Koo Naing and the    ABDFU, Norway. Organised by ISFIT. 
More info. www.isfit.org 

╖ March 8th  : Next session of the Governing Body of the ILO. 
Forced labour in Burma to be discussed 

╖ March 17-19th  : International Strategy Meeting on Burma, 
Bangkok. Organised by Altsean-Burma.     More info, contact: 
teaparties@xxxxxxxxxx 

╖ April   : Events organised by Association Suisse-Birmanie: 
Petition to abolish forced 
labour.More info, contact info@xxxxxxxxxx 

╖ April   : EU Common Position Review 

╖ April 1-7th  : Inter-Parliamentary Conference, Cuba 

╖ March 19th/April 27th : UN Commission on Human Rights, Geneva 

╖ May 13-20th  : UN LDC III, UN conference on the LDC-countries, 
Brussels 

╖ May 22nd  : Shareholder meeting for Total, Paris 
╖ May 27th  : 11th Anniversary of the 1990 elected 

╖ May   : ARF Senior Official Meeting, Hanoi 

╖ June   : Meeting in the Governing Body of the ILO 

╖ June   : Meeting of the Socialist International Council, Lisbon 

╖ June 8-10th  : Burma Desk during the Italian Forum for 
Responsible Tourism, Venice û Italy 
 More info., contact r.brusadin@xxxxxxxxxxxxx

╖ June 19th  : Aung San Suu Kyi birthday party and Burmese Women's 
Day 

╖ July   : Belgium takes over EU Presidency 

╖ July   : 8th RFA Ministerial Meeting, Hanoi 

╖ July   : 34th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting and Post-Ministerial 
Conference 

╖ July   : ASEAN Summit 

╖ Aug. 31st- Sep.7th : World Conference against Racism and Racial 
Discrimination, Xenophobia and related 
 intolerance, South Africa 

╖ December 1st  : Worlds Aids Day 

╖ December 10th  : 10th Year Anniversary of the Nobel Peace Prize 
for Aung San Suu Kyi, 
 






________________


The BurmaNet News is an Internet newspaper providing comprehensive 
coverage of news and opinion on Burma  (Myanmar) from around the world.  
If you see something on Burma, you can bring it to our attention by 
emailing it to strider@xxxxxxx

To automatically subscribe to Burma's only free daily newspaper in 
English, send an email to:
burmanet-subscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

To subscribe to The BurmaNet News in Burmese, send an email to:

burmanetburmese-subscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx


You can also contact BurmaNet by phone or fax:

Voice mail or fax (US) +1(202) 318-1261
You will be prompted to press 1 for a voice message or 2 to send a fax.  
If you do neither, a fax tone will begin automatically.

Fax (Japan) +81 (3) 4512-8143


________________


Burma News Summaries available by email or the web

There are three Burma news digest services available via either email or 
the web.

Burma News Update
Frequency: Biweekly
Availability: By fax or the web.
Viewable online at http://www.soros.org/burma/burmanewsupdate/index.html
Cost: Free
Published by: Open Society Institute, Burma Project

The Burma Courier 
Frequency: Weekly 
Availability: E-mail, fax or post.  To subscribe or unsubscribe by email 
celsus@xxxxxxxxxxx
Viewable on line at: http://www.egroups.com/group/BurmaCourier
Cost: Free
Note: News sources are cited at the beginning of an article. 
Interpretive comments and background
details are often added.

Burma Today
Frequency: Weekly
Availability: E-mail
Viewable online at http://www.worldviewrights.org/pdburma/today.html
To subscribe, write to pdburma@xxxxxxxxx
Cost: Free
Published by: PD Burma (The International Network of Political Leaders 
Promoting Democracy in Burma)




________________

____________________________________________________________
T O P I C A  -- Learn More. Surf Less. 
Newsletters, Tips and Discussions on Topics You Choose.
http://www.topica.com/partner/tag01