BurmaNet News: March 25, 2001

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______________ THE BURMANET NEWS ______________
        An on-line newspaper covering Burma 
         March 25, 2001   Issue # 1763
______________ www.burmanet.org _______________

INSIDE BURMA _______
*AFP: Tight security laid out for Myanmar's Armed Forces Day 
*Xinhua: Myanmar Launches TB Control Week Campaign
*Bangkok Post: 'Seven Million Shan Can't Be Beaten'
*SHAN: Wa fighters deserting Junta troops

REGIONAL/INTERNATIONAL _______
*Sunday Telegraph(London): Burmese rights protester to fight for Tories 
*Bangkok Post: Uncommon Ground
*The Nation: Politicians trading in drugs: General
*The Charlatan (Ottawa): From Weapons of Wars to Words of Hope: A 
Carleton student?s long journey out of the Jungle of Burma 

ECONOMY/BUSINESS _______
*AFP: Myanmar moves to quash currency rumours
*AFP: Japan approves 14.5 mln dlr debt relief to Myanmar

OPINION/EDITORIALS_______
*Bangkok Post: Time Running out on Burma Problem
*Bangkok Post: Anti-Burma Loose Canons Must Be Silenced

	


__________________ INSIDE BURMA ____________________



AFP: Tight security laid out for Myanmar's Armed Forces Day 

YANGON, March 25 (AFP) - The Myanmar junta is laying down a heavy 
security presence around the capital Yangon ahead of its most important 
event of the year, Armed Forces Day. 

 On Tuesday it will mark the day in 1945 when General Aung San, 
Myanmar's independence hero and the father of democracy leader Aung San 
Suu Kyi, called on national resistance fighters to throw out the 
occupying Japanese forces. 
 Hordes of soldiers are already at work patrolling the neat 
thoroughfares of the city, many of them brandishing steel probes used to 
search for explosives while others are even shaking down trees to check 
for devices. 

 Yangon neighbourhoods have been woken during the night by security 
patrols checking to see if any non-residents are being harbored inside 
homes and cars are being searched at random. 

 The parkland venue for the centrepiece of the celebrations, an 
elaborate military parade, has already been cordoned off and the closure 
of many thoroughfares has caused bad traffic snarls. 

 Religious rituals at the former Resistance Park have also been affected 
by the security cordon -- the recital of Buddhist chants to ward off 
evil spirits has this year been done by tape recording and not by actual 
monks. 

 "This is a particularly delicate time of the year for the government 
here, with Armed Forces Day coming up," one Western diplomat told AFP. 
"They are normally overly security conscious at this time of the year." 

 The celebrations take place this year amid ongoing talks between the 
junta and Aung San Suu Kyi which appear to be paving the way for their 
first official dialogue since 1994. 

 After years of dreary deadlock between the two sides, the talks have 
sparked a political renaissance in Yangon which for months has been 
buzzing with rumours and intrigue. 

 Earlier this month the junta was forced to dismiss persistent rumours 
that its leadership has been riven by a coup or power struggle between 
intelligence chief Lieutenant-General Khin Nyunt and military strongman 
General Maung Aye. 

 The stories were given fresh impetus in February after junta 
number-four Lieutenant-General Tin Oo died in what the authorities said 
was an accidental helicopter crash. 

 Dissident groups claimed that Tin Oo, a trusted aide and likely 
successor to Maung Aye, was deliberately killed -- a theory largely 
discounted by diplomats and observers in Yangon. 

 Reliable observers also dismiss the coup rumours and say there are 
absolutely no signs of turmoil in the military-run country. 

 Exiled democracy activists have also tipped March 27 as the likely date 
for an "important gesture" from the regime, which in recent months has 
made a series of concessions to the opposition led by Aung San Suu Kyi. 

 However, most observers are confident that the Nobel peace laureate, 
who has been held under house arrest since September, will not be 
released before the talks made substantial headway. 

 "In the way of developments it is probably going to be a matter of 
months rather than weeks before we see anything," the diplomat said. 



___________________________________________________



Xinhua: Myanmar Launches TB Control Week Campaign

YANGON, March 25 (Xinhua) -- Myanmar is launching for the first time a 
tuberculosis control week campaign covering every village and township 
in the country. The campaign, which began on Saturday and will last till 
the end of this month, is being carried out by Myanmar's health ministry 
in cooperation with various health-related non- governmental 
organizations. Meanwhile, TB control centers are also being set up to 
implement Directly Observed Treatment Short Course (DOTS) strategy in 
every township with the assistance of the World Health Organization 
(WHO). In Myanmar, there are some 80,000 TB patients and half of them 
are pulmonary TB patients and about 20,000 die each year. 

According to last year's WHO report on global TB control, only two 
million TB patients including Myanmar received DOTS treatment in 1998 
and about 80 percent were successful in the treatment. The report 
estimated that if every TB patient receives DOTS treatment, mortality 
rate, infection rate and disease outbreak rate will fall. The Myanmar 
health ministry spends 25 million Kyats (about 62, 500 U.S. dollars) 
annually in funding medicines for TB. 

TB is seen as one of the major public health problems in Myanmar and it 
constitutes the second priority disease in the country's national health 
plan. It was reported that HIV infection among TB cases in the country 
is 4.5 percent and 60 to 80 percent of AIDS cases are suffering from TB, 
becoming one of the challenges for TB control programs in the future. 


___________________________________________________



Bangkok Post: 'Seven Million Shan Can't Be Beaten'

 Sunday, 25, 2001



An exclusive interview with Shan State Army leader Chao Yodsuk 
Subin Khuenkaew and Poona Antaseeda

The northern Thai-Burmese border remains tense. Conflict between two 
rival minority groups in Burma-the Shan State Army (SSA) and the United 
Wa State Army (UWSA)-may erupt at any time. Both sides have consolidated 
their troops after fighting spilled across the border into Thailand on 
February 9, when Burmese troops allied with the UWSA seized a Thai 
military base at Pang Nun in Mae Fah Luang district of Chiang Rai and 
proceeded to shell the nearby SSA base.

Perspective visited the SSA base recently and found the troops on full 
alert. Medical supplies and equipment had been stocked up. Clashes 
between SSA and Burma loom to occur at the end this month to mark SSA's 
national day on March 25, and Burmese national day on March 27. In an 
exclusive interview, SSA leader Chao Yodsuk talked about the border 
conflict, the SSA policy and the political situation in Burma.

Q: What is the present situation?
A: There's a stand-off and fighting with Burma is inevitable. 

Q: How will the SSA counter attacks by Burma?
A: The SSA has many ways to counter Burma. At the moment, the only thing 
we are afraid of is that the Burmese soldiers will not dare attack us. 
Junior Burmese troops don't want to fight with us.

Q: How many SSA troops are there?
A: Over 10,000.

Q: How does the SSA acquire its weapons?
A: We buy them from whoever offers to sell them to us. Our money comes 
from public donations. We fight for the Shan people so they support us. 
Q: How do you respond to Burma's allegation that the Shan people have 
been producing drugs in Shan State?
A: We don't want the world community to listen only to Burma. We want 
them to listen to both sides. I insist that the SSA is not involved in 
drug production. It is our policy to get rid of and crack down on drugs. 
It's the Burmese government that pulls the strings behind drug producing 
elements. For more than 30 years, the United Nations International Drug 
Control Programme has helped Burma tackle its drug problems. But the 
problems are getting worse. The Burmese government is using the 
proliferation of drugs to leverage its negotiations with the world 
community. 
Q: What are the SSA's policies?
A: We have four policies-expel Burmese from Shan State; strive for an 
independent Shan State; suppress drugs and prevent drug addiction among 
our people; and improve the quality of life of the Shan people. 
Q: The Shan minority group has been fighting for independence from Burma 
for 30-40 years. Do you think they still have a chance of victory? A: 
We're 100% confident that we will win. We have seven million people. 
We're ready to fight Burma at any time.

Q: There have been reports that Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu 
Kyi and Lt-Gen Khin Nyunt, first secretary to the State Peace Council 
and Development (SPCD), might form a coalition party. Do you think such 
a government would benefit the SSA and other ethnic minority groups? A: 
I don't think such a coalition will benefit the Shan. I don't think the 
National League for Democracy can overpower the SPCD. What's more, it's 
hard to believe that the SPCD will hand over power to Suu Kyi. SPCD 
members are likely to cling on to power as long as they can. It's 
impossible for such a coalition party to take place. If the NLD took 
power, all present Burmese leaders would be jailed because they have 
killed people and been involved in drug production.

Q: As far as you're concerned, is there a peaceful solution to the 
conflict. A: First, Burma must respect the Panglong Agreement which 
states that the country must not dispatch its soldiers to any states. 
Second, Burma must withdraw all its troops from Shan State and 
subsequently engage in talks with the Shan.

Q: What do you expect the UN and Asean to do to help in this matter? A: 
We hope the UN and Asean will step in to help negotiate. We don't want 
to carry on fighting. The pressure exerted by the EU and the UN to bring 
Suu Kyi and Lt-Gen Khin Nyunt to the negotiating table recently was done 
in good faith. But we cannot expect anything much.

Q:What can Asean and China do to solve the problem?
A: There are two things that China can do to help stop Burma from 
suppressing minority groups. First, it must stop supplying weapons to 
the regime; and second, it must stop trading with the country. 
As for Asean, it should bar Burmese leaders from being the country's 
representatives in the association and recognise Suu Kyi as the leader 
of Burma instead.

Q: What does the SSA think about Thai Prime Minister Thaksin 
Shinawatra's "economic diplomacy"?
A: Giving top priority to economic affairs is Mr Thaksin's strategy. But 
in the future, political problems must be considered as equally 
important.





___________________________________________________



SHAN: Wa fighters deserting Junta troops

March 24, 2001

The Thai worker, who requested his name withheld, said he saw several Wa 
 fighters that left earlier with junta units returning to Mongyawn just  
before his departure. One of them reportedly told him of the clash 
between  the Burma Army and the Shan State Army on 10 February between 
Mongliang and  Paleep villages in Mongpiang Township. "It ended 
inconclusively," the  fighter said.

"But henceforth the Burmese would place us in the vanguard that didn't 
make  us feel right."

The Wa told him that they had brought down thousands of their people 
down  to the border areas where they would be defenseless against the 
SSA's  punitive campaigns if there were any. Besides, the Wa had 
invested so much  in developing the area that they could not afford a 
war with the Shans that  would result in hundreds of millions of baht in 
loss.

"We therefore decided to leave them," he said. It was also believed that 
 Burma Army units were not anxious for a fight with the Shans either. 
Lt.-Col. Kawnzuen from Loi Kawwan, opposite Chaingrai Province, also 
told  S.H.A.N. the Wa had ceased their tunnel-digging activities for 
some time now. 
Earlier reports said the Wa were engaging in building tunnels towards 
Shan  positions.


Shan Herald Agency for News.


___________________ REGIONAL/INTERNATIONAL___________________
				



Sunday Telegraph(London): Burmese rights protester to fight for Tories 


March 25, 2001, Sunday 




James Mawdsley, jailed twice for opposing the military junta, is to 
campaign for William Hague in the election. Adam Lusher reports 

By Adam Lusher 

: 
A HUMAN RIGHTS campaigner who spent 14 months in a Burmese jail for 
protesting against the military junta is to turn his attention to 
Britain's New Labour. 

James Mawdsley revealed that when the general election is called, he 
will be campaigning for the Conservative Party. He said last night: "I 
can't wait until the Tory Party is back in office. I just have Tory 
blood. We share the same outlook. I believe passionately in the 
Conservative philosophy of individual responsibility and the prime 
importance of freedom and justice." 

Mr Mawdsley, 27, was imprisoned twice during his campaign against the 
Burmese regime. The second time, he served 14 months of a 17-year jail 
sentence for distributing protest leaflets and singing pro-democracy 
songs. He was kept in solitary confinement and suffered severe beatings 
before being released last October. 

Back home in Ormskirk, Lancashire, he said he hoped to finish writing 
The Heart Must Break, a book about his experiences, in time to play a 
role in the election. 

Tomorrow he will get a taste of what is to come by visiting four 
constituencies near his home with the local parliamentary candidates and 
talking to Conservative Association members 

Mr Mawdsley said his experience in Burma had strengthened his 
Conservative beliefs. "I like government giving us our freedom so we can 
address what concerns us about situations abroad," he said. "When I 
returned to Britain, I said the prison phase of my work in Burma had 
finished, and I would work through political means. I feel far more 
optimistic doing that within the Tory Party than I would with Labour. 
The Tories are most concerned with justice. Look at how Mrs Thatcher 
dealt with the Iron Curtain and the Argentinian junta in the Falklands. 
She understood this about dictators: you have to stand up to them. There 
are people in all political parties who are concerned about Burma. Mr 
Cook and his colleagues did well. It's just that I believe the Tories 
can do better. It is going to take real political courage. I met William 
Hague a few weeks ago, and I trust him far more than anyone in the 
Cabinet. 

"An ethical foreign policy is a nice idea but I get the impression that 
our Government is far too beholden to the press and the fickleness of 
the electorate to be effective." 
[PS]News: [ES] 






___________________________________________________




Bangkok Post: Uncommon Ground

 Sunday, March 25, 2001



BORDER DISPUTE: Clashes between Thai and Burmese troops along the 
disputedborder look like continuing indefinitely as the two sides fail 
to even reachagreement on which maps to use

Poona Antaseeda

The latest Thai-Burmese border conflict is expected to dominate a 
Regional Border Committee meeting in Keng Tung, Burma on April 2-4. 
Tensions between the neighbouring countries heightened after Burmese 
troops seized a Thai military base in Mae Fah Luang district in Chiang 
Rai, on February 9. The hillside base has enabled Burma to shell the 
rival Shan State Army.

Fighting between Thailand and Burma on and around Phuten Nayong hill in 
Mae Sai erupted two days later after Bangkok's demand for the withdrawal 
of Burmese troops was ignored. Since then, the relationship has been 
tense along the border in Chiang Rai, Chiang Mai, Tak and Ranong. 
The Burmese authorities insist both areas are on Burmese soil while 
Thailand's Third Army claims they are part of Thai territory. 
Lt Gen Watanachai Chaimuenwong, the third army commander, said he will 
raise the issue with his Burmese counterparts. The meeting is expected 
to focus on problems at Phuteng Nayong hill and Doi Lang. Troops from 
both countries stand almost face-to-face about 100 metres apart at one 
point at Phuteng Nayong. At Doi Lang the two sides are only separated by 
a 20 by 40 metre area where the soldiers used to play Takraw together 
during more peaceful times.


Lt Gen Watanachai said he would propose that both sides remove their 
troops from the disputed areas pending negotiations on demarcation. 
There are many ambiguous areas on both sides. But Lt Gen Wattana 
reiterated that the Pang Nun base is in Thai territory because the area 
is one kilometre deep inside the country.

Thai soldiers resumed observation at the base last October after two 
years of absence due to budget shortages.

AMBIGUOUS BORDER

The 2,401-km mountainous stretch along the Thai-Burmese border is one of 
the most conflict prone areas between the two neighbouring countries. 
The volatility is due to the ambiguity of the 1894 Anglo-Siamese 
agreement on Burmese-Siam border demarcation signed during the reign of 
King Rama V. 

Demarcation of western areas of Thailand has progressed very slowly 
compared with border areas with Malaysia and Laos. Whenever Thailand and 
Burma are in conflict, border disputes are generally the cause. 

Disputes over Phuteng Nayong in Dan Lao sparked in 1990 when Thai 
authorities began to build a road along the border. Construction had to 
be halted at Doi Nang in Mae Sai when Burma protested that the western 
side of the hill was Burmese territory (see graphic). Both Thailand and 
Burma dispatched soldiers to the area but later agreed to withdraw the 
troops to pave the way for a joint survey by the Thai-Burmese Joint 
Border Committee (JBC).

In 1994, tension started to simmer again after a Burmese monk who was 
invited to stay at Phuteng Nayong temple and the Burmese Army began to 
build up a permanent base. A monastery, Buddha statue and water storage 
tanks have been constructed. But when Burma started to build the five by 
seven metre Buddha statue in 1997, Thai authorities protested and 
demanded work be halted. However, the dispute has now been solved. In 
the same year, Thai authorities bought a Global Positioning System (GPS) 
in preparation for a joint border survey and demarcation effort 
following on the agreement at the JBC meeting.

But Thai soldiers complained that Burma did nothing after the meeting to 
facilitate the effort. "The Burmese never set up their own boundary 
demarcation committee as agreed in the meeting, although we have already 
established our committee and have been waiting for them," said a leader 
of a Thai military base in Mae Sai.

Instead, in December last year, Thai soldiers found that Burma had set 
up a military base at Phuteng Nayong temple. The soldiers protested the 
matter through the Town and Bordership Committee (TBC), demanding that 
Burma withdraw its troops as agreed earlier. But Rangoon refused, 
claiming the crest of the hill is its observation point. It feared that 
Shan State Army (SSA) troops would seize the area and use it to mount 
attacks against Burmese soldiers.

The hill is a perfect area for military observation as it gives a wider 
view of both Mae Sai and SSA controlled areas along the border. 
On February 11, Thai and Burmese soldiers clashed at Phuteng Nayong and 
Pang Nun base after Burma refused to retreat from Pang Nun base which it 
captured in order to shell the SSA base.

Thailand and Burma have used different scale maps to interpret the 
boundary as marked in the Anglo-Siam agreement.

Thai authorities insist that according to the agreement the borderline 
starts at the 21st boundary pillar (see graphic) on the northwestern 
crest of the hill next to the Sai river.

Their map, drawn up by the Royal Thai Survey Department with a scale of 
1:50,000 sq-m in, also shows the same boundary.

Burma, meanwhile, uses its own map with a scale of 1:63360 sq km to 
interpret the agreement. According to that map, the boundary starts at 
the 21st pillar running across Phuteng Nayong temple and runs to the 492 
reference pillar and the Sai river in the North




BREAKDOWN IN NEGOTIATIONS

Regarding the 2,401 km border from Chiang Rai to Mae Hong Son, only 59 
km in Chiang Rai, along the Ruak and Sai rivers, has been settled. The 
demarcation in the areas was made in 1991, and was marked by a thalweg 
or the deepest part of the channel. The settlement was made after 
several conflicts between the two countries.

The Thai-Burmese Joint Border Committee (JBC) met in 1998 and agreed in 
principle to survey and demarcate the border. Both sides agreed to set 
up their own working groups to jointly survey the borderline from North 
to South by dividing it into 10 sectors. The two sides agreed to compose 
terms of reference. Burma later informed Thailand it wanted the 
memorandum of understanding to be written before the legal framework was 
explored. 

But in the 4th JBC meeting in 1999, Burma informed Thailand that the 
boundary demarcation should be carried out by the General Description of 
Boundary Alliance (GDBA) method, the same technique Burma used to 
demarcate its northwestern border with Bangladesh. The Thai Foreign 
Ministry has been seeking clarification from Burma over the GDBA's 
methods since last year. However, it has yet to get a reply from Burma, 
according to Prasas Prasasvinitchai, director of the Foreign Ministry's 
Boundary Division. 
The method proposed by Burma is to specify the thalweg from point to 
point. "We're afraid it'll result in changing borderline conditions so 
that we'll face problems in Parliament," explained Mr Prasas.

Originally, he said, both Thailand and Burma agreed in the JBC meeting 
that they would abide by the Anglo-Siam agreement and a joint working 
group would be sent to demarcate the disputed areas. That's how Thailand 
solved border demarcation problems with Malaysia.

Presently, there are eight critical disputed areas along the border. 
They are: Phuteng Nayong hill, Mae Sai, Chiang Rai; Doi Lang, Mae Ai, 
Chiang Mai; Kiew Phawok, Chiang Dao, Chiang Mai; a section of the Moei 
river under the Thai-Burma Friendship bridge in Mae Sot, Tak; Ban 
Phrathat Kok Chang Phuek, Mae Sot, Tak-Ban Koken, Mae Sot, Tak; Three 
Pagodas, Sangkhla Buri in Kanchanaburi, and; Islands off the Ranong 
coast, including Koh Song, Koh Lam, Koh Kan, and Koh Kheenok. Thailand 
has border problems with all its neighbours, including Laos and Malaysia 
but they are not as complicated and drawn out as with Burma.

Thailand and Laos share a 1,810 km border both on land and water. 
According to the
ministry 480 km has already been settled.

The latest fight between the two countries occurred during 1987-8 at Ban 
Rom Klao in Charttrakan, Phitsanulok. But the problems were settled 
after the two agreed to survey five sites. So far the ministry says 
there are 14 troublespots along the border, but no armed conflicts.

Malaysia has a 647 km border with Thailand; 552 on land and 95 across 
water along the Kolok river. The demarcation between Thailand and 
Malaysia was carried out from 1973-1986 during the period of communist 
insurgency. The work culminated at Buki Jeli hill in Narathiwat, a spot 
with five rivers. Thailand and Malaysia could not agree which river to 
choose for the demarcation line.

Surveying the 95 km Kolok river stretch will begin next month, said Mr 
Prasas. 

BURMESE INSINCERITY HINDERS PROGRESS

Despite admitting that Thailand and Burma have problems in interpreting 
the Anglo-Siam agreement, Thai soldiers point to Burma's insincerity as 
the root cause of the sluggish pace of settling border demarcation 
issues. 

Lt Gen Wattanachai who has adopted a tough stance over border problems 
with Burma said these problems could be settled if Burma was sincere. 
The methodology and technical problems are petty ones, he added. 

To end the conflict, Rangoon should be more flexible, he said, adding 
that the way Thailand settled the problems with Malaysia is a good 
example of how friendships work out.

"Based on true friendship, the problems can be solved.There's no 
mountain range runs through that stretch," said the commander.

Unlike Burma, Laos is friendly to Thailand and is determined not to 
tackle to problem in a violent manner, said Lt Gen Wattanachai. 
"Wherever we cannot agree about something, we suspend negotiations," 
said Maj Gen Prasas Luewattananon, Thai chief of Thai-Burma 
Coordination. A concrete wall is even erected in some areas to demarcate 
the border. A 10 rai- plot of land in Narathiwat, for example, was ruled 
to be on Malaysian soil but owned by Thai people. Thai authorities have 
to expropriate the land. Malaysia compensated for the crops. Then the 
concrete wall was built. Internal conflicts in Burma also make border 
settlement more complicated. Burma regularly cites its problems with 
ethnic minority groups as the reason for retaining its soldiers along 
the border. Doi Lang is an example. 

Minority groups, on the other hand, take advantage of disputed areas by 
using them to run their movements in places where it is easy for them to 
flee attacks by Burmese soldiers by moving onto Thai soil. 

Burmese soldiers also know that holding the highest point will benefit 
them because it gives them a better view of the enemy. "The Burmese try 
to capture the highest points. At some points where Thai flag poles were 
erected to mark our soil, as soon as we moved out, Burmese soldiers 
seized the sites," said Capt Sanit Banthao, intelligence chief assistant 
to the Third Army. Moreover, Thailand's flexible constructive engagement 
policy has encouraged Burmese soldiers, who never previously faced tough 
responses from Thailand, to repeatedly invade Thai territory, claiming 
some areas have been used by them, added Capt Sanit.

Thai soldiers also accused Burma of taking advantage of the ill-defined 
border to protect their avenues for transporting drugs.

"Local Thais such as Lao Ta, kamnan Daeng or senior local officials all 
have interests in drug smuggling along the border which they fear will 
be affected if border problems are settled," said Capt Sanit. 

DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES

Thailand, however, has appeared to apply a double policy over border 
problems. 
The Thai government under Thai Rak Thai has reiterated that border 
problems are a domestic issue. Drugs are also an internal problem. The 
Thai military, however, insist that the problem is a national issue and 
that talks at national level between the respective governments is 
needed. 
Lt Gen Wattanachai said he was not confident that the problems can be 
settled at the RBC meeting.

"Border problems must be discussed by the Joint Committee. We must take 
the national interest to heart," he said referring to the Thai-Burmese 
Joint Committee which must be led by the foreign ministers of the two 
countries. 
But Surakiat Sathirathai, Foreign Minister, insisted the conflict is a 
domestic issue and should be treated as such.

"The matter must be sorted out internally so that it won't affect the 
national relationship," said Mr Surakiat. The minister plans to visit 
China soon to seek cooperation from China in suppressing drug smuggling 
from Burma. "The drug problem is an internal issue and the same applies 
to border issues. People are missing the point by demand that we must 
fight over the border issue," said Mr Surakiat.

Army-chief-commander Gen Surayud Chulanont said the RBC meeting can only 
solve the problems at a local level. Any problems that need to be 
resolved at national level, must be discussed by the JC.

Pornpimol Trichote, an expert on Burma issues at Chulalongkorn 
University's Institute of Asian Studies, says the border problem is 
indeed a national issue. "The problem is a state to state matter, but it 
is conducted at the local level because that's where it occurs," she 
said. She added that solving border problems starts with local officers 
who are closest to the disputed areas.

At the moment, the drug problem is the most urgent. But that doesn't 
mean the border issue can be put on the back burner.

Drugs, minorities, smuggling and border demarcation disputes are all 
interrelated issues which need to be tackled together. The only thing 
certain is that resolving the issue is a matter of the utmost urgency. 



___________________________________________________




The Nation: Politicians trading in drugs: General

March 22, 2001.


THIRD Army Region Commander General Watanachai Chaimuanwong yesterday 
said more than 10 Thai politicians and businessmen were involved in 
narcotics trafficking and production in Burma and Thailand's northern 
region.  

He was responding to a news report suggesting Burma had a list of 10 
Thai politicians who had prominent roles in the production and 
trafficking of drugs, particularly methamphetamines.  

"It is for sure that a number of Thais - politicians and businessmen - 
are involved in the syndicates," said Watanchai.  

"Our Office of Narcotics Control Board has a list of them, more than 10 
of course," he added.  

Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra said he would make no statement 
relating to the Burmese claims this time.  

"I have my own way to check and deal with this case," he said. "Burma is 
aware already of my strong efforts to tackle the drug problem."  

Meanwhile former prime minister Chuan Leekpai said he had never been 
shown the list. "It would be good if Burma gave the list to the Thai 
side, however we have to check the facts first," he said.  

"During my premiership, Rangoon never gave such a list to me."  

Thailand and Burma have exchanged verbal barbs since last month, when 
Burmese troops encroached on Thai territory in pursuit of ethnic Shan 
rebels.  

Watanachai was the first to come out and criticise Burma's actions, and 
allege its involvement in drug trafficking.  

His criticisms are considered to have broken Thailand's traditional 
diplomatic approach - to avoid making direct criticisms of other 
countries, particularly neighbours. The situation became tense after 
Thaksin lashed out at Burma and the Burmese affiliated United Wa State 
Army.  

The conflict resulted in the closure of the Thai-Burma checkpoint 
linking Chiang Rai with Burma's Tachilek. Thailand recently re-opened 
its side of the checkpoint, but Burma has not. Watanachai yesterday said 
raw materials and the equipment used to produce narcotics were imported 
illegally into Burma from Thailand.  

"It is a fact that chemicals and materials used in the production of 
speed pills and other narcotics come from the Thai side," the general 
said. "The ingredients are also produced in China and sent to Burma 
through Thailand," he said.  

Thailand and Burma agreed to convene their Regional Boundary Committee 
(RBC) in Keng Tung on the Burmese side from April 2 to 4. The committee 
has not met for two years, because of the countries' shaky relationship. 
 

Watanachai said the main talking points in the meeting would be old 
bilateral problems that had never been seriously tackled, such as border 
demarcation, illegal immigration, fishing and narcotics.  

The Thai side would also raise Burma's intrusion into Chiang Rai 
province last month, Watanachai said.  

"We consider the upcoming RBC meeting as a proactive approach from the 
Thai side," he said.  

"The meeting is expected to help ease the tension."



___________________________________________________




The Charlatan (Ottawa): From Weapons of Wars to Words of Hope: A 
Carleton student?s long journey out of the Jungle of Burma 

By Chris Harris



March 22, 2001


( Note: Charlatan is Carleton University ( Ottawa ) Students Weekly News 
Paper ) 

We sit at MikeÆs place drinking tea, surrounded by dark wood tables. 
Fluted glasses hang over the ornate bar. 

Salai Bawi Lian Mang is neatly dressed in a button-down plaid shirt. 
Students at the next table are engage in a game of chess and are 
discussing worldly issues. 

Their concern must seem far cry from BawiÆs experiences.


Bawi is a second-year political science student at Carleton who is 
involved in his studies and also in worldly issues. He is very much like 
the students at the next table, with one exception: he a former 
guerrilla fighter from the jungles of Burma. 

Bawi was raised in a rustic little town in western Burma now called 
Myanmar. The region is home to the Chin people. The Chin traditionally 
lived off the land and roamed the hills of the region. They are one of 
the many traditional peoples from the countryÆs forested border regions. 


Bawi left BurmaÆs physical resistance movement in 1995 to inform the 
world of his peopleÆs struggle. Once armed with the knowledge he has 
learned in university about human rights and freedom, Bawi will return 
to his people. 

" I need to teach them their basic rights," he says. " They think the 
government has the right to do whatever they want". 

In 1962, a military coup led by Gen. Ne Win overthrew Burma?s democratic 
government. The new authoritarian military regime, the Burmese Socialist 
Program Party ( BSPP ), kept the country isolated from most foreign 
contact or news, establishing widespread forced labour and drying up the 
country?s resources. The brunt of its actions focused on Burma?s many 
unique religious and cultural peoples. 

According to a United Nations survey, the BSPP had, by this time, 
transformed the healthiest economy in Southeast Asia into the world?s 
least developed country. In 1987 the government abolished the country?s 
currency system, replacing it with one based on Ne Win?s superstitious 
belief that the number nine was lucky. Families lost their life savings 
overnight. 

In 1987 after attending high school in Chin state, Bawi moved to the 
Burmese capital of Rangoon to pursue a university education. 

By 1988, political organizations and minority resistance movements began 
gathering in protest with a network of students nation-wide. University 
protest were violently broken up by the military and the universities 
closed. Bawi, in his second year of studies, returned home to organize 
local Chin student protests. 

Unrest continued throughout the summer and culminated in a peaceful 
protest in Rangoon on Aug. 8, 1988. Burmese military responded by 
embarking on a four-day massacre, killing 3,000 men, women, children and 
monks. 

The Burmese military changed hands to the State Law and Order 
Restoration Council ( SLORC ), and their grip on the Burmese people grew 
tighter. Thousands of people, mostly students and ethnic minorities, 
fled to neighbouring Thailand and India,. Some joined guerrilla rebel 
groups. 

Bawi fled to India with 200 fellow Chin students. There, he volunteered 
to join the guerrilla resistance movement called Chin National Front ( 
CNF ). In a team of 50 students, Bawi hiked across northern Burma to the 
Kachin State. They joined the Kachin Independence Organization movement, 
where he endured a gruelling three months of day-and-night intensive 
military training. He spent the following two years resisting the 
Burmese military in Kachin state. 

Meanwhile, a democratic party to rival the military regime was being 
crated by a woman named Aung San Suu Kyi. The government soon confined 
Suu Kyi to house arrest under accusations of "endangering the state". To 
please foreign governments and investors, they staged what was billed as 
a democratic election. From the confines of house arrest Suu Kyi won the 
election with a whopping 82 per cent of the vote, but the government 
refused to hand over control of the country, and Suu Kyi remains under 
house arrest today. 

After two years with the Kachin rebels, Bawi returned to fight on behalf 
of his home region. He trekked, single file, in a group of 70 rebels 
form an entire year to reach his native Chin province. They lugged heavy 
arms, caught malaria and almost starved, while constantly stopping to 
hide from the Burmese army. Bawi spent a year working with CNF 
resistance in Chin state. He then flew over to the Karen state on the 
eastern border to aid the Karen PeopleÆs resistance. In 1994 the Karen 
headquarters Marnepalaw was sacked by the Burmese army, and Bawi fled to 
Thailand. 

"It was time to change my focus from guerrilla warfare to human rights", 
says Bawi. 

In Thailand, he came in contact with a Karen human rights group and says 
he realized that because of the isolation of the Chin people within 
Burma, the world knew little of what was happening in his country. 

Since then, BawiÆs life has been dedicated to informing the world of his 
peopleÆs struggle. He went back to Chin state, and co-founded the Chin 
Human Rights Organization ( CHRO ) to begin documenting the struggle. 

" What strike me most when I go to any village, Karen, Chin anywhere in 
the country, is that the people are suffering a lot", Bawi says. " 
Suffering, poverty, fear of prosecution, fear of military....and the 
world doesnÆt know it". 

As a member of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, Bawi was 
able to become a landed immigrant in Canada in 1995 and moved to Ottawa. 
he immediately began working with Burmese friends here and in Burma to 
publish a Chin Human Rights magazine called Rhododendron ( the flower of 
the people ). The magazine publicizes the current oppression of the 
Burmese army against the Chin people, with eyewitness accounts and 
stories. 

Bawi worked as a cook in Ottawa restaurants to fund the magazineÆs 
publication. The magazine was very successful and has since worked with 
many groups such as the National Endowment for Democracy in Washington, 
Open Society Institute N.Y., UN Human Rights Commission and UN Working 
Group on Indigenous People. Currently the magazine is published every 
two months and is sent to human rights groups all in Asia, Europe, and 
North America, and is also published on the Internet at 
http://www.chro.org 

He also taking the chance to pursue an education, now difficult to 
acquire in Burma after the government limited access to universities. 

Bawi says the government demands a "Burmanization" of all cultural and 
religious minorities in Burma. The regime has changed the nationÆs 
official name from Burma to Myanma to symbolize the uniformity of the 
countryÆs people. They also enforce the religion of Buddhism. 

Yin Yin Oo, political first secretary at the Embassy of Myanmar ( Burma 
) in Ottawa, says the government has its reasons for enforcing this 
uniformity. 

"Bad habits of individuals and bad customs of tribes have to be 
discouraged," she says. " The government has and is trying to educate ( 
these tribes ) and if necessary relocate them, which may look like 
pressuring them, at first". 

The problem in Burma today is the military government, says Bawi. 

" What they say is law, so when they go to town they take what they 
want". 

The country received foreign exchange by exporting rich resources such 
as natural gas, oil, gems, and rice. The government administers what 
they call "voluntary labour" from citizens, which Bawi calls " forced 
voluntary labour". The military takes foods from each village, which are 
exported at a fixed price, much lower that the market price.  

According Corinne Baumgarten of the Canadian Friends of Burma, the 
Burmese dictatorship continues to grow stronger with the support to 
foreign investment from countries such as Japan, China, England, and 
Canada, costing the people of Burma their freedom, rights , and lives. 
Bawi says the military has grown by 400 to 500 thousands since the 1988 
massacre, when it had 17,0000 soldiers. Forty-five percent of the 
nationÆs gross national product is spent on military. 

Oo says the reason the countryÆs military has grown so much is because 
it is located between the worldÆs two most populous countries; India and 
China. 

" Both countries are not passive, timid countries, either," she says. 

Canada placed a voluntary sanctions on Burma in 1997. Despite this, 
Canada has since doubled its imports of Burmese-made clothing, according 
to Baumgarten. Our country has more resource mines in Burma than any 
other country. The Yukon-based Ivanhoe Mines company, owned by Daniel 
Kunz, has a 50-50 partnership with Burma. Even Nortel Networks has been 
involved with trade in Burma. 

Bawi says the Burmese military government goes to great lengths to try 
and isolate the country. All foreigners are restricted to certain areas 
of the country such as Mandalay and Rangoon. Foreigners also must 
exchange $ 300 US with the government upon arrival, which adds to the 
regimeÆs coffers. 

Bawi says that Myanmar government oppresses the Burmese people by 
depriving them of an education. He says school teachers are not paid 
enough to survive, so they must find food for their families before they 
can teach. He adds public universities have only been open for three of 
the last 12 years. 

Only military universities are functioning in Burma, and enrolment is 
limited to military and close friends and families of military, he says. 
Bawi calls this attack on education as "assassination of the future," 
for the people of Burma. 

Baumgarten adds that, since the fall, the Canadian Friends of Burma have 
been campaigning for students rights in the country. She says the 
campaign will be ongoing until at least this fall. It involves sending 
postcards to the Burmese embassy in Ottawa in support of students, who 
make up the majority of political prisoners in Burma. 

As for Bawi, he is doing his part to help his people by publishing 
Rhododendron. 

"Ethnic people of Burma are not allowed to learn their own language, not 
allowed to practice their own culture, and religious minorities are 
always discriminated against," Bawi says. "I like the way we are able to 
discuss ( politics ) here. ItÆs very different from the way it is in 
Burma." 





_______________ ECONOMY AND BUSINESS _______________
 


AFP: Myanmar moves to quash currency rumours 

YANGON, March 25 (AFP) - Myanmar has moved to quash rumours that its 
dollar-denonimated special currency, the Foreign Exchange Certificate 
(FEC), is about to be withdrawn after suffering a steep decline in 
value. 

 State Central Bank deputy chairman Than Lwin told the Myanmar Times 
that the authorities had no intention of taking FECs out of circulation 
and that the rumours which have swept Yangon were totally baseless. 

 "Even if they were taken out of circulation the Central Bank would have 
to make a full refund in dollars," he said. 

 Myanmar's military government put the FEC into circulation in 1995, as 
a substitute for the US dollar to be used inside the country where it 
was illegal for nationals to handle hard currency. 

 While the unit value of the FEC was originally equivalent to one 
dollar, since late last year it has declined in value to the point where 
by mid-February it sold at a 25 percent discount to the greenback. 

 The growing price disparity has been attributed to over-printing of the 
special currency, which has meant that the amount in circulation exceeds 
the number of dollars collected by the government. 

 The shortfall was quickly accounted for in the local economy and some 
restaurants in Yangon began charging 15 percent more for meals paid for 
in FECs instead of dollars. 

 With the city awash in FECs and demand shrinking, people eager to hedge 
their bets offloaded the currency and bought up dollars or gold, sending 
the price of gold shooting up. 

 In another symptom of the nation's economic decline, the kyat plunged 
to an all-time low of 503 against the dollar on the free market last 
month, compared to an official exchange rate of six to the dollar. 

 Than Lwin said he expected the anomaly in the FEC and dollar rates to 
correct themselves in due course. 

 His view was supported by the current conversion rate which has shifted 
to 528 kyats to the dollar against 480 kyats to the FEC, a difference of 
just 48 kyats compared to 100 kyats a few weeks ago. 

 "I believe the disparity between the dollar and the FEC will gradually 
decrease without any need for the authorities to intervene and the 
financial markets will soon return to normal," the central banker said. 

 Than Lwin attributed the rumours of the FEC's withdrawal to a 
misinterpretation of a recent Trade Ministry notification concerning 
taxation on border trade which was being "deliberately spread by 
unscrupulous traders." 

 The ministry said last November that the dollar and the currencies of 
two border nations could now be used in transactions. 

 "Rumours of impending removal of FECs were started by traders when 
officials at border points who misinterpreted the Trade Ministry 
notification initially refused to accept FECs," he said. 

 Than Lwin's comments were reported in the debut edition of the 
Myanmar-language version of the "Myanmar Times" which hit the newsstands 
Friday. 

 The original English-language Myanmar Times weekly, the nation's first 
private newspaper in more than three decades, was launched a year ago. 



___________________________________________________



AFP: Japan approves 14.5 mln dlr debt relief to Myanmar 

YANGON, March 25 (AFP) - The Japanese government is to provide Myanmar 
with 1,777 million yen (14.5 million dollars) in debt relief, according 
to an official information sheet. 

 Myanmar's deputy minister for finance and revenue Brigadier-General 
Than Tun and Japan's ambassador in Yangon Shigeru Tsumori exchanged 
notes on the debt relief last Friday, it said. 

 Japan is the biggest creditor nation and aid donor to Myanmar. It 
suspended all but a small amount of humanitarian aid in the aftermath of 
the 1988 military takeover, but the flows of funds resumed in 1994. 

 Japan has stated its willingness to increase its supply of humanitarian 
aid if the military government embraces reform. 



_______________OPINION/EDITORIALS_________________



Bangkok Post: Time Running out on Burma Problem

 Sunday, March 25, 2001



Thai officials should be able to re-establish polite and direct talks 
with their Burmese counterparts this week. An unlikely but welcome 
meeting will take place between foreign ministers Surakiart Sathirathai 
and Win Aung in Chile, on the sidelines of a Latin American-Asian 
economic meeting. Burma is to host the high-ranking Thai delegation of 
the Regional Border Committee at Kengtung. That meeting has been delayed 
several times by Burma, but is supposed to resume again tomorrow. 
Given the background of recent weeks, these meetings are far from 
routine. Burmese military incursions into Thailand and the steadily 
escalating support of drug trafficking by Rangoon casts a heavy shadow 
over every contact between Thai and Burmese officials. The only serious 
external threats to Thai security at the moment come from our western 
neighbour. 

Everyone agrees that the drugs problem is the Number One threat to Thai 
security and survival. It cannot be defeated, or even opposed, without 
co-operation from Burma.


Every indicator shows that Burma supports and possibly even benefits 
from the drug trade of its close ally, the United Wa State Army. Yet, 
until now, members of the Rangoon military junta have refused even to 
acknowledge that their Wa friends make or smuggle illicit drugs.

Burma was correct about one thing in the recent impolite and unnecessary 
propaganda barrage. Thailand's drug problem has grown partly because of 
corrupt and inefficient enforcement. There is no doubt the Thai "drug 
mafia" sells and profits from the methamphetamine trade. Such red 
herrings display Burma's lack of courtesy and reality.

Much remains to be done. But there can be no meaningful progress in the 
re-vitalised war on drugs without moves against the makers and 
distributors. 
Burma appears to have smugly accepted a false impression of a badly 
split Thai society.

They must disabuse themselves of this notion that Thai policy will be 
driven by personal diplomacy. Sen Kraisak Choonhavan, not known for his 
close relations with the army, recently visited the Burma border area 
and was appalled. He believes the Burmese military dictators are 
directly involved in drug trafficking.

Rangoon may be banking on the administration of Prime Minister Thaksin 
Shinawatra to go easy on Burma, somehow. This cannot, and will not, 
happen. Mr Thaksin, like the rest of the country, feels Burma owes 
Thailand some action in the fight against drugs. To that end, Foreign 
Minister Surakiart went to Beijing last week to discuss the options 
available in dealing with Rangoon, both diplomatic and other.

China has strong influence with Burma and with the Wa. Southern China, 
like Thailand, suffers from the Burmese drug disease. The vague 
statements from Rangoon that they will end the illicit drug problem in 
14 years are as unacceptable to China as they are to Thailand.

There is great scepticism about this promise. Almost universally, Thais 
and other Burmese neighbours feel that if Rangoon were serious about 
ending drug trafficking it would take two steps. First, it would deal 
with the Wa by reminding the group that drug production is illegal and 
by acting against any Wa who disobeyed the law. Second, it would 
announce a series of actual steps it hopes to take against drug makers, 
smugglers and traffickers. 
Thailand would be delighted to help if Burma were to take action instead 
of shouting and shooting. A planned, cross-border programme could help 
farmers to replace crops, close the drug factories that operate openly, 
and end much of the cross-border smuggling.

Burma seems to reject such notions of co-operation, leaving everyone to 
wonder why. But Rangoon must begin serious, public steps to help to 
eradicate its part of the drug trafficking problem. Otherwise, Thailand 
and the world will act accordingly.



___________________________________________________






Bangkok Post: Anti-Burma Loose Canons Must Be Silenced

Sunday, March 25, 2001



In the current clamour to discredit Burma the first casualty is 
objectivity, the second, diplomacy

Amarin Khoman

It is evident that in order to improve Thai-Burmese relations after the 
recent clashes, fuelled by the unauthorised but incessant verbal 
nonsense beloved of politicians and bureaucrats seeking prominence in 
the national media, the purveyors of mindless, contradictory statements 
should be dealt with in no uncertain terms.

History has provided both Thailand and Burma with many common traits in 
cultural and traditional social values, plus a strong sense of communal 
faith through religious instruction. Both countries suffer similar fears 
as globalisation feeds the appetite of neo-colonialist ambitions. 

The subtlety of some democratically possessed superpowers is almost 
always lost in their oft-repeated catch-cries of human rights 
violations, and their considered justification in reshaping the entire 
world to fit their image. What price for race, culture, independence or 
values then? 
The most important lesson we can learn from the current problems 
affecting both countries is that a continuation or escalation of our 
differences could have a regional effect of far greater significance, if 
we don't call a halt to the acrimonious war of words and commence some 
serious dialogue. A good place to start would be for the Thai government 
to appoint an official spokesperson and tell the rest to just shut up or 
be held accountable for their actions. This government in recent days 
appeared to be actively striving to attain a degree of cooperation, but 
it must be effective and enforceable, as the current situation helps 
neither Thailand nor Burma.

Nobody denies that drugs are produced along the common border between 
the two countries, or that the factories are located on the Burmese 
side. However, it is impossible to secure this long and porous area and 
much of it remains inaccessible on the Burmese side, making it difficult 
for the Burmese to exact absolute control at all times, due to the 
constant movement and deployment of forces in conflict.

The Burmese authorities have never been happy or proud of this 
situation, which nevertheless opens the door to criticism from the 
uninitiated, often from the comfort of their uptown offices in rich 
countries who strive to show us in the developing nations the wisdom of 
their collective experiences, which judging from their collective past 
history leave a lot to be desired.

Thailand has an immense drug problem. But Thai people must also realise 
that if they do not buy and if corrupt officials and godfathers are not 
actively involved in the production and distribution of narcotic drugs, 
the problem can be lessened. In other words, let us shoulder part of the 
blame and recognise that only sincere cooperative efforts will solve the 
problem, not harsh words for Burma.

We must take a long hard look at ourselves and honestly evaluate our 
role in perpetuating this evil. We must deploy the military, the police 
and all those government agencies having lawful authority in all matters 
relating to illegal drugs and substances, and to wage war against 
manufacturers and traffickers.

The military should be employed where they will do the most good. They 
should be employed to secure the current and future aspirations of our 
nation and its people. This should be the principal priority of the 
military, not deployment to regions such as East Timor, which only 
benefits self-serving politicians and external influences. They are 
needed at home. 

It is inevitable that the two countries will continue to disagree over 
issues occurring beyond immediate government control in sensitive border 
areas. However the drug scourge is a common problem worthy of a sincere 
and concerted effort by both countries.

The Thai government could well start with some in-house cleaning to 
promote good relations between the two countries. Let Prime Minister 
Thaksin live up to his many election promises by unifying the various 
government agencies that seem devoted to causing confusion rather than 
unity, not only in government, but among the Thai populace.

Mr Thaksin should lead by example. He should be the last person to 
comment and only do so when all the facts are in. He has appointed a 
Minister of Foreign Affairs to handle foreign policy. Let the minister 
do his job. There are far too many official spokespersons keen to get 
their picture or opinion in the print media or on television. More often 
than not, their views are contradictory, causing irreparable damage to 
Thailand's image at home and abroad.


STICK TO CORDIALITY CODE

Good relationships can be established and maintained if the government 
sought to improve on the following observations:

1. Individuals and agencies must stop accusing each other and resort to 
firm action to eradicate damaging, untruthful or mischievous statements 
and rumours finding their way into the public domain. Officials must be 
briefed on the need for propriety, accuracy and responsibility when 
reporting events involving neighbouring countries. Hence the need for 
the Minister of Foreign Affairs to put his foot down and take effective 
control of what is his portfolio.

There should be a list of authorised personnel selected to speak on 
behalf of all relevant agencies, and media personnel should be directed 
to seek them out for official government views. Firm action is required 
to dissuade others from commenting on issues not within their knowledge 
or portfolio. 

2. We must resist the temptation-induced by internal or external 
factors-to interfere in the internal affairs of our neighbours and 
respect the rights of their citizens to determine their own destiny.

3. We must establish a sincere cooperative relationship between 
governments and private sectors in the region to ensure a continuance of 
the ethics and practices determined by decades of contact and common 
reliance between respective societies.

4. We must stop blaming the previous government for all our current ills 
and seeking scapegoats for official incompetence. If the Minister for 
Foreign Affairs is not up to the task, then he should be removed. 

So far, our greatest failure has been ourselves. The desire of 
rank-and-file bureaucrats to prattle on about things that don't concern 
them will upset the delicately balanced mechanism of diplomacy. 

People in the border areas, Thai and Burmese alike, suffer from the 
closure of certain checkpoints. These people rely on these entry points 
for their livelihood.

Burma's desire to be a good neighbour with Thailand is common knowledge 
to those engaged in daily commercial activities with Burmese people. We 
must strive to improve this healthy relationship.

However, I'm afraid that problems will continue to occur due to the 
mindless interference of those seeking their place in the sun, or the 
inability of the man at the top to make some tough decisions in a timely 
fashion, when it comes to neutralising the unofficial rat-pack of 
commentators.

*Amarin Khoman is the president of the Thai Star Group of Companies.







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