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BurmaNet News: September 28, 2001
- Subject: BurmaNet News: September 28, 2001
- From: strider@xxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 27 Sep 2001 22:06:00
______________ THE BURMANET NEWS ______________
An on-line newspaper covering Burma
September 23, 2001 Issue # 1888
______________ www.burmanet.org _______________
INSIDE BURMA _______
*Reuters: Myanmar opposition tells military free Suu Kyi now
*AFP: Myanmar's NLD calls for Aung San Suu Kyi's release at anniversary
event
*Bangkok Post: ILO turns spotlight on use of forced labour
*DVB : ILO team at controversial Burma pipeline site International
Labour team at controversial Burma pipeline site
*Far Eastern Economic Review: Intelligence- Time Running out for Burma's
Forests
MONEY _______
*Bernama [Malaysia]: Source Food Imports From Myanmar
DRUGS______
*Fear Eastern Economic Review: Osama Bin Laden--The Cash Flow
REGIONAL/INTERNATIONAL _______
*AFP: Belgrade closes 13 embassies for economic reasons
*The Nation: Glitches in signups of illegals ?over?
*BBC: Bin Laden - the Asia connection
*Mizzima: Chin immigrants being evicted from Mizoram
__________________ INSIDE BURMA ____________________
Reuters: Myanmar opposition tells military free Suu Kyi now
By Aung Hla Tun
YANGON, Sept 27 (Reuters) - Myanmar's opposition on Thursday demanded
the immediate and unconditional release of pro-democracy figurehead Aung
San Suu Kyi, in its most strongly worded statement since peace talks
with the military began last year.
At a ceremony marking the 13th anniversary of the founding of the
National League for Democracy (NLD), which won Myanmar's last election
in 1990 by a landslide but was never allowed to govern, the party called
for the release of all political prisoners.
``We demand the unconditional and immediate release of our
secretary-general, Daw (Mrs) Aung San Suu Kyi, and all other political
prisoners,'' the NLD said in a statement read by a party representative
from the Karen ethnic group.
The party also reaffirmed the mandate of Suu Kyi and NLD Chairman Aung
Shwe to carry on their duties in working for the emergence of democracy
in Myanmar.
The 56-year-old Suu Kyi, winner of the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize, has been
held under de facto house arrest for more than a year, cut off from
contact with the outside world.
But since last October, the military government has been holding
regular meetings with her to discuss ending the political deadlock that
has gripped Myanmar for more than a decade.
The NLD and the government agreed to cease verbal attacks on each other
after the start of the talks, and the government has released more than
150 political prisoners.
MORE THAN 1,500 STILL IN JAIL
But according to Amnesty International, more than 1,500 political
prisoners remain in jail.
Around 400 people attended the ceremony at the NLD's central Yangon
headquarters, including senior party leaders, veteran politicians and
diplomats from the United States, Britain, Japan, France, Australia and
South Korea.
A year ago, amid a military crackdown on the NLD, such a ceremony would
have been unthinkable. All senior NLD leaders were in forced confinement
this time last year, and the military government barred access to the
NLD's headquarters.
``It is pretty long since we held such a ceremony,'' said Hla Pe, a
member of the NLD's central executive committee who acted as chairman
for the ceremony.
``It is a very auspicious day but we cannot feel complete happiness, as
our secretary-general, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, cannot attend this
ceremony.''
NLD Vice Chairman Tin Oo, recently released from de facto house arrest,
told NLD members they had to be flexible in their fight for democracy.
``There is no such thing as an enemy forever or a friend forever,'' he
said in an address to the ceremony.
``Of course, a noble friend is best. But a noble enemy is second
best.''
Few details of the talks between Suu Kyi and the military have emerged,
and the dialogue has not passed beyond the stage of confidence-building.
The start of dialogue was welcomed by the international community and
by representatives of Myanmar's many ethnic groups. But diplomats say
the goodwill will not last forever.
Opposition members and ethnic groups are pressing for more transparency
and for concrete signs of progress, to prove the dialogue is more than
just a public relations exercise.
The government insists it wants to move Myanmar towards democracy, but
says the country faces anarchy and disintegration if the process moves
too quickly.
(Additional reporting by Andrew Marshall in Bangkok)
___________________________________________________
AFP: Myanmar's NLD calls for Aung San Suu Kyi's release at anniversary
event
[Abridged]
YANGON, Sept 27 (AFP) - The opposition National League for Democracy
(NLD) called for the unconditional release of its leader Aung San Suu
Kyi Thursday at a ceremony to mark the 13th anniversary of its founding.
Some 500 party members were joined by diplomats from the United States,
Britain, Australia, Japan and other nations, as well as veteran
politicians from other pro-democracy parties and the media at the
ceremony.
The NLD called on all its members and elected MPs to "further
consolidate their strength and unity for renewed efforts to achieve the
party's objective to attain genuine democracy."
A final resolution proclaimed the members' "complete trust and
confidence" in the party's leaders to do "whatever was necessary through
discussion,
negotiation or co-ordination" to achieve democracy.
Aung San Suu Kyi has spent the last 11 months in secret talks with
junta leaders, which observers hope will herald a fully-fledged
reconciliation process that could one day introduce democracy to
military-ruled Myanmar.
At Thursday's ceremony, party chairman Aung Shwe, who was recently
released from house arrest in a goodwill gesture aimed at bolstering the
talks, noted that the current political climate was conducive to
national reconciliation.
And in an obvious reference to the ongoing dialogue, vice-chairman Tin
Oo said there was no such thing as "an eternal foe" or an "eternal
friend".
"Time and circumstances always dictate changes," he said, going on to
point out that in any "fruitful negotiation" there had to be "give and
take" and that the end result should not be seen in terms of losers and
winners.
In a sign of the political thaw initiated by the talks, the security
presence at the meeting was less obtrusive than in previous years when
each guest was photographed entering NLD headquarters.
On Thursday, no attempt was made to hinder party members or invited
guests who were allowed to enter the venue freely, and traffic on the
busy road outside was not affected.
___________________________________________________
Bangkok Post: ILO turns spotlight on use of forced labour
September 28, 2001
LARRY JAGAN
Things are changing in Burma and another sign of this is the presence of
a high level delegation from the International Labour Organisation to
investigate the use of forced labour.
Human rights groups like Amnesty International say the Burmese military
routinely forces villagers to work on the construction of roads and
bridges and to act as porters. "Anyone who refuses," said a Burma
researcher for AsiaWatch, "is brutally beaten and put in jail."
The members of the mission have had extensive discussions with both the
government and the opposition. They have had a long meeting with the
opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who is still under virtual house
arrest. Now they are spending two weeks travelling round the country's
border areas, where forced labour is still believed to be used
extensively.
The director-general of the ILO, Juan Somavia, said the mission would be
extremely rigorous and had been guaranteed freedom of access. Any
witnesses that give evidence will be protected. The members of the
mission are internationally eminent jurists led by the former
governor-general of Australia, Sir Ninian Stephen. "The high calibre of
its members," said Mr Somavia, "will guarantee that they are not
hoodwinked by the Burmese generals."
Burma's generals have promised the ILO full co-operation. "The team will
be given freedom of movement and we will not accompany them except to
take care of their security," Burma's Deputy Labour Minister
Brigadier-General Win Sein told the government-sponsored Myanmar Times.
The ruling junta was stung into action last November when the ILO
condemned Burma for its use of what the international community calls
slavery. They called on members to implement what would in effect be an
international economic boycott of Burma. With its economy plunging
deeper into crisis, this is the last thing the Burmese generals want to
see happen.
Since then they have officially outlawed forced labour and circulated
directives banning the use of forced labour throughout the country. The
mission now hopes to assess to what extent forced labour has been
stopped.
Aung San Suu Kyi's party, the National League for Democracy, says the
use of forced labour has been substantially reduced. "It's not as
prevalent as it was," said NLD spokesman U Lwin.
But that is not the experience of the ethnic groups like the Shan, Karen
and Mon, who all live in Burma's border areas. These are the areas where
the delegation is currently visiting. A Mon spokesman said that while it
was not as bad as it was, forced labour is still a problem.
The Burmese military are so anxious to impress the ILO mission that many
of the country's regional commanders toured around the border areas in
the weeks before the delegation arrived telling villagers what to say.
In Mon state, the local military commanders even made villagers sign
petitions saying there is no forced labour in their area.
Human rights activists believe that forced labour is still used
extensively in border areas, where the army still needs local people to
help with the construction of roads and bridges and to carry supplies.
"In the past few years, the army has certainly reduced its use of women
and children," said an AsiaWatch researcher. "But forced labour
persists. We have over a thousand fresh documented cases since last
November."
The mission will report back to the ILO in November at its major annual
session. "The results of the mission will be crucial to whether western
government's respond to Burma's attempts to lessen its international
isolation," said a western diplomat based in Rangoon.
The ILO says this mission is part of an on-going process. In private,
senior officials admit that establishing a permanent presence in Rangoon
is the only way to ensure the elimination of forced labour and to
monitor the prosecution and punishment of those found to be using force
labour.
Observers feel this issue is going to be very divisive for the country's
military leaders. There is likely to be great resistance to ending the
practice within the army. "The army, especially in border areas, where
there is rugged terrain, cannot do without press-ganging local villagers
into service as porters and guides," said a Bangkok-based military
specialist.
The ILO mission's report is expected to be a strong of indicator of how
much change is happening in Burma. But the ILO chief, Juan Somavia,
probably best summed up the international mood when he said: "The ILO
won't be satisfied with something that doesn't appear to be real
progress. It is progress for a mission to be there, but progress has to
continue."
- Larry Jagan is the BBC's regional editor for the Asia-Pacific region.
He is currently based in Bangkok.
___________________________________________________
DVB : ILO team at controversial Burma pipeline site International Labour
team at controversial Burma pipeline site
Excerpt from report by DVB on 24 September
DVB has learned that the visiting ILO high-level delegation has split
into two groups and begun their study tour of Arakan State and
Tenasserim Division. A six-member ILO team led by the delegation leader,
Sir Ninian Stephen, arrived in Tavoy today and the team later inspected
Myittha and Yebyu Villages in Tavoy District in the afternoon. Forced
labour and confiscation of land were rife in the region due to the
construction of the SPDC natural gas pipeline. The other ILO team has
already arrived in Maungdaw, Arakan State yesterday...
The ILO team arrived in Rangoon last Monday [17 September] and the teams
will go for field inspection trips in the forthcoming two weeks. An ILO
official said the teams currently touring Arakan State and Tenasserim
Division will return to Rangoon on Friday and they will be leaving for
other states and divisions next week.
DVB correspondent Aye Chan Naing contacted a local abbot from Tavoy and
inquired about the ramifications of the visit.
[Unidentified abbot] I do not think it will make any difference because
they will not be able to visit the places they wanted on their own.
[Aye Chan Naing] The government has promised them that they will be
allowed to go anywhere they want.
[Unidentified abbot] Well, the government did give their promise but I
think what they had promised before and what they are going to direct
now will be different.
[Aye Chan Naing] What is your view then?
[Unidentified abbot] Well, I do not want to give my view because it will
not be appropriate. That is why I do not want to say anything.
[Aye Chan Naing] Do you know that the ILO delegation has arrived?
[Unidentified abbot] We heard that they are in Rangoon.
[Aye Chan Naing] The latest we heard was that they have arrived in Tavoy
today.
[Unidentified abbot] Well, I haven't heard about that. They may have
arrived but I do not know. It does not concern us too.
[Aye Chan Naing] What about the current situation? Do they still use
forced labour?
[Unidentified abbot] Well, think for yourself. What they say and what
they do are two different things. It will be much better now with the
arrival of the inspection team. They have reduced and later stopped the
practice before the arrival.
Source: Democratic Voice of Burma, Oslo, in Burmese 1430 gmt 24 Sep 01
___________________________________________________
Far Eastern Economic Review: Intelligence- Time Running out for Burma's
Forests
Issue cover-dated October 4, 2001
Western environmentalists warn that northernmost Burma's remaining
forest will all be gone within a few years if current rates of
clear-cutting continue. Unchecked logging could have severe long-term
effects as the watersheds of two of Burma's most important river
systems--the Irrawaddy and the Chindwin--are located in the far north.
Over the past year, companies based in the adjacent Chinese province of
Yunnan have felled hundreds of thousands of logs in Burma's Kachin
state, and new roads have been built across the border to get the timber
out. Previously, logging was confined to border areas east of the Kachin
capital of Myitkyina, but the loggers have moved into the central part
of the state and concessions are being extended all the way to India in
the west. According to local Kachins, those involved in the
clear-cutting include a Yunnan company, a Beijing-based firm, a
Malaysian-Chinese outfit and an Australian-listed mining company. The
companies have hired more than 1,000 local tribesmen--former
anti-government rebels--to cut the trees in what appears to be the most
extensive deforestation in Southeast Asia today.
______________________MONEY________________________
Bernama [Malaysia]: Source Food Imports From Myanmar
KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 27 (Bernama) -- Malaysian importers were today
urged to consider sourcing cheaper and competitive food supply from
Myanmar and pass the benefits on to the consumers.
In making the call, the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Tan
Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said his visit to the country last April convinced
him that Malaysia could source supply of fish and other sea food as well
as poultry and livestock products from Myanmar besides maize.
Presently a Malaysian company has been granted an area in Myanmar for
poultry farming but there was no taker yet for a proposed
maize-cultivation project there, he said.
Muhyiddin told reporters this when approached on an offer by Myanmar's
Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council Senior General Than
Shwe yesterday that Malaysian investors cultivate farming land his
country to meet Malaysia's food needs.
Than Shwe, who is also the Myanmar prime minister said Malaysia could
cut down on its RM10-billion imported food bill by growing food in his
country which has 10.4 million ha of virgin and fallow land for
cultivation.
-- BERNAMA
________________________DRUGS______________________
Fear Eastern Economic Review: Osama Bin Laden--The Cash Flow
It won't be easy to track Osama bin Laden's money network, and it will
be harder to destroy it
By Alkman Granitsas/HONG KONG
Issue cover-dated October 4, 2001
IN SINGAPORE AND HONG KONG the accountants have been poring over bank
records. In Malaysia, the central bank is thinking about conducting a
probe. Japanese stockmarket regulators are looking into unusual share
transactions, while the Philippine Congress plans to pass much delayed
legislation against money laundering by the end of this month.
As the United States threatens to punish foreign banks that do not
freeze terrorists' assets, Asia's financial regulators are looking for
one thing: the money trail of Osama bin Laden. So far there's no hard
proof that the Saudi millionaire and alleged terrorist leader has been
moving money through the region's banks and financial institutions. But
that doesn't mean it isn't there.
In fact, there are hints that Asia may be at the centre of bin Laden's
worldwide financial network. The problem regulators face is how to crack
down on the region's vast underground banking system--the likely channel
bin Laden used to transfer his cash--without imposing onerous new
regulations on legitimate business transactions.
"There's obviously got to be a way of drying up funds to these terrorist
organizations," says Alan Johnson, of financial-services group Horwath
Hong Kong. "But I don't believe you should use sledgehammers to crack
nuts. Regulators should not turn the whole financial world upside down
and impose restrictions on ordinary people trying to do business."
There's certainly evidence that bin Laden's money is floating around
Asia. His past associates say he used banks in Hong Kong and Malaysia,
while his brother-in-law spent years in the Philippines and has been
linked to terrorist group Abu Sayyaf. In Indonesia too, there are dark
suspicions that bin Laden has helped finance extremist Islamic groups.
The region's financial cops have been coming together in an all-out
effort to track that money--the financial equivalent of a regionwide
manhunt. Sources tell the REVIEW that in the past week the international
police organization Interpol has begun conducting daily briefings for
police commercial crime units across Asia. The move, though not
unprecedented, represents a significant step in regional police
cooperation.
But so far, there's not much to show for all the effort. One reason is
that bin Laden may have a lot less money than most people think. He is
said to have inherited $300 million from his father's construction firm,
but may have lost much of that when Saudi Arabia froze his assets
sometime between 1992 and 1994. Several failed business deals, primarily
in Sudan, may also have cost him and left him with only a few million
dollars to his name.
A bigger impediment to tracking bin Laden's money may be Asia's age-old
underground banking systems that are widespread in South Asia and among
Chinese communities in East Asia. It's a system based on trust--and
cash--that leaves almost no paper trail.
"What is unique about Asia is that the region has underground banking
systems that are unlike anything else in the rest of world," says Sam
Porteous, country manager for investigations firm Kroll in Shanghai.
"These are systems that move money instantaneously across borders. It's
better than the modern banking system and it's untraceable."
TRANSACTIONS WITHOUT RECORDS
Known as hawala in India, hundi in Pakistan or fei qian in China, Asia's
underground banking system is enormous and widespread. By some
estimates, as much as 60% of money from Burma's drug trade passes
through underground banks.
It works like this: A client approaches a local underground bank in,
say, Islamabad--usually a business like a goldsmith's shop or a travel
agency. He deposits $10,000 to be remitted to an associate in, say,
Bangkok. The shop in Islamabad gives the sender a receipt or chit,
something as simple as a specially marked movie-ticket stub or a
low-value rupee note. The chit is mailed to the Bangkok recipient, who
then presents it to an associated goldsmith or travel agent and
withdraws the $10,000 in Thai baht. With no banks involved, there is no
record of the cross-border transaction.
Says analyst Kent Brown of Pinkerton security services: "Investigation
into bin Laden and his finances will provide a modern Rosetta Stone on
how to attack terrorists' financial networks."
___________________ REGIONAL/INTERNATIONAL___________________
AFP: Belgrade closes 13 embassies for economic reasons
BELGRADE, Sept 27 (AFP) - The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY),
which is made of Serbia and Montenegro, announced on Thursday that
economic reasons had forced it to close 13 of its embassies around the
world.
The decision to close embassies in Chile, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya,
Lebanon, Myanmar, North Korea, Tanzania, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Vietnam,
Zambia and Zimbabwe was part of a "rationalisation programme of
diplomatic representation," Belgrade said in a statement.
But the closures will "in no way affect relations" with the countries
concerned, as ambassadors in neighbouring countries will ensure
diplomatic continuity, the FRY statement pointed out.
___________________________________________________
The Nation: Glitches in signups of illegals ?over?
Published on Sep 28, 2001
Labour Minister Dej Boonlong yesterday attributed the slow registration
process for illegal migrant workers to unanticipated technical glitches
that had already been rectified.
In the first three days of registration, 39,160 illegal immigrants had
registered: 32,558 from Burma, 3,787 from Laos, and 2,181 from Cambodia.
About 10,000 registered workers were employed in plantation works.
The registration process was marred by power outage and dataprocessing
glitches, Dej said, adding the glitches had caused a slowdown in issuing
registration cards.
Dej expected the registration to pick up speed for the remainder of the
process, which ends on October 13. The ministry estimated that hundreds
of thousands of illegal immigrants would register.
When asked how his ministry would ensure that registered workers were
from the approved neighbouring countries, Dej said he might request
those suspected of reporting a bogus nationality to sing their national
anthem as proof.
___________________________________________________
BBC: Bin Laden - the Asia connection
Thursday, 27 September, 2001, 11:37 GMT 12:37 UK
By BBC regional analyst Larry Jagan in Bangkok
They seek him here, they seek him there, they seek the elusive Osama Bin
Laden everywhere. Even in east Asia, rumours abound as to his
whereabouts.
First he was supposed to be in hiding in China, having fled across the
Pamir mountains into China's restive Xinjiang province - a suggestion
strenuously denied by the authorities in Beijing.
Although few took this very seriously - intelligence experts thought it
would be impossible for him to remain there undetected - the US embassy
in Beijing sent its foremost resident expert on the area to see for
himself.
Then there were reports that Bin Laden's supporters and followers - from
Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand - were meeting at the
Indonesian holiday resort of Batam, not far from Singapore.
Bin Laden's connection to Indonesia has long been rumoured. So the
search went on.
Planning meeting
The idea that the Bin Laden group was planning further attacks in the
small island resort seemed inconceivable.
In the midst of the few chalets, long sandy beach and imported rocks
that make up this seaside location, a group of Muslim activists would
not have remained incognito for very long.
The Indonesian police and army chiefs both dismissed the report as
totally groundless.
A Thai military intelligence officer dealing with the Muslim movements
in southern Thailand dismissed the reports as totally unfounded.
While another insurgent expert said it was impossible that a series of
independent cells would be meeting, let alone discuss strategy or what
to do next.
Underground organisations like Bin Laden's depend on being completely
separate, with independent command structures.
The search for Bin Laden will go on. It will not be long before the
Philippines becomes the next hiding place.
Suspicions
After all, there have long been strong suspicions that Bin Laden is
involved with the shady Abu Sayyaf group, responsible for a series of
kidnappings over the last year or so.
What is clear is that there has been an Afghan connection throughout
Asia with several Muslim groups.
Certainly arms and explosives from Afghanistan have made their way into
Xinjiang and may well have involved in a series of bomb blasts that have
occurred there in the past few years.
And two Indonesians accused of involvement in the bombings of a
Christian church in 1999, according to the police, were trained in
Afghanistan and were members of the Afghan militia there in the early
1990s.
Chasing shadows
But rumours outweigh the reality by far.
The Burmese army - hoping the pro-democracy groups along the Thai-Burma
border might believe it - circulated their own rumour suggesting that
the Taleban were training a rebel ethnic group, the Shan State Army.
No one has taken that rumour seriously - although at least one news
organisation reported that the biggest Bin Laden organisation was based
in Burma.
So whether predominantly Buddhist or Muslim, most countries in Asia do
not seem to have dispelled the rumours that Bin Laden is taking refuge
there.
___________________________________________________
Mizzima: Chin immigrants being evicted from Mizoram
Mizzima News
New Delhi, Sept. 27: Thousands of Chin nationals who are living in
Lunglei District of Mizoram State are being asked to leave the place by
the powerful local Mizo body, according to some of them who fled from
Mizoram to New Delhi.
A 48-year old Pu Pan Tu who arrived New Delhi this morning told Mizzima
News that he had to leave his house in Lunglei District after local
branch of Young Mizo Association (YMA) issued an eviction notice that
all the "foreigners" who are staying illegally in the area have to leave
their houses. He had been staying in Lunglei District for more than ten
years.
In Lunglei district, five Quarters namely Ramthar Veng, Salem Veng,
Electric Veng, Chanmari Veng and Farm Veng house many of the Chin
nationals from Burma. Most of them survive on daily-wage odd jobs.
Lunglei District is one of the eight districts of Mizoram State, which
has about 400 km long international border with Burma.
On August 18 this year, Ramthar Veng Branch of the Young Mizo
Association made a wide spread circular announcing that all the
foreigners and non-Mizo living illegally in the locality have to leave
their houses by the end of August and action will be taken against even
those who receive them secretly. Mr. K. Lalhmingliana, secretary of the
Ramthar Veng Branch of the YMA, signed the circular.
Similar eviction announcements were made in other adjoining localities.
On September 8, Salem Branch of the Young Mizo Association made an
announcement to the effect that all the foreigners and non-Mizos in the
area have to leave their houses by September 15 and urged the house
owners not to rent any one of those "illegal foreigners". Mr. C.
Lalrimawia, secretary of the YMA Salem Branch, signed the announcement,
which appeared on a daily newspaper, Lunglei Times.
"Following the announcement, some YMA members came into our house and
broke our dishes and threatened us not to dare to live anymore",
recalled Pu Pan Tu who lived in Ramthar Veng with his family of five.
"The worst is that YMA even does not allow us to bury those who died in
the locality. We are forced to bury the body in far away villages. For
us, there is no place even to bury our body after we die".
Pu Pan Tu, along with two closed friends, fled to New Delhi to seek
support from their fellow countrymen, non-governmental organizations of
India and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Office
in New Delhi for the plight of Chins in Mizoram. He worked as a joint
secretary of National League for Democracy (NLD) in his San Baung
Quarter in Matupi township of Chin State until March 1990 when he fled
from the eminent arrest of the military authorities for his political
involvement.
According to local people, there are over 5,000 Chin nationals from
Burma living in Lunglei District alone and some NGOs estimates the total
number of Burma immigrants living in the entire state to be around fifty
thousands although the exact numbers are not available.
With the new drive against "foreigners" (Chins) in Lunglei District,
some families have already left their homes to the far away villages and
border areas in the past few days. Many of them rent new houses in
villages, pretending to be Mizo nationals.
These Burma nationals who are mostly from Chin State of Burma left their
native places due to deteriorating political and economic situation
under the military regime.
Mizoram government officials and YMA leaders said that the overwhelming
presence of the Chins in the state threatens the economic, political and
societal stability of Mizoram. And it had tried several times in the
past to deport these Chin immigrants to Burma but forced to stop
deportation after outcry from NGOs and human rights organizations in
India and abroad.
In an interview in July this year, Mizoram Chief Minister Mr.
Zoramthanga once again expressed his worry over the presence of a large
number of Chin nationals who are staying illegally in the state. He
wants the border with Burma to be fenced to check further infiltration
of immigrants into the State.
Moreover, Mizoram government claims that more than 75% of the crimes and
drug-related activities in the state are being committed by the people
from Burma.
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