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BURMA RELATED NEWS - NOV - 1, 2000. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- HEADLINE
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- AFP - Myanmar launches
crackdown on Indian rebel camps
Reuters - Cambodian PM seeks funding
for Mekong River region
Reuters - Myanmar, the world"s most
repressed economies
AFP - Schizophrenic Asia has
the best and worst economic freedoms: report
AFP - Indian FM to visit
Vietnam, Laos next week
Asia Pulse - Korean Company LG
to Supply Electric Equipment Worth $3.5 MLN to Myanmar
AP - Myanmar Students Vow To
Continue Armed Struggle Vs Govt
The Japan Times - Allies'
disapproval prompts Japan to reconsider Myanmar panel meeting
Business Day - Economics tops
bill for Asean's summit
Daily Express - How I sang
though hell of Burma jail
Xinhua -
ASEAN SOM on Youth Affairs Ends in
Myanmar
Xinhua - Motor Vehicles in Operation
Increase in Myanmar
Bkk Post - Overcrowded camps worsen with baby
boom
BBC - Burmese army 'attacks' Indian rebels
SCMP - Students vow to continue struggle
Wednesday, November 1 2:02 PM SGT
Myanmar launches crackdown on Indian rebel camps GUWAHATI, India, Nov 1 (AFP) - The Myanmar army has launched a crackdown
on Indian separatist guerrillas holed up inside the country, rebel leaders said
Wednesday.
The outlawed National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN)
said one of its training camps located inside Myanmar had been torched by
government troops.
The NSCN is fighting for an independent tribal homeland in
India's northeastern state of Nagaland, bordering Myanmar.
"Myanmarese troops have launched an offensive since
October 15 against us," Kitovi Zhimomi, the self-styled "prime minister" of the
NSCN, told AFP by telephone from his hideout somewhere in Nagaland.
"We have shown the utmost restraint and have not
retaliated as the Myanmarese troops would indulge in indiscriminate harassment
of the common Naga people living there if we do so," Zhimoni said.
Myanmar troops on October 25 shot dead five Indian
frontier guards along the border.
Myanmar later apologized, saying the troops had mistaken
the guards for Indian separatist guerrillas.
Zhimoni said thousands of Christian Naga people had fled
across the border into India last month, alleging persecution by the military
junta.
The Naga people, mostly from villages in the Sagaing
district of northern Myanmar, crossed into Nagaland's Mon district "as their
houses were set ablaze," the NSCN leader said.
"There has been large scale torture of the Nagas, forcing
many of them to desert their villages and take shelter either in the jungles or
in parts of Nagaland."
There are an estimated 20,000 Naga people in
Myanmar.
Church leaders said the Naga Christians had been forced to
close down their churches, which had then been desecrated or used as kitchens by
the Myanmar army.
WIRE:11/01/2000 00:10:00 ET
Cambodian PM seeks funding for Mekong River region PHNOM PENH, Nov 1 (Reuters) - Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen called
on Wednesday for financial support from donor countries and international
financial institutions to develop the Greater Mekong Subregion.
"Development projects cover many sectors and sub-sectors
and require large-scale investment to an extent that outstrips the capacity of
the countries in the region," Hun Sen told delegates at a conference in Phnom
Penh. "Given these colossal needs, the major challenge to promote development of
the (Greater Mekong Subregion) countries is to identify investment sources," he
said. "This challenge can be met through the strengthening of partnerships among
and between regional countries and donors, especially international and regional
financial institutions."
Hun Sen delivered the keynote address at the second annual
Greater Mekong Subregion-ASEAN Conference on Development and Governance. The
two-day meeting ends on Thursday.
Hun Sen also proposed creating a working group to draw up
a masterplan for the development of the region -- which includes Cambodia, Laos,
Vietnam, Myanmar, Thailand and southern China -- over the next 20 to 25 years.
"We need a realistic development plan, which focuses on concrete projects,
well-determined priorities, resource mobilisation measures and investment
programmes," he said.
The group would consist of Association of South East Asian
Nations (ASEAN) member countries, China, Japan, the Asian Development Bank
(ADB), the U.N. Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP)
and other donors, the prime minister said.
WIRE:11/01/2000 05:02:00 ET
Hong Kong remains world's freest economy-survey HONG KONG, Nov 1 (Reuters) - Hong Kong was declared the world"s
freest economy on Wednesday in an annual survey by The Heritage Foundation and
The Wall Street Journal, retaining top spot for the seventh year and keeping
Singapore in second place.
"Hong Kong comes far and away as the freest economy in the
world," Edwin Feulner, president of the Washington-based think-tank, told a news
conference to release the annual "Index of Economic Freedom."
The survey said the rule of law, lack of trade barriers
and low taxes kept Hong Kong in pole position, but it said they had lingering
concerns about government intervention in the economy. Those concerns stemmed
from the government"s intervention in the stock exchange to counter speculative
attacks in 1998.
"The ongoing orderly disposal of the assets acquired in
the intervention are encouraging, but the pace of sales has been slow," the
survey said.
Singapore remained in the runners-up position, unchanged
from last year, with its overall score declining due to its public sector taking
an increased share of the economy, the survey said. The survey said
government-linked corporations dominated Singapore"s economy, making up 70
percent of all companies and generating some 60 percent of economic output.
Asia-Pacific nations took four of the top 10 spots in the
survey of 155 countries, ranked in terms of their degree of economic freedom in
categories including monetary policy, government intervention, capital flows and
black market activity.
Ireland was ranked third, New Zealand fourth and the
United States -- the world"s biggest economy -- was ranked an equal fifth with
Luxembourg. Nine Asia-Pacific nations, including Japan, improved their standings
on a year ago with Thailand marking the world"s single biggest improvement,
leaping up to 27th place from 46 last year.
But while some Asia-Pacific countries were among the best
individual performers globally, the survey warned that economic freedom in the
region had declined over the previous 12 months. It said economic freedom scores
fell in 17 Asia-Pacific nations compared with a year ago and the region was home
to five of the world"s most repressed economies -- Laos, Myanmar, Turkmenistan,
Uzbekistan and North Korea. ^
Wednesday, November 1 3:52 PM SGT
Schizophrenic Asia has the best and worst economic freedoms: report HONG KONG, Nov 1 (AFP) - Asia counts four of the world's top 10
freest economies, but the "schizophrenic" region also has six of the most
repressed, according to a report released here Wednesday.
Freewheeling Hong Kong came out top in the "2001 Index of
Economic Freedom," published by The Heritage Foundation -- a leading US think
tank -- and The Wall Street Journal.
But isolated Communist North Korea, which has only this
year slowly started to emerge from five decades of self-imposed isolation, came
out bottom of the list ranking 155th in the table which judged countries on how
heavily governments intervene in their economies.
Singapore placed second in the list, New Zealand came in
fourth and Australia ninth.
But Laos ranked 150th with Vietnam and Myanmar in 144 and
145 places, and the Central Asian republics of Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan stood
at 149, and 148 respectively.
The 1997 Asian financial crisis had had a profound effect
on the regional ecomomy and the Asian tigers, who were once unified by their
success, have shown vastly divergent performances in tackling the crisis, the
report said.
"Asia as a whole no longer exists as a cohesive entity; it
has fractured into subgroups of economically free and unfree," the report
said.
"Asia shows the most schizophrenic differentiation of
scores of all the regions in the index. Three of the top four freest economies
in the world are in the Asia, but so are six of the world's 15 repressed
economies," it added.
While Thailand made efforts to liberalise its economy
following the 1997 slump, Malaysia, with its "authoritarian" leader, Prime
Minister Mahathir Mohamad, had taken "exactly the wrong message" from the Asian
economic collapse, said Hugo Restall, editor with The Wall Street
Journal.
Mahathir had scared off investors by placing tight
government controls on the economy, the report said.
"Through his brutal tactics, Mahathir has assured his
personal political survival, but most likely at the long-term expense of the
country," the report said.
Thailand, on the other hand, saw the biggest improvement
of anywhere in its performance in the index. Lower inflation and government
expenditure and reduced tariffs boosted Thailand from 46th to 27th
place.
Thailand's improved performance and the worsening
prospects in Malaysia were a "graphic demonstration of how democracy can improve
economic freedom," said Restall.
South Korea and Taiwan were also cited by Edwin Feulner,
president of the Heritage Foundation, as examples where "economic freedom has
led to a very competitive political freedom."
The report highlighted the direct correlation between
economic freedoms and national prosperity, "so this really matters to the
average citizens of these countries," Fuelner said.
China's performance in the index declined this year as a
result of the poor job it has made of cleaning up its insolvent banking system
but the mainland's imminent entry into the World Trade Organisation should
increase increase competition and transparency, it said.
"Annual GDP growth remains robust, averaging more than
eight percent, but growth figures mask systemic weaknesses in China's economy
that are caused by the general lack of economic freedom," the report
said.
The country's economic reforms launched in the late 1970s
had stalled partly because of "government reluctance to pay the social and
political price of enacting broader economic reforms," it added.
Japan, the world's second biggest economy which has been
mired in recession for much of the last decade, seems to be recovering, the
report said.
Although Sogo deparment store's recent collapse under a
mound of debt "could be only the tip of a red-ink iceberg," the "Big Bang"
reforms in financial regulations have lured more foreign direct investment, it
said.
Taiwan remains "mostly free" but it had slipped from 11th
to 20th place as its practice of intervening in the market to propr up currency
and the stock market had harmed its overall score, the report said.
Even though North Korea scored the lowest in all of the
index's 10 categories,its economy expanded in 1999 for the first time in 10
years, with a 6.2 percent growth in GDP. This was a result of expanded
agricultural production and a massive 360 billion dollars in aid.
Wednesday, November 1 8:20 PM SGT
Indian FM to visit Vietnam, Laos next week NEW DELHI, Nov 1 (AFP) - Indian Foreign Minister Jaswant
Singh will visit Vietnam and Laos early next week to strengthen political and
trade ties, the foreign office said Wednesday.
Spokesman Raminder Singh Jassal said Singh would visit the
two countries between November 6 and 10, holding meetings with the presidents
and prime ministers of both countries as well as his counterparts.
In both Laos and Vietnam, Indian officials will hold
extensive talks with their hosts on furthering trade and political and cultural
ties.
Singh will represent India at the first Ganga-Mekong
Linkage meeting in the Laotian capital Vientiane, aimed at boosting cooperation
between New Delhi and countries in the Mekong basin.
Foreign ministers of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and
Vietnam will attend the meeting.
Wednesday, November 1 4:17 PM SGT
Korean Company LG to Supply Electric Equipment Worth $3.5 MLN to Myanmar SEOUL, Nov 1 Asia
Pulse - LG Industrial Systems Co says it has signed a deal with
Myanmar Electric Power Enterprise to supply high-voltage equipment and
switchboards worth US$3.5 million.
The products will be provided for substation construction
in central Myanmar until next May.
Wednesday, November 1 5:40 PM SGT
Myanmar Students Vow To Continue Armed Struggle Vs Govt BANGKOK (AP)--Myanmar's leading group of exiled
student dissidents marked its 12th anniversary Wednesday, vowing to continue an
armed struggle against the military regime.
"The political problems in Burma will not be solved if the
regime remains inflexible and power-mad," said the All Burma Students'
Democratic Front in a statement issued in Bangkok.
"The ABSDF will have to continue its armed struggle as one
of the means necessary to fulfill the political needs of the movement," it said.
The group was formed by students who fled Myanmar, also
known as Burma, after a bloody crackdown on 1988 pro-democracy demonstrations
against the military, which has kept an iron grip on the country since 1962.
Thousands of protesters were killed and thousands more
fled into exile in neighboring Thailand. Some took up weapons, to fight
alongside ethnic insurgents seeking greater autonomy in Myanmar.
The Japan Times: Nov. 1,
2000
TOKYO TAKES TENDER TACK Allies' disapproval prompts Japan to reconsider Myanmar panel meeting By HISANE MASAKI
Staff writer Japan's Myanmar policymakers are facing a dilemma of
whether they should honor their pledge and hold a second meeting of the
Japan-Myanmar economic panel.
Or delay it for a lack of progress. With Myanmar politics showing no sign of breaking through
a recent logjam, the policymakers are having second thoughts about the planned
second meeting of the fledgling joint panel by the end of this
year.
The panel, which consists of both senior government
officials and private-sector experts, was inaugurated earlier this year to help
the impoverished Southeast Asian country promote economic reforms.
When the panel members gathered in Yangon in June, they
agreed to meet again in Tokyo by the end of this year, although no specific date
was set.
"Our plan to hold another meeting of the joint economic
panel (at some time) remains unchanged despite the current situation in
Myanmar," a senior Foreign Ministry official said, requesting anonymity. "We are
not discussing Japanese financial assistance at the panel. We are just advising
Myanmar on how to promote reforms of its economic structure.
"Therefore, (holding another panel meeting) is a matter
that should be thought about separately from political issues such as the lack
of democratization or violations of human rights."
But if the second panel meeting is actually held in Tokyo
despite no improvement in Myanmar politics, Japan may face a barrage of
criticism from the U.S. and Europe as well as human-rights activists both at
home and abroad. This is the prospect that worries Japan's Myanmar
policymakers.
While insisting that there is no change in Japan's basic
policy, the official acknowledged that the next meeting may be delayed until
early next year.
"We want to closely watch developments in Myanmar politics
for a while before deciding when -- and how -- the second panel meeting should
convene," the official said. "Even if the next panel meeting is actually held by
the end of this year, as currently planned, we may have to keep a low
profile."
The current showdown between the Myanmar military junta
and prodemocracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy erupted
in early September when Suu Kyi was forced to end a nine-day roadside protest
just outside Yangon.
The military regime now refers to itself as the State
Peace and Development Council, or SPDC.
The military regime forcibly returned the Nobel Peace
Prize laureate to her Yangon home and confined her there. Although Suu Kyi was
released from effective incarceration 13 days later, she was again placed under
effective house arrest following another failed attempt to travel outside the
capital.
Foreign diplomats in Yangon have not been allowed to visit
Suu Kyi at her home.
The military took power in a 1988 coup. It then nullified
the results of a 1990 election in which Suu Kyi's NLD won a landslide victory.
Suu Kyi was placed under house arrest for nearly six years until the summer of
1995.
Japan, the United States and many industrialized countries
in Europe claim that the military regime's current constraints on Suu Kyi are
virtually the same as her 1989-1995 house arrest.
But while calling for improvements in the protection of
human rights and democratic principles, Japan has taken a much softer approach
toward Myanmar's military rulers than have the U.S. and Europe. Japan has argued
for a "constructive engagement" approach toward the junta to bring about
favorable changes there, instead of ostracizing it internationally.
Although Japan has suspended large-scale economic aid for
new projects since the 1988 coup, largely out of fear of drawing flak from the
U.S. and Europe, it continues to funnel some financial aid to the military
rulers.
Tokyo insists the aid -- a relatively small amount in
comparison with what it would likely provide under normal circumstances -- goes
for for "humanitarian" projects in health and other areas.
In stark contrast, the U.S. and Europe have toughened
sanctions against Myanmar during the past decade.
Neither approach appears to be paying any dividends, and
the current standoff between the SPDC and Suu Kyi's NLD now poses the
biggest-ever challenge to Japan's policy of "constructive
engagement."
Japanese officials say they firmly believe that driving
Myanmar further into a corner through sanctions will only backfire.
"It will encourage Myanmar's military rulers to build a
wall around themselves and make them even tougher toward domestic opposition
forces," one government official said, asking that he not be named.
The U.S. and European nations disagree. In their New York
meeting in September, Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, an ardent personal
admirer of Suu Kyi, implicitly urged her Japanese counterpart, Yohei Kono, that
Japan abandon its constructive engagement efforts with Myanmar and follow the
U.S. and European example.
The U.S. is even critical of Japan's launching of the
joint economic panel, claiming it will only spoil the SPDC by sending the wrong
signal -- one that says Japan condones the lack of progress on democratization
and the protection of human rights.
Even Japanese officials are not sure whether the Myanmar
situation will get better or worse.
"The current political stalemate is probably the result of
a tug-of-war that is taking place behind the scenes between hardline
conservatives and moderates within SPDC over how to deal with Suu Kyi and her
NLD," one government source said. "Therefore, we cannot predict at all what
action the SPDC will take next."
The source added: "Japan has not attached -- and will not
attach -- any political condition for hosting the second meeting of the joint
Japan-Myanmar economic panel. But if the SPDC goes even further and takes a
drastic step like outlawing the NLD, then it will become almost impossible to
hold the meeting."
Business Day - Oct 30 2000
Economics tops bill for Asean's summit SINGAPORE Economic integration will headline next month's
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) summit with the thorny issue of
Myanmar kept out of the spotlight, and a Spratly's code of conduct again left
unresolved, officials said.
Summit hosts Singapore are already wired up to push their integration message at the informal summit, so called because it contains no formal agenda. The road will not be easy. The Asean, often described as
an ineffective sunset organisation, was unable to produce a united response to
the 1997 financial crisis. Members of the 10-nation grouping are now at various
stages of recovery and not all see integration as a priority. But for
trade-dependent Singapore, Asean economic integration is of national importance.
"With enlargement, Asean must take steps to integrate the
new members with the region and the world economy," the government said. "We
must also take concrete and practical steps to enhance Asean's economic
competitiveness."
Easing the path to preparing the unwritten agenda has been
Asean's success in having the European Union (EU) agree to talks in December,
ending a freeze in relations since Myanmar was admitted to Asean ranks in 1987.
Myanmar is under fire from the EU for its treatment of
prodemocracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who is under effective house arrest, and
from the International Labour Organisation for the use of forced labour.
But Asean, with a policy of not interfering in the
internal affairs of its members, has resisted all pressure to intervene.
Asean hopes that tensions on the Spratly island chain
could be defused during talks with China on the sidelines of the November 22-25
summit faded at a recent Hanoi meeting of Chinese and Asean diplomats, which
again failed to agree on a code of conduct. Sapa-AFP.
Daily Express - Oct 30,
2000.
How I sang though hell of Burma jail BY DAVID SMITH HUMAN rights activist James Mawdsley has told how he survived beatings in a
Burmese jail by reading the Bible and singing two songs - Lord of the Dance and
Singin' in the Rain.
Mr Mawdsley drew fortitude from his faith to endure brutal treatment and
415 days of solitary confinement in the hellish Keng Tung prison.
He also defused the situation and brought smiles to fellow inmates' faces
with his musical renditions.
Mr Mawdsley, 27, a Roman Catholic, is now home after being released early
from a 17-year jail term imposed to punish his pro-democracy demonstrations
against the Burmese military regime's slaughter of ethnic groups.
"I read the Bible several times over and prayed almost continuously," he
told the Daily Express. "I'd read it at school years ago but in prison it had a
massive and wonderful effect. It is very relevant to today's world.
"It gave me strength because it made me realise the fight has been going on
for thousands of years. Jeremiah was imprisoned and, reading about the hardships
he and others like John the Baptist and St Paul went through, I wanted to get
stuck into the junta.
"Every evening the other prisoners had to line up and sing the junta's
anthem. I disrupted it by singing Lord of the Dance. I could see the prisoners
nearest me all had grins on their faces." Mr Mawdsley even sang in the moments
before his torture began. "They came to beat me the first time because I was
banging on my door in protest at being in solitary. I realised I wouldn't want
to get myself worked up when they hit me as that would escalate the situation so
I sang Singin' in the Rain to stop myself reacting aggressively."
Then, and on the following two days, 15 men trooped into Mr Mawdsley's
toad, bat and rat-infested cell and some beat him savagely with 3ft wooden
clubs.
He recalled: "I prayed, saying I would do whatever was required but I would
be very grateful for a change. I was confident in God because He has been
helpful so many times.
"And the next morning a prison officer apologised, promising to take my
message to the authorities and that such incidents would never recur. He even
offered to punish those who had beaten me. I said: 'No, they are my mates.' They
were trustee prisoners who had been carrying out orders and who wept in shame
afterwards."
Mr Mawdsley, from Ormskirk, Lancashire, also gained solace from other
prisoners, British diplomats in Burma and his family, as well as pressure groups
the Jubilee Campaign and Christian Solidarity Worldwide.But about the future he
is uncertain. "I do know to get arrested there again would be stupid. But Burma
will stay with me until it has democracy."
ASEAN SOM on Youth Affairs
Ends in Myanmar
YANGON (Nov. 1) XINHUA - The two-day senior officials' meeting
(SOM) on youth affairs of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)
ended here Tuesday.
The meeting, to be followed by the Third ASEAN Ministerial
Meeting on Youth Affairs on Wednesday, approved the drafting of Yangon
Declaration and Joint Communique of the ministerial meeting as well as report of
the senior officials to the ministerial one.
The senior officials stressed that all the ASEAN member
countries have the duty to establish appropriate policy, programs and plan for
action for youth which will ensure them to meet the challenges of globalization
impact.
The first ASEAN ministerial meeting on youth affairs was
held in Indonesia in 1992 and the second in Malaysia in 1997.
ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia,
Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
Tuesday October 31, 10:30 PM
Myanmar cracks down on separatist Indian guerillas By Syed Zarir Hussain, India Abroad News Service Guwahati, Oct 31 - Myanmar has launched a crackdown on
Indian separatist guerrillas holed up inside the country besides setting ablaze
hundreds of houses belonging to Christian tribals, rebel leaders said Tuesday.
The outlawed National Socialist Council of Nagaland
(NSCN), led by factional leader S. S. Khaplang, said one of their arms training
camps located inside Myanmar was burnt down by troops. The NSCN is fighting for
an independent tribal homeland in India's northeastern state of Nagaland
bordering Myanmar.
"Myanmarese troops have launched an offensive since
October 15 against us. They had burnt down one of our training camps", Kitovi
Zhimomi, the self-styled prime minister of the NSCN, told India Abroad News
Service on the telephone from his hideout somewhere in Nagaland. "We have shown
utmost restrain and have not retaliated as the Myanmarese troops would indulge
in indiscriminate harassment on the Naga people living there if we do so," he
said.
Myanmarese troops shot dead five Indian paramilitary
troopers along the borders last Wednesday. Myanmar later apologized to the
Indian authorities saying their troops mistook the soldiers for Indian
separatist guerrillas.
Zhimomi said thousands of Christian Naga tribals have fled
across the border into India this month, alleging persecution by the Myanmarese
military junta.
"The Naga tribals, mostly from eight villages in the
Sagaing district of northern Myanmar, crossed into Nagaland's Mon district as
their houses were set ablaze", the NSCN leader said. "There has been large scale
torture on the common Nagas forcing many of them to desert their villages and
take shelter either in the jungles or in parts of Nagaland", he said.
There are an estimated 20,000 Naga tribals in Myanmar.
Church leaders said the Naga Christians were being forced
to close down their churches, which had then been desecrated or used as kitchens
by the Myanmar army.
"The matter is very serious and calls for international
condemnation as many of the Christians were forcibly converted to Buddhism by
the monks and the military junta", a church leader in Nagaland said, requesting
anonymity.
Earlier this year NSCN rebels killed at least 40
Myanmarese soldiers in an encounter that lasted for about a week.
"They are trying to attack our general headquarters but
they have failed to do so as we are well protected", Zhimomi said.
Motor Vehicles in Operation
Increase in Myanmar
YANGON (Oct. 30) XINHUA - The
number of motor vehicles in operation in Myanmar totaled 434,315 at the end of
June this year, an increase of 25,614 or 6.26 percent compared with a year
ago.
Of the total registered motor vehicles, there were 173,081 passenger cars,
54,576 trucks, 16,660 buses and 174,490 motor cycles, according to the latest
Economic Indicators published by the country's Central Statistical
Organization.
The number of motor vehicles in Myanmar increased by 31,828 annually in the
last four years.
These motor vehicles used in Myanmar are mainly those manufactured in Japan
and most of them are second-hand or outdated ones.
To ensure smooth transport and traffic safety, the Myanmar transport
authorities have introduced harsher measures to punish drivers who break the
traffic rules.
Meanwhile, there are also unlicensed motor vehicles smuggled from the
country's border regions to inland areas reaching the capital of Yangon.
Measures are being taken against such vehicles.
Besides, the Myanmar authorities have banned use of cars imported under the
transit trade system to a third country since September 1997.
The authorities have also prohibited enterprises doing business in the
country from re-selling their motor vehicles imported with tax relief and tax
exemption beginning November 1998.
Bangkok Post - Nov 1,
2000.
REFUGEES - Overcrowded camps worsen with baby boom Problems multiply as birth rate soars Saritdet Marukatat The birth rate among Burmese refugees is four times the national average,
posing problems for already-jammed camps.
The Interior Ministry says average population growth at shelters inside
Thailand is about 4%, compared with a national rate of 1%.
The problem is most serious in camps at Tham Hin in Suan Phung district,
Ratchaburi, and Mae La in Tak's Tha Song Yang district.
Every month 20 babies were born at Tham Hin camp, said one official.
The figure is even higher at Mae La, which is the biggest camp with some
30,000 refugees.
The Tham Hin camp houses more than 8,000 ethnic Karen fleeing fighting
between Karen armed groups and Burmese government forces inside Burma.
Thailand has about 101,000 Burmese refugees, mostly Karen, in border camps
in Mae Hong Son, Tak, Kanchanaburi, Ratchaburi and Chumphon, said the United
Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
Last month while visiting Tham Hin, UNHCR chief Sadako Ogata said the camp
lacked adequate space and sanitary conditions.
The government said it has no intention of expanding camps to alleviate
overcrowding.
Officials have encouraged refugees to plan their families and use condoms,
with only limited success. Birth control is contrary to the religious beliefs of
many refugees. Forcing the issue would raise concerns about human rights
violations.
Health officials say a camp environment is not the best place to bring up a
child. Fungpit Boonliang, a doctor with Thai Red Cross, said babies may
encounter developmental problems. Their mothers were stressed, and with many
children competing for food they may suffer malnutrition. "Maybe children look
normal now but they could develop slowly or not develop at all in years to come.
That's what we're most worried about", said Dr Fungpit.
Though HIV/Aids and narcotic addiction were still the biggest problems
among camp refugees, the high birth rate could not be overlooked, he said.
BBC -Wednesday, 1 November, 2000,
13:13 GMT
Burmese army 'attacks' Indian rebels By Subir Bhaumik in Calcutta A Naga separatist group in India's troubled north-eastern region says two
of its bases inside Burma have been attacked this week.
The chief of the military wing of the Khaplang faction of the National
Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN), Khitobi Zhimomi, told the BBC that Burmese
troops smashed two of his bases in the Sagaing division of western Burma this
week.
He described this as a major attack and said only a timely withdrawal from
the two bases saved the NSCN guerrillas from suffering major losses.
However, he did not rule out some casualties in sporadic encounters with
Burmese troops during the retreat, though he could not provide details.
Indian military officials have confirmed the Burmese action against the
rebels - but refused to give any details.
Last week, four Indian soldiers were killed in an attack by the Burmese
army, who later said they had mistaken the troops as NSCN rebels.
The Burmese later apologised for the mistake.
Military co-operation between India and Burma in tackling trans-border
ethnic rebellion has increased this year following two visits to Burma by the
former Indian army chief General Ved Prakash Malik and a visit to India by the
chief of staff of the Burmese army, General Maung Aye.
South China Morning Post
Wednesday, November 1, 2000 BURMA - Students vow to continue struggle ASSOCIATED PRESS in Burma Burma's leading group of exiled student dissidents marked its 12th
anniversary on Wednesday, vowing to continue an armed struggle against the
military regime.
''The political problems in Burma will not be solved if the regime remains inflexible and power-mad,'' said the All Burma Students' Democratic Front in a statement issued in Bangkok. ''The ABSDF will have to continue its armed struggle as one of the means
necessary to fulfil the political needs of the movement,'' it said.
The group was formed by students who fled Burma after a bloody crackdown on
1988 pro-democracy demonstrations against the military, which has kept an iron
grip on the country since 1962.
Thousands of protesters were killed and thousands more fled into exile in
neighbouring Thailand. Some took up weapons, to fight alongside ethnic
insurgents seeking greater autonomy in Burma.
In 1997, the ABSDF said it would focus on peaceful political activities,
but squabbles within its ranks that led to some leading members leaving the
organisation has seen another shift in policy.
The ABSDF says it has 1,300-1,500 members, including about 500 people
inside Burma, fighting with ethnic armies along the border with Thailand.
The armed resistance to the regime has dwindled in recent years due to
increased military pressure from the Burmese government, which has reached
cease-fires with most rebel groups over the past decade.
In its statement, the ABSDF demanded the regime release all political
prisoners in Burma and hold dialogue with Aung San Suu Kyi, the leader of the
pro-democracy party that swept the 1990 general elections but was not allowed to
take power.
''No democratic system can grow under the dictatorship,'' the statement
said. ''The military dictatorship must be abolished to allow democracy and human
rights to flourish in our country and to promote equality for all the
nationalities of Burma.'' |