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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- BURMA RELATED NEWS - NOV - 4, 2000. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- HEADLINE
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BBC - UN rapporteur on Burma
resigns
AP - Artillery Shells Land
In Thailand During Myanmar Fighting
The Japan Times - Business leaders plan Japan stint for Myanmarese
The Hindu - Need for transport links with Myanmar reiterated
Bkk Post - Wa moving to
saturate Thai market
Bkk Post - Locals may
move to avoid fighting
The Nation - Burmese exiles fight over press freedom Kyodo News - Sweden
submits resolution condemning Myanmar junta to U.N.
BBC - Burma promises
India defensive support
BBC - Saturday, 4 November, 2000,
00:40 GMT
UN rapporteur on Burma resigns The United Nations special human rights rapporteur on Burma, Rajsoomer
Lallah, has resigned due to a lack of support and resources.
Mr Lallah, who held the post for four years, said he was not receiving the administrative and financial support he needed to do his job properly. His predecessor had also stepped down, citing similar grievances.
"If I don't have the support, I don't feel I can usefully contribute what I
can," Mr Lallah told the French news agency AFP.
"Maybe there are some resource difficulties... maybe states of the UN
should do more about financing."
As a special rapporteur, Mr Lallah's mandate was to present reports to the
Geneva-based UN Human Rights Commission.
Earlier this month, he helped produce a damning UN report accusing the
military government of torture and rape, and massacres in which more than 100
minority people had died.
Outspoken critic
A UN spokesman said the organisation had done its best to support Mr
Lallah's work and shared some of his frustration about the lack of money.
"In an administration such as ours which is so dependent on limited
resources, sometimes we do have to juggle with personnel," spokesman Jose-Luis
Diaz said.
But he added other reasons lay behind Mr Lallah's departure.
"We also understand Mr Lallah was frustrated with a lack of progress in
relation to the situation he follows, and also concerns about his workload as
he's also a member of the Human Rights Committee."
Correspondents say the Burmese regime will be relieved at the departure of
Mr Lallah, who was an outspoken critic of Burma's human rights record.
Mr Lallah - a former chief justice of the supreme court in Mauritius - had
never been authorised by Myanmar's military regime to visit the country during
his mandate.
Earlier this month, the UN's special envoy on Burma, Razali Ismail, held
talks in Rangoon with the military government aimed at improving human
rights.
Friday, November 3 11:31 PM SGT
Artillery Shells Land In Thailand During Myanmar Fighting MAE SOT, Thailand (AP)--The
Myanmar army attacked a rebel group's stronghold near the border with Thailand
Friday, and two artillery shells landed on Thai soil during the fighting,
officials and villagers said.
The Myanmar army was assisted by ethnic guerrilla allies during the attack on the Karen National Union base, the officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity. They said one KNU soldier was injured by splinters from a shell, and was
taken to a hospital in Thailand. There were no other reports of casualties.
The Thai military sent army rangers and militia units to protect the border
and evacuate about 100 villagers from the area in Phoppra district, about 370
kilometers northwest of Bangkok.
There were no injuries on the Thai side, the officials said.
The Myanmar army and the allied Democratic Karen Buddhist Army had attacked
the KNU base Thursday as well, but had withdrawn after a brief skirmish.
The KNU has been fighting for regional autonomy since Myanmar's
independence in 1947. It once controlled a huge part of the country's east, but
in recent years lost its last enclaves along the border with Thailand. Its
forces, thought to number 2,000 to 3,000, now fight in mobile guerrilla units.
It is the only major ethnic army that has refused to sign a cease-fire with
the military regime of Myanmar. The government has brokered deals with at least
15 other armies.
The KNU has said it will give up its armed struggle if its political rights
are guaranteed.
The Japan Times: Nov. 4,
2000
Business leaders plan Japan stint for Myanmarese YANGON (Kyodo) Business leaders from Japan and Myanmar agreed Friday to
establish a framework under which young Myanmarese engineers and managers could
come to Japan for training.
The agreement was reached during a conference to discuss ways to help small businesses in the Southeast Asian country. The two sides also looked at ways of creating a better investment
environment for small and midsize Japanese companies.
On Thursday, the Japanese delegation met with Lt. Gen. Khin Nyunt, the No.
3 man in the country's military junta as first secretary of the State Peace and
Development Council (SPDC), and other government officials.
The Japanese delegation, headed by Tomoo Takahara, adviser to Itochu Corp.,
discussed with its Myanmar counterpart ways to compliment the Japanese
government's economic restructuring assistance with cooperation from the private
sector.
The delegation also asked Myanmar to further improve the skills of its
workforce in areas such as information technology.
It is estimated there are about 50,000 small-scale manufacturers in
Myanmar, most of which are badly organized and not competitive in international
markets.
"The negative image of the military junta does not allow some good points
of Myanmar's investment environment to be known in Japan," said a Yangon-based
Japanese businessman.
The Japanese delegation comprised businessmen, Japan External Trade
Organization officials and academics.
, while the Myanmar delegation was made up of local businessmen and
government officials, including Brig. Gen. David Abel, minister at the office of
the SPDC chairman.
The Hindu
Need for transport links with Myanmar reiterated By Our Special Correspondent NEW DELHI, NOV. 3. India today reiterated the need for new transport links
with Myanmar to push economic and security ties between the two countries.
The External Affairs Minister, Mr. Jaswant Singh, today advocated the need
for greater economic cooperation with Myanmar, including development of
``infrastructure projects.'' The Minister made these observations before the
visiting Home Minister of Myanmar, Colonel Tin Hlaing.
The Colonel is expected to hold discussions with the Home Minister, Mr. L.
K. Advani, tomorrow. His tour includes visits to Hyderabad, Mumbai and
Bangalore. While in Bangalore, he will visit the Indian Space Research
Organisation.
India attaches high importance to Myanmar on account of its strategic
location. With a 1600 km border with India, the country is seen as an essential
land bridge connecting South and South East Asia. Not surprisingly, India wants
to construct roads to Myanmar as part of its efforts to draw physically closer
to South-East Asia. New Delhi is already engaged in constructing a border road
from Tamu in Manipur to Kalemyo, a key communication junction in the centre of
Myanmar.
This link is seen as a gateway to the rest of east Asia, through which
India hopes to hook up with the larger Asian highway project in the making. Once
complete, the highway will connect most of Asia including India, Myanmar,
Bangladesh, Vietnam, Thailand and Laos up to China. Besides the corridor to
Kalemyo, India is already connected to Myanmar by the Stilwel road which cuts
through Arunachal Pradesh.
India has also factored Myanmar in its plans to achieve energy security.
Natural gas from Myanmar can be piped into eastern India across Bangladesh.
The construction of trans-border transportation links is likely to be in
focus during the coming visit of Mr. Singh to Vietnam and Laos. In Laos, he will
launch the trans-Asian Mekong- Ganga Suvarnabhumi projects along with his
counterparts from Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, Myanmar and Cambodia. This initiative
is expected to bring the people of the Mekong and Ganga valley together in
various spheres of activity, including culture and information technology.
Bangkok Post - Nov 4,
2000.
DRUGS - Wa moving to saturate Thai market Avalanche of speed pills predicted Wassana Nanuam The United Wa State Army will flood the market with three billion
methamphetamine pills next year, or about 300 million tablets a month, according
to a Third Army source.
Production capability will be far above the estimated 600 million pills
their illegal factories in Burma churned out this year, the source said.
More gangs will shift to moving the drug into the country through the East
and Northeast rather than the North.
Because of the huge numbers of pills being made, shipments were expected to
be in bulk, ranging from 100,000 tablets to millions of pills.
The source said the Wa were experimenting with production of
methamphetamine in the form of an inhalant, which was expected to be brought in
via the border in Nan and Phetchabun. Gen Surayud Chulanont, the army chief,
said priority was being given to the problem, which posed a threat not only to
national security but also to politics. The most effective way to combat drugs
was to move against the producers and dealers, cut demand and help addicts quit,
he said.
An army source said the Internal Security Operations Command had submitted
its anti-drug plan for next year to Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai as Isoc
director.
- A former policeman and another man were charged with trafficking in
400,000 methamphetamine pills in Prawet district yesterday.
Police said Supoj Mansak, 30, and Kitti Supoonna, 36, were also found with
618,000 baht and guns when they were arrested in a car park at Chinda Mansion in
Chalerm Phrakiat Soi 12.
Mr Kitti said he and Mr Supoj, a former traffic officer, had been hired to
deliver the pills. He said the value of speed traded in the past three months
was up to 44 million baht.
Bangkok Post - Nov 4,
2000.
BURMA-Locals may move to avoid fighting Burmese troops and the Democrat Karen Buddhist Army launched heavy attacks
on rebel soldiers, shelling their position opposite Phop Phra district, border
officials said yesterday.
About 400 soldiers from the 205th Light Infantry Battalion and the DKBA
deployed heavy weapons in an attack on the Karen National Union's 6th division
opposite Ban Huay Nam Nak in tambon Chong Kaeb.
The Fourth Infantry Regiment task force in Mae Sot stepped up security
along the border and officials may evacuate residents.
A KNU soldier was wounded and fled across the border to Thailand.
He was being treated at Phop Phra hospital.
Two mortar shells landed on Thai soil during the fighting, but no Thai
resident was injured, officials said.
Thirty families in Ban Huay Nam Nak may be evacuated to another village
further from the border.
The Nation - Nov 4,
2000.
Burmese exiles fight over press freedom Burmese activists warn that criticism of exile groups must be allowed if
true democray is to be achieved, writes Win Htein.
When the Irrawaddy magazine strongly criticised Burma's government in
exile, there was a sharp reaction among Burmese in exile. Most of them
complained that "now was not the right time for criticism within the movement".
All it could do was to benefit the "enemy of the democracy movement", the State
Peace and Development Council.
However, Irrawaddy editor Ko Aung Zaw does not agree. "Before, I was
confused and under pressure," he said. "But now I'm very clear that people in
the struggle must practice real democracy. Media criticism is the best way for
it to be practised. We don't need to wait until the time is right to do that."
But many activists and politicians in exile are still angry with him. "The
guy and his Irrawaddy were born from our 8888 movement. Why did he criticise us?
How much is he independent, as a professional journalist? He received money from
funding agencies like us. I never read his magazine, throw it away," shouted an
exiled politician in Bangkok.
But Aung Zaw retorts: "We received funding from agencies, yes, because we
cannot sell the Irrawaddy. But you must be clear that we are not under the
control of funding agencies or anyone else. Our journalistic ethic is very
independent. We are working for people, not for funding agencies, not for
political organisations."
However, the government in exile, the National Coalition Government of the
Union of Burma (NCGUB), was more concerned about correct facts than with being
criticised.
"We are not complaining about anything in the free media. We welcome it.
But we are complaining about factual data. He should have asked us before he
wrote. Failing to investigate is not good journalistic ethics," commented Dr
Sein Win, the NCGUB prime minister.
"Some facts are wrong," added Dr Thaung Htun, chief of UN affairs for the
NCGUB. "You can check our accounting whenever you want. NCG is the only
organisation that has independent auditors. People look to us as a government.
But we receive funds like other organisations, not for the whole country. So how
can we deliver it to all? Otherwise, we are speeding up on our diplomatic
campaigns. Now the junta is losing. We are stepping on to victory."
Some activists have a negative view of the NCGUB. "I welcome the comment
from the Irrawaddy editorial. Yes, a lot of opportunists are working under the
shadow of NCG as activists and sharing the funds. These funds are for the
democratic movement, but NCG leaders believe themselves to be real ministers"
said Htun Aung Gyaw, former chairman of the All Burma Students' Democratic
Front.
"I do not think press freedom will come after democracy, because if there
is no opposition in our circle, there will be no improvement," he added.
"Without criticism we cannot correct the wrongdoing. If we do not dare to
correct it, we are betraying our struggle. The junta will be more happy if the
leading opposition group is insufficient and crowded with opportunists."
Some Burma-watchers agree with Aung Zaw. "The role of the media is very,
very clear, that it should report what it sees," says Yindee Lertcharoenchok, a
journalist and Burma specialist. "The opposition media also must report what it
sees. It should not be a tool of propaganda for the NCG to try to hide mistakes.
If it does that, [the opposition] media is no different from the junta's media."
Another factor is the electronic media, particularly the Burmanet computer
network. Htun Aung Gyaw is one of the regular writers on the network.
"Most of the writers are in conflict with each other," says a Bangkok-based
exiled journalist. "This is because they have never lived with a free media.
They have lived for nearly 30 years in a military-controlled country, and so
they do not know how to respond to a free media. They know only what they want
to write. However, it is beneficial to control the opposition leaders' ethic and
corruption."
Although Burmese exiles have access to free media, inside the country
people cannot even use the Internet. "We know a bit through foreign-based
radios," said the editor of a monthly magazine in Rangoon. "But we have no free
Internet, and we cannot go to Burmanet or any other political net. The
foreign-based radios are the only path for us to see the outside world."
Recently two monthly magazines were closed for using the name of General
Aung San, the country's independence hero and father of Aung San Suu Kyi.
Military intelligence also ordered them not to use the names of writers who are
members or MPs of the National League for Democracy. According to the
Paris-based press freedom organisation Reporters Sans Frontières, Burma is the
most media-suppressed country in the world.
"While we have our ears, eyes, mouths and pens closed, we welcome the fact
that you [the exiles] can freely criticise your elected government," said the
Rangoon-based editor.
However, pressure is being put on a free press in exile.
"We even face pressure from funding agencies not to criticise the democracy
movement. But we are independent journalists, so we must do our duty. If they
stop funding, we will tell the public why," Aung Zaw vowed.
A few years ago, many activists complained about censorship policy to the
editor of Burmanet, which is sponsored by the Open Society Institute, which came
about after heavy criticism of leaders of the All Burma Students' Democratic
Front in 1997.
The India-based Mizzima news group's editor Ko Soe Myint said: "Why do you
deter those who fight? Because you are worried that your enemy will know your
weaknesses? This is not an adequate answer. So what if they know? Are you
worried about dishonesty? We need freedom of _expression_ to support and
strengthen democracy. Free media and democracy cannot be separated. Without
democracy, a free media cannot exist, and without a free media, democracy cannot
be maintained."
WIN HTEIN is Bangkok correspondent for the Democratic Voice of Burma radio
station.
NEW YORK, Nov. 3 Kyodo News
Sweden submits resolution condemning Myanmar junta to U.N. Sweden has submitted to a U.N. human rights committee a draft resolution
blasting Myanmar's junta for its treatment of pro-democracy supporters and other
human rights violations, U.N. sources said Friday.
The resolution, submitted Thursday to the Third Committee of the Millennium
General Assembly, urges the junta to remove ''all restrictions on Ms. Aung San
Suu Kyi's and other National League for Democracy (NLD) members' freedom of
movement.''
BBC - Saturday, 4 November, 2000,
16:28 GMT
Burma promises India defensive support The Burmese home minister has met his Indian counterpart along with the
Indian Foreign Minister to discuss the defence of their common border against
insurgents.
Colonel Tin Hlaing is currently on a nine-day tour of India and is the most
senior Burmese minister to visit the country this year.
The two nations have agreed to cooperate in fighting ethnic rebels who are
challenging their governments.
Officials said Colonel Hlaing had assured the Indian leaders of Burma's
continued support in tackling ethnic rebels. Observers say the Burmese
Minister's visit is intended to consolidate earlier military arrangements at a
political level.
From the newsroom of the BBC World Service |