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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- BURMA RELATED NEWS - January - 17, 2001. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- HEADLINE
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- AP - Myanmar Twin Leaders May Get Asylum
AP - Bangladesh, Myanmar To Hold Talks On
Embankment Dispute
AP - EU Takes Placatory Stand On Myanmar
Ahead Of Visit
AFP - EU troika seeks meeting with Aung
San Suu Kyi over landmark dialogue
Reuters - Thai PM wants God's Army twins
to go to school
Xinhua - Khin Nyunt Meets Chinese Public
Security Minister
News24 SA - Myanmar accused of child
labour
UPI - Burma's
junta offers Karens olive branch
IHT - In Sign of
New Flexibility, Burmese Junta Opens Door to EU
Envoys
CNN - U.S. has not said last word on
Myanmar, Albright says
The Straits Times - Junta 'ready for talks' with all in Myanmar
Bkk Post - Six Burmese arrested, 98,000
pills seize
The Nation - Divine call led mystical
waifs to take up arms
The Nation - EU
team hopes to meet Suu Kyi
Bkk Post - Security forces to keep close
eye on Tak medical clinic
BBC - Bangladesh and Burma agree to
talks
Wednesday January 17 7:02 AM ET
Myanmar Twin Leaders May Get Asylum By MATTHEW PENNINGTON, Associated Press Writer SUAN PHUNG, Thailand (AP) -
Thailand said Wednesday it will consider giving asylum to the twin boy leaders
of a mystical rebel movement from Myanmar who surrendered after 12 months on the
run in the jungle.
Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai met with the twins, Johnny and Luther Htoo, at
the border patrol police headquarters here, and talked to them briefly through
an interpreter.
The twins surrendered without arms Tuesday along with 12 followers
including five boys, two girls, one middle-aged woman and four adult men or
older teen-agers. Three more surrendered Wednesday.
Asked if the twins look like killers, Chuan shook his head and said, ``I'd
like to see them with their parents and going to school.''
The poorly equipped guerrillas of God's Army, which Johnny and Luther led,
believe the twins have magical powers that make them invincible in their fight
to overthrow the government of Myanmar, also known as Burma. The boys once
claimed to have several hundred followers.
The Christian fundamentalist boys have fought to overthrow Myanmar's
military government for more than three years, driven by a hatred for the
predominantly Buddhist Myanmar army.
The twins became icons for youthful rebels around the world after the
widespread circulation of an Associated Press photograph showed the
angelic-looking, long-haired Johnny posing next to his tougher-looking,
cigarette-puffing brother, Luther.
The boys claimed to be 12 when the picture was taken in December
1999.
On Wednesday, the twins and the 12 followers were lined up like obedient
schoolchildren as Chuan talked to each of them.
He held up the long-haired Johnny's left arm and looked at a tattoo on it
before moving on to Luther, who touched his palms together and bowed before the
prime minister in a traditional Thai greeting.
Chuan held Luther's hand and touched him on his head. The nervous Luther
broke into a broad smile. The slightly built, unhealthy boys, who are believed
to be 13 or 14, look no older than 8 years old.
Army chief Surayudh Julanonda, who accompanied Chuan, said an investigation
will determine if any of the group was involved in killing Thais. Those found
blameless will be considered for refugee status.
The others will be prosecuted, he said, adding that the army is trying to
contact the remaining God's Army members in the jungle to get them to
surrender.
Officials had said that at least two followers who surrendered Tuesday were
suspected of taking part in a Dec. 30 raid on a Thai border village in which six
villagers were killed.
Among the three who surrendered Wednesday was a 15-year-old boy who is also
suspected of taking part in the attack.
The group probably surrendered because of hunger and battlefield pressure
from Myanmar and Thai forces, said Komes Daengthongdee, governor of Ratchaburi
province where the group surrendered. Ratchaburi is 60 miles west of the Thai
capital, Bangkok.
There was no immediate comment from Myanmar's military regime about their
surrender or the possibility of asylum. But Komes said Myanmar had not asked for
extradition.
At a news conference, Luther chain smoked and grinned when a reporter
shouted his name. Johnny, tattoos visible on his arm under a tatty
yellow-and-white striped shirt, smiled when he heard his name, but looked
tense.
They have been hunted by the Thai army since January 2000, after God's Army
was suspected of aiding another dissident Myanmar group that seized a hospital
in Ratchaburi. All the militants were killed by Thai commandos.
The God's Army had earlier given refuge to guerrillas of the same group,
which had taken hostages at the Myanmar Embassy in Bangkok in October 1999. They
were allowed to go free in exchange for releasing their captives.
Most, if not all, of the God's Army followers are members of Myanmar's
ethnic Karen minority, which has long sought autonomy from the central
government.
About 140,000 Karen and other refugees from Myanmar live in refugee camps
along the border with Thailand after fleeing fighting between rebel groups and
the Myanmar army.
Wednesday, January 17 2:54 PM SGT
Bangladesh, Myanmar To Hold Talks On Embankment Dispute DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP)--With
troops on high alert, Bangladesh and Myanmar have agreed to hold talks to end a
dispute over Myanmar's building of an embankment on a river shared by the two
neighbors, a Bangladesh official said Wednesday.
No date or venue has been set for the talks to be held by officials,
Foreign Secretary C.M. Shafi Sami was quoted as saying by state-run Bangladesh
Sangbad Sangstha news agency.
He said Myanmar had also accused Bangladesh of building an embankment on
the river, which Dhaka has denied.
Myanmar has proposed that officials from the two countries jointly verify
each other's allegations on embanking the river, Sami said.
"We have agreed to the proposal," he said.
Tension was high along the Naaf River after Myanmar started building an
embankment on the border river early this month.
Border guards of the two countries exchanged fire Jan. 8, but there were no
casualties.
Both countries have since reinforced troops along the 273-kilometer
frontier, part of it formed by the river. Thousands of villagers fled their
homes, fearing an outbreak of fighting.
Wednesday, January 17 4:03 PM SGT
EU Takes Placatory Stand On Myanmar Ahead Of Visit BANGKOK (AP)--The
reconciliation moves by Myanmar's military rulers and opposition leader Aung San
Suu Kyi are largely due to the efforts of Myanmar's Southeast Asian neighbors,
Sweden's ambassador said Wednesday.
Ambassador Jan Nordlander also said that the European Union team scheduled
to visit Myanmar this month will not insist on the immediate release of Nobel
peace laureate Suu Kyi from house arrest.
Even Suu Kyi herself is accepting "in a temporary way" the restrictions
placed upon her, "as long as the dialogue goes on," Nordlander said. "One should
not be more holy than the pope."
Nordlander, whose country holds the current E.U. presidency, struck a
remarkably conciliatory tone toward Myanmar's junta as well as the Association
of Southeast Asian Nations, with whom the E.U. has consistently been at
loggerheads on the issue of democracy in Myanmar.
Nordlander was speaking about the Jan. 29-31 visit by the E.U.'s
four-member delegation, part of its efforts to urge the military government to
reinstate democracy.
The junta refuses to recognize the results of the 1990 general elections
swept by Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy. In the last decade, the
generals have imprisoned scores of NLD members and kept Suu Kyi under long
periods of house arrest. In the latest round, she has been kept under
restrictive custody in her house since Sept. 22.
After a visit to Myanmar, the U.N. envoy, Razali Ismail, announced this
month that the junta has been holding secret reconciliation talks with Suu Kyi.
Nordlander said the talks may be the result of pressure "from the inside
and from the outside."
"It is apparent that great efforts have been made from many quarters, not
the least from some other members of Asean and this has perhaps been the
decisive factor," he said.
Asean has long insisted on engaging Myanmar's rulers in regional affairs to
persuade them to turn to democracy, rejecting the Western policy of imposing
sanctions.
"Personally, I don't think it would yield any results to isolate Myanmar.
If you want to achieve changes you must talk to your partner," he said.
Nordlander said that the E.U. will maintain its sanctions on Myanmar until
its generals restore democracy, release all political prisoners and respect
human rights. But "one must be rather patient. This is a long process."
The E.U. team will be led by Borje Ljunggren, the director general of the
Asia desk in the Swedish Foreign Ministry. The other members will be Ljunggren's
counterpart in the Belgian Foreign Ministry, Patrick Van Haute, and two
officials from the European Commission and the Council secretariat.
The team is expected to meet with Suu Kyi, Foreign Minister Win Aung, the
No. 3 leader in the junta, Khin Nyunt, and representatives of ethnic minorities,
U.N. agencies and international voluntary groups.
Wednesday, January 17 5:29 PM SGT
EU troika seeks meeting with Aung San Suu Kyi over landmark dialogue BANGKOK, Jan 17 (AFP) - A
European Union (EU) delegation visiting Myanmar later this month hopes to meet
with opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi to find out her views on plans for a
landmark dialogue with the military regime.
The EU troika, made up of representatives of the EU Commission and current
and future holders of the rotating presidency Sweden and Belgium, is to arrive
in Yangon January 29 for a three-day visit.
Sweden's ambassador to Bangkok Jan Axel Nordlander said the trip was taking
place at a critical time, after the announcement of breakthrough talks between
the opposition and the junta which were brokered by UN envoy Razali
Ismail.
While Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy has welcomed the
talks, the opposition leader has been under house arrest since September 22 and
unable to publicly air her views on the nascent dialogue.
"It will be very important that the troika goes to Rangoon (Yangon) at this
time because it will give the Union an opportunity to get first-hand knowledge
of what the opposition thinks about the dialogue so far," Nordlander said.
"After that we will know better the prospects for the future," he told
reporters.
The ambassador said there were signs Aung San Suu Kyi had temporarily
accepted the house arrest restrictions with the view they would help cement
plans for a dialogue before they are exposed to public scrutiny.
"We of course urge the government in Rangoon to release all political
prisoners and to lift the restrictions on all political leaders," he said.
"But it seems at this time that Aung San Suu Kyi herself is accepting for
the time being, in a temporary way, these conditions as long as the dialogue
goes on.
"It appears that the dialogue is more important than her own personal
situation ... and that is of course a very courageous attitude."
Asked whether the EU -- prominent critics of the Yangon regime -- should
hold back from meeting with the Nobel peace laureate while she remained under
house arrest, he quipped: "One should not be more holy than the Pope."
Diplomatic sources have told AFP that the the international community was
asked to exercise discretion as Razali went about setting up the talks, and
particularly to refrain from criticising the house arrest restrictions.
The junta has admitted that it preferred to talk to the opposition leader
out of earshot of some of the diplomatic missions in Yangon that have staunchly
advocated her cause.
In return, it appears to be extending a series of goodwill gestures,
including ordering the state-run media to halt its vicious stream of personal
attacks on Aung San Suu Kyi.
And in its first apparent reaction to the announcement of the landmark
contacts, the junta's first secretary Lieutenant General Khin Nyunt said Tuesday
that it was ready to "join hands with all the forces in the nation"
However, it warned the international community must roll back sanctions if
it wants to see "the emergence of a peaceful, modern and democratic
state."
Nordlander said the EU would hold its annual review of sanctions against
Myanmar in April, but any change would require proof of tangible steps towards
democracy.
"The issue of lifting the sanctions is a bit premature at this time, let's
see first what the troika mission can bring," he said.
"Personally I don't think that it would yield any results to isolate
Myanmar ... if you want to achieve changes, you must talk to your partner but
that might be a drawn-out process."
In a glowing endorsement for Razali's work, he said the EU attached "great
importance to the Malaysian diplomat's mission.
"The Union stands united behind the efforts of Mr Razali, we give him our
full support," he said.
WIRE
UPDATE 1-Thai PM wants God's Army twins to go to school RATCHABURI, Thailand, Jan 17 (Reuters) - Thai Prime Minister Chuan
Leekpai said on Wednesday he hoped the gun-toting teenage twins who led a ragtag
band of guerrillas in Myanmar"s jungles would go and live with their parents and
start attending school. Twins Johnny and Luther Htoo, believed to be in their
early teens, surrendered to Thai police on Tuesday along with 12 other members
of the God"s Army ethnic Karen rebel group.
Police relieved them of 11 M-16s and three AK-47s. Looking nervous and
confused, the twins were paraded in front of journalists on Wednesday. Luther
chain-smoked cigarettes. Johnny, who has shoulder-length hair, smiled
uncertainly at photographers.
Villagers along Thailand"s border with Myanmar believed the twins had
magical powers. The God"s Army is a small rebel faction that broke away from the
autonomy-seeking Karen National Union guerrilla force a few years ago. Outgoing
Prime Minister Chuan flew to the border police patrol base where the twins were
detained. He had ordered a crackdown on the God"s Army group after an attack on
a Thai shop near the border last month which left six people dead.
"I"d like to see them with their parents and going to school," he told
reporters after seeing the twins. But the whereabouts of their parents are not
known. Thai officials said the twins were likely to end up in a refugee camp.
Officials said the twins and their companions would be investigated before a
decision was made on their fate.
"We are now treating them as civilians fleeing warfare and we are
interrogating them," Ratchaburi Provincial Governor Gomet Daengthongdee told a
news conference. "If a panel finds the group members were not involved with
previous armed attacks inside Thailand, they would be categorised as refugees
and sent to live in a Thai refugee camp.
BLOODY ATTACKS
God"s Army has been linked to several armed attacks inside Thailand,
including a siege of the Myanmar embassy in Bangkok in 1999 and a bloody attack
on a hospital last January. But no evidence has been found so far that the twins
and their companions were guilty of any violence in Thailand, Gomet said.
"I don"t think these people are fighters as most of them are women and
children, but we need to interrogate them more," he said. Police said the group,
including nine teenagers, was hungry and exhausted and had turned themselves in
following heightened security patrols along both sides of the border by Thai and
Myanmar forces.
They surrendered without a fight to a Thai police unit along the border on
Tuesday. Gomet said they had separately captured three other members of God"s
Army wanted in connection with the December 30 attack on a grocer"s shop in Suan
Pueng, a town in Ratchaburi province about 150 km (95 miles) west of Bangkok.
"The surrender is the result of an intense hunt by Thai security forces
after the killing at the grocer"s shop," he said. There are some 140,000
refugees from Myanmar in Thai camps. Most are ethnic Karens who fled fighting
between Myanmar government forces and autonomy-seeking Karen guerrillas.
Khin Nyunt Meets Chinese Public
Security Minister
2001.01.17 21:28:00 YANGON, January 17 (Xinhuanet)
-- First Secretary of the Myanmar State Peace and Development Council
Lieutenant-General Khin Nyunt met visiting Chinese Minister of Public
Security Jia Chunwang here Wednesday.
The two sides exchanged views on combating transnational crimes, especially
on drug-related ones, cooperation in drug control and promotion of
exchange between the public security departments of the two countries as
well as matters of mutual concern.
Khin Nyunt said the friendly ties between Myanmar and China, which
were forged by Myanmar and Chinese leaders of older generations based on
the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, have developed well.
In recent years, he noted, the frequent exchange of visits of
high-ranking leaders between the two countries has further deepened
bilateral ties.
Myanmar and China have supported each other in international affairs,
he said, adding that the Myanmar people will never forget the economic aid
extended by China.
He stressed that the Myanmar government and people will stick to the
"one-China" policy.
At the meeting, Jia said China and Myanmar are friendly neighbors
linked by mountains and rivers. After the founding of New China, Myanmar
was one of the earliest countries that diplomatically recognized the
People's Republic of China.
During more than half-century's time in the past, Sino-Myanmar
relations maintained a steady pace of development no matter how the
international climate changed, he noted.
Last year, China and Myanmar issued a joint statement on bilateral
cooperation in the future, he recalled, saying that the two sides are
making positive efforts to implement accords signed between them.
On the issue of drug control, Khin Nyunt said Myanmar and China have
conducted good cooperation. The two countries share a very long common
border and Myanmar is sure to further strengthen cooperation with China in
this field, he noted.
Jia described narcotic drugs as the common enemy of the human
society.
The Chinese government has made tireless efforts to control drug
abuse, he said, hoping that the Myanmar Ministry of Home Affairs will
strengthen cooperation with the Chinese Ministry of Public Security in
suppression of drug-related crimes.
Jia arrived here on Tuesday for a five-day visit at the invitation of
Myanmar CCDAC Chairman and Minister of Home Affairs Colonel Tin
Hlaing.
News24 SA -
17/01/2001 08:53 - (SA) Myanmar accused of child labour Washington - US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright took a new swipe at
Myanmar on Tuesday, accusing it of using forced labour, as the United States
launched a new drive to eradicate global sweatshops.
Albright, who has never hidden her contempt for the military regime in
Yangon, said the cabinet of President Bill Clinton had worked hard to address
the scourge of forced child labour around the world.
"As anyone who's heard me knows, I have been particularly appalled by the
forced labour situation in Burma which the International Labour Organisation
(ILO) has condemned and which is unlikely to improve as long as democracy is
denied," Albright said at a news conference in the Old Executive Office Building
near the White House.
"Although only a few days remain in this administration, please rest
assured, we have not spoken our last word on Burma," she said, using the
country's former name.
The United States has been one of the most consistent supporters of Myanmar
opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and vilifies the junta which refused to cede
power when her National League for Democracy won elections in 1990.
The ILO last year called on its members to review their ties with Myanmar
over evidence that it used forced labour - a charge the junta denies.
Clinton announced two new initiatives Tuesday aimed at giving the global
economy "a more human face" by eradicating sweatshops and abusive child labour
practices worldwide.
He unveiled some four million dollars in grants to private-sector efforts
to eliminate sweatshops overseas, as well as government guidelines to help US
businesses comply with laws prohibiting imports produced with forced child
labour. - Sapa-AFP
United Press
International
Burma's junta offers Karens olive branch Wednesday, 17 January 2001 6:43 (ET) RANGOON, Burma, Jan. 17 (UPI) -- Burma's government-controlled media
Wednesday held out an olive branch to the country's last major anti-government
insurgent group, quoting junta strongman Lt. Gen. Khin Nyunt as saying he was
ready to "join hands" with the Karen National Union.
An editorial in Rangoon's New Light of Myanmar newspaper quoted Khin Nyunt,
who is first secretary of the ruling council and head of the feared Military
Intelligence, as saying, "The problem of insurgency that broke out with the
regaining of independence is now almost resolved with only one group, the KNU
group, operating out of the border region with a neighboring country..."
He expressed "hope that the KNU, too, would be able to join hands
with the government in the not-too-distant future."
The peace offer was made amid a general softening of the junta's
normally shrill propaganda against its enemies, including the National League
for Democracy and its leader, Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.
The United Nations announced last week that secret talks were
underway between Suu Kyi and Khin Nyunt with the aim of resolving the country's
decade-long political deadlock.
Suu Kyi's party won a landslide victory in the country's only free
election in 1990, but has been blocked from taking office by the junta.
Khin Nyunt said the government's efforts to achieve peace among the
country's various ethnic groups had paid off and "national races residing in
different parts of the nation are enjoying peace and progress unprecedented in
their memory."
Local analysts pointed out that the junta has indeed managed to
co-opt many of the country's insurgencies, including those of the ethnic Shan,
Kachin and Mon, but at a price of granting local autonomy to the former
insurgents. In some areas this has included turning a blind eye to the growing
of opium poppies.
The KNU, with its mainly Baptist leadership, has been fighting
against Rangoon since shortly after the British granted independence to the
country in 1948.
Khin Nyunt accused the foreign media of distorting the real situation
in Burma, saying "the standard of living and the quality of life of the people
are improving day by day, and anybody visiting Myanmar can see that the
political and economic picture painted by the foreign media does not reflect the
true situation.
In Sign of New Flexibility,
Burmese Junta Opens Door to EU Envoys
Michael Richardson International Herald Tribune Wednesday, January 17, 2001 SINGAPORE A delegation from the European Union has been given permission to
visit Burma soon in another sign that the military government there was trying
to placate its international critics, diplomats said Tuesday.
. Officials from Western countries that have long advocated sanctions against Burma for its political repression and human rights abuses now contend that the military junta and the opposition, led by the Nobel Peace laureate Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, are ready to negotiate a framework for resolving their deep differences. . "For the first time in over 10 years, there's the possibility that a process of dialogue might get going," said Stanley Roth, U.S. assistant secretary of state for East Asia and Pacific affairs. . The human rights situation in Burma, also known as Myanmar, remains "awful," Mr. Roth said, and there will have to be a great improvement before there can be a significant change in relations between the United States and Burma. . "But the fact that we have been calling for dialogue for all these years and that it may now have started and may achieve results is very significant," Mr. Roth said recently in Washington. "I think it could be the key for the Burmese beginning to work out their own problems." . Signs of easing of political tensions in Burma have intensified since the United Nations said last week that an envoy had helped broker direct talks between the junta and Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. Her political party, the National League for Democracy, won overwhelming support in 1990 elections but has never been allowed to govern. . U Lwin, an official with the National League for Democracy, said the talks, which began in October and have been shrouded in secrecy, appeared to have made some progress. A UN spokesman said more substantive discussions were expected to start soon. . Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has been confined to her residence in Rangoon since September, after angering the junta by twice trying to travel outside the capital on party business. . The UN envoy, Razali Ismail, a Malaysian diplomat, met Daw Aung San Suu Kyi twice during his visit this month. He also held talks with Burma's head of military intelligence, Lieutenant General Khin Nyunt, and Foreign Minister Win Aung. . Mr. Ismail's mission coincided with a weeklong visit to Burma by the Malaysian prime minister, Mahathir bin Mohamad. . The Malaysian government has been leading efforts by the Association of South East Asian Nations to encourage political reconciliation in Burma through a policy of "constructive engagement" between junta and opposition leaders, officials said. . Burma, which joined ASEAN in 1997, has lost substantial amounts of foreign aid and investment largely because of international concern about human rights abuses there. The situation has added to the burden on its already struggling economy. . A Southeast Asian official said the National League for Democracy had an incentive to seek talks, as well. . "Aung San Suu Kyi also recognizes that she is getting nowhere by insisting that the league is the only legitimate political authority and refusing to talk to the military rulers who have de facto power," the official said. . A Singapore newspaper, The Straits Times, wrote Tuesday: "There is great promise that a sort of settlement, if not a conjunction of interests, can be forged. Myanmar has been in a state of suspended animation, neither in danger of splintering nor able to stitch together a functioning economy on investments from the region alone." . At a meeting in Laos in December between ministers from the European Union and ASEAN, Burma agreed in principle to allow an EU mission to visit, with no restrictions on whom the delegation could meet. . Marius Haas, the German ambassador in Rangoon, said Tuesday the dates had been set for Jan. 29 to 31, Reuters reported. . "The delegation will comprise representatives from the present EU president, Sweden, the next president, Belgium, the Commission of the EU and the Council of the EU," Mr. Haas said. . Mr. Haas also indicated that the talks between the military and opposition, which he described as "a very historic step indeed," could help to improve relations between Burma and the EU, which has banned senior Burmese officials from visiting Europe. . But Sidney Jones, Asia director of Human Rights Watch in New York, said it was not clear what kind of concessions either side in Burma would make. . In an order that took effect over the weekend, the junta told the state-controlled media to halt personal attacks on Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. . Ms. Jones said such confidence-building measures would have to go "much, much further" and include the release of the opposition leader from house arrest. . To show goodwill, other analysts said, the junta may also decide to release league members who have been imprisoned. CNN - U.S. has not said last word
on Myanmar, Albright says
January 17, 2001 Web posted at: 8:16 AM HKT (0016 GMT) WASHINGTON (Reuters) -- U.S.
Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, an outspoken opponent of Yangon's
military rulers, said on Tuesday the administration had not said its last word
about Myanmar.
At the beginning of her remarks at a ceremony to unveil new measures to
help stomp out child labor around the world, Albright briefly mentioned Myanmar,
also known as Burma.
"Over the past four years, my Cabinet partners and I have worked especially
closely to address the issues of forced child and sweatshop labor around the
globe," Albright said. "As anyone who's heard me knows, I have been particularly
appalled by the forced labor situation in Burma, which the ILO (International
Labor Organization) has condemned and which is unlikely to improve as long as
democracy is denied.
"And although only a few days remain in this administration, please rest
assured, we have not spoken our last word on Burma," she said, without
explaining further.
Albright visited Myanmar in 1995, when she was the U.S. ambassador to the
United Nations, to speak to Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi. She has been
an opponent of the military rulers in Myanmar and has called for dialogue
between the government and pro-democracy opposition leader.
Earlier this month Albright said only time would tell if a new dialogue
that just began between the military leaders and the opposition leader was
genuine.
The military government, which prevented Aung San Suu Kyi's National League
for Democracy from ruling despite its landslide 1990 election victory, has held
initial direct talks with the opposition leader and was expected to hold more
substantive discussions soon, a U.N. spokesman said last week.
Aung San Suu Kyi, who spent six years under house arrest before being
released in 1995, has been isolated repeatedly since, including being forced to
stay inside her Yangon home since last September.
After Suu Kyi was prevented from leaving Yangon last September, Albright
issued a statement deploring the "heavy-handed action" as the latest "outrage"
committed against the NLD leader and other pro-democracy leaders.
The military government, in power for most of the last four decades, has
never shown any sign of relinquishing control in Myanmar.
The Straits Times - JAN 17, 2001
-WEDNESDAY
Junta 'ready for talks' with all in Myanmar But the international community must roll back sanctions before
democracy and reconciliation can take hold in the country, says First Secretary
BANGKOK - Myanmar's military regime said yesterday it was ready 'to join
hands with all the forces in the nation', as it expects a delegation from the
European Union to visit at the end of the month.
The statement took place in an apparent reaction to the announcement of
landmark contacts with Ms Aung San Suu Kyi, leader of the opposition National
League for Democracy (NLD) Party.
But the junta's First Secretary, Lt-General Khin Nyunt, said the
international community had to roll back sanctions if it wanted to see 'the
emergence of a peaceful, modern and democratic state'.
The United Nations announced last week that secret talks between Gen Nyunt
and Ms Suu Kyi were being held to prepare the way for a historic dialogue
between the two sides.
The regime has so far made no official response to the news, but the
general's comments for the first time link the political thaw with the end of
sanctions.
Nations using pressure tactics and sanctions on Myanmar 'should give them
up' if they wanted to see national reconciliation begin in the country, he
said.
'It is now generally accepted by most observers that these tactics have not
worked and can be counter-productive.
'Presently Myanmar is beginning to achieve sound political, social and
administrative foundations and it is most important that these nations, even if
they are not in a position to assist us, do not impede the progress being
made.'
The heavy burden of sanctions, which has helped bring Myanmar's economy to
its knees, is credited with being one of the major factors behind the junta's
new willingness to countenance political change.
Gen Nyunt urged those nations holding 'pessimistic and narrow-minded views'
on Myanmar to review their stance.
'Even as we look forward to joining hands with all the forces in the nation
in the march towards the national goal...it is our earnest desire to establish
friendly and mutually beneficial cooperation with all the nations of the world,'
he said.
A delegation from the European Union is expected to visit the country from
Jan 29 to 31 to assess progress made in reconciliation between the military
government and the NLD, diplomats said yesterday.
Mr Marius Haas, Germany's Ambassador to Myanmar, said yesterday the
delegation would comprise representatives from present EU president Sweden, the
next president Belgium, the Commission of the EU and the Council of the
EU.
Mr Jan Nordlander, Sweden's Ambassador to Thailand, said the four-member
delegation would meet Ms Suu Kyi, the government and representatives of ethnic
minorities. --AFP, AP
Bangkok Post - January 17, 2001.
DRUGS Six Burmese arrested, 98,000 pills seized Six Burmese nationals were arrested on narcotics trafficking charges on
Monday and 40 Thais on other drugs-related charges.
City police chief Pol Lt-Gen Anant Piromkaew said the six Burmese were
arrested at The Mall department store in Bang Khae, Lotus superstore on
Ratchadapisek road and on Soi Ramkhamhaeng 50.
A total of 98,000 methamphetamine pills were seized, he said, adding that
the Burmese were accused of distributing speed pills to city students.
Police also raided a house in Banglampu Lang, Klongsan district, and
arrested three people on drug charges. They found 240 speed pills and two sets
of drug-related equipment, the commissioner said.
Officers then posed as drug dealers and waited in the house for over five
hours. Nearly 50 people showed up apparently to buy speed pills.
He said 37 were arrested aftertesting positive for drugs in a
urinetest.
The Nation - January 17, 2001.
Divine call led mystical waifs to take up arms GOD'S Army was formed in Burma three years' ago by members of various
ethnic militia groups, including Karen Christians, Buddhists and animists. It
was headed by twin brothers Johnny and Luther Htoo, who were just nine years old
at the time.
The group took its name from rumours that the boys, who preached in a
church, believed God was calling them to lead an armed group to fight the
Burmese army. Members believed the Htoo twins were bullet-proof and could make
themselves invisible. As word spread, God's Army swelled to include almost 200
members by 1998.
The recent hostage-taking incident at Rajchaburi Hospital was reportedly
carried out by a God's Army militia member and nine armed Burmese students. The
gunmen demanded medical treatment for fellow militia members wounded in attacks
by the Thai and Burmese armies.
The crisis ended when Thai commandos stormed the hospital, killing all the
gunmen. Johnny and Luther Htoo were not involved.
The twin brothers have since become the world's most famous child soldiers.
Burma has about 50,000 child soldiers - more than any other country. Many of
them belong to the various ethnic groups along the Thai-Burma border.
On December 30, six villagers were killed in an area known to be patrolled
by God's Army. Following the attack, Thai troops monitored the group's movements
and activities until they surrendered on Monday.
The Nation - January 17,
2001.
EU team hopes to meet Suu Kyi BY JEERAWAT NA THALANG THE Swedish Ambassador to Thailand announced yesterday that a four-man
delegation from the European Union would visit Burma from January 29-31 to meet
opposition leader Ang San Suu Kyi and assess the political situation there.
The EU has welcomed efforts by Burma's military government to talk to Suu
Kyi, "but I think it's premature to talk about lifting the sanctions at this
time. Let us see first what the troika visit can bring", said Jan Axel
Nordlander.
Acting as spokesman for the EU presidency - currently held by Sweden -
Nordlander said the delegation of Sweden, Belgium (which will hold the next EU
presidency), the European Council and the European Commission, would try to urge
the military government to reinstate democracy in Burma.
The visit was agreed during the Asean-EU meeting in Vientiane, when Burmese
Foreign Minister Win Aung declared that the group would be received in Burma in
the same fashion as it was during the last visit in July.
"And the last time, they met Ang San Suu Kyi," said Nordlander.
"It will be very important for the delegates to go to Rangoon this time to
get first-hand information on what the opposition thinks about the dialogue so
far," the ambassador added.
Asked by a reporter if the "constructive engagement" policy of Asean was
more effective than the tough stance taken by the West in dealing with Burma,
Nordlander said, "the terminology in this case has been quite effective".
He added, "Any country would be more sensitive to the views of her
neighbours and immediate friends than to the views of those who are very far
away and with whom she has lesser dealings."
Nordlander then said that "the junta has been under pressure from the
inside and the outside to commence a dialogue for many years, and it is apparent
that great efforts have been made from many quarters, not least from some other
members of Asean. And this has perhaps been the decisive factor".
Apart from Suu Kyi, the team plans to meet Win Aung and Burma's
intelligence chief Gen Khin Nyunt, as well as representatives of ethnic
minorities, UN agencies and other international organisations.
Bangkok Post - January 17,
2001.
BORDER Security forces to keep close eye on Tak medical clinic Supamart Kasem Local officials will look into activities of an NGO-run clinic in Mae Sot
amid reports illegal migrants have set up shelters near the premises.
Col Chainarong Thanaroon, chief of the Fourth Infantry Regiment Task Force,
has asked authorities to monitor Cynthia Clinic, which treats locals and
Burmese.
The centre, run by Dr Cynthia Maung with foreign volunteers, was set up
without Medical Council permission. Burmese authorities had asked Dr Cynthia to
move the clinic to Myawaddy, offering to pay for medical supplies and find a
site, sources said. A source close to Dr Cynthia said the founder had yet to
decide on the proposal but felt the move might be risky.
Dr Cynthia confirmed she had been approached by Burmese authorities but
refused to go into detail.
Sources said Dr Cynthia and her team opened the clinic in 1989 in a rented
house near the Thai-Burmese border. They have worked closely with
non-governmental organisations and local health agencies to give free health
care services to border villagers and underprivileged people.
Dr Cynthia later expanded the clinic by having more rooms built on rented
land nearby, the sources said.
BBC - Wednesday, 17 January, 2001,
15:36 GMT
Bangladesh and Burma agree to talks The authorities in Bangladesh and Burma have agreed to hold talks to defuse
border tension and resolve their differences over the alleged construction of
illegal dams.
The two countries have accused each other of building dams on the Naaf
river -- which forms part of their common border -- in violation of signed
agreements.
Both countries deny such allegations and have now agreed to form a joint
commission which is to inspect the sites of the alleged dams.
Tensions came to a head last week when Bangladeshi and Burmese border
guards exchanged fire.
A BBC correspondent in Dhaka says that despite the efforts by both sides to
defuse the tension, hundreds of villagers have fled their homes.
From the newsroom of the BBC World Service
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