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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- BURMA RELATED NEWS - January - 23, 2001. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- HEADLINE
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- AFP - Outlawed Myanmar separatists arrested in
Bangladesh
AP - God's Army Twins
Admit No Powers
The Time - Out of God's
Hands
AP - UN Happy With Myanmar Junta Efforts To
Fight Drugs
Asia Pulse - Malaysian Trade Minister Rafidah
Announces Itinerary
Xinhua - Myanmar Kokang Ethnic Leader on
Achievements in Drug Control
Xinhua - Myanmar Leader Stresses
Importance of Economic Prosperity
The Times of India - Bangla, Myanmar
border talks collapse
The New Straits
Time - Business: Aviation: A case for equal access
Bkk Post - Traders to seek re-opening of 2
northern checkpoints
BBC - Falun Gong stages 'suicide
protest'
Tuesday, January 23 6:22 PM SGT
Outlawed Myanmar separatists arrested in Bangladesh CHITTAGONG, Bangladesh, Jan 23 (AFP) - Bangladeshi police said Tuesday
they have unearthed a suspected den of Myanmar separatist militants arresting
two people, including an alleged top leader.
Two houses in the southern port's Chandgaon area was raided Monday by
police who said one was used as a hideout by the Arakan Rohingya National
Organisation (ARNO).
They said ARNO was an extremist fundamentalist group, set up last year and
fighting for the independence of Myanmar's Arakan province bordering
Bangladesh.
Selim Ullah, 40, was accused of being the group's "chief of military staff"
while the second man under arrest was named as Faiz Ahmed, an officer in the
investigation team told AFP.
The Jugantor daily, quoting police, said the group had links to Bangladeshi
fundamentalist groups, including the Harkatul Jihad, as well as two unidentified
opposition political parties.
ARNO has its headquarters in Libya, the officer said, adding they had found
a picture of Ullah with Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi taken when he was
undergoing training in Libya.
The police source said they first arrested Abu Yassir, the commander of a
hill-top camp in Cox's Bazaar at a jungle hideout in Ukhia, and raided the
Chittagong base after questioning him.
"They smuggle in weapons from Malaysian extremist groups and Libya and sell
them here to mainly Muslim fundamentalist groups as well as terrorist
organisations," the police said, on condition of anonymity.
"They are also involved in supplying weapons to Assamese separatists," he
added.
The officer said the main objectives appeared to be making money by
smuggling weapons and creating lawlessness ahead of general elections in
Bangladesh due this year.
"They are supporting these fundamentalist groups as they believe they will
be properly rehabilitated here if they win the polls," he said.
According to the newspaper, the group has 5,000 armed cadres using AK47
rifles, light machine guns, rocket launchers and anti-aircraft guns, with bases
in Chittagong and nearby beach resort district of Cox's Bazar, bordering
Arakan.
Police seized pictures, documents and personal computers during the raid on
the two houses.
The police officer said ARNO was a new alliance of several groups,
including the Rohingya Solidarity Organisation and National United Party of
Arakan headed G. Maung.
The two under arrest were taken to Cox's Bazar where sedition charges have
been filed against them and a magistrate court Tuesday granted a police request
to question them for 10 days, police said.
More than 380,000 Arakanese fled to Bangladesh in 1992 alleging persecution
by Myanmar troops -- a charge Yangon denies.
Most were repatriated after a 1991 agreement between Dhaka and Yangon,
followed by a second one in 1993 between the United Nations High Commissioner
for Refugees and the Myanmar authorities.
Some 21,000 remain in two camps in the Cox's Bazar area awaiting
repatriation.
Several rebel groups are known to be fighting for the independence of
Arakan, but ARNO remains a little known group and no further details were
available.
Monday January 22 12:32 PM ET
God's Army Twins Admit No Powers By MATTHEW PENNINGTON, Associated Press Writer SUAN PHUNG, Thailand (AP) - The
teen-age twins who led the God's Army rebel group acknowledged on Monday they
have no mystical powers to repel bullets and said they want to give up
fighting.
Wearing oversized soccer shirts, Johnny and Luther Htoo, who led a
hit-and-run campaign for three years against the Myanmar military, said their
days as soldiers are at an end.
``I want to live as a family with my parents,'' Luther told reporters at a
border police base near the Myanmar frontier with Thailand. ``I want to
study.''
Luther said the God's Army, a rag tag guerrilla group, had 150 soldiers at
its peak while fighting to try to win autonomy for the ethnic Karen
minority.
When they surrendered to the Thai army last week, driven by hunger and
exhaustion, the God's Army had probably not more than 20 followers. Seventeen of
them, including the twins, surrendered Jan. 16 and Jan. 17. Luther said he knows
of only three comrades still in the jungles.
The twins' legend began around 1997 when Myanmar troops came to their
village during a sweep of Karen areas. The mainstream guerrillas group, the
Karen National Union, reportedly fled while the twins rallied some men and
directed a successful counterattack.
After that, the twins' followers said the boys - who are Christians - had
powers from God. Their followers believed bullets couldn't hit them and mines
wouldn't explode under their feet.
``God sent me to be the leader to fight against Burma,'' said Luther, who
like his twin does not know his exact age. ``I am not afraid because God is
always with me.''
Asked if he has mystical powers to repel bullets, Luther said: ``It is not
true.''
The twins became icons for youthful rebels around the world after the
circulation of an Associated Press photograph showed the angelic-looking,
long-haired Johnny next to his tougher-looking, cigarette-puffing brother,
Luther.
Thai authorities say they believe the twins are 15 years old. But the
undernourished boys, who are vegetarians, look little more than 10.
Luther said the God's Army had stopped fighting since they lost their base
at Ka Mar Pa Law, just inside Myanmar, in early 2000 when it was attacked by
Myanmar forces.
At that time, they became separated from their parents. The parents trekked
to Thailand, where they live in one of the refugee camps strung out along the
Thai-Myanmar border.
Thai authorities are considering giving the twins refugee status and
reuniting them with their parents.
``If God did not help us, we all would have died a long time ago,'' said
Luther. He said he was unsure if he would stay in Thailand.
``If I could go back (to Myanmar) I would,'' he said.
The twins appeared at the news conference with a dozen armed Thai border
police standing guard alongside 12 other God's Army followers, most of them
children. The police camp is about 100 miles west of Bangkok near the
border.
Officials said all of them have been deloused and given haircuts - all
except Johnny, who had his customary long hair in a ponytail.
``If I have a hair cut, I will get sick,'' said the waif-like Johnny,
gazing timidly at the sky as he spoke.
Asked if they would give up smoking, Luther - known as a chain smoker -
shook his head.
The Time
JANUARY 29, 2001 VOL. 157 NO. 4 Out of God's
Hands
The child leaders of a Karen rebel group seek refuge in Thailand after years of jungle warfare By ROBERT HORN Ratchaburi To the Karen, they were deities. To the Thais, they were demons. But when
they staggered down from the mountains of Burma at dusk last Tuesday, Johnny and
Luther Htoo brought neither miracles nor M-16s, just Bibles in their rucksacks.
The tiny teenage twins, leaders of the mysterious rebel force known as God's
Army, approached a company of Thai soldiers and asked for sanctuary. Whisked to
a police compound in the nearby town of Suan Pheung, they soon found themselves
exchanging bewildered stares with Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai and a dozen of
Thailand's top generals. As Chuan inspected his prizes, he gently stroked the
boys' lice-ridden locks. "He totally demystified them," says Sunai Phasuk, a
Burma specialist with Forum Asia, a human rights group. In Buddhist Thailand,
where the head is the most sacred part of the body, that one simple gesture did
more to strip them of their aura than any number of blunders in the jungle or
defeats in battle. They had become plainly, simply mortal. You don't pat a god
on the head.
God's Army, an insurgent group of Burma's Karen minority, shot its way to international prominence a year ago when 10 rebels from its camp stormed a hospital in the Thai town of Ratchaburi, taking 500 patients and staff hostage. After a brief standoff, the rebels surrendered and then, according to Thai witnesses, were executed, shot at point-blank range. The bloodshed briefly focused the world's attention on some strange tales seeping from the Burmese jungle. The twins had never ventured more than a few kilometers from their base on Kersay Doh, or God's Mountain, but photos of the wide-eyed, chain-smoking, rifle-toting, 12-year-old leaders were flashed around the world. They became instant objects of fascination and fear. In the hills of Burma where the Karen have been fighting for independence for half a century, Johnny and Luther already were folkloric legends, renowned for beating back entire companies of well-armed Burmese soldiers. Their followers, believers in the Karen blend of animism, Buddhism and Christianity, swore the pair had magical powers and were impervious to bullets. Were the charismatic twins truly messianic leaders of a desperate band of
rebels, or merely helpful figureheads for veteran Karen insurgents? "We think
they may have been used as fronts by older rebels," says General Surayud
Chulanont, Commander in Chief of the Thai Army, after debriefing them. Surayud
was the architect of the strategy that induced the boys to surrender. He
recruited three Karen village elders in Thailand who had been trading with God's
Army to serve as mediators in his negotiations with the rebels. Though they had
few chances to speak with the twins directly, they traveled frequently to the
group's base. One of the elders, a cheroot-smoking, leathery-skinned man in his
50s, suspects that the real leaders were three hard-line Karen named Rambo,
Samoo and Subiya. Still, the twins were clearly impressive. "They really did
defeat the Burmese with just a handful of men," the elder says. Karen Christian
priests who also had frequent contact with God's Army confirm the twins'
exploits. If the boys were natural-born fighters, it was clearly in the
interests of their band to deify them. "For a people facing a bleak future they
represented hope, both military and religious," says Sunai, the Burma
specialist.
The end game for Johnny and Luther may have begun on New Year's Eve. That's
when Rambo and three other rebels got into a dispute with a group of drunken
Thai villagers in the border hamlet of Ban Wan Noi Nai and opened fire, killing
six Thais. A combined force of Thai soldiers, border patrol units and police cut
off the rebels' supply routes from Thailand. Isolated, God's Army managed to
subsist primarily on deer and monkey, but the mood in the camp had changed. A
Burmese army unit was less than 5 km away, and the ragtag band could feel defeat
closing in. It was then that the twins reasserted their control. When an older
rebel tried to stop the Karen elder from talking to Luther, the boy cold-cocked
the rebel, bloodying his nose. "They were coming to their senses," the elder
says. The rebels didn't want to be killed by the Burmese, but they didn't know
whether they could trust the Thais. With coaxing from the elders, the boys
decided to make the long, slow walk to Thailand.
At the police station in Suan Pheung last week, however, Luther and Johnny
Htoo, the saviors of the Karen, suddenly seemed human, boyish actually, in their
frailty. Shorn of their weapons and fatigues, they appeared to be scrawny,
stunted children smoking Thai cigarettes and munching on shortbread cookies.
Johnny and Luther will most likely be allowed to live in a refugee camp with
their mother. "They are just kids," observed General Surayud.
Some Karen still refuse to believe the twins are finished. They say the
boys will grow strong again and return to vanquish their foes. At that notion,
the elder just laughs and says the boys' fighting days are over. The Karen,
however, are a people still in need of a savior. And so in the mist-covered
mountains of the Thai-Burma border, many are still praying for the second coming
of Luther and Johnny Htoo.
Tuesday January 23, 3:39 PM
UN Happy With Myanmar Junta Efforts To Fight Drugs BANGKOK (AP)--Myanmar's ruling
junta is serious about fighting drugs, and its commitment is showing good
results in controlling opium and amphetamine production, U.N. officials said
Tuesday.
The "problem has not been solved. The problem will not be solved tomorrow,"
Sandro Calvani of the U.N. International Drug Control Program told a news
conference to discuss the UNDCP's second World Drug Report.
The report, released Monday in Vienna, says Myanmar remains the
second-largest producer of illicit opium in the world after Afghanistan. The two
countries accounted for 95% of opium production in 1999 with Afghanistan's share
at 75%.
While Afghanistan remains a challenge to the global community, there is
reason for hope in Myanmar, said Yngve Danling, a law enforcement adviser to the
UNDCP, who also addressed the news conference.
"We are seeing that (Myanmar) government authorities...are serious (and)
committed. They are doing what they promised to do and they are performing. And
they are getting results," said Calvani, the UNDCP's east Asia and Pacific
representative.
According to the World Drug Report, the production of opium poppy fell from
1,303 tons in 1998 to 895 tons in 1999. The seizure of amphetamine-type
stimulants increased from 50 kilograms in 1997 to 160 kilograms in 1998.
Amphetamines are the new scourge on the drug scene, with their trafficking
growing more strongly than that of any other drug over the last decade, the
World Drug Report said.
Myanmar has emerged as a leading center for amphetamines, bringing it
international opprobrium second only to the criticism it faces for suppressing
democratic rights.
Amphetamines are made by Myanmar rebel groups such as the Shan and Wa in
makeshift laboratories strung along the border with Thailand and China, where
the junta has little control.
The two rebel groups have signed peace accords with the junta, which gives
them virtual autonomy in large enclaves dominated by their minority communities.
But by choosing to make peace with the rebels, the junta may have
compromised its fight against drugs to some extent, Danling, the UNDCP adviser,
said.
Danling and Calvani also praised Myanmar for cooperating with neighbors
Thailand and China in fighting drug lords by sharing information about their
trafficking activities.
Myanmar has also cooperated with the U.N. in running successful programs on
making villagers give up the cultivation of poppy, Calvani said.
He said the U.N. estimates it will need a $10 million investment by the
international community to fight the drug problem in Myanmar, including
providing alternative sources of income to villagers. But so far only $1 million
has been provided, mostly by the U.S. and Japan.
The international community has in the last three years invested 300 times
more in Thailand in fighting drugs compared to Myanmar, he said.
This is largely because of the pariah status that Myanmar has in the West
over its refusal to hand over power to the National League for Democracy party
of Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, which won the 1990 general
elections.
Tuesday, January 23 4:10 PM SGT
Malaysian Trade Minister Rafidah Announces Itinerary KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 23 Asia Pulse
- Malaysian Trade and Industry Minister Rafidah Aziz has lined up 11 trade
missions this year which will take her to six continents in efforts to attract
new foreign investments and create new markets.
In a statement Tuesday, the ministry said that the first trade mission
starting Feb 7, would take Rafidah to North America where she would be attending
investment seminars in Los Angeles and Tucson in the US and Vancouver, Canada to
meet with potential investors.
On March 22 to 25, Rafidah would visit neighbouring Indonesia, Thailand,
Myanmar and Cambodia for another trade mission followed by an 11 day trade and
investment mission to Japan beginning April 22.
From May 18 to 24, she would lead a trade and investment mission to United
Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia where seminars have been planned in Dubai, Jeddah
and Riyadh.
Her next destination would be Europe where from May 24 to June 2, Rafidah
would attend investment seminars in Frankfurt, Germany; Paris, France; Milan,
Italy and London, England for meetings with the countries' respective
businessmen.
From June 17 to 23, the minister would visit the African continent to meet
businessmen in Mozambique and South Africa.
Next in her itinerary is South America where from July 8 to 20, Rafidah
would visit Mexico, Chile and Brazil to look for business opportunities in these
countries as well as attract Foreign Direct Investment [FDI].
In August, the minister would be in Australia for two weeks beginning Aug 5
where she would travel to Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth to attend
business seminars.
From Sept 24 to Oct 2, Rafidah would again visit Canada and the US where
investment seminars have been set in Philadelphia, Toronto and St Louis.
On Oct 8, Rafidah would be in Beirut, Lebanon to open a Malaysian products
exhibition followed by a visit to Casablanca and Rabat in Morocco.
Her last destination would be a three-day visit to China beginning Oct 22
where investment seminars have been arranged in Shanghai and Beijing.
Myanmar Kokang Ethnic Leader on Achievements in Drug
Control
2001.01.23 14:27:05 YANGON, January 23 (Xinhuanet) -- Chairman of the
Government of the Kokang Special Administrative Region (KSAR) of Myanmar U
Phon Kyar Shin said the special region has made remarkable achievements in
drug control.
Phon, who is also commander of the Myanmar National Democracy
Alliance (MNDA), made the remarks at Laukkai in the country's northern
Shan state, in an exclucive interview with Xinhua recently.
He noted that the KSAR's drug control tasks started in 1991 and since then,
the regional government has successively laid down drug control measures
such as "manufacture-ban," "trafficking-ban, " "addict-ban," and
"opium-cultivation-ban," overrunning many opium refineries, destroying
narcotic drugs worth of over one billion U.S. dollars and punishing large
batches of drug offenders engaged in illicit manufacturing and trafficking of
drugs.
The regional government has imposed forced drug abandonment, strongly
controlling the abuse of drug, he said, adding that the narcotic drug
output in the Kokang region is now only one-tenth of that in other drug
cultivating areas in the country.
He said the MNDA reached a peace agreement with the Myanmar
government in 1989. The Kokang region's three objectives are maintenance
of peace, launching of drug control and development of economy.
He noted that the Kokang Drug Elimination Museum, known as Myanmar's
first museum of its kind, was inaugurated in Kokang's Laukkai Area on
December 27 last year, signifying the determination and confidence in drug
eradication efforts of the 180,000 Kokang people.
The construction of the museum was meant to call on people to cherish
human lives and stay away from drug and participate in control of drug,
which is far from eliminated in the area.
He pointed out that "the greatest difficulty in carrying out the
all-sided drug control tasks is how to tackle the food and shelter
problems of the local people. We hope our country will extend us a policy
of privilege."
He also hoped that the international community would strengthen cooperation
in drug control efforts.
Myanmar Leader Stresses Importance
of Economic Prosperity
2001.01.23 11:28:13 YANGON, January 23 (Xinhuanet)
-- Myanmar leader Lieutenant- General Khin Nyunt has stressed the importance of
economic prosperity in his country, saying that peace and political
stability in the nation are also closely linked to it.
"To prosper economically, we also need political stability. But in any
case, economic prosperity is essential to develop the country, to raise
the standard of living of the people," Khin Nyunt, first secretary of the
Myanmar State Peace and Development Council, was quoted by Monday night's
official Information Sheet as saying.
In a recent interview with the Myanmar Times, a local English weekly
journal, Khin Nyunt admitted that, compared to other countries in the
region, Myanmar has a long way to go and catch up. He called for improving the
country's traditional agrarian economy by mechanizing its farming.
On questions of education, Khin Nyunt said Myanmar started planning a
reform in the sector in 1997 and has drawn up a four- year education plan
(2000-04) which aims at offering all-round education, raising the level of
studies to be equal to international standards and abolishing as much as
possible the disparity between education available in the urban and rural
areas.
With regard to HIV/AIDS, Khin Nyunt said prevention against the diseases is
a national cause, warning that in case of ignorance, it will be the
scourge that will destroy the entire races.
He complained that it is difficult for Myanmar to monitor infected
cases in the country.
"We have no means of getting the exact data on how many cases there
are. To test each person would cost around 2.00 U.S. dollars and really we
cannot afford it," he said.
He added that although Myanmar has asked the World Health Organization for assistance, yet the country has not received anything sufficient but has to start the monitoring system with its own limited sources. He disclosed that Myanmar is planning to set up care centers for AIDS
patients from cities down to border areas.
The Times of India - January 23,
2001.
Bangla, Myanmar border talks collapse by Ershadul Huq DHAKA: Talks between the border security force commanders of Bangladesh and
Myanmar have collapsed over Myanmar's refusal to sign the minutes of a flag
meeting that took place over the weekend.
Media reports of the flag meeting between the commander of paramilitary
Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) and the commander of Myanmar's "Nasaka" border security
force reaching here said the Myanmar side displayed a "bellicose attitude" and
refused to sign the proceedings of the meeting. The meeting was held on Sunday
at Maungdau in Myanmar.
The reports said the Myanmar delegation led by Commander U.Kyaw Sanhala had
suggested that they would repair the damaged parts of an embankment running
along the river Naf, which divides the two nations, to defuse border-related
tensions. BDR Commander Lt. Colonel Rafiqur Rahman Bhuyian, who led the
11-member Bangladesh team to the talks, rejected the proposal, saying the
embankment was constructed in flagrant violation of the border treaty between
the two countries and further construction or repair of it would not be
allowed.
According to the reports, this led to the Myanmar side leaving the meeting
abruptly. A Myanmar proposal to form a Joint Survey Commission (JSC) to defuse
border tensions was also left hanging in the balance because of the failed
talks.
It was not known till Sunday whether the JSC would be formed, but foreign
ministry sources here said the JSC would be formed at the "local command level,"
involving the border forces of the two countries.
Meanwhile, reports from Myanmar say that two light infantry regiments have
been deployed at forward positions, some 500 yards from the Bangladesh border.
About 15,000 regular troops have also been stationed near the border with
Bangladesh. (IANS)
The New Straits Times
Business: Aviation: A case for equal access By Jothi Jeyasingam 23 January 2001 TUES: GOVERNMENT legislation and policies significantly affect the
operations of the integrated express industry with regard to access to aviation
markets, as a key gateway into the Asean region.
Access to individual country markets is determined by a pattern of
bilateral civil aviation agreements that describe the rights of one country's
air carriers to serve markets in another country.
Integrators prefer to operate in regimes that grant them greater
access.
This is because it permits them to develop efficient and far ranging
service networks that can offer customers more service to more markets.
Among the Asean member nations, only Brunei, Malaysia and Singapore permit
unlimited access under their "open skies" agreements with the United States,
Indonesia, Myanmar, Philipines and Thailand.
The Asean Heads of State in the Hanoi Action Plan (December 1998),
recognised the need to consider further liberalisation of aviation services in
the region.
However, the plan only calls for the articulation of a "policy framework
and modalities for the development of a competitive air services policy, a
gradual step towards an open sky policy".
This will give Governments freedom to choose their own timing in achieving
liberalisation.
According to the US-Asean Business Council, an organisation dedicated to
strengthening business and political ties between the US and Asean, a regional
agreement on air services is a possibility.
Several members of the Asia Pacific Economic Co-operation Forum (Apec) are
actively exploring the development of an air services agreement that would
establish an open skies Network among them.
Such an agreement if implemented has the potential to serve as a model for
a liberal intra-Asean agreement.
Once the basic terms of market access have been determined, integrators
must have the abbility to operate flexibly and efficiently.
This involves the ability to perform their own ground handling and to price
their services without undue Government restrictions.
For the most part, civil aviation agreements between the US and Asean
countries contain liberal provisions in these areas.
Bangkok Post - January 23,
2001.
Traders to seek re-opening of 2 northern checkpoints Military keeps them closed to fight drugs Subin Khuenkaew Traders will ask the incoming government to reopen two northern border
checkpoints, closed by the military to stop the flow of drugs.
A source said the traders want the reopening of Kiew Pha Wok checkpoint in
Chiang Mai and Ban Huay Phung in Mae Hong Son to facilitate cross-border
trading.
Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai and the military rejected earlier calls for
their reopening. They also ordered the closure of Son Ton Du checkpoint to
damage the drug trade. The traders have been lobbying both local and
national-level politicians, the source said.
"Exporters will renew their calls for the reopening of the checkpoints.
They believe the next government will support their calls since Thaksin
Shinawatra has promised to promote cross-border trading," the source said.
Meanwhile, Burma's recent ban on Thai products has caused cross-border
trade in the North to plummet.
Sakhon Apiniwet, secretary to the Chiang Rai chamber of commerce, said
Burmese authorities banned 15 Thai products in November without giving a
reason.
Mr Sakhon said the ban had caused the export volume to Burma to drop by
30-40%.
BBC -Tuesday, 23 January, 2001, 11:41
GMT
Falun Gong stages 'suicide protest' Five followers of the banned Falun Gong spiritual movement have set
themselves on fire in Beijing's Tiananmen Square, according to state media.
The protest, on the eve of Chinese New Year, left one woman dead and four people injured, Xinhua state news agency said. China outlawed the Falun Gong movement, which teaches meditation and
exercise, in July 1999 after branding it an "evil cult".
The four women and one man reportedly set themselves on fire after dousing
themselves in gasoline at 1440 (0640 GMT).
"Misled by the heresy of Li Hongzhi, a ringleader of the evil Falun Gong
cult, five Falun Gong addicts tried to commit suicide by burning themselves on
Tiananmen Square," Xinhua said.
The four injured were taken to hospital by police, the news agency added.
The US network CNN quoted as saying that one man was seen being carried
into a police van with severe burns on his face, while other bodies lay on the
ground, shielded by a screen put up by police.
But a Falun Gong spokeswoman in Hong Kong said the alleged incident could
not be linked with the group and might be part of a smear campaign by Beijing.
"Taking life is a sin. We don't even harm mosquitoes. Why should we harm
ourselves?" she added.
Crackdown
Falun Gong members have held regular demonstrations in Tiananmen Square
over the last 18 months to protest against the government ban.
Thousands of people have been arrested and organisers have received lengthy
jail terms.
The movement also says more than 100 people have been beaten to death in
custody - an allegation denied by the authorities.
China's handling of the protests is under extra scrutiny this year with
Beijing hoping to be chosen to host the 2008 Olympics.
The International Olympic Committee is due in Beijing in February to assess
the city's bid ahead of its decision in July.
Police in Beijing are currently bracing for a possible repeat of the mass
protest last New Year's Day when thousands of Falun Gong practitioners descended
on Tiananmen Square.
Falun Gong, which insists it has no political motives, says its teachings
promote health and good citizenship.
But Beijing blames the group for the deaths of hundreds of followers by
advising them not to seek medical treatment when ill.
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