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BURMA RELATED NEWS - August 01,
2001.
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HEADLINES
---------------------------------------------------------------- AP - Myanmar Journalists' Plight
Alarming
AFP - Thailand optimistic over release of
anti-drugs officials
AFP - ASEAN nations urged to accept
globalisation to relieve poverty
AFP - Southeast Asia dogged by problems of key
members: DBS Bank
AP - Myanmar Govt. Rejects
Criticisms
BBC - Burma targets international
image
FT - Thais seek Burma releases
The Nation - Officers
set to be freed
The Nation - 'Burma
must cut fees'
The Nation - Abduction
revives border tensions
Bkk Post - Missing seven safe after a
4-day absence
---------------------------------------------------------------- Tuesday July 31 1:33 PM ET Myanmar Journalists' Plight Alarming By GRANT PECK, Associated Press Writer BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) -
Calling Myanmar ``the largest prison for journalists in Asia,'' an international
press freedom group urged sanctions be maintained against the military
government until jailed journalists are released and censorship is
eliminated.
The Paris-based group, Reporters Without Borders, issued a 20-page report
Tuesday documenting the plight of 18 detained journalists and the lack of press
freedom in Myanmar, which is also known as Burma.
It said that despite nine months of closed-door negotiations between the
military government and pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, ``the situation
concerning freedom of the press has not improved one iota.''
Myanmar's military regime has long been ostracized by Western governments
for its poor human rights record and failure to hand over power to a
democratically elected government. The United States and European Union (news -
web sites) countries limit diplomatic and business contacts with the
regime.
Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy won a landslide victory in a 1990
general election, but the military never allowed parliament to convene, and
subjected its opponents to severe harassment and detention.
``Torture is still commonplace in prisons and detention centers, and some
journalists suffer from serious mental disorders resulting from long periods of
isolation,'' the report said. ``Censorship, threats and arrests are still the
routine for journalists working for the few private media in the country, and
for political activists who speak out against the situation in Burma.''
A request to the Myanmar government spokesman for reaction to the report
went unanswered Tuesday.
According to Reporters Without Borders, journalists have received long
prison sentences for distributing information the regime deems ``hostile to the
state'' as well as ``owning undeclared video cameras, talking with foreign
journalists or sending information to Burmese media in exile.''
Although prison conditions are very harsh, several detained journalists
have put up resistance, smuggling out information to human rights groups, taking
part in hunger strikes and even circulating underground publications, the report
said.
Government control of information is near-total, with major media
controlled by the military and their families and rigorous censorship applied to
the few independent private journals, the group said.
Censors closely scrutinize any articles using words such as ``democracy,''
``corruption'' or ``education,'' it said.
Reflecting the government's sensitivity to the popularity of Suu Kyi, the
1991 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, favorable references to the opposition leader
are ``clearly forbidden'' and it is impossible to publish an article about a
female head of state.
The group said some underground publications, written, published and
distributed by opponents of the regime, circulate sporadically.
The most common sources of uncensored information, however, are broadcasts
by international radio outlets such as the BBC, the U.S. government-funded Voice
of America and Radio Free Asia, and the Democratic Voice of Burma, which is
based in Norway.
The group said its report was based on interviews conducted in June with
Myanmar exiles in northern Thailand, ``since it is impossible to carry out an
unfettered investigation in Burma.''
---------------------------------------------------------------- Wednesday August 1, 5:46 PM
Thailand optimistic over release of anti-drugs officials BANGKOK, Aug 1 (AFP) - Thai authorities said Wednesday they were optimistic that seven anti-narcotics officials taken captive by ethnic Wa fighters on the Myanmar border would soon be released. "All seven Thai officials, who have been seized by a minority group, are
safe," Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra said.
"The government is working closely with the Myanmar government. I don't
know when they are expected to return to Thailand but the negotiations should
not take too long," he said.
Defence Minister Chavalit Yongchaiyudh said the situation would become
clearer later Wednesday when a delegation of Myanmar officials arrive at the
Tachilek-Mae Sai border crossing to negotiate with the Wa.
"I think that at the latest they will be freed tomorrow and then return to
Thailand," he said, adding that the Thais would probably be interrogated by the
Myanmar team before they are released.
The prime minister downplayed suggestions that the incident could harm ties
with Thailand's military-run neighbour, saying that since his fence-mending
mission to Yangon in June, relations were at their closest.
Border clashes earlier this year between the Wa and a Thai-allied ethnic
militia provoked fighting between the two national armies and drove a serious
wedge between the governments, which was only healed in recent weeks.
The Wa, who have signed a ceasefire agreement with Myanmar's military
regime, are reputed to control much of the heroin and amphetamines trade in the
rugged border region abutting Thailand.
The Thai officials, made up of four Office of Narcotics Control Board
(ONCB) staff and three army personnel, have been out of contact since Friday
when they crossed into the drug-infested border area controlled by the Wa.
Newspaper reports said Wednesday that they had been handed over to the
Myanmar army by their Wa captors and were due to be released shortly.
However, Thamarak Issarangkul Na Ayutthaya, the minister responsible for
the ONCB, said Myanmar officials were still unable to confirm their
whereabouts.
A negotiating team led by ONCB deputy secretary general Chatchai Suthiklom,
the Defence Ministry's General Vichit Yathip, and Thailand's ambassador to
Myanmar Oum Maolanon arrived in Yangon late Tuesday.
"At their first meeting in Yangon, Myanmar authorities were asked first of
all to try to confirm the whereabouts of the group," Thamarak said.
---------------------------------------------------------------- Wednesday August 1, 2:33 PM
ASEAN nations urged to accept globalisation to relieve poverty SINGAPORE, Aug 1 (AFP) - Singapore President S.R. Nathan pressed Southeast Asian nations Wednesday to overcome fears about globalisation, saying it was the "ultimate driver" to easing poverty in the region. Social improvement would come from economic development "although that
inevitably brings with it some degree of social change and sometimes chaos and
pain," he told an ASEAN social welfare ministers meeting.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) welds together 10
economies ranging from affluent Singapore to struggling nations such as Cambodia
and Laos.
Critics within the grouping argue that globalisation will make the poor
nations poorer, but Nathan told the opening of the two-day conference that a
balance had to be found.
"It would be difficult to envisage significant alleviation of poverty if we
merely focused our efforts on ensuring social stability, without being willing
to compete in the global economic race," he said.
"But this is by no means an easy balance to strike, as the fear of social
disruptions and upheavals brought about by the relentless forces of
globalisation and technology is very real."
Nathan said the challenge facing ASEAN was to preserve social order and
cohesion without shutting out the benefits that globalisation and
technology.
"Put simply, it is to accept the logic that the ultimate driver for social
development is really economic development."
Tech-savvy Singapore has repeatedly urged ASEAN to embrace the new economy
and the information technology age, and Nathan said social and economic policy
making could not be divorced.
He suggested educating the public on the totality of the problem to help
people understand that sacrifices were necessary to secure long-term
prosperity.
Strengthening family and community bonds should also be considered, he
said.
"A strong family would be the best counterbalance to many of our social
problems such as drug addiction, youth delinquency and other social
evils."
"These and other measures are really part of building up our social order
to increase our societies' capacity to withstand societal changes and
challenges."
Singapore's Community Development Minister Abdullah Tarmugi said the ASEAN
welfare minsiters meeting, the first since 1993, would focus on strengthening
co-operation amongst the 10 member countries.
"A socially cohesive ASEAN contributes to the peace and stablity of the
region, and provides a nurturing environment for our children to realise their
full potential," he said.
"It is timely to take a fresh look at ASEAN co-operation in social
development, as we have new ASEAN members who will bring added
perspectives."
This is the first meeting of all 10 ASEAN social welfare ministers, as
Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam were not members of the grouping at the
previous meeting.
---------------------------------------------------------------- Wednesday August 1, 11:36 AM
Southeast Asia dogged by problems of key members: DBS Bank SINGAPORE, Aug 1 (AFP) - Corruption scandals dogging the leaders of the Philippines and Thailand, and the inexperience of new Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri, have regional financial markets on edge, Southeast Asia's largest bank said Wednesday. Bribery allegations against the husband of Philippine President Gloria
Arroyo, Jose Miguel, "has taken on added significance" because the state
ombudsman has formed a panel to investigate her alleged involvement, DBS Bank
said in a report.
"It should continue to keep the Philippine financial markets on the edge if
it threatens to result in another Estrada-type scandal," the bank said.
Former Philippine president Joseph Estrada was toppled in a popular
uprising in January following a corruption scandal. Estrada's fall catapulted
then vice president Arroyo to power.
Jose Miguel Arroyo is alleged to have accepted 50 million pesosdollars) in
bribes to convince the president to approve two vetoed telecoms franchise bills.
He has denied the allegations.
DBS compared Arroyo's rise to power with that of Southeast Asia's other
woman president, Megawati, who was swept to office following the ouster by
parliament of Abdurrahman Wahid.
"Megawati honeymoon to end soon," DBS said. "Given the similar paths to
power by both Megawati and Arroyo, it would be difficult to be optimistic for
Indonesia for the medium term."
Both leaders, who are daughters of former presidents, are haunted by
supporters of their deposed predecessors. Both also have businessmen husbands,
DBS noted.
But the bank said Megawati faced bigger separatist problems with more
provinces crying out for independence.
Arroyo's government is holding peace talks with the main Filipino Muslim
separatist group, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, and is waging war on a
small but notorious band of kidnappers, the Abu Sayyaf.
While Arroyo boasts of an economics background and extensive experience as
a cabinet member, Megawati was relatively inexperienced.
"This leaves much doubt if Megawati can fare any better, in an environment
that is more politically and economically more challenging," the bank
said.
Allegations that Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra had deliberately
concealed assets in 1997 continue to hobble his leaderhip, DBS Bank said.
Thailand's Constitutional Court is expected to hand down a verdict either
this month or next. A guilty verdict could lead to Thaksin's removal from
office.
"Even if Thaksin is able to remain a strong influence in the background, it
will not be the same as having a captain at the steer," it said.
Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand are key members of the Association
of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which also groups Brunei, Cambodia, Laos,
Myanmar, Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam.
ASEAN is losing out to stronger competition from China in terms of foreign
investments and exports.
---------------------------------------------------------------- Wednesday August 1 7:00 AM ET
Myanmar Govt. Rejects Criticisms By GRANT PECK, Associated Press Writer BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) - A
Myanmar government spokesman professed bewilderment Wednesday at charges by an
international press freedom group that the country's military regime detains
journalists in brutal conditions and tightly restricts freedom of
information.
In a report issued Tuesday, the Paris-based group Reporters Without Borders
described Myanmar, also known as Burma, as ``the largest prison for journalists
in Asia.''
It urged that international sanctions be maintained against the military
government until 18 jailed journalists are released and censorship is
eliminated.
Asked for comment, the Myanmar government spokesman said the government was
``confused'' by the charges because last year the group ``stated that 24
professional writers were behind bars but this time it is 18.''
In a faxed statement, the spokesman said ``there are 84 journals and 141
magazines published by the private sector regularly with over 400 professional
writers actively pursuing their profession.''
``Constructive criticism is welcomed and there are foreign and local
organizations in the country exchanging views with government officials and also
providing suggestions and advice on a regular basis which has been appreciated
by the government,'' the spokesman said on customary condition of
anonymity.
Commenting on the group's charge that journalists are tortured in
detention, the spokesman said the government is working ``very closely and in
full cooperation with the ICRC (International Committee of the Red Cross) which
has been visiting the correctional facilities in the country.''
The press group's report, however, said Red Cross personnel do not have
access to all of the country's 36 prisons and that three years after inspections
resumed, ``food, health care and sanitary conditions have not changed
significantly.''
---------------------------------------------------------------- BBC - Tuesday, 31 July, 2001, 15:25
GMT 16:25 UK
Burma targets international image Burma's military rulers have freed another four opposition politicians.
They are all members of the National League for Democracy (NLD), and were
elected to parliament in 1990 when Aung San Suu Kyi's party convincingly won the
polls.
A spokesman for the NLD said the MPs had been in detention since 1996.
So far this year the military authorities have released more than 150
dissidents.
Secret talks
This follows secret talks between the opposition leader, Aung San Suu Kyi,
and the Burmese generals.
NLD offices throughout Rangoon have opened
The contacts, sponsored by the United Nations through its special envoy Razali Ismail, are aimed at paving the way for a full-scale dialogue of national reconciliation. Although both sides refuse to discuss the details of the talks publicly,
opposition sources have long said the release of political prisoners was part of
the trust-building measures that had been agreed on by the two sides.
A senior NLD member told the BBC he thought the military authorities should
now release all the remaining political prisoners.
Amnesty International estimates there are nearly 2,000 political prisoners
still being held in Burma's jails. But at present the generals appear happy to
drag the process out.
Diplomats in Rangoon believe the Burmese military authorities are releasing
the political prisoners in drips-and-drabs in order to deflect international
criticism of their human rights record, and are not ready to have the talks
progress any further than the confidence-building stage.
Signs of Change
But there are other signs that the Burmese generals are trying to improve
their international image.
The main objective of launching this channel is to let the outside world
keep abreast of the situation and developments in Myanmar said a Senior
official.
The Ministry of Information in Rangoon has announced plans to launch a new
English-language television channel which will also be broadcast
internationally.
Government sources told the BBC the new station will be piloted early in
August and is intended to give an informed version of developments in Burma.
Initially it will only broadcast three hours of news programmes. But it in
the future is expected to included a range of programmes including cultural
performances and sport.
Burma's generals are always complaining about what it regards as biased
reporting in the foreign media.
More releases expected
Analysts believe that the launch of the new television station indicates
that Burma's military leaders are preparing for possible change in the country
in the coming months.
Diplomats believe the next few weeks are going to crucial to the dialogue
process. The next step, they say, must be the release of the three senior NLD
leaders from house arrest, including Aung San Suu Kyi.
This may well happen later this month in time for the UN envoy's return to
Rangoon at the end of August.
---------------------------------------------------------------- The Financial Times
Thais seek Burma releases
By Amy Kazmin in Bangkok Published: July 31 2001 16:49GMT Senior Thai officials flew to Burma on Tuesday in a bid to secure the release of seven Thai anti-narcotics officials, including a female army colonel, who have apparently been abducted by an ethnic army allied with Burma's military government. Thaksin Shinawatra, Thailand's prime minister, said the seven officials from the Office of the Narcotics Control Board and the Ministry of Defence - who were last in touch with their respective offices on Saturday - were being held by the United Wa State Army. Bangkok has accused the Wa militia of flooding Thailand with millions of
methamphetamine pills produced in makeshift border laboratories in territory
under Wa control. Thai officials believe an estimated 800m methamphetamine pills
from Burma will enter Thailand this year.
Burma's military rulers, who persuaded the United Wa State Army to give up
their anti-government insurgency by granting them relative autonomy, have denied
that the ethnic militia is involved in drug production or smuggling. The junta
says it does all it can to quell drug trafficking.
The abduction is likely to strain further relations between the neighbours,
who have accused each other of turning a blind eye to the busy drug trade along
their border. Earlier this year, the two armies skirmished along the border,
while border towns were shelled.
The missing officials crossed into Burma and entered the town of Tachilek
opposite the Thai town of Mae Sae after attending an anti-drugs seminar in
Chiang Mai last week.
A Thai anti-narcotics official in Chiang Mai said the squad had permission
from Burmese authorities to survey the drugs situation in the border town, but a
local radio report in Thailand said they had gone to visit a monk across the
border. Thai officials said the group had been driving a van with heavily tinted
windows and a high-powered radio.
Thailand's Foreign Ministry has appealed to the military regime in Rangoon
for help in securing the officials' release, while Burmese officials said they
had already sent out search parties to try to locate the officials.
Thai officials were hopeful the hostages would be released on
Wednesday.
---------------------------------------------------------------- The Nation - August 01,
2001.
Officers set to be freed
The seven Thai military and narcotics-suppression officers kidnapped in
Burma on Friday are likely to be freed today after they were handed over to the
Burmese army by their Wa abductors yesterday, said an informed source.
According to the source, the Burmese army wants Thailand to send a senior
officer to receive the officers, who were captured by the Wa drug army during a
trip in the vicinity of Tachilek township on the Burmese side of the border.
PM's Office Minister Gen Thamarak Isarangura, who oversees the government's
war on drugs, confirmed yesterday the United Wa State Army (UWSA) had handed the
Thai hostages over to the Burmese army after the Burmese military government
stepped in to help negotiations between Thai and Wa officials.
Thai military officers along the border believed the officers had been
handed over to Burma's Battalion 331, under the command of Col Aye Saw. However,
the report has not been confirmed as direct contact with the seven officers has
not been made, the officer said on condition of anonymity.
Bangkok yesterday dispatched Gen Wichit Yathip, chief of staff attached to
the defence minister, and Chartchai Suthiklom, deputy secretary-general of the
Office of the Narcotics Control Board, to Rangoon to urge the Burmese junta to
pressure their UWSA allies to release the seven officers. The announcement of
their planned hand-over came last night, just a few hours after the two officers
left for Rangoon.
Army chief Gen Surayudh Chulanont said the officers had crossed the Mae
Sai-Tachilek checkpoint on July 27 on a border pass to visit a revered monk
residing about 30 kilometres from the border.
According to a Thai border officer, the seven officers had notified Burmese
border authorities of their visit and both sides understood that visiting the
monk would not create any problem.
But along the way, according to an army intelligence officer along the
border who spoke on condition of anonymity, the seven were kidnapped by a unit
of the UWSA under the command of Wei Hsieu-kang, a notorious opium warlord who
is wanted in Thailand and the United States on drug-trafficking charges.
"I have no doubt that it was Wei's men who carried out the abduction," the
officer said.
The kidnapping was believed to have been in retaliation for the
government's get-tough policy against Wei's illicit activities. Wei, 55,
commands a sizeable faction within the 20,000-strong UWSA and is believed
responsible for the smuggling of millions of methamphetamine pills into the
Kingdom every month.
---------------------------------------------------------------- The Nation - August 01,
2001.
'Burma must cut fees'
Piyanart Srivalo
Deputy PM Pitak says Thai fishing boats will only pay one licence fee, so
other preconditions by Rangoon will have to be dropped for any deal
DEPUTY Prime Minister Pitak Intrawityanunt yesterday ordered the Fishery
Department and Foreign Ministry to negotiate with Burma to drop all but one of
its preconditions for the resumption of a fishery concession revoked two years
ago in the wake of strained bilateral relations.
Pitak, who oversees national fishery policy, said after a meeting with
trawler-owners who work in the Andaman Sea that Thailand would pay only the
licence fee on Thai boats. (This fee is Bt1,100 per tonne every 30 days. Thai
fishing vessels displace between 60 and 150 tonnes.)
Pitak rejected other demands for reopening Burmese waters to the Thai
fleet.
"It is true that Burma is the owner of the natural resources, but it should
take into account that Thailand is an investor taking a risk. It would be better
to think of it as mutual interest," Pitak said.
Burma is also demanding 25 per cent of the total catch, saying Thai owners
could repurchase this at an export price to be stipulated by Rangoon in US
dollars.
It also wants a 10-per-cent tax on the remaining 75 per cent catch. This is
normally levied on Burmese exporters, but not on foreigners.
Rangoon also demands that another vessel be dispatched to unload the catch
from the trawlers and take it back to Thailand, which would increase cost and
difficulty.
Thai trawlers have previously taken their own catch back to Thailand after
customs clearance.
Pitak said the Thai industry could not comply with some of the new
requirements given the dollar-baht exchange rate and Thailand would have to
renegotiate the licence fee.
The agreement was due to be signed during a visit to Thailand by Burmese
intelligence chief Lt-General Khin Nyunt in September, if all goes well, Pitak
said.
To promote cooperation, he said, Thailand would support the establishment
of fish-processing factories in Burma and press for proper registration of
trawlers operating in disputed waters.
The Thai fishing industry has also called for the setting up of impartial
and independent arbitrators to resolve any problems emanating from the opening
of Burmese waters.
During a visit to Rangoon by Defence Minister General Chavalit
Yongchaiyudh, Burma said it had given all the concessions to Singapore but would
try to discuss the prospect of Thailand sharing them 50-50.
The concessions to Thailand were revoked after a group of Burmese
dissidents seized the Burmese Embassy in Bangkok in 1999.
---------------------------------------------------------------- The Nation - August 01,
2001.
Abduction revives border tensions
Don Pathan
Thai political leaders and top officials in Bangkok were tight-lipped as to
how the kidnapping of seven Thai army and narcotics officers by a pro-Rangoon
armed group could have occurred just weeks after the fence-mending visit by
Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra to Rangoon.
Few were without an opinion as to how such an incident would affect the
waxing and waning of Thai-Burmese relations. All agreed Burma's help was
necessary for securing the release of the seven captives.
Thai officers on the front lines along the border, on the other hand, were
not so optimistic. Many see the incident as retaliation against the recent
arrest of seven people, reportedly their associates, in connection with the
smuggling of 74 kilograms of heroin and Bt90 million in cash.
Moreover, they said the kidnapping incident had not only strained working
relations at the local level but more importantly, it had exposed the flaws in
what has been billed as recuperating bilateral ties between the two
governments.
Needless to say, the "flaw" in this case is the 20,000-strong United Wa
State Army (UWSA), dubbed one of the world's largest armed narcotics-trafficking
groups. The UWSA operate somewhat independently in an autonomous zone along
Burma's northeastern frontier.
At the height of the mudslinging that was kicked off by day-long
cross-border shelling between the Thai and Burmese armies earlier this year, top
brass from both sides were trading vicious accusations, saying their
counterparts were taking kickbacks from drug traffickers.
Although the war of words may have quietened down following Thaksin's visit
to Rangoon, feelings among border units remain tense, officials said. Many said
it would take more than a "kiss-and-make-up" session between Thaksin and the
junta to improve the situation on the front lines.
For years, Bangkok has consistently held Rangoon accountable for the Wa's
illicit activities, despite acknowledging that the UWSA operate independently
from Rangoon. This independence is illustrated by the fact that Burmese troops
are required to disarm before entering Wa-controlled areas.
Two years ago, Thailand declared war on the UWSA, accusing them of
regularly flooding the country with millions of methamphetamine pills. Economic
sanctions were imposed against the Wa and a border checkpoint leading to Mong
Yawn, one of their strongholds near the Thai border, was ordered shut.
According to the US State Department, Burma continues to be one of the
world's largest producers of illicit opium, accounting for 80 per cent of the
total production in Southeast Asia. A great deal of the drug activities there is
controlled by the UWSA. The group entered a cease-fire agreement, but not a
permanent peace deal, with the military government of Burma in 1989.
---------------------------------------------------------------- Bangkok Post - August - 01,
2001.
Missing seven safe after a 4-day
absence
Burmese troops hold them after abduction Post Reporters
Seven Thai security and drugs officials who went missing after entering
Burma on Friday were yesterday reported safe with Burmese military authorities
at Tachilek border town.
Reliable sources said the group-which lost contact with the Thai side after
entering Tachilek from Mae Sai checkpoint in Chiang Rai-had been handed over to
the Burmese military and was expected to be freed soon, pending instructions
from Rangoon.
The seven missing Thais comprise four military officers and three
civilians. They were believed to have been abducted by members of the Wa
minority group after crossing into Burma.
The military officers are Col Duangkamol Sukhonthasap, director of Division
12 of the Supreme Command's Armed Forces Security Centre; Lt-Col Domsak
Khampirasaeng, chief of the Mae Sai-based Thai-Burmese border co-ordinating
centre; and Capt Sanit Banthao and Chief Warrant Officer Sathit Sithiprasert of
the Third Cavalry Regiment Task Force.
The civilians are Seni Waiwattana, Surasak Chanthawong and Thanu Rangsee of
the Office of Narcotics Suppression Board.
The sources said the group attended a meeting on drug suppression on July
25 in Chiang Mai. On July 27, they crossed the border from Chiang Rai's Mae Sai
district to Tachilek in a Toyota land cruiser of the ONCB.
Lt-Col Domsak informed immigration officials they were to make an official
contact with Burmese authorities in Tachilek.
They went to Ban Mai restaurant south of Tachilek town where they had a
luncheon appointment with Burmese border officials.
They placed their orders and then visited Wat Sai Muang temple, from where
Lt-Col Domsak made his last contact with his office in Mae Sai via mobile
phone.
The seven were to have returned to the restaurant but did not show up. It
was believed they were taken away from the temple.
Thamnu Sirisingh, director of the Northern Narcotics Suppression Centre,
believed the seven might have been arrested due to a misunderstanding as the
vehicle they were travelling in was heavily tinted and equipped with
communications radio.
They might have been suspected of being on a spying mission, Mr Thamnu
said.
Reports of their probable release came last night after authorities
launched a co-ordinated attempt to secure their freedom.
Gen Surayud Chulanont, the army chief, said Third Army commander Lt-Gen
Watanachai Chaimuanwong had contacted Maj-Gen Thein Sein, Burma's Triangle Force
commander, to help trace the seven.
Supreme Commander Gen Sampao Chusri also ordered Gen Sommai Wichaworn,
armed forces chief-of-staff, to co-ordinate with Lt-Gen Khin Nyunt,
secretary-one of the ruling State Peace and Development Council.
Gen Surayud said it was not yet clear who had abducted the group, since
Burma had neither denied nor admitted arresting them.
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