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BURMA RELATED NEWS - September
07, 2001.
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HEADLINES
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Reuters - Philippines and Nauru warned to stem
"hot money" flow
Asia Times - Bangkok shakes hands with Myanmar
junta
IHT - Rangoon: A Last Colonial-Era City
Bkk Post - Rosarin in Burma, army has confirmed
The Nation - BURMA: Razali to brief Annan on
talks
The Nation - Regional manhunt for kingpin
The Nation - Burma is
easy prey for China
Xinhuanet - Myanmar Exports Less Teak, Hardwood
in First Four Months
Xinhuanet - Myanmar Exposes 1,536
Drug-Related Cases in Half Year
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Friday September 7, 11:09 PM
Philippines and Nauru warned to stem "hot money" flow By Brian Love PARIS (Reuters) - An
international agency waging war on money laundering warned the Philippines and
the Pacific isle of Nauru on Friday that they faced sanctions from September 30
if they failed to crack down on the recycling of "hot money".
But the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force, backed by some 30
industrialised nations, backed away from similar threats made to Russia, saying
Moscow had taken promising steps towards blocking the recycling of cash by
criminals.
The FATF, set up in the late 1980s by the world's seven main economic
powers, said its members had decided to keep Russia under surveillance on a
blacklist which included a string of other countries, to which it had added
Ukraine and Grenada.
The list, issued on Friday after a week of negotiations in Paris, included
Ukraine, Grenada, Russia, the Cook Islands, Dominica, Egypt, Guatemala, Hungary,
Indonesia, Israel, Lebanon, the Marshall Islands, Myanmar, Nigeria, Niue, St
Kitts and Nevis and St Vincent and the Grenadines.
The Philippines and Nauru were the only two on the blacklist that were
threatened with sanctions within weeks.
Sanctions included denying further licences to banks from outcast countries
to operate in FATF member states and advice to the wider business community of
FATF countries that operating in culprit nations was risky, the organisation
said.
There was no hard figure for the sums of illicitly gained cash pumped
through bank accounts by the underworld, but the FATF has cited "guesstimates"
that go as high as $1.5 trillion a year -- as much as France's annual gross
domestic product.
RUSSIA OFF SANCTIONS HOOK, OTHERS WATCHLISTED
"Russia enacted significant legislation over the summer, so the FATF
withdraws its call for members to initiate additional counter-measures," the
FATF said. The country would remain on the FATF's blacklist for the time being,
however, it said.
New anti-money laundering laws in the miniscule Pacific atoll of Nauru were
not enough, the FATF said.
The Philippines, which is racing against time to get money controls through
its parliament, has yet to deliver long-awaited reforms, the FATF added.
While economic sanctions such as trade restrictions are not planned, the
FATF is counting on the banking curbs to pressure countries to toe the line for
fear of scaring off investors.
Philippine Finance Secretary Jose Camacho said this week his government was
using "fast track" procedures to try to get bills on money laundering passed by
September 30.
Laws have been adopted in Nauru in response to FATF pressure but the
verdict was that not enough had been done by the island, which has a population
of 10,000, just one main road, no significant industry -- but 400 banks.
The U.S. Treasury department says $70 billion of illicit money left Russia
to offshore accounts in Nauru in 1998 alone.
For Russia, the stakes had been higher in the sense that it wants to play a
leading world role on the political and economic front -- and to join as the
eighth member of the rich nations' club currently known as the Group of
Seven.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Asia Times Online - Sep 07,
2001.
Bangkok shakes hands with Myanmar junta
By Marwaan Macan-Markar BANGKOK - Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's attempt to pen a new
chapter in his country's foreign policy toward Myanmar is being derided by
champions of democracy in Thailand, but is winning praise from others.
Critics took the prime minister to task following the effusive manner with
which a high-ranking official from Yangon was treated during a three-day visit
which ended Wednesday. For them, the visit by Lieutenant-General Khin Nyunt,
Myanmar's military intelligence chief, provided more "disturbing" clues about a
perceived turn in Thai policy toward its neighbour - one that places greater
emphasis on building friendly ties than being a critic of its dismal human
rights record.
"It is very disturbing. Now the military guy from Myanmar is being given a
red carpet welcome as if he comes from a respectable government," Thepchai Yong,
group editor of the independent daily The Nation told IPS. "They have been
longing for this handshake, this mark of respectability from Thailand. The
generals in Rangoon [Yangon] will get the wrong signal from this - legitimizing
the military junta."
For Sunai Phasuk, it marks a departure from the way the Myanmar junta was
viewed by Thaksin's predecessor, Chuan Leekpai. "Chuan was a trenchant critic of
the military rulers in Rangoon and always raised the human rights issue," said
Sunai, a senior researcher at Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development
(Forum-Asia), a Bangkok-based rights watchdog.
The Chuan administration's stance on Myanmar's ruling State Peace and
Development Council (SPDC) was also evident in a suspension of visits between
government leaders of the two countries. "By not going, Chuan sent a strong
message to the military leaders about what he thought of their policies," added
Sunai.
Western as well as some Asian governments have put Myanmar at arm's length
because of its repressive policies and poor human rights record. And althouth
the junta and the opposition leader, Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, have held
talks on possible political reforms, many believe it is too early to say that
the military government will end its rule.
By contrast, the Thaksin administration struck a cordial note with Khin
Nyunt, the third-ranking member of the SPDC, on a range of bilateral issues that
needed ironing out - like stamping out the drugs trade, illegal migration into
Thailand, and border disputes. The level of cordiality was also evident in the
treats offered to the general, including a dinner party on board a luxury
riverboat hosted by General Chavalit Yongchaiyudh, Thailand's Defense Minister.
On that occasion, Chavalit described Myanmar as Thailand's "best friend". Khin
Nyunt was also given an audience with Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej.
Signs of a shift in Thailand's Myanmar policy surfaced in June, when
Thaksin visited Yangon only a few months after border clashes between the troops
of the two countries. The justification for such a visit emerged earlier when
the Thaksin administration said it was seeking "forward engagement" with Yangon,
meaning the government was prepared to seek informal ties with Myanmar. This was
different from "constructive engagement", a term used by some Southeast Asian
nations to describe the way they deal with governments they want to persuade to
adhere to international norms.
The path Thaksin has chosen has come in for some praise, too. This week,
Myanmar specialists in Thailand welcomed developments that stemmed from Khin
Nyunt's visit. "I can't say I am impressed with the visit, but I am pleased with
the outcome and approach," Pornpimol Trichot, a Myanmar specialist at Bangkok's
Chulalongkorn University, was quoted as saying by the Bangkok Post.
What was significant to her was an unprecedented development: "The first
time the two countries had put on the table all contentious issues, like illegal
labor, refugees, border disputes and border demarcation, and agreed that they
were shared problems. This time both sides went directly to these points," she
said, pointing out that previously the Myanmar leadership had refused to
acknowledge such problems existed.
But such achievements do not impress a Myanmar journalist, who did not want
to be identified. "It doesn't surprise me at all, the 'good news' coming out of
this week's talks," he told IPS. "Thanks to Thaksin's foreign policy, the rulers
in Myanmar will feel that the relationship between the two countries is friendly
and normal again. It will help them claim legitimacy in the international
community after being ostracized and treated like a pariah."
The irony of this was not lost on Sunai, the Forum-Asia researcher.
"Thaksin is an elected leader and one who won with the biggest majority in a
Thai election. But he is ignoring his democratic credentials to flirt with an
oppressive regime."
Furthermore, this policy is also undermining Thailand's reputation as a
vibrant democracy in the region, he added. "It says we don't care much about the
plight of people who lack rights and don't enjoy democracy. Or they are
secondary matters."
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- The International Herald Tribune
Friday, September 7, 2001
Rangoon: A Last Colonial-Era City
Thomas Crampton Tourists now reap the dividends of Burma's dictatorship. Decades of rule by
a harsh military junta have quashed political dissent, frightened foreign
investors and generally hampered the economy. Yet the stunning lack of
development in comparison to such prosperous neighbors as Thailand and Malaysia
has preserved Rangoon as Southeast Asia's last untouched colonial-era capital.
. Walking from the tranquil grandeur of the golden Shwedagon Pagoda to the British-built edifices along the broad streets of downtown, foreign visitors can't help but notice the World War II-era buses; men wearing the traditional Burmese sarong, the longyi; relief from the chirp of mobile phones, and little multinational advertising. Burma is one of the few countries on earth without a McDonald's or Starbucks. Even Pepsi and Coke decline to bottle or promote their products in Burma. Modern motorized traffic has increased significantly over the past few years, but three-wheeled pedicabs still ply the tree-lined streets. Lacquered leather sandals with velvet straps are the preferred footwear, and chatting at sidewalk tea shops is a popular pastime. . Thomas Crampton is the IHT's correspondent in Hong Kong and travels frequently throughout Asia. . SHOULD YOU GO? Ruled by a military government that is heavily criticized by human rights groups, Burma is the target of numerous consumer boycotts and investment sanctions. The leader of the opposition, the Nobel laureate Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, lives under house arrest and has warned democracy-supporting foreigners to stay away and avoid enriching the junta. . Others argue that visiting Burma breaks the country's historic pattern of self-imposed isolation. By staying in guest houses rather than large hotels that are often government joint ventures, tourists can ensure most of their money goes to individuals, not into the government's coffers. As for the people of Burma, they are hungry for contact with the outside world and almost always tell visitors they want more tourism. . Faced with the wrath of anti-tourism Burma activists, Lonely Planet examined its moral responsibility in publishing a guide to the country. Following a visit by the company's founders in January, the company stepped up the pace of publication of its guide from once every three years to every other year. It is a measure of the divisiveness Burma engenders that nobody can even agree on what to call the place. The government changed the country's name to Myanmar and the capital's to Yangon; this newspaper and many other news organizations still refer to Burma and Rangoon. . THE BUZZ For months rumors have swirled through the Rangoon cocktail circuit about the top secret talks between the government and Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, leader of the National League for Democracy. Inquiring minds want to know: Who does the Nobel Prize-winning democracy activist meet with? Is she really under house arrest or has she voluntarily withdrawn from public view? Will the government actually make any concessions toward democracy? How long will other members of her party and other opposition groups be willing to let the talks carry on in total secrecy? . HOTELS Built in high colonial style along Rangoon's main street, the Strand Hotel has a credible historic claim as one of Asia's great hotels. Recently brought up to modern standards, the attraction of the venerable façade wears thin when waiters serve up mediocre food followed by an absurdly expensive bill. Drop by for afternoon tea, but sleep elsewhere. The published price of a double room at the Strand, which is part government-owned, is $350 a night, not including breakfast or tax. As at most upscale hotels in Asia, however, prices can be negotiated: 92 Strand Road; tel: 951-243-377; fax: 951-289-880; e-mail: strand.ygn@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx. . Although somewhat isolated, the Pan Sea is the most picturesque hotel in the city. It is a tastefully refurbished teak mansion surrounded by pools of water. Guests are welcomed with a glass of juice squeezed fresh from mangos that drop from trees in the garden. The open-sided second floor of the building is a nice place to sip a cocktail and recover from the tropical heat or challenge fellow guests to a game of billiards. Double rooms are officially priced at $150, not including breakfast or tax, but prices drop for long stays or groups: 35 Taw Win Road, Dagon Township; tel: 951-229-860; fax: 951-228-260; e-mail: panseaygn@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx. . The May Shan is one of many independent guest houses. Although the rooms are small and often windowless, the location is central, the air conditioning is frosty, each room has satellite TV and telephone, and the staff is exceptionally friendly. A double room costs $15 a night: 115 Sule Pagoda Road; tel: 252-986/7; fax: 252-968. . DINING For traditional Burmese fare at a pleasant out-of-the-way place, spend an evening at the Green Elephant restaurant. Kicking off with a generous rum sour cocktail, the meal of Burmese salads and curries that follows will set you back less than $20 for two, a fraction of the price of a meal in one of the city's five-star hotels: 519(A) Pyay Road, Thirimingalar Lane; tel: 531-231; 721-721; fax: 533-706. . The Traders Hotel offers by far the best lunch buffet in town, ranging from Western cuisine to Burmese specialties spread across a tennis court-size area. A meal costs about $11 a person: 223 Sule Pagoda Road; tel: 242-828; fax: 242-800. . INTERNET Burma is one of the last countries in the world to deny its citizen's access to the World Wide Web. There are no independent service providers, no Internet cafés and the few people who do have e-mail addresses must send their messages through government-monitored servers. Even travelers carrying their own laptops and who are willing to pay exorbitant long-distance charges to log on overseas will face difficulties. If Internet access is an absolute necessity, bring a satellite phone with you. . MOBILE PHONES Still considered sensitive military equipment, mobile phones are extremely rare. Installation of an entirely new GSM network has been completed in Rangoon, but the government has not approved operations. Mobile phones can be rented at the Traders Hotel for $50 a day and 50 cents a call; tel: 95-1-242-828. . LAPTOP REPAIR For minor problems, try Geocomp, one of the largest computer service companies in Burma: 360 Pyay Road, Sanchuang; tel: 524-273; 526-615; 514-454; fax: 527-359. . NEWS In country where censorship is strictly enforced, it can be hard to find out what's going on. Hotels for foreigners usually have CNN, BBC and censored editions of a handful of international publications (including this newspaper). As for local papers, the New Light of Myanamar (favorite topic: "Crush external elements") has a new competitor in the flashier-looking Myanmar Times. Neither offers critical insight about Burma, but the Times can tell you about any new restaurants in town. For news on the Internet, look at www.myanmar.comfor the government's views; or check out the excellent collection of news stories on Burma compiled by the activists who run www.burmanet.org. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bangkok Post - Sep 07,
2001.
MONEY LAUNDERING Five suspects
arrested, 14 more still being sought
Rosarin in Burma, army has confirmed
Wassayos Ngarmkham
Five more suspects were arrested yesterday in the seven-billion-baht
illegal money transfer case, and police are looking for 14 others.
Warrants were earlier issued for the arrest of two prime suspects in what
was believed to be a major money-laundering operation.
However, only Sarinra Mahamad, assistant director for merchant banking of
UOB Radanasin Bank, was apprehended on August 31. Her sister, Rosarin
Chorpradit, remained at large yesterday.
Lt-Gen Watanachai Chaimuenwong, the Third Army commander, yesterday
confirmed Mrs Rosarin had fled to Burma.
She was probably hiding at the Red Wa's Mong Yawn town with drug baron Wei
Hseuh-kang, he said.
Mrs Rosarin was known to have supplied fuel oil to the
methamphetamine-producing United Wa State Army.
Police yesterday issued warrants for the arrest of 19 other suspects, most
of them Indian nationals. One of them is Mrs Rosarin's husband, Pichet
Chorpradit.
Police searched 21 locations throughout Bangkok yesterday, and arrested
five suspects.
The five were identified as Boonthawee Satjamahitthinunt, 50, Ms
Petchpairin Wiewsathienpornkul, 30, Mrs Supanee Rirkthanativivanich, 41, Mrs
Chusri Sabouysuk, 45, and Goti Ashokkumar Chhaganbhai, 31.
Police also seized a large quantity of documents on money transfers and
currency trading.
Most of the 19 suspects had businesses of their own, with large sums of
money in circulation, police said.
Mrs Chusri owns Thai Siri, a tour company, and is wellknown in tourism
circles.
Police took from the house of Suksawat Onnuam, a former Bangkok Bank
employee, a computer, a safe, and six big document folders.
The five suspects arrested yesterday were taken to the Economic Crime
Investigation Division headquarters for questioning. Documents seized from them
were to be examined by experts from the Customs and Excise departments.
Pol Maj-Gen Mongkol Kamolbut, the deputy chief of the Central Investigation
Bureau heading the investigation, said each of the suspects had transferred
30-40 million baht into Mrs Rosarin's accounts.
Immigration police had been told to look out for the 14 suspects still at
large to prevent them from leaving the country, he said.
Pol Maj-Gen Mongkol said he did not expect the police to be able to arrest
other people suspected of being the masterminds in the near future.
Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra was being kept informed of the latest
developments in the case, he said.
Pol Maj-Gen Mongkol admitted police were still in the dark as to where all
that money came from, how the money was transferred out of the country, and the
real purpose of such transfers.
The Money Laundering Commission would be asked to check with all companies
involved, both local and foreign.
``It is not yet clear from what businesses the money had been acquired. It
was probably from either the fuel trade or the drug trade, or both,'' Pol
Maj-Gen Mongkol said.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Nation
BURMA: Razali to brief Annan on
talks
Larry Jagan
Published on Sep 7, 2001
United Nations envoy Razali Ismail is going to New York next week to brief
UN secretary-general Kofi Annan personally on the outcome of his visit to Burma
last week.
Diplomats in Rangoon say opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi appears relaxed
and is confident that reconciliation talks are progressing well.
“Talks between the opposition leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, and the country’s
military rulers could be on the verge of a major political breakthrough,” says
an Asian diplomat based in Rangoon who didn’t want to be identified.
Razali, though, is more subdued. He said his trip was “very satisfactory,
and both sides were working towards national reconciliation”. He declined to
give any further details.
“The talks are secret and none of the parties is prepared to reveal the
substance of the discussions at this stage,” said a senior member of Suu Kyi’s
party, the National League for Democracy (NLD).
Substantial movement towards breaking the country’s political deadlock
appears near. “Everyone is being tight-lipped about the talks,” says a
Rangoonbased jour¬nalist.
“The Burmese official media didn’t even report his visit. This is because
the talks have reached a particularly sensitive stage,” he says.
Western diplomats in Rangoon say an air of expectation pervades the
capital. Sources in the UN say they expect further releases of political
prisoners as a result of Razali’s current trip, probably by the end of this
week. How many, and who, will reflect how serious Burma’s generals are about the
talks becoming more substantial, they said.
For now, the talks are still at the confidence-building stage, according to
a senior member of the NLD. But party leaders, including Suu Kyi, are anxious to
see the talks develop.
“This can only happen if the military are prepared to release more
political prisoners,” NLD spokesman U Lwin said.
He says the party’s leaders understood they couldn’t all be released
immediately, and had submitted a list of priorities. “But the bottom line,” he
says, “is the release of all political prisoners within an agreed
timeframe.”
Privately, NLD leaders say this means by the end of the year at the latest.
Human rights groups believe there are more than 1,500 political prisoners in
Burma’s jails.
“As pressure from the international community has brought the talks to this
point, it’s now time for them to think creatively about how to move the process
forward constructively,” said a senior source at the UN who spoke on condition
of anonymity.
Most diplomats accept that the next stage must involve some discussion
about the resumption of international assistance to Burma. There is no doubt
that the interna¬tional community has already begun to think along those
lines.
The Europeans and Japanese want to encourage the dialogue, but are
reluctant to take any action which might slow the pace of the talks.
Washington is increasingly concerned about China’s growing influence in
Burma and feels that they must accommodate Burma if they are to effectively
counter China’s domineering presence in the region.
Many observers still believe the military regime are only making the
minimum concessions necessary in order to deflect international criticism of its
conduct at international bodies such as the UN Human Rights Commission and UN
General Assembly.
But the NLD has also begun to discuss the need to allow what it calls
“limited humanitarian assistance” from the international community even while
the generals are still in power.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Nation
DRUG FUGITIVE: Regional manhunt
for kingpin
Marisa Chimprabha
Published on Sep 7, 2001
Thailand will ask China and Burma for help to locate Thai drug fugitive
Surachai Ngernthongfoo, or Bang Ron, allegedly leader of one of the country’s
largest amphetamine distribution networks, a senior source from the Office of
Narcotic Control Board (ONCB) said yesterday.
The request would be forwarded via existing channels for antidrug
cooperation that Thailand maintains with the two countries, the source
said.
“To ask China and Burma for help in finding Bang Ron does not mean that we
know for sure he is now taking shelter in either country,” the source said.
“However we believe Surachai has connections with drugtrafficking syndicates
operating in those countries.”
The ONCB will send photographs of Bang Ron and arrest warrants to China and
Burma as part of its quest to locate and arrest the ring leader, who escaped
after a dramatic police raid on his home in 1998.
The ONCB will ask China for information about Burmese drug gangs operating
along its border that may be sheltering Bang Ron, the source said.
From Burma, Thailand will ask that the government recheck a report that the
fugitive stayed with a Wa ethnic gang that is a major producer of drugs in the
country.
Bang Ron is believed to have fled to Burma via Kanchanaburi province.
“According to our intelligence, we believe Bang Ron is not in Bangkok, [because
we are] still closely watching his family, relatives and close aides,” the
source said.
Surachai is suspected of being the ring leader of a wellorganised
drugtrafficking ring operating in Bangkok and the border province of
Kanchanaburi.
A police SWAT team swooped on his home in Nong Jok district in October 1998
but encountered a hail of bullets from guards stationed at the house. But in the
aftermath of the raid, police confiscated more than 758,000 amphetamine pills
and uncovered Bt200,000 cash hidden inside his luxury home.
Police said Surachai used to bury speed pills smuggled from Burma beneath a
bear’s cage at his home so, in the event of a raid, sniffer dogs would be put
off by the bear’s strong scent. They believe there could still be as much as
Bt100 million circulating within Surachai’s drug network. Residents in the
vicinity of his home said Surachai frequently had drugs flown in from Burma, and
that light planes used nearby farmland as a clandestine landing strip.
He is believed to have close connections with senior Thai police and army
officers, and they are thought to have aided his escape. Initial reports
suggested Surachai had taken refuge with the Wa and then underwent cosmetic
surgery so he could return to Bangkok.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Nation
Burma is easy prey for China
Nicole Veash , The Observer
Published on Sep 7, 2001
The junta’s heavy reliance on Beijing could backfire as favours are called
in
RANGOON – Life in Burma isn’t easy. In addition to a military dictatorship,
a moribund economy and mass unemployment, now a new threat is eating away at the
country. And the growing shadow on Burmese culture comes from a source very
close to home: China.
Sandwiched between China to the east and India and Bangladesh to the west,
Burma has always been particularly vulnerable to cultural domination. But a
combination of geopolitics and capitalism that is sweeping through China is
causing an onslaught on the Burmese way of life, not seen since colonial times,
when Britain was the country’s selfimposed master.
The creeping cultural invasion began when the ruling governments of both
China and Burma cracked down on democracy campaigners in the later years of the
1980s. As international hostility mounted against their authoritarian regimes,
the two countries started to form closer ties in the military, economic and
political spheres.
For the Burmese junta, resulting sales of military hardware from China have
helped to support their regime. The Rangoon government is estimated to have
spent some US$2 billion (Bt90 billion) during the 1990s on Chinese equipment,
enabling their army to expand from 180,000 men at the start of the decade to the
450,000 it was by 1999. Chinese aid and investment has also gone into Burmese
infrastructure and industrial projects.
In return for financial support in a variety of guises, Beijing has been
allowed to develop a strategic interest inside its wellplaced neighbour.
Vorasakdi Mahatdhanabol, a China expert at Thailand’s prestigious Chulalongkorn
University, says that an ability to trade is now the driving force behind much
of Beijing’s policy.
“The landlocked provinces of Yunnan and Sichuan are economic powerhouses.
They are producing masses of cheaply-made, often plastic, goods which are
flooding the region,” he says. “Although these products are already the dominant
consumer goods in Burma, China now wants better links with other international
markets. One obvious way of doing this is by getting access to the Indian
Ocean.”
Vorasakdi says that Burma feels obliged to provide China with easy access
to its own coastal ports. In return, China has been paying for extensive – and
much needed – roadbuilding projects throughout the country.
“The Chinese are talking a lot about trade at the moment,” says Vorasakdi,
“but many countries in the region are suspicious. They think China wants to
expand its military might by using Burma as a bouncing off point. Through Burma
it can threaten its old rival India and other enemies in the region.”
Others agree. Anthony Davis, an old Asia hand and writer on intelligence
and defence issues for publications such as Jane’s Intelligence, points to
significant demographic changes already taking place inside Burma.
“In the northeast of Burma, hundreds of thousands of Chinese are migrating
across the border,” he says. “In the country’s second city of Mandalay, some 30
per cent of the population are now ethnic Chinese. The whole demographic balance
of northern Burma is really changing.”
Davis observes that this human and cultural influx is not going down at all
well with Rangoon’s generals. “The military junta are in a difficult position,”
he says. “They’ve relied on Chinese support to keep their grip on power but now
they’re worried about this dependency and are trying to pull back from China’s
embrace. But it’s politically hard for them to let go.”
Experts suggest millions of Chinaborn migrants will be living inside
Burma’s borders within the next five years. And with Chinese penetration into
the country continuing in all spheres, economically as well as politically, the
assessment of an Asian diplomat, based in Bangkok, could turn out to be
true.
“Soon,” he says, “Burma will be nothing more than a Chinese satellite. And
when that time comes, we’ve all got to worry.”
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Myanmar Exports Less Teak,
Hardwood in First Four Months
Xinhuanet 2001.09.07 09:41:50 YANGON, September 7 (Xinhuanet)
-- Myanmar exported 106,832.5 cubic-meters of teak in the first four
months of this year, 2.83 percent less than the same period of 2000,
according to the latest figures released by the country's Central Statistical
Organization.
Meanwhile, during the period, the country exported 98,625.5
cubic-meters of hardwood, a 48.33-percent reduction from the corresponding
period of 2000.
Export earning from teak and hardwood totaled 70.69 million U.S. dollars
during the four-month period, 12.43 percent less than that in the same period of
2000.
In 2000, Myanmar exported a total of 302,810 cubic-meters of teak and
494,259.5 cubic-meters of hardwood with their total earning amounting to
201 million dollars.
Timber has become Myanmar's second largest export goods after
agriculture products and foreign exchange earned through the export of
timber accounted for about 20 percent of Myanmar's total export earning.
Myanmar's forest covers 50 percent of its total land area, a 7- percent
reduction from 1962 reportedly due to indiscriminate felling of
trees.
Of the forest area, 18.6 percent are reserved and protected public
forest, the percentage of which is being targeted to increase to 30.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Myanmar Exposes 1,536 Drug-Related
Cases in Half Year
Xinhuanet 2001.09.07 09:32:05 YANGON, September 7 (Xinhuanet)
-- The Myanmar authorities exposed a total of 1,536 narcotic-drug-related cases
in the first half of this year, seizing 474.91 kilograms (kg) of opium and
27.89 kg of heroin, according to a latest compiled data of the Myanmar
Central Committee for Drug Abuse Control.
The seizure, made by army units, police and the customs, also
includes 8,371 kg of marijuana, 6.14 million tablets of stimulant drugs,
1,889 kg of ephedrine and 269.28 liters of phensedyl.
During the half-year period, the authorities punished 2,187 people
for being involved in the cases, it revealed.
Earlier official statistics show that in 2000, the Myanmar
authorities exposed a total of 3,535 drug-related cases, seizing 2. 268 tons of
narcotic drugs, of which opium accounted for 1,552 kg, while heroin represented
158 kg. During the year 4,881 drug offenders were punished.
Meanwhile, the authorities also destroyed a total of 9,317.9 hectares
of illegally-grown poppy fields in the country in the fiscal year
2000-2001 which ended in March.
Following the declaration of its Mongla region in eastern Shan state
as an opium-free zone in April 1997, Myanmar began in 1999 implementing a
15-year drug eradication plan in three five-year phases which costs
33,588.14 million Kyats (about 50 million U.S. dollars) plus 150 million
dollars covering 25 townships in the first phase, 20 townships in the
second phase and nine townships in the third phase.
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