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BURMA RELATED NEWS - September
29, 2001.
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HEADLINES
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- AP - China Eyes River For
Development
PD - Yugoslavia Shuts Down 13 Embassies
The Nation - Glitches
in signups of illegals ‘over’
NSTP - Bank: Smooth Afta transition
expected
Mizzima - Internet Burma Library now available SHAN - Wa refineries move from the
border
SHAN - Wa and Burmese commanders strike new
deal
SHAN - New militia leader chosen
SHAN - New speed refinery across the
border
NMG - Burma enforced new regulation on import
restriction
BMA - Myo Myint Nyein Selected for Canadian
Press Freedom Award
Irrawaddy online - New Printing Houses to
Open
Irrawaddy online - Karenni Troops Battle
Junta
Irrawaddy online - Fishing Licensing Gets Technical ------------------------------------------------------------------------- China Eyes River For
Development
The Associated Press, Fri 28 Sep 2001 DACHAOSHAN, China (AP) — As dams go, the one rising across
this remote gorge in China's southwestern Yunnan province isn't large. When it's
finished in December, the 30-story-high wall of concrete will hold a narrow,
55-mile-long reservoir that will take just five days to fill.
But critics worry about the Dachaoshan dam's location —
on the Mekong River, a source of food and livelihood for 60 million people
downstream in Southeast Asia.
Dachaoshan is part of a multibillion-dollar effort by
Beijing to develop its upstream half of the 3,025-mile-long waterway. China says
the construction is necessary to lift backward southwestern provinces such as
Yunnan, home to 43 million people, out of poverty.
But critics warn that China is ignoring potentially
disastrous effects on farms and fisheries in the other five countries that share
the Mekong — Vietnam, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Burma.
``China acts like it doesn't need to care about
countries downstream. It has to recognize that the Mekong isn't just theirs,''
said Witoon Permpongsachareon, director of Terra, a Bangkok-based environmental
group.
The $600 million Dachaoshan is the second of at least
eight hydroelectric dams that Beijing wants to build on the region's most
important waterway over the next two decades.
The first, at Manwan, was finished in 1993. Work is to
begin next year on the Xiaowan dam, a $4 billion structure the height of a
100-story building that will be the world's tallest dam.
Plans also call for dynamiting a shipping channel
through the Mekong's extensive rapids, fulfilling Beijing's dream of turning the
river into a link to Southeast Asia's export markets and raw materials.
China has already cleared its own rocks and built two
river ports at the cities of Jinghong and Simao in Yunnan. In June, limited
freight and passenger service opened to northern Laos and Burma.
In November, Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji is to announce
$5 million in aid to Laos and Burma to blast another 180 miles of rapids in
those countries, Chinese officials said.
They call the offer proof they're serious about
promoting joint development.
``All countries will prosper equally from the increased
trade,'' said Mei Ruichang, a spokesman for Yunnan's Navigation Affairs Bureau,
which is overseeing the river-clearing work.
But critics say China is ignoring fears in Laos that
destroying the rapids might damage tourism, a big money-earner for the
impoverished country. They also complain that Beijing refuses to join regional
efforts such as the four-nation Mekong River Commission to coordinate
development.
Likewise, skepticism has also met Chinese claims that
dam building will benefit countries downstream.
China says the dams will ease the annual cycle of
flooding and water shortages that accompany rainy and dry seasons.
But experts say that would spell disaster for critical
fisheries, such as Cambodia's Great Lake — the main source of protein for the
country's 12 million people. The lake depends on those yearly floods to
replenish nutrients. Farmers in Laos also wait for the dry season to plant on
the exposed river bottom's fertile mud.
Critics fear the dams will block migration routes of
rare species such as the giant freshwater catfish, which can weigh up to 650
pounds.
The dams could also slow the river's flow, raising
water temperatures and possibly wiping out native fish species.
Chinese officials call these concerns exaggerated,
though they admit that some environmental damage is inevitable. Still, they say,
the dams are necessary to power Yunnan's industrialization and improve living
conditions.
In Shandi, a village about a mile uphill from
Dachaoshan, the first electricity came two years ago.
Lu Mingxie uses a single naked bulb to light her
dirt-floor home as she shucks corn and peels dark green pumpkins. The
50-year-old farmer welcomes the progress.
But she, too, has her complaints about the Chinese
government's high-handed way of bringing it about.
Lu says dam officials seized a three-quarter acre plot
of good rice paddy near the dam that her family had farmed for six generations.
They promised compensation, but she has yet to see any.
``Not everything about this dam is good for us common
people,'' she said.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- People's Daily
Friday, September 28, 2001, updated at 16:08(GMT+8) Yugoslavia Shuts Down 13 Embassies The Yugoslav federal government decided Thursday to
shut down 13 of its embassies to save money.
Those embassies are Caracas, Santiago, Beirut, Dar es
Salaam, Lusaka, Nairobi, Accra, Conakry, Tashkent, Pyongyang, Yangon, Hanoi and
Harare, according to the press release published by the Yugoslav Information
Ministry on Thursday.
The government's decision has nothing to do with its
diplomatic relations with those countries, but was made solely for economic
reasons, the ministry said. Embassies in neighboring countries will take care of
the closed-down posts. --------------------------------------------------------------------------The Nation
Glitches in signups of illegals ‘over’
Published on Sep 28, 2001
Labour Minister Dej Boonlong yesterday attributed the
slow registration process for illegal migrant workers to unanticipated technical
glitches that had already been rectified.
In the first three days of registration, 39,160 illegal
immigrants had registered: 32,558 from Burma, 3,787 from Laos, and 2,181 from
Cambodia. About 10,000 registered workers were employed in plantation
works.
The registration process was marred by power outage and
dataprocessing glitches, Dej said, adding the glitches had caused a slowdown in
issuing registration cards.
Dej expected the registration to pick up speed for the
remainder of the process, which ends on October 13. The ministry estimated that
hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants would register.
When asked how his ministry would ensure that
registered workers were from the approved neighbouring countries, Dej said he
might request those suspected of reporting a bogus nationality to sing their
national anthem as proof.
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The New Straits Times Press
Sep 28, 2001.
Bank: Smooth Afta transition
expected
FRI: THE transition process to the Asean Free Trade
Area is expected to be smooth as more than 98 per cent of the products from the
six original Afta members are already in the low tariff rates between zero and
five per cent.
Public Bank Bhd, in the September issue of its Economic
Review, said despite a slowdown in the first six months, some Asian economies
including Malaysia, South Korea and Hong Kong continued to preserve strong and
healthy economic fundamentals.
This was reflected particularly in low inflation,
healthy current accounts, low external debt and stable banking
sector.
"Sound economic fundamentals provide greater
flexibility for these economies to stimulate domestic growth and mitigate the
impact of weak external sector as well as increase their potential for
sustaining economic stability." Public Bank said the six original Afta members —
Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines and Singapore — had shown
firm commitment to the market-opening initiative set to kick off by end2002.
More than 96 per cent of Malaysia's products are already at tariff rates between
zero and five per cent under the Common Effective Preferential Tariff scheme.
About 60.4 per cent of the products are at zero tariff.
The bank said the average CEPT rate for Malaysia's
products last year was 2.8 per cent and was expected to decline further to 2.45
per cent by next year and 2.07 per cent in 2003.
The products yet to be included in the scheme are CKD
(completely knockeddown) and CBU (completely built-up) automotive items,
unprocessed agriculture products in Sensitive List and products in the General
Exception List.
In total, about 98.3 per cent of the products from the
six countries are already in the scheme, of which 92.7 per cent have duties at
zero to five per cent.
Last year, the average tariff rates was 3.25 per cent
and this is expected to decline to 2.4 per cent in 2003.
The new Asean members — Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar and
Cambodia — as a group have included at least 56.9 per cent of their products in
the CEPT scheme, of which 55.4 per cent have duties between zero and five per
cent.
"Afta is necessary in the light of keen competition
with some of the fast emerging economies such as China and India," Public Bank
said.
It added: "Afta promises significant economic benefits
to the region. Increased intra-regional trade and investment through the
liberalisation process will lead to a higher income, economic welfare and rapid
development in the regional economies." The bank said as a single market, Afta
had an estimated population of 513 million and a combined national income of
US$580.2 billion (RM2.2 trilion) last year.
The region is also dynamic in terms of economic growth
and developments.
After the regional crisis in 1998, Asean's gross
domestic product per capital increased to US$1,121 last year from US$930 in
1998.
In terms of economic growth, with preserved economic
fundamentals, the region rebounded quickly and strongly with GDP growing by 5.4
per cent in 2000. --------------------------------------------------------------------------Internet Burma Library now
available
Mizzima News Sept. 28: An online database library with classified and annotated links to
thousands of full-text documents on Burma is now available. The text-based
Online Burma Library (OBL) –http://www.burmalibrary.org/- is "an evolving
project designed to make full texts of Burma documents accessible online to
Burmese and non-Burmese researchers, academics, journalists, etc.", said the
Librarian in an email release today. "It functions as a linked, annotated
catalogue to much of the Burma material already on the Internet and will
eventually house a number of archives..."
The library is divided into subject-wise categories such as Aung San Suu
Kyi, Civil Society, Drugs, Economy, Foreign Relations, Internal Displacement,
Military (Tatmadaw), Society and Culture, Women, Ethnic groups in Burma, etc.
which are also searchable in the "Alphabetical list". Moreover, the library has
the "Reading Room" where directories, general information on Burma, portals,
news sites, and Burma Community homepages, etc. are available.
"The most important single document on OBL is The Burma Press Summary --
the searchable 17MB archive of Hugh MacDougall's excellent summary of "The
Working People's Daily" and "The New Light of Myanmar" from 1987 to 1996 --
containing many full texts of major SLORC/SPDC speeches, decrees, laws etc." The
two newspapers are published by the government in Burma.
The database is MySQL, used in combination with PHP. The library is the
first of its kind available on Internet to the interested individuals and
organizations on Burma. (www.burmalibrary.org)
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SHAN No: 09 -
13:
Drugs Wa refineries move from the border For the second time during the year, the powerful intelligence chief had
instructed another Wa faction to pull out their refineries from the Thai border,
reported an informed source yesterday.
"It was on 29 August that the order came from Rangoon", he said. "He (Khin
Nyunt) cited the increasing ill repute of Mongyawn (the southern Wa capital
opposite Mae Ai and Mae Fa Luang districts, the former in Chiangmai province and
the latter in Chiangrai province) and the recent designation of the area as a
tourist attraction in the near future."
The order came ahead of Lt-Gen Khin Nyunt's 3-day visit to Bangkok, 3-5
September, when Rangoon promised to pressure the Wa to quit drugs if Bangkok
would help develop Mongyawn, according to Gen Thammarak Isranggura na Ayutthya,
PM Thaksin's drug czar.
"Since then Wa have been busy dismantling their labs, about ten of them,
and moving them to Nayao, Karnlong and Karnnoi in Mongtoom tract east of
Mongyawn, opposite Shan State Army's eastern strongholds just across Chiangmai,"
he reported.
Wei Hsiaokang, the Wa's southern chieftain, had already moved his
"factories" to the Laotian border since 26 June at the "request" of the general
on 29 May, he reminded S.H.A.N.. He also believed that the recent order was
directed to Wei Hsaitang, the northern Wa commander in the south.
"Mongyawn is now a town with hotels, and electricity plant and fancy flower
parks," he said. "Fruit orchards are also springing up over the place."
Both Mongyawn and Mongtoom are in Monghsat township, Monghsat district,
eastern Shan State. --------------------------------------------------------------------------
SHAN No: 09 - 14:
Drugs again Wa and Burmese commanders strike new deal Wa and Burmese officials had recently held in a meeting across the border
for renewed cooperation after the arrival of a new battalion commander, reported
a border watcher yesterday.
The meeting took place at the IB 65 command post in Mongton township,
Monghsat District, opposite Chiangdao district of Chiangmai on 19 September. It
was presided over by its new commander, Lt-Col Hla Myint, who succeeded Lt-Col
Myint Sway earlier this month, and attended by other battalion commanders in the
area: Lt-Col Maung Maung Than of IB 225, Lt-Col Moe Aung of IB 277 and Lt-Col
Win Sein of LIB 519; Wa officials: Wei Hsiaoying, Jalabo, Ta Marn, Ta Htawn and
Ta Hperng and Hsaw Hsing a.k.a. "Chawching". The meeting lasted two and a half
hours from 09:00-11:30.
A 6-point agreement was concluded there, said the source. According to it,
Hsaw Hsing was to remain the cartel's sales agent, as agreed earlier on 4 June
(#7-15, Wa going 50:50, S.H.A.N.). Proceeds from sale would be divided equally
between Wa and Burmese. One baht from the sale of each pill (current price: B 11
per pill) would be reserved for the army's expenses. Security during transit
would be provided by both forces: the Burmese along the motor-road and the Wa
off the motor-road.
The last point was that no credit would be given to buyers anymore. "In the
past, there had been several instances when consignments were seized in Thailand
and their customers, as a result, were unable to pay back," the source
explained.
The new commander concluded the meeting with an exhortation, "We shall
stand only if we are loyal to each other."
Burmese units were more and more heavily involved in the drug business
since a self-reliance policy was imposed on them a few years ago, said Thai
intelligence sources. --------------------------------------------------------------------------
SHAN, No: 09 - 15:
New militia leader chosen Burmese authorities had recently appointed a rival Lahu chieftain to
replace the former militia leader who was in jail since 25 August, reported
sources from the border.
Lt-Col Hla Myint, new commander of IB 65, told a gathering of the
117-strong militia force from Nakawngmu, 27 miles north of the Thai border, on
25 September that Tin Win had been designated the leader in place of Hpo Thein
and his two brothers who were arrested last month. (# 9-4, Militia chief taken
into custody, S.H.A.N.)
During the assembly, 63 of the militiamen believed to be the disgraced Hpo
Thein's followers were disarmed. Tin Win, a former officer the now defunct Mong
Tai Army of Khun Sa, was then authorized to raise his force up to 100 men.
"The militias are forbidden from communicating with the enemy," he was
reported as saying. "Anyone who is found associating with the enemy shall be
executed." Hpo Thein and his brothers' whereabouts are unknown since they were
taken into custody. One of the charges against them was association with
Yawdserk's Shan State Army.
"All over the township of Mongton, only a handful of Shan militias remain,"
said another source from the area. "One in Maeken, commanded by Tarnleng;
another in Nakawngmu, commanded by Wiya and the last one in Poongpakhem,
commanded by Kyaw Tint. Altogether, they number less than 100."
In contrast, the total Lahu militia strength in the township would exceed
200, he estimated.
Several Shan militia leaders and headmen were arrested and had disappeared
in the wake of the Pakhee Battle in April-May, when the Shans claimed to have
captured hundreds of thousands of speed pills from the Burmese outpost.
N.B. In Report # 9-4, it was mistakenly reported that Hpo Thein was from
Poongpakhem. It should be corrected
to Nakawngmu.
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SHAN No: 09 - 16:
More on drugs
New speed refinery across the border One more methamphetamine refinery had been newly added to the two already
in existence under the control of the local Burmese commanders, reported an
informed source yesterday (28 September).
The new refinery is located 14 miles east of Mongton (51 miles from the
Thai border) near the Maeken River. "You drive 11 miles along the
Mongton-Monghsat road then branch off 3 miles to the right and you'll get there,
just 4 miles north of the village of Mong Aek," he elaborated.
Lt-Col Hla Myint, new commander of IB 65 (Mongton) went to inspect the
location on 14 September led by Hsaw Hsing a.k.a. "Chawching", a drug fugitive
from Chiangmai who is living in Mongton and Jalaw, a Lahu trader from
Nawngpayen, a village north of Mongton.
Four days later, the colonel issued an order for villagers in Mong Aek and
the nearby Naniu to "contribute" 4,000 slats of woven thatch, each 4½ cubits in
length, by 15 October.
Lao Ma, 47, from the defunct Mong Tai Army of Khun Sa, and Sgt. Myint Lwin
with 60 troops were dispatched to the location to oversee the construction.
Additional security was to be provided by Lahu militias from Mongkarng led
by Jakaw and from Loi Kham led by Jana. Apart from refineries operated separately by Wa and Lahu militias, there
are two refineries, one in Hwe Khailong and the other in Hoyawd, both of them in
Mongton township, under the local Burmese commanders' direct management, said
the source.
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Network Media Group
Burma enforced new regulation on import restriction Chiang Mai, September 29, 2001 A new regulation enforcing restriction of Burmese border trade importers
was introduced and all the border trade centers will no longer be allowed to
issue any import permit started from September 26, a source from Thai-Burma
border said.
According to the new regulation, all parties who want to import goods to
Burma must apply import permits from the Directorate of Trading under the
Ministry of Economics and Trading in Rangoon. The border trade stations on all
the borders will not be allowed to issue new permits. But, the permits already
issued at the border trade stations before September 26, which can import
maximum value of US dolor 30,000, can still be used, merchant sources from Mae
Sod said.
"It will be more expensive to go to Rangoon to get import permit
every time", said a Burmese importer in Mae Sod.
Burma made restrictions on imports since last two years allowing only
27 "essential commodities" for Burma to be imported. A new regulation was
imposed again on June 19, 2001 that barred the importers who earn foreign money
from other businesses rather than exporting goods from Burma. And, the
regulation only allowed the import value of US dolor 30,000 for an import
permit.
The new order to the border trade stations from Directorate of Trading was
issued on September 21 and effective since September 26, 2001.
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Myo Myint Nyein Selected for
Canadian Press Freedom Award
Burma Media Association (BMA) September 28, 2001 Toronto--A well known Burmese journalist who has been in prison since 1990
is to get honored with the 2001 Canadian's International Press Freedom Award,
Toronto-based Canadian Journalists for Free _expression_ (CJFE) informs today to
Burma Media Association (BMA) that nominated for the award.
Myo Myint Nyein, now in his 50, was arrested and sentenced to 7 years
imprisonment in 1990 on charge of contributing to the preparation, planning, and
publication of a satirical poem, What's Happening, written by Min Lue, against
the military government. He was a prominent editor of the Payphuhlwar
magazine and a member of National League Democracy's
information Department, and now is reportedly being detained in Thayawaddy prison since 1996. In 1995, his sentence was extended to another 7 years after taking part in
a remarkable press freedom movement in Insine prison. He was a leading
member of a 24 Media Members Group and reportedly undertook to smuggle out
reports of various human rights abuses in prison to the then UN special
rapporteur Yozo Yokota. He was also known as taking part in
the leading role of publishing the Diamond Jubilee National Day Magazine in Inside prison and collecting a group of political prisoners' signatures on a white shirt that sent out to the Annual Meeting of United Nations Human Rights Commission in 1995. The Program Manager of CJFE David Cozac said the jury committee was very
impressed by his case and so that selected for this year award-winner. The BMA
President Maung Maung Myint added, "this precious award has now highlighted the
plight of these courageous people and the oppressed Burmese media
society."
This is the second Burmese journalist who would receive the award, and the
1998 International Press Award went to a Burmese female journalist Daw San San
Nwe while she was in prison.
CFFE said they would hold the awarding-ceremony in Toronto on November 8
and invite a representative of Burma Media Association to receive the award and
speak out on his half.
Note: Further contact for the award: Mr. David Cozac of CJFE at (416)
515-9622 and Ko Maung Maung Myint of BMA at (home) 47-22301625 or (mobile phone)
47-92061348
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Irrawaddy online
New Printing Houses to Open By Maung Maung Oo September 28, 2001—In an attempt to deliver the government’s state-run
newspapers in a more timely fashion the Burmese government will be opening up
two new printing houses on Monday in Magway, in middle Burma, and Taung Gyi, in
the Shan State.
"The life of a newspaper is only one morning but in our country, some rural
towns get the newspapers two or three days after they were printed," said a
journalist in Rangoon. Who added that, "The junta is now starting to understand
the influence that media can have. Even Lt Gen Khin Nyunt called for the
Ministry of Information to improve the quality of state-run newspapers."
In March of this year a second printing house was set-up in Mandalay, the
capital of upper Burma, in order to get the news out faster. The government
hopes to accomplish a same-day delivery service for the areas surrounding both
Magway and Taung Gyi.
There are three state-run newspapers in Burma The Myanmar Alin, the Kyemon
and The New Light of Myanmar. The Myanmar Times is the only non state-run paper
in Burma, however the paper is thought to have close ties to the junta.
Burma’s military government also recently launched a new TV channel, MRTV
3, that is to be broadcast via satellite to hundreds of countries around the
world. The aim of the channel is polish Burma’s tarnished international
reputation by broadcasting the ‘truth’ about Burma.
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Irrawaddy online
Karenni Troops Battle Junta By Chan Mya Aye September 28, 2001—Karenni Army (KA) troops attacked a Burmese army
battalion in the Kayah (Karenni) State on September 23 reportedly killing eleven
soldiers and injuring twenty-seven during a thirty-minute attack, according to a
spokesman for the Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP).
KNPP’s Foreign Affairs Director Doh Say told The Irrawaddy that thirty
soldiers belonging to KA Regiment 2, led by Lieutenant-Commander L. Mwe,
ambushed Light Infantry Battalion (LIB) 250 near the Maesalong mountain range.
The government troops were reportedly escorting LIB 250 Commander Htun Htun Oo
from Bawlakhe to the Kayah State capital of Loikaw when the ambush took place.
The KA is the armed wing of the KNPP.
"There were military trucks and other vehicles carrying troops and
equipment. Our troops fired on the two military trucks at the front of the
convoy," said Doh Say.
The KNPP signed a cease-fire agreement with the junta on May 21, 1995.
Although, within three months of signing that agreement fighting again broke out
between the military regime and KA troops. However, the junta maintains that the
cease-fire agreement is still being observed. There have been 18 cease-fire
agreements signed between the junta and different ethnic groups inside
Burma.
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Irrawaddy online
Fishing Licensing Gets Technical By Maung Maung Oo September 28, 2001—Burma’s Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries has asked
foreign fishing companies applying for a 2001-2002 offshore fishing license to
attach a copy of any contracts that they have signed with the Myanmar Economic
Holding Co Ltd, (MEHCL), according to a business source in Rangoon. The source
said that the government would only issue licenses to companies who are involved
in contractual agreements with MEHCL.
MEHCL is the largest company in Burma and is under the direct control of
the Defense Ministry. MEHCL is responsible for six types of businesses in Burma
that are related to the fishing industry such as ice production and cold storage
for fish and prawns.
"If you want to do any kind of business in Burma, you have to be involved
with MEHCL," says an influential businessman in Burma. "It is the only way to
officially bribe the generals," he adds.
MEHCL was responsible for the issuing of offshore fishing licenses but this
year the company transferred the duty to the Fisheries Department. Foreign
companies are required to use US dollars when dealing with MEHCL in order to
generate foreign currency reserves for the government.
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