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BURMA RELATED NEWS - August 11-
12, 2002.
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HEADLINES
------------------------------------------------------------------------ AFP - Suu Kyi voices "grave concern" over alleged Shan rapes:
report
AFP - Border with Myanmar re-opening soon: Thai
FM
The Nation - Rape of Shan women a grave concern
- Suu Kyi
The Nation - THAI-BURMESE TIES: PM told to put
trade 1st
Bkk Post - Thailand to host first UN seminar
Bkk Post - Democracy, end to fighting the answer
The Star - Bodies of two Myanmars
recovered
Kyodo News - E. Asian ministers discuss
development issues
Xinhuanet - Myanmar's fertilizer
production plunges in fiscal 2001-02
------------------------------------------------------------------------ Monday August 12, 1:00 PM
Suu Kyi voices "grave concern" over
alleged Shan rapes: report
(AFP) - Myanmar's pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi told a newspaper there was "grave concern" over recent reports that military troops raped hundreds of ethnic Shan women. A report released last month by two Thai-based Shan rights organisations detailed the rapes of 625 girls and women in the eastern Shan state, mostly between 1996 and 2001, prompting international outrage, particularly in the United States. "It should be a matter of grave concern for everybody who cares about the future of our country," the 1991 Nobel peace laureate said in an interview with the Nation on Monday. "I am also very concerned if such human rights violations are taking place," she told the English-language newspaper. "It is terrible that any of our people should feel that they are targeted as an ethnic group." Myanmar has rejected the rape allegations as "preposterous accusations" resulting from political pressure, but earlier this month it sent an official team to Shan state to conduct an investigation. The US State Department said last month it had raised its concerns with the regime over the report. Aung San Suu Kyi, who was released May 6 from 19 months of house arrest, heads the National League for Democracy (NLD), which won a sweeping election victory in 1990 that the military refused to recognize. ------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sunday August 11, 1:43 PM
Border with Myanmar re-opening soon:
Thai FM
(AFP) - Thailand's border with Myanmar will reopen soon, Foreign Minister Surakiart Sathirathai said according, as hostilities begin to ease between the south east Asian neighbours. Meanwhile, sources in northern Thailand said checkpoints between the two countries could open as early as Monday. Borders have been closed since May when a series of deadly border skirmishes saw ties plummet to unprecedented lows. But conditions have improved steadily, traders and military sources have said, aided by Surakiart's bridge-mending mission to Myanmar last week. "When the relations are back to normal, the reopening of checkpoints, trade and economic cooperation will follow in the next two or three weeks," the minister told Matichon, a Thai language daily, published on Sunday. "So the reopening of the checkpoint is possible," he added, referring to the gate at the Friendship Bridge 440 kilometres (273 miles) northwest of Bangkok, connecting Thailand's Mae Sot town with Myawaddi in Myanmar. Surakiart's optimism was topped by unconfirmed reports from traders and military sources in northern Thailand that the Friendship Bridge or the checkpoint at Mae Sai in Chiang Rai province could open Monday. "We heard the rumours, but there is no formal information on that," a Thai customs official at the Friendship Bridge told AFP. Myanmar nationals could be seen calmly crossing the border along the Moei river near the Friendship Bridge, with cross-border trade and medical visits increasing amid the slackening tensions, sources told AFP. The Nation newspaper also reported the border could open in the coming days, and that Lieutenant General Khin Nyunt, Myanmar's intelligence chief, could be present at the re-opening of the bridge. Bilateral relations have been in crisis since May when border clashes erupted between the Myanmar junta and ethnic rebels, which Yangon accuses Thailand of assisting. The two countries exchanged protest notes, and Myanmar sealed all border gates and barred official visits. In the ensuing weeks it mounted a verbal tirade against Thailand, its historic adversary. After talks with Myanmar's top three military leaders last Tuesday, Surakiart said he was confident simmering issues including border traffic and a Myanmar campaign against Thai-made goods would be resolved in the next few weeks. Despite the clampdown, illicit trade continued after the closure. The Bangkok Post reported that traders have been allowed to ship millions of dollars in goods after paying bribes to officials. Some traders said they got the green light for contraband shipments after paying off the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army, a pro-Yangon ethnic militia, the newspaper said. ------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Nation
Rape of Shan women a grave concern - Suu Kyi
Published on Aug 12, 2002 Burma's opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi responds to reports of alleged rapes by Burmese soldiers on young women in Shan state in an interview with The Nation. The recent report "License to Rape" extensively details rapes involving at
least 625 girls and women by Burmese army soldiers in Shan state.
Many governments and international organisations have responded with great
concern. What is your response?
I am also very concerned if such human rights violations are taking place.
It should be a matter of grave concern for everybody who cares about the
future of our country.
Because after all, Burma is a union made up of many different ethnic groups
and it is terrible that any of our people should feel that they are targeted as
an ethnic group.
Has the human rights situation improved in Burma? Has the situation for
ethnic nationality groups improved?
I do not know enough about what is going on to say if there has been real
improvement. Real improvement means that there must be security and that people
must feel free to go about their legitimate work without fear.
I cannot say that this is the case now. I do not know if there are some
areas in which people would claim that there has been progress. In order that I
may know more about the situation, I think I would have to be allowed to look
more closely into what is going on everywhere in this country.
The authorities have recently invited the new UN Commissioner on Human
Rights to visit Burma. How positive a development is this?
I suppose it depends on what they wish this commissioner to do while in
Burma.
Are you optimistic about the visits of the UN special envoy, the Malaysian
prime minister and the Japanese foreign minister?
I've always said I'm a cautious optimist and I've never had any reason to
change my mind about this. So, about these visits also, I'm cautiously
optimistic.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Nation
THAI-BURMESE TIES: PM told to put trade
1st
Published on Aug 11, 2002 Businessmen support fence mending moves Businessmen along the Thai-Burmese border yesterday threw their support behind Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, calling on his government to continue giving top priority to trade and investment relations with Burma. Participants at yesterday's chamber of commerce meeting in the Mae Sot district of Tak province said the government was doing the right thing by reaching out to the military government of Burma. The meeting came amid unconfirmed reports that the Thai-Burmese border would be re-opened in the coming days and Burma's intelligence chief Lt-General Khin Nyunt would be present at the re-opening of the Thai-Burmese Friendship Bridge that links Mae Sot to the Burmese border town of Myawaddy. Khin Nyunt is supposedly inaugurating Burma's "one stop service centre" in Myawaddi to deal with customs and immigrations matters and streamline cross-border trade. The meeting in Mae Sot came up with resolutions calling on the government to lessen restrictions on Burmese workers in Thailand and urged the government to lower the fee for permits. Banphot Korkiertcharoen, deputy chairman of the Tak Chamber of Commerce, said the atmosphere along the border has improved steadily since Foreign Minister Surakiart Sathirathai's fence-mending visit to Rangoon. Banphot urged the government to guarantee that the border will not be closed when military skirmishes erupt again. "We welcome the news that the border will re-open," said Suchart Treeratwattana, another deputy from the chamber. Banphot said there needs to be assurances that the Burmese will not unilaterally close the border as they please. "We hope this will be the last time," said Banphot, pointing to the financial loss suffered by the local businessmen every time the border is shut. Suchart said he was told of the unconfirmed visit of Khin Nyunt to open the border at a meeting with Ma Tin Tin, chairman of the Chamber of Commerce in Myawaddi, a Burmese town opposite Mae Sot. The border was closed following the May 20 conflicts. Wisanu Imrath, a merchant from Doi Wow in Mae Sot district said the mood among the traders along the border has been very gloomy due to the uncertainty about whether the border will open or close. Phayup University's Suchart Somsrap said the government must distinguish between ego and politics, saying Thailand needs to do away with Deputy Prime Minister General Chavalit Yonchaiyudh's method of dealing with the Burmese because it won't work in the long run. Chavalit often points to his personal connections with the Burmese generals and says that his brand of "personal diplomacy" can improve bilateral ties. The deputy premier was sidelined from having a direct role in normalising bilateral ties following the May 20 border clashes that seriously damaged Thai-Burmese relations. Academics and Thai officers on the frontline say the government is conceding too much to Rangoon and fundamental problems such as drugs, insurgencies and refugees, have yet to be addressed. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Bangkok Post - Monday 12
August 2002
Thailand to host first UN seminar
Regional training centre planned The armed forces will host the world's first peace-keeping
seminar in Pattaya and Bangkok from Aug 19 to Sept 6 under the sponsorship of
the United Nations.
Col Nalik-Atipak Saengsanit, director of the peace-keeping operations division of the Supreme Command's Directorate of Joint Operations, said 120 representatives of the armed forces of countries in Asia and the Pacific will attend. The UN wanted Thailand to be a regional training centre for peace-keeping operations. This was in line with government policy, Col Nalik-Atipak said. Seven contingents of Thai troops have served with UN forces in East Timor and five officers have worked as United Nations observers on the Iran-Iraq border and another five in Sierra Leone. Thai military personnel, including a contingent of engineers and medical staff, are also expected to participate in the reconstruction of post-Taliban Afghanistan. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Bangkok Post - Monday 12
August 2002
Strife to persist, analyst says
Democracy, end to fighting the answer Supamart Kasem Thai-Burmese relations will remain unstable until the
military junta ends ethnic conflicts and converts to democracy, analysts
say.
Pornpimol Trichote, a Burmese analyst at Chulalongkorn University's Institute of Asian Studies, said there was nothing to guarantee that Burma would not seal its border again, despite improving relations in the wake of Foreign Minister Surakiart Sathirathai's trip to Rangoon last week. ``Thai-Burmese relations continue to swing up and down in the absence of democracy and a lack of ethnic unity in Burma,'' she told a seminar looking at the border crisis in the border town of Mae Sot. Ms Pornpimol decried the use of arms by the ruling State Peace and Development Council to end armed ethnic fighting. Political dialogue would be more effective, she said. ``Burma has been at war with ethnic groups since 1824. That shows that the military approach cannot bring peace,'' she said. Mr Surakiart's visit raised hopes that the border might be reopened soon. But Ms Pornpimol believed defusing border tensions was not the answer to better ties. ``The future of relations between Thailand and Burma depend on structural changes inside Burma.'' ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Star - Saturday, August
10, 2002
Bodies of two Myanmars recovered KUALA LUMPUR: Family members broke down in tears as the
bodies of two more Myanmars were fished out of a disused mining pool beside the
Selayang wholesale market here yesterday.
?I am making preparations to bury my brother here as I do
not have enough money to take his body back to Myanmar for burial,? Yusof Yakob
said after firemen recovered the body of his brother Yunos in the morning.
?The only thing I can remember about my brother was his
excitement in going back to Myanmar to meet our parents,? said Yusof.
He said they had bought bus tickets to return home via Thailand recently. Yunos is among four other illegal immigrants from Myanmar
who drowned in the pool after 50 people, including illegal immigrants from
Indonesia, jumped into the pool to evade a police operation at the market.
?I am going to miss him as we were like best friends,?
said another Myanmar, Shafie Hamid, 22, whose elder brother?s body was also
recovered from the pond.
City Fire and Rescue Department assistant director
(operations) Abu Obaidat said his personnel will continue to search the pond for
more victims.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ E. Asian ministers discuss development
issues
By Yukiko Ochi TOKYO, Aug. 12, Kyodo - A
ministerial meeting on East Asian initiatives for development began Monday
morning in Tokyo for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) plus
Japan, China and South Korea.
The one-day meeting, chaired by Japanese Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi,
is a new East Asian diplomatic initiative on development issues, following up on
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's commitment to help Southeast Asian nations
move forward together.
''I am convinced that it is extremely beneficial to share our development
experience and expertise, which East Asia has attained through remarkable
economic growth, and to discuss future directions of regional cooperation,''
Koizumi said in a message to the meeting read by Senior Vice Foreign Minister
Seiken Sugiura.
With regard to official development assistance (ODA), Koizumi said,
''Because the stability and prosperity in East Asia will continue to be
important to Japan, Japan remains committed to actively providing assistance to
East Asia,'' despite the country's difficult economic situation.
Through the meeting, the nations aim to pursue new methods and standards
for development that would support regional cooperation in detailed projects,
according to a Foreign Ministry official.
Through the process of pursuing such new methods and standards for
development, they aim to achieve transparent, efficient and effective ODA
utilization, the official said.
Kawaguchi said she hopes that the participants at the meeting will assess
the role of ODA and to discuss the role that ODA can play from now on.
By presenting a model of an East Asian approach to development that would
be useful not only for the region but for other regions, the nations hope to
contribute to international discussions on development, according to the
official.
The nations hope to present the model at the World Summit on Sustainable
Development (WSSD) to be held in Johannesburg, South Africa, from Aug. 26 to
Sept. 4, the official said.
Koizumi also said in his message that at the WSSD, ''Japan would like to
convey East Asia's development expertise, its important existence to the
international community and to share this expertise with other regions dealing
with the same issues of development.''
They are expected to issue a document on the results of the meeting,
possibly including a message for the WSSD.
ASEAN encompasses Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the
Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam and South Korea
sent their foreign ministers to the Tokyo meeting, while China was represented
by a deputy foreign minister.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ Myanmar's fertilizer production plunges in
fiscal 2001-02
Xinhuanet 2002-08-11 10:57:17 YANGON, Aug. 11 (Xinhuanet) --
Myanmar's fertilizer production plunged 75.7 percent to 38,859 tons in the
fiscal year 2001-02, which ended in March, from 160,000 tons in 2000-01,
registering the lowest chemicals production in the past seven years, said the
figures available from the industry sources.
Annual fertilizer production in the past seven years at least exceeded
100,000 tons.
Meanwhile, during the 2001-02, the country imported 21 million US dollars
worth of chemicals to fill its domestic need.
So far, Myanmar has only three fertilizer plants which can onlyproduce urea
and are far from meeting its annual demand of over 800,000 tons of chemicals.
To promote agricultural development, the Myanmar government hasexempted the
import duties of agricultural implements including fertilizer, pesticide, and
machinery.
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