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BURMA RELATED NEWS
- December 04, 2002.
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HEADLINES
------------------------------------------------------------------------ AFP - Thailand frees 98 foreign
prisoners to mark king's birthday
AFP - Thailand raps Myanmar over
repatriation of illegal workers
AP - Media watchdog expresses concern
over detained journalist's health
AP - Buddhist leaders to urge
peaceful end to Iraq crisis
Asia Pulse - Rbi Hikes Indian Direct
Investment Ceiling in Myanmar, Saarc
One World Net - Red Cross Acclaims
Landmine Ban as Canada Renews Fund
CSM - Diplomatic pitfalls frustrate
Thailand's antidrug fight
Asian Tribune - Persecuted Muslims
Fear Deportation to Military-Ruled Burma.
Asian Tribune - New members for
NLD
Asian Tribune - Detained journalist
Win Tin again transferred to Rangoon general hospital
Bkk Post - Wa free 16
Thais
Asia Times - Thailand's gem
capital
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Wednesday December 4, 4:54 PM
Thailand frees 98 foreign prisoners to mark king's birthday BANGKOK, Dec 4 (AFP) - Thai authorities released 98 foreign prisoners to mark King Bhumibol Adulyadej's 75th birthday, as part of an amnesty granted to some 8,000 convicts nationwide. "There were 98 foreign convicts from 27 different nations freed today. Most of them were convicted of illegal entry, over-staying their visas, and using fake documents," an immigration police official said. African nationals accounted for the largest group among those released, including 25 from Liberia, four from Sierra Leone, three from Cameroon, two Nigerians, two Ghanians, and one each from the Ivory Coast and Mali. Among the others were 15 Vietnamese, eight Chinese, seven Myanmar nationals and six Pakistanis, as well as one each from France, Japan and Singapore. Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra Wednesday presided over the release of 5,000 convicts who were serving time for failure to pay fines, at a ceremony in a Bangkok stadium. Provincial governors held similar events at jails across the country. Beloved and respected by his subjects, King Bhumibol is the world's longest reinging monarch having ascended to the throne in 1946. He was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts on December 5, 1927. Among events to celebrate his 75th birthday Thursday, hundreds of thousands of people are expected to join Thaksin and his cabinet ministers in a candle-lit vigil at a park near the Grand Palace. Although the king's birthday is a major event every year in Thailand, more elaborate commemorations were held three years ago to mark his 72nd birthday which is a particularly auspicious age according to the Buddhist calendar. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Wednesday December 4, 4:32 PM
Thailand raps Myanmar over
repatriation of illegal workers
BANGKOK, Dec 4 (AFP) - Thailand's government Wednesday accused the Myanmar junta of failing to cooperate in a plan to repatriate hundreds of thousands of illegal Myanmar workers in the kingdom. "Thailand has repeatedly expressed its wish for Myanmar officials to fully implement the agreed masterplan for repatriation of illegals," Deputy Prime Minister Korn Dabbaransi told reporters. Korn said Myanmar had so far agreed to establish only one holding center for illegal workers -- in Myawaddy, opposite the western Thai border town of Mae Sot. Thailand is pushing for two more centers in Kawthung and Pyathonzu, opposite Thai's Three Pagodas pass in the western province of Kanchanaburi. "We have proposed two more holding centers but Myanmar has not yet approved them," Korn said. The problem of illegal Myanmar workers has been a perennial irritant to relations between Thailand and its poorer neighbour. Under a crackdown launched last year, Thailand is hoping to send back hundreds of thousands of workers who typically took dirty and poorly-paid jobs in factories and the agricultural sector. In April Thailand and Myanmar signed a memorandum of understanding which enabled Thai business owners to legally import Myanmar workers for certain regions and industries. But while a drive to register Myanmar labourers last year drew more than 500,000 names, this year the Labor and Social Welfare Ministry has reported only 200,000 registrations, sparking concern among various authorities. Korn said the government has set up a special task force to crack down on illegal workers and that both employers and those who shelter them would be subject to fines and jail terms. The minister did not give figures for those repatriated so far, but said the slow pace of return was due to Myanmar's internal problems -- a reference to the fact that many are afraid to return to life under a repressive regime. Thailand's National Security Council estimates that some one million illegal workers from Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar are in Thailand whom around 80 percent are Myanmar nationals. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Media watchdog expresses
concern over detained journalist's health
Tue Dec 3, 8:54 PM ET BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) - An ailing 72-year-old journalist in Myanmar, who has been in the military government's custody for the last 13 years, has been moved to a hospital after his heart problem worsened, two media watchdogs reported. Pro-democracy journalist Win Tin was transferred from Insein prison to the Yangon General Hospital in the Myanmar capital of Yangon on Nov. 23, said a statement received Wednesday from Reporters Without Borders, an international organization. "Conditions at Insein prison have taken a heavy toll on Win Tin's health, and he has had to be hospitalized several times," said the statement, co-signed by the Burma Media Association, a group of Myanmar journalists in exile. Myanmar is also known as Burma. The statement said Win Tin underwent tests at a smaller hospital on Nov. 22 in connection with a heart ailment. Because of his electrocardiogram result and the existence of a localized infection, a doctor requested his transfer to general hospital the next day, the statement said. The Myanmar government did not immediately comment on the report. A recipient of the WEF 2001 Golden Pen of Freedom Award, Win Tin is a founder of the National League for Democracy party headed by pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi. He was arrested on July 4, 1989, tried in a military court and sentenced to 14 years in prison for allegedly being a member of the banned Communist Party of Myanmar. He was sentenced to an additional five years for illegally possessing writing materials in jail. Win Tin, former editor of the daily Hanthawati newspaper, has had two heart attacks and a hernia operation during his incarceration and suffers from high blood pressure, diabetes and spinal inflammation, according to media groups. They say his condition reportedly worsened in early July. The Reporters Without Borders statement said Win Tin is being kept in one of the rooms for political prisoners in the hospital's ground floor where prominent NLD members Htwe Myint and Than Nyein are also being treated. It said Win Tin is being examined by a doctor every day. In a letter to Myanmar Interior Minister Col. Tin Hlaing, the two media groups demanded that Win Tin should be freed immediately. They noted that the junta recently released 100 other political prisoners as part of a reconciliation process with Suu Kyi, and that Win Tin should also be a beneficiary of that policy. The junta has been in power since 1988 and refuses to give up power even though the NLD won the 1990 general elections. Its reconciliation talks with Suu Kyi have produced little tangible result besides the release of a few hundred political prisoners. Several hundred more political dissidents remain in jails. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Buddhist leaders to urge
peaceful end to Iraq crisis
2 hours, 41 minutes ago By CHRIS DECHERD, Associated Press Writer PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) - Buddhist leaders from around the world meeting this week in Cambodia will urge the United States to use peaceful means in confronting Iraq, organizers said Wednesday. The three-day World Buddhist Conference opening Thursday in Phnom Penh is expected to attract 2,000 participants from more than a dozen countries. Kazuo Takayama, spokesman for Japan's Nenbutsushu Buddhist sect, the event's main organizer, said Buddhists have a responsibility to speak out and act for global peace. Participants hope to send a message to international leaders such as U.S. President George W. Bush, who is threatening war on Iraq, and will issue a communique underscoring the role of Buddhism in solving global problems. "We hope journalists will report clearly on our declarations and we hope President Bush sees those news reports," Takayama told The Associated Press. The conference, the third since 1998, is one of the religion's most important events, unique for bringing together leaders from different backgrounds and sects. It will be opened this year by Cambodia's King Norodom Sihanouk. Uong Sophearin, an administrator at Cambodia's Religion Ministry, said Cambodia is an ideal place to launch a plea for peace because the country ? which is predominantly Buddhist ? has suffered through so much war and violence but is now at peace for the first time in 30 years. One notable absentee will be the Dalai Lama, the exiled spiritual leader of Tibet. Takayama said that "His Holiness knew his presence would be a distraction" and effectively chose not to come. Cambodian officials earlier this year said that the Dalai Lama was not invited because it would have angered China. China, a major backer of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, views the Dalai Lama as a political troublemaker. The Dalai Lama claims China illegally controls Tibet, located in what is now western China. China is not sending a delegation to the conference. The Dalai Lama attended the first conference in Kyoto, Japan, in 1998 but did not show up at the 2000 conference in Bangkok. Australia, Bhutan, Cambodia, India, Laos, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam are all expected to be represented. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Wednesday December 4, 3:51 PM
Rbi Hikes Indian Direct Investment Ceiling in Myanmar, Saarc MUMBAI, Dec 4 Asia Pulse - Liberalising the norms for Indian overseas investment, the Reserve Bank of India has enhanced the investment ceiling on direct investment through automatic route in Myanmar and SAARC countries, excluding Pakistan, by US$50 million to US$150 million. "In the case of Nepal and Bhutan the ceiling has been doubled to Rs 7 billion from the existing Rs 3.50 billion for Rupee investment," the RBI said in a notification to forex dealers yesterday. It said the necessary amendments to the Foreign Exchange Management Regulations, 2000, would be issued separately. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Red Cross Acclaims Landmine Ban as Canada Renews
Fund
Tue Dec 3, 7:39 AM ET Jim Lobe,OneWorld US On the five-year anniversary of the international landmine ban signed in Ottawa, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is acclaiming its impact, while the Canadian government announced US$72 million more for its Canadian Landmine Fund (CLF) to support mine clearance, victim aid, and stockpile destruction around the world. The additional money will ensure that the CLF, one of the major bilateral initiatives to implement the Ottawa treaty, will continue for at least five years. The Canadian government said it is also designed to spur other donors to renew their own financial commitments in 2003, the deadline for all State Parties to the treaty to destroy their stockpiles of anti-personnel mines. "Canada was a world leader in the landmine issue since its inception in 1997 and, through this renewal, Canada has recommitted itself to world leadership on this issue," said Paul Hannon, executive director of Mines Action Canada. "This is the perfect birthday present as this week marks the 5th anniversary of the opening for signature of the Ottawa Convention." The ICRC, which joined the international campaign to ban landmines in 1994, said it was greatly encouraged by the progress made to date. "Today, 130 states have ratified or acceded to the Convention," according to a statement issued by its Geneva headquarters, "and public support for the ban remains undiminished." Sixteen other countries have signed the treaty and are in the process of ratifying it. Most important, according to the ICRC, the world's oldest humanitarian relief agency, has been a sharp reduction in landmine injuries over the past five years. "The annual number of victims has fallen dramatically, by over 65 percent in places such as Bosnia-Herzegovina, Cambodia and Croatia where the Convention's stipulations are being implemented," it said, adding that some 27 million landmines have been destroyed by parties to the convention. In addition, according to ICRC, global attitudes towards landmines have changed radically, despite the refusal of a number of major powers--including the United States, Russia, China, India, Pakistan, Iran, Iraq, and Israel--to sign the 1997 treaty. "Back in 1994...anti-personnel landmines were almost universally considered to be militarily indispensable and were widely used. Now, however, the prohibition of antipersonnel landmines is a widely accepted norm," the group said. "This is good news." Three-quarters of the world's nations have acceded to the treaty which formally took effect in March, 1999, after it had been ratified by the required 40 nations. That was only 16 months after the convention was opened for signing, the fastest ever entry-into-force of a major multilateral treaty. The speed with which the treaty was negotiated and ratified has been attributed to the effectiveness of an unprecedented coalition of nongovernmental organizations, concerned Western governments, and other governments whose populations were forced to deal with the deadly legacy of an inexpensive, easy-to-use weapon that has wreaked havoc on old Cold War battlegrounds such as Angola, Afghanistan, Cambodia, and several nations in Central America. In the post-Cold War early 1990s, anti-personnel mines were still killing or maiming more than 26,000 people a year, with children comprising a disproportionate number of victims. The yearly number of mine casualties now stands at between 15,000 and 20,000, according to recent estimates by the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL). In the addition, the number of mine-producing countries has declined sharply, from 55 in the mid-1990s to only 14 today, while the global trade in the weapon is now limited to illegal or covert supplies. Much work, however, remains to be done, according to both ICRC and the ICBL. During the past year, both Russia and Georgia have laid mines against insurgencies in the Caucasus region, and Iran reportedly supplied landmines to allies in Afghanistan during fighting there. Afghanistan acceded to the mine ban treaty last summer. Myanmar (formerly Burma) was also reported to have used landmines over the past year, while India and Pakistan laid tens of thousands of new mines during the protracted crisis that brought them to the brink of war between December last year and mid-2002. "Efforts must continue to ensure that the Ottawa Treaty gains complete universal adherence," the ICRC said. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Christian Science
Monitor
December 03, 2002 edition Diplomatic pitfalls frustrate Thailand's antidrug fight Thais sideline a US-trained commando force in their bid to boost ties with Burma. By Simon Montlake | Special to The Christian Science Monitor PHITSANULOK, THAILAND ? A special US-trained commando force created to block a flood of illegal drugs into Thailand has been sidelined by a delicate diplomatic two-step between Thailand and Burma (Myanmar), its neighbor and the source of the drugs. Known as Taskforce 399, the unit was set up last year and trained by US Special Forces troops. It is equipped with surveillance and combat equipment, including Black Hawk helicopters and night-vision goggles. US officials say Thailand quietly sought their help amid public alarm over the rapid spread of methamphetamine pills, known to Thais as ya ba or crazy medicine. An estimated 5 percent of Thailand's 62 million people are addicted to the speed pills, which cost as little as $1 each and are readily available across the country. "When you have methamphetamine showing up in your primary schools, it's time to sit up and take notice," says a US military official. "Nobody wants these drugs pouring over their border." The US is also getting a taste of this problem: In August, customs officials in California seized 75,000 ya ba pills sent to Sacramento from Thailand and Laos, the largest-ever bust. And heroin continues to flow out of Burma and to the US, via smuggling routes in Thailand and China. But initial optimism that US trainers and equipment might help turn the tide against traffickers has given way to frustration. Thai Army sources, diplomats, and observers in the rugged, 1250 mile-long border area say that Taskforce 399 has pulled back in recent months as Thailand has sought to repair diplomatic and commercial ties with Burma's military rulers. Relations between the two countries took a nosedive in May when Thai troops shelled Burmese troops that were battling Shan rebels along the border. Burma promptly closed all land crossings to Thailand, slamming the door to trade. The border reopened in October after months of talks between the two governments. Few details were offered publicly, but diplomats say Burma wanted firm assurances that Thai troops wouldn't stray across the border - even to track drug couriers. Burma also said it objected to the presence of "foreign" troops near its border, although US and Thai military officials say that US troops assigned to train Taskforce 399 are advisers and don't join Thai antidrug operations. "[Burma] is quite nervous; they don't want the US government involved in this kind of stuff ... Thailand is in a delicate situation. Its relationship with Burma may be getting better, but there are still problems on the border and they may be losing the war on drugs," says Aung Zaw, a Burmese exile and magazine editor. At the heart is a dilemma for countries trying to stem the outflow of drugs from Burma: How to cooperate with a government with only nominal control over its territory. Much of the ya ba and heroin trafficked across the border is traced to ethnic insurgents such as the United Wa State Army that signed cease-fires with the junta. Drug-control experts say Burma has made strides recently in combating opium, the raw ingredient in heroin, by promoting alternative crops for farmers, a strategy that Thailand has used successfully to curb its opium trade. Last year Burma's heroin production fell to 950 tons, a 14-year low, according to the US Drug Enforcement Agency. But those favoring cooperation with Burma say there's no sign of a crackdown on ya ba labs. "Opium fields are easy to detect, but methamphetamine factories are hidden from sight and can't be easily found, and they're located in areas that the Burmese government doesn't control," says Yngve Danling, an adviser to the UN Drug Control Program. Critics see Burma's inaction as deliberate, and accuse its generals of profiting from the trade, a charge denied by the regime. Whatever the reason, the drugs keep arriving. This week, the Thai Army warned that the UWSA was developing new routes to traffic up to 1 billion pills into Thailand over the next year. Some Army officers bemoan their chances of success without "hot pursuit" of traffickers who slip across the border, which is porous and poorly demarcated. "We can cooperate with Burma with our [antidrug] intelligence but they don't have enough troops to do the job," complains a Thai general. Taskforce 399 was supposed to strike back at the drug lords. Using $2 million from the US Defense Department's counternarcotics budget, it was designed as a lethal, rapid-response unit ready to swoop in on armed convoys that cross into Thailand at night. In reality, the taskforce currently has only about 100 men assigned permanently, with another 460 men seconded from Army and border police units. Thai officers say this lack of manpower prevents them from reacting quickly to intelligence tip-offs, since they need approval to mobilize. Some say the handicap is intentional: Officers are under orders to avoid firefights in sensitive areas that could upset Thai diplomacy. Lt. Gen. Udomchai Ongkasing, commander of the 3rd Army that guards the border, says Taskforce 399 has a "small target" for now, and that cooperation is the way forward. "We only use Taskforce 399 inside our border. We care that Myanmar isn't happy about 399 operating along the border...[so] if we try to coordinate with the Myanmar junta to help us suppress drugs, this is better," he says. That policy can work, say observers, only if Burma stamps out UWSA drug labs or Thailand loses its appetite for ya ba. So far, neither looks likely. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Asian Tribune
Date :
2002-12-04
Persecuted Muslims Fear Deportation to Military-Ruled Burma. Over 4,000 undocumented Rohingya asylum seekers camping
near local administration buildings in Teknaf, Bangladesh fear deportation to
military-ruled Burma.
The asylum seekers, members of a stateless Muslim ethnic minority group from Burma?s Arakan State, have been living in appalling conditions since 15 November, after being evicted from the houses in Teknaf, Bangladesh, where they were taking refuge. The Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (Forum-Asia) called on the Government of Bangladesh and the UNHCR, the United Nations Refugee agency, today to abide by international humanitarian principles and ensure that the group is not forcibly deported to Burma. Forum-Asia, a regional human rights organization, is concerned for the safety of the asylum seekers who are likely to face continued discrimination and human rights abuses should they be returned to Burma. The authorities in Bangladesh, who claim there are about 25,000 illegal Rohingya immigrants in Teknaf area alone, began to evict Rohingya from the area in November, forcing over 600 families to camp out in front of the Teknaf district offices, without adequate food or clean water. Shah Jahan, Bangladesh Member of Parliament, told reporters that the ?push-back? process would start soon. Forum-Asia sources report that more than half the asylum seekers living in the makeshift camp are children, many malnourished, and shelters made from leaves and two to three families are sharing plastic sheets. Sources say that many of the asylum seekers are refugees who had been sent back to Burma previously, only to flee again due to continued abuses by the Burmese military. Rohingya are a minority Muslim group who live under strong oppression in Burma?s Arakan State. The Rohingya are stateless, and are subject to severe restrictions on their movement within Burma, often being used as forced labor by the military. According to a Human Rights Watch report of July 2002, the persecution of Muslims in Burma has intensified since September 11, 2001. One Rohingya man in the Teknaf camp said: ?I left the country [Burma] when I could no longer bear the amount of forced labor?. The Burmese Army will just kill us if we go back. The Bangladesh Government repatriated many refugees to Burma after the last refugee crisis. Why are they coming back again, like me? No one can go back and stay until there is some peace in Burma. If they are sent back forcefully, they will come back again after a short time. No, I will not go back! If they send me by force, I will jump in the Naf River ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Asian Tribune
Date : 2002-12-04 New members for NLD The Nationa League for Democracy (NLD) has decided to accept new membership, according to the party spokesman U Lwin. The decision came about after the recent Shan State trip of Daw Aung San Auu Kyi. The NLD spokesman, U Lwin said NLD is preparing to accept new members but no new members having been accepted yet. Many people wanted to join the party but the NLD was not prepared to receive them due to organisational difficulties. It was believed that it was more important for each organisation to look after its own members for the time being, before thinking about expanding the party. He also said that the NLD will concentrate on accepting young people as new members. They will be accepted into the party if they are in accordance with the rules and regulations. The party chairman himself gave the instruction to extend the memberships. On the matter of the 115 prisoners released last month, U Lwin said that the NLD didn't receive the list of non-NLD prisoners. Among them, only the 14-15 people who frequent the NLD office are known to him. Two young writers; U Thurein Htet Linn and Maung Lwin Mun Bank are among the released. When the DVB asked him about the rumours that only half of the declared 115 prisoners were released in reality, U Lwin admitted that he himself heard the news on the media only. He added that the NLD has never received so called "Information sheet", daily press information sheet sends to news agency and international community via internet by SPDC information committee. U Lwin also added that the NLD is lodging appeals on behalf of political prisoners such as U Shwe Maung of Mandalay, U Saw Nandi of Kengtung, the recently sentenced law students Ko Khin Maung Win and Thet Naing Soe. But Thet Naing Soe is still refusing to lodge an appeal. U Shwe Maung was arrested on 7-Novmber and sentenced 3-years for moulded a golden hat, the symbol of the NLD. U Lwin said the NLD also has a strong legal support team in Mandalay for political prisoners in that area. - Democratic Voice of Burma ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Asian Tribune
Date : 2002-12-04 Detained journalist Win Tin again transferred to Rangoon general hospital Burma: Dec. 03: Reporters Without Borders (Reporters Sans Frontières) and the Burma Media Association (of Burmese journalists in exile) today voiced their concern about the health of detained journalist and pro-democracy activist Win Tin, who was transferred to Rangoon general hospital on 23 November. "Following the recent release of around 100 political prisoners, the Burmese military government should pursue this policy by freeing ailing political prisoners as a priority," Reporters Without Borders secretary-general Robert Ménard and Burma Media Association chairman U Thaung said in a letter to the interior minister, Col. Tin Hlaing. Win Tin, who is 72 and has been imprisoned for the past 13 years, should be an immediate beneficiary of such a policy, the letter said. Win Tin was taken to the district hospital near Insein prison, on the outskirts of Rangoon, on 22 November for tests in connection with a heart ailment. Because of his electrocardiogram result and the existence of a localised infection, a doctor requested his transfer to Rangoon general hospital the next day. Since then, he has been kept in one of the rooms for political prisoners in the hospital's ground floor where Htwe Myint and Doctor Than Nyein, members of Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy are also being treated. Reporters Without Borders and the Burma Media Association have been told that he is being held in a room of about 15 square metres, where he is examined by a doctor every day and receives medicine appropriate for his condition. Conditions at Insein prison have taken a heavy toll on Win Tin's health, and he has had to be hospitalised several times. While in prison, he has had two heart attacks, high blood pressure, diabetes and spondylitis (an inflammation of the vertebrae). He has also undergone an operation for a hernia. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Bangkok Post -
Wednesday 04 December 2002
Wa free 16 Thais Chiang Rai _ The pro-Rangoon United Wa State Army yesterday released 16 Thais detained in Burma since 1999. Of the 16 _ 11 men and five women _ 14 were of Muser origin. When Thailand closed the checkpoint at Ban San Ton Du in 1999, about 300 Thai people were arrested and kept at Mong Yawn and Ban Hong prisons. The 16 Thais were brought to the border by Col Min Chen, personal secretary of Wei Hsueh-ying, commander of the 171st UWSA Brigade, and received by a representative of the Third Army at Ban San Makhed in Mae Fa Luang district of Chiang Rai. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Asia Times Online -
Dec 4, 2002
Thailand's gem capital By Michael Spencer The provincial town of Chantaburi in eastern Thailand seems an unlikely center for international commerce of any description, but a combination of factors has earned it a solid reputation as one of the most important gem-trading capitals of the world. Located some 250 kilometers from Bangkok, the town owes its prominence to the nearby presence of a legendary gem mountain known as the Khao Ploei Waen. In the past sapphires and rubies littered the ground there in such quantities that village children used them as marbles or smashed them into pieces for the pleasure of making colored sparks fly. It was this treasure trove that put Chantaburi firmly on the map as one of the world's top gem-trading locations, an accolade it still merits today. The local gem traders' association estimates that today at least 80 percent of the world's rubies and sapphires transit Chantaburi at one stage or another on their journey from the mine to the retail outlet. But in the 1970s and '80s the town's centuries-old commerce looked to be on the point of collapse. Local mines were all but depleted and supplies of high-quality rubies from Myanmar were becoming increasingly difficult to obtain. There were imports from Cambodian mines just across the border but supplies were shrinking rapidly. With some deft footwork, local dealers developed overseas supply networks for rough gems and maintained the town's preeminence by capitalizing on the skills of its craftsmen. The real savior of Chantaburi's status as a gem-trading center, however, came in the form of the colorless geuda sapphires that began to arrive in large quantities from Sri Lanka in the 1980s. Over the years, Thai gem cutters had developed a lucrative sideline of heating gemstones to improve their color and selling price. The process was known for centuries as a way of deepening the color of rubies and sapphires, but Chantaburi craftsmen elevated it into an art form involving a combination of heat, pigments and luck. When they applied their skills to the colorless geuda stones, they were able to imbue them with hues similar to the best Myanmese and Thai stones, in the process providing a lucrative new income source for the local dealers. The formula for the arcane process of heat treatment is jealously guarded by a handful of local artisans, and such is the value of their knowledge they have recently applied for an international patent to protect their intellectual property rights over the technique. Gem dealers freely admit that with the exception of 1-2 percent of stones that are extremely valuable naturally perfect gems, it has been a standard practice for centuries to heat almost all rubies and sapphires to enhance their color permanently. Heat-treated natural stones are still a cut above synthetics. These are chemically identical to natural stones, but created cheaply in labs. Sapphires and rubies have been synthesized since the early 1900s and are getting harder to detect. A neophyte in the business might think that going closer to the source decreases the chance of being ripped off. Actually the inverse is the case. An old dealer's maxim warns that the closer to the mine, the greater the chance of encountering a synthetic stone. The gem business is a major component of Chantaburi's local economy, which is otherwise largely based on agriculture and fishing. The gem traders' association estimates that some 20 percent of the province's population is directly employed in the gem sector, and the indirect benefit is felt in a considerable portion of the province's economy. The nerve center of Chantaburi's gem trade is the Talaat Ploei, or gem market, located in the heart of the old town. The market, an informal collection of open-fronted shophouses at the intersection of Si Chan and Thetsaban streets, operates on weekends from Friday to Sunday. Thousands of dollars' worth of gems lie scattered on the tables, and African, Indian and Sri Lankan dealers mingle with Thai, Chinese, Japanese and even the occasional Western buyer. Typically from the mine to the end consumer a gemstone changes hands at least seven times, and jumps in price a thousand percent. Even between Chantaburi and Bangkok the price difference can vary by up to 30 percent. Huddled at rickety tables with jeweler's loupes screwed into their eyes, the buyers rent space at one of the shophouses and put up a sign listing the gems they are interested in acquiring. Sellers patiently line up to present their stashes and eye the stones of the competition. It all seems very amicable with no raised voices, just quiet bargaining that leads to a deal being refused or concluded with a handshake. There is surprisingly little crime in this ancient brotherhood of gem traders, where trust is everything and anyone who doesn't play by the rules will find it impossible to do business again anywhere in the world. "Chantaburi is for professionals," said Abdo, a Malian trader in rough stones as he waited to present a bagful of sapphires from Madagascar. Although some of the locals resented the intrusion of the African dealers, they are increasingly tolerated and even welcomed for providing much-needed rough stones to supply the local business. Yet even in this, the most traditional and secretive of trading societies, the World Wide Web is beginning to intrude. Local Internet startup Thaigem.com is now the biggest private-sector employer in Chantaburi and the largest single buyer of gems in town. It does 90 percent of its business on the web and dispatches more than 3,000 gems a day to online customers from all over the globe, making it Fedex Thailand's biggest customer by volume. Despite initial resistance, the company's success has already bred a slew of imitators, to the delight of the consumers, who can now compare gem prices online at the click of a mouse. The gems and jewelry industry has been a powerful export earner for Thailand, with the segment placing seventh among the country's exports. The Department of Business Economics valued Thailand's gem and jewelry exports at US$1.675 billion in 2000, making the country the world's leading exporter of gemstones and the second-largest exporter of fine jewelry after Italy. The largest markets for exports of Thai gems and jewelry are the United States, Israel, Belgium and Japan. In addition, industry analysts estimate that another 30-50 percent can be added to these export figures as a result of direct sales to tourists visiting the country. Thailand's gem and jewelry industry has emerged as a major international player in the production, processing and trade of the products, but the sector increasingly faces formidable opposition from Sri Lanka, Myanmar and India, who have more abundant resources of precious stones and lower labor costs than Thailand. These countries have been improving their skills and infrastructure to facilitate the cutting and processing of stones locally. Thailand has so far managed to stay competitive in the global market by upgrading its production processes through improved technology. Particular focus has also been placed on the development of jewelry design skills and on increasing marketing efforts to establish Thai brand names in the world market. The Department of Export Promotion is active in showcasing Thailand's gems and jewelry industry, co-hosting a trade fair for the industry twice a year. At least five trade associations are busy with extensive public relations programs intended to boost the image of the Thai gems and jewelry industry overseas and to counter negative publicity generated by a small number of fraudulent operators who prey on unwary tourists. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ |