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BURMA RELATED NEWS - May 16, 2003.
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HEADLINES
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AFP - Asian nations
won't bar entry of SARS travellers: draft resolution
AFP - Asian
countries agree to border measures against SARS
AFP - Myanmar's Suu
Kyi encounters "most serious" protest
NST - Customs foil
bid to smuggle steel wire rod to Myanmar
UN News - UN labour
agency, Myanmar reach accord to help victims of forced labour
The Nation - HOTEL
SPAS: Dusit group eyes middle market
Asian Tribune -
SARS - A big deal in northern borders of Burma
Asian Tribune - KNU
on Selling of War Weapons to the Burmese SPDC Military Clique
Asia Times - Yangon
approves UN envoy's return
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Friday May 16, 2:04
PM
Asian nations won't bar entry of SARS travellers: draft
resolution
CLARK, Philippines (AFP) - Asian nations are to pledge at a regional
conference on SARS here to allow travel by people suspected to be carrying the
deadly respiratory disease if they agree to be quarantined, officials
said.
A draft resolution discussed by delegates from 12 countries on the
penultimate day of the meeting says "the country of arrival should refer the
individual to health or quarantine authorities for appropriate medical
treatment."
The draft made no mention of the bans imposed by some
countries on travellers from other countries which have suffered Severe Acute
Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) epidemics.
The draft resolution, expected to
be adopted Saturday, also called for a standardised "health declaration card" to
be filled out by passengers before departure and upon arrival.
The card
would include the passenger's name, nationality, passport number, and a basic
health questionnaire recommended by the World Health Organization
(WHO).
The resolution also called for passengers' temperatures to be
screened before departure and on arrival at their destinations. Those showing
symptoms of SARS would be advised to postpone travel, the resolution
added.
Governments at the conference are also expected to agree to
exchange information on passengers to trace any who might have had contact with
a suspected SARS victim.
China, Japan, South Korea and nine of the 10
members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have tentatively
agreed to the common standard precautionary measures at the conference held in a
special economic zone north of Manila.
The countries also affirmed they
would follow the guidelines of the WHO in managing passengers suspected of
carrying SARS.
In the past, there have been reports of air passengers
being turned away from airports due to fears they might have SARS.
The
epidemic has battered Asia's aviation and tourism industry, with some experts
warning it could lead to losses totalling billions of dollars.
It was
hoped that the adoption of standard measures for testing air passengers would
help contain the disease, the first major epidemic to be spread around the world
by air travel.
It was also hoped they would lessen confusion and panic
over SARS which has severely curtailed air travel.
"We call on other
countries to come together in the spirit of cooperation and similar resolve to
standardise procedures in related areas to prevent the spread of SARS," said the
draft resolution.
Experts say that SARS is one of the most serious
threats to Asian economies since the Asian financial crisis in 1997.
SARS, which is most prevalent in East Asia, has killed almost 600 people
and infected almost 8,000 worldwide.
The conference was attended by ASEAN
members Brunei, Indonesia, Cambodia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines,
Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. ASEAN member Laos did not send any
representatives.
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Friday May 16, 4:36 PM
Asian countries agree to border measures against SARS
CLARK, Philippines, May 16 (AFP) - China, Japan, South Korea and nine
Southeast Asian Nations agreed Friday to standardise border controls as the
region fights to control the spread of the deadly SARS virus.
A
communique issued here committed each nation to implement "as far as
practicable" temperature screening for all passengers at international airports
from August 15.
The 12 nations also agreed to make passengers fill out a
standardised "health declaration card" before departure and upon arrival.
It would include the passenger's name, nationality, passport number, and
a basic health questionnaire recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Those showing symptoms of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome would be
advised to postpone travel, though it was not clear if suspect passengers would
be forcibly prevented from travelling.
Governments also agreed to
exchange information on passengers to trace any who might have had contact with
a suspected SARS victim, as well as to give "priority clearance to medical
equipment and supplies" for SARS-related control measures.
They called
on other countries to "come together in the spirit of cooperation and similar
resolve to standardize procedures in related areas to prevent the spread of
SARS."
The measures are designed to bring relief to the beleaguered
aviation industry and related services and minimize economic losses estimated to
now run into billions of dollars.
SARS has battered Asia's air and
tourism sectors and the new measures are designed to lessen confusion and panic
over the disease, which has killed more than 600 people worldwide.
Travellers from some of the countries represented at the conference are
already barred from a number of SARS-free countries.
Some of the Asian
neighbors have closed their borders to certain nationalities to control the
spread of the virus, the first major epidemic to be spread around the world by
air travel.
The countries also affirmed they would follow the guidelines
of the WHO in managing passengers suspected of carrying SARS.
In the
past, there have been reports of arriving air passengers being sent back at
airports on arrival at their destination due to fears they might have SARS.
However under the communique, no passenger would be denied entry.
"All passengers suspected of having SARS should not be denied entry into
the country of arrival," the resolution issued by airport, quarantine and
immigration officials representing 12 nations said.
The countries
include the core areas of the SARS crisis that has killed almost 600 people and
infected almost 8,000 worldwide.
"The country of arrival should refer
the individual to health or quarantine authorities for appropriate medical
treatment," the resolution said.
"This means that there will be no
deportation of passengers who are suspected to have SARS. Instead, the patient
would be immediately brought to a hospital in the country of arrival," said
Edgardo Manda, Manila international airport manager.
Organizers said
conference delegates adopted the resolution ahead of schedule after a marathon
overnight meeting Thursday.
Health Secretary Manuel Dayrit said he would
present the document at the forthcoming WHO meeting in Geneva.
The
conference was attended by Association of Southeast Asian members Brunei,
Indonesia, Cambodia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and
Vietnam. ASEAN member Laos did not send any representatives.
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Friday May 16, 8:00 PM
Myanmar's Suu Kyi encounters "most serious" protest
YANGON, May 16 (AFP) - Myanmar's democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi
encountered a pro-junta group of some 300 people protesting her movement as she
arrived in the capital of northernmost Kachin state Friday, her party said.
It was the "most serious" incident on this trip so far, National League
for Democracy (NLD) spokesman U Lwin told AFP.
The leader is currently
on a month-long political tour, the lengthiest of a number she has made across
the country since being released from house arrest in May last year by the
ruling military junta.
The NLD and Suu Kyi have complained increasingly
of government harassment during her travels, particularly of the thousands of
supporters who flock to see her, and her current trip is being viewed as a test
of whether the regime will attempt any disruption.
U Lwin told AFP that
on Friday Aung San Suu Kyi was met by a group of some 300 members of the junta's
Union Solidarity Development Association (USDA) as she attempted to cross a
bridge to Myitkyina.
The members of the USDA -- officially a social
organisation with some 19 million members -- were carrying catapults and small
objects such as bicycle nuts, he said.
"When she was about to cross the
bridge they stopped her... They put their faces right into the motorcade. No one
was hurt," U Lwin said.
"In fact they didn't use them (the catapults) at
all. They were just showing their force, and our people suggested that they open
the road. Finally they moved away."
U Lwin said the disturbance had been
the most serious on this trip, but said no other problems had occurred.
The Nobel peace laureate has reopened six NLD offices, including the
Kachin state office, since departing from Yangon on May 6, the first anniversary
of her release from 19 months under house arrest.
Her trips are aimed at
reinvigorating her beleaguered party, which won 1990 elections by a landslide
but has been blocked from governing by the military.
In the leaders'
last trip to western Chin state, USDA supporters were also involved in shouting
slogans against her at several towns.
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New Straits Times
Customs foil bid to
smuggle steel wire rod to Myanmar
Sharanjit
Singh
MALACCA, May 16: Customs officers foiled an
attempt to smuggle RM750,034 worth of steel wire rods to Myanmar by a
Selangor-based company.
The company, which is involved in manufacturing
nails, tried to smuggle the steel wire rods in 21 containers from the West Port
in Port Klang.
State Customs Department director Md Hassim Pardi said the
company made a false declaration that it intended to export 33 containers filled
with nails to Yangon.
However, a tip-off led customs officers to inspect
every single container and it was later found only 12 were filled with nails
while the others had coils of the steel wire rods.
All the containers
were later seized and the company is expected to be charged for making a false
declaration to customs.
The offence, under Section 135(I)(g) of the
Customs Act 1967 carries a maximum RM50,000 fine or 20 times the value of seized
goods.
Md Hassim said the company also faced charges under Section 133(I)
of the same act and those found guilty faced a RM500,000 maximum fine or five
years jail.
He said it was an offence to export steel wire rods without
licence from the International Trade and Industry Ministry.
In a related
development, Md Hassim said Malacca customs had seized RM2.1 million worth of
goods, including kretek cigarettes, vehicles, beer and liquor and mobile
telephones, with unpaid duties in the first four months of this year.
He
said the department also collected RM119,450 in compounds from various
offenders.
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UN News Centre
UN labour agency,
Myanmar reach accord to help victims of forced labour
ILO, 15 May ? The United Nations labour agency has
negotiated a formal understanding with Myanmar for the establishment of a
facilitator to assist possible victims of forced labour in the south Asian
country.
?I welcome both the Formal Understanding on the Facilitator to
assist possible victims in Myanmar to seek remedies available under the relevant
legislation and as provided under the Forced Labour Convention No. 29 (1930) and
the reaffirmation of your government's commitment to eradicating forced labour,
expressed in this Formal Understanding,? the Director-General of the
International Labour Organization (ILO), Juan Somavia, said in a statement in
Geneva.
Mr. Somavia also reiterated that the ILO Liaison Officer in
Yangon, Hông-Trang Perrett-Nguyen "will continue to do her utmost for a
successful conclusion of the Plan of Action.? In addition to the formal
understanding on the facilitator, such a Plan of Action would comprise a
road-building project in a pilot area; alternatives to the use of forced labour;
and information and awareness raising.
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THE NATION
Choosak Jirasakunthai
HOTEL SPAS: Dusit group eyes
middle market
Published on May 16, 2003
Devarana
outlets for Dusit hotels, new brand for Princess chain
Devarana Spa Co,
a unit of Dusit Hotels and Resorts, is to launch a new health and beauty spa
concept targeting the middle market.
"It will be a trendy spa concept
aimed at a market different from Devarana's," managing director Wipawadee
Sirimongkolkasem said recently.
Devarana Spa caters to high-end guests
at Dusit Thani luxury hotels in Bangkok and Pattaya, with a third branch opening
at the Dusit Resort and Polo Club in Cha-Am this year.
The new concept,
however, will be located in the four-star hotels of the Dusit Group's Princess
chain.
"The second spa concept will be launched before the end of this
year in two properties - Royal Princess Srinakarin and Princess Chiang Mai,"
Wipawadee said.
Devarana Spa has been in the local spa-operating
business for more than two years, in a market now growing crowded with foreign
entrants.
Traditional Thai hospitality, however, enables the local
operator to remain competitive, she said.
Chiva Som and Centara Spa are
among the other local spa brands in the market, while international players
include Mandara Spa and Angsana Spa.
Devarana Spa is also looking to the
overseas market, possibly at the Dusit Dubai and the Dusit Inya Lake in Burma.
Thailand's 230 spas attracted 2.6 million international tourists last
year and generated US$85 million (Bt3.6 billion) in revenue, a recent survey
found.
The first-ever study of the sector was conducted by Intelligent Spas
Pte Ltd and endorsed by the Thai Spa Association.
Spa visits have
increased by 64 per cent over the last three years. Some 3.3 million people
visited spas in the 2002/2003 period, with 80 per cent coming from abroad.
Women make up 59 per cent of spa users.
Most spas are situated
in a hotel or resort. On average, spas have eight private treatment rooms.
Hotel spas have an average of seven rooms for couples, compared to
resort spas, which average only four.
Spas derive half of their revenue
from massage services. And most of the more than 4,000 spa workers are
full-time.
Most of the spas forecast an increase in revenue for the
coming year.
The Thai Spa Association was launched recently with a total
of 44 members, including 12 in the hotel and resort category, 12 in the day-spa
category, two destination spas and two medical spas.
The other members
are spa consultants, training schools and suppliers of spa equipment and
products.
The association is working closely with government agencies on
issues including the Bt1-million travel membership card programme and the Public
Health Ministry's "Thailand as a wellness hub" campaign.
The local spa
industry started almost 10 years ago with three operators - Chiva Som, Banyan
Tree Spa and Oriental Spa.
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Asian Tribune
Date :
2003-05-16
SARS - A big deal in northern borders of
Burma
Burma has posted public health and Red Cross
officials along the border with China, but the performance of their duties has
left a lot to be desired, said a Shan businessman from northern Shan
State.
"There are many border crossings but SARS (Severe Acute
Respiratory Syndrome) inspectors are placed only at Zegao and Muse (pronounced
Muzay)" said the source. "They look casually at travelers passing through the
checkpoints from head to toes and just let them move on. If they can't do a job
properly, why are they doing it at all?"
The businessman explained he
was in Muse to gamble at one of the casinos there, but found each one of them
closed for almost a week. "They must have been taking their cue from China that
has shut down the entertainment venues on the Chinese side of the border," he
speculated. "Not that the Chinese are also paying too much attention to SARS in
Yunnan except at Kunming (the capital of the province where an international
airport is located)."
He also found only a few townspeople wearing
anti-SARS masks in Muse, each costing 800 - 1,500 kyat. "But most people don't
appear to know anything about the epidemic," he said. "They would laugh and ask
'why are you donning it? Is it a new fashion??
His experience in Muse
proved the shallowness of Rangoon's public information "machine", he concluded.
SARS, first dubbed as killer pneumonia, and believed to have originated
in China's Guangzhou Province have claimed hundreds of deaths and is damaging
the economy of the Asian countries more than the Gulf War and terrorist attacks
combined, according to Asian leaders at the SARS summit in Bangkok late last
month.
- Shan Herald Agency for News. -
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Asian Tribune
Date : 2003-05-16
KNU
on Selling of War Weapons to the Burmese SPDC Military
Clique
Karen National Union (KNU) has extended an appeal
to all the countries in the region, as well as to the other leading countries,
not to sell weapons to the Burmese State Peace and Development Council (SPDC)
manned by the Army generals.
In a press statement released by KNU
deplored the SPDC for taking over the administration of Burma by force and
terror and for refusing to hand over power to the National League for Democracy
(NLD) the winning party in the 1990 multi-party democratic election.
The
Karens in their passionate appeal said, "We would like to urge all countries
concerned to immediately cease the sale of military wares and providing training
to the SPDC terrorist military clique, as part of observing the most basic level
of ethics and without submitting to motivation for self-interest
only."
The full text of KNU?s statement is given below:
1. The
SPDC is the military clique, which seized state power by terror and brutality
with reliance on military force, after killing and spilling the blood of
thousands of people in 1988. This military clique, despite its promise to go
back to the barracks after holding a multi-party democratic election, has not
only refused to hand over power to the NLD, the winning party in 1990
multi-party democratic election, but has also been tyrannizing the NLD by
various means.
2. The SPDC military clique has been sloganeering under
"Non-disintegration of the Union," "Non-disintegration of National Unity," etc.
on the one hand, and it has been terrorizing the ethnic nationalities by waging
a brutal war against them, on the other hand. In this brutal war, the SPDC
troops, by policy, have been perpetrating murder, looting, unlawful arrest,
torture, rape of women, forced labor and slavery.
3. In the whole World,
the SPDC is the biggest terrorist military clique, which has been involved in
narcotic drugs production and trafficking, in addition to giving protection to
drug barons as dignified and esteemed citizens. There is almost no one in the
world, who does not know this fact.
4. While such conditions are
prevailing, sale by some leading countries of the World and neighboring
countries, of MIG fighter planes, warships, tanks, artilleries, artillery
ammunitions, and nuclear technologies, is extremely deplorable. Despite the
knowledge that the SPDC has been ruling the country by terror in accordance with
the system of fascist military dictatorship, and despite the knowledge that the
country has been subjected to more than half a century of civil war and the
ethnic nationalities have been subjected to brutal military attacks, destruction
and massacre in this war, selling of military wares to the SPDC is tantamount to
commission of an extremely heinous crime.
5. For emergence of national
reconciliation and true political dialogue, which would settle political
problems fairly through discussions, we, the KNU, would like to urge all
countries concerned to immediately cease sale of military wares and providing
training to the SPDC terrorist military clique, as part of observing the most
basic level of ethics and without submitting to motivation for self-interest
only.
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Asia Times - May 17, 2003
Yangon
approves UN envoy's return
By Larry Jagan
BANGKOK - United Nations envoy Razali Ismail's return to Yangon in June
after an absence of more than six months will signal yet another opportunity to
see how much of a push he can give to the stalled dialogue between the generals
and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
"Mr Razali will be visiting
Burma for four days from the 6th June," government spokesman Colonel Hla Min
said. Yangon gave permission this week for Razali to visit.
Razali has
been trying for months to return to Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, to help
restart the process, but the generals have rebuffed his repeated attempts to
visit the country over the past three months. The authorities continually found
excuses - the country's banking crisis, the visit by the UN rapporteur on human
rights Paulo Pinheiro or trips abroad by key government ministers - to delay his
visit.
In the past few weeks, the UN envoy has begun to express his
frustration and annoyance publicly. "I am perplexed and disappointed," he said
recently when he was in Bangkok to see Thai Foreign Minister Surakiart
Sathirathai. "I thought I was a good friend to all sides, so can't understand
why I'm unable to visit," he said.
The UN envoy was largely responsible
for brokering secret talks between the two sides more than two years ago, while
the opposition leader was under house arrest.
He also persuaded the
Myanmese generals to free Suu Kyi a year ago. But since then, there has been
little contact between the military government and the opposition leader.
"There's nothing happening on the political front," said an Asian
diplomat in Yangon. "The whole national reconciliation process has stalled and
needs Mr Razali to return to give it new momentum."
Since Razali started
his diplomatic mission more than three years ago, he has visited Yangon every
three months or so. "It is crucial that I see all parties involved in the
dialogue process as regularly as possible," Razali emphasized recently.
It will now be more than six months since his last visit - the longest
interval ever between trips. Diplomats in Yangon believe the military regime's
reluctance to allow the UN envoy to return to Myanmar is a clear sign that the
dialogue process is in real trouble. So Razali will be returning to Myanmar at a
very crucial time.
There has been no real contact between the two sides
for more than six months. In recent weeks there had been fears that the dialogue
process was degenerating into a war of words between the two sides, fought
through press conferences and press releases.
Four weeks ago, Suu Kyi
went on the offensive and for the first time since her release a year ago
publicly accused the military government of not being sincere about their
promises to introduce democratic reform. "I have come to the conclusion that the
SPDC [State Peace and Development Council, as the military government is called]
is not interested in national reconciliation," she told reporters in Yangon.
Since then there have been signs that the military government was
anxious to repair its relations with the opposition leader. These include the
release of more than 20 political prisoners more than a week ago.
Diplomats in Yangon also expected a face-to-face meeting to take place
between Suu Kyi and senior representatives of the military government, but this
does not appear to have happened.
It is unlikely to take place now, as
the opposition leader is touring Kachin state in the north of the country and is
not due back until a few days before Razali is scheduled to arrive in Yangon.
But even if the regime seems to have mellowed and agreed to allow Razali
to return to Yangon to talk to both sides, as yet there has been no sign that
Myanmar's top generals are prepared to start the serious political talks they
promised after the release of the opposition leader from house arrest.
According to UN officials, Razali hopes to able to convince them to do
just that on this trip. But Razali will have his work cut out for him.
"Ambassador Razali is likely to be exploring ways in which the two sides can
actively cooperate with each other as a preliminary stage before substantive
political negotiations," said a UN official.
The envoy is anxious to
find ways of moving the process on from the pure confidence-building stage to
active cooperation between them, which could lead to substantive talks.
Razali is likely to try to resurrect some of the recommendations he has
made to both sides in the past. "He's looking for a project or two on which both
sides can work together on," UN officials in New York said.
Razali is
believed to feel there is scope now to pursue this as the humanitarian crisis is
rapidly worsening and both sides realize Myanmar's desperate need for
humanitarian and development assistance.
Both the opposition leader and
the senior military officials say the two sides should cooperate on humanitarian
and development issues such as AIDS, health and education. "They [the generals]
have shown that they are not willing to cooperate with us in matters of
humanitarian aid," Suu Kyi told a news conference in Yangon last month.
"The government actively welcomes meaningful and constructive help in
all areas of national development - particularly in education, health care and
economic development," said Colonel Hla Min in a recent statement to the
international press.
Razali remains convinced that he can help all sides
in their reconciliation process - the government, the opposition and the ethnic
minorities.
Diplomats feel that the generals and Aung San Suu Kyi are
unable to talk to each other without some form of international mediation, and
that otherwise Myanmar's political deadlock will never be resolved.
UN
officials insist the organization has a very important role to play in all
conflict situations - not just in Myanmar - that goes beyond facilitation. In
recent months the international community has also begun to suggest that
Razali's role should be boosted.
Now Razali will have another
opportunity to see if he can help push the dialogue process forward.
Interestingly, the Myanmese authorities agreed to this last trip just as the
United States and the European Union are in the process of strengthening
economic sanctions against Yangon because of the lack of progress in the
dialogue process.
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