Monday, February 7 7:45 PM SGT

Portugal Pushing EU Dialogue With Myanmar

BANGKOK (AP)--The European Union wants to include Myanmar in a high-level meeting with Southeast Asian countries, despite the European group's opposition to Yangon's military government, the Portuguese ambassador to Thailand said Monday.

Portugal is pushing the plan to set up a meeting of senior officials of the EU and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations - which includes Myanmar - while Lisbon holds the EU council presidency, Jose Tadeu Soares said.

The EU imposes diplomatic sanctions on Myanmar because of the military government's failure to turn over power to a democratically elected government and its poor human rights record. They include a ban on official high-level contacts.

That makes it difficult and in many circumstances impossible to hold high-level meetings with Asean, which refuses to exclude Myanmar.

The proposed meeting of senior level officials from the two blocs could be the prelude to a summit of ministerial level officials, though no such outcome was guaranteed, Soares said at a news conference.

Soares acknowledged that trying to hold high-level meetings between the EU and Asean was difficult, as EU has been "very critical of the policies of some Asean countries." He didn't specifically name Myanmar in his initial remarks but in response to questions made clear that was the country to which he was referring.

Soares said the Portuguese position - "not shared by all the other Europeans all the time" - was that "we should keep talking even if sometimes we have to say unpleasant things."

In March last year, an EU-Asean ministerial meeting scheduled to be held in Berlin was canceled when the EU refused to lift its visa ban on Myanmar officials.

Kyodo News - BANGKOK, Feb. 7

Myanmar deploys 1,500 troops near Thai border

    Myanmar deployed about 1,500 extra troops along its border with
Thailand in the northern province of Mae Hong Son over the weekend, a
Thai military spokesman said Monday.
     The troop deployment appeared to be in preparation for an attack 
against the Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP), Lt. Gen. Sanan 
Kajornklam told Kyodo News.

Bangkok Post - Feb 7, 2000.

BORDER FIGHTING

Fleeing rebels will be disarmed

Refugees welcome, but no guns allowed

Yuwadee Tunyasiri

Thailand will allow Karen civilians fleeing military skirmishes in Burma to take temporary refuge on humanitarian grounds, but all guerrillas of the rebel God's Army will be disarmed and held under detention.

Kachadpai Burusphat, secretary-general of the National Security Council, said that authorities would not allow foreign forces to carry weapons on Thai soil.

However, Thailand would permit them entry if these forces agreed to lay down their arms, he said.

When the situation in Burma returns to normal, these refugees would be deported, he said.

His remarks came in the wake of reports that Burmese troops had taken the God's Army base at Kamaplaw after intensive shelling by artillery, forcing civilians and fighters to flee.

The Kamaplaw base, opposite Ratchaburi province, was reportedly overrun by Burmese government troops.

Supreme Commander Gen Mongkol Ampornpisit continued to give reassurance yesterday that the fighting continuing between Burmese forces and minority groups along the border would not affect Thai people.

On the possible influx of Karen civilians, the supreme commander said all civilians would be given temporary shelter and they would be under the care of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees.

Veerachai Naewbunnian, deputy permanent secretary for the Interior Ministry, said there were about 1,700 Burmese, most of them dissident students, at the Maneeloy holding centre in Ratchaburi

The US embassy has sent officials to interview those refugees to determine their suitability for inclusion in a third-country resettlement programme, Mr Veerachai said.

Since the hospital takeover in Ratchaburi by some dissident students and God's Army rebels, Thai authorities have closely monitored the movements of Burmese students at Maneeloy, according to the deputy permanent secretary, who is responsible for security affairs at the refugee holding centre.

Bangkok Post - Feb 7, 2000.

THAI-BURMESE RELATIONS

Troops on red alert after intrusion

Six Burmese soldiers held for questioning

Sunan Ochakachorn, Chewin Sattha and Aphaluck Bhatiasevi

Tension was high along the border in Mae Hong Son last night, with the mobilisation of fully armed troops with artillery at Ban Nam Pieng Din pass, following the arrest of six armed Burmese soldiers who intruded on Thai soil.

The Burmese were seized and taken for questionning at the 7th Infantry Regiment. In an aggressive response, Burmese troops mobilised around the Unit 3607 Thai Rangers base.

Though the Burmese soldiers said they crossed the border in search of food, security officials believed they were on a mission to abduct Karen leaders from the nearby Ban Nai Soi refugee camp, which houses 13,000 Karen.

The mobilisation of Burmese soldiers around the ranger base promp-ted Col Sathit Srisuvan of the 7th Infantry Regiment to send more troops, along with another three 105mm artillery pieces to the Ban Nam Pieng Din pass in Muang district.

Meanwhile, it was believed that about 100 God's Army members were among the 242 refugees who entered Thai territory at Ratchaburi's Suan Phueng district yesterday.

Though reports were still to be confirmed, officials said they suspect most of the men, young and old, were Karen militants who had left their weapons and mingled with villagers entering Thailand.

Villagers at Ban Tham Hin who went into the jungles yesterday afternoon said they saw about 100 God's Army men at the foot of a nearby hill.

About 50 patrol policemen later surrounded the passage that was earlier used by the villagers to send food to the Karen rebels.

Following the breaking of God's Army's base at Kamaplaw, about 400 Karen, most of them women and children, entered Ban Huay Sud in Suan Phueng district.

They have been moved in with the other 600 refugees at Ban Huay Khok Moo in the same district.

Deputy Prime Minister Korn Dabbaransi, also health minister, said he would consult with Interior Minister Sanan Kachornprasart immediately on ways the refugees could be moved out of the country, as they posed a security risk.

"We've had enough of this," Mr Korn said.

The Health Ministry has been spending about 200 million baht every year on the health of refugees and illegal immigrants.

He said the country has suffered under the re-emergence of communicable diseases like malaria and elephantiasis, which had previously been under control but were returning with the refugees.

The Nation - Feb 7, 2000.

2,400 packed into immigration cells

SOME 2,400 illegal immigrants - three times the recommended number - were yesterday packed into the detention centre at the Immigration Police headquarters.

They get insufficient food and barely have space to sit. On Saturday night, one female detainee had a miscarriage.

The detainees, mostly Burmese, have been detained as part of stepped-up security measures to prevent any terrorist acts during next weekend's United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.

Immigration police commissioner Pol Lt Gen Chidchai Wansathit said the Office of the National Police had made a deliberate effort to reduce crimes by illegal immigrants. Immigration Police have been arresting all illegal immigrants they have come across since Feb 2.

Chidchai said the Immigration Police's detention centre could accommodate 800 detainees at a time. But on Feb 2 about 1,000 immigrants were arrested. And yesterday morning the number of detainees totalled 2,400.

Chidchai said those arrested were meant to be moved to other prisons or deported. About 1,000 of the Burmese detainees were yesterday due to be transported in ten buses to the Thai-Burmese border.

The centre is a three-storey building with six detention rooms and nine bathrooms, located in Bangkok's Soi Suanploo area. Detainees are separated by sex.

Permission has been sought to move some detainees to Bangkhen Private Police School. The school's detention cells, however, accommodate only about 350 detainees, Chidchai revealed.

Reporters had a chance yesterday to witness a moment when food - that was found to be insufficient - was served. The detainees struggled to get their share, causing temporary turmoil in the cells.

Warders at the centre said the detainees were mainly Burmese, Cambodian and Laotian. Most of them also suffer from respiratory diseases.

BY SAOWALAK PUMYAEM and

AMORNRAT SA-ARDSORN