|
AFP News, 27
March 2000
Myanmar fetes Army Day with swipe at opposition YANGON, March 27 (AFP) -
Myanmar's military rulers celebrated Armed Forces Day Monday, accusing Aung San Suu Kyi's opposition of subversion and claiming foreign "colonialists" were bent on destroying the nation. In a typically combative speech, junta chairman Senior General Than Shwe used the annual day of homage to the armed forces to spell out a tough line against the junta's opponents at home and abroad. In a clear attack on the National League for Democracy (NLD) of Aung San Suu Kyi, he said "some organisations" were turning to "subversion" to further their political ends. "What is intentionally done with a narrow outlook without considering national interest will lead to undesirable consequences," Than Shwe told an audience of 6,000 soldiers lined up on a parade ground. He warned that groups disturbing the stablity of Myanmar "must be eliminated as the common enemy." It is now 10 years since the NLD won a general election which the military has refused to recognise. The party has since been the all but crushed in a concerted campaign by the junta. Diplomats here say thousands of members have been detained and forced to resign. Aung San Suu Kyi, who has spent years under house arrest still finds her movements severely restricted. The NLD was due to hold its own meeting later Monday. The army was founded by Aung San, the father of Aung San Suu Kyi who led Burma, as the country was then known to independence from Britain. Than Shwe also appealed to insurgent groups fighting the Yangon junta to follow former brothers in arms and sign ceasefire deals "and quickly join hands with the tatmadaw (army)." Myanmar's government sees the deals with a myriad of ethnic groups which formerly fought for autonomy of Yangon as its signal achievement. It argues that the initiative has restored peace and stability to the country. Critics however say many of the deals are little more than agreements by the junta to turn a blind eye to drugs cultivation by ethnic militias in return for an end to hostilities. The last major insurgent groups fighting the junta is the Karen National Union, which has been holed up in jungle bases along the Thai border for more than 50 years. The junta, known as the State Peace and Development Council, traditionally uses Army Day to call for national unity and to laud what it says are efforts to transform Myanmar into a dynamic nation. AFP News,
27 March 2000
Aung San Suu Kyi says victory in democracy struggle certain YANGON, March 27 (AFP) -
Myanmar's junta threatened to eliminate its political opponents on Monday but a defiant Aung San Suu Kyi predicted her "revolutionaries of democracy" would win a certain victory and overturn military rule. In a clear attack on the Nobel laureate's National League for Democracy (NLD), junta chairman Senior General Than Shwe accused political enemies of subversion, painting them as a tool of foreign "colonialists" bent on destroying the nation. He warned a select audience of 600 troops that groups which he claimed were disturbing the stability of Myanmar "must be eliminated as the common enemy." It is now 10 years since the NLD won a general election which the military has refused to recognise. The party has since been all but crushed in a concerted campaign by the junta. Aung San Suu Kyi later Monday gathered 200 supporters at her NLD headquarters in downtown Yangon, urging them to fight on with courage and perseverance for democratic change. "We are not ordinary revolutionaries, but revolutionaries for democracy and as such we must make sure that the means we use are compatible with the goal of democracy by seeing to it that they are based on democratic principles," she said. The NLD refers to March 27 as the 55th Resistance Day, marking the start of Burmese resistance to occupying Japanese armies. "Fifty-five years ago we started the resistance movement to get out from under the boots of the fascist Japanese ... today we are struggling to get out from under military dictatorship and achieve democracy," Aung San Suu Kyi said. "The 1988 revolutionary movement has not come to an end," she said, referring to a student uprising and predicting "victory is certain." The NLD meeting was conducted under the gaze of security agents who constantly keep watch on party headquarters. No attempt was made to intervene in the meeting. Than Shwe, the chairman of the military's self-styled State Peace and Development Council, appealed to insurgent groups fighting the Yangon junta to follow former brothers in arms and sign ceasefire deals "and quickly join hands with the tatmadaw (army)." The junta sees the deals with a myriad of ethnic groups which formerly fought for autonomy of Yangon as its signal achievement. It argues that the initiative has restored peace and stability to Myanmar. Critics however say many of the ceasefires are little more than agreements by the junta to turn a blind eye to drugs cultivation by ethnic militias in return for an end to hostilities. The last major insurgent group fighting the junta is the Karen National Union, which has been holed up in jungle bases along the Thai border for more than 50 years. The junta traditionally uses Armed Forces Day to call for national unity and to laud what it says are efforts to transform Myanmar into a dynamic nation. Than Shwe also took up a familiar line of attack against Western critics of Myanmar who charge the military is guilty of gross human rights violations. "Once the nation is rid of narrow racialist beliefs which are the legacy of colonialists, we will be rid of the danger of the union disintegrating and we will attain total peace." Burma gained independence from Britain in 1948, but was renamed Myanmar by the military decades later. BBC News,
27 March 2000
Burma warns opponents The chairman of the ruling junta in Burma, Senior General Than Shwe, has warned opponents of the military government that they will be "eliminated" if they threaten the country's stability. Speaking at a ceremony in Rangoon marking the 55th annual armed forces day he said: "Whoever, with narrow outlook, disturbs the stability and hinders the development of the nation must be eliminated as the common enemy." Than Shwe, also the prime minister and leader of the ruling State Peace and Development Council, accused foreign-backed opponents of the regime of trying to weaken the army and further their political ends. "What is done without considering the national interest will lead to undesirable consequences," he told the 6,000 troops, top generals and war veterans in attendance. Attack on opposition His comments were seen as a reference to the civilian opposition movement, the National League for Democracy (NLD), which is led by Aung San Suu Kyi. The NLD, which continues to push for its 1990 election victory to be honoured, held its own ceremony later in the day. Armed forces day marks the uprising by the army against Japanese occupation forces in World War II - a period when the army was led by Suu Kyi's father. The military has governed Myanmar since 1962. The current regime seized power in 1988 and has since doubled the number of troops. Over one third of the national budget is spent on the military. The regime has been widely accused of human rights abuses, including subjecting citizens to forced labour. It has also detained thousands of NLD members and kept Suu Kyi under house arrest for years. Than Shwe also called for national unity and appealed to armed insurgent groups fighting the junta in border areas to sign ceasefire deals "and quickly join hands with the tatmadaw (army)." South China Morning Post, 27
March 2000
Junta boss warns
'common enemy'
ASSOCIATED PRESS in Rangoon Burma's top general threatened to eliminate rivals
of the ruling military regime, as it marked the 55th annual Armed Forces Day
with a parade of thousands of troops in central Yangon Monday.
''Whoever, with narrow outlook, disturbs the stability and hinders the development of the nation must be eliminated as the common enemy,'' said Senior General Than Shwe, who also serves as prime minister and leader of the ruling State Peace and Development Council. General Than Shwe did not name any particular
group, but it was a clear reference to the National League for Democracy of Aung
San Suu Kyi, which continues to push the regime to honour its victory in 1990
general elections. The party was never allowed to take power.
At the morning ceremony, some 6,000 soldiers from
the army, navy and air force paraded in Resistance Park near the Burma capital's
towering Shwedagon Pagoda.
The event was attended by the regime's top
generals, as well as war veterans and military attaches from foreign
embassies.
The NLD was scheduled to hold its own ceremony in
the afternoon at the party's humble headquarters in the city.
Armed Forces Day commemorates the uprising by the
army of Burma against the Japanese occupation forces at the end of World War II.
The army was headed by Suu Kyi's father Aung San at the time.
In a characteristically belligerent 30-minute
address, General Than Shwe accused foreign-backed opponents of the regime of
trying to spoil its attempts at developing the country and undermining the
national interest.
''Today, pessimists depending on foreigners are
jealous of our Tatmadaw's [the armed forces] efforts to achieve all-around
development of the country, and are doing their utmost to weaken and break up
the Tatmadaw so they will be able to grab power,'' he said.
''What is done without considering the national
interest will lead to undesirable consequences.''
Burma has been governed by the military since 1962.
Since the current regime took power in 1988, troop strength has more than
doubled.
The regime has been widely accused of human rights
abuses, including subjecting citizens to forced labour.
General Than Shwe stressed the importance of
national unity, and invited armed groups still fighting the government in border
areas to reach peace deals as most other ethnic insurgencies have done over the
past decade.
''I hope some armed groups which still remain in
the jungles will understand the objective of national reconsolidation and ...
will quickly join hands with the Tatmadaw,'' he said.
Security was very tight at the parade. Roads were
blocked around Resistance Park and guests were made to undergo checks on
entering the park.
|