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HEADLINE -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Reuters - Myanmar pledges action as
kyat hits record low
AFP - India acts to block wave
of illegal Myanmar immigrants
AFP - Thailand's drugs scourge
spreading to the rural south: military
AFP - Myanmar's 8-8-88 uprising
to be marked quietly after rebel sieges
Shan Herald Agency - Tangled Ties
Xinhua - Thai Deputy
PM on Trade with, Investment in Myanmar
BKK Post - Spy security
threat
Japan Times - Narita security guards accused of beating detained foreigners
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- INTERNATIONAL
PROTEST AGAINST JAPANESE GOVERNMENT ON AUG 8.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- WIRE:08/07/2000 03:19:00
ET
Myanmar pledges action as kyat hits record low YANGON, August 7 (Reuters) - Myanmar"s kyat currency hit a record
low against the dollar on the black market on Monday after a prolonged slide due
to inflation, speculation and the weakness of the Thai baht, dealers in Yangon
said. The kyat"s fall has prompted the country"s military government to pledge
"market friendly intervention" to halt its slide. A commentary in the official
Myanmar-language paper Kyemon on Friday said the authorities would step in to
control prices. "It is customary for the government to carry out
"market-friendly intervention" before the emergence of a well-developed market
economy," the commentary said. State-run papers in Myanmar are considered
mouthpieces of the government. On the black market, the kyat was quoted at 385
to the dollar on Monday. It was quoted at 365 per dollar-denominated Foreign
Exchange Certificate (FEC), the currency issued to tourists. The official
exchange rate is six kyat to the dollar. The kyat"s previous black-market record
low was 384 to the dollar in August 1998. Myanmar"s economy remains tightly
controlled, despite the introduction of some market reforms in 1988 after 26
years of central planning. The economy is commodity-based and relies heavily on
the export of rice, pulses and prawns. "There is no objection to raising prices
to some extent as required by the situation in the market," the Kyemon
commentary said. But it said prices were being deliberately distorted by
political opponents and unscrupulous businesspeople. "Political opportunists and
their followers as well as greedy businesspeople are fabricating all sorts of
rumours to disrupt the market by causing inflation," Kyemon said. "The
government will not look on indifferently in such a situation." Consumers were
advised to help keep prices under control by being thrifty. Giving an example of
"market-friendly intervention," Kyemon said the government was distributing
petrol and diesel at subsidised prices. The paper said fuel subsidies cost the
government about four million dollars per year. Prices of gold also have been on
the rise since the government raised the salaries of the service personnel five
to eight times effective in April to try to keep up with inflation. Gold dealers
say they were warned not to exceed a price of 54,000 kyats per tickle (0.525
ounce) of 20-carat bar, compared with a price of 51,500 kyats per tickle in
March. FECs were introduced in 1993 so that tourists did not have to accept the
official kyat exchange rate.
Monday, August 7 1:34 PM SGT
India acts to block wave of
illegal Myanmar immigrants
GUWAHATI, India, Aug 7 (AFP) - Indian troops have arrested more than 150
Myanmar nationals in the past week as part of a new campaign of "zero tolerance"
towards illegal immigrants, senior officials said Monday.
Most of the arrests took place in the far northeastern state of Mizoram, where officials say Myanmar drug smugglers and gun runners are taking advantage of the porous border. "The problem is indeed very serious and we are taking all possible steps to push back the illegal Burmese infiltrators", Mizoram Home Minister Tawnluia (eds:one name) told AFP by phone from the state capital Aizawl. "Since last week, we have arrested at least 150 people -- most of them drug peddlers or involved in other criminal activities in Mizoram," Tawnluia said. "Over the years, we have pushed back lots of illegal immigrants and this new trend of Myanmar nationals trying to vitiate the atmosphere will not be tolerated." According to police sources, most of the infiltrators sneak into the border districts of Saiha and Champhai in eastern Mizoram before making their way to Aizawl. "The Myanmar nationals and the Mizos share lots of things in common, like identical features, which makes the task of the security forces difficult," said one senior police official. "Some of them belong to the same Mongol stock as those of the Mizos and many of them speak the same language as well." Pressure groups and political leaders have expressed serious concern over the amount of drugs being smuggled across the border. The problem of drug addiction in Mizoram has assumed alarming proportions in recent years, with needle sharing among intravenous drug users accounting for a sharp jump in the number of HIV-infected youths. "The infiltrators are bringing with them hard drugs like heroin and marijuana which they can sell at a reasonable profit in Mizoram," the police official said. Monday, August 7 9:32 AM SGT Thailand's drugs scourge spreading to the rural south: military HAT YAI, Thailand, Aug 7 (AFP) - Amphetamine addiction, which has caused havoc in Thailand's cities and been named its top national security threat, has now spread to the rural south, the army says. "I believe more than 50 percent of villages in the south already have a drugs problem," said Lieutenant General Narong Denudom, the commander of Thailand's Fourth Army which patrols the region. "We are very concerned because drug use is spreading rapidly through the community," he said, adding that the situation was only going to worsen. In a region where many toil in rubber plantations and in the fishing industry, druglords are finding it easy to recruit a network of pushers, he said. "Because people in the south are poor, it's easy to lure them into the trade." Another factor behind the boom in amphetamines -- known as "ya baa" or "crazy medicine" here -- is an efficient new smuggling route which extends from the drug factories in Myanmar to southern Thai ports. The Thai army's push to close off the rugged northern reaches of the Myanmar border to drug smugglers has forced the trade to be diverted, by air and sea, to the town of Ranong on the southernmost tip of the border. "Because the Third Army has cut off the flow of drugs in the north they are now flooding into the country via Ranong," said Narong. From there, they are distributed around the southern provinces and also by road to Bangkok. Bustling Hat Yai, the main southern city, is buffeted not just by amphetamines from the north, but also by ecstasy, which is shipped up from Malaysia, the army commander said. But amphetamines, pumped out by ethnic rebel groups operating makeshift labs inside the Myanmar border, remains the number-one problem, according to Thai and United States drug-control authorities. The Thai military estimates 600 million amphetamine pills flooded into Thailand last year across its 2,000 kilometer (1,240 mile) border with Myanmar. Community leaders say drug addiction is reaching crisis proportions, with more than 600,000 Thai youths reportedly hooked on cheap supplies of ya baa. The narcotics control board has announced a plan to tackle the problem at the community level by targeting a quarter of the country's 71,500 villages to ensure they are drug-free by the end of next year. Under a three-year plan, it aims to eventually reach all those living in rural Thailand. But an army source familiar with operations in the south was critical of the government's response to the drugs crisis, saying it had failed to take any steps to prevent it from spreading across the country. "The drugs problem is of great concern, because we never take active measures to stop it, we always wait for the problem to come and then we try to solve it," he told AFP. A united approach was needed, just as would be mounted against any other threat to national security, he said. "Although we are confident we can solve the drugs problem in our area, to get rid of drugs from the country, we need to take a much more active approach." Monday, August 7 4:26 PM SGT Myanmar's 8-8-88 uprising to be marked quietly after rebel sieges BANGKOK, Aug 7 (AFP) - Myanmar opposition groups have been forced to scale down Tuesday's commemorations of the bloody 1988 student uprising in Yangon in light of the violent rebel protests of the past year. For the first time there are no plans for a protest outside the Myanmar embassy here, which was the target of a siege mounted by rebel gunmen last October. Only low-key private ceremonies have been organised. "After the embassy siege, for security reasons we don't want to have any misunderstandings between Thai authorities and ourselves," said the All Burma Students' Democratic Front (ABSDF) spokesman Sonny Mahinder. "We don't want any demonstration or protests in Thailand. This is the first time we have have marked it in this way," he said, adding that its members would commemorate the day at their headquarters on the Thai-Myanmar border. On August 8, 1988, hundreds of democracy demonstrators were gunned down, paving the way for a junta to take power from longtime military strongman Ne Win the next month. Last year's anniversary of the "four eights" uprising was held under tight security in Yangon, but passed off quietly. In Bangkok, however, more than 200 exiled students slashed their arms with knives and soaked Myanmar flags with blood in a protest outside the Myanmar embassy. ALTSEAN-Burma, a network of activist groups, said the siege, and the bloody occupation of a provincial hospital in January where 10 rebel gunmen were killed, had forced a re-think in strategy for activists since then. "There's been a significant crackdown on public events organised to support the Burmese cause for democracy by the Thai authorities. Protests and public demonstrations have been quite frowned on," said coordinator Debbie Stothard. "At this stage a public demonstration in Thailand would be rather provocative." But Stothard said the crackdown had also had a positive effect, by forcing activists to become "far more sophisticated and more thoughtful in the way they carry out their activities." However, she warned that by targeting groups who promoted non-violent means of protest, Thai authorities risked "making trouble for themselves" by pushing activists underground. Stothard said some democracy groups were planning to mark this year's anniversary with religious ceremonies to honour those killed 12 years ago, rather than hold public demonstrations. "It's all going to be a low-key and a far more thoughtful commemoration," she said. Outside Thailand, however, protests outside Myanmar embassies will be held as usual, with demonstrations planned in the United States, Japan, Australia, Canada, South Korea and India, the ABSDF's Mahinder said. Other activist groups said the Japanese embassies in the United States and Australia would also be targeted because of Tokyo's alleged financial and political support of the junta. On the eve of last year's anniversary, Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi called for reconciliation and urged the army and the people "to work hand in hand to achieve democracy". Her National League for Democracy won resoundingly in 1990 elections but the military refuses to recognise the result and keeps the Nobel laureate under constant military surveillance at her Yangon home. Shan Herald Agency
Tangled Ties
August 7, 2000 A new style of military leadership in Thailand has complicated relations
with Burma, as efforts to sort out responsibility for the two countries’ drug
trade continue.
Long gone, it seems, are the days when a quick telephone call from a Thai
general to the War Office in Rangoon was all it took to defuse tensions between
Thailand and Burma. These days, according to a senior Thai army officer who
recently led a group of journalists on a tour of the Thai-Burma border, the
hotline that once linked military commanders on both sides of the border is a
thing of the past. "Relations (with Burma) are very bad," he admitted to
reporters as he guided them through the battle zone that lies at the center of a
war of words between the two countries.
Relations between the two armies have been in a tailspin since earlier this
year, when Thailand’s army chief Gen Surayud Chulanont started accusing Burma’s
ruling junta, the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), of doing little to
stem the flow of drugs, especially methamphetamines, that for years has been
flooding Thailand from areas inside Burma. But the uneasy relationship, under
increasing strain since Surayud’s appointment to the Thai Army’s top post in
1998, had already begun to show signs of serious trouble last year, when a
series of clashes between the Thai and Burmese navies claimed lives on both
sides. To make matters worse, the destruction of a pagoda on Salon Island,
believed to have been built by the SPDC’s army chief Gen Maung Aye, undoubtedly
touched a sensitive nerve in a military relationship that for years had been
based less on national security policies than on personal ties between leading
generals.
Needless to say, Surayud, who is widely respected both at home and abroad
as a military professional, is not regarded by his Burmese counterparts as a
"real friend of Burma"—an epithet earned by some of his predecessors, including
Gen (later Prime Minister) Chavalit Yongchaiyudh, who was among the first to
embrace Burma’s self-declared rulers when they seized power in 1988. After
assuming Thailand’s top military post, Surayud took the bold step of giving the
Foreign Ministry authority over relations with Burma, breaking with the
tradition of Thai army chiefs serving as de facto ambassadors to Rangoon. Now
forced to deal directly with Foreign Ministry officials rather than like-minded
military men, the Burmese generals were also reportedly chagrined by their
failure to anticipate Surayud’s appointment. According to a well-placed source
in Burma, the SPDC compiled a list of powerful Thai generals who were likely to
succeed Surayud’s immediate forerunner, Gen Chettha Thanajaro, who had been
especially close to Rangoon. Surayud, apparently, was not on it—or if he was, he
certainly was not the choice the Burmese generals would have made.
Now Surayud is concentrating on re-building the Thai Armed Forces and
repairing its image, which has long been tarnished by accusations of
unprofessionalism and excessive involvement in areas outside its proper sphere
of influence. The first order of business has been to expand Thailand’s military
strength by buying items on a long shopping list of state-of-the-art weapons,
including F-16 jet fighters and Black Hawk helicopters. This year, for the first
time, Thailand also extended its joint military exercises with US forces to
include maneuvers near its volatile western border with Burma. As the buffer
zone created by anti-Rangoon rebels based along the Thai-Burma border becomes an
increasingly fragile shield, Thai leaders, both civilian and military, have come
to recognize their neighbors to the west as Thailand’s single greatest security
threat. Although only ceasefire groups involved in the drug trade have been
targeted as an immediate concern, Surayud’s criticism of Rangoon’s failure to
stop the flow of drugs into Thailand has also raised the possibility of a
head-on collision between the two country’s militaries.
The Burmese regime, for its part, is not sitting idly by as Thailand beefs
up it combat strength. According to the Democratic Voice of Burma, a
Norway-based Burmese opposition radio station, Burma and its major military ally
and arms supplier, China, are planning to hold joint military exercises in the
near future. If this happens, it will be the first time that the Burmese
tatmadaw, or armed forces, has allowed foreign troops to operate on its
turf.
"Burma believes it can beat Thailand anytime," said a Thai army officer
during a recent press briefing at the border check point of Que Par Wok. In the
eyes of Burmese soldiers, Thailand is nge naing, a natural inferior that can
always be outdone. Until recently, Burmese troops or rebels aided by Rangoon
demonstrated their disdain for the Thai Army by regularly carrying out raids on
refugee camps and villages on Thai soil. Astonishingly, Thailand’s former army
chiefs failed to prevent these brazen incursions, resulting in a loss of public
confidence in the Thai military.
Thai Deputy PM on Trade with, Investment
in Myanmar
YANGON (Aug. 6) XINHUA -
Bilateral trade between Myanmar and Thailand is progressing well in spite of the
fact that both countries' economies suffered from certain crisis in the last
couple of years, said Thai Deputy Prime Minister and Commerce Minister Supachai
Panitchpakdi Saturday.
Meeting with the press at the end of the second session of the Myanmar-Thai
Joint Trade Commission (JTC) here Saturday evening, Supachai noted that like
last year, the positive trade expansion for some years exceeded 20 percent,
pointing out that highly commendable improvement was brought about which is
tremendous jump in the export from Myanmar to Thailand of more than 76 percent
in 1999.
It helps to narrow the gap of trade between the two countries, he said,
hoping to see that the bilateral trade be more balanced.
Thailand has large surplus in trade with Myanmar. He believes that there
will be more import demand of goods from Myanmar to Thailand, emphasizing that
the Thai government has placed the highest priority to cross-border trade with
Myanmar.
He disclosed that Thailand has set up a Cross-Border Trade Promotion
Committee, which he chairs.
He stressed the need for both sides to improve the payment system and
banking relations to expedite the implementation of banking agreements and
memorandums of understanding signed in the last few years.
He recommends more banks to be involved in the MOUs in addition to the
existing only one Thai bank in the banking process dealing with the private
sector of the two countries.
He said Thailand would help Myanmar solve its trade deficit which is likely
brought about by allowing more open trade.
On investment, Supachai went on to say that Thailand encourages more Thai
investment into Myanmar, saying that Thailand is now the third largest investor
in the country and agreeing that there would be more rooms for investment
between the two countries. At the moment Thailand is on the verge of signing an
agreement on investment promotion and protection, especially in the areas of
propagation of seeds for various types of agricultural products and
agro-industry.
As to tourism, he said Thailand would help Myanmar promote tourist in-flow
by upgrading coastal Dawei area in Southern part of the country to a tourist
spot.
With regard to fishery, he said that Thailand has been providing assistance
to Myanmar in the marine shrimp propagation project until its completion, adding
that the implementation has been quite successful.
The two-day second session of the Myanmar-Thai JTC, which began on Friday,
was attended by Myanmar delegation, led by Commerce Minister Brigadier-General
Pyi Sone, and its Thai counterpart, headed by Supachai who arrived here on
Thursday for the session.
Bangkok Post - Aug 7,
2000.
Inbrief - Spy security threat Wassana Nanuam At least five Burmese spies are caught entering Thailand every month under
the guise of illegal immigrants and they pose a threat to national security,
said a military intelligence gathering unit.
The unit identified two groups of spies. One gathers economic information
about Thailand and the other group spies on their fellow countrymen, said the
Fourth Army Region's intelligence gathering unit.
On February 12 this year, four Burmese spies were arrested along the border
in Ranong. However, only one was prosecuted in court as he was found in
possession of a list of orders from a Burmese military unit.
The infantry task force said the number of Burmese illegal immigrants in
Ranong had now reached 100,000, compared to 35,000 ten years ago.
The Japan Times: Aug. 8,
2000
Narita security guards accused of beating detained foreigners By TAKUYA ASAKURA
Staff writer Foreigners who are refused entry to Japan at Narita airport have been the
subject of violent attacks from security guards with a private company who are
forcing them to hand over expenses to cover the cost of guarding them, as well
as for their meals and accommodation, until they are deported, a former company
official told a news conference on Monday.
Former employees of I'M Inc., a security firm based in Narita, Chiba Prefecture, said they were encouraged by the company to make detainees being held pending deportation at lodging facilities operated by the Justice Ministry's Immigration Bureau cover the costs for their detention. The former employees were speaking on condition of anonymity. Such expenses are normally collected by security firms on behalf of and at
the behest of the airline that brought the individuals to Japan.
Representatives of I'M Inc. said its employees have never committed any
violence against individuals who are detained.
The Asahi Shimbun reported Friday that two Tunisian men allege they were
physically abused and money was extorted from them by the company's security
guards en route to a facility at the airport which houses deportees refused
entry to Japan.
Thameur Mouez, 21, and Thameur Hichem, 20, who arrived in Japan aboard a
Turkish Airlines plane on June 20, claimed guards forced them to pay $600 after
kicking and throwing them against a wall at the security company's office at the
airport.
The guards returned the money after the Tunisians filed complaints with
police. Police said the case is under investigation.
The immigration law stipulates that people who are refused entry are to be
deported, and the airline that brought them to Japan is also responsible for
transporting them out of the country.
In 1997, about 12,000 foreigners were refused entry at airports and ports
across the country.
Although the Narita facility was owned by the Immigration Bureau, airlines
and approved security companies are responsible for the detainees, according to
immigration officials.
These passengers are ordered to remain at the immigration facilities or
designated hotels if they cannot depart on the day of their arrival.
Deportees are responsible for covering the costs of their stay until they
depart, including fees for security guards as well as accommodation and food
expenses, according to the rules of the International Air Transport
Association.
"Security companies collect such costs from deportees under contracts with
airlines," I'M said through lawyer Haruo Kobayashi, adding that the company has
informed its employees that they cannot force deportees to pay such
expenses.
A former employee who worked for the firm for the last three years,
however, said the company is eager to collect money directly from deportees
because they can get more out of individual detainees than they can by charging
the expenses to airlines.
Meanwhile, human rights groups, including Amnesty International, asked the
ministry on Monday to consider legal measures so that the rights of detainees at
such facilities are fully guaranteed.
They also claimed that the ministry should be obligated to adequately
monitor the treatment of detainees.
An Immigration Bureau official, who received the request, said he is aware
of various problems concerning the facilities, adding that he is not in a
position to comment on revising the law.
"If there are any concrete measures (to solve the problem), we are ready to
listen to opinions and will study them," he said.
Experts on immigration affairs have often criticized the Japanese
government for being irresponsible over the treatment of deportees, pointing to
violence against deportees and mistreatment at holding facilities.
"It is irresponsible for the Immigration Bureau to say they have nothing to
do with treatment of the detainees while they order them to be physically
restrained," said Hideki Morihara, of Amnesty's Japan branch.
Lawyer Koji Kodama called for alterations to the current system, which
gives private companies the task of detaining deportees.
------------------------------------- (Send your protest letter to Japanese Government and Japanese Bussiness Companies before August 8. Stage demonstration in front of Japanese Embassies around the world on Aug 8.) |