|
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HEADLINE -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- AP - Amnesty group, U.S. condemn police action
against Suu Kyi
Reuters - World anger mounts as Myanmar blocks
Suu Kyi
Reuters - EU asks Myanmar to let opposition
chief move freely
Reuters - France urges Burma to let Aung San Suu
Kyi go free
AFP - Aung San Suu Kyi's ordeal -- 12 years and
counting
Channel NewsAsia - Myanmar Karen rebels look to SAR model AP - Groups Condemn Suu Kyi Detention
AP - Myanmar Cops Block Suu Kyi
Trip
The Times of India - India, Myanmar meet on
border management
The Times - Burma dissident in car protest
The Nation - Outrage grows over Suu Kyi road
block
BBC - Backlash over Suu Kyi
detention
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NEWS FROM JAPAN -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Voice of Burma - Burmese pro-democracy
activists rally for road-blocked Suu Kyi
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BURMA RELATED NEWS -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- WIRE:08/26/2000 03:14:00 ET
Amnesty group, U.S. condemn police action against Suu Kyi BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) _
Amnesty International has urged Myanmar"s military government to allow
pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi to travel unhindered, denouncing her
detention outside the capital as "general harassment" by the authorities. In a
statement late Friday, the London-based human rights group said the three-day
standoff between Suu Kyi and the government is another example of the military"s
attempt to stamp out "all peaceful opposition activities" in Myanmar, also known
as Burma. Winner of the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize, Suu Kyi was stopped by security
forces Thursday in Dala, a suburb outside the capital city of Yangon. She and
other party members were driving into the countryside for organizational work.
She was asked to return to Yangon, but refused and has spent the last two nights
in a Toyota. It was Suu Kyi"s first attempt to leave Yangon in two years. In
similar standoffs with the military in 1998, she remained in her car for nearly
six days on one occasion and for 13 days on another. "This level of surveillance
and intimidation is all part of the general harassment" by the government
against Suu Kyi"s National League for Democracy party, said Donna Guest of
Amnesty International. The NLD chairman, Aung Shwe, wrote Friday to Myanmar"s
military leader, Gen. Than Swe, urging him to allow Suu Kyi to continue with her
travels. She and the others "have been illegally and unlawfully prevented by the
military dictators which amounts to criminal act," Aung Shwe said in the letter,
a copy of which was given to reporters in Yangon on Saturday. "The NLD as a
legal political party has the right to (perform) its legal party organization
works," the letter said. Suu Kyi"s car and a pickup carrying 12 party supporters
have been herded into a small lane, which has been blocked by military trucks on
both ends, witnesses said. Aung Shwe"s letter said tires of both vehicles were
deflated. The government claimed Suu Kyi was prevented from going any further
for her own protection, saying the area she was planning to visit was rife with
threats of violence by separatist insurgents. Security problems have rarely been
reported in Kungyangon, 30 miles south of Yangon, where Suu Kyi was planning to
go. The National League for Democracy accused the government of detaining her
illegally. Guest noted that the State Peace and Development Council, as the
military government is called, has frequently claimed that Myanmar is almost
entirely free from insurgent activity and is a secure and stable country.
"Amnesty International urges the SPDC to allow (Suu Kyi) and other NLD members
to travel freely," she said. A Myanmar government statement released late Friday
said Suu Kyi and her companions "continue to rest" in Dala and "the local
authorities make every effort to ensure their comfort and safety." On Friday,
the United States and Britain said they deplored the military rulers" action.
"The U.S. condemns this abridgment of Aung San Suu Kyi"s right to freedom of
movement and her right to visit whomever she chooses," State Department
spokesman Philip Reeker said. Reporters have not been allowed to go to Dala,
which is separated from the capital by the Yangon River. Journalists were
stopped by security forces at the ferry crossing and politely told to go back.
On Saturday, two National League for Democracy cars waited on the Yangon side of
the ferry crossing in case Suu Kyi decided to return. Residents coming from Dala
said there was little traffic on the roads in the suburb. Suu Kyi is frequently
at loggerheads with the military government, which has ruled this Southeast
Asian nation with an iron fist since crushing a pro-democracy uprising she
helped lead in 1988. Suu Kyi was put under house arrest in 1989. The order was
lifted in 1995, but her movements remain restricted. The government also refuses
to honor the results of the 1990 general elections in which her party won a
landslide.
WIRE:08/26/2000 07:37:00 ET
World anger mounts as Myanmar blocks Suu Kyi YANGON, Aug 26 (Reuters) -
Opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi defied a request by Myanmar"s military
government to return home on Saturday and prepared to spend a third cramped
night in her car beside the road where it was stopped by police. The 55-year-old
Nobel laureate and more than a dozen members of her National League for
Democracy (NLD) were waved down on Thursday as they headed south of Yangon in
two vehicles, halting Suu Kyi"s first bid to leave the capital since another
roadside standoff two years ago. That standoff ended after 13 days when
deteriorating health and dehydration forced her to end her protest and return
home in an ambulance. As international condemnation of the treatment of Suu Kyi
mounted, the government said she had been prevented from travelling for her own
safety and was continuing to "rest" in the town of Dala. It said travel in the
area was dangerous. "Until safety conditions improve, Daw Suu Kyi is visiting
Dala, a small but charming town which is 10 minutes by boat from Yangon," the
government said in a statement. Suu Kyi left her residence in the capital on
Thursday and crossed the Yangon river by ferry before setting off with several
colleagues in two vehicles to meet supporters south of the city. POLICE, DOCTORS
ON STANDBY Witnesses said the group"s vehicles were parked a short distance off
the road where they were stopped. Nearby stood an ambulance and a truckload of
police. The government said that local authorities and residents were providing
Suu Kyi and her group with food and drink. Police and a government medical team
were on the spot around the clock to "ensure her maximum comfort, welfare and
safety," it added. "The government encourages Daw Suu Kyi to return home and
continue her political activities in a more secure environment in Yangon," it
said. "She and her companions remain free to return to their homes at any time,
or to continue staying by the roadside as long as the conditions remain safe."
The NLD, which won elections in May 1990 by a landslide but has never been
allowed to govern, said it had sent a letter to the authorities on Friday to
protest about Suu Kyi"s treatment. "If the health of the group suffers because
of a lack of food and water this is the full responsibility of those blocking
them," the NLD said in a statement. It demanded that Suu Kyi and her companions
be allowed to continue their journey, echoed by governments around the world.
"The United States deplores the government of Burma"s refusal to allow Aung San
Suu Kyi and other National League of Democracy leaders to travel freely in their
own country," the U.S. State Department said in a statement. "Freedom of
movement is a fundamental, internationally recognised right. Its denial can only
increase the existing tensions in Burma." The statement said the United States
was concerned about the health and safety of Suu Kyi"s group and would hold the
Myanmar authorities directly accountable for their welfare. The European Union
and British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook called on the government to open a
dialogue with Suu Kyi. Suu Kyi was under house arrest for six years until 1995
and her movements remain severely restricted. In 1998, she twice spent several
days in her car after being blocked by police when trying to leave Yangon.
WIRE:08/26/2000 08:15:00 ET
EU asks Myanmar to let opposition chief move freely PARIS, Aug 26 (Reuters) - The
European Union urged Myanmar on Saturday to restore freedom of movement for
opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi. "The EU
presidency reiterates its constant demand, as well as that of its European
partners, that the restrictions on the freedom of movement of the
secretary-general of the National League for Democracy (NLD) be lifted, " said a
statement available on the web site of the French presidency of the EU. The EU
also said it was worried about information concerning Suu Kyi, who was reported
to have been blocked in her car outside the Myanmar capital Yangon in the
company of other members of the NLD. The EU reiterated the "importance it
attaches to the establishment of a dialogue between the Burmese (Myanmar)
authorities and Mrs Aung San Suu Kyi"s NLD, as well as with other democratic
forces and national minorities." "Only this dialogue can allow Burma to progress
along the road to democratisation and national reconciliation."
WIRE:08/26/2000 11:03:00 ET
France urges Burma to let Aung San Suu Kyi go free PARIS, Aug 26 (Reuters) -
France urged Myanmar on Saturday to let opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize
winner Aung San Suu Kyi move freely in her own country, joining calls from the
United States and the European Union. Suu Kyi has been locked in a roadside
standoff with police since Friday when her car was stopped while leaving the
capital Yangon. "France condemns the restrictions on the freedom of movement of
Mrs Aung San Suu Kyi and other members of the National League for Democracy
(NLD)," a French Foreign Ministry statement said. It said France was asking
Burma to "immediately end the current situation and to give them back their
freedom of movement without delay." It said France held Burma"s authorities
"accountable for the safefy and health" of Mrs Aung San Suu Kyi. The European
Union and the United States have also called on Burma to lift the travel
restrictions on Aung San Suu Kyi.
Saturday, August 26 8:25 PM SGT
Aung San Suu Kyi running low on supplies as showdown drags on YANGON, Aug 26 (AFP) -
Myanmar's junta was preventing food and water from reaching opposition leader
Aung San Suu Kyi as she prepared to spend a third night camped in a car outside
Yangon in a showdown with the authorities, her party said Saturday.
The National League for Democracy (NLD) said Aung San Suu Kyi and her
entourage were running out of supplies and appealed for help from local people
in the township where the group was halted Thursday.
"If the health of those being blocked be impaired by lack of food and water
... this is the entire responsibility of those who have stopped them," the NLD
central executive committee said in a letter to the military regime.
"We demand that the blockade be immediately removed and the NLD leaders be
allowed to proceed to their desired destination."
The withholding of supplies and the regime's refusal to allow Aung San Suu
Kyi to go about legitimate party business were "criminal acts", it said.
The Nobel laureate sparked the stand-off Thursday when she left Yangon for
a meeting of the party's youth wing in the outlying town of Kawhmu, in defiance
of an order which confines her to the capital.
It was her first attempt to travel outside Yangon since a dramatic 13-day
confrontation on a bridge outside the capital in August 1998 which ended amid
fears for her health.
The United States, the European Union and Britain have demanded the junta
lift the new blockade immediately.
"We are concerned about the health and safety of the National League for
Democracy group and hold the Burmese authorities directly accountable for their
welfare," said US State Department spokesman Philip Reeker.
British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook said he was "disturbed" by reports of
the stand-off.
"We urge the authorities to lift these unnecessary and unlawful
restrictions immediately and call on the regime to open an immediate dialogue
with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and the NLD," he said.
The Myanmar government said the opposition leader had been travelling
without proper security precautions and was stopped for her own safety.
"Until safety conditions improve, Daw Suu Kyi is visiting Dallah, a small
but charming town which is just ten minutes by boat from Yangon," it said.
In an apparent response to the criticism of the conditions she is living
in, the government released photographs of the stand-off, showing party members
bathing in a stream and being delivered food and water.
The government insisted that every effort was being made to "ensure the
comfort and safety" of the party and that an ambulance and a doctor were
stationed at the scene in case of emergency.
"She and her companions remain free to return to their homes at any time,
or to continue staying by the roadside as long as the conditions remain
safe."
Aung San Suu Kyi and more than a dozen party members including NLD
vice-chairman U Tin Oo left Yangon by river ferry early Thursday and were met on
the other side by supporters and two vehicles for the journey to Kawhmu.
They drove to Dallah where they were halted and ordered not to go any
further. Journalists representing foreign media have since been barred from
making the river crossing to Dallah.
However, witnesses said the two vehicles had been taken off the road and
moved about 200 yards (metres) along a dirt track. A police truck blocked their
path and the tyres had been let down.
Aung San Suu Kyi remained in her car, and party members took turns to stand
by her window with an umbrella to provide some shade during the steamy days.
They had also set up tarpaulins that served as makeshift tents.
The opposition leader's intentions have not been made public, but it
appears she plans to continue the stand-off until she is allowed to travel on to
Kawhmu or is forced to return to Yangon.
Although she is no longer under house arrest as she was between 1989 and
1995, she is confined to the capital and her movements are closely
monitored.
In the last attempt to test these restrictions, in August 1998, she camped
out in a minibus on a bridge outside the capital after being blocked from
travelling to meet provincial supporters.
The NLD won a crushing victory in 1990 elections but the results have never
been recognised by the military, which has been in control of Myanmar, formerly
known as Burma, in various guises since 1962.
Saturday, August 26 5:19 PM SGT
Aung San Suu Kyi's ordeal -- 12
years and counting
YANGON, Aug 26 (AFP) - Since
forming the National League of Democracy 12 years ago, Aung San Suu Kyi has had
an endless series of troubles from the Myanmar military junta.
Following are major events:
1988, Aug-Sep 8: Mass demonstrations demanding an end to the military
dictatorship in place since 1962 are staged across the country after months of
turmoil. Troops open fire on the crowds, leaving hundreds or thousands dead
according to different estimates. Military takes charge. National League for
Democracy, led by Aung San Suu Kyi, daughter of independence hero Aung San, is
formed.
1989, July: Aung San Suu Kyi is placed under house arrest.
1990 May: Aung San Suu Kyi's NLD bags 392 out of 485 seats in parliamentary
elections. The military government, known as the State Law and Order Restoration
Council, annuls the results.
1991: Aung San Suu Kyi is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
1995: The junta releases Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest.
1996: The government bans Aung San Suu Kyi from addressing supporters
outside her house.
1997, May: Hundreds of police prevent the holding of an NLD congress at
Aung San Suu Kyi's home.
1998, July-August: Aung San Suu Kyi makes several attempts to flee the
capital but is blocked by a military escort. The NLD calls for a meeting of the
1990 parliament, a move which triggers a crackdown against the party and the
arrest of hundreds of followers.
1999, March: Aung San Suu Kyi's husband, Michael Aris, dies in Britain from
cancer. The junta denied Aris a visa in the last months of his illness. His wife
elects not to visit him, fearing she may be barred from returning.
2000, Aug 24: Aung San Suu Kyi faces off military authorities in a town
outside Yangon. NLD members say security officials stopped her as her car
approached Dallah township, about 32 kilometres (20 miles) from Yangon.
Aung San Suu Kyi sparked the stand-off when she left Yangon for a meeting
with the party's youth wing in the outlying town of Kawhmu, in defiance of an
order which confines her to the capital.
The Myanmar government said the Nobel laureate was travelling without
security precautions and had been stopped for her own safety.
The United States, Britain criticise the restrictions on her
movement.
Channel NewsAsia
Saturday, August 26 8:10 PM SGT Myanmar Karen rebels look to SAR model The Karen National Union is looking to the one-country two-system concept
practised by China and Hong Kong as a model of how they can have a separate
Karen state that co-exists with the rest of Myanmar.
The KNU rebels have been battling successive Myanmar governments for close to 50 years and claim they have over 10,000 fighters. And as our Indochina correspondent Romen Bose reports, they remain
optimistic despite the continual clashes with government troops.
The Karens have been fighting a guerrilla war in the jungles along with
several other armed rebel groups on the border between Thailand and
Myanmar.
One of the rebel bases is an hour's hike from the nearest Thai
village.
The base has been there for more than three years.
It's now occupied by a new generation of Karens, most of them about 30
years of age and all quite used to fighting government soldiers in daily
skirmishes in the jungles of Myanmar.
One of them is Major Nerdah Mya who was educated in southern
California.
In the 1980s, he returned to Myanmar at the request of his father, General
Bo Mya, then President of the KNU.
With the jungle war taking its toll, the KNU have their fair share of
deserters.
Many seasoned soldiers have crossed to the Myanmar side and the KNU have
begun recruiting from deeper in the Karen state.
But recruiting new men and training them take time.
Nerdah Mya said:"For new recruits we would have basic training. They have
to know how to handle their rifles first, then we train for military manoeuvres
in the jungle and also basic training, how to march, how to salute and then we
can also give them political briefing about what they are fighting for, why they
have to fight for Karen freedom, why they have to fight and suffer and sacrifice
for the people."
But to get the men battle ready, local training is often not enough.
Mercenaries from France and even former members of the British SAS turn up
on the KNU's doorsteps quite often, to help train these rebels in return for
gaining guerrilla experience with the KNU.
Nerdah Mya said:"If we know they are not working for the Burmese, then we
would allow them to come into the area. Most of the time they stay for 2 or 3
months, then they go back, tell more friends, and more friends come back with
them"
Many KNU rebels think cutting off foreign investments is a key to winning
the war.
And former leader of the KNU and now Commander in Chief of the KNLF,
73-year-old General Bo Mya is no exception.
He has been fighting government troops since he was 15.
For him, peace with Yangon is still achieveable.
General Bo Mya said:"We are willing to talk about peace plans, we are
willing to have discussions withYangon. But if they refuse to make peace or
refuse to compromise, then we can't do very much."
General Bo Mya said the KNU want a confederation of sorts in Myanmar and
sees the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region as a good model.
"We want to establish a federation. We don't want to be independent. But we
must have a Karen state and our own autonomy so that everyone will be
happy."
And that objective is what keeps them going.
Saturday August 26 3:20 AM ET
Groups Condemn Suu Kyi Detention By VIJAY JOSHI, Associated Press Writer BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) -
Amnesty International has urged Myanmar's military government to allow
pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi to travel unhindered, denouncing her
detention outside the capital as ``general harassment'' by the
authorities.
In a statement late Friday, the London-based human rights group said the
three-day standoff between Suu Kyi and the government is another example of the
military's attempt to stamp out ``all peaceful opposition activities'' in
Myanmar, also known as Burma.
Winner of the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize, Suu Kyi was stopped by security
forces Thursday in Dala, a suburb outside the capital city of Yangon. She and
other party members were driving into the countryside for organizational work.
She was asked to return to Yangon, but refused and has spent the last two nights
in a Toyota.
It was Suu Kyi's first attempt to leave Yangon in two years. In similar
standoffs with the military in 1998, she remained in her car for nearly six days
on one occasion and for 13 days on another.
``This level of surveillance and intimidation is all part of the general
harassment'' by the government against Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy
party, said Donna Guest of Amnesty International.
The NLD chairman, Aung Shwe, wrote Friday to Myanmar's military leader,
Gen. Than Swe, urging him to allow Suu Kyi to continue with her travels.
She and the others ``have been illegally and unlawfully prevented by the
military dictators which amounts to criminal act,'' Aung Shwe said in the
letter, a copy of which was given to reporters in Yangon on Saturday.
``The NLD as a legal political party has the right to (perform) its legal
party organization works,'' the letter said.
Suu Kyi's car and a pickup carrying 12 party supporters have been herded
into a small lane, which has been blocked by military trucks on both ends,
witnesses said.
Aung Shwe's letter said tires of both vehicles were deflated.
The government claimed Suu Kyi was prevented from going any further for her
own protection, saying the area she was planning to visit was rife with threats
of violence by separatist insurgents.
Security problems have rarely been reported in Kungyangon, 30 miles south
of Yangon, where Suu Kyi was planning to go. The National League for Democracy
accused the government of detaining her illegally.
Guest noted that the State Peace and Development Council, as the military
government is called, has frequently claimed that Myanmar is almost entirely
free from insurgent activity and is a secure and stable country.
``Amnesty International urges the SPDC to allow (Suu Kyi) and other NLD
members to travel freely,'' she said.
A Myanmar government statement released late Friday said Suu Kyi and her
companions ``continue to rest'' in Dala and ``the local authorities make every
effort to ensure their comfort and safety.''
On Friday, the United States and Britain said they deplored the military
rulers' action.
``The U.S. condemns this abridgment of Aung San Suu Kyi's right to freedom
of movement and her right to visit whomever she chooses,'' State Department
spokesman Philip Reeker said.
Reporters have not been allowed to go to Dala, which is separated from the
capital by the Yangon River. Journalists were stopped by security forces at the
ferry crossing and politely told to go back.
On Saturday, two National League for Democracy cars waited on the Yangon
side of the ferry crossing in case Suu Kyi decided to return. Residents coming
from Dala said there was little traffic on the roads in the suburb.
Suu Kyi is frequently at loggerheads with the military government, which
has ruled this Southeast Asian nation with an iron fist since crushing a
pro-democracy uprising she helped lead in 1988.
Suu Kyi was put under house arrest in 1989. The order was lifted in 1995,
but her movements remain restricted. The government also refuses to honor the
results of the 1990 general elections in which her party won a landslide.
Saturday, August 26 2:00 AM SGT
Myanmar Cops Block Suu Kyi Trip YANGON, Myanmar (AP) -
Pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi was stopped by police from traveling
outside the capital and was stranded on the city's outskirts Friday, her car
blocked by two trucks.
It was Suu Kyi's first attempt to leave Yangon in two years. In similar
standoffs with the military in 1998, she remained in her car for nearly six days
on one occasion and another time for 13 days.
The 1991 Nobel Peace Prize winner's National League for Democracy party
said in a statement that her being stopped from traveling by Myanmar's military
government was illegal.
The military government said she was stopped for her own protection. ``Due
to threats of violence by armed insurgent separatist forces, travel by prominent
persons to some parts of the country is at present inadvisable,'' a government
statement said Friday.
Another government statement released late Friday night said Suu Kyi and
her travel companions ``continue to rest'' in the Yangon suburb where they were
stopped. It said ``the local authorities make every effort to ensure their
comfort and safety.''
Security problems have rarely been reported in Kungyangon, 30 miles south
of Yangon, where Suu Kyi was planning to go for party organizational work when
her car was stopped Thursday afternoon.
Suu Kyi crossed the Yangon river in a ferry and boarded a Toyota car with
her party's Vice Chairman Tin Oo and another senior party official, the
government statement said. It said the car was stopped by police and she was
asked to return to Yangon.
Officials of her National League for Democracy confirmed the account.
Suu Kyi's virtual detention and her refusal to back down was her latest
clash of will with the military government, which has ruled this Southeast Asian
nation, also known as Burma, with an iron fist since 1988 after crushing a
pro-democracy uprising she helped lead.
A year after that she was put under house arrest. The order was lifted in
1995 but her movements have remained restricted. The government also refuses to
honor the results of the 1990 general elections in which her party won a
landslide.
She tried to leave Yangon four times in 1998 but was stopped by the
military.
Once, when stopped on a trip to the Irrawaddy Delta town of Pathein, she
remained in her car for nearly six days in protest. When police brought her back
to Yangon, she said the treatment constituted ``being kidnapped.''
On the fourth occasion when stopped, Suu Kyi stayed in her car for 13 days
before returning home voluntarily on her doctor's advice.
On Friday, the National League for Democracy requested that party members
and local residents of Dala suburb, where her car was stuck, provide food and
water to Suu Kyi and others.
Suu Kyi's car and her supporters' van were moved to a small lane off the
main road and blocked from traveling further by two trucks parked on both ends
of the street, a witness said.
About a half-dozen uniformed policemen and several plainclothes agents were
at the scene, and an ambulance was nearby, he said, speaking on condition of
anonymity.
Another witness said the government people brought food from a restaurant
for Suu Kyi, but she refused to eat it, preferring the guava and other fruit
given by local residents.
Britain deplored the military's action.
``To restrict leaders of a democratic political party from moving around
the country is a denial of fundamental human and political rights,'' Foreign
Secretary Robin Cook said.
The Times of India News Service
Aug 26, 2000. India, Myanmar meet on border management NEW DELHI: Home secretary Kamal Pande will lead the Indian delegation to
the four-day India-Myanmar meet, beginning in Yangon from August 28, for
effective border management of the two countries .
A memorandum of understanding (MoU) on cooperation between civilian border
authorities of India and Myanmar for maintaining peace and tranquillity along
the common border was signed in January 1994. The meeting will review the
developments since then.
The Myanmar side will be led by deputy minister of home affairs Brig Gen
Thura U Myint Maung. The meeting intends to cement economic, trade and cultural
relations among others between the two countries.
The agenda for the meeting includes - to effectively curb all illegal
activities such as trans-border movement of insurgents and other nefarious
activities; MoU on border-crossing between the two countries; prevention of drug
trafficking and smuggling; strengthening of infrastructure and security to
facilitate border trade between India and Myanmar; bridge on river Tiau;
India-Myanmar boundary issues et al.
The Times
August 26 2000 FAR EAST The junta, afraid of Aung San Suu Kyi's popularity, has blocked her attempt to leave Rangoon for the countryside Burma dissident in car protest
FROM SIMON INGRAM IN BANGKOK BURMA'S Opposition Leader Aung San Suu Kyi was locked in another battle of
wills with the ruling junta as she spent a second night stranded in her car in a
roadside standoff with the police.
Officials from Daw Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy said that the 55-year-old Nobel Laureate was accompanied by about a dozen supporters and that they were running out of food and water after spending the day in their vehicles in sweltering heat on a road close to the capital, Rangoon. The last time she tried to leave the capital two years ago resulted in her
spending 13 days trapped in her car. She eventually returned home voluntarily on
her doctor's advice, sick from exhaustion and dehydration. On her first attempt
in 1998 she remained in her car for five days before being forcibly returned
home.
The latest standoff began on Thursday, when Daw Suu Kyi left her Rangoon
residence to travel to Myaungmya, a town about 80 miles to the southeast and
reputed to be her birthplace. The authorities, who released the politician from
six years of house arrest in 1995 and have since restricted her movements, acted
swiftly.
After she crossed the Yangon river by ferry, Daw Suu Kyi and her entourage
were intercepted by police near the town of Dallah. The politicians were told
that they could not proceed any farther and should return to Rangoon. They
refused, arguing that they were conducting legitimate party work. Daw Suu Kyi's
car and another vehicle were reported to be parked close to the road last night,
while a lorryload of police and an ambulance stood nearby. Reporters who tried
to reach Dallah yesterday were told by the authorities not to proceed.
The military junta said that Daw Suu Kyi was travelling without proper
security clearance. It stated: "Due to threats of violence by armed insurgent
separatist forces, travel by prominent persons to some parts of the country is
at present inadvisable." The authorities added that it would take "all necessary
action in protecting [Daw Suu Kyi] from these threats, while also safeguarding
her human rights as much as possible."
Support for the political leader was swiftly forthcoming from Britain, a
staunch critic of the military regime. Robin Cook, the Foreign Secretary, said
that Britain deplored the Burmese Government's action. "To restrict leaders of a
democratic political party from moving around the country is a denial of
fundamental human and political rights," he said.
"We urge the authorities to lift these unnecessary and unlawful
restrictions immediately, and call on the regime to open an immediate dialogue
with Aung San Suu Kyi and the NLD."
The league and the Burmese military have been in conflict since 1990, when
the generals refused to recognise the results of parliamentary elections that
gave Daw Suu Kyi's party a sweeping majority and hand over power.
Despite maintaining a stranglehold on power, the authorities fear her
popularity among ordinary Burmese. The grassroots support has remained firm
despite criticism of her style of leadership, which is regarded by some as
unbending.In a recent interview, Daw Suu Kyi reiterated her call for greater
international pressure to be applied on Rangoon to restore democracy to the
country.
It is far from clear what the daughter of the late Burmese nationalist,
General Aung San, hopes to gain by staging her latest protest. In the past she
has said that whatever hardships she is made to suffer, they are insignificant
compared to those of ordinary members of her party, many of whom have suffered
arbitrary detention and other acts of intimidation, aimed at forcing them to
renounce their membership of the league.
The Nation, Agencies
Aug 26, 2000. Outrage grows over Suu Kyi road block THE international community yesterday unleashed a barrage of criticism at
the Burmese junta for its latest stand-off with pro-democracy leader Aung San
Suu Kyi, accusing the regime of breaching basic human rights and warning that it
will be held solely responsible for any adverse consequences concerning her
welfare.
Meanwhile Suu Kyi's party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), claimed
that the junta was preventing food and water from reaching her and others
stranded inside their vehicles. The party appealed for help from local people as
the supplies were fast running out.
"We demand that the blockade be immediately lifted and the NLD leaders be
allowed to proceed to their desired destination," the NLD's central executive
committee said in a letter of complaint sent to the regime.
"If the health of those being blocked is impaired by lack of food and water
. . . then the entire responsibility lies with those who have stopped them," the
letter said.
Meanwhile, the US State Department said, "The United States deplores the
government of Burma's refusal to allow Aung San Suu Kyi and other National
League of Democracy leaders to travel freely in their own country."
"Freedom of movement is a fundamental, internationally recognised right.
Its denial can only increase the existing tensions in Burma," it said in a
statement.
In Paris, the European Union called on the ruling State Peace and
Development Council(SPDC) to immediately lift its blockade and open dialogue
with the NLD.
France, which is the present rotating president of the EU, said it was
"concerned" about the situation, especially reports of dwindling of food and
water supplies for Suu Kyi and her entourage.
British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook minced no words when he said that he
was "disturbed" by the incident and urged Rangoon to "lift these unnecessary and
unlawful restrictions immediately".
"To restrict leaders of a democratic political party from moving around the
country is a denial of fundamental human and political rights," he said.
Amnesty International also joined in by expressing its concern on what it
termed as a part of "general harassment" by the authorities.
The flurry of disparagement came as Suu Kyi yesterday again defied a
request by the authorities to return home and prepared to spend a third night in
her car beside the road where it was stopped by the police on Thursday.
She and her followers was blocked in Dala, a Rangoon suburb, when they
tried to drive out to the countryside for party organisational work in
Kungyangon, 50 km south of the capital.
The government said she had been stopped for her own protection from
"threats of violence by armed insurgent separatist forces" and she was
continuing to "rest" there.
It was the first in two years that Suu Kyi had tried to break from de facto
confinement in Rangoon despite being released from eight years of house arrest
in 1995. She had tried to leave four times in 1998 but was stopped every time.
On one occasion, she remained in her car for nearly six days and on another
for 13 days.
Police and a government medical team were on the spot round-the-clock to
"ensure her maximum comfort, welfare and safety", according to the official
statement.
In a statement obtained by The Nation, the exiled National Coalition
Government of the Union of Burma discounted the security threat as a "ridiculous
excuse" coming from "the very people who have taken every opportunity to claim
they have for the first time since World War II established peace and stability
in the country".
BBC - Saturday, 26 August, 2000, 11:39
GMT 12:39 UK
Backlash over Suu Kyi detention The United States and Europe have reacted angrily to the the detention of
Burmese pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, by police in the capital Rangoon.
The US state department said it "deplored" Ms Suu Kyi's detention, saying freedom of movement is a "fundamental, internationally recognised right". The European Union called for travel restrictions on Ms Suu Kyi to be
lifted, and urged the Burmese Government to begin talks with opposition parties.
Ms Suu Kyi was stopped by police on Thursday while attempting to travel
outside the city for the first time in two years.
Standoff
According to reports, the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize laureate and other members
of her party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), left Rangoon on Thursday
morning to travel to meet supporters.
But the group were halted by police at Dala on the outskirts of the city,
and have not yet returned home.
Ms Suu Kyi is preparing to spend a third night in her car, locked in a
tense standoff with officials.
Plainclothes security officials have apparently warned reporters away from
the area.
Two years ago, Ms Suu Kyi spent 13 days in her car after being prevented
from leaving Rangoon.
She eventually gave up her protest suffering from dehydration.
Security
According to the Burmese Government, Ms Suu Kyi and the other NLD members
have been stopped this time for not having "proper security arrangements".
"Security officials requested them not to proceed but stay in Dala town or
return to Yangon [Rangoon]," said a government statement.
Authorities referred to "threats of violence by armed insurgent separatist
forces", and said Ms Suu Kyi had been stopped for her own protection.
Reports said Ms Suu Kyi and her party had been planning to travel to
Kungyangon, 50km (31 miles) south of Rangoon for a meeting of the NLD's youth
wing.
The NLD won elections in May 1990, but Burma's military rulers refused to
hand over power, jailing some party members and placing others under house
arrest.
The daughter of the late Burmese nationalist leader, General Aung San, Ms
Suu Kyi was prevented from leaving her home for six years.
Although this was lifted in 1995, since then the military has constantly
restricted her movements.
# # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # #
Burmese pro-democracy activists rally for road-blocked Suu
Kyi+
VOICE OF BURMA,
Aug. 26 – Pro-democracy
Burmese Activists in Japan rallied Saturday afternoon at the Burmese Junta
embassy blaming the junta for blocking the way of pro-democracy leader Daw Aung
San Suu Kyi who was in a car headed for a satellite town on the opposite side of
the Rangoon River to meet with the youth wing of the NLD
Thursday. Daw Aung San
Suu Kyi and party are on the other side of the Rangoon River in Dala where the
junta armed man have been blocking their way to Kungyangon.
About 30
pro-democracy dissidents, including visiting dissident Ko Aung Thu Nyein of the
All Burma Students’ Democratic Front, shouted slogans calling for freedom of
movement of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi in front of their embassy in Shinagawa at a
rally sponsored by the dissident umbrella group League for Democracy in Burma
(LDB). They
hand-posted a statement to their embassy demanded that all political prisoners
be freed including U Aye Tha Aung of the CRPP who was arrested in May and
sentenced in June to 21 years in jail and student leader Min Ko Naing, who was
arrested soon after the nation-wide pro-democracy uprisings of
1988. The statement
also urged the junta to hold meaningful dialogue with Daw Aung Asn Suu Kyi and
her NLD immediately. It warned that
dissidents will hold the junta responsible if anything happens to Burma’s only
Nobel Laureate Daw Aung San Suu Kyi as the consequence of the junta
blockage. Daw Aung San
Suu Kyi and entourage was blocked in 1998 while on their way to Bassein. She
gave up her sit–ins at the advice of her family doctor after days of
endurance. |