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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- BURMA RELATED NEWS - SEP 29, 2000. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- HEADLINE
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- AP - EU Urges Myanmar To Lift
Restrictions On Aung San Suu Kyi
AP - Thailand Supports Oct UN Mission
To End Myanmar Deadlock
NSTP - National: Myanmar fisherman
freed of dadah trafficking charge
AP - U.S. Help For Thai Anti-Drug Patrols Discussed
AFP - Dot.com world a recruiting
field for UNDP, administrator says
Reuters -Myanmar
blasts opponents, Suu Kyi still locked up
The Nation - Thailand backs UN effort
for talks in Burma
The Nation - Maneeloy to be
shut down next year
The Nation - EDITORIAL:
Razali's mission to Burma critical
The Nation - FROM THE EDGE:
Burmese exiles in India lose their edge
Friday, September 29 3:24 AM SGT
EU Urges Myanmar To Lift Restrictions On Aung San Suu Kyi PARIS (AP)--The European Union said Thursday that
Myanmar's authorities must immediately lift restrictions on the freedom of
movement of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, adding that it was deeply
concerned by the Noble Peace laureate's situation.
A statement issued by the EU Presidency, currently held by France, condemned the restrictions on the free movement of Suu Kyi and members of the her party, the National League for Democracy. Suu Kyi and eight other central executive committee
members of the NLD have been under virtual house arrest since last Friday after
she made her second attempt in one month to travel upcountry by train. She has
been similarly stopped on several occasions in the past.
Security forces hauled Suu Kyi and deputy party leader Tin
Oo out of the Yangon railway station after they tried to travel to Myanmar's
second biggest city, Mandalay, for party work. Officials say Tin Oo is being
kept at a government guest house.
Suu Kyi led a pro-democracy uprising against the military
in 1988 and was put under house arrest a year later. Her National League for
Democracy won general elections in 1990, but was prevented from taking power.
Over the past month, the military's restrictions on the
NLD have drawn a barrage of international criticism.
"All current restrictions on Aung San Suu Kyi's freedom of
movement and on her freedom to communicate with the outside world and to receive
visitors must be lifted without delay," the EU statement said, calling for
dialogue between the authorities and the democratic opposition, including the
NLD.
Friday, September 29 5:11 PM SGT
Thailand Supports Oct UN Mission To End Myanmar Deadlock BANGKOK (AP)--Thailand voiced support Friday for a
United Nations mission to break the political deadlock inside Myanmar, warning
the situation there could deteriorate and affect other countries in the region.
A Thai Foreign Ministry statement urged Myanmar's military government and pro-democracy opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi to cooperate with U.N. envoy Razali Ismail, a former Malaysian diplomat, who will visit Myanmar in the second week of October. On Thursday Thai Foreign Minister Surin Pitsuwan met with
Razali, who was appointed by U.N. Secretary-general Kofi Annan in April to
promote human rights and broker political reconciliation in Myanmar, also known
as Burma.
Without an urgent improvement, "the situation (in Myanmar)
will only deteriorate. The impact will not be limited only to inside Myanmar,
but will affect the region as Myanmar is also an ASEAN member," the Thai
statement said.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which includes
Thailand, admitted Yangon in 1997, despite Western opposition because of
Myanmar's poor human rights record. ASEAN nations rarely comment on the internal
affairs of a fellow member.
Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy swept 1990 general
elections in Myanmar but was barred from taking power by the military, that has
jailed hundreds of her followers and heavily restricts the NLD leader's
movements.
The long-running war of wills between Suu Kyi and the
regime, which has ignored the pro-democracy leader's long-standing calls for
political talks between them, has escalated since Razali's first visit to
Myanmar in June.
Since Sept. 22, Suu Kyi and other leaders of her party
have been under virtual house arrest after her second attempt in one month to
travel outside Yangon was blocked by authorities. The regime's actions drew
renewed international criticism.
The Thai statement called for a political dialogue between
the two sides to promote national reconciliation for the benefit of the
"majority of Myanmar people." -0- 29/09/00 09-11G
New Straits Times Press
(Malaysia)
Friday, September 29 6:30 PM SGT National: Myanmar fisherman freed of dadah trafficking charge PENANG, Thurs. - A 35-year-old Myanmar fisherman accused
of dadah trafficking was today freed by the High Court.
Kyaw Nya Than's freedom was however shortlived as he was immediately re-arrested outside the courthouse pending deportation to his country. Judge Raus Md Sharif, in freeing Kyaw without calling for
his defence, said he found that the prosecution failed to prove a prima facie
case against him.
Kyaw, who worked as a fisherman in Teluk Intan, Perak
until his arrest, was charged with trafficking in 17.13 gm of heroin in the Tun
Uda Jetty area in Georgetown at 10.50am on Aug 26, 1998.
Raus said he concurred with defence counsel S.P. Raman's
submission that there were contradictions in the evidence given by the raiding
party led by Inspector Noordin Ibrahim of the State police narcotics
unit.
He said they had contradicted themselves on the place of
arrest and the spot from which the raiding party observed the
accused.
He also said the prosecution failed to produce another
Myanmar national who was arrested together with Kyaw to testify to bolster their
case.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Muzalni Soid prosecuted.
Friday, September 29 6:57 PM SGT
1. US Official:World Pressure Key In Resolving Kashmir Issue 2. U.S. Help For Thai Anti-Drug Patrols Discussed BANGKOK (AP)--International pressure can play a
major role in resolving the Kashmir dispute between nuclear neighbors India and
Pakistan, but the final solution rests only with the two enemies, a top U.S.
military official said Friday.
The effect of international influence became evident last year when pressure from Russia, China and the U.S., one-time allies of either Pakistan or India, helped prevent an all-out war between the two enemies on the Siachen Glacier, Adm. Dennis Blair, commander-in-chief of the U.S. Pacific Command, told reporters. "I would take a lot of lessons from what happened in
Siachen Glacier," Blair, who recently met Indian defense officials, told
reporters. From India, Blair went to the Philippines before coming to Thailand.
"To me that's the sort of lesson of how over time the
international community can bring pressure on two sides in the pretty
intractable problem," he said. "Realistically that's the way progress will have
to be made in that area."
At the same time, Blair said, he sees "no alternative"
than for India and Pakistan to solve the issue between themselves.
India and Pakistan have fought three wars, two of them
over Kashmir, the Himalayan region that both claim. The problem has become even
more tangled over a separatist guerrilla war in Kashmir by groups demanding
either independence or union with Pakistan.
India accuses Pakistan of aiding the rebels, a charge
Pakistan denies.
Blair also spoke of the need for the U.S. military to
cooperate with allies in the region in the areas of humanitarian missions,
search and rescue during disasters, and peacekeeping efforts.
"It is the way of the future," he said.
U.S. Help For Thai Anti-Drug Patrols Discussed
During his talks with Thai defense and security officials,
Blair said, he discussed the problem of drug smuggling into Thailand from
Myanmar, where warlords produce and traffic in heroin, marijuana, and recently,
methamphetamine.
He said he discussed U.S. help for Thai border patrols in
the form of training and equipment and providing intelligence. He refused to
give details.
He also refused to say if the United States would back the
Thai army if it decided to conduct cross-border raids into Myanmar to shut down
drug rings, but acknowledged that it would be an "important" policy decision for
Thailand to make.
Blair said the Thai military, border police and
intelligence agencies will have to coordinate their efforts to fight what is
turning into the one of the biggest social and security problems for Thailand.
Friday, September 29 5:27 AM SGT
Dot.com world a recruiting field for UNDP, administrator says UNITED NATIONS, Sept 28 (AFP) - The UN Development Programme should
recruit from the world of dot.com as it switches focus from project aid to
global knowledge networking, UNDP Administrator Mark Malloch Brown
said.
In an interview with AFP, he said officials from 67
countries attending UNDP's ministerial conference this month had warmly endorsed
reforms and policy changes adopted since he took over in June last
year.
"The sting in the tail was to improve the quality of
UNDP's country performance," he said.
In addition to 1,000 headquarters staff in New York, UNDP
employs about 3,990 locally recruited and 390 international workers around the
world.
The biggest recipients of its 2.3 billion-dollar annual
programme include India, Pakistan, Myanmar, Bangladesh, China, Vietnam, Nepal,
Ethiopia, Nigeria, and Tanzania.
Malloch Brown said his aim was "to turn us from a bunch of
project managers who help a government dig some wells, or build a school, into a
set of knowledge brokers around specific priority areas."
Among these were to encourage the use of information and
communications technology, and also of clean, affordable energy, in developing
countries, and to combat the spread of HIV/AIDS.
"That is the new UNDP. You have to take on these issues,
at the policy and at the advocacy level," he added.
Malloch Brown said the coming year would be "crucial" for
recruitment.
Budget cuts within the United Nations since 1992 meant
that "we have not been recruiting young professional staff on an organised
basis."
As a result, UNDP lacked people in most developing
countries "who can sustain a policy dialogue with the government".
They might know "how to get Land Rovers or other very
important project elements," he said, "but that is a very different profile from
someone who can hold their own on an issue such as legislative reform or
environmental policy."
A striking exception was Brazil, where "the national staff
are some of the ablest Brazilians imaginable and managing large governance
programmes."
Defined in a recent UNDP report as putting in place
strategies to ensure equity in society, governance is one of the programme's
priorities.
The report, "Overcoming Human Poverty", said holding
governments accountable to people, particularly in the use of public funds
between elections, was "crucial to poverty reduction efforts."
Malloch Brown said UNDP wanted "to build up global
knowledge networks" so that, when a small country office did not have the
expertise, "they can identify consultants who can provide that
advice."
In a message to UN staff on Monday, Secretary General Kofi
Annan said he wanted to "attract and promote qualified staff, especially young
people for whose talents we have to compete with nimble dot.com
enterprises."
Echoing those remarks, Malloch Brown said "the skills you
need to get ahead in the global economy are exactly the skills which will make
you hugely successful in the UN."
He added: "When corporations start raiding our staff I
shall know that I have succeeded."
Advocacy was especially needed, he said, to make up for
the "amazing absence of political leadership and public political will on
promoting alternative energy."
A report released last week by UNDP pointed out that
one-third of the world's people lack access to electricity with which to satisfy
basic household needs and support livelihoods.
Malloch Brown said was "incredibly important to build back
public support around this" in rich countries.
"The public are okay on environmental issues that are to
do with cutting forests down and other things of that kind, but they are really
cautious on anything which has to do with their beloved motoring," he said.
WIRE:09/29/2000 04:33:00
ET
Myanmar blasts opponents, Suu Kyi still locked up YANGON, Sept 29 (Reuters) - Myanmar"s military branded the
opposition a group of traitors on Friday and said pro-democracy figurehead Aung
San Suu Kyi, who remains locked in her house and cut off from contact, was
trying to destroy the country. Suu Kyi"s two attempts this year to leave Yangon
in defiance of restrictions on her freedom have sparked an angry response from
the military government, which has confined senior opposition members to their
homes and put one in detention. In the latest of a series of stinging attacks,
the official Kyemon newspaper said Suu Kyi had been "going on the rampage" and
was damaging the government"s image. "Suu Kyi has been going on the rampage more
than before since the begining of 2000," it said. "She has been attempting to
make the Western bloc more hostile to Myanmar and showing her cunning will
towards the people." Another commentary in the Kyemon and Myanma Alin newspapers
said Suu Kyi"s National League for Democracy (NLD) was in league with foreign
colonialists trying to destabilise Myanmar. "What Myanmar"s 50 million people
are after today is living an easy life, making an easy living and keeping
Myanmar"s independence and territorial integrity," the commentary said. "The
colonialist group, which wants to influence Myanmar, is interfering to spoil
national unity and to disrupt the peace and progress of the country by mingling
intimately with internal traitors." INTERNATIONAL OUTRAGE The treatment of Suu
Kyi has sparked international condemnation and thrown into doubt a planned
meeting in Laos in December between the Association of South East Asian Nations
(ASEAN) and foreign ministers of the European Union. The 55-year-old Nobel
laureate was released from house arrest in 1995 but her movements remain
severely restricted. She tried to leave Yangon by car in August but was stopped
by the police south of the capital, and was forcibly returned home after a
nine-day roadside standoff. An attempt to leave the city by rail last week was
also blocked by police. Suu Kyi and seven senior colleagues have been kept
locked in their homes since then, and NLD Vice Chairman Tin Oo is in detention.
The government says Suu Kyi and her companions lashed out at railway cleaning
staff and may face charges. The NLD won elections in 1990 by a landslide but has
never been allowed to govern. The government says public opinion has turned
against the party, and official newspapers regularly carry stories reporting
mass anti-NLD demonstrations. It says millions of voters have signed petitions
demanding the dissolution of the party. (With additional reporting by Andrew
Marshall in Bangkok)
The Nation - Sep 29,
2000.
Thailand backs UN effort for talks in Burma THAILAND yesterday threw its support behind a bid by the
United Nations' special representative to Burma, Ismail Razali, to break the
political deadlock and start a dialogue between various factions in the country.
Both sides agreed that the current impasse would not
benefit any party in Burma, whether government or the opposition, said Surapong
Jayanama, director-general of East Asian Affairs.
He said political dialogue must be held so that opposing
forces would have a chance to exchange opinions, which would hopefully lead to
formal negotiations for the sake of national reconciliation.
Surapong said Razali and Foreign Minister Surin Pitsuwan
agreed during their discussion yesterday that the economic and social situation
in Burma would continue to deteriorate if nothing is done.
"It would have far-reaching consequences not only on Burma
but also on regional stability," Surapong said.
Razali is in Bangkok ahead of a visit to Burma next week
to try to persuade the leaders of various sides to start a dialogue.
During his introductory trip in June, Razali met with
heads of the ruling State Peace and Development Council and Aung San Suu Kyi,
leader of the opposition National League for Democracy. No progress was made.
As UN envoy to Burma, Razali is entrusted with promoting
human rights and national reconciliation there. Before visiting Thailand, he
held talks with Japanese officials about the situation in Burma. Japan is
considered a major provider of aid to the regime.
Surapong quoted Razali as saying he was well aware of the
daunting task ahead and does not anticipate a sudden breakthrough. "What is most
important is cooperation from every party," Razali was quoted as saying.
His visit came amid renewed political tension in Rangoon
as the military government stepped up its restrictions on the opposition's
activities.
Surapong said the government and opposition must be
flexible to reach a compromise for the benefit of all of the Burmese people.
Surin also told Razali that Thailand hopes to see
reconciliation and well-being in Burma, which would reduce the burdens and
problems Thailand has struggled with for a long time.
The Nation - Sep 29,
2000.
Maneeloy to be shut down next year BY JEERAPORN CHAISRI
THAILAND will close down the Maneeloy holding centre next
year as all Burmese residents there are expected to leave soon for overseas
resettlement, Ratchaburi Deputy Governor Preecha Raungchan said yesterday.
The Kingdom has accelerated the resettlement of thousands
of the centre's residents groups of Burmese gunmen seized and briefly held
hostages at the Burmese Embassy in Bangkok last October, then the Ratchaburi
Hospital in late January.
Preecha, who oversees the Maneeloy centre, said more than
1,000 Burmese have been resettled in third countries since last October.
There are now less than 1,300 students in the camp and all
have been registered for overseas resettlement.
Most were accepted by the United Kingdom, Canada, New
Zealand, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Australia and the United States - the last two
countries taking the largest share.
About 50 refugees will fly to New Zealand on October 24.
Another big group is scheduled to leave in February,
because all flights to the resettlement countries are fully booked due to peak
tourist bookings.
Preecha said he expected the rest to be resettled by the
middle of next year as the preparation-and-resettlement process was going on
smoothly with cooperation from the Maneeloy residents.
Before the embassy hostage crisis, many Burmese students
had resisted attempts to relocate them elsewhere in the country or resettle them
overseas.
"If the Thai government and the UNHCR [UN High
Commissioner for Refugees] have a concrete policy to resettle all Maneeloy
residents, we will be able to close down the centre sometime early next year,"
said the deputy governor.
Preecha said holding centre residents were allowed to
enjoy sports and recreational activities, but forbidden from engaging in any
political work or campaigns.
The authorities had to impose strict rules, he said,
because it was not easy to look after more than a thousand people.
If any of the Burmese break the rules, they would be sent
to Bang Kaen Police Cadet School in Bangkok for temporary detention.
"It's not jail imprisonment, only temporary detention,"
Preecha said.
"I understand what they [Burmese students] want is
freedom, but they should be aware of Thai law as well. If we let them engage in
political activities, Thailand might run into trouble again. I have, therefore,
followed the Interior Ministry's regulations in overseeing peace and order in
the camp," said Preecha, who will be transferred to Phetchaboon province next
month.
But there were still a few Burmese students who managed to
sneak out of the camp to run political activities, he claimed.
Preecha said the Thai government provided English lessons,
computer and vocational training for centre residents to prepare them for life
abroad.
The Maneeloy centre was set up in 1992 to house Burmese
students recognised by the UNHCR as refugees or 'persons of
concern'.
The Nation - Sep 30,
2000.
EDITORIAL: Razali's mission to Burma critical DATO Ismail Razali, UN special envoy to Burma, will visit the beleaguered
country early next month. His trip comes at the most crucial time for Burma
since the crackdown on democracy in 1988. Two major reasons give rise to
optimism that there will be a breakthrough in the decade-long political impasse.
Firstly, Razali represents the United Nations' ongoing effort to promote
national reconciliation in Burma. Secondly, he is one of Malaysia's most famous
veteran diplomats, and is close to Prime Minister Mahathir Mohammad.
Razali held extensive talks with Foreign Minister Surin Pitsuwan on
Thursday about the situation on Burma. It was a good meeting because it was a
rare opportunity for Thailand and Malaysia to sit down and discuss the crisis in
Burma. Within the region, it has been an open secret that the two countries have
different approaches towards Burma.
It was Mahathir who succeeded in bringing the pariah state into Asean as a
member in 1997. Thailand was to blame for a lack of strong leadership to
counterbalance Mahathir's push for Burma's membership. Other Asean countries
were overwhelmed by Malaysia's weight.
This will not be the last consultation between the two countries. There
will be a series of meetings after Razali's trip to ensure that his efforts
produce results. The Thai-Malaysian effort also can be expanded in the near
future to include other like-minded Asean countries in the effort to assert peer
pressure on Burma. Asean finds it impossible to act as a group because gaining a
consensus on this issue is extremely difficult. Vietnam, the current chair, is
approaching Rangoon about the possibility of having an Asean troika inside the
country. This followed UN secretary-general Kofi Annan's suggestion to Vietnam
at UN headquarters in New York. So far, Burma is not happy about the idea.
Annan has taken a special interest in the Burma crisis, and has now become
personally involved. Therefore, Razali's trip can make or break the notorious
Rangoon regime. That explains why Thailand, along with Western countries, has
strongly backed Razali in searching for a way out of the current impasse. It is
high time for Burma to show its Asean spirit. If the country has any, it must
start a political dialogue with the opposition. For the past three years, Asean
has suffered from Burma's intransigence.
Beyond Asean, Japan can help. Razali, who has also held talks with Japanese
leaders, is confident that Tokyo's economic leverage can be put to good use. So
far, Japan has used only the "carrot" half of the "carrot and stick" approach.
Japan has been most generous in providing humanitarian assistance to Burma,
despite the termination of official aid. If Japan wants to help improve the
situation in Burma, Tokyo must end its marshmallow methods. It must get tough
and break out its stick. Otherwise, its aid will only compound the problem and
turn the junta leaders more inward, hardening them into a refusal to cooperate.
With the support of Malaysia and the UN, as well as core Asean countries,
Razali carries with him the UN mandate and Mahathir's friendship. If his visit
fails, Burma will certainly become the target for criticism and condemnation in
a series of international meetings. This will include a review of labour
conditions inside Burma at the International Labour Organisation.
The Nation - Sep 30, 2000.
FROM THE EDGE: Burmese exiles in India lose their edge BY YINDEE LERTCHAROENCHOK PUNE, India - Whereas their fellow countrymen in Thailand have been living
under constant threat of arrest and expulsion, Burmese refugees and political
activists in India have been enjoying the hospitality of their host government.
The Burmese exiles not only mingle with the locals and live like Indian
citizens but they are also allowed to engage in political activism as long as it
remains peaceful and does not affect "Indian policy and relations" with its
neighbour to the east.
Interestingly, India and Thailand - two model democracies in South and
Southeast Asia - have over the past 10 years been watching Burma closely and
with similar grave concern. But each has treated exiled Burmese living on their
soil differently.
While Thailand is to be thanked for housing and tolerating hundreds of
thousands of Burmese refugees, economic migrants and dissidents and has often
closed its eyes to Burmese anti-government activism, these groups of people have
lived virtually under the whim of the powers-that-be in Thailand, not to mention
being subject to constant police crackdowns and financial extortion. The Burmese
can one day be valued as a prized cheap labour source for the Thai industrial
sector, and the next day be vilified as snatchers of employment from Thai
workers.
As Thai-Burmese relations began to deteriorate in the past two years,
partly as the result of violent Burmese activism in Thailand, the leadership in
Bangkok realised the large presence of undocumented and uncontrolled Burmese in
the Kingdom would only create more problems and eventually harm its national
interests.
Thus it's not a surprise that after the armed seizure of the Burmese
Embassy in Bangkok last October, the Thai government urged the West to quicken
their resettlement of thousands of so-called Burmese "students" who were
recognised by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). At the same time,
the government has repeatedly called on the UN refugee body and Rangoon to help
in the repatriation of more than 100,000 border refugees, mainly Karen, back to
Burma.
After the military coup in September 1988, tens of thousands of Burmese
students and urban protesters decided to flee the crackdown to the Thai border,
hoping to obtain international support and sympathy for their democratic cause.
Only a few thousand opted to leave for the Indian border.
Large numbers of the former group have since been resettled in the West or
returned to Burma or continue to live low-profile lives in Thailand or on the
border. The latter group, confined initially for a few years to border camps in
India's northeastern Manipur State, has largely moved to live in New Delhi and
other major cities. Most of them are not only protected as refugees by the UNHCR
but are also recognised by the Indian government as democratic activists fleeing
political repression back home.
Many of those in India subsequently entered Indian schooling and higher
education. Although about a thousand of them have since been resettled in third
countries, mainly in the West, several hundred are said to be staying put in New
Delhi, Calcutta and in various northeastern cities.
Indian officials and Burmese activists in India attribute the Indian
"sympathy and hospitality" towards Burmese dissidents to the country's "strong
political culture and tradition". The world's largest democracy, India takes
pride in its advocacy for freedom and democratic values and often sides with the
oppressed people of dictatorships.
Between 1988 and 1993, the national All India Radio's Burmese language
service continuously broadcast pro-democracy news and information and openly
voiced government support for the democratic struggle in Burma.
Although New Delhi's policy towards Burma has started to shift towards
cultivating closer relations with the Burmese junta, the country's adherence to
freedom and democracy has never been totally abandoned.
As one official pointed out, the Burmese ruling generals have recently
complained about the Burmese democratic movement in India and requested New
Delhi crack down on it. The government's response was that "it has toned down
its support [for the Burmese], but it's not India's tradition to throw these
values [of freedom and democracy] away."
"As long as they demonstrate peacefully and do not create any violence,
there is not going to be any crackdown," the official added.
Burmese dissidents themselves have also praised India for its tolerance and
sympathy for the Burmese democratic struggle. They acknowledge the lack of
either hostility or discrimination against them, even among the general Indian
public.
"But again we [Burmese] are not the only exiled political group here. In
fact, we are pretty small when compared with the Tibetans or the Bengali from
Bangladesh," said Thin Thin Aung, a leading Burmese activist with the
Delhi-based Mizzima News Group.
"In general, there exists no hostility against the Burmese," noted one
official. "There is also no public discrimination against them. It's a neutral
kind of attitude."
A striking example of the sympathetic Indian attitude towards Burmese
dissidents is reflected by none other than Defence Minister George Fernandez
himself. He not only welcomes the Burmese who come to ask him for help and
political support, but he has also opened his residential compound for them to
stay. He also does not restrain his sharp criticism against the Burmese junta
for its harsh repression against the democratic opposition and its increased
dependence on China - the "major threat" to India.
But despite the freedom and sympathy from top Indian political and
bureaucratic circles, Burmese political activism in India hardly gets any Indian
media coverage. In fact, news on Burma finds little space in the country's
numerous broad-sheet newspapers or electronic media, unless it is a matter of
national security or whenever Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi comes
under harassment.
Of late, the Indian press began to voice its concern over Burma's closer
ties with China and potential Chinese military expansion into the Indian Ocean.
It's a pity that the majority of India's one billion people, however,
remains pretty much unaware of what's been happening across their eastern border
where political repression has been the norm of the day.
Indian intellectuals, journalists and politicians attribute the public's
ignorance to the Indian media's virtual lack of interest. But they also blame
the Burmese dissidents themselves for the failure to lobby and for their
"ineffective" publicity campaigns.
"They have come to live such a comfortable life that perhaps they have
forgotten their cause," said one official. "For example, one leading Burmese
politician has never done any lobbying with the media. I can say that there is
absolutely not even one Indian journalist or writer who is dedicated to writing
about the Burmese cause for them."
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