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----------------------------------------------------------------- BURMA RELATED NEWS - June 05, 2001. ----------------------------------------------------------------- HEADLINE ----------------------------------------------------------------- The Times - Fighting for Their
Lives
ABC online - Envoy's
visit to Burma "timely" says Annan
AP - UN Envoy: Myanmar Military, Opposition Held
Talks
AP - New History Book Tells Myanmar Kids That
Thais Are Lazy
AP - US Official Says Few Signs Of Progress In
Myanmar Talks
AP - Thaksin: Thais Love Democracy,But Won't
Preach To Myanmar
AFP - Myanmar dissidents demand 'failed' talks
be exposed to scrutiny
Reuters - Thai PM Thaksin says may visit Myanmar
on June 18
BBC - UN envoy 'fails' in Burma
The Independent - Myanmar reconciliation mission
completed
Bkk Post - Thaksin insists on Burma
visit
Bkk Post - Protest over new pagoda
Xinhuanet - Myanmar Makes Efforts in Environment
Protection
Xinhuanet - Myanmar to Export Opium-Substitute
Crop to Japan
Xinhuanet - Tourist Arrivals in Myanmar Decline
in January, February
Asiaweek - Backtalk -
No regrets
NYT - Myanmar Tests
Resolve of I.L.O. on Enforcing Standards
UN News - In Myanmar, UN envoy holds
meetings to help national reconciliation talks
----------------------------------------------------------------- The Times
JUNE 11, 2001, VOL.157 NO.23
Fighting for Their
Lives
Biting is banned, but not elbowing, head-butting or
kneeing, as bare-knuckle boxers scrap it out for cash on the Thai border
BY ALEX PERRY In a sweltering corrugated-roofed shed on the Thai-Burmese border,
24-year-old Chinaka hits the canvas in the third. It's not the first time this
bout the Burmese has gone down, and the beatings have taken their toll: he seems
to be swimming in slow motion on the dirty floor. As he inches on his stomach
across the ring, the crowd screams at him to get up while his Thai opponent,
fighting the referee's restraint, presses to finish him off. Chinaka's eyes are
frosted and bloody from three fresh cuts on his right brow. Giving up, he feels
his way to the ropes and, as he is pulled into the cursing throng, his eyelids
flicker with the approaching blackout.
Bare-knuckle kickboxing doesn't pay much: at fights outside the Thai border
town of Mae Sot, the purse is $22 for a Thai winner, $11 for a Burmese, $4 each
for a draw—losers get nothing. And the rules are brutally simple. Head-butting,
elbowing, kneeing as well as kicking and punching are allowed. Victory is by
surrender or straight knockout. If both fighters are still standing after five
rounds (or two for kickboxers under 14), it's a draw. There's no count: the two
referees' chief purpose is to protect a floored fighter from being stomped on by
an opponent. Poking in the eyes is not allowed, nor is biting. Boxers wear no
shoes, as is the tradition in Muay Thai (kickboxing). Less traditional in this
illegal version: boxing gloves are dispensed with, replaced by hands bound
across the palm with thin strips of hemp to make the fights as savage as
possible.
The area around Mae Sot in Thailand's wild west is a tense mix of Thai
soldiers, Burmese rebels and smugglers of jade, gemstones, heroin and
amphetamines. A boxer calling himself Thai may have been born in a Burmese
refugee camp and speak the language of the Karen guerrillas or the Mon tribesmen
over the frontier. Crowds flock from Burma for the fights, some crossing legally
at the checkpoint but most just wade across the parched Moei river. In this town
of mixed allegiances and sliding identities, boxing alone provides a little
certainty—without exception, every match is Thailand vs. Burma.
The high point of the season is in April when Thai promoters hold a series
of tournaments in makeshift rings set up in sheds or forest clearings. The
contests feature up to 16 fights a day between boxers who have traveled from
villages on either side of the border. Many are professional journeymen, living
day-to-day and bout-to-bout from the tiny purses they earn. These matches seem a
million miles from the gloved superstar kickboxing bouts held in stadiums in
Bangkok. On the border, fighters simply cannot afford to lose. Many share their
meager wages with managers and trainers. That financial pressure only
intensifies the violence.
Bare-knuckle boxing has been outlawed in Thailand since 1923: too many
fighters never awoke from that conclusive knockout, often delivered by a fist of
hemp rubbed in ground glass. Nevertheless, tournaments are tolerated, partly
because Muay Thai has a place in the country's history. Siamese soldiers
perfected the martial art in the 16th century, and Thais have been flooring
Burmese since as long ago as the 18th century, when soldier Nai Khanom won his
freedom from captors by defeating 12 top Burmese fighters. To this day, many
Thais ascribe their status as the sole unconquered Asian nation to Muay Thai.
Back in Mae Sot, Chinaka's career could be over. By night he is back on his
side of the border trying to recover, and doesn't show for the next day's
tournament. Whether he will fight again any time soon is unsure, but by age 24,
boxers are often approaching career's end in the gloveless ring. Chinaka's
manager and trainer know it: they're busying themselves with a new crop of
fighters to replace him. Chinaka's battles may be coming to a finish, but the
fights go on.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
(Jun 4, 2001)
Envoy's visit to Burma "timely" says
Annan
United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan says a four-day visit to Burma
by his special envoy has been "timely" and he hopes it will help reconcile the
military rulers and opposition.
The envoy, Razali Ismail, left Rangoon on Monday after holding what mR
Annan called "important discussions" with Lieutenant General Khin Nyunt, the
influential number three in the junta.
Mr Razali also paid two visits to Aung San Suu Kyi, head of the National
League for Democracy.
In a statement through his spokesman, Mr Annan said the purpose of Mr
Razali's visit had been to help facilitate progress in the talks between the
government and Aung San Suu Kyi, which started in October.
The dialogue, the first between the two sides since 1994, appears to have
faltered after reaching a delicate decision-making stage, and all parties
involved have agreed not to divulge any details of their content or
progress.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Tuesday June 5, 8:08 PM
UN Envoy: Myanmar Military, Opposition
Held Talks
KUALA LUMPUR (AP)--The U.N.
envoy credited with brokering discussions between Myanmar's military rulers and
its pro-democracy leaders said Tuesday they have been in talks, and was
cautiously optimistic they could reach an agreement.
But Razali Ismail, a Malaysian diplomat who just returned from a visit to
Myanmar where he met members of the ruling junta and pro-democracy leader Aung
San Suu Kyi, would not give any details of the talks or say when they occurred.
"I can confirm that they have been talking," Razali told The Associated
Press.
Asked if he was confident the two sides could reach agreement, Razali said:
"I remain realistic enough that it can be done, it must be done."
He declined to enter into "any qualitative discussion" about his most
recent visit to Myanmar, but said that it was "it was important for me to be
there."
"I think the U.N.'s role is further underlined by my visit," he said.
Western nations and Myanmar's opposition hope that the talks could lead
democracy in Myanmar, which has been ruled by the military since 1962.
The current group of generals took power after crushing a pro-democracy
movement in 1988, killing thousands of people.
The junta called national elections in 1990 but refused to honor the
results when the Suu Kyi's party won overwhelmingly. Since then, the junta has
harassed and arrested scores of opposition members and thwarted political
activity.
Suu Kyi has been living under virtual house arrest since September.
Razali is credited with achieving the first breakthrough in the deadlock by
initiating reconciliation talks between Suu Kyi and the junta leaders in
October, conducted in secrecy in the Nobel Peace laureate's lakeside villa.
Belying initial hopes of progress, however, some diplomats and
pro-democracy groups have expressed concern that the talks have stalled.
"The current talks are not open," the All Burma Students' Democratic Front
said in a statement issued in Bangkok Tuesday. "People are frustrated waiting
for information while human rights abuses and forced labor are still occurring
inside the country.
"We ask (both sides) to open up the talks so the people of Burma and the
world can see if there is progress," spokesman Sonny Mahinder said.
Earlier Tuesday, a U.S. State Department official said in Kuala Lumpur that
U.N. efforts to foster talks between the two sides in Myanmar began promisingly,
but that after six months there is little to show for it.
President George W. Bush's administration strongly supports efforts to
bring about democracy in Myanmar and was encouraged by the release of a small
number of prisoners in March and the visit in April by a U.N. human rights
investigator, said Ralph Boyce, the deputy assistant secretary at the State
Department's Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs.
"However, it has now been over six months since the political dialogue
began and there have been few signs of significant progress," Boyce said at an
Asia-Pacific Roundtable conference.
"We hope that the regime in Yangon understands the urgent need for positive
political developments."
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Tuesday June 5, 6:50 PM
New History Book Tells Myanmar Kids That
Thais Are Lazy
YANGON (AP)--Fourth graders in
Myanmar will be required to study a new history textbook on Myanmar-Thai
relations, which portrays Thais as servile and lazy.
The new textbook will be mandatory reading in government schools for
nine-year-olds who began the 2001-2002 academic year Monday after a three-month
holiday. The textbook is a 12-page supplement to the regular history book.
Its surprise addition to the curriculum is certain to infuriate Thailand,
which has been engaged in a war of words with Myanmar for months. The Thai
government didn't immediately comment on the development.
Thai-Myanmar relations have plunged to their lowest level, principally over
Thailand's accusations that Myanmar's ruling junta aids drug traffickers.
Myanmar denies the charge and charges Thailand with supporting anti-government
rebels. Their arguments have sparked frequent border skirmishes since January.
The book says Thailand has consistently launched anti-Myanmar campaigns and
those who grew up under such campaigns had deep-rooted hatred for the Myanmar
people.
The book has five chapters, the last one titled "Current Myanmar-Thai
Relationship." Its three subchapters blame Thailand for the support to
anti-government dissidents, loss of Myanmar's natural resources and the drug
problem.
"Thai people are given to fun and appreciation of beauty. They are
disinclined to self-reliance and hard work," according to an excerpt from the
chapter, "Traits and Characteristics of Thai People".
"In order to keep their thrones, Thai kings often yield to the West
European nations," says the Myanmar-language books, in an apparent reference to
the fact that unlike other Southeast Asian countries, Thailand was never
colonized by a Western power.
"During the first World War, Thais sided with the Allies; during the second
World War, Thais first sided with the Japanese and later with the Allied
forces....Foreign policy of Thailand is known 'to bend with the wind,"'
according to the textbook.
The textbook also recalled history when successive Myanmar kings attacked
Thailand after alleged intrusions by Thai soldiers.
It concludes with the statement that "the narcotic problem will exist so
long as Thailand continues to accept and support the insurgents, because drug
trafficking problems are connected with insurgents."
Thailand says Myanmar's military junta does little to stop the production
of drugs in its border areas where an ethnic armed group, the United Wa State
Army, has virtual control. The drugs, largely methamphetamines, land up in
Thailand in huge quantities, and the government has declared it public enemy no.
1.
The UWSA has been named by the U.S. State Department as the biggest drug
army in the world. Myanmar says it is trying to put an end to the narcotics
business but says the problem wouldn't be so rampant if corrupt Thai officials
weren't involved as well.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Tuesday June 5, 3:41 PM
US Official Says Few Signs Of Progress
In Myanmar Talks
KUALA LUMPUR (AP)--United
Nations efforts to foster talks between Myanmar's military rulers and the
country's pro-democracy movement began promisingly, but after six months there
is little to show for it, a U.S. State Department official said Tuesday.
President George W. Bush's administration strongly supports efforts to
bring about democracy in Myanmar and was encouraged by the release of a small
number of prisoners in March and the visit in April by a U.N. human rights
investigator, said Ralph Boyce, the deputy assistant secretary at the State
Department's Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs.
"However, it has now been over six months since the political dialogue
began and there have been few signs of significant progress," Boyce said in a
speech to the Asia-Pacific Roundtable conference of academics and bureaucrats in
Kuala Lumpur.
"We hope that the regime in Yangon understands the urgent need for positive
political developments," he said.
A U.N. envoy Razali Ismail ended Monday a visit to Myanmar, also known as
Burma, after talking with Suu Kyi and members of the ruling military junta. He
didn't release details of the talks.
Western nations and Myanmar's opposition hope the talks with Suu Kyi will
pave the way for democracy in Myanmar, which has been ruled by the military
since 1962.
The junta called national elections in 1990 but refused to honor the
results when the NLD won overwhelmingly. Since then, the junta has harassed and
arrested scores of NLD members and thwarted political activity.
Suu Kyi has been living under virtual house arrest since September.
Razali is credited with achieving the first breakthrough in the deadlock by
initiating reconciliation talks between Suu Kyi and the junta leaders in
October, conducted in secrecy in the Nobel Peace laureate's lakeside villa.
Belying initial hopes of progress, however, diplomats have recently
expressed concern that the talks have stalled.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Tuesday June 5, 11:16 AM
Thaksin: Thais Love Democracy,But Won't
Preach To Myanmar
BANGKOK (AP)--Thai Prime
Minister Thaksin Shinawatra says Thailand would like to see democracy
flourishing in every country, but won't preach its virtues to neighboring
Myanmar, long ruled by the military.
However, if a dialogue between Myanmar's junta and the opposition led by
Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi paves the way for civilian rule, "we would
welcome it," Thaksin said late Monday.
He was answering questions after giving a speech at a dinner hosted by the Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand. "We love democracy. We would like to see ... democratic system in every
country," Thaksin said when asked if he supported Suu Kyi's cause. "But we
wouldn't like to interfere in the internal affairs of other countries,
especially our friends," Thaksin said.
His remarks demonstrate the cautious path Thailand treads as it tries to
mend its relations with Myanmar, which have plunged to their lowest levels in
years over border skirmishes, drug smuggling and aid to rebel groups.
As one of the most democratic countries in the region, Thailand is often
hailed as a role model for other nations such as Myanmar, which has been ruled
by the military since 1962.
The current junta refuses to hand over power to Suu Kyi, whose party won
the 1990 general elections, but both sides are now holding reconciliation talks.
Thaksin denied that Thailand is providing help or sanctuary to ethnic rebel
groups from Myanmar fighting the central government in Yangon for autonomy. This
is one of the main points of contentions poisoning Thai-Myanmar relations.
The other issue is Thailand's accusation that the junta is doing little to
stop drug production and trafficking by the pro-Yangon United Wa State Army in
border areas, especially methamphetanines that are flooding Thailand.
Thaksin said he would travel soon to Myanmar, also known as Burma, for
talks to resolve the disputes. He said no date has been set.
"After I come back from bilateral (talks) with Burma, things will be
solved," he said. "It is the willingness of the two governments to solve the
problems together. We both understand our problems and our concerns."
Thailand has declared drugs as public enemy no. 1, and Thaksin said he
fully supports the death penalty for drug smugglers.
"We will guarantee justice for all criminals but punishment should fit the
crime," he said, citing statistics that 2 million of Thailand's 64 million
people are drug addicts.
On the Thai economy, Thaksin said he won't interfere in the central bank's
monetary policies or interest rates.
The central bank's monetary policy board would be given free rein to
determine whether rates should rise from "very low levels to moderate or just
low levels," he said.
Thaksin said the dismissal last week of central bank Governor Chatu Mongol
Sonakul was due to personality problems, and not policy differences.
He denied rumors that Thailand might adopt strict capital controls.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Tuesday June 5, 7:29 PM
Myanmar dissidents demand 'failed' talks
be exposed to scrutiny
BANGKOK, June 5 (AFP) - Secret talks between democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and Myanmar's military regime have failed to make any head way and should now be opened to public scrutiny, a Myanmar dissident group Tuesday. "The progress over the last eight months of dialogue has been virtually
non-existent," the All Burma Students Democratic Front (ABSDF) said in a
statement.
The Thailand-based activist group called on the opposition National League
for Democracy (NLD) and the ruling State Peace and Development Councilto reveal
details of the contacts which began last October.
"We ask the NLD and SPDC to open up the talks so the people of Burma and
the world can see if there is progress" said spokesman Sonny Mahinder.
"The current talks are not open. People are frustrated waiting for
information while human rights abuses and forced labour are still occurring
inside the country."
The ABSDF accused the military regime of staging religious and racial riots
which have broken out in recent weeks to "distract people's attention from
current political and economic problems."
"The people of Burma should have access to information about the real
progress of the talks," it said, urging foreign governments and rights
organisations to maintain pressure on the SPDC.
UN envoy Razali Ismail ended a four-day mission to Myanmar on Monday where
he met with Aung San Suu Kyi and top junta leaders in a bid to revive the
reconciliation talks they embarked on last year.
The dialogue, the first between the two warring sides since 1994, initially
raised hopes that 40 years of military rule might finally be coming to an end in
Myanmar.
But in the last few months the contacts appear to have hit a road block, as
elements within the junta baulked at the prospect of introducing democratic
reforms.
The government's decision to allow Razali to visit last week, after a
worryingly long absence of five months, was hailed as a sign that the
reconciliation process was back on track.
But eyebrows were raised again Monday when the Malaysian diplomat left
Yangon without any of the prizes he was expected to be handed -- including the
release of a batch of political prisoners and permission to release a statement
on the direction and intent of the talks.
Instead, UN chief Kofi Annan later made a vaguely-worded statement which
said only that the visit by his special envoy had been "timely" and that he
hoped it would help reconcile the military rulers and opposition.
Dissident groups and the nation's many ethnic minorities, whose support
will be crucial in any transition to democracy, have made increasingly loud
calls for light to be shed on the secret dialogue.
"It's difficult for everyone else to have the patience and forbearance to
deal with this situation when we don't have a great deal of information to go
on," said one diplomat in Yangon after Razali's departure.
"The mood here is one that we have to be very patient and we have a long
way to go," he added.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Tuesday June 5, 11:05 AM
Thai PM Thaksin says may visit Myanmar
on June 18
BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has said he hopes to visit Yangon later this month to try to mend relations battered by rows over drugs and skirmishes along the Thai-Myanmar border. Thaksin said late on Monday he had made tentative plans to visit Myanmar in the third week of June and would probably stay just one night. "Wait and see the results after I come back," he told a dinner hosted by
the Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand.
"There will be progress. We both understand our problems and concerns. I am
confident we can come to an arrangement where we can eliminate the problem."
Thaksin told reporters he might visit Yangon on June 18, but added that
this had not been settled: "It's still tentative."
On June 18, Thaksin's lawyers are due to present closing arguments to the
Constitutional Court in a trial over allegations that Thaksin failed declare
some of his wealth when he was a cabinet minister in the 1990s. Thaksin denies
the allegations.
Asked whether he would make a personal appearance at the trial on June 18,
Thaksin said he had not yet made up his mind.
"I am still undecided," he said. "I leave it to my legal advisers to decide
whether it is appropriate for me to appear."
Relations between Thailand and Myanmar -- enemies for centuries -- have
deteriorated since Thaksin was elected in January on a promise to "wage war
against drugs".
Thailand says most of the drugs pouring into the country from the notorious
Golden Triangle region, where Thailand meets Laos and Myanmar, are made by
ethnic minority groups inside Myanmar.
Thailand sent reinforcements to its northern border with Myanmar after
recent fighting between Thai troops and a pro-Myanmar government ethnic militia
group, the United Wa State Army (UWSA), which is accused by Bangkok of being a
major producer and supplier of methamphetamine stimulants and heroin.
Myanmar disputes this and in turn accuses Bangkok-backed rebels along the
2,400-km (1,490-mile) Thai-Myanmar border of being the region's main drugs
producers.
Myanmar Foreign Minister Win Aung is due to pay an official visit to
Thailand before Thaksin goes to Yangon, Thai officials have said.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
BBC - Tuesday, 5 June, 2001, 04:36 GMT
05:36 UK
UN envoy 'fails' in Burma A statement issued by the United Nations suggests the recent visit to Burma
by its special envoy, Razali Ismail, has had little impact on re-starting talks
between the military leadership and the opposition leader, Aung San Suu Kyi.
The UN statement said simply that the UN hoped Mr Razali's visit would help
dialogue to progress further.
The BBC's Burma analyst says the statement suggests that the visit has
failed to kick-start the stalled talks, and that the UN has again failed in its
efforts to bring democratic change to Burma.
Sources close to Mr Razali told the BBC the main obstacle was the fear of
Burma's generals that democratic change would lead to the break-up of the
country.
But many analysts believe that Burma's leaders have little option but to
involve Aung Sang Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy in determining
the country's future if they want to avoid the risk of economic ruin.
From the newsroom of the BBC World Service
-----------------------------------------------------------------
The
Independent-bangladesh.
Myanmar reconciliation mission
completed
YANGON, June 4: UN envoy Razali Ismail Monday ended a four-day mission to
Myanmar where he met democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and the ruling junta in a
bid to revive the reconciliation talks they began last year, reports AFP.
Razali visited Aung San Suu Kyi twice at her lakeside villa during his
visit, and also met the junta's influential number three, Lieutenant General
Khin Nyunt, and Foreign Minister Win Aung.
The Malaysian diplomat is credited with acting as a catalyst for the
historic dialogue that began last October but which in recent months appears to
have faltered after reaching a delicate decision-making stage. All parties
involved in the talks, the first between the military regime and Aung San Suu
Kyi since 1994, have agreed not to divulge any details of their content or
progress. However, diplomats in Yangon said that Razali's presence after a break
of five months was a good sign that the reconciliation process has not
completely broken down. "He's come here and been able to talk to both sides and
go to and fro between them and encourage them, and that's pretty important," one
said.
"He comes as a special person with a special mandate which the Myanmar side
recognises ... but the situation is all still very delicate." Senior members of
the opposition National League for Democracy had said they expected the junta
would mark Razali's visit with the release of some of the country's estimated
1,700 political prisoners.
But with no sign so far of any goodwill gesture, or of a hoped-for official
statement on the progress of the talks, there will be disappointment among those
who have so far been left out of the process.
Dissident groups and the nation's many ethnic minorities, whose support
will be crucial in any transition to democracy, have made increasingly loud
calls for light to be shed on the secret dialogue.
"It's difficult for everyone else to have the patience and forbearance to
deal with this situation when we don't have a great deal of information to go
on," the diplomat said.
"The mood here is one that we have to be very patient and we have a long
way to go," he said, adding however that fears Aung San Suu Kyi could call an
end to the contacts appeared to be unfounded.
"I don't think Aung San Suu Kyi is about to call the talks off. That would
be a very serious step and I think she probably think it's better to keep them
going even if they're not making much progress," he said.
Razali wrapped up his visit with a meeting at NLD headquarters with six
members of the party's Central Executive Committee. The three other members,
including Aung San Suu Kyi, are being held by the regime.
Before flying out of Yangon in the early afternoon, he paid a final call on
Foreign Minister Win Aung.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Bangkok Post - June 05,
2001.
Thaksin insists on Burma
visit
Resolves to get to the root of drug problem Kosol Satithamajit
Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra last night insisted on going to Burma,
promising he will return with results that will resolve the drug problem at the
centre of the conflict between the two countries.
"Just wait and see the results after I come back from Burma," he said at a
dinner hosted by the Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand at the Plaza
Athinee hotel.
"There will be progress. We both understand our problems and concerns. I am
confident we can come to an arrangement where we can eliminate the
problems."
Mr Thaksin pointed to his success in getting Zhu Rongji, the Chinese
premier, to agree to host a meeting on the drug problems between the leaders of
China, Burma, Thailand and Laos.
He will discuss this meeting with the Burmese leaders when he visits
Rangoon.
There have been objections to Mr Thaksin's visiting Burma, since the
Burmese foreign minister is still to pay a return visit to Thailand.
Burma, critics said, has shown little co-operation or interest in solving
drug and other bilateral problems and Mr Thaksin would be playing into their
hands by courting them without the promise of a concession.
Mr Thaksin would not say when he will go to Burma, but said he has to go
because he did not want to see the problems at the border get out of hand and
become really serious.
This was a problem the leaders of the two countries had to discuss face to
face.
Asked if, as a democratic country, Thailand would express any support for
Aung San Suu Kyi, Mr Thaksin said: "We love democracy. We want to see our
friends have a democratic system, but we won't interfere in internal
matters."
However, if the Burmese government wanted Thailand to take part in any
dialogue with the opposition leader, he would be most willing to support such a
move.
On the issue of the Constitutional Court ruling on his assets case, Mr
Thaksin said he has not planned what he will do should the verdict go against
him. He was confident of his innocence, but whatever the verdict he would
respect it.
He had not yet decided whether he would appear before the court in person
to deliver any statement. He admitted this was the "kind of tactic" he would
leave to his legal team to decide.
Asked if Thailand was now shifting its foreign relations to lean more
towards China than the United States, the prime minister said Thais and Chinese
had a relationship that went back to their ancestors, since many came from
China. Economically, China was also a big market and Thailand must have a good
relationship with her.
As for the US, Thailand has been an old ally, and this relationship would
continue.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Bangkok Post - June 05,
2001.
Protest over new
pagoda
Chiang Rai Thailand will protest against Burma's construction of a pagoda in the
disputed border area of Kuteng Nayong.
Col Wanthip Wongwai, commander of the Third Cavalry Regiment and head of
the Thai Township Border Committee, said the one-square-kilometre area
overlooking Mae Sai district was claimed by both Thailand and Burma.
Burma had begun building the temple in the disputed area but halted work
from Feb 21, when conflict between Thailand and Burma became serious.
A few days ago Burmese troops delivered construction material to the area
and work was resumed.
"We want Burma to stop the construction since the dispute over the area has
not been settled," Col Wanthip said. He would raise this matter at a meeting of
the Thai Town Border Committee when preparing a protest note to Burma.
Col Wanthip also said he had ordered about 20 border crossings to be closed
permanently as they were reportedly being used for smuggling goods at
night.
- Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has not tied his trip to Burma with
Burmese Foreign Minister U Win Aung's pending's visit to Thailand scheduled for
the third week of June.
Political sources said the prime minister would visit once diplomatic
arrangements were finalised.
"The premier has not set any pre-condition for visiting Burma and would not
mind speeding up his trip if this would help resolve border tension and create
new understanding with Burma," the sources said.
Mr Thaksin yesterday said he would make the trip this month, but declined
to commit to a date.
Third Army commander Lt-Gen Watanachai Chaimuanwong is optimistic tension
along the border would decrease markedly with the approaching rainy season,
which would hamper the movement of troops.
A security source said Lt-Gen Watanachai has been instructed to avoid any
unnecessary confrontation with Burmese troops along the border area that could
lead to further tension.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Myanmar Makes Efforts in
Environment Protection
2001.06.05 14:44:10 YANGON, June 5 (Xinhuanet) --
Myanmar has been making efforts in protection and conservation of
environment by enacting seven environment-related laws over the past two
decades.
These laws are known as the Territorial Sea and Maritime Zones Law,
Pesticide Law, Marine Fisheries Law, Fresh Water Fisheries Law, Forest
Law, Plant Pest Quarantine Law, and Wild Life and Wild Plants Protection and
Natural Areas Conservation Law.
Of them, the Territorial Sea and Maritime Zones Law was promulgated
in 1977 to protect the marine resources from extinction and
over-exploitation.
The Pesticide Law, prescribed in 1990, was for prohibition against
misuse or over-use of pesticide which may cause impact to plants and
living things.
The 1992 Myanmar Forest Law governs systematic conservation of the
state's forest resources and extraction of forest products.
The 1994 Wild Life and Wild Plants Protection and Natural Areas
Conservation Law deals particularly with biological diversity, prohibiting
illegal hunting, poaching and trading of animals and their
parts.
In line with the Global Agenda 21 designed for effective
environmental management, the country also formulated Myanmar Agenda 21 in
1997 which is a program for sustainable development.
The Myanmar government is reportedly in the process of drafting two new
environmental laws -- the Environmental Protection law and the Environmental
Impact Assessment Rules -- to strengthen the related management in the
country.
In addition, it formed the National Commission for Environmental
Affairs (NCEA) in 1990 and established the Dry Zone Greening Department to
endeavor for greening the arid central Myanmar with greening projects in
13 districts being implemented.
Furthermore, Myanmar conducts nationwide tree-planting campaign,
participated by governmental and non-governmental organizations, local
communities, farmers and students, and more than 11 million seedlings are
planted all over the country every year.
While expanding agricultural lands to boost production or setting up
new industries and factories, the Myanmar government also takes special
care to avoid negative impact on the environment.
Care is also exercised in granting foreign investment projects to
ensure that they meet strict environmental standards or keep with the
existing environmental rules and regulations and environmental
considerations.
The country is also participating actively in a number of regional
programs and projects designed to prevent environmental
degradation.
On the international front, Myanmar has signed a number of
international environmental agreements and conventions such as the U.N.
Framework Convention on Climate Change, the Convention on Biological
Diversity, the Vienna Convention and the Montreal Protocol for Protection
of the Ozone Layer and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered
Species of Wild Flora and Fauna.
Myanmar is still green with more than 50 percent of its land covered
with forest. The land area of reserved and protected forest amounts to
more than 104,000 square-kilometers.
There are over 3,410 kinds of botanical plants in the country, of
which trees take up 2,700 kinds, bamboo 96 kinds and cane 36 kinds. There
are also more than 1,240 kinds of birds.
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Myanmar to Export Opium-Substitute
Crop to Japan
2001.06.05 11:08:46 YANGON, June 5 (Xinhuanet) --
Myanmar has reached a contract with Japan to export buckwheat, a kind of
opium-substitute crop, to Japan, according to Myanmar's Department of
Progress of Border Areas and National Races Tuesday.
The contract to export three containers of buckwheat to Japan was
signed between the Myanma Agricultural Produce Trading and the Japan
International Corporation Agency on Monday.
Meanwhile, earlier in February, Myanmar also reached a memorandum of
understanding with Japan to purchase 20 tons of buckwheat seeds from Japan
for cultivation of the crop in northern Shan state of the country.
In 1992, Myanmar and Japan agreed to substitute opium poppy with
buckwheat in Myanmar's poppy-growing northern Shan state and it was
realized in 1997 with trial cultivation successfully conducted in the
state's Tarshwetang area.
Cultivation of opium-substitute crops plays a key role in tackling
the food problem of these poppy-growing areas as well as in consolidating
Myanmar's achievements made in drug control.
According to official statistics, in 2000, the cultivated areas of
poppy-substitute crops in Kokang area of northern Shan state reached
17,520 hectares, of which buckwheat took up 1,320 hectares, while sugar cane
represented 16,200 hectares.
The growing of the crops were greatly assisted by Japan and
China.
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Tourist Arrivals in Myanmar
Decline in January, February
2001.06.05 10:10:59 YANGON, June 5 (Xinhuanet) -- A
total of 32,377 foreign tourists visited Myanmar in the first two months
of this year, dropping in number by 32.6 percent compared with the
corresponding period of 2000, the country's Economic Indicators said in
its latest issue.
The decline was obvious in the number of those travelling across
border, reaching only 4,692 during the two-month period and constituting a fall
of 77.8 percent in the cross-border arrivals from the same period of 2000
when it was 21,195.
The sharp reduction of cross-border tourists arrival was seen as
being due to the outbreak of border clashes in February between Myanmar and
Thailand which is one of Myanmar's two neighboring countries supplying
most of the tourists to the country.
While the number of foreign tourists arriving Myanmar by land was
experiencing a sharp drop in the two months, those coming in by air
increased by 2.8 percent, reaching 27,685 as compared with the same period
of 2000.
According to official statistics, in 2000, the number of tourist
arrivals was registered at only 234,900, falling by 9.3 percent from 1999.
Of them, 49 percent entered the country by land through border points.
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Asiaweek
June 1, 2001 VOL.27 NO.22 Backtalk - No
regrets
Human rights? The worst thing about Myanmar's government is the red tape,
says Cherie Aung-Khin. Her factory in Yangon turns out upmarket household goods
for clients in London, Milan, New York and Paris. ASIAWEEK's Roger Mitton takes
her to task
Let's face it, you help the military junta stay in
power.
People who buy our things are in international business. They're not interested in politics. They are aware of the humanitarian side, though. Our products are all handmade by the working class. The income goes to the workers, not to the government. So what do the workers make, about $50 a month?
No, much less than that. It may not seem much in real money, but converted into Myanmar kyat, it's a lot. You should not compare it with dollars. Your products sell in the U.S. and Europe, but do they say 'Made in
Myanmar'?
In Europe, we don't need to put the label on them. In America, we have to do it, but we still sell a lot there — it's a quarter of our income. We sell over 5,000 designs to Pottery Barn, Crate & Barrel, Nieman Marcus, Saks 5th Avenue, all the big names. In Japan, we put the label on and nobody pays any attention. So what's the problem?
No one complains anywhere, unless someone who has an ulterior political motive starts stirring things up. Anti-regime sources will always be against people who are working for the good of the people. But normal consumers who see these beautiful items and pay the price don't necessarily think that way. Is there anything you don't like about your
government?
There's an incredible amount of red tape. It delays and kills our work. It's just silly. If a rush order comes in we'll lose the order. It takes a minimum of two weeks to deal with the bureaucracy. If you complain, they always say "put it in writing." But nothing happens. Your products aren't cheap, but they must cost you a fraction to
make in Myanmar.
I leave that to your assumption. On the whole, it's a profitable business. But I sometimes wonder if it's worth it. You work 24 hours a day, no holidays. Even on holiday, you are looking at things and deciding if you could make it. I can sit on a beach for 3 days maximum. But you're rich . . .
Not rich in money. Compared with some young Myanmar businesspeople, I earn peanuts. I don't have their wealth. But I have a very colorful and satisfying life. I have good friends all over the world. I go and see them once a year, they come and see me. I have a very nice companion in Thailand. I enjoy cultural things. I always travel to Europe and America to see all the ballet and opera. My favorite ballet is Swan Lake, the classical ones. -----------------------------------------------------------------
The NewYork Times - June 5, 2001
Myanmar Tests Resolve of I.L.O. on
Enforcing Standards
By ELIZABETH OLSON
GENEVA, June 4 — Nearly all governments agree smooth, seamless
international trade is good and mistreatment of workers is bad.
But as antiglobalization protests in Seattle and elsewhere have
illustrated, when free trade and labor standards intersect, the results can be
surprisingly troublesome.
Look no further than efforts by many governments to take Myanmar to task
for flouting international prohibitions against forced labor.
Last November, the International Labor Organization, a United Nations
affiliate based in Geneva with 175 member countries, called for stiff measures
against Myanmar, formerly called Burma, because of the military government's
practice of forcing villagers to do unpaid construction work.
Initially, the European Union, the United States and other countries
indicated that they would impose sanctions against Myanmar over the issue. But a
new report by the labor organization failed to identify a single nation that had
responded to its call with any concrete action.
The reason is that Myanmar belongs to the World Trade Organization, and
sanctions with some sting — like a ban on textile exports — would violate W.T.O.
rules.
If anything, the effort to isolate and punish Myanmar over its labor
practices is losing ground. Japan recently announced the largest aid package
since the military government suppressed prodemocracy demonstrators more than a
decade ago.
The United States State Department listed Myanmar as among the three worst
offenders in its annual report on human rights abuse, and trade preferences for
Myanmar were suspended years ago; Americans are also banned from investing in
Myanmar. But there is limited support in Congress for additional sanctions — in
part because the government of Myanmar has reopened dialogue with the country's
most prominent dissident, Aung San Suu Kyi — and the United States remains
Myanmar's largest export market.
Indeed, Myanmar's trade with both the United States and the European Union
has soared recently. According to Eurostat, the union's statistical agency, the
volume of trade between the 15 countries in the union and Myanmar shot up from
222.6 million euros ($188 million) in December 1999 to 404.3 million ($342
million) in December 2000. The Commerce Department reports a near- quadrupling
of American imports from Myanmar since 1997, reaching $412 million last
year.
Oddly, that growth has occurred in part because of American diplomatic
cold-shouldering of Myanmar. No agreement has been negotiated on a bilateral
quota for apparel, like the ones the United States has with most other
developing countries. Manufacturers from China and elsewhere have set up shop in
Myanmar specifically to exploit the loophole.
The labor organization's fruitless effort to take a strong stand against
Myanmar has shed a harsh light on its lack of enforcement power. At the March
meeting of the organization's governing body, American officials worried
publicly about its ineffectiveness. "In the absence of democratic reforms in
Burma, the practical ability of an I.L.O. presence there to assure that forced
labor has been eliminated nationwide is highly problematic," Charles Spring, a
Labor Department official, told the group.
Not that it has not kept trying: in late May, the organization said Myanmar
had agreed in principle to allow an I.L.O. team into the country to conduct an
independent investigation of its arguments that it is moving against forced
labor. Details have yet to be negotiated.
The Bush administration has said it opposes the direct linking of trade
issues and worker safeguards. In April, the White House said it would review a
free-trade pact that the Clinton administration concluded last year with Jordan
that included labor-standards provisions, the first such pact to do so.
Many developing nations prefer to leave the issue of labor standards to the
labor organization, while trade unions and workers' rights activists want the
World Trade Organization to have jurisdiction because the trade group's
dispute-settlement system has the power to authorize trade sanctions.
Some on Capitol Hill would like to force the issue by enacting a ban on
textile imports from Myanmar, which would probably provoke a complaint to the
World Trade Organization. In late May, Senator Tom Harkin, Democrat of Iowa,
introduced such a bill in the Senate. William Goold, an aide to Senator Harkin,
said leaving the matter solely to the labor organization was "asking governments
to ignore the clear limitations of the I.L.O."
The labor organization is scheduled to discuss Myanmar again at its annual
meeting on Tuesday. Meanwhile, human rights groups and trade unions say nothing
has changed in Myanmar, despite a decree against forced labor last October that
they called a sham.
"Clearly there is a reluctance by the international community to take
concrete steps," said Janek Kuczkiewicz, Asian specialist for the International
Confederation of Free Trade
Unions. -----------------------------------------------------------------United Nations News
In Myanmar, UN envoy holds meetings to
help national reconciliation talks
4 June – Secretary-General Kofi Annan's envoy for Myanmar completed today
his visit to the country after holding high-level meetings aimed at facilitating
progress in democratization and national reconciliation talks between the
Government and the National League for Democracy.
Special Envoy Razali Ismail had "important" discussions in Yangon with
Lt.-Gen. Khin Nyunt, Secretary 1 of the State Peace and Development Council
(SPDC), and other government officials, Mr. Annan's spokesman said today in New
York. During the four-day visit, Mr. Razali also met with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi,
General Secretary of the National League for Democracy.
Spokesman Fred Eckhard said it was the Secretary-General's hope that his
Special Envoy's visit and the Yangon discussions would contribute towards
progress in the talks. Mr. Annan considered such timely visits to Myanmar as an
important function in discharging the good offices mandate he had been given by
the General Assembly, the spokesman said.
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