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BURMA RELATED NEWS - December
12, 2001.
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HEADLINES
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Reuters - Myanmar fetes Jiang with release of
Chinese prisoners
BBC - Aung San Suu Kyi urges
caution
Reuters - Myanmar frees prisoners for Jiang's
visit
Asia Times - Myanmar teeters on the brink of
collapse
AFP - China's Jiang leaves for Myanmar on
three-day visit
AFP - Myanmar rolls out red carpet for Jiang's
first visit
AFP - Myanmar dissidents stage hunger strike
over closing of Thai camp
Reuters - Thailand says fearful Myanmar rebel
twins can stay
Reuters - Thais urge new U.N. approach to
Myanmar
Dow Jones - Rights Groups Press Energy Companies
To Leave Myanmar
AP - Chinese President Visits
Myanmar
BBC - UN says world failing
asylum-seekers
BBC - Burma's reliance on China
The Star - Razali optimistic on talks in Myanmar
Bkk Post - Rights advocate warns against closing
down Maneeloy camp
Bkk Post - Suu Kyi continues her struggle for
democracy
Xinhuanet - China-Myanmar Friendship Highlighted
in Yangon
Kyodo News - 14 Myanmar dissidents stage Tokyo
hunger strike for Suu Kyi
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Wednesday December 12, 2:13 PMMyanmar fetes Jiang with release of Chinese prisoners YANGON (Reuters) - Myanmar has
released more than 200 Chinese prisoners to mark the arrival on Wednesday of
President Jiang Zemin on a four-day official visit aimed at strengthening
bilateral ties.
A government spokesman said in a statement the prisoners, mostly held on
immigration charges, had been released on Tuesday as a sign of goodwill.
"Over 200 Chinese prisoners have been released while some others are in the
process of being released," the statement said.
"They are a good will gesture and to commemorate the visit of the Chinese
president to Myanmar."
Sources told Reuters most of the prisoners were released on December 10 and
11 from facilities around the country.
Myanmar's state-run press ran front-page biographies and photos of Jiang
with editorials praising relations between the neighbours.
Jiang's visit is the first by a Chinese president since the current
military regime seized power in Yangon in 1988.
Jiang is due to arrive later on Wednesday and stay until December 15.
China is a major supplier of arms and assistance to Myanmar, while much of
the west -- including the United States and European Union -- shuns contact with
the ruling military, which they accuse of human rights violations.
BBC - Tuesday, 11 December, 2001,
16:01 GMT
Aung San Suu Kyi urges caution Burma's pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi has cautioned that dialogue
with the country's military rulers has yet to start in full.
Her comments were reported following a statement by the ruling State Peace
and Development Council (SPDC) saying it was committed to creating a
"functioning democracy".
They also came as her National League for Democracy (NLD) said talks with
the military must start yielding more tangible results.
Over the last year, Aung San Suu Kyi has been holding secret United
Nations-brokered talks with junta leaders which have raised hopes of a
breakthrough.
The 1991 Nobel Peace laureate was again placed under house arrest in
September 2000, 10 years after the NLD won a landslide election that the
military refused to recognise.
Despite the recent contacts between the two sides, Aung San Suu Kyi
stressed that the process of national reconciliation had barely begun.
Mutual mistrust
"It is not that dialogue has begun," she was quoted by Japan's Jiji Press
news agency as telling former Japanese Foreign Minister Kabun Muto.
"It is a period in which both sides are attempting to erase mutual
mistrust," Mr Muto quoted her as saying.
According to the Jiji report - monitored by the AFP news agency - Mr Muto
met Aung San Suu Kyi at her home in Rangoon on 4 December.
The statement from the generals, released on Monday, said they were working
with Aung San Suu Kyi to find a political settlement.
"Today, we are all in the process of joining hands, walking on the same
path toward our common objective," it said.
Negotiations so far have led to the release of nearly 200 political
prisoners, but an estimated 1,500 remain in detention.
The NLD said on Monday that any further delays in moving towards democracy
could lead to "undesirable negative effects".
"It is now necessary to develop, step by step, the confidence building
talks between the SPDC and NLD into meaningful dialogues," it said in a
statement carried by the Reuters news agency.
The statement was released to mark Burma's National Day.
Nobel pressure
The junta's statement directly replied to comments in Oslo by South African
retired Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who said Aung San Suu Kyi was on the
winning side of the conflict.
Nobel laureates, who had gathered to celebrate 100 years of the peace
prize, paid tribute to Aung San Suu Kyi and called for her release.
The junta has so far ignored the global chorus calling for her
release.
Wednesday December 12, 5:31 PM
Myanmar frees prisoners for Jiang's visit By Aung Hla Tun YANGON (Reuters) - Chinese President Jiang Zemin arrived in Myanmar for a four-day official visit on Wednesday, as his hosts freed more than 200 Chinese prisoners as a goodwill gesture. Jiang said as he arrived that he hoped his visit would strengthen bilateral
ties between the two neighbours.
"I wish to enhance mutual understanding, deepen friendship and expand
cooperation through exchange of views on our bilateral relations and other
issues of common interest," he said in a written statement.
He added that he wanted to learn more about the economic and social
development of Myanmar.
Jiang is the first Chinese head of state to visit the Southeast Asian
country since the current military regime seized power in Yangon in 1988.
According to a Myanmar government spokesman, Jiang and the head of
Myanmar's government, General Than Shwe, will sign agreements covering "a wide
range of areas" to promote bilateral co-operation.
Myanmar marked Jiang's arrival with the release of a large number of
Chinese prisoners, mostly held on immigration charges.
"Over 200 Chinese prisoners have been released while some others are in the
process of being released," a government statement received by Reuters said.
"They are a good will gesture and to commemorate the visit of the Chinese
president to Myanmar."
Sources told Reuters most of the prisoners were released on December 10 and
11 from facilities around the country.
Relations between Myanmar's military government and China have warmed in
recent years, with Beijing becoming a key supplier of arms to its southern
neighbour.
This has caused growing concern in other countries in the region,
especially in India, that Beijing's political and economic influence is moving
rapidly southwards.
But China still only ranks 15th in terms of foreign direct investment in
impoverished Myanmar, although $60 million worth of investment projects are
currently under discussion.
In the last fiscal year (April 2000-March 2001), Myanmar imported $293
million worth of goods from China. Exports to China amounted to $104 million.
Much of the West -- including the United States and the European Union --
shuns contact with the ruling military, which they accuse of human rights
violations.
Jiang departs Myanmar on December 15.
(Asia Times Online)
Dec 12, 2001. Myanmar teeters on the brink of collapse BANGKOK - The latest report on Myanmar by the Asian Development Bank (ADB)
states that the country's economy is on the verge of collapse, as the military
government struggles to provide basic services. According to the Myanmar
Economic Update report, taxation is amongst the lowest in the world, while only
three people out of every 20 have access to electricity and only one person in
200 has a telephone.
The military's continued iron grip control of the country has done little
to ease the economic burden. The escalating economic crisis has forced the
junta's hand to some extent over its relations with pro-democracy leader Aung
San Suu Kyi and for over a year now the two have engaged in a dialogue process.
The talks have resulted in the release of nearly 200 political prisoners,
although an estimated 1,500 remain in detention.
Since 1991, bilateral assistance has largely dried up in the wake of
international sanctions. However, countries of the region have pursued a
vigorous policy of engagement and in July 1997 Myanmar was admitted to the
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Myanmar continues to receive
loans and grants from some countries, including the China, India, Japan,
Singapore, and Thailand, and from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting
Countries (OPEC). Of these, China has been the biggest supporter, supplying most
of Myanmar's military hardware, including tanks, patrol boats and fighter jets,
along with military training. Many believe that the two countries closely
cooperate in the area of intelligence.
Chinese President Jiang Zemin arrived in Myanmar on Wednesday for a
four-day visit that will likely involve trade discussions. Jiang is the first
Chinese head of state to visit the country since 1985. Officially, China is
Myanmar's third most important trading partner, with bilateral trade estimated
to be worth more than US$600 million a year, but unofficially, informal trade
likely doubles this total. Through low-interest loans, China has also funded the
country's infrastructure through deep-sea port, road and airport projects.
Military intelligence chief Lieutenant-General Khin Nyunt has said that
Myanmar's economy has been growing without international assistance at over 8
percent a year over the last five years. "I am confident that, with increased
inputs from abroad, our economic growth will be more rapid," he said. But his
assertion contrasts sharply with the findings of the ADB's report.
It states that Myanmar's prospects for growth over the medium term are
constrained by growing macroeconomic imbalances and impediments to structural
adjustment. However, prospects could be improved if Myanmar were to recommence
reforms and undertake needed adjustments. Ultimately, poverty reduction and
broader improvements in the quality of life will rest on policy and
institutional frameworks that serve to promote durable and equitable growth.
According to the report, official development assistance could have an
important role in serving these objectives and meeting Myanmar's still
considerable development needs. Myanmar's gross domestic product (GDP) is
estimated to have grown at an average annual rate of 5.9 percent since the
beginning of reforms in 1988. With a population growth rate of about 2 percent
per year, this translates into per capita income growth of about 4 percent per
year, which is close to the average performance of other developing member
countries of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) during the 1990s.
State-owned economic enterprises (SEEs) dominate public finances,
accounting for nearly 75 percent of public expenditure, only about 6 percent of
which goes toward capital expenditures, the report says. A small and declining
share of public sector expenditures has been going to investment in physical and
human resource development. Public expenditure has been squeezed by a low and
declining rate of revenue collection, which at 5.1 percent of GDP in 1999-2000
was among the lowest in the world. Inadequate public revenues have jeopardized
the delivery of essential public services.
Myanmar has been operating under increasing resource constraints. Myanmar's
international reserves are meager and its external arrears and debts are
increasing. At the end of 2000, Myanmar's international reserves covered only
about two months of imports. Flows from the private sector (foreign private
investment, suppliers' credits, and private transfers), which had been
relatively buoyant prior to 1997, suffered in the wake of the Asian crisis and
as a result of stiffening sanctions. The hike in world oil prices in 2000
exacerbated foreign exchange constraints as Myanmar is a net oil importer. The
inflow of official development assistance from bilateral and multilateral
agencies has been very small and confined largely to humanitarian aid. Myanmar
has responded to the erosion of its reserves by tightening trade and exchange
regulations.
But, according to the ADB, other imbalances have a longer legacy. Perennial
budget deficits and frequent recourse to inflationary finance has encouraged the
use of US dollar in everyday transactions and fueled a secular depreciation of
the domestic currency. Maintenance of the fixed official parity confers ever
larger subsidies on entities that import at the official exchange rate, imposes
stiffer taxes on those that export at the official exchange rate, and provides
fertile ground for rent seeking.
Macroeconomic imbalances cannot be sustained indefinitely and they will
ultimately jeopardize growth prospects. The ADB report recommends that measures
to strengthen domestic resource mobilization be given priority attention. The
ratio of tax to GDP in Myanmar is among the lowest in the world. The tax system
is also excessively complicated and suffers from too many exemptions. Myanmar's
agriculture sector, which accounts for about 60 percent of GDP, largely escapes
direct taxation. A broader tax base, a simplified tax code, and the replacement
of implicit by explicit taxes could do much to help mobilize resources, ease
fiscal deficits, and moderate inflationary pressures.
There is a pressing need to increase the flow of public resources to basic
health and education services, and to other areas where developmental needs are
not being met. However, the report states, Myanmar's SEEs are loss-making and
are diverting scarce resources away from socially more productive uses. While
the privatization of viable state-owned entities should be a long-term
objective, greater operating efficiency of SEEs could be encouraged through
mechanisms that provide for greater autonomy and accountability of SEEs.
Progress on poverty reduction in Myanmar will hinge on growth prospects and
on mechanisms that allow the poor to benefit fully from expanding economic
opportunities. Based on a household income and expenditure survey, and using a
national poverty line, the Central Statistical Organization has calculated that
Myanmar's headcount poverty ratio was 22.9 percent in 1997. Assuming that there
has been no change in the headcount ratio since 1997, and that the population is
growing at 2 percent, this means that in 2001 there were approximately 11.7
million people in Myanmar who did not have the means to support their basic
subsistence.
A variety of social and health indicators also give the ADB cause for
concern. In 1999, the official estimate of life expectancy for urban males was
61 years. In 1997, the incidence of malnutrition in children under five years of
age was reported to be 31 percent and the under five mortality rate was 77.77
per 1,000 live births.
Estimates made by international organizations paint an even more somber
picture. Tuberculosis is still a serious threat to health in Myanmar and malaria
control remains a key concern. While there are no official estimates of how
widespread the incidence of HIV/AIDS infection is, other sources suggest that it
has reached epidemic proportions. There can be little doubt that the spread of
HIV/AIDS and growing drug abuse is putting families, communities, and health
care systems under additional stress.
While poverty afflicts the lives of a substantial portion of Myanmar's
population, official estimates suggest that the incidence of poverty is low
compared to other countries with similar levels of per capita income, such as
Cambodia, Laos, Mongolia, and Vietnam. Indeed, the estimated poverty incidence
is also lower than that of the Philippines, a country whose per capita income is
nearly triple that of Myanmar. Whether Myanmar's poverty indicators reflect
favorable initial conditions - Myanmar was one of Asia's richest countries in
the 1950's and early 1960s - or a legacy of the equalizing socialist policies
pursued in the 1980s, or a consequence of favorable agrarian conditions is
difficult to determine.
Official estimates of rural poverty also contrast with international
patterns. In most parts of the world, including East Asia, income distribution
is biased toward urban areas, and the incidence of poverty tends to be higher in
rural areas than in urban areas. Apparently, this is not the case in Myanmar,
where the official estimates suggest that the incidence of poverty is lower in
rural areas than in urban areas. The estimated incidence of poverty also seems
to exhibit little gender bias.
Prospects for poverty reduction in Myanmar will depend not just on raw
economic growth but also on the quality of that growth, the report states. Broad
international experience suggests that reductions in the incidence, depth, and
severity of poverty are most likely when economic development is market-led and
accompanied by pro-poor policies and interventions. An essential ingredient of
such a strategy would be to invest adequate public resources in health,
education, and affordable safety nets. The allocation of public expenditure in
Myanmar does not currently reflect such priorities.
The role that export restrictions play in promoting food security is
unclear. The report cites the experience of countries such as Vietnam as
suggesting that easing export restrictions is likely to evoke a strong supply
response and generate larger domestic surpluses.
In terms of its prospective industrial development, Myanmar is a low-wage
economy, with a comparative advantage in labor intensive activities. Myanmar
already has a significant presence in the textile and garments industries,
which, notably, benefit from import and export tax exemptions. Myanmar's natural
resources also provide ample opportunity for specialization in agro-processing
and other downstream, resource-based, activities. Although these are already the
largest contributors to manufacturing output in Myanmar, there is still ample
scope for market growth through expansion into neighboring markets. but there
remain a number of impediments to the development of Myanmar's manufacturing and
industrial sector. Entrepreneurial talent and experience is scarce and needs to
be nurtured. Likewise the technical, managerial, and marketing skills needed to
facilitate operations logistics, including the development of supply and
distribution backbones, is in short supply.
According to the report, extensive administrative and bureaucratic control
exercised over industry stifles private enterprise and raises business costs.
While a variety of measures have been introduced to encourage foreign direct
equity investment and significant liberalization has occurred, Myanmar's
investment exclusion list is still quite extensive, and approval procedures are
cumbersome and lack transparency. Once established, foreign enterprises then
have to cope with a variety of discriminatory practices including the payment of
higher charges for utilities.
Myanmar's public health system is facing serious resource constraints.
Although the Ministry of Health's current expenditures have increased over the
past five years, public expenditure on health has declined from 0.38 percent of
GDP in 1995-96 to 0.17 percent in 1999-2000, one of the lowest levels in the
world. Even though the public health system remains functional and the number of
facilities, especially in the border areas, has increased, the quality of
service is declining and the adequacy of medicines and equipment is decreasing.
As a result, public health facilities are experiencing declining usage rates as
more people turn to private sector health care providers. Private health care
options for both modern medical care and traditional services are expanding
throughout Myanmar.
In terms of addressing health care needs, the report states, Myanmar still
faces a wide variety of challenges. Rural and border areas need increased
immunization and inoculation coverage. To combat diarrhea-related diseases,
improved environmental health infrastructure is needed. To ensure that the poor
can get access to basic health care services, more resources need to be
mobilized to support the health trust fund and, in terms of its use, there is
scope for better targeting.
The ADB report says that reforms for Myanmar's basic and higher education
are in the pipeline. The reforms, as identified in the Special Four-Year Plan
for Education (2000-03), entail improving curricula, upgrading facilities,
training teachers, implementing enrolment and retention programs, and expanding
higher and nonformal education. In recent years the government has made notable
progress in establishing basic education schools, especially in rural and border
areas, and bringing the national average up to one school for every two
villages. Official data suggest that Myanmar has no significant gender
differences in primary school enrolments. The government has also made rapid
gains in expanding the higher education system throughout the country.
Universities reopened fully in mid-2000 after most classes had been suspended in
1997. However, the government remains concerned about possible student unrest,
and its policy of not allowing access to the Internet constrains learning
opportunities and adversely affects standards. Although overall education reform
seems to be moving in the right direction its potential for success is, at best,
tenuous. Financial and human resources are both severely constrained.
Comparatively high parental contributions to basic education are both a
positive development and a source of concern. On the one hand, such
contributions show a strong commitment by parents to provide their children with
the best possible education. On the other hand, they raise concerns about the
burden these contributions place on lower-income households and quality
differences that are emerging between schools in richer areas and those in
poorer areas. The emergence of a two-tier public education system in major
metropolitan centers is worrying, with the children of a privileged few
attending exclusive schools and receiving a modern education at international
standards, while the vast majority of children attend poorly equipped, outmoded
schools.
Although Myanmar has made some progress in developing transportation,
communications, and energy infrastructure, the report indicates that much
remains to be done. Inadequate infrastructure is a bottleneck to growth and the
more balanced regional development of the country. Almost half of all roads are
simple earth roads and tracks that are not always passable by motorized
vehicles, particularly during the monsoon season, and are used mainly by bullock
carts.
Despite the significant growth in the telecommunications subsector since
1975, the present system is still basic. The average telephone density of 0.5
per 100 inhabitants is still far below the 1992, decade-old average for Asian
and Pacific developing countries of 1.38. Telecommunications are almost
nonexistent at the village level and in rural areas. Inadequate
telecommunications infrastructure, means, among other things, that the
opportunities for Internet-based learning and other services will remain
severely constrained even if current policies on Internet access and usage are
relaxed.
Since 1988-89, the report points out, Myanmar has not received any new
lending from multilateral financial institutions. Nevertheless, several United
Nations agencies maintain a presence in the country, though their activities are
smaller in scope and scale than in the past and are very small compared to
assistance to countries with comparable needs. In recent years, the United
Nations has become the largest source of assistance, which is mainly
humanitarian. In 2000, total assistance amounted to $47.2 million, with the UNDP
and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) as the largest contributors,
accounting for $17 million and $13 million, respectively.
In 2000, bilateral assistance amounted to only about $22 million, of which
some $6 million was grants. In addition, a few international and national
non-government organizations (NGOs) operate in Myanmar. Assistance from
international NGOs increased from $4.5 million in 1999 to more than $7 million
in 2000. NGO activities concentrated mostly on HIV/AIDS, primary health, and
maternal and child health care.
The fact that the ADB has just conducted a comprehensive survey of
Myanmar's economy has led to rumors that the bank is considering resuming loans
to Myanmar. It seems likely that the ADB and other international financial
institutions are preparing to enter Myanmar's economy as soon as the dialogue
process between the junta and the opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi produces
tangible results. Wednesday December 12, 1:02 PM
China's Jiang leaves for Myanmar on three-day visit (AFP) - China's President Jiang
Zemin left for a three-day visit to Myanmar, his first trip to the
military-ruled state, the foreign ministry in Beijing said.
The Chinese leader departed around 9:00 am (0100 GMT), a foreign ministry
spokesman said.
Jiang, the first Chinese president to travel to Myanmar since 1985, is
visiting at the invitation of Senior General Than Shwe, chairman of the
country's ruling State Peace and Development Council.
Chinese officials said last month the trip would be aimed at "enhancing
understanding, friendship and cooperation" between the two countries and would
include the signing of bilateral agreements.
According to analysts, China is keen to maintain its influence in Myanmar
and counter India's growing links with the regime there.
On Tuesday, the government in Yangon announced it was releasing more than
200 Chinese prisoners ahead of Jiang's arrival as "a sign of
goodwill". Wednesday December 12, 5:34 PM
Myanmar rolls out red carpet for Jiang's first visit Yangon, Dec 12, (AFP)-Chinese
President Jiang Zemin was feted on his first visit to Myanmar with a lavish
welcome from the military junta, which relies heavily on Chinese investment and
arms.
Jiang, the first Chinese president to visit Myanmar since 1985, was met at
Yangon International Airport by the regime's ruling troika of generals after
touching down around 12:30 pm (0600 GMT).
Thousands of well-wishers cheered as troops fired a 21-gun salute for the
president as he began a three-day visit to a state isolated by the international
community over its human rights record.
Jiang was welcomed by Senior General Than Shwe, chairman of the State Peace
and Development Council (SPDC), Vice Chairman General Maung Aye and head of
military intelligence Lieutenant-General Khin Nyunt.
Chinese officials have said that Jiang's visit is aimed at "enhancing
understanding, friendship and cooperation" and will include the signing of
bilateral agreements.
In a written arrival statement carried by China's Xinhua news agency, Jiang
said China and Myanmar were "good neighbours with a profound 'pawkphaw'
(fraternal) friendship fostered in the long term and close contacts between the
two peoples".
On Tuesday, the government in Yangon announced the release of more than 200
Chinese prisoners ahead of Jiang's arrival as "a sign of goodwill".
Analysts say China is keen to bolster its influence in Myanmar to counter
India's growing links with the regime while firming up access to the Andaman
Sea, where China is supporting the construction of a port.
Chinese activity is also strong in northern Myanmar near the border, where
a growing number of Chinese entrepreneurs have bought property and set up
businesses, observers say.
China and Myanmar have maintained close ties since they established
diplomatic relations in 1950, with senior officials keeping up frequent visits.
China was the first country to recognize Myanmar's military regime after it
seized power in a bloody coup in September 1988, and has been one of its biggest
foreign investors and a major supplier of arms.
Investment by Chinese companies in Myanmar exceeds 30 million dollars,
according to the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Annual trade between the
two has topped 500 million dollars since 1997.
Chinese exports to Myanmar include textiles, chemicals, machinery and
medicine while it buys timber, jade and livestock products from the military
state.
Jiang's entourage includes his wife Wang Yeping, Vice Premier Qian Qichen
and other high-ranking officials, according to Xinhua.
The last Chinese president to visit Myanmar was Li Xiannian in 1985. Than
Shwe, with whom Jiang was due to hold talks later Wednesday, toured China in
1996.
Wednesday December 12, 7:27 PM
Myanmar dissidents stage hunger strike over closing of Thai camp BAN MANEELOY, Thailand, Dec 12 (AFP) - Myanmar political dissidents said
Wednesday they had launched a hunger strike to protest Thai government plans to
close a camp in western Thailand where they have been living for years.
The move follows a pledge by Thailand to close the Maneeloy Holding Center,
which houses dissidents from the Myanmar junta's bloody 1988 crack-down on
pro-democracy demonstrators, on December 15.
Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra said in June that the Maneeloy camp in
Ratchaburi province would be closed along with other refugee camps and that
attempts would be made to resettle eligible inhabitants in third countries.
But Myanmar dissidents on hunger strike since early Tuesday said only 100
out of 480 at the camp had been resettled in countries such as Australia with
the help of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
The remaining 380 feared they would be forced to return to Myanmar, they
said.
"Now the UNHCR cannot help Burmese (Myanmar) students," Maung Maung Oo, who
lives at the camp and is secretary general of the Burmese Student Association
(BSA), told AFP.
"Three hundred and eighty of us don't have anything for the future, so
yesterday morning at 9:00 am we began our hunger strike," he added before
leading protestors in shouting out a list of demands.
In a statement, the BSA called on authorities to delay the closing of the
Maneeloy camp, recognise Myanmar dissidents as political refugees and hold a
tripartite meeting between the Thai government, the BSA and the UNHCR.
"We cannot move to border areas for the reason that border areas are full
of peril for our lives," it added.
Thaksin said earlier this year that Maneeloi and the numerous refugee camps
along the Myanmar border would be gradually closed, and that he would tackle the
problem of illegal immigrants from Myanmar, who number about a million.
Thailand is home to more than 120,000 refugees who fled fighting between
Myanmar troops and ethnic independence armies. Many of them are from the Karen
ethnic group and live in camps on the Thai side of the border.
Wednesday December 12, 5:11 PM
Thailand says fearful Myanmar rebel twins can stay BANGKOK (Reuters) - The teenage
twins who led a rebel army in Myanmar's jungles until their surrender earlier
this year can stay in Thailand if they are afraid to resettle in the United
States after the events of September 11, a Thai official said.
Kachadpai Burusapatana, secretary general of the National Security Council
(NSC), told Reuters in an interview on Wednesday Thailand would not force Johnny
and Luther Htoo to relocate to a third country as planned unless they wanted to.
"Currently, it seems they are not happy to leave...so I won't be forcing
them to do so," Kachadpai said.
The boy soldiers -- believed now to be in their early teens -- led the
God's Army ethnic Karen guerrilla group for years. They fought the Myanmar army
with scores of followers who believed they had mystical powers.
The pair and 12 others surrendered to Thai authorities in January, after a
crackdown by border patrols who cut off their food supply lines.
Kachadpai said Washington had completed the final stages of formalities to
accept the Htoo boys and their family members for resettlement in the United
States.
But Thai media reported last month that television coverage of the
September 11 attacks on New York and Washington had frightened the boys and
inspired them to have second thoughts about a move to the United States.
"If they are fearful of any danger there, they can stay here," Kachadpai
said.
The twins, who became famous after pictures showed them carrying assault
rifles and smoking cigars, told a news conference at the time of their surrender
their fighting days were over.
The Htoo brothers as well as their mother, sister and 12 former God's Army
fighters are now living in a Thai border police camp, some 100 km (60 miles)
southwest of Bangkok.
Wednesday December 12, 12:53 PM
Thais urge new U.N. approach to Myanmar By Trirat Puttajanyawong BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand on Wednesday urged the United Nations to
soften its stance toward neighbouring Myanmar's military rulers to help create
the right environment for the return of about 100,000 displaced people living on
Thai soil.
Thai National Security Council chief Kachadpai Burusapatana told Reuters
the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and other international agencies
should put development ahead of democracy in Myanmar.
"International agencies and the international community must change their
approach from pressuring Myanmar (on democracy) to providing incentives and
support for Myanmar to reach out to the world," Kachadpai said in an interview.
Kachadpai said peace, not democracy, was the most important condition for
refugees to return home.
"Some said we should wait for democracy to take root in Myanmar before
these people would return home...But in our Thai approach they can return home
and make a living there without democracy as long as there is no fighting.
"We should help build such an environment that facilitates a return of
refugees and restores confidence among them," he said.
The Myanmar military held elections in 1990, which were won by the National
League for Democracy (NLD) of Aung San Suu Kyi. But the military ignored the
result and many opposition supporters fled the country. Others have fled
Yangon's many battles to suppress ethnic insurgents along its borders and
crackdowns on demonstrations in its cities.
For more than a year, U.N. special envoy to Myanmar Razali Ismail has been
brokering talks aimed at bringing democracy through reconciliation between the
ruling State Peace and Development Council and Myanmar's opposition NLD.
Many nations -- including the United States and the European Union --
maintain sanctions on Myanmar, saying they will not be lifted until democracy is
achieved.
HUNGER STRIKE
Kachadpai's remarks come amid a hunger strike by residents of a border camp
for displaced persons from Myanmar over government plans to close it on December
15.
The Maneeloy camp, around 150 km (95 miles) west of Bangkok, was set up in
1992 to host pro-democracy student activists who fled Myanmar after crackdowns
by the military in the late 1980s and early 1990s. It once held as many as 3,000
refugees.
The UNHCR says it has already relocated some 1,500 refugees from the camp
to the United States, Australia and Europe since 1992 and expects to resettle a
final batch of 200 exiled Myanmar students living in the camp by year-end.
Kachadpai said after the camp closure, Thai authorities would deport to
Myanmar another 100 displaced persons now staying there.
"Some of them demand that we delay the closure of the camp by three months,
but we will not negotiate over their demands," he said.
Kachadpai said Thailand, which shares a 2,400-km (1,490-mile) border with
Myanmar, had set a three-year plan to send 109,000 displaced persons in 10
temporary camps in four Thai border provinces back to Myanmar by 2003.
"It's been 15 years since these 109,000 people have caused various problems
along our border from security to deforestation," he said. "We have a very firm
strategy to make these people return home within three years."
Kachadpai said sending the displaced people home was the "real
humanitarian" approach because leaving them in Thai camps deprived them of hope
for a future.
Wednesday December 12, 4:36 AM
Rights Groups Press Energy Companies To Leave Myanmar By Stephen Parker Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--U.S. and U.K. energy companies that do business with an authoritarian regime in Southeast Asia drew fire this week from U.S. demonstrators opposed to human-rights abuses in the region. Activists gathered outside 14 Hess gasoline stations Saturday from
Massachusetts to Florida, waving signs that read, "Honk for human rights" and
"Leave Burma now." They called on Amerada Hess Corp. (AHC), which holds a 25%
share in Premier Oil PLC, to insist that Premier leave Myanmar (formerly Burma).
"Hess, Hess, what the Hess? Out of Burma! It's a mess," about 20 protesters
shouted in New York City. "They rape the people, rape the earth. We know what
your oil is worth!"
Unocal Corp. (UCL), based in El Segundo, Calif., and TotalFinaElf SA (TOT)
of France also produce gas in Myanmar, from the Yadana field.
Amerada Hess responded Monday, saying it won't pressure Premier to withdraw
from its Myanmar operations.
"In analyzing our future investment in Premier, clearly that is one of the
many factors that needs to be examined," Amerada Hess Vice President Carl Tursi
said, referring to human-rights abuses in Myanmar. "But we have to make
decisions in the best interest of our shareholders."
Premier has built an offshore production platform to tap the Yetagun field
in the Andaman Sea, and a pipeline to carry gas overland to the Thai border.
Other partners in the Yetagun operation include Myanmar's and Malaysia's
national oil companies.
Premier also has oil and gas operations in Pakistan, Albania, Indonesia and
the U.K.
Amerada Hess has two voting members on Premier's board of directors, but
Tursi said they both excuse themselves from decisions involving Myanmar
operations.
"We have no operations in Burma ourselves and no people there," Tursi said.
"U.K. law is different than U.S. law in how much influence we can exert that is
not purely in the interest of Premier shareholders in general. People have
clearly been applying U.S. interests to this, and I don't think that quite works
there."
Human rights and environmental groups criticized Tursi's response.
"It's not okay for him to say that they're going to continue to reap the
benefits from Premier's project and not stand up and say this is wrong," said
Rick Herz, litigation director for EarthRights International.
Premier Says It's Invested In Villages Along Pipeline
Premier Oil executives in London could not be reached for comment this
week, but the company's Web site states that it has provided $1.8 million for
social development within villages along the Yetagun pipeline. It has invested
the money in building schools and health facilities and improving the water
supply, according to Premier's "Social Performance Report 2001."
"We believe that the right to development is a basic right, without which
other human rights cannot be secured or sustained," Premier's human-rights
policy states.
But EarthRights International has learned through interviews with hundreds
of refugees from the pipeline region that Myanmar's government has militarized
the pipeline area and forced villagers to build roads and barracks, Herz said.
EarthRights has offices in Washington, D.C., and Thailand.
"The area was, as they put it, secured by the military," Herz said. "As is
the case wherever the Burmese military goes, there was also summary execution,
torture and rape on a pretty massive scale. It just became untenable for large
numbers of people to live there."
Moe Chan, co-founder of Free Burma Coalition's New York chapter, said he
left his home in Myanmar 10 years ago after witnessing firsthand the military's
heavy-handed rule.
"I know how oppressive this government is," Chan said. "If I have at least
two meals a day here and am able to speak out, I want to turn back and help the
people in Burma."
The U.S. State Department, U.N. International Labor Organization and
private human-rights groups have reported widespread abuses by the Myanmar
military.
The regime, which calls itself the State Peace and Development Council,
"continued to restrict severely freedom of speech, press, assembly and
association," the U.S. State Department's Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and
Labor said in a report on the country. The report didn't link any abuses
directly to the natural gas operations.
Myanmar's defense ministry denies allegations of human-rights abuses in a
nine-volume treatise titled "The Truth," published on the Web at Myanmar.com.
Despite its claims of no wrongdoing, the Myanmar regime prevented 1991
Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy from
taking power after the league won 1990 national elections overwhelmingly. The
junta also prevented Suu Kyi from joining other peace laureates this week in
Oslo for the centennial of the Nobel awards.
Last year, Myanmar's government issued a decree prohibiting forced labor.
But Human Rights Watch said Monday that forced labor continues in
ethnic-minority regions of the south. That's more than enough reason for Premier
and other oil and gas companies to leave, said Mike Jendrzejczyk, Human Rights
Watch's Washington director for Asia.
"Egregious use of forced labor is so widespread that no foreign companies
should be in the country because they may directly or indirectly benefit from
it," Jendrzejczyk said.
Wednesday December 12 4:55 AM ET
Chinese President Visits Myanmar By MATTHEW PENNINGTON, Associated Press Writer YANGON, Myanmar (AP) - Chinese
President Jiang Zemin (news - web sites) arrived Wednesday on a four-day visit
aimed at expanding cooperation with Myanmar in a boost to its military junta,
facing global criticism for suppressing democracy and human rights.
Myanmar's top three generals, including leader Gen. Than Shwe, and hundreds
of flag-waving children greeted Jiang and his more than 100-strong entourage at
Yangon airport. He exited a special Air China flight from Beijing to a 21-gun
salute.
Later Wednesday, he was due to hold talks with Than Shwe and other senior
figures in the regime, which has depended heavily on China for trade, credit and
weapons over the past decade.
Jiang is the first Chinese president to visit Myanmar since the current
regime took power in 1988 after a crackdown on pro-democracy protesters left
hundreds perhaps thousands dead. Although Chinese presidents had visited Myanmar
before, they weren't the top leaders of the communist party at the time.
In a written statement issued on arrival, Jiang said that friendly
bilateral relations were ``in the interest of the two peoples as well as peace
and stability in the region.''
Analysts say Jiang's visit signals China's intent to reassert its economic
and strategic interests in Myanmar. Jiang is accompanied by the foreign,
agriculture and economic ministers.
Impoverished Myanmar offers China a potential path to the Indian Ocean, and
could serve as a land bridge for trade between South and Southeast Asia.
The two other major Asian powers, India and Japan, are also vying for
influence in Myanmar, which until recent years faced virtual international
isolation for its human rights record and suppression of democracy.
China stuck by Myanmar after the regime crushed the 1988 pro-democracy
uprising - often compared to Beijing's Tiananmen Square crackdown in 1989. China
also does not join the international criticism of the junta over its refusal to
accept the general election victory of democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi in
1990.
Analysts expected Wednesday's discussions to focus on economic and
counter-narcotics cooperation between the two totalitarian states, which share a
1,250 mile border.
Myanmar is the world's leading producer of heroin, which has led to high
addiction rates and the spread of AIDS (news - web sites) in southern China.
Officials of both sides declined to give details of the agenda of the talks
and the content of cooperation agreements due to be signed.
According to Chinese statistics, trade between the countries totals $600
million annually, making China Myanmar's third-largest trading partner after
Singapore and Thailand.
BBC - Wednesday, 12 December, 2001,
15:02 GMT
UN says world failing asylum-seekers The UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Ruud Lubbers, has strongly
criticized governments' attitudes to asylum-seekers, accusing them of failing to
meet their international obligations and contributing to the problem of illegal
immigration.
He was speaking at the opening of a two-day conference in Geneva attended
by representatives of 156 states, including nearly 80 ministers from signatories
of the 1951 Refugee Convention.
Mr Lubbers said he accepted that the problem of displaced people in the
world had grown but he attacked the view of refugees as a burden rather than
potentially productive citizens.
There are currently about 22m refugees in the world.
The convention has been signed by 141 states since it was established 50
years ago and Mr Lubbers said it was "no less important today".
He praised it for helping "millions of people throughout the world" to find
safety and build new lives.
'Fear and mistrust'
Governments, however, now tended to treat asylum-seekers as a burden,
lumping them together with "economic migrants".
"We see governments refusing to accept refugees because they are so many,
refusing to accept them because they are mixed up with economic migrants,
refusing to accept them because of a lack of burden-sharing among states," Mr
Lubbers said.
Government policies were "often based on fear and mistrust" and political
leaders were failing their countries if they fuelled "anti-foreigner and
anti-refugee sentiments".
The UN high commissioner voiced concern at the continuing global traffic in
human beings but he argued that restrictive government policies forced many
asylum-seekers to turn to the smugglers.
"Unless governments do more to find lasting solutions for refugees, more of
them will fall into the hands of human smugglers, traffickers and criminal
networks," he said.
"Who is then fuelling crime? Fleeing refugees or failing governments?"
Unfair share
The Refugee Convention was established to cope with the huge numbers of
people displaced in Europe by the Second World War.
Mr Lubbers appealed for states to do more to share their responsibility for
refugees.
He contrasted the difficulties Pakistan and Iran experienced coping with
millions of displaced Afghans with calls by the EU and states such as Australia
for refugees to be confined to their own regions.
He said there was a paradox:
"If all countries lived up to their obligations with respect to refugees,
there would be no problem of burden-sharing but countries are not prepared to
live up to their obligations unless there is burden-sharing."
In perhaps an indication of the prickliness of the subject, some of the
guests to the conference in Geneva decided not to attend.
British Home Secretary David Blunkett, German Foreign Minister Joschka
Fischer and French Cooperation Minister Charles Josselin all sent deputies to
take their place.
BBC - Tuesday, 11 December, 2001,
23:38 GMT
Burma's reliance on China By BBC regional analyst Larry Jagan China has been Burma's biggest and most ardent supporter since the generals
seized power in 1988. Since then Rangoon and Beijing have been very close
allies.
Most of Burma's military hardware comes from China, including tanks, patrol
boats and fighter jets. The Chinese military also provides most of the army and
the air force's specialist training.
But there is some concern within the Burmese army that it is becoming
overly dependent on Beijing for military equipment and training.
Rangoon is scouting around and trying to diversify its sources of military
hardware.
New allegiances
There have been growing military ties between Burma and India. Burma has
also acquired sophisticated fighter planes from Moscow.
"Beijing wasn't happy with the recent Burmese purchase of MiG jets, and
they made their displeasure known," a Western diplomat told the BBC.
There has been constant speculation over the past decade that Burma and
China continue to work closely in the area of intelligence.
"We have little doubt that the Chinese are allowed to have access to the
Indian Ocean for intelligence purposes," said an Indian Government official.
A matter of money
Other defence specialists are less convinced.
China has certainly helped Burma build a deep-sea port near Mergui on the
Andaman sea. But analysts believe this is as much for economic reasons as
strategic.
A decade ago the Chinese authorities encouraged the southern states,
especially Yunnan province to look southwards to Burma.
Beijing was concerned that the living standards in the country's southern
hinterland was falling behind the more prosperous eastern seaboard area which
benefited from trading with Hong Kong, Vietnam and indirectly with Taiwan.
Since then trade between Burma and southern China has flourished. China is
officially the third most important trading partner with bilateral trade
estimated to be worth more than $600m a year.
But analysts believe the value of exports to China could be double that, as
much of the trade between the countries is informal.
China has also funded substantial infra-structural development in Burma,
including deep-sea ports, roads and airports. Beijing has done much of this
through low-interest loans.
Apart from giving Chinese producers better access to the Burmese market,
China's central planners also see these developments as giving Chinese products
to potential export markets further afield, in South Asia, the Middle East and
even Europe through this transit system.
Flourishing drugs trade
But improved road links, especially in the north of the country, have also
benefited the narcotic smugglers.
The production and distribution of amphetamines has risen substantially in
the past few years. United Nations anti-narcotics experts estimated that 60% of
these tablets end up in China.
China is also a major transit route for the drug smugglers from Burma's
Golden Triangle. Increased drug addiction within China, along the drug routes,
has prompted Beijing to see the stamping out of drug production and trafficking
as a major issue.
Ironically Beijing's policy of helping Burma develop its internal road
links and external air routes will make the country increasingly important
strategically.
Already India and Japan are anxious to counter what they see as worrying
Chinese influence in Burma.
Rangoon no doubt hopes to be able to exploit this rivalry to its own
advantage.
The Star - Dec 11,
2001.
Razali optimistic on talks in Myanmar KUALA LUMPUR: UN special envoy Tan Sri Razali Ismail is optimistic over
reconciliation talks between Myanmar’s opposition National League for Democracy
(NLD) leader Aung San Suu Kyi and the ruling junta’s military regime.
Razali, who just returned from Myanmar after his sixth visit yesterday,
said he was satisfied with the discussions.
“Some of the best conversations in the world have come out of closed door
dialogues … Be patient, we will get good results,’’ he told reporters after a
press conference to announce the staging of the fifth One Asia Dialogue at
Renaissance Hotel here yesterday.
Asked whether he was confident that Aung San Suu Kyi would be released,
Razali said: “I cannot focus solely on her. I have to look at the total picture.
As the dialogue progresses, I’m confident all these things will happen.’’
Myanmar has faced stifling economic sanctions since its suppression of the
democracy movement in 1988, its staunch refusal to recognise the NLD’s landslide
victory in the 1990 elections and systematic use of forced labour.
Bangkok Post - Dec 12,
2001.
Rights advocate warns against closing down Maneeloy camp Exiles should not be forced back, he says Achara Ashayagachat Thailand should let Burmese exiled students stay at the Maneeloy centre
until there are definite signals human rights and democracy will be restored in
Burma, a human rights advocate said yesterday.
Vitit Muntabhorn, a law professor at Chulalongkorn University, stressed
that there should be no forced repatriation of the Burmese.
Interior Minister Purachai Piemsomboon has stood firm on plans to close the
Maneeloy centre, in Ratchaburi province, on Dec 15. Interior ministry officials
say 188 of the 198 Burmese students there have been accepted by third countries.
But the students have strongly opposed the closure plan. Thailand is host to
another estimated 100,000 Burmese refugees living in camps on the border with
Burma.
Addressing a seminar organised by the United Nations High Commissioner for
Refugees, Mr Vitit stressed the need to address root causes that had forced
Burmese people to flee to Thailand.
This required a return to democracy in Burma, the release of pro-democracy
leader Aung San Suu Kyi, and respect for human rights for all in that country,
he said.
The UN had been good in the past but needed to be ``more assertive'', he
said. A durable solution to the problem of refugees would be the voluntary
return of Burmese in safety and dignity, he added. But this could only be
assured by a tripartite agreement between the Burmese and Thai governments and
the UNHCR, he said.
Citing the risks Bosnian refugees ran by returning to borderline camps in
their homeland, Mr Vitit opposed efforts to ensure a monitoring role for the
UNHCR on the Burmese side of the border.
Burmese refugees should be returned ``to their homes'' not to camps
clustered on the Burmese side of the border, he said. The UNHCR should monitor
the safety of returnees in these places, not in camps, he said.
Gen Sanan Kachornklum, chief adviser to Defence Minister Chavalit
Yongchaiyudh, stressed the need for a tripartite mechanism to solve the problem
of Burmese refugees.
He attributed to the tripartite agreement between Thailand, Cambodia and
the UNHCR the successful repatriation of some 300,000 Cambodian refugees between
1992-93.
Bangkok Post - Dec 12,
2001.
Suu Kyi continues her struggle for democracy Aung San Suu Kyi received the Nobel Peace Prize 10
years ago. She was unable to pick up her prize as she was, and still is, under
house arrest. But there have been some changes in her home of
Burma.
LARRY JAGAN
In the 10 years since Burma's opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi was
awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, the country has moved very little towards
achieving the democratic changes for which she has fought so steadfastly.
The military still run the country with an iron grip. There is no freedom
of speech and the country's press is tightly controlled by the army. And the
economy teeters on the brink of collapse.
But there are significant changes. Ten years ago, Mrs Suu Kyi was under
house arrest and unable to see anyone including her husband, the English
academic Michael Aris, or her children. This has changed.
At first she was allowed occasional visits by her husband and children.
Then, on July 10, 1995, she was released from house arrest, after being held for
almost six years. She is currently back under virtual house arrest, where she
has been since Sept 22 last year after she tried to travel outside Rangoon. The
difference now is that she is allowed frequent visitors, including her
sons.
But of course Mrs Suu Kyi also has suffered major personal tragedy during
this time. Her husband died of prostate cancer in March 1999. She had not seen
him for three years.
Ten years ago, the Burmese army was engaged in bitter warfare with the
ethnic rebel groups which controlled much of the country's border areas. Now all
but a very few, principally the Karen National Union, have signed cease-fire
agreements with Rangoon and the Burmese military now effectively controls the
borders.
Burma also was facing growing international isolation 10 years ago and,
apart from China, had virtually no friends. Burma had relied increasingly on the
Chinese for military hardware, training and trade.
This close relationship between Beijing and Rangoon alarmed the rest of
Asia, and so the countries of the region launched a vigorous policy of
engagement. Burma was admitted to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in
1997, and India has developed close relations. The rest of the international
community is pondering reducing Burma's international isolation, provided there
is substantial political reform in the near future.
But little has changed on the political front. Ten years ago, when Mrs Suu
Kyi was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, university students demonstrated their
support for democracy with small-scale protests. The authorities reacted by
clearing the universities and sending the students home.
The campuses remained shut for some time and, although the government says
the country's universities and colleges opened last year, in effect they are
only partly opened for fear that students will again one day take to the
streets.
But the political struggle goes on. Since her release from house arrest six
years ago, Mrs Suu Kyi has remained a thorn in the side of the military. She has
continued to remind the generals that her party, the National League for
Democracy, convincingly won the national elections held in May 1990.
The NLD has continued to demand that the military junta hand over power to
a civilian administration.
The official press has vilified Mrs Suu Kyi. When she tried to travel
outside Rangoon in July and August 1998, and again in August and September 2000,
to visit her party members in regional centres she was forcibly
restrained.
She left Burma's military leaders in no doubt that she was not going to
give up her fight to see democracy restored to Burma. It was partly this
continuous confrontation between the military and Mrs Suu Kyi, along with
growing pressure from Burma's neighbours _ especially Malaysia, Singapore and
Thailand _ and an escalating economic crisis which led Burma's ruling generals
to feel that they had to find a way to accommodate the opposition leader.
For more than a year now, the military junta and Mrs Suu Kyi have engaged
in what has become called ``a dialogue process''. ``It's a process of
confidence-building and a preliminary to actual talks,'' NLD spokesman U Lwin
told Bangkok Post.
It is a process that has been facilitated by the United Nations envoy for
Burma, Malaysian diplomat Razali Ismail. Mr Razali has made six visits to
Rangoon over the past 18 months to encourage the two sides to talk to each
other.
While the two sides have not had face-to-face discussions _ although
intelligence chief Lieutenant-General Khin Nyunt has met Mrs Suu Kyi twice in
the last 12 months _ substantial progress has been made.
More than 200 political prisoners have been released, many of the NLD's
local offices have been allowed to re-open and NLD members are now able to
travel much more freely, even between regional offices and Rangoon.
``These may be only small measures,'' said one diplomat, ``but they do
indicate that the Burmese military leaders are prepared to make concessions to
Aung San Suu Kyi.''
While Mrs Suu Kyi's uncompromising determination has helped her stand up to
the generals, it has not always endeared her to all her supporters.
There have been some in the NLD over the last six years who have felt her
style of leadership is too autocratic and that she should have been more
conciliatory towards the military much earlier.
She has dismissed these allegations by saying the military junta declared
war on the party and that centralised leadership was sometimes needed as a
matter of survival.
On the face of it at least, Burma _ 10 years after Mrs Suu Kyi was awarded
the Nobel Peace Prize _ has not changed much, and is no nearer to having truly
democratic institutions. But in reality the situation has changed _
qualitatively rather than quantitatively, according to diplomats and frequent
visitors to Burma.
Ten years ago there was no prospect of political reform, now at least there
is hope.
- Larry Jagan is the BBC regional editor for Asia-Pacific. He is
currently based in Bangkok.
China-Myanmar Friendship
Highlighted in Yangon
Xinhuanet 2001-12-12 23:52:36 YANGON, December 12 (Xinhuanet)
-- China will make concerted efforts with Myanmar to comprehensively implement
the joint statement on bilateral cooperation so as to enable the two peoples to
be good neighbors and partners forever and make their friendship last from
generation to generation.
Chinese President Jiang Zemin made the remarks here Wednesday afternoon in
his talks with Than Shwe, chairman of the State Peace and Development Council of
Myanmar.
Than Shwe welcomed Jiang, saying Jiang has brought the Chinese people's
friendship to Myanmar and helped deepen the "pawkphaw" (fraternal) friendship
between the two peoples, and this visit will be recorded in the history of
bilateral friendly contacts.
Jiang said that China and Myanmar are two friendly neighbors with a deep
"pawkphaw" friendship, and Myanmar was among one of the first countries to
establish diplomatic ties with the new China.
Leaders of the older generations cultivated bilateral friendship and
jointly sponsored the Five Principles of Peaceful Co-existence, noted
Jiang, adding that the two countries took the lead in solving border issues left
over by the history through consultations.
He said that leaders of the younger generation of the two countries have
continued to keep close contacts with increasing mutual trust and
friendship.
Bilateral exchanges and cooperation in various fields have had steady
development and withstood the test of changes of the international situations,
said Jiang.
He attributed it to the two countries' adherence to the Five Principles of
Peaceful Co-existence, good-neighborly friendship, non-interference in each
other's internal affairs, mutual respect and equal treatment, saying this has
laid a firm foundation for the continuous progress of bilateral relations.
Citing the two countries' similar historical experience, Jiang pointed to
the consolidation of bilateral relations during their struggles for independence
and liberation, safeguarding sovereignty and territorial integrity, and building
their countries.
He stressed that bilateral friendship is in the aspiration and fundamental
interest of the two peoples, which has gained support from the two peoples, thus
pushing forward the progress of bilateral ties.
Jiang noted that the development of China-Myanmar good-neighborly
friendship is an important component of China's foreign policy, and this
principle will not change.
Echoing Jiang, Than Shwe said Myanmar is satisfied with the development of
bilateral ties, hoping that bilateral "pawkphaw" friendship will be carried
forward from generation to generation.
He noted that the Five Principles of Peaceful Co-existence have become an
important norm guiding international relations.
He reiterated that Myanmar will continue to follow the "One China" policy
and will never develop any official contacts with Taiwan.
Than Shwe also spoke highly of China's rapid development, saying that
Beijing's successful bid to host the 2008 Olympic Games and China's entry into
the World Trade Organization (WTO) indicate that China will make new and
important contributions to world peace and development in the new century.
He said he hoped China, under the current international situations, will
play a bigger role in safeguarding the just rights and interests of developing
countries.
Jiang suggested that the two sides continue high-level contacts, enhance
understandings and friendship, further cooperation in various fields and
people-to-people contacts, promote the overall development of bilateral ties,
and strengthen coordination and cooperation in international and regional
affairs.
Jiang said that under the new situation, both sides can strengthen their
coordination in the United Nations, the WTO, east Asian cooperation and the
ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) regional forum so as to
contribute to international and regional stability and development.
On bilateral economic and trade cooperation, Jiang said China will continue
to encourage Chinese business people to invest in Myanmar and will continue to
offer possible assistance.
China will work with Myanmar to explore bilateral cooperation, said Jiang,
suggesting that the two sides take agriculture, development of human and natural
resources and infrastructural construction as their cooperative priority in the
future.
Than Shwe agreed with Jiang, saying that Myanmar attaches importance to the
development of friendly cooperation with China and thanks for China's support
and assistance.
He briefed Jiang on bilateral cooperative prospects and welcomed Chinese
businesses to Myanmar.
He also told Jiang about Myanmar's domestic situation, saying that his
country is enjoying social stability and economic development, and the Myanmar
government is making efforts to build a peaceful and prosperous country.
Jiang expressed his pleasure with Myanmar government's achievements in
recent years, and said that China holds that the world is colorful, and every
country is entitled to choosing a development path suited to its own conditions.
China will, as always, continue to support Myanmar government's efforts for
safeguarding social stability and promoting economic progress, added
Jiang.
They also exchanged views on international and regional issues of common
interest.
Jiang invited Than Shwe to visit China again and the latter accepted the
invitation.
After the talks, the two leaders attended a signing ceremony for bilateral
cooperative documents which cover frontier defense; economic and technological
cooperation; encouragement, promotion and protection of investment; plant
quarantine; animal quarantine and hygiene; fishery; and petroleum.
On Wednesday evening, Than Shwe hosted a dinner in honor of Jiang. They
watched a performance given by local artists after the dinner.
Jiang arrived here at noon Wednesday for a four-day state visit to Myanmar
as guest of Than Shwe.
Kyodo: 14 Myanmar dissidents stage Tokyo
hunger strike for Suu Kyi
TOKYO, Dec. 10 - Fourteen Myanmar dissidents started a 36-hour hunger
strike in Tokyo on Monday, calling for freedom for pro-democracy leader Aung San
Suu Kyi and all political prisoners in their homeland.
Sponsored by the Burma Office, an umbrella Myanmar dissident organization
in Japan, the dissidents began the strike at 8:00 a.m. in central Tokyo's Hibiya
Park.
The group says about 400 dissident students in Myanmar had been detained
for demanding for Suu Kyi's release from house arrest when she was proclaimed
winner of the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize. Of them, 11 remain in custody. 'It is for
Aung San Suu Kyi and such students detained for a decade that we are on hunger
strike,' said Thandar Myint, the only woman participant.
Pyone Cho, one of the hunger strike participants, accused the Myanmar junta
of unlawfully detaining parliamentarians elected in a 1990 vote in Myanmar. The
junta, now officially called the State Peace and Development Council, has barred
the legislators from assembling and forming a government.
After being freed from house arrest in 1995, Suu Kyi has been placed under
virtual house arrest since September last year, when she attempted to leave
Yangon, defying the junta's restrictions of her movements. At that time, she
gave numerous open-air speeches from her home to crowds until the junta
barricaded the area.
Win Aung Sein, another striker, said the junta talks about 'national
reconciliation,' but the liberation of all political prisoners is a prerequisite
to confidence building between the junta and Suu Kyi's National League for
Democracy.
Amnesty International says Myanmar still holds some 1,500 'prisoners of
conscience,' and dissidents agree with the number. The junta has been freeing
dissidents in batches, but democracy activists complain the rate is too slow and
it would take years for all of them to be freed.
A ceremony was held Saturday in Tokyo to mark the centennial of the
establishment of the Nobel Peace Prize as well as to commemorate the10th
anniversary of Suu Kyi's receipt of it.
On Saturday, about 400 Japanese and Myanmar dissidents attended an event in
Tokyo to mark the centennial anniversary of the establishment of the Nobel Peace
Prize as well as to commemorate the 10th anniversary of Myanmar democracy leader
Aung San Suu Kyi's receipt of the Nobel Peace prize.
It was sponsored by the Diet Members League Supporting Democracy in
Myanmar, which deplored the detention of the parliamentarians and the junta's
failure to hand over power to those who 'were chosen by a fair and democratic
election.'
Yukio Hatoyama, the leader of the Democratic Party of Japan, attended the
event and urged the participants to work toward ensuring Suu Kyi's freedom.
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