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BURMA RELATED NEWS - January
21, 2002.
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HEADLINES
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- BBC - Burma to build nuclear reactor
AFP - Thai government media center a threat to
press freedom
Reuters - Myanmar to build its first nuclear
reactor
AP - Growing Slave Trade of Chinese
Women
Reuters - Tribal Rebels Kill 16 in India's
Assam
Free Realtimes - Myanmar Grants Fishing Rights to Myanmar-Thai Joint Venture
TI - Myanmar says no
trace of missing French activist
Kyodo News - 1st
software park opens in Myanmar
CNN - Myanmar confirms nuclear
plans
Bkk Post - Smugglers
abandon heroin cargo, flee back to Burma
Bkk Post - EDITORIAL -
Thailand's place in a small world
The Nation - Regional anti-Aids funds move 'is
best'
Xinhuanet - Myanmar's
IT Sector Enters Into Stage of Development
Irrawaddy online - Former Professor Arrested for Solo
Protest
Irrawaddy online - Education Report Released
Mizzima - Burma: A solution
underway
SHAN - Burma Lawyers:
State Protection Law 1975 not an anti-terrorist law
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
BBC - Monday, 21 January, 2002, 16:24 GMT
Burma to build nuclear reactor The Burmese military government has confirmed that it plans to build a
nuclear reactor with help from Russia.
In the first official statement on the issue, the deputy foreign minister Khin Maung Win said it would be used for peaceful purposes. He said it was imperative for developing countries like Burma to seek to
narrow the development gap and avoid their being marginalised.
He also pointed out that all Burma's neighbours, with the exception of
Laos, were reaping the benefits of nuclear research reactors.
The deputy foreign minister dismissed reports that the International Atomic
Energy Agency had raised concerns about safety standards in Burma. Kin Maung Win
also rejected reports that two nuclear scientists from Pakistan had been given
sanctuary in Burma.
From the newsroom of the BBC World Service.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tuesday January 22, 1:37 PM
Thai government media center a threat to press freedom (AFP) - Thai civil rights
monitors are alarmed over plans for a government media office which would set
guidelines for news coverage at hundreds of state-run radio and television
stations, describing it as the latest attempt to bridle the press.
The controversial Centre to Improve Public Understanding, due to open at
the behest of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his ruling coalition, could
thwart reporting critical of the government, they say.
The premier and his Thai Rak Thai party, commanding an overwhelming
majority in parliament, have forged ahead with the plan despite mounting protest
from senators, reporters and press freedom advocates.
However, plans to open the facility as soon as Wednesday appear to have
been shelved, and a new start date is expected to be announced shortly.
The center to be headed by PM's office permanent secretary Yongyuth
Sarasombat would guide news coverage at Thailand's state-run radio stations,
which comprise most of the kingdom's 520 stations.
Two television stations run by the military would also take
directions.
Thaksin, who is notorious for his sensitivity to criticism, has shown
steadfast support for the idea, saying its mandate would be to "keep the public
abreast of current affairs".
But the move has raised the hackles of Thai journalists and press freedom
campaigners wary of the scheme they say will stifle media liberty and allow the
government to dictate news coverage.
"We think this is an attempt to manipulate the news," said Chavarong
Limpattamapanee of the Thai Journalists Association and acting chair of the
South East Asian Press Alliance, a press freedom advocacy group.
"This is not just interference, it's become control," he told AFP. "When
you talk about interference, the government would tell them not to cover a
specific event. But now they control the news that will be covered."
Chavarong said he and his colleagues "totally disagree with this policy and
the creation of the center," adding it violated the spirit of Thailand's 1997
constitution, which guarantees freedom of the press.
Under the reformist constitution, the press has enjoyed a considerable
degree of freedom compared to the tight control it faced under successive
military dictatorships for more than six decades.
Prasong Lertrattanavisut, head of the Reporters Association of Thailand,
said the government had overstepped its bounds by trying to exert influence over
public institutions, though the center's intentions were still unclear.
"'State' and 'government' have different meanings," he said. "'State'
belongs to all people and government has the duty to work for the benefit of the
people."
"It is not clear at the moment what the government wants. If they held
press conferences without forcing state-run media to broadcast them -- that is
fine."
Since Thaksin took office after a landslide election victory last January,
he has had several brushes with the media.
The first came during the election campaign, when reporters with the
private television station iTV, which is partly controlled by Thaksin's business
empire, claimed management attempted to censor coverage.
A group of 23 journalists were later sacked, in a move which media rights
group Reporters Sans Frontieres (Reporters Without Borders) said was a worrying
sign of the future of press freedom in Thailand.
Earlier this month, Thai police ordered the seizure of an edition of the
weekly Far Eastern Economic Review because of an article on Thaksin's relations
with the Thai monarchy -- a strictly taboo subject.
Other analysts see the new media center as a propaganda tool to improve the
image of the Thaksin government as it copes with declining popularity.
"It's almost a systematic goal of the government to streamline media
reports in a way that it would boost the popularity of the government in terms
of its policies," said Sunai Phasuk, a Bangkok-based press freedom
advocate.
"This issue has become more pressing for the government after one year has
passed and the honeymoon period is over," he said, adding the Thai public was
disappointed with the administration's work so far.
Sunai said Thaksin's popularity had suffered from negative media coverage,
particularly reports of a birthday address by revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej
that portrayed Thailand as headed for disaster.
"This media center is very much needed for the survival of the government,"
he said. "It's a confirmation of the trend that first appeared when the
government came to power last year."
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tuesday January 22, 2:33 PM
Myanmar to build its first nuclear
reactor
YANGON (Reuters) - Myanmar's
ruling military has confirmed for the first time that it is planning to build
its first nuclear reactor with help from Russia, in a move it says is purely for
peaceful purposes.
Deputy Foreign Minister Khin Muang Win said the reactor would be used to
meet demand for radio isotopes for healthcare, agriculture and education.
"We have been conducting feasibility studies for building a nuclear reactor
for peaceful purposes," he told a news conference late on Monday.
"I would like to stress that it is purely for peaceful purposes, purely for
nuclear research, purely for training our scientists and also to meet our need
for radio isotopes."
Russia said last year that it was close to finalising talks with Yangon on
the sale of a research reactor, which industry sources say is likely to have a
capacity of about 10 megawatts.
Myanmar's military authorities have previously declined to confirm the
negotiations with Russia but said on Monday they had never tried to hide their
interest.
"We have been carrying it out openly," said Khin Muang Win.
"We officially informed the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Authority)
Director General of our idea and asked for their advice in September 2000," he
said.
IAEA officials have confirmed discussions with Myanmar and say the reactor
is unlikely to be suitable for the production of nuclear weapons.
But they have expressed concerns over safety and the ability of the
impoverished nation to cope with such high-maintenance technology.
Myanmar, ruled by the military for much of the last four decades and one of
the poorest nations in the world, has limited infrastructure and funds.
The country has been isolated politically and economically from much of the
Western world for its human rights record and alleged involvement in the illicit
drugs trade.
It has also faced a campaign for international sanctions since 1990 when
the military ignored the results of elections won by the National League for
Democracy of Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.
Industry sources say the Russian reactor is likely to cost up to $5
million, a price tag that Yangon might choose to meet by bartering produce such
timber, rice and fish.
Foreign diplomats in Yangon say a number of technicians from Myanmar left
for Russia last year for training on how to build and operate nuclear
facilities.
Nuclear experts say that of the roughly 400 research reactors world-wide,
nearly half have been mothballed due to their expense and complicated
maintenance.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tuesday January 22 2:38 AM ET
Growing Slave Trade of Chinese Women By MARTIN FACKLER, Associated Press Writer DALUO, China (AP) - Henei was
17 when a stranger offered her and a cousin work at a restaurant that he said
was in this tourist town on China's border with Myanmar.
Poor and uneducated, she jumped at the chance to leave her mountain village
about a four-hour drive away. Days later, after forced marches through jungles
and long van rides under watch by gunmen, they arrived at a hotel in Malaysia,
where they were sold to pimps.
``They inspected us like clothes at the marketplace. They asked us
questions like how old we were, were we virgins,'' Henei says, wiping away tears
of rage that still well up six years later.
Henei, who like other members of her Akha tribe uses only one name, managed
to escape. But thousands of other women and girls in China's poor south are
falling victim to a growing slave trade with the more prosperous economies of
Southeast Asia.
Some are sold to clothing factories or as farm laborers. But many are
forced to provide sex in bars and brothels.
Human Rights in China, a New York-based rights monitor, says as many as
10,000 Chinese women may be trafficked into Southeast Asia every year.
Throughout the region, some 300,000 women and children are trapped in
``slavery-like'' conditions, according to the International Organization for
Migration,ainful memory in my life,'' she says.
Henei doesn't know how much a pimp paid for her and her cousin when they
reached Malaysia. He locked them in a hotel room, where she pounded on the door
and drew the attention of police.
The two were returned to China three months later.
Many women aren't so lucky.
A member of China's Dai minority says she was forced to work without pay
for a year in a brothel in the southern Thai beach resort of Koh Samui. She
asked that her name not be used.
Five years ago, a man from her village in Yunnan promised her and a friend
work at a noodle restaurant in Thailand. He said they could earn $360 a month -
far more than the $240 her father made in a year picking tea leaves and raising
sugar cane.
``The man kept saying how full of fun Thailand was, and he promised to
contact our parents later. We couldn't resist,'' says the woman, who was 19 at
the time.
When they reached Myanmar, two armed men told the women they'd been sold.
The Koh Samui brothel eventually bought them for $3,000 each. They spent a
year there, living in small, wood-paneled rooms. There was barely space for the
bed where they worked and slept.
The woman was finally discovered by Thai police and sent home penniless.
Her friend never returned.
``We were forced to sell our bodies,'' she says. ``It will scar my heart
forever.''
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tuesday January 22 3:08 AM ET
Tribal Rebels Kill 16 in India's Assam GUWAHATI, India (Reuters) -
Heavily armed tribal guerrillas shot dead 16 villagers, including nine women and
two children, in India's northeastern state of Assam, police said Tuesday.
The incident took place at Udalgiri, about 90 miles from Dispur, Assam's
capital. The village lies near the border with neighboring Bhutan.
``A group of about 20 to 25 militants of the outlawed National Democratic
Front of Bodoland (NDFB) carrying automatic weapons raided an isolated village
and opened fire,'' a police officer told Reuters.
Sixteen villagers, identified as settlers from the eastern state of Bihar,
were shot dead after they were called out of their houses and ordered to line
up, police said. The rebels also set about 20 houses on fire. Elsewhere in
eastern India, suspected guerrillas from the Maoist Communist Center gunned down
five people in Bihar's Gaya district, about 95 miles southeast of the state
capital, Patna.
Monday night's massacre in Assam was the second major attack carried out by
NDFB rebels in less than a week against non-tribals in the tea and oil rich
state.
Last Tuesday, the rebel group gunned down 13 villagers and wounded 18 near
Bijni village in Assam. The NDFB is fighting for an independent homeland for
Bodo tribesmen who make up about 13 percent of Assam's 26 million people.
Police said the tribal rebels who massacred the 16 villagers came from
Bhutan, where they have training camps.
``The NDFB (rebels) came from Bhutan and went back to their hideout soon
after killing,'' Assam's inspector-general of police (law and order), M. Mohan
Raj, told Reuters.
Authorities say the rebels also have camps in the adjoining countries of
Bangladesh and Myanmar. Soldiers have been deployed along the border with Bhutan
to stop rebels from entering Assam.
A conglomeration of 18 non-tribal groups, Jangosthiya Sangram Samity,
called a day-long general strike to protest against the series of attacks on
them by tribal guerrillas.
``The strike started early this morning disrupting normal life mostly in
western parts of the state,'' a police spokesman said. ``There has been no
report of any violence so far.''
India's northeast has been plagued by rebellion for decades, with tribal
groups accusing New Delhi of flooding the region with outsiders, exploiting the
region's mineral resources and ignoring the local economy.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Free Realtime Myanmar Grants Fishing Rights to
Myanmar-Thai Joint Venture
YANGON, Jan 22, 2002 (Xinhua via COMTEX) -- The Myanmar fisheries
authorities have granted a Myanmar-Thai joint venture to carry out fishing
operation in the country's territorial waters where an exclusive economic zone
lies.
The move is aimed at attracting more foreign investment in the country's
fisheries sector, according to the Fisheries Department (FD) of the Myanmar
Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries.
The joint venture, formed by Myanmar's KTTA Co and Thailand's K Marine
Corporation in early January, is the first of its kind ever approved by the
Myanmar government to fish in the country's territorial waters.
The joint venture, shared by the Myanmar company with 60 percent and the
Thai's with 40 percent, has a deposit of 100,000 U.S. dollars as security in
Myanmar's state-run Foreign Trade Bank.
According to the FD, the joint venture's fishing fleet from Thailand is
heading towards Myanmar waters batch by batch for the move.
The joint venture's trawlers are designated to pay to the Myanmar
government 15 percent of the total value of the catch and 10 percent of the
value of the exports.
In addition to fishing operation, the joint venture will also run related
businesses such as cold storage plants, processing facilities and cannery or
fish meal plants.
According to official statistics, there are about 15,000 fishing boats
owned by Myanmar companies in operation in the country's territorial
waters.
In the fiscal year 2000-01, Myanmar produced 1.28 million tons of fish and
prawn, of which 140,000 tons were exported, earning 218 million U.S. dollars. It
is expected that production for 2001-02 ending March will reach 1.37 million
tons and more earning will be brought about.
Other statistics show that since Myanmar opened to foreign investment in
late1988, foreign companies coming from Bangladesh, China, Germany, Japan and
Thailand have so far injected 197 million dollars in the sector of
fisheries.
Meanwhile, the Myanmar government has also worked out a three-year fishery
development plan starting 2000, encouraging the local private enterprises to
engage in the sector by setting up fishery joint ventures with the government
and foreign companies.
Besides, the government has leased out or sold the majority of the
state-owned fishery ponds to the private sector for business operations.
Fishery sector is the third productive mainstay of Myanmar's economy after
agriculture and forestry.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Times of India
Myanmar says no trace of missing French
activist
AFP [ MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 2002 3:46:06 PM ]
ANGKOK: Myanmar's military government said on Monday it had no information on the whereabouts of a 31-year-old French activist who went missing along its border with Thailand last October. Friends of Xavier Tanguy, a known supporter of the opposition ethnic Karen
militia, believe he was arrested and detained in Myanmar after he secretly
entered the country to meet with Karen insurgents.
"We still do not have any information on Mr. Xavier Tanguy ... I do believe
that if Mr. Tanguy really happened to cross over to the Myanmar side we would
definitely know by now," a government spokesmen said in a statement.
"We have been working closely with the French Embassy in Yangon to
investigate Mr. Xavier Tanguy's alleged disappearance on the Myanmar side of the
Myanmar-Thai border since he was reported missing."
The French embassy in Yangon declined to comment on the inquiry into
Tanguy's disappearance.
However, the French embassy in Bangkok said the embassy was "working with
the local police authorities in Mae Sot," the Thai border town where the French
activist was last seen around October 17, according to friends.
Tanguy's parents were scheduled to take up their son's case on Monday with
France's ministry of foreign affairs in Paris.
Aside from a possible accident or foul play -- Tanguy's bank account has
shown no activity since he was reported missing -- his friends say he could have
fallen into a political trap as his Myanmar girlfriend worked as a government
informer.
Tanguy's father said last month that his son had last been seen in the
company of a woman from Myanmar whose mother is imprisoned there on charges of
trafficking in opium.
Myanmar could be seeking some kind of deal "because Xavier, who has entered
the country clandestinely several times, is well known to their secret service,"
he said.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1st software park opens in
Myanmar
YANGON, Jan. 21, Kyodo - In a
first step to developing an independent software industry, Myanmar opened its
first information and communication technology (ICT) park Monday at Yangon
University's Hlaing Campus in the northern suburbs of Yangon.
Lt. Gen. Khin Nyunt, first secretary of the ruling State Peace and
Development Council -- Myanmar's junta, formally opened the Myanmar Information
and Communication Technology (MICT) Park at a ceremony also attended by
diplomats, ICT experts and guests from foreign countries.
In his opening ceremony speech, Khin Nyunt, who is also chairman of the
Myanmar Computer Science Development Council, said: ''The government is
committed to the development of ICT in the country and will render necessary
assistance and support as much as possible.
''Myanmar has entered a new era in ICT development with the inauguration of
this park, and I am fully confident this venture will be a resounding success,''
he said.
More than 40 local companies worked to construct the park, which cost $1.2
million to build. There are four production blocks attached to the main building
comprising a business center and a conference hall.
About 30 companies have opened shops in the newly opened park, where more
than 1,000 programmers will also sit and write software.
Also at the ceremony, Multimedia Development Corp. of Malaysia and
e-National Task Force of Myanmar signed a memorandum of understanding on
cooperation in information technology development in Myanmar.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- CNN - Myanmar confirms nuclear
plans
January 22, 2002 Posted: 0850 GMT YANGON, Myanmar -- The military government of Myanmar has confirmed that it
is planning to build the country's first nuclear reactor with help from Russia.
Confirming reports of the project, Deputy Foreign Minister Khin Muang Win
said the reactor was to be used purely for peaceful purposes to meet demand for
radio isotopes from the country's healthcare, agricultural and educational
sectors.
"We have been conducting feasibility studies for building a nuclear reactor
for peaceful purposes," he told a news conference in the capital Yangon,
formerly Rangoon.
"I would like to stress that it is purely for peaceful purposes, purely for
nuclear research, purely for training our scientists and also to meet our need
for radio isotopes."
Myanmar's often secret military rulers have previously declined to comment
on reports of negotiations with Russia on the construction of the reactor.
However announcing the project on Monday they denied that they had ever
tried to hide the plans.
"We have been carrying it out openly," said Khin Muang Win. "We officially
informed the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Authority) Director General of
our idea and asked for their advice in September 2000," he said.
Sanctions
According to Reuters IAEA officials have confirmed discussions with Myanmar
and say the reactor is unlikely to be suitable for the production of nuclear
weapons.
However IAEA officials based in Vienna have raised concerns about Myanmar's
ability to cope with such high-maintenance technology and the high safety
standards needed for its upkeep.
Myanmar is one of the poorest countries in the world and human rights
groups have criticized reports of the planned reactor saying it is a frivolous
expense designed only to bolster the egos of the country's ruling generals.
Myanmar's military rulers have been subject to wide-ranging political and
economic sanctions for several years as a result of the country's poor human
rights record and alleged involvement in the illegal narcotics trade.
According to Reuters nuclear experts believe the 10-megawatt reactor will
cost in the region of $5 million to build, excluding maintenance costs.
The initial construction costs could be met by bartering produce such as
timber, fish and rice -- a system used by the government to fund other projects
in the past.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bangkok Post - January 22,
2002.
Smugglers abandon heroin cargo, flee
back to Burma
Methamphetamine seizure in Lampang
Manop Thip-osod
Authorities seized 21 kilogrammes of heroin and nearly half a million
methamphetamine pills in two raids in the North over the weekend.
Sixty bars of compressed heroin were seized on Sunday night following a
clash between a Thai patrol and a group of armed men in Mae Hong Son's Pang
Mapha district near the Burmese border.
Two smugglers, identified later as Muso tribesmen, were killed in the
clash.
The rest fled back across the border, abandoning 21kg of heroin.
There were no Thai casualties.
Third Army commander Lt-Gen Udomchai Ongkhasing suspected the seized heroin
was part of a large consignment being smuggled into the country via Mae Hong
Son, Chiang Rai and Chiang Mai provinces.
The heroin seizure was reportedly linked to the arrest of Seri Saengsuk, a
Chinese man arrested with his wife, Khamla, on Jan 12 on drug trafficking
charges. They were believed to be major traffickers in the North.
On Saturday night, Sa-ard Lamyongchalalai, a Muso from Mae Hong Son, was
arrested in Lampang with 470,000 speed pills in his possession.
Pol Maj-Gen Supoj Siripoon, chief of metropolitan division 6, said the
suspect was wanted for alleged involvement in drug trading in Bangkok.
Six guns and some ammunition were also seized during the arrest.
Pol Maj-Gen Supoj said the suspect was believed to have links with a
Burmese woman arrested in the seizure of 50,000 speed pills in the Siam Centre
shopping complex car park on Nov 11 last year.
Further investigation led to the confiscation on Dec 16 and on Jan 11 of
839,000 more speed pills by the same police team that arrested the Burmese
woman, he said.
The woman was believed to have links with drug warlord Wei Hseuh-kang, Pol
Maj-Gen Supoj said.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bangkok Post - January 22,
2002.
EDITORIAL - Thailand's place in a small
world
When Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra met ambassadors of the European
Union last week, he discussed trade with the EU _ and whether Thailand could
help Afghanistan with a narcotics, crop substitution project. When the prime
minister flew to Jakarta, President Megawati Sukarnoputri asked if he wanted to
buy an Indonesian airplane, and how Thailand planned to help the world war on
terrorism. Several Thai officials from the lovely, tourist-friendly Doi Tung
project spent the weekend in Burma. They were discussing the possibility of a
similar project to further Thailand's war on drugs by halting the growing of
opium by Burmese hilltribes.
As the song goes, ``It's a small world''. It has been growing smaller.
Technology has cut travel and, especially, telecommunications times.
Globalisation, love it or hate it, has brought countries closer. Who, until
recently, would have imagined Thai rice on Cuban plates, Thai-developed computer
software running hospitals in America? And no event has emphasised the shrinking
world like the war on terrorism after the Sept 11 attacks on the United
States.
Every country has a role to play in this smaller world. Thailand and others
are still searching for their exact place. One thing is certain: The modern
world makes the Thai role more important than ever. The country's impressive
food supply, political poise and rich background of diplomacy are a source of
stability.
Mr Thaksin correctly sees Thailand as a world leader in crop substitution,
a major weapon against illicit narcotics. But as he discussed this with the
European ambassadors, officials also discussed a little known Thai capability.
Thai soldiers and dogs trained a generation of Afghan de-miners in the days
before the Taliban. Now, they may go back to train more Afghans in the job of
removing landmines.
Mrs Megawati and Mr Thaksin laced their bilateral trade talks with
discussions on how to co-operate in the war against terror. Few people now doubt
that Southeast Asia is a training ground and base for terrorists linked to the
al-Qaeda network. Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore all have stepped up
anti-terrorist operations and, among them, have made dozens of arrests of senior
and dangerous terrorists. Some, Malaysian officials have told Thai leaders, have
been in Thailand to purchase or steal explosives and other weapons.
In the southern Philippines, more than 600 US troops have joined the army.
They are trying to root out the savage Abu Sayyaf, founded and originally funded
by Osama bin Laden. The group has served as a model for a tiny handful of Thai
extremists _ who conducted their first beheading of kidnap victims last year.
President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo asked for, and received, solid support from Mr
Thaksin for her anti-terrorist campaign when he visited Manila last year.
Neighbours are looking to Thailand _ as Thailand must look to them _ for
support. The shrinking world has been matched by a growth in cross-border crime
and terrorism. Thailand needs and often receives help in its battles against
drugs, the greatest security threat to the nation. Even Burma has begun to
respond to some Thai problems. Malaysia has been a good neighbour in tracking
and dealing with terrorists who try to find refuge from authorities in the
South.
This is why Mrs Megawati has asked Mr Thaksin for help and support in two
linked problems in Indonesia _ terrorism and separatist violence. Thailand can
share intelligence that will help to identify terrorists and prevent future
attacks. Thai authorities can do more to half the illicit sales and smuggling of
weapons to both Malaysia and Indonesia. In a small world, co-operation means a
lot.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- THE NATION
Regional anti-Aids funds move 'is best' Mukdawan Sakboon Published on Jan 22, 2002 Countries in the Greater Mekong subregion should collectively propose an
Aids-prevention and control programme to gain support from the Global Health
Fund, senior health officials told a meeting of regional representatives
yesterday.
Dr Suvit Wibulpolprasert, deputy permanent health secretary, cited the
problem of cross-border migrant labourers and the growing sex trade as potential
areas for collective action between Thailand, Burma, Cambodia, China, Laos and
Vietnam.
He put forward the proposal yesterday at the intersessional meeting of the
Human Security Network on Human Security and HIV/Aids, organised by the Ministry
of Foreign Affairs and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/Aids
(Unaids).
Suvit himself is backed by six out of the 10 countries in Southeast Asia,
which guarantees his place on the 18-member Global Fund board authorised to
approve the use of funds to fight HIV/Aids, tuberculosis and malaria.
Meanwhile, Bangkok Senator and Aids activist Jon Ungphakorn said countries
in the grouping needed to cooperate not only on Aids prevention, but also on
measures to increase access to care and essential drugs.
Despite international praise for Thailand's success in Aids prevention, Jon
said the disease was not a priority with the present government. Thailand had
also failed to curb the epidemic among intravenous drug-users, where the
infection rate is still as high as 50 per cent.
Policy-makers and health officials from the six countries in the Greater
Mekong subregion attending yesterday's meeting agreed that HIV/Aids posed a
major threat to human security.
Unaids humanitarian coordinator Ulf Kristoffersson said deaths from Aids in
the next decade would outnumber all the casualties from conflicts and other
emergencies.
Health officials have expressed concern over the marked rise of the disease
in Indonesia, India and China. On a single day in China there could be as many
as 645,000 needles and syringes being shared, said Wu Zunyou of China's National
Centre for Aids Prevention and Control.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Myanmar's IT Sector Enters Into Stage of
Development
Xinhuanet 2002-01-22 11:32:04
ã??ã??YANGON, January 22 (Xinhuanet) -- The information technology (IT) and software sectors of Myanmar have entered into a stage of development following the current inauguration of an Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Park in the capital of Yangon, which brings IT companies together into operation. ã??ã??The country's first ever ICT park, opened on Monday at the Yangon
University's Hlaing campus, comprises a teleport and internet data center
established by the Bagan Cybertech, a semi-government organization.
ã??ã??The ICT park, built at an estimated cost of some 10 million U.S.dollars,
will create business opportunities for Myanmar software companies. Meanwhile,
the teleport and internet data center will help expand the communication
infrastructure.
ã??ã??The grouping of IT companies at the park would also enable the
development of big software projects which a single company alone can not
implement.
ã??ã??The park provides facilities for 32 tenants which include 24 Myanmar IT
companies. It also has two Japan-Myanmar e-(electronic)learning centers.
ã??ã??The Bagan Cybertech provides the ICT park with high speed data
communication broadband internet access and telephony voice services.
ã??ã??The launching of the ICT park was also marked by hosting two-day meetings
of e-ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Working Group and e-ASEAN
Task Force prior to the event.
ã??ã??Myanmar has been selected to promote 8 of 40 e-ASEAN pilot projects
including e-tourism.
ã??ã??In recent years, Myanmar made some achievements in the ICT sector. At
present, almost all basic education schools in Myanmar including the primary
level have already established or in the process of establishing multi-media
classrooms.
ã??ã??In addition, 20 computer colleges have also been set up across the
country.
ã??ã??Myanmar joined in signing the e-ASEAN Framework Agreement in November
2000 and an e-national task force has been formed to implement the framework in
an effort to provide access to the country's 52-million population having a
tele-density of 0.53 per 100 people.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Irrawaddy Online
Former Professor Arrested for Solo
Protest
By Kyaw Zwa Moe
January 22, 2002â?? Reliable sources in Rangoon have reported that a former
university rector was arrested in early December for staging a one-man protest
against Burmaâ??s ruling military regime. The sources added that they believe the
retired professor is currently being detained at Rangoonâ??s notorious Insein
prison.
Dr. Salai Tun Than, 74, staged the protest in front of Rangoon City Hall, a
focal point of protests in the Burmese capital during the 1988 popular uprising
against military rule.
According to the sources, the retired rector from Yezin University in
Pyinmana, Upper Burma stood in front of City Hall distributing copies of a
petition letter he had written to demand political reform. In his letter,
obtained by The Irrawaddy, he called on the ruling military council to hold
multiparty general elections within one year. He also requested that officials
from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and the United Nations supervise
the election. He added that power should be transferred to the victor as soon as
the results are made known to the public.
It is believed that Dr. Salai Tun Than wore an academic gown during the
protest. Otherwise, witnesses said, he did not say or do anything to draw
attention to himself.
In his letter, he urged military officials to kill him if they refused to
meet his demands. "It is better to die than to live under the military regime,"
the letter said. He also appealed to all armed forces and police to join the
people and urged the armed forces to stop killing people.
Alerted by local officials, security officers arrested the professor. It is
believed that he is now being detained in Insein Prison and has been denied
permission to meet relatives and friends.
Dr. Salai Tun Than, a Christian and a member of the Chin ethnic group,
earned a Ph.D. in Agronomy from the University of Wisconsin and had served as
rector at the Yezin University of Agriculture in Pyinmana until 1990.
In Burma, approximately 2,000 political prisoners are currently being
detained under harsh conditions.
Twelve years ago, the military regime held general elections but refused to
honor the National League for Democracyâ??s landslide victory.
Irrawaddy Online
Education Report
Released
By Zarny Win
January 22, 2002â?? The All Burma Federation of Student Unionsâ?? Foreign
Affairs Committee (ABFSU-FAC) released a report earlier this month that analyzes
the education system in Burma between 1988 and 2000. The report outlines the
collapse of the Burmese education system since the current military leaders
seized power in September 1988.
"We published this report because we want academics and students around the
world to know the education situation in Burma," said Minn Naing of the
ABFSU-FAC. "The military has been controlling the education system and the
political situation in Burma."
The 95-page report consists of two parts, one covering the civilian
education system and another part covering the militaryâ??s education system.
Numerous statistics are cited throughout the report that point to the militaryâ??s
role in the destruction of a once-thriving education system. "Burmaâ??s education
system is seriously damaged and the future for the students and the country is
terrifying," says the report.
Since 1988 universities and colleges in Burma have been open for a total of just 40 months. According to the report, education and health account for just 7.7% of annual government spending in Burma, while military expenditures now comprise over 40% of the national budget. The report also mentions that 9.5 million children are unable to acquire a basic education, and only 37% of children who do start primary school are able to go on to the middle-school level. Observers have said that this sort of report by exile groups is rare due to
the emphasis placed on documenting human rights abuses throughout Burma. Those
interested in obtaining a copy of the book can contact bakatha@xxxxxxxxxx.
Burma: A solution
underway
By Win Htein Mizzima News January 21: The United Nations Special Envoy for Burma, Razali Ismail will
soon return to Rangoon to finalize his mission on negotiation process between
the military government and the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD)
in Burma.
"He will arrive here 3rd February and stay to 8th. I hope that he could
bring significant progress this time", a senior politician who met Razali's
representative in Rangoon told Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB) recently.
This is 7th trip for Razali since UN secretary general Kofi Annan appointed
him in April 1999. After 3rd trip to Burma in 2000, he announced there is a
secret talk between the ruling State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) leader
Lt-Gen Khin Nyunt and the NLD leader Aung San Suu Kyi who remains under house
arrest.
Many believe that Razali could reach a political agreement between the SPDC
and the NLD this time. "It depends on how the SPDC responds. I hope they will
find a way from the current secret talks to go to genuine dialogue. Mr Razali
has told me that he plans a guide map for Burma in the year 2002. So I am
optimistic that we could reach to tripartite talks this yearâ??, said Khun Htun
Oo, chairman of Shan National League for Democracy (SNLD), which won second
majority parliamentary seats in the 1990 election.
The SNLD leader said he plans to discuss with all the ethnic leaders
including armed rebels to prepare for the â??tripartite talksâ??. "We must be ready
for the UN-sponsored tripartite dialogue. I have planned to meet all ethnic
political parties including those parties banned by the junta, â??cease-fireâ??
armed groups and all armed ethnic rebels including KNU (Karen National Union),
KNPP (Karenni National Progress Party) and SSA (Shan State Army) this yearâ??, he
added.
Many observers agree with him. Some analysts pointed that recent military
reshuffle within the SPDC is a sign to encourage the talks. "There are now only
three top generals remaining in the SPDC who participated in crushing the
pro-democracy uprising of 1988. All the regional commanders and the BSO chiefs
are from new blood. So I hope this reshuffle will help the talks go ahead", said
U Htay Aung, a defense analyst based in Thailand.
On November 9, the junta dismissed seven top generals including Secretary
3- Lt-Gen. Win Myint and reshuffled 10-of 12-regional commanders. Then 10 â??new
bloodâ?? Brig-Generals were appointed as regional commanders in last December. And
four of ten former commanders have become chiefs of Bureau of Special Operation
(BSO) while six are chief staffs in War Office in Rangoon.
However, another Burmese political analyst Aung Naing Oo said the current
talk is still in a confidence-building stage. "There are two things needed from
the SPDC side before entering into a real dialogue. Those are: to release more
political prisoners especially Members of Parliament and CEC members of the NLD
and permission to reopen more NLD offices. These are basic conditions for the
dialogue to go ahead", he said.
According to the NLD spokesman U Lwin, there are 809 party members,
including 17 MPs still in jail although 207-political prisoners were released.
The NLD needs to reopen about 300-offices nation-wide although 30-offices were
reopened in Rangoon Division.
Some exiled political activists view that the SPDC is not honest. They said
that the talk is, from the military junta side, just a â??showâ?? to international
community to lift economic sanction and to sway the countryâ??s bad human right
records.
But Khun Htun Oo and some analysts believe the SPDC is now seriously
considering how to negotiate with the opposition. "They have no option except
dialogue. They face a lot of pressure from inside and outside. But we must
understand they are an armed group, which is difficult to bend. So we must wait
some more time", the Shan leader said.
Aung Naing Oo agrees with him. "14-months are not so long for a dialogue
process. Some negotiation programs are longer than that. The important thing is:
what are they negotiating, not how long they negotiate", he pointed out.
On the other hand, many are worried that how an agreement can be reached
between the two confronting sides. The NLD calls to honor the 1990-election
verdict and convene the peopleâ??s parliament while the SPDC calls the National
Convention.
Khun Htun Oo suggested; "The SPDC should allow calling a parliament while
the NLD promises that itâ??s parliament is not to take over power directly. Then
the parliament should establish an interim government. I think this is the best
way for give and take.â??
This is not a new idea. However it may be the best option for this long
standing troubled land after 12 years that an election was held but the ruthless
military refused to honor the peopleâ??s verdict.
Win Htein is a correspondent for Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB), based in
Norway.
Shan Herald Agency for News
21 January 2002 No: 01 - 09: Burma Lawyers: State Protection Law 1975
not an anti-terrorist law
As US-led UN Secretary Council pushes its 189 members to adopt a new"
broadest possible" counter-terrorist laws, Burma is still hanging on its 27 year
old State Protection Law to terrorize its people, charged a report by the Burma
Lawyers Council, an exiled group based in Bangkok.
In its report issued in December, Peter Gutter and B.K. Sen of the BLC
argued that the State Protection Law, promulgated by the "constitutional
military government" in 1975, had only one purpose: "to ensure the perpetuation
of military rule." Being "the main power base" of the military authorities, it
is "indeed the broadest possible law in the world," it says.
Under this law, a Buddhist monk from Moulmein was sentenced to two years
imprisonment in 1996 for distributing leaflets about Samma-sati (Right
Mindfulness) without permission from the local authorities.
It stresses that unlike its predecessor Public Order Preservation Act,
(POPA), the SPL that "can hardly be called a law" is "subject to writ remedy in
the Supreme Court." The redeeming feature of POPA was that "at least there was a
Constitution and a Supreme Court, and the legal remedies were available."
Nevertheless, since 11 September, Rangoon authorities have taken full
advantage of the global war against terrorism in order to justify its existence,
it says.
"(T)he first thing Jeremy Greenstock's (UN Security Council
counter-terrorism) committee should do is to help stop terrorism committed by
the state," urges the analysis, because as Bishop Teodoro Bacani of Philippines
once put it, "the very means to fight terrorism are themselves the means to
terrorize the citizenry."
The report calls for the complete abolishment of the law.
According to the SPL, the military can restrict "any fundamental right of
any person suspected of having committed or believed to be about to commit any
act which endangers the sovereignty and security of the state or public peace
and
tranquility. |