[burmanet2-l] Burma Related News - Feb 04, 2002.

["TIN KYI" <tinkyi@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

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BURMA RELATED NEWS - February 04, 2002.
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HEADLINES
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Reuters - Moderate quake hits northeast Myanmar, no damage
Bkk Post - Labour smuggling links seen 4 killed in similar manner last year
The Nation - Little impact seen from MiG-29 deal
Xinhuanet - Japan Provides Grant Assistance to Myanmar
Xinhuanet - Myanmar's Fertilizer Production Down in 1st 10 Months of 2001
Xinhuanet - Myanmar Increases Edible Oil Import in 1st 10 Months of 2001
NSTP - Plans for one-stop agencies to hire, train, screen aliens
The Indian Express - Another regional headache for US? Russian n-reactor set
for Myanmar

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Monday February 4, 12:35 PM
Moderate quake hits northeast Myanmar, no damage

YANGON, Feb 4 (Reuters) - A moderate earthquake, measuring 4.9 on the
Richter scale, shook a sparsely populated region in northeastern Myanmar
early on Sunday, the country's Meteorology and Hydrology Department (MHD)
said.

A MHD official said on Monday the quake at 1938 GMT Saturday, centred near
the Chinese border about 372 miles northeast of Yangon's Kabar-Aye
seismological observatory, did not cause any damage or casualties.

"We don't think there would be any damage since the area is almost
uninhabited."

Myanmar's thinly populated northeastern and northwestern regions are
quake-prone. The strongest jolt in the two areas a few years ago measured
6.5 on the Richter scale.
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Bangkok Post - Feb 04, 2002.
Labour smuggling links seen 4 killed in similar manner last year
Chiang Mai

A conflict about illegal workers or drugs is probably behind the murder of
14 Karen workers whose bodies were dumped in a stream, police say.

The Karen were found with their throats cut in Huay Mae Lamao stream in
tambon Mae Jarao in Tak's Mae Ramat district on Saturday.

Pol Maj-Gen Winai Nilsri, commander of the Border Patrol Police Region 3,
said police were looking at two possible motives: conflicts in the drug
trade or smuggling of illegal migrants.

He did not believe the murders were the work of Thai people.

An autopsy found the victims had been murdered more than 10 days ago, some
from stab wounds to the body. Their throats were cut later.

The seven men and seven women were aged from 14-45.

Pol Maj-Gen Winai said that in a similar case last year, the bodies of four
alien workers were found floating in a stream.

Police investigations found the victims had been killed by a job brokerage
gang which lured them to work in Thailand.

The gang slashed the workers' throats after getting brokerage fees from
them.

Pol Col Saksin Klansanoh, commander of the 13th special task force, said
illegal smuggling of alien workers was rampant in Mae Ramat district.

Thongmuan Sitthikaew, head of Wang Pha village in the district, said the
victims were illegal workers.

He believed they might have been killed by a local employer who did not want
to pay them wages.
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The Nation
Little impact seen from MiG-29 deal
Supalak Ganjanakhundee
Published on Feb 4, 2002

Burma's recent purchase of Russian-made MiG-29 jet fighters introduced no
significant new threat to Thailand as the 10 aircraft are too few to have an
impact on the regional balance of air power, according to a military source.

Senior military officers last week held discussions on the matter following
a move by the US Senate Appropriation Committee to assess Thailand's defence
needs, he said.

They concluded that just 10 aircraft could not create a major security
threat and the fragile Burmese economy could not support a rapid military
build-up by Rangoon that would damage the current power balance in the
region, the source said.

The Burmese economy has been affected by the paucity of foreign capital
inflow since the regional financial crisis in mid 1997.

The ruling State Peace and Development Council may have the capacity to
build up its armed forces to 500,000 men as it is a low-cost plan, but
installation of advance military capacity needs heavy investment, the source
said.

Worried about regional military balance due to the Burmese fighter purchase,
a US Senate committee ordered the Department of Defence to report to
Congress on Thailand's security capability by April.

The Thai military is monitoring the move closely since it would influence
its plans for weapon procurement, the source said.

Rangoon signed a US$150-million (Bt6.56-billion) contract for the 10 Russian
MiG-29s last year to upgrade its air force, made up primarily of Chinese
variants of the MiG-21 and MiG-19.

The junta's air-force build-up was regarded by international observers as a
reaction to Thailand's earlier purchase of a squadron of used F-16 fighter
jets from the US to add to the two batches of F-16s already in service in
the Thai Royal Air Force.

The source said that while the small number of aircraft was not a direct
threat, the Russian influence accompanying their purchase was worrisome and
the 10 advanced fighter jets had been offered cheaply to get a presence in
Southeast Asia.

Training for the MiG-29s will allow Russian personnel to set foot in Burma,
creating prospects for Moscow to have influence over the country in the long
run, the source said.
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Japan Provides Grant Assistance to Myanmar
Xinhuanet 2002-02-04 13:39:45

YANGON, February 4 (Xinhuanet) -- The Japanese government has provided
grassroots grant assistance of 331,184 U.S. dollars to Myanmar for 13
projects during the period from December 1, 2001 to February 1, 2002,
according to a press release of the Japanese embassy here Monday.

The assistance covers construction projects of four primary and one middle
schools, medical equipment and water supply and electrification projects in
Myanmar's seven states and divisions.

Meanwhile, the Japanese government has provided about 20 million U.S.dollars
of technical aid to Myanmar in the current fiscal year ending in March,
according to the Japan International Cooperation Agency which has been
extending such aid to the country for over 20 years.

Another embassy figures show that in 2001, Japan provided Myanmar with the
Official Development Assistance (ODA) worth 1.689 billion yen (about 13.8
million U.S.dollars), and in January this year, a similar aid of 203 million
yen (about 1.65 million dollars) for human resources development scholarship
project was extended.

Besides, up to 2001, Japan has provided 20 times of debt relief to Myanmar
including a sum of 3.594 billion yen (about 29.22 million dollars) in 2001.
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Myanmar's Fertilizer Production Down in 1st 10 Months of 2001
Xinhuanet 2002-02-04 10:18:17

YANGON, February 4 (Xinhuanet) -- Myanmar produced 56,647 tons of chemical
fertilizer in the first ten months of 2001, a reduction of 59.11 percent
compared with the same period of 2000, according to the latest figures of
the country's Central Statistical Organization.

Meanwhile, during the ten-month period, the country imported 18.53 million
U.S. dollars worth of fertilizer.

In 2000, Myanmar produced 167,599 tons of chemical fertilizer, up 14.8
percent from 1999.

Up to now, the country has only three fertilizer plants which can only
produce urea and are far from meeting its annual demand of over 800,000 tons
of chemical fertilizer.

To promote agricultural development, the Myanmar government has exempted the
import duties of agricultural implements including fertilizer, pesticide,
improved variety and machinery.
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Myanmar Increases Edible Oil Import in 1st 10 Months of 2001
Xinhuanet 2002-02-04 10:05:08

YANGON, February 4 (Xinhuanet) -- Myanmar imported 72.07 million U.S.
dollars worth of edible oil in the first 10 months of 2001, a 22.67 percent
increase compared with the same period of 2000, according to the latest
figures of the country's Central Statistical Organization.

Myanmar produces over 380,000 tons of the oil annually, accounting for only
76 percent of the country's total domestic demand.

Myanmar projects to yield 413,000 tons of edible oil during the present
fiscal year of 2001-2002 ending March, an increase of 32,000 tons over the
previous fiscal year, according to a forecast of the state-run Myanmar
Agricultural Service (MAS).

The MAS under the Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation expects that the
increased production would be brought about through growing of three main
oil crops of groundnut, sesame and sunflower in three arid divisions of
Mandalay, Sagaing and Magway in central Myanmar.

Total cultivated area of the crops would expand to 2.55 million hectares
with sesame taking up 1.4 million hectares, more than double the area of the
other two crops.

According to official statistics, annual edible oil consumption of Myanmar
is about 500,000 tons. As domestic production is still falling short of
demand, the country has to import over 100,000 tons of palm oil annually
from Malaysia.
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The New Straits Times Press - February 04, 2002.
KAJANG
Plans for one-stop agencies to hire, train, screen aliens
by Chok Suat Ling

There are plans to establish one-stop agencies for the recruitment, training
and screening of foreign workers in their respective countries before they
are brought to Malaysia.

Human Resources Deputy Minister Dr Abdul Latif Ahmad said the plan
encompassed domestic help and workers in the manufacturing, construction and
plantation sectors.

We are talking about one-stop agencies appointed by the Malaysian Government
in countries like Bangladesh, Nepal, Myanmar and Cambodia to conduct and
oversee the training, orientation and health checks of foreign workers
before they come here.

When they reach Malaysia, all that needs to be done is to just put them up
in a lodging house before they start work. This way, the workers will
already know what to expect before they arrive in the country.

They will know about our culture and way of life, Abdul Latif, who was
representing Human Resources Minister Datuk Dr Fong Chan Onn, said after
presenting Socso payments to 35 contributors at Metro Inn.

Abdul Latif said the proposal, when implemented, would help ensure only
skilled and healthy foreign workers came into the country.

At present, many foreign workers that come in are unskilled. Also some are
infected with the HIV virus or have tuberculosis but we only find out when
they are already in the country.

Background checks will also be conducted to ensure they have no criminal
records.

He said the Labour Department was currently drawing up a working paper on
the proposal.

Asked who would bear the cost of training, Abdul Latif said the workers
would. On the duration of training, he said it might be around four months.

Abdul Latif, however, declined to comment when asked how foreign maid
agencies in the country would be affected should the proposal be
implemented.

In his speech earlier, Abdul Latif said there were now 9.5 million Malaysian
workers, and the figure was expected to rise to 12.5 million by 2010.

He also said there was now RM9 billion in the Socso fund. Some 40 to 60 per
cent of claimants are those who have been involved in accidents.

Many Asean countries are interested in the way we administer the fund.
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The Indian Express
Another regional headache for US? Russian n-reactor set for Myanmar
PALLAVA BAGLA

NEW DELHI, FEBRUARY 2: INDIA may soon have to reckon with another nuclear
neighbour. The military regime of Myanmar is all set to acquire its first
nuclear reactor from Russia, the ground-breaking ceremony for this was
scheduled last week.

According to a report in the latest issue of the US journal Science, the
reactor is being installed at a military complex in the central province of
Magway, the region that has the richest uranium deposits in Myanmar.

The 10-MW reactor is being imported ostensibly to produce medical isotopes
and to study the feasibility of mass-producing nuclear energy in Myanmar.

The report says the Myanmar government confirmed to the United Nations that
more than 200 of its scientists and technicians have received nuclear
training in Russia in recent months.

An American Defence official has told Science that Washington is worried
that the reactor could increase the threat of radioactive material falling
into the hands of terrorists.

A team from Vienna's International Atomic Energy Agency visited Myanmar and
said the country's radiation-protection infrastructure was ''not meeting the
expected standards.''
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