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BURMA RELATED NEWS - JULY 26,
2002.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
HEADLINES
------------------------------------------------------------------- AFP - Myanmar tries to shut out human
rights criticism at ASEAN forum
Kyodo News - Kawaguchi to visit
Myanmar in early Aug
Xinhuanet - Thai-Myanmar officials to
meet soon
Xinhuanet - ASEAN Diplomats Gather in
Brunei Before Ministerial Meets
BKK Post - Press told to be
critical
BKK Post - Shan brace for Wa
offensive
BKK Post - 5,000 are disease carriers
The Guardian - High court ruling
averts libel trial over Guardian article on Burma activist
The Star - Myanmar to pilot
e-passports
RN - Humour as a Weapon
RN - Burma: 40 Years of
Repression
SHAN - Burmese officer:
mountain near Khun Sa's village targeted
NMG - Burma uses
International NGOs to cover Human Rights abuses ------------------------------------------------------------------- Thursday July 25, 5:04 PM
Myanmar tries to shut out human
rights criticism at ASEAN forum
(AFP) - Myanmar's military junta wants to prevent elaborate discussion of its human rights record at a regional meeting here amid expected criticism from the European Union and the United States, diplomats said. Foreign ministers of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), including Myanmar, will hold their annual talks in Brunei next week followed by separate meetings with counterparts from the United States, the EU and other key trading partners. US Secretary of State Colin Powell has reportedly instructed his diplomats to express outrage at the meetings over claims that Myanmar troops have systematically raped girls and women in the eastern Shan state. However, Myanmar's junta is trying to hush up any criticism. The junta has particularly objected to a paragraph on "the reconciliation process" in Myanmar for inclusion in a joint communique to be released by the ASEAN ministers after their talks, a Western diplomat said. "Myanmar wanted it deleted but host Brunei felt strongly for the retention of the said paragraph," the diplomat told AFP. The paragraph was intended to welcome the May release from house arrest of democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi as part of the reconciliation process in Myanmar, officials drafting the communique said. "Myanmar perhaps felt it was not relevant for ASEAN to single out its political problem, especially going by ASEAN's unwritten policy of non-intervention in each other's domestic issues," an ASEAN official said. "Furthermore, any mention of Myanmar may open the floodgates for a no-holds barred discussion on the political and human rights situation there when ASEAN ministers meet their Western counterparts," the official said. Brunei has argued that the absence of a paragraph on Myanmar, following the political reforms seemingly taking shape there, might be "misinterpreted by the media," the Western diplomat said, without elaborating. ASEAN officials said Brunei was seeking reinstatement of the paragraph in the ministerial communique. "Myanmar may relent to a carefully-worded para on the political situation in that country," another official said. "I'm confident this will all be resolved in the ASEAN spirit of brotherhood." ASEAN officials stressed that Myanmar had made substantial progress on its human rights front since the end of 2000, notably the release of 300 political prisoners including Aung San Suu Kyi. Since then the junta has also allowed several international delegations to visit, including UN envoy Razali Ismail, the EU and the International Labour Organisation. But human rights' concerns reemerged when troops were recently accused of using systematic rape as a weapon of war against ethnic minority women in Shan. A report by the Shan Human Rights Foundation and Shan Women's Action Network documents the rapes of 625 girls and women in the state by Myanmar troops, mostly between 1996 and 2001. The junta vehemently denied the charges but the United States has expressed concern over the report and urged Yangon to fully investigate the claims. Powell, who will attend the ASEAN meetings, has instructed his diplomats to convey their outrage over the report, the Washington Post said. "He should personally express the same outrage," it said. Aside from Brunei and Myanmar, ASEAN comprises Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Kawaguchi to visit Myanmar in
early Aug
Friday, July 26, 2002 at 09:30 JST TOKYO (Kyodo
News)? Japanese Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi formally
announced Thursday she will visit Myanmar early next month, likely Aug
3-5.Kawaguchi told reporters she will also go to Singapore after taking part in
a series of meetings of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations
(ASEAN) plus Japan, China and South Korea, slated for July 30 in Brunei, the
ASEAN Regional Forum the following day and a meeting of foreign ministers of
ASEAN and the three nations.
------------------------------------------------------------------- Thai-Myanmar officials to meet
soon
Xinhuanet 2002-07-26 10:19:00 BANGKOK, July 26 (Xinhuanet) -- Myanmar and Thai officials are scheduled to meet soon to discuss ways to enhance bilateral cooperation, the Thai News Agency said Friday. Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Chavalit
Yongchaiyudh was quoted as saying that Thailand and Myanmar are close
neighbouring countries, maintaining good relations for a long time. He said the
discussion will help restore peace and order along the border.
Earlier, Udomchai Ongkasing, commanding general of the
Third Army Area Command, said that a positive change had taken place lately over
situations along the Thai-Myanmar border.
With the positive trend, he hoped relations between the
two countries would improve though it would take some time to restore the sound
bilateral relationship.
Udomchai the Thai military would do the best to protect
the country's sovereignty.
The Thai-Myanmar relations have soured since clashes along
the border in May, leading to Myanmar's closure of its border checkpoints with
Thailand. Myanmar accused Thailand of supporting armed ethnic groups fighting
against Myanmar government forces. Thailand has denied the accusation.
Meanwhile, the House Committee on Commerce reported that
Yangon's closure of its border checkpoints with Thailand over the past two
months had caused business losses to both sides up to five billion baht (125
million U.S. dollars), as trade and tourism had come to a
standstill.
------------------------------------------------------------------- ASEAN Diplomats Gather in
Brunei Before Ministerial Meets
Xinhuanet 2002-07-26 13:00:23 BANGKOK, July 26 (Xinhuanet) -- Thai diplomats joined their counterparts from other countries of the Association of Southest Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Brunei Friday, in preparations for next week's annual ministerial meets of the bloc there. News reports from the state-owned radio here said the
meeting of ASEAN Standing Committee (ASC) and the ASEAN Senior Officials Meeting
(SOM), attended by senior officials from foreign ministries of ASEAN countries,
are being held in Bandar Seri Begawan, the capital of Brunei, between July 26
and 27.
Established in 1967, ASEAN now groups Brunei, Cambodia,
Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and
Vietnam.
Brunei will also be the venue for this year's annual
ministerial-level ASEAN gatherings between July 29 and August 1, including the
35th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting (AMM), the Ninth ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) and
the Post Ministerial Conferences (PMC).
The AMM is an annual meet of ASEAN foreign ministers to
discussand exchange views on issues of concern to the association and is held in
member states on a rotational basis.
The ARF, held back-to-back with the AMM, is a loose
consultative forum to foster constructive dialogue on regional political and
security issues. Members of the forum include 10 ASEAN members, Australia,
Canada, China, the European Union, India,Japan, the Democratic People's Republic
of Korea (DPRK), South Korea, Mongolia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Russia
and the United States.
The PMC, convened normally after the ARF, are meetings
between ASEAN countries and their Dialogue Partners on international political
and economic issues as well as development and functional cooperation. ASEAN
Dialogue Partners are Australia, Canada, China, the European Union, India,
Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, Russia and the United States.
According to Thai media reports, this year's ASEAN meeting
will focus on regional issues such as investment and trade reforms as well as
anti-terrorism and security.
Expanding ASEAN's ties with Australia and New Zealand, a
commitment to enforce good corporate and financial ethics and a blueprint to
narrow development gap between poor and rich members are also expected to be on
the agenda. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Bangkok post - 26 Jul
2002
Press told to be critical
Payback for articles in junta mouthpiece
Wassana Nanuam
Defence Minister Gen Chavalit Yongchaiyudh has called on the
press to counter articles critical of the country published in the Burmese
government mouthpiece. -------------------------------------------------------------------
Bangkok Post - 26 Jul
2002
Shan brace for Wa offensive SSA troops expecting three-pronged attack Subin Khuenkaew A fresh round of border fighting looks imminent as a
deployment of Burmese and United Wa State Army (UWSA) troops prepare to renew an
offensive against Shan military bases.
Led by drug warlord Wei Hsieo-kang, the Wa forces were expected to launch a three-pronged attack on Koh Wan, Koh Hom and Koh Muang bases, said Jao Gorn Juen, Shan State Army (SSA) commander. There were an estimated 3,000 SSA fighters ready to defend the bases. Considered the strongest of the three, Koh Hom also houses a field hospital and a military academy. Burmese troops ceased their previous military operation with the United Wa State Army _ the region's biggest drug-trafficking force _ on June 28, after suffering heavily losses in attacks on Koh Muang and Koh Fah bases. An officer from the Saraburi-based 4th cavalry regiment estimated the casualty toll at 100-120, with about 80 wounded. ``The SSA put up a tough fight and the Burmese suffered heavily,'' he said. ``Large-scale offensives are very tricky operations during the wet season.'' The UWSA ranks were also diminished during cross-border operations near Mae Fah Luang's Ban Puna district. ``The Burmese could not break through our defences because our soldiers fought with their hearts and souls,'' Jao Gorn Juen said. The number of Burmese troops who took part in last month's assault against the SSA was the largest yet, he said. However, he remained confident his enemy would not achieve their objectives as long as they were unable to use Thai soil to launch attacks from the rear. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Bangkok Post - 26 Jul
2002
5,000 are disease
carriers
Will be sent back to home countries
Penchan Charoensutthipan
More than 5,000 foreign workers have been found with serious
contagious diseases and will be sent back to their home countries. -------------------------------------------------------------------
High court ruling averts libel
trial over Guardian article on Burma activist Clare Dyer, legal correspondent Thursday July 25, 2002 The Guardian The Guardian yesterday won a high court ruling which averted an expensive libel trial and capped libel damages for James Mawdsley, the human rights activist who was imprisoned in Burma, at a maximum of £10,000. The paper succeeded in its application to have the claim over an article in Weekend published in June 2001 dealt with by the little used "summary disposal" procedure brought in by the Defamation Act 1996. Awards under the procedure, which has been used in only about half a dozen cases, can be no more than £10,000. Mr Mawdsley, 29, claimed the article, by two freelance journalists, painted him as a hypocrite who never had any interest in Burma. The Guardian denied that it bore that meaning. He also argued that the four page article said he had no interest in Aung San Suu Kyi, campaigner for Burmese democracy, when in fact he was one of her biggest fans. Mr Justice Morland yesterday refused Mr Mawdsley's lawyers permission to appeal against the summary judgment. Alasdair Pepper, Mr Mawdsley's solicitor, said he was awaiting his client's instructions on whether to seek permission from the court of appeal itself. Unless there is a further attempt to appeal, lawyers for both sides will agree a form of apology and the judge will fix the damages on Monday. The Guardian's readers' editor, Ian Mayes, had agreed to publish an apology for inaccuracies in the article, but was unable to agree a form of words with Mr Mawdsley, who took his case to the press complaints commission. The PCC said the Guardian had complied with its code but Mr Mawdsley consulted libel solicitors Peter Carter-Ruck & Partners, and issued proceedings. Mr Justice Morland said £30,000 - equivalent to loss of an eye - would have been an appropriate sum for a jury to award without any apology from the paper. But the Guardian's offer of a prompt apology and its general behaviour were substantial mitigating factors. In addition, Mr Mawdsley was entitled to a declaration from the court that the allegations were false. The ruling was seen yesterday as a vindication of the role of readers' editor. The judge said Mr Mayes carried out his function "honourably, independently and competently." The Guardian's editor, Alan Rusbridger, said: "We're extremely pleased a court has recognised the constructive role a readers' editor can play in resolving disputed issues." -------------------------------------------------------------------
Myanmar to pilot e-passports
PETALING JAYA, Malaysia--The E-National Task Force of Myanmar has appointed Malaysia?s Iris Corporation to implement the country?s pilot Electronic Passport (e-Passport) Project. Financial details were not disclosed. This will make the Asean member country only the second
after Malaysia that will adopt IRIS (Image Retrieval Identification System)
technology to incorporate into official travel documents. Myanmar?s e-Passport project will be modelled after the Malaysian electronic passport that has been implemented by Malaysia?s Immigration Department since March 23, 1998. The pilot project will involve the supply and implementation of the complete system, from front-end capture systems for passport personalization to autogates for faster immigration processing at the Myanmar international airport. The deal would also include the supply of retrieval and encoding systems for chip personalization, the use of fingerprint biometric systems, and systems integration services to existing backend databases. ?Iris will be working with local (Myanmar) systems integration companies to ensure a smooth implementation of the pilot project. ?The project will also include the transfer of technology to the appropriate governmental agencies that will be involved in the pilot project,? Tan said in an interview last week. The company has targeted the Asean smartcard market, and was also planning to promote smartcard applications among users in the Middle-East region, especially those in the Gulf states. -------------------------------------------------------------------
Radio
Netherlands
Humour as a
Weapon
By Yvette Turlings. Photos by: James Powell, 25 July 2002 To say what you think is nothing special for westerners; in Burma it's enough to have you tortured and persecuted. Two comedians, Par Par Lay and Lu Saw, spent seven years behind bars because they told jokes about the military junta. "Of course it is dangerous to tell our story. But the world must know what is happening here." "The Moustache Brothers have been going for over thirty
years," Lu Maw says in the dark home-theatre of his family. Posters of their
shows and handmade puppets are hanging on the wall, as is a large picture of the
Brothers together with democracy activist Aung San Suu Kyi. That's rare because
any sign of support for this national hero is dangerous in Burma. Lu Maw is the
one doing the talking because he is the only one who speaks English. He has
written down all the words that he thinks might be difficult for him to
pronounce, because he wants to make sure I understand him correctly. He is eager
to tell his story, because the more widely known his group becomes, the more
difficult it will be for the military to arrest them.
No Fear
Lu Maw: "On January 4th 1996, on Burma Independence Day,
Aung San Suu Kyi, the leader of the National League for Democracy, threw a big
party in Yangon. She had hired us to do a show. There was an audience of about
two thousand people, including many tourists and some generals. Before the show
we had decided we would not shy away from political jokes. We had made up about
a thousand, about the bad schools, the forced labour, the military junta that
refuses to hand over power to the NLD after their defeat at the polls and so
forth. It was dangerous but we weren't afraid of the consequences. We were young
and militant. As a precaution half of us stayed at home. Me too, because someone
should look after our families if the others would be
arrested."
Apprehended
The performance was a huge success and the group returned
home to Mandalay without any problem. Lu Maw: "In Yangon the regime didn't dare
touch us, because there all eyes were fixed on us." But back in Mandalay it was
different. "The military secret service entered the house at midnight. The
whole group was apprehended and questioned. They beat us, kept us awake and let
us stand for hours on end. I was being interrogated in a room full of military
officers. I couldn't see their faces because they shone a bright light into my
face. They kept asking me questions like: Who was our leader? Who made up the
jokes? Were we a member of any organisation? And if they didn't like my answer
they slapped me hard on my ears. They put me on a stool without any back support
and which was so high that my feet couldn't reach the floor and made me sit
upright for hours. The pain in my back was terrible but if I moved they'd beat
me. My brother and cousin were tortured as well. They put out cigarette ends on
Par Par Lay's body. They held us for two weeks, then they let everybody go,
except Par Par Lay and Lu Saw. They were taken to prison."
Show Trial
What followed was a two-month show trial against the two
comedians, which attracted widespread attention. Nobody ever got to see the
defendants. They were charged with practising political activities, which is a
violation of the ?law for the prevention of emergency situations'. Aung San Suu
Kyi wanted to travel to Mandalay to testify, but the army stopped her by
uncoupling her train carriage.
The comedians were sentenced to seven years in prison and
were moved to a hard labour camp, 500 kilometres away from Mandalay, an enormous
distance for the relatives because the roads in Burma are bad and public
transport is slow and expensive. Lu Maw: "Until then only hardened criminals
were imprisoned in Kyein Kranka and the conditions there were awful. My brother
and my cousin were the only ones to be shackled to a ball and chain and to be
forced to hammer rocks. They had to sleep in bamboo huts that offered no shelter
against the heavy rain. They became ill with malaria and dysentery but there
were no medicines."
After two months both men were transferred to an
?ordinary' prison thanks to an Amnesty International letter-writing campaign.
Here they spent another five-and-a-half-years, of which they spent long periods
in isolation. All those years nobody was allowed to visit the prisoners, not
even their wives.
Intimidation
"In the meantime I had to provide a living for our
families," Lu Maw says. "The group split up and I started to perform at home,
which attracted a lot of tourists." On July 15th 2001 the junta finally released
the two comedians. Lu Maw: "All of Mandalay had come out to greet them, the
streets round our house were packed. The military were present to photograph and
video bystanders.
"That evening we performed at home. The house was
surrounded by 200 military secret police and on the front row there were five
military officers with cameras and videos, seated next to politicians of the
NLD. We did what we always do: perform. I looked at the officers while I was
telling jokes about the corrupt traffic police and felt proud. After each
performance we ask everyone for a donation of 1000 kyat (about US$1.30) and the
officers on the front row donated that as well.
They returned the next evening and so it went on for
eleven nights. The twelfth day three military men came in to arrest Par Par Lay.
He was taken to Colonel Tin Tun. He forced my brother to sign a document saying
that we would no longer perform for tourists; otherwise they would arrest all of
our family. Then they let him go."
?The Show Must Go On'
When it was time for the evening show a number of tourists
were queuing up at the door. Lu Maw: "What were we to do, cancel the show? Of
course not! We just got on stage. But Par Par Lay and Lu Saw have become so well
known because of the sentences they served that the colonel did not dare to
carry out his threat and arrest us. Instead the government blacklisted us so we
can't be hired and take the show on the road.
Now we perform in our own house where we receive as many
tourists as possible. We introduce them to Burmese culture, but we also make fun
of the injustice in this country. Of course that's dangerous. Now they're
leaving us alone, but I don't know what will happen tomorrow. But I'm not
afraid. I want freedom of speech and democracy. You have to fight for
that."
------------------------------------------------------------------- Radio
Netherlands
Burma: 40 Years of Repression By Yvette Turlings, 18 July 2002 Burma, once the largest exporter of rice, is now one of the poorest countries in the world. Years of exploitation and economic mismanagement by its military dictators have brought this fertile and mineral-rich country to the brink of ruin. Economic sanctions isolated Burma from the rest of the world. The history of the Burmese Empire started in 1044 with
King Anawratha. From the city of Bagan he ruled over a territory
comprising practically all of present-day Burma. At the end of the 19th century
border conflicts with the Raj (the British colonial administration in India)
lead to the annexation of Burma by the British.
Elections
During the Second World War the Burmese managed to drive
out the British rulers with the help of the Japanese. They founded the Burmese
National Army (BNA) of which General Bogyoke Aung San (the father of dissident
and democracy activist Aung San Suu Kyi) and General Ne Win were prominent
leaders.
But the Japanese persecuted the Burmese so badly that at
the end of the war the BNA changed sides and joined the Allied Forces. Japan was
defeated and Burma came under British rule again. By then the British had agreed
to grant the country independence. In April 1947 elections were held that were
easily won by general Aung San and his new Anti-fascist People's Freedom League.
Three months later the popular general was killed.
Coup
On 4 January 1948 Burma gained independence. But very soon
matters took a turn for the worse. The many ethnic and religious minorities in
Burma revolted and several armed rebel groups were formed. In 1962 the troubles
resulted in a coup d'etat by general Ne Win. He ousted the government and
installed a military Revolutionary Council, which he chaired himself. He also
announced a change of course: on to the road of socialism.
Rebellion
Like in many other countries, that road unfortunately
ended up going downhill. General Ne Win ordered shops to be closed and to be
replaced by state controlled shops. Many lost their jobs and soon the black
market was the only place to find many items. Money became worthless and
companies were taken from the people without compensation. Ethnic Indians and
Chinese, many of whom were entrepreneurs, were expelled from the country.
The economic situation in the fertile and mineral-rich
country deteriorated quickly and discontent within the population grew. In 1987
the unrest came to a head: in large numbers students took to the streets to
protest against General Ne Win. The army's crackdown was ferocious: three
thousand protesters were killed and all universities were closed down.
State of emergency
After a coup in 1988 the military formed the State Law and
Order Restoration Council (SLORC). They promised to organise free elections but
in the meantime proclaimed a state of emergency; the constitution was suspended
and all state bodies were abolished. They also changed the name of the country
into Union of Myanmar.
Sabotage
The opposition hastily formed a party, the National League
for Democracy (NLD), led by Secretary-General Aung San Suu Kyi. The Burmese
rallied behind this charismatic daughter of their national hero. In the meantime
the SLORC tried to appease the population with hurried facelifts of city-centres
and a radical switch from socialism to capitalism, but that was all in vain. In
their last ditch effort to sabotage the elections, the military created unrest
by moving entire villages from one end of the country to the other. Aung San Suu
Kyi was put under house arrest and other opposition leaders were imprisoned.
Convinced that they had rendered the opposition harmless, the junta held
elections in May 1990. But the NLD won a landslide victory. The infuriated
SLORC refused to recognise the result: elected MP's were imprisoned and
tortured, Aung San Suu Kyi continued to be detained in her own
house.
Economic sanctions
Aung San Suu Kyi was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991
for her peaceful and persevering resistance to the military dictatorship and
Burma entered the spotlight of international attention. The western countries
put economic sanctions in place that took the ruined economy to the brink of
collapse and isolated the country from the outside world. As a result of
international pressure on the military junta the house arrest of Aung San Suu
Kyi was lifted in 1995. But it proved to be no more than a fake gesture: she was
not permitted to leave Rangoon and in 2000 she was placed under house arrest
again. The military authorities obstructed any NLD-meetings and NLD-members were
arrested, intimidated and tortured. In 1997 the SLORC suddenly dissolved itself,
prompted by the disastrous economic situation. Some of the corrupt
ministers were sacked and a new military council was created: the State Peace
and Development Council (SPDC). Nothing much changed: most of the prominent
generals returned in the SPDC.
Better future?
Through the mediation of the UN's special envoy to Burma,
Ismail Razali, Aung San Suu Kyi came out of house arrest again on 6 May 2002.
The military junta hopes this political PR-stunt will bring about an easing of
the economic sanctions against Burma. But the people are sceptical: ?could this
be the beginning of a better future? We'll believe it when we see it'. Because
after 40 years of repression the Burmese have almost forgotten what hope
is.
The military junta conducts a true reign of terror. The
state of emergency has been proclaimed suspending the constitution. Burma is not
party to international treaties on human rights, so fundamental rights are not
safeguarded. Ethnic and religious minorities and the political opposition are
oppressed. Forced labour, child prostitution, trafficking in women, torture and
summary executions are of the order of the day. All possible means are being
used to demoralise the population in order to prevent an uprising. There is no
freedom of the press and just about everything is prohibited: to travel freely,
to stay over at someone else's house without prior permission or to possess a
picture of Aung San Suu Kyi. Large parts of the country are closed off to
foreigners, officially for security reasons, but in reality to keep outsiders
from prying. The military are stuffing their pockets with the profits of
the trade in gemstones, teak and poppies, while the people are suffering from
hunger.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Shan Herald Agency for
News.
No: 07 - 06: 26 July
2002
Burmese officer: mountain near Khun Sa's village targeted An officer from the Burma army has disclosed recently that
the objective of the upcoming exercises would be the capture of a mountain range
close to Ban Hintaek, former stronghold of ex-warlord Khun Sa from 1964 to 1982,
in Chiangrai's Mae Fa Luang District.
"He had obviously meant Loi Kawwan", remarked the source from Mongton, a township opposite Chiangmai. The information was provided in a casual manner by an officer from the Infantry Battalion #65. He also added that D-Day might be 24 July or 12 August. 12 August coincides with the anniversary of Her Majesty Queen Sirikit's birthday. The information was corroborated by a Thai intelligence officer in Fang, 150 km north of Chiangmai. "According to my source, the exercises would last for a week, 12-18 August, in the triangle area," he added. The 24 of July witnessed only troop movements both from the Burma Army and its ally, the United Wa State Army. Villagers in Monghsat saw 300 new troops coming from the direction of Mongpiang, a town further north that is near to the Takaw Bridge on the Salween. A number of 120 mm mortars and 105 mm howitzers together with 5 armored cars were reported. Between 250 - 300 Wa were also seen moving by trucks from Loi Htwe and Hwe Aw, opposite Chiangmai's Chiangdao District towards the direction of Monghsat. Loi Kawwan is in Monghsat Township but nearer to Tachilek. A series of operations had been launched against this mountain stronghold of the Shan State Army's Kengtung Force within the last few years. One that was mounted last year culminated in a military confrontation between Rangoon and Bangkok when Burmese troops crossed the border to attack the SSA from the rear. This year's attack in June also ended with reportedly heavy losses on the side of the alliance. According to the Oslo-based Democratic Voice of Burma, Rangoon would be employing 3 divisions: LID 101 from Pakhokku, MOMC #14 from Monghsat and MOMC #17 from Mongpan backed by fighters from Namzarng and 2 paratroop companies for the forthcoming "maneuvers". Network Media
Group
Burma uses International
NGOs to cover Human Rights abuses Mae Hong Son, July 25, 2002.Burmese individuals concerned for International Aid accused Burmese regime for using the existence of International Non-Governmental Organizations as shield to cover Burma Army's human rights abuses. An e-mail message received on July 24 stated that Burmese regime used the existence of international NGOs as shield to defense against the human rights report, License to Rape, released by Shan Human Rights Foundation and Shan Women Action Network documenting massive rapes against Shan women by Burmese Army in recent years. "We have also invited the Special Rapporteur of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights to Myanmar several times and have made it possible for him to freely visit places of his own choosing, including the border areas, and to inquire about any allegation. He has also visited the Shan State. In addition, several International and National NGOs are operating in the Shan State." referred in the message coding the letter of Burmese Ambassador U Linn Myaing to US House of Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen giving explanation to human rights situation in Shan State on July 3. Shan Human Rights Foundation and Shan Women Action Network, both based in Thailand released a joint report in the middle of June documenting more than 600 cases of rapes against Shan women by Burmese Army soldiers during recent years since 1996. Burmese regime denounced the report alleging that the report was made by Shan rebel groups as propaganda tool. After the release of the report, some international journalists from well respected newspapers came down to Thailand, made interviews with Shan victims and wrote articles on the rape incidents in world respected news papers. However, the international non-governmental organizations operating in Burma keep silent on the human rights situation in Burma including in border ethnic areas. There are about 30 international non-governmental organizations working in Burma on humanitarian grounds including several UN agencies. |