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BURMA RELATED NEWS - August 16
- 17, 2002.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
HEADLINES
------------------------------------------------------------------------ Reuters - Malaysian officials say Mahathir-Suu
Kyi talks likely
Reuters - Myanmar frees prominent political
prisoner Reuters - China
Landslide Kills Up to 67
AP - Malaysia's
Mahathir will hold talks with Myanmar's Than Shwe, but has "no plan" to meet Suu
Kyi
AP - Myanmar frees 5
opposition members and cancer stricken leader
AP - Thai senate group
hears stories of atrocities by Myanmar military
The Star - Dr M to boost trade relations with
Myanmar
Bkk Post - Kraisak panel hears abuse reports
The Nation - EDITORIAL: Razali must come clean
at once
BBC - Burma releases six dissidents
WT - Envoy defends Burmese passport deal
TI - Suu Kyi willing to compromise
World Oil - Mahathir to push MOU's
Xinhuanet - 27 human trafficking cases reported
in Myanmar this year
Xinhuanet - Myanmar has no arrangement to reopen
border points: official
------------------------------------------------------------------------ Friday August 16, 2:47 PM
Malaysian officials say Mahathir-Suu Kyi talks likely By Patrick Chalmers KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) -
Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad heads for Myanmar on Sunday to talk
business and politics with the ruling junta, and a landmark meeting with
opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi looks likely.
While western governments have shunned Myanmar's leaders for their bloody
repression of pro-reformists, Malaysia has led diplomatic efforts to engage
Yangon, trying to coax the ruling military towards national reconciliation and
democracy.
"Yes, it is likely to happen because the junta has not raised any
objections," a government official told Reuters in reference to plans for
Mahathir and Suu Kyi to talk.
Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar told a Friday news conference
nothing was set but did not rule out a meeting.
Diplomats say a handshake between Nobel Peace Prize winner Suu Kyi and
Mahathir could take place only with the junta's blessing and would be another
sign of inch-by-inch progress.
Malaysian diplomat Razali Ismail, the U.N. special envoy to Myanmar, said
earlier this month he expected substantive talks between Suu Kyi and the
military to begin "very, very soon".
Foreign observers in Yangon said Mahathir's visit was not seen speeding up
the process, whether or not he meets Suu Kyi.
BREAKTHROUGH SEEN UNLIKELY
"I find it unlikely that there will be a breakthrough when he is here,
particularly because they have not confirmed that he will meet Aung San Suu
Kyi," said one observer.
"Generally the mood in town is not optimistic, despite Razali's words," the
observer, who declined to be named, added.
Mahathir championed Myanmar's entry into the Association of South East
Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 1997, despite bitter complaint by western governments.
For the past two years Razali has tried to broker talks between Yangon's
generals and Suu Kyi, who was recently released after spending 19 months under
house arrest.
The opposition leader began confidential talks with the junta in October
2000, although they have yet to move beyond so-called "confidence building" to
issues of real reform.
Thousands of people were killed during anti-government riots in 1988, after
which the military declared martial law.
Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy won a landslide in 1990 polls,
Myanmar's last, but the army refused to cede power.
General Than Shwe's government says it wants democracy but fears that
moving too fast could destabilise the multi-ethnic country.
"Some people consider it slow but it's up to them to move in the way they
feel comfortable," Syed Hamid said of the generals.
Analysts say the main factor pushing the junta towards compromise is a
desire to have international sanctions eased to give the battered economy a
chance to recover.
Syed Hamid said the weekend visit would see state oil firm Petronas sign an
offshore oil exploration contract with Myanmar's energy ministry, and an
undertaking made to study the construction of mini-hydro plants at two dams.
A 300-strong Malaysian delegation including officials, business people and
several other ministers will travel for the first time to Yangon using
electronic passports supplied by Iris Corp, whose chairman is the U.N. special
envoy.
Yangon has bought the passport-processing technology from the Malaysian
firm for use at its international airport.
Razali said in May that Suu Kyi, who has called in the past for an
investment boycott of her country, had had "no problem" with his Iris activities
when he raised the matter with her.
Malaysia is the fourth largest investor in Myanmar behind Singapore,
Britain and Thailand, with total trade of $275 million, the Foreign Ministry
said in a statement.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ Myanmar frees prominent political prisoner
BANGKOK, Aug. 16 (Reuters) ? Myanmar freed a prominent opposition politician on Friday, ahead of a visit by Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, who hopes to kick start talks between the junta and pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) welcomed the release of 58-year-old Aye Thar Aung. The NLD, which won Myanmar's last elections in 1990 but was never allowed to govern, has called for all political prisoners to be freed. Aye Thar Aung, a member of an ethnic minority party, the Arakan League for
Democracy, was sentenced to 21 years in prison in 2000. In 1998, when the NLD
tried to set up a shadow parliament reflecting the results of the 1990 election,
Aye Thar Aung was named the body's secretary -- angering the junta.
''Aye Thar Aung has been spending most of his time together with his family
at Yangon general hospital taking medical treatment provided by the government
for liver cancer,'' the junta said in a statement.
''The authorities concerned have released him from custody on humanitarian
grounds and will continue to assist him and his family with necessary care and
assistance.
NLD spokesman U Lwin said the release was a step forward.
''We really welcome the release of Aye Thar Aung,'' he said. ''They
promised to release him.''
The junta said it had also released five NLD members from prison on Friday.
More than 300 NLD members have been released since October 2000, when the junta
began confidential talks with Suu Kyi and eased its stance towards the
opposition.
But more than 500 political prisoners are still behind bars, rights groups
say, including around 250 NLD members.
Hopes are high of a political breakthrough in Myanmar after U.N. special
envoy Razali Ismail said at the end of his latest visit this month that the
junta would soon begin substantive political talks with Suu Kyi.
The confidential dialogue between Suu Kyi and the junta has yet to move
beyond so-called ''confidence building'' to touch on political issues, and the
57-year-old Nobel peace laureate has repeatedly called for meaningful talks to
begin soon.
After strong international pressure, Suu Kyi was released from 19 months of
house arrest in May, but since then she has had no meetings with senior members
of the junta.
Mahathir is due to arrive in Myanmar on Sunday, and diplomats say he will
aim to encourage the speedy start of meaningful talks between the two sides.
Suu Kyi has said political reconciliation cannot begin until all prisoners
of conscience are released. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ China Landslide Kills Up to
67
Fri Aug 16, 1:32 AM ET
By Scott
Hillis
BEIJING (Reuters) - A huge wall of mud and rock slammed into villages in southwest China, probably killing 67 people in the second deadly landslide to strike the area this week, officials and state media said on Friday. The landslide crashed into 10 villages in the middle of the night in Xinping county, about 120 miles south of Kunming, the Yunnan provincial capital. At least 24 people were confirmed dead and 43 were missing with little hope they would be found alive, officials and media said. "We have never seen such a mudslide. One like this is very rare, it is record-making," a Xinping county official told Reuters by telephone. "There is little hope of finding any survivors," he said. The disaster struck at 4 a.m. on Wednesday, giving villagers little chance to flee. "It destroyed over 600 houses in 10 villages and washed away the tobacco plants which give local residents their livelihood," said the official Xinhua news agency, which reported that at least 14 people had been injured. TOBACCO REGION Some 3,000 police, troops and civilians had rushed to the area and were handing out quilts, clothes and grain. Tents had been set up for those left homeless, the county official said. Rescuers were digging through the mountain of dirt with hand tools for fear that heavy equipment could injure survivors, he said. The landslide struck after days of heavy rain and local weather officials predicted that more downpours on Friday could trigger further landslides, Xinhua said. Yunnan, a province of 35 million people criss-crossed by mountains and rivers, borders Vietnam, Laos and Myanmar and has some of China's most stunning scenery. It is also home to more than two dozen non-Chinese ethnic minorities. But the rugged terrain has also made it one of the country's poorer regions. Some farmers, however, have prospered thanks to crops such as tobacco. Xinping is near the city of Yuxi, home to China's top cigarette brand. The hilly province is no stranger to landslides. "Ecological disasters like this one are very frequent in Yunnan," said Ding Jianbo, a retired engineer in Kunming who used to work for the provincial land and resources department. "Every year there are tens of millions of yuan in losses." SLIDES AND FLOODS Wednesday's tragedy came on the heels of a huge landslide in northern Yunnan on Monday. The confirmed death toll from that disaster had risen to 16 by late Thursday, Xinhua said. Local officials said there was little hope of finding survivors and the final tally was expected to be 29 dead. That disaster was blamed on unusually heavy and sustained rain as well as deforestation in the hilly region that made soil on the slopes unstable. The killer landslides are nature's latest blow to China, which has been battling floods that have killed more than 900 people so far this year. Xinhua said rains and floods had killed 108 people in the central province of Hunan this month alone. Torrential rains had lashed the province since August 5, triggering floods and landslides that also damaged railways and highways, it said. The disasters had affected 38 million people in Hunan and caused more than 18 billion yuan ($2 billion) in damage, Xinhua said. The flood season arrived early this year, but so far it has not been as bad as 1998 when the worst floods in decades killed 4,000 people. ------------------------------------------------------------------------
Malaysia's Mahathir will
hold talks with Myanmar's Than Shwe, but has "no plan" to meet Suu Kyi
Fri Aug 16, 2:52 AM ET
By JASBANT SINGH, Associated Press Writer
PUTRAJAYA, Malaysia (AP) - Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad had no plans to meet Myanmar's pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi during a visit to the country next week, but would do so if the military junta asked him to, a senior official said Friday. Mahathir, who has helped Malaysia play a mediating role between Myanmar's generals and Nobel peace laureate Suu Kyi, will hold talks with junta leader Gen. Than Shwe on Sunday, the first of a two-day visit, Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar said. "At present we have no plan," to meet Suu Kyi, said Syed Hamid, who will accompany Mahathir on the Aug 18-19 trip as part of a 300-strong delegation of officials and business leaders. Malaysia had received no formal request for Suu Kyi to meet Mahathir, Syed Hamid told reporters. "If there is a request, it is up to the Myanmar government to inform us ... We will do whatever is considered necessary and acceptable to the host government." Last week, Syed Hamid said Suu Kyi had "indicated her willingness" to meet Mahathir during his visit and that Malaysia would respond "at an appropriate time." Mahathir, Asia's longest-serving leader, has taken no official role in international efforts to end Myanmar's political impasse over the junta's refusal to allow democracy. But he vacationed in Myanmar in January 2000 and has long resisted what he sees as a Western campaign to criticize the regime, saying it will eventually embrace political change and bring about economic improvement if given time. Mahathir's trip comes two weeks after U.N. envoy Razali Ismail, a former Malaysian diplomat, made his eighth visit since April 2000 to Myanmar, also known as Burma. Reconciliation has advanced in that period, including Suu Kyi's release from house arrest and the freeing from prison of scores of members of her National League for Democracy. Myanmar's current ruling junta came to power in 1988 after crushing pro-democracy protests. Suu Kyi's party won a 1990 general election but the junta prevented her from taking power. Syed Hamid said there had been "positive and constructive political development in Myanmar," but repeated Malaysia's position that moves toward democracy should be at a pace that the junta "feels comfortable with." A meeting between Suu Kyi and Myanmar's generals ? considered the next big step in reconciliation ? should take place when both sides are ready, he said. "We leave it to the wisdom of the leaders there and Suu Kyi to work out a solution to the benefit of the people of Myanmar," Syed Hamid said. During the visit, the Malaysian delegation is expected to sign an offshore oil exploration contract between Petronas, Malaysia's national resources company, and Myanmar's energy ministry and launch an electronic passport scanning system, Syed Hamid said. ------------------------------------------------------------------------
Myanmar frees 5 opposition
members and cancer stricken leader
Fri Aug 16, 9:19 AM ET
By AYE AYE WIN, Associated Press Writer
YANGON, Myanmar - Myanmar's military junta on Friday freed five members of democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi's party and a cancer-stricken opposition leader in the latest show of political goodwill, the government said. The release came as Suu Kyi was quoted Friday by Israeli newspaper Haaretz as saying that she is willing to compromise with the junta in their talks to achieve national reconciliation. "Dialogue always entails compromise," Suu Kyi was quoted as saying by Haaretz, one of Israel's most respected newspapers. A copy of the report was received in Bangkok, Thailand. "I don't think you can go into dialogue saying `I can't compromise,'" said Suu Kyi, the 1991 Nobel peace laureate who was released from 19 months of house arrest on May 6. "You had better not start that way, because the dialogue won't get anywhere." A government statement said it had freed five members of the National League for Democracy party from various correctional facilities and that all are "in good health and back together with their respective families." It said the government also released from custody an "NLD-related individual," Aye Thar Aung, who is being treated for liver cancer in hospital. "The authorities concerned have released him from custody on humanitarian grounds and will continue to assist him and his family with necessary care and assistance," the statement said. Aye Thar Aung, 57, is secretary of the NLD's 10-member alternative parliament, which the party formed after the junta refused to hand over power despite an overwhelming NLD victory in 1990 general elections. He is a representative of ethnic political parties but not a member of the NLD. Aye Thar Aung was arrested in April 2000 and given a 21-year jail sentence for flouting an emergency law and a publishing law. Details of his alleged crimes were never released. Friday's releases bring to 308 the number of opposition members freed since the start of the reconciliation talks almost two years ago between Suu Kyi and the junta. Another 250 NLD members remain in custody. Suu Kyi has made the release of all political prisoners her foremost demand. In her interview with Haaretz newspaper she did not say what she was willing to compromise over. "I am not going to talk about it. It's very premature ... How can I talk about it?" she said during the Aug. 6 interview with a Haaretz correspondent in Yangon. Suu Kyi has led a nonviolent campaign for democracy in Myanmar since 1988, soon after the current junta came to power after crushing a pro-democracy movement. Her reconciliation talks have so far been described as confidence-building steps. No substantive dialogue has taken place between the two sides, but the government has made several concessions including giving Suu Kyi political freedom and releasing NLD members. ------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thai senate group hears
stories of atrocities by Myanmar military
Sat Aug 17,12:27 AM ET
BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) - Refugees fleeing into Thailand say Myanmar troops are engaging in widespread brutality including the gang rapes of children as young as 11, a newspaper said Saturday. Shan ethnic minority refugees, who are seeking a new home in Thailand, made the claims Friday before the Thai Senate's foreign relations committee, the Bangkok Post said. Similar reports of rape, killings, forced labor and the burning of villages by Myanmar troops have recently been released by Amnesty International and other human rights groups. The junta which rules Myanmar, also known as Burma, has denied the allegations, saying they are being fabricated by anti-government rebel groups. Kraisak Choonhavan, chairman of the Senate committee, said the 606 refugees who fled recently into the northern Thai province of Chiang Mai, about 670 kilometers (415 miles) north of Bangkok, should not be repatriated to their homeland. "No one wants to return to such an ordeal," he was quoted as saying. Human rights violations are being reported mainly from areas inhabited by the Karen and Shan ethnic minorities. Both continue to offer strong armed resistance to the central government. The U.S. State Department last month condemned the pervasive use of rape and other sexual violence against a vulnerable population and urged Myanmar officials to investigate the reports. ------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Star
Saturday, August 17, 2002
Dr M to boost trade relations with Myanmar PUTRAJAYA: Datuk Seri Dr Mahathir Mohamad will hold talks with Myanmar
leader Senior General Than Shwe on enhancing trade and investment opportunities
during the Prime Minister?s official two-day visit to Myanmar beginning
tomorrow.
Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar said the visit was to
reciprocate the one made by Gen Than Shwe to Malaysia last September.
He said Dr Mahathir would be accompanied by his wife Datin Seri Dr Siti
Hasmah Mohd Ali; International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Rafidah
Aziz; Energy, Telecommunications and Multimedia Minister Datuk Leo Moggie; and a
delegation of 300 people including government officials and businessmen.
Syed Hamid said Dr Mahathir would address the Malaysia-Myanmar technology
conference, jointly organised by the Malaysian Industry Government Group for
High Technology and the State Peace and Development Council of Myanmar.
He said the meeting between Dr Mahathir and Gen Than Shwe would be a chance
to exchange views and improve trade ties. Malaysia is the fourth largest foreign
investor in Myanmar after Singapore, Britain and Thailand.
Malaysia?s exports to Myanmar last year amounted to RM748.6mil, while
imports from Myanmar were valued at RM297.1mil.
Syed Hamid said Dr Mahathir would also attend the signing of two memoranda
of understanding on joint oil exploration projects in Myanmar by Petronas and
Myanmar?s energy ministry and the construction of two mini-hydro
plants.
On whether Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Su Kyi had asked to meet Dr
Mahathir, he said she had not made a formal request but it would be for Myanmar
to decide on any meeting.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ Bangkok Post - Saturday 17 August 2002
Kraisak panel hears abuse reports Repatriating refugees would cause outcry Cheewin Sattha - Chiang Mai Reports of gross human rights abuse by Burmese soldiers against ethnic minority refugees have been confirmed by the Senate committee on foreign affairs. The committee, led by its chairman Kraisak Choonhavan, toured the troubled spot in Chiang Mai's Wiang Haeng district yesterday. It received information from refugees that shed light on brutalities committed by the Burmese troops stationed on the border. Mr Kraisak said the 606 refugees who fled into Thailand, claimed they had been forced to transport provisions and weapons. They were oppressed and the situation worsened over the five years they had been under the Burmese soldiers' control. The refugees said sexual assault was rife with victims, including children as young as 11 years-old, being gang-raped. The abuse had been so unbearable that they had to cross into Wiang Haeng district to escape. Mr Kraisak said the refugees had been witness or victims to severe brutality. He hoped that improving relations between Burma and Thailand would not prompt the repatriation of the refugees. Relations soured to the point of military tension after Rangoon had accused the military of secretly assisting the Shan State Army in fighting its troops. Mr Kraisak said countries in Europe in particular were concerned about reports of human rights violations and urged Rangoon to do something. The government's foreign policy was on the right track and it should capitalise on the improving relations by letting Rangoon know the extent of its concerns and what was happening there so solutions could be devised. Mr Kraisak said Thailand could not afford to sit on its hands and allow the repatriation to go ahead. Doing so would risk condemnation from the international community. The refugees had lost their homes and their possessions. ``No one wants to return to such an ordeal,'' he said. Mr Kraisak opposed pushing back the refugees when no clear direction was set on how to tackle human rights abuse. It was, however, premature to speculate on the possibility of establishing camps for the Wiang Haeng refugees. It would depend on the countries' negotiations and the border situation. He said the Third Region Army had insisted it did not fire weapons into the Burmese territory during a May military exercise as alleged by Rangoon. The exercise had been planned months ahead and involved mainly logistical maneuvering. Mr Kraisak said the relationship with Burma under the previous Chuan Leekpai government had been ``cold''. The leaders of the countries had never exchanged visits. Nonetheless, bilateral investment at the time had been positive. When border tension flared, only one checkpoint in Chiang Rai's Mae Sai district opposite Tachilek was closed. The Thaksin government, on the other hand, tried to build ties but economic cooperation, particularly border trade, was rather gloomy. Mr Kraisak said the shortcomings might have resulted from the government's failure to invite Gen Than Shwe, chairman of the ruling State Peace and Development Council, for a visit. The government had invited other less senior figures and may have overlooked Gen Than Shwe who is the government leader. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Nation
EDITORIAL: Razali must come clean at once
Published on Aug 17, 2002 Strange things happen with dictatorship regimes around the world. Their leaders know how to deal with outsiders, especially those who have vested business interests in the country. The military junta leaders in Rangoon are no exception: they know how to engage the United Nations envoy to Burma, Razali Ismail. Razali partly owns Iris Corporation, a Malaysian-based company that
specialises in smart card-based security, including electronic passports and
identity documents. The company's very first project for Burma is for
e-passports for its citizens, a world first that Burmese newspapers have been
trumpeting on their front pages. The passports will have an embedded microchip
containing the personal data of the holders. Automatic gates will be installed
at the airport's departure terminal.
This suddenly makes Burma look like a "techno city", at least at the
airport. It also immediately raises the question of why Burma, one of the
world's poorest countries, would need such a system if not for some sinister
reason.
The passports will be issued to Burmese diplomats, officials and leading
business people as an experiment, but concerns have been expressed that they
could be used to track members of the opposition or any other groups which the
junta wants to keep an eye on.
Razali hopes the e-passports will be introduced in all East Asian nations
in the future. It is interesting that this concept should be adopted first by a
pariah regime, one that has been shunned by the world. Would it have been so if
it were not for the privilege that comes with Razali's post?
To be sure, Razali has defended himself time and again, saying that his
company was given the contract before he was appointed to the UN post. But this
does not fly. He has not convinced critics that his company's dealings with the
Burmese junta are not a conflict of interest. He may believe it is not, but
undeniably the regime is benefiting from this enterprise with his company. Just
look at the way in which the junta leaders have awarded business contracts to
foreign companies - they all owe the regime special favours, which must be
returned in earnest in the future.
Razali should have the courage to choose one or the other job. He should
understand his dilemma better as a veteran diplomat who has been exposed to
similar issues around the world. The UN's reputation is also at stake when the
Rangoon junta makes use of him.
In Asia, the concept of conflict of interest seems elusive. Asian leaders
and their family members love to get involved in business activities using their
connections. They say there is no question of conflict of interest, it's just
complementary to their work. Think again.
Razali is a respected diplomat and his role in mediating national
reconciliation in Burma is reaching a crucial stage. His integrity must be
untainted. In other words, he must come clean.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ BBC - Friday, 16 August, 2002, 13:32
GMT 14:32 UK
Burma releases six dissidents The Burmese authorities have released six opposition activists from detention. They include the leader of the Arakan League for Democracy, Aye Tha Aung,
who was given a 21-year sentence two years ago.
The other five are members of the National League for Democracy, led by
Aung San Suu Kyi.
A BBC correspondent in the region says the releases are part of a deal to
prepare the ground for substantive political talks between the opposition and
the military government.
Aye Tha Aung told the BBC that he would be having an operation for lung
cancer on Monday, and afterwards he intended to continue working for human
rights and democracy.
From the newsroom of the BBC World Service
------------------------------------------------------------------------ August 16, 2002
Envoy defends Burmese passport deal By Richard S. Ehrlich THE WASHINGTON TIMES BANGKOK ? Burma's military regime will embed a microchip containing
personal data into its passports this week in a deal that will profit the U.N.
envoy to Burma, despite concern over a possible conflict of interest, according
to reports reaching Bangkok, the capital of Thailand, Burma's neighbor.
Burma's electronic passports, known as "e-passports," use computer
technology developed by a Malaysia-based company partly owned by Razali Ismail,
the U.N. envoy to Burma.
Mr. Razali has visited Burma, also known as Myanmar, several times to help
in negotiations between the military regime and opposition leader Aung San Suu
Kyi. His mediation in April led to the release of Mrs. Suu Kyi from her latest
stint of house arrest in May.
Mr. Razali, a Malaysian citizen, insists his U.N. mediation did not
conflict with the e-passport deal and has offered to resign both his U.N.
position and from the company if the United Nations found him guilty.
"There is no conflict of interest," he told the British Broadcasting Corp.
(BBC) on Tuesday. "I've never spoken about this to leaders in [Burma´s]
government."
Mr. Razali said the e-passport technology was developed and licensed to
Burma before he became the U.N. special envoy to the country.
"The fact that my company is involved in discussions with the Myanmar
government is not a conflict of interest because I have not negotiated it
myself," he told the International Herald Tribune in May.
The e-passports, developed by Iris Corp., include a microchip that displays
the document holder's photograph, fingerprints and other unspecified
information.
Burmese can flash the passports at a device built into the departure or
arrival gates in Rangoon's international airport.
To start the new program, about 5,000 e-passports were to be issued this
week to Burmese diplomats, government officials, business leaders and others,
the BBC said.
The introduction of the e-passport is a surprise technological advance for
the reclusive nation that forbids open public access to Internet, computers, fax
machines and similar technology amid fears that uncensored information could
destabilize the regime.
Illegal possession of a modem could result in a prison sentence.
Mr. Razali played down fears that the e-passports could be an Orwellian
"Big Brother" system linked to larger databases designed to keep Burmese under
the watchful eye of the regime.
"Must you think of things in such sinister terms?" he told the BBC.
"Anyway, it's only for those people who want to travel outside. In most cases,
those will be government people."
Mrs. Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy won national elections in
1990, but the military regime refused to hand over power and instead placed her
under house arrest.
The United States and other Western nations, which demand that the military
regime step down and restore democracy, have imposed economic sanctions and a
boycott of Burma.
Malaysia is the sixth-biggest investor in Burma. In January 2001, Malaysian
Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad visited Burma, where he is perceived as a close
friend of the military government.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Times of India
Suu Kyi willing to compromise
AP [ SATURDAY, AUGUST 17, 2002 12:50:59 AM ] BANGKOK: Myanmar?s opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi says she is willing to compromise with the country?s military rulers in discussions to achieve national reconciliation, a newspaper reported Friday. ??Dialogue always entails compromise,?? Suu Kyi was quoted as saying in an interview published Friday by Israeli newspaper Haaretz. ??I don?t think you can go into dialogue saying ?I can?t compromise,??? Suu Kyi said. ??You had better not start that way, because the dialogue won?t get anywhere.?? Suu Kyi has led a non-violent campaign for democracy in Myanmar since 1988 and has suffered long periods of house arrest. She was released from the latest round on May 6. Her freedom was partly due to efforts by UN special envoy Razali Ismail, who has also brokered the start of reconciliation talks between her and the generals in charge of Myanmar. The talks have so far been described as confidence-building steps. No substantive dialogue has taken place between the two sides. Suu Kyi did not say what she was willing to compromise over. ??I am not going to talk about it. It?s very premature ... How can I talk about it??? she said during the interview, conducted Aug. 6 by a Haaretz correspondent in Yangon, Myanmar?s capital. The junta held elections in 1990 but refused to hand over power when Suu Kyi?s National League for Democracy (NLD) party won. Observers have said that a possible deal could involve some kind of power-sharing agreement between the NLD and the military. Suu Kyi said she harbors no ill-will against the military. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ World Oil
KUALA LUMPUR: Mahathir to push MOU's 16/08/2002 10:34:30 Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad will leave Sunday on a business trip to Myanmar but is unlikely to meet opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar said. Mahathir would push Yangon's military junta to accelerate the national reconciliation process in talks with Senior General Than Shwe during his two-day visit there, he said. But no plans have been made to meet Suu Kyi, he said, adding that any such meeting must be arranged by the junta and Malaysia would leave it to UN special envoy to Myanmar, Razali Ismail, to follow-up. Foreign Minister Albar said Mahathir's trip is to reciprocrate Senior General Than Shwe's visit to Kuala Lumpur in September last year and would focus on trade and investment, with plans to sign two memorandums of understanding (MoU). The two MoUs are an offshore oil exploration contract between Petronas and Myanmar's Energy Ministry, and a study to construct mini-hydro plants at the Nga Moe Yeik and Tabuhla dams between Tepat Teknik Sdn Bhd and Myanmar's Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation. Syed Hamid said another three tentative MoU's on steel exports, telecommunications and development of Yangon are also on the cards but awaiting approval from the Myanmar parties. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 27 human trafficking cases
reported in Myanmar this year
Xinhuanet 2002-08-17 15:36:16 YANGON, Aug. 17 (Xinhuanet) -- There occurred 27 human traffickingcases in Myanmar so far this year and the authorities have taken actions against 34 related brokers, a high-ranking Myanmar official disclosed Saturday. Than Tun, department head of the Office of the Chief of
Military Intelligence, said at a news briefing here that such brokers, who
trafficked people to border areas, charged for a payment of 50,000 kyats to
150,000 kyats (about 55-166 US dollars)per head.
He said that lured by brokers, young boys and girls living
in the country's rural areas went abroad illegally through neighboring countries
on the excuse of seeking employment.
According to official statistics, 3,982 illegal Myanmar
workershave returned to Myanmar from Thailand since February this year.
Earlier reports said that there are 140,000 Myanmar
refugees and over 400,000 Myanmar illegal immigrants living in
Thailand.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ Myanmar has no arrangement to
reopen border points: official
Xinhuanet 2002-08-17 14:19:02 YANGON, Aug. 17 (Xinhuanet) -- Myanmar has not made any arrangement to reopen its border points with Thailand closed sinceborder clashes between the two countries nearly three months ago, a high-ranking Myanmar official said on Saturday. Major-General Kyaw Win, vice-chief of the Military
Intelligence,made the remarks at a press briefing here.
He said Myanmar has no plan to hold talks with the Thai
side on the reopening of the border points.
On Thursday, Thai newspaper The Nation reported that
Myanmar agreed to reopen its border points soon one after another, quotingThai
Foreign Minister Surakiart Sathirathai, who paid a 24-hour visit to Myanmar on
August 5. It was the first visit to Yangon by a high-ranking Thai government
official since the latest outbreak of border dispute between the two countries.
The Myanmar-Thai relations have been tense since May 20
when Thailand was accused of backing an attack on four military outposts on the
Myanmar side along the two countries' border by armed anti-government ethnic
group, the Shan United Revolutionary Army.
After the incident, Myanmar unilaterally closed all of its
fourmajor border points -- Tachilek, Myawaddy, Phaya Thonzu and Kawthoung, among
many other measures taken against Thailand.
The closure of Myanmar's border points had reportedly
caused economic losses estimated at over 100 million US dollars.
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