|
------------------------------------------------------------------------
BURMA RELATED NEWS
- December 09, 2002.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
HEADLINES
------------------------------------------------------------------------
AP - China sentences six to death in
huge heroin smuggling case
AP - Malaysia will raise Australian
pre-emptive strike idea at defense forum
Reuters - Myanmar says to cut opium
output by half
NDTV - Myanmar's exports up 15.6 per
cent
Xinhuanet - ASEAN statistical meeting
opens in Myanmar
Bkk Post - Burmese Wa army the
culprits
The Nation - In the lair of the
world's most notorious drug warlord
Mizzima - Non-Violent Peace
Force's international conference held in India ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Report: China sentences six to
death in huge heroin smuggling case
Sun Dec 8,10:37 PM ET BEIJING (AP) - Six members of a gang that smuggled more than 100 kilograms (220 pounds) of heroin into China have been sentenced to death in Guangdong province, which borders Hong Kong, the official Xinhua News Agency reported Monday. The sentences were handed down Sunday in Dongguan, an industrial center near Hong Kong that is emerging as a base for cross-border drug crime involving the former British territory. The defendants shipped heroin from Myanmar, on China's southwest border, through southern China to Guangdong, Xinhua said. Police have reported huge seizures recently from Hong Kong and mainland gangs that are smuggling heroin, methamphetamines and other drugs through China to Hong Kong and foreign markets. The defendants sentenced to death Sunday were identified as Bi Zhong, Sha Lingjie, Zhang Yong, Zhou Longqiong, Shu Jiying and Qiu Qiyun. They were convicted of smuggling some 65 kilograms (143 pounds) of heroin, while other members of the gang were held responsible for the remainder, Xinhua said. It said three others received suspended death sentences, which usually are commuted to life in prison, while seven received sentences ranging from 10 years to life. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Malaysia will raise Australian
pre-emptive strike idea at defense forum
40 minutes ago KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) - Malaysia vowed to turn up diplomatic heat on Australia at Asia's biggest security forum unless the Australian government backs off on its claim of a right to launch pre-emptive strikes against terrorists outside its borders. The remarks Monday by Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar made clear that Malaysia ? a nation often critical of Australia's position in Asia ? has no intention of forgetting what it sees as a hostile statement by Australian Prime Minister John Howard. Howard said on Dec. 1 that Australia reserved the right to launch unilateral strikes in other nations against terrorists plotting attacks on Australia and its citizens. He also said that the U.N. Charter should be amended to recognize this right. Syed Hamid said that he would raise the issue at the ASEAN Regional Forum, which meets in July and brings together the foreign ministers of the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations plus powers with interests in the region, from India to the United States. "Any opportunity that I have, I will talk about it," Syed Hamid was quoted as saying by the national news agency, Bernama. "I think we have to discuss this sort of thing." Syed Hamid said Howard's declaration could "threaten the peace and stability of other countries." Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said earlier that he would view unilateral strikes as an act of war and has threatened to break off anti-terrorism cooperation unless Howard quits acting like a "white-man sheriff in some black country." Syed Hamid said that even many Australians opposed Howard's stance. "I think they know that Australia is very much dependent on its relations with this side," Syed Hamid said. "Australia cannot simply make statements without caring for the feelings or sensitivities of other countries." Malaysia has taken a lead in Southeast Asia in cracking down on terrorism, detaining 70 suspected Islamic militants since mid-2001. Many of them were involved with Jemaah Islamiyah, an al-Qaida-linked group hoping to establish a hard-line Islamic state in Southeast Asia. Jemaah Islamiyah is blamed for the Oct. 12 bombing attacks in Bali, Indonesia, which killed nearly 200 people, about half of them Australian tourists. The group also plotted attacks on the U.S., British and Australian embassies in Singapore in a plot thwarted a year ago. ASEAN members are Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Myanmar says to cut opium
output by half
YANGON, Dec 9 (Reuters) - Myanmar's ruling military pledged on Monday to slash opium production by 50 percent in the coming year, raising fears of a crisis for poor farmers dependent on growing the illicit drug. Myanmar authorities said opium production in the reclusive Southeast Asian country would be halved to about 412 tonnes in the 2002-2003 crop year, for which planting began in September. Under pressure to dispel its image as the source of much of the illicit heroin on Western streets and ease its international isolation, Myanmar has embarked on an ambitious opium crop substitution scheme. U.S. and U.N. anti-drugs agency figures show opium production fell by about 25 percent in 2001-2002 to 825 tonnes, from about 1,080 tonnes the previous year. ``We will cut opium production by 50 percent in the coming 2002-2003 year,'' Colonel Hkam Awng, joint secretary of Yangon's Central Committee for Drug Abuse Control, told Reuters. ``This will be through providing commercial crop seeds and alternatives to farmers who currently rely on opium,'' he said. Myanmar Foreign Minister Win Aung told reporters on a visit to the rugged northeast last weekend that in some parts of the country -- including those controlled by the Yangon-allied Wa and Kokang ethnic groups near the Thai border -- opium production would be slashed by as much as 80 percent. U.N. FEARS REBOUND But U.N. officials expressed concern over the rapid pace of the programme, saying impressive results in the short term could mask future crises. ``A reduction of 50 percent would be revolutionary, and that is what they are talking about,'' said an official from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. ``I know we should be happy, but that is too fast, too soon. I don't see enough income coming in for the opium poppy farmers and I'm very concerned we will have a humanitarian situation on our hands.'' Without the necessary support, farmers would either starve or be forced to resume opium poppy cultivation in the future. ``Everything is possible. In Afghanistan they made a reduction of 80-90 percent in 2001,'' he said. ``That was extremely spectacular and extremely positive on a superficial level. But the year afterwards it just exploded back in the faces of all those people involved in drug control.'' Opium production in Afghanistan had fallen to just 128 tonnes in 2001, but had shot up to 3,400 tonnes this year, he said. ``Thats what I'm afraid of. If you want to consolidate and do it in a humanitarian way, then you need to generate alternative incomes for the opium farmers. That is just not happening.'' ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Myanmar's exports up 15.6 per
cent
Sunday, December 8, 2002 (Yangon, Myanmar): NDTV - Myanmar's exports rose 15.6 per cent in the first eight months of this year from the same period last year, helping turn a trade deficit into a surplus, the government said on Sunday. The data from the government's statistical organization provides only a suggestion of trends, since they do not include substantial commerce in illicit goods such as narcotics, teak and gems. They also fail to take into account much of the overland trade, often smuggled, with China and Thailand. Even the official total is difficult to calculate in dollar terms, because of the wide difference between the official exchange rate of about six kyats to the US dollar and the free-market rate of 1,050 kyats per dollar. Exports for the January to August period totaled 13.5 billion kyats, or US$2.25 billion at the official exchange rate, up 15.6 percent from the same period last year. Imports for the first eight months totaled 9.5 billion kyats, a 31.27 percent drop from the 14.8 billion kyats a year earlier. That gave Myanmar, also known as Burma, a trade surplus of 4 billion kyats for the first eight months, compared to a deficit in the same period last year. Myanmar's top export earners, rice, pulses and natural gas, all registered increases this year. Imports of cement and crude oil both fell significantly, apparently because of a shortage of foreign exchange and increased local production.(AP) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ASEAN statistical meeting
opens in Myanmar
YANGON, Dec. 9 (Xinhuanet) -- The Fourth Meeting of Heads of Statistical Offices of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) opened here Monday. The meeting is aimed at exchanging experience and knowledge and harmonizing ASEAN statistics. And the discussions will also cover the requirements of the ASEAN nations. The two-day meeting is attended by representatives from member states of the grouping, United Nations agencies and Asian Development Bank. The first ASEAN heads of statistical offices meeting was held in 1997, the second in Indonesia in 1999 and the third in Malaysia in 2001. The United Nations has provided 1.5 million US dollars for strengthening the statistics of the 10 ASEAN nations from 2000 to 2002. ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Bangkok Post - Monday
09 December 2002
Burmese Wa army the culprits Watanachai clarifies remark; junta denial Wassana Nanuam and Achara Ashayagachat The United Wa State Army is the group producing drugs in military camps along the border and is expanding production to the borders of other neighbouring countries, Deputy Army Commander-in-Chief Watanachai Chaimuanwong said yesterday. Clarifying his statement of Saturday that drugs were being made in Burmese military camps, Gen Watanachai said yesterday that he was referring to the Wa. They had their own military camps and also served as soldiers in the Burmese army. ``I consider that Wa soldiers are Burmese soldiers,'' Gen Watanachai said. ``The Burmese government gives the Wa self-rule and use the Wa as soldiers _ what we call Burmese soldiers of the Wa ethnic group. Nevertheless, they are Burmese soldiers and I would not be wrong to say so.'' The deputy army chief also said army intelligence confirmed that the Wa had expanded their drug operations to the borders of other neighbouring countries, but declined to say which. Army sources identified them as Laos and Cambodia. They said the Wa were producing methamphetamines near the borders with Thailand. Some Lao and Cambodian soldiers were involved. The Associated Press yesterday reported that the Burmese junta denied there were drug factories inside its army camps and that its anti-drug officials were stunned by Gen Watanachai's comments, made at a Chulalongkorn University seminar. In a statement, the junta said that despite ``all these groundless allegations thrown at Myanmar'', its officials hope to ``work together with all the countries that have been affected by this scourge''. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Nation
In the lair of the world's most notorious drug warlord Don Pathan Published on Dec 10, 2002 The notorious leader of the outlaw Wa army spoke to reporters recently for the first time. This is the first of a three-part series PANGHSANG, Burma - If one is to believe the ancient art of Chinese facial reading, then Bao Yu-xiang has a number of things going for him. The Chinese say Bao's thick nose represents wealth, though not necessarily greed, while the wide forehead indicates cleverness - the kind that helps one to survive in the rugged northeast of Burma, a remote region plagued for decades by opium politics and insurgencies. His pitched, warrior-like eyebrows are those of a man who possesses a great deal of confidence, while the hawkish eyes let you know that he can't be fooled or crossed. Indeed, with a 20,000-strong army of his own, most people would think twice before crossing the chairman of the United Wa State Army - a pro-Rangoon outfit accused by Thai and foreign governments of flooding the Kingdom with hundreds of millions of methamphetamines and the world with tonnes of heroin on an annual basis. But with or without the help of the ancient Chinese interpretations, Bao has proven to be a man the world has to take seriously. In and around the Golden Triangle, his name is definitely one of the most venerable. Bao was born into the family of a tribal chief in Burma's northern Shan State near the Chinese border, where Wa headhunters roamed just two generations ago. Now in his late 50s, he was reared in post-colonial Burma, in an opium-rich region where ethnic warlords and Communist guerrillas fought to stake claims. "My father didn't know how to read or write," Bao said. "There were eight boys and one girl in our family." In spite of the hardship that comes with life in the remote Wa Hills, as the area linking southwest Yunnan to northern Burma is called, the young Bao was destined for bigger things. During the days of insurgencies, Bao quickly climbed up the ladder within the Communist Party of Burma (CPB) to become a fierce field commander. While communist insurgents around Asia crumbled one after another, Bao and his men effectively turned their movement into a force that could not be taken lightly. Bao says he is satisfied with the cease-fire arrangement the UWSA made with the Burmese government 13 years ago, but added that more has to be done. In a recent interview from his headquarters in Panghsang, Bao said he would like to see the new Burma Constitution - which has been undergoing drafting since 1993 - officially recognise the role and rights of the country's minority groups under some sort of federal system. Of course, Bao concedes, not all minority groups can have their own autonomous area. The degree of autonomy, he says, would depend on size and military strength. Since the cease-fire agreement with the Burmese junta in 1989, the UWSA has grown significantly in size and strength, expanding its turf from the Chinese border down to areas adjacent to Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai and Mae Hong Son provinces. Bao runs his 20,000-strong army from his base in Panghsang, a town of about 10,000 residents. Situated on the bank of the Nam Kha River that separates China's Yunnan and Burma's Shan State, the town is surrounded by high mountains that form part of the Wa Hills. The range stretches from the southwest of Yunnan province to the eastern region of Burma's Shan State bordering Thailand. While not exactly a boomtown by most standards, Panghsang is no jungle hideout either. It has electricity, running water, wide paved roads, hotels, a hospital, private clinics, karaoke bars, casinos, shop-houses, temples and a mosque for some 30 or so Muslim families. Bao even has his own private bowling alley. On the hilltop overlooking the town are rubber plantations. The first crop yield should come in two years' time. Joint ventures on mining and gem exploration are well on the way, but they are far from reaching full potential due to the lack of technical know-how, Bao said. The UWSA's rice wine and Golden Triangle cigarettes brand are strictly for local consumption as neither the Burmese or the Chinese allow these products in their markets. The UN Drug Control Programme (UNDCP) has launched a number of projects to rid the area of poppy growing, but Bao said much more support is needed to ensure that the Wa-controlled area becomes opium-free. The Wa-controlled region would be drug-free by 2005, Bao said - but few are convinced that the UWSA can deliver on its promise. The international community that despises the organisation appears to be lost as to what to do, while Burma, the country to which Bao has pledged his allegiance, has ruled out any military option to force the UWSA to get out of the drug trade. Indeed, the security arrangements between the Burmese generals and insurgent groups may have stopped the shooting. However, it has also resulted in a very undesirable outcome - one that has placed Burma in the ranks of pariah states, in which former and current heroin dealers roam freely and opium warlords continue to operate their own armies. Opium cultivation in Burma has shot up dramatically since the communist insurgencies ended and grade-four heroin continues to flood major cities throughout the world. The political deadlock in Rangoon, coupled with the regime's appalling human rights record, has turned the Burmese government into an international outcast, while the freezing of the much-needed foreign aid has made this resource-rich nation an even bigger "basket case". Generally, it's agreed that in Burma, drugs and insurgencies are two sides of the same coin. And unless a political solution acceptable to all sides can be reached, no anti-drug policy in Burma will have any chance of success. So far, no solution is in sight. The UWSA continues to grow as Thais and Burmese watch with weary eyes, taking a wait-and-see approach. But instead of looking to Rangoon for answers to the "UWSA problem", more and more people are turning to the Chinese province of Yunnan. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Non-Violent Peace Force's
international conference held in India
Htoo Shin Mizzima News 8 December 2002 A five-day long conference of the international movement of the Global Non-Violent Peace Force was held in Haryana State, India, between 29 November and 3 December 2002. The Non-Violent Peace Force was organized by its current leader, David Hardsort, and supported by Nobel Peace Prize laureates the Dalai Lama of Tibet, Rigoberta Menchu from Guatamala, the opposition leader and former Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheik Hasina, Hail Mary of Spain, Nimla Pandes of the Asia Peoples Organization of India, a nephew of Mr. Gandhi, Ela Fandhi (MP of South Africa) and various international organizations during its three-year efforts. The India-based Committee for Non-violent Action for Burma (CNAB) is a full member of the Non-Violent Peace Force. In an interview with Mizzima News, NCGUB leader Dr. Tint Swe commented: "The main aim of this organization is to help solve existing problems around the globe in a non-violent way by giving a six month training to peace activists who are subsequently sent to troubled regions. These trained peace forces/soldiers are given a salary and a life insurance", he said. Dr. Tint Swe found that during the confererence: "Tibetans and people from Burma were the only exiled participants amongst members from throughout the international community. The conference decided that this year peace troops would be sent to the Israel-Palestine region, to Sri Lanka, Kashmir and Serb areas in Bosnia. U Ramji, the current chairman of the Committee for Non-Violent Action for Burma (CNAB), explained that the organisation "aims to help find a solution to the current troubles facing countries and to help organize the dialogue between the government and oppositions groups to solve existing crises around the globe wherever problems exist. Though the organization expected funds of 4 million dollars this year, now they expect around 2 million dollars as a result of some governments' increasing their defense budget". ------------------------------------------------------------------------ |