AP
- Myanmar Officials Rescue Animals From Restaurants -Report
Reuters - Panel: Saudis Should Be on Religious
Blacklist
AFP
- Myanmar approves UN envoy's visit: diplomat
AFP
- Cambodian FM assures security for June ASEAN Regional Forum
The
Boston Globe - Ethics conflict seen as ex-CIA officials turn to lobbying
Taipei Times - Myanmar military rapes out of hand
BBC
News - Burma approves UN visit
The
Nation - Fight for access to information goes on
Asian Tribune - Education of Burma worsen though regime claims for
improvements
Asian Tribune - Burmese Junta troops kill monks
Hoover's online - OVL is negotiating to acquire 100% oil equity in
a gas exploration field in Myanmar on a nomination basis
Mizzima News - Indian government moves on arms trade with
Burma
DVB
News - Daw Aung San Suu Kyi in Mokaung
--------------------------------------------------------------
Wednesday May 14, 12:53 PM
Myanmar Officials Rescue
Animals From Restaurants - Report
YANGON, Myanmar
(AP)--Authorities seized hundreds of
wild and endangered animals during raids on four Yangon restaurants that serve
exotic meats, a weekly magazine reported.
In the raids conducted on
April 30, police and Forest Department officials seized four armadillos, 68
fresh water turtles, 18 tortoises, two monitor lizards and 283 snakes including
252 vipers, 30 cobras and one python, the Myanmar-language "7 Day News" reported
in its latest issue.
It said three pigeons and 10 water ducks also were
seized, adding all the animals were to be released in their natural habitats. It
gave no other details, and forestry officials weren't immediately available for
comment.
The restaurant owners, three of whom are foreigners, face up to
seven years in prison if found guilty of killing, hunting and selling wild and
endangered animals.
Armadillos and monitor lizards are among endangered
species.
Customers pay exorbitant prices for dishes made of wild or
endangered animal meat, believing them to have medicinal properties. Many eat
the exotic meat simply for the novelty.
Restaurant owners say a majority
of their customers are from Hong Kong, Taiwan and China.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Panel: Saudis Should Be on Religious
Blacklist
Tue May 13, 3:42 PM ET
WASHINGTON
(Reuters) - A government advisory
panel condemned Saudi Arabia's record on religious rights on Tuesday and said
Washington should put its long-standing ally on its blacklist of countries that
engage in religious persecution.
"We cannot understand how it is we have
not named Saudi Arabia as a country of particular concern," said Michael Young,
vice chairman of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom.
The State Department said in its annual report on religious freedom
around the world last October that Washington would have to look carefully at
the case for including the Muslim country in its list of "countries of
particular concern."
But the new list released in March, which named
China, Iran, Iraq, Myanmar, North Korea and Sudan, did not include Saudi Arabia
or other new U.S. allies which were criticized in the report, like Pakistan.
The blacklist is reserved for countries the State Department considers
systematically and egregiously violate religious freedom. The administration
denies that its list is influenced by political considerations.
The
governments in Saudi Arabia and Pakistan have pledged to work with President
Bush in his war on terrorism.
Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil
exporter, has long been a close ally of Washington. Secretary of State Colin
Powell on Tuesday met Saudi leaders in Riyadh, where suicide bombers overnight
had killed at least 29 people in attacks on expatriate housing complexes.
Saudi Arabia is the site of the holiest Islamic sites. It does not allow
non-Muslims to worship in public or circulate religious literature. Saudi
authorities try to discourage people from gathering for worship in private
houses.
At a Washington news conference on the commission's annual
report, Young said the United States should press Saudi Arabia both publicly and
privately to allow for "basic human rights."
The commission also asked
for a congressional inquiry into whether Saudis were indirectly or directly
funding "efforts" that encouraged hatred, intolerance or violence.
The
nine-member commission, created by the International Religious Freedom Act in
1998, prepares reports designed to sway policy decisions made by Congress and
the president.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Myanmar approves UN envoy's visit: diplomat
YANGON, May 14 (AFP) - Myanmar's junta has given permission for
United Nations special envoy Razali Ismail to make a visit to the military-ruled
state in early June, his first in over six months, diplomats and other sources
said Wednesday.
Razali would journey from his native Malaysia to Yangon
next month to resume his task of helping speed up national reconciliation talks
between the country's generals and the opposition National League for Democracy
(NLD).
"We have heard that the approval has been given for Razali's
visit, and he will be coming in June," a Malaysian diplomat here told AFP.
The visit would occur June 6-10, according to one source familiar with
the envoy's itinerary.
Razali, whose latest trip to Yangon was in
November last year, is credited with brokering landmark secret talks between the
military and NLD leader Aung San Suu Kyi, which began in October 2000 and were
aimed at promoting national reconciliation and political reform.
The
talks have led to the release of Aung San Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate,
and some political prisoners, but otherwise have ground to a halt.
The
democracy campaigner complained publicly last month of the junta's lack of
sincerity in committing to a dialogue to map out a political transition.
Razali himself has also expressed frustration with the pace of change in
Myanmar, admitting after his ninth mission to the country, last November, that
he was disappointed at the lack of progress in reviving the dialogue.
Last week officials in Yangon said they had been too busy to arrange an
itinerary for Razali despite his requests to visit the country.
In April
Razali said he would attempt to initiate tripartite meetings between the junta,
the NLD and ethnic groups, and to "consider humanitarian assistance" for
Myanmar.
Citing a lack of progress on political reform, the EU earlier
this month extended and beefed up its long-held sanctions against Myanmar.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Cambodian FM assures security for June ASEAN Regional
Forum
PHNOM PENH, May 14 (AFP) - Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong on
Wednesday "fully guaranteed" the security of nearly two dozen foreign ministers
expected here at next month's ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF).
"I can tell
you that we are confident that at the summit there will be no problems, there
will be no security problems," Hor Namhong told diplomats and journalists during
a roundtable forum.
He reminded that ahead of last year's ASEAN Summit
in Phnom Penh, several newspapers reported the city could not provide adequate
protection for the leaders of the 10-member regional grouping.
"But the
summit went well without any security problems," he said. "And I can reassure
that the security will be fully guaranteed once again for the June summit."
The meeting will focus on security issues in the Asia-Pacific region,
including the North Korean nuclear crisis, terrorism, and the political and
security situation in the Middle East, Hor Namhong said.
US Secretary of
State Colin Powell plans to travel to Cambodia for the talks, a State Department
spokesman said Tuesday, despite recent US criticism of the government of Prime
Minister Hun Sen and security fears sparked by riots in January.
ARF
includes the 10 ASEAN states, along with Australia, Canada, China, the European
Union, India, Japan, Mongolia, New Zealand, South Korea, North Korea, Papua New
Guinea, Russia and the United States.
The Association of Southeast Asian
Nations (ASEAN) groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the
Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
--------------------------------------------------------------
The Boston Globe
Ethics conflict seen
as ex-CIA officials turn to lobbying
Some working for foreign
regimes
By Nicholas Thompson,
Globe Correspondent, 5/13/2003
WASHINGTON -- In the mid-'90s,
Barry Broman was CIA station chief in Burma, also known as Myanmar, a leading
producer of illegal narcotics that is governed by one of Southeast Asia's most
repressive military regimes. In retirement, though, Broman switched clients:
Last year, the former US intelligence officer worked on behalf of Burma as a
$5,000-a-month lobbyist, trying to persuade American officials to adopt a more
friendly stance toward the regime.
Once tasked with gathering
intelligence to advance US interests, Broman spent much of last year plying the
Washington bureaucracy to embrace a more favorable stance toward Burma, whose
illegal drug production -- much of it entering the United States -- accounts for
between 10 percent and 15 percent of the country's economy. In February, Lorne
Craner, an assistant US secretary of state, denounced Burma's military
government for its ''disregard for human rights and democracy [that] extends to
every conceivable category of violation.''
Despite that record,
government filings show that Broman's company, the Washington-based DCI Group,
unsuccessfuly lobbied Congress and the Bush administration to have Burma
certified as a partner in global antinarcotics efforts, a status that would have
allowed it to receive increased American economic aid. The firm also issued news
releases announcing Burma's counternarcotics efforts, its discharge of some
political prisoners, and rebuttals to published reports accusing the regime of
carrying out a policy of systematic rape against ethnic minority
women.
Broman, who worked for Burma from June until December of 2002, is
part of a class of retired CIA officials whose lobbying raises the possibility
of disquieting conflicts, in the view of a number of government officials. CIA
station chiefs considering the prospect of future careers and financial gain may
shade information to favor the government they are supposed to spy on, these
officials said. This could be extremely dangerous if the CIA is tracking
terrorists or other people potentially harmful to the United States, they
added.
Receiving information tinged by personal motives is a ''serious
security concern'' said Robert Baer, formerly a CIA operative in Tajikistan and
the Middle East who notes that a number of his colleagues have gone into
lobbying. Baer said that, given the current reliance on very narrow intelligence
sources, dishonest spies could even ''lead the US into war.''
Melvin
Goodman, a former head of the CIA's Soviet desk, condemned Broman's work done on
behalf of Burma, saying it ''shows a lack of any notion of what ethical behavior
is. The fact that he is certainly capitalizing on his former clandestine
relationships makes it even worse.''
Almost all CIA officials are banned for
three years from working for foreign governments with which they had contact.
Broman left his CIA position in Burma seven years ago.
A narrower
restriction permanently bars former federal officials from working on
''particular matters,'' such as contracts, that they handled while working for
the government. The CIA had no comment on whether Broman had violated this
standard, although a former general counsel to the CIA said that, at most, it
''raised questions.''
Documents that foreign lobbyists are required to
file with the government list Broman as one of 10 DCI staffers on the Burma
contract, which has since ended. But Broman usually was accompanied by only one
or two colleagues when he met on various occasions with members of Congress,
Pentagon officials, and opinion leaders such as former United Nations ambassador
Jeanne Kirkpatrick. The most frequent topic of conversation, according to
filings at the Department of Justice, was ''drug enforcement cooperation efforts
between the US and Myanmar.''
All lobbying organizations that represent
foreign governments must register with the government under a 1938 law passed
after Adolf Hitler hired a public relations specialist to improve Germany's
image in America.
Broman, whose career in the CIA was confirmed by
several former colleagues and intelligence sources, declined to comment for this
story. DCI also declined to comment. But a Broman friend, who worked with him in
the CIA, said the former station chief truly believes that Burma is doing a good
job in reducing drug production: ''He really cares about human rights and he is
one of the few people with really in-depth knowledge of the country.''
At
least one other former CIA station chief has registered as a foreign agent for a
country he once worked in: Milton Bearden, CIA station chief in Sudan from 1983
to 1985. Sudan is one of seven countries involved in state-sponsored terrorism,
according to the State Department.
Bearden works for a firm,
headquartered at his house, called the Steeplechase Group, which is run by Anis
Haggar, a Sudanese businessman. Haggar is closely linked politically and
financially to the Sudanese government, run by the National Islamic Front, or
NIF, according to current and former government officials.
But Bearden
says there is total separation between Steeplechase and the government of Sudan
and that reports of Haggar's ties to the NIF are mostly red herrings. ''He
doesn't need any money from the government -- he is the largest taxpayer in
Sudan,'' Bearden told the Globe. Bearden added that he registered as a foreign
agent only out of ''an abundance of caution.''
According to its
disclosure report, Steeplechase works with ''US government officials to arrange
meetings with Sudanese officials to discuss the prospects for peace and to
discuss international petroleum developments and their potential impact on
Sudan's petroleum industry.'' Steeplechase Group was paid about $300,000 last
year for this service.
''I help out with the peace negotiations,''
Bearden said. He added that he also is helping Sudan with reducing the number of
child soldiers involved in its civil conflict and reducing its AIDS
rate.
Other Sudan observers are concerned Bearden is relying on the
sensitive contacts he gained while in the CIA to help persuade Congress and the
Bush administration to lift or limit sanctions against Sudan, thus creating
opportunities for American investment. Eric Reeves, a professor at Smith College
and Sudan specialist who testifies frequently on Capitol Hill, says the CIA is
closely involved in setting US policy toward the country, and that to reach
peace in its long-running civil war Sudan ''needs more international pressure.
It doesn't need high-paid lobbyists with contacts in the CIA telling it how to
avoid the pressure.''
Bearden said there is no difference between a
former CIA official working as a lobbyist for a foreign government and a former
ambassador doing the same thing. ''If an ambassador can do this without anyone
raising any questions, I can't possibly see why someone would raise the issue
with the CIA,'' he said.
Others disagree, both about the practice in general
and about whether CIA officials should be particularly chastened.
''A
foreign government's interests are not the same as those of the United States.
To turn around for moneymaking purposes and work for another government is
reprehensible,'' says Susan Rice, a former assistant secretary of state for
African affairs.
This story ran on page A9 of the Boston Globe on
5/13/2003
--------------------------------------------------------------
The Taipei Times - Tue, May 13,
2003
Myanmar military rapes out of hand
BEYOND EXCESSIVE:
Unbelievable acts of violence against minority women and their families came to
light in a report released by human rights groups
NY TIMES NEWS
SERVICE
Tuesday, May 13, 2003,Page 5
Women from the Shan minority and
other ethnic minority groups in northeastern Myanmar are telling stories of
rapes by the military that are sometimes characterized by sadism and that human
rights groups say appear to be authorized and systematic.
The US State
Department investigated the reports, which it called "appalling," and said it
found them credible.
The military government has denied that rape is
tolerated, asserting that any perpetrators are harshly punished, and calling the
reports fabrications by domestic and foreign enemies of their government.
"Isolated rape cases may have happened in certain areas, as is happening
in many other countries around the world," the Myanmar government said in a
statement last month. "But `systematically using rape as a weapon of war' is
just too ridiculous."
Minister for Labor U Tin Win, said this was the
first time the military had ever been accused of such abuses.
"Severe
punishment is always handed down to any member of the armed forces who rape
women, be they officers or other ranks or privates," he said.
"The
Myanmar society upholds very high standards of decency and culture under the
all-encompassing fold of Buddhist teachings," he said.
However, the
reports have been supported by widespread and consistent descriptions given by
victims and witnesses, including members of separate ethnic groups.
The
government must contend with three separate and mutually corroborating reports
-- the initial collection of accounts by a Shan human rights group a year ago,
an unusual follow-up investigation by the State Department and, most recently, a
report by an independent human rights group.
"Women are raped during
forced labor assignments, they are raped while farming, they are raped in their
own homes and raped also when they are trying to flee to Thailand," said
Veronika Martin, an author of the most recent study, by the human rights group
Refugees International, based in Washington.
That report, released last
month, made the point that the allegations came from a range of ethnic groups
and that the rapes -- sometimes conducted on military property by high-ranking
officers -- appeared to be officially sanctioned.
It documented accounts
of 43 rapes among women from the Karen, Karenni, Mon and Tavoyan groups as well
as the Shans. It said 75 percent of the women interviewed reported knowing
someone who had been raped.
"Aside from the fact that rapes are
happening across ethnic boundaries, our report also showed that rape is
happening on a widespread basis and is not the result of rogue groups or
occasional unruly soldiers," Martin said.
Because military units are
often stationed near villages for long periods and use local people as forced
laborers, the report said, three-fourths of the women interviewed were able to
identify their attackers by their battalion number.
The initial
allegations were made last year by the Shan Women's Action Network, a private
human rights group based on the Thai-Myanmar border, which described rape as a
systematic weapon of war.
Its report said it had documented 173
incidents of rape or sexual violence against 625 women and girls committed by
soldiers from 52 military battalions between 1992 and 2001.
It alleged
that 25 percent of the rapes resulted in death and that 83 percent were
committed by officers.
In December, the State Department issued a
statement saying that it was "appalled by the reports" and that its own
interviews in three separate locations appeared to confirm them.
It said
its investigators had talked to 12 women who said they had been gang-raped by
soldiers in the past five years.
"All of the victims under 15 appeared
severely traumatized by their experiences, were disturbed mentally and spoke in
whispers, if at all," the State Department said.
"The older women sobbed
violently as they recalled horrific incidents of their own rapes, as well as
brutal rapes, torture and execution of family members."
--------------------------------------------------------------
BBC News - Tuesday, 13 May, 2003
Burma
approves UN visit
The Burmese military government is
reported to have approved the first return visit in six months by the United
Nations envoy to Burma, Razali Ismail.
The visit is due early next month.
The UN envoy brokered secret talks more than two years ago between the
government and the country's pro-democracy leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, who was
then under house arrest.
In recent months, the dialogue has stalled.
But a BBC correspondent in the region says that, since Aung San Suu Kyi
publicly accused the government, four weeks ago, of being insincere in its
promises of democratic reform, there have been signs the military leadership
wants to repair relations.
The United States and the European Union are
strengthening economic sanctions against Rangoon because of the lack of progress
in the dialogue process.
From the
newsroom of the BBC World Service
--------------------------------------------------------------
THE NATION
Fight for access to
information goes on
Rungrawee C Pinyorat
Published on May 14, 2003
Access to
information is critical for democracy to function effectively, yet in many Asian
countries people are struggling in their fight for the right to gain access to
public records.
Speaking at yesterday's seminar "Access to information:
Lessons from the Region", Thienchai Na Nakorn, the dean of Sukhothai
Thammathirat Open University's Law School, said despite the fact Thailand's
Information Act had been in place since 1997, enforcement continued to be a
major problem.
He said records showed that half of those using the law
were government officials, whose primary motive for acquiring information was
often to protect themselves against disciplinary action.
Others were
bidders curious to know why they lost a tender for a government project. There
were few cases in which the Information Act was used for the good of the public,
he said.
The Information Disclosure Tribunal, which has the authority to
request state agencies disclose information, is unable to work independently
from those agencies, he said.
Thienchai said there was a need to modify
political mechanisms so the Act could be implemented more effectively.
Thailand, India, Japan and South Korea all have information acts. The
Philippines and Indonesia are in the process of drafting similar bills.
The Philippine Centre for Investigative Journalists' executive director
Sheila S Coronel said there seemed to be no correlation between levels of
development and access to information.
She cited Malaysia and Singapore
as examples where, despite being economically advanced nations, access to
information was relatively limited.
"Plurality of media ownership, a
culture of discussion and political participation and democratic polity are
determinant factors which enhance people's rights to know," she said.
Coronel said that in the Philippines, despite the fact that people's
access to information was guaranteed by the constitution, a legacy of
authoritarian culture remained strong and state agencies tended to withhold
information.
Burma stands out as the country where virtually no reliable
information is available to anyone, she said.
Kunda Dixit, editor of the
Nepali Times, said few Nepalese people were aware they had a right to know, and
did not expect it because they were so used to secrecy.
Hinca IP
Pandjaitan, of the Indonesia Media Law and Policy Centre, said the post-Suharto
era had spurred positive developments in the process of democratisation.
The Freedom of the Information Access bill is currently under review by
Indonesia's parliament and Pandjaitan said he was hopeful it would soon be
implemented.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Asian Tribune
Date :
2003-05-14
Education of Burma worsen though regime claims for
improvements
The education situation in Burma is still
deteriorating, according to a report of Foreign Affairs Committee of the All
Burma Federation of Student Union (ABFSU). The 2002 education report of ABFSU is
now released to international governments, human rights groups, academic
society, and various UN agencies including UNESCO and UNDP.
The report
said, "Though the regime opened all universities and institutes in July 2000, it
has never focused on quality of education. They showed so-called achievement in
education sector to international community; the numbers of graduate students,
school buildings, and new institutes are increased they claimed. But, these
numbers are just quantities and hollow, not the substance of quality education.
The regime has abused student rights, right of education, academic freedom and
institutional freedom, and government interference to education is widely
common."
Since the present ruling government does not want to make real
changes to develop education sector in Burma, the education situation is still
in turmoil. Children dropped out from schools for various reasons, but the key
reason is families financial status. Currently, the regime has laid down a
four-year national education promotion program and a 30-year long-term education
plan. However, the report point out, the government assistance of student
facilities such as hostels, scholarship funds, and modernized learning materials
are not materialized yet. The government authorities have ordered to do
self-reliance program in education, particularly in rural areas. According to
these programs, local people and parents have to share the cost for school
buildings, teachers, teaching materials, and other related expenses. It is
assumable that the government has less responsibility for free compulsory
primary education in these regions. Since people are suffering of social burdens
and high commodities price, they could not well support such
programs.
The report claim, poverty and continuing expensive education
costs are the primary reasons behind the failure of the "free primary education"
scheme since the government assistance towards education is significantly less
than the military budget and the government policies had failed to reduce the
poverty. In addition, the report suggests that the elimination of poverty scheme
will only result from basic economic and political reforms.
The
independent student bodies, which represent the student voice and student
rights, are totally prohibited by the government. Student social groups and
their activities are under the close watch of the government security
intelligence. Any underground student networks which try to advocate for
student, political and civil rights are ruthlessly crushed and the union
activists are jailed in various military prisons. Since the regime fears the
opposition, it imposed the government-controlled university system and
interferes in all university affairs.
Since students and faculty do not
have the liberty to write, research, speak and teach and therefore genuine
higher education is not realized in Burma. The free exchange of ideas in college
education is strictly concealed. Since the universities and institutions are the
primary sources for dissenting ideas and vibrant debate in society, the
restriction on academic freedom largely affect the entire society of Burma as
the people are used to in silenced and in objective attitude of despotic rules
and order. Moreover, the quality of education become degrading.
These
abuses on the right to education have been based around political suppression,
because they view students and intellectuals as a disruptive group. This
political suppression has resulted in a deteriorating education system, and a
failure and lack of commitment to uphold the "right to education". Ethnic
minorities, student activists and family members of political activists are
specific targets of the regime's right to education abuses.
The report
explains that students have involved in politics for peaceful political changes
and sustainable democratic system in Burma, as they believe all problems and
disorder in education system rooted from political system and strong
authoritarian rules. Therefore, the report describes, education in Burma cannot
detach from politics, as only credible democratic government can solve the
problems of present education situation and grantee real education
development.
Min Naing, spoke-person of ABFSU, said, "We had compiled the
report based on the facts and cases what we got information from our own sources
and other references on education. Although we cannot claim the report is
perfectly professional, as it is prepared from the students' point of view, we
believe that understanding of the true situation of education in Burma will be
heightened. The report is intended to the governments, the UN agencies, Human
Rights groups, international academic arena, and whoever interested in Burma's
affairs."
--------------------------------------------------------------
Asian Tribune
Date :
2003-05-14
Burmese Junta troops kill monks
Two
monks in the southern township of Kunhing were shot dead by a Burmese patrol on
29 March, said Shan refugees arriving recently in Chiangmai.
The two
were U Uttama, 83, of Mon descent and one of his novices, Sanglong Kaw, 43.
Their monastery was at Htam Loikong (Mount Hollow Cave), 1-1/2 mile northwest of
the township seat.
According to Sanglong Kaw who died at the hospital and
another novice who survived the shootings, the perpetrators were Captain Than
Naing Oo and his 20-men patrol from Infantry Battalion 246. "I recognized the
Captain, because he often visited the temple," the villagers quoted him as
saying.
The patrol was said to have arrived at the temple at 04:30 before
the break of dawn. They started shooting without provocation and the monk died
on the spot, they said. He had been there only for 4 years and 9 months.
A few days after his funeral, the village elders were summoned by the
commander of the battalion. "We were flabbergasted when he said the army would
say nothing about the killing of monks that was committed by the Shan rebels,"
recalled a villager.
Rangoon's press conference held on 10 May,
identified the abbot as U Pandita, 66, and the date of the killing as 24
March.
Junta officials also accused the rebels of shooting 11 farmers,
killing 4 and wounding 4 on 29 April at Naungpan in the same township. A source
from the Shan State Army "North", a cease-fire group with one of its brigades in
Kunhing, however, dismissed the report altogether. "Everyone, including those
wounded and those that survived the attack, knows it was the Army that shot at
them," he said. "But as the witnesses are still under detention by the Army, it
will be difficult to prove."
The connection between the SSA "North" and
the SSA "South" of Col. Yawdserk has been a tricky situation for both groups.
"If the 7th Brigade (Kali, Kunhing Township) is not assist ing Yawdserk," one
Burmese officer was said to have raged, "how come he is surviving all our
onslaughts?"
The SSA "South" had offered to sign a cease-fire pact with
Rangoon an arrangement identical to other groups, including the Wa, but was
rejected by the junta that insisted Yawdserk "could only surrender."
-
Shan Herald Agency for News -
--------------------------------------------------------------
Hoover's Online
ONGC MAY GET OIL
EQUITY IN MYANMAR GAS FIELD (OVL is negotiating to acquire 100% oil equity in a
gas exploration field in Myanmar on a nomination basis)
May 14, 2003
5:17am
India is in talks with Myanmar for acquisition of 100
percent oil equity in a gas exploration field in Myanmar on a nomination basis.
India is sending a team of officials from ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL) to visit Myanmar
to collect information on the gas fields. Following this, a data room is likely
to be opened up for more information. India is also negotiating for sale of
petroleum products from the Numaligarh refinery to Myanmar.
Publication:
India Business Insight
Distributed by Financial Times Information Limited -
Asia Africa Intelligence Wire
--------------------------------------------------------------
Indian government moves on arms trade with
Burma
Mizzima News
Guwahati, May 14,
2003:
After focusing on increasing cross-border trade, the
Indian Government is making moves to supply arms and ammunition to Burma in a
bid to strengthen the bilateral relations between the two countries. A decision
to supply medium-size and small arms to the Burmese junta has created a
sensation in the Southeast Asian countries.
The signing of a
border trade agreement in 1994 greatly improved bilateral relations between
India and Burma. Moreover, an increasing of volume of trade between India and
Burma has brought the two countries closer. The current move on the armament
front is likely to give fresh impetus to Indo-Burma relations. Yet many
political parties in India do not lend their support to
it.
Burma has faced a situation of turmoil during the
last decade in view of political instability and continuous economic crisis. The
Burmese junta also faces a challenge from underground groups operating in the
country. The economy has come to a grinding halt. To overcome these
problems, the Burmese junta is seeking help from neighboring countries including
India and China. The Indian government has lent a helping hand to the Burmese
junta regarding the improvement of the economic and trade
situation.
Now the question arises: why has the Indian Government
taken such a strong interest in Burma? The North East of India (which
comprises seven states) has been hit badly by insurgent militancy and the free
flow of illegal arms from Burma. Chinese arms and Burmese ammunition have
exacerbated the militancy problem as militant groups bring arms into the region
taking advantage of the porous Indo-Burma border. According to the Indian Home
Ministry, as many as twelve North East Indian underground organizations are now
operating from Burmese territory, with strong bases in Kachin State and the
bordering areas.
Although Indian security forces have carried out
counter-insurgency operations along the Indo-Burma border they have not been
able to contain the problem of arms smuggling and cross-border
insurgency.
Recently Indian Deputy Prime Minister LK Advani
revealed that cross-border insurgency in Kashmir and the free flow of arms and
ammunition were causing a serious situation for the country. In the wake of his
comment the Indian Home Ministry submitted a list of militant camps to the
Burmese junta with a request to take stern action against them. But so far this
request has not been complied with.
Despite repeated requests from
the Indian side the Burmese Junta is not in a position to take harsh action
against militant groups operating from hide-outs in Burma due to its lack of
military competence.
Political analysts observe that the supply of
arms and ammunition is likely to foment trouble in Southeast Asian. India, on
its part, has started to mobilise the world community on a campaign against the
dumping of arms and ammunition in the Southeast of Asia. This campaign, however,
has been predicted to lead to the escalation of tensions in neighbouring
countries.
--------------------------------------------------------------
DVB News (13 May 2003)
Daw
Aung San Suu Kyi in Mokaung
Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and team
have now officially opened Mokaung NLD office at 11 o'clock this morning. They
were welcomed by a considerable number of people and members of the USDA also
blocked roads and threatened people. A local resident who welcomed Daw Aung San
Suu Kyi told the DVB as follows:
A Mokaung resident : They arrived at
Mokaung around 9-10pm. Before they entered the town, they were harassed by
members of the USDA about eight miles away from the town. Today, they have
raised the signboard and the flag and departed for Phakant. There were many
people attended the event when they raised the signboard. But there were some
harassment. They (authorities) told people not to say this and not to go there
and the like. Nothing will change for you if you
go there. They are our
enemies who depend on foreign powers, they told people. Despite the harassments,
many people turned up.
DVB : How did the spectators welcome and greet
Daw Suu?
A Mokaung resident : They all gladly received Daw Suu's love.
They welcomed her gladly. They (authorities) banned people from driving their
cars and motorcycles on the road to be used by Daw Suu but the people crammed it
with their presences anyway. It was so crammed full of people. It was hard to be
near Daw Suu. I had to look at her from afar.
DVB : What did she say?
A Mokaung resident : I didn't hear what she said. The reason is they
didn't allow her to speak with the amplifier. She had to talk with a microphone
and I could not hear her from afar.
Yesterday, on her way from Monyin to
Mokaung, at Hopin junction, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi was harassed by about 30
members of the USDA, said the NLD's spokesman, U Lwin as follows:
U Lwin
: They left Hopin and it was at a junction, I was told. There must be about 30
youth members of the USDA holding posters and banners and shouting slogans.
Then, on the other side, there were about 100 supporters of the NLD who shouted
and confronted the other group. The situation was quite tumultuous. She had to
control them. She had to talk a bit. She had to feed them cool religious water
(calmed them down with religious doctrines). She told them to have
compassion
with each other and the like. The shouting match stopped and the situation
returned to normal and she departed.
Despite the harassments of members
of the USDA, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and team managed to open the NLD offices at
Monyin and Mokaung. U Lwin also summarised the speech of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi
delivered at Monyin as follows:
U Lwin : She said that Monyin is the
model town of the union. Please carry on the good tradition of ethnic nationals
living together with unity. It is not strange that people are working for their
nationals but please do not damage the benefits of other nationals. Understand
one another. Please work not only for your town, your state but also the union.
Only then, we could strengthen the existing unity. As the strength of unity
increases, it will help the spirit of the union. Please carry on the model
spirit of Monyin, she said.
Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and team left Mokaung
at 1.30pm today for Phakant. A local Phakant woman excitedly told the DVB that
they have arrived at 6 o'clock this evening as follows:
A Phakant
resident : Yes, they have arrived at Phakant now. They have just arrived now.
They welcomed her with flowers. It's nearly 6pm at Phakant. I am going to see
them. There are many people welcoming them with cars in convoy. They are
welcoming them with Kachin national dress and uniforms.
At Phakant, the
team are expected to raise the signboard of the township NLD office early in the
morning and they are expected to continue to Tanaing in the north. They will
open 8 township NLD offices including the ones at Phakant, Tanaing, Waingmaw,
Shwegu and Myikyina, said U Lwin.