--------------------------------------------------------------
10 Myanmar Activists Get Prison Sentence
Mon
May 26,11:21 AM ET
By AYE AYE
WIN, Associated Press Writer
YANGON, Myanmar - A
Myanmar court sentenced 10 democracy activists to prison terms ranging from two
years to life, and a pro-junta group threatened supporters of opposition leader
Aung San Suu Kyi and hurled a brick at her car, her party said Monday.
As
the Nobel Peace laureate drove through central Myanmar, returning home from a
political tour, a group backed by the military regime forced her waiting
supporters to flee after threatening to run them over with cars, said U Lwin,
the spokesman for her National League for Democracy party.
The
sentencing and the reported intimidation of Suu Kyi's supporters cast further
doubt on the junta's seriousness about allowing her party political freedom,
despite embarking on reconciliation talks with the pro-democracy leader in
October 2000.
In the past, Suu Kyi has been routinely harassed, and her
supporters intimidated and bullied by members of the Union Solidarity
Development Association, which claims to have 19 million members avowedly loyal
to the junta.
"Run for your lives or you will have to pick up your own
corpses," U Lwin said the USDA members shouted at crowds through loudspeakers as
Suu Kyi's car entered Kyidauk Pauk village, near Mandalay, Myanmar's second
biggest city, on Sunday.
Someone also threw a brick that hit Suu Kyi's
car, but she was unhurt, he said.
U Lwin said 100 people, many of them
wielding sticks, knives and catapults, also intimidated the supporters. One NLD
member was injured in the head, apparently hit by something fired from a
slingshot, he said.
"This is a most serious incident. These people are
very rowdy. They bully the public and are extremely unruly," U Lwin said.
A government spokesman could not immediately be reached for comment. The
government denies it harasses Suu Kyi and opposition members.
Meanwhile,
NLD officials said that 10 party members were sentenced last week to between two
years and life imprisonment for anti-government activities and comments.
A court in the northern town of Monywa sentenced three men to two-year
prison terms Thursday for saying publicly that "dictatorship does not exist in
democracy."
They were charged under a law that prohibits making a
statement "likely to cause fear or alarm to the public," said an NLD official on
condition of anonymity.
Last Tuesday, a court in Yangon convicted seven
NLD members under various laws for alleged anti-government activities including
trying to stir unrest, distribute anti-government leaflets and carry out
attacks.
Two of them were sentenced to life imprisonment, one to 13
years and the others to five years each, said NLD officials.
The
military junta does not usually announce the schedules or outcome of political
trials. Government officials were not immediately available to confirm the
sentences.
The current junta came to power in 1988 after crushing a
pro-democracy movement. It called elections in 1990 but refused to hand over
power to the NLD party, which won by a landslide.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Suu Kyi urges junta to honor 1990 election result
YANGON, Myanmar (AP) _ Opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, whose
party won Myanmar's last general elections held 13 years ago Tuesday, urged the
junta to honor the result and give up its stranglehold on power.
``Ignoring the results of the 1990 election amounts to insulting the
people and disrespecting the people,'' said a statement by Suu Kyi.
The
message was read out by Hla Hla Moe, one of the victorious candidates for the
National League for Democracy party in the May 27, 1990 elections.
The
NLD won 392 of 485 seats in the election for parliament but the military regime,
which itself had called the elections, refused to hand over power.
The
junta had seized power two years earlier in 1988 after suppressing nationwide
pro-democracy protests during which Suu Kyi burst into prominence.
The
political deadlock has not eased despite reconciliation talks between Suu Kyi
and the junta since October 2000.
The only tangible result of the talks
has been the release of a few hundred political prisoners, mostly NLD members,
and the release of Suu Kyi from 19 months of house arrest last May.
``The election results cannot be cast aside at will. We, the National
League for Democracy party, stand firm for implementation of the results of the
1990 election,'' Suu Kyi said in her message.
She said her recent party
organizational tours across the country have indicated to her that democracy is
sorely needed in Myanmar.
Her speech was read out at a function held at
the party headquarters in Yangon, attended by about 500 people including
diplomats, veteran politicians and reporters. Suu Kyi did not attend.
In
his brief address, party chairman Aung Shwe urged the authorities to convene a
parliament immediately and reiterated that the NLD will not accept any new
election.
``He who makes the law shall not break the law,'' Aung Shwe
said.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Junta accuses Suu Kyi supporters of attacking 'peaceful'
opponents
YANGON, Myanmar (AP) _ Myanmar's military government Tuesday
accused Aung San Suu Kyi's supporters of physically assaulting ``peaceful''
opponents during her ongoing trip to the north. It said 10 people were injured
in the attacks.
The government claims contradict complaints by Suu Kyi's
National League for Democracy that a pro-junta group obstructed the Nobel Peace
laureate's tour and bullied her supporters.
The NLD said Monday that
pro-junta elements driving by in a dozen cars had threatened to run over people
waiting along the road to greet Suu Kyi near Mandalay in northern Myanmar on
Sunday. It said a brick was hurled at Suu Kyi's car, hitting its hood.
But a government statement gave a different version of the events.
It said a group of people who do not support Suu Kyi were staging
``peaceful protests'' against her when youths from the NLD started fights with
them.
It said 10 people including three women were injured in three
separate incidents when NLD members threw stones and attacked those staging
peaceful ``anti-Suu Kyi protests.''
``Local authorities have urged the
NLD to be broadminded and understand that there are those who support the NLD
and those who do not support them,'' the statement said.
Suu Kyi is
currently on a one-month political tour of the north, her seventh such trip
since being freed by the military government from house arrest last May.
The NLD has said her previous trips were also obstructed by members of
the Union Solidarity Development Association, a pro-junta group of 19 million
members.
The allegations and counter allegations could further stall the
reconciliation process that Suu Kyi and the junta embarked on in October 2000.
The process has not moved beyond confidence building talks, and has yielded no
tangible result in resolving the country's political deadlock.
The
military regime came to power in 1988 after crushing a pro-democracy movement.
It held elections on May 27, 1990 but refused to hand over power to the NLD
despite its overwhelming victory.
On Tuesday, the 13th anniversary of
the elections, Suu Kyi urged the junta to honor the result and give up its
stranglehold on power.
``Ignoring the results of the 1990 election
amounts to insulting the people and disrespecting the people,'' Suu Kyi said in
a statement released at a function at the party headquarters in Yangon.
It was read out by Hla Hla Moe, one of the victorious candidates for the
National League for Democracy party in the May 27, 1990 elections.
The
NLD won 392 of 485 seats in the election for parliament but the military regime,
which itself had called the elections, refused to hand over power.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Rights group urges Thailand to investigate murders of
Myanmar workers
BANGKOK, May 27 (AFP) - Regional rights group Forum-Asia called on
the Thai government Tuesday to investigate the torture and murder of six Myanmar
workers whose charred remains were found in northern Thailand last week.
Relatives of the dead, who went missing on May 14, have said they were
last seen in the custody of police, who had allegedly beaten them.
"Forum-Asia calls on the Thai government to investigate and bring
justice to victims of these brutal killings and their families immediately," it
said in a statement.
"Thailand is a country governed by the rule of law.
Regardless of the victims' nationality, race and social status, their cases must
be treated fairly and without discrimination," it said.
The group's
secretary-general Somchai Homlaor warned in the statement that a failure by Thai
authorities to deliver justice could create anger among Myanmar workers living
in Thailand.
"This situation might force Burmese (Myanmar) workers to
resort to violence to defend themselves from exploitation and abuses," he said.
A foreign ministry official on Saturday told AFP a letter had been sent
to the Thai foreign ministry calling for a full investigation.
According
to eyewitness accounts, Forum Asia said the men were killed because they
challenged henchmen from a prominent human trafficking and extortion gang in Tak
province's Mae Sot district.
"Members of this gang were allegedly
associated with local officials. The murders were intended to be a lesson for
other migrant workers," the statement said.
The rights group also called
on Thai authorities to provide adequate protection to witnesses, who are
currently staying in safe-houses.
"The key witnesses, including
individuals who could indict local police and a village headman in the murders
of the six Burmese workers, are deeply worried about their safety after
receiving death threats," it said.
Forum-Asia's call comes as the UN
special representative on human rights said Tuesday that rights groups were
facing government-sponsored harassment and intimidation in carrying out their
work.
Thai police officials have said a probe into the incident was
ongoing.
--------------------------------------------------------------
The Washington Post
Act on Burma
Tuesday, May 27, 2003; Page A18
ON THIS DAY 13 years
ago, the people of Burma voted in a landslide to replace their military rulers
with a pro-democracy party headed by Aung San Suu Kyi, the indomitable daughter
of the hero of the nation's independence movement. The generals refused to cede
power, and the struggle to implement the election results continues to this day.
Just recently, as Aung San Suu Kyi tried to bring her message of nonviolence and
self-determination to a Burmese province, thugs from the ruling party attacked
her motorcade and menaced her with machetes. The message in those machetes to
the United States and other friends of democracy should be clear: It's time for
stronger measures of support for Burma's beleaguered citizens.
Those 50
million or so people and their plight don't generally draw much attention from
world power brokers. Burma, also known as Myanmar, is strategically tucked at
the crossroads of India, China and Southeast Asia, and it's rich in natural
resources. But its regime has no weapons of mass destruction (at least thus
far), and its population is mostly Buddhist, not Muslim; in the war on
terrorism, it's peripheral. But for the Bush administration's efforts to promote
democracy, Burma offers a unique opportunity. Most dictators claim to represent
the will of their people, and most claim that no alternative to their rule
exists; both claims usually are lies, but not easy to disprove. In Burma the
truth is provable: The National League for Democracy won 392 seats out of 485;
in the 13 years since the party should have taken over, the nation has grown
steadily poorer; and both the party and its leader remain popular and ready to
lead.
That enduring popularity comes in the face of grinding repression.
Some 1,400 political prisoners are subject to torture and appalling conditions.
Burma leads the world in slave labor, forced child conscription into the
military, rape as an instrument of terror. Aung San Suu Kyi spent the better
part of the past 13 years under house arrest, routinely vilified in the official
(and only) press, in part for marrying a British man and producing "mongrel"
children. Now widowed, Aung San Suu Kyi was freed from house arrest one year ago
when international pressure forced the regime to promise a political dialogue.
But no dialogue has ensued; a United Nations-brokered process has gone
nowhere.
The U.N. facilitator is scheduled to return to Burma next month,
and reports indicate the regime will once again promise dialogue. Some
observers, particularly Japanese officials eager to ramp up investment in Burma,
will pretend this is progress. But this time around no one should be satisfied
with anything but deeds: true freedom for the National League for Democracy to
operate, including to publish a newspaper; and true dialogue leading to
power-sharing and transition. Short of such progress, the U.S. government should
conclude that its current investment ban is insufficient.
"There are
moments in history when great people emerge to shine a bright light on a dark
path. Aung San Suu Kyi is such a person," President Bush said last month. Also
last month, the American Apparel & Footwear Association called for an
immediate ban on textile, clothing and footwear imports from Burma, citing the
government's continued "abuse of its citizens through force and intimidation."
Stiffer sanctions might harm some ordinary Burmese, but far less than almost all
Burmese are being harmed by military rule.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Bangkok Post - Tuesday 27 May 2003
Mae Sot, `streets of terror'
Ploenpote
Atthakor
Armed teenage gangsters who target
Burmese workers in hit-and-run attacks have turned Mae Sot into a town of
terror, a Burmese woman said yesterday.
``These young gangsters, aged
14-15, ride motorcycles, use pistols, knives, and iron bars. They don't even
wear a mask or hood to hide their faces,'' she said.
They usually
attacked people at night. Men were assaulted, and women often had their money
snatched. One Burmese woman said the attacks had gone on for more than a
year.
``Previously the attacks were once in a while and mostly not
serious. Now the assaults are more common and in one case a man died after being
stabbed,'' she said.
``These young people hate Burmese. I don't know
what makes them hate us so much. We are attacked merely because we are
Burmese,'' she said. Burmese migrants lived in fear and they dared not walk
alone or leave home at night.
Police were no help. One arrest was made,
and some gangsters were jailed briefly before the attacks simply
resumed.
In one case a Burmese whose wife was about to deliver left home
in the middle of the night to call a midwife. ``Unfortunately, he met the gangs
and was shot three times. He was sent to Mae Sot hospital but did not receive
any treatment for he had no money.'' She had heard the man tried to reach
Cynthia Maung, a Burmese activist doctor who runs a clinic in town.
``I
have not heard of him or his family since,'' she said.
--------------------------------------------------------------
The Nation
Police ?not involved? in Tak killings
Published on May 27, 2003
A senior police officer
yesterday dismissed the notion that policemen were involved in the murders of
six illegal immigrants from Burma whose charred bodies were found in Tak last
week.
Lt-General Nawin Singhapalin, commissioner of the Region 6 Police,
which includes Tak, said that he believed police were not involved in the brutal
killings in Tak?s Mae Sot district.
The victims, all male, were shot and
their bodies burned on a pyre of rubber tyres near Huay Kalok village, Mae Sot.
Police said conflict over the importation of illegal Burmese workers could be
the cause of the killings.
Spent cartridges from 11mm and .38 pistols
and a pair of handcuffs were found at the crime scene.
Nawin yesterday
disputed that the presence of handcuffs suggested police involvement. He said
they were widely available.
The commissioner visited the Mae Sot police
station yesterday and was briefed about the investigation. He said police had
located a number of witnesses.
Colonel Songkran Sangkhakorn, police
chief at Mae Sot, said yesterday that arrest warrants could soon be issued for
five or more suspects in the case, including a village head, a kamnan and some
village defence volunteers. Police have been closely monitoring the suspects, he
added.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Asian Tribune
Date :
2003-05-27
Thirteenth Anniversary of the Multi-Party Parliamentary
General Elections last Held in Burma.
Bangkok, May 27:
The Central Committee of the National League for Democracy (Liberated Area) in
Burma has issued a statement in remembrance of the thirteen year anniversary of
the multi-party parliamentary general elections held in Burma, on 27 May 1990.
It was the first and last time such an election was held with the view to
restore democracy and rule of law in Burma - officially now called
Myanmar.
In the parliamentary multi-party general elections that was held
13 years ago, more than 82% of the elected seats were secured by representatives
of the National League for Democracy (NLD) led by the Nobel peace laureate Daw
Aung San Suu Kyi .
But, the military regime, earlier called State Law
and Order Restoration Council, which was renamed later as the State Peace and
Development Council, refused to honor the results of the 1990 elections and has
restricted the parliament from forming a new government of the winning parties.
The National League for Democracy in its statement about the last
parliamentary multi-party general elections expressed: ?The elections were also
the achievement and victory of all the citizens of Burma that desired and
demanded the emergence of a new democratic nation. Indeed, the election results
indicated the will of the citizens of Burma to create a new history, which is
one of the most important achievements of the democracy movement.? The full text
of the statement issued by The Central Committee of the National League for
Democracy (Liberated Area), is given below:
1. Today is the thirteen
year anniversary of the 1990 multiparty general elections. The multi-party
general elections were the result of the 8888 nationwide democratic uprising.
The elections were also the achievement and victory of all the citizens of Burma
that desired and demanded the emergence of a new democratic nation. Indeed, the
election results indicated the will of the citizens of Burma to create a new
history, which is one of the most important achievements of the democracy
movement. The citizens expressed their desire for a new political system to be
created and they elected their representatives through the 1990 elections.
However, the military regime, the State Peace and Development Council/ State Law
and Order Restoration Council, has refused to honor the results of the 1990
elections and has restricted the parliament from forming a new government of the
winning parties.
2. The military regime refuses to honor the election
results in which more than 82% of the elected seats were secured by
representatives of the National League for Democracy (NLD). The regime has
engaged in endless brutal repression of the winning party, NLD. All of these
negative political aspects have created the country's economic, social, health
and education problems, which have led to the current disaster like
circumstances. Burma has turned out to be one of the worst countries among the
international community.
3. Currently, the military regime has twisted
the national reconciliation process into a political deadlock. They have also
declined to have a meaningful and genuine political dialogue with the NLD.
Instead, the military regime has stepped up suppression by constantly arresting
NLD party members as well as leaders and members of parliament. We need to see
that the regime's secretary one Gen. Khin Nyunt was honest when he assured the
Thai foreign minister that the SPDC would resume political dialogue with Daw
Aung San Suu Kyi. We need to see that it was not meant to be an empty promise.
4. The National League for Democracy's first and foremost aim is to
achieve a democratic Burma. This is why the NLD has the highest aspirations for
the people's parliament. The NLD has also worked hand in hand with other ethnic
national political parties as well as individual parliament members to establish
the Committee for Representatives of People's Parliament (CRPP). At the same
time, this cooperation helps us to better fight to achieve the ultimate goal of
the People's Parliament, which is to create a new democratic Burma.
5.
Therefore, the National League for Democracy (Liberated Area) has been pursuing
the National League for Democracy's policies and principles; to have a genuine
future Democratic Union of Burma, to have a tripartite dialogue with the ethnic
nationalities, to secure national reconciliation under acceptable conditions, to
honor the 1990 election results, to form the people's parliament, and to
continue struggling until we have a genuine democratic Burma.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Asian Tribune
Date :
2003-05-27
Supreme Command of Shan State Army denies any involvement
in the explosions in Tachilek, Burma.
Bangkok, May 27:
Supreme Command of the Shan State Army in a statement, unequivocally denied of
their involvement in the May 21, explosion in the town of Tachilek, in Burma.
They have emphasized, "Tachilek, is a town in Shan State and such explosion
could only hurt the Shan State people. SSA has never and will never act in such
destructive and subversive act to harm the Shan State people, because our duty
is to protect them."
This statement is said to be a rejoinder to the
allegation made by Burmese Military intelligence chief General Kyaw Thein,
implicating Shan State Army as the culprit in the said explosion.
The
Burmese General repeated his claim that Shan State Army rebels, also known as
the Shan United Revolutionary Army (SURA), were behind the attacks, which he
said were carried out with the support of unnamed Thai military and civilian
figures.
In a statement issued by the Supreme Command of the Shan State
Army stated: "In the press conference on 26th May 2003, Burmese Vice-chief of
Military Intelligence Maj-Gen Kyaw Win and the Head of Department of the
Ministry of Defence Brig-Gen Kyaw Thein branded SSA and KNU as terrorist groups.
But they have forgotten of what they have done to their own people. Armed with
sophisticated weapons, the Burmese Army had brutally murdered tens of thousands
of unarmed students and civilians, in several peaceful demonstrations in urban
areas."
The full text of the statement made by the Supreme Command of the
Shan State Army is given below:
SSA has not been involved and is not
responsible for the explosion in the town of Tachilek, on 21st May 2003.
Tachilek is a town in Shan State and such explosion could only hurt the Shan
State people. SSA has never and will never act in such destructive and
subversive act to harm the Shan State people, because our duty is to protect
them.
In the meantime, SSA is optimistic and hopeful of the Thai PM
Thaksin Shinawatra's role as the mediator for the reconciliation. Therefore, SSA
will never start the trouble to spoil this position. Probably, it could be the
work of some groups, who would like to foil this plan. SSA is inquiring to find
the real culprit.
In the press conference on 26th May 2003, Burmese
Vice-chief of Military Intelligence Maj-Gen Kyaw Win and the Head of Department
of the Ministry of Defence Brig-Gen Kyaw Thein branded SSA and KNU as terrorist
groups. But they have forgotten of what they have done to their own
people.
Armed with sophisticated weapons, the Burmese Army had brutally
murdered tens of thousands of unarmed students and civilians, in several
peaceful demonstrations in urban areas.
One could imagine their reigns of
terror in remote areas, where there are no access for international media. In
order to cover their evil acts, the Burmese Generals are trying to put the blame
on others with their usual trick of " Covering an elephant carcass with a goat
skin". The only reason why the generals have always denied to negotiate is that,
they wish to proceed with their ?Reign of Terror.?
--------------------------------------------------------------
Daw Aung San Suu Kyi faced strong harassments at Letpan
Hla nearSinkku
DVB News (2003 May
26)
Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and team who have been rallying people in
Kachin State are now back in Mandalay. During the journey to Mandaly, the team
suffered the worst harassments yet from members of the USDA (Kyant Phut).
On their way from Mogok, Kyappyin to Thapeikkyin, the team were
obstructed and harassed by the USDA members at 7 Mile. The worst was to come at
Letpan Hla, just before they reached Sinkku. The people from villages near
Sinkku were hired to harass them, said the NLD's spokesman, U Lwin as follows:
U Lwin : The problems started at Letpan Hla near Sinkku. The harassments
were done by Kyant Phut in accordance with the news we received earlier.
Originally, one person from each household was forced to take part in the
harassments by their leaders with the orders of respective Kyant Phut leaders.
Some people had to give money. Some people were threatened with 'volunteering'
in road building near Letpan Hla if they didn't join them. Some people had to
pay 500-1000 kyats as contributions. They were people made up of many people
from different backgrounds. On Saturday, they picked up about 300 people as they
thought Daw Aung San Suu Kyi was coming. On Sunday when Daw Aung San Suu Kyi
eventually turned up, they did the same; they collected them ['members' of USDA]
in five cars. They staged the worst demonstrations and harassments there.
At Nweyon Village, the villagers who defied the order of the village
chiefs not to welcome Daw Aung San Suu Kyi were attacked with speeding cars and
the villagers had to run for their lives, continued U Lwin:
U Lwin : The
villagers defied the order of the chiefs not to welcome Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.
Earlier, the chiefs told the villagers that each person would get seven years in
prison if they welcomed her. The villagers were not afraid of the threat. They
defied it and came out welcome her. Five of their cars drove alongside in tandem
the convoy of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, on the left and right. The people who were
welcoming her on the sides of the road, they were not even on the road, had to
run for their lives. If they didn't, they would have to collect their own
corpses. That is very ugly.
At a place, a bunch of USDA members armed
with sticks, machetes and weapons bashed Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's car with bricks
and one NLD youth member was hit on the head with flying stones, said U Lwin:
U Lwin : They still had an original plan to intimidate the team. They
planned to pretend to offer garlands of flowers to Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and bash
her car. What the witnesses saw were - the thugs were carrying sticks, machetes,
catapults and the like. And they prodded the sides of the cars of Daw Aung San
Suu Kyi's convoy with metal rods from the sides from their cars. They also drove
in front of the convoy in a way of obstruction. Then, stones started to rain
down on the cars of the convoy. They had to drive slowly and they bashed Daw
Aung San Suu Kyi's car with bricks. A boy who was in the back of the car for
security was hit and he suffered a bloody gush on the head and a girl was hit by
a catapult pellet. They tried to harm them personally and damage the cars. They
also tried to rob cameras from them. Some cameras were damaged from the
struggles. It was the first time they damaged our cars and equipments and hurt
people physically.
The NLD has reported the authorities concerned
concerning the assaults on the people and the cars of the NLD by the members of
USDA and a statement will be issued on tomorrow's anniversary of the election,
said U Lwin as follows:
U Lwin : We have reported the incident to the
authorities at local level and we have also done that at Rangoon to discuss this
matter. They also reported the incident to Sinkku Police Station for
investigation. We will issue a special statement concerning the matter on the
anniversary of the election. We have planned to do this with the instruction
from Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.
After leaving Mogok, at the entrance of
Thapeikkyin, some people awaited the team with posters and placards in their
hands and slogans issuing from their mouths. But when Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and U
Tin Oo alighted their cars and confronted them with the question, 'Are you
shouting from your heart,' the protesters all fled. Moreover, the cars belonging
Mogok NLD members that escorted Daw Aung San Suu Kyi were stopped by three
Military Intelligence
vehicles at the entrance of Thapeikkyin. Despite the
intensive harassments, the team managed to form NLD youth organisations in
Madaya and Sinkku.
Tomorrow, the team are expected to form youth
organisations at Mandalay Northeast Township and Tada-U Township.
According to the latest news, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and team are now in
Mandalay and she had delivered a public address at 7pm in front of the NLD
Mandalay Division Office - she mainly talked about the harassments of the USDA
(Kyant Phut).
--------------------------------------------------------------
Daw Aung San Suu Kyi given "warm welcome" in
Kyatpyin
DVB News (2003 May 25)
It has been
learned that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and party have departed Kyatpyin near Mogok to
Thabeikkyin and Singu. It is expected that they have reached Singu by now.
Hundreds of thousands of people turned up today to warmly welcome Daw Aung San
Suu Kyi and party in Kyatpyin. Many people also greeted them with local drum
bands along the road as they left Kyatpyin.
Two local residents from
Kyatpyin gave DVB the following account.
A Kyatpyin resident : Daw Aung
San Suu Kyi came here this morning but she has already left. She left about 1100
(local time). She arrived at Kyatpyin Myoma about 0930. People came in over 500
bicycles and about 200 cars. More than 300,000 people welcomed her. That is my
estimate.
Among the welcoming crowd, some unscrupulous persons hired by
the Kyant Phut (vernacular acronym for Union Solidarity and Development
Association) held posters and staged a demonstration. Local residents said that
the demonstrators were not from Kyatpyin but from other villages, hired by the
Kyant Phut and forced to protest. A local resident from Kyatpyin told the
following to DVB.
Another Kyatpyin resident : The people holding the
posters looked like people from the jungle, uncivilized and illiterate. We
believed they were each given 500 kyat to hold the posters such as - We don't
want Aung San Suu Kyi; Axe-handles relying on foreign power; and Leave Mogok as
soon as possible. They numbered about 20. They look ignorant and were lured into
holding the posters. The authorities told them their detained identity cards and
house registration cards will be returned if they hold the posters. They have no
idea what they were doing. We believed they were brought from villages, 70 to 80
miles away from Kyatpyin. A few of them were so illiterate they were holding the
posters upside down. While the majority was shouting, long live Daw Aung San Suu
Kyi, they just kept quiet and protested. Later they discarded the posters on the
roadside and left.
DVB : Did Daw Aung San Suu Kyi say anything about the
harassment caused by the Kyant Phut?
Another Kyatpyin resident : Yes.
She told the people she was very pleased to know that they adopted goodwill and
did not retaliate. She also thanked them for managing the rally well. She did
not say anything to the other side.
After Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and party
departed for Kyatpyin, traffic police staged a surprised roadblock east of Mogok
resulting in some motorists being fined for traffic violation. Daw Aung San Suu
Kyi and party will form a youth group in Singu and will stay overnight there.
Daw Aung San Suu Kyi will proceed to Mandalay tomorrow together with Mandalay
Division Organizing Committee members who will come and fetch her in Singu.
NLD (National League for Democracy) spokesperson U Lwin told DVB that he
is worried for Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and party as he could not communicate with
them and as there are plans by the Kyant Phut members to stage protests along
the way to Mandalay.
U Lwin : We have heard about the plans to protest
so I was worried and was waiting to hear from them. Now that I did not hear
anything, everything seems fine. On the way to Mandalay they had to pass through
three towns and as there were rumours about the protests I was worried.
According to a Mandalay resident, authorities have informed the people
that the famed Mandalay Zaycho Market will be closed from 1500 tomorrow (26 May)
to 0900 the following day for spraying pesticide to prevent SARS (severe acute
respiratory syndrome).
It has been learned that Monywa District Peace
and Development Council chairman has summoned Kyant Phut members from Pale and
Yinmabin Townships to stage protests against Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and party when
they arrive in Monywa. Furthermore, they have prevented the people from
welcoming Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and entourage. Authorities have also ordered
employees not to greet them while monks are advised not to go out during those
days. A resident from Monywa said authorities have especially notified prominent
abbots not to accept Daw Aung San Suu Kyi if she visits them. The resident added
that authorities have been keeping a close eye on responsible NLD officials in
Monywa and homes of NLD members have been frequently raided for inspection of
unregistered guests. (BBC monitoring service )
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Planning to protest Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's Mandalay
visit?
DVB News (2003 May 24)
Daw Aung San Suu
Kyi and party, who left Rangoon on 6 May for a political tour, arrived in Mogok
on 22 May and are believed to be still resting there. A Kyatpyin resident said
the group will go to Kyatpyin in western Mogok tomorrow and is scheduled to meet
with the townspeople.
NLD (National League for Democracy) spokesperson U
Lwin told DVB that they will then depart for Mandalay and visit Thabeikkyin,
Singu, and Madaya on the way. U Lwin said they are expecting disturbances and
harassment in Mandalay, similar to the Kachin State trip, by Kyant Phut
(vernacular acronym for Union Solidarity and Development Association) members
who are already making preparations and recruiting people to protest.
U
Lwin : Protesters are already organizing the people by various means to
demonstrate. On the way to Mandalay the group has to pass through Thabeikkyin,
Singu, and Madaya so the protesters are organizing the people in those places.
Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and party are expected to arrive in Mandalay
tomorrow and plan to organize the NLD youth groups. They will proceed to Monywa
the next day. U Lwin explained the following political activities to be carried
out in Monywa.
U Lwin : They will install the township NLD signboards in
Monywa, Ye-U, Budalin, Taze, and Tabayin. There are some townships which they
will visit although they will not be installing signboards there, such as Ayadaw
and Myinmu. Since they have to cover those cities as well, I think they will
take at least another three days.
Although they received more than
expected success in the Kachin State political tour, U Lwin told DVB that he is
appalled by the unrestricted and freehand activities of the Kyant Phut
organization.
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