(
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(1)
(2) HRP declined overture from Burmese military
(3) Drug fugitive on
(4) Six people, including five Italians, died when
boat sank in Arakan
State
(5) Rough rides for Mongla
residents
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Mizzima News (www.mizzima.com)
Sonny Swe, Burmese partner of a local leading weekly The
Myanmar
Times, has been detained for an alleged national security
reason,
according to sources close to the
Rangoon-based paper.
Mr Sonny, 36, son of detained
Brigadier-General Thein Swe, a close
ally of ousted Prime Minister
General Khin Nyunt, was arrested at
A close friend to Mr Sonny said he
was detained not for the alleged
irregularities of business
operations but for politically-motivated
allegations, adding that the young
businessman might exploit his
father's former political rights to
get himself business interests.
"He seems to have a greater interest in businesses
rather than
political affairs," the close
friend said.
With Mr Sonny arrested already in
notorious Insein prison along with
his younger sister Ma Marlar, the future of the paper has become
regrettably unclear.
However, as hopefully predicted, Mr
Sonny's wife Yamin Htin
Aung has
taken his place as Deputy Chief
Executive Officer, continuing to
timidly run the paper with her
Australian partner CEO Ross Dunkley who
holds a 49 percent of the stakes.
It is obvious that the quality of the paper's news contents
has been
drastically declined during the
past few weeks, which would possibly
be continuing to be so.
An informed observer said the paper was probably closed down
in a few
months unless Ross Dunkley took
bold measures such as developing a new
business partnership.
Among the other measures might be a plan to slash political
contents
and lobby the Ministry of
Information to establish a special deal with
it.
As recently forced by the military authority upon local
publications,
the paper is to cover reports from
military sources, such as those in
relation to popular students'
leader Min Ko Naing, who
was free under
the government's two vacate schemes
carried out late last month.
An informed source close to the paper quoted Ross Dunkley as
saying
that any staff member who was found
to have contacted and talked to
released political dissidents would
be nothing but fired.
Like in many local businesses, almost all the staff members
of
Consolidated Media Co., Ltd., which began running the paper
in
February 2000, are selfishly career-oriented.
"The company's corporate culture has enforced
individualism and
opportunism among all the
employees," criticised most local media
persons.
The 250-staffed paper has a circulation of 25,000 in Burmese
edition
while English edition claims 3000
copies a week.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
HRP declined overture
from Burmese military
=====================================
Independent Mon News Agency
The military government army launched a strong military
operation in
the Hongsarwatoi
Restoration Party (HRP) based area situated inside
and sent overtures to the HRP for a
cease-fire after an HRP
headquarters was captured in
fighting by a Karen National Liberation
Army and Muslin armed group moving in the area, the HRP
chairman said.
“Our man reported to me that seven Burmese military
operations troops
launched a military offensive
against us, and recently the Burmese
troops also sent overtures to our
troops for a cease-fire with the
help of a Thai army officer,” said Nai Pan Nyut, recovering from
wounds.
“Our man replied back that I was not back there and they did
not make
any decision for the cease-fire and
denied meeting the Burmese
military troops commander,” Nai Pan Nyut said, explaining
what his
troop replied to the Burmese army.
“If their is no benefit to Mon people, we do not make
cease-fires and
surrender,” said Nai Pan Nyut, recently able to
walk again, with a
small wound still on his leg.
There is regularl fighting
happening between HRP and Burmese troops.
Some Burmese soldiers died in the battle, Nai Pan Nyut claimed, but
said none of his people were
wounded or died.
The HRP had received overtures by the
Burmese military government
many times, and in February the HRP
denied a cease-fire talk after the
Burmese military government changed the talk place from Thai
territory
to
According to Nai Pan Nyut, the Burmese military surrounded his troops
and headquarters, whose arms
decreased after the capture by KNU and
Muslin armed groups..
The HRP movement also decreased in Southern Mon State and
Northern
Tanesserim (Tanintharyi)
division after HRP troops had military
operations launched strongly by
Burmese troops for a year.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Drug fugitive on
====================================
Bang Ron, on the run from drug charges in
Division's website www.csd.go.th launched Dec. 1.
Bang Ron, whose real name is Surachai
Ngernthongfu, is believed to be
either in
native of
pills were uncovered at his home by
a police raiding party in 1998.
According to a former drug operative, Bang Ron was one of
the Thai
businessmen who introduced the Wa
to yaba technology in the early
1990's, when
Little is known about Bang Ron's whereabouts. He was
reported to have
moved into
narcotic agents believe he left for
bases along the
from
++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Six people, including
five Italians, died when boat sank in Arakan
State
===================================================================
Narinjara News
Akyab, Nov 30: Six people,
including five Italians, died when their
boat sank in
Akyab resident. Included among the deceased were three women and
two
men from
Akyab, the capital of Arakan state.
The Akyab resident said that five
boats were bound for Mrauk Oo,an
ancient Arakan
city, from Akyab (or Sittwe).
Th ree boats suddenly
sank as a result of strong winds
near Pyaday village, five miles west
of Mrauk
Oo. The other two boats escaped the tragic accident.
Other Akyab residents informed Narinjara that local people and fishing
boats rescued a number of travelers
in the water, but six people
disappeared in the heavy waves.
The bodies of the Italian citizens were found in a nearby
river
yesterday, and today the bodies
were brought by plane to
Akyab by Italian authorities.
"We have not received any detailed information from
that area, but
there are rumors that some local
crewmen are still missing. I still
don't know how many people were
missing in the accident," said a hotel
owner from Akyab.
Whenever accidents occur in
real facts. In May, a cyclone
attack in Arakan state left over 1,000
people dead, but the government
claimed that only about 200 people
were killed.
It is believed that this is the first time a foreigner has
died in
Arakan state since
foreigners to visit restricted
areas of Arakan state a few years ago.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Rough rides for Mongla residents
===========================
Life for the majority of Mongla's
ordinary inhabitants is in some ways
pointlessly unpleasant, say sources
coming from the Sino-Burma border
north of Tachilek,
reports Tai Touch from Chiangrai.
"For some reason, they still refuse to issue us
national ID cards,"
said a villager from Mongla, 80 kilometers northeast of Kengtung
and
opposite Daluo
in
leader) has made peace with them
for 16 years."
As a result, locals without IDs are not allowed to cross the
border
into
each to obtain 10-day passes.
"How can they expect us to make a
living?" mourned the source,
who was on a visit to her relative in
Tachilek.
Other sources, particularly those living along the border
between
Mongla and Kengtung,
complained about having to pay both government
and local authorities for
electricity. "Both sides say we have to pay
whether or not we are using
it," said a villager whose home is near
Taping, the bridge on the Namlwe
that divides Sai Leun's
controlled
territory, officially labeled
Special Region #4, from the Burmese
government's.
The government charges 500 kyat ($0.50) per household per
month, while
the local authorities levy 50 yuan ($6.25).
"The only good thing we can say," another said,
"is at least there is
no war."
Sai Leun,
leader of Special Region #4, fought the military government
in
=======================================================================
Burma News International is a network of nine exiled media
groups
such as Mizzima
News, Shan Herald Agency for News, Kao Wao News Group,
Khonumthung News Group, Narinjara News, Kaladan Press
Network,
Independent Mon News Agency, Karenni Information
Network Group and Network Media Group.
.........................
Contact: Duty Editor
+66 9 54 94 296