Burma News International

Date: March 24, 2005

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

(1) Not a few for engagement at dissident forum

(2) Shan army fights on two fronts

(3) Four-Nation Economic Forum Unborn for Lack of New Delhi Support

(4) 100,000 metric tons of fertilizer smuggled into Burma from Bangladesh this year

(5) Indo-Burma to check AIDS along porous border

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Not a few for engagement at dissident forum

S.H.A.N

24 March 2005

Almost half of the 75 activists, the majority of whom were younger

people, had vouched for taking part in the junta-engineered roadmap

rather than throwing a blanket opposition against it, reported one of

the organizers of a two-day workshop in Chiangmai that ended

yesterday.

45% of the participants of US-based Burma Fund's Workshop on Social

and Political Movements: Lessons for Burma thought a lot could be done

by casting votes against the military-written charter at the

referendum (the 4th stage of the roadmap) and joining in the general

elections (the 5th stage) rather than cold shouldering them, noted Win

Min. "The referendum and the elections are the only phases (in the 7-

point roadmap) where there are direct popular participation and the

military will not be able to orchestrate to perfection," Thein Oo of

Burma Lawyers Council also pointed out.

"Our (federal) proposals have been jilted," a Kachin participant

quoted a National Convention delegate. "The referendum is the only

field where we can beat the junta at its own game."

Others are not so quite as cocksure. "The regime will cheat, because

it knows fully well it cannot win without resort to cheating," said Bo

Bo Kyaw Nyein, son of one of Burma's most well-known late politicians

and himself a 1974 - U Thant funeral riots veteran.

Others also argued that the sole aim of Burma's military rulers in

holding a referendum and elections are to legalize its hold on power,

not to lose it. "Former Foreign Minister Ohn Gyaw, just before he was

sacked, was reported to have said the USDA (Union Solidarity and

Development Association, mass organization set up by Rangoon in 1993)

was its passport to remaining in power," recounted another

participant.

The workshop also discussed mass uprisings and other issues that

included whether the National League for Democracy, that had won

landslide victory in the 1990 elections, should enter the next polls

where the country is expected to remain under the rule of the minority

(the military has already earmarked 25% of the parliamentary seats

without putting itself to the ballot) even when another runaway

election victory awaits the party.

Rangoon authorities are currently going through the roadmap's first

stage: Holding a national convention to lay down constitutional

principles. But some dissidents say it has already gone on to the

second stage" Taking necessary steps to establish a discipline-

flourishing democracy by arresting Shan politicians last month. The

formal drafting of the charter has been designated as the next stage,

but many critics believe the generals already have a blueprint for it.

++++

Shan army fights on two fronts

S.H.A.N

March 23, 2005

The Shan State Army "South" of Colonel Yawdserk now faces two

adversaries, first the Burma Army and now the 171st Military Region

led by Wei Hsuehkang of the United Wa State Army, according to rebel

and civilian sources:

The SSA had two clashes, its fourth and fifth, with the 171st opposite

Maehongson's Pang Mapha district yesterday: one across from the

village of Mailan, Mae Lana tract, and another at Kawng Teevee further

north. Details are still unavailable.

Meanwhile, sources coming from Shan State report engagements with the

Burma Army in Mongyawng, a township on the Mekong, on March 1 that

left more than 10 casualties on the Burma Army's side. As a result,

the Burmese authorities have levied a "donation" of 300 kyat (US$0.3)

per household to make up for the losses, local people said.

The SSA's Loi Kawwan-based Kengtung Front is active in the area.

Also, in early February, an ambush by a unit of the SSA's 198th

Brigade at Sanien, west of Panglong, 53 miles east of Taunggyi,

inflicted heavy casualties on the Burma Army's Mongpan-based Infantry

Batttalion 294. "I saw many women and children crying at Wan Htam (the

Battalion post) over the loss of their husbands and fathers on my way

here, said a trader from Mongpan.

Reports by the civilians were later confirmed by the SSA. However no

official bulletins on the events were posted.

"The SSA has , for more than a year, been unusually silent about its

activities," said one of Thailand's top Burma watchers on the

border. "It may be trying to please Prime Minister Thaksin's Thai Rak

Thai government, but the policy of silence is definitely not working

to its advantage."

The SSA has since 1998 produced Lawd Liao (Freedom), a quadrilingual

(Shan, Burmese, Thai and English) publication. Its next to last

edition came out in June 2003 and its last in February 2004.

++++

Four-Nation Economic Forum Unborn for Lack of New Delhi Support

Kaladan News Network

Chittagong, March 22: The Kunming initiative to form an economic forum

with Bangladesh, China, India and Burma (BCIB) has fallen flat due to

lack of New Delhi support, Chinese Ambassador to Bangladesh Chai Xi

said March 20 at a roundtable meeting in Dhaka.

The initiative is named after Kunming, a Chinese city where the first

meeting was held in 1999. Though it was taken by non-governmental

bodies, the Kunming initiative was expected to result in an inter-

governmental organization.

"The Kunming initiative was supposed to emerge as a new economic forum

named BCIB in the region. But India did not gear up itself accordingly

in the last meeting of the initiative," the Chinese envoy said,

responding to a question at a roundtable in the city.

The Bangladesh Institute of Law and International Affairs (Bilia)

organized the meeting at its Dhanmondi office.

Xi said a total of five preparatory meetings were held under the

initiative, but the forum could not be formed because India was not

ready for it.

According to sources, after Kunming in 1999, three meetings were held,

in Delhi, Dhaka and Rangoon, in preparation for the quadripartite

BCIB. The fifth meeting took place in Kunming last August.

In that last meeting, delegations from Bangladesh, China and Burma

were very eager to transform the initiative into a permanent body, but

the position of India was lukewarm, said a Bangladeshi researcher who

participated in the meeting.

A high official of the Indian High Commission in Dhaka who took part

in the roundtable said he was not aware of India's position in this

regard, as he was not present at the latest meeting under the

initiative.

++++

100,000 metric tons of fertilizer smuggled into Burma from Bangladesh this year

Narinjara News

Dhaka, March 23

100,000 metric tons of Bangladeshi-made fertilizers were smuggled to

Burma from Bangladesh by local smuggling syndicates within the last

two-and-a-half months, the Bangali-lqnguage newspaper, The Jugantor,

reported March 16.

Bangladesh farmers are now suffering from shortages of fertilizer

because of the mass amounts smuggled from their country this last year.

According to sources, the fertilizer smuggling to Burma is done by

waterway and a number of Bangladeshi fertilizer agents are involved in

the smuggling business.

The Bangladeshi government now has instructions from the Bangladesh

Embassy in Rangoon to discuss the situation with the concerned

authority of Burma to facilitate the end of the fertilizer being

smuggled into Burma from Bangladesh.

On 14 March, Bangladesh local administers complained to the Home,

Commerce and Foreign ministries about recent smuggling to Burma and

the subsequent shortage of fertilizer in the country, the report said.

This year the agriculture ministry of Bangladesh has collected 2.6

million metric tons of fertilizer for domestic demand but .3 million

metric tons of fertilizers were imported from abroad.

In Bangladesh, the cost of production for one ton of fertilizer is

5,500 taka, but the Bangladesh government sells one ton of fertilizer

to farmers at a retail price of  4,800 taka. Furthermore, Bangladesh

is forced to import foreign fertilizer for 20,000 taka, but the

government sells one ton of fertilizer to farmers for only 4,800 taka.

The smugglers use the opportunity of fertilizer being sold at reduced

prices by the government to smuggle them into Burma and get a triple

profit.

One bag of fertilizer is sold to farmers by the government for only

250-300 taka (about 3,750 kyat) in Bangladesh, where that bag of

fertilizer in Burma is currently worth about 10,000 Burmese kyat.

In the last two months, the Bangladesh Navy, while patrolling in

Bangladesh waters, has seized 13,300 bags of fertilizers, worth 160

million taka, and 32 smugglers were arrested, the report said.

++++

Indo-Burma to check AIDS along porous border

Surajit Khaund/Mizzima News

March 20, 2005

Under the aegis of the World Health Organization, India and Burma

would jointly fight against the dreaded AIDS/HIV which has posed a

serious threat to the people of both the countries over the years.

The one day meeting of the two countries represented by Dr G

Binodkumar Sharma, Director of Manipur AIDS Control Organization

(MACS) running under the National AIDS Control Organization (NACO) and

Chairman of the District peace and Development Council, Tamu

(Myanmar), Lt Colonel Win Soe  which concluded in Tamu bordering area

of Burma on Saturday , had decided to organize a series of AIDS

awareness programs in north western Burma including Tamu town and

Namphalong markets bordering Moreh, India's gateway to the South East

Asian countries from the next week.

Dr G Binodkumar Sharma who led the Indian delegation told the newsmen

today that members of both the countries had agreed to initiate a

conceptive effort to fight against the AIDS. The Indian delegates

included World Health Organization Consultant A Ibochou Singh,

District Immunization Officer, Moreh, Dr N Shyamsai, All Manipur NGOs

Forum general Secretary Y Surchandra Singh and Indian Immigrant

Officer, Moreh K Tomba Singh.

The campaigns are being taken up in the backdrop of taking cognizance

of the perpetual threat posed by the porous Indo-Burma border

regarding transmission of HIV/AIDS infection. The Government of India

has acknowledged the fact that the various HIV/AIDS awareness

campaigns have not yielded the desired results because of the porous

border which has made drug trafficking all that easier.

Taking this fact into account, the Centre has started the initiative

to consult the Burma's authorities for launching joint control

programs with especial emphasis at the border areas on either side.

Even though HIV/AIDS awareness campaigns are being launched on a war

footing in Manipur, such programs are non-existent on the other side

of the border and this has negated the effort and activities of the

Government and NGOs alike.

AIDS/HIV posed grave threats to  Manipur . By the end of October,

2004, a total of 18,853 HIV cases including 3,358 females and 1701

AIDS cases including 462 resultant deaths were reported out of 94,639

blood samples screened.

The safe sex campaigns are urgently needed on both sides of the border

to check rapid spread of HIV/AIDS. In fact, National AIDS Control

Organization (NACO) had pointed out to the Centre the necessity to

begin the joint control program at the earliest and as a result an

official team of Manipur AIDS Control Society (MACS) recently visited

Moreh to chalk out future program with Burmese officials to prepare

itineraries for an official level consultation at the top level

between the two countries.

The latest effort is due to reports placing Ukhrul at the top of the

HIV/AIDS chart. One of the reasons cited for the situation in Ukhrul

is its close proximity to Myanmar making this district the ideal

transit point for heroin smuggling.

***End***

......................................................................

Burma News International is a network of nine 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.

WWW.BNIONLINE.NET

.........................

Burma News International

Contact: Duty Editor

       +66 9 54 94 296

[email protected]