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BurmaNet News: October 24, 1994





************************** BurmaNet ************************** 
"Appropriate Information Technologies, Practical Strategies"
************************************************************** 
BurmaNet News: Monday, October 24, 1994
Issue #41

************************************************************** 
Contents:

NATION: UN DRUG CONTROL ACTIVITIES IN SOUTHEAST ASIA
JIR: THE BURMESE AIR FORCE
MANAGER: RANGOON REBORN
MANAGER: UNCHANGED RANGOON
MANAGER: VOICE OF DISSENT
MANAGER: TEAK TREASURES
SCB: "LETTER TO INDIAN GOVERNMENT" 
SCB: "NEED DOCUMENTS FOR BURMA HOMEPAGE" 
BURMANET: RADIO BURMA

************************************************************** 

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NATION: UN DRUG CONTROL ACTIVITIES IN SOUTHEAST ASIA

24 Oct 1994

SOUTHEAST Asia is one of the regions most seriously affected by the
illicit drug problem.  It has the world's major opium and heroin
producing area known as "The Golden Triangle" on the border of
Thailand, Myanmar and China and also the starting point of major
trafficking routes.  

The producing of drugs in the region not only feeds illicit markets
around the world, but has contributed to a serious increase in drug
abuse among the people of the region.  Young people of the more
disadvantaged groups of society, including ethnic minorities and
the unemployed, are at the highest risk and injecting drug user and
their partners are highly vulnerable to HIV/AIDS.  The United
Nation International Drug Control Programme(UNDCP) was created in
1991 by merging three UN drug organs to intensify international
drug control efforts.  UNDCP assists governments financially and
technically in their effort: -to reduce the demand for drugs,
through treatment, rehabilitation and social reintegration of drug
addicts; -to reduce the illicit supply of narcotic drugs and
psychotropic substance; -to suppress illicit manufacture and
trafficking of drug; -and to regulate the international licit drug
market.  UNDCP is strengthening its operation capacity through its
Regional Centre in Bangkok which covers Southeast Asia and China,
and through Country Offices in Myanmar and Laos (and in Vietnam in
the near feature).  

In Thailand, UNDCP (formerly UNFDAC) has for the last two decades
supported the Government's efforts to reduce opium production in
the northern highlands, which has resulted in significant reducing
nationwide, from 150 tons in early 1970s to about 12 tons in
1993/1994.  The UN supported integrated social and economic
development projects have also contributed significant to the
improvement of the overall living conditions of hilltribe
villagers, through introduction of viable cash replacement crops,
improved water supply and sanitation systems, and development of
local educational facilities.  

UNDCP has been placing has been placing high priority on the
development of collaborative joint drug control activities among
the Government of the Golden Triangle area to deal with drug
production, trafficking and abuse problems.  China, Myanmar and
Thailand signed agreement tin June 1992 for cooperation in drug
control on the border areas between Myanmar/China and
Myanmar/Thailand.  Subsequently opium control rural development
project activities have been initiated with UNDCP support in
Myanmar, in the Southern Shan State and in the East Kengtung
region, as well as joint anti-trafficking and drug abuse prevention
activities in the border areas.  In Oct 1993, Laos joined the three
Government and UNDCP in signing a Memorandum of Understanding in
New York demonstrating a willingness to collaborate closely in
addressing drug control problems.  Representative of the four
countries and UNDCP met in Vientiane in June this year to discuss
appropriate drug control strategies.  This collaborate framework is
being expanded in the near future to include Cambodia and possibly
Vietnam.  

************************************************************** 
JIR: THE BURMESE AIR FORCE 
Jane's Intelligence Review 
October 1994 
by William Ashton

[Photo captions: 

     #1: In May 1991, China provided Burma with two FT-7
     twin-seated trainer aircraft such as the type shown here.  Two
     years later, another two FT-7 aircraft were delivered.  

     #2 An Upgraded export version of the Chinese Q-5 'Fantan', the
     A-5M, may have been sent to Burma this year.  

     #3: The Y-8 is a multi-purpose transport aircraft with a
     maximum range of 5615 km.  Two Y-8D aircraft were delivered to
     Burma in September 1993 and two more are on order.  

     #4: Six G4 Super Galebs were delivered to Burma in early 1991
     and a second batch of six were probably halted because of the
     conflict with Yugoslavia.  ]

     [Map of Burma showing airstrips at Myitkyina, Bhamo, Lashio,
     Kengtung, Namsang, Mandalay, Taunggyi, Meiktila, Magwe,
     Sittwe, Toungoo, Sandoway, Rangoon, Mingaladon, Moulmein,
     Tavoy and Mergui.  ]

Introduction

Whenever the Burmese Armed Forces (the 'Tatmadaw') are mentioned,
it is usually the Burmese Army which springs to mind.  This is
hardly surprising.  With about 265,000 men and women now in
uniform, the army is by far the largest service.  It has played the
most prominent part in Rangoon's struggle against the 20 or more
insurgent groups which have challenged central rule since Burma
(Myanmar) received independence in 1948.  It has always received
the lion's share of the Burmese defence budget.  Moreover, since
General Ne Win's military coup in 1962, the army has effectively
dominated all political processes in the country.  This role was
reinforced in 1988 by the creation of the State Law and Order
Restoration Council (SLORC) which consists almost entirely of army
officers.  (See also JIR, Vol 5, No 10, pp 466-471.  )

Over the past few years, however, the Burmese Air Force (BAF or
"Tatmadaw Lei') has increasingly claimed a share of international
attention.  This has primarily been due to its acquisition of
several new kinds of aircraft, and thus its potential for
significantly increased operational capabilities.  

Background

Since its inception in 1948, the BAF's primary mission has been to
provide transport and close combat support for the army in its
counter-insurgency operations.  Although poorly equipped (mainly
with modified DHC-1 Chipmunk trainers and Airspeed Oxford
transports) the BAF played an important role in the years
immediately following independence, as the 'Tatmadaw' fought to
keep the fledgling Union government from being overrun by ethnic ,
communist and other insurgent groups.  The BAF's unchallenged
command of the air repeatedly enabled Rangoon to break up rebel
concentrations and resupply its own forces which, at one stage,
were confined to main population centres.  During the late 1950s
and early 1960s, the BAF was also called upon to defend Burmese air
space against foreign incursions, as both Communist and Nationalist
China carried their struggle into northern Burma.  Later, the BAF's
role expanded to include the monitoring of opium poppy production,
spraying poppy fields with defoliants, and the identification of
heroin refining centres.  

Before 1988, Burma's strictly neutral foreign policy and severe
economic problems placed significant limits on the development of
the BAF's operational capabilities.  It benefitted from British
assistance in the 1950s, and the USA gave some help in the 1960s
and 1970s.  Generally speaking, however, military aid was firmly
resisted.  Thus, the BAF was forced to rely on comparatively
obsolete equipment, often purchased second-hand.  

For many years, Douglas C-47 Dakotas were the mainstay of the BAF's
transport arm.  In 1978, however, Burma acquired five second-hand
Fairchild-Hiller FH-227 (licence-built Fokker F27) turboprop
aircraft for transport duties; they replaced the BAF's few
remaining C-47s.  The aircraft were adapted for military purposes
by the addition of a side cargo-door.  Another F27 was bought for
staff transport.  There were also plans to acquire a number of
Lockheed C-130 Hercules transports but they were abandoned in 1982,
probably because of cost.  In any case, Burma Airways operated a
fleet of Fokker F27 Friendship and F28 Fellowship passenger planes
which could be used to supplement military lift capabilities. 
There has never been any clear distinction between civilian and
military aircraft in Burma and, during major counter-insurgency
campaigns, all aircraft in the country have been considered
available for troop transport and medical evacuation, as required. 


The BAF has also maintained a small helicopter fleet for transport
and observation duties.  During the 1970s and 1980s, for example,
the BAF operated 14 Aeropspatiale SA.  316 Alouettes but hardly six
are now airworthy.  The USA provided Burma with 12 Kaman HH-43B
Huskies but again few, if any, of them are still flying.  In 1975,
18 Bell 205 Iroquois were donated to Burma by the USA for
anti-drugs patrols but, by the early 1980s, they had all been fully
integrated into the BAF for military uses.  Over the years,
accidents and ground fire have reduced the number of aircraft still
serviceable to about 11.  The BAF also operates about six Bell 206
Jet Rangers.  A range of light aircraft has provided the BAF with
liaison and transport capabilities, a role which is now performed
mainly by Pilatus PC-6 Turbo-Porters and Cessna 180s.  

The same economic problems which have hindered the modernization of
the BAF's inventory have also contributed to serious maintenance
and servicing problems.  The lack of spare parts, in particular,
has led to a high ratio of unserviceable aircraft.  It has also
been suggested that the shortage of spare parts and aviation fuel
forced the sale of BAF's SF260s and the retirement of its fleet of
10 Kawasaki-Bell 47G helicopters, provided to Burma as part of
Japanese war reparations.  Like other selections of Burmese
society, however, the BAF has become expert at improvisation and
adaptation, as seen, for example, in the transformation of its PC-7
and PC-9 trainers into light ground attack aircraft.  They have
been equipped with bomb racks, air-to-ground rockets and (at least
the PC-9s) with podded light machine guns.  It was apparently
confusion over the combat role of these aircraft which in 1991 led
an Australian company to export repaired Pilatus engine parts to
Burma, despite the Australian Government's ban on arms sales to the
SLORC.  

Developments Post-1988

Since September 1988, when Ne Win and the armed forces reasserted
their political power, the SLORC has embarked on a massive arms
purchasing campaign.  It has taken advantage of special
'friendship' deals, used profits from the sale of overseas
property, made barter arrangements, and drawn on pre-contract
bonuses paid by foreign companies wishing to exploit Burma' rich
natural resources.  Through such means, the military regime has
been able to place orders for a wide range of arms and equipment
from China, the former Yugoslavia and Poland, Pakistan, Singapore,
the former Soviet Union and Israel have also been mentioned as arms
suppliers.  Details of specific orders and actual deliveries are
difficult to obtain, but, from the information available, it would
appear that a surprisingly large proportion of the new acquisitions
has gone to the BAF.  

In May 1991, China provided Burma with 10 'Chengdu' F-7 Airguard
fighters and two FT-7 twin seat trainer aircraft, under a massive
arms deal negotiated between Rangoon and Beijing.  In May 1993,
another squadron of 10 F-7s and two FT-7 aircraft were delivered. 
According to reliable reports, a third squadron of these aircraft
types will be delivered before the end of 1994.  As a derivative of
the MiG-21 'Fishbed', the F-7 is based on fighter designs but it
can be fitted with rocket pods and converted into a suitable ground
attack aircraft.  An upgraded, export version of the NAMC Q-5
'Fantan', the A-5M, is even better suited to counter-insurgency
operations.  A number were due to be delivered in mid-1994.  

The Chinese have not forgotten the BAF's transportation arm.  In
late 1991, it was reported that a delegation from the SLORC
visiting Beijing to discuss the possible purchase of three aircraft
types: the SAC Y-8 general purpose medium-range transport; the
'Harbin' Y-12 STOL unity aircraft; and the 'Changhe' Z-8D aircraft
were delivered to Burma in September 1993 and two more are on
order.  No other firm orders have yet been revealed, although in
January 1993 a regional defence journal stated that China may
supply the SLORC with up to six 'Harbin' Y-12s and the same number
of another turboprop transport aircraft, passably the 'Xian' Y-7. 
The SLORC's earlier interest in the Z-8 helicopter was not
mentioned.  The same journal also stated that Burma had ordered an
unspecified number of NAMC/PAK K-8 'Karakorum' jet trainers; these
are produced jointly by China and Pakistan.  The details in this
report, however, have yet to be confirmed.  

While the SLORC has looked first to China to satisfy the BAF's
needs, it has not ignored other suppliers further afield.  In
August 1990, for example, the SLORC ordered some 20 SOKO G-4 Super
Galebs (Seagulls) from Yugoslavia, probably under a barter deal
involving the supply of Burmese timber.  These aircraft are
designed to operate as both jet trainers and light ground attack
aircraft.  Six Galebs were delivered to Burma in early 1991 and
have already seen action against insurgents and drugs traffickers. 
A second batch of six were due to be delivered in early 1992 but
none has yet appeared.  Given recent events in the former
Yugoslavia, the remainder of the order may never be filled.  (The
SOKO factory in Mostar was abandoned in May 1992 with a number of
airframes unfinished.)

Despite reports in the news that President Lech Walesa attempted to
halt arms sales to Burma because of concerns over its poor human
rights record, the SLORC has managed to obtain up to 20 PZL
'Swidnik' Mi-2 "Hoplite' helicopters from Poland.  While a
relatively old design, one version of this aircraft still makes an
effective gunship and there are reliable reports that all the
Burmese Mi-2s have been armed to perform this role.  In July 1993,
the BAF also took delivery of some 12 PXL 'Swidnik' W-3 'Sokol'
(Falcon) multi-purpose helicopters.  In one configuration, these
aircraft can carry 12 passengers but they can also be armed and
operated as highly effective gunships.  It is believed that the
Burmese Falcons are currently being used for transport purposes.  

When it first became clear that the SLORC was looking to upgrade
its air force, the Soviet Union quickly took steps to try and cash
in on this sales bonanza.  In mid-1991, for example, the Soviet
Embassy in Rangoon approached the military regime with an offer to
provide Mi-8 'Hip' and Mi-17 "Hip-H' helicopters, all on
low-interest, easy-payment terms.  Both the Mi-8s and Mi-17s are
essentially medium-lift transport helicopters but they can also be
used for medical evacuation and (fitted with external stores)
employed in an assault role.  

There have also been reports that the SLORC was offered a number of
Soviet combat aircraft.  In this testimony before a subcommittee of
the House Armed Services Committee in March 1991, for example, the
US Director of Naval Intelligence, Rear Admiral Thomas Brooks,
stated that a number of Sukhoi Su-7/17 'Fitter' aircraft had been
exported to Burma the previous year.  Given the relative
sophistication of the latest version of the 'Fitter', this seems
unlikely.  If the US report is true, however, then this multi-role
fighter-bomber would make a major addition to the BAF's ground
attack capabilities.  Unfortunately, no details of the sale were
ever given to Congress, nor have there been any confirmed 'Fitter'
sightings in Burma to date.  One Bangkok newspaper also reported a
Soviet offer of the Su-26 but this seems to be an error.  If any
such approach was made, it is more likely that the offer was of the
Su-25 'Frogfoot' ground attack aircraft, which performed well
against the 'mojahideen' in Afghanistan.  

In addition to combat aircraft, the Soviet Union also tried to sell
the SLORC some transport aircraft.  A Soviet delegation visiting
from Aviaeksport in May 1991 apparently offered the Burmese some
Tu-154 'Careless' medium-range transports.  Moreover, during a
later approach, the Soviet Embassy offered to sell the SLORC
several An-32 'Cline' short-to-medium range transports.  These
aircraft were portrayed largely as replacements for Burma Airway's
ageing Fokker F-27 Friendships.  No firm sales of Soviet
transports, however, have been reported.  

Generally speaking, it appears that the SLORC has decided to steer
well away from Soviet (and now Russian) aircraft in favour of
Chinese models.  the SLORC may still look for other sources of
supply but, on grounds of both broad foreign policy and the
reliability of continuing technical support, it seem likely that
China will remain the supplier most favoured by the SLORC for some
time.  

In addition, the BAF has also taken delivery of a number of new air
defence radars and a quantity of munitions, all from China.  The
radars are believed to be JLP-40 tactical air defence and
surveillance radars, and JLG-43 height-finding radars; these can
all operate together.  This development should mark a major advance
in the BAF's capabilities, as Burma's current radar equipment is
obsolete and believed to be of poor resolution.  the radar coverage
is limited and there is little modern ground control.  The
munitions provided by China reportedly include one thousand 100 kg
Type 2 GP HE gravity bombs, as well as a number of manportable,
shoulder-launched HN-5A surface-to-air missiles (SAMs).  The latter
have a heat-seeking guidance system, like the SA-7 on which they
are based.  The HN-5As are the first guided missiles to be
introduced into the 'Tatmadaw's arsenal.  

BAF Organization and Infrastructure

The headquarters of the BAF is located in the Ministry of Defence
in Rangoon.  The commander-in-chief (air) is Lieutenant General
Thein Win; he is also minister of transport in the ruling SLORC. 
The BAF is responsible for its own administration and training but
is closely integrated with the army for operations.  It is still
largely organized along British lines, with designated training,
combat, transport and radar units.  In some areas, however, the
formal structure exists only on paper and many units are under
strength.  In recent years, the BAF establishment has been 9000, up
from about 7500 in the mid-1980s, but this is expected to increase
further in order to manage the larger number of aircraft and
aircraft types which are being introduced into service.  No
aircraft are operated by any other branch of the Burmese armed
forces.  

Since the 1962 coup, almost all air-related training has been
carried out in Burma by the BAF itself, mainly at Meiktila.  The
purchase of new and more advanced aircraft types, however, has
necessitated the training of both pilots and ground crew overseas,
mainly in the former Yugoslavia and China.  In addition, and in a
major departure from past Burmese policy, several instructors are
now based in Burma to assist with the introduction of the new
machines.  

The main BAF operational base is at Mingaladon.  This is also
Burma's only international civil airport.  It is, in addition, the
site of the BAF's principal supply, maintenance and repair
facilities.  It also houses various administrative and security
units.  the second largest air base is at Meiktila, south of
Mandalay and closer to the BAF's main areas of operation.  It is
also home to the BAF's specialist training facilities, including
its Administrative Training School, Technical Training School,
Electronic Training School and Advanced Pilot Training School.  

Other BAF units are based at Hmawbi near Rangoon, Myitkyina in the
far north of the country, Shante near Meiktila, and at Moulmein in
the southeast.  New BAF bases are reportedly being constructed at
Toungoo and Namsang, probably to take the Super Galebs and some of
the new Chinese F-7s and A-5Ms.  Depending on the kind of aircraft
operating, and the state of the facilities at each location, the
BAF also uses the civil airfields scattered around the country. 
These include strips at Moulmein, Tavoy, Mergui and Magwe in the
south, Mandalay in central Burma; Kengtung, Lashio, Bhamo and
Taunggyi in the north; and Sittwe and Sandoway in the west.  it is
expected that most of these facilities will gradually be upgraded
as part of an extensive programme to provide the BAF with greater
range and flexibility in addition to radar facilities.  It is
believed that the BAF operates a relatively crude electronic
warfare capability, with units dispersed mainly around the
country's periphery.  

Until recently, the greatest threat to BAF aircraft was from
equipment failure (usually because of age or poor maintenance) or
pilot error.  Several BAF aircraft have been shot down by ground
fire over the past few decades, however, and there have recently
been reports in the Thai press that at least one rebel group as
managed to acquire a number of SA-7s.  If these reports are true,
then the threat to BAF aircraft from hostile forces in Burma would
be significantly increased.  Helicopters and light aircraft would
be particularly vulnerable.  

Assessment

None of the aircraft types ordered or received by the SLORC since
1988 is state-of-the-art.  Nor do any compare very favourably with
the with the air forces of Burma's main neighbours.  They have the
benefit, however, of being tested models with proven records and
are at a level of technical sophistication appropriate to Burma
developing capabilities for maintenance and repair.  On paper at
least, they significantly enhance BAF's combat capabilities.  They
are more powerful, more versatile and able to operate more
effectively and for longer periods than aircraft in Burma's
inventory before 1988.  Also, despite occasional tensions with
Thailand, India and even Bangladesh in recent years, there is
little likelihood that the BAF's new acquisitions will be employed
against an external power.  There has been a significant reduction
in rebel activity since 1989 but, nonetheless, counter-insurgency
will remain the BAF's primary mission for the foreseeable future. 
There are still some serious problems for the BAF to overcome,
however, and it remains to be seen how effectively its new
equipment will be absorbed and operated.  

Clearly, the purchase of new and technically more advanced weapons
platforms and weapons systems does not translate immediately into
improved military capabilities.  The acquisition of new equipment
needs to be based on a balanced and coherent strategic plan,
something which the Burmese leadership has not been noted in the
past.  There will also be problems integrating these new systems
into existing inventories and learning how to operate them
together.  Most will depend for their full effectiveness on
improved command control, communications and intelligence
resources.  New doctrines and operating procedures will need to be
developed.  Even with Chinese help, these difficulties willing to
be overcome quickly.  Casualties can be expected and, indeed, there
have been suggestions that a number of the new aircraft have
already crashed.  

In particular, much will depend on greatly improved training,
logistics and maintenance procedures.  The purchase of such a
diverse range of aircraft from so many different suppliers seems
bound to cause real headaches for the BAF.  There will be a
continuing requirement, for example, for a wide range of training,
both for pilots and ground crew, in Burma and overseas.  Also, the
BAF will have to maintain an extensive range of maintenance skills
and spare parts.  Given its very poor record to date, this will
pose a real challenge, even if the necessary foreign exchange can
be found.  The closure of the SOKO factory in former Yugoslavia
raises questions about the replacement spares for the Super Galebs. 
In addition the SLORC may have to contend with a continuing ban on
arms sales to Burma from some important suppliers, in protest over
the SLORC's continued abuse of human rights.  The Super Galebs, for
example, are powered by Rolls-Royce engines, parts for which may
remain embargoed by the UK for some time.  

There is another complication for the SLORC.  Although the BAF has
played a relatively minor role in Burma's internal political
upheavals over the past 35 years, it has not escaped public
criticism.  As a part of the 'Tatmadaw', it has been associated
with Ne Win's Revolutionary Council (1962), the regime's tame Burma
Socialist Programme Party (which formally assumed power in 1974)
and the more recent SLORC.  Also, BAF personnel have been used to
support the army and police during times of serious civil unrest,
as in the case of the U Thant riots in Rangoon in 1974.  Although
it has not been directly involved in the periodic killings of
protesters in Burma's main population centres, the BAF's role in
bombing rebel camps and settlements during the 'Tatmadaw's
long-running counter-insurgency campaigns has drawn bitter
denunciations from insurgents and local villagers alike.  The BAF
has also borne the brunt of international criticism over the
spraying of ethnic minority villages with the toxic defoliant 2m4-D
(an ingredient in Agent Orange) in the mid-1980s.  

These criticisms are not new but they can have real, practical
effects.  The BAF has traditionally attracted many of the
'Tatmadaw's better educated recruits.  The technical complexity of
both flying and maintaining the BAF's aircraft has required skills
which are in short supply in Burma.  After the SLORC crushed the
pro-democracy demonstrations in 1988, however, there has been a
marked increase in the emigration of its intelligentsia, including
many tertiary and technical students.  Of those who remain, few
seem happy to contemplate a military career.  Even with the lure of
an eventual transfer to Burma's civil airline, with it attendant
privileges and black market opportunities, the BAF must be asking
itself whether or not it can attract sufficient qualified recruits
to keep all its new aircraft flying.  

Conclusions

Over the past six years, the SLORC has made a concerted effort to
upgrade the BAF from a small, poorly equipped and relatively
ineffectual service plagued by accidents and unserviceable
aircraft, into a much more powerful force.  The BAF will soon boast
three new squadrons of fighter aircraft and three new squadrons of
modern ground strike and counter-insurgency aircraft.  It will also
have a much enhanced potential for helicopter attack and transport
lift.  Its new and upgraded airfields should add flexibility and
reach to BAF operations.  

These developments, however, will not translate into improved
military capabilities unless the SLORC also underpins its ambitious
acquisition programme with a major effort to improve the direction,
operation and maintenance of its new aircraft.  A greater priority
will also need to be given to recruitment, training and the
development of better ground facilities.  Failure to do this will
simply become expensive new liabilities.  

--William Ashton is a freelance journalist living in Australia.  

************************************************************** 
MANAGER: RANGOON REBORN 
October 1984 
BY JAMES ECKARDT

[Manager is a Bangkok-based business magazine] 

SOMETHING is happening in Rangoon almost unheard of only 18 month
ago: new construction.  

Hotels, restaurants, condominiums, supermarkets, office complex and
apartment buildings are springing up all over the capital.  Some
176 licensed guesthouses occupy refurbished villas and townhouses. 
Seventeen large hotels are under construction, with total
investment of US$ 561m from Singapore (six
projects),Thailand(six),Malaysia(two), Hong Kong (two) and
Japan(one).  

If not exactly a Bangkok-style building boom-a single tower crane
pokes into the skyline above the 16-story Theingyi Market complex
- the busy construction sites do herald a new era for one of Asia's
last undeveloped cities.  

The construction upswing is just the latest chapter in Rangoon's
up-and-down history.  Although its Sule and Shwedagon pagodas date
back two millennia, "Dagon" was a sleepy riverside village until
1755, when Burmese King Alaungpaya drove the Mons from Lower Burma
and renamed the town "Yangon"(end of strife).  For almost a hundred
years, Yangon served as the kingdom's ocean port.  With the
outbreak of the Second Anglo-Burmese War in 1852, the Burmese
leveled the original riverfront town to clear a field of free from
their fortified pagodas.  After victory in a fierce battle, the
British were faced with the task of building a whole new city, the
named of which was now anglicized into Rangoon.  

Into the breach stepped Dr William Montgomerie, the Army's
superintendent surgeon.  A resident of Singapore from in 1819 to
1842, he add learned his city-planing skills at the knee of Sir
Standford Raffles, serving as secretary of the town committee
charged with designing Singapore from scratch.  Wrote Montgomerie:
"I had considerable experience and consider myself qualified to
give and opinion as to the best plan for laying out the new Town. 
" His design is downtown Rangoon today: a chessboard pattern of
wide, east-west avenues and numbered north-south streets.  A band
was constructed along the river, a la Shanghai, and a wide strand
left open from which today's Strand Road and the 1901 Strand Hotel
took their names.  

Rangoon population rose steadily over the years: from less than
30,000 in 1852 to 200,000 in 1896, to 341,000 in 1942, to 800,000
in the independence years of 1947, to some four million today. 
>From the riverfront downtown, the city expanded northward along
roads that curved and meandered along the hilly contours of the
countryside.  Whereas most cities have an industrial and commercial
center, Rangoon's center is green: parks, gardens and Kandawgyi and
Inya lakes.  The business district remains in the southernmost
chessboard, its tree-shaded architecture frozen in time: massive
colonial masonry and brickwork with high ceilings, columned
porticos and intricately patterned balconies.  

Like Hanoi, Rangoon's indigenous and colonial architecture has been
preserved in aspic by decade of economic and political isolation. 
How to protect these architectural treasures while developing new
construction project is the task confronting the Yangon City
Development Committee.  In line with the abandonment of Ne Win's
"Burmese road to Socialism, " the 20-year-old YCDC was granted its
independence from the Home Affairs Ministry in 1990.  With a staff
of 20,000, the YCDC's engineers and architects have a free hand to
develop a revitalized Rangoon for Visit Myanmar Year 1996.  "Our
first priority is to provide services or the resident of Yangon,"
states U Khin Maung Hla, head of the YCDC Buildings Department, as
he sits in his spacious office on the third floor of Rangoon City
Hall, itself a gem of traditional Burmese motifs, designed by
architect U Tin in 1925.  Eight YCDC projects will bring shopping
malls, cinemas, restaurants, hotels, supermarkets, offices and
residential apartments to the city.  "at the same time, we want to
avoid the destruction of architectural treasures.  Yangon Mayor U
Ko Lay has attended mayors conferences in Japan and the united
State to learn how other cities have approached the problem of
development.  

"We will have some budget to preserve historical buildings but, for
renovation projects, we depend on the private sector," he adds,
displaying models of four new projects in the downtown area and
another four in the outlying townships.  All were designed by
Burmese architects, and construction will be in the hands of some
200 Burmese contractors.  Investment comes from Burmese firms,
often in joint ventures with foreign companies.  In the downtown
area, about 50 or 60 building s will be declared historical
treasures.  At present, YCDC has targeted 20 building for
preservation.  Mr Kihn dispatches three his engineering staff Aung
Chain San, Myo Myint and Khin Aung - to give MANAGER a tour of the
downtown sites.  

Of the stately buildings along Strand Road - the Moorish- arched
General Post Office, the red brick Custom House, the towered Port
Authority Building, the Queen Anne-style Civil Court - the jewel in
the crown is the 93-year-old Strand Hotel, resorted by Adrain
Zecha's Amanresorts Group.  With its teak wainscoting, rattan
furniture, ceiling fans, Burmese artwork, marble bathrooms and
canopied beds, the Strand exemplifies Rangoon's renaissance.  

Up Shwedagon Pagoda Road is the nearly complete Theingyi Market
Complex, a Burmese - Singapore joint venture.  Twin eight-story
buildings will house a carpark, restaurants, cinemas, supermarkets
and the shops of stall-owners of the demolished old market.  A
third 16-story structure, the tallest in Rangoon, will be an office
block.  Further up the street is the Yangon General Hospital, a
missive combination of soaring turrets and broad arches made of red
brick with yellow trim.  Built in 1911 at a cost of four million
rupees, the hospital replaced a former structure made of, as a
newspaper account has it, "wood saturated by generations of
microbes which was a disgrace to civilization.  "

Further north is the century-old Ching Chong Palace, a Chinese
mansion built by a wealthy Shan Family that now functions as the
Myanmar Cultural University.  Other buildings slated for
preservation are the Secretariat, the Fire Station, the High Court
and a cluster of buildings along Bogyoke Aung San Street: Scoot
Market, the RailWay Office and the Central Railway Station.  In
this same area, two new hotels are rising: the Macao- backed
Central Hotel and the Railway Hotel, a joint venture between a
Singapore firm and the local First Myanmar Investment, whose new
ten-story headquarters is rising nearby.  this same group will be
leasing the red brick colonial Railway Office block to convert it
into yet another Hotel.  

At the Railway Station, of magnificently ornate, traditional
Burmese design, the three YCDC engineers take their leave of
MANAGER.  The engineers - all graduates of Yangon Institute of
Technology, which produce 700 engineers and architects a year -
express optimism about Rangoon's future.  YCDC is charged with the
maintenance of civil works, sanitation, roads, bridges and markets. 
they maintain: although power outages are still a daily occurrence,
they look forward to the construction of Rangoon's third
hydroelectric dam.  

On subsequent days, MANAGER tours more development sites.  The old
Irron Bazaar on Downtown Lanmadaw Road has been almost completely
demolished to make way for yet another Singaporean-Burmese
development: a four-story market for old stall-holders, an 11-story
office building and a nine-story hotel.  

Two other markets - wood and tin-pan sheds on Strand Road and 38th
Street have yet to be torn down, but are alated for development. 
The Nyaung Binlay Market on Strand Road will be replaced by an
office building, shopping complex and residential tower - all owned
by the Burmese company Yuzana.  The 38th Street Market will be
replaced by apartments, restaurants, supermarkets and a 16-story
hotel.  

Three miles out of town, the local Asia Express Company has cleared
land {sparing an ancient mosque) and begun structural work on the
Nat Chaung Quality Development Project: 11 five-story apartment
blocks with a sperate shopping area.  South of Inya lake on
Dhammazedi Road, near the Thai Embassy(housed, improbably enough,
in a Tudor mansion), is the new blue-and-white tile Yuzana Building
- six stories of apartments, offices, restaurants an supermarkets. 
North of Inya Lake, on Forestry Ministry grounds, the blue
reflecting glass of the international Business Center would not
look out of place on Silom Road.  

While none of these developments match the mega-projects of
Bangkok, their smaller scales spares them the massive ugliness of
such instant mini-cities as Maung Thing Thani.  

There are exceptions, of course.  The picturesque, 35-room
Kandawgyi Hotel - which began life as a boat club on Kandawgyi Lake
in 1912 - has been taken over by the Sino- Burmese family that give
Bangkok the dubious gift of Baiyoke Tower.  Renamed Baiyoke
Kandawgyi Hotel, a new 238-room concrete blockhouse of an annex is
rising next door, blocking the view of a nearby pagoda.  

While deploring such ugliness, a long-time resident of Rangoon
attributes much of city's recent development to the return of the
Sino-Burmese business families that fled the country after 1961 -
the year that Gen Ne Win launched his disastrous "Burmese Road to
Socialsiam.  " The families have now come back to stay, and are
plowing their wealth back into new construction.  

************************************************************** 
MANAGER: UNCHANGED RANGOON 
October, 1994 

A brand-new football stadium built by the Chinese and an indoor
stadium built by the Japanese flank the eastern end of the
Tharkayta Bridge.  At the other end is unchanged Rangoon, the
residential township of Tharkata.  A visistor drive s for miles
down a potholed road clogged with returning students in uniforms of
white shirts and green longyis.  Dirt side streets meander to the
horizon, lined with coconut palms, bamboo stands, banana and mango
trees.  

Every house here is different - ranging from middle- class,
pastel-colored, concrete bungalows with louvered windows to houses
made of wood and tin pan to mat-and- thatch hovels - and all are,
in Burmese fashion, jammed up against each other.  Villages in the
Irrawaddy rice delta are built in the same cheek-by-jowl manner. 
Why the Burmese live this way while this depurate themselves with
fences and gardens is a question for anthropologists to ponder.  

Four dollars gets you a three-hour boat ride down the Rangoon River
and a scene unchanged from the days of Conrad.  Vast booms of teak
logs line the southern shore, awaiting their turn at sawmills.  A
score of lateen-rigged fishing boats beat their way into the wind. 
Ocean freighters and rusty coastal tramps are moored in midstream. 
The foredeck of one freighter, the Sheraton II,is packed with
'renovation vehicle': second-hand trucks, delivery vans, a cement
mixer and a Yaohan back- hoe.  

The mouth of Pazundaung Creek, which runs along Tharkata township,
is now spanned by the Tinyn Bridge, constructed this year by the
Chinese.  The creek is always bustle with rice barges an bumboats
and three-oared lateen sailboats and sampans steered by
sun-blackened fishermen.  Shipping boats crammed full of passengers
and market goods chug steadily downstream to river front villages. 
Woman wash clothes and naked, brown children swim in the muddy
water.  houses of mat-and-thatch line the shore, interspersed with
wooden wearhouses.  Bare-chested stevedores carry rice sacks on
their backs from a flatbed truck down to a waiting barge.  

Back on the river, you are brought back to the twentieth century:
two white container ships bear huge silver cylinders labeled, "LP
Gas.  DANGEROUS.  INFLAMMABLE.  " The ship are from the Total and
Texaco offshore rigs in the gulf of Martaban, staffed by petroleum
engineering from the Myanmar Institute of Technology.  

************************************************************** 
MANAGER: VOICE OF DISSENT 
October 1994

Visitor might be enchanted by Rangoon's turn-of-the- century
architecture, but press critics at the time were not impressed. 
About the new High Court building , one observered, "The court was
probably designed by a pardoned convict who never forgave his
judge.  " Another suggested that anarchist dynamiters "who are
causing so much trouble in London these days might be induced by
offer of a free pardon to come to Rangoon to practice their art
here.  "

But as Noah Cross, the Los Anglers robber baron character played by
John Huston in Chinatown, once quipped, "politicians, ugly
buildings and whores all get respectable if they last long enough. 
" Regardless of how its antiquities compare with those of the
world's great cities, tourists greatly prefer the distinctive
character of Rangoon to the sterile glass boxes of Bangkok and
Singapore.  

A Singapore secretary who lives in Hanoi comments, "I came to
Rangoon to Hanoi: the people are much warmer and friendlier.  "

Rangoon must be doing something right.  According to an official of
the Tourism & Hotels Ministry, tourist arrivals have risen from
26,000 in 1992 to 62,000 in 1993, to some-where over 100,000 

projected this year.  "I have no doubt that we'll reach our goal of
a half million tourists for Visit Myanmar Year 1996," says U Thein
Win.  "We'll have enough hotel rooms.  The problem we face is
transportation infrastructure.  "

************************************************************** 
MANAGER: TEAK TREASURES 
October, 1994

Rangoon abounds with traditional Burmese teak houses.  A casual
drive through Bahan, Golden Valley and Tamwe townships uncovers
scores of homes that, sold just for timber, would fetch a fortune. 
"This house has been in my family for over a hundred years,"
relates Daw Aung San, a spry women in her 60s, in her impeccable
Anglo-Indian accent.  "My father had been a timber merchant, my
husband an advocate, and my grandchildren now use the upper parlor
as a study room.  " The four-bedroom house features high ceilings,
glazed windows and priceless teak furniture.  Electrical engineer
U Kyaw Nyunt, of Indian ancestry, it otherwise know as 'Jacob' from
his years at the American Baptist Mission School.  His five-bedroom
teak home was build on 1.  25 acres of land in 1917 by two British
expatriates, JPA County and RS Giles.  Jacob's father, an advocate,
bought the house from them in 1921.  

"A Scotsman recently visited my home with an interest in turning it
into a guesthouse Jacob reveals, but I never heard from him again. 
I wouldn't mind my home as a guesthouse, provided it was developed
in a sarn manner that didn't destroy the character of the house. 
"These teak homes are built to last.  An earthquake pasturing six
on the Richter Scale would have no.  on it.  An elephant could walk
over it.  " He slaps the thick rail of his balcony.  "This house
feels like a ship.  "

Daw Tin May Nhoo estimates that her marble-floored teak home is a
over a hundred years old, although she has lived here for only 20
with her veterinarian husband.  The house had been bought by her
father-in-law, a wealthy merchant who died in 1981.  His portrait,
in high collar and flowing mustache, dominates the front parlor. 
"There are four families living here now," she say.  "All
interrelated, twenty people in all.  As you can see, there is
plenty of room.  "

EM Patial, a London-trained barrister-at law, served as Rangoon's
mayor in 1926.  He built four teak houses along Dhammazedi
(Boundary) Road.  one is currently occupied by his granddaughter,
Dr Daisy Patail.  Her cousins live in a second house, but two
others have been sold off and torn down.  Dr Patail's home is
illuminated by a tall by a tall octagonal skylight.  Chinese
rosewood chairs are lined under broad moorish arches.  Her kitchen
table is marble topped antique teak, her verandas intricate Burmese
grillwork.  "Architects have come to study here," she discloses. 
"They've copied features of this house - the arches, the skylight
- for other buildings.  " If only some of those architects had been
from Bangkok.  

************************************************************** 
SCB: "LETTER TO INDIAN GOVERNMENT" 
Oct 23, 1994 
by suantak@xxxxxxxxxxxx 

 The following is a speech read in front of the Indian Embassy in
Washington, DC protesting the forced deportation of Burmese
refugees from India.  The protest was held October 21, 1994.  

His Excellency Ambassador of the Republic of India to the United
States of America! October 21, 1994

On receipt of the news that Burma's citizens were deported from
India, we weigh the pro and contra of protesting the action of the
Indian authorities because India is looking after political
refugees who are not effected by the deportation of non- registered
refugees.  We decided to carry out this protest demonstration for
the following reasons.  

Primarily to protest the forceful repatriation of refugees from
Burma (over 900 from Mizoram alone and we don't know how many from
other states).  They are now subjected to the abusive regime in
Burma.  

Secondly we are protesting the destruction of Burma's teak and
hardwood forests in the border areas because of India's trading
with the SLORC.  

Thirdly India's dance to the tune of the SLORC's demands in
connection with the All India Radio, Burmese section.  We are
informed that Burma's citizens (over 900 from Mizoram alone have
been forcefully repatriated to Burma.  Some of them have lived in
India for many years and have established themselves in India. 
Burma is ruled by a xenophobic, brutal, ruthless, military junta
and under their eyes Burma's citizens who had left the country
illegally are politically suspect and the military intelligence has
recorded these people as anti- regime/ anti-state elements.  In
their return to Burma they will be persecuted and can receive long
years of imprisonment, most likely without trial or charge.  Many
of them will be tortured by the MIS and some will face death.  

It is difficult to comprehend the democratic government of India
handing over Burma's refugees to the gruesome hands of the Burma's
dictators.  We have evidences of students who were incarcerated
because they attended schools in India, leaving the country without
proper papers.  

We, therefore appeal to the Indian government to reconsider their
actions of deporting Burma's refugees.  India must wait and send
them back only after there is democracy in Burma.  

Immediately after the massacre of thousands of peaceful
demonstrators in 1988 India had sided with the people of Burma and
acted fitfully for the nation, which is the largest democracy of
the world by distancing itself from the SLORC.  But during the last
two years India had followed the footsteps of totalitarian regimes
of the region by trading with the SLORC.  

India's trade with the SLORC has caused the destruction of teak and
hardwood forests of northwestern Burma.  It is inconceivable that
a democratic nation such as India will sink so deep as to sacrifice
democratic principles to trade with a regime that refuses the right
of speech and expression, democracy, and human rights, in order to
obtain under priced teak.  

 We urge the government of India to work for the promotion of
democracy in Burma.  Instead of supporting the longevity of the
SLORC by trading with the enemy of democracy, India must stand firm
on the principal of democracy and help bring democracy to Burma.  

For many years the All India Radio, Burmese section was the source
of news and facts for the people of Burma.  The Burmese people had
for many years depended the All India Radio as the source of news
and information.  However during the last two years at the demand
of the SLORC the All India Radio, Burmese section ceased to
function as before.  A prominent Burmese broadcaster was let go on
the demand of the SLORC.  

We urge the government of India to reactivate the All India Radio
Burmese section for the benefit of the mass of Burma's population. 


However much we complain and protest on the handling of Burma's
refugees, we are indebted to the Indian government for looking
after the registered political refugees from Burma.  We appeal to
the Indian government to stand by us in our struggle for democracy
and human rights in Burma.  India must take its rightful
responsibility as the largest democracy in the world and as a
neighbor, by playing a leading role in the democratization of
Burma.  

vum son for Lai Association, Committee for the Restoration of
Democracy in Burma, and Foundation for Democracy in Burma 

5809 Burgundy Street Capital Heights, MD 20743

ph:301 499 0499 fax 301 808 0872 

************************************************************** 
SCB: "NEED DOCUMENTS FOR BURMA HOMEPAGE" 
Oct 23, 1994 by jrchien@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 

I am working on creating a homepage for Burma where you will be
able to view pictures and literature both in Burmese and English. 
However, I need pictures and literatures about Burma.  Also, I
would like to contact Burmese groups around the world so that I can
obtain the documents needed for my homepage.  If you know any
Burmese organization, please send me a note.  

If you also like to contribute documents and pictures, please send
me a note so that I can give you my address.  

Thank you.  

*****************
[Technical Note: Homepages are WorldWideWeb (WWW) hypertext
documents which integrate text, graphics and audio into an easy-to-
use interface.  A section of the WWW frequently-asked-questions
(FAQ) is appended here to explain how it works.  -Strider.

*****                          
What are WWW, hypertext and hypermedia?

  WWW stands for "World Wide Web". The WWW project, started by CERN 
  (the European Laboratory for Particle Physics), seeks to build a
  distributed hypermedia system.
  
  The advantage of hypertext is that in a hypertext document, if
  you want more information about a particular subject mentioned,
  you can  usually "just click on it" to read further detail. In
  fact, documents  can be and often are linked to other documents
  by completely different authors -- much like footnoting, but you 
  can get the referenced document instantly!
  
  To access the web, you run a browser program. The browser reads
  documents, and can fetch documents from other sources.
  Information providers set up hypermedia servers which browsers
  can get documents from.
  
  The browsers can, in addition, access files by FTP, NNTP (the
  Internet news protocol), gopher and an ever-increasing range of
  other methods.  On top of these, if the server has search
  capabilities, the browsers will permit searches of documents and
  databases.
  
  The documents that the browsers display are hypertext documents.
  Hypertext is text with pointers to other text. The browsers let
  you deal with the pointers in a transparent way -- select the
  pointer, and you are presented with the text that is pointed to.
  
  Hypermedia is a superset of hypertext -- it is any medium with
  pointers to other media. This means that browsers might not
  display a text file, but might display images or sound or
  animations.

***************************************************************** 
BURMANET: RADIO BURMA

If you are interested in receiving news in Burmese from the
Democratic Voice of Burma, Voice of America or the British
Broadcasting Service contact Radio Burma at:

     PO Box 39
     Bung Thong Luang
     Bangkok 10242

***************************************************************** 
ABBREVIATIONS USED BY BURMANET:

 AP: ASSOCIATED PRESS,  AFP: AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE
 AW: ASIAWEEK,  AWSJ: ASIAN WALL STREET JOURNAL
 Bt.: THAI BAHT; 25 Bt.=US$1 (APPROX), 
 BBC: BRITISH BROADCASTING CORPORATION,  
 BI: BURMA ISSUES
 BIG: BURMA INFORMATION GROUP
 BKK POST: THE BANGKOK POST
 BRC-CM: BURMESE RELIEF CENTER-CHIANG MAI
 BRC-J: BURMESE RELIEF CENTER-JAPAN
 CPPSM: C'TTEE FOR THE PUBLICITY OF THE PEOPLE'S STRUGGLE IN 
 MONLAND  
 FEER: FAR EAST ECONOMIC REVIEW
 JIR: JANE'S INTELLIGENCE REVIEW
 KHRG: KAREN HUMAN RIGHTS GROUP
 Kt. BURMESE KYAT; 110-120 KYAT =US$1 BLACKMARKET
                    6 KYAT=US$1 OFFICIAL
 NATION: THE NATION (DAILY NEWSPAPER, BANGKOK)
 NLM: NEW LIGHT OF MYANMAR
 S.C.B.:SOC.CULTURE.BURMA NEWSGROUP 
 S.C.T.:SOC.CULTURE.THAI NEWSGROUP
 SEASIA-L: S.E.ASIA BITNET MAILING LIST
 XNA: XINHUA NEWS AGENCY
*****************************************************************