Military govt tightens grip on Myan

[tinkyi@xxxxxxxxx]

Subject: Military govt tightens grip on Myanmar( Burma )

The Daily Yomiuri
Wednesday, March 12, 1997

Mandalay, Myanmar(Burma)(Reuter)-
The soldiers chant loudly as they conduct predawn marches and
drills around Mandalay Fort in the center of the city. They are 
a visible reminder that despite the commercial bustle of Myanmar's
second city, the military is still in complete control- in Mandalay,
in the capital Yangon and throughout Myanmar.
"The situation here is very bad,"said a well-known Myanmar writer 
who asked not to be identified. "This is worse than a fascist
regime." "They shut our mouths, they shut our eyes and make people
hear everything they want them to hear," the writer said. "They are
watching everything we do. They know you have come to see me and may
ask me why, and what I said to you."

Govt suppression
Many complain that the ruling State Law and Order Restoration Council
(Slorc) is tightening control over citizens and, at the same time, 
making it appear as if it is opening up to the rest of the world.
This is "Visit Myanmar Year," with the government seeking to open its
once isolated nation up to foreign visitors and their hard currency.
Yet since the tourism year began in November, the government has 
continued to move against the opposition movement led by Nobel Peace
laureate Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy (NLD)
party.
"There is severe repression of the NLD and the forces working for 
democracy," Suu Kyi told a news conference last week. "The situation 
is getting worse all the time. This is persecution of the NLD," she
said, after outlining the arrests and intimidation tactics used by 
the Slorc against NLD members.
The Slorc regularly accuses Suu Kyi and members of her NLD party of
trying to incite unrest  and destabilize the country, and says the 
action it has taken are meant to maintain control. The Slorc also
closed all the major universities across the country in December
after suppressing a series of rare student street demonstrations.
It is not known when they will reopen.

Terrorist attacks worry govt
The military presence in Yangon has been stepped up recently as the 
government fears possible terrorist attacks by the ethnic guerrilla
groups it accused of setting off two bombs at a Buddhist shrine on 
Christmas Day.
In the capital, cars navigate around barricades set up in the middle
of the streets. Drivers cast sideways glances at tanks parked in the
streets and at soldiers armed with machine-guns who stand guard every
few meters on the capital's main roads.
"They( the enthic rebels) can plant bombs at any time," a senior 
millitary official said when asked about the heightened security.
"We have to be aware of the threat to our security."
Diplomats said the government is worried about threats posed by
rebel groups such as the Karen National Union (KNU)- the only major
ethnic group yet to sign a ceasefire agreement with the Slorc and still
fighting for autonomy. An Adviser to KNU hard-line leader Bo Mya told 
reporters last week that the guerrillas planned to step up attacks in 
key cities such as Yangon and Mandalay after the Slorc vowed to keep 
troops at the Thai-Myanmar border recent fighting.
"For the Slorc now, the most important thing is to keep security because 
they need foreign investment. I think the Slorc will try to keep security 
by using any means they have to," one Asian diplomat said.
Myanmar is not only opening up to tourism, it is also trying to encourage
foreign investment. Despite pleas from Suu Kyi to foreigners not to bring 
money to Myanmar until the regime improves it human rights record and 
begin talks with the opposition, foreign investment is rising.
Some $6.03 billion worth of foreign projects have been approved by the 
government since it opened up the economy after seizing power in 1988.
But economist estimate only about half of that has actually been invested 
as some investors, uneasy over threats of U.S economic sanctions and other
international pressure on the Slorc, await more political and economic
stability before starting operations.

Future still uncertain
Right now the situation is still uncertain, analysts say, with several
different elements bubbling away at the same time.
"It's like many different piles of gun-powder spred out," the writer
said. "If one explodes it could ignite the rest."
Others agree, noting there are some signs of unrest: that students, 
peasants and even Buddhist monks-a key element to the national pro-
democracy uprisings in 1988-may decide to get involved in protests 
against the military.
"It could just take one thing," a diplomat said. "If the Slorc can keep
all the different elements happy there is no problem, but if it explodes
you dont know what could happen." 
"We're definitely not going to see dialogue (between Suu Kyi and the 
Slorc) any time soon," an Asian dipmat said. "I don't think anything
else is going to happen right away but we are all waiting to see."

Information Committee
Burma Youth Volunteer Association-Japan.