The BurmaNet News, March 24, 1997

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------------------------ BurmaNet ------------------------  
"Appropriate Information Technologies, Practical Strategies"  
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The BurmaNet News: March 24, 1997  
Issue #674 
  
HEADLINES:  
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MUSLIM LIBERATION ORGANIZATION OF BURMA
MLOB: OPEN LETTER TO THE SUPREME AUTHORITIES
BKK POST: MUSLIMS COMPLAIN OF JUNTA PRESSURE
BKK POST:MONKS RAID MOSQUE IN RANGOON
THAILAND TIMES: 200 BURMESE TROOPS "KIDNAP" KARENS
AP REPORT: ABUSES CONTINUE UNCHECKED
BKK POST:KARENS ASK THAILAND TO ALLOW UN TO HELP
NATION: US WARNS ON BURMA TRAVEL
THAILAND TIMES: KNU PLANS TO MOVE BASE CAMP
BKK POST: BONN PROTEST
S.H.A.N : SITUATION IN SHAN STATE
UPDATE: BATTLE NEWS FROM SHAN STATE
THE NATION: FIVE THAIS HELD IN BURMA
NATION: RANGOON CRIES FOUL AS A THOUSAND POPPIES
ASIA TIMES: MYANMAR CLASHES POLITICAL, NOT RELIGIOUS
ONSOB: REFUGEE ASSISTANCE
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MUSLIM LIBERATION ORGANIZATION OF BURMA
STATEMENT REGARDING RECENT DEMONSTRATIONS IN BURMA
March 20th, 1997

The recent demonstrations were sparked by the deaths of 16 Buddhist monks in
prison.

It is with great regret that we have heard that sixteen Buddhist monks were 
forcibly disrobed and were then brutally tortured to death by prison
officials.  Following this incident, Mandalay monks began anti-government
demonstrations on March 17th.  The demands made by the people and the monks
during these demonstrations were for the authorities to announce a list of
monks currently detained in Burmese prisons, and to release these monks.

The SLORC is afraid that this kind of demonstrations could lead to political
unrest, and may even threaten their very power base.  They therefore
immediately circulated a story that the Mandalay monks demonstrations were
triggered by Buddhist-Muslim tension following an alleged rape case. This is
not the first time that the SLORC has used this type of religious
misinformation campaign.  The first Buddhist-Muslim conflicts were created
and provoked by the regim in two major cities during the 1988 pro-democracy
uprisings in Taunggyi and in Prome.  Ne Win's government also employed this
tactic to create a major riot between Burmese and Chinese people in 1967, to
distract people from their real conflict with the government, which was over
greatly inflated rice prices.

The Burmese people, both Muslim and Buddhist, know the tricks of the 
SLORC well and will fight this military dictatorship together.

M.L.O.B
March 20th, 1997

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

MLOB: OPEN LETTER TO THE SUPREME AUTHORITIES OF THE MEMBER MUSLIM COUNTRIES
OF THE ASEAN GROUPING
March 24, 1997

Dear Sirs,
	I would like to, most respectfully, forward the following statement for
your information, understanding and high consideration.
1. Burma gained independence in 1948.  Due to the failure on the parts of
successive governments to provide equality and justice to all nationalities,
the present civil war started in 1949, just after independence.
2. The army led by Gen. Ne Win seized power in 1962 and because all people,
especially ethnic minorities, have been discriminated against and
persecuted, almost all minorities have taken part in the armed struggle
against the military dictatorships.
3. During the period of the civil war, the people have been facing arious
kinds of hardships.  Whenever the civilians have tried to expose their
grievances by peaceful demonstrations, they were gunned down in groups on
every occasion.
4. In 1988, the people of Burma showed in peaceful demonstrations that they
did not want to continue to be under military rule and that they wanted
democracy.  SLORC, the ruling regime, massacred several thousand people,
which is well known to the world.  
5. Just after the socialist government handed over power to SLORC, the
latter had promised that they would transfer power to the people's
representatives before long.  However, they still hold power.
6. In 1990, SLORC held a general election.  When the NLD, led by Nobel
laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, won a landslide victory, SLORC refused to honour
its promise of transferring power to the winning party.  In the meantime,
SLORC arrested several people's representatives, jailed them and tortured
them, while some were even killed.
7. Since 1993, SLORC has been holding a sham national convention to draw a
consitution which will legalise their grip on power.
8. Although SLORC has made cease-fire agreements with some armed ethnic
groups, the fighting will restart as SLORC lacks sincerity.  The KNPP, which
has also made cease-fire agreements with SLORC, is now fighting again.
9. The SLORC generals have become millionaires and their relatives and
supporters could enjoy the open market economy and foreign investments,
while other people are suffering from starvation and hardships.  Moreover,
with the profits from the foreign investments, SLORC is enlarging its army
to persecute the minorities.
10. The people of Burma no longer want to be under the boots of the military
and to suffer more hardships.  They are eager to see the fall of the
dictatorship.  The people are afraid that a SLORC-led Burma would become a
member of the Asean grouping, which will give legality to SLORC to brutalise
the people for longer.
11.  This is the time when the entire people of Burma are disgusted with the
attitudes of SLORC, while all peace-loving people of the world and even the
UN are condemning the dictatorship.  Your continuous efforts, for mere
commercial benefits, to make SLORC a member of the Asean means to legalise
the status of SLORC to continue to enslave the people for much longer.  We
are sorry to say that your attitudes anger the people of Burma.  
12. It is said that the prevailing anti-Muslim riots and destruction of
mosques and other Islamic institutions by some elements in Burma are being
instigated by some factions of the SLORC ruling circle.  ASEAN member Muslim
countries, by exerting efforts to legalise the dictatorship, are prolonging
its rule to allow it to continue to brutalise the people of Burma.  There
are similar incidences: while anti-Muslim riots and destruction of mosques
occur in the cities, the SLORC army during offensives against the Karen are
also burning down many mosques, destroying holy Qurans, forcing Muslims to
eat pork, raping Muslim girls, many Muslims have been killed, and Muslims
are not being allowed to return to their homes in Burma.  The Muslims are
also referred to as Kala- foreigners, a term somewhere between animals and
human beings; human in form but almost lower than animals.

We, therefore, would like to urge the 3 member Muslim countries of ASEAN
groupings to prevent the minority Muslims of Burma from being victimised.
We also would like to request the supreme authorities of the three Muslim
member countries of the ASEANto kindly help save the lives and properties of
the oppressed minority Muslims in Burma.

Central Executive Committee
Muslim Liberation Organization of Burma

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

BKK POST: MUSLIMS COMPLAIN OF JUNTA PRESSURE
March 23, 1997

	Muslim people in Burma have complained to several non-governmental
organisations that the ruling junta has increased pressure against them
after almost achieving its goal to suppress Karen National Union guerrillas.
	The All Burma Muslim Union (ABMU), a member of the National Democratic
Front, made its statement available on Thursday to
international Muslim organisations and NGOs in Saudi Arabia, USA,
Malaysia, pakistan, India and several other countries.
	The statement said the State Law and Order Restoration Council
had turned on the Muslim people because its plan to get rid of the KNU is
soon to be successful.
	It cited a number of attacks at KNU strongholds along the Thai-
Burmese border since February forced at least 20,000 Karens and
Muslims to cross the border and took refuge in Thailand.
	ABMU chairman Dr Abdul Razzak said Muslims were not spared their basic
human rights violation especially on nationality and
occupation.
	He said the Muslims are being regarded as those without
nationality although they have lived in Burma for several decades.
	"Over 10 million Muslims are estimated to be living in the
country whiles Slorc claims they form only four percent of the population,
or 1.6 million out of 40 million people.
	From 1958 when then prime minister U Nu made Buddhism the state religion,
the government started its drive to press the Muslims
who were not allowed to perform several religious rites.
	The pressure was reduced in scale after conflicts between
Buddhists and Muslims exploded.

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

BKK POST:MONKS RAID MOSQUE IN RANGOON
March 23, 1997
Rangoon, AFP

	A group of at least 50 Buddhist monks raided a mosque in northeastern
Rangoon yesterday, signalling a spread of last week's Buddhist-Muslim unrest
from Mandalay to the capital, witnesses said.
	The monks removed loose property from the mosque in Rangoon's
Yankin township, including the Koran, the Muslim holy book, and set it on
fire outside, the witnesses said.
	Full security was deployed after the attack around the Yankin
township mosque, a second mosque in adjacent Tamwe township and near the
home affairs ministry , in the same general vicinity, the witnesses reported.
	Security was also beefed up around mosques elsewhere in Rangoon.
	Analysts suggested the authorities wanted to avoid any risk of
the general population joining up with the monks in political protests.
	Monks played a central role in prodemocracy demonstrations in
1988 which were crushed by the ruling junta.
	The raid was linked to Buddhist-Muslim unrest over the past week
in the northern city of Manadalay, triggered by the attempted rape earlier
this month of a Buddhist girl by one or more Moslem men.
	Monks vandalised mosques and destroyed Muslim property in
incidents which left at least one novice mons dead of gunshot wounds,
diplomats and other sources said.
	Mandalay was reported to be calm yesterday as Buddhists prepared for the
full Moon Day religious holiday today.
	The holiday also marks a deadline set by monks demanding the
release of one of their number who was detained in the unrest. The monks
threatened to return to the streets if he remained in jail, informed sources
said.
	Although Muslims represent only 3.9 percent of Burma's people,
and Buddhist 85 percent, a traditional animosity stems form the colonial
period when Britain imported mostly Muslim Indians for favoured positions in
Burma's administration.
	The animosity was fuelled by recent rumors circulating widely in
Rangoon of Muslims seeking to "infiltrate" Burma via its approaching
membership in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean).
	Asean groups predominantly Muslim countries Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia
with the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
	Following Indonesian President Suharto's recent visit to Burma,
informed sources said that Indonesia would back a new mosque to be built in
Mandalay. There was no official mention of the project.
	Burmese intelligence sources suggested earlier this week that
destructive elements bent on sabotaging Burma's Asean bid were behind the
unrest in Mandalay.
	In Rangoon yesterday, Muslim elders who had been meeting at the Tamwe
mosque since Friday night were asked to leave, and the
building was locked. Security forces ordered neighboring shops run by Indian
Muslims to close.
	Riot police and fire trucks were dispatched to the area, and
barricades were readied in case authorities decided to close any roads, the
witnesses reported.
	Security forces were also on alert yesterday in other towns with
large Muslim populations.
	Earlier this week, junta officials summoned Muslim elders to tell
them to keep a low profile to avoid sparking incidents, a Muslim
source said.
	
***********************************

THAILAND TIMES: 200 BURMESE TROOPS "KIDNAP" KARENS IN 
THE LATEST CROSS BORDER RAID
March 22, 1997
by Assawin Pinitwong

TAK: More than 200 armed Burmese troops yesterday crossed the
border to attack a house in a Thai village and abducted former
anti-Rangoon Karen soldiers, according to an informed Karen source. 
	However, no Thai authorities entered the area or submitted a
protest letter against the egregious incursion by the Burmese troops.
	The Burmese 13th Battalion's 88th Division troops led by Lt Col
Than Kyu circled Ban Kor Tor village in Umphang district and some of them
entered a villager's house and abducted two former Karen National Union
(KNU) soldiers -Cha Wa and Kyaw Kyaw who sought shelter there.
	Before retreating to Burma, the foreign troops threatened that they would
attack Thai villagers who provide shelter to former KNU men.
	Burmese troops plan to arrest KNU soldiers living along the
border as these men might allegedly try to persuade former KNU soldiers, who
have left the armed forces and sought shelter as refugees, to once again
take up arms and fight against the Burmese army troops.
	In another development, five Thai villagers from Ban saen Khamleu village
in Mae Hong Son's Pang Mapha district were captured and have been held by
Burmese authorities since March 10 after they
crossed the border in the area of the Burmese village of Ban Kailuang.
	Pang Mapha district chief Thavee Suvanilai was yesterday informed of the
matter by villagers and he then reported it to Mae Hong
Son's Thai-Burmese border committee. It was then reported to Mae Sariang's
7th Infantry Special Task, Force. The special unit will turn the matter over
to Chiang Rai's Thai-Burmese border committee which will contact Burmese
authorities in Tachilek to return the five Thai villagers to Thailand.
	The Burmese village of Khailuang is a drug producing area of the
Mong Tai Army (MTA). Burmese authorities raided drug producing plants in the
area on March 8 of this year. An informed source in Mae Hong Son said the
villagers in custody were probably arrested because they were involved in
drug production in the area. 
	Meanwhile, three battalions of Burmese soldiers  from Myawaddy's 275th
Infantry battalion and 3rd Strategic Division have been
stationed along the route conveying imported goods from Thailand to Rangoon
via Myawaddy.
	The deployment of military troops was ostensibly in response to
the attack of a Burmese merchant's transport vehicle by the KNU where one
person was killed. Another vehicle from Rangoon was recently assaulted while
it prepared to transport goods form Myawaddy to Rangoon.
	Military sources in Myawaddy said the KNU has planned to torch
Myawaddy and thereby create disturbances in the country's interior.
Authorities also claim the KNU has planned to attack vehicles transporting
goods from border areas to Rangoon at every  point.
	Myawaddy authorities warned residents of possible disturbances
created by the KNU. Meanwhile products form Thailand now need to pass
tougher customs inspections due to the fear that bombs might be hidden with
the imported goods.

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

AP REPORT: ABUSES CONTINUE UNCHECKED
March 23, 1997
Geneva, AP

	Torture, executions, forced labour and rape remain widespread in
Burma as the military junta tightens its grip over the population, according
to a new UN report.
	The report accused authorities of further clampdowns on pro-
democracy activists led by Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi and on
the student movement.
	"There is essentially no freedom of thought, opinion, expression
or association," said the report by UN investigator Rajsmoor Lallah, an
expert from Mauritius.
	"Because of both visible and invisible pressures, the people live
in a climate of fear in which whatever they or their family members may say
or do involves the risk of arrest and interrogation."
	New laws to reduce civil liberties still further were past in
1996, he said.
	The Burmese diplomatic mission to the United Nations had no
immediate comment on the report.

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

BKK POST:KARENS ASK THAILAND TO ALLOW UN TO HELP
March 23, 1997

	The Karen Refugee Committee has urged the Thai government to
allow the United Nations high Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to provide
aid and assistance to around 90,000 Karen refugees currently seeking shelter
along the Thai-Burma border following Rangoon's recent military onslaught.
	The request was made in a communique sent to the press yesterday.
	"We would like to request the Royal Thai Government to permit the United
Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to perform its mandated role in
protection of refugee rights and security and to continue to extend refuge
to Karen civilians who have been forced to seek refuge in the border area of
Thailand," said the communique.
	It said that currently around 92,000 Karen refugees have camped
along Thailand's western border with Burma adding that the border situation
has got worse recently after the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA)
joined hands with Burma's State Law and Order Restoration Council (Slorc) in
attacking Karen refugee camps along the border area.
	It noted that two large camps located near the border in Tak province were
hurt down by the DKBA and Slorc troops which made more than 16,000 refugees
homeless.
	However, KRC said it would like to express their appreciation and
gratitude to the Thai government "for kindly permitting these refugees to
take refuge in the border area of Thailand".
	The communique also voiced its concern that thousands of Karen
refugees were vulnerable to further attacks as their camps were reportedly
located adjacent to Slorc troops on the other side of the border.
	Asked for comment on the KRC's latest move, a senior army officer said he
was not surprised as it clearly showed that the Karen National Union wanted
to make internal fighting in Burma into an international issue.
	The officer said the government still considered Karen refugees
the victims who fled fighting in Burma and not victims of warfare that might
be a condition for the presence of the UNHCR.
	"So far our government could handle the refugees situation on our
border area and non-governmental organisations including several religious
organisation have also been providing their assistance to these refugees,"
noted the officer.
	The officer said a number of leading security officials were
concerned that if the UNHCR was allowed to work at the Thai-Burma
border area it would complicate the border situation and might
also cause misunderstanding with Burma.
	"At present, when the situation turns back to normal we could
send these refugees back to Burma but once the UNHCR is present it could
complicate the situation and the government will have to seek UNHCR opinion
before we could make any move," explained the officer.
	The officer said the KNU wanted to make its fight with Burma,
deemed by Thailand as Burmese internal affairs, to become an international
issue by drawing intervention from the outside world.
	"If the UNHCR is allowed to work at the border area it could
inevitably heighten border tension which could be harmful to Thai-Burmese
relationship," noted the officer.

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

NATION: US WARNS ON BURMA TRAVEL
March 23, 1997
AFP

WASHINGTON - The US government has warned its citizens against
travel to Burma without "a compelling reason," amid unrest in Rangoon and
Mandalay. 
	"Because of popular unrest in Rangoon, disturbances in the city
of Mandalay, widespread presence of army and police troops, and the
resulting potential for violence, the Department of State recommends that US
citizens exercise all due caution in travelling in Burma," the department
said in a statement released late on Friday.
	US nationals "should for the time being curtail travel to Burma
in the absence of a compelling reason," the statement said.

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

THAILAND TIMES: KNU PLANS TO MOVE BASE CAMP
March 23, 1997
by Assawin Pinitwong

TAK: The Karen National Union (KNU) met yesterday and produced an
agreement to establish a new base of operations in Burma, while KNU leader
Gen Bo Mya hopes to spend the rest of his life in his hometown, a border
patrol source said.
	The KNU will move the center of its operations to Phapoon
division opposite Mae Hong Son province and Ta Song Yang district
in Tak province. The area is also Gen Bo Mya's home where he
wishes to live out his remaining years.
	Senior KNU members met yesterday at a temporary camp along the Thai-Burmese
border, opposite Tak's Mae Sot district. The meeting
was attended by about 30 officials who discussed the KNU's plans
since its camps were attacked by the Burmese military government
last month.
	The source said the new campsite will make the KNU more difficult to topple
and Bo Mya has personally inspected the area.
	The new KNU base is adjacent to an area controlled by the Karenni National
Progressive Party(KNPP) and Burmese students opposed to the Rangoon military
government. These groups both have good
relations with the KNU and are knowledgeable of the difficult
terrain in this area.
	Moreover, a statement from Burmese pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi
called attention to the plight of the KNU in their struggle against the
military government. Suu Kyi reiterated her support to the KNU in their
fight for freedom in Burma.

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

BKK POST: BONN PROTEST
March 23, 1997
Reuters

Bonn- Germany protested to Burma on Thursday over its decision to refuse
entry to a former German cabinet minister, Otto Lambsdorff, who heads a
foundation which speaks out on human rights, the Foreign Ministry said.
	Mr Lambsdorff had planned to hold talks with the Burmese leadership and
democracy movement leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

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

S.H.A.N : SITUATION IN SHAN STATE
March 22, 1997

Many people thought Khun Sa's surrender on January 7, 1996 had rung the
death -knell for the Shan nationalism, forgetting that the Shan struggle did
not start with Khun Sa's Mong Tai Army, better known as the Shanland United
Army.

The fact is that as long as a considerable number of Shan still believe
Shanland and Burma are separate entities, bound together in the first place
by the Panglong Agreement in 1947, and later by the Burmese military under
which life is a living hell, it would be premature to predict the end of the
Shan cause.

That was why soon after the MTA's collapse, a group of hitherto relatively
unknown youth joined hands together to continue the struggle. And although
their estimated strength is less than one - tenth of Khun Sa's once mighty
MTA  (conservative estimate : 23,000 - 28,000 ), it has given so much
headache to the Burmese commanders that, as one of them jokes dryly, we are
becoming addicted to aspirin.

On the other new development in the Shans' favour was that all the different
groups are coming closer together despite SLORC attempts to keep them
divided. On February 23, 1996, seventeen days after Khun Sa's surrender, the
two ceasefire groups namely  the Shan State Army (SSA ) , estimated strength
: 3,500 and the Shan State National Army ( SSNA ), estimate strength : 4,000
, led by Karnyord, whose mutiny on June 6, 1995 broke the back bone of the
MTA, and consequently , the determination of Khun Sa, formed the Shan State
Peace - keeping Committee ( SSPC ). Late in the year, the alliance was
reinforced by membership from the new SURA led by Karnyord's boyhood friend
Yordserk. It was
then renamed the Shan State National Organisation ( SSNO ). It also vowed to
stick together in spite of SLORC's demand to dismantle it.

1996 also saw the Shans abroad moving closer together. It was a crucial
matter because with the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD), the
largest party in Shan State, having no voice outside the so called National
Convention and the Shan armed resistance movement being cut off from
Thailand, the traditional gateway to international media and relations, the
need for a setup that shall speak for the Shans in general had increased.
The founding of the Shan Democratic Union ( SDU ) on November 16, 1996 by
key member of the Chiangmai - based Shan State Organisation and the Bangkok
- based Tai Union seemed to be the appropriate answer to their call.

As for the SNLD itself, there has been several accusations from the pro -
democracy quarters that it took " bribes " , in the form of business
concessions, from SLORC in order to continue participation in the on - and -
off going National Convention. No official denial has come forth from the
SNLD so far. However, insiders said it was the SNLD, and not even NLD, that
had so far spearheaded the counter - offensive campaign against SLORC on the
latter's own grounds i.e. the National Convention. It would continue to
stand by its own announced principles when the NC reconvened. Unlike the
NLD, which has access to foreign powers and media although out of the NC,
the SNLD enjoys neither and seems set to make up for its handicaps by making
the best of a bad situation. And that does not mean, as they vehemently
maintain, they shall knuckle under SLORC's dictates. The SNLD seems to be
pushing home this point when in last December, they made a formal protest to
the General Than Shwe, chairman of the SLORC, that one of its elected
members, Sai Soe Nyunt, had been detained, beaten up and forced to sign his
resignation from the party by a SLORC officer. 

However,as the National Convention is to be adjourned indefinitely until
such time when SLORC feels ready, then what shall the SNLD choose to do?
That is the question that now rests heavily on its shoulder. Nevertheless
S.H.A.N thinks it is better for the opposition to talk things over with the
Shan party instead of directing accusations at its leaders.

1997 hopefully will see the Shans getting closer than they were in 1996.
S.H.A.N thinks it will bring a tremendous boost for the cause of Democracy
as a whole and the people of Shan State in particular. What it needs from
the rest of the world is to facilitate the trend and not to fear it.

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

UPDATE: BATTLE NEWS FROM SHAN STATE
March 20, 1997 (rec'd)

BATTLE NEWS.

On 26.1.97 at mid-night, troops from No. 153 Battalion of 749 Brigade of the
Shan United Revolutionary Army (SURA) attacked Slorc troops in Murng Nawng,
Kae See township. Two Slorc soldiers were killed in the battle.

30.1.97,  SURA 758 Brigades, 251 Battalion attacked Slorc troops Langhur and
Murngnai. Slorc No. 99 IB suffered 1 dead and two wonunded.

31.1.97,  SURA 758 Brigade, 259 Battalion attacked Slorc troops at Sai Mon,
between Kho lam & Kunhing, killing 5 Slorc soldiers and damaged 2 vihicles.
Ten people, engineers and workers in oil business, who were bound for
Kengtung were aslo seriously wounded. SURA troops finally set fire to SLORC
military base there.

31.1.97, SURA  758 Brigade, 152 Battalion assaulted Slorc troops in Murng
Kerng. Four Slorc soldiers of No. 514 were killed in the battle.

2.2.97, SURA 758 Brigade, 153 Battalion ambushed Slorc Kunhin-based No. 524
near Kiu Na Zarng south of Murng Nawng, Kae See township, Casualty unknown.

2.2.97, SURA 758 Brigade, 153 Battalion again attacked Slorc troops in Murng
Nawng, Kae See. Casualty unknown.

4.2.97, at 11:30 hrs. SURA # 758 Brigade, # 159 & #154 Battalion attacked
Slorc troops of Kunhin-based #524, over 50 strong and led by Maj. Nyi Khin,
in Murng Lurm village tract near Pang Long, Loi Lem township. The battle
lasted about one and a half hours during which 5 Slorc soldiers died and 12
wounded,  and lost one G-3 rifle and some equipment. SURA suffered 1 dead &
3 wounded.

10.2.97, at about 07:30 pm, about 30 troops of SURA #158 Battalion, #758
Brigade, attacked Slorc troops #524 IB in Lai Hka. One Slorc soldier & 4
Slorc servants were killed and 3 Hino trucks were damaged in the raid.

12.2.97, 09:00 Hrs, SURA #758 Brigade, #159 & #154 Battalions ambushed SLORC
troops No. 64 IB between Namzarng & Kholam. Slorc suffered 7 deaths, 3
wounded, & lost 1 G-3 rifle, 12 G-2 magazine & 80 rounds of G-3 ammo.

16.2.97, SURA #758 Brigade, 157 Battalion sniped at Slorc troops No. 515 at
Tart Mawk military base, Laikha township. One Slorc soldiers was killed and
one wounded.

On 24.2.97, at 16:45 hrs. 2 platoons of SURA troops from Brigade 758
Headquarters Security Unit ambushed Slorc troops of No. 422 LIB between Wan
Zing and Nam Mawng in Murng Nawng tract, Kae See township. Slorc troops
suffered 10 deaths, including one Major and one 2nd Lt.
SURA Seized the following arms and equipment.
 1. One 60mm mortar and two shells
2. Two G-4  Sub-machine guns
3. Two G-3 assault rifles
4. Three BA-94 (New stan-guns)
5. One Carbine rifle
6. One M-9 mortar
7. One radio transmitter
8. One 9-mm pistol
9. one Icom walkie-taklie

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

THE NATION: FIVE THAIS HELD IN BURMA
March 22, 1997

MAE HONG SON - Five Thai nationals, including two children, are
being held by Burmese soldiers after crossing the border to trade
in Burma, officials said yesterday.
	They said the chief of Pang Mapha district, Thawee Suwanwilai, was seeking
their release and had reported the incident to provincial authorities.
	Burmese soldiers also seized four horses, a pig, 20 chickens, two crates of
beer and sweets, worth about Bt 28,500 altogether, the officials said.
	In nearby Tak province, about 80 Burmese soldiers raided the village of
Klotho on Wednesday night and took away two senior members of the Karen
Nation Union (KNU) who had been taking refuge, officials said.
	They threatened to return for other members of the KNU.
	There are about 100,000 long-term Karen refugees in the area and as many as
20,000 others who have sought shelter during the current Burmese army
offensive against the rebel group.
	
****************************************

THE NATION: RANGOON CRIES FOUL AS A THOUSAND POPPIES BLOOM
March 21, 1997
Aung Zaw

There may be truth to charges opium bandits are sitting in Slorc's national
convention, Aung Zaw writes.

	Sai Soe Nyunt, an executive member of the Shan National League for
Democracy [SNLD], was handcuffed and severely beaten shortly after his
arrest in December by Maj. Win Thu, a Burmese army officer. 
	The reason for the beating at Mine Nay Village in Shan state was that Sai
Soe Nyunt had allegedly insulted the Tatmadaw (armed forces).
	Sai Soe Nyunt pleaded to the soldiers not to torture him. He told them he
was a delegate at the National Convention in the hope that they would go
easy on him.
	But the army officer replied: "No one cares about the convention. The
attendants are only prostitutes, opium-addicts and opium bandits." 
	 "The national convention is nonsense." 
	The National Convention was set up by the military junta in Burma to draft
a new constitution but it is regarded most observers as a "sham".
	The incident at Mine Nah offers an insight into how Rangoon itself view the
assembly.
	But, ironically, there is also a grain of truth in Win Thu's charge.
	The US State Department's 1996 International Narcotics Strategy Report
released lists Burma's eight top traffickers from Wa, Kachin and Shan areas.
It includes three Wa leaders Paoyu Chiang, Litzu Ju and Wei Hsueh Kang. The
three are leaders of the United Wa State Party [UWSP].
	Wei Hsueh Kang was a protege of the area's most famous drug lord, Khun Sa.
According to Bertil Lintner's "Burma In Revolt", Wei Hsueh Kang and his two
brothers have their own heroin empire along the Thai border.
 	"Lacking their own army inside Burma, the brothers made use of their old
Wa contacts and bankrolled the build-up of the Wa National Army in the early
1980s."
	The UWSP, led by Chao Ngi Lai, became a Slorc militia force after it has
reached a cease-fire agreement with the Slorc in 1989. The UWSP has 20,000
man under arms under Paoyu Chiang or Ta Pang's leadership. The US report
accused the junta of given the Wa leaders of significant political
legitimacy as they were hand-picked by the junta to attend the national
convention as "leaders of national races".
	The Clinton administration recently again condemned Burma for failing to
cooperate in the fight against drug trafficking. It said the vest majority
of heroin on the streets of the US originated from Burma, and drug
trafficking was being conducted without any meaningful constraint being
applied by the authorities. The report describes the UWSP as Burma's largest
drug trafficking organisation.
	Burma has more than doubled its illicit drug exports since the military
government, the State Law and Order Restoration Council  takeover in 1988
and the amount of area under poppy cultivation has risen dramatically, the
US report said.
	The Burmese government denies this is the case.
	At the recent press conference in Rangoon Col. Kyaw Thein, a Burmese
intelligence officer, blamed two ethnic rebel organisations, Wa National
Organisation [WNO] and Shan United Revolutionary Army [SURA] of involvement
in drug trafficking.
	Moreover, Burma recently allowed a team of US drug officials and undertake
a four-day joint survey of opium poppy fields. It was a third joint survey
of opium poppy fields. It was the third such joint mission in four years.
	But for the SURA, WNO and other Burma watchers, Slorc's recent actions are
nothing more window dressing.
	"It is rubbish - the Slorc knows who in the heroin business," says a Shan
leader. Sai Oot, deputy secretary of the SURA, said fighting between SLORC
and SURA troops is still going on in central Shan state. 
	"This area is unstable and hundreds of villages have been forced to move by
the Slorc - no one wants to go  there and of course, no one is growing opium
there."
	Maha San, a Wa prince and leader of the WNO say that UWSP leaders for the
growth in drug trafficking. But Maha San, who was a commander of  Vingngun
local militia in the 1960s, was reluctant to talk about the UWSP and its
alleged involvement in drug business.  In 1989, Maha San himself was
arrested by Was at their Panghsang headquarters and later escaped to China. 
	"The Wa people have image problem - we have been accused of being opium
bandits or drug dealers - in fact, there are only handful of people doing
this dirty business. There are some Wa leaders have been benefited from this
drug business but Was are still poor". "The opium is easy to grow it takes
only three months and many merchants are waiting to buy it" he said. The Wa
prince said it was impossible to grow rice in Wa area because of the soil
conditions. 
	Additionally, he said, "Even if we grow the rice where are we going to sell
it? Was live in mountain and there is no proper transportation." 
	"The Was are not given any alternative. There is no organisations nor
governments wanting to help to eliminate the opium growing," stressed Maha San. 
	"They always see Wa people and opium together. That's not true.  There are
Was who really want to wipe out the opium problem."
	Though some Wa leaders are keen to eradicate the opium problem the junta
and UWSP leaders are not among them.
	 "They can make money quickly and easily," he said. But for the Wa people
the future is dim. "We have nothing - no school, no hospital, no proper
transportation and no road. Our people are still poorest". 
	Though the Slorc has provided some assistance for the Wa through the UWSP
in recent years the Wa people received little, Maha San said. He also said
the junta don't dare touch the UWSP. "If they start to criticise the Wa
leaders the Was will go back to fighting so the Slorc is just turning a
blind eyes to what Wa leaders have been doing." 
	Additionally, the Slorc is worried that the Wa leaders will pull out of its
National Convention.
	Maha San also revealed that since Khun Sa "surrendered" to the ruling junta
last year, the former lord's Chinese business associates have moved into Wa
area where Maha San said "they enjoy more freedom to continue their business." 
	Several months after the army took over Khun Sa's heroin refineries last
year, at least three heroin refineries were re-opened and run by Khun Sa's
former friends from his former HQs at Ho Hmong.
	"They  were given unofficial permission to re-start their old business,"
Maha San said. 
	Last year, Robert S Gilberd, United States' assistant secretary of state
for international narcotics wrote in the Far Eastern Economic Review, that
the nature of the drug trade has changed in an unmistakable way: 
	Burma's most important narco-traffickers are no longer holed up in jungle
hideaways. They are buying real estate in Rangoon and Mandalay, investing in
Burma's economy, openly courting military officials."
	A prominent Shan leader, Khun Kya Nu, who is also a founding member of the
Shan State Independence Army in 1960 said the SURA or WNO didn't need to
respond to the Slorc's allegations. 
	"Why do we have to respond to Slorc's accusations - they are
narco-dictatorship - the whole world knows the Slorc is a
narco-dictatorship." (TN)

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ASIA TIMES: MYANMAR CLASHES POLITICAL, NOT RELIGIOUS, SAYS YANGON
March 20, 1997
Stephen Brookes, Bangkok

Myanmar's second largest city Mandalay has been put under a curfew following
violent clashes between Buddhists and Muslims last weekend that officials
said may have been politically motivated. 

The two days of riots, in which at least two mosques were reportedly
destroyed by monk-led mobs numbering in the hundreds, were brought under
control by the military and an 8pm to 4am curfew was now in place in five
primarily Muslim townships, analysts in Yangon said. 

According to unconfirmed reports, three persons may have been killed during
the clashes. Government sources denied the reports. The riots, which broke
out in different parts of the city, were apparently sparked by rumors that a
Buddhist girl had been raped by a Muslim businessman, observers in Myanmar
said. "This seems like a religious conflict rather than a political
protest," one analyst said, noting that a similar clash between Muslims and
Buddhists had taken place in Bathein several years ago. 

But one high-level official disagreed, describing the violence as
politically-motivated. "There are certain people targeting the students, the
monks and the workers" to create social unrest and derail Myanmar's expected
entry into the Association of Southeast Asian Nations this year, he said,
noting that ASEAN members Indonesia and Malaysia were primarily Muslim. 

"If the instigators can create misunderstandings, they can make problems for
Myanmar's entry into ASEAN," he said, adding that the government knew who
was behind the riots, but declined to identify them. "Everybody knows who is
opposing Myanmar's entry into ASEAN." 

Opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, while never outrightly condemning
Myanmar's entry into ASEAN, had said it would consolidate the power of the
ruling junta, making it harder to move toward democracy. 

"The mobs may have been led by a politically-motivated group within the
monks," one diplomat in Yangon said. "There are young monks who are fairly
political. But the clashes did not seem to be coordinated and there are
tensions between the Muslim and Buddhist communities, which have different
social values." 

A government source said between 200 and 300 monks from various monasteries
were involved in the clashes, with an unknown number of supporters
participating. He said a recent media report that 16 monks had been taken to
military areas to be used as porters was a "hoax". 

There are an estimated 300,000 to 500,000 monks and nuns in Myanmar, where
Theravada Buddhism is the prevalent religion. Close to 90 percent of the
population is Buddhist, while less than four percent are Muslims. 

Buddhist monks have played key roles in the country's political history for
most of this century. Many actively supported the pro-democracy movement
that began in 1988 to 1989. Myanmar's ruling State Law and Order Restoration
Council has been making efforts over the past several years to promote
Buddhism and win support from the monks, primarily by building and restoring
pagodas. 

Mandalay and Yangon were reported as calm on Wednesday. Security is high in
the capital, ahead of the March 27 Armed Forces Day celebrations. "Whenever
anyone wants to start trouble with the monks, they start in Mandalay," one
official said. "It may spread to Yangon, we don't know. But that's what they
usually do." (AT)

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ONSOB: REFUGEE ASSISTANCE
March 24, 1997

To whom it may concern:

We are now opening a center for receiving items for dontaion to refugees
along the Thai-Burmee border.  The refugees require assistance and health
care.  Suggested items for donation include food, medecine, clothes, and
stationary goods.  

Opening Date: 24th March 1997
Location: In front of Ramkhamhaeng University 

We welcome all assistance in helping provide the refugees with donations.

Cordially, 

Yea Chan
General Secretary
Overseas National Students' Organization of Burma

Coordinating Representatives-
Active for Social Students' Group of Ramkamhaeng University
Thai Action Committee for Democracy in Burma

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