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The BurmaNet News, June 9, 1997




------------------------ BurmaNet ------------------------       
"Appropriate Information Technologies, Practical Strategies"       
----------------------------------------------------------       
       
The BurmaNet News: June 9, 1997       
Issue #744

HEADLINES:       
==========     
DVB: BOMB EXPLOSIONS AT AIRPORT, DEFENSE ACADEMY 
THE NATION: RANGOON FREES 300 SUU KYI SUPPORTERS
AP: HEROIN SEIZURE SUSPECT EXTRADITED 
FAR EASTERN ECONOMIC REVIEW: POWER PLAY
KNU: PRESS RELEASE NO.25/97
JAKARTA MEDIA:BURMA- NOT NECESSARILY ATTEND ASEM 
REUTER: MALAYSIA SLAMS ASEAN'S CRITICS ON BURMA 
MEDIA STATEMENT: LIM KIT SIANG
BKK POST: BURMA MEMBERSHIP 'WILL DAMAGE CREDIBILITY'
THAILAND TIMES: MAE SOT A HOTBED FOR MALARIA
TT:CHETTHA REFUTES RUMORED APPROVAL OF OPERATION
TT: CONSTRUCTION RAISES CONCERNS OF WATER POLLUTION
TT: CROSS-BORDER TRADERS WANT MAJOR ROADS FIXED
THE NATION: PRO-PIPELINE LOBBY COMES FORWARD
THE NATION: THAI SOLDIERS SHOULD NOT ABUSE REFUGEES
IID: STATEMENT ON ASEAN'S ACCEPTANCE OF BURMA
ANNOUNCEMENT: UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA DIVESTMENT
-----------------------------------------------------------------     

DVB: BOMB EXPLOSIONS AT AIRPORT, DEFENSE ACADEMY 
June 3, 1997 [translated from Burmese]

It has been reported that a bomb explosion at Loikaw Airport on 22 May
caused damage only to buildings.  Saw Win Nyo reported that about 800
civilians living in the vicinity were being questioned by military
intelligence personnel.  The military intelligence personnel were
suspicious that those responsible for the bombing were being hidden by
sympathizers from the ward.  Local people said this explosion had nothing
to do with the civilians and that it concerned only military intelligence
personnel and the Defense Services, because the majority of the airplane
tickets from Loikaw were monopolized by military intelligence.  Apart from
military servicemen and senior officials, others have to pay a high price
for the plane tickets.  It was believed to be the act of the Defense
Services, to show their dissatisfaction over the military intelligence.
There have been frequent bomb explosions in Burma, and they all
occurred in places with high security.  A bomb exploded at the Thihapasana
Cave in Kabaaye last December and another bomb explosion occurred at the
house of Lt. Gen. Tin Oo, secretary-2 of the State Law and Order Restoration
Council [SLORC], and caused the death of his daughter, Cho Le Oo.
On 10 April, 4 days after the explosion at Tin Oo's house, a bomb
exploded a few moments after SLORC Chairman Sr. Gen. Than Shwe had
delivered an address at the graduation parade of the Military Cadet
Training Course at the Defense Services Academy in Maymyo.  Military
sources reported that a major and 14 cadets were killed and another 10
cadets were wounded.  Whenever a bomb explosion has occurred, the SLORC has
always accused the opposition forces and the activists.
But this time news was blacked out, because the SLORC could not
pinpoint the blame for the bomb explosion that occurred at the high
security Maymyo Defense Services Academy, where only authorized military
personnel are allowed.
It has been reported that a group of Defense Services personnel,
including a major from an engineering battalion, was being held for
questioning.  Observers say questioning members of the engineering
battalion whenever a bomb explosion occurs has created a lack of trust and
a growing discontent among Defense Services personnel.

Oslo Democratic Voice of Burma

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

THE NATION: RANGOON FREES 300 SUU KYI SUPPORTERS
June 7, 1997
AFP

RANGOON - Burma's ruling junta has released over 300 Aung San Suu
Kyi supporters who were prevented from attending an opposition party
congress last month, an aide to the pro-democracy leader said yesterday.

"I've heard that everybody has been released," said the aide, reached by
telephone at Suu Kyi's Rangoon residence.

The National League for Democracy (NLD) announced late on Thursday that
although supporters had been unable to attend the congress, they had managed
to approve 21 resolutions through letters, word of mouth and group discussions.

In an 11-page statement the NLD also called on the military government to
release all political prisoners, convene parliament and initiate talks with
the political opposition and ethnic minorities .

The international human rights watchdog Amnesty International says that some
2,000 people were detained in 1996 alone in Burma in connection with calls
for improved human and political rights.

The aide said that 316 members of the NLD had been confined to their homes
or detained by authorities around the country in the run-up to the May 27 to
28 congress, called to mark the NLD's May 1990 landslide election victory.

Rangoon has denied any detentions but said that local authorities had asked
NLD members to stay at home.

The "request" for NLD members ',to refrain from attending this function has
been canceled since last Sunday [June 1]" and they were now "free to visit"
Rangoon, a senior government official said on Thursday.
     
Only a handful of senior party members were able to reach Suu Kyi's house
for the congress, after hundreds of armed riot police were deployed to
scupper the meeting.

The congress marked the seventh anniversary of the NLD's sweeping win -
never recognised by the ruling junta - in the last general elections to be
held in Burma.

The resolutions called for tripartite dialogue among democratic forces led
by Suu Kyi, the representatives of country's ethnic minorities and the
junta, the State Law and Order Restoration Council (Slorc).

The NLD also urged the Slorc to convene "as soon as possible", a parliament
based on the result of the 1990 general elections, halt further repression
of NLD party members, end forced labour and release all political prisoners.

The statement broadly echoed similar calls made by the party at the time of
the planned congress for the military junta to allow elected candidates in
the election to take up parliamentary seats and for Slorc to support
political dialogue.

However, on Thursday the party also revealed it had drafted an 80-page
document which should form the basis of a new constitution.

"We have, however, decided to keep this document on hold until a genuine
national convention ... could be held," the statement said.

The Slorc has organised a national convention to draft a new constitution
and is sensitive to moves by the NLD to frame an alternative charter.

The NLD withdrew from the convention in late 1995, claiming it would
unfairly enshrine a proportion of seats for the military in any future
parliament.   

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

AP: HEROIN SEIZURE SUSPECT EXTRADITED 
June 5, 1997
Jiraporn Wongpaithoon 

BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) -- The suspected mastermind behind the biggest
shipment of heroin ever seized in the United States left a Bangkok prison
today for a closely guarded journey to New York, where he will stand trial
on drug charges. 

Li Yun-chung was arrested in Bangkok last year but jumped bail and fled to
Burma in February. Burmese authorities, in a gesture of political
friendship, sent him back last month. 

Li, a Burmese-born Chinese with Thai residency, was indicted in U.S.
District Court in New York in May 1996 in connection with 1,070 pounds of
heroin that was seized in Hayward, Calif., in 1991. The drugs, worth about
$50 million, were destined for New York. 

Thai authorities arrested him in July with an alleged accomplice, Cha 
Chung-chang, also sought by U.S. authorities. Cha is still fighting 
extradition. 

Li's case gained notoriety in Thailand because of allegations he bribed 
high-ranking court officials to have bail granted. When Thai authorities 
questioned Li on his return, he said he bought his freedom for $800,000. 

Li was handed today to U.S. officials at the Bangkok Remand Prison and taken
by van to Bangkok's airport, where he was flown by helicopter to a Thai air
force base at Takhli, 100 miles northeast of Bangkok. 

A U.S. military aircraft waited there to transport him to New York, 
accompanied by two agents of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and
two U.S. federal marshals. 

Li was not expected to arrive in New York today due to a stopover, sources
in the federal prosecutor's office in Brooklyn, N.Y., said on condition of 
anonymity. 

Li and Cha also have been linked to a 158-pound heroin shipment seized in
Singapore in March last year. 

Since January 1996, at least six alleged drug traffickers have been
extradited from Thailand to the United States. 

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

FAR EASTERN ECONOMIC REVIEW: POWER PLAY
June 12, 1997

Burma's new military strongman, Gen. Maung Aye, is forming his own
military-intelligence unit to counter the Directorate of Defense Services
Intelligence, led by Lt-Gen Khin Nyunt.

A special cabinet meeting in early May also discussed whether Maung Aye
should take over from the aging Gen Than Shwe as commander-in-chief of the
defense services and chairman of the ruling State Law and Order Restoration
Council. 

If that happens, his deputy will be the present army chief of staff, Lt-Gen
Tin Oo. These changes may take place as early as July, but will need the
approval of Burma's old strongman, Gen Ne Win, who retired in 1988 but still
plays an important role behind the scenes.

The power of Khin Nyunt, a Ne Win protégé, has been slipping over the past
year. Most recently, his DDSI has been blamed for failing to prevent a
parcel bomb from reaching Tin Oo's daughter, who was killed in a blast in
early April. (FEER)

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

KNU: PRESS RELEASE NO.25/97
June 3, 1997

                    OFFICE OF THE SUPREME HEAD QUARTERS
                               KAREN NATIONAL UNION
                                     KAW THOO LEI

                                        KNU Press Release No.25/97
             Regarding 1997 SLORC Offensive Against the KNU
                                                                             
  June 3,1997

         By military offensive, the SLORC has been destroying Karen villages
and, in east of Shwe Gyin township, the SLORC is continuing its work of
destruction as given below-
          The SLORC troops burnt down:

In Sor-theh-kee village tract, 49 houses, making 494 persons homeless; in
Ler-wah village tract 50 houses, making 304 persons homeless, in Su-mu-ta
village tract, 25 houses, making 104 persons homeless; in Ko-phet village
tract, 40 houses, making 131 persons homeless; in Tee-ba-lar village tract,
63 houses, making 267 persons homeless; in Meh-reh-kee village tract, 93
houses, making 438 persons homeless; Eighty families from Meh-reh-kee and
Klor-ko-ger villages, and 32 families from Tee-ba-lar village tract were
driven down to the plain areas.

             From 12 to 21 May, 1997, troops from SLORC IBs 57, 59 and 37
combined together and continued the work of destruction in northern Pa-pun
district as given below.
             
             In Ler-mu-plaw village, the SLORC troops burnt down 55 houses,
83 farm huts, 55 rice barns and killed a large number of live-stock. The
SLORC IB 548 looted 10 baskets of rice and 10,000 kyats from
Tee-law-theet-ta, 25,000 kyats from Tee-theh-lay village and 2 buffaloes
from Tee-tha-blu-ta village. In Baw-kyo-traw village area, villagers have to
pay 1,000 kyats per family as porter fees.

              On 11-5-97, a DKBA commander, Saw Hla Dah, came to Par-klu
village of Myawady township and forcibly collected 3,000 kyats per family as
recruitment fees. Village elders Par Jer Po and two others were beaten
severely as Lo-Baw and Do-thu-kee villages were late in paying the fees. The
villagers had to pay an additional 400 kyats to DKBA Saw Mya Aung, as a fee
for the work of beating. The three village elders were released on 18-8-97
and elder Par Jer Po could hardly walk because of the beating. 

Abbreviations: KNU = Karen National Union (Political wing of the Karen
resistance), SLORC = State Law and Order restoration Council (Military
dictatorship of Burma), DKBA = Democratic Kayin Buddhist Army (A puppet army
of the SLORC), Kyat is the name of Burmese currency, Shwe Gyin is a town
about 90 miles to the east of the Burmese Capital, Rangoon, Myawady is town
in the Karen State opposite Tak province of Thailand.

KNU Information Center

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

JAKARTA MEDIA INDONESIA (INTERNET VERSION): ALATAS SAYS BURMA 'WILL NOT
NECESSARILY' ATTEND ASEM 
June 4, 1997

Jakarta (Media Indonesia)--Foreign Minister Ali Alatas says the question of
who will and who will not attend the upcoming Asia-Europe meeting [ASEM]
will be dealt with individually. "ASEM will not be a collective meeting,
ASEAN on the one hand and the EU on the other; rather, it will be a meeting
among countries," Foreign Minister Alatas said in Jakarta yesterday.  Alatas
made the statement in response to a decision by the EU, supported by the
British Foreign Office, not to invite Burma to the upcoming ASEM in London
next year, although that country will be admitted into ASEAN in July.
Indeed, Burma will not necessarily attend the next ASEM.  It would be
erroneous for them to think that Burma will automatically attend the next
ASEM when the country joins ASEAN," Alatas said.
A senior Burmese official shrugged off the EU's decision not to invite
his country to the next ASEM as part of a "divide-and conquer" policy.
Burma has been severely singled out and criticized by the West for
human rights violations.  The international community is increasingly
supporting Aung San Suu Kyi, who has won the Nobel Peace Prize.

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

REUTER: MALAYSIA SLAMS ASEAN'S CRITICS ON BURMA 
June 6, 1997

KUALA LUMPUR, June 6 (Reuter) - Malaysia's acting Prime  Minister Anwar
Ibrahim on Friday slammed critics of the move by the Association of
Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to admit Burma for ``playing to the gallery.'' 

 Speaking to an Asia-Pacific Roundtable, Anwar said the critics were
apparently ``influenced by the oscillating moods of the moment rather than a
clear-eyed vision of the future.'' 

 ``Criticism of ASEAN for admitting Myanmar into the grouping, together with
Cambodia and Laos and talks of 'containment' of certain Asian countries, for
example, demonstrates a predilection to playing to the gallery rather than
facing the realities of the region,'' Anwar said. 

 Some 240 policymakers, scholars, journalists and corporate figures from 24
countries were attending the three-day annual discourse organised by
Malaysia's Institute of Strategic And International Studies (ISIS). 

 A charter drawn up at last year's roundtable stressed the ``three pillars
of our Pacific Community'' -- peace, prosperity and a ``celebration of
civilisations,'' Anwar said. 

 ``There should be a celebration of civilisations where we each fortify the
values and the ways which make us strong and that makes us civilised in our
own light while partaking of the values and the ways of all our Pacific
partners,'' he said. 

 ``We in the Pacific must reject and reject most vigorously the thesis that
civilisations are destined to collide, especially in this part of the world.''

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

MEDIA STATEMENT: LIM KIT SIANG
June 6, 1997 [abridged]

                             DEMOCRATIC ACTION PARTY

Media Statement by Parliamentary Opposition Leader, DAP Secretary-General
and MP for Tanjong, Lim Kit Siang, in Petaling Jaya on Friday, June 6, 1997:
SLORC should show positive results in ASEAN constructive engagement policy
in the eight-week probation before formal admission to ASEAN in the third
week of July

The decision of the ASEAN foreign ministers informal meeting to admit
Myanmar into ASEAN-10 at the Asean Ministerial Meeting in Kuala Lumpur on
July 24 is a great disappointment and have rightly provoked a sense of
outrage, not only in international circles but also in the region as well.

The Burmese State Law and Order Council (SLORC) should take heed of the
remarks by the Japanese Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto that it should not
regard Asean membership as a form of pardon for the military junta.

In fact, it is not only SLORC which is on "probation", ASEAN has also placed
itself on  "trial" as to whether it could ensure  that Burma under SLORC
would help to make the ASEAN constructive policy a success and see positive
results in the area of democratic reforms and national reconciliation or
whether the admission into ASEAN would be a precursor to more repressive
policies against the people of Burma.

The eight-week period between the Asean foreign ministers informal meeting
and the ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on July 24, is the first probation period
for SLORC, as to whether it could  show ASEAN and the world that it can be a
responsible regional and global player by initiating tripartite discussions
among the military junta, the National League for Democracy headed by Aung
San Suu Kyi and the ethnic minorities to pave the way for national
reconciliation and unity.

The question that should be answered in this eight-week period before
Burma's formal admission into ASEAN is whether SLORC is prepared to show a
more democratic face or whether it wants to be admitted into  ASEAN merely
to legitimise and perpetuate its repressive regime and policies.
                                                                            
                               Lim Kit Siang

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

BKK POST: BURMA'S MEMBERSHIP 'WILL DAMAGE CREDIBILITY'
June 8, 1997
AFP

Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) will damage the grouping's
credibility, an Indonesian analyst warned yesterday.

"Burma's membership will result in a heap of criticisms towards Asean from
the international community, especially the Western countries," said Jusuf
Wanandi, chairman of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies.

The move would in turn limit Asean's influence both regionally and globally,
Jusuf wrote in a paper entitled "Asean 10: Challenges and implications for
the wider region."

"Asean has to take these criticisms seriously," he said.
     
Jusuf noted that opposition to Burma's entry had also been voiced by
non-governmental organisations within Asean member countries.

"In their eyes, Burma's Slorc (the State Law and Order Restoration Council)
lacks decency and legitimacy," he said.

On the economic front, Jusuf said, Asean would have to provide a lot of
assistance and support for the three economies to catch up.

Asean 6 would have almost tariff-free economies in 2003- Vietnam in 2006-
but the three economies would be given longer time to implement reforms
until 2008 or 2009, he said.  
     
"This will strain the three economies and Asean as a whole," Jusuf said.

He said the admission of Laos would create problems because of the country's
lack of officials capable in participating in Asean's development.

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

THAILAND TIMES: MAE SOT A HOTBED FOR MALARIA INFECTION
June 7, 1997
By Assawin Pinitwong

TAK: Mae Sot district is the most heavily malaria infected area in Thailand,
with over 2,000 cases of infection believed to be transferred by alien
workers coming from the Thai-Burmese borders.
     
A health source yesterday said that malaria cases usually escalate during
the rainy season, adding that infected refugees who enter from Burma were
known carriers of the disease.

Of the 2,000 infected patients throughout the province, ten of them have
died in Mae Sot Hospital. The source added that 15 of 18 border police
officers at Tambon Phawor were also sick with the disease.

Ronnatri Ruangweerayut, a doctor at the Mae Sod Hospital, cited that 2,000
patients come yearly for treatment, and 10 percent of them are usually in
serious condition, saying that some of them died when the disease spread to
their stomach and kidneys.  

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

THAILAND TIMES: CHETTHA REFUTES RUMORED APPROVAL OF BURMESE RIVER CHANNEL
OPERATION
June 7, 1997
By Assawin Pinitwong

TAK: Army chief Gen Chettha Thanajaro yesterday dismissed rumors that
Burma's, construction of a river diversion channel had been initially
approved by senior officials of the two countries, by saying permission
could only be granted by the Burmese Technical Sub-comittee.

Gen Chettha said only the sub-committee has the authority to approve any
construction operations because. it has the information and evidence such as
aerial maps to be used in monitoring any digging activities.

He said disputes regarding the dredging of the Moei River have existed for a
long time therefore a serious resolution to the problem needs to be found by
the two sides.

Meanwhile, a border source said that Thailand and Burma have again failed to
agree on a map to be used as a guideline for future river diversion channels
on the disputed land in Tak province.

Following the Thai-Burmese Technical Sub-committee's meeting on
Thursday, the two sides failed to reach an agreement on which aerial maps
should be used as a blueprint for digging operations on the shared waterway.

Burmese authorities insist on using a 1989 map, but Thailand prefers the
digging to be based on three maps produced in 1989, 1992 and 1994.

However, the matter will be discussed continuously until a substantial
agreement can be reached between the two countries .

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

THAILAND TIMES: BURMA'S EXPANDED CONSTRUCTION RAISES CONCERNS OF WATER POLLUTION
June 6, 1997
By Assawin Pinitwong

TAK: Burma put additional burden on the already tense Thai-Burmese relations
when it approved the construction of commercial buildings which encroach
further along the Moei River bank, causing Thailand to worry about the
possible contamination of the shared waterway.

A border source said yesterday-Myawaddy authorities reportedly granted a
private company a construction permit for 20 more units of commercial
buildings along the Burmese side of the Moei River.

The buildings are ostensibly designed to encroach further onto the bank of
the river, raising Thailand's ire that the construction may cause water
pollution as the Burmese reportedly lack a proper waste water treatment system.

The construction will be located southward of the Thai-Burmese Friendship
Bridge which recently opened to facilitate trade in the popular economic
area as it is crowded with goods transport operations.

The source said Thai authorities had five years ago banned a similar
construction project on Thai soil due to its close proximity to the river bank.

However, Burma reportedly agreed for the first time to dismantle the
embankment which it constructed early last month on the same river.

Such an action was believed to be in exchange for Thailand's approval of the
Burmese excavation of a river diversion channel opposite Tak's Ta Sai Luad
sub-district, added the source.

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

THAILAND TIMES: CROSS-BORDER TRADERS WANT MAJOR ROADS TO RANGOON FIXED
June 6, 1997
By Assawin Pinitwong

TAK: Cross-border traders yesterday called for a cooperative effort between
Thailand and Burma in upgrading roads leading from the border to the Burmese
capital, saying that decent roads could boost border trade at Mae Sot to the
tune of two billion baht a year.

Chirasak Paiboonthammarote, chairman of the Thai-Burmese Border
Traders Association, said the appalling state of disrepair on Burma's roads
is a severe impediment to Thai traders.

He urged the Thai government to join hands with the Burmese junta in
improving the 300-kilometer road to Rangoon from Myawaddy, just across the
border from Mae Sot.

Although the total cost of the project might reach 300 million baht, it
makes economic sense given the development expected in the border region
once the Thai-Burmese Friendship Bridge is open to traffic, he said.

But Chirasak said that even with improved roads, Thai traders doing business
in the area will still face problems.

At present, he said, the traders are stung by exorbitant fees by the Burmese
authorities each time they cross the border. Once both bribe money and
legitimate fees have been added up, the total cost for the traders is
l00,000kyat, equivalent to about 14,000 baht, he said.

Chirasak said the traders urge Thailand to work closely with Burma to
facilitate cross-border trading by removing unnecessary red tape.

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

THE NATION: PRO-PIPELINE LOBBY COMES FORWARD
June 7, 1997

TWENTY-FIVE village headmen and kamnan from Kanchanaburi province submitted
letters to Prime Minister Chavalit Yongchaiyudh and
Industry Minister Korn Dabaransi yesterday in support of the Yadana gas
pipeline project, which has been strongly opposed by environmentalists.

The headmen and kamnan yesterday went to Government House and the
Industry Ministry to deliver the letters.

"The construction of the Yadana gas pipeline is supported by 99 per cent of
the villagers in the area. We believe the project will benefit the nation as
a whole," said Thanya Darapisaisuk, a kamnan from Keang Sean sub-district in
Kanchanaburi who led the village headmen to Government House.

Tasco Mannesmann, a joint venture between Mannesmann Demag AG of
Germany and Tipco Asphalt of Thailand, received the concession
from the Petroleum Authority of Thailand (PTT) and the Burmese
government to lay the gas pipeline through Kanchanaburi province. 
     
The project, however, has met stiff resistance from environmentalists,
prompting concern from the builder that the pipeline might not be completed
within the specified time frame.

Korn said the contract was drawn up between 1995 and 1996 during previous
governments and that the National Environmental Board (NEB) had already
concluded that construction would not have a negative impact on the environment.

The NEB gave approval for construction on March 24 this year and the PTT
worked out a route for the pipeline which would have the least impact on the
environment, Korn said.

Korn said the pipeline was essential as domestic annual demand for
electricity is increasing by 1,400 megawatt. Since plans to construct
hydro-electric dams have been blocked by conservationists, the government
has no better choice than to seek energy sources from neighbouring countries
and natural gas from Burma emerged as a viable solution, he said.

Thanya claimed the protesters might have a hidden agenda, and
added "I wonder whether they are even from the area".

"If anything happens to the project, for instance, if it is forced to be
re-routed, I will certainly protest. Now, we are waiting to see what
decision the government takes. We have already considered that our gains
would surpass our losses once the pipeline is completed," he said.

Pinand Chotiros-saranee, a leader of the protesters against the pipeline
project, however, said that the village headmen came out to support the
project because they did not have correct information about the route it
would take.

She said although PTT claimed the pipeline would be built along a main road,
in some areas it would pass through the forest and that could cause
environmental harm. 

"These village headmen have occupied land in the forest area and they hope
land prices will go up once the pipeline is constructed. They wrongly expect
that the pipeline will bring industry to Kanchanaburi province.

In the letters submitted to the prime minister and industry minister the
village representatives said they represented people living in Ban E-Tong,
Pi Lok, Huy Kayeng, Ta Kanoon, Lintin, Tongpabhumi, Sai Yok, Tha Sao, Wang
Krajae, Lumsoom, Sri Mongkol, Ban Kao and Chorakae Puek, which covers a
260-kilometre stretch of the pipeline route.

The letters said the villagers in the area agreed on June 5 that they would
back the project.

"There will be no negative environmental impact. The construction of the
pipeline will not harm any endangered species", he claimed.

The pipeline builder would be fined by the Burmese government if the project
is not completed by the July 1998 deadline, he added.

Korn claimed that construction of the pipeline would open up only a
20metre-wide strip of land. Once completed, the builders would restore the land.

Korn said the project would make a "rising star" of Kanchanaburi. "In the
future, Kanchanaburi will become the gateway to countries to the west such
as India, as well as the Middle East and Europe. Kanchanaburi will also be
economically important because it will have four-lane streets and a railway
to Tawai," Korn said. 
                                                                  
**************************************************

THE NATION: THAI SOLDIERS SHOULD NOT ABUSE REFUGEES LIKE SLORC
June 8, 1997

I would like to explain about a recent event in Huay Kaloke Karen refugee
camp in which one soldier under the Mae Sot district administration command,
shot threateningly at a member of the camp community.

On May 24, at about 11 pm, five soldiers came by motorbike to the refugee
camp. The five arrived at the (Karen organised) patrol checkpoint which is
located in front of a school. One of them was drunk and demanded a girl from
the refugee camp member who was on duty there. That person tried to reason
with the soldier. But the soldier responded by challenging the camp patrol. 
     
Suddenly, the soldier fired his M-16 twice into the ground, near the man's
feet. This shocked the people in the camp, and some packed their bags, ready
to flee. However, the Thai soldiers ordered the Karen on duty to tell the
camp that the incident was only an accident.

As far as we refugees know, the soldiers love money and girls, more than
they care about our security. I would like to urge these soldiers to treat
us as human beings and perform their duties accordingly.

I would also like to note a remark from one of our community publications
produced after Huay Kaloke and Huay Boe camps were burned to the ground by
Slorc and DKBA: "We state that the security from the Thai Army is inadequate
 ... What is the meaning of this? It means that people come into our houses,
kick us in the backside, sleep with our wives and then leave, while we can
only merely sit and watch."
     
We hope that the Thai soldiers will not continue to behave in a way that
will make it easy to mistake them for those who lay in wait across the
border to commit abuses against us. 

"A refugee"
HUAY KALOKE CAMP

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

IID: STATEMENT ON ASEAN'S ACCEPTANCE OF BURMA
June 4, 1997 [excerpts]

ASEAN'S ACCEPTANCE OF BURMA

The Initiatives for International Dialogue (IID) is shocked and views with
grave disdain ASEAN's acceptance of the murderous SLORC regime of Burma as a
full member .

We are not at all surprised at the approvals of authoritarian regimes in
Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore; however, for the Philippines to do so is
not only legitimizing the violations and suppression of rights in Burma but
is an insult to our very freedoms and liberties which we have fought and
struggled for so long against the very types of dictatorship as is now
firmly entrenched in Burma.

We are also familiar with that old refrain sung by ASEAN's foreign
ministers, mimicked by our Secretary of  Foreign Affairs Domingo Siazon, to
the effect that rather than isolate it, it is much better to constructively
engage Burma in the region in the hope that ASEAN may be able to soften its
narcissistic tendencies and influence it to move towards democracy faster.
What is however wrong about this policy is that it has never worked here nor
in any part of the world. In short, stripped of its bare essence, what this
convoluted logic brings is nothing but a legitimisation of the dictatorship
and a condonation of the brutal treatment of its own populace.

We are also tired of the worn-out argument that it is not for us to criticize,
and question, a sovereign government's policy, or its violation of
internationally recognized human rights for to do so is to interfere
unnecessarily in the internal affairs of that particular state. Our
government however forgets that this pre-supposes that the regime in place
in Burma is legitimate to begin with.

Alexander A. Padilla
Chairperson, IID
Initiatives for International Dialogue
04 June 1997
       =========================================
        |       Initiatives for International Dialogue            
        |   27-D Rosario Townhouse, Galaxy St., GSIS Heights      
        |              Matina 8000 Davao City  
		Philippines                   
        | Tel: (63)(82) 299 25 74 (to 75) Fax: (63)(82) 299 20 52 
        |         Alternate E-mail: iid@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx          
        ========================================

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ANNOUNCEMENT: UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA DIVESTMENT CAMPAIGN BEGINS
June 5, 1997

Contacts:
* University of California Student Association (UCSA): Kimi Lee, Executive
Director (510) 834-8272, Anastatia Telesetsky (805) 685-1661
* UCLA Burma Action Coalition:  Harold Goldstein (310) 319-9133, Yuki
Kidokoro (310) 450-5375, Aung Min (310) 838-8721
* Bay Area Burma Roundtable:  Dan Orzech  (510) 528-0653

A NEW DIVESTMENT CAMPAIGN TAKES ON "THE SOUTH AFRICA OF THE 90s"
UC Students And Faculty Call For Divestment From Burma

Los Angeles, CA -- In a movement with echoes of the South Africa divestment
movement of a decade ago, University of California students and faculty
across the state have begun pressing the UC Regents to cut ties with
companies which do business in Burma.

In recent weeks, the University of California Student Association, which is
the state-wide UC student government, the UCLA legislative assembly of the
academic senate, and the UC Santa Cruz student government have all called on
the Regents to divest from companies which invest in Burma, and to end
purchases from those companies.  Many cities, counties and states have
already banned deals with companies which do business in Burma, and the
Federal government last month banned all new investment in that country.

"Burma's generals are using the money they make from foreign corporations to
finance massive purchases of arms, which they turn on their own people,"
says UCSA executive director Kimi Lee.  "The University of California should
have nothing to do with companies that support the junta."

Burma's democratically elected leader, Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, has
repeatedly called for Western corporations to end their support for the
military regime in Burma.  She reiterated that position most recently in a
meeting with Unocal President John Imle at her home in Rangoon, where she
remains under virtual house arrest.

The University of California holds stock in two companies which do business
in Burma: Procter & Gamble and the Swedish telecommunications company
Ericsson.  Ericsson lost contracts last year with the city of San Francisco
worth up to $90 million because of its business dealings in Burma.

The University of Washington, Stanford and a number of other universities
have already begun using their endowments to support democracy in Burma. The
University of Washington Board of Regents decided in March 1995 to vote for,
and sponsor, shareholder resolutions aimed at limiting corporate involvement
in Burma.

A shareholder resolution at Unocal Corporation's annual meeting earlier
this week called on the company to investigate claims that it was being
used as a front for laundering drug money in Burma.  Burma is the world's
largest producer of opium, and the source of most of the heroin found on
American streets.  The University of Washington owns stock in Unocal.

After continuing pressure from students and faculty, the University of
Wisconsin Regents announced that they would sell the University's shares in
Texaco because of that company's participating in a natural gas project in
Burma.  Days later, Texaco executives announced that they were looking for
ways to withdraw from Burma.

With most major corporations already out of Burma, the few companies still
doing business there are becoming more visible.  Students at California
universities played a key role in convincing PepsiCo to withdraw from Burma
in February of this year.  Sales of Pepsi were banned at UC Berkeley,
Stanford and a number of college campuses until Pepsi ended sales in Burma.

"This is something for the Regents to think about over the summer," says
Anastatia Telesetsky, the UC Santa Barbara graduate student representative
to the UCSA.  "When we come back in the fall, we'll expect them to have some
answers."

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STUDENT UNION ASSEMBLY: UCSC RESOLUTION
June 4, 1997 [excerpts]

Resolution on Corporations Doing Business in Burma

         Student Union Assembly of the University of California, Santa Cruz
calls on the Regents of the University of California to divest any of its
shares in companies that do business with Burma,

        Student Union Assembly of the University of California, Santa Cruz
calls on the Regents of the University of California to establish policy
that a business supplying goods or service to any University of California
campus or other organizational unit shall be required to state that it, its
parent, subsidiaries or franchises do not conduct business in Burma,

June 4, 1997

Student Union Assembly
University of California, Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz, CA 95064

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