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Breaking News From The Rangoon Post (r)
- Subject: Breaking News From The Rangoon Post (r)
- From: RANGOONP@xxxxxxx
- Date: Sat, 11 Apr 1998 19:32:00
These following news are searched and posted by The Rangoon Post. Further
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Press Association Newsfile
April 8, 1998, Wednesday
SECTION: PARLIMENTARY NEWS
HEADLINE: BRITAIN SEEKS RENEWAL OF SANCTIONS AGAINST BURMESE REGIME
BYLINE: Andrew Evans, Lords Staff, PA News
Britain tonight renewed its criticism of the "appalling" human rights
record
of the military regime in Burma and will be calling this month for UN
endorsement of its condemnation. Junior Foreign Office Minister Baroness
Symons
of Vernham Dean told peers at question time: "The Government are appalled by
the
plight of Burma's ethnic minorities. "We are introducing a resolution on
Burma at the UN Commission on Human Rights later this month, which will
highlight this important issue. The root of the problem remains the repressive
military regime in Burma. "We are using our EU Presidency to secure renewal
of EU punitive measures against the regime." Tory Baroness Cox, who visited
the
area last week, welcomed the minister's "robust" response, which she said
would
"give comfort to many of those suffering at the hands of the brutal regime".
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Agence France Presse
April 09, 1998 16:24 GMT
SECTION: International news
HEADLINE: Myanmar opposition leaders calls UN to pressure Yangon
DATELINE: GENEVA, April 9
Myanmar opposition leader and Nobel peace laureate, Aung San Suu Kyi,
asked
the United Nations to increase pressure on the military junta in Yangon, in a
video cassette sent to the UN rights commission here.
The human rights situation has "got even worse," she said, adding that some
100 people had been arrested by the authorities in the first two months of the
year.
"I think that the numbers of those arrested must be very close to one
hundred
if not more since the beginning of 1998, and we are at the beginning of
March,"
she told the commission in a tape smuggled out of the country and shown to the
commission Thursday.
In her message, Aung San Suu Kyi urged the United Nations to implement its
resolutions on the democratisation process in Myanmar.
"It is time that the international community took a greater interest in
getting the terms of the resolutions implemented," she said.
The National League for Democracy party (NLD) under Aung San Suu Kyi, one
of
nine officially sanctioned opposition parties, won national elections here in
a
landslide victory in 1990, but was subsequently denied power by the military.
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Agence France Presse
April 09, 1998 10:51 GMT
HEADLINE: Myanmar opposition slams junta for rejecting Richardson
DATELINE: BANGKOK, April 9
Myanmar (Burma) opposition forces on Friday slammed the military
government's rejection of a proposed visit to the isolated country by US
ambassador to the United Nations Bill Richardson.
But the spokesman for the exiled National Coalition Government for the
Union
of Burma (NCGUB) said the decision was to be expected and reflected the
junta's unwillingness to accept international criticism.
"The SPDC never respect or accept international opinion and comment. They
do
not accept opposite views, so I'm not surprised a visit by the ambassador was
turned down," the Bangkok-based spokesman for the government-in-exile said.
He said authorities would rather not have a visitor who would likely insist
on meeting opposition leader and Nobel Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi and other
political figures.
"They are afraid the ambassador will meet Aung San Suu Kyi and political
leaders and dissidents, so they refused him to come. They will be worried
about
showing the outside what is happening in Burma, " he said.
Washington was told Thursday that Richardson would not be allowed to visit
Myanmar on an upcoming swing through South Asia as its officials are
currently
barred from travelling to the United States.
The NCGUB is made up of many members of Aung San Suu Kyi's National League
for Democracy party which won Myanmar's last elections in 1990 by a
landlslide
only to see the result ignored by the junta.
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AP Worldstream
April 09, 1998; Thursday 11:58 Eastern Time
HEADLINE: Thai elephant injured in pit dug for gas pipeline from Myanmar
DATELINE: BANGKOK, Thailand
A young elephant was injured in Western Thailand when it fell into a pit
dug
for a gas pipeline project from Myanmar.
Villagers heard the elephant roaring in pain from injuries to its front and
hind legs, but were unable to rescue the animal because entry to the area was
barred by the Petroleum Authority of Thailand, The Bangkok Post reported
Thursday.
The villagers, who live near the city of Kanchanaburi, 110 kilometers (68
miles) west of Bangkok, said the elephant struggled for three hours before
finally climbing out of the pit and limping back into the jungle.
Environmentalists and human rights activists have staged protests against
the
dlrs 1.2 billion pipeline, scheduled to begin carrying gas from Myanmar to
Thailand in July 1998.
The project is a joint venture between Total of France, Unocal of the
United
State, Myanmar's military government and the Petroleum Authority of
Thailand.
Protesters say it will destroy virgin rain forest and deprive elephants and
other wildlife, already under threat from deforestation, of their habitat.
They also have said that forced labor has been used in Myanmar to build
the
pipeline, although the oil companies involved have
enied the charge.
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Japan Economic Newswire
APRIL 10, 1998, FRIDAY
HEADLINE: Myanmar bans many imports, magazine says
DATELINE: YANGON, April 10 Kyodo
The Myanmar government has banned imports of alcohol, beer, cigarettes,
soft drinks, biscuits, canned meats and fruits, seasoning powder and dried
noodles, according to the current issue of a Myanmar business journal
quoting
recent government documents.
The journal, The Market, said the ban last month was part of a government
drive to 'encourage local products.'
All the banned items are produced in Myanmar, mostly by joint-ventures
between foreign companies and the government or private organizations.
The same government documents also showed exports of some agricultural
products have also been banned. The products include rice, sugar, ground nuts
and ground nut oil, the magazine added.
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Deutsche Presse-Agentur
April 8, 1998, Wednesday, BC Cycle
04:15 Central European Time
SECTION: Financial Pages
HEADLINE: Myanmar to allow private ownership of cinemas
DATELINE: Yangon
Myanmar's ruling military junta has announced plans to privatize the
country's 29 cinemas, which were nationalized three and a half decades ago by
the previous socialist regime, news reports said Wednesday.
Local entrepreneurs who wish to lease the cinemas were given until April
30
to contact the Myanmar (Burma) Motion Picture Enterprise - the state
enterprise that currently runs the country's ancient movie houses.
Other privatization options include a total purchase or entering a joint
venture with the government to run the cinemas, said the New Light of Myanmar
newspaper.
Myanmar, a country with a population of 46.7 million, has only 29
cinemas
nationwide, with 10 in the capital Yangon (formerly Rangoon), and four in
Mandalay.
All cinemas were nationalized shortly after General Ne Win's military coup
in 1962 that ushered in 26 years of the disastrous "Burmese Way to Socialism".
Socialism was officially dropped in 1988, although the country's military
regime has since kept a tight grip on most aspects of the economy. dpa aso pj
jh
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Deutsche Presse-Agentur
April 9, 1998, Thursday, BC Cycle
03:59 Central European Time
HEADLINE: Myanmar launches first promotional CD
DATELINE: Yangon
The military regime in Myanmar (Burma) has launched the country's first
locally-made promotional compact disc (CD) in an effort to counter the
"concocted news reports" of "neo-colonialist" news agencies, reports said
Thursday.
The CD, labelled " Myanmar - Another Incarnation," was officially
launched
Wednesday at the International Business Centre in Yangon (Rangoon), local
newspapers reported.
State Peace and Development Council First Secretary Lieutenant General
Khin
Nyunt, presiding over the CD launch, praised Burmese young people who
developed
the CD locally.
"This is an accomplishment to make Myanmar (Burma) extensively known to
the world," said Khin Nyunt.
He added that "some news agencies of neo-colonialists have blacked out all
good and nation-building news about the government and instead are
highlighting
false and concocted news reports about Myanmar with pessimistic views."
Myanmar has been ruled by a military junta since September 1988 despite
the electoral win of the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) at the
1990 general election. dpa aso pj bo