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The BurmaNet News: June 8, 1998



------------------------ BurmaNet ------------------------
 "Appropriate Information Technologies, Practical Strategies"
----------------------------------------------------------

The BurmaNet News: June 8, 1998
Issue #1021

HEADLINES:
==========
BKK POST: FOREIGN INVESTMENT SLICED IN HALF 
BKK POST: WA LINKED TO DRUGS CACHE
BKK POST: U.S. POSTS REWARD ON FOUR TOP TRAFFICKERS
THE NATION: IS INDONESIA FOLLOWING BURMA OR VICE VERSA?
THE NATION: JAPANESE LAWMAKERS SUPPORT BURMESE JUNTA 
ANNOUNCEMENT: HOW TO LISTEN TO RADIO FREE BURMA 
BURMANET SUBJECT MATTER RESOURCE LIST
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The Bangkok Post: Foreign Investment Sliced in Half Due to Asian Crisis 
5 June, 1998 

Tokyo -- Burma's ruling military junta admitted yesterday that foreign
investment in the sanctions struck country was cut by more than half in the
fiscal year to last March.

Blaming the dramatic fall on the Asian financial crisis, Brigadier General
David Abel said foreign direct investment in Burma dropped 53.6% from the
previous year to just $771 million (32382 million baht) in the 12 months to
March.

Foreign trade was going "according to plan," however, the junta's minister
of national planning and economic development told a seminar in Tokyo, the
International Conference on the Future of Asia.

"There will be a strong tendency of growth" in sectors such as agriculture,
metals and minerals, marine products, processed timber, oil and gas, said
the general, who acts as the junta's chief media contact.

Washington imposed trade sanctions after Burma's ruling junta refused to
acknowledge the result of a 1990 election won in a landslide by Aung San
Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy.

The European Union has a freeze on contacts at ministerial or senior
official levels and an embargo on the sale of arms to Burma.  Military
cooperation is banned and all non-humanitarian aid or development projects
are suspended.

Brig Gen Abel said the lack of a financial market in Burma and the fact
that the currency, the kyat, is not convertible prevented much of the
speculation that swept across Asia. 

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The Bangkok Post: Wa Linked to Drug Cache
5 June, 1998 

Villagers escape as police launch raid

Chiang Mai -- A Border Patrol Police unit uncovered cache of more than 12
million baht and 5,000 amphetamine pills in a Mae Ai district village on
Wednesday.

The police surrounded Hua Nam, a Lisor hilltribe village on the
Thai-Burmese border, after they were tipped off that it was a point where
traffickers delivered amphetamine pills to Thai agents.

All males in the village including their chief, Lao-dam Saenlee, 53, fled
into Burma as soon as they spotted the police.
They were believed to have sought refuge with the United Wa State Army led
by Wei Hsueh-kang, who reportedly has some 5,000 armed men under his control.

Wei is one of four drug traffickers for which the American government has
set a $2 million reward for information leading to their capture.

The police found 5,000 amphetamine pills, 12 million baht worth of cash in
500- and 1,000-baht banknotes, a list of customers, and three bank accounts
showing a combined deposit of three million baht hidden in two huts in the
village.

Thai officials believe the UWSA is operating a heroin and amphetamines
factory supplying drug traders in Thailand. It is believed about one
million pills are smuggled into Thailand via this route monthly. 

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The Bangkok Post: U.S. Posts Reward on Four Top Traffickers
5 June, 1998 

Khun Sa still high on the wanted list

Washington -- The State Department has stepped up the pressure on narcotics
traffickers in Burma and Thailand, setting $2 million rewards for four more
men wanted on drug charges in New York.

The department has long had a $2million reward for information leading to
the capture of Khun Sa, former leader of the Shan United Army, world's
largest producer until 1996.

Julie Reside, a department spokesman, said: "The announcement today expands
the reward to include the additional four narcotics traffickers and
reaffirms that we still want Khun Sa."

The four other men wanted are Chang Ping-yun, or Khun Saeng; Wei
Hsueh-kang, or Prasit Chivinnitipanya; Yan Wan-hsuan, or Lao Tai -- all of
Burma; and Liu Szu-po, also known as Kamrat Namsuwakhon or Lamdap
Namsuwakhon, of Thailand.

The rewards are being offered as part of the Counter-narcotics Rewards
Programme established by Congress in 1986 to help the US government
identify and bring to justice major drug traffickers.

The State Department's counter narcotics bureau sets the rewards in
cooperation with other agencies, including the Justice Department, the Drug
Enforcement Administration and the FBI.

In the US, information regarding the targeted traffickers can be provided
to local offices of the DEA or FBI, while overseas, information should be
given to the nearest US embassy or consulate.

Khun Sa capitulated to the Burmese junta in 1996 and is living in an army
safe house in Rangoon along with Chang, a key aide.

Khun Sa formerly commanded 20,000 guerrillas in the SUA, also known as the
Mong Tai Army, ostensibly to fight for independence for Shan state. But
international drug agencies accuse him of using the guerrillas as a
personal army to protect his opium and heroin businesses.

He was indicted in a US court in December 1989 on various charges of heroin
trafficking and Washington wants him handed over so he can stand trial in
the US.

Yan is Khun Sa's former confidential secretary, and head of the guerrilla
group's political affairs section. He also has been indicted in court for
attempting to import and distribute heroin.

Liu was a principal heroin distributor for Khun Sa, the State Department
said, noting he was last seen in Thailand.

Wei commands the United Wa State Army's Southern Military Command, a group
the State Department says has replaced the MTA as the dominant heroin
traffickers in Southeast Asia. He is believed to be in Burma. 

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

The Nation: Is Indonesia Following Burma or Vice Versa?
7 June, 1998 by Htun Aung Gyaw 

INDONESIA AND BURMA HAVE FOLLOWED REMARKABLY SIMILAR COURSES OVER THE LAST
THREE DECADES. HTUN AUNG GYAW TAKES A LOOK AT THE PARALLELS.

The recent demonstrations m Indonesia resemble those that took place in
Burma in 1988. Twenty-six years of economic mismanagement and hardship as
well as political oppression drove the Burmese people to nationwide
demonstrations that year. During those protests, the army killed more than
3,000 people, many in circumstances eerily similar to those occurring in
Indonesia now.

Thirty-six years ago, General Ne Win staged a coup that overthrew the
civilian government of Burma. He declared that the country was on the brink
of chaos and that it was the army's duty to prevent it from falling into
disorder. Ne Win adopted socialist economic policies, centralising the
nation's economy, and led Burma into a downward spiral from being one of
the most prosperous nations in Southeast Asia during the 1960s to one of
the poorest in the world by the 1980s.

Because of these economic hardships and widespread political repression,
the Burmese people, led by university students, have protested against the
government in the years since Ne Win's rise to power. In 1988, working
people joined the students in demonstrations that spread all across the
country. Ne Win resigned his office, but the Burmese army put down the
unarmed demonstrators without mercy, taking the lives of more than 3,000
citizens. The military staged another coup, and formed a new ruling junta
under the supervision of Ne Win himself.

Thirty-two years ago, the Indonesian communist party, the strongest
opposition party in that country, was crushed by anti-communist riots that
resulted in the deaths of thousands of communist party members and ethnic
Chinese. Sukarno, who had been named "president for life", was forced to
hand over political power to Gen Suharto in 1966. The rise of Suharto was
welcomed by the West and by the United States because he had been able to
quash the communist threat without outside assistance.

Suharto proceeded to create the Golkar party, which was authorised to
select the candidate for president. Without fail for seven elections, the
Golkar party chose Suharto as its nominee and enabled him to rule the
country for 32 years until his resignation last month. Under his rule,
Indonesia benefited from two favourable economic developments. One was the
discovery of off-shore oil fields, and the other was the hike in oil prices
in the 1970s. The Suharto regime has always showered its ruling elite and
his own family with special business privileges.

Corruption and nepotism have flourished in this system of crony capitalism,
as Suharto's own family is said to have accumulated almost US$40 billion by
means of subsidies and monopolies. As a result, the gap between rich and
poor widened terribly. The Indonesian people have become dissatisfied with
the regime for its corruption and misuse of power. But the support from the
Western powers and the surging economic growth in Asia enabled Suharto to
stay in power until the Asian financial crisis hit Indonesia.

Major events that have occurred in both Burma and Indonesia during the past
three decades have seemed to mirror each other. Thirty-two years ago,
Suharto staged a coup de force; Ne Win took power four years earlier on
March 2, 1962. Suharto took power from Sukarno on March 11,1966. Ne Win
ousted his rivals in the army before the coup of 1962. Similarly, the
deaths of seven Indonesian generals on Sept 30, 1965 -- blamed on
communists -- still remain shrouded in mystery. To this day no one has
established who carried out those assassinations. Suharto was the sole
general to survive this incident and rose to became dictator without
competition.

Both dictators used the military to suppress pro-democracy protests and to
exploit each country's natural resources. In both cases they have
monopolised the economic, social and political institutions of their
respective countries. This has resulted in widespread corruption, financial
mismanagement and human rights abuses. Each dictator has brought great
riches to their close family and friends. The upper classes in Indonesia
and Burma did not emerge from fair and legitimate economic competition.

It is also important to note that the military institutions of both nations
emerged as a  result of strikingly similar historical circumstances. Both
armies were formed under Japanese occupation and were built up into tightly
consolidated units after the coups of the 1960s. Unlike in the liberal
governments of the world, in Burma and in Indonesia the military remains a
constant presence in everyday civilian life.

There are, however, some obvious differences between the two armies. The
Indonesia army is well-fed; Burma's is not. This can be attributed partly
to the fact that Suharto's policies brought about economic growth that
raised living standards nationwide, so his soldiers naturally benefited. In
Burma, it has only been the top military officers who have reaped such
gains from the system, not by means of economic reform but through purely
corrupt measures. Low ranking Burmese soldiers, on the other hand, resort
to extortion and thievery to supplement their meager incomes.

They exploit in particular people in rural areas by simply taking their
possessions or forcing them into slavery. This barbarism is a side-effect
of Ne Win's failed economic policies. From the start he followed a
closed-door, protectionist line, which has caused uncontrollable inflation
and precipitated the rapid decline of Burma's economy into one of the
poorest in the world. Thus, the economic plight of the country, which
turned soldiers into thieves robbing an already poverty-stricken populace,
was the major reason behind the widespread demonstrations that broke out
all over Burma in 1988. The students had had enough of the disintegration
of the economy as well as the repression of political freedom and
elimination of basic human rights. The first series of demonstrations took
place in March of 1988 and grew into an uprising that peaked on August 8,
1988.

The second wave of discontent occurred shortly after the March
demonstrations when the general population witnessed the brutality of the
regime. Students were massacred in one peaceful demonstration after
another, and these cold-blooded acts, in conjunction with 26 years of
swelling anger among the populace, reached a breaking point on 8-8-88.

During the recent uprising, Suharto's military followed a pattern similar
to that of Ne Win in 1988. In order to suppress the demonstrators, without
making the regime appear to be any more brutal than it was already
perceived to be, they used a series of covert tactics to provide
justification for their savage measures.

The Burmese military often hired thugs to go out and loot or burn property
in the vicinity of a demonstration, thus giving the soldiers an excuse to
open fire on the crowds near the looting and brand all whom they shot as
looters. There have been reports that only a handful of Indonesian students
have been killed, but the reported deaths of hundreds of looters bring to
mind a statement concerning the 1988 demonstrations made by Burma's Foreign
Minister Ohn Gyaw.

In those protests, 545 people were killed, according to the junta. Ohn Gyaw
reported that 525 of them had been looters and that only 20 had been
protesters. To the witnesses of the massacre, this was far from the truth,
both in the low numbers and in the true actions of the victims. Another
tactic was to hire a few people to mingle among the protesters and commit
acts of violence during a peaceful demonstration, giving the troops a
reason to open fire. It is quite likely that the Indonesian junta also
adopted this method.

Another common tactic employed by the two juntas to maintain their power
without having to themselves commit violence has been to blame minority
groups for the ills of their respective countries. Ethnic native Chinese
have often been used as scapegoats in order to deflect the anger toward
both governments.

In the past week, ethnic Chinese have found themselves in extreme peril,
having to literally flee for their lives, because Suharto's son-in-law
attacked Chinese businessmen for their lack of sympathy for the country's
worsening economic problems. In Burma and Indonesia, ethnic Chinese own
much of the wealth; in Indonesia's case, they own a staggering 75 per cent
of it while making up only 5 per cent of the population. It is clearly not
difficult to exacerbate an already existing resentment on the part of the
majority. During the 1967 rice shortages in Burma, the junta spread rumours
that Chinese students were intent on taking over the country and that the
shortages had been caused by Chinese merchants.

The results were shockingly brutal pogroms, in which people on the verge of
starvation lynched many innocent Chinese students, with the Burmese regime
escaping the desperate fury of the people.

On March 13, 1988, six students were shot dead at the Rangoon Institute of
Technology while demonstrating inside their campus, an incident that
sparked a series of demonstrations. Similarly, six students were shot dead
at Trisakti University, which provoked the nationwide demonstrations in
Indonesia.

In Burma, the March demonstration spread nationwide on August 8, 1988,
known as "four eights" (8.8.88), and paralysed the government. In the heat
of these massive demonstrations, various opposition forces came to the fore
but, sadly, they failed to unite with each other. Former prime minister U
Nu, once Ne Win's close aide, Brigadier Gen Aung Gyi, former Gen Tin Oo, Bo
Yan Naing and Aung San Suu Kyi never reached an agreement over the
formation of a coalition government.

The power vacuum was shortly filled by the military. The Burmese military
established the State Law and Order Restoration Council, or Slorc, which
has since become the SPDC in order to give the impression that a change of
government has taken place. Ne Win declared he would step down, and did so
officially; however he went on to play the role of a puppet master,
controlling the military junta from behind the scenes. Ne Win's strategy
was to fade quietly into the background while maintaining his grip on the
military.

The events of the past few weeks, however, suggest that it will not be as
easy for Suharto to pull a copycat act and turn himself into a
puppet-master. The government of the new president, Bacharuddin Jusuf
Habibie, has allowed the passage of laws liberalising Indonesia's elections.

Up to now only three political parties have been allowed to run in the
elections, and any campaigning could only be carried out in the few weeks
before the actual vote. Furthermore, in what are signs of an internal power
struggle within the ruling party, the chief of the armed forces, Gen
Wiranto has spoken out against Suharto's son-in-law, Lt Gen Prabowo
Subianto, indicating that certain elements of the military are ready to
turn on the Suharto clan. Pragbowo has been transferred to head up a
military academy.

Other positive developments in Indonesia include resignations by relatives
of Habibie and Wiranto in an attempt to make good on promises to put an end
nepotism in public life. The new government has also released two prominent
political prisoners, Sri Bintang Pamungkas, leader of the Indonesian Labour
Welfare Union, and Muchtar Pakpahan, a member of the United Development
Party, an opposition group with strong Muslim support.

The Justice Minister has gone as far as to consider for release all
political prisoners, other than those connected to the communist party, and
to re-evaluate the situation of East Timorese jailed for their political
dissent.

Although it is not the time for the Indonesian people to take once more to
the streets, they must remain vigilant and apply pressure on the government
to make good on its promise for reforms. If they do not, the government
might advantage of the people to buy time to cool down present tensions and
leave the nation's hierarchical power structures largely intact.

The Habibie government must draft a new constitution that would bring about
a working democracy and cut off the military from influencing the nation's
political affairs. Wiranto has the chance to show his devotion to his
country's best interests by creating a role for the army as the defender of
the nation, apart from the realm of politics.

The Burmese regime has always looked to Indonesia for a model of economic
prosperity coupled with political authoritarianism. The military government
recognised that economic prosperity was the key to their holding power,
just as Suharto and his circle did. But now, in Indonesia, Habibie has
acknowledged the importance of a stable domestic political life in securing
the foreign loans necessary to revive his country's shattered economy.

Indeed, Indonesia can continue to receive funds from the International
Monetary Fund only after a reassessment by that organisation of the
political and economic situation there. It seems that the technocrat
Habibie has realised that the best economic interests of his nation lie
with a stable and open political system. The regime in Burma,
unfortunately, seems to be taking the opposite course. The military
government has forced the closure of most non-military affiliated colleges
and universities, effectively eliminating the chance for a strong middle
class to emerge in Burma. Prospects for political stability have likewise
been undercut by the continued policy of outlawing opposition parties and
arresting their leaders.

Help from the IMP is not an option due to the Burmese government's flagrant
human rights violations, so Burma's economy will continue its downward
slide for the foreseeable future.

However, the recent events in Indonesia suggest a pattern of positive
political developments in Southeast Asia. Just as Burma has followed a
parallel course with Indonesia over the past three decades, Suharto's
resignation was prompted by the will of the people, much like the "people
power" movement that swept Ferdinand Marcos from office in the Philippines.

Ne Win was likewise forced to step down in 1988, but the Burmese army
decided to cast its lot with its leadership and not with the people, as the
armies of the Philippines and now Indonesia have done.  Just as Ne Win and
Suharto have looked to each other for ideas for maintaining their
authoritarian regimes, it is now time for the people of Burma to take heart
from what the people of Indonesia have been able to accomplish. The
military's continued hold on Burma is surely weakened by the collapse of
Indonesia's authoritarian government. One hopes that Burma's generals are
intelligent enough to realise that they too must come to the negotiating
table with the opposition and let the people decide on the system of
government that will serve them.

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The Nation: Japanese Ruling Party Lawmakers Form Support Group for Burmese
Junat 
5 June, 1998 

Tokyo -- About 20 ruling party lawmakers in Japan launched a group
yesterday to support Burma's ruling military junta and correct
"misunderstanding" about the country, members said.

The group is headed by Kabun Muto, a 71-year-old former foreign minister
and former trade minister from the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, and
membership is expected to reach 30 soon, an aide for Muto said.

"Nobel peace laureate Aung San Sun Kyi has made her stance clear by using
media, but the [Burmese] government is not known well," the aide said.

Muto visited Burma in February to meet leaders of the junta, and received a
request that he work for correcting "misunderstanding" of them, she said.

The Japanese government should fully resume its official development
assistance (ODA) loans to Burma, Muto was quoted as saying.

Washington imposed trade sanctions after Burma's ruling junta refused to
acknowledge the result of a 1990 election won in a landslide by Aung San
Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy.

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Announcement: How to Listen to Radio Free Burma 
7 June, 1998 from rfb@xxxxxxxxxxx

First Burmese Language Internet Radio in the World

Dear Friends,

 The way to listen Radio free Burma.

1. Create the new folder in your hard disk. Please name that "Down load file".

2. Go to "http://www.fast.net.au/rfb";

3. Look for free Real Audio 5.0 icon and double click that icon. It will go
to this - " http://www.real.com";

4. Either you buy the software or just down load for free of charge. 

5. The real audio file into your hard disk "Down load file" and save it.

6. After saving, go back to  "Down load file" folder and double click on
Real Audio file icon and it will set up.

7. Now you can listen to Radio Free Burma.

If you want to install Burmese font, same thing you can do as above.

If you have any difficulty, please contact rfb@xxxxxxxxxxx
Thank you very much for Mr Wriston Tongue who built the Radio Free Burma
Peace and Courage,
Radio Free Burma

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BurmaNet Subject Matter Resource List 
8 June, 1998 

BurmaNet regularly receives inquiries on a number of different topics
related to Burma. If you have questions on any of the following subjects,
please direct email to the following volunteer coordinators, who will
either answer your question or try to put you in contact with someone who
can: 

Campus activism: 	zni@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Boycott campaigns: 	Dan Orzech: orzech@xxxxxxxx
Buddhism:		Buddhist Relief Mission: brelief@xxxxxxx
Chin history/culture:	[volunteer needed] 
Fonts: 		tom@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx 
High School Activism: 	Zan Rubin: cyclic@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
History of Burma:	zni@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
International Affairs: 	Julien Moe: moe@xxxxxxxxxxxxx  
Kachin history/culture: 	74750.1267@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx  
Karen history/culture: 	Karen Historical Society:  102113.2571@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Mon history/culture: 	 [volunteer needed] 
Naga history/culture: 	Wungram Shishak: z954001@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Burma-India border 	aungsan@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 
Pipeline Campaign :	freeburma@xxxxxxx 
Resettlement info:	refugee_help@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Rakhaing (Arakan) history/culture: 	Kyaw Tha Hla: thisthis@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Rohingya culture	volunteer needed 
Selective Purchasing	Dan Orzech: orzech@xxxxxxxx
			Simon Billenness: sbillenness@xxxxxxxx
Shan history/culture: 	Sao Hpa Han: burma@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Shareholder activism: 	Simon Billenness: sbillenness@xxxxxxxx
Teak Boycott		Tim Keating: relief@xxxxxxx
Total - France		Dawn Star: cd@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Tourism campaigns:	bagp@xxxxxxxxxx "Attn. S. Sutcliffe"    
volunteering: 		refugee_help@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
World Wide Web:	FreeBurma@xxxxxxxxx

REGIONAL CONTACTS: 
Australia:		Australia Burma Council: azappia@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Canada:    		Canadian Friends of Burma: cfob@xxxxxxx
Great Britain:		Burma Action Group/UK bagp@xxxxxxxxxx

United States --
New England:	Simon Billenness sbillenness@xxxxxxxx
Northwest		Larry Dohrs dohrs@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
[Feel free to suggest more areas of coverage] 

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