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The BurmaNet News, July 25-26, 1998



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

The BurmaNet News: July 25-26, 1998
Issue #1057

HEADLINES:
==========
NLD: ANNOUNCEMENT NO. 11 (7/98) 
REUTERS: MYANMAR BLOCKS THIRD SUU KYI TRIP 
BKK POST: SUU KYI SEES NEXT 2 MONTHS AS CRITICAL 
BKK POST: TIME FOR RANGOON TO SHOW GOOD WILL 
SPDC: INFORMATION SHEET NO. A-0515(I) 
AFP: CHINESE MILITARY DELEGATION VISITS MYANMAR 
SPDC: INFORMATION SHEET NO. A. 0519(I) 
KYODO: ASEAN BACKING FOR SUU KYI "DIFFICULT" 
REUTERS: ASEAN URGES NATIONAL RECONCILIATION 
BKK POST: ASEAN IS "READY TO READY TO LISTEN" 
THE NATION: ASIA HAS CHANGED; SO MUST ASEAN
ALTSEAN: MEDIA STATEMENT 
BKK  POST: UN ALLOWED TO TACKLE REFUGEE PROBLEM 
YOMIURI: SUU KYI INTERVIEW TO APPEAR ON INTERNET
****************************************************************

NLD: ANNOUNCEMENT NO. 11 (7/98) 
24 July, 1998 from <ncgub@xxxxxxxxxxx> 

The following is an unofficial translation of the statement by the National
League for Democracy received from diplomatic sources in Rangoon.

The National League for Democracy 
No. (97/B) West Shwegondaing 
Bahan Township, Rangoon

Announcement No. 11 (7/98)

1. The elected representatives of the National League for Democracy (NLD)
are facing the most humiliating and degrading charges under the Habitual
Offenders Restriction Act. In accordance with Burmese customs and
tradition, and because it is the responsibility of the NLD leaders to give
words of encouragement to these representatives or their immediate family
members, the General Secretary and a member of the Central Executive
Committee, who is also the chairman of the Irrawaddy Division Organizing
Committee, left by car for Bassein Township, Irrawaddy Division, at about
09:05 this morning.

2. It was learned that at about 10:15am, the General Secretary and the
members of her party were being blocked at a bridge, near A-nyar-zu
village, 15 miles (24 km) east of Nyaungdon.  The road was blocked with
barbed wire and sandbags and the NLD party was reported to be still at the
site at about noon (0500 GMT).  Further announcement will be made as more
information is received.

Central Executive Committee The National League for Democracy
Rangoon (The 1st Waxing Moon of Wagaung, 1360) July 24, 1998 

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

REUTERS: MYANMAR BLOCKS THIRD SUU KYI TRIP THIS MONTH
24 July, 1998
 
YANGON, July 24 (Reuters) - Myanmar's ruling military junta prevented
opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi from making a trip on Friday to a
western township to meet party supporters, her National League for
Democracy (NLD) party said in a statement.

It was the third time the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) had
stopped her from travelling to townships outside Yangon. The others were on
July 7 and Monday this week.

The NLD said that Suu Kyi, who is the party's secretary general, had
planned on Friday morning to go by car with a number of party members to
Pathein, capital of Ayeryarwaddy Division in western Myanmar.

``On their arrival at a bridge near Anyarsu Village, about 65 km (40 miles)
west of Yangon at 10:15 a.m. (0345 GMT) their car was stopped and
blockaded,'' the statement said. It added that further statements would be
issued as more information became available.

A government official, who declined to be identified, confirmed that Suu
Kyi's car had been stopped by the authorities.

On the previous two occasions she was prevented from leaving the capital,
the authorities made other arrangements for her to meet the people she
wanted to see.

The authorities have on previous occasions said her trips were stopped
because they feared for her safety and in case anti-government elements
harmed her and blamed the government for it.

It has also blamed the NLD for stepping up political agitation ahead of the
planned reopening next month of some institutions of higher learning that
were closed in December 1996 after widespread student unrest.

The confrontation between the NLD and the SPDC has intensified in recent
weeks with the opposition demanding the government convene parliament by
August 21. The NLD swept the last general election in May 1990, but the
military ignored the results and has refused to convene parliament.

Instead, the SPDC has clamped down on the movements of opposition MPs in
the townships, confining them there and requiring them to report twice
daily to security officials. 

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

THE BANGKOK POST: SUU KYI SEES NEXT 2 MONTHS AS CRITICAL 
25 July, 1998 by Ralph Bachoe 

MORE THAN 40 NLD MPS ARRESTED

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has told the people of Burma that the next two months
will be a critical period for the country.

The Burmese opposition leader's reminder came after her National League for
Democracy set the ruling junta an Aug 21 deadline to reconvene parliament
in line with the 1990 general election the opposition won by a landslide.

Aung San Suu Kyi has been making this demand since May. The junta's
reaction has been to threaten the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize winner [SIC: ASSK
won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991] with legal action for her statements. It
said she was hampering the drafting of a new national constitution by a
government-appointed National Convention.

The All Burma Students' Democratic Front said more than 40 NLD MPs had
recently been detained "in connection with the NLD's demand to convene
parliament".

The so-called national convention has been an on-off affair since it was
inaugurated in 1993 with no new constitution in sight. The junta said it
would be democratic but at the same time insisted the military has a
leading political role to play.

During an interview with representatives of the European press and a
foreign NGO group, Aung San Suu Kyi said the people were afraid of military
intimidation and the military was itself afraid of the people.

"This fact must be made known to the Burmese people through the
international mass media," she told a German visitor at the July 15 meeting
at her home in Rangoon.

During the Aug 8, 1988 uprising more than 8,000 people were killed by the
military. But in December 1996, when students at the Yangon Institute of
Technology demonstrated in support of a student union, no one was killed.
The street demonstrations, the biggest since 1988, ended after the students
were subdued by water cannon.  Schools and universities were closed on Dec
9 but some have been partially reopened recently.

This, according to members of the European Union, is a great improvement on
the part of the military junta compared to that of the barbarism of 1988.
Burma observers say it is an indication that Slorc, or the SPDC, as they
are now known, are sensitive to criticism by the international community,
particularly universal condemnation of their methods of suppressing dissent.

Aung San Suu Kyi said: "The people of Burma have nothing to fear nowadays.
Unlike 1988, we now have legally elected members of parliament who
represent the people." The Lady, as she is known, has displayed courage by
holding meetings with members of her party and using every opportunity to
make public speeches.

She concedes that political defiance by the people at home is not enough.

The opposition leader said there were indications the junta also realised
the power of the international media and indicated the United States-run
Radio Free Asia may have been infiltrated by Slorc.

Her suspicions were aroused by an interview given by retired Brig-Gen Aung
Gyi with RFA on June 10 in Washington. Aung Gyi, while criticising the
military government, said Gen Ne Win was the only person who could save
Burma. He also said Aung San Suu Kyi should be sued for evading taxes on
monies granted her after winning the Nobel Peace Prize and other awards.

Burmese analysts believe Aung Gyi could not have given the interview
without the blessing of Slorc. He split with Aung San Suu Kyi after the
1988 uprising and had been jailed three times since the 1960s by the
military for his political beliefs.

Aung San Suu Kyi said the Burmese people should pay close attention to what
is being said on foreign radio broadcasts, namely Voice of America, British
Broadcasting Corporation, RFA and Democratic Voice of Burma, a student-run
station aired by Radio Oslo. 

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

THE BANGKOK POST: TIME FOR RANGOON TO SHOW GOOD WILL 
24 July, 1998 
**Burma appears headed for a political showdown. The democratic factions
are demanding that the military regime call the parliament elected in 1990
into session within a month. A confrontation can be avoided, but it will
take a new show of good will from Rangoon.**

An extraordinary event took place in Burma this week. In the two largest
cities, Rangoon and Mandalay, students took their examinations. It was the
first time in two years that any Burmese students at all had sat for an
exam of any kind. The majority of youths in Burma still haven't attended a
class or taken an exam or otherwise moved their academic lives forward
since 1996. The stagnation of youth has become the norm in Burma, and
events such as the opening of an exam room for a day make front-page news.

In an age where education is becoming ever more important, one can only
lament such events in Burma. But of course it also is an age where freedom
and democracy have increasing importance. It is hardly a secret that these
[ ] are repressed in Burma. Last week, the regime bragged that it had not
recently arrested any elected members of parliament. A spokesman explained
that it was only detaining them, and making them report in person, twice a
day, to police headquarters. It was for their own good, said the official.
Otherwise, the MPs might be tempted to get involved in politics.

The members of parliament were elected in 1990, in the only free, fair
election ever staged in Burma. The voting was sponsored and overseen by the
military junta, then known as Slorc. The problem was that the people of
Burma elected the wrong people, so far as the dictatorship was concerned.
The Burmese rejected army: sponsored nominees and elected pro-democracy
candidates, most of them followers of Aung San Suu Kyi.

At the time of the election, she was already under house arrest. In
essence, she still is. Technically free, Mrs Suu Kyi is ringed by the army,
unable to travel outside her home and barred from inviting the guests she
wants, when she wants them. It is a measure of her well-known bravery and
widely admired political and physical courage that she continues to speak
out. She did so recently, in an interview carried on these pages earlier
this week.

Mrs Suu Kyi has always urged her followers and political allies to avoid
direct confrontation with the Burmese army and the dictatorship. Ten years
ago, the regime demonstrated the costs of revolution. Soldiers killed
thousands of young people, monks and ordinary men and women who took to the
streets to ask for change. There is, of course, no organised resistance to
the Rangoon rulers.

But Mrs Suu Kyi is risking confrontation with the authorities now. She has
called on them -- demanded, really -- to convene the parliament that was
elected in 1990. Its members never have met in one place since the Burmese
leadership has simply ignored the election. Mrs Suu Kyi, it should be
noted, is not a member of that parliament, although many of her most
prominent supporters are.

The demand to call an elected parliament into session might seem reasonable
to most people. But the Rangoon leadership sees no value, and much harm, in
the proposal. But for the moment, the challenge lies out there. For now, at
least it is a line in the sand.

The trick for those on both sides of this line is to pick up the challenge.
There is no question that Burma, like every country, must change. The only
issue is how change will come about.

The Rangoon government has an opportunity to examine Mrs Suu Kyi's
political programme, discuss it with her, and negotiate. Mrs Suu Kyi and
her pro-democracy forces also have the duty to do what is right for their
fellow Burmese citizens. It will be difficult for the two sides to open
talks in a spirit of good will. It will almost certainly be worse if they
refuse.

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

SPDC: INFORMATION SHEET NO. A-0515(I) 
22 July, 1998 from OKKAR66129@xxxxxxx
 
Air Mandalay to Launch New Domestic Route

Air Mandalay will launch its new Yangon-Heho-Tachilek-Kentung-Heho-Yangon
domestic route for the convenience of travelers in remote areas.  The
airline will operate the new route twice a week (Mondays and Thursdays)
beginning 27 July.

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

AFP: CHINESE MILITARY DELEGATION VISITS MYANMAR 
23 July, 1998 

A Chinese military delegation arrived in Myanmar on Thursday on a goodwill
visit, state-run Myanmar media reported.  

The delegation, led by the head of the Shandong military command, called on
General Maung Aye, deputy commander-in-chief of Myanmar's defence forces,
Television Myanmar said in a report monitored here.  

Maung Aye is also vice chairman of the State Peace and Development Council,
the official name of the ruling junta.  

Other senior junta members as well as the heads of the Myanmar armed
services attended the talks, the television said, without indicating what
was discussed.  
China was the first country to recognise the Myanmar regime after it seized
power in 1988 and has been criticized for supplying arms to it.  

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

SPDC: Information Sheet No. A.0519(I) 
25 July, 1998 from OKKAR66129@xxxxxxx

(1)  General Maung Aye Receives Thai Military Delegation Led by Commanding
General of Third Army Region of Royal Thai Armed Forces 

Vice-Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council Deputy
Commander-in-Chief of Defence Services Commander-in-Chief (Army) General
Maung Aye received the Thai Military Delegation led by Commanding General
of the Third Army Region of Royal Thai Armed Forces Lt-Gen Sommai
Wichaworn, who attended the 16th Meeting of Myanmar-Thai Border Committee,
at Zeya Thiri Beikman, Konmyinttha, in Yangon on 24 July.

**********

Again Just After (3) Days ?

On 24 July at 1055 hrs. U Hla Pe ( NLD Ayarwaddy Division Organizer), Mrs.
Aris and two drivers (one reserve) in a motor vehicle were stopped by the
local security officials at near Anyarsu village located 20 miles
south-west of Yangon. The local security officials noticing the absence of
Mrs. Aris security team similar to the incident of 7 July and 20 July made
an enquiry and requested the party not to proceed with their planned trip
but to return.

The local authorities enquiring thrice on the destination of the trip and
other relevant matters with the intents of forthright and forthwith
arrangement for their itinerary was not responded at all by the party. At
the same time in Yangon U Tin Oo (NLD) was disseminating news about the
incident to certain diplomats from Western Embassies and some foreign news
agencies in concerted and timely fashion-action to induce some governments
and media to exploit the opportunity to berate the Government and to
portray Myanmar as a lawless and unstable country where the democratic
forces are being suppressed while the country is about to explode with
civil unrest.

Regretfully, the NLD leadership has again turned a deaf ear on the
authorities' request to give due consideration and importance in the
maintenance of peace and stability of the entire nation by way of not
prioritizing party politicking at this stage of development. Moreover the
importance and necessity of maintaining and consolidating peace and
stability is indispensible at this juncture, especially when the children
of Myanmar are now in the process of preparing to sit for their final
examinations of the institutes of higher education.

Obviously, adopting and engaging in a confrontational stance by challenging
the government at every turn under the pretext of human rights and
democracy will definitely not serve the interests of the overwhelming
majority of the Myanmar people in the process of rebuilding a nation. The
government is meeting her commitments while hoping and expecting the
political parties especially the NLD meet theirs so that Myanmar will
become a functioning democracy within a reach of reasonable time frame.

It is the fervent desire of the nation and the people  for the NLD
leadership to be more realistic in outlook and move forward on a suitable
and proper-track with a humantarian vision and horizon rather than charging
ahead in an improper  and bullheaded way with the sole intention of
creating waves to rock the boat.

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

KYODO NEWS SERVICE: ASEAN BACKING FOR SUU KYI "DIFFICULT" 
23 July, 1998 by Varunee Torsricharoen in Tokyo 

Malaysian Foreign Minister Abdullah Badawi said Thursday it would be
'difficult' for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to back
Myanmar pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi's call for the ruling junta
to recognize the results of the country's 1990 parliamentary elections.  

'It is very difficult for ASEAN to take that position,' Abdullah told
reporters ahead of a working dinner with his counterparts from the eight
other ASEAN countries, including Myanmar.  

'I think there has to be some other way,' he said without elaborating.  

Suu Kyi heads the National League for Democracy (NLD), which won the 1990
elections by a landslide but was barred by the military regime from taking
power.  

Earlier this month Suu Kyi called on the ASEAN foreign ministers to support
her June demand for the convening of parliament by Aug. 21 in line with the
1990 election results.  

'We would very much like the ASEAN countries to give full support to our
call for the convening of parliament in the full understanding that this
call was not a confrontational move, but a positive step toward the
democratization of Burma (Myanmar),' Suu Kyi said in a videotaped interview
at her Yangon residence.  

But Abdullah said voicing a position on the standoff between Suu Kyi and
the junta would be tantamount to interfering in the internal affairs of a
member country.  

Malaysia and other countries have voiced strong misgivings about a Thai
proposal to adopt a more proactive 'flexible engagement' policy instead of
clinging to the group's time-honored principle of noninterference in
members' domestic affairs.  

Myanmar has sharply criticized Thailand and the Philippines for urging the
junta and the NLD to show restraint as tension between the two sides
escalates in the wake of Suu Kyi's appeal last month. 

A senior Thai official said Myanmar's tense domestic situation will not be
discussed among the ASEAN ministers in talks Friday and Saturday, since Suu
Kyi did not formally convey her request for support to the group.  

But the official noted that some of the group's 10 dialogue partners, which
include vocal Myanmar critics such as the United States and the European
Union, might bring up the issue when joining the ASEAN ministers for talks
next week.

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

REUTERS: ASEAN URGES NATIONAL RECONCILIATION ON MYANMAR 
25 July, 1998 

MANILA, July 25 (Reuters) - The Association of South East Asian Nations
(ASEAN) on Saturday urged member state Myanmar, torn by a political
conflict between the military junta and pro-democracy campaigners, to work
harder for reconciliation.

Philippine Foreign Secretary Domingo Siazon, chairman of a two-day ASEAN
foreign ministers conference in Manila, said both sides in the conflict
should approach negotiations without preconditions.

``We would be happy if indeed the reconciliation process is accelerated,''
he told a news conference at the end of the meeting.

``It takes all parties in a process of conflict to move towards
convergence. We would like to see that when we talk about national
reconciliation...

``Dialogue should be without conditions. If you are prepared to negotiate,
you should say, 'I am prepared to meet you'. The devil you may be --
because we are both devils in each other's eyes if you don't like each
other -- but no conditions.

Siazon said he had had an intense exchange of views with Myanmar
authorities and that he believed that universities there would be re-opened.

The military government closed institutions of higher learning in December
1996 after widespread student unrest.

Opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi leads continued efforts to democratise
Myanmar, but her movements are restricted.

Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy swept the last general election in
May 1990, but the military ignored the results and has refused to convene
parliament.

ASEAN accepted Myanmar in the regional grouping last year despite vehement
objections by Western countries and human rights groups.

The other members of the nine-nation group are Malaysia, Indonesia,
Thailand, Singapore, Brunei, Vietnam and Laos.

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

THE BANGKOK POST: ASEAN IS "READY TO LISTEN" 
25 July, 1998 

NEEDS TO CONSULT WITH OTHERS ON RIGHTS VIEWS

Asean is "ready to listen" to calls  from human rights groups for Asean to
help work towards a solution in Burma, Foreign Minister Surin Pitsuwan said
yesterday.

"Asean is ready to listen to the proposals. Asean does not reject them but
Asean needs to consult among member states because everything has a
procedure, which cannot be quickly  changed," Mr Surin said.

The minister noted that he and Philippines Foreign Minister Domingo Siazon
had engaged representatives of regional human rights mechanisms in Manila
and that was "a beginning".

The minister's comment followed the picketing by some 50 activists of the
hotel where the Asean ministerial meeting was taking place.

The Alternative Asean Network on Burma called on Asean to lead its major
trading partners in developing a transition package to ensure that the
Burmese military negotiates with the National League for Democracy (NLD),
headed by Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.

"Now is the time to intervene to help both the Burmese military regime and
the government-elect achieve their stated intentions to restore democracy,
human rights and the rule of law to Burma," said Debbie Stothard, the
network's coordinator.

Dr Naing Aung, chairman of the All Burma Students' Democratic Front, said
it was crucial for Asean to also "convince the military junta to release
some 2,000 political prisoners" and implement economic and political reforms.

In Rangoon, Burma opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi was blocked by
authorities from leaving the capital yesterday for the third time in less
than three weeks, foreign diplomatic sources said.

Junta officials stopped the National League for Democracy (NLD) chief some
30 miles (50 kilometres) west of the capital as she attempted to travel to
the town of Bassein, they said.

No further details were immediately available and NLD and junta officials
could not be immediately reached for comment.

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

THE NATION: ASIA HAS CHANGED; SO MUST ASEAN 
24 July, 1998 

Editorial

THE saddest thing about Asean is that the grouping continues to entertain
the illusion that it could plod along in much the same way it has been for
the past 30 years. Granted, Asean has indeed been very successful -- the
grouping is no doubt the most dynamic regional organisation outside of Europe.

But the future may not be so rosy if Asean is to resist change. Indeed, the
world has changed and so has the region. It would be wrong for Asean
leaders to think that the best way to cope with this mini-revolution is to
pretend that it's business as usual.

When the Asean foreign ministers begin their two-day meeting on Thursday in
Manila, they have to tackle new issues that could make or break the
organisation. But while the various economic and political crises
afflicting the region are challenging, they could also provide new fertile
grounds for the grouping to grow and adjust itself so that it is relevant
to the new regional environment.

For years, Asean has refused to discuss their problems because its leaders
prefer to talk about success. It is an Asean dogma that member countries
should never wash their dirty linen in the public.

And so it must be quite a shock for the Asean member countries when Foreign
Minister Surin Pitsuwan suggested that they should discuss issues frankly
with one another. Asean, Surin argued, needs to build a new political clout
to replace its waning economic clout which is being battered by the
economic tsunami.

To be transparent and open to each other within Asean would strengthen the
grouping instead of weakening it. Certainly, some authoritarian member
states have no such desire because they want to use Asean to legitimise
their regimes.

Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia are three leading Asean countries that have
openly opposed Surin's proposal, arguing that there is no need to change
the principle of non-interference. In fact, this ''flexible engagement''
proposal does not call for the abolition of the cardinal
''non-intervention'' principle but rather it serves as a wake-up call for
Asean to refresh their approach on issues that render regional
repercussions. This is a proposal that Asean should rally behind.

Although Asean foreign ministers may not form a consensus at the Manila
meeting, the good thing is that this idea has been discussed and views
solicited. The ''flexible engagement'' genie is out of the bottle and no
matter how hard others will try, it is not going to disappear from the
picture.

Thailand should remain firm and undaunted by the opponents of ''flexible
engagement''. After the meeting, the Thai government and Foreign Ministry
must follow-up and continue to clarify its proposal to the member states
and international community.

Most importantly, at the sixth Asean summit in Hanoi, Prime Minister Chuan
Leekpai must use his charisma and moral authority to convince the other
Asean leaders that being open to each other and be transparent would
beneficial to the grouping.

While Asean is struggling with itself, other regional organisations are
moving leaps and bounds to integrate themselves with the world economy.
European Union and Latin American free-trade countries, known as, Mercusor,
are working on a free-trade agreement, if succeeds it would be first among
two huge trade blocs.

Asean is at a cross roads. It needs a bold vision to move ahead and restore
its credibility in the international community. The Manila meeting will
give us the answer to whether Asean will remain a force to be reckoned well
into the 21st century or sink into the oblivion.

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

ALTSEAN: MEDIA STATEMENT 
24 July, 1998 from <altsean@xxxxxxxxxx> 

Manila, Fri: - Asean supporters of Burma's democracy movement welcomed
Philippines' President Joseph Estrada's opening speech at the 31st Asean
Ministerial Meeting for emphasizing the human dimensions of Asean and
called for the AMM to act decisively on Burma.

"We are concerned that the aspirations expressed in President Estrada's
speech are being undermined by the AMM's reluctance to act decisively on
Burma at this critical time.  Now is the time to intervene to help both the
Burmese military regime and the government-elect achieve their stated
intentions to restore democracy, human rights and the rule of law to
Burma," said Altsean-Burma Coordinator Debbie Stothard.

Ms Stothard proposed that Asean lead its dialogue partners to develop a
transition package to ensure that the Burmese junta dialogues with the
National League for Democracy (which won 82% of the seats in Burma's 1990
election) and convenes Parliament.

Copies of Altsean-Burma's confidential proposal were presented (outside the
Manila Hotel this morning) to Undersecretary Lauro Baja for referral to the
Asean Ministers.  President Estrada's motorcade and other delegate's cars
passed through the group of 50 human rights and labor activists from the
Philippines. Burma, Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia campaigning for great
democracy and human rights in Asean.

"The regime is extremely vulnerable and is too nervous to allow journalists
into the country.  They are running out of money to feed their troops, and
are still afraid to re-open the universities.  The military has recently
increased its attacks on the NLD as a panic reaction to the party's call
for parliament to be reconvened by August 21.

"Now is the time that intervention would be most effective - while the
military is shaky and the NLD remains committed to a peaceful political
resolution.  If Asean waters down its approach to Burma, it will be missing
an opportunity to help end the long-running crisis.

"We are not interested in condemning the regime - we just want to see a
settlement that will benefit all sides.  As long as Burma is in this state,
it will continue to be a security threat and economic drain on this region.
Asean admitted Burma into the grouping a year ago despite protests and now
is responsible for ensuring that change happens," stressed Ms Stothard.

Altsean-Burma is a network of Asean-based individuals and organizations
supporting human rights and democracy in Burma.  It has a secretariat in
Bangkok (tel. 662 275 1811, fax 662 693 4515).

For more information, please telephone 0918 829 9029 or room 812 at the
Bayview Park Hotel.

A L T S E A N - B U R M A Alternative Asean Network on Burma Tel/Fax: 66 2
693 4515 * <altsean@xxxxxxxxxx>

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

THE BANGKOK POST: UN ALLOWED TO TACKLE REFUGEE PROBLEMS 
25 July, 1998 by Nussara Sawatsawang 

OGATA ACCEPTS INVITATION

Thailand recently officially agreed to allow the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees to help tackle the problem of refugees along the
Thai-Burmese border, sources said yesterday.

Gen Boonsak Kamhaengridhirong, the secretary-general of the National
Security Council (NSC), sent a letter of the government's consent to the
UNHCR on June 22, and Sadako Ogata, the UNHCR's chief, accepted the
invitation on July 13, sources added.

The aim is to lighten the burden on Thailand which shelters about 100,000
refugees along the western borders, in addition to 700,000 illegal migrants
from Burma currently living on Thai soil.

Under the agreement, the UNHCR will give advice to the Thai government on
registration and relocating refugees fleeing war and the threat of
persecution in Burma.

Also, it is entitled to send representatives to observe the situation of
refugees along the border and witness the repatriation, according to a
Foreign Ministry official close to the issue.

The UNHCR will not be responsible for screening refugees for repatriation
to the homeland under this arrangement, he added.

"The UNHCR's role will be under a framework of assisting and giving advice
to the Thai government [of the refugees problem], but so far the government
remains to have a say either yes or no for any decision," said the
official, who asked not to be named.

The official added that officials from the agencies concerned are to work
out details of the arrangement but said the implementation is expected
within two months.

He said the move was a bold step to enhance transparency in dealing with
the refugees issue, which will draw attention and funding from donor
countries.

The role of the UNHCR in tackling the problem is also clearer than before
under this agreement, he added.

Thailand previously barred the UN agency from involving itself in refugee
affairs for fear of increasing economic dependence and prolonged burdens as
it had with Cambodian refugees 20 years ago.

It claimed that those migrants flee to Thailand for economic reasons, not
because of war or persecution.

The policy changed when refugee camps on the western borders encountered
continuous attacks by the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) supported
by the Burmese troops, resulting in renewed influx of refugees into Thailand.

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

THE YOMIURI SHIMBUN: SUU KYI INTERVIEW TO APPEAR ON INTERNET 
23 July, 1998 

Kyoto, Japan

Academics at Kyoto Seika University in Sakyo Ward, Kyoto, were granted
permission to take to Japan an uncensored videotape of an interview they
conducted in Myanmar with democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, The Yomiuri
Shimbun learned Wednesday.  

It is rare for Myanmar authorities to allow an interview with Suu Kyi to be
taken out of the country uncensored. 

The university plans to broadcast the interview on the Internet in October.  

In the interview, Suu Kyi, 53, former leader of the National League for
Democracy, reportedly spoke of the need for immediate talks between the
league and the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC), Myanmar's
military government.  

Suu Kyi reportedly said that poverty was becoming increasingly acute in
Myanmar and that children were being denied a proper education. She said
the country's people were crying out for reform, but added that she was
pessimistic about the future.  

Suu Kyi reportedly said that talks between the government and democracy
campaigners offered the best chance of a solution.  

She reportedly said that such talks should not seek to produce winners and
losers, but instead should offer proposals to which both sides could agree.  

The university decided to conduct the interview to remind students of the
importance of freedom and peace and to mark the university's 30th
anniversary.  

The interview will appear at <http://www.kyoto-seika.ac.jp> 

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