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NEWS - Exiled government says right



Exiled government says rights abuses in Myanmar rising steadily

       Thu 17 Sep 98 - 03:50 GMT 

       BANGKOK, Sept 17 (AFP) - Myanmar's exiled government Thursday
said human rights abuses in the military state have
       "dramatically escalated" in the biggest crackdown on democrats
since the generals seized power 10 years ago.

       The National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma (NCGUB)
released its Burma Human Rights Yearbook on Thursday on the
       eve of the 10th anniversary of the formation of the military
government.

       "The military has dramatically escalated its repression of NLD
(National League for Democracy) members and we are now
       experiencing the biggest crackdown on pro-democracy supporters
since the (military) seized power 10 years ago," NCGUB Justice
       Minister Thein Oo said in a statement received here.

       He said members of Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi's
opposition NLD were being targetted as well as ethnic minorities
       waging guerrilla wars for self-rule in remote areas.

       The NLD has vowed to convene a parliament this month in defiance
of the junta which claims any such move would be illegal.

       The junta was known as the State Law and Order Restoration
Councilwhen it was formed on September 18, 1988, amid bloody
       street protests against the former military dictatorship which
had ruled the country since 1962.

       The SLORC changed its name to the State Peace and Development
Council (SPDC) in November last year but still refuses to
       recognise general elections in 1990 which the NLD won with a
large majority.

       "Since May the military has detained more than 1,200
pro-democracy supporters across the nation. Some 783 of them from the
NLD
       and of those 196 are NLD members of parliament," Thein Oo said.

       It said the 700-page yearbook, to be launched here later
Thursday, listed wide-scale human rights abuses in 1997-98 including
       extra-judicial killings, forced relocation, forced labour,
arbitrary detention and restrictions of freedoms of movement, speech and
       assembly.

       It said ethnic minorities including the Karen, Mon and Tavoyan
also had been subject to abuse, including rapes, forced relocations
       and forced labour during military operations against guerrilla
forces along the rugged border with Thailand.

       In one of the worst reported cases, the Thailand-based NCGUB said
664 Shan people has been forcibly relocated from their
       villagers last year and then executed, many as they tried to
return to their homes in search of food.

       "The soldiers shot or beat many of them to death, while others
were raped and some beheaded," Thein Oo said.

       None of the NCGUB's claims could be immediately confirmed, but
the report matches other damning human rights assessments by
       leading bodies including the United Nations and Amnesty
International.

       The junta said Wednesday it had released a senior member of the
opposition who was detained last week but said the others would
       remain in custody for the time being.

       The announcement of the release was accompanied by a stern
warning to the NLD not to go ahead with plans this month to convene
       the parliament elected in 1990.

       "The government views with grave concern the expressed intention
of the NLD to convene a people's parliament," a junta statement
       said, adding that such a move may lead to "political chaos." 

       The junta has effectively thwarted Aung San Suu Kyi's plans by
detaining most of the party's key members. 

       The junta had earlier said the NLD members had merely been
invited for a political discussion. It said they were being housed in
       government guesthouses and had not been arrested.

       No comment on the NCGUB's yearbook was immediately available from
the SPDC.