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Burmese junta sees signs of social



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      Burmese junta sees signs
      of social breakdown,
      rioting as political
      tensions mount

      RANGOON -- Burma is concerned about
      the potential for social breakdown and
      rioting as the Asian economic crisis hits
      home and political tensions between the
      junta and opposition groups mount, an
      official said. 

      ''Tragically, political change and social
      unrest in some new democracies in recent
      months have resulted in rioting, looting,
      death and even civil war,'' junta spokesman
      Lieutenant Colonel Hla Min said in a
      statement yesterday. 

      ''The government of Myanmar therefore
      takes the issue of 'political crisis' very
      seriously as we move towards our goal of a
      stable, multi-party democracy.'' 

      Hla Min was speaking in Rangoon on
      Wednesday, when the junta announced the
      arrest of 54 people, including 23 from the
      National League for Democracy (NLD)
      opposition party, in connection with an
      alleged plot to ''incite anarchy''. 

      He said democracy was ''achievable'' in
      Burma, citing recent ceasefire agreements
      with ethnic rebel groups, efforts to liberalise
      the economy and the country's entry into the
      Association of Southeast Asian Nations
      last year. 

      ''Nevertheless, the Asian economic crisis is
      straining political systems in many
      countries. If we lose the basic peace and
      stability we have achieved, the groundwork
      for democracy may be lost,'' Hla Min said. 

      The junta has refused to recognise the
      results of 1990 elections which the NLD,
      led by Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu
      Kyi, won in a landslide. 

      Opposition groups say they are being
      subjected to the most severe crackdown on
      dissidents since the crushing of student
      demonstrations in 1988. Hundreds of
      opposition supporters and NLD members
      are reported detained or arrested since
      May. 

      The junta denies it keeps political
      prisoners. 

      UN high commissioner for human rights,
      Mary Robinson, on Wednesday stepped up
      criticism of Rangoon following the 54
      arrests announced this week. 

      ''The latest detentions of opposition
      activists in Myanmar are very worrying,
      indicating that the government continues to
      ignore basic human rights standards and
      the concern of the international community,''
      Robinson said in a statement, her second
      condemning the junta in successive days. 

      Agence France-Presse