[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index ][Thread Index ]

SCMP-Mutinous troops back top activ



Subject: SCMP-Mutinous troops back top activist

Wednesday  January 6  1999

Burma-Mutinous troops back top activist

WILLIAM BARNES in Chiang Mai, Thailand
Dozens of Burmese troops have walked out on their commanders in the Shan
state, voicing support for opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, sources on
the Thai-Burma border say.

The move will be a serious blow to a regime that has retained a remarkably
united military front in the face of international condemnation, civil
conflicts and economic crisis.

Soldiers based at Mong Ton and Mong Hsat, across the border from the
northern Thai town of Fang, are reported to have left the camp recently -
some tearing off their badges and allegedly voicing support for Ms Aung San
Suu Kyi.

Border sources talk of "big trouble" and of "some kind of shooting".

Two companies from one battalion, and large numbers from another, are said
to have left the ranks.

Desertions are not uncommon in an army that feeds its ballooning appetite
for recruits with often unemployed youths, some of whom are press-ganged
into service.

However, one observer said: "Any breaking of the ranks must be deeply
disturbing for the generals. If this is anything more than a one-off thing
it is very significant."

Not the least of the generals' fears is that dissatisfied troops will link
up with ethnic rebels along the border or dissidents inside the country.

The regime uses vicious discipline, but also rare perks, to retain the
loyalty of its soldiers. Yet economic privileges have been severely eroded
by the country's dire stagnation and mismanagement by the central
authorities.

There have been several reports that battalions have been asked to grow
their own food. Even if in practice this usually means more forced labour
and confiscations for local people, it hardly smacks of high rewards for a
hard life.

Maintaining discipline in an army that may have nearly tripled in size to
around 400,000 personnel in the 10 years since the junta was formed appears
increasingly problematic.

Many soldiers are known to resent the favours given to well-connected, often
Chinese businessmen, and the privileges of the elite.

Some observers say the junta will not talk to Ms Aung San Suu Kyi for fear
of her potential power over many sections of the military.