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Canberra refuses to boycott drug co



Subject: Canberra refuses to boycott drug conference

Canberra refuses to boycott drug conference

18th February, 1999
Sydney Morning Herald
Craig Skehan

Australia rejected yesterday mounting criticism of its decision to send
police and customs officers to a highly controversial narcotics conference
to be held in Burma next week.

The United States and a swag of European nations are boycotting the
gathering in protest over alleged complicity by members of Burma's military
junta in the heroin trade.

A spokesman for the Foreign Minister, Mr Downer, said Australia believed the
conference would " more pressure" on the regime to combat drug production
and smuggling.

"We see it as an international policing conference. And it is incumbent on
us to do what we can to improve scope for law enforcement as Burma is a
major source of heroin coming to Australia."

The conference, jointly organised by the Burmese military and Interpol, has
been supported by neighbouring Thailand and China, both of which are
smuggling routes for heroin coming out of Burma.

One of the National League for Democracy candidates elected to Burma's
aborted 1990 parliament, U Tin Tut, sent an emotive letter yesterday urging
Mr Downer to cancel Australian participation.

He said Australian attendance would be self-defeating as the junta would
provide "false evidence" to support its claims of a crackdown on
traffickers.

The US, Britain, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Denmark, Belgium and Italy are
boycotting the conference.