The BurmaNet News: June 29, 1999

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

The BurmaNet News: June 29, 1999
Issue #1303

Noted in Passing: "Every second of waltzing with the dictators in Burma is
another hour of agony for the people." - Corazon Aquino (see KH: THE TIME
FOR BURMA'S FREEDOM IS NOW) 

HEADLINES:
==========
KH: THE TIME FOR BURMA'S FREEDOM IS NOW 
SCMP: BURMA IN GENERAL DISARRAY
IRRAWADDY: SHWEDAGON AND THE GENERALS 
NATION: MINORITIES HAVE LOST PATIENCE WITH NLD 
BKK POST: CASE AGAINST WEI SUFFERS BIG SETBACK 
BBC: VANCOUVER DRUGS RING SMASHED 
PROJECT MAJE: SAILING THROUGH ETHNICIDE 
****************************************************************

KOREAN HERALD: THE TIME FOR BURMA'S FREEDOM IS NOW 
24 June, 1999 by Corazon Aquino 

[Following are excerpts taken from keynote speeches made during a
conference of the Forum of Democratic Leaders in the Asia Pacific in Seoul.
- KH Ed.]

By Corazon Aquino Former president of the Philippines 

In 1997, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) overrode
civilized world opinion and accepted junta-ruled Burma as a member on the
premise that "constructive engagement" would prod the military junta to
relax its grip and undertake serious measures for democracy.

It is now 1999. It appears that the regime of the Burmese junta is more
entrenched and crueler than ever. Appeasement seems to have emboldened it
to further consolidate power and worsen its methods of control.

In the meantime, the junta continues to set in motion several courses of
action to build up the illusion that Burma is indeed on her way to
democracy. The favorite showcase is, of course, the national convention
called to draft a constitution -- a process that has taken all of seven
years, with no indication that a free constitution will ever really be
produced.

It is time to call a spade a spade, for time is running out for the Burmese
people.

As the world prepares for the new millennium, the Burmese people remain
trapped in a form of bondage that can only remind us of Moses and his
people in Egypt, to build up the Pharaoh's pride or the junta's tourism
program.

It is not for any lack of trying; that is clear. Like the Filipinos --
perhaps even more than the Filipinos - the Burmese people have paid their
dues for freedom.

In the Age of Global Democracy ushered in by the fall of Marcos in Manila
and the fall of the Wall in Berlin, it is unfair that those who have paid
as much for it in Rangoon should not enjoy even a morsel.

We can no longer close our eyes or take our own sweet time to help Burma
achieve her freedom, especially those countries whose freedom was achieved
with international help -- from an enlightened foreign press to enlightened
foreign governments.

Constructive engagement only bought time for the junta to consolidate its
grip and to silence more of the friends of freedom in Burma.

This engagement has been purely destructive of Burma's best interests, and
constructive only for the junta's designs. It has softened the severity of
the embargoes called by some enlightened countries and allowed the junta to
sell the services of Burma's slave labor.


The key element of progress in the wired world of the age of information
is freedom.

So let us stop quibbling about how best to achieve progress in Burma -- by
more dictatorship and less freedom now for more prosperity and more liberty
later -- and act to give Burma her freedom as soon as possible.

There is no time to lose. Every second of waltzing with the dictators in
Burma is another hour of agony for the people of that sad country. 

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

SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST: BURMA IN GENERAL DISARRAY
25 June, 1999 by William Barnes 

The Burmese generals are frightened. They may control one of the biggest
armies in the region but they are terrified of provoking their own
population with stiff price rises.

The military dares not risk a popular backlash and so even modest attempts
at reform are hamstrung.

The results of this fear can be bizarre. When the Indian onion crop failed
a year ago, the authorities quickly banned the export sale of onions -- and
lost a lucrative selling opportunity -- for fear of a price rise.

Yet this fear does not extend to allowing producers to reap the benefit of
market prices: the authorities retain a monopoly over rice exports, which,
as a result, are predictably dismal.

Rice production, traditionally a big export-earner, is now barely keeping
pace with population growth.

The ruling military junta that emerged to pick up the reins of 26 years of
military rule in 1989 -- after mass protests -- decided to try to buy off
or distract the unhappy population with economic growth.

Former dictator Ne Win's quasi-socialist central planning was dropped
overnight in favour of a free-market economy.

"The only problem is the word 'free'," said one foreign banker.  "The
military's instinct and training is to control. This economy is not free at
all."

The ruling generals do not trust outsiders -- and that includes in effect
anyone outside the inner core of the junta -- to take important decisions
that they may simply be unable to understand themselves.

So they harass importers, demand cheap produce from farmers, let potential
investors swing in the wind waiting for official decisions and print money
to fill financial black holes.

The hard-line army chief, General Maung Aye, is widely  regarded as firmly
on the more inflexible, less worldly side of the regime.

Yet he is head of the many key committees where economic policy is made on
the hoof.

Lt-General Khin Nyunt, who represents the relatively sophisticated arm of
the regime, looks after internal politics, ethnic affairs, health,
education and foreign relations.

General Maung Aye, along with the junta's secretary, General Tin Oo, is
left with responsibility for trade, finance and agriculture.

This is not a clean divide because the regime rules by consensus and all
the senior men sit on the main councils.

But it does show the ease with which uniformed generals think they can --
often on their own -- make difficult economic policy decisions.

The results can be alarming. Last year, a tax was slapped on exports, a
decision hardly designed to encourage a faltering manufacturing sector.


"They needed money so they thought, 'The exporters must have money, let's
tax them'. They didn't think it through," one observer said.

When a diplomat discovered the trade policy co-ordinating committee under
Gen Maung Aye met every week, he assumed it was merely to pass trade
approvals or something similar.

He was shocked to discover that no, it actually "made policy" every week.

When the generals realised in 1995 that palm nut from Malaysia for the
country's famously oily curries was taking up 10 to 15 per cent of the
import bill, they banned the export of domestic sesame seed.

The decision was reversed only because a key Japanese trading house brought
its chairman to Burma to explain that sesame produces much less oil than
palm nut, so the comparative advantage was in Burma's favour.

Penny drops.

The trade was freed up in 1996 and 1997, only for the sesame export ban to
be reimposed last year.

When a puzzled Rangoon resident asked why, one Japanese executive simply
shrugged his shoulders and said: "They forgot."

This involvement goes much further than mere policy.

The creation of United Myanmar Economic Holdings (Umeh) and the Myanmar
Economic Corp (MEC) allowed the military establishment to lock its claws
around whatever new business sectors arose. Military factories dominated
manufacturing during the quasi-socialist era of Mr Ne Win.

Umeh and MEC are key local joint-venture partners for foreign investors.
Some analysts see them partially as officers' retirement funds and also as
financial hedges against possible political changes.

An example: Umeh took control of all ruby and sapphire mines from the
ministry of mines in 1995.

The Myanmar Gems Enterprise, under the ministry, was left with only the
organisation of the annual gems emporium for overseas sales. As a result,
gems supply has fallen because many private mines are said to have gone
"off the map" to wait for a better selling opportunity.

Even sympathetic visitors, such as Singapore Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong,
have privately warned the generals to free up markets, to tackle rampant
corruption and to stop making off-the-cuff policy behind closed doors.

Middle-ranking officers in the intelligence organisation, the Directorate
of Defence Services Intelligence, appear to be well aware of the deficiencies.

Some local economists have been allowed to be quite critical, between the
lines, in recommending what one diplomat described as "sensible" policy
measures in seminars organised by the organisation.

The top generals' control of the economy could soon be in the international
spotlight. The United Nations is trying to persuade the regime to start
exchanging political liberalisation for advice and money.

But even if the regime makes sufficient token gestures to unlock some
economic aid, observers wonder how international help can bolster an
economy that bends to the whim of a small coterie of soldiers. 

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

THE IRRAWADDY: SHWEDAGON AND THE GENERALS 
May, 1999 

Vol. 7, No. 4

PLAYING THE RELIGION CARD


The Burmese generals recently renovated Shwedagon Pagoda. Under the
junta's guidance intensive restoration of ancient pagodas and temples is
being carried out all over Burma. As people throughout the country donate
gold, diamonds and rubies to pagodas, the generals  pay daily visits to
sacred shrines. But what is the reason behind all this? 

Do the generals really believe they can atone for their past in this way,
or are they simply trying to whitewash their sins? Aung Zaw writes.

It was in 1870, some 129 years ago that a small gathering of senior monks
and members of the Burmese elite held a meeting at a monastery in Rangoon.
By that time the British had already taken over Lower Burma. The meeting
was called to discuss Shwedagon Pagoda. Sayadaw U Pyar and the laymen
wanted to restore the Htidaw or "umbrella" which crowns Shwedagon, Burma's
most sacred pagoda. The Htidaw had last been renovated 85 years earlier by
King Muay Du. But the monks and other Burmese did not want to ask the
British authorities for assistance, as a signal that they did not recognize
their occupation of the country. Instead, they requested the assistance of
King Mindon, who still ruled Upper Burma. King Mindon in Mandalay Palace
immediately accepted the request from Rangoon and began restoration work on
the Htidaw.

It took over a year to complete the task. In October 1871, the king had the
new golden crown transported to Shwedagon, where, according to tradition,
eight strands of the Buddha's hair are enshrined. The king's ceremonial
Yaynansakkyar steamer carrying the diamond-studded Htidaw arrived in
Rangoon on October 22. Hundreds of thousands of Burmese participated in
ceremonies to mark the restoration of the Htidaw.

"The British were not pleased by the ruler's statement of independence, but
were powerless to stop the action," noted one historian. 

Shwedagon has often been a center of political activity. During British
rule, students gathered at the pagoda to call for boycotts against the
foreign rulers. After the country achieved independence, Shwedagon
continued to be used as a center point for politically active students who
took refuge there from the dictatorial regime. In 1988, opposition leader
Aung San Suu Kyi gave her first public speech at Shwedagon.

Now Burma's military rulers are using Shwedagon to serve their own ends.
Last year they consulted senior monks to discuss plans to refurbish the
pagoda, and especially the Htidaw, which has not undergone any repairs
since 1970. Most people are suspicious about their motives, but the
generals went ahead with their plan anyway.

At first, it seemed that Shwedagon itself did not agree with the idea. When
the generals tried to remove the Htidaw, an earthquake shook the pagoda. 

"That was a strong indication that Shwedagon wouldn't accept the generals'
plan," commented one monk. "But later they tried again and again and the
earthquakes stopped."

All Burmese, including the generals, regard Shwedagon as a symbol of the
country. The regime knows that making merit by doing work on the sacred
temple may also be a good way to restore their image within the country.
Suddenly Burmese are seeing a steady stream of images in the state-owned
media showing generals roaming around temples and consulting monks. The
regime even established a "Leading Committee for Perpetual All-round
Renovation of Shwedagon Pagoda," headed by SPDC Secretary One Lt Gen Khin
Nyunt.


"This has become a serious business, as if they have nothing else to do,"
remarked one Burmese observer. 

MIXED REACTIONS

Looking at all the gold, jewels, money, and valuable items that people have
donated towards the latest restoration of Shwedagon, one might find it hard
to believe that in 1987 Burma was designated a "Least Developed Country" by
the United Nations. Many people simply removed rings and jewelry and
donated them while others looked on. As one Burmese person explained to a
foreign journalist, "Contributions whether in cash or kind or service and
in whatever amounts to such a sacred pagoda will help us be reborn into
peaceful high-class lives and will certainly be conducive to attaining our
final goal of Nirvana."

As of March 1999, groups and individuals had contributed a total of 43,275
items of jewelry and other precious possessions. Donations also came in
from outside of the country. According to Reuters news agency, Singapore's
Golden Pagoda Temple donated 132 gold bells and a gold bowl weighing more
than six kilograms.  

"People are so confused. Elderly people were delighted to have a chance to
see the sacred umbrella restored in their life time," said one observer.
"The generals know very well how to play the game."

But as the day to place the Htidaw back on the top of the pagoda grew
closer, it was clear that Burmese were divided into three groups. One group
was clearly pleased with the generals' work at Shwedagon. The second group
took a neutral stance, choosing not to link the issue to politics. The
third group did not support or like it at all. 

It is believed that senior monks in the Sangha Council even had a heated
debate amongst themselves about whether the unpopular generals should have
been permitted to hoist the Htidaw.

Some members of the public suggested that the regime didn't deserve this
golden opportunity to make merit. Others expressed concern that the
generals might steal the valuables they had collected for the restoration.

In 1997, news spread about the junta's systematic looting of pagoda
treasures at several temples in Upper Burma. In one infamous incident,
authorities broke open the famous Mahamuni Buddha image in Mandalay to
search for a legendary ruby. When monks protested against the junta's
mishandling of the statue, the army sent troops to Mandalay and stirred up
anti-Muslim riots to distract people's attention.

Some Buddhist scholars in Rangoon disagreed with the junta's restoration of
the Htidaw. One senior academic said, "They don't understand the meaning of
restoration and preservation. What they are doing now is destroying history
and removing all valuable sculptures. They did the same things in Pagan."

The junta, however, claimed that the ancient pagodas and temples in Pagan
had been restored to their original styles. But the "patriotic" generals
refused to replace some sculptures because the British built them during
the colonial period. 

HARD TIMES AHEAD

Many people in Burma said they believed the generals were simply preparing
for hard times when they decided to renovate Shwedagon. A middle-aged man
in downtown Rangoon said, "They are very superstitious. I am sure they are
doing yadaya."


Yadaya is a form of magic widely practiced in Burma to ward off evil
spirits and weaken one's enemies. It is well known that many SPDC generals
practice yadaya and rely on the advice of astrologers. Recently there has
even been a rumor that Khin Nyunt has been attempting to "steal" Aung San
Suu Kyi's power by dressing in women's clothing, complete with a flower in
his hair.  

Some analysts in Rangoon have suggested that the renovation was an attempt
by the generals to demonstrate their superiority to Suu Kyi, since women
are not permitted to climb to the top of Shwedagon.

However, the sight of Khin Nyunt climbing to the top of the pagoda in his
military uniform provoked anger in some younger Burmese. When he and
several other generals started shouting "Aung Pyi! Aung Pyi! " ("We won! We
won!") upon reaching the top, some wondered whether they were referring to
their victory over Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy, or the people
of Burma.  

In any case, when hundreds of thousands of Burmese showed up for the
three-day ceremony to mark the renovation of the pagoda, their numbers
included NLD members. Even opposition leaders who had been detained by the
regime were permitted to attend.

"I am out here because we made a special request to the authorities. For
Buddhists this is the event of a lifetime."

Initially, it was believed that a general amnesty for political and other
prisoners might be announced to mark the occasion. However, this did not
happen.

After hoisting the Htidaw, a state-run newspaper declared that this was a
"rare victory" for the people of Burma. "The ceremony can be marked as a
milestone in all-round nation-building endeavors of the patriotic Tatmadaw
(armed forces) to ensure secure and prosperous life for the nationalities
since September 1988." The date refers to the coup and subsequent crackdown
on pro-democracy protesters that marked the beginnings of the current
regime's reign.

The same article also noted favorable signs that the renovation had met
with divine approval. "The climate that was dry and hot since the start of
summer had changed due to showers of rain beginning from 7 April till New
Year Day. It is a good omen for the people of Myanmar that there will be
peace and tranquility in the nation in the coming year and they will be
able to strive not only for the interests of the nation and the people but
also for the benefit of the world."

But in military-ruled Burma, good omens don't last long. Five days after
the three-day ceremony was held, a fire broke out in the eastern stairway
of Shwedagon. The fire was extinguished 15 minutes after it was spotted by
pilgrims. One veteran reporter in Rangoon said that it was lucky that rain
started falling soon after the fire broke out. Some attributed this to
Shwedagon's tago, or power. 

Damage was slight, but the official media was quick to place the blame on
its opponents. "It can be speculated as to who is responsible. It is those
who have committed similar things a number of times." The next day, a more
explicit article lashed out at the NLD and underground elements for
starting the fire.


However, analysts in Rangoon said that sabotage by one of the regime's
many enemies was unlikely. They noted that Shwedagon has been heavily
guarded since top leaders, especially Khin Nyunt, started visiting almost
every day. "No one could enter the ceiling and set a fire as the area is
well guarded," said one veteran journalist.

A police officer who had been assigned to guard the temple for decades said
that the security of the temple is completely controlled by the army and
intelligence units.  

Some believe that the government itself lit the fire so that it could place
the blame on the opposition. "Now that they are the heroes of Shwedagon,
they need to find a villain. It was like Hitler who set fire to the
Reichstag and blamed the communists," remarked prominent dissident Moe Thee
Zun.

"No one in Rangoon is convinced that this is the work of rebels or the
NLD," said one lawyer in Rangoon. "Some don't even believe that the fire
took place. They think it was just made-up."

The junta likened the incident to the December 1996 bombing at Kaba Aye
Pagoda, where a tooth relic from China was being displayed. Five people
were killed and many others were injured. The junta blamed Karen rebels and
the opposition that time, too, but it never presented any evidence to back
up the accusation.

Some Burmese have even expressed disappointment that disaster hasn't
befallen the generals. Many believe that such a scenario is still possible.
"Something will happen to them or their family members because they are not
the real rulers of the country," said one person.

It is believed that the junta planned to hoist the Htidaw on the first of
March. The plan was withdrawn after astrologers suggested it was not the
right time. They were right. Lightening struck Rangoon seven times on that
day and the generals decided to stay away from Shwedagon. 

A Burmese monk in Thailand said that the generals' motives for renovating
the pagoda  were different from those of King Mindon. "It was just a
facelift for the government. They are using Shwedagon as a shield and to
whitewash their sins."

The renovation has kindled many hopes and expectations, but no one should
be surprised to discover that the junta's wishes and those of the rest of
the Burmese people are at odds with each other. It remains to be seen whose
wishes will be answered.

[Aung Zaw is the editor of the Irrawaddy. ]

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

THE NATION: MINORITIES HAVE LOST PATIENCE WITH NLD 
25 June, 1999 

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

After reading the Josef Silverstein piece, [I] sincerely question where he
got his information on the minorities being behind Aung San Suu Kyi? Last I
heard was most of the ethnics were not behind the National League for
Democracy strategy.

In fact they recently made a pact to go it alone as they always have. The
ethnics are the fighters or guerrillas if you will. They are the forced
labourers, the ones who lose much more than the technocrat Burmese. The
ethnics for years have tried unsuccessfully to convince the NLD leadership
and rank-and-file to go for broke. What else do they have to lose? They
have already lost everything. Why the junta always gets its way is they
know they have broken the morale of the Burmese and the NLD. There are no
freedom fighters willing to spill blood. Only the ethnics have proven that
they will go for it. Without that the junta is in the driver's seat. And
with Thailand supporting the junta the ethnics have a lot more to lose.


With the lady in the top slot the Burmese suffer daily. She must be
willing to step aside and let the players go to the table. Stubbornness on
the part of Suu Kyi and the tatmadaw will only sink the country into the
abyss.

A keen observer, Canada

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

THE BANGKOK POST: CASE AGAINST WEI SUFFERS BIG SETBACK 
28 June, 1999 by Nusara Thaitawat 

DRUG WARLORD MAY GET OFF THE BOOK

In another setback to US and Thai efforts to bring drug kingpins in the
Golden Triangle to justice, Wei Hsuehkang of the United Wa State Army who
was indicted in New York in 1993, may still get off the hook following the
recent death of a key witness and the disappearance of another, informed
sources said.

Sources in New York and Bangkok told Bangkok Post the key witness in Wei's
case had died of natural causes and the other, a convicted drug trafficker
who agreed to testify against Wei in court in exchange for a lesser
sentence, had completed his jail term and there was no reason for him to
cooperate.

The witness, whose identity has been kept secret, has been released and is
believed to have left the US. His whereabouts are unknown.

The evidence against Wei is not strong enough to win the case in court,
sources said.

This turn of events is becoming a major embarrassment for the US, which
last year offered a US$2 million (72 million baht) reward for Wei's
capture. With insufficient evidence to prosecute him, the indictment for
conspiracy and drug trafficking would eventually have to be dropped.

Just last week, news reports from San Francisco where another suspected
drug kingpin -- Thanong Siripreechapong, a former MP of the Chart Thai
Party -- is being tried, indicate he may go free after a prosecutor tried
to temporarily conceal a kickback accepted by a US agent in order to secure
a conviction.

Assistant US Attorney John Lyons twice called the prosecutor handling the
kickback case to delay action against Customs agent Frank Gervacio, who
accepted a $4,000 gift from a key informant in the Thanong case, until
after he testified in order to keep the agent's credibility intact,
according to AFP.

Both attempts failed. US District Court Judge Vaughn Walker is considering
a proposal to dismiss most of the charges against Thanong, whose lawyer
outlined a proposed deal in a letter to the San Francisco federal court two
weeks ago and expects the matter to be resolved tomorrow.

Another source said the State Department is unlikely to cancel the reward
for Wei under its Counter Narcotics Rewards Programme since he remains the
biggest and most powerful drug kingpin in the Golden Triangle, a position
he has held since 1996, after the UWSA militarily defeated Khun Sa of the
Mong Tai Army.

His 47th Brigade of the UWSA based in Ban Hong, opposite Ban Therdthai in
Mae Fah Luang district of Chiang Rai, floods the Thai market with millions
of methamphetamine tablets each month. It also supplies the international
drug market with heroin. Its efforts to locally produce the synthetic drug
ecstasy, has proved unsuccessful.


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

BBC: VANCOUVER DRUGS RING SMASHED 
24 June, 1999 

Most of the drugs were seized from a boat in Vancouver's port 

Police have arrested 28 suspects and seized 54kg of heroin in a massive
operation against a major international drugs ring operating out of the
Canadian port of Vancouver.

The gang had been shipping heroin from southeast Asia to markets in Canada
and the United States, in an operation so large that it could manipulate
drug prices across North America at will.

"When you start dealing with heroin at the multikilogram level, you are
dealing with the top echelon of heroin movement throughout the world," said
Royal Canadian Mounted Police Sergeant Patrick Convey.

The gang also dealt in extortion and credit card fraud on a global scale.

>From Burma to Vancouver

Most of the suspects are from the Vancouver area, but the FBI has also
charged gang members from as far afield as New York, Las Vegas and Puerto
Rico.

Vancouver police were tipped off that a suspected gang leader living in the
city was to be kidnapped or have his house fire-bombed, and used the
information to uncover a wider gang network in a three-year investigation.

The gang's operations stretched from Burma to Vancouver's East Side, which
has a notorious heroin problem.

Police say heroin was sometimes stockpiled in Canada in an effort to limit
North American supplies and drive up prices.

Harbour seizure

Most of the Vancouver heroin seizure came from a Chinese vessel entering
the city's harbour.

A million containers pass through the port every year, but police and
customs officials only manage to search 3% of the vessels.

They have long complained that they are fighting a losing battle against
the heroin trade.

According to the RCMP's Sergeant Convey, the suspects felt Vancouver was a
safe place for business.

"I would have to say Vancouver is definitely one of the major areas for the
distribution of heroin coming in from southeast Asia for the entire North
American market," he said.

Canadian police said that smugglers liked to work from Canada because its
drug laws carried lesser penalties than those in the United States.

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

PROJECT MAJE: SAILING THROUGH ETHNICIDE 
25 June, 1999 from maje@xxxxxxxxxxx 

A little-known aspect of Burma tourism is the growth since 1997 of scuba
diving tours to the Mergui Archipelago/Burma Banks area. Located off
Burma's southern Tenasserim region, these islands in the Andaman Sea are
described in websites and articles as "pristine," "breathtaking,"
"unspoilt and fascinating," etc. The diving regions are reached on
live-aboard sailing or motor yachts, usually leaving from the southern
Burmese towns of Kawthaung or Mergui. Divers can observe a variety of
marine life, including sharks, and sea-kayaking is now also offered in the
area. Several scuba diving companies based on the Thai resort island of
Phuket, plus some international tour agencies, offer this access to Burma's
Andaman Sea islands. Prices range around US$800 to $2,200 for 5 to 8 day
cruises.


These trips are advertised as "eco tours" or "eco cruises" and the exotic,
untouched aspects of the area ("one of the last pristine environments on
earth") are emphasized to attract "been everywhere" divers. Tour operators
negotiated with the Burmese military for some three years for permission to
run the tours, even though the Burma Banks dive site is in international
waters, as the regime considers it all within the Myanmar Exclusive
Economic zone.

"Adventure Travel" magazine, in an article titled "The Last Eden" touting
the Mergui Archipelago tours, commented, "Amazingly, apart from a few 'sea
gypsies,' there's not even an indigenous population," and "Not only have
the islands escaped development by the modern world, they don't even have a
significant indigenous population."

Some of the tour company websites use the Sea Gypsies as one of the
attractions of their cruises: "The only humans you'll encounter are the
Moken Sea Gypsies who roam the area in their small boats, largely the way
their ancestors have done for centuries. They are very friendly and like to
visit for a chat or to barter some fish ... .  Where we have contact with
the inhabitants, Moken seagypsies, this is on a basis of mutual respect and
in no way degrading for them." -- Faraway Sail & Dive Expeditions.

The small, endangered ethnic group referred to as "Sea Gypsies" or "Moken,"
the Saloun people, traditionally have lived on boats in the region and
survived on ocean and island foods.  According to a Thailand-based
environmental expert, "Most of the Salouns in Burmese waters have been
forced by Slorc to settle in permanent onshore camps, sort of like
relocation settlements." Further sources have documented that at least 700
Saloun families were forcibly resettled on land since 1993, in the Burmese
regime's effort to secure the Myanmar Exclusive Economic Zone for
activities such as petroleum drilling and commercial fishing. Reportedly
Saloun men who have fled persecution in Burma have wound up working on Thai
fishing boats, and some of the Saloun women have been reduced to working as
prostitutes in the notorious AIDS-deathtrap brothels of the Thai port of
Ranong.

The effects of the dive tours on the remaining sea-roving Salouns are hard
to determine. What is readily apparent is that the tours work to the
advantage of the very regime which obliterated the traditional way of life
for most Salouns and many other indigenous peoples of Burma. An "Outside"
magazine endorsement of one of the tours added this caveat: "Burma's
military dictatorship began heavily courting tourist dollars. Be forewarned
that a percentage of your trip fee will go to support this regime."

The tour company websites mostly make only passing mention of a "port and
customs entry fee" sometimes including visa, which is paid to the regime,
varying between US$90 and $130. In one case, Fantasea Divers posts a page
about its "Myanmar Entry Fee" (US$130 in "new undamaged and unmarked
bills," not including visa) specifying that it "is simply the amount that
the Burmese authorities charge us for each passenger" and "The money is
divided between the [Tourism] Ministry, Kawthoung district and the Southern
Army Command. It does not go into some general's Swiss bank account." What
is not noted on Fantasea's website (or any of the other dive outfits') is
the well-documented extraordinary human rights abuse record of the Southern
Army Command of Burma -- enormous levels of forced labor, village burnings,
ethnic cleansing, rape, torture, and murder of civilians. Why giving even
one dollar to the Southern Army Command's bullet fund or a mere colonel's
local bank account would be justifiable for a pleasure cruise seems
incomprehensible.


The tours usually are escorted by a guide/translator from the regime's
Ministry of Tourism. A bizarre self-satisfying combination of individual
concern for preservation of the environment with blissful ignorance of the
wholesale human and ecological mayhem committed by Burma's regime seems to
result. The scuba tourist's Burma impression is one of "world-class
dive-sites," "awesome creatures,"  "incredible photo opportunities," and of
course the "seafood and cocktail extravaganza."

In an article in "Nautica" (an "international yachting magazine") about one
of these trips, the author mourns a dynamite killing of barracudas and
other fish as "a massacre" and feels "sad and embittered" because of it,
but is apparently oblivious to the massacres of indigenous people by
Burma's military, taking place not far away in the Tenasserim area.

One Phuket-based dive tour company, Seacats, publicizes its refusal to run
tours to Burmese waters due to safety concerns (citing disputes between
Thai and Burmese naval vessels earlier this year) "without questioning the
ethics of operating in Burma in the first place." It is up to Free Burma
activists from around the world to raise those ethical questions to the
operators of the scuba tours.

[For more information about Project Maje and Burma Scuba Tour Companies,
please contact maje@xxxxxxxxxxxx]

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