The Nation - Burmese probed over bo

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The Nation - Sep 12, 1999.
Burmese probed over bomb find

POLICE said yesterday they were investigating whether Burmese dissidents
were linked to a cache of powerful explosives uncovered in northern
Thailand.

Police and customs officers in Chiang Rai province seized 58 kilogrammes of
explosives on Friday along with three boxes of dynamite and two tonnes of
ammonium nitrate used to manufacture explosives.

Police said the cache had been uncovered on the premises of a local
transport company in Mae Sai district near the Burmese border.

''The bomb is so powerful that it could have destroyed the whole of Mae Sai
district,'' an police officer said.

He said police were investigating whether exiled Burmese dissidents were
connected to the explosives.

Last Sunday Karen rebels blew up a natural-gas pipeline in southern Burma,
temporarily halting supplies to a number of factories.

The attack, near the town of Bilin in Mon state, shut down supplies for
about 24 hours to some industries, including a French-built cement factory
and a gas-powered turbine.

A Karen National Union (KNU) spokesman said on Thursday that more attacks
were planned and accused Rangoon troops of looting, killing and raping in
villages in Karen state.

The KNU is the main ethnic minority rebel group yet to sign a ceasefire with
the ruling military in Rangoon.

Burmese pro-democracy groups had called for a nationwide uprising on Sept 9
aimed at ending decades of military rule.

They said several small-scale demonstrations had taken place throughout
Burma but a tight security net limited protest.

Diplomats in Rangoon said the planned day of unrest had passed quietly, with
many people staying at home as troops patrolled the streets and manned
roadblocks.

The Nation, Agence France-Presse