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NCUB Response to Speech of U Win Au



Subject: NCUB Response to Speech of U Win Aung on September 24, 1999 at  the UNGA

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On October, 4 ,1999,<br>
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Reqarding the Speech of&nbsp; FM U Win Aung on September 24, 1999 at UNGA
meeting and The invasion of SPDC Embassy in BKK, Thailand by the Burmese
Democratic Activists, NCUB held a press Conference attended by U Maung
Maung Aye, General Secretary of NCUB, U Aung Moe Zaw, Joint&nbsp;
Secretary (1), Khaing Soe Naing Aung, Joint Secretary (2), U Bo Thaung,
Joint Secretary (3) at NCUB(HQ) near Thailand-Burma Border.<br>
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NCUB Response to Speech of U Win Aung on September 24, 1999 at the
UNGA<br>
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What the SPDC FM U Win Aung has said in his speech are diametrically
opposed to what is actually happening currently in Burma. He said that he
fully agreed to the provisions of the UN Declaration on Human Rights and
supported without reservation the UN rules and regulations governing the
member states. The fact is that the SPDC military regime has never abided
by any of the 30 provisions of UN Declaration on Human Rights. The SPDC
is instituting a system of slavery of modern time by the widespread and
deliberate use of forced labor. According to reports of the international
human rights organizations, one out of 20 persons in Burma is subjected
to forced labor. The SPDC military regime has acceded to such
international agreements as the Convention on Child's Rights, Termination
of Discrimination against Women, the 1949 Geneva Convention on the
Protection Civilian Population in War etc., but we see that it has never
respected the provisions contained in them. We see that the SPDC has been
press-ganging an increasing number of children for forced labor and, what
is worse is the forcing of more and more of the under-aged into the army.
The people, in general,=A0 has never known the laws protecting the rights
of children and women, as the SPDC has never published them. Even many
pregnant women have been forced to do hard labor and no special rights
are given to pregnant women or nursing mothers. The Association for the
Welfare of Mothers and Children, organized by the SPDC looks only after
the welfare of the wives and children of the SDPDC army officers and
their relatives. <br>
The SPDC has been blatantly violating the provisions of the 1949 Geneva
Convention by committing, in the war zones, extra-judicial executions of
innocent civilians, forced relocations, planting of land mines in the
vacated villages, forced portage, the use of human beings as mine
detectors, rape of women, burning of villages and looting, on a large
scale.=A0=A0 <br>
In Burma, the rights to the freedom of organization, assembly,
expression, thought etc., provided for in the UN Declaration of Human
Rights are not only restricted severely, but the existing organizations
are also being suppressed harshly by the imposition of unjust orders and
decrees by the SPDC. The NLD is a legally instituted party, according to
the SPDC Election Law, and it was the party, which gained the highest
vote in the 1990 general election. However, the SPDC has been forcing the
NLD branch offices to take down their signboards and has detained
hundreds of NLD party members and nearly100 members of parliament,
elected on the party's ticket. The SPDC secret police conspire to frame
criminal cases against political activists, their relatives and children
for imprisonment. <br>
Annual reports of the UN Special Rapporteur, the ILO, the international
human rights organizations, and resolutions of the UNGA at its annual
meetings show that human rights violations by the SPDC and its agents are
increasing inordinately, year after year, and we see that the SPDC has
been ignoring them regularly. <br>
U Win Aung said that the SPDC had allowed the ICRC to inspect prisons and
positive results were obtained. However, he did not mention that prior to
the ICRC inspection, political prisoners were moved to other places and
the prisons were renovated. Some criminals were presented to the ICRC
representatives as political prisoners. U Win Aung, in his speech, opined
that there was a good chance for forming a human rights commission in
Burma, in relation to the visit of Head of the Australian Human Rights
Commission, Mr. Sidoti. While he was discussing about the formation of
human rights commission with the SPDC authorities, the SPDC agents were
arresting in earnest hundreds of pro-democracy activists, for fear of
them staging demonstrations. Thus Mr. Sidoti was used by the SPDC to
cover up their repression and mislead the world. <br>
The SPDC, said U Win Aung, was not against democracy and human rights.
The democracy the SPDC was promoting was the kind that would guarantee
the basic needs such as food, shelter and clothes to the people. It is an
important responsibility of a government to provide such needs to the
people, however the presumption of U Win Aung and the SPDC that
fulfilling the basic needs of the people and democracy were two separate
things and that the people could not have both at the same time was the
most reactionary thought of all times.=A0 <br>
As a result of mismanagement of the economy by the SPDC, there is
galloping inflation and scarcity of the basic commodities.=A0 According to
the SPDC finance minister, the rate of inflation in the country was 20%.
The price of a commodity is now 10 times higher than it was in 1988, when
the military seized power. The people have to use electrical power in
quota and in rotation. Clean water is available only to 40% of the
population. The number of malnourished infants is on the increase,
because the mothers cannot get food with enough nutrition.=A0 <br>
U Win Aung also said that the SPDC was regarding narcotic drug
eradication as a national task and that it could declare a number of
regions as drug free zones. The fact is that the SPDC could declare only
Milar Township, as a drug free zone. <br>
In 1988, the production of opium was about 800 tons. Now, the production
is more than 2,000 tons, an increase of=A0 250%. Formerly, opium
cultivation could be found only along the border facing China and
northern Thailand. Now it can also be found in areas facing India, in the
Chin State, Sagaing Division and on the West Bank of Salween.=A0 Many SPDC
regional commanders are deeply involved in the drug business, though we
do not know how high the corruption goes. The acceptance of the SPDC of
the opium barons as leaders of ethnic nationalities at its national
convention drafting the state constitution, in a way shows the depth of
the relations between the SPDC top leaders and the drug traffickers.
Nowadays, psychoactive drugs are easily available in the big cities such
as Rangoon and Mandalay. <br>
It was the view of U Win Aung and the SPDC that the state constitution to
be drafted by the SPDC National Convention only could produce a modern
and developed state. It has now been more than 6 years that the SPDC
Convention has been in existence, but still a legitimate state
constitution is nowhere near completion. The NLD boycotted it and many
genuine ethnic representatives had been expelled from the Convention for
speaking out their minds. <br>
U Win Aung further said that there were now 17 ethnic groups that had
reached cease-fire agreement with the SPDC and that the SPDC was always
keeping the door to negotiation open for the KNU and other remaining
armed organizations. He also said that the SPDC regarded national unity
as its foremost task. The widespread human rights violations and
atrocities committed daily by the SPDC troops and agents in the Karen
areas, the Karenni State, the Chin State, the Shan State and the Arakan
State are totally contradictory to the candy-coated words of U Win Aung.
<br>
With respect to the economic situation, U Aung Win said that there was a
slowdown in development Burma due to economic crisis in Asia, but there
was no economic recession. However, the SPDC could not publish the usual
yearly financial and economic progress report this year.=A0 The ministries
have to cease work and activities due to shortage of funds. The SPDC
invites young men staying abroad to come back and join hands with it.=A0
Without any fundamental change in the political system, the invitation of
the SPDC sounded like a call for surrender. This was a trick by the SPDC
to make itself appear different in the international arena. <br>
If the SPDC is sincere,=A0 it would be a basic change for it to join hands
first with the CRPP. It would be more beneficial for the development of
the country if the SPDC would allow freedom of action to the political
parties and to free all the political prisoners. The NLD mandated by the
people in the 1990 election is ready to work for the development of the
country. <br>
Educated people are needed in development and so it is necessary to
reopen the universities and colleges. The international community should
respond to the invitation by U Win Aung=A0 and go to Burma to find out the
real situation and act accordingly.=A0 <br>
=A0=A0=A0 On the other hand, we would like to urge U Win Aung to stop his
attempt to mislead the international community, and try to make positive
changes politically. The words of U Win Aung were nothing but part of the
attempt, as usual, by the SPDC military regime to deceive the
international community by shamelessly telling lies at the UNGA. <br>
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