Times - Barking hound dog Part 2

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Reply-To: "TIN KYI" <tinkyi@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>

Times - (Asia ) Nov 15, 1999 Vol. 154 No. 19

TIME: Were you successful in making your case to DeSoto?
Win Aung: We met again with him in a wrap-up session on Monday, October 18,
and he told me, "The more time I spend here the more I understand how
complex the situation is." He now admits there are many complex situations
in our country. Some people thought the situation was simple and all you had
to do was turn the coin. But I said if it were that simple, we'd be the
happiest people.

People from the outside do not understand that. The composition of our
ethnic population and also the difficulties presented by our geographical
terrain make communication and development difficult. That is why we are
building so many roads now, so that we can communicate better. Take the road
to Muse, for example. We did not have the money for a four- or-six-lane
highway, so we decided let us have a thin stretch of just one or two lanes.
Later if we have more money, we can expand it.

We have built thousands of bridges. During 400 years under the British, only
one bridge was built across the Irrawaddy. All our successive
governments--led by U Nu and Ne Win--did not build any more. We have added
another five, and we are planning another three, so there will be nine
altogether. It is ironic that when we are trying to build and promote
national unity, we have received not a cent from either the World Bank or
the Asian Development Bank. At the same time we have been accused of having
only a single source for our military hardware and spending so much on that
hardware. But if we were buying so much military hardware, how could we
build so many dams and bridges--103 with another 23 under construction.

We can travel to Thailand now without using ferries. What is now a two-hour
trip by road used to take 22 hours by boat. Where is that money coming from?
We have saved this money. We export whatever we can and use the money
earned. We make our own cement. Steel components have to be imported from
abroad. But we have managed this. Whatever money we have gotten [from
outside sources] has not been wasted.

The opposition always says all the money went into the pockets of the
generals and the people suffered. But look at me. Look at my limousine. It's
just an Audi built in China. We save our money. Money for the Buddhas is
donated by the people, and the expanding skyline is the result of
private-sector efforts. What the government is trying to do is raise the
standard of education and health care and improve the ports and roads. This
is the groundwork. The beneficiary will be the next government, which will
emerge from the new constitution. Why are we doing this? As a military
government we are disciplined and united, so we can build now. We are not so
sure that will be the case later on, because political parties will emerge,
and they will have to listen to their constituents.

TIME: Do you understand that there is great impatience at the length of time
you're taking to turn over the power to another government?
Win Aung: The U.N. came here because of the [human rights] resolution.
That's why the De Soto mission was here, and of course it has a mandate, and
it would like to see things improved. We did not pretend that we have
achieved a democracy and everything is perfect. We did not say that. But
what we are trying to do is solve the problems in a human way, and as much
as possible in a humanitarian way.

The only thing is respect for the law, and that's why the NLD releases a lot
of statements every day that are always critical. People think no one can
criticize the government here or the government will put them in prison. But
that is not so. I said we are solving the problem honestly. Only when they
cross the line of the law and only when there was danger of eruption into
uncontrolled outbursts which can drag the country down into anarchy, only
then did the government have to take those actions.

Another thing I said to [De Soto's group], which they did not know, is that
nobody can arrest or detain anyone for more than 24 hours without a warrant.
There is a law, and we are very much adhering to that law. If the security
people want to [detain someone] they must go to court and obtain a warrant.
That is the rule of law.

Another thing I told them is that the grassroots and village levels are the
most important levels of government. District levels are more supervisory,
but the actual implementers and administrators are the township and village
levels. At the township level there are no longer any military people in the
government administrative system. There are no more captains and majors
there. Now only civil service people chair the committees. They were
surprised to learn this. These are new facts.

TIME: What led the government to invite the International Committee of the
Red Cross (ICRC) to return to Burma to inspect the prisons?
Win Aung: They [the ICRC] like to go anywhere, and we collaborate with them.
The minister of home affairs is responsible for that, because the prison
department is under his ministry. I just came back [to Burma] last year
after so many years abroad. What I see now in prison is that prisoners have
blankets and mosquito nets. Those things were not allowed under the British
because of the possibility of suicides. I was pleasantly surprised. I am
also a human being. I would like to see other human beings enjoy justice. I
asked Secretary One, "Why did you allow those things, which are not allowed
under the rules?" And he replied, "These prisoners are people. We can change
the rules."

The ICRC would like to see prisoners have their medical needs and exercise
needs satisfied, and the ICRC is helping us with that. When the ICRC
recommends something, we don't just push it aside. Our government listens
carefully. What can be amended is amended.

TIME: The opposition says the key test will be whether or not the government
will allow repeat visits to the same jails and the same prisoners.
Win Aung: We have not decided about that. But I would say, "Why not?" The
impression I got from many people and from Home Ministry reports is that
there are many things going on. My own reaction is why not? We don't have
anything to hide.

TIME: Allegations have been made that before the government granted access
to the ICRC, many prisoners were moved from the jails the ICRC would be
authorized to visit to other, unauthorized jails.
Win Aung: We allow them to visit wherever they like, and we show them the
place where the guests were allowed to stay--whether or not they are really
guests. [He is referring to the elected NLD parliamentarians who were
detained in military guesthouses, following the NLD's creation of the
Committee Representing the People's Parliament, which the regime regards as
a "parallel government."] These people are permitted to go home on weekends.

If they [the NLD] convene a parallel government or announce the formation of
this or that, they can create a lot of problems for us. We just wanted to
deter such a situation. There is no need to put them in prison. The reality
is that we have had to use a lot of money entertaining these people. If some
are alcohol drinkers, we even supply them with alcohol. But our guest
population is decreasing.