[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index ][Thread Index ]

Reuters-Myanmar dissidents riot at

Subject: Reuters-Myanmar dissidents riot at Thai holding centre 

This is a multi-part message in MIME format.

------=_NextPart_000_001B_01BF3151.FAA20F60
Content-Type: text/plain;
	charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

Myanmar dissidents riot at Thai holding centre=20
11:30 p.m. Nov 16, 1999 Eastern=20
BANGKOK, Nov 17 (Reuters) - About 100 Myanmar dissidents have clashed =
with guards at a holding centre in western Thailand, leaving at least =
two people injured, police said on Wednesday.=20

The dissidents started the hour-long riot on Tuesday night after guards =
at the Maneeloy camp in Ratchaburi province refused to let them out to =
get a colleague who had been arrested over the weekend for stealing.=20

One Myanmar dissident suffered a gunshot wound and was hospitalised, as =
was a Thai security guard who was beaten up by the mob, a police =
spokesman told Reuters.=20

``Investigators will be dispatched to the camp on Wednesday to find the =
wrongdoers and they will be punished in accordance with Thai law,'' the =
spokesman said.=20

About 1,000 dissidents, who fled violence and political suppression in =
Myanmar in 1988, have been held in the Maneeloy centre since 1993 under =
an arrangement with the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).=20

Frustrated by tight regulations governing their movements out of the =
centre, they have been restless in past weeks.=20

Last month, a group of dissidents held five UNHCR employees hostage for =
several hours after they were denied their monthly living allowance of =
$20 a month for violating camp rules. The issue was later resolved.=20

The dissidents have also come under pressure since five armed Myanmar =
dissidents raided the Myanmar embassy in Bangkok on October 1 and held =
89 people hostage for about 25 hours.=20

The embassy attackers later released their hostages and flew to freedom =
in the jungles around the Myanmar border near Ratchaburi. But the =
incident embarrassed Thai authorities who have since taken a harder =
stance on the dissidents.=20

The latest incidents have prompted the Thai government to impose tougher =
measures on their movements and work with the UNHCR to speed up their =
resettlement in third countries.=20

Thailand has set November 21 as the deadline for nearly 2,000 Myanmar =
dissidents living illegally in Bangkok to register with the authorities =
and be sent to the Maneeloy centre pending resettlement abroad.=20

More than 200 of them have registered.=20


------=_NextPart_000_001B_01BF3151.FAA20F60
Content-Type: text/html;
	charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN">
<HTML><HEAD>
<META content=3D"text/html; charset=3Diso-8859-1" =
http-equiv=3DContent-Type>
<META content=3D"MSHTML 5.00.2614.3500" name=3DGENERATOR>
<STYLE></STYLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY bgColor=3D#ffffff>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2><FONT size=3D+1><STRONG>Myanmar =
dissidents riot at=20
Thai holding centre</STRONG></FONT> <BR>11:30 p.m. Nov 16, 1999 Eastern=20
<P>BANGKOK, Nov 17 (Reuters) - About 100 Myanmar dissidents have clashed =
with=20
guards at a holding centre in western Thailand, leaving at least two =
people=20
injured, police said on Wednesday.=20
<P>The dissidents started the hour-long riot on Tuesday night after =
guards at=20
the Maneeloy camp in Ratchaburi province refused to let them out to get =
a=20
colleague who had been arrested over the weekend for stealing.=20
<P>One Myanmar dissident suffered a gunshot wound and was hospitalised, =
as was a=20
Thai security guard who was beaten up by the mob, a police spokesman =
told=20
Reuters.=20
<P>``Investigators will be dispatched to the camp on Wednesday to find =
the=20
wrongdoers and they will be punished in accordance with Thai law,'' the=20
spokesman said.=20
<P>About 1,000 dissidents, who fled violence and political suppression =
in=20
Myanmar in 1988, have been held in the Maneeloy centre since 1993 under =
an=20
arrangement with the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).=20
<P>Frustrated by tight regulations governing their movements out of the =
centre,=20
they have been restless in past weeks.=20
<P>Last month, a group of dissidents held five UNHCR employees hostage =
for=20
several hours after they were denied their monthly living allowance of =
$20 a=20
month for violating camp rules. The issue was later resolved.=20
<P>The dissidents have also come under pressure since five armed Myanmar =

dissidents raided the Myanmar embassy in Bangkok on October 1 and held =
89 people=20
hostage for about 25 hours.=20
<P>The embassy attackers later released their hostages and flew to =
freedom in=20
the jungles around the Myanmar border near Ratchaburi. But the incident=20
embarrassed Thai authorities who have since taken a harder stance on the =

dissidents.=20
<P>The latest incidents have prompted the Thai government to impose =
tougher=20
measures on their movements and work with the UNHCR to speed up their=20
resettlement in third countries.=20
<P>Thailand has set November 21 as the deadline for nearly 2,000 Myanmar =

dissidents living illegally in Bangkok to register with the authorities =
and be=20
sent to the Maneeloy centre pending resettlement abroad.=20
<P>More than 200 of them have registered. =
</P></FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>

------=_NextPart_000_001B_01BF3151.FAA20F60--