BurmaNet News: January 11, 2001

[strider@xxxxxxxxxxx]

______________ THE BURMANET NEWS ______________
  An on-line newspaper covering Burma 
 January 11, 2001 Issue # 1708
______________ www.burmanet.org _______________

NOTED IN PASSING:
 ``We are very glad [but]...Both sides have to be careful not to 
irritate the process.'' 

U Lwin, a member of the NLD¡¯s executive committee on talks with the 
regime.  See Reuters: Suu Kyi party hails govt talks, asks for patience

INSIDE BURMA _______
*Reuters: Suu Kyi party hails govt talks, asks for patience
*BBC: What's behind the Burmese talks?

REGIONAL/INTERNATIONAL _______
*AP: Thailand to hand over drug trafficker to the U.S. in 60 days 
*AFP: Vietnam Declines Comment on Burma's Junta, Opposition Leader's 
Meeting
*AFP: Myanmar government-in-exile welcomes news of landmark talks
*Times of India: Historic Myanmar talks lauded by all
*Bangkok Post: Scepticism Tempers Initial Hopes

OPINION/EDITORIALS_______
*Los Angeles Times: Myanmar Is an Easy Case to Make for Sanctions 

OTHER______
*PD Burma: Calendar of events with regard to Burma



__________________ INSIDE BURMA ____________________



Reuters: Suu Kyi party hails govt talks, asks for patience

By Aung Hla Tun 

 YANGON, Jan 10 (Reuters) - Myanmar's National League for Democracy 
(NLD) opposition confirmed on Wednesday it had been in secret talks with 
the military government and said the dialogue appeared already to have 
achieved some progress. 

 NLD central executive member U Lwin said the direct talks between NLD 
leader Aung San Suu Kyi and the ruling generals would require patience 
on both sides so that the momentum of the meetings should not be 
interrupted
 . 
 ``We are very glad,'' he told Reuters. ``The meeting is what we have 
been working for. Since (news of) it has appeared, the responsibility 
has become greater on both sides not to interrupt the momentum of the 
process.''
 
 ``Both sides have to be careful not to irritate the process.'' 

 NLD members were told of the dialogue in December: ``The meeting seemed 
to have achieved some progress then,'' he said.
 
 He gave no details. 

 The United Nations announced on Tuesday Nobel Peace Prize winner Suu 
Kyi and the Yangon government had had initial direct talks and were 
expected to open more substantive discussions soon. 

 The meetings started in October and so far had involved Suu Kyi's 
talking to Lieutenant-General Khin Nyunt, a top member of the ruling 
State Peace and Development Council, officials said. 

 The talks have been welcomed on all sides and raised hopes that Myanmar 
may finally move towards democracy after years of political stand-off 
between the NLD and the military and international isolation for the 
Yangon regime.
 
 The NLD won Myanmar's last general election in 1990 by a landslide but 
has never been allowed to govern. Instead, Suu Kyi and NLD members have 
been harassed and imprisoned. 

 ``HISTORIC BREAKTHROUGH'' 

 The All Burma Students' Democratic Front (ABSDF), exiled opponents of 
the Myanmar military, hailed the talks, calling them a ``truly historic 
breakthrough after 12 years of struggle.'' 

 ``We hope this dialogue will begin to overcome the major problems of 
civil war and bring about democratisation. This will start the process 
of healing and reconciliation.''
 
 ``This is the most positive sign we've seen since the general election 
held in 1990,'' the ABSDF said in a statement. 

 The foreign ministry of neighbouring Thailand, with whom Myanmar has 
often had frosty relations in recent years, said it was delighted by 
news of the talks. 

 ``Thailand is pleased to learn of the positive development in Myanmar, 
which will lead to a possible reconciliation. It is the hope and desire 
of Thailand and the world community to see the parties concerned 
continue their efforts,'' Foreign Ministry spokesman Rathakit Manathat 
told Reuters. 

 The head of a major diplomatic mission in Yangon from a member of the 
Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) called the talks a ``big 
breakthrough.'' 

 ``It is a big breakthrough in Myanmar's politics,'' he told Reuters. 
``I am very optimistic about the process. It is a good sign, not only 
for Myanmar but for the whole of ASEAN.''
 
 Special praise was reserved for U.N. special envoy to Myanmar Razali 
Ismail, who has been credited with organising the talks and ended a 
five-day visit to Myanmar on Tuesday. 

 ``We commend the relentless efforts of the United Nations special envoy 
and the U.N. secretary-general and hope the two will pursue the matter 
further,'' Thai foreign ministry spokesman Rathakit said. 

 The talks have surprised many observers, particularly in light of a 
crackdown on the NLD last year. 

 Suu Kyi has been under de facto house arrest since September and 
Razali's meetings with her were her first contact with an outside 
visitor in nearly three months. 

 But U Lwin said hostilities between the two sides in Myanmar had calmed 
in recent weeks and noted that government-run papers had recently 
stopped attacking the NLD, once a daily ritual. 

 ``We have noticed the government papers have stopped carrying 
provocative articles and cartoons and therefore we decided not to do 
anything that will be provocative.'' 


____________________________________________________



BBC: What's behind the Burmese talks?

Jan. 11, 2001

By regional analyst Larry Jagan 

The international community has cautiously welcomed the news that 
Burma's opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi has met the country's 
military leaders. 

This was the first such face-to-face meeting for more than six years and 
therefore must be significant. 


At least the two sides appear to be talking to each other - that's 
something that hasn't happened since before Aung San Suu Kyi's release 
from house arrest in mid-1995. 

But many people of course remain sceptical that a real dialogue has 
actually begun. 

Burma's military rulers have in the past tried to exploit developments 
for their own purposes. 

At present it is certainly in their interests to show they are being 
more conciliatory towards the opposition leader. 

Sanctions 

Burma's military rulers are worried about the potential impact of the 
International Labour Organisation's decision late last year to urge 
their members to step up pressure on Rangoon to end forced labour and 
improve its human rights record. 



They fear that many countries might consider imposing economic sanctions 
against Burma. 

At the same time it's quite clear that the other South East Asia leaders 
have been telling the Burmese Government privately that they should be 
more conciliatory towards Aung San Suu Kyi. 

Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, a long-time supporter of 
Burma, has led the way in this. 

The UN envoy Razali Ismail said Mr Mahathir's visit to Burma last week 
had been important in helping break the country's political deadlock. 

It is probably no coincidence that immediately on his return from 
Rangoon, Mr Mahathir announced plans to bring in workers from Burma for 
the construction, manufacturing and plantation industries. 

This will earn much needed foreign currency for Burma. 

Family visit 

Sources in the opposition National League for Democracy say their 
position has always been clear; Aung San Suu Kyi and the NLD have 
consistently appealed to the generals to enter a dialogue. 


The problem has always been the military's reluctance to do so. But it 
does appear that Aung San Suu Kyi has been more conciliatory towards the 
military recently. 

This certainly seems to have been the case during the recent visit of 
her son Kim, his partner and her grandson, when Aung San Suu Kyi allowed 
the military to make the travel arrangements. 

Some Rangoon residents are now speculating Aung San Suu Kyi has been 
mellowed by the time she spent with her grandson in December. 

Asean 

But the major problem for Aung San Suu Kyi now is where can this 
dialogue process go. 


Only in December, at the EU-Asean meeting in Laos, the Burmese foreign 
minister said the government was happy to talk to Aung San Suu Kyi 
provided she admitted she was wrong. 

While talks may be under way there is no evidence Burma's military 
rulers are considering giving up power or even sharing it. 

They have increased the strength of the army and are busy building an 
organisational structure to support them. 

The United Solidarity Development Association or USDA - the government's 
so-called grassroots civilian organisation - is growing and boasts more 
than 10 million members. 

The military is also building hospitals and schools for its own use, 
opening medical colleges and technical institutes. 

But the army knows there are still major issues it hasn't been able to 
tackle such as the country's massive Aids epidemic, the crisis in 
education with most universities still effectively closed, and a rapidly 
deteriorating economy. 

The military rulers may feel these are issues which they can discuss 
with Aung San Suu Kyi and the NLD without compromising their hold on 
power. 

China 

The UN envoy Mr Razali seems to have finally helped start a dialogue of 
sorts between the two sides. 

Although there are few details of what he discussed with both parties, 
he says he's keen to find ways of strengthening the process. 

He says he's also prepared to travel anywhere in the region if it will 
help maintain the momentum. UN sources say he's planning to visit China 
shortly. 

Beijing has been one of Burma's most ardent supporters since the 
military coup in 1988 brought the current crop of generals to power. 

While it's obviously good the generals and Aung San Suu Kyi are talking, 
the international community will also expect early signs of concrete 
results. 

Releasing the opposition leader from virtual house arrest and freeing 
other NLD leaders who are currently detained would seem like a good 
place to start. 






____________________________________________________








___________________ REGIONAL/INTERNATIONAL___________________
				


AP: Thailand to hand over drug trafficker to the U.S. in 60 days 

Jan. 11, 2001

BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) _ Thai police will hand over in 60 days a 
suspected Golden Triangle drug dealer to the United States, which had 
set a dlrs 2 million reward for his capture, a Thai news agency said 
Thursday. 

 Yang Wan-Hsuan, also known as Lao Tai, was arrested on a U.S. request 
on Tuesday night in Chiang Rai, 680 kilometers (422 miles) north of 
Bangkok. The United States says he was the accountant for what used to 
be the world's largest heroin smuggling syndicate, the Shan United Army. 


 Narcotics Suppression Bureau commissioner Lt. Gen. Priawpan Damapong 
said local investigations into Yang's activities are expected to be 
complete in 60 days, the state-run Thai News Agency reported.
 
 Yang will be extradited to the United States after that, he was quoted 
as saying. 
 Yang was wanted in Thailand on suspicion of smuggling heroin and 
methamphetamines, and for illegal entry into the country. 

 ``All we know about him now is that he's still quite influential in the 
north among both heroin and amphetamine networks,'' the Thai News Agency 
quoted Priawpan as saying. 
 Yang was indicted in 1994 in a New York federal court for attempted 
conspiracy to import heroin into the United States and distribution of 
heroin. 

 Yang's arrest was part of an ongoing joint Thai-U.S. operation launched 
in 1994 that targeted top members of the Shan United Army, formerly 
headed by Khun Sa, also known as Chang Chi-fu. 

 According to the U.S. State Department, Yang used to be Khun Sa's 
confidential secretary and worked as the Shan United Army's accountant. 

 Khun Sa was once the biggest heroin trafficker in the Golden Triangle, 
the opium and heroin-producing region where the borders of Thailand, 
Laos and Myanmar meet. More than a dozen top members of his ring have 
been arrested, and many extradited to stand trial in the United States. 

 Khun Sa remains at large in Myanmar, also known as Burma. The country 
is the world's second largest producer of heroin after Afghanistan.
 

____________________________________________________


AFP: Vietnam Declines Comment on Burma's Junta, Opposition Leader's 
Meeting

HANOI, Jan 10 (AFP) - Vietnam declined to comment Wednesday on news the 
military junta in Yangon was engaged in talks with opposition leader 
Aung San Suu Kyi, sticking to its longstanding line that outside 
countries should not interfere in Myanmar. "We do not make any 
commentaries on the domestic affairs of other countries," said a terse 
one-line statement from foreign ministry spokeswoman Phan Thuy Thanh. As 
current holder of the rotating presidency of the Association of 
Southeast Asian Nations, Hanoi has made every effort to prevent the 
10-member grouping from heeding mounting international pressure to 
intervene. On the eve of a breakthrough ministerial meeting with the 
European Union in Laos last month, at which ASEAN finally broke its 
silence on Myanmar and issued a joint statement calling for an "early 
dialogue" between the junta and the opposition, Hanoi insisted it would 
brook no discussion of the issue. 

Myanmar's political situation was "its internal affair and will not 
figure on the agenda of the Vientiane meeting," a foreign ministry 
statement said, even though Foreign Minister Nguyen Dy Nien signed up to 
the joint statement just four days later. Itself a regular butt of 
Western human rights criticism, Vietnam routinely insists on the 
principle of non-interference in other countries' internal affairs and 
also roundly criticised Western intervention in the former Yugoslavia. 



___________________________________________________


AFP: Myanmar government-in-exile welcomes news of landmark talks 


BANGKOK, Jan 10 (AFP) - Myanmar's government-in-exile Wednesday welcomed 
news of landmark talks between the junta and opposition leader Aung San 
Suu Kyi which were brokered by UN envoy Razali Ismail. 

 "We welcome the secret talks between Aung San Suu Kyi and Khin Nyunt, 
it's a positive move," said National Coalition Government of the Union 
of Burma (NCGUB) spokesman Maung Maung Aye. 

 "The NCGUB congratulates Mr. Razali's success." 
 However, he cautioned that with the opposition leader under house 
arrest and out of touch with the outside world, details of the meetings, 
which are expected to pave the way for a landmark dialogue, remain 
sketchy. 

 "It is difficult to say what has been achieved, we do not know yet what 
they have discussed." 

 "With Aung San Suu Kyi under house arrest, how can we say if it was a 
true or fair dialogue." 

 "However we expect the recent meetings helped establish better 
understanding, trust and openness between the two sides, and will 
support true dialogue to achieve national reconcialiation." 

 He echoed calls from UN chief Kofi Annan who has urged the two sides 
not to let this opportunity slip through their fingers. 

 "The NCGUB hopes that the secret meeting isn't like the talks in 1994 
when Aung San Suu Kyi and Khin Nyunt also met twice, without making any 
progress," he said, referring to the powerful chief of military 
intelligence. 

 The NCGUB is made up of MPs elected in the 1990 elections which gave a 
landslide victory to the opposition National League for Democracy. 

 When the junta refused to hand over power to the NLD they were forced 
to flee Myanmar and are now based in Thailand. 

 


___________________________________________________



Times of India: Historic Myanmar talks lauded by all 

Jan. 11, 2001

YANGON: Myanmar's military rulers and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi 
have a great responsibility to ensure the success of their 
groundbreaking reconciliation talks, a senior Suu Kyi colleague said on 
Wednesday. Myanmar dissidents, foreign governments and human rights 
groups also welcomed the news of the face-to-face talks between Suu Kyi 
and the junta leaders, which have been going on in secret since October.

The breakthrough was announced on Tuesday by the United Nations after 
its special envoy, Razali Ismail, concluded a 5-day mission to Myanmar 
where he met with government leaders and Suu Kyi.

This was Razali's third trip to the country to end Myanmar's 10-year 
political stalemate over the junta's refusal to hand power to Suu Kyi's 
National League for Democracy, which won the 1990 general elections.

Instead, the government routinely arrests and harasses NLD members. Top 
junta leaders had last met with Suu Kyi in late 1994 before she was 
released from six year of house arrest. Her movements were heavily 
restricted thereafter.

She has been forced to stay in her Yangon home since Sept. 22 when she 
tried to travel outside the city on party business. "This (meeting) is 
what we have been working for and since it has begun, the responsibility 
now is bigger on both sides," U Lwin, an executive committee member of 
Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy Party, said.

"To maintain the momentum of the process and to make it a success, both 
sides have to be careful not to do anything to derail the process of 
confidence building," he told The Associated Press. He said the NLD has 
noted that there have been no provocative articles in government 
newspapers in recent days. Therefore, "we decided not to do anything to 
irritate the authorities," he said.

U Lwin was released from restrictive custody on Dec. 1 together with 
five other NLD leaders.

On Tuesday, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in New York that Suu 
Kyi had had taken part in more than one round of talks since October 
with Lt. Gen. Khin Nyunt, Secretary One of the State Peace and 
Development Council, as the junta is known.

"It's a historic breakthrough," Sonny Mahinder of the Thailand-based 
dissident group, the All Burma Students' Democratic Front, told the AP 
in Bangkok.

Chaiyachoke Chulasirwongs, an expert on Myanmar at Bangkok's 
Chulalongkorn University, said the fact that the U.N. disclosed the 
secret meetings indicates that the talks "must have been going quite 
well."

He told the AP in Bangkok that the prospect of more foreign aid if it 
starts a dialogue with Suu Kyi - a condition sought by key donors such 
as Japan - would have been a likely motive of the generals.

"The deadlock has been going on for so long, neither side benefits from 
it continuing. Perhaps they realize the need to find common ground for 
the sake of the development of the country," he said.

The news was also hailed by foreign governments. Thai Foreign Ministry 
spokesman Don Pramudwinai said his government welcomed any moves toward 
national reconciliation in its neighboring country.

But the United States urged caution. Secretary of State Madeleine 
Albright said in Washington that Suu Kyi must be respected by the regime 
as a political leader not a "little sister" under their guard.

The talks were not reported in Myanmar's government controlled press. 
When told about the talks, people on the streets reacted with 
expressions of hope.

"I am very glad a meeting had taken place ... but I would rather wait 
for the results of the meeting. A dialogue is the first step... but the 
outcome is more important" Myint Maung, a 45-year old history tutor, 
said.

Talks a positive step: Singapore

Singapore on Wednesday welcomed the "positive development" in Myanmar 
where the military junta had opened dialogue with opposition leader Aung 
San Suu Kyi. 

"We welcome this positive development," a foreign affairs spokesman said 
in a brief statement. "It shows the importance of patient and quiet 
diplomacy." Singapore has been a staunch defender of non-interference in 
Myanmar, despite international pressure to use its influence to bring 
about reconciliation.

Last November, Singapore unsuccessfully tried to raise support to block 
the International Labour Organisation from recommending sanctions 
against Yangon over the issue of forced labour. Singapore Prime Minister 
Goh Chok Tong also threatened to call off last month's talks between the 
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the European Union 
amid reports some European ministers would not attend because of 
Myanmar's presence. 

"Myanmar is a member of ASEAN and we would meet the EU together as an 
ASEAN group," said Goh. "If EU wants to exclude Myanmar and the dialogue 
is going to be called off, then let it be called off because we can't 
allow an external organisation to dictate who should be in ASEAN when we 
have such a dialogue." ASEAN's policy of consensus and non-intervention 
has largely shielded Myanmar, which joined in 1997, from open criticism. 
(AP/AFP)


___________________________________________________



Bangkok Post: Scepticism Tempers Initial Hopes

 Thursday, January 11, 2001

Analysis / Junta-suu Kyi Talks



It is too early yet to be talking breakthrough, but the fact that the 
junta is even talking to Aung San Suu Kyi is encouraging. They have 
spoken before but nothing concrete has come of the discussions.

CHRIS JOHNSON

Burma's military rulers and its pro-democracy opposition have raised 
hopes in some quarters by holding secret talks but most diplomats, 
analysts and exiles doubt much will change soon.

More than 10 years of brutal suppression of dissent in Burma has left 
many inside and outside the impoverished country deeply suspicious of 
the government and its motives.

Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for 
Democracy have adopted an unwavering position that nothing less than 
full democracy is good enough for Burma. All sides welcomed the news of 
the talks. 
The All Burma Students' Democratic Front, exiled opponents of the Burma 
military, called them a "truly historic breakthrough" after 12years of 
struggle.

"We hope this dialogue will begin to overcome the major problems of 
civil war and bring about democratisation. This will start the process 
of healing and reconciliation," it said in a statement.

But few people expected any early breakthrough.

UN special envoy Razali Ismail had said in a statement after a trip to 
Burma this week that he was optimistic about prospects for dialogue 
between Mrs Suu Kyi and the military.

But Tuesday's announcement by a UN spokesman that the two sides had held 
initial direct talks and were expected to hold more substantive 
discussions soon was greeted with widespread surprise and some 
skepticism. 
Mrs Suu Kyi and her party won the last general election in 1990 by a 
landslide but has never been allowed to govern. They have stuck to their 
nothing-but-democracy principle for years despite harassment and 
imprisonment by the ruling generals.


The military government, in power for most of the last four decades, has 
never shown any sign of relinquishing control and political analysts 
suggest they would be removed quickly if their own people could decide 
their fate.

US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright summed up the attitude of 
Western governments.

"Obviously we will have to see where it leads and whether it is a 
genuine dialogue, rather than the kinds of patronising and cruel 
conversations that were evident when I was there," Ms Albright said, 
referring to a trip she made to meet Mrs Suu Kyi in Rangoon in 1995, 
when she was US ambassador to the United Nations.

Ms Albright said the level of the dialogue was important, and it had to 
be one where Mrs Suu Kyi was taken seriously.

US President Bill Clinton's administration has long argued for a 
dialogue between Burma's government and Mrs Suu Kyi.

But, until this week, there had been no progress and, in fact, 
intimidation of the National League for Democracy was stepped last year. 

After several attempts to leave Rangoon in protest at restrictions on 
her movements, the authorities have forced Mrs Suu Kyi to stay inside 
her Rangoon home for the last three months.

Ms Albright said Mrs Suu Kyi should be "respected as a political leader 
and not, as was framed to me, as a 'little sister' that they had to take 
care of by keeping her in her house".

Mr Razali of the UN was the first foreign diplomat to see her since she 
was put under house arrest in September.

Ishtiaq Hossain, a senior lecturer in political science at the National 
University of Singapore, said Burma come under huge pressure in recent 
months from its neighbours to show some progress towards dialogue with 
Mrs Suu Kyi.

The Association of South East Asian Nations, which admitted Burma as a 
member in 1997 despite protests from pro-democracy groups, has been 
embarrassed by the political stand-off in Rangoon and particularly the 
treatment of Mrs Suu Kyi.

Mr Razal' s trip coincided with a visit by Malaysian 'Prime Minister 
Mahathir Mohamad to Burma and diplomats say Malaysia has been trying to 
persuade Rangoon to show that Asean's policy of "constructive 
engagement" with the military regime has worked.

Mr Ishtiaq said Mr Razali's role appeared to have been crucial-in the 
progress towards talks.

"I am quite sure Razali has played a mitigating role, managing to 
persuade the Myanmar [Burmese] government the talk to Suu Kyi and to 
persuade Suu Kyi that the military government is not going to go away," 
he said. 

The All Burma Students' Democratic Front was upbeat. "We're very 
optimistic. It has been a long conflict. This is the most positive sign 
we've seen since the general election held in 1990," it said. 

But whether the dialogue ushers in democracy is a different matter. 

Mrs Suu Kyi and the National League for Democracy appear to be playing a 
long end-game, relying on an implacable, principled commitment to 
democracy to ensure their ultimate goal is met. Any compromise might 
weaken their position and diminish the party in the eyes of supporters. 

The leaders of the military government have little to gain from 
discussion with Mrs Suu Kyi, analysts say.

"The bottom line is that the military just want to stay in power. They 
won't give that up," said Bertil Lintner, a veteran regional analyst and 
author of honks on Burma.-Reuters


______________OPINION/EDITORIALS_________________



Los Angeles Times: Myanmar Is an Easy Case to Make for Sanctions 



January 11, 2001, Thursday, Home Edition 



BYLINE: ROBERT L. BOROSAGE, Robert L. Borosage is a founder of the 
Campaign for America's, Future and co-editor of the forthcoming book, 
"The Next Agenda" (Westview, Press)  


The brutal military clique that runs Burma--now called Myanmar--leads 
the global race to the bottom. Workers have no right to form a union, 
and independent labor activity is ruthlessly suppressed. In February, 
the military shelled a village that dared host a trade union event on 
human rights. Workers making clothes for U.S. companies are paid as 
little as 8 cents an hour. 

Myanmar is infamous for its systematic use of forced labor. Each day, 
men, women and children are rounded up at the point of a bayonet, 
forcibly held in camps and put to work on road and other construction 
and commercial projects, made to carry military supplies, or even to 
serve as human land mine detonators in combat zones. 

Now Myanmar's indefensible practices pose a test to the Clinton 
administration and the industrial world. For the first time in its 
history, the International Labor Organization, or ILO, has called on 
member governments to "review their relations with Myanmar" and to act 
"to ensure that such relations do not perpetuate the system of forced or 
compulsory labor in that country." The ILO is urging members to isolate 
Myanmar, after independent investigations have confirmed what the 
dictatorship denies: "widespread and systematic" use of forced labor. 

The ILO's action calls the bluff of the United States, its European 
allies and the minstrel chorus that celebrates corporate globalization. 
For years, they have fended off efforts to enforce basic worker rights 
in trade accords, in World Bank and International Monetary Fund policies 
and at the World Trade Organization. As protests grew--50,000 in Seattle 
against the WTO, 80,000 in Nice against the European Union--the 
defenders looked for cover. The WTO isn't the proper forum, they argued, 
because the ILO is charged with concern for labor rights. Skeptics noted 
that the ILO was the perfect dodge: all bark and no bite, with a 
tripartite membership of business, labor and government that virtually 
ensured paralysis. The ILO has no power to enforce sanctions on its own. 
But now the ILO has called on its members to sanction a country for 
wanton violation of basic worker rights. 

The U.S. has led the global denunciation of the Myanmar junta's 
human-rights practices. In May 1997, President Clinton barred all new 
investment in Myanmar. He recently rewarded the Medal of Freedom to Aung 
San Suu Kyi, the democratically elected leader of Myanmar whom the 
military deposed a decade ago and now has under virtual house arrest. 

But the ILO declaration calls on nations to review any practice that 
might support the dictatorship. The AFL-CIO, human rights organizations, 
as well as conservative Republican Sen. Jesse Helms of North Caroline 
and liberal Democrat Tom Harkin of Iowa, among others, have called on 
the president to ban immediately all imports from Myanmar. 

The U.S. is one of Myanmar's largest--and its fastest-growing--consumer 
markets. U.S. apparel companies increased their imports from there by a 
staggering 130% in the first nine months of 2000. Members of the junta 
jointly own many of the factories exporting to the U.S., so U.S. 
consumers are unwittingly supporting one of the most repressive 
dictatorships in the world. Sweatshop investigator Charles Kernaghan 
reports in a study that leading U.S. retailers, including Kenneth Cole, 
Williams Sonoma, Dress Barn and others, are importing from Myanmar 
sweatshops. Last year, the U.S. military imported more than $ 138,290 in 
clothing made there. A ban on U.S. apparel imports would cut off about 
one-fourth of the regime's foreign exchange earnings. 

Now in his final days in office, Clinton is being pressed to put muscle 
behind his own words and support the ILO by suspending all imports from 
Myanmar. Led by Tom Niles, president of the U.S. Council for 
International Business, the business lobby has fought against any 
action, demanding impossible preconditions, including a preposterous 
"cost-benefit test" for each sanction considered (presumably balancing 
the cost of workers' lives against the benefit of cheaper T-shirts). 

The most recent annual report of Human Rights Watch concluded that the 
"current system to regulate global commerce leaves little or no room for 
human rights and other social values," even as the global economy is 
"generating human rights problems of global dimension." Myanmar now 
offers what should be a rather easy test case. 

If the president suspends imports to Myanmar--and his successor upholds 
the suspension--then the ILO will have succeeded in triggering 
significant sanctions against a regime for violations of core worker 
rights. If the president ducks, the global community will have 
demonstrated that there is no constraint, no global standard of basic 
rights that will be enforced on corporate behavior. If forced labor is 
not beyond the pale, then what is? 



______________________OTHER______________________



PD Burma: Calendar of events with regard to Burma

Jan. 11, 2001

Published by PD Burma. 

    
  February 5-6th  : Meeting of Solidarity Groups, Brussels  
 

¨Z February 6th : James Mawdsley to address the European Parliament, 
Brussels 
 

¨Z February 15-16th  : Burma Donor Meeting, Sweden  
 

¨Z  March/April  : Teachers/ Students Union Conferences 
 

¨Z April  : EU Common Position Review 
 

¨Z March/April : UN Human Rights Commission, Geneva 
 

¨Z May 13-20th : UN LDC III, UN conference on the LDC-countries, 
Brussels 
 

¨Z May 27th  : 11th Anniversary of the 1990 elected.  
 

¨Z May  : ARF Senior Official Meeting, Hanoi  
 

¨Z June 19th  : Aung San Suu Kyi birthday party and Burmese Women's Day 
 

¨Z July  : Belgium takes over EU Presidency 
 

¨Z July  : 8th RFA Ministerial Meeting, Hanoi  
 

¨Z July  : 34th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting and Post-Ministerial 
Conference  
 

¨Z July  : ASEAN Summit

 

¨Z Aug. 31st- Sep.7th  : World Conference against Racism and Racial 
Discrimination, Xenophobia and related intolerance, South Africa 
 

¨Z December 1st  : Worlds Aids Day

 

¨Z December 10th  : 10th Year Anniversary of the Nobel Peace Prize for 
Aung San Suu Kyi.



________________


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burmanet-subscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

To subscribe to The BurmaNet News in Burmese, send an email to:

burmanetburmese-subscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx


You can also contact BurmaNet by phone or fax:

Voice mail or fax (US) +1(202) 318-1261
You will be prompted to press 1 for a voice message or 2 to send a fax.  
If you do neither, a fax tone will begin automatically.

Fax (Japan) +81 (3) 4512-8143


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Burma News Summaries available by email or the web

There are three Burma news digest services available via either email or 
the web.

Burma News Update
Frequency: Biweekly
Availability: By fax or the web.
Viewable online at http://www.soros.org/burma/burmanewsupdate/index.html
Cost: Free
Published by: Open Society Institute, Burma Project

The Burma Courier 
Frequency: Weekly 
Availability: E-mail, fax or post.  To subscribe or unsubscribe by email 
celsus@xxxxxxxxxxx
Viewable on line at: http://www.egroups.com/group/BurmaCourier
Cost: Free
Note: News sources are cited at the beginning of an article. 
Interpretive comments and background
details are often added.

Burma Today
Frequency: Weekly
Availability: E-mail
Viewable online at http://www.worldviewrights.org/pdburma/today.html
To subscribe, write to pdburma@xxxxxxxxx
Cost: Free
Published by: PD Burma (The International Network of Political Leaders 
Promoting Democracy in Burma)




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