BurmaNet News: January 17, 2001

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______________ THE BURMANET NEWS ______________
        An on-line newspaper covering Burma 
         January 17, 2001   Issue # 1713
______________ www.burmanet.org _______________

NOTED IN PASSING:
And although only a few  days remain in this administration, please rest 
assured we have not spoken  our last word on Burma."
Madeleine Albright, See Voice of America Burmese Service: Albright¨C¡®we 
have not spoken our last word on Burma.¡±


INSIDE BURMA _______
*Myanmar Times: ILO ¡®study group¡¯ formed
*The Nation: Khun Sa Aide Not One of Us, Says Shan Rebel Leader
*Shan Herald Agency for News: Ceasefire leader: General keeps General 
happy
*Shan Herald Agency for News: Tens of Thousands of Wa waiting to be 
relocated--Chinese among Wa resettlers

REGIONAL/INTERNATIONAL _______
*Voice of America Burmese Service: Albright¨C¡®we have not spoken our 
last word on Burma.¡±
*Bangkok Post: Security Forces to Keep Close Eye on Tak Medical Clinic 
*Bangkok Post: Six Burmese Arrested, 98, 000 Pills Seized

OPINION/EDITORIALS_______
*The Hindu (New Delhi): Engaging a democracy 'icon'

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



__________________ INSIDE BURMA ____________________



Myanmar Times: ILO ¡®study group¡¯ formed

Issue of January 8-14, 2001

A NETWORK of local businessmen have joined forces to form the ILO Study 
Group, with the goal of countering international response to the 
International Labour Organisation¡¯s decision, late last year, to take 
measures against Myanmar. The group¡¯s principal aim will be to monitor 
any potentially negative impact arising from the decision, and develop 
strategies to protect their, and the nation¡¯s, economic interests. The 
group will liaise with the Government in delivering its findings. 

¡°One response we might recommend the government to take will be to 
formulate action plans such as submitting petitions to the ILO signed by 
local workers angry at the sanctions,¡± one member of the newly-formed 
group told Myanmar Times. ¡°If enough workers, say, 100,000 sign the 
petition, perhaps the sanctions will be reviewed by the ILO.¡± U Zaw Min 
Win, general secretary of the Union of Myanmar Chambers of Commerce and 
Industry (UMFCCI) - a body with several members in the new business 
group ¨C said: ¡°The 10-member business group will report any findings 
it makes to the Ministry of Commerce. ¡°I don¡¯t think it would be 
difficult to get the required signatures,¡± he said. ¡°Our workers want 
to be protected, as well as our employers, from the effects of the 
sanctions.¡± 






___________________________________________________



The Nation: Khun Sa Aide Not One of Us, Says Shan Rebel Leader

BY SA-NGUAN KHUMRUNGROJ 


Wednesday, January 17, 2001



THE head of a rebel army fighting the military government of Burma for 
autonomy has disputed claims made by the Thai police that a former aide 
to Burmese opium warlord Khun Sa was their leader. 

Shan State Army's leader, Col Yawd Serk, in a statement sent to The 
Nation yesterday, said Yang Wan-Hsuan, also known as Lao Tai, was not a 
member of his movement. Yawd Serk said Yang had surrendered to the 
military government of Rangoon along with Khun Sa in 1995 in return for 
amnesty.  

Yang was arrested by Thai police last week. Both Yang and Khun Sa are 
wanted by the United States government on charges of drug trafficking. 
Thai authorities have said Yang would be extradited to the US, where he 
has been indicted on charges of trafficking heroin, by the end of 
February.  

Yawd Serk also claimed that Burma's State Peace and Development Council 
(SPDC), the junta's highest decision-making body, has been involved in 
drug trafficking. 

He said the recently seized heroin and methamphetamine near the Surin 
Islands "gives clear evidence that the SPDC was involved in this drug 
case because the drugs had passed through Rangoon, the capital of Burma. 
 
"These drug gangs and drug traffickers are strong and powerful and they 
have good contacts in every country. Therefore, if the international 
community cannot cooperate to bring all these foreign drug traffickers 
to trail, there is little hope to eradicate drugs," Yawd Serk said in 
the statement. 

He went on to say that the amount of heroin and amphetamines being 
produced has risen even after Khun Sa's surrender. "In Shan State and 
Kachin State, the SPDC has been commanding the ethnic people in the area 
to cultivate opium plantations repeatedly," he said. 

"The Burmese military has been using narcotic drugs as a weapon of 
ethnic cleansing, systematically, against the people in Shan State since 
the state's power was usurped by General Ne Win in 1962. As part of the 
conspiracy¨¤by the Burmese military, drug laboratories have been 
permitted, and more heroin and amphetamines have been produced by drug 
traffickers under SPDC security," he said. 

Yawd Serk said he is willing to work with the international community to 
curb the flow of drugs, but so far has largely been ignored. 


___________________________________________________


Shan Herald Agency for News: Ceasefire leader: General keeps General 
happy

17 January 2001



A Shan leader whose group enjoys a ceasefire agreement with Rangoon told 
 S.H.A.N. recently through a telephone interview that Gen. Maung Aye, 
slated  to become the next chairman of the ruling military council, 
appeared to be  satisfied with the power-sharing arrangements made by 
Gen. Khin Nyunt. 

The Shan leader, who was not anxious to be named, conceding there were  
differences between Khin Nyunt, the powerful military intelligence chief 
 and Secretary-1 of the State Peace and Development Council, and the 
Maung  Aye-Tin Oo clique, said: "Both nevertheless know they have to 
stand  together in order to survive, and  Gen. Khin Nyunt has been smart 
enough to  keep his rivals sweet by his seemly magnanimity."

Gen. Maung Aye, designated heir-apparent to Senior Gen. Than Shwe, the  
current office holder, had often made it quite clear he did not cherish 
the  idea of becoming a mere "figurehead."

"According to inside sources I know, the deal made between the two is 
that  Maung Aye will be handling the military and economic affairs while 
Khin  Nyunt manages the political affairs", said the Shan commander. 
"So I don't think there'll be any falling-out with each other as long as 
 the deal is in place".

Gen. Khin Nyunt himself had lately disclaimed rumors of split between 
the  two factions.

"However, it may be a different picture, once foreign pressure is 
lifted." 







____________________________________________________



Shan Herald Agency for News: Tens of Thousands of Wa waiting to be 
relocated--Chinese among Wa resettlers

Jan. 17, 2001



Travelers who came through Panghsang, the Wa capital near Chinese border 
 two weeks ago, said they saw tens of thousands of people outside the 
town  in temporary shelters waiting to be transported to the Thai border 
in  Mongton Township.

"The townspeople told us these people were forced out from mountain  
villages," one said. "Not all of them were Wa. We saw many Lahus, 
Chinese  and even some Shans among them."


Another source from Mongton, interviewed by S.H.A.N. this morning about  
Chinese citizens mingling with Wa resettlers, said: "Not all of them are 
 Hans (ethnic Chinese) although many of them are. Like in Thailand, Laos 
and  else where, China also has many hilltribes who, finding a Chinese 
yuan has  more value in Burma than in China (1 yuan is roughly 50 kyats) 
and that law  is laxer and easier on the hilltribes, have been moving 
into the Wa region.  Many Chinese also come because in Burma there is no 
restrictions on the  number of children you can have as in China."

Hawk, S.H.A.N. reporter, reported from Fang of finding several Wa and  
Chinese holding Thai identity cards. "In the village of Ban Nawngphai 
(87  households) in Mornpin Tract alone, we found at least 15 Wa and 
Chinese,  who by marrying local Lahu women, have automatically become 
Thai citizens,  because Thai laws favor hilltribes over Shans, their own 
cousins." 
S.H.A.N. source in Mongton added: "You can therefore expect more and 
more  Chinese and Chinese hilltribes coming along with the Wa in the 
coming years." 




____________________________________________________



Bangkok Post: Security Forces to Keep Close Eye on Tak Medical Clinic 

Jan. 17, 2001

Supamart Kasem 

Local officials will look into activities of an NGO-run clinic in Mae 
Sot amid reports illegal migrants have set up shelters near the 
premises. 
Col Chainarong Thanaroon, chief of the Fourth Infantry Regiment Task 
Force, has asked authorities to monitor Cynthia Clinic, which treats 
locals and Burmese.


The centre, run by Dr Cynthia Maung with foreign volunteers, was set up 
without Medical Council permission. Burmese authorities had asked Dr 
Cynthia to move the clinic to Myawaddy, offering to pay for medical 
supplies and find a site, sources said. A source close to Dr Cynthia 
said the founder had yet to decide on the proposal but felt the move 
might be risky.

Dr Cynthia confirmed she had been approached by Burmese authorities but 
refused to go into detail.

Sources said Dr Cynthia and her team opened the clinic in 1989 in a 
rented house near the Thai-Burmese border. They have worked closely with 
non-governmental organisations and local health agencies to give free 
health care services to border villagers and underprivileged people. 

Dr Cynthia later expanded the clinic by having more rooms built on 
rented land nearby, the sources said





___________________ REGIONAL/INTERNATIONAL___________________
				


Voice of America Burmese Service: Albright¨C¡®we have not spoken our 
last word on Burma.¡±

VOA Report Broadcast on January 16 (As Transcribed from Voa Burmese 
Website)

With a few days to go before the end of the Clinton Administration,  
Secretary of State Madeleine Albright has spoken about Burma.  Her 
comment  came as she announced new U.S. government funding for 
organizations  fighting child labor and sweatshops.

"As anyone who has heard me knows, I have been particularly appalled by 
the  forced labor situation in Burma which the I-L-O has condemned and 
which is  unlikely to improve as long as democracy is denied. And 
although only a few  days remain in this administration, please rest 
assured we have not spoken  our last word on Burma."

She did not elaborate.  However, U.S. officials say a statement will be  
issued soon expressing Clinton administration hopes for the political  
dialogue in Rangoon.

Officials say the statement will emphasize Washington's concern that  
Burma's military not use the dialogue process as a political stall  
tactic.  However, no change in U.S. policy toward Burma will be 
announced now. 

One dozen U.S. senators signed a letter to the President asking him to 
ban  all textile and apparel imports from Burma.

U.S. officials say that is not likely to happen given the delicate 
nature  of the political dialogue in Rangoon.

The issue of textile imports made headlines in December when the U.S.  
Army/Air Force Exchange was forced to end imports of clothing from Burma 
in  response to protests from labor and human rights groups.

At the Tuesday ceremony, Secretary Albright spoke about what she feels  
should be U-S guidelines on apparel imports.

"When we buy a blouse or a shirt, we want to know that it is not 
produced  by people who are under-age, under coercion, underpaid or 
denied their  basic right to organize."

Lieutenant General Khin Nyunt Tuesday called for an end to, what he 
called,  "pressure tactics and sanctions" if they really wish to see the 
emergence  of a democratic state in Burma.

Speculation is mounting as to how the incoming Bush administration will  
handle the question of sanctions.  The U.S. Congress in 1997 approved a 
ban  on new U.S. investment in Burma and President Clinton signed the 
bill into law. 

U.S. officials say the administration is happy that a political dialogue 
 has begun and wants to see progress.  They say it is important that the 
 SPDC understand that Washington will be watching closely.  However, 
there  is absolutely no intention of making any change in U.S. policy 
now. 

The U.S.-based Free Burma Coalition says there should be no easing of 
U.S.  pressure on the SPDC.  Jeremy Woodrum of the coalition's 
Washington office 

"We don't think that the Western world or democracy should be paralyzed 
by  the fact that one dictator made an announcement that it would be 
difficult  for dialogue to move forward if there continues to be 
pressure from these  countries, especially since the SPDC has proved 
time and time again that  they cannot be trusted and that they will back 
out of the dialogue pretty  much any moment they feel like it."



___________________________________________________


Bangkok Post: Six Burmese Arrested, 98, 000 Pills Seized

Jan. 17, 2001.


Six Burmese nationals were arrested on narcotics trafficking charges on 
Monday and 40 Thais on other drugs-related charges.

City police chief Pol Lt-Gen Anant Piromkaew said the six Burmese were 
arrested at The Mall department store in Bang Khae, Lotus superstore on 
Ratchadapisek road and on Soi Ramkhamhaeng 50.

A total of 98,000 methamphetamine pills were seized, he said, adding 
that the Burmese were accused of distributing speed pills to city 
students. 
Police also raided a house in Banglampu Lang, Klongsan district, and 
arrested three people on drug charges. They found 240 speed pills and 
two sets of drug-related equipment, the commissioner said.

Officers then posed as drug dealers and waited in the house for over 
five hours. Nearly 50 people showed up apparently to buy speed pills. 

He said 37 were arrested aftertesting positive for drugs in a urinetest.



_______________OPINION/EDITORIAL_______________


The Hindu (New Delhi): Engaging a democracy 'icon'

January 17, 2001 

THE UNITED NATIONS has done well to broker a political engagement 
between Myanmar's ruling military junta and its arch adversary and a 
phenomenal proponent of democracy, Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi. However, it is 
a measure of diplomatic circumspection that the global organisation 
appears to have waited for this new reality to seem sustainable before 
announcing the evident breakthrough. Ms. Suu Kyi and the governing SPDC 
(the State Peace and Development Council) have held at least one 
meaningful meeting in recent months to begin addressing the intractable 
puzzle of how best Myanmar can be administered. The aim of ``confidence 
building'' was at the core of the in camera discussions that the two 
sides have held so far under the current initiative of the U.N. The more 
tangible objective, discernible in the latest official comments at the 
U.N. headquarters, is to facilitate a round of preliminary talks between 
the SPDC and Ms. Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) so that 
the two can try and agree to begin direct parleys on the substantive 
questions of how Myanmar should reorganise its constitutional order. It 
is obviously too early to judge how promising the U.N.'s facilitation is 
for a final political settlement of the impasse between the SPDC and the 
NLD.  

In one sense, the U.N.'s current agenda in regard to Myanmar's internal 
affairs is particularly delicate, given that there has been no 
intervention in that country by any external force within the 
conventional definitions of the world body's diplomatic business. 
However, the SPDC had consented to the appointment of a veteran 
Malaysian diplomat, Mr. Razali Ismail, as the U.N. Secretary-General, 
Mr. Kofi Annan's Special Envoy to Myanmar last April. The Yangon 
regime's action then was explainable on two counts - Myanmar's 
reasonably cordial equation with the U.N., which had been cognisant of 
that country's domestic situation all along, and possibly the SPDC's 
calculation that the democracy question could perhaps be `internalised'. 
Myanmar's military Government had by that time traversed a long way in 
gaining leverage in regional institutions such as the Association of 
South East Asian Nations. Yet, it was arguable that a U.N.- facilitated 
`internalisation' of the challenge from Ms. Suu Kyi's 
externally-applauded movement would be a bonus for the SPDC. For the 
U.N., it was simply a matter of affirming international interest in 
Myanmar's political question in the wake of a controversy over the 
so-called ``dollars for democracy'' plan.  


The message in Myanmar's contemporary history is that its military 
leadership, long used to being the `government', will not be willing to 
transfer power to the people without a grim struggle. A parallel reality 
is that Ms. Suu Kyi has somehow been unable in recent years to recapture 
her earlier mystique of a messianic leader so as to unseat the military 
dictatorship through a revolution of `people power'. This has not of 
course diminished her status as a democracy `icon', although the SPDC 
seems to have skilfully resorted to the politics of manipulation within 
a societal framework of poverty and ethnic diversity in order to stay in 
power. The SPDC's top leaders such as Gen. Than Shwe and Lt. Gen. Khin 
Nyunt are also aware of the political power of the gun barrel besides 
the potency of propaganda. The skewed but perceived meaning of Ms. Suu 
Kyi's marriage to a foreign national has remained an emotive topic in 
the political counter-attack against her by the SPDC and its earlier 
incarnation in power, the State Law and Order Restoration Committee 
(SLORC). In addition, the SPDC's hold on power is traceable to a 
tangential political discourse on the need for measured steps towards 
`full' democracy over time. Linked to the SPDC's version of a slow march 
towards democracy is its constant refrain about the need to sustain 
Myanmar's territorial integrity in the face of divisive tendencies along 
ethnic lines.    

______________________OTHER______________________


PD Burma:  Calendar of events with regard to Burma 

Jan. 17, 2001

Published by PD Burma. 

                                             
 

 

¨Z  January 29-31st      : The EU troika to visit Burma 
 

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

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

¨Z  February 15th     : Conference on Burma in Stockholm, Sweden. Oluf 
International Center               and Foundation for Human Rights 
 

¨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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