------------------------ BurmaNet ------------------------ "Appropriate Information Technologies, Practical Strategies" ---------------------------------------------------------- The BurmaNet News: May 16 1995 Issue #173 --------------------------------------------------------- BKK POST: THE RIGHT WAY TO END MONEY LAUNDERING BKK POST: 13 BURMESE HELD IN CSD RAID ON SHOP BKK POST: KAREN CAMP RAID YIELDS MORE ARMS BKK POST: THE RIGHT WAY TO END MONEY LAUNDERING TAK CLASH CAUSES 7-HOUR BLACKOUT THE NATION: SURIN HITS BACK AFTER BURMA'S ALLEGATIONS BKK POST: GOVT WILLING TO WORK WITH BURMA TO REPATRIATE KARENS BKK POST: PRESIDENT OF LAOS ENDS GOOD-WILL TRIP TO RANGOON BKK POST: 28 ILLEGAL BURMESE, KHMER WORKERS HELD BKK POST: MEMORY LAPSE LANDS SANAN IN A FLAP THE NATI0N: ARMY NETS HUGE WEAPONS HAUL AFTER RAIDING TWO KAREN CAMPS BKK POST: RANGOON TV SHOWS SLORC MEETING DKBO THE NATION: SOLDIER INJURED AFTER CLASH WITH GUERRILLAS AT BORDER BKK POST: HUNT FOR HIDDEN ARMS OF KAREN REFUGEES TO GO ON BKK POST: BANGKOK AIMS FOR PEACE IN THE REGION BKK POST: POLICE TO GET SPECIAL TRAINING TO FIGHT DRUGS BKK POST: CHIANG RAI READY FOR BORDER CLOSURE THE NATION: EX-FOREIGN MINISTER URGES KRASAE TO BE MORE ACTIVE IN HIS NEW ROLE THE NATION: BORDER RESIDENTS SHOULD NOT WORRY, INSISTS ARMY SPOKESMAN BKK POST: LAOS AND BURMA SIGN AGREEMENTS ON RANGE OF ISSUES FEER: IT'S RANGOON, NOT REBELS ------------------------------------------------------ o-------------------------------o The BurmaNet News is an | | electronic newspaper | Iti | covering Burma. 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[including back issues of the BurmaNet News as .txt files] BurmaWeb: http://www.uio.no/tormodl Burma fonts: http://www.cs.bham.ac.uk/~lka/burmese-fonts/moe.html Ethnologue Database(Myanmar): http://www-ala.doc.ic.ac.uk/~rap/Ethnologue/eth.cgi/Myanmar -------------------------------------------------------------- 13 BURMESE HELD IN CSD RAID ON SHOP 15 MAY 1995 THIRTEEN Burmese, one of them a women, were arrested in a raid b Crime Suppression Division police early yesterday morning on a lathe shop on Charan Sanitwong Road in Bang Plad District. They were charged with illegal entry. Komchai Kornchamraskul, 42, the shop on Charan Sanitwong Road in Ban Plad District. They were charged with illegal entry. Komchai Kornchamraskul, 42 the shop owner, was also arrested some 200 illegal Burmese immigrants. On Saturday, Immigration and Border Patrol Police(BPP) repa- triated some 200 illegal Burmese immigrants in a round-up cam- paign at three locations in this western town on the Burmese border. some 100 immigration and BPP officers were involved in the operation which focussed on the regular hangouts and places which provide employment for the illegal immigrations. Most of the 227 people rounded up in the campaign were chil- dren and women. They were immediately sent back across the border by Thai officials. Pol Mai Prasit Krathinthong, immigration police inspector of Tak, said the campaign would continue in a systematic manner for a period of time under a plan decide upon by the local border peace-keeping force. ((BP) BKK POST: THE RIGHT WAY TO END MONEY LAUNDERING 15 May 1995 Drug traffickers smuggle narcotics because of the huge prof- its. Thus, an obvious way to attack them is through their fat pocketbooks. This simple truth is the key to an international strategy aiming to hurt drug kingpins and halt their law-brea- king. On the surface, the strategy is simple enough: seize the illgained earnings of known drug gang leaders. but turning the goal into reality has proved difficult, to say the least. In our own country, as in many others, drug trafficking kingpins have sometimes shown that crime does pay. They have made their criminal activities profitable through a complex, shadowy pro- cess knowing in general terms as money laundering. Money laundry is a fitting term. It involves taking the "dirty" money paid by hapless drug users to their dealers and bringing it into society spanking"clean." The crumpled bills handed over by hundreds of desperate heroin addicts in Bangkok turns up in a Swiss bank account, and is used to purchase an automobile in America. The suitcase of cash paid to a marijua- na smuggler on a Canadian island reappears a few months later from a Singapore bank, and is used to pay contractors working on a hotel in Rangoon. Money laundering is an intricate, often mysterious process which exploits legal loopholes, international banking and hu- man trust - to say nothing of outright greed. In its simplest form, it is a drug dealer who walks into a bank, opens a James Bond bag filled with cash, and deposits it in his account. from here, he may write a cheque to pay for a new home or car, or he may telegraph the funds to another account in another country. The dirty money has been laundered, and reappears in the economy as clean - just like a dress or shirt laundered after a day of wear. Some 20 years of education and coopera- tion between anti-drugs officers and bankers have made this simple scenario increasingly rare, but it remains the simples example of money laundering. An international community concerned with the high-handed and dangerous marketing tactics of drug kingpins is working des- perately to cash up with sophisticated narcotics dealers. Thailand is expected to pass an anti-money laundering law shortly, probably when Parliament disposes of the no=confidence debate. The new proposed new law has won wide support from the government and Opposition, as well as Thai businessmen. Increasingly, society has been both embarrassed and outraged by the sight of drug dealers profiting from their crimes, rather than paying for them. Work to close down the money laundries will not be easy. But the effort must press forward. justice may work carefully - and thus slowly - but it must prevail. More than 80 cases brought under the 1992 law permitting seizure of drug dealers' assets remain pending. It is said criminals are encouraged at this. But when the law prevails, they will feel otherwise. The most encouraging aspect is the support of the business communitwn, capitalistic and open societies to launder their proceeds. decent societies which encourage investment are the targets of drug kingpins, both to sell their drugs and to launder their cash. It is no accident that nations such as the United States, Britain, Taiwan and Thailand are the chief targets of such criminals. Our welcome to investors must not be mistaken for weakness. Ruthless drugs marchants profit through the suffering and other exploitation of our citizens. Their use of our economic system to further their ill-gotten gains and personal lives adds great insult to the very real injury they have inflicted. Our industrious and honest workers, executives and businesses have no need of their dirty money. The government has acted wisely in moving cautiously on the anti-laundering bill. By gaining support from the private sector, it has made success of the measure more likely. It has balanced the honest citizen's need for economic privacy against society's demand to catch, stop and punish the drug trafficker. It may move us closer to the day that crime doesn't pay. (BP) NATION: KAREN CAMP RAID YIELDS MORE ARMS 15 May 1995 The Thai Army have seized a large amount of weapons during a raid on a karen refugee camp, the second discovery in four days, the Thai-Burmese border area commander said yesterdays. The weapons allegedly belonged to Karen National Union guer- rillas, Colonel Philbul Burcha said. More than 150 border patrol police and soldiers stormed the Mae Lama Luang Refugee Camp and a nearby village in Mae Hong Son province late on Saturday, and confiscated rocket launch- ers, rifles, rocket-propelled grenades, sub-machine funs, an- ti-tank rockets and more than 20,000 rounds of ammunition, he said. "We will continue to search for weapons that might be hidden in the refugee camps to demonstrate to the Burmese government that Thailand does not support anti-Rangoon guerrillas," Phibul said. Former officers of the KNU reportedly stored the arms in the two villages which lie opposite Manerplaw - one of the last two KNU strongholds which fell to Rangoon forces earlier this year, he said. That fighting sent some 10,000 Karen across the border, where they joined some 60,000 ethnic people already in Thai refugee camps. About 400 Thai border troops launched the first pre-dawn raids on Wednesday against refugee camps at Huay Ma Noke, Sho Klo, Kler Kho and Mae La in Tak province, south of Mae Hong Son, and a quantity of arms were seized. The searches came after the Burmese government and a Karen splinter group complained that Thailand was harbouring anti- Rangoon terrorists. (TN) TAK CLASH CAUSES 7-HOUR BLACKOUT 15 May 1995 A government patrol clashed with an unidentified force in Tha Song Yang district yesterday morning and the exchange of gun- fire damaged a power transmission line, causing a seven-hour blackout in the area, a military source said. The clash took place at about 10 a.m when cavalry soldiers patrolling in two jeeps between kilometre 55-56 on Mae Sot-Tha Song Yang Road were fired on by an unidentified armed force with RPG rocket launchers and rifles. The clash cite was about three kilometres from the Thai-Bur- mese border. The patrol returned fire with machine-guns and rifles. Seven armoured personnel carriers, five jeeps and a helicopter gunship immediately rushed to clash site.The unidentified force withdrew after about 15 minutes. No casualties were reported and damage was restricted to the power transmission line which caused a seven hour blackout in Tha Song Yang District. Two men were later arrested near the scene of the fighting and taken to Task Force 34 headquarters in Mae Sot for question- ing. It was not yet confirmed whether the attacking force was from Burma. (BP) SURIN HITS BACK AFTER BURMA'S ALLEGATIONS 13 May 1995 The Foreign Ministry yesterday strongly criticized as incorrect and unacceptable recent allegations by Rangoon that Thailand is harbouring anti-Burma terrorists and supporting drug traffickers. The ministry totally rejects allegations by Burma's ministry of defence which could imply that Thailand has allowed Burmese insurgents, including drug warlord Khun Sa, to hide here and to travel in and out of the country and implement antigovernment activities, Deputy Foreign Minister Surin Pitsuwan said. Thailand and Burma have been engaged in border conflicts after incursions by a Karen splinter group which attacked Karen refugee camps in Tak and Mae Hong Son provinces. Rangoon's defence ministry, in a statement issued by its embassy here, alleged that the border problems occurred because Thailand has been harbouring the terrorists. The problems that have occurred on the Thai-Myanmar [Burma] border are a consequence of Thailand having harboured for various reasons terrorists who seek to oppose Myanmar, the statement said. Surin yesterday stressed that Thailand has the absolute right according to internationally-accepted standards and international law to provide shelter for people escaping internal fighting in their homeland. With its merciful provision of shelter, Thailand should not be accused of providing shelter for antigovernment insurgents, Surin said. It is not important who the refugees are and which side the belong to antigovernment or government. If they flee the fighting into our land, we have to accept them on humanitarian grounds and on a temporary basis. When the internal situation returns to normal, they will return home on their own, Surin said. He stressed that the conflict was between Thailand and Burma and that Thailand did not want to upgrade the problem to Asean level. Asean groups Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand. The minister also referred to Burma's statements about attacks by Khun Sa, such as one launched through Mae Sai, Thailand, on the Burmese town of Tachilek on Mar 20. The statement said that when the Burmese army launched offensives against the drug traffickers, they were able to take refuge in, and bring reinforcements of manpower and materials through, Thailand. Surin said the international community had recognized Thailand's attempts to suppress drug trafficking and related activities and therefore the criticism from Rangoon was unacceptable. Referring to a recent report that Khun Sa carries a Thai identity card, Surin said if that was true, the identity card would certainly be revoked. He said without elaboration that Thai authorities are considering revoking the ID cards of certain people. (TN) PRESIDENT OF LAOS ENDS GOOD-WILL TRIP TO RANGOON 13 May 1995 Laotian President Nouhak Phoumsavanh ended a four day good-will visit to Burma yesterday during which the two countries signed a trade pact and an agreement on agricultural cooperation. Instruments of ratification of an agreement on a fixed international boundary between the two neighbours along the Maekong River, signed last year, were exchanged during the visit. Details of the trade and agriculture agreements, signed Tuesday, were not released, but state-run Radio Rangoon said at the time they were of fundamental importance for short-and long-term relations and cooperation . A joint communique released after Phoumsavanh flew back to Vientiane said his visit had provided a firmer basis for further strengthening the friendship and cooperation of the two countries, thus contributing to peace, stability and cooperation in the Southeast Asian region. It said his talks with Burmese leaders had afforded a close and cordial exchange of views on development and experiences of their respective countries as well as on current international issues. (BP) GOVT WILLING TO WORK WITH BURMA TO REPATRIATE KARENS 13 May 1995 Thailand is willing to cooperate with Burma to repatriate the 90,000 Karen refugees as soon as possible, deputy foreign minister Surin Pitsuwan said yesterday. The best solution is to send them back, but the problem is, they don't want to go. And we can't force them, said Surin. The question of the return of the refugees was raised at a meeting on Thursday attended by officials of the Foreign, Defence and Interior ministries and of the National Security Council. According to Surin, at refugees has increased by 20,000 from the 70,000 recorded on May 1. Surin said Thailand needed to hold discussions with Burma both at the local level and through the appropriate diplomatic channels in order to resolve the problem. He said Thailand needed to reassure the refugees about their safety before returning home. Commenting on allegations made by Burma's deputy military intelligence chief Colonel Kyaw Win earlier this week that Thailand cooperated with and supported anti-Rangoon groups, Surin said they were unacceptable and unfounded. However, Surin declined to respond to the allegations more aggressively, saying the Foreign Ministry has already made its point in a series of protest notes handed to the Burmese ambassador to Thailand since the beginning of the year. The ministry has summoned Ambassador U Tin Winn eight times over the past few months to discuss the 15 incidents in which armed men intruded into Thai territory. The last time, the aide memoire warned Burma of Thailand's right to self-defence against violations by Burmese troops of its territorial sovereignty. Surin defended Thailand's assistance to the refugees on humanitarian grounds. He said that no matter which faction they came from, they are disarmed. This practice is consistent with international law and does not mean that Thailand is hostile or unfriendly toward Burma, he said. He said Thailand fully cooperates with Burma and international agencies in drug suppression. It has closed some border checkpoints and revoked the Thai nationality of a number of convicted drug dealers who illegally obtained Thai identification cards. The deputy minister said he would discuss the issue with Burmese officials at a meeting on cooperation on drug suppression organised by the United Nations on Drug Cooperation Programme (UNDCP) in Beijing, China on May 26-27. Ministers from China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Burma will be present at the meeting. Meanwhile in Mae Hong Son, Defence Minister Gen Vijit Sookmark said Thailand wanted to see national reconciliation in Burma, saying it would help relieve the burden of refugees who had sought shelter in Thailand. Gen Vijit made the comment while inspecting the border. He said Burma should understand how Thailand had suffered over the refugee problem. Thailand has sheltered this burden for a long time, which has been caused by internal strife in Burma among minority groups and caused us trouble, said the defence minister. Gen Vijit said he was optimistic that border problems would gradually be improved, and he did not believe that Burmese forces would make cross-border attacks into Thai territory. He said Thailand and Burma had coordinated closely through border committees at the local and regional level. Gen Vijit ruled out any possibility of a military clash between the security forces of the two countries. In a separate interview in Tak, he said Thailand has no policy of supporting minority rebels in Burma. Col Pibul Bucha, commander of the Third Army's Task Force 35, yesterday briefed the defence minister over security, saying the situation had been improved greatly as a result of reinforcements in the area. The Third Army Region and the Police Department sent troops to the border after elements of the Rangoon-backed Democratic Karen Buddhist Army conducted a series of cross-border attacks on camps holding anti-Rangoon Karen rebels and intimidated Thai security forces protecting the camps. Rangoon has denied any link with the DKBA. In a related incident, a local security source said that Burma has asked for Thai cooperation over a report that forces of the Karen National Progressive Party (KNPP) had transferred a large amount of illegal logs into Thailand through provincial crossing points. They want us to close the crossing points, the security source said. (BP) 28 ILLEGAL BURMESE, KHMER WORKERS HELD 14 May 1995 Illegally-employed Burmese and Khmers threatened to jump from the second and third floors of a Pattaya building site during a Tourist Police raid yesterday. The workers panicked when the police arrived at the Pattaya Plaza project site. Twenty-eight of them were arrested after police persuaded them not to jump. Two Thai foreman were also charged with illegally employing aliens and providing them with accommodation. The workers admitted they had illegally crossed the border to seek jobs in Thailand, police said. (BP) MEMORY LAPSE LANDS SANAN IN A FLAP 14 May 1995 A Memory lapse had Interior Minister Sanan Kachornprasart in a flap yesterday. He could not remember whether he gave written approval for processed wood to be imported from Burma on March 20. After learning the Opposition Planned to grill him for allegedly allowing Thai Veneer Industry Co to bring in 400,000 cubic metres of processed wood from Burma. Maj-Gen Sanan phoned Foreign Affairs Division director Pranai Suwannarat. Mr Pranai said the minister had never signed such an order. The official told him he found no announcement in the Royal Gazette ordering the opening of border passes along the Thai-Burmese border to enable wood imports. (BP) THAI-BURMA BORDER PROBLEM ON AGENDA 14 May 1995 A meeting called by the National Security Council will be held tomorrow to consider Thai-Burmese border problems, a Government House source said yesterday. NSC secretary-general Gen Charan Kullavanijaya on Friday sent an urgent message inviting commanders-in-chief of the three armed forces, the permanent secretary of the Foreign Ministry, representatives of the Police Department and officials responsible for security affairs to the meeting at the NSC assembly hall at Government House. Matters to be discussed include measures to protect national sovereignty, control and repatriation of refugees and aid for the refugees from various organisations, the source said. (BP) RANGOON TV SHOWS SLORC MEETING DKBO 14 May 1995 While Rangoon denies any involvement in the incursions by armed Buddhist Karens into Thailand, Burmese television recently reported on a visit by high-level members of the State Law and Order Restoration Council (Slorc) to the head office of the Democratic Karen Buddhist Organisation (DKBO). The television report, monitored in Tak's Mae Sot district, showed the second secretary-general of Slorc Lt-Gen Tin Oo, Interior Minister Mya Thein, Military Chief-of-Staff Lt-Gen Maung Hla, Southern Force Commander Maj-Gen Ket Sein, the Agriculture Minister and many high-ranking military officers visiting the DKBO's headquarters in a temple near Thu Mew Hta village north of Manerplaw, a former Karen National Union (KNU) camp opposite Sop Moei district of Mae Hong Son. The Burmese officials were greeted by soldiers in Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) uniforms. Pra U Htu Zana, the founder of the DKBO, gave the visiting officials a report on the activities being conducted by his organisation. Lt-gen Tin Oo was full of praise for Pra U Htu Zana, saying he believed the DKBO would be able to bring back all the Karen refugees to Burma and pledged to give his full support to the organisation, according to the television. Situation reports prepared by Tak's Tha Song Yang authority have indicated that after the KNU had lost several camps in Burma, DKBA soldiers crossed the border into Thailand on 35 separate occasions between February and early May to abduct KNU leaders, attack and burn down Karen refugee camps, threaten Thai authorities, rob and murder villagers along the border and threaten non-government organisations giving aid to Karen refugees. All of this was undertaken to force Karen refugees to return to Burma. Tha Song Yang district chief Wallop Sripa said about 7,000 Karen refugees had returned to Burma via Mae Ta Wah camp opposite Tha Song Yang after incursions by the DKBA. The DKBO yesterday distributed leaflets along the Thai border claiming it had no intention of causing serious incidents in Thailand, adding that it only wanted Karen refugees to return home to join in the nation's development. The DKBO was established by Pra U Htu Zana, 46, late last year. Its headquarters are located in a temple near camp at Manerplaw, opposite Sop Moei District of Mae Hong Son Province. Military sources said Pra U Htu Zana was being supported by the Slorc to divide the KNU, containing both Christians and Buddhists. (BP) ARMY NETS HUGE WEAPONS HAUL AFTER RAIDING TWO KAREN CAMPS 14 May 1995 The Army said yesterday it has seized more war weapons in the latest raids on two Karen refugee camps in Mae Sariang and Sop Moei districts. The operations at Mae Lamaluang and Baan Paumaloo camps on Friday came after the first coordinated raids which netted big caches of arms from four refugee camps in Tak province on Wednesday. The weapons confiscated from the Mae Hong Son camps included 27 AK-47, seven M-16 and eight HK-33 assault rifles, three rocket launchers and a large assortment of ammunition, Col Piboon Boocha, commander of the 35th Border Task Force said. He said the raids were part of efforts to step up security on the border and to reduce tension with the Burmese government and its troops, both of which have accused Thailand of supporting the Karen National Union (KNU). The colonel said the situation along the Thai-Burmese border was returning to normal after months of incursions by armed insurgents from Burma. Piboon said soldiers had been sent to provide security for people in the areas prone to fighting. He urged people to inform his task force if there was trouble. On Wednesday, about 400 men from the police and Army searched Saiko, Maan Huay Manok, Baan Koekoe and Baan Ma Hla camps in Tak's Mae Sot district. They seized five machine guns, four rocket launchers, 29 M-16 assault rifles, four hand grenades and more than 3,000 rounds of ammunition. Deputy Army Commander-in-Chief Chettha Thanajaro said yesterday Thailand and Burma still had a good relationship, despite the attacks on Karen refugee camps in Thailand. He said the Foreign Ministry had asked the Burmese government to produce evidence to back its charges that Thai forces had injured innocent people during reprisal attacks against the renegade Democratic Karen Buddhist Army in Burma. He said it was more appropriate that the ministry should handle the border issue as soldiers were responsible only for protecting the country's sovereignty. "I do not believe the situation will get any worse," he said. (TN) SOLDIER INJURED AFTER CLASH WITH GUERRILLAS AT BORDER 16 May 1995 A Thai soldier was injured after an unidentified armed group engaged his security unit in a gunfight as it guarded a refugee camp in Tha Song Yang district here early yesterday, border officials said. According to the source, the clash at the Shoklo border camp took place around 4 a.m. It lasted 10 minutes before the 10 armed intruders retreated into Burma. Sgt Jen Sornpaiboon was shot in the left leg and was admitted to Tha Song Yang District Hospital. The incident followed an ambush on a Thai patrol jeep on the Mae Sot-Tha Song Yang border road on Sunday. Thai helicopter gunships, tanks and jeeps equipped with machine guns expelled the intruders after a 15-minute clash which produced no casualties, said border sources. In a related development, the chief of the 10th Cavalry Battalion, Maj Yothin Bunchuay, said yesterday his men arrested two KNU members for illegally entering Thailand and confiscated their jeep. The battalion handed over the two Karen to the 34th Border Task Force for interrogation. Meanwhile, Deputy Foreign Minister Surin Pitsuwan said yesterday that the relocation of Karen refugee camps on the border deeper into Thailand and the dispatch of senior Foreign Ministry officials to Rangoon are probably not necessary as the Thai and Burmese armies seem to have the border situation under control. However, Surin said talks on the repatriation of the refugees are still necessary to make sure it is acceptable to both the Burmese government and the Karen refugees. Surin yesterday said Burma's attitude to the border problems had "improved." Just last week, Rangoon accused Thai elements along the border of aiding ethnic insurgents fighting the Burmese government. It also denied responsibility for repeated intrusions into Thailand by the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA). "The [border] situation seems to have returned to normal. The Thai and Burmese armies in the past few days have been in closer cooperation to solve the conflicts," Surin said. He said Burma had also shown a positive response toward Thailand's repeated calls for Rangoon to stop the DKBA's incursions into Thai territory. "The relocation of the 17 Karen camps 10 kilometres deeper inside Thailand may not be necessary at the moment," he said. Surin's statement came as the National Security Council called a brainstorming session yesterday with senior officials from the Foreign Ministry, Defence Ministry, Interior Ministry, the armed forces and the National Intelligence Bureau to review the border situation and formulate strategies to handle future incidents. Surin did not attend the meeting but was later briefed by his ministry's senior officials. He said coordination between Thai authorities handling border issues was becoming smoother. Karen who eventually want to return will be allowed to, while those who are still uncertain about the situation would be allowed to stay put, Surin said. (TN) HUNT FOR HIDDEN ARMS OF KAREN REFUGEES TO GO ON 16 May 1995 The Thai authorities will continue to search for weapons which may have been hidden by Karen refugees on the Thai side of the border with Burma, National Security Council chief Gen Charan Kullavanijaya said yesterday. Drastic legal action will be taken against any refugees found to have them in their possession, in order to reduce the fighting between warring Karen factions in Burma. Col Charan was speaking after a meeting with representatives of government agencies responsible for national security to discuss the problem on the Thai-Burmese border and ways of tacking it. Attending the meeting were the permanent secretaries of the Foreign and Defence ministries and representatives of the three armed forces, the Police Department and the National Intelligence Agency. "Thailand does not want the Karen refugees to have war weapons with which they can conduct terrorist activities in Burma," he said. "It is believed that there will be no more attacks and burnings to force the Karens to go back home. They will gradually go back anyway as the rice planting season has come," he said. This was a reference to recent attacks by Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) soldiers on Karen refugee camps in Thailand. (BP) BANGKOK AIMS FOR PEACE IN THE REGION 16 May 1995 Thailand aims to create peace and democracy in the region and to eventually include Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Burma in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Deputy Foreign Minister Surin Pitsuwan said yesterday. Mr Surin also reaffirmed that Thailand's policy towards countries in the region including Burma, had not changed. Thailand would push for all ten regional countries to gain ASEAN membership, beginning with Vietnam in July, he said. Cambodia, Laos and Burma will follow soon after. he denied the Thai ambassador to Rangoon felt uneasy about Thailand's constructive engagement policy with Burma, saying the ambassador had come back to Bangkok on normal official duties and then returned to Rangoon. Asked whether the current situation along the Thai-Burma border was obstructing the implementation of the constructive engagement policy, Mr Surin said negotiations would help improve the situation. negotiations were not necessarily at a government or ministerial level but could be carried out through many other channels, he said. Mr Surin said Thailand had lodged a protest with Burma charging that it should be more responsible and not allow Karen forces to violate Thailand's sovereignty. The problems with Karen minority groups are Burma's internal affair and Thailand will not interfere, he said. On the suggestion that the Foreign Ministry seemed to be slow in taking diplomatic action when there was a problem like the current one with Burma, Mr Surin said the ministry had proved many times that it was better to take steps prudently rather than to act under pressure. (BP) POLICE TO GET SPECIAL TRAINING TO FIGHT DRUGS 16 May 1995 The Narcotics Suppression Bureau (NSB) will hold a four day special training course for its police units nationwide in an effort to map out measures to drastically crack down on drug suppliers and addicts, according to NSB Commissioner Somchai Milinthangkul. The training starts today at Pattaya City and is organised in line with the Police Department's plan and policy on the prevention and suppression of illegal narcotics, NSB commissioner said. To cope with the widespread use of drugs in society, narcotic suppression units comprising eight members each will be set up at all police stations countrywide, said Pol Lt-Gen Somchai. Each police station under the jurisdiction of the Metropolitan Police Bureau and the Central Investigation Bureau will have a four-man narcotics suppression team where as all Border Patrol Police units will be provided with another training course, according to the NSB commissioner. Previous narcotics prevention and suppression campaigns were directly carried out by the NSB and Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) which mostly focused on drug kingpins. (BP) CHIANG RAI READY FOR BORDER CLOSURE 16 May 1995 The provincial authorities are ready to close border checkpoints for the safety of nearby villagers if ordered by the Interior Ministry, Mae Sai District chief Padki Rattanapol said yesterday. Officials were concerned about the fighting inside Burma between the Burmese Government troops and Mong Tai Army under Khun Sa's leadership which may threaten the lives of Thais living along the border, Mr Pakdi said. The National Security Council has proposed the closure of the Thai-Burmese border to ensure the safety of Thai citizens. The Burmese Government ordered the closure of its border pass at Tachilek over a month ago following fighting between one of Khun Sa's commando units and the Rangoon troops. However, only the Interior Ministry and the Chiang Rai governor have the power to issue the order to close the border checkpoints. If the ministry is to issue the order to close the border at Mae Sai, two other temporary checkpoints at Ban Pang Ha and Ban Muang Daeng shoulthe lead? That's because the military cannot sit idle while the border attacks continue. There was virtually no diplomatic action for quite some time. If I had been the Army chief, I would have taking action. I said in previous interviews that the military action had to be drastic. There's no need to be too worried about the bilateral relationship with Burma because that's the realm of the Foreign Ministry. However, they should coordinate. Sometimes the foreign minister and prime minister expressed different opinions on the Thai-Burmese dispute. I don't know how often the foreign minister discussed the problem with the minister, I normally called the prime minister to let him know my decision before I took action. Therefore, it's unlikely that we would have expressed different opinions. I was his subordinate, so I had to consult him in advance. There were press reports that the Burmese government would like Thailand to give up its so-called 'constructive engagement' policy. That not true. I support that policy because it encourages economic and academic cooperation. (TN) BORDER RESIDENTS SHOULD NOT WORRY, INSISTS ARMY SPOKESMAN 16 May 1995 How is the situation along the Thai-Burmese border? Military operations remain the same. We have found a lot of weapons. When the Christian Karen fled into Thailand, they brought their weapons with them. When they arrived, they buried them. There are many refugee camps which are not strictly controlled by us. Someday they will dig up those weapons and use them to kill or rob Thai people. The situation is much like that along the Thai-Cambodian border. There are a lot of weapons buried there. Why are there still so many illegal weapons along the Thai-Burmese border? We have only a few border patrol police and volunteers. It is easy to smuggle weapons into Thailand. Do the Thai military have any plans to suppress the Buddhist Karen? After our continuous military actions, the Buddhist Karen said they would stop their operations. Our policy remains the same - if they attack us, we will retaliate. Will the military send the Christian Karen back to Burma? We will definitely send them back. We have a clear policy that states we don't want them to stay too long. But they must want to go back and it must be safe for them. We don't want permanent refugee camps in Thailand. We want to send them back because often they fell trees and encroach on forests. We also have to spend a lot of money taking care of them. Critics say the military does not want to push the Christian Karen back because it wants a budget from the government? That's not true. Our major policy is that we don't want illegal immigrants. We have to ask for a larger budget because we have to increase the number of our staff taking care of them. Previously we used some 100 officers to oversee illegal immigrants. But now we have to control some 50,000 refugees. How are the relations between the Thai and Burmese military? There are no problems. What we have to do on our soil, we do legally. We do not cross the border. We have the right to take immediate action against any groups illegally entering Thailand. Do you think the situation along the Thai-Burmese border will escalate? I'm confident that the situation will not escalate because it is a local issue. The situation has improved after our actions against the Christian Karen. The fact that we have sent more soldiers to the border does not mean that the situation has worsened. This is just a normal operation to increase the confidence of Thai villagers, and for us to ensure we will be well-prepared for any situation. Are you confident that the Thai military can control the situation? I'm confident that we can defend the country. The people along the border should not be worried. But they should tell us if they hear any information that concerns illegal crossings. We have problems if the people do not help us. Why did the military allow intruders to cross the border on several occasions? Please don't be disappointed with the Army. Everything is very time-consuming. If the situation had escalated, we could have been blamed for using aggressive measures. But if we decide to be aggressive, we will be. We have to act carefully. We will use military force, if negotiations fail. But why has the military allowed the Buddhist Karen to violate our sovereignty on several occasions? We have taken action over that and the Buddhist Karen have called a truce. What was behind the Buddhist Karen launching attacks on Thai soil? They side with Rangoon, which wants to separate the two Karen forces and let them destroy each other. Buddhist Karen want power from Rangoon, or they may have reached certain agreements which we do not know about. Have we become a tool of any side? We are not anyone's tool. We don't want to fight Burma, but we have to do our job. What do you think about the suggestion from Suthin Noppaket [chairman of the House Committee on foreign affairs] that Thailand should not resort to military action as it could damage bilateral relationships with Burma? I would like him to repeat standing on the border when they [the Karen guerrillas] open fire. But now people want him dismissed. Military officials use a military strategy, while diplomatic approach. In what way do you view the government's constructive engagement with Burma? this depends on the government. For a example, to sanction one country will cause that country to turn to another. If we want a country to be as developed as we are, we have to lead the way and show what developed countries can achieve, such as Singapore and Malaysia. They [the 'constructive' is a good word. They [the Burmese government] with gradually learn that while they are engaged in civil war, other countries are developing. Many parties think the constructive engagements arose because of a selfish policy of Asean, designated to be profitable to Burma? We may surmise that from now on Burma has no right to be involved in Asean affairs, and should be isolated. If that happens the only ones to suffer would be them. They [Burma] would have to seek assistance from some other countries. They may turn to China. (TN) LAOS AND BURMA SIGN AGREEMENTS ON RANGE OF ISSUES 16 May 1995 Laotian President Nouhak Phoumsavanh returned home from a five-day visit to Burma on Friday with several agreements signed by Vientiane and Rangoon. His visit as guest of Gen Than Shwe, chairman of the ruling State Law and Order Restoration Council (Slorc), coincided with the first meeting of the Laotian-Burmese Joint Commission. Nouhak and Gen Than Shwe share the view that the visit "will help excellent cooperation to flourish between Laos and Myanmar," according to Radio Vientiane. they exchanged views on international issues. Foreign Minister Somsavat Lengsavad and Commerce Minister Sompadith Vorasane were among Laotian officials on the trip. The two governments signed an agreement on trade and agriculture cooperation. They also ratified a border demarcation treaty signed last year during a visit to Vientiane by Gen Than Shwe. The countries share a 230-kilometre border. The general chose Laos as his first country to visit since Slorc's seizure of power in 1988. "The signing of the documents will lay a firm foundation for future cooperation between the two countries," the national radio said. Laotian ambassador to Burma Li Bounkham told Inside indochina that according to the first joint commission meeting, both countries agreed in principle to direct flights between Rangoon and Vientiane to promote "Visit Myanmar Year" in 1996. They agreed to open a permanent border checkpoint at Ban Wang Pong, Tachilek district, in Burma's Shan state and at Muang Mom, Muang Ton Pung in Bo Kaew province, Laos. "We both want to upgrade the permanent checkpoints to international level so foreign tourists can visit," Li said. Border trade will be promoted. Burma and Laos agreed to exchange military attaches. Laos has these in all its neighbouring countries except Burma. Nouhak's visit highlighted this year's exchange of visits between the two countries. Burmese Information and Culture Minister Lt-Gen Aung Ye Kyaw visited Laos country for five days ending April 27, two months after Laotian Deputy Information Bouabane Vorakhoune went to Rangoon to strengthen cultural ties and information cooperation. (BP) IT'S RANGOON, NOT REBELS Burmese government behind camp attacks By Bertil Lintner in Kamaw Lay Kho, Thailand It was late at night when more than a hundred heavily armed soldiers with guns at the ready came into Thailand's Kamaw Lay Kho refugee camp, recounts Saw Kauk Cho, pastor of the Baptist church in the camp 80 kilometres north of Mae Sot, a town on the border with Burma. Within minutes, the attackers doused the ethnic Karen camp with kerosene and set it ablaze. The story of April 25 is familiar six such camps housing 10,000 refugees have been burned since April 19. Before that, Karen rebels lost the last of their strongholds at Manerplaw and Kawmoora. What's less known is that the attempts to drive the refugees back into Burma are being carried out by the Burmese army rather than by a breakaway Buddhist faction of the Karen fighters themselves, as the Burmese Embassy in Thailand says. Most observers along the frontier, from foreign aid workers to Thai intelligence officers to refugees, offer evidence that points at troops of the Burmese regime, the State Law and Order Restoration Council. "It's Burmese regulars, with a few ex-Karen national Union defectors acting as guides, who are burning the refugee camps," says a Western aid worker along the border. "But the claim that it is the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army which is carrying out the attacks makes it appear as if the present imbroglio is an internal Karen conflict. For every DKBA soldier, there are at least five to 10 guys from the Burmese army." The Kamaw Lay Kho camp is a stone's throw from the Moei river, which forms the border with Burma. The attackers came from across the water, Saw Kauk Cho says. Then, young privates poured kerosene on the bamboo huts in the camp and lit them while older officers in the background directed the action over walkie-talkies. The pastor tells how mortars and rocket-propelled grenades were fired into the dense maze of houses. Within minutes, the refugee camp's 300 buildings became an inferno. The attackers told the refugees they had to return across the border, or face a worse fate in the next attack, the pastor says. Rangoon and the Thai press say the attackers are from the DKBA, a breakaway faction from the main KNU. The Buddhist faction was set up on December 21, when some Buddhist KNU soldiers mutinied against the predominantly Christian leadership. According to a border intelligence source: "Not more than 200-300 KNU soldiers defected last December, and the groups attacking the refugee camps are much more numerous than the so-called DKBA has ever been." Sources along the border also point out that all the refugee camps which have been attacked are located immediately opposite major Burmese army positions such as Mae Tha Waw, south of Manerplaw. Soldiers at the Maw Pokay base could walk to the Kamaw Lay Kho refugee camp in less than an hour, for example. Refugees at the camp say they recognized a few of the attackers as former KNU soldiers from a hill tribe whose men shifted sides and joined forces with the Burmese army in December. The rest were unknown to the refugees; they either spoke Burmese or spoke Karen with an accent typical of the Irrawaddy delta south of Rangoon and far away from the hills bordering Thailand where the KNU operates. Many ethnic Karens from the government-controlled delta have been recruited into the Burmese army. The evidence that the attackers weren't from the Karen faction could explain the cautious response from the Thai side. It's true that on May 5, Thai helicopter gunships fired salvos on a Karen Buddhist position inside Burma. Military and civilian leaders in Bangkok have protested what they call the Karen Buddhist incursion, and called on the Burmese army to rein in its rebel allies. And in an effort that signals Thai defence of its sovereignty, Bangkok has sent reinforcements supported by field artillery to the border. But in the refugee camps along the border, there are few signs that the Thais have stepped up security. Thailand's dilemma is obvious. The Thais do not want to comfort regular Burmese troops, even ones wearing the uniforms and insignia of the Karen Buddhist army. Some observers argue the Burmese motive from the camp attacks is to shake Thailand's will to harbour the refugees. Observers along the Thai-Burmese border say both the Burmese and the Thai authorities want the refugees to return to Burma. Shortly after the first cross-border raid, Thai army commander Gen. Wimol Wongwanich said "it would take only a week to push all refugees back to Burma," if he were permitted to do so. On May 2, Thai Interior Minister Sanan Kachornprasart suggested that the 74,000-plus Karen refugees in Thailand should be moved away from their 23 camps on the border and concentrated in two or three protected camps. Refugee workers point out that in the new camps the Karens would be more difficult to attack and easier to push back into Burma. KNU leader Bo Mya has appealed to the United Nations to protect the refugees. But involvement of the international body would constrain the refugees' movement. Presence of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees would also attract international scrutiny, which the Thais clearly do not want. The answer to the problem may be found down at the banks of the Moei at Mae Sot itself. The Thais began building a new bridge across the river last October and hope to finish it by 1996. Already, concrete arch spans the Moei, and construction workers cross the border as if there weren't any conflict nearby. Markets and shops are springing up along the Thai road leading down to the bridge, and all in all appears there's too much at stake for the Thais to risk war with the Burmese over the refugee issue. (FEER) o-----------------------------------------------------------o CONTACTING BURMANET BY SNAILMAIL, FAX OR PHONE: In Washington: Attention to BurmaNet c/o National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma (NCGUB) Information Office 815 15th Street NW, Suite 609 Washington D.C. 20005 Tel: (202) 393-7342, Fax: (202) 393-7343 NCGUB email: ncgub@igc.apc.org In Bangkok: Attention to BurmaNet c/o Burma Issues PO Box 1076, Silom Post Office Bangkok 10500 Thailand Tel: (066) (02) 234-6674, Fax: (066) (02) 631 0133 Burma Issues email: durham@mozart.inet.co.th The NCGUB is a government-in-exile, formed by representatives of the people that won the election in 1990. Burma Issues is a Bangkok-based non-governmental organization that documents human rights conditions in Burma and maintains an archive of Burma-related documents. Views expressed in The BurmaNet News do not necessarily reflect those of either NCGUB or Burma Issues. ------------------------------------------------------------ NEWS SOURCES REGULARLY COVERED/ABBREVIATIONS USED BY BURMANET: ------------------------------------------------------------ ABSDF-DNA: ALL BURMA STUDENT'S DEMOCRATIC FRONT [DR. NAING AUNG] ABSDF-MTZ: ALL BURMA STUDENT'S DEMOCRATIC FRONT [MOE THEE ZUN] AMNESTY: AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL AP: ASSOCIATED PRESS AFP: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE AW: ASIAWEEK Bt.: THAI BAHT; 25 Bt. EQUALS US$1 (APPROX), BBC: BRITISH BROADCASTING CORPORATION BF: BURMA FORUM BKK POST: BANGKOK POST (DAILY NEWSPAPER, BANGKOK) BRC-CM: BURMESE RELIEF CENTER-CHIANG MAI BRC-J: BURMESE RELIEF CENTER-JAPAN CPPSM:C'TEE FOR PUBLICITY OF THE PEOPLE'S STRUGGLE IN MONLAND FEER: FAR EAST ECONOMIC REVIEW GOA: GOVERNMENT OF AUSTRALIA IRRAWADDY: NEWSLETTER PUBLISHED BY BURMA INFORMATION GROUP KHRG: KAREN HUMAN RIGHTS GROUP KNU: KAREN NATIONAL UNION Kt. BURMESE KYAT; UP TO 150 KYAT-US$1 BLACK MARKET 106 KYAT US$1-SEMI-OFFICIAL 6 KYAT-US$1 OFFICIAL MOA: MIRROR OF ARAKAN MNA: MYANMAR NEWS AGENCY (SLORC) THE NATION: A DAILY NEWSPAPER IN BANGKOK NCGUB: NATIONAL COALITION GOVERNMENT OF THE UNION OF BURMA NLM: NEW LIGHT OF MYANMAR (DAILY STATE-RUN NEWSPAPER,RANGOON) NMSP: NEW MON STATE PARTY RTA:REC.TRAVEL.ASIA NEWSGROUP RTG: ROYAL THAI GOVERNMENT SCB:SOC.CULTURE.BURMA NEWSGROUP SCT:SOC.CULTURE.THAI NEWSGROUP SEASIA-L: S.E.ASIA BITNET MAILING LIST SLORC: STATE LAW AND ORDER RESTORATION COUNCIL TAWSJ: THE ASIAN WALL STREET JOURNAL UPI: UNITED PRESS INTERNATIONAL USG: UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT XNA: XINHUA NEWS AGENCY ----------------------------------------------------------