------------------------ BurmaNet ------------------------ "Appropriate Information Technologies, Practical Strategies" ---------------------------------------------------------- The BurmaNet News: December 6, 1995 Issue #296 Noted in Passing: The kings of Myanmar were known for their cruelty towards their subjects, but were also famous for their great merit-making activities such as the building of large numbers of pagodas. (see: MYANMAR WEBSITE: SLORC HISTORY EXCERPT) HEADINGS: ========= MYANMAR WEBSITE: SLORC HISTORY EXCERPT REUTER: NAGA REBELS KILL NINE INDIAN TROOPERS IN AMBUSH MAINICHI DAILY NEWS: LETTER FROM BURMA ORGANIZING COMMITTEE: MESSAGE OF FELICITATION SYDNEY MORNING HERALD: THALIAND SNUBS EVANS OVER BURMA TIES THE NATION: SUU KYI VOWS TO PURSUE DEMOCRACY CAMPAIGN THE NATION: GARETH EVANS SEES BURMA'S BEST PATH TO DEMOCRACY BKK POST: RANGOON PRESSES AHEAD WITH RUINOUS POLICIES BKK POST: KAREN RENEGADES SHOOT MISSIONARY DEAD NATION: BURMA CONFIRMS DECISION TO SIGN ASEAN NUCLEAR-FREE TREATY BKK POST: OBSERVERS TAKE CONTRASTING LINES ON BURMA'S CONVENTION BURMESE JUNTA SAYS IT HAS MASS SUPPORT --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- MYANMAR WEBSITE: SLORC HISTORY EXCERPT >From the Myanmar.com website: December 3, 1995 (Editor's Note: Is this perhaps meant to be a justification of the SLORC's present use of forced labor?) Having been expressly told since childhood that the Five Precepts should be observed as strictly as possible, Buddhists are generally reluctant to break these precepts. So when they cannot avoid breaking them, it seems that they will be sure to follow up with meritorious deeds. For example, the kings of Myanmar were known for their cruelty towards their subjects, but were also famous for their great merit-making activities such as the building of large numbers of pagodas, their assistance to the Sangha, the body of monks, and construction of reservoirs and lakes. (http://www.myanmar.com/myanmar/gov/tourist/rel.html) ******************************************** REUTER: NAGA REBELS KILL NINE INDIAN TROOPERS IN AMBUSH December 4, 1995 From: FreeBurma@aol.com NEW DELHI, India (Reuter) - At least nine Indian paramilitary troopers were killed and six injured when Naga guerrillas attacked a patrol in the northeastern state of Nagaland, a local news agency said Monday. The government's Central Industrial Security Force troopers were attacked while carrying state funds through rugged terrain on Dec. 2, the United News of India quoted an official statement as saying. Naga militants have battled New Delhi's rule in Nagaland for 10 years, demanding a separate homeland at the Burmese border. ***************************************************** MAINICHI DAILY NEWS: LETTER FROM BURMA December 4, 1995 By Aung San Suu Kyi Glimpses of history and untamed beauty ROAD TO THAMANYA (2) The country we had been going through was rocky. At Mokpalin we had passed a rock quarry where, I was told, convicts were usually to be seen working. We saw none on our way to Thamanya, but on our way back we saw two men in white with chains on their legs trotting along the roadway, shouldering a pole from which hung large baskets full of broken rock. In the vicinity of Kyaik - hto is the Kyaik - htiyoe pagoda. It is only 15 feet in height but it is one of the most famous religious monuments in Burma because it is built on a large skull shaped rock amazingly balanced on the edge of a jutting crag 3,600 feet above sea level. Its perch is so precarious that the push of one strong man can set it rocking gently. Yet it has managed to maintain its equilibrium over many centuries. There are rubber plantations all along the route from the Sittang bridge until the town of Thaton, a straggling place with a slightly battered air. When we were schoolchildren we were taught that rubber was one of the main export products of Burma. But over the last few decades our rubber industry gradually went downhill and now rubber no longer features among our important natural assets. Once upon a time Thaton with its twilight air was a thriving capital and a famous center for Buddhism, ruled over by the Mon King Manuha, a monarch who commanded the respect of friend and foe alike. Although he was defeated in battle and carried away as a captive by King Anawratha of Pagan, Manuha's personal stature remained undiminished. Popular Burmese history has it that even in defeat his glory was so manifest, every time Manuha made obeisance to Anawratha, the victor king broke out into a goose flesh of fear. In the end, it is said, Anawratha managed to destroy Manuha's glory by underhanded means. In Pagan today there still remains the Manuha stupa with dedication by the captive king praying that he might never again, in any of his future lives, be defeated by another. The sympathetic account given of King Manuha is one of the most admirable parts of Burmese history, demonstrating a lack of ethnic prejudice and unstinting respect for a noble enemy. >From Thaton we continued to travel in an easterly direction and at about eleven o'clock we entered the state of Karen. The state capital Pa-an lies on the east bank of the river Salween which we crossed by car ferry. Pa-an is a spacious town, quiet and pleasantly countrified. We did not stop there as we had made arrangements to meet members of the Karen State NLD only on the way back from Thamanya. There is an untamed beauty about the lands around Pa-an. The area is notable for its striking hills that rise sheer from the ground. In some of the hills are caves in which old Mon inscriptions, images and pagodas have been found. It was in one of these caves that a queen of Manuha took refuge after the defeat of her husband. It is believed that this queen later moved, for greater security, to the foot of "Paddy Seed Hill" and that it was she who had the two pagodas constructed on its summit. As we approached Thamanya, the quiet seemed to deepen. It was difficult to imagine that we were close to areas which have served as battlefields for most of the last 50 years. Fighting had broken out between government troops and Karen insurgents almost as soon as Burma was declared an independent nation in January 1948. And there has not yet been a political settlement that could bring permanent peace to this land with its wild, magical quality. The Hsayadaw of Thamanya is a vegetarian and only vegetarian food is served in his domain. It is customary for those making the journey to Thamanya to start eating vegetarian food at least the day before they set out. We too had been eating vegetarian food and we felt full of health and calm self - satisfaction as we covered the last lap of our journey. Suddenly it occurred to us that the quietness and feeling of ease had to do with something more than the beauties of nature or our state of mind. We realized that the road had become less rough. Our vehicle was no longer leaping from crater to rut and we were no longer rolling around like peas in a basin. As soon as we passed under the archway that marked the beginning of the domain of Thamanya, we noted that the road was even better, a smooth, well - kept black ribbon winding into the distance. The difference between the road we had traveled and the road on which we now found our- selves struck all of us. This road had been built and maintained by the Hsayadaw for the convenience of the villagers who lived around the hill and of the pilgrims who came in their tens and thousands each year. It was far superior to many a highway to be found in Rangoon. (This is the second in a yearlong series of letters, the Japanese translation of which appears in the Mainichi Shimbun the same day, or the previous day in some areas.) **************************************************** ORGANIZING COMMITTEE: MESSAGE OF FELICITATION December 4, 1995 From: burtu.atubdo@axcess.net.in 75th anniversary(Diamond Jubilee) of Rangoon University celebration MESSAGE OF FELICITATION BY ORGANIZING COMMITTEE 1st Dec.' 95 marks the occasion of the 75th anniversary (Diamond Jubilee) of Rangoon University. Rangoon University was founded in 1920, and since then it has given birth to a numerous outstanding persons. One can see in the national record the history of outstanding leaders whom the Rangoon University gave birth to during 1920-95 period. With the untiring efforts of our forebrothers, national colleges and universities were founded all over the country during the reign of British Colonialists. After sometimes, Rangoon university, which had been kept under Calcutta University, became an independence university. This struggle fostered nationalist spirit among Burmese people. Leaders of Rangoon University were never reluctant to sacrifice their lives for the sake of the nation. Thakhin Aung San, Thakhin Nu, etc.,who had steadfastly fought against British imperialist till they could retrieve the lost independence for the people, are good examples.The campus of Rangoon University is the auspicious place where the nationalists spirit originated. This University which has given birth to a numerous precious statesmen, has now completed 75 years. Our forebrothers have fulfilled their duties for the country. Now is the time for today's students to shoulder the national responsibilities. It is our duty to receive legacy handed down by our forebrothers. May this precious legacy be well-maintained and last forever. ************************************* SYDNEY MORNING HERALD: THAILAND SNUBS EVANS OVER BURMA TIES December 4, 1995 From: myoa@cin.gov.au (Myo Aye) BANGKOK, Sunday: Thailand has bluntly rejected a plea by the Australian Foreign Minister, Senator Gareth Evans, for countries in the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) to slow their rapidly expanding ties with the military regime in Burma. The Thai Foreign minister, Mr. Kasem Kasemsri, told Senator Evans: "We are here, we have to deal with our nighbours and we will not change in order to please anyone." Mr. Kasem said Thailand - which shares a troubled border with Burma - and the other members of ASEAN had no right to interfere with the internal affairs of other States. In a meeting with Mr Kasem on Friday, Senator Evans appealed for continued restrictions on regional economic and political links with Rangoon while the regime there continued to refuse to open a dialogue with the Burmese democracy leader, Ms Aung San Suu Kyi. He also said that Australian companies should avoid trade and investment in Burma until there was evidence of reform. Thailand and other regional nations are leading an investment push that has been about $4 billion in new deals signed with the Burmese regime in the past two years. The head of the Burmese regime, General Than Shwe, has been invited to attend the ASEAN leaders' summit in Bangkok late next week, and preparations are being made for Burma to become a full member of the regional alliance. About 30 Australian companies are believed to be involved in mostly small-scale investments in Burma, and Australian investment in the country totals about $40 million. A number of big companies, including BHP, Transfield and CRA, have been exploring new investment opportunities. Senator Evans said the Australian Government's policy continued to be to neither encourage nor discourage private business dealings with Burma, but he appeared to question the integrity of companies dealing with the regime. **************************************************************************** THE NATION: SUU KYI VOWS TO PURSUE DEMOCRACY CAMPAIGN December 4, 1995 Reuter, United Press International RANGOON- Burmese democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi vowed to continue her struggle for a popular political system in military-ruled Burma and rejected government suggestions she was inciting the people to take to the streets. Suu Kyi, speaking to a crowd of up to 5,000 people outside her Rangoon home late on Saturday afternoon, said if anyone would suffer in the fight for democracy in Burma it would be her and other leaders of her group, not the ordinary people. "Since the founding of the National League for Democracy (NLD) we decided to strive in a dignified and just way by making sacrifices for the emergence of an administration and political system as desired by the people. We will keep on working according to that decision," she said. Last week Suu Kyi pulled the NLD out of a government- organized convention drawing up the guidelines of a new constitution. The NLD's boycott of the national convention, which has been meeting intermittently since January 1993, was the pro- democracy party's most significant act of defiance since Suu Kyi was released from six years of house arrest in July. Apparently referring to articles in state-run newspapers suggesting she was trying to incite the people to take to the streets, Suu Kyi said she would never use such a tactic. "Some accuse us of inciting the people to protest on the streets. We will never use the method of sacrificing the people. If anyone is to suffer we will go to the front to suffer first," she told the crowd. In her regular weekend meetings with the crowds outside her home, Suu Kyi has repeatedly called for patience and restraint in the campaign to end 33 years of military rule. The NLD won more than 80 per cent of the seats in a 1990 election but the military ignored the result, insisting that a new constitution be drawn up before any transfer of power to a civilian government could be considered. The government has insisted that delegates at the national convention, the large majority of them hand-picked, include a clause in the new constitution which would guarantee the military a "leadership role" in politics. Suu Kyi said the NLD pulled out of the convention after the chairman declined to discuss the party's assertion that the national convention was not, in its present form, capable of assisting in national reconciliation, genuine multi party democracy and a state constitution because there was no discussion and dialogue. Suu Kyi said the NLD delegates attended the Nov 28 convention session expecting to hear the chairman's reaction to the party's latest statement. But they heard nothing, despite the fact the convention allows free discussion of issue by the delegates, she said. Two days later, the NLD was expelled from the convention for being absent for two consecutive days without the permission of the chairman. "But it was not true the delegates absented themselves without permission," she said, explaining the delegates sent a letter to the convention chairman on Nov 28 to outline their stand. Before her explanation, Suu Kyi elicited a laugh when she noted that the space outside her home had not become narrower, but that the crowd had become larger. "So will those at the front please sit down so that those at the rear can equally see and hear me?" she said. "This is a democracy, you know." (TN) ************** NATION: GARETH EVANS SEES BURMA'S BEST PATH TO DEMOCRACY IS VIA PROSPERITY December 4. 1995 Rita Patiyasevi DESPITE Australia's resentment towards the Burmese ruling junta and its desire to see democracy flourish, Australian Foreign Minister Gareth Evans has succumbed to the realization that change would not come without a painstaking mixture of principles, pragmatism and patience. Evans said at the Pacific Rim Forum in Bangkok on Friday that while it was important to continue to emphasize the "universality of the value of human rights", and not as a product of western paternalism or patronization, these issues need not become major barriers to the kind of cooperative environment that countries were trying to create in the region. "If we emphasize the universality and values, it would be easier in the lone run to develop a region-wide sensitivity to it, as we can already see happening. The reasons for this were being patient and letting the process of economic liberalization translate itself into political liberalization," he said. He cited the changes in South Korea and Taiwan from an extremely authoritarian political structure to a dramatically moderated one over a number of years as a result of "a very successful economic liberalization programme" which carried within itself their own political logic. The minister said it was hard to sustain such strict policies once the momentum of economic progress began because, in such a processes, people tend to become wealthier, and whether by education or otherwise, become more sensitive towards economic survival and less preoccupied with just looking towards the quality of their lives. He said the people then start to demand some kind of input over decision-making that affects their lives and, thus, makes it easier to move towards democracy. Therefore, aware of the way the dynamics operate, he suggested that the West try to be less impatient about trying to force the pace of change in Burma. However, he said that was not saying counties should not speak out against the situation in the country. He said it was important to keep the "pot bubbling" and let the sense of universal values be made not just apparent but equally obvious. Evans said the willingness to be patient and allow development to take place as its own pace would eventually let economic liberalization become political liberalization. "In the past, it has been a mixture of principle, pragmatism and patience," he said. The Australian foreign minister had on Friday cautioned Asean about welcoming the Slorc into its realm. Burmese Prime Minister Gen Than Shwe was to attend the 10 Southeast Asian nations meeting in Bangkok this month being held in parallel with the 5th Asean summit. Evan's caution came as new political tension was building in Burma. Burmese democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi has pulled out her political party from junta organized national convention to draft a new charter and has vowed to continue her struggle for a popular political system in military- ruled Burma. In response, the Burmese government revoked the status of Suu Kyi's part as a participant in the constitutional convention and suggested she was inciting the people to take to the streets. Evans said Asean could exercise some leverage, especially in welcoming Slorc, because the Burmese junta were eager to gain respectability from the association. He said Australia and other countries have little leverage because of the isolation of Burma, the traditional unwillingness to take other countries' domestic concerns seriously, and the ineffectiveness of using the United Nations to apply sanctions because of China's ability to veto. *************** BKK POST: RANGOON PRESSES AHEAD WITH RUINOUS POLICIES December 4, 1995 It is increasingly difficult to fathom the Rangoon regime and its refusal to consider solutions to the serious problems of Burma. The State Law and Order Restoration Council (Slorc) continues to push its constitutional convention. This meeting seeks to legalise the military rule of the country, and to perpetuate it. In addition, it will put into law the Slorc's policy that a Burmese woman with a foreign husband cannot lead the nation. Regime spokesman surely cannot believe they are fooling anyone with this charade. Burma's leaders have two targets in mind at the convention. The first is the country's democratic movement, which has not died despite years of arrests, killings and torture. The other is Aung San Suu Kyi, by far the most prominent democrat in Burma, and undeniably a serious and festering thorn in the side of the junta. During the past seven years, Ms Suu Kyi has organised and led a pro-democracy movement, won an election, and gained both a Nobel Peace Prize and fame in her own country and abroad. In contrast, Slorc has arrested her, denied her the election win, criticised the Nobel committee, and instructed its media to attack her as_among other disparaging descriptions_a whore. This last action says much, although is says nothing about Ms Suu Kyi herself. On the contrary, the attack says quite a lot about the regime. It is, in fact, an interesting attack on the leader of the National League for Democracy (NLD).The Slorc maintains that its constitutional convention is to bring together the various peoples of Burma. But its description of the married mother of two is applied to MS Suu Kyi because her husband is not Burmese. When the junta gets its way at the constitutional convention, which it undoubtedly will, the law will forbid Ms Suu Kyi from being leader of the country for this unique reason. The two factions in Burma Ms Suu Kyi and the democrats, and the military government appear to be on a collision course. Each has walked carefully on a political tightrope for more than a year. Rangoon held talks with Ms Suu Kyi while she was under house arrest, but these had no results. The generals then freed her, but it is clear now that their aim was only to reduce the foreign pressure on Burma to move towards democracy and national reconciliation. Since the release of "the lady" last July, the government has refused both proposals and demands to discuss the future of Burma with any eye to national reconciliation. It has actually tightened restrictions on MS Suu Kyi and her followers. Last week, the NLD began a boycott of the new session of the constitutional convention. Ms Suu Kyi herself stated publicly that the process to write a new charter is "totally unacceptable." The government warned, ominously, that the army "will not tolerate any attempt to disrupt or destroy the progress and achievements made so far," even though few observers were able to see any progress or achievements at all. There were fears inside and outside Burma a confrontation may be inevitable. Such a clash is unthinkable to many. The memory of the brutal military crackdown on pro-democracy forces in 1988 is still fresh. Unfortunately, it appears Slorc intends not only to refuse its duty to avoid a confrontation, but may relish the thought. In this situation, only the leaders in Rangoon have the power to exercise statesmanship. Time and again, MS Suu Kyi and other Burmese democrats have asked for discussions on the future of the country. There is still ample time for the Rangoon leadership to achieve true national reconciliation in Burma. As Ms Suu Kyi has said, "We have repeatedly asked for dialogue. "Friends of Burma should counsel the Slorc to consider seriously such calls. The future of the nation must be settled by the citizens of Burma, to be sure. But it is in the interests of Burmese and their neighbours that changes take place in a healthy and peaceful atmosphere. Another direct confrontation would affect Burma's trade and foreign policy as well as its own people. The action of the Rangoon regime to freeze democratic forces out of the process of writing a new constitution is unhelpful. Burma's leaders should take all views of citizens into serious account. If it refuses to consider true reconciliation among all Burmese, the regime may have to pay a heavy price. (BP) ********************************************* BKK POST: KAREN RENEGADES SHOOT MISSIONARY DEAD December 4, 1995 A MISSIONARY was shot dead on Saturday night when about 50 troops from the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army attacked Karen refugees in the Sho Klo Camp. A Border Patrol Police source said yesterday the DKBA forces, armed with M16, AK47 and grenade launchers and led by Capt Pa kale and Sergeant Myo Aung struck at around 9.30 p.m. The missionary, Pastor Saw Wah, 45, was killed instantly after he was shot during the three-pronged attack. The DKBA is an offshoot of the mainly Christian Karen National Union, a rebel organisation, which broke off from KNU and defected to the Rangoon government side. In April this year DKBA forces crossed the border and burned down several Karen refugee camps. This resulted in clashes with Thai forces and Thai protests against the Rangoon government for allowing the incursion. The source said three soldiers from the Karen National Union were also taken across the border yesterday after DKBA withdrew its forces from the refugee camp. The three Karens include Aung Nyunt, 28, from the 7th division's 21st battalion Saw Nu Wah, 35, from the 19th battalion and Par Chit, 25. _About 10,000 Karen refugees live in the Sho Klo Camp, located at kilometre marker 104-107 on Tha Song Yang - Mae Sariang Road. Meanwhile, Lt Sein Pit, a DKBA officer, denied DKBA forces were directly involved in an attack on tourists on the Thai side of the border. He said his mission was to put pressure on Karen refugees in a bid to get them to return to Burma. He said there was no policy to harm innocent Thais living along the border. ************************************************************** NATION: BURMA CONFIRMS DECISION TO SIGN ASEAN NUCLEAR- FREE TREATY December 5, 1995 (abridged) JAKARTA Burma has confirmed that, along with nine other countries, it will probably sign a treaty during the fifth summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations next week that will make the region a nuclear weapons-free zone. Besides Burma, the nine are the seven member nations of Asean Brunei Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam plus Cambodia and Laos. "We are very interested in the treaty, so of course we will sign it," a Burmese diplomat, who asked not to be named, said at the weekend. Southeast Asian countries want to use the treaty the result of nearly 10 years of negotiations to guarantee their rights to use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, while expressing their wish not to develop or possess nuclear weapons. The draft treaty, obtained by Kyodo, says that signatories should not "provide source or special fissionable material, or equipment or material especially designed or prepared for the processing , use or production of special fissionable material" to any non-nuclear state, except under conditions subject to the safeguards required by an article of the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty, or any nuclear weapon state, except in conformity with applicable safeguard agreements with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). "It is left to each country [signatory] to accept or refuse," said Indonesian Foreign Minister Ali Alatas. The treaty will allow some nuclear countries outside Southeast Asia to sign a supplementary protocol. The protocol is directed at the five declared nuclear countries, which are also members of the United Nations Security Council, in the hope that they will contribute to efforts to achieve general and complete disarmament to ensure international peace and security. " This protocol shall be open for signature by France, the People's Republic of China, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United States of America," the protocol said. The protocol says that signatories should not "use or threaten to use nuclear weapons against any state party to the treaty". It also says that each signatory, in exercising its national sovereignty, will "have the right to withdraw from this protocol if it decides that extraordinary events, related to the subject-matter of this protocol, have jeopardized its supreme national interests". ************************************************************* BKK POST: OBSERVERS TAKE CONTRASTING LINES ON BURMA'S CONVENTION December 12, 1995 (abridged) THREE KEY Countries differ over Burma's national convention that reconvened last week. The United States and Japan asked Rangoon to talk with prodemocracy elements, while Thailand distanced itself from the issue. The US statement, issued in Dublin where President Bill Clinton was on an official visit, called Burma's ruling junta to stop threatening the opposition National League for Democracy [NLD]and engage in peaceful dialogue. Meanwhile, Japanese Foreign minister Yohei Kono took a softer tone, urging Burma's rulers to listen to "various" opinions from pro-democracy camp when drawing up the constitution. " I hope the government will achieve national reconciliation listen to various views in the country, " Mr Kono said on Friday. " I want many people to voice various opinions. But maybe I cannot say so heedlessly, considering the situation people are in under the present administration," he said. Observers said the NLD, which recorded a landslide win in the l990 election, was trying to push the junta into holding talks. The US statement, expressing concern at recent events in Burma, said: "We and other governments have noted that under current circumstances, the National Convention convened by the Burmese authorities does not offer the opposition a meaningful opportunity to participate in the crucial decisions that will determine Burma's political future. "We understand that the National League for Democracy withdrew from the convention after its repeated requests for dialogue with the authorities were rejected, triggering a harsh and threatening response by the authorities. The US urged the junta to recognise public discussion in an environment free of intimidation. "We further urge the authorities to avoid threats or other measures against those who seek to express their views freely. We continue to believe that it is only through peaceful dialogue between the SLORC and recognised democratic leaders that national reconciliation will take place in Burma," the statement said. However, Foreign Minister Kasem S. Kasemsri told his Australian counterpart Gareth Evans that Thailand, in line with ASEAN's stance, respected the internal affairs of others. "We prefer diversity and, since we have to live with Burma as a neighbouring country, this is not a matter of experimenting," he said. Despite their different views all three countries benefit from economic links with Burma which is rich in natural resources. According to Burma's Ministry of National Planning and Economic Development, the United States, as of July ranked fourth among foreign investment countries with almost seven billion baht of the total capital investment, followed by Thailand with 6.6 billion baht and Japan, which ranked eighth, with 1.67 billion baht. Japan this year has granted large sums as "humanitarian assistance" to Rangoon. In March it provided a 290-million-baht aid package to develop Burma's border areas. Last month, Japan agreed to provide 1.25 billion baht as relief to cover a loan to Burma. The money will be used to buy machinery, raw materials and spare parts. ************************************************************** BURMESE JUNTA SAYS IT HAS MASS SUPPORT December 5, 1995 (Nation or Post - sorry, lost the citation) RANGOON- The Burmese junta said yesterday that thousands of people across Burma had rallied over the weekend in support of a constitutional convention which has been boycotted by the opposition. The official press reported that some 5,000 people rallied in two major districts in central Burma at Magwe and Monywa to "express unanimous support for the successful conclusion of the National Convention". The Magwe rally on Sunday was attended by some 30,000 people, mainly members of the Union Solidarity and development Association (USDA), state school students and teachers, as well as public service employees, newspapers reported. The USDA was formed by the ruling junta as a social organization, but analysts here see it as an eventual political power base for the military. In MONYWA some 55,000 people, comprising USDA members, government workers and local residents, marched on Sunday, shouting slogans in support of the National Convention, the newspapers said. The reports were aimed at drumming up public support for the convention, which opened last week to draw up a new constitution, but was boycotted by Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD), analysts said. Aung San Suu Kyi, speaking at one of her weekend public addresses outside her house on Sunday, said she had received a letter from Monywa which said the public had been coerced into attending the mass rally. " On Saturday, motor vehicles equipped with loudspeakers roamed the streets of Monywa, saying that one person from each household must attend the Sunday rally or face the consequences," she quoted the letter as saying. It also said that local authorities had made house calls to remind people they would face fines if anyone refused to show up. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- BURMANET SUBJECT-MATTER RESOURCE LIST BurmaNet regularly receives enquiries on a number of different topics related to Burma. 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