------------------------ BurmaNet ------------------------ "Appropriate Information Technologies, Practical Strategies" ---------------------------------------------------------- The BurmaNet News: February 4, 1996 Issue #338 Noted in Passing: Surrender is out of the question - Nerdah Mya, KNU President General Bo Mya's son. (see BKK POST: KAREN REBELS BRACE FOR FINAL SHOWDOWN) HEADLINES: ========== ABSDF-MTZ: LETTER TO KNU ON 47TH REVOLUTION DAY THE HINDU: INA VETERANS RETRACE "DILL CHALO" ROUTE BKK POST: AMENDMENTS SOUGHT OVER EXPLOITATION OF BURMESE BKK POST: AMNESTY WORRIED ABOUT FATE OF BURMESE JAILED BKK POST: RIVAL KAREN FACTIONS IN FIERCE FIGHTING NATION: BORDER TRADE WITH BURMA TO RESUME NATION: BURMA WOOS CHINA BKK POST: KAREN REBELS BRACE FOR FINAL SHOWDOWN ASIAN AGE: SIX BURMESE WITH FORGED CHINESE PAPERS HELD IRISH TIMES: RESPONSIBLE THIRD WORLD TOURISM ADVOCATED INDEPENDENT LETTER: RE: INDIANA ALUMNI LETTER BAC: COLUMBIA LINKED TO WEAPONS PURCHASES IN BURMA DRAFT LETTER TO LOBBY SENATORS - BURMA BILL ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ABSDF-MTZ: LETTER TO KNU ON 47TH REVOLUTION DAY February 1, 1996 On 31 January 1996, commemoration of the 47th anniversary of the Karen Revolution day was held at the KNU headquarters. To General Bo Mya Chairman Karen National Union Subject Message of felicitation on the 47th anniversary of the Karen Revolution Day. The ABSDF conveys its sincere greetings on the occasion of the Karen Revolution Day on January 31, 1996. On this auspicious occasion we are not able to attend the ceremony because of various problems but we feel that we are together with members of the Karen National Revolution. On the 47th anniversary of the Karen Revolution Day we gladly honor members of the Karen National Union and the Karen National Liberation Army for valiantly raising the Karen national flag and continue with the armed struggle against all sorts of obstacles and difficulties to strive for national rights and privileges and to free from the oppression of successive military governments of Burma. We pay homage to all the Karen leaders and all the Karen revolutionary martyrs who have given up their lives so nobly and so valiantly during the course of the Karen revolutionary struggle against successive governments of military dictators. We extend our best wishes to General Bo Mya and members of the Karen National Revolution who have made great sacrifice to uphold the Karen Revolutionary flag against various problems and difficulties and carry on with the fight against military dictators for the rights and privileges of the Karens and other nationals and for democracy in Burma. The ABSDF sincerely expresses it's resolution to firmly join hands with the armed forces of the Karen revolution and struggle on until our goal of democracy and the establishment of a Federal Union is realised. May the just Karen Revolution be victorious Down with military dictators. Central Excutive committee All Burma Students Democratic Front 8888 ****************************************************** THE HINDU: INA VETERANS RETRACE "DILL CHALO" ROUTE January 30, 1996 (slightly abridged) From: fdhr!chan@unv.ernet.in New Delhi, Jan. 29: The route of "Dilli Chalo", the historic march of the Indian National Army (INA) led by Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose 50 years ago, was retraced by an 18-member expedition which reached the Capital last evening from Singapore. Completing the route in 43 days in five year jeeps which retraced the 800-km-long tortuous route, the expedition passed through Malaysia, Thailand and Myanmar before touching the Indian soil on North-Eastern States. The expedition was airlifted from Yangon to Imphal, aboard an IL-76 transport aircraft and only the second flight in the region since 1954, said Mr. Akhil Bakshi, at a press conference today. Col. Dhillon and Col. Lakshmi Sahgal, along with the three-member film crew, stayed back in Myanmar to visit the historic battle fronts at Meiktila, Bagan, Monywa, Mount Popa and the operational headquarters of the INA at Mandalay where Lala Lajpat Rai and Bal Gangadhar Tilak were lodged in jail. Talking about their experience, Col. Dhillon, Col. Sehgal and Capt. Yadava, said they were overwhelmed by emotions when they visited battle fronts in Myanmar. "Some of the areas looked exactly the same as we have left them 50 years ago. It was really surprising and nostalgic too," said Col. Dhillion. Mr. Sunil Dutt said the expedition was sponsored by the people of India and the purpose behind it was to make an attempt to recreate the same feelings of patriotism and nationalism that had prompted hordes of people to join the "Dilli Chalo" march of Netaji. He said throughout the rout the expedition was greeted warmly by the people who offered all help. The film-star-turned-politician said that at several stretches they could hardly cover 12 to 14 km in an hour owing to the massive response of the public. **************************************************************** BKK POST: AMENDMENTS SOUGHT OVER EXPLOITATION OF BURMESE February 3, 1996 (abridged) LAWS must be amended to prevent the exploitation of immigrant workers from Burma, academics and social activists told a seminar yesterday. Attention needed to be paid to working conditions, welfare and wage discrimination, the seminar organised by Thammasat University Student Organisation and Committee for Democracy Promotion for Myanmar (Burma) was told. The discussion was arranged after one Burmese illegal immigrant was killed and 55 seriously hurt in a Jan 14, on a boat in which they ere being smuggled from Koh Pang-nga to Phuket. Dr Kittaya Achawanijkul of Mahidol University's Institute for Population and Society Research said governments had not done enough for the well-being of Burmese here. The government had to extend to foreign workers the same conditions it demanded of foreign countries for Thai workers, he said. ****************************************************** BKK POST: AMNESTY WORRIED ABOUT FATE OF BURMESE JAILED FOR WRITING POEM February 3, 1996 AMNESTY International said it was concerned about the well-being of six members of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy arrested in Burma last month. The international human rights organisation said in a statement received in Bangkok yesterday that the six men were detained apparently for having written a poem commemorating the 1991 death in custody of former opposition leader Tin Maung Win. "Amnesty International is gravely concerned for the well-being of six men arrested on 27 January, 1996, in Rangoon by military Intelligence Unit 6," the statement said. "Their arrests form part of he continuing crackdown, begun in mid-December 1995 against members and supporters of the NLD, Myanmar's (Burma's) leading opposition party, founded in 1988 by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi." Amnesty said dozens had been arrested for peaceful political activities, with those detained at risk of torture or ill-treatment which it said was common during interrogation and after sentencing. "In addition, conditions in Myanmar's prisons fall far short of international minimum standards, with lack of access to proper medical treatment, overcrowding, and insufficient food all serious concerns." According to the Amnesty statement, the six men held a religious ceremony to mark the 18 January anniversary of Tin Maung Win's death, during which they presented a poem they had written to his family. "The authorities claimed that U Tin Maung Win, an NLD member arrested in October 1990, died from leukaemia, but unofficial sources suggested that the cause of death was ill-treatment or harsh detention conditions, as there was no prior indication of the disease," Amnesty said. The six men have not been heard from since their arrest and are believed to be held at the military intelligence unit's headquarters. They have not been charged, Amnesty said. Burma's ruling State Law and Order Restoration Council took power in 1988 after suppressing a six-month pro-democracy uprising during which thousands of people were killed or wounded and many more imprisoned. Amnesty said about 2,000 political prisoners, including Suu Kyi, have been released from jail but hundreds more remained in prison. Since Suu Kyi's NLD party in late November withdrew from the SLORC-convened National Convention, which is being held to draw up guidelines for a new constitution the government has cracked down on NLD members. Several people have been detained for possessing and distributing videotapes of Suu Kyi's weekend speeches and others arrested for satirizing the SLORC in dance performances, Amnesty said. **************************************** BKK POST: RIVAL KAREN FACTIONS IN FIERCE FIGHTING NEAR BORDER February 3, 1996 Mae Sot, AP HEAVY fighting erupted on Thursday in Burma between ethnic Karen rebels and troops loyal to the government, Thai officials said. There were no immediate reports of casualties. The Thai army rushed reinforcements to its border to prevent incursions by either group, the Border Patrol Police(BPP) said. Soldiers of the Karen National Union, which has been fighting for autonomy from Rangoon since 1948, were battling a splinter group of their own people called the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army. The Burmese army, which supports the splinter group had been shelling KNU positions, said Thai border police officers They said the fighting is taking place about eight kilometres from the Thai border province of Tak. The battle broke out when KNU troops intercepted a contingent of about 100 splinter group guerrillas advancing towards refugee camps housing KNU supporters in Thailand More than 70,000 Karen refugees, most of whom support the KNU, are living in the camps just over the Thai border. They have been frequent targets of the splinter group, and at times, the Burmese army. The frequent cross-border raids have fuelled tensions between Thailand and Burma. KNU officials had warned recently that the Burmese army was massing for an attack. Villagers rear the border, meanwhile, reported seeing convoys of Thai troops headed towards the border area, along with jeep- mounted artillery. Earlier this week, marauders from the splinter group of Karen attacked a BPP check point and a temple, killing a policeman, a monk and a villager. Thai military officers said border patrols will be stepped up around the clock. Defence Minister Chavalit Yongchaiyudh told the Associated Press in Bangkok Thursday that army commanders along the border had requested more troops. ************************************************************ NATION: BORDER TRADE WITH BURMA TO RESUME February 3, 1996 PRIME Minister Banharn Silapa-archa will visit Burma in March to sign a trade agreement to return border trade to normal after its cessation last year, Deputy Commerce Minister Montri Danphaibool said yesterday. After the trade agreement is signed, border points will be opened in Chiang Rai, Tak and Ranong provinces, he said. Thailand will introduce a one-stop service to facilitate trade, he said. However, the new trade system will be regulated because businessmen must purchase bankers' drafts from designated banks to carry out transactions. The two countries have not managed to reach an agreement on the price ceilings for the drafts, Montri said. Thailand proposed a limit of up to US$ 20,000, but Burma wanted the drafts restricted to US$ 2,500- US$ 5,000, similar to its trade agreements with India and Bangladesh, he said. Montri said trade volume would increase following the signing of the trade agreement. Under the pact, businessmen will be allowed to enter Burma for 12 hours up to four days. Thai officials said trade volume with Burma has continued to increase despite the closure of the border. Thai businessmen have sent their goods via third countries, such as Singapore and China, which has increased transport costs and raised prices, the officials said. ******************************** NATION: BURMA WOOS CHINA February 2, 1996 RANGOON - Burma has formed a high level committee to further increase already strong economic and trade ties with neighbouring China, a state-owned newspaper said yesterday. China is one of Burma's major trading partners, along with Singapore, Thailand, Japan and India. The 12-member committee includes key government ministers and is headed by Lt Gen Khin Nyunt, secretary of the ruling military council. The New Light of Myanmar said the Sino-Myanmar Economic Promotion Committee, formed on Wednesday, was designed to boost economic cooperation with China and help implement Burma's own five-year economic plan. A similar body to increase economic ties with Singapore was formed in 1994. According to the Chinese Embassy, trade volume between the two countries reached US$ 600 million last year, an increase of 18 per cent over the previous year. *********************************** BKK POST: KAREN REBELS BRACE FOR FINAL SHOWDOWN February 3, 1996 by Bruce Stanley, in Teakaplaw, Burma, AP This article appeared with a photo in which Karen women perform a traditional dance Wednesday to celebrate their people's struggle for independence from Rangoon. IN a clearing hacked from the Burmese jungle, white-gloved Karen guerrillas marched to the music of a choir and an electric guitar. They paraded to honour their comrades killed in one of the world's oldest insurgencies, as a new generation of fighters, some barely in their teens, cradled their weapons and watched. The Karen are the last major group of ethnic rebels that refuses to surrender or cut a deal with Burma's military rulers. The Burmese army, which ousted the Karen from bigger strongholds last year has been gathering reinforcements for what could be a decisive push against them. Fighting was reported on Thursday near the Thai border, but it was unclear if it was the start of a major government offensive. "Actually, we are not fighting the SLORC alone," said Do Thaw Da, secretary of health and welfare in the Karen civilian administration. "We have to fight the world. The foreigners who invest in Burma are our enemies indirectly." About 400 Karen soldiers and villagers met at this remote jungle base Wednesday to mark the 47th year of their fight for freedom_ a fight that may soon face its toughest challenge. Their leader, Gen Bo Mya, told The Associated Press that his outnumbered troops plan soon to launch an urban guerrilla campaign to carry their war to the streets of Burma's capital, Rangoon, and other cities. This shift in tactics, together with renewed efforts to discourage foreign investors from helping to prop up the Burmese economy, is the only way the Karen can expect to win their freedom, he said. "We've been trying our best for 47 years, but we don't want to be terrorists _ to blow up bridges or to go and capture villagers and use them as porters," he said. Bo Mya, speaking after the songs and parade had ended, insisted that his men would not attack civilians. Still, he acknowledged the need to wage a more aggressive fight. "We have to use conventional warfare. We have to use guerrilla warfare. We're going to make more attacks in the cities," he said. The Karen, many of whom are Protestant Christians, began their struggle in 1948, the same year Burma won its independence from Britain. Like several of Burma's other ethnic minorities, they fought for autonomy or, at the minimum, a federal form of government that promised a degree of self-determination. However, Burma's military has made peace pacts with most of the minorities since it seized power in 1988. It coaxed Khun Sa's men into laying down arms in early January, and Burmese troops are now attacking the Karenni, a smaller ethnic group related to the Karen. Bo Mya said the Karen and their 5,000 fighters are the government's next and final target. The two sides held peace talks in December and plan to meet again in February, but Karen officials say they expect the talks to fail because the government only wants total surrender. "Surrender is out of the question," said the general's son and foreign affairs adviser, Nerdah "Rocky" Mya. "We want to have a peaceful dialogue." Wednesday's celebration included traditional dancers, who like many of the guests, travelled to Teakaplaw in the backs of pick-up trucks, bouncing for hours along rutted tracks of dried mud. Children played with balloons and mothers nursed babies as Bo Mya urged them on to victory, speaking through a microphone powered by a car battery. The festivities ended with a feast of boiled beef, after a 30-member choir sang a Karen anthem that sounded remarkably like the American folk song "Home on the Range". Dozens of Karen soldiers, bristling with grenade launchers and rifles, guarded the crowd. Several of them were children just slightly taller than their weapons_ the latest generation to take up arms in the desperate fight. Karen leaders say their troops must .make much of their own ammunition and depend on weapons captured from government troops. The Burmese army grows stronger, meanwhile, with ample supplies from China and elsewhere. The government's military intelligence also infiltrates every segment of society making sustained urban attacks by the Karen very difficult. ************************************************ NATION: PDP KEEPS CLOSE EYE ON MA KHINE' AFFAIR February 3, 1996 (abridged) Thaksin has 'information' on Suchart's Burmese partner THE controversy over Deputy Interior Minister Suchart Tancharoen's business relationship with a Burmese woman took a new twist yesterday when Deputy Prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra said he had considerable information" on her business activities. "We won't interfere with this internal matter of the Chat Thai Party. But if the public wants us to take a stand we will consider its wishes." Some reports claimed that the group and its Burmese connections were also involved in stock manipulation, and even money laundering. The woman became controversial after an article written by Prasong Soonsiri, who as ex-foreign minister and former chief of the National Security Council has in-depth knowledge of Thai-Burmese affairs, alleged that "a Cabinet member" was capitalizing on his relationship with a Burmese woman to reap logging profits. Press reports said Ma Khine Zaw had a considerable investment in the Thai stock market. Democrat Surin Pitsuwan, former deputy foreign minister, has called on the Foreign Ministry, the immigration police and the National Security Council to investigate her background. Matichon, in its reports, mentioned without naming names what it suggested was a conspiracy in which Thai logs were "laundered" in Burma, or Burmese logs were legally cut with profits going to a group of politicians with Burmese connections. The same group, it was reported, took over money-losing firms listed on the Thai stock market, manipulated share prices and sold out at a huge profit. **************************************************** ASIAN AGE: SIX BURMESE WITH FORGED CHINESE PAPERS HELD January 31, 1996 India Security officials at Beijing's Capital Airport detained six Burmese after finding three of them holding forged Chinese identify papers, the Beijing Evening News said on Tuesday. They were picked up on Sunday as they were trying to leave on a flight for Kunming, capital of the southern province of Yunnan. (Reuter) ********************************************************** IRISH TIMES: RESPONSIBLE THIRD WORLD TOURISM ADVOCATED January 30, 1996 [excerpt] by Mark Brennock Tourists should not travel in ignorance to the third world countries marketed as holiday playgrounds for the well off, a campaigner for responsible tourism said in Dublin yesterday. In many such countries, peoples had been displaced, natural resources damaged and tourist revenues used to buy weapons, warned Mr. Paul Gonsalves of the Ecumenical Coalition on Third World Tourism. The development agency Trocaire invited him to Dublin to speak last night. "If you are choosing to go on holiday to the third world, it is your responsibility to find out more than the tourist brochures tell you about the conditions there, and then decide whether you are making the right decision," he said. The Burmese authorities had designated this year as "Visit Burma Year," he said. Every tourist must change $300 at the border, "and that money is going into the hands of the military to buy guns to kill their own people. Do you want your money to be used in this way?" ********************************************************** INDEPENDENT LETTER: RE: INDIANA ALUMNI DIRECTOR'S RESPONSE - COMMENTS February 2, 1996 From: David Wolfberg [Editor's note: Several students, alumni, and faculty have written to Jerry Tardy, the director of Indiana University Alumni Association, protesting the alumni group's plan to tour Burma this spring. Tardy replied to one of the letter-writers, and his response, along with comments by David Wolfberg, a Burma activist involved in the tourism campaign, are presented here.] >From: Jerry Tardy >To: egass@indiana.edu > JT:>Thank you for your note of concern. Twenty-five alumni have signed up for >our 18-day tour to Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Burma, and Hong Kong. >We believe we have a commitment to honor our contract with them. DW: UCLA cancelled sponsorship without worrying about a "contract" because the travelers were given the option to contact the tour operator and continue with the Tour, with UCLA's name withdrawn because of human rights concerns. Similarly, IU can pull its name and allow the alumni to make their own decision from there. What Jerry doesn't mention is the difference -- if IU pulls sponsorship, they'll lose money. Of greater interest would be the contract itself, which probably would not be violated if the tour is cancelled. Tours change all the time due to varying circumstances and the contracts are written to avoid lawsuits in such an event. JT: I'd like to share with you a few points that haven't emerged in published reports. No university has canceled its trip. DW: TRUE. UCLA has only "cancelled sponsorship". UCLA cannot cancel Burma Passage because UCLA isn't the actual operator. JT: Fifteen schools are operating tours >that include a stop in Burma. MIT, Bucknell, Emory, Syracuse, and >Saskatchewan recently returned from trips to the area. Yale, Northwestern, >Illinois, Penn State, Washington (St. Louis), Brown, and the University of >Southern California all have trips scheduled. UCLA's Alumni Association >did withdraw its sponsorship while allowing the tour to go forward; it is >the only school to have done so. UCLA's 18 passengers completed the tour, >but the Alumni Association was unable to provide the sort of educational >support that we are providing. > DW: UCLA was able to provide a wealth of materials about tourism-linked forced labor -- a hell of a lot more than most tourists will be exposed to on a Disney-style luxury cruise. JT: >In visiting Burma, we are in no way siding with the repressive, >authoritarian military government. DW: This is a very important statement which should be used in press materials. Headline possibility: "Indiana University Sees Burma Regime as `repressive, authoritarian' -- But Continues With Tour" The statement / release, if anyone has time to do it, should be brought to SLORC's attention and then SLORC may be the ones to cancel the tour. JT: We are very sympathetic to the >concerns that have been voiced by the students. Visiting a country does >not mean endorsing the policies of its government. When it became >possible for Americans to travel to the People's Republic of China in the >late 1970s, we were the first university in the country to sponsor an >alumni tour there. That tour was no more an endorsement of the Chinese >government than this stop on our itinerary is an endorsement of Burma's >dictatorship. DW: FYI, His Holiness The Dalai Lama fully supports Aung San Suu Kyi and the drive to stop investment to SLORC-controlled Burma. But His Holiness believes tourism would be good for Tibet. It's very different with Burma. JT: >We have mailed to the participants information from The New York Times and >the Christian Science Monitor about the political situation in Burma. DW: Which information? The Christian Science Monitor at one point filed an atrocious report about how things were improving with investment in Burma. JT: >These participants are aware of what's going on in Burma. They have >chosen to go on this trip. We do not believe that we have the right to overrule >their choice, to make their decision for them. DW: I would agree with this. But IU can make a clear statement as to their position by cancelling sponsorship... which doesn't mean making the decision for their alumni who go. JT:>A lecturer on board ship will inform travelers of the situation in the >various ports of call, which also include Malaysia and Thailand. Tom >Bartlett is well versed and well informed, having undertaken assignments >in Southeast Asia for the State Department and the United Nations. DW: What is Mr. Bartlett's experience with regard to Burma? JT:>We have offered to share with our travelers a position statement from the >Burmese Student Association, and we are trying to arrange a meeting of >students with our travelers upon their return. This conversation, >reflecting different points of view, is part of the free exchange of ideas >that education and democracy are all about. We believe that it would make >an interesting, informational article in the alumni magazine. In this way >our 60,000 members can learn some of the issues, weigh the information, >and form their own opinions. DW: It would have been nice for this to happen BEFORE the travellers go. JT: >An editorial in the Indiana Daily Student stated, "With each tourist that >crosses the border into Burma, the State Law and Order Restoration Council >receives $300 for its military coffers." A representative of Intrav, the >St. Louis-based company that planned this tour, informs us that the $300 >is waived for its group travelers, who will be staying aboard a Norwegian >ship docked in the harbor. DW: In all likelihood, according to Edith Mirante, the ship will pay a docking fee directly to SLORC. JT: >From the founding of the republic, Americans have agreed to disagree; that >is part of what it means to be a democracy. I respect your point of view >and appreciate your concern. > >Jerry Tardy >Executive Director >Indiana University Alumni Association DW: Over all, this response is better than most. It addresses many of the concerns by encouraging an open dialogue. Tun Myint, Mr. Horne and others have clearly made an impact, and ought to be commended. **************************************************************** BAC: COLUMBIA LINKED TO WEAPONS PURCHASES IN BURMA February 2, 1996 From: Brischmidt@aol.com Dear All- Please publicize this as widely as possible, especially to media outlets and to retailers of Columbia's clothing. BAC thinks this could be the lead issue in attracting attention to Columbia and getting them to withdraw. -Brian Schmidt Burma Action Committee (BAC) ************ COLUMBIA SPORTSWEAR LINKED TO WEAPONS PURCHASES IN BURMA Contact: Matt Donohue (503) 786-9517, Brian Schmidt (503) 236-9776, brischmidt@aol.com Portland OR: The Burma Action Committee (BAC) accused Columbia Sportswear of involvement in an arrangement where a percentage of the profits from the manufacture of its clothing in Burma is directed to weapons purchases by the country's dictatorship. BAC said Columbia contracts manufacturing to Myanmar Segye International, a joint venture between South Korea's Segye and the Union of Myanmar Economic Holdings (Umeh). Umeh is owned members of Burma's army and 40% owned by the Defense Ministry Department of Procurement for the State Law and Order Restoration Council, the governing body of Burma's dictatorship, considered by many experts to be one of the most repressive in the world. "Go ahead and call it Columbia-gate," said Brian Schmidt of the BAC. "The connection between Columbia and support for Burma's dictatorship is now clear. This is only the worst violation of any possible business ethic. Anyone can verify this information with a single reference to published information and a phone call to Columbia. The most important question now is not what did Columbia know and when did they know it, but whether they are going to act responsibly now that the information is public and get out of Burma." Schmidt described how the arrangement was established where sales of Columbia's clothing finance Burma's weapons. "A Korean multinational corporation, Segeye, decided to invest in Burma and establish a textile manufacturing presence in Burma. To do so it established a new corporation that is a joint venture between Segeye and a Burmese corporation, the Union of Myanmar Economic Holdings (Umeh). Umeh holds between 40 and 50% of the ownership of the joint venture, 40% being the figure released by Columbia. Columbia Sportswear has since contracted with the joint venture to manufacture portion of its outdoor clothing line. This arrangement, however, falsely pretends that Umeh is an independent corporation. Umeh was set up in 1990 by the army to control foreign investment in the country. Current and retired military personnel run Umeh, and a 40% share of the company is owned by the Department of Procurement, which buys weapons for the Defence Ministry. The information about Umeh is publicly known and was last mentioned in the January 18 Far Eastern Economic Review." "The money trail is simple to follow. The consumer buys clothing from Columbia, and Columbia uses the consumer's money to pay the joint venture in Burma that made the clothing. Of the profits that the joint venture makes from the consumer's money and distributes to its owners, at least 40% goes to Umeh, and 40% of that money from the consumer goes to buy weapons." Schmidt concluded, "The consumer can look at a Columbia Sportswear display and know that one-sixth of the profits that are distributed in Burma are funnelled directly to weapons for a regime that is one of the most repressive on the planet. Activists around the country are not asking Columbia to shut down its entire operations, but just to stop providing direct support for dictators. The outdoor clothing Columbia is really making in Burma is body bags." Burma Action Committee (formerly the Pepsi-Burma Boycott Committee) is a Portland-based grass-roots organization supporting a boycott of companies investing in Burma. It emphasizes consumer activism and education, supports campus groups, and promotes local and national legislation that call for divestment from Burma. BAC's address is PO Box 1926, Portland OR, 97207. Columbia Sportswear's address is 6600 N. Baltimore, Portland OR 97203, (503) 286-3676. ****************************************************** DRAFT LETTER TO LOBBY SENATORS - BURMA BILL January 31, 1996 From: reaproy@cais.cais.com (Phil Robertson) Dear Friends of Burma, Now is the time to write your Senator and tell him or her that you want them to support the McConnell bill for sanctions on Burma! We have to get this bill moving, get some momentum behind it, and get it passed. If you haven't written both of your Senators, please stop, take 10 minutes and adapt this letter as you see fit and send it! 10 minutes and 64 cents, and you will feel great! It's the grassroots pressure that is going to win this fight in Washington, D.C., that's the thing that sets this movement apart from others. Please make your contribution now, every letter counts! And remember, when you receive a reply back from your Senators, make a copy and send it to U Soe Pyne, NCGUB, 815 15th Street, N.W., Suite 910, Washington, D.C. 20005. That way we can check to see that what your Senator is telling you is what he's really doing! Thanks again for your support -- keep pushing and we'll win! Cheers, Phil Robertson Thanks also to Simon Billenness, whose draft was helpful in putting together this letter. ========================== Senator _________ U.S. Senate Washington, D.C. 20510 Dear Senator ______, I write to inform you of my very wholehearted support for bill S. 1511, the Burma Freedom and Democracy Act of 1995. I strongly urge you to become a co-sponsor of this important legislation and support its passage in committee and when it comes to the floor of the Senate. This bi-partisan bill, co-sponsored by Senators McConnell, Moynihan, D'Amato and Leahy, seeks to impose economic sanctions on the military junta of Burma. As you may know, after brutally crushing peaceful pro-democracy demonstrations in 1988 and killing an estimated 3000 protesters in the capital city of Rangoon alone in the process, the Burmese military junta formed the State Law & Order Restoration Council (SLORC). The SLORC regime continues to be rated as one of the worst human rights abusers in the world by highly reputable human rights organizations like Human Rights Watch/Asia. Since 1988, despite condemnation by the world community and annual United Nations General Assembly urging respect for human rights and seeking a negotiated transition to democratic rule, the SLORC has refused to loosen its grip on power. In 1990, the SLORC held elections (which were judged free and fair by the international community) in the belief that it was popular enough to win. When the National League for Democracy (NLD), led by Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, won over 80% of the seats, it decided to annul the election and then harass and imprison elected Members of Parliament from the NLD and allied parties and their supporters in an effort destroy the democratic forces through violence and intimidation. Although the SLORC released Aung San Suu Kyi from six years of house arrest in 1995, she has repeatedly stated in press interviews that nothing else has changed in Burma and that foreign investors should stay away. In this call, she echoes the voice of Nelson Mandela and the ANC when they were struggling against apartheid. Despite repeated calls by Aung San Suu Kyi for dialogue, the SLORC has refused even to meet with her and other leaders of the democracy movement. Meanwhile, the SLORC continues to crack down on pro-democracy activists; refuses to allow the Red Cross access to political prisoners despite pledges to Congressman Bill Richardson to do so. According to both the International Labor Organization and the UN's Special Rapporteur on Human Right in Burma, Prof. Yozo Yokota, SLORC regularly uses forced labor for infrastructure projects. Last year, three American cities -- Berkeley (CA), Madison (WI) and Santa Monica (CA) -- voted to boycott companies that do business in Burma. Similar legislation has also passed the Massachusetts lower house and has been introduced in the New York City Council. Just as we Americans supported Nelson Mandela's call for economic sanctions against the apartheid regime in South Africa, we should respect Aung San Suu Kyi's request that corporations not invest in Burma at this time. Passage of the Burma Freedom and Democracy Act of 1995 (S. 1511) would send a clear signal to the SLORC that the United States supports the Burmese democracy movement. I hope that you will step forward and join with the bi-partisan coalition of Senators behind this effort and immediately co-sponsor the Burma Freedom and Democracy Act of 1995. I look forward to hearing from you soon on this important issue to me. With best wishes, Sincerely, *************************************************************