Subject: BurmaNet News February 2, 1997 Date: Sun, 02 Feb 1997 04:02:19 -0800 (PST) From: strider@igc.apc.org Reply-To: Conference "reg.burma" To: Recipients of burmanet-l ------------------------ BurmaNet ------------------------ "Appropriate Information Technologies, Practical Strategies" ---------------------------------------------------------- The BurmaNet News: February 2, 1997 Issue #626 HEADLINES: ========== BURMA ISSUES: UPDATE ON KAREN REFUGEE CAMPS NEW YORK TIMES: UNOCAL SIGNS BURMESE GAS DEAL THE NATION: KAREN REBELS FIRE AT THAI MILIARY JET THE NATION : US CONDEMNS BURMA FOR ROLE IN CAMP ATTACKS REUTER : THAI PTTEP PTTE.BK UNIT IN NATGAS DEAL WITH BURMA VOA: BURMA- HUMAN RIGHTS AFP: THAI GOVERNOR FLAG ORDER VOA: BURMA CONFERENCE/AMERICAN UNIVERSITY ASSOCIATED PRESS : BURMESE REBELS CELEBRATE REVOLT BRC-J: AN URGENT APPEAL FOR HELP DOS: BURMA REPORT ON HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES FOR 1996 REQUEST: WILL INDIA BUY BURMESE GAS? ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- BURMA ISSUES: UPDATE ON KAREN REFUGEE CAMPS February 1, 1997 From: Burma Issues Report #2 1 Febuary 1997 5:00 pm Thailand time The following report has been confirmed by several of our staff who returned from Mae La (Beh Klaw). They indicated that there were from 300-500 soldiers on the Thai side. Several thousand refugees have moved across the road into the jungles and mountains that lie deeper in Thailand to seek safe refuge for the night. There are only about 30 Thai border patrol officers near the camp and our friends expect that they will move out when the shelling begins. So far the Thai military has been reluctant to interfere with Burmese military incursions that are directed against the refugees. The situation is currently very tense, and our staff were urged to leave the area later this afternoon. Other friends went further north and will provide more information when they return later today. 1 Febuary 1997 2:30pm Thailand time. Friends from our border office have been discussing the current situation with people from the nearby camps and have forwarded the following information to us. Most of is was obtained from intercepted radio transmissions. Last night units of soldiers crossed the Moi River from Burma into Thailand, near Mae La (Beh Klaw) camp (population approx. 25,000). The southern group is predominantly DKBA while the northern group consists of Slorc soldiers. While entering Thailand, the southern group met Thai soldiers and they exchanged fire, but the Thai soldiers pulled back. Currently both groups are hiding in the mountains between the border and Mae La (Beh Klaw) camp. The two groups combined have a total of 400-500 soldiers. Tonight, a third group of soldiers located along the Burmese bank of the Moei River plan to initiate the attack by shelling Mae La (Beh Klaw) camp, after which the two groups will attack from the north and south. Currently residents of Mae La (Beh Klaw) are moving across the road and into the Thai jungles on the other side. For those not familiar with the geography it looks like this: |M| ^ : : ^ |O| T ^ : : ^ B |E| H ^ C :R: ^ U |I| A ^ A :O: ^ R | | I ^ M :A: ^ M |R| L ^ P :D: ^ A |I| A ^ : : ^ |V| N ^ : : ^ |E| D ^ : : ^ |R| ^ : : ^ Several of our staff will be returning from Mae La (Beh Klaw) and will be able to confirm current situation there. The KNU has been moving troops into the area, but we do not know to what extent. We also do not know what the Thai authorities are doing although one of our staff saw a several trucks carrying Thai soldiers, dressed in black (perhaps a one or more ranger units), in Mae Sot. They might be mobilizing to head north to Mae La (Beh Klaw). If the camp gets attacked tonight, the already serious refugee problems will be escalated significantly. Report #3 1 Febuary 1997 8:30 pm Thailand time The residents of Bay Klaw have been digging trenches to bury clothing and material goods. Despite the tense situation, many people are actively organizing and preparing ways to save their possessions and protect their families. Some residents of Bay Klaw also organized an effort to gather extra clothing to send to Huay Kalok and Huay Bone camps which have suffered extensive damage from the past weeks raids. It's amazing to hear that people who fear an imminent attack have taken time to help out their friends to the south. We have contact with a cellular phone that has been stationed in Bay Klaw camp and will try to keep as up-to-date as possible on the developments there. Sho Klo camp is north of Bay Klaw camp and had previously been difficult to attack due to a larger Thai military presence there. However, Sho Klo is also one of the most vulnerable because it is located so close to the boarder. Residents of Sho Klo report that the Thai military have pulled away from the camp leaving it exposed to attack by the Slorc troops who are currently just north of Bay Klaw. There are very unconfirmed reports that other camps along the boarder fear attacks and we are trying to confirm them. Contacting most of these camps will take at least one day's travel. There are worries that the Burmese military will try to launch offensives along most of the boarder in an effort to straife as many camps as possible. There are questions as to whether or not the troops near Bay Klaw will wait another night before they attack or not. Report #4 2 Febuary 1997 8:45 am Thailand time At 9:30 pm Feb. 1, one of our staff spoke to her friend at the Nai Amphur's office in Tha Song Yang near Sho Klo camp. Sho Klo camp was being shelled and rangers have returned to positions near Sho Klo and Mae Tan. She is currently enroute to the office to speak with the officials there. ******************************************** NEW YORK TIMES: UNOCAL SIGNS BURMESE GAS DEAL; U.S. MAY BAN SUCH PACTS February 1, 1997 David E. Sanger WASHINGTON -- As the Clinton administration weighs whether to impose a ban on new U.S. investment in Myanmar because of its human rights abuses, Unocal Corp. has signed a deal with the Burmese government to greatly expand its rights to explore and develop gas fields off the coast. The agreement was announced by Unocal on Thursday, the same day the State Department, in its annual human rights review, condemned the killing and torture of dissidents and ethnic minorities in Myanmar, formerly Burma. Though Unocal's statement made no mention of it, company officials confirmed Thursday that the Burmese government was paid a signing bonus of several million dollars. In recent weeks, administration officials say, there has been growing discussion in the White House and at the State Department about banning new investment in Myanmar by U.S. companies; a new law empowers President Clinton to impose sanctions if repression there worsens or if Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel peace laureate and opposition leader, is detained again. The State Department report notes that in recent months, Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi "has been severely restricted in her ability to receive visitors," and that at least 147 members of her party have been arrested. Unocal would be a major target of that ban, because it is already the largest American investor in Myanmar. Another major U.S. company that once operated there, Pepsico Inc., announced earlier this week that it would join a growing list of companies that are pulling out, partly because of protests by rights groups. Unocal denied Friday that it had acted quickly to strike the deal before any investment ban. "We do not believe that the sanctions are about to be implemented, and we hope they won't be," Barry Lane, a spokesman for the company, said Friday. "We believe sanctions are not good policy, and the best policy is engagement." Lane added: "We would never enter into a contract in haste. We have been negotiating the terms of this contract for six or nine months, and the Ministry of Energy in Myanmar set the date for the signing ceremony." Unocal's decision puts the administration in much the same position it found itself in early 1995, when Conoco Corp. announced a major deal with Iran. President Clinton ultimately ordered the company to void the contract and barred U.S. companies from investing in Iran. Conoco's deal was picked up by the French oil company Total, Unocal's partner in Myanmar. But some in the administration, including in the National Economic Council, have argued that a similar ban on investment in Myanmar would be useless because other nations are eager to trade there. This week Japan protested to the State Department about a Massachusetts law that prohibits the state from doing business with any company that does business in Myanmar; those companies include Sony and many of Japan's automakers. Others in the administration fear that a ban on doing business with Myanmar in the name of human rights would open the White House to more criticism of its China policy. That policy, reiterated by President Clinton just a few days ago, holds that continued trade and investment in China will ultimately bring freedom to the country. "There's a struggle on to come up with a way to differentiate China policy from Burma policy," one of Clinton's top economic aides said recently. "And here's what it comes down to: China's too rich to mess with, and Burma isn't." Unocal and Total are already partners in developing theYadana gas field, a $1.2 billion project that includes a pipeline to pump gas to Thailand. The new contract calls for the exploration of an adjacent field that covers more than 4,200 square miles. The Yadana project has been a constant source of lawsuits, protests and problems for Unocal. The International Labor Organization has accused Myanmar of using forced labor to guard the pipeline, and State Department officials say there is credible evidence that the Burmese military has leveled towns in the path of the pipeline construction. Villagers either are told to go elsewhere or are pressed into work for the military, the officials say. Unocal says it does not have evidence of any such abuses, and notes that all of the Burmese it employs are well paid. The State Department report confirmed that, saying, "The preponderance of evidence indicates that the pipeline project has paid its workers at least a market wage." ************************************************* THE NATION: KAREN REBELS FIRE AT THAI MILIARY JET February 1, 1997 Yindee Lertcharoenchok A THAI military plane flying on a reconnaissance mission over northern Tak province was fired upon on Thursday by Burmese backed Karen rebels, who earlier this week entered Thailand and burned down three border refugee camps in the area. The attack in Tha Song Yang district, prompted the OV-10 Bronco aircraft, which narrowly avoided being hit, and Thai ground forces to return fire. Although no one was injured during the Karen attack, it is the first time the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) has opened direct fire on a Thai military aircraft. The plane was part of military reinforcements sent in to secure the long Thai-Burmese border in Tak after armed DKBA forces launched lightning raids on Tuesday night on Karen refugee camps in three districts, killing one Thai man, an elderly Karen Woman and a three year old Karen child. Relief workers on the ground expressed concern yesterday for the refugees' safety after armed DKBA forces were spotted returning to Baan Huay Kalok, or Wangka camp, in Mae Sot district, which was almost completely razed during the raid. "They (DKBA) came in to assess their work. After finding out that a number of houses in Wangka survived the fire, they threatened to make another incursion to destroy what remained. The situation is very very tense," one worker said. The relief workers questioned whether Thai forces, who were said to have been posted to the area, had in fact been mobilised to deter further incursions. A senior Thai Army officer said yesterday that the Third Army Region Command, which is responsible for the northern region, was instructed by Army Commander in Chief Gen Chettha Thanajaro to take preventive measures against new incursions and to take action against any foreign intruders. He said Thai forces are on a constant patrol of the 100 kilometre long frontier, but admitted that it is difficult to spot the intruders, who are always on the move. During a trip to Chiang Rai yesterday, Chettha held a meeting with all senior commanding officers responsible for security in Tak to conduct a briefing on the situation on the ground. Another Thai official, who has been monitoring the situation , said that the Thai army had learned of a fresh deployment of more Burmese troops to the frontier area opposite Mae Sot, Umphang and Phop Phra districts. Relief workers said that Mawke camp in Phop Phra, which houses about 8,300 Karen refugees, and Shoklo in Tha Song Yang, which contains about 7,300 are at serious risk of coming under violent attack from the DKBA. They said that in the past few months DKBA forces have repeatedly entered the camps and warned refugees there to return to Burma or face forced eviction. The group gave similar threats over the past six months to residents of the three camps attacked on Tuesday. The DKBA has been attacking refugees taking asylum in Thailand since it broke away from the main Karen National Union (KNU) over two years ago. Foreign Minister Prachuab Chaiyasan said yesterday that Thailand has to introduce decisive measures to stop the incursions. Foreign Ministry Spokesman Surapong Jayanama said on Thrusday that the DKBA's "blatant violation of Thai sovereignty" clearly showed the "breakdown of Thai intelligence" and that responsible Thai military and security agencies need to send "a strong and clear signal" to the DKBA that Thailand will no tolerate further acts of violence and aggression. Relief workers and the KNU have accused the Burmese junta of being involved in the attacks. ******************* THE NATION : US CONDEMNS BURMA FOR ROLE IN CAMP ATTACKS February 1, 1997 WASHINGTON - The United State on Thursday deplored this week's attacks on refugee camps in Thailand by Burmese-backed Karen rebels and called on Rangoon to cease its support for the repression. The attackers from the Democratic Karen Buddhist Association (DKBA) set fire to two of the camps, destroying the homes of more than 10,000 ethnic Karen refugees on Jan 28 and Jan 29, the State Law Department said. "We all on the government of Burma to cease its support for repression and violence against the ethnic minorities and to respect international humanitarian principles and obligations towards refugees," the State Department said in statement. Thai relief workers and media accused the Burmese military's State Law and Order Restoration Council (Slorc) of being behind the raid, noting that there are Burmese bases within a few kilometres of the camps. Rangoon has denied any control over the actions of the DKBA, which has launched numerous intrusions against refugee camps in Thailand over the past year-and a half. The Slorc yesterday said that the pro-Rangoon rebels attacked refugees as a retaliatory measure. A statement issued by the Slorc and obtained by Reuter said that the DKBA, a break-away faction of the ethnic Karen rebel group, was responsible. It said members of the Karen National Union ( KNU) - the armed group fighting for autonomy from Rangoon had entered Burma from Thailand in December and killed six people in an attack on a DKBA village. "On the 28th of January some members from the DKBA retaliated by attacking some KNU camps," the statement said. KNU officials could not immediately be reached for comment on the December attack. The DKBA was formed in 1995 after a mutiny within the predominantly Christian KNU. It is supported by Rangoon's military government, rebel sources say. The KNU was formed in 1948 to fight for autonomy from Rangoon shortly after Burma gained independence from Britain. The KNU is one of the only remaining armed rebel groups still fighting Burma's military government. Since their 1995 breakaway, DKBA troops have entered Thailand and attacked camps housing about 70,000 refugees on the border several times. Scores of KNU members and members of their families have been killed or wounded over the past two years. Yesterday, the KNU condemned the "atrocities" committed by the DKBA and accused Rangoon of being behind the attacks. The KNU said in a statement that DKBA attacks on refugee camps had been launched with the aid of the Burmese government. At least two people were killed when the DKBA burned and looted two refugee camps housing more than 10,000 Karen refugees, border sources said. An attack on a third camp housing more than 25,000 refugees was turned back by Thai troops before dawn on Wednesday, the sources said. "We strongly and unequivocally condemn these atrocities by the DKBA against the innocent and the weak," the KNU statement said. The attacks were launched simultaneously against the Wangka and Don Pa Kiang refugee camps, just north of Mae Sot in western Thailand. "These attacks are acts of collaboration between the Slorc and the DKBA," it said. "The Slorc must bear the main responsibility for these barbaric acts." ******************************************* REUTER : THAI PTTEP PTTE.BK UNIT IN NATGAS DEAL WITH BURMA January 31, 1997 BANGKOK, Jan 31 (Reuter) - PTT Exploration and Production Plc (PTTEP) said its unit PTTEP International Co Ltd on Friday signed an agreement to develop and produce natural gas in Burma. PTTEP said in a statement to the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) that under the farm-in agreement, PTTEP International will develop, produce and transport natural gases under the Yetagun Project in Burma's Andaman Sea. PTTEP International will hold 14.1667 percent stake in the investment. Other partners include Texaco Inc , Premier Petroleum Myanmar Co and Nippon Oil Exploration (Burma), a unit of Nippon Oil 5001.T . The farm-in agreement will be effective after PTTEP signs a contract with the state-run Petroleum Authority of Thailand to trade natural gas from the Yetagun source and on the approval of the Thailand Burmese governments, the statement said. ********************************************* VOA: BURMA- HUMAN RIGHTS Gary Thomas February 1, 1997 Intro: Burma's military government has reacted to the US state Department's annual report on human rights. The report says repression of democracy activists has increased in Burma. VOA Correspondent Gary Thomas reports from Rangoon the reaction was a surprisingly mild one. Text: Foreign minister Ohn Gyaw gave what analysts say was a surprisingly muted reaction to the state department's criticism of burma's human rights record. Speaking at the government's monthly news conference Saturday, Ohn Gyaw called the report misleading, however Ohn Gyaw at the same time, praised the US charge d'affairs in Rangoon, Kent Wiedemann. // Ohn Gyaw act // We have a new charge d'affairs in the United States embassy and we hope that with this critical and pragmatic approach to the situation in our country, gradually the report -- which is a misleading one issued by the state department -- will eventually improve. // end act // Mr. Wiedemann however says he rejects the notion that any change in the annual report will come about because of him. He says that is the responsibility of burma's rulers -- the state law and order restoration council -- not him or the united states government. // Wiedemann act // To the extent that the foreign minister described me as being pragmatic, I would accept that compliment if it means that, uh, he sees me as being here to help solve problems. And, indeed, that is my role. But he must understand that from the united states perspective the principle -- most fundamental problem -- is human rights and the need for the government fulfilling its promise to move towards democratization and pluralistic government. And it is that problem we need to work together to solve. // end act // The charge d'affairs is the highest ranking US diplomat in Rangoon. The United States has declined to send an ambassador to Burma as a measure of its disapproval of the military government. The slorc was not well disposed towards the previous charge d'affairs -- Marilyn Meyers. The government's most recent crackdown came in December when students took to the streets to protest police brutality and demand the right to form a student union. Hundreds of people were detained. Although most have been released, 34 people were sentenced in January to prison terms of seven years each for their role in the protests. A spokesman said saturday there are no more people in custody awaiting trial. Asked why the trials are closed to public scrutiny, the official, who was not identified, says it is because of what he terms security reasons. // official act // However for security reasons there are time when we cannot allow other people in the court room other than those who are connected to the case, I would like to stress that the proceedings are being done in accordance with the law. // end act // The universities and even some secondary schools were closed after the protests and remain shut. Asked when they might re-open, an official would only say when it is appropriate. meanwhile the barricades in the streets around pre-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi's house remain up keeping all visitors including the media away. (signed) *************************************** AFP: THAI GOVERNOR ORDERS BORDER OUTPOSTS TO FLY THE THAI FLAG AT ALL February 1, 1997 FLAG ORDER: A Thai provincial governor has ordered border outposts to fly the flag at all times to avoid giving Myanmar the impression that Thailand had abandoned the territory. Mae Hong Son governor Pakdi Chomphuming said that the move was to ensure Myanmar recognised Thailand's sovereignty over the province. -- AFP. ****************************************************** VOA: BURMA CONFERENCE/AMERICAN UNIVERSITY February 1, 1997 Intro: A four-day burma conference has opened at Washington's American University. It is sponsored by the Free Burma Coalition. Khin Maung Htay of VOA's Burmese service was there to File this report. Text: Attended by some 250 people including Burma activists and Friends of Burma from all over the United States, the conference came just one week after the university conferred a doctor of Laws degree in absentia on burma's democracy leader and nobel Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi. The degree was accepted and the Commencement speech given on her behalf by her husband, Dr. Michael Aris, a british academic. American University president Dr. Benjamin Ladner, in welcoming the guests to the conference on saturday, spoke about the ideals and mission of his university in furthering justice and equality everywhere in the world. In responding to burmese press reaction to the American University's presentation of an honorary degree to Aung San Suu Kyi as being "a poison", Dr. Ladner has this to say about it. // Ladner act // This university has a long history of being on the right side of the right activities and the right events. (applause) The situation in burma is our event. // end act // Zarni is the founder of the Free Burma Coalition, a grass-roots organization based at the university of wisconsin in madison where he is studying for his doctorate in political science. The Coalition has a world-wide network especially on college campuses. It is inspired by and modeled after the anti-apartheid movement against South Africa. Hence the official name of the Conference : Burma: The South Africa of the 1990's - A Conference On activism and human rights. Zarni underscored the many successes gained by his organization including the latest one of a decision by the pepsi corporation to completely pull out of burma by may 31. // Zarni act // It sent a very strong signal to lawmakers around the world that this campaign enjoys a popular support not just within the country under Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's leadership but around the world as well. It's a very significant achievement. // end act // Among the speakers on the first day of the conference was Dr. Sein Win, a cousin of Aung San Suu Kyi and prime minister of the National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma (government in exile). He said that because of the many repressive measures by the state law and order restoration council (slorc), the military government, against Aung San Suu Kyi's party - the National League for Democracy -- congress should now pass a bill that will impose full sanctions against Burma. The United States Congress has already passed a conditional sanction against Burma and intends to impose in full measure if the burmese military government re-arrests Aung San Suu Kyi and harasses her party and its members. Dr. Sein win says that the slorc knows what it should do to avoid full US sanctions. // Win act // What they want is that they want the NLD party to exist legally but put so much restrictions and also put certain members of the NLD party in prison so that the NLD party could not function as a political party. // end act // Another speaker Dr. Mya Maung, professor of finance at Boston College rejects the burmese foreign minister U Ohn Gyaw's claim at the United Nations recently that the national economy is growing at eight-and-a-half per cent annually in Burma. He says that, on his recent visit to south east Asia, he found out that there are fifty thousand illegal burmese workers in Singapore and ten thousand in Malaysia. This reflects the adverse economic situation in Burma, Dr. Mya Maung said. // Maung act // So you can see what the burmese called the land has become the land unfit for human beings to live. There was a young minister of the eleventh century, pinya dynasty, spoke of such a land : a land where there are no doctors to take care of the sick; a land where there are no wisemen to teach the children how to learn and a land where there is no rule of law. This is just precisely what is happening in Burma. // end act // U Maung Maung, general secretary of the Federation of the Trade Unions of Burma and Dr. Maran Laraw, executive director of the Kachinland project usa also spoke about labor and ethnic affairs. U Tin Wynn, the burmese ambassador in Washington, denied the factual content of Dr. Sein Win and Dr. Mya Maung's remarks when contacted by phone. He said, in effect, that they are way off the mark from reality. The burmese ambassador, however, refused to go on tape for his response. (signed) Neb/sds ******************************************* ASSOCIATED PRESS : BURMESE REBELS CELEBRATE REVOLT Jiraporn Wongpaithoon January 31, 1997 TEAKAPLAW, Burma (AP) -- Burma's ethnic Karen rebels marked 48 years of revolt Friday, but celebrations were muted because thousands of refugees who were burned out of their homes this week feared new attacks. The Karen National Union, backed by most ethnic Karens living along the rugged border with Thailand, accused Burma's military government of taking part in Tuesday night's attack, which left two Karen refugee camps in Thailand in ashes. Gen. Bo Mya, the Karen National Union's commander, said Burma's State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) had planned and supported the operation carried out by the rival Democratic Karen Buddhist Army. ``That night, it was not only DKBA forces who came to burn and kill, but also Burmese soldiers,'' Bo Mya told reporters. ``Mortars were fired from Burma into Thailand. Only SLORC can do that.'' At least 7,000 people were left homeless by the raids on the camps at Huay Kalok and Huay Bong in Thailand, where hundreds of houses burned. A Thai merchant and two refugees were killed. Though cross-border raids into Thailand are common, the scale of Tuesday's raid was unprecedented. Thousands of Karen refugees were camped on rattan mats by the roadside near Huay Kalok on Friday, and planned to move deeper into the Thai jungle for safety. Thailand has moved in military reinforcements, including armored personnel carriers, to defend the area against further intrusions. Heavy security was in place at Mae La, a third camp that was shelled Wednesday morning after Thai defense forces repelled a ground attack. The camp holds 25,000 people. At his headquarters in Teakaplaw, just inside the Burmese border from Thailand, Bo Mya stood in a jungle clearing Friday and saluted a 100-man color guard and the Karen flag. Women and children sang patriotic songs. The 69-year-old general told reporters that cease-fires arranged by the government with 15 other insurgency groups over the past few years were unraveling. Three of them -- representing the Karenni, Shan and Mon groups-- recently have broken ranks and resumed fighting alongside the Karen, he said. Recent negotiations between the government and the rebels have gone nowhere. ``We have talked to SLORC four times already,'' Bo Mya said.``We hope that we can negotiate with them, but so far nothing has changed.'' More than 70,000 people from Burma live in refugee camps in Thailand. The ethnic minorities who live in Burma's border areas face harsh treatment from the Burmese military. The U.S. State Department has condemned the attacks and called on Burma to end its support ``for repression and violence against the ethnic minorities.'' **************************************** BRC-J: AN URGENT APPEAL FOR HELP From: Ken and Visakha Kawasaki February 1, 1997 On January 28th, three Burmese refugee camps in the Mae Sot area were attacked. The attacks were violent. Families were forced to escape from their burning homes. They were not allowed to take any personal belongings. Hundreds of houses were burned to the ground, leaving thousands homeless and destitute. Over ten thousand Karen refugees have sought safety in the forests and fields outside their smoldering camps. They have no shelter, no blankets, no extra clothing, no food and no potable water. Even as we make this appeal, Burmese soldiers are in the area and other camps are under threat of shelling and attack. We fear the circumstances may even worsen. Burmese Relief Center--Japan is accepting donations to assist these refugees by purchasing food, blankets, medicine, and basic household necessities with the cooperation of NGO workers on the scene. In Japan, contributions can be made by postal transfer (yubin furikae): Number: 01030-2-68650; Name: Ken Kawasaki (in Romaji) Outside Japan, checks in US dollars, payable to "Burmese Relief Center--Japan" can be mailed to: Burmese Relief Center--Japan, 266-27 Ozuku-cho Kashihara, Nara 634 Japan or Burmese Relief Center--Japan 2001 Missouri Ave. Flint, MI 48506 U.S.A. (If you send your donation to the U.S. address, please inform us of it via e-mail, if possible.) All donations will be promptly receipted. You can send used clothing directly to Thailand. Please contact BRC--J for the address. Thank you for your generosity and your concern. Burmese Relief Center-- Japan 266-27 Ozuku-cho Kashihara-shi Nara-ken 634 Japan Tel: (07442) 2-8236 Fax: (07442) 4-6254 e-mail:brelief@gol.com http://www2.gol.com/users/brelief/Index.htm ******************************************** DOS: BURMA REPORT ON HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES FOR 1996 From: FreeBurma@aol.com January 31, 1997 Re: Burma Report on Human Rights Practices for 1996 by U.S. Department of State ---------------------------- This report is now available at the following internet sites. If you want to receive it by email, please send me a note. URL: http://www.clark.net/pub/burmaus/ (Burma and U.S. Congress) URL: http://www.state.gov/ (Department of State) FTP SITE: ftp://128.248.153.232/pub/1996 HRC Report GOPHER: gopher://gopher.state.gov:70/ ****************************************** REQUEST: WILL INDIA BUY BURMESE GAS? January 31, 1997 From: darnott@gn.apc.org IS INDIA PLANNING TO BUY BURMESE GAS? The recent reports about Total/Unocal's new contract to explore Block 8 (the most south-westerly of the offshore exploration blocks in Burmese waters) set me thinking about stories I heard in India last December that Unocal and another company were proposing to pipe Burmese gas to India. The way I heard it, India is worried about security of supplies from the Gulf and was thinking seriously about the proposal, but had not decided. I imagine if India did agree to buy, that might encourage further exploration. Conversely, if India were persuaded not to buy, it might generate a healthy depression in some quarters. Could our friends in India and/or those with inside information and/or an inclination for digging check this out, and put the information with as many details as possible on the net or pipe it to darnott@iprolink.ch David Arnott, Geneva, 31/1/97 *********************************************