Subject: The BurmaNet News February 12, 1997 Date: Tue, 11 Feb 1997 19:56:35 -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 12, 1997 Issue #636 Noted in Passing: Independence Day should be a time for celebrating the liberation of a nation from bondage. To restrict the observance of such an occasion is a denial of the basic concept that the independence of a nation should be linked to the freedom of its people.-Daw Aung San Suu Kyi (see: THE NATION:INDEPENDENCE IS NOTHING WITHOUT FREEDOM) HEADLINES: ========== THE NATION: INDEPENDENCE IS NOTHING WITHOUT FREEDOM THAILAND TIMES: DKBA TO STEP UP BLITZ AGAINST REFUGEES FEER: BURNING ULTIMATUM REUTER: CONGRESSMEN DEFEND MASSACHUSETTS TO EU, JAPAN THAILAND TIMES: MALAYSIAN OPPONENT URGES ASEAN TALKS THE NATION: KHIN NYUNT SAYS JUNTA SEEKS PEACE WITH KAREN THE NATION: CHETTHA BACKS RELOCATION OF REFUGEES THE NATION: ASEM WILL SET ENTRY RULES BKK POST: SOUTH KOREAN GOVT REGRETS DEPORTATION NEW LIGHT OF MYANMAR: NEWS BRIEFS (2.7.97) NEW LIGHT OF MYANMAR: NEWS BRIEFS (2.6.97) BKK POST: EDITORIAL-TALKS ARE ESSENTIAL TO EASING TENSIONS ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- THE NATION: INDEPENDENCE IS NOTHING WITHOUT FREEDOM February 11, 1997 Letter from Burma Aung San Suu Kyi Independence Day should be a time for celebrating the liberation of a nation from bondage. To restrict the observance of such an occasion is a denial of the basic concept that the independence of a nation should be linked to the freedom of its people. The authorities seemed determined to prevent us from observing the occasion of our independence. In many townships, the local Law and Order Restoration Council officially forbade the NLD from holding an Independence Day ceremony. Perhaps it was because they thought that officialdom alone had the monopoly on independence; perhaps they disapproved of the practice of political parties demonstrating their commitment to freedom; or perhaps the very idea of independence was repugnant to them. We went ahead with our plans to observe Independence Day on Jan 4, the most important day in the political calendar of our country. It was fairly obvious that the military was not eager to allow us to observe the day of our national freedom in too marked a manner. We believed in the right of our people to express fully, at least once a year, their views of what independence meant to them. Negotiations had to be conducted over the numbers who were to be let through to my house for our ceremony. A rather uncertain compromise was reached and on Jan 4, our guests found they had to wend their way through serious ranks of barricades and security forces. For our celebrations, we had a singing competition, which provided us with an opportunity for an airing of songs intended to raise courage and commitment to the cause of freedom in the hearts of listeners. Next there was a performance by a dancer and four comedians in traditional mode, reminding us of Daw Hnin Pa Pa, U Par Par Lay and U Lu Zaw, who had entertained us last year and who are all now prisoners of conscience. Lastly, there was a one-act play based on the peasant uprising of 1930. There were striking similarities which the audience were quick to seize upon with humorous appreciation. As soon as Independence Day had passed, it was time to look forward to Union Day. Fifty years ago, a conference had been held at a small town in the Shan State, a conference which had been crucial in deciding the shape of the future Union of Burma. In the half century that has passed, the quest for a nation that is indeed a true home for all our peoples has not yet ended. The vision of a union based on mutual trust and goodwill has eluded successive generations. As we approach the 50th anniversary of the Panglong Agreement, an accord between all nationalities in Burma to form, with some stipulations, one Union of Burma, it is time to assess how far we have come along the road to unity. In the opinion of 15 ethnic nationality organisations which held a seminar at the beginning of the year, we have not come very far. The behaviour of those who impose their will over defenceless peoples has done much to make the ethnic nationalities question whether they could ever receive justice under a government dominated by the majority Burmese. A few weeks ago, the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD) complained to the chairman of the State Law and Order Restoration Council (Slorc) that one of their members had been forced to resign from the party by an army officer. The day after an altercation with a couple of soldiers, the party member concerned and two others were taken away to a military camp without any explanation. The next day they were subjected to a tirade by an officer: Did they belong to the Burmese Communist Party? Did they belong to the All Burma Students Democratic Front? Did they know they could all be killed as there was no law in the army? The member of the SNLD was further asked if he was one of those clinging to the skirts of Aung San Suu Kyi, accused of beating a soldier and of preaching politics for half an hour, and asked if he were trying to defy the army. When he replied that he had not committed any crime and that he was an official delegate to the National Convention, the officer retorted that the National Convention was quite meaningless, full of prostitutes, drug abusers and drug runners. The hapless convention delegate was beaten and made to send off letters of resignation to his party and to the National Convention in exchange for his freedom. The treatment meted out to that one member of the SNLD was not so much a sign of racial discrimination as a reflection of the basic lack of justice within the country. Such treatment, and worse, is daily fare for members and supporters of the NLD: many of our organisers and elected members of Parliament have been forced to resign through systematic persecution. The realisation that we are all suffering from the same lack of basic human rights is a basis from which we could create bonds of friendship and understanding that could lead to a true union. Friendship between the majority Burmese and the other ethnic nationalities is essential to the welfare of our nation. We have to work to foster a state of understanding and sympathy especially when there has been such a long history of suspicion and bitterness. In December 1995, the NLD brought out a statement on the occasion of the Karen New Year. It stated the need for sincerity, unity, equality, mutual respect and basic human rights and emphasised the importance of promoting the languages, customs and traditions of the ethnic nationalities. Such an innocuous message should not have offended anybody who has an interest in promoting the national good. However, the authorities reacted to it as though it was an incitement to unrest. The joint secretary of the Myaungmya NLD was placed under arrest for reading out the message at a Karen New Year gathering. Within six months he was dead in Myaungmya jail, still awaiting sentencing. To penalise a man so heavily for an act aimed at promoting national unity demonstrates an alarming lack of vision. This year the Karen New Year came a few days after Independence Day. We brought out another New Year message and commemorated the occasion with Karen colleagues by raising the Karen flag in our garden. The flag consists of horizontal red, white and blue bars and a red and blue rising sun at one corner with a drum superimposed on it. The drum is an important symbol for the Karen people. It is usually referred to as a frog drum because it has small frogs on its face and elephants lumbering down the flank. It is said that the frogs signify the unity of purpose that will lead the Karen people to victory over even the biggest enemy. As the Karen New Year is traditionally held after the harvest, it is usual to serve steamed glutinous rice on this occasion. Large dishes of steaming black and white mounds of rice sprinkled with crushed sesame seeds, accompanied by cups of boiling green tea is a fine display of hospitality very much in keeping with the spirit of rural Burma. The simplicity of our Karen New Year feast, shared with Karen ­ and non-Karen colleagues dressed in bright red, traditional tunics ­ was enormously satisfactory. During World War II, there were many bloody conflicts between the Burmese and Karen communities of the Irrawaddy delta. The resolution of the conflict brought together leaders of the Karen community with the leaders of the Burmese independence movement. It could be said that this was the prelude to the Union that was agreed upon but as soon as the independence of Burma was declared in January 1948, Karen who did not believe they would receive fair treatment under a Burmese government rose up in rebellion. Thus the Karen insurgency constitutes the longest-standing armed conflict within the country and much remains to be done to establish goodwill between Burmese and Karen. Then there are the Chin and the Arakanese in the west, the Kachin in the north, the Shan and the Karenni in the east, the Mon in the southeast and the many other peoples who make up the rich diversity of our country. Our ethnic nationalists still harbour a deep mistrust of the majority Burmese, a mistrust natural to those who have not been accorded justice and fair play. In trying to build up a strong union, our greatest challenge will be to win the confidence of those who have only known repression and discrimination. The road that some countries have to travel from statehood to nationhood is a difficult one. All too often one recalls to mind the words ''such a long journey ahead ­ not a question of imagination but of faith." To travel a long rough road, with no companion other than faith is at times a wearisome task. It was with hopes of a better future that the generation of those who came to maturity between the two world wars trod the path to independence. It was the dream of our fathers that a free nation should be a fit home for a free people. It is the tragedy of Burma that independence has not meant the realisation of the hopes of those who died for the ideal of freedom, that it has not resulted in the true flowering of the spirit of Panglong. It is out of human suffering that new societies are built. The price of justice and freedom has never been small, nothing of lasting value ever came cheap. We must decide for ourselves whether we are prepared to pay that price. For some, the price may be too high, so high it seems beyond the paying capacity of normal human beings. Yet there have been many who have paid without reservation for a strong, just, democratic Union of Burma. Let us hope that we may be able to do full honour to such noble generosity.(TN) *************************************** THAILAND TIMES: DKBA TO STEP UP BLITZ AGAINST REFUGEES February 11, 1997 by Assawin Pinitwong TAK ; Pro-Rangoon Karen renegades yesterday vowed not to step down their cross border attacks until every last Karen refugee seeking shelter in the border area had returned to Burma, according to a Karen source. "We'll continue hunting down the refugees until we have rounded up every last one of them,"said Capt Tuiwa, acting chief of the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA)'s Division 555, to a group of reporters. He pledged his assurances that those returning to their native country would have security and a piece of land from which to make a living. Describing the DKBA's arson attacks on Huay Kaloke and Huay Bong refugee camp slate last month as a "necessity," he said that the group had for the past two years warned refugees of the consequences should their demand for the refugees to return to Burma be ignored. **************************************************************** FAR EASTERN ECONOMIC REVIEW: BURNING ULTIMATUM February 13, 1997 By Bertil Linter in Mae Sot, Thailand Cross-border attacks timed to force Karen rebel hand At first glance, the timing couldn't have been worse. Burma is due to join Asean this year, breaking decades of isolation. And, more immediately, the Thai army commander-in-chief Gen Chettha Thanajaro will visit Rangoon soon to discuss problems along the common border. But then, beginning on January 28, troops from Burma crossed into Thailand, looting and setting ablaze three refugee camps near Mae Sot, around 400 kilometres northeast of Bangkok. More than 1,000 buildings were burned, leaving 10,000 homeless in two initial attacks: one at Huay Kalok, 10 kilometres north of Mae Sot, and the other at Don Pa Kiang near Huay Bong, 19 kilometres north of Mae Sot. All of the refugees were ethnic Karens who had fled the civil war in Burma. On February 2, forces from across the border then attacked Mae La farther to the north, home for 25,000 refugees, and the largest of the camps along the Thai-Burmese frontier. In the south near Mae Sot, the attackers came mainly from the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army, a renegade faction operating under Burmese army command. In the north, independent sources along the border say, regular Burmese troops from the 259 Light Infantry regiment carried out the raids, guided through the terrain by a few local DKBA troops. But what can Burma gain from attacking refugee camps in a country which has helped it break its international isolation, and even defended it from critics of its abysmal human rights record? Diplomatic observers in Bangkok see three reasons for the attacks. The first, and most important, is to pressure the Karen into accepting a cease-fire with the government, as have 15 other rebel forces in Burma. The rebel Karen National Union, to which most of the refugees in the camps pay allegiance, has talked to the govnerment four times so far, most recently last November in Moulmein. "But negotiations have gone nowhere," says a KNU spokesman in Mae Sot. "They only wanted to discuss the terms of the cease-fire without addressing any political issues." Many in Mae Sot believe the Burmese gave the KNU an ultimatum: Agree to a cease-fire before the end of January, or face military action. The timing of the attacks certainly backs this theory. Second, local security official in Mae Sot suspect that by instigating violence along the border, the Burmese govnerment hopes the Thais will tire of housing the refugees and repatriate them to Burma. "By letting the DKBA carry out some of the attacks, the Burmese want it to appear as if it were some kind of infighting among us Karens," says Robert Htwe, a Karen aid worker on the border. A third reason could be a meeting of about a dozen ethnic minority groups in the area opposite Umphang south of Mae Sot in mid-January, which seems to have angered the govnerment in Rangoon. The resolution from the meeting rejected the government's efforts to draw up a new constitution, which the minority groups say will "perpetuate the military dictatorship." It also called for a dialogue between the ruling junta, pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and the ethnic minorities, and urged Asean not to admit Burma. The meeting was especially remarkable because it brought together not only the KNU and a few other rebel armies still fighting the govnerment, but also four groups which have made cease-fire agreements with the govnerment: the Was, the Mons, the Kachins and the Karennis. "This was unprecedented," says Tzang Yawnghwe, a Shan now living in Canada whose father served as Burma's first president. "The unity was remarkable." Not since the 1980s have so many ethnic minority groups discussed common issues. The Burmese junta's decision to strike against the camps may not, after all, have been that untimely. "They want to crush all resistance along the border, and they clearly see the refugee camps as havens for KNU cadres and their dependents," says an Asian diplomat in Bangkok. He suggests that the Thai government's reluctance to protect the camps also indicates a desire to be relieved of the nearly 100,000 refugees in camps in Thailand. But neither military action nor Burma's cease-fires seems likely to guarantee peace for civilians. In Shan State, where nearly all rebel groups have made cease-fire accords with Rangoon, over 100,000 people from 600 villages have been relocated, often at gunpoint, according to a recent report from the Shan Human Rights Foundation in Chiang Mai. They have been forced into 45 main sites, where the authorities believe that they can more easily control traditionally defiant civilians. Many Shan have fled into Thailand, where officials estimate as many as 300,000-400,000 people from Burma work illegally. "We just couldn't stay at home," says Ai Tuan, a 23-year-old man from southern Shan State who is a construction worker in Thailand. "The army came to our village almost every day to demand crops and forced labour." A continuous flood of refugees into Thailand is only one outcome of the still-unsettled political situation in Burma. Bloody cross-border raids, with ensuing instability in a previously tranquil frontier area, is another. Asean's silence over the situation in Burma seems bound to, backfire, benefiting-as it seems to-only the junta in Rangoon. (FEER) *************************************************** REUTER: CONGRESSMEN DEFEND MASSACHUSETTS TO EU, JAPAN February 10, 1997 By Leslie Gevirtz BOSTON- A group of Democratic congressmen from Massachusetts wrote to the European Union on Monday telling them to stay out of the internal affairs of their state, which is boycotting firms that trade with Burma. Democratic Rep. Barney Frank, who authored the letter to the EU signed by the state's congressional delegation, said in a telephone interview: "We're fully prepared to support Massachusetts in this matter. "Most countries don't fully comply with the WTO (World Trade Organization agreement) ... but I particularly resent both the EU and Japan trying to interfere with Massachusetts, particularly since we pay for their defense," Frank said. The letter to the EU follows one sent to Japan's Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto on Friday that said Japan had the sovereign right to put dollars ahead of human rights but it should not "intimidate Massachusetts into changing the standards it has established for doing business with the state government." About 10 U.S. cities, including San Francisco, have passed selective purchasing laws against firms doing business in Burma, citing the brutality of the military junta that controls the Southeast Asian nation. But Massachusetts is the only state and the largest market so far to boycott such firms. Frank suggested if the state's law barring Massachusetts from trading with firms that do business in Burma were found to be a WTO violation, any sanction against Massachusetts should "be paid for by reducing the amount of money spent on the defense of both Japan and Europe." The EU has complained to the U.S. State Department about the Massachusetts law that went into effect on Jan 1. In a letter sent to Governor William Weld, EU Ambassador Hugo Paemen called the measure "a breach of U.S. international obligations and as such could have a damaging effect on bilateral EU-US relations." Since Weld signed the law last August, it has inspired several U.S. firms including Apple Computer and Hewlett-Packard to cut ties with Burma. Human rights activists said the state law was a challenge to Burma's ruling State Law and Order Restoration Council and noted Aung San Suu Kyi, the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize winner who leads the country's democratic opposition, has called for sanctions against her country's government. ************************************************ THAILAND TIMES: MALAYSIAN OPPONENT URGES ASEAN TO HOST TALKS February 11, 1997 Deutsche Presse - Agentur KUALA LUMPUR: Foreign ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), meeting in Singapore this week, should open up talks between Burma's military junta and pro-democracy forces on national reconciliation, Malaysia's opposition chief said yesterday. Lim Kit Siang, secretary general of the Democratic Action Party, said the ministers should seriously consider the idea of hosting a dialogue, under the auspices of ASEAN, between Rangoon's military leaders and the pro-democracy opposition led by Aung Sang Suu Kyi. "Such a dialogue ..could help break the present political impasse in Burma and help move Burma towards the road of democratization and national reconciliation," he said in a statement. The seven ASEAN foreign ministers will meet their counterparts from the 15 member European Union on February 13-14 in Singapore for the annual ASEAN-EU dialogue, followed by the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) on February 15, where they will be joined by foreign ministers from China, Japan and South Korea. The Burmese situation is expected to crop up during the meetings as the EU has long pushed ASEAN to act firmer against Burma to compel the military government, known as the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC),to embark on democratic reforms. ASEAN has long practiced what it calls "constructive engagement" with Rangoon in the belief that it will result faster in reforms than by confronting or isolating Burma. Burma last year applied to join ASEAN as a full member, hopefully this year. Lim said the policy has failed to produce any positive results; instead it has encouraged SLORC to continues with cracking down on prodemocracy activists, including closing universities in December after anti-government protests by students. ASEAN, he proposed, should expand its "one sided policy of confining contacts only with SLORC to also "constructively engage" through official links with Suu Kyi and the pro-democracy movement. The ASEAN meeting in Singapore also assumes great significance because the grouping will decide in July whether to accept Burma as a member, Lim added. ASEAN group Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia have applied to become full members. ***************************************************************** THE NATION: KHIN NYUNT SAYS JUNTA SEEKS PEACE WITH KAREN February 11, 1997 Reuter A senior Burmese military official said yesterday that his govnerment wanted to make peace with ethnic Karen rebels based on the eastern border with Thailand, but that the offer had been rejected by rebel officials. "The govnerment is still patiently inviting in good faith the remaining armed group in the jungle," said Lieutenant General Khin Nyunt, in apparent reference to the Karen National Union (KNU) based on Burma's eastern border with Thailand. "The govnerment is extending peace overtures because of their feeble strength, and we must make political advantage out of it," he told cultural troupes preparing to attend ceremonies marking Burma's 50th Union Day. Khin Nyunt's remarks came amid Thai military reports that Rangoon had sent reinforcements to its eastern border region and is ready to launch offensives against the KNU. The KNU, which has fought Rangoon for greater autonomy for the Karen state since 1948, has rejected several previous peace overtures, saying it will not lay down its arms as a precondition for talks. A Thai Army source based in Mae Sot, a town bordering Burma, said on Sunday that thousands of Burmese soldiers has been seen heading toward the KNU's jungle strongholds over the weekend. A KNU officer based on the border said that the rebels could not accept Khin Nyunt's statement because they believed a Burmese troops attack on their camps was imminent. "How can he say that in good faith when at the same time he is sending troops to fight us?" The officer asked. "Khin Nyunt's remarks are merely a face-saving gesture in order to draw international attention. "How can we hold peace talks as their offensive against us is imminent?" He asked. At least 15 other ethnic factions have reached peace agreements with Burma's ruling State Law and Order Restoration Council. The KNU is the only group that has not yet reached an agreement with the junta. (TN) *************************************************** THE NATION: CHETTHA BACKS RELOCATION OF REFUGEES February 11, 1997 ARMY Commander-in-Chief Gen Chettha Thanajaro said yesterday that relocation and consolidation of the scatttered Karen refugee camps to one site further away from the Thai-Burmese border would make it easier for Thai security forces to provide protection. He said his proposal that Karen refugees in camps along the frontier in Tak province be relocated 10 kilometres deeper inside Thailand was the best solution as it would benefit all parties involved. Relocation would help the international community realise that Thailand is serious about providing protection to the refugees, he added. There are currently about 80,000 Karen refugees living in over a dozen camps along the Thai-Burmese border. Chettha said relocating and consolidating the camps was just an idea and that the final decision would rest with the government. The Army, he said, was ready to follow whatever the government orders. The Army has come under heavy public criticism over its failure to prevent attacks by armed Burmese and pro-Rangoon renegade Karen forces on three Karen refugee camps in Tak province on Jan 28 and 29. A new site must not threaten national security, otherwise the refugees would have to remain in their old camps, Chettha said. The Army chief said all government and military agencies involved in refugee affairs are discussing and coordinating with the Forestry Department and Tak's border district chiefs to find a suitable location for the new camp. He said if there were no sites available, another option would be to move the refugees to the Huay Kalok area in Mae Sot district, one km deeper inside Thailand than the present camp. Meanwhile, Reuter reports that the Burmese-backed Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA), which launched the attacks against the Karen camps along with Burmese troops, vowed yesterday to persist with attacks on refugees sheltered in sprawling camps along the Burma-Thai border. ''We will continue to attack them until they all return to Burma," Captain Htu War, the DKBA commander, said at his jungle camp on the Burmese side of the Moei River which marks the border with Thailand. He said that Burmese troops have provided arms and supplies for recent operations against the 80,000 refugees associated with the Karen National Union (KNU). But he added that Burmese troops are not involved in the raids. The DKBA is a Buddhist-dominated splinter group that broke away in 1995 from the predominantly Christian KNU, which has been fighting Rangoon for an independent Karen state since 1948. The DKBA has recently stepped up its harassment of the KNU, which has refused to lay down arms and rejected peace overtures from Burma's ruling State Law and Order Restoration Council. Recent DKBA attacks have left scores dead and wounded in the KNU refugee camps. Htu War said KNU guerrillas had used the refugee camps in Thailand as sanctuaries, crossing into Burma from time to time to attack the DKBA.(TN) *************************************************** THE NATION: ASEM WILL SET ENTRY RULES February 11, 1997 By Rita Patiyasevi THE future membership of Burma, Laos and Cambodia in the Association of South east Asean Nations (Asean) will not gain them automatic admission into the Asia-Europe meeting (Asem), a senior official said yesterday. The first Asia-Europe Foreign Ministers meeting in Singapore on Saturday will discuss the criteria for accepting new members to the grouping, among other issues. The official said that although senior officials touched on the subject when they met in Dublin last December, the proposed selection criteria will be looked into in further detail before being submitted to the leaders next year for final approval. The proposed criteria include the geographical position of new members, that Asia and Europe only nominate countries in their own continents and that all member countries approve a nominated country before it is granted membership. Australia, New Zealand and Russia, along with several countries from Asia and Europe, have all expressed the desire to join Asem. The ministers of Asean ­ which groups Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam ­ will meet their European Union (EU) counterparts on Thursday and Friday. This will be followed by the first Asia-Europe Foreign Ministers meeting on Saturday, involving Asean, China, Japan, South Korea and the EU. High on the agenda will be discussions on expanding Asem membership and a united effort to combat terrorism. The official said other issues on Asia's agenda at the Asem meeting will be a follow up on the economic and political deals agreed by leaders at the inaugural summit in Bangkok last March, the launch of the Asia-Europe Foundation in Singapore and the Greater Mekong projects. Thailand will seek confirmation from Asem foreign ministers on the establishment of an Asia-Europe Environmental Technology Centre (AEETC). Foreign Minister Prachuab Chaiyasan, who led a group of Asem diplomats to the national Environmental Research and Training Centre which will be expanded into the AEETC, hopes the progress of the multi-national institute will be reflected in the chairman's statement at the Singapore meeting.(TN) *************************************************** BKK POST: SOUTH KOREAN GOVT REGRETS DEPORTATION February 11, 1997 AFP The South Korean foreign ministry summoned Burma's ambassador to Seoul yesterday to express "regret" over the deportation of a South Korean MP from Rangoon, a ministry spokesman said. The ambassador, U Phone Myint, was also asked by Asia-Pacific Affairs director Ryu Kwang-Sok to take steps to prevent a repeat of the incident in which the MP was bundled aboard a plane despite having a diplomatic passport and a valid visa. Kim Sang-Woo, an opposition member of South Korea's national assembly and a member of the foreign relations committee, was refused entry to Burma on Thursday because Burmese military intelligence said he had "a history of interfering in Burma's internal affairs". (BP) *************************************************** NEW LIGHT OF MYANMAR: NEWS BRIEFS (2.7.97) February 7, 1997 From: OKKAR66127@aol.com MINISTER FOR HOTELS AND TOURISM RECEIVES OFFICIAL OF SEICHI TRAVEL SERVICE INC YANGON, 6 Feb-Executive Director and Regional General Manager of Seichi Travel Savice Inc Mr Koji Takashima of Japan paid a courtesy call on Member of the State Law and Order Restondion Council Minister for Hotels and Tourism Lt-Gen Kyaw Ba at his Office this morning. MF Takashima said Seichi Travel is one of the famous travel agencies in Japan and his travel agency wUI make arrangemcats for sending tourists to Myanmar beginning this year. They will extensively carry out advertising campaign on Myanmar for sending more tourists to this country, he said. The minister said he will provide necessary assistance to Seichi for achieving success. Present on the occasion also was Director-General U Khin Maung Latt of Directorate of Hotels and Tourism and officials. VOA CORRESPONDENT MEETS YCDC MEMBER, OFFICIALS YANGON, 6 Feb-VOA correspondent Mr Gary P Thomas, currently here, met Yangon City Development Committee member U Kyi Win and officials conccrned in the meeting hall No 1 at the City Hall at 1 pm yesterday. They discussed city development affairs. Present also were Head of YCDC Revenue Deparanent U Tin Maung Myint, Head of Markets Department U San Tun, Assistant Heat of City Planning and Land Administration Department U Soe Myint and other officials. ENERGY MINISTER RECEIVES NIPPON OIL PRESIDENT YANGON, 6 Feb president of Nippon Oil Exploration Ltd of Japan Mr T Tomita and party called on Minister for Energy U Khin Maung Thein at his office yesterday afternoon. They discussed investment and cooperation in the energy sector especially in exploration and drilling of oil and natural gas. Director-General of Energy Planning Department U Soe Myint was also present. DELEGATES ARRIVE TO OBSERVE GOLDEN JUBILEE UNION DAY YANGON, 6 Feb- At the invitation of Minister for Progress of Border Areas and National Races and Development Affairs Lt-Gen Maung Tint, 20 delegates of the national races including nine men from border area of tarmoenye region, Kutkai Township, in North-East Command area arrived here by train at 9 pm on 5 February to observe Golden Jubilee Union Day. The delegates were welcomed by officials of the Department for Development of Border Areas and National Races under the Ministry of Progress of Border Areas and National Races and Development Affairs. ************************************** NEW LIGHT OF MYANMAR: NEWS BRIEFS (2.6.97) February 6, 1997 From: OKKAR66127@aol.com MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE, FORESTRY, FISHERIES OF CAMBODIA AND DELEGATION ARRIVE YANGON, 5 Feb- At the invitation of Minister for Forestry Lt- Gen Chit Swe, an eight-member goodwill Cambodian delegation led by Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Cambodia Mr Tao Seng Hour arrived here by air this morning. They were welcomed at Yangon International Airport by Minister Lt- Gen Chit Shwe, Deputy Minister U Aung Phone, departmental heads and other officials. Minister Mr Tao Seng Hour and delegation called on Minister Lt- Gen Chit Swe at International Business Centre. Deputy Minister U Aung Phone and official were also present. Accompanied by Director- General of Planning and Statistics Department U Soe Tint and officials, they visited Panhiline Sluice Project in Nyaungdon Township, Ayeyawady Division. Officials explained to them the work for establishment of integrated farms, summer paddy cultivation and construction of the sluice. SPRAYING, DRIPPING AND SOLAR- POWERED SYSTEMS FOR AGRICULTURE PURPOSE DEMONSTRATED YANGON, 5 Feb- Water spraying and warming systems for agricultural and clarified at Yuzana Garden Hotel today. The demonstration was jointly sponsored by the Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ram Trade & Investment (1996) Ltd of Israel and AEC Co, Ltd of Myanmar. Director- General of the Agricultural Planning Department of the Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation Dr. Mya Maung delivered the opening address. Representative of Naan Irrigation Systems Mr Nathaniel Van Collem explained spraying and dripping, Deputy Research Officer of the Ministry of Science and Technology U Aung Gyi dealt with use of solar energy in Myanmar and representative of Chromagen Solar Energy Systems Mr Ami Elazari discussed solar-powered lighting at houses, warming system and solar- powered water pumps. They also replied to question asked by the guest. ENERGY MINISTER RECEIVES MARUBENI GM YANGON,5 Feb- Minister for Energy U Khin Maung Thein received General Manager of Marubeni Corporation of Japan Mr K Miyazaki and party at his office this morning . They discussed matters concerning investment and cooperation and power generation and distribution. Director-General of Energy Planning Department Soe Myint was also present at the discussions. FRENCH TOURISTS CONCLUDE VISIT YANGON,5 Feb- Philip group comprising 110 French tourists left this evening at the end of their visit to Myanmar.The trip was arranged by Myanmar Hotels and Tourism Service. During their stay in Myanmar they visited Bagan, Mandalay, Amarapura and Sagaing. They were seen off the airport by officials of MHTS. RELIGIOUS BOOKS PRESENTED TO CHINESE DELEGATION YANGON, 5 Feb- Minister for Religious Affairs Lt-Gen Myo Nyunt presented goodwill pennant and religious books to members of the Chinese Buddhist delegation safeguarding Buddha's Tooth Relic at Hantha Thiri Hill, Kaba Aye, this morning. The minister expressed his pleasure for their efforts towards bilateral goodwill relations during their stay in Myanmar.The Sayadaw of the Chinese delegation believed that relations between the two countries will further strengthen and expressed thanks for the hosts having arranged visits to famous pagodas for them. He spoke of broad-mindedness and piousness of Myanmar people and perpetuation of bilateral goodwill relations. Present also were Deputy Minister for Religious Affairs U Aung Khin, Director- General of Religious Affairs Department U Arnt Maung and officials.The minister then presented the pennant in commemoration of bilateral goodwill relations and religious books to the delegation. ************************************************** BKK POST: EDITORIAL-TALKS ARE ESSENTIAL TO EASING TENSIONS February 11, 1997 Burma's feud with the Karen National Union rebels continues to intensify. What should be an internal affair of our neighbour to the west has spread to Thai territory. The Burmese regime is threatening the use of more force against the Karen. Rangoon has a special obligation to keep its internal problems off Thai soil. The feuding between the Burmese regime and Karen rebels is coming to a boil. That could mean serious trouble for Thailand. Past attempts by Rangoon's army to subdue the Karen National Union have spilled onto our soil. Most recently, pro-Slorc forces attacked two refugee camps inside Thailand and burnt them to the ground. More seriously, they killed a Thai villager in the assault. The govnerment should consider seriously steps to try to prevent this border conflict from getting out of hand. Relations between Slorc and the Karen are an internal Burmese affair. Fighting between the regime and the rebels which spills into Thailand is a serious and international matter. Now is a good time to put it to Burma: Keep the fighting - if any - on your own side of the border. There is no secret about what Burma plans for the Karen. Unless the Karen National Union surrenders and accepts Slorc sovereignty, Rangoon will attempt once gain to crush them by military means, as it does each dry season. Reports from Mae Sot say the Burmese army is in the process of building its forces opposite Tak province in preparation for just such a military drive. It will not be the first time Burma sends its army against Karen-controlled areas opposite Thailand. Such raids have been a grave risk to peace in the past. Two years ago, Burmese forces simply ignored the border in their drive to capture territory from the Karen. They managed to capture the Karen headquarters and other high ground. The Burmese also sank Thai-Burma relations to a low point. In Rangoon, there are equally ominous threats from Lt-Gen Khin Nyunt, one of the leaders of the military junta. Peace talks with the KNU are making no progress, he said in a Union Day speech. Clearly, the regime is prepared to flex its military muscle against the Karen. It is not for our govnerment to take sides in the Rangoon-Karen dispute. But Thai officials have the right to protect our border from any foreign intrusion. We also have accepted a special obligation to protect thousands of innocent Karen who have fled Burma for the safety of our country. Like Thai villagers, these unarmed refugees must be protected. The Foreign Ministry and border committees should be involved in an attempt at preventive measures. They must urge their Burmese counterparts to keep their disputes in their own country. Although Burma often has shrugged off Thai requests in the past, our officials should continue to make representations to them. Every border violation risks greater confrontation and escalation of an international dispute neither Thailand nor Burma truly desires. Nor should Burma be let off the hook when it claims the ethnic Karen guerrilla forces it has organised have nothing to do with Slorc. The so-called Karen Buddhist Army is a Slorc invention, and Rangoon will have to accept responsibility for its actions. The attacks on the Tak refugee camps amount to nothing less than a terrorist raid on Thailand, sponsored by the Burmese regime. If talks and diplomatic processes cannot halt such actions by Rangoon, then force must be considered. Attempts must continue to engage the Burmese junta in civilised diplomatic discussion in order to lower the tension at the Thai frontier. Thai officials should attempt to talk out any problems the two countries face. At the same time, the duty of our armed forces to protect our borders is clear. There is always hope, however slim, that Burma will listen to reason. (BP) ***************************************************