Subject: The BurmaNet News February 22, 1997 Date: Sat, 22 Feb 1997 20:09:27 -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 22, 1997 Issue #646 HEADLINES: ========== UTS: DAW AUNG SAN SUU KYI HONORARY DEGREE AND ADDRESS THE NATION: SLORC TROOPS CONSOLIDATE GAINS IN OFFENSIVE NCUB: SLORC VIOLENCE AGAINST THAI SECURITY FORCES BRC-JAPAN: BORDER UPDATE FEBRUARY 21, 1997 BKK POST: BURMA'S ARMY CHIEF TO MEET CHETTHA BKK POST: THAIS MISSING AFTER ENTERING BURMA THAILAND TIMES: THAI SOLDIERS FOIL ATTEMPTED ASSAULT BKK POST: SLORC, KNU TROOPS IN FIERCE FIGHTING AP: KARENS DENY BURMESE CLAIM OF BRIGADE SURRENDER BEIJING XINHUA: BURMESE MINISTER DEPARTS FOR BEIJING REUTER: KAREN REBELS CALL FOR PEACE TALKS WITH BURMA AP: SUHARTO IN BURMA: FAMILY BUSINESS AND DIPLOMACY THE NATION: TERROR DESCENDS ON TENASSERIM ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- UTS: MEDIA RELEASE-DAW AUNG SAN SUU KYI HONORARY DEGREE AND ADDRESS February 21, 1997 Kenneth Oo MEDIA RELEASE: UTS HONOURS BURMESE DEMOCRACY LEADER The University of Technology, Sydney today awarded an honorary Doctorate of Letters to Burmese democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi. The honorary degree, accepted on Daw Suu's behalf by her husband Dr Michael Aris, recognises her long struggle to bring democracy to her own country and her passionate international advocacy of the principles of democracy and freedom. UTS Vice-Chancellor Professor Tony Blake said the honorary doctorate recognised Daw Suu's commitment to human rights and to the welfare of her fellow Burmese. "Her determined campaign to achieve change by peaceful means is an inspiration to all Australians'", Professor Blake said. "Daw Suu and other members of the League for Democracy have shown a commitment to their cause which has resulted in a long, courageous campaign that has inspired many supporters around the world." Professor Blake said UTS was proud to be associated with one of the great leaders of the latter part of the 20th century who speaks with clarity and conviction for human rights and democracy during difficult times. He said UTS has, as part of its stated values, a commitment to democracy, freedom of speech and human rights. "By recognising the work of Daw Suu, UTS is fulfilling one of the roles of a modern university, which is to promote constructive comment on educational, cultural and social issues through public debate," Professor Blake said. For further information telephone Amanda Hainsworth, Media Manager on 61-2-9514 1600. ---------------------------------- CITATION-DAW AUNG SAN SUU KYI DOCTOR OF LETTERS (honoris causa) The Council of the University of Technology, Sydney at its meeting on 22 February 1996 resolved that Aung San Suu Kyi shold admitted to the degree of Doctor of Letters (honoris causa). The award is made to Aung San Suu Kyi in recognition of her outstanding role as a leader of Burmese pro-democracy movement and passionate advocate, internationally, of the principles of democracy and freedom. Since her return to Burma in 1988, Aung San Suu Kyi's remarkable record of striving to bring democracy to her country has been an inspiration to the Burmese people and to the supporters of democracy around the world. Her commitment to human rights and to the welfare of her country has resulted in a long and determined campaign which has few parallels in modern history. Suu Kyi was born in Rangoon Burma 19 June 1945, the daughter of Aung San, the Burmese general who dedicated his life to achieving independence for Burma and who was assassinated in 1947 when Aung San Suu Kyi was two years of age. His work and writings have been a source of great inspiration to Suu Kyi who continues to acknowledge his influence on her work and has paid special tribute to him by adding his name to hers. As he fought for the liberation of Burma, so she has fought and continues to fight for democracy in Burma. She is a true daughter of her father. After early education in Rangoon, Aung San Suu Kyi went to Delhi with her mother (Burma's appointed Ambassador to India), and in her further education there became familiary with the teachings of Gandhi whose adherence to non-violence has been an important influence on her subsequent work in Burma, and the peaceful means by which she has sought to achieve change. After studying briefly at Delhi University, Aung San Suu Kyi went to St Hugh's College at Oxford University from which she graduated with the degrees of Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts, with politics, philosophy and economics as her major subjects. Between the time of her marriage to an English academic Michael Aris in 1972 and her return to Burma, Aung San Suu Kyi worked in England, and for the United Nations in New York and Bhutan. Their two sons were born in England in 1974 and 1977. She also spent a period of time engaged in scholarship, in particular concerning her father, resulting in the book about him entitled Aung San, subsequently continuing her research on his life while at the University of Kyoto. In March 1988 Aung San Suu Kyi returned to Burma and quickly became the leader of her country's pro-democracy movement, helping to found the National League for Democracy, becoming Secretary-General. Showing great personal courage in the face of opposition by the country's military rulers, she travelled throughout Burma, speaking in support of democracy to large crowds. In July 1989 she was placed under house arrest. In May 1990 the National League for Democracy won a landslide victory in the Burmese general elections, only to have the results ignored by the military government. Aung San Suu Kyi remained under house arrest until July 1995. Since that time she has continued to make her views clear, speaking fearlessly tot he Burmese people about what she has called 'Burma's second struggle for independence'. During the period of her detention, Aung San Suu Kyi continued to be the focal point for the democratic aspirations fo the Burmese people, also attracting the support of democratic countries and human rights groups around the world. Aung San Suu Kyi has received many awards paying tribute to her work, the most significant being the Nobel Peace Prize in October 1991. In its citation the Norwegian Nobel Committee stated that it wished 'to honour this woman for her unflagging efforts and to show its support for the many people throughout the world who are striving to attain democracy, human rights and ethnic conciliation by peaceful means'. Other tributes and awards to Aung San Suu Kyi include: * Fellow Indian Institute of Advanced Studies Simla, 1987, * Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought by the European Parliament, 1990 * Thorolf Rafto Prize for Human Rights in Norway, 1990 * Prix Literaire des Droits de l'Homme Paris, 1992 * Simon Bolivar Prize UNESCO, 1992 * Hon Member World Commission on Culture and Development, UNESCO, 1992 * Victor Jara International Human Rights Award of the Centre for Human Rights and Constitutional Law, Los Angeles, 1993 * Bremen Solidarity Prize, 1993 * Member Academine University des Cultures Paris, 1993 * Rose Prize by International Forum of the Danish Labor Movement, 1993 * Companion in the Order of Australia (AC), 1996 She holds Honorary Doctorates from Thammissat University, Bangkok (1992), Toronto University, Canada (1992), Vnje University, Brussels (1994) and The American University, (1997). It is a great honour for this University to make the award of Doctor of Letters (honoris causa) to one of the truly great women of the latter part of the 20th century, who speaks with clarity and conviction in troubled times in support of human rights and democracy. -------------------------------------------- ADDRESS BY AUNG SAN SUU KYI OF BURMA UPON RECEIVING AN HONORARY DOCTORATE OF LETTERS IN ABSENTIA FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY, SYDNEY, 21 FEBRUARY 1997 Address delivered on her behalf by her husband Dr Michael Aris. An honorary Doctorate of Letters from a university of technology for a politician appears on the surface to be a strange combination. But politicians and those studyhing technology share this in common, that we are both seeking to find new ways of improving present conditions. It is an exciting challenge, trying to change the present that our future might be better. The future belongs to those who are equipped to bring a new and more desirable shape to our world. No amount of technological advancement will guarantee peace or prosperity. Technological know-how has to be translated into a form that can promote human happiness. The main purpose of technology should be to remove what is ugly and onerous from the life of humanity, just as the chief responsibility of politicians should be to remove what is ugly and onerous from the life of their nation. Without education we can achieve nothing of value. Education is not necessarily a mater of qualifications acquired in formal instituions. It is a process ofmental and intellectual training, whether formal or informal, that results in a capacity for assessing problems correctly and finding the best solutions. Ill-educated people with their resentment of learning and their need to prove the superiority of their ignorance cause much unnecessary suffering. According to the teachings of Buddhism, which is reflected in the thoughts of some western philosophers, there is and extremely close link between lack of knowledge, or stupidity, and evil. It is for this reason taht good academic instituaitons which seek to expand human knowledge and to uphold high standards of scholastic endeavour represent a beacon of hope for those who are experiencing the evils of a lack of good educaiton. The curtailment of the right to develop initiative and to exercise freedom of expression has disastrous effects on the future of a nation. Our struggle for democracy is also the sturggle to assert our right to genuine education. And it is for this reason that we so value the support of academic institutions. Australians, as the citizens of a nation forged out of hard endeavour, have a reputation for a tough, independent mentality and derring-do. We expect from you the boldness to stand up and speak for the rights of those who are seeking to cast off their shackles. In today's every-shrinking world, everybody can contribute towards desirable change. In our country where the military regime has a monopoly on the whole media apparatus, our people are forced to depend on external radio and television stations to receive uncensored news. With its proximity to Burma and with the increasing numbers of Burmese on its soil, we hope that Australia will recognise the need for disseminating information in the Burmese language on the educational, social, economic and political currents sweeping across the globe. As I thank your Vice-Chancellor Professor Blake and his predecessor Professor Guthrie for their part in conferring on me an honorary Doctorate of Letters of this university, I would like to request the students and young people of Australia to keep in mind our struggle, which is part of the sturggle of humanity to evolve as better species. ********************************** THE NATION: SLORC TROOPS CONSOLIDATE GAINS IN KAREN OFFENSIVE February 21, 1997 (abridged) (AFP) Burmese government troops were digging in rather than conducting any major advances into ethnic Karen-held territory to the south of last week's sweep of rebel bases, border sources said yesterday. Clashes continued, however, between forces of the military's ruling State Law and Order Restoration Council (Slorc) and the Karen National Union (KNU), which has resisted central rule from Rangoon for 50 years. The junta's troops last week swept through the KNU's remaining strongholds in Burma's Karen state, opposite the Umphang district of Thailand's Tak province, dispersing the rebels into the jungle to continue their fight as guerrillas. Since then a separate offensive has been launched against the rebel's last bases to the south, on a strip of land more than 200 kilometres long held by the KNU fourth brigade. "The Slorc is still active in the fourth brigade area, but there are no major movements," one of the sources said. "They seem to be digging in to what they have for now," though they were moving further into areas away from the border, he added. KNU's fourth brigade operates in Burma's southeastern Tenasserim district, close to planned natural gas pipelines from offshore fields to the Thai border, and several other infrastructure projects. Thailand hosts around 90,000 Karen refugees and hundreds of thousands of illegal workers from Burma. At least 4,000 joined the refugee population last week in Umphang, and an unknown number merged with the illegal workforce. Thousands more were expected to cross the border from the fourth brigade area into Kanchanaburi and Chumphon provinces, if the Slorc offensive continues. Some 300 have already come across in Chumphon, but the Thai side was not allowing them to set up a camp or build any bamboo huts, forcing them to live under makeshift shelters, aid workers said. The same was believed to be true in Kanchanaburi province, where 800 to 1,000 Karen have gathered at the border, but the border sources said conditions there could not immediately by confirmed. **************************************************** NCUB: SLORC VIOLENCE AGAINST THAI SECURITY FORCES February 21, 1997 All Burma Students' Democratic Front PRESS STATEMENT NO (4) Attacks and violence perpetrated against Thai security forces by SLORC troops At 12:00 AM, on February 18th 1997, SLORC troops attacked two Thai Border Patrol Policemen and one of the Thai security personnel was killed in the incident. The source stated that these two Thai policemen were asked by the SLORC troops to obtain Amphetamine tablets ("Yah Maa" in Thai language) on the Thai side of the border. The Thai policemen then retreated to Thailand and were attacked on their return patrol. The incident took place at a location near to Sakhanthit village (Bahn Khloeng village on the Thai side). At 8:00 AM, on February 20th 1997, a clash lasting approximately fifteen minutes occurred between Thai Border Patrol Police (BPP) and SLORC soldiers, while Thai BPP troops were patrolling the Thai side of the border three kilometers away from Sakhanthit village. Thai troops withdrew after a Thai Border Patrol policeman was seriously injured in the incident. SLORC troops then followed the Thai troops on Thai soil and fired many rounds of heavy artillery shells at them. At 2:00 PM on the same day, the Thai BPP responded by firing many rounds of artillery shells towards the Burmese side to warn and prevent further possible intrusions of SLORC troops into Thailand. This kind of evidence, along with evidence of the many SLORC border incursions into Thailand in recent years, is very convincing and clear, and shows that SLORC troops have no respect for the sovereignty of neighbouring countries like Thailand. Such violent acts will have serious consequences for regional security and stability in the South-east Asian area. ASEAN should take into account the many border incursions of the SLORC into neighbouring countries like Thailand, before accepting the SLORC as members of the ASEAN family of nations. Information Committee National Council of the Union of Burma (NCUB) For more information, please contact Pado Mahn Shar of KNU at 055 561 062 or 055 561 040. ********************************** BRC-JAPAN: BORDER UPDATE FEBRUARY 21, 1997 February 21, 1997 Ken and Visakha Kawasaki Shoklo - 124 houses in Section 5 were burned on Feb. 17. DKBO from Paw Pa Hta shelled Shoklo from 7 - 12 times. Mae La - DKBA attacked Mae La on January 29th. There was fighting between camp security troops (KNU) and DKBA. Both sides had casualties. On February 15, Thai army disarmed camp security. Don Pa Kyiang (Huay Bon) -- attacked by DKBA on January 29th. Nearly the whole camp was burned. Huay Kalok -- Attacked and burned by DKBA and SLORC on January 29th. Approximately 1,110 houses out of 1,300 were burned. People panicked but the Thai authorities did not allow them to leave the camp. DKBA came into the camp several times. The monastery was safe and people sheltering in the monastery were not harmed. Thai soldiers left the camp about an hour before DKBA's attack. There was no protection and there would be no possible protection by Thai. Ta Per Poo -- No DKBA attack. Because it is right on the border and the SLORC has a position on the other side of the border, roughly half of the people have already evacuated. Noh Pha Doh -- As it is very close to Htee Ka Pler (HQs of Gen. Bo Mya), almost all people have moved to Naung Luan (Thai village). The Thai check point did not allow refugees to go deeper inside Thailand. Noh Pa Htaw Wah - Attacked by the SLORC and DKBA on February 12. People moved to Kalaw Htaw (Mae Kyan) village. The Thai authority forced the people to move to the new location (transit camp) after DKBA threatened the Thai authorities that they would attack Mae Kyan. Lay Pho Hta - Attacked by SLORC on February 15 as it is on Burmese soil. People moved to Pai Kler and are living on the road of that village. Mae Taraw Khee -- People evacuated to Pai Kler before the SLORC attack. Some people are hiding in the forests and mountains. Kwee Ler Ter -- People are hiding in the mountains as there are no routes for their evacuation. Htee Hta Baumg -- According to unconfirmed reports, that camp was burned down by the SLORC and the people are hiding in the forests and mountains. People from the refugee camps in Umphang area and those displaced from Dupalaya District will be placed in the new camp between Mae Kyan and Pai Kler. DKBA has said that they will attack all refugee camps wherever they are. Yesterday (Feb. 21st) there was some fighting between SLORC and Thai patrols on Thai soil in the Umphang area. Now it is almost impossible for anyone to reach Umphang. There was considerable SLORC military movement in Mague/Tavoy District. Hundreds of people have evacuated to the Thai side. There area bout 20,000 SLORC soldiers in Karen State. Many KNU people and civilians are trapped in Duplaya, including according to unconfirmed reports the Commander of the Sixth Brigade and the volunteer troop (high school students). About 200 KNU soldiers from Battalion 16 led by Lt. Col. Th Mu Hel surrendered to SLORC. A group of five KNU medics went inside to evacuate KNU health structures, were arrested and executed. There is sporadic fighting in Duplaya. According to unconfirmed reports one volunteer soldier from Sakhanthit mission school and one member of PLF died in action. Students (ABSDF 205 from Mae Ka Thi Hta) are reportedly cut off while some NLD members and political defiance activists are also thought to be trapped in the Kyeik - don Area. http://www2.gol.com/users/brelief/Index.htm *************************** BKK POST: BURMA'S ARMY CHIEF TO MEET CHETTHA February 21, 1997 Burmese Army Chief Maung Aye will meet his Thai counterpart Chettha Thanajaro at the Burmese border town of Tachilek, opposite Chiang Rai's Mae Sai district, on February 25. Army sources said the two leaders were expected to discuss border problems. The meeting is expected to be followed by lunch on the Thai side.(BP) **************************************************** BKK POST: THAIS MISSING AFTER ENTERING BURMA February 21, 1997 Ranong - Four Thai men living close to the Burmese border have gone missing after entering Burma to catch turtles a week ago. Mrs Boonkong Kiangwong of Ban Nongchik village in Tambon Pakchan of Kra Buri district lodged a complaint with district chief Santi Khananurak yesterday that her husband, Charoen Suksawat, and three other men identified only as Khai, Tian and Noi has crossed Klong Yoong into Burma last Saturday. They promised to return on Tuesday but have not showed up so far. (BP) ******************************** THAILAND TIMES: THAI SOLDIERS FOIL ATTEMPTED DKBA ASSAULT February 21, 1997 by Assawin Pininwong TAK : About 50 armed Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) troops clashed with Thai soldiers as they attempt to cross the Moei river towards the Shoklo refugee camp in Tha Song Yang district yesterday. No casualties were reported after the intruders were pushed back onto Burmese soil. Last week, the DKBA, backed by the Burmese military junta, had successfully torched some 20 refugee homes in the Shoklo camp. They faced heavy resistance form the Range Rogers 3503 troops which were stationed round the clock there. Troop numbers were subsequently increased after the attack. Yesterday's assault came at about 1:10 am. Thai officials said the DKBA troops again attempted to burn down the Shoklo camp inhabited by thousands of rival Karen National Union ( KNU) refugees. Another attack was carried out yesterday in the Umphang district as three helicopter gunships opened fire on unidentified armed troops crossing the Moei river. DKBA attacks began late last month when they burnt down tow refugee camps in Tak province leaving nearly 10,000 refugees homeless. Meanwhile Lt-Gen Thanom Watcharaput, commander of the Army Region 3, said in a press conference that he has ordered the use of air attacks for the first time following heavy fighting between the two sides which started last month. About 60,000 refugees are now living in 14 camps under Thai protection along the Thai-Burma border; Most of them are KNU members who have been fighting with the Burmese government since 1948 for autonomy. ***************************************************************** BKK POST: SLORC, KNU TROOPS IN FIERCE FIGHTING February 21, 1997 (abridged) Ralph Bachoe Mae Sot--A senior official of the Karen National Union (KNU) said yesterday that heavy fighting has continued for the past two days in the 4th Brigade area in the Mergui-Tavoy region of southern Burma. Padoe Mahn Sha, general-secretary 1, said four Slorc divisions are heavily engaged with KNU forces in the mountainous area, while an unknown number are involved in fighting in the lower plains. He said Slorc troops have requested air support form central command but fighter planes have yet to come to their assistance. So far, he claimed, more than 100 Slorc soldiers have been killed in the fighting. He did not mention KNU casualties. Also yesterday, two Thai helicopter gunships of the Fourth Infantry Regiment opened fire at Burmese troops while they were crossing the border into Thai-land, the regiment's border task force commander Colonel Suvit Maenmuan said. No casualties were reported. The gunships spotted the intruders and attacked after the Burmese fired and attacked after the Burmese fired 10 82mm mortar shells across the border. Some shells landed a kilometre from Noh Ka Thaw Wah refugee camp while others missed a border patrol police base by about 20 metres. Pedoe Mahn Sha confirmed Slorc's claim that KNU troops recently surrendered, but said the actual number was between 150 and 200, not 250 as stated by the Burmese army. Morale among the KNU troops remains high, he claimed, and KNU leader General Bo Mya is in the best of health. ***************************************************************** AP: KARENS DENY BURMESE CLAIM OF BRIGADE SURRENDER February 20, 1997 MAE SOT, Thailand (AP) _ Burmese military officials say 380 Karen rebels have surrendered to them, but a spokesman for the ethnic rebels denied it on Wednesday, calling it propaganda meant to sow dissension. Thai border security officials said Wednesday that Burmese authorities told them that a brigade of Karen National Union guerrillas under the command of Col. Moe Tu surrendered on Sunday. The guerrillas, who operated near the area of Teakaplaw, the Karen headquarters abandoned to Burmese soldiers last week, were said to have turned over 280 weapons. But a member of the Karen National Union's central executive committee, Pado Aung San, said at the border that the group's soldiers have never surrendered en masse. The Karens have been fighting the central government for greater autonomy since Burma gained independence in 1948. ``It is just rumor,'' Pado Aung San said, adding that the report was meant to cause misunderstanding and split Karen unity. An estimated 5,000 government troops overran the Karen National Union's main stronghold of Teakaplaw last week, displacing about 20,000 people and sending Karen fighters into the jungle. Many refugees from the fighting have crossed into Thailand's Tak province, 370 kilometers (230 miles) northwest of Bangkok. Meanwhile, a news agency associated with Burmese student rebels allies of the Karens reported Wednesday that the Burmese army had extended its offensive against the Karen to a southern front opposite the Thai province of Kanchanaburi. The Oway News agency said that more than 1,000 villagers have been displaced by attacks on the Karen National Union's Fourth Brigade that began on Feb. 10. Burmese troops have been given a March 27 deadline Burmese Armed Forces Day to overrun the Fourth Brigade and the 1st Battalion of the All Burma Students Democratic Front, the report claimed. ******************************* BEIJING XINHUA: BURMESE MINISTER OF CONSTRUCTION DEPARTS FOR BEIJING February 19, 1997 Rangoon, February 19 (XINHUA)-- Myanmar [Burma] Minister for Construction Major General Saw Tun left here today for Beijing on a week-long visit to China at the invitation of his Chinese counterpart, Minister of Construction Hou Jie. The Myanmar minister and his party will inspect some new residential buildings in Beijing, and visit the Shanghai-Nanjing expressway, some bridge construction sites and construction machinery factories in Shanghai. ***************************** REUTER: KAREN REBELS CALL FOR PEACE TALKS WITH BURMA February 20, 1997 By Sutin Wannabovorn MAE SOT, Thailand-Ethnic Karen rebels on Thursday called for peace talks with Burma after the Thai military said it would squeeze out guerrillas from border camps. The call for a truce came from senior Karen National Union (KNU) spokesman Ner Dah, who fled with thousands of Karen refugees to the Thai side after Burmese troops razed the group's key mobile jungle camps in Eastern Burma. "The KNU is demanding that Burmese troops stop their offensive against us, withdraw from the border and resume talks," he told Reuters by telephone. "If they are sincere, they have to stop fighting and talk now, but if they continue to fight we have to defend ourselves." But senior Thai military officers, who took reporters on a tour of border areas housing Karen refugees, said they planned to bring order to Karen refugee camps in the area and predicted time was running out for the KNU. "We plan to estabish orderly camps for them and strictly screen (KNU) guerrillas out from civilians. Anyone found with arms will be pushed back to Burma," said Lieutenant General Thanom Vacharapuk, commander of Thailand's Third Army. The Third Army is responsible for security in the area. Thanom said some guerrillas had mingled with refugees in the camps and crossed into Burma to attack Burmese positions. About 60,000 refugees live in 14 Thai camps across the Burma border and another 30,000 are scattered in nearby jungles, he said. Thailand's sprawling camps would be centralised into one or two locations, where authorities could provide the refugees security and control their activity, he added. Other officers predicted that with strict control on Karen movements in place soon, the KNU could be finished. "The KNU is definitely finished within this rainy season. I mean that their fighting for ideology is ended and after that the guerrilla group will be reduced to a small group of bandits," Major General Sommai Vachiravorn, deputy Thai Third Army commander, told Reuters. The KNU was formed in 1948 to fight for greater autonomy for the Karen state from the Rangoon central government. It is one of the few rebel groups that have rejected Rangoon's peace overtures and refused to lay down arms. Fifteen other ethnic guerrilla groups have already reached ceasefire agreements with the ruling Burmese military junta. In the past 10 months, KNU representatives have met with Burmese government delegates four times to discuss peace initiatives, but they have all ended in failure because the KNU has refused to lay down arms before talks. Colonel Suvit Maenmuen, commander of the area Thai task force, accused the KNU of exaggerating fighting between them and the Burmese troops and creating rumours and border confusion. "Yes, there were heavy movements of the Burmese troops inside Burma but real fighting never took place. The cowardly KNU ran away and made big noises," he said. "Actually there are only about 6,000 fresh refugees who have fled the Burmese to Umphang district during the Burmese attack of last week," Colonel Suvit said. The latest Thai military plans come as a new blow to the KNU, which is said by rebel sources to be racked by policy differences between hardline leader General Bo Mya and moderate vice president Swe Seing, who wants to discuss peace. ************************************ AP: SUHARTO IN BURMA: MIXING FAMILY BUSINESS WITH DIPLOMACY February 20, 1997 Joe Mcdonald SINGAPORE (AP) _ A visit to Burma by President Suharto of Indonesia will be more than just a political boost for the isolated Burmese military rulers. It's also a chance for Suharto to do some family business. During a two-day stop in Rangoon starting Friday, the Indonesian leader plans to attend the signing of an agreement between his daughter's company and one owned by the Burmese government. The deal adds to a web of business ties that link the Suharto family to Burma, giving its ruling generals financial and political support to resist pressure for better human rights and greater democracy. Other foreign investors have been driven away by threats of boycotts, combined with economic mismanagement that has turned one of Asia's richest countries into one of its poorest. But conglomerates run by Suharto's children are stepping up involvement in its communications, construction, petrochemical, logging and animal feed industries, according to activists and the companies. ``With many companies pulling out of Burma, it will create less competition for the companies owned by the ruling elite,'' said George J. Aditjondro, an Indonesian sociologist who teaches at the University of Newcastle in Australia. Burma has actively sought closer ties with Indonesia, Aditjondro said in a telephone interview. Burmese leaders want to copy the political system created by Suharto, a former general who has held power since 1966 through a military-dominated ruling party, Aditjondro said. Burma also wants Indonesia ``to become a `big brother' in the international human rights battle,'' he said. ``That's why they make it easier for the Indonesian companies. It's really a kind of defense mechanism.'' In exchange, he said, Indonesia would gain an ally in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which is expected to give Burma full membership this year despite Western protests. Indonesia's overtures to Burma are similar to those of Thailand, Singapore and other Southeast Asian countries that are defying outside criticism by stepping up business and political ties. None of the Suharto family companies will comment on criticism of their dealings with Burma. But Indonesia and its ASEAN partners have argued that it is inappropriate to mix trade with what they regard as unrelated issues such as human rights. The Suharto children, having become immensely wealthy at home through state contracts and monopolies for toll roads, telephones and other services, are beginning to branch out overseas. ``A lot of the official visits of Suharto are now very closely in line with his family's business interests,'' said Aditjondro. He calls their dealings ``Suharto's kleptocracy.'' The agreement to be signed this week is between Burma's Union of Myanmar Economic Holding Ltd. and PT Citra Lamtorogung, owned by Suharto's eldest daughter, Siti ``Tutut'' Hardiyanti Rukmana, according to the Indonesian state news agency Antara. It didn't say what the deal covers, but Tutut's company is known best for building toll roads in Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines, while Burma needs investment in roads and other infrastructure. Among other family members: _The Bimantara Group led by Tutut's billionaire brother, Bambang Trihatmojo, is installing a phone network in Rangoon and starting a factory there to make animal feed, according to Aditjondro. He said Bambang also owns 35 percent of a company with logging operations in Burma, Cambodia and elsewhere. _The Humpuss Group owned by another brother, Hutomo ``Tommy'' Mandala Putra, says it has a share in a logging joint venture but hasn't started work. It says it received a concession in 1993 to cut timber on 200,000 hectares (500,000 acres) of Burma's forests, which are being rapidly wiped out to earn the government foreign currency. Humpuss would not confirm a report by the Jakarta Post that Tommy was appointed head of an agency in charge of promoting private investment and trade with Burma in 1994. _Hashim Djojohadikusomo, a relative of the Suharto family by marriage, is investing in Burma's cement business. In addition, Tommy is building a factory in Indonesia to produce the industrial chemical methanol in partnership with the oil companies Unocal of the United States and Total of France, which are among the biggest foreign investors in Burma. ``This is contrary to (Burmese pro-democracy leader) Aung San Suu Kyi's call for a boycott of the oil companies,'' said Aditjondro. *********************************** THE NATION: TERROR DESCENDS ON TENASSERIM February 21, 1997 Fleeing villagers tell tales of slaughter as Slorc troops move in to 'pacify' yet another border area for oil exploration. Adrian Levy and Cathy Scott-Clark report. The widow was still in a state of shock, but she wanted the world to know how her husband had died. Kyaw Shwe was seized by Burmese soldiers while out looking for food. They tied him to a tree. Then soldiers scalped and castrated him. "He died tied up to the tree," whispered Thaw En, who has seven children. Her eldest son and daughter were with her husband when the soldiers appeared. "My children were forced to watch him bleed to death." Such accounts of murder were common-place in southern Burma last week. The army is carrying out a ruthless campaign to drive out rebellious national minorities and clear the area for international investment. Thousands of civilians have been killed, tortured or enslaved in force-labour camps. Their villages have been burnt down in a systematic campaign launched four months ago in the Tenasserim region. The government wants the area, home to the Karen guerrillas, to be made "safe" for oil and tourism ventures, including an ecology park. The Burmese government has tried to keep its activities secret. The British Embassy in Rangoon, the capital, heard rumours of atrocities against civilians two months ago. But embassy staff were refused permission to investigate. We encountered more than 2,000 refugees after we were smuggled over the border from Thailand. All had terrible stories to tell - shocking even by Burma's appalling human rights standards. Driven from their land under a new offensive involving thousands of Burmese troops, the refugees either fled from the troops or were locked in labour camps and forced to work on government projects. Beating are common, malnourishment widespread and malaria rampant. The government is targeting one of the last uncharted parts of southern Burma not yet sold to or developed by foreign investors. The State Law and Order Restoration Council (Slorc), the military dictatorship which seized control of the country in 1988, believes the untouched beaches and gas fields off its western coast have enormous potential. Insurgent groups opposed to the government remain active in Tenasserim, primarily the Karen National Union (KNU), drawn from the Karen minority. The government is trying to drive everybody out. Peasants whose villages lie in the path of projected development have been targeted. Naw Taw Chi, a mother of five, was moved to a relocation camp at Christmas after soldiers arrived at her village. "We were threatened and hit with rifle butts," she said. "The soldiers were firing at us we ran away and I saw several people fall down." She went to the relocation camp, where hundreds of people were kept under armed guard. They were told to grow their own rice if they wanted to eat. People were tied up and beaten and taken to work on the road at gunpoint. Others were made to watch as their sons were bayoneted to death. Disclosures about the government's "pacification" drive have prompted demands from human rights groups for sanctions against the Burmese junta. Yet foreign companies are still keen to invest in Burma. Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel peace prize winner and the leader of Burma's democracy movement, has called for a world boycott of companies doing business in Burma. Her campaign is being compared to that of Nelson Mandela, who supported sanctions against South Africa from his prison cell. Faced with an outcry about atrocities against civilians, the European Commission has brought forward a debate on whether to suspend Burma's trade privileges. Amnesty International last week published a report warning of unprecedented levels of abuse in Burma. The American state of Massachusetts has imposed sanctions similar to those imposed against South Africa during apartheid. However, campaigners against the junta faced a setback last week with the news that Burma will almost certainly be admitted to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) trading group this summer. Tension in the country is rising with Suu Kyi under virtual house arrest again, opposition figures jailed and tortured, and ten of thousands of refugees streaming over the border into Thailand. The crisis is set to worsen. In a new offensive, the Burmese army attacked rebel Karen positions along the border last week. Tenasserim district is the Karen's last stronghold inside Burma. The junta's campaign in Tenasserim is similar to the army's brutal attempts in 1995 and 1996 to pacify a neighbouring region between Ye and Tavoy on the west coast to accompany a huge deal Slorc had signed with foreign oil companies. The deal is worth billions of dollars. But the razing of villages and other abuses in the path of a pipeline, now under construction using forced labour, led to an outcry. Activists in Europe and America have been putting pressure on the oil companies to stop doing business with the Burmese government. The significance of the latest pacification campaign is that it is associated with a new deal struck between the Burmese authorities and Premier Oil, a British company, to exploit offshore gas fields. Premier estimates the new field to be worth at least US$15 billion (Bt375 billion). The area under attack has been earmarked as the route for a pipeline project linking the field, via Tenasserim, to Thailand, which will buy the gas. This means nothing to the peasants of Tenasserim. They just want the terror to end. "I was very scared when the soldiers started to shoot," said May Wah, 14. "I thought we were all going to die. I don't want to be a refugee, but I am too scared to go home." (TN) ****************************************************