Subject: BurmaNet News February 24, 1997 Date: Mon, 24 Feb 1997 17:13:15 -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 24, 1997 Issue #648 HEADLINES: ========== SYDNEY MORNING HERALD: SOEHARTO IN RANGOON AP: SLORC OFFENSIVE CAUSED 41 KAREN LIVES BURMANET: INCREASING HARRASSMENT OF NLD MEMBERS SLORC: INFORMATION SHEET NO. A-0023 KNU: SITUATION UPDATE-NO. 6 AND NO. 4 BRIGADE AREA BUSINESS WEEK: TROUBLING BARRAGE OF TRADE SANCTIONS BKK POST: BURMA MAY PLAN ANOTHER MILITARY OFFENSIVE THE NATION: EXILES CLAIMS SLORC SHOT AT THAI PATROLS THE NATION: SNOH WILL VISIT TAK TO GAUGE BORDER BKK POST: INTELLIGENCE WORK TO BE UPGRADED BKK POST: BURMA REFUSES TO RETURN TRUCK MONLAND RESTORATION COUNCIL: MON NATIONAL DAY NCUB: CONTACT NUMBER CORRECTION -------------------------------------------------------------- SYDNEY MORNING HERALD: SOEHARTO IN RANGOON February 24, 1997 By Mark Baker, Herald Correspondent in Bangkok Asean boost for Burma An extraordinary meeting between Indonesia’s President Soeharto and the reclusive former Burmese dictator, General Ne Win, has cleared the way for Burma to become a full member of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN). Mr Soeharto has spurned international protests over human rights abuses by the Burmese military regime and declared that he wants Burma admitted to ASEAN, without conditions, as soon as possible. For an hour on Saturday, the veteran Indonesian leader held talks in Rangoon with General Ne Win, who has received no foreign dignitaries since his ostensible retirement from political life in 1988. The meeting stunned political observers as General Ne Win is never seen in public and rarely mentioned in Burma’s official media. The high-level talks reinforced long-standing speculation that he remains a powerful figure behind the scenes. The 85-year-old general, who seized power in a 1962 coup and led Burma down in a 1962 coup and led Burma down a path of socialist isolationism, lives in a heavily guarded villa on the shores of Rangoon’s Inya Lake, opposite the home of the democracy leader, Ms Aung San Suu Kyi. General Ne Win announced his retirement in 1988 during the political turmoil which led to a military crackdown against pro-democracy protests in which more than 3,000 people were killed. The meeting between the two men, who were leading members of the Non-Aligned Movement before General Ne Win pulled Burma out of the official agenda for Mr Soeharto’s two-day visit to Rangoon. “It’s purely personal,” the Indonesian Foreign Minister, Mr Ali Alatas, said. “Obviously these two leaders go way back.” But the meeting underscored the stand by Mr Soeharto, the most influential leader in ASEAN, in support of Burma’s early admission to the regional grouping. Analysts expect Burma, along with Cambodia and Laos, to be admitted to full ASEAN membership as early as July when foreign ministers of the region hold their annual meeting in Kuala Lumpur. Mr Alatas said that while no date has been fixed, Indonesia hoped all three countries could join “as soon as possible”. “I would like to reaffirm ASEAN’s stance that we have never and will not make as a precondition or a criterion for membership the internal situation of a country,” he said. Indonesia and other ASEAN members would never accept conditions that were “tantamount to asking for changes or interfering in the political or economic system” of prospective members, he said. The comments are a direct rebuff to calls by Western governments for ASEAN to pressure Burma to improve its human rights record and undertake political reform. These calls were reiterated by foreign ministers of the European Union during talks with their ASEAN counterparts in Singapore 10 days ago. But with both Indonesia and Malaysia now pressing strongly for Burma’s unconditional entry to ASEAN, it is clear that regional government” with the Burmese military regime. Trade and investment links between Burma and ASEAN are growing rapidly. About $200 million worth of new Indonesian investments have been approved since late last year, and several new agreements, including a joint venture for a new domestic Burmese air service, were signed during the Soeharto visit. ------------------------------------- [excerpts from related articles] THE NATION: SUHARTO COMPLETES LANDMARK TRIP February 24, 1997 AFP Two memoranda of understanding were signed in Rangoon, on Indonesian investment in Burmese industry - by the Citra Group headed by Suharto's daughter, Siri Hardijanti Rukmana - and an airline services joint venture. Suharto's trip was seen by many as upstaging planned visits by Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, whose country plays host to the annual Asean foreign ministers' meeting and an informal Asean summit later in the year. Asean membership would give Burma a greater degree of international credibility and give it more access to the economic powerhouse family of southeast Asia. The two memoranda of understanding covered Indonesian investment in industrial sectors in Burma and a joint venture to operate internal air services in Burma with leased Indonesian aircraft. The Burmese-language press said the joint venture airline would help develop Burma's border areas, recently pacified now that 15 of the 16 armed ethnic-based insurgent groups operating in the frontier areas have signed ceasefire agreements with Rangoon in exchange for development assistance. The other memorandum was to lead to a feasibility study on investment potential in several sectors, from agriculture to manufacturing. Indonesia has invested a total of about US$200 million (Bt5 billion) in Burma since the junta assumed power in 1988. Security was tight in the Burmese capital throughout the visit. Supporters of the opposition National League for Democracy said they had decided to stay away from the Shwedagon pagoda, where they sometimes congregate at the weekend, to avoid the appearance of provocation. Suharto toured the 2,500-year-old site on Saturday. The Burmese-language Mirror daily hailed the Indonesian leader's "historic" visit, recalling that it reciprocated a visit by the junta leader, Senior General Than Shwe, to Jakarta last November. ------------------------------------ THE NATION: BURMA'S ASEAN BID 'WELL UNDER WAY' February 23, 1997 AFP Alatas stressed that the main focus of Indonesian President Suharto's visit to Burma was economic, dedicated to bolstering economic cooperation, two-way trade and joint ventures. Alatas noted that two-way trade values were "very, very low ... far below capacity" but said: "We are trying to do something about that." Indonesia lags well behind other Asean members such as Singapore and Malaysia in business links with Burma. Indonesia is involved in fewer than five projects, compared to a total of more than 50 for the other two. Suharto met Ne Win on his last official visit to Burma, in 1974. Since then, Burmese leaders have turned away from Ne Win's staunch advocacy of non-alignment to make an effort to enter the international community. Ne Win withdrew Burma, one of the founder nations with Indonesia, from the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) when he felt members were tilting towards one or the other of the great powers and he opposed membership in Asean because of the presence of foreign bases in some Asean states. After the ruling junta took power in 1988, they decided to rejoin the NAM. Most recently, Burma applied for Asean membership. ************************** AP: SLORC OFFENSIVE CAUSED 41 KAREN LIVES February 23, 1997 RANGOON, Feb 23 AP - Breaking a silence on its military operations along the Thai-Burmese border, the government announced today its troops had killed 41 ethnic Karen rebels in a continuing offensive which began on February 11. State radio said government forces had clashed 53 times with the Karen National Union in three areas of south-eastern Burma since the push began against the country's last major insurgency. "Mopping up operations" were continuing and more Karen fighters were expected to surrender to the government side, the broadcast said. The offensive has displaced thousands of Karen civilians and led to artillery exchanges between Thai and Burmese troops along the frontier. The report made no mention of the escalation of tensions with Thailand. State radio said the offensive was launched after leaders of the Karen National Union unilaterally broke off peace talks with Rangoon. The rebels, who have been fighting since 1947, demand autonomy from the central government and have refused any compromise that excludes Aung San Suu Kyi, Burma's Nobel Peace prize laureate and pro-democracy leader. The broadcast claimed that 41 rebel bodies had been counted and 293 weapons along with 270,000 rounds of ammunition were seized. Another 243 weapons and 70,000 rounds of ammunition were brought in by 511 officers and soldiers who surrendered following disagreements with the "extremist leadership" of the rebel movement, the broadcast said. "More KNU members who want peace and wish to exchange weapons for peace are expected to come in," it said. An estimated 20,000 people have crossed into Thailand or were attempting to since the fighting erupted, joining some 90,000 already there. The proximity of the fighting to Thailand has led to exchanges of fire between the Burmese troops and Thais, who in the past have used the various ethnic armies along the border as a buffer against Burma. Mahn Shar, KNU vice secretary-general, said last Friday that about 100 government troops had been killed or wounded in the fighting. He did not estimate Karen casualties, but said the KNU was waging hit-and-run attacks to minimise casualties. The KNU says the offensive began on February 8 and was led by Thura Sit Maung, whom it described as "notorious for human rights abuse perpetrated against the civilian population in southern Burma". International human rights agencies have in recent years compiled detailed documentation of human rights abuses by the Burmese military in areas held or influenced by ethnic minority rebels. These include summary executions, torture and rape of civilians, forced evacuations of villages and use of civilians as frontline porters. Rangoon routinely denies charges of human rights abuse. **************************** BURMANET: INCREASING HARRASSMENT OF NLD MEMBERS February 24, 1997 The SLORC is not only preventing the NLD from holding party congresses but also harrassing NLD members in multiple ways in order to weaken the party. NLD members in several parts of the country cannot travel without prior permission from military intelligence. Trips to Rangoon in particular are generally not allowed, because it is assumed the members will visit Aung San Suu Kyi. The SLORC is squeezing NLD members economically by making it difficult for them to get jobs and threatening those who employ active NLD members. The SLORC has not overlooked the pschological sphere either. Monks have been told not to ordain or accept offerings from NLD members. A pattern is emerging of NLD members being arrested and severely punished for petty offenses and acts which may or may not be their fault. In 1996, one NLD member was sentenced to 3 years in prison for a very minor car accident in which no one was killed. Now Dr. Than Aung is being charged for causing death, because he gave an injection to a sick man who later died. This man first went to Dr. Than Aung's clinic and when he came back awhile later, Dr. Than Aung recommended that he go to the general hospital. It is not surprising that the patient went to a private clinic first. Goverment-provided medical care in Burma is woefully inadequate. BurmaNet has received reports from all over the country, including the capital, Rangoon, that public hospitals have no medicine, no equipment for medical procedures, and no disposable needles. Patients must have friends or relatives go out and buy everything from bandages to anesthesia. In one of her Letter's From Burma, Aung San Suu Kyi wrote that most hospital workers must be bribed before they will provide service, because their salaries are so pitifully low. It is interesting to note that SLORC supporters who commit serious crimes do not face equivalent punishments. Recently, the Chinese government asked the Burmese government to extradite 2 Burmese men from Muse, after they had murdered a Chinese woman. When the SLORC found out that the 2 guilty men were USDA members, the SLORC refused to extradite them. Even army deserters are treated better than NLD members. In the Hsipaw area in mid-1996, it was reported that 10 deserters from the SLORC army killed a man who was driving a truck. A teacher standing on the side of the road saw the incident and was shot too. The men then took off in the truck. But when the family asked the SLORC to catch and punish the criminals, the local officials blamed the incident on the victims and refused to track down the criminals. *********************************************************** SLORC: INFORMATION SHEET NO. A-0023 February 23, 1997 OKKAR66127@AOL.COM Date. 23-2-97 (1) Dr. Than Aung, an elected member from the National League for Democracy Party of Mingalar-Taung-Nyunt constituency (2) is facing charges for causing death by negligence at the Mingalar-Taung-Nyunt police station on the 21st of Feb. 1997. The incident took place on the 17th of Feb. at 8.15 p.m where a car parking attendance, U Win Htein visited Dr. Than Aung at his private clinic opened at his residence in Mingalar-Taung-Nyunt Township. U Win Htein complained to Dr. Than Aung that he was not feeling well and was given one injection shot. On the way back from the clinic U Win Htein met with two members of the Ka-Doe-Sait ward law and order restoration council of the same township and the chairman of the ward co-ops shop. U Win Htein told the (3) officials that he has just visited Dr. Than Aung at his clinic and recounted his treatment there. He later on was taken back to Dr. Than Aung when he complained that he was feeling much worse after the shot given to him by Dr. Than Aung. When arriving back at the clinic, Dr. Than Aung recommended that U Win Htein be taken to Yangon General Hospital to be admitted there. The (3) officials took U Win Htein by car to Yangon General Hospital and was directed by the staff there to the New General Hospital which was on stand by for emergency cases for the day. On arrival at the New General Hospital at 21:20 hrs. U Win Htein was pronounced dead (15) minutes before his arrival there by the doctor-in-charge of the emergency ward. This incident was reported by the Mingalar-Taung-Nyunt Township authorities to the township police station and an investigation has been carried out. Consequently, case has been opened and action has been taken against Dr. Than Aung for causing death by negligence it is learnt. (2) After the Kayin National Union (the last remaining insurgent organization) leadership one sidedly suspended the peace negotiations with the government representatives after finishing the 4th round of talks. The members of the K.N.U have been returning to the legal fold, individually and in groups. Altogether (511) KNU officers and members together with (243) assorted arms including (25) heavy weapons, (77,411) rounds of small and heavy weapons, (155) mines have returned to the fold up to 11th Feb. 1997. In the mopping-up area operations (53) clashes took place between the KNU and the government troops where KNU suffered (41) dead with (293) assorted weapons, (268,433) rounds of assorted ammunition and (645) mines were captured by the government troops. The KNU also suffered heavy casualties. On the government side, (7) members were killed while (3) officers and (29) members were injured. (3) On the 22nd of Feb. a reporter from TV India who arrived by UB-222 flight from Bangkok was deported on the same day by UB-225 flight. The reporter from TV India Mrs. Bhuvaneswari Sridharan was found to have falsely stated her occupation and intention when she applied for her visa at the concerning Myanmar Embassy. During her arrival at the Yangon International Airport the immigration officials found documents revealing her true intention and she was refused entry into the country it is learnt. Source: Myanmar Authority Concerned ************************** KNU: SITUATION UPDATE-NO. 6 AND NO. 4 BRIGADE AREA February 21,1997 So_Nou@sala.icn.net (So Nou) KNU No.6 Brigade Area Being trapped behind the enemy line and facing hunger for two days, a number of 500 refugees in the area safely arrived on Thai soil on February 18,1997. According to these escapees, many villagers were still trapped inside Burma and were hiding in the deep jungle. These villagers were lack of food for more than 4 days now. Some villagers while hiding in the jungle were found by the Slorc troops and were sent back to their villages where they were vulnerable to Slorc's persecution. A company of eighty soldiers from KNU No. 16 Battalion that recently defected to the Slorc had returned and joined hands again with their troops on February 19,1997. KNU No.4 Brigade Area 2274 families with a total number of 11877 people were homeless and scattered in the deep Mergui-Tavoy jungle due to the Slorc's major offensive launched against the KNU..Many of these villagers could not make their way out to safety to Thailand yet but were hiding in the deep jungle. Those who were caught while hiding received a severe punishment from the Slorc troops. Young childeren and old people were killed, men were forced as porters and women were raped in front of the family. Since the beginning of the offensive, 14 skirmishes occured between the SLORC troops and the KNU troops which the Slorc side suffered 132 casualities and 7 from the KNU side. KNU Information Center ****************************** BUSINESS WEEK: A TROUBLING BARRAGE OF TRADE SANCTIONS FROM ALL ACROSS AMERICA February 24, 1997 Paul Magnusson, Washington Trade sanctions used to be Washington's almost exclusive preserve. But now, to the consternation of U.S. business, states and cities across the nation are muscling in and making sanctions a booming American growth industry. Already, trade and investment with 35 nations that buy a fifth of the world's $4 trillion annual exports are subject to U.S. penalties of some sort, according to the National Association of Manufacturers. And the trend is accelerating. Frightened business groups are mounting a lobbying counteroffensive. Former U.S. trade ambassador Clayton Yeutter is heading a push by the National Foreign Trade Council, which represents 560 U.S. companies, to persuade Congress to stop the epidemic. Yeutter wants congressional hearings to broadcast the message that sanctions enacted in a fit of outrage, however justified, gnaw at American corporate sales and profits. ''We need to evaluate each situation carefully and determine if we are going to achieve the desired result,'' he says. ALARM BELLS. Yeutter's chances of radically changing matters are slim. The lobbying campaign raises hot-button issues, such as states' rights. Alarm bells started jangling, for instance, when Massachusetts joined a slew of American cities--from Oakland, Calif., to Ann Arbor, Mich.--in imposing trade sanctions on companies trading with Burma last year. The measures ban or penalize bidding by sanctions-busters for public contracts. Massachusetts is now mulling a similar move against Indonesia, whose human rights abuses in East Timor are the focus of growing protests. The state-imposed sanctions have angered America's trading partners as well. Both Japan and the European Union have complained to Washington that the measures are illegal because they flout World Trade Organization accords. Business argues that the rules, adopted at U.S. insistence, are important weapons against unfair foreign trade practices. But business won't be getting much help from Congress. Some legislators have their own agendas, from beefing up sanctions against Cuba to renewing those against Colombia. And many want the White House to use its powers to ban future U.S. investment in Burma. If that happens, warn business advocates, the U.S. could be pitched into a major fight with the nine-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which Burma is scheduled to join in July. In that event, contends Ernest Z. Bower, president of the U.S.-ASEAN Council for Business & Technology Inc., ''we not only lose business, we lose the opportunity to affect the pace of change in the entire region.'' Business' biggest beef is that U.S. sanctions are mostly Lone Ranger-style unilateral efforts. Too often, they result in foreign companies being handed contracts on a plate while the offending regime goes unpunished. Along the way, the U.S. also loses its capacity to influence other nations' policies on outstanding issues ranging from drug enforcement to human rights. That's just what El Segundo (Calif.)-based Unocal Corp. is arguing as it attempts to rescue its 28% share of a $1 billion offshore natural gas well and pipeline project in Burma. But Yeutter is going to need more compelling arguments to stem the rising tide of U.S. trade and investment restrictions--and quickly. New York City is considering boycotting Swiss financial institutions over the Nazi gold affair. And the handover of Hong Kong to China in mid-year could stir up new sanctions demands if Beijing tampers with democratic rights there. At this rate, exporters may soon be looking back on today's Burma sanctions as the good old days. ***************************** BKK POST: BURMA MAY PLAN ANOTHER MILITARY OFFENSIVE February 23, 1997 Chumphon Four battalions seen near KNU base Burmese forces are expected to launch another military offensive against a Karen rebel base on the border of this southern province next week, said an army officer from the Fourth Army Region yesterday. Col Kolachai Suwannaboon, deputy chief-of-staff of Thep Sat-tri Forces, said no less than four Burmese battalions had already been moved into the area near the Karen National Union's 12th battalion at Ka-miew Pass, straddling the Thai-Burmese border in Tha-Sae district. The colonel said KNU bases in the North have already been attacked by Burma and the Ka-miew Pass might be the next target. The officer said he did not think that KNU forces in the area would be able to sustain the onslaught as the 12th battalion only had around 200-300 soldiers. Col Kolachai said hundreds of Karen refugees would inevitably cross the border into Thailand once Burma launches its new military drive. However, he said the 4th army had already mapped out a plan, called Sri Soontorn 01, to tackle the problem. The officer said the army's stance on the issue was quite clear - no foreign forces would be allowed into the country unless they were disarmed. Meanwhile, the National Democratic Front, which unites Burmese rebel groups, yesterday issued a statement condemning Burma over its military drive against KNU bases. "We, the National Democratic Front, strongly condemn the ongoing Slorc's (Burma's military junta) military offensive against the Karen people and the KNU. This offensive is appalling yet it is the most recent of the Slorc's traitorous and criminal actions," said the statement, which also called for international support for its struggle for autonomy. Meanwhile, the Thai-Burmese Friendship Bridge and recent cross-border assaults by Rangoon-backed Democratic Karen Buddhist Army will be raised for discussion when Army Commander-in-Chief Gen Chettha Thanajaro meets his Burmese counterpart Gen Maung Aye next week. An army source said Gen Chettha was hopeful that the meeting scheduled at Burma's Thachilek, opposite Chiang Rai's Mae Sai border town, on Tuesday could lead to more cooperation between the two countries. The army chief was optimistic that Gen Maung Aye would positively respond to his request urging Burma to help play a role in maintaining peace in the border area and prevent any more cross-border attacks from the DKBA, noted the source. "Though they (DKBA) are not Burma Army regulars, we all know that the DKBA has its bases and army support inside Burma. Burma could help play a role to maintain peace and order in the area," said the source. Over the construction of the friendship bridge in Mae Sot which has been suspended since early 1995, the source said Gen Chettha hoped that the pending meeting could create more understanding paving the way for a resumption of construction of the bridge, which has been 95 percent completed. Burma has unilaterally suspended the construction after it alleged in early 1995 that Thai officials had encroached on the Moei river, considered a natural border line between the two countries. The source noted that Gen Chettha would like to openly discuss the issue with Gen Maung Aye as the army chief felt that further delay in the bridge construction would not benefit anyone. "Any misunderstanding or mistrust should not be left untackled as it could harm border cooperation," noted the officer.(BP) ****************************************** THE NATION: EXILES CLAIMS SLORC SHOT AT THAI PATROLS February 22, 1997 BURMA'S government in exile, the National Council of the Union of Burma (NCUB), said that Burmese troops attacked Thai security forces in Tak province on Thursday and claimed it was the second clash between the two sides on Thai soil this month, demonstrating Rangoon's lack of respect for its neighbours. In a statement, the NCUB alleged that the first incident took place on Feb 18, when troops belonging to the State Law and Order Restoration Council (Slorc) attacked Thai border patrol police and security personnel. The NCUB said that a member of the Thai forces was killed during the attack. It also claimed that the incident took place inside Thai territory, however details surrounding the attack are vague. The group also alleged that a 15-minute exchange between Thai border patrol police and Burmese soldiers took place at 8 am on Thursday, inside Thailand's border. The Thais retreated after one of their troops was seriously injured, the statement said, adding that the Burmese pursued them, only to pull back after coming under artillery fire. ''The incidents clearly show that the Slorc troops have no respect for the sovereignty of a neighbouring country like Thailand. Such violent acts will have serious consequences for security and stability in the region," the NCUB said. The NCUB also urged the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to take into account the many incursions by Slorc troops into Thailand before admitting Burma into the regional grouping. Thai officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that hundreds of Burmese soldiers exchanged gunfire and even shelled Thai border police on Thursday when they met along the border, Associated Press reported yesterday.(TN) ****************************************************** THE NATION: SNOH WILL VISIT TAK TO GAUGE BORDER SITUATION February 23, 1997 The Nation, AFP Interior Minister Snoh Thienthong said yesterday he will visit Tak province on Tuesday to gain first hand experience of the Thai-Burma border situation. "I have been receiving conflicting reports in the last few days on what is happening at the border," Snoh said, adding that the situation might have deteriorated further. He was speaking after reports about an exchange of gunfire between Thai and Burmese troops along the border on Thursday. Burmese forces have been conducting mopping up operations since early this month against the Karen National Union, a Karen minority rebel group, in the area opposite the border province. Snoh said the fighting in Burma caused a surge of people across the border seeking safety in Thailand. Snoh said the press should not focus on the human rights of fleeing Karen while neglecting the rights of Thais living near the border, who also suffered from the fighting. Maj Gen Pairach Kemkon, deputy commander of the 4th Army Region, yesterday inspected the Burmese border in the southern province of Chumphon. Pairach said the situation was under control, although he had received reports about Burmese reinforcements, possibly in preparation for an operation against Karen rebels in the area. Should there be an incursion by foreign troops, Supreme Commander Gen Mongkol Ampornpisit had already given approval to repel them, Pairach disclosed. The military was prepared to disarm fleeing rebel troops and would ensure that all those displaced were settled in the camp run by the Interior Ministry. An offensive into the last stretch of land still in the hands of rebel ethnic Karens close to the Thai border could drive as many as 10,000 villagers into Thailand, a rebel source said yesterday. Forces of the State Law and Order Restoration Council (Slorc), as Burma's ruling junta is known, are pushing from the north and west towards the Karen base at Minthamee in its Fourth Brigade area in southeastern Burma. "There is fighting all over Fourth Brigade Area. Slorc battalions are about 20 kilometres away from us," said Kwe Htoo Win, district chairman for the Karen National Union (KNU) at Minthamee. (TN) ****************************************************** BKK POST: INTELLIGENCE WORK TO BE UPGRADED February 24, 1997 To protect Thais from Burmese raid Military intelligence work is to be upgraded along the Thai-Burma border in order to protect Thais from the Burmese offensive against Karen rebels. Army Commander-in-Chief Gen Chettha Thanajaro is to meet commanders of the First, Second, Third and Fourth Army Regions and the Special Warfare Command Unit to thrash out what improvements can be made, says an army source. Areas of Kanchanaburi, Chumphon, Ranong, Tak and Mae Hong Son may be targeted as offensives against minority groups along their borders are expected. The commanders and the Supreme Command Headquarters are also thought to have agreed to closer coordination of their intelligence work. Matters arising from the planned meeting are expected to be raised with the army chief's Burmese counterpart Gen Maung Aye at a meeting between the two men on Tuesday at Tachilek on the Burmese side of the border. The source said these high-level talks would concentrate on the problem of the partially built Thai-Burmese Friendship Bridge linking Tak's Mae Sot district and Myawaddy in Burma. No work has been done on it since 1995. Border problems, particularly the encroachment into Thailand by the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA), which attacked Karen refugee camps in Thailand, will also be on the agenda. Gen Chettha will ask Burma's ruling junta, the State Law and Order Restoration Council, to keep the DKBA out of Thailand. He will also suggest that the area of Doi Lang in Chiang Mai's Mae Ai district be made a military-free zone. Both countries claim the area as their own and have a military presence there. Gen Chettha is said to believe keeping the troops there is a waste of money. Saroj Chavanaviraj, the permanent secretary for foreign affairs, will also attend the meeting and will discuss a possible official visit to Burma by Premier Gen Chavalit Yongchaiyudh.(BP) ****************************************************** BKK POST: BURMA REFUSES TO RETURN TRUCK BELONGING TO POLICE February 24, 1997 Committee talks prove unsuccessful Tak - Burma has refused to return a pick- up truck belonging to the Thai Police Department which a group of Burmese soldiers seized during a raid on Thursday at Mae Odoh in Tambon Klothor, Umphang district. Talks over the return of the vehicle in Myawaddy yesterday during the local Thai-Burmese Border Committee meeting between Col Suvit Maenmuan and his Burmese counterpart Lt-Col Saing Phone proved to be unsuccessful. Deputy Commander of the Third Army Region Maj-Gen Sommai Vichavorn said that Thai authorities were informed that the return could not be made at a local level because their Burmese counterparts had already reported the incident to their superiors. Therefore, any decision on the matter would need a higher level negotiation. According to Maj-Gen Sommai, over 100 Burmese troops exchanged fire on Thursday with the combined forces of 12 Thai soldiers and Border Patrol Police. Although some of the Burmese were injured, the BPP could not protect its belongings, allowing a pick-up, rifle ammunition, communication radios and dry food to be snatched. The two sides led by Deputy Commander of the 4th Infantry Regiment Task Force Col Chainarong Thanarun and Capt Tin Tun of Burmese Division 88's Wing 301 met for the first time on Friday to discuss the problems. Meanwhile in Bangkok, the Burmese military attache sent a letter to Thailand's Third Army Region expressing regret at Thursday's incident in Umphang saying it was caused by a "misunderstanding." A Burmese television news programme monitored in Mae Sot yesterday also reported that over 400 members of the Karen National Union have surrendered to the Burmese government at Kya-In Seikkyi Military Command, opposite Umphang district about 80 kilometres from the border.(BP) ********************************* MONLAND RESTORATION COUNCIL: MON NATIONAL DAY February 23, 1997 Pon Nya, honsawatoi@centralnet.net LOCAL OBSERVANCE OF MON NATIONAL DAY SPOTLIGHTS ABUSE IN BURMA February 23-1997- Today is the fiftieth anniversary of Mon National Day, marking that the day of establishment of the Mon Kingdom of Hongsawatoi, today¹s Pegu in lower Burma, by Prince Samala and Vimala in 825. Mon people celebrate the Mon National Day at Indiana-Purdue University at Fort Wayne, Indiana. An independence Mon Kingdom flourished for nearly a thousands years in the Southern part of what is now Burma or Myanmar. In 1957, the kingdom was invaded by a Burman dynasty and ever since the Mon people have been struggling to regain thier independence. For the last thousand years, Burma was in turmoil as the Burmans fought to suppress other ethnic nationalities. Memory of this long and bitter strife prompted the ethnic nationalities to seek to protect their rights after independence from Britain. In 1947, the Burman and ethnic and ethnic leaders signed the Panglong Agreement which acknowledged the right of self-determination, autonomy and equality for each of the ethnic nationalities. But when the constitution was actually drawn up, it turned out to be a unitary system of government dominated by majority of Burmans who refused to recognize the rights of established in the agreement. As result, ethnic nationalities were forced to fights for their rights shortly after independence from Britain 1948. The situations of the Mons has grown considerably worse in recent years. Under the control of the current military regime, thousand of Mons are suffering severe poverty, political oppression and racial discrimination in Burma. Worst of all, military seizing them for forced labor on projects funded by foreign investors. For example, the construction of a gas pipeline from Martaban Gulf across the Monland to Thailand is notorious for its dependence on forced labor under the cruelest conditions. Unocal is a major investor in this venture. In addition, rapes and murders of Mons by Burmese troops in the area are common. To escape the oppression, thousands of Mons and other ethnic nationalities have fled from the gas pipeline area to the Thai-Burma border. On the fiftieth anniversary of Mon National Day, Monland Restoration Council is calling for three step that could lead to genuine federal union that guarantees ethnic self-determination: 1. dialogue among the National League for Democracy Party, ethnic leaders and military junta (SLORC). 2. U.S. sanctions against the Burmese military junta. 3. rejection of Burmese membership in ASEAN until democracy and human rights are restored. Central Committee Monland Restoration Council http://user.centralnet.net/honsawatoi/Monland.html Contact: Pon Nya 2807 Westbrook Drive Fort Wayne, IN 46805 Tel: 219-471-3961 ********************** NCUB: CONTACT NUMBER CORRECTION February 24, 1997 "All Burma Students' Democratic Front" Dear Friends, Please accept our apologies for stating the WRONG telephone number, 055 561 062, to contact Pado Mahn Shar, for further information in KNU and NCUB press releases dated February 21st and 22nd, 1997. Pado Mahn Shar can ONLY be reached on 055 561 040, for further details information regarding the current fighting between SLORC and KNU troops and situation of Karen Refugees. Information Committee National Council of the Union of Burma (NCUB) Tel/Fax: 055 561 040 *******************************