------------------------ BurmaNet ------------------------ "Appropriate Information Technologies, Practical Strategies" ---------------------------------------------------------- The BurmaNet News: June 20, 1997 Issue #753 HEADLINES: ========== ABSDF PRESS RELEASE: SLORC TROOPS MALTREAT KAREN SLORC: INFORMATION SHEET A-0054, A-0055, A-0056 AP: MILITARY STOPS SUU KYI'S SUPPORTERS FROM ATTENDING BAG-UK: BRITAIN EMBARGOES BURMA TRADE PROMOTION SJMN: S. F. VOTES TO EXPAND BURMA BAN ASIA TIMES: MYANMAR OPENS INSURANCE JOINT VENTURE BKK POST: QUAKE WARNING REPEATED NATION: US STATE PROSECUTOR SETS SIGHTS ON KHUN SA THE NATION: POLICE SEIZE COCAINE PARCEL NATION: PITAK ASKS BURMA TO CEASE TRADE DISRUPTION BKK POST: AUGUST DATE SET BRIDGE'S OFFICIAL OPENING FEER: FLY IN THE OINTMENT BKK POST: REFORMS IN READINESS FOR ASEAN DEBUT ----------------------------------------------------------------- ABSDF PRESS RELEASE: SLORC TROOPS BEAT, MALTREAT AND CONSCRIPT KAREN VILLAGERS June 19, 1997 From: Caroline Lurie SLORC troops and Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) soldiers beat a heavily pregnant Karen woman and broke her teeth in the village of Thwahta in Karen State, while forcing another woman to take off her clothes in public and poking her genitalia with the barrel of a gun. The incident is part of a series of human rights abuses carried out against the Karen villagers in Papun District by the SLORC's Light Infantry Regiments (LIR) 546, 547 and 548. These troops have also been responsible for burning churches, schools and houses, and destroying food supplies including tons of rice, and other property belonging to the villagers. According to eyewitness Naw Rogyi Phaw, the incident involving the woman occurred on 27 March when approximately 150 soldiers from LIR 548 and the DKBA arrived at Thwahta to round up villagers as porters. Naw Rogyi Phaw who recently arrived at Mae Yel refugee camp from Thwahta, told the ABSDF that the pregnant woman was beaten for failing to bring her husband Saw Pulaw Pho, a former member of the Karen National Union (KNU), to the soldiers. Naw Pulaw, the wife of Saw Maung Kyaing, the headman of the village, was forced to strip naked in front of the remaining female villagers and a soldier poked her genitalia with the barrel of his gun. Saw Maung Kyaing was accused of being responsible for the villagers who fled before the troops arrived at the village. The soldiers tied him to a tree in front of his house and lit a fire next to him as a punishment for failing stop the male villagers from running away. The following day on 28 March, the SLORC and DKBA troops took the pregnant woman and several other young Karen women from the village as porters when they left. Saw Keini from the village of Nakokhee, who had been with a group of 40 Karen women porters before his escape, told the ABSDF that the same pregnant woman, whom he knows as the wife of Saw Pulaw Pho, and another Karen woman were forced to carry heavy loads of supplies. He said the women were beaten if they staggered or couldn't walk, and were abandoned in the jungle after they became unconscious from fatigue and from the beatings. About 3,000 villagers from the area have so far fled to Thailand since the beginning of the offensive in February this year. The refugees have been sheltering in refugee camps in Thailand's Mae Sarieng District. All Burma Students Democratic Front (ABSDF) For more information please call: 01-654 4984 ************************************************* SLORC: INFORMATION SHEET A-0054, A-0055, A-0056 From: OKKAR66127@AOL.COM INFORMATION SHEET A- 0054 17 - 6 - 97 (1) (25) men headed by Saw Ba La Htoo of the Karen National Union (the outlawed terrorist group) 10th. Battalion traded arms for peace on the 15th of June to the local military authorities. This group used to operate in the Dawei (Tavoy) area. (2) (25) civilians killed and (5) wounded by the break away group of the former Mong Tai Army. The incident took place in the Eastern Shan State near Tachileik where (40) armed terrorists led by Khay Ngim of the M.T.A break away faction of Ywet Sit ambushed a civilian convoy on the 13th.of June, it is learnt. ********* INFORMATION SHEET NO. A-0055 DATE 19-6-97 (1) Narcotics drug seizures in various parts of the country from 1st of May to the 31th of May amounts to a total of:- (a) 149.99 Kilos of Opium. (b) 3.46 Kilos of Heroin. (c) 10.05 Kilos of Marijuana. (d) (1,000) Amphetamine Tablets. (f) 100 Kilos of Amphetamine base. (2) U Than Kyaw (71) yrs. an (N.L.D) elected representative of Hlaing Thayar Township of Yangon Division submitted his resignation to the concerning N.L.D authorities on the 18th . of June 1997. The reason for his resignation was officially stated for health reason but unofficial sources said that it was due to differences in internal party politics. (3) (69) armed members from the remaining terrorist group (KNU) traded arms for peace on the 13th of June. It is learnt that, this group is lead by Saw Win Maung from the KNU Central H.Q. ********************* INFORMATION SHEET A- 0056 19 - 6 - 97 Mrs. Aris celebrated her 52nd. birthday at her University Avenue residence today. (5) invited monks were offered morning meal and 20 people including U.S CDA Mr. Wiedemann and spouse and the British Ambassador Mr. Gordon attended the morning function, it is learnt. ******************************************** AP: MILITARY STOPS SUU KYI'S SUPPORTERS FROM ATTENDING HER BIRTHDAY PARTY June 19, 1997 [slightly abridged] RANGOON, Burma (AP) _ Military police prevented about 100 supporters of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi from visiting her home to celebrate her 52nd birthday Thursday. About 20 of Suu Kyi's relatives and aides, however, were allowed into her compound for a quiet ceremony in which she offered food to five Buddhist monks, a traditional merit-making ritual. Suu Kyi has been under semi-house arrest since last September, when the military sealed off her home to prevent a congress of her political party and stop her from giving weekend speeches to the public. Since then, they have granted only limited access to the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize winner. With riot police lurking in a truck nearby, more than 100 of Suu Kyi's supporters gathered at the office of her political party, the National League for Democracy, near the golden Shwedagon Pagoda. Wearing the trademark collarless, orange jacket of the NLD, they heaped elaborately wrapped gifts on a table inside the office. Many hoped Suu Kyi, who is recovering from a fall last month in which she hurt her back, would leave her home and join them. ``Since we cannot go to her house, we celebrate her birthday here and we all wish for her health and success,'' said Hla Mying, 54, an NLD member. An aide at Suu Kyi's home said that if the Nobel laureate couldn't come to the party office, she would send Tin Oo and Kyi Maung, the party's vice chairmen, to greet the supporters. This was Suu Kyi's second birthday celebration since her release from six years of house arrest in July 1995. Last year, before the military blockaded her home, streams of supporters filed in and out of her compound delivering gifts and wishing her well. On Thursday, in cities around the world such as Bangkok, Tokyo and New York, supporters held protests and celebrations to mark her birthday. They have also designated her birthday as Burma Women's Day, to spotlight women's contributions to the democracy struggle. Outside the Burmese Embassy in Bangkok, about a dozen Burmese, Thai and Western protesters donned Suu Kyi masks and paper shackles and held a banner that read ``Women's Rights, Human Rights for Burma.'' Police have taken a hard line against Burmese democracy protesters since Chavalit Yongchaiyudh was elected Thailand's prime minister last year. But they did not intervene until the demonstrators tried to hand out leaflets. A Burmese Embassy official was seen photographing the protesters. Democracy activists have said that since Chavalit became prime minister, Thai and Burmese military intelligence personnel are now working together to harass Burmese exiles. ``Burmese women have not been very visible in the struggle, but they have always been there,'' said Debbie Stodhard, one of the protesters. In fact, Burmese women have been very visible in the democracy movement. The NLD has many women members, and large numbers of them would show up at Suu Kyi's compound for party meetings before the government imposed its restrictions. *************************************************** BAG-UK PRESS RELEASE: BRITAIN EMBARGOES BURMA TRADE PROMOTION From: Burma Action Group UK June 19, 1997 The election of the new Labour government may prove a good omen for Burma's democracy movement. Today as the British Ambassador hand delivered a birthday greeting to Daw Aung San Suu Kyi from the new Foreign Secretary, the Government issued a statement detailing its new policy on trade promotion towards Burma. In answer to a Parliamentary Question, Foreign Office Minister Derek Fatchett said "the Government will not provide any financial support to companies for trade missions to Burma or for trade promotion activities within Burma until there is progress towards democratic reform and respect for human rights in Burma." Despite continuing to provide routine advice to companies looking at Burma, the Government "will also make clear wherever possible the present realities in Burma, including the political and human rights situation and the state of the economy. It will also draw to businessmen's attention statements by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and other pro-democracy leaders discouraging trade and investment in Burma." The Government is looking to persuade EU partners to follow their lead during meetings scheduled over the next weeks, culminating in the meeting of EU Foreign Ministers on 26 June. However discussions have so far failed to produce a consensus of opinion on the issue. The Burma Action Group UK see today's move by the new Labour Government as an encouraging first step. In addition the announcement does not preclude introduction of further more punitive measures and discussions in this regard are in progress. In an interview on 22 May, 1997 Foreign Office Minister Derek Fatchett said "Sanctions may well be an option at some time during our discussions". Yvette Mahon, Co-ordinator of the Burma Action Group said "Pre-election the Labour Party lent their support to Daw Aung San Suu Kyi in her call for the imposition of full economic sanctions against Burma. The Burma Action Group UK are hopeful that today's announcement is simply the first step on a road leading to the fulfillment of that pledge. Britain has today sent a firm signal of growing world resolve to isolate Burma's brutal military regime." According to the U.S. State department, Great Britain is the third largest investor in Burma. As an essential next step the Burma Action Group UK would like to see the Government following the recent American example, by announcing that it will impose a ban on all new investment in Burma by British companies and individuals, and that it will lobby for an EU-wide initiative in this regard. We further encourage the Foreign Secretary to ensure that Burma is on the agenda for discussion at the upcoming G8 meeting in Denver, and that Britain continues to advance a critical attitude towards Burma at forthcoming EU-ASEAN meetings despite the recent decision by ASEAN to admit Burma to the grouping this July. For further information contact: Yvette Mahon, Co-ordinator: Tel: 0171 359 7679, Fax: 0171 354 3987 ************************************************ SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS: S. F. VOTES TO EXPAND BURMA BAN June 18, 1997 Supervisors debate involvement in foreign human rights issues SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Extending San Francisco's involvement in the international human rights arena, city supervisors voted to expand economic sanctions against Burma and discussed a similar ban against five African nations. After a heated debate, the Board of Supervisors voted on Monday to add construction contracts to an ordinance barring the city from doing business with companies having ties to Burma. The Southeast Asian nation's government is often criticized for harsh repression of its country's democracy movement. The board's vote follows closely on a wave of national sanctions against Burma, which is also known as Myanmar. The Burmese government seized power in 1988 after gunning down 3,000 demonstrators, and refused to recognize Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi's sweeping victory in 1990 democratic elections. San Francisco Supervisor Amos Brown, saying the board needs to be consistent, raised the possibility of similar bans on commerce with Sudan, Liberia, Rwanda, Zaire (now Democratic Republic of the Congo) and Nigeria. But tempers flared when Supervisor Gavin Newman urged that the ban be dropped. He argued that San Francisco's involvement with foreign human rights issues means it must levy sanctions against a slew of other countries. Such a move would be costly in time and money, he said. Supervisor Tom Ammiano, chief sponsor of the Burma ban, said: ``It really mocks what human rights issues are all about. If that supervisor had done his homework, he wouldn't have wasted time on this ridiculous polemic. I feel we have a moral responsibility to our neighbors.'' ******************************************* ASIA TIMES: MYANMAR OPENS INSURANCE DOOR WITH JOINT VENTURE June 17, 1997 Stephen Brookes Japan's Yasuda Fire and Marine Insurance agreed last week to set up a joint-venture company with Myanma Insurance in a move that may signal an opening up of Myanmar's state-held insurance sector. The new company - the first insurance joint venture in Myanmar - is likely to be set up within six months, officials at Myanma Insurance said. No name or financing details for the company have been settled, they said. At a June 12 ceremony marking the agreement, Minister for Finance and Revenue Brigadier-General Win Tin said: "As the economy expands and becomes more complex, more insurance activities" were needed. "Now is the proper time for Myanma Insurance to have a business partner, since the advent of the market economic system has caused government organizations to undergo drastic changes to be aligned with market mechanisms." Insurance has been a monopoly of the state in Myanmar for more than three decades. Under the Investment Law of 1988, foreign investors are required to take machinery, fire, marine and personal accident insurance with Myanma Insurance, and the company's turnover is more than US$100 million annually. The Myanmar Insurance Law of 1993 paved the way for privatization of the insurance industry, and in June 1996 new regulations opening up part of the insurance market were announced. Actual privatization of the insurance industry has been stalled, however, and foreign insurers are only allowed to set up representative offices. "Private insurance companies are not allowed to set up yet," said Deputy Managing Director of Myanma Insurance, Maung Thein. "New regulations are expected soon. But we expect that the joint venture will settle the problem of getting reinsurance," he added. "Life will be much easier." Reinsurance enables insurers - in this case Myanma - who have sold policies covering any number of risks, to effectively insure themselves against possible payouts on those risks. In doing so they spread the risk they are covering, and therefore increase the amount of coverage they can offer. Domestic reinsurance is not available in Myanmar and therefore companies need to approach established reinsurance markets in Japan, the United States or Europe - hence this latest tie-up. Without reinsurance, a domestic industry is effectively suffocated by its own limitations. Local insurance companies now act as insurance buyers for foreign investors, arranging full coverage through a foreign reinsurer while paying fronting fees to Myanma Insurance. Yasuda's representative office in Yangon refused comment on the new venture, but in a written statement Yasuda said that it had "high expectations of what this pioneer company can do to assist the development of the Myanmar insurance industry. "The establishment of a joint-venture insurance company in Myanmar will allow Yasuda to strengthen its worldwide network and improve its client services such as the provision of insurance cover, and claims handling," the company added. "This, in turn, will support the growing Japanese trend toward investment in Asia." A number of Japanese companies including Mitsui and Sumitomo had expressed interest in forming a joint venture with Myanma Insurance, said Maung Thein. Yasuda was picked, he said, because it was the second largest insurance company in Japan, and the first to have a representative stationed in Yangon. In remarks at the signing ceremony, Win Tin noted Yasuda had "exhibited its goodwill and enthusiasm towards our country in the most perceptible manner". -------------------------------------------- BRC-J: MESSAGES TO YASUDA WEB SITE June 18, 1997 From: Ken and Visakha Kawasaki Here's what people can do if they want to lodge a protest with Yasuda Fire & Marine Insurance Co., Ltd.: 1. Go to this site: 2. Press the "English" button 3. Scroll down to the "Mail" icon (a little blue envelope) 4. Fill in the blanks and send http://www2.gol.com/users/brelief/Index.htm ************************************************ BKK POST: QUAKE WARNING REPEATED June 19, 1997 Anond Bunnag Environmental groups yesterday asked the House Environment Committee to prevent the Petroleum Authority of Thailand's gas pipeline from endangering forests in Kanchanaburi province. Pipop Thongchai, an activist representing the groups, told reporters after meeting the panel at Parliament that apart from being a potential threat to forests, the 260-km-long pipeline would pass two quake-prone zones in Darn Jedi Sarm Ong area and Si Sawat district of the province. The 16.5-billion-baht pipeline was also prone to terrorist attacks because a 10-km section of the pipeline will pass through an area controlled by Burmese ethnic groups. Mr Pipop affirmed the proposal for an underwater pipeline from the Yadana and Yetagun gas fields in Burma to the power plant in Ratchaburi province was a safer option as it would reduce the length of the pipeline by 30%. He also called on the House panel to ensure that the contents of the pipeline deal between PTT and Burma were made available to the public. ********************************************************* NATION: US STATE PROSECUTOR SETS SIGHTS ON KHUN SA June 17, 1997 Yindee Lertcharoenchok A SENIOR US federal prosecutor responsible for several indictments against Southeast Asian drug trafficking syndicates has expressed strong hope that opium warlord Khun Sa will be brought to justice for his illicit drug activities over the past 20 years. Catherine E Palmer, a senior litigation counsel and assistant attorney in the US Attorney's Office in the eastern district of New York, praised Thailand for its cooperation in arresting and extraditing several of Khun Sa's leading lieutenants under a joint Thai-US Operation named Tiger Trap. Since last year, three out of 14 Tiger Trap suspects who were all arrested separately, have already been extradited to face charges in US federal courts which has experience in prosecuting members of the Italian mafia, Asian crime gangs and Southeast Asian drug traffickers. China recently handed the US one Tiger Trap suspect, arrested in southern Yunnan province, said Palmer, who is the lead prosecutor in Operation Tiger Trap aimed at persecuting Khun Sa and 19 other collaborators who have participated in heroin production and trafficking. Palmer, who has just left Bangkok after a one-month stay as a guest lecturer at the Thailand Criminal Law Institute, declined to name Tiger Trap suspects who have already pleaded guilty. But several informed sources identified Li Chia-cheng, who was arrested by Yunnan authorities and sent to the US in late April, as being among them. The three other suspects extradited from Thailand were Meechai Pathumanee, who was extradited on January 17, 1997; Chao Fu-sheng extradited on May 24, 1996; and Chao Yuan on August 31, 1996. In an interview last Friday, Palmer praised Thailand for its cooperation in the operation that had "a direct impact on Khun Sa's ultimate fall" and "a significant impact" in disrupting his drug empire that had been operating in the Shan State for more than 20 years. "We have gotten several of the top [Tiger Trap suspects]. I can't say what's going on right now with Khun Sa or what will happen to him in the future, but I remain very optimistic that he will face justice at some point," she said. "Whether it's in the United States, Burma or Thailand, that's not important to me. But what is important to me is that he answers the charges some place, whenever it happens," Palmer said, who has been dubbed "Dragon Lady" by the Asian community in New York for her tough pursuit of Asian organised crime gangs and Southeast Asian drug trafficking syndicates. She was hopeful that more of the operation's suspects would be arrested. "Concerning Khun Sa, I'm proud of the fact that our efforts here in cooperation with the Thai police have resulted to a large extent with the shutting down of his Shan operation and made him move to a place where maybe he cannot run operations as he once did," she said. The US prosecutor accepted that there were several other major narcotic warlords in Burma's Shan State, apart from Khun Sa, who are or have been heavily involved in illicit drug activities in the Golden Triangle area. She said the Thai police and US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) "were well aware of who the rising people are" and were closely working together to bring new cases and investigations against all of the major targets. Palmer hopes Burma will continue to extend anti-drug cooperation as, it did with the surprise arrest and deportation to Thailand in late May of Li, who jumped bail in early February while awaiting extradition to the US. (TN) ******************************************************* THE NATION: POLICE SEIZE COCAINE PARCEL June 18, 1997 Kyodo A BURMESE man was arrested on Monday in Pattaya when he arrived at a post office to collect a cocaine parcel sent from Brazil, Thai narcotics officials said yesterday. Authorities confiscated 600 grammes of cocaine stuffed inside two pairs of slippers packed in a parcel sent by express mail from Sao Paulo, according to the officials. They said the cocaine has a local street value of Bt2.1 million. The man was identified as Khup Za Dong, 27, who is believed to he a member of an international narcotics - trafficking ring that imports cocaine for sale in Bangkok and Pattaya. British authorities were said to have tipped off Thai officials about the suspicious nature of the parcel after it transited Britain route to Thailand. Officials said Khup Za Dong, a resident of Bangkok for three years, also earns a living by sending Burmese workers to third countries, including Japan and South Korea. Some 2.5 kgs of cocaine has been confiscated in Thailand since January this year. Convicted narcotics traffickers can face the death penalty.(TN) ******************************************************* NATION: PITAK ASKS BURMA TO CEASE TRADE DISRUPTION June 19, 1997 Don Pathan MAE SOT ­ The Burmese junta should end its block on cross-border trading and treat border problems and economic activities along the Thai-Burmese frontier separately, Deputy Foreign Minister Pitak Intrawityanunt said yesterday. "Myanmar [Burma] won't be able to open or close its borders as it pleases once it becomes a member of Asean [the Association of Southeast Asian Nations]. There is certain behaviour and a code of conduct that Asean members ... have to abide by," Pitak said during a one-day tour of this northern district in Tak province. Rangoon abruptly ordered the closure of the Myawaddy border crossing last Thursday in response to a dispute over an islet in the Moei River the junta claimed had been lost to Thailand when the river changed course due to flooding. The closure has gravely affected Mae Sot's economy and an estimated Bt1-million worth of goods destined for Burma remain stranded on the Thai side each day. Last week, Maj Rijirawat Vongsriyanarong, head of the Thai-Burmese coordinating committee, quoted Lt Col Sai Phone, commander of Burma's 275th Infantry Division, as saying that the closure was due to a decision by Rangoon to reorganise cross-border rules and regulations. But border officials have said they believe the closure resulted from Thailand's protest at Burma's attempt to dredge the river in order to return it to its original position. Thailand asked the Burmese to stop the dredging, saying it could affect the river's causeway and the frontier. The Burmese argued that the original water channel had been altered over the past several years and that they had a right to regain the islet, which Thailand had claimed as part of a land reclamation. Speaking at a meeting of the Mae Sot Chamber of Commerce, Pitak assured local businessmen that the border situation would improve considerably once Burma joined Asean. The traders urged the ministry to study the possibility of making the area a "special economic zone" aimed at attracting labour-intensive industry. They also asked the government to relax travel restrictions for Burmese workers and allow them to work in the proposed zone. Pitak said border problems were likely to continue because the two countries share a long common border. "But this doesn't mean that security issues have to disrupt commercial activities," he said. Kobsak Chutikul, director general of the ministry's Economic Affairs Department, played down the territorial dispute, saying border problems did not reflect the entire relationship between the two countries. He dismissed recent media reports which called the closure a violation of the Agreement on Border Crossing signed last month during Prime Minister Chavalit Yongchaiyudh's visit to Burma, saying that Article 13 allowed either country to suspend entries along the border for security reasons. "Though it was within their [Burma's] rights [to close the border], nevertheless, there is an unwritten international code of conduct that members of the world community should abide by," he said. The traders asked Burmese Ambassador to Thailand U Hla Muang, who was accompanying Pitak, to consider the economic well-being of the area before closing border crossings. The envoy responded by saying that "man-made border problems take longer to resolve than problems created by natural causes", implying that it could take some time before the territorial dispute is settled and that Burma feels the right to reclaim land lost due to flooding overrides Thailand's appeal to maintain the status quo.(TN) ******************************************************* BKK POST: AUGUST DATE SET BRIDGE'S OFFICIAL OPENING June 19, 1997 [abridged] Supamart Kasem, Mae Sot, Tak 3 checkpoints to be upgraded The Thai-Burmese Friendship Bridge, linking Mae Sot district and Myawaddy of Burma, is to be officially opened in August to facilitate transport of goods and people between the two countries, it was confirmed yesterday. Thai and Burmese authorities have also agreed to upgrade three temporary checkpoints Mae Sot-Myawaddy, Mae Sai-Tachilek and Ranong-Kawthaung - to be permanent checkpoints. The confirmation of the official opening of the bridge was made by Deputy Foreign Minister Pitak Intrawithayanunt and Burmese Ambassador to Thailand Hla Maung during an inspection trip to Mae Sot yesterday. (BP) *************************************************** FEER: FLY IN THE OINTMENT June 12, 1997 Asean's decision to make Burma, Cambodia and Laos members from July will present multiple dilemmas for the grouping itself and for its relations with the West. By Murray Hiebert in Kuala Lumpur, Nigel Holloway in Washington and Michael Vatikiotis in Bangkok For Asean, the real work is only just beginning. The grouping's decision to embrace Burma despite protests over human-rights abuses along with Cambodia and Laos was only the first step. Now it faces the more formidable task of integrating the new members into a 10-nation bloc and managing its relations with the rest of the world. Asean won't have to wait long for its first challenge. American Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and several European foreign ministers all of whom opposed Burma's admission will hold talks with their Asean counterparts in Kuala Lumpur in late July, a day or two after the new members are admitted. The presence of the Burmese could put the Western foreign ministers in a ticklish position. Malaysian Foreign Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, who announced the May 31 decision to admit the new members, tried to avoid giving the impression that Asean was thumbing its nose at the West. It was not a signal. We signal to nobody, he told journalists at the end of an Asean foreign ministers' meeting in Kuala Lumpur. But in an apparent attempt to limit the scope for dispute, Badawi said Asean would not assign the new members dialogue partners with nonmember nations. The United States, the European Union, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and South Korea hold a series of dialogues with Asean members after the bloc's annual meeting. The decision not to give the new members dialogue partners will tend to marginalize them and essentially make them second-string members of Asean, at least for several years. Another hurdle is the Asia Europe summit in London next year. The British government bars visas to Rangoon's military leaders, which means a dispute may arise over whether Burma will be allowed to attend the summit. A senior European diplomat in Bangkok says the European Parliament is also unlikely to amend the EU's protocol with Asean to recognize Burma's membership in the grouping. This could complicate future dealings between the two blocs. Other countries such as Canada and Japan provide aid to Asean but refuse or restrict bilateral assistance to Burma. Asean, however, doesn't allow donors to exclude any of its members from aid programmes for the grouping. But no Canadian politician will risk signing an agreement with Slorc, predicts Abdul Razak Baginda, head of the Malaysian Strategic Research Centre. (SLORC stands for the State Law and Order Restoration Council, Burma's ruling military junta.) Integration of the new members into Asean could prove equally daunting. Admission is easy, says Razak. But when the hullabaloo ends will the new members be able to send personnel to 280 meetings a year? Observers believe this will be easier for Burma, which has more English speaking diplomats, than poorer, smaller Laos and Cambodia. Economic cooperation could pose additional problems. Badawi said the three new members would be given 10 years from January 1998 to comply with the tariff-reduction schedule mandated by the Asean Free Trade Area, or Afta. The other members have until 2003 to lower tariffs on 98% of their traded goods to below 5%. Vietnam, which joined Asean in mid- 1995, has been given until 2006. Asean's membership explosion could also result in internal political tensions. It will be more difficult to maintain the cohesion of 10 disparate countries, says Lee Poh Ping, an international-affairs specialist at the University of Malaya. He points out that Asean's six older members are more developed and have long practised market economics, whereas Burma, Cambodia and Laos have long been isolated from international markets. There's bound to be a clash of cultures, Lee says. Burma's growing economic and military ties with China could be one of the first tests for an enlarged Asean. China is very close to Myanmar, says another analyst in Kuala Lumpur, using the military leadership's name for Burma. If the Spratlys become a problem, he says, referring to islands in the South China Sea claimed by China and several Asean members, what will Myanmar's position be? Burma did nothing to help Asean rebut American opposition in the run up to the foreign ministers' meeting. In recent months, Rangoon has restricted the activities of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and detained more than 300 members of her National League for Democracy, most of whom were only released on June 3. In a videotape smuggled out of Burma just before the Asean meeting, Suu Kyi said that Asean membership would make Rangoon's military leaders even more obdurate and oppressive. Asean officials insist that their decision to embrace Burma had nothing to do with giving Rangoon a good-housekeeping seal of approval. Instead, they say, it is a continuation of their policy of constructive engagement, which emphasizes economic cooperation and downplays political issues. And what if the human-rights situation in Burma worsens after its Asean membership? Now that Myanmar will be a member of Asean, Asean's policy of constructive engagement, which we will continue to pursue, will be more effective, I hope, Malaysia's Badawi told journalists. The three countries will be formally admitted at an Asean foreign ministers' meeting hosted by Malaysia in July. Observers say this year, the 30th anniversary of Asean's founding, provided a convenient peg for expanding membership. It's very symbolic, says Razak. If you have no fixed criteria for admitting new members, you have to fall back on certain events. Washington had been working behind the scenes for months to persuade Asean governments to proceed slowly on Burma's admission. On April 25, State Department spokesman Nicholas Burns told reporters that the U.S. was trying to use our influence to make the point that Burma should be given a stiff message that it is not welcome. His words provoked a strong reaction from Asean, prompting Washington to soften the wording of its opposition by acknowledging that membership was a matter for Asean to decide. Analysts and diplomats differ on the impact of Washington's lobbying efforts on Asean's decision to admit Burma. A senior Asean official says American opposition was only a minor consideration. He says delaying the decision until December, as some had suggested, was ruled out because it wouldn't have made the issue any less sensitive. Others believe Washington's tactics speeded up Rangoon's admission. The attempt by the U.S. to pressure Asean got the opposite result, says Razak of the Malaysian Strategic Research Centre. Asean became more resolved to unite Southeast Asia. In the U.S., analysts downplay the extent of the damage. Some argue that the American cause was lost because Washington hadn't tried hard enough to coordinate its Burma policy with Asean. The Clinton administration could have done better working with Asean by saying: We will delay sanctions if you delay membership,' says Douglas Paal of the Asia-Pacific Policy Centre, an independent think tank. A Democratic staffer in the House says that some American congressmen may ask Secretary of State Albright to boycott the Asean meeting in Kuala Lumpur in July. But even though she described Slorc as an ugly acronym for an ugly government in 1995, most analysts believe she will attend because of the importance Washington places on its ties with Asean. Still, no one expects the criticism of Rangoon to end after it joins Asean. Asean countries made a big mistake, but this is by no means the end of the battle over Burma or the end of our relations with Asean, says a Republican congressional aide in Washington. Since the decision on the new members, American officials have stressed that Washington and Asean have the same objectives with regard to Burma, but differ on how to achieve them. According to John Dinger, a State Department spokesman, We now look to Asean to use its good offices to urge the Slorc to seriously address our mutual concerns and urge the Slorc to enter into a productive dialogue with democratic forces in Burma. Robert Manning of the Progressive Policy Institute, a Washington think tank, believes that U.S. Asean relations will be tense for a while, but foresees no long-term damage. When push comes to shove and they dial 911, who're they gonna call? he asks. America is Asean's only option, he says. Singapore's ambassador to Washington, Chan Heng Chee, puts it differently: The U.S. sees Asean as an important strategic friend. Now the Asean-10 is Southeast Asia and it's inconceivable that the U.S. would not want a relationship with Southeast Asia. We share a congruent interest in maintaining peace and stability. (FEER) ********************************************************** BKK POST: REFORMS IN READINESS FOR ASEAN DEBUT June 19, 1997 Rangoon, AFP Rangoon planning to liberalise economy The military government plans political, economic and social reforms as it emerges on the world stage, with Asean membership expected next month, a minister was quoted as saying yesterday. Brigadier General David Abel, the national planning and economic development minister, said Burma was working towards economic liberalisation and privatisation, the state-run New Light of Myanmar reported. General Abel was quoted as saying that Burma's authorities were working to bring about "necessary reforms socially, politically and economically. The first step would occur when the country was admitted to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean)? he said. This ought to propel us through to the next stage of development," General Abel said at the opening of a four-day construction materials exhibition on Tuesday attended by 100 companies from 15 countries. The minister said he envisioned liberalisation in the formation of companies, joint ventures and publicly listed companies, and the privatisation of state enterprises. Privatisation has so far taken the form of foreign joint ventures with companies owned either directly by the military or by active or retired personnel, often operating under monopolies or oligopolies. The minister said per capita gross domestic product had grown 800 percent in terms of kyats, the local currency, since the junta took power from the previous military government and begin to open up the economy in 1988. General Abel dismissed widespread concerns about Burma's human rights abuses as "unfounded accusations" aimed at discrediting his government and urged foreign entrepreneurs to come see conditions for themselves. (BP) ***************************************************