------------------------ BurmaNet ------------------------ "Appropriate Information Technologies, Practical Strategies" ---------------------------------------------------------- The BurmaNet News: December 1, 1997 Issue # 881 HEADLINES: ========== THE NATION: YADANA GAS PIPELINE ROW SIMMERS ON BKK POST: NSC SAYS IMMIGRANT POLICY FAILS THE NATION: A JUNTA BY ANY OTHER NAME BKK POST: KHUN SA TELLS SHANS TO QUIT FIGHTING JUNTA BKK POST: A THUG BY ANY OTHER NAME IS STILL A THUG THE NATION: ASEAN WEIGHS CURBS ON CURRENCY TRADING BKK POST: GROUP ISSUE STEN WARNING SCMP: THAI ARMY PURGE OF REFUGEES FEARED THE STRAITS TIMES: NEW THAI LAW AIMS TO HALT TRAFFICKING IN WOMEN ----------------------------------------------------------------- THE NATION: YADANA GAS PIPELINE ROW SIMMERS ON November 29, 1997 KAMOL SUKIN The Thai-Burmese gas pipeline has been mishandled from the beginning, senior officials of the Petroleum Authority of Thailand (PTT) confess. But this awakening does nothing to resolve the conflict over the controversial project. Kamol Sukin reports. Controversy has surrounded the Yadana gas pipeline since it first began, and with construction of the first half complete -140 kilometres of the 260-km route is now in place - the conflict is nowhere near a resolution. If anything, the second half is proving more contentious than ever as it enters protected forest land - and its progress is being closely monitored by opposition groups. "It is true that we are worried about opposition to the building of the rest of the ! pipeline because it will pass through about 50 km of the forest conservation area," admitted Songkiat Thansamrit, PTT director of public relations. Songkiat last year expressed the opinion that all opposition to the pipeline was political or insincere, but he now admits that there is something wrong with the way the project has been run - mistakes he explains that are outside the PTT's authority to correct. There was no public participation in the project, from its inception to its construction, Songkiat said. And there are many people who believe it is the wrong direction to go for energy sector development. "If there was a second similar pipeline project I'm sure that we would not run it this way, but would allow more public participation from the very beginning," he f said. PTT's PR team, headed by Songkiat, is now trying to convince the media that things have changed for the better. Their well-prepared presentation contains a lot of promises about minimising the environmental impact of pushing the pipeline through the forest. New and more expensive technology is being employed. The company is also promising to answer the many questions raised by the opposition groups. It intends to send a team of eight conservationists to advise those building the pipeline about the best ways to avoid disrupting the ecology. PTT is also suggesting that villagers be prohibited from hunting. "We have been asked frequently how many of these promises we can really deliver," Songkiat said, but he did not explain much except to make a further promise ; that PTT would try to do its best. But all promises are dismissed as "cosmetic" by the pipeline's opponents who argue that the project has been on the wrong track from the beginning. The most interesting development, however, is that the attitude of the pipeline management towards the opposition t groups, which include Kanchanaburi villagers, environmental activists and academics, seems to have changed during the -past year. We accept that we have learned many things from the pipeline's opponents. Some we had never thought about before, like the pipeline will divide the forest into two parts," Songkiat said. "Many points raised by the groups are reasonable and should be listened to." But a simple change of attitude does not mean that things will automatically be better. Songkiat said the demands that construction of the pipeline cease while the project is reviewed and answers are sought to problems raised puts the PTT in an awkward position. The PTT's role in the project did not begin until all agreements- had been put in place and the contracts concluded. "We were caught between the gas producer [the Burmese government] and the consumer [the Electricity Authority of Thailand (Egat). Both sides have contracts with the PTT for construction of the pipeline, including a deadline," he said. "If there have been mistakes made, then the review needs to go back to the very start of the project, when we committed to buy the natural gas from Burma, and this is not within the full authority of PTT." Songkiat said the way the project was handled from the start caused problems. The public was not informed until after the pipeline had been approved by the Cabinet, a decision which was hardly likely to be reviewed, and no funds were made available for impact studies until after it had been given the green light. The decision-making process on whether the project was viable was known only to the authorities and whenever problems occurred there was no mechanism to make changes, he explained. In light of the economic crisis, the project's viability was no longer a matter even for debate because with the collapse of the baht the cost had risen way beyond the original estimate of Bt16.5 billion. PTT needs to raise about 70 per cent of the money through foreign loans and the issuing of domestic bonds. Songkiat declined to even attempt an estimate of the final cost of the project. So neither the economic viability nor the social and environmental impact of the gas pipeline are likely to be reconsidered by either PTT or the government. No one wants to take a fresh look into these issues because they still believe that the project is necessary, according to officials. The new government has shown no interest in taking up the matter, even though Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai vas at the head of the former cabinet which started negotiations for the project two years ago. Opponents of the pipeline plan a public gathering very soon to demand the government make its position clear. Previous attempts to begin talks failed. Last month the Chavalit government declined to send a minister with full authority to negotiate. The same questions about the project are still being raised by the same groups of people. And despite the talk of good intentions and lessons learned there is no clear sign of a change in the making. ******************************************************* BKK POST: NSC SAYS IMMIGRANT POLICY FAILS November 29, 1997 The National Security Council has admitted that the policy of registering alien workers and clamping down on illegal entries has failed. The NSC's admission came a day after the House Committee on Labour and Social Welfare called on the government to repatriate all immigrant workers because they were forcing a rising number of Thais out of work. Deputy secretary-general Khachadpai Burusapatana said the number of alien workers registered had fallen short of target only 290,000-300,000 workers had registered by November last year out of an estimated 700,000. The cabinet last year allowed immigrant workers to work in 43 of the country's 72 provinces. The Interior Ministry also ordered in June last year that employers register them with the authorities between September and November last year. They would then be allowed to work for two years before being repatriated. The Interior Ministry recently proposed that the registration period be extended to allow more to sign up. However, the proposal was criticised by Thai labour unions and the House Committee on Labour and Social Welfare which argued that alien workers would dominate the labour market and lead to Thais losing their jobs to low-wage workers, mostly from Burma, Laos, and Cambodia. The House committee yesterday said there were now one million illegal immigrants in the country. The NSC deputy secretary-general urged the government to review its policy on alien worker registration, saying it failed to control illegal entries. The policy had encouraged immigrants, particularly from Burma, to enter the country illegally in the hope of a better future, said Mr Khachadpai, adding that Burmese workers sneaked into the country via 75 border passes. "As long as our neighbouring countries are stricken with poverty, drought, and internal problems, there will continue to be an influx of rural poor into our country. We have to spend a huge sum of money to crack down on these illegal workers every year. Now it's time to jointly draw up concrete measures to solve the illegal entry problems," said the NSC chief. Commenting on the Labour and Social Welfare Ministry's estimate. that the number of alien workers is as high as one million people, the NSC secretary-general said official surveys had been unable to establish the exact number. The House Committee on Labour and Social Welfare has also urged agencies concerned to repatriate nonregistered alien workers for the sake of the rising number of jobless Thais. ******************************************************* THE NATION: A JUNTA BY ANY OTHER NAME November 30, 1997 THE CREATION OF A NEW RULING BODY IN BURMA IS A SIGN THE GENERALS ARE FEELING THE PRESSURE AUNG ZAW/THE RANGOON CURRENT It was Tazaungdei Pwe, the festival of lights, but most Burmese were too preoccupied with political events to enjoy the celebration fully. An official radio bulletin had announced the nine-year-old State Law and Order Restoration Council had been dissolved and replaced by the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC). The announcement surprised many Burmese. They had mixed feelings about the unexpected change, but for most Burmese, the SPDC isn't any more welcome than its predecessor. "The country has suffered enough under 35 years of military rule. We don't need more military dictatorship by a new name," said a politically active student in Rangoon. U Nyan Linn, about 45, was not surprised. "Changing the name doesn't mean anything," he said. "The old guys are paving the way for a younger generation to enjoy the state treasures because they're full," he joked. The old Slorc was officially replaced by the SPDC on Nov 15. Of its 19 members, 15 are high-ranking army, navy, air force or regional commanders. The government also formed a new 40-member cabinet. Lt Gen Khin Nyunt, who retained his position as secretary one, announced that the government had set up two new ministries - electric power and military affairs. Several senior Slorc members were shifted to a newly created advisory board, presumably to inactive posts. Though fresh faces were brought into the cabinet and the new ruling body, four of 'the most powerful generals - Sen Gen Than Shwe, Gen Maung Aye, Lt Gen Khin Nyunt and Lt Gen Tin Oo - kept their top jobs. Two other top army men were also brought into senior positions. Lt Gen Win Myint was given the newly created Secretary Three position. Win Myint headed the 11th Battalion in 1989, later becoming adjutant general. He is believed to be close to Khin Nyunt. The swiftness of his rise surprised even some generals, Rangoon-based analysts said. To appease the other generals, the SPDC established a new ministry military affairs. The ministry is headed by Lt Gen Tin Hla. Tin Hla's background is blood-tainted. During the 1988 uprising, he led the 22nd Battalion which earned notoriety as the most active unit in killing anti-government demonstrators. But for the intelligence chief the two generals are priceless allies. Analysts speculated that Ne Win had asked Khin Nyunt and the three other generals to "purge" some of the corrupt ministers and bring in more new faces. The intelligence faction was the big winner. "The army and intelligence factions have been at loggerheads for decades, but in the past, the army faction always defeated the intelligence. Now it is the opposite," said an analyst. Because of this, some opponents in exile see the new body as a ploy aimed at simply resolving rifts within the military. The SPDC was formed not to resolve the country's current political problems but just to resolve the military's own internal conflicts," said Moe Thee Zun, vice chairman of the All Burma Students Democratic Front (ABSDF). While it appears Khin Nyunt's faction has gained the upper hand, some Burma watchers predicted that division commanders loyal to Maung Aye will not let the intelligence faction take control of the nation. Bangkok-based journalist Bertil Lintner commented, 'Although Khin Nyunt's rivals Tin Oo and Maung Aye remained in their previous positions, if you look at the new list further down you would see more of Khin Nyunt's men than Maung Aye's." Maung Aye is vice-chairman and Tin Oo is Secretary Two of the SPDC. Khin Nyunt's former rivals Kyaw Ba and Tun Kyi were noticeably shifted to the advisory board. It is believed that trade minister Tun Kyi, who has a reputation among Burmese as the most corrupt minister in the government, was placed under investigation. - Sources in Rangoon reported that at least four former cabinet ministers including Tun Kyi were briefly detained. "But we are not sure what and how tough the action will be against them," said one in Rangoon. The new trade and commerce minister, Lt Gen Kyaw Than, fired several senior officials in the department. "We hope it is good for business," said a businessman, adding that local businessmen are quite happy with the 'punishment". Some regional analysts believe that Burma's two important trade partners in the region - Singapore and Indonesia nudged the generals for the new appearance. Lt Gen Khin Nyunt recently paid a visit to Singapore, where he was told that his regime needed to make a few changes if -it wanted to attract more foreign investment. Singapore businessmen also complained about the red tape and corruption among Slorc cabinet ministers, mainly Tun Kyi and Kyaw Ba. Burmese at home and abroad suggested that the new ruling body represents nothing more than a cosmetic change. "They have no intention to restore democracy to Burma but only to strengthen their grip on power," charged Moe Thee Zun. "For most ordinary Burmese, there is no dramatic change as long as the SPDC continues to practice previous repressive rule." He added that the SPDC did not announce its new policies thus will stick to the previous regime's line. "It's purely cosmetic," he said. However, political analysts in Rangoon and Bangkok watched the developments carefully. Indeed, many factors are involved in the recent emergence of the SPDC. Slorc watchers said the changes are related to worsening economic problems and the presence of unskilled and corrupt ministers in important ministries. Furthermore, there is a strong likelihood of a food shortage next year because of heavy floods in the Irrawaddy delta as well as in pegu and Mon states. Thus the junta could face another possible uprising as people grow increasingly frustrated with their daily hardships. "They realised that in order to remain in power they needed a major shake-up and to polish their image," a political analyst in Rangoon said of the generals. "The outside pressure is also working, he said. The generals want to repair their pariah image to attract foreign investment and aid. "It is understandable that after Burma became a member of Asean it would need to heed the grouping's advice," a Bangkok based diplomat said. Burma joined Asean in July but continues to face stumbling blocks in the international arena as it has yet to undertake any genuine political or economic reform. Last week, the state-run media reported that the changes were designed to foster "the emergence of disciplined democracy in the country- and to build up a peaceful developed nation." Many Burmese are not convinced that a democracy is about to be restored by the hands of the generals. The former regime, said an independent analyst in Rangoon, had no time to concentrate on its own politics. "Particularly, since the National League for Democracy pulled out of the national convention [in 1996], the Slorc was in defensive position." He said over the past two years the Slorc has not been able to make any political and economic achievements as the regime was preoccupied chasing its opponents. Internally, the regime has at least. five opponents the traditionally active students, monks, opposition groups, ethnic rebels and the general public who are displeased with high inflation and other hardships. "The new junta wants to play a dominant role in politics rather than reacting and wasting time with the opponents," the analyst said. He predicted that the SPDC would continue to seek to marginalise the opposition groups including the NLD. "They will continue to play cat and mouse games so that Aung San Suu Kyi and the party will be exhausted and look powerless." The new junta might not apply force but it will use more cunning ways of dividing and weakening the movement, he said. The SPDC might even invite Suu Kyi to the negotiating table but only after weakening the party. In this case, one of SPDC's preconditions will be "guided democracy", he predicted. Be that as it may, ordinary Burmese people have little faith ;; in the new ruling body. "It's like the Burmese saying, "no matter how many times a snake sloughs off its skin, it is still poisonous," said the ABSDF's Moe Thee Zun. "Although, I do believe that the SPDC will be the last military-led body," he added. ***************************************************************** BKK POST: KHUN SA TELLS SHANS TO QUIT FIGHTING JUNTA November 30, 1997 EX-DRUGS LORD ISSUES RADIO SURRENDER PLEA Former drug warlord Khun Sa has urged anti-Rangoon Shan people to surrender to the Burmese government following a battle between thousands of Shan troops and Burmese soldiers in central Shan State earlier this month. According to a Thai border official from Mae Hong Son, Khun Sa said in a radio broadcast monitored in Thai-Burmese border areas on November 10 that he wanted Shan ethnic groups to disarm and cooperate with Rangoon to create peace in Burma. The broadcast was made after over 2,000 Shan State Army (SSA), Shan State National Army (SSNA) and Shan United. Revolutionary Army (SURA) forces attacked strongholds of Burmese troops in Muang Kung and Muang Laika in central Shan State during November 8-9 and managed to take over two towns from Rangoon troops. Shan rebels joined forces to fight the Burmese troops after Burmese soldiers robbed agricultural products and valuables from people in central Shan State who had long backed Shan nationalist movements, the source said. The source added that Shan people were dissatisfied with the former drug kingpin's statement, saying Khun Sa was a betrayer, for he and his Mong Tai Army had yielded to Rangoon and also supported Burmese troops. Khun Sa planned to seek approval from the Burmese government for him and his family to stay outside a military camp in Rangoon soon, the source added. Earlier, many Shan people who had long fought for the independence of Shan State had agreed to surrender to Rangoon but no ceasefire agreement has been reached yet. ***************************************************************** BKK POST: A THUG BY ANY OTHER NAME IS STILL A THUG November 30, 1997 Letter to the Editor In 1962, the generals in Rangoon, in a swift coup d'etat, threw out the elected civilian government and presented themselves as the Revolutionary Council. With most of the elected democratic leaders thrown into prison and denied medical treatment, the generals proceeded to plunder the nation. Seeking a modicum of some international legitimacy, they wrote themselves a constitution and continued their reign of terror in mufti as the Burmese Socialist Programme Party. Under the banner of "The Burmese Way to Socialism", the generals continued to oppress the people, destroy every vestige of democracy and take the nation into economic ruin. As with most authoritarian regimes, the leadership punished those who brought bad news resulting from its decision-making. Soon, the statistics upon which policy decisions were being made were inaccurate which only magnified the miserable performance of the generals. In 1988 the brutal military regime realised that the Burmese people were fed up with the stupidity, incompetence and corruption of the "Burmese Socialist Programme Party". With millions of people demonstrating against the regime in every town and village throughout Burma, it didn't take a rocket scientist to conclude the BSPP was finished. After only a few months, the generals in Rangoon finally caught on to the winds of change. After a brief period of consultation with the discredited U Ne Win (Shu Maung), it was decided to change costumes once again. This time they discarded their mufti and returned to Army green and slipped into their shiny boots and proclaimed themselves the State Law and Order Restoration Council (Slorc). To people capable of rational thinking, the absurdity of thugs adopting the title of "State Law and Order Restoration Council" was obvious. Here was a group that destroyed the rule of law in Burma. It actively promoted lawlessness. It even asserted that it was subject to new laws. Constantly ranting and raving about supposed "neo-colonialists" among political opposition groups, it cited colonial period security laws to justify the arrest and imprisonment of supporters for democratic reform. >From all appearances, then, what Slorc wants to accomplish is to restore colonialism to Burma, with the generals being the "masters". It began its new era in 1988 with the protest by thousands of unarmed peaceful protesters, followed by looting of natural resources on a scale unparalleled in a region where corruption has been raised to a fine art. Under the guidance of these generals in Rangoon, the health care delivery system collapsed, the education system collapsed and the economy collapsed. The only areas seeing growth were the number of prisoners held under inhumane conditions, the infant mortality rates HIV/Aids, the number of tons of opium harvested, hectares of mature hardwood forests subjected to clear cutting, and incidents of gang-rape, torture, forced relocations, and extrajudicial executions. Now after nine years of further incompetence, corruption and bestiality, they have once again changed their attire and have returned dressed as the State Peace and Development Council (SDPC). As the spokesman for the National Council of the Union of Burma (NCUB) recently stated, "Over this thirty-five years of rule, the military has changed the name of the country three times, changed the flag once, and has adopted four different names for its ruling body." It is unlikely there will be any confusion between the State Peace and Development Council as military dictatorship now wishes to call itself and the Political Defiance Committee (PDC) which is the coordinating committee of the people of Burma who oppose the tyrants in Rangoon through nonviolent struggle. For our foreign readers, the easiest way to tell the difference is that the PDC never tortures the people. It never kills young men on sight in the rural areas. It never uses forced labour or uses people as human mine sweepers. It never engages in gangrape. It never has and never will fear the people of Burma. It is not corrupt. Changing names again did not remove the blood from the hands of the thugs in Rangoon. They remain murderers, crooks, and thugs. Peace and development can only be achieved when they leave. Bon Voyage! Hla Htut, a Democrat ***************************************************************** THE NATION: ASEAN WEIGHS CURBS ON CURRENCY TRADING December 1, 1997 Agence France-Presse KUALA LUMPLTR - Southeast Asian finance officials discussed possible curbs on foreign exchange trading in talks here yesterday ahead of a meeting of Asia-Pacific finance ministers, a senior Asean official said. The official, who asked not to be named, said the meeting discussed the "imposition of restrictions on currency trading" following the recent collapse of several currencies across the region. During the meeting, the officials from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations also discussed a proposal for a regional surveillance mechanism and the possibility of setting up an Asean fund to help members in distress. The official said the talks were "general" and did not go into specifics. Regional surveillance is one of the four areas covered by the "Manila Framework" adopted during a recent meeting of Asia-Pacific deputy finance ministers in the Philippine capital, including the United States and Japan. The framework also calls for enhanced economic and technical cooperation, measures to strengthen the IMF's capacity to respond to financial crises and a cooperative financing arrangement to supplement IMF resources. While the Manila meeting dropped plans for an exclusively Asian fund mooted by Japan and several Southeast Asian countries, officials say they are now considering a small Asean fund as a confidence-building measure. Clifford Herbert, secretary-general of the Malaysian finance ministry, said earlier the Asean fund "won't be very large" and would be separate from the cooperative financing arrangement to supplement IMF resources. Asean groups Brunei, Burma, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. Two of its biggest members, Thailand and Indonesia, have already sought tens of billions of dollars in international bailout facilities led by the International Monetary Fund. ******************************************************* BKK POST: GROUP ISSUE STEN WARNING December 1, 1997 Threaten to 'close off the forest' Supawadee Susanpoolthong Conservation groups and their allies are threatening to "close of the forest" to prevent the controversial Thai-Burma gas pipeline being built through it. They made the threat in a bid to abet the Petroleum Authority of Thailand (PTT) to suspend construction and start a new round of talks with them. The groups will petition Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai on Tuesday and are calling on the cabinet to review a resolution, passed during the previous government, allowing construction to begin in the forest section. They want the government to suspend work and restart talks between the groups and the PTT. The groups claim the work has infringed the rights of locals and damaged natural resources. The Kanchanaburi Conservation Group and 11 conservation and human rights groups drew up the resolution yesterday following a meeting to map out their response to the ongoing work. In October the Chavalit Yongchaiyudh cabinet approved the Industry Ministry's request to revoke national park status for that section in Sai Yok National Park through which the 260-km pipeline will pass. Two weeks ago, the PTT started laying the pipeline in the area. The first 50-km section of the pipeline route is national park forest land, six kilometres of which is lush forest. Phinan Chotirosseranee, leader of the local group, accused the PTT of violating the terms of an agreement they had reached. She said the excessive felling of trees has occurred and that the PTT had cut a swathe of forest to make a new l5-km road., Phibhop Dhongehai, secretary-general of the Campaign for Popular Democracy, said: "We'll wait five days after submitting the letter (to Premier Chuan). If there's no response, we'll move according to the plan. We will march from Bangkok to Kanchanaburi and close the forest to prevent the PTT from laying the pipeline until talks are called to consider changing the route." He said the project lacked a popular mandate because the terms of the contract between the state company and the Burmese government had never been revealed. "The PTT has no grounds for saying that it is liable to pay a heavy fine if it suspends the project or cannot finish it in time because it never asked to amend the terms of the contract even though it has the right to do so," he said. The PTT has consistently claimed that it will be fined some 40 million baht a day if it cannot take delivery of natural gas from the Yadana and Yetagun fields by next July. The two sides agreed to mediated talks in early November but the talks broke down when the opposition groups demanded the presence of the industry minister to ensure that the outcome of talks would be respected. However, former industry minister Korn Dabbarangsi could not be persuaded to join. ******************************************************* SCMP: THAI ARMY PURGE OF REFUGEES FEARED December 1, 1997 WILLIAM BARNES in Bangkok Hopes that Thailand's new Democrat Party-led Government will be soft on thousands of Burmese refugees may be dashed by the largely independent Thai military's border-control plans. Thailand is clearly getting nervous about the number of foreigners seeking refuge within its borders or working illegally during the biggest economic downturn since World War II. Last week, a parliamentary committee recommended kicking out all illegal immigrants - perhaps as many as a million, most of them Burmese. Yet there are doubts over whether such an ostentatiously human-rights-minded administration would be so brutal with "guests" who provided cheap labour during the economic boom and may have justified fears for their safety in Burma. Every Burmese exile remembers how new Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai allowed a group of Nobel Peace Prize winners - including the Dalai Lama - to visit the Thai-Burma border and protest about the lack of democracy in Burma, during his last term of office in 1993. Mr Chuan clearly thought that a democratic country should allow the trip, even at the cost of annoying a neighbour and deeply irritating China by providing a platform for the exiled Tibetan leader. International human rights groups were relatively unconcerned that the last Democrat-led coalition, from 1992 to 1995, would make any moves against some 120,000 "legal" Burmese refugees and the many thousands more living off the underground economy. A very different atmosphere prevailed when less-principled governments were in charge. Recently ousted premier General Chavalit Yongchaiyudh had a history of seeking business deals with Burma's junta for Thai firms. Yet no matter how well-meaning the current Thai Government might be, it remains in only dubious control of its borders - long the preserve of the military for "security reasons". The Burmese regime has been canny enough to try to exploit this crack between policy and practice by pandering to Thai military chiefs. Soon after Thailand hosted the Nobel Prize winners, the junta feted the then Thai army chief in Rangoon, while giving the then foreign minister a decidedly cool reception and revoking a number of business contracts. "The Thai military have given up a lot but they are not ready to give up their special rights over the border areas - and the junta knows it," said one diplomat. The junta has repeatedly called on Thailand to send its citizens home - the better to control its enemies, claim opponents. ******************************************************* THE STRAITS TIMES: NEW THAI LAW AIMS TO HALT TRAFFICKING IN WOMEN December 1, 1997 AFP BANGKOK - Thailand hopes a new law on human trafficking will help halt the flow of women and children into the sex trade, The Nation newspaper reported yesterday. The Prevention and Suppression of Trafficking in Women and Children Act, signed by King Bhumibol Adulyadej on Nov 16, gives the authorities the power to detain suspected victims to verify their travel documents. They can detain suspects for up to 10 days with the permission of the provincial governor in outlying provinces and the director-general of police in Bangkok. However, the law does not allow them to detain suspected traffickers. The Nation was reporting on a conference on child trafficking organised by international and local development agencies as well as legal bodies here last week. Thailand is a major destination for human traffickers, who procure women and children from China, Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia. Also on the rise is trafficking in women from Russia, eastern Europe and the Mekong region. There are approximately 200,000 prostitutes in Thailand. This figure is obtained from independent research reports compiled in 1994 by the Thai Red Cross Society and Mahidol University's Institute for Population and Social Research. According to the report, prostitution generates 450 billion to 540 billion baht (S$18.8 billion to S$22.6 billion) in yearly revenue. The figure was equivalent to between 50 and 60 per cent of Thailand's national budget in 1995, it said. The authorities and activists are hoping the law will help curb traffickers, who have come up with new methods of circumventing existing laws. -----------------------------------------------------------------