From editor@burmanet.org Mon Oct 21 17:12:31 2002 From: editor@burmanet.org (editor@burmanet.org) Date: Mon, 21 Oct 2002 12:12:31 -0400 (EDT) Subject: Burmanet News: October 17-18 2002 Message-ID: <31475.207.10.94.131.1035216751.squirrel@webmail.pair.com> October 17-18 2002 Issue #2107 INSIDE BURMA DPA: Myanmar human rights abuses causing flood of refugees HRW: Burma’s denial of child soldier use “not credible” DVB: DVB views gasoline, diesel shortage, price rises Irrawaddy: Breaking the “stagnant embrace” Mizzima: Envoy returns to Burma with hope for better human rights Myanmar Information Committee: MOFA issues press release regarding report of Human Rights Watch DVB: [Suu Kyi on last leg of journey] MONEY Xinhua: Foreign investment in Myanmar plunges in first half of 2002 PRESS RELEASES UC Free Burma Coalition: 4 Nobel Peace Prize winners join growing call for UC divestment from Burma ___INSIDE BURMA______ Deutsche Presse-Agentur October 18 2002 Myanmar human rights abuses causing flood of refugees A human rights group accused Myanmar of allowing abuses by its military to continue, adding persecuted refugees will continue to stream across the border into Thailand, a report said Friday. As torture, rape, summary executions, forced labour, and extortion by the junta's soldiers continues unabated in eastern Myanmar (Burma), Thailand can expect a steady flow of internationally displaced people (IDPs), human rights group Refugees International (RI) said in a report. The number of IDPs in Myanmar increased in 2002 because of the frequency of counter-insurgency operations by the military junta in ethnic minority areas, the Nation daily newspaper reported. "The fact that 42 per cent of IDPs in eastern Burma choose to live on the run and in hiding, rather than move to government-run relocation sites, adds credence to the fact that many relocation sites resemble concentration camps," the report by RI said. Since 1996, an estimated minimum of 1 million people living in ethnic states bordering Thailand have been displaced. The report added there are no guarantees that refugees will be protected from abuse by Thai authorities, or even receive humanitarian assistance once in Thailand. The Thai government has tightly restricted the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees' role in protecting refugees, decreasing the U.N.'s effectiveness in protecting IDPs along the border with Myanmar, RI said. United Nations special rapporteur on human rights, Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, is in Myanmar to investigate allegations of rights abuses, including mass rape by the junta's soldiers against ethnic girls and women. Myanmar's military junta welcomed the U.N. investigation, calling the rights abuse accusations "outrageous". ___________ Burma's Denial of Child Soldier Use "Not Credible" (New York, October 18, 2002) The Burmese government’s claim that it does not use child soldiers is contradicted by the evidence, Human Rights Watch said today. Burma has claimed a recent Human Rights Watch report is "just another example of attempts to tarnish the image of Myanmar and the Myanmar Tatmadaw (military) in the eyes of the international community." "We're very disappointed that, despite ample evidence to the contrary, the government continues to deny the military's use of children as soldiers," said Jo Becker, Children's Rights advocacy director for Human Rights Watch. "It is the widespread forced recruitment of children by Burma's army that tarnishes the image of the country, not efforts to bring these abuses to light." On October 16, Human Rights Watch released a report based on numerous first-hand testimonies of children who had been forcibly recruited by Burma's military. The report found that boys as young as 11 are forced into the army, brutally treated, and forced to commit human rights abuses and fight against armed opposition groups. Although the vast majority of Burma's child soldiers are in government armed forces, armed opposition groups were found to include children as well. The government claimed on Thursday that the military is purely voluntary and that national laws setting the enlistment age at 18 are "strictly enforced." "Burma's denial of the use of child soldiers is not credible," said Becker. "We urge the government to take positive steps to confront the problem. These include demobilizing all children from its forces and putting effective systems in place to ensure that children are not recruited and that those responsible are held accountable." The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights Situation in Myanmar, Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, is currently in Burma for his fourth visit to the country. Human Rights Watch has urged him to raise the recruitment and use of children as soldiers with the government of Burma and to report on this issue to the United Nations General Assembly. ________ Democratic Voice of Burma October 17 2002 Democratic Voice of Burma views gasoline, diesel shortage, price rises We understand that gasoline and diesel oil prices have been rising exorbitantly in Myanmar Burma in recent days. The price of diesel oil per gallon was over 70,000 kyat last week as heard and it has risen to over 80,000 kyat this week. The price rises came despite the introduction of non-driving days every other Sunday for military vehicles and daily calls by SPDC State Peace and Development Council newspapers to save fuel oil. DVB Democratic Voice of Burma called Yangon Rangoon and contacted a person in the trucking business to ask him why fuel oil prices were rising uncontrollably and what were the difficulties caused by the price rises. Here is that interview. DVB We have heard about the rapidly rising gasoline and diesel oil prices. Unidentified person Yes. Yes, that is true. DVB How much have they risen? Unidentified person I think diesel oil is over 80,000 kyat. DVB I see. How much was it before? Say, a week or two ago? Unidentified person About a week or two ago, it was about 70,000 kyat. DVB You mean the price rose by about 10,000 kyat in just a week or two. Unidentified person Yes, that is true. DVB Why do you think it rose so fast in just about a week? Unidentified person I don't really know, only the traders will have that answer. I am just a person in the truck business, and I just buy oil at the price they quote. DVB If that is the case, we understand that Nilar Yoma gasoline and diesel stations were closed down all over the country recently... ellipsis as received Unidentified person Yes, that is true. Well, those Nilar Yoma stations did help us a little. DVB Have you ever bought gasoline from those Nilar Yoma stations? Unidentified person They only sell diesel oil. DVB Have you used their service before? Unidentified person Yes, but I was told they do not sell fuel oil anymore, and we are still enquiring. DVB Are they still closed? What have you learned about them? Unidentified person They are open but I am told diesel will be sold to people with quota books. They said we must register for the books. But the books... ellipsis as received DVB Does that mean you have to buy with books at Nilar Yoma stations? Unidentified person Yes, that is true. DVB Are you not certain that they are officially opened? Unidentified person I don't know if they are officially opened. But I think they will sell at around 650 to 700 kyat. DVB Do you mean per gallon? Unidentified person Yes, per gallon. DVB On the basis of that price, how much would a drum cost? Unidentified person Each drum holds 50 gallons, and if each gallon is sold at 650 kyat, then the price would be around 32,500 kyat. DVB So, if Nilar Yoma stations reopen, the price would be half of what the cost is now? Unidentified person Well, I don't think they can sell at all because there isn't any oil left. DVB Is it easy to buy at government-regulated price? Unidentified person Government-regulated price is only for government departmental cars. DVB Isn't it possible for non-government car owners to buy it? Unidentified person No. DVB Since gasoline and diesel oil prices are rising, haven't the prices of commodities gone up as well? How about the freight charges? Are they more than before? How about passenger buses, are they charging more? Unidentified person Of course, how could they not rise? We still travel the same journey. For instance, we received 8,000 kyat for (words indistinct), but we told them that we can only carry their load if they pay us about 11,000 kyat, and we carried the goods and came here at the new rate. DVB Is it because of the fuel oil price rise? Unidentified person Yes, of course. DVB Only recently, we heard that 14 containers belonging to son of General Khin Nyunt, Ye Naing Win, and "Yuzana" U Htay Myint owner of Yuzana group of companies were seized at Sule Wharf. Have you heard about that case? Unidentified person We are just people in the truck business and we are on the move, so we have not heard about that news. DVB Newspapers have been calling for frugality in using gasoline and diesel oil every day. In addition, they are keeping all military-owned vehicles off the road every other Sunday. With regard to these actions, what do you people feel about it? Unidentified person We don't know much about it because it concerns government departments. DVB As an owner of a vehicle, what do you think should be done to bring down prices of gasoline and diesel oils in Myanmar? Unidentified person Prices will go down if a lot more fuel oil is sold. If no arrests are made and if oil is sold abundantly, prices will go down. Previously, we usually buy oil for our trucks in Hlegu, but they raided those shops and made some arrests. It is not easy for people like us in the business. ________ Irrawaddy October 18 2002 Breaking the "Stagnant Embrace" By "Burma Observer’ The idea that negotiations between the Burmese military regime—the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC)—and Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the leader of the democratic opposition, will lead to a democratic transition in Burma sooner or later is an idea whose time has come. A negotiated settlement is in the pipeline since there is no viable alternative to dialogue and a negotiated transition. However, this is not to say that both the camps are as committed to this path as it appears. Each would certainly prefer a less messy, more clear-cut solution: on the one hand, the overthrow of the military regime, and on the other, the collapse or "disappearance" of the democratic opposition. Nonetheless, like it or not, the two camps will just have to hunker down to fighting a different kind of war, a very political kind, which neither is comfortable with or very skilled at. They will have to talk, negotiate, and compromise, because it is not likely that what each camp hopes for will be fulfilled. Compounding the problem is the fact that they are poles apart in their vision of how Burma should be constituted, and how politics is to be played, or who should participate in the political arena. The military regime’s goal is to establish what it calls "disciplined democracy", a regime like that of former Indonesian dictator Suharto, which—unfortunately for the ruling top brass in Burma—has collapsed, and worse, is no longer a fashionable model, and is even considered pathetic, if not ridiculous. The regime’s blueprint for the future is irrelevant as far as the global trend is concerned. The regime is, moreover, illegitimate, having foolishly (in hindsight) held a general election in 1990 and lost overwhelmingly. As it were, the military was publicly slapped in the face by the electorate, as was a similar regime in 1960. It is also clear that the regime lacks even a rudimentary capacity to govern. Everything it touches has turned to ash. And although it has managed to desperately cling on to power by virtue of its command of the armed forces, the Tatmadaw (the Burmese Army) is bloated and badly decayed. The men are demoralized, the mid-level officers dream of political change, and half of them dream of becoming ministers, while officers in the higher echelons are almost all corrupt. The regime is a hollowed-out shell—and this is more so the case considering the fact that the top generals are held together primarily, if not only, by fear of the people’s wrath. The goal of the democratic opposition is well known and is in tune with the global trend toward openness, transparency, accountability, good governance, the rule of law, and in the context of a multi-ethnic society, a federal arrangement that its leaders believe will solidify and sustain national unity. However, the balance of power is not in its favor. Although the movement is worldwide, its elements scattered all over the globe, it has not received much assistance from the international community or from sympathetic governments. The reason is that Burma is low on the priority list of most governments, and is furthermore just barely on the radar screen of the governments of neighboring states—India, China, Japan and members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations—or regarded as a troublesome nuisance. What one finds currently in Burma are therefore two totally different dreams locked in a stagnant embrace, like two over-the-hill boxers who cling to each other in an exhausted stupor. Given the political standoff, where neither camp can hope to win a clear victory, the coming negotiations and the politics of transition will be very protracted and likely very messy. Once negotiations begin in earnest, it is likely that there will appear fissures and divisions in both the main camps and within the ethnic nationalities. The SPDC’s camps would break up, perhaps not openly, into hardliners, pragmatists, moderates, extremists, and idealists or true believers, as would the opposition camp and the ethnic nationalities. The above is all the more likely since all the protagonists are held together more by what they are against than by what they are for. Far from their minds is the likelihood that the solution or the settlement—or possible settlements—arrived at will be far from satisfactory. As such, leaders who understand that democratic transition will be a long, drawn-out process, one that requires inventive compromises, sophisticated bargaining, tough give-and take, and so on, will be hampered more by true believers within their own constituencies than by their opponents sitting across the negotiation table. For example, a military caretaker government might have to be agreed on, in exchange for recognition by the regime of an interim parliament—the "1990 parliament"—to oversee the transition process, to which the care-taking body would, in turn, be accountable. Or a decentralized, but not fully federal, constitutional arrangement might have to be adopted for a period of years, pending the drafting and adoption of a fully federal constitution at a later date. The above hypothetical interim arrangements would obviously not satisfy anyone, and might be challenged by outraged purist elements and by opportunist demagogues, the rabble-rousers, and others trying to outbid the mainstream leaders in both camps. Evidently, any solution arrived at will not be satisfactory to anyone—not the SPDC, the democratic opposition, or the ethnic nationalities who comprise close to 40% of the population and occupy about 60% of the total land area. The challenges facing Burma in the coming negotiation and in the politics of transition will thus be very formidable. And if the international community labors under the illusion that a settlement can be worked out among Burmese stakeholders because of certain cosmetic moves made by the regime, it will certainly be very rapidly disillusioned. The above is not to say that Burmese stakeholders, including the ethnic nationalities, are incompetent and bloody-minded. The fact of the matter is that the existence of military dictatorship in Burma since 1962 has radically knocked out of joint all functional relations and the modicum of trust that hitherto existed between the state in Burma and the broader society. What we have had in Burma since 1962 is a military-monopolized state that has no relation with broader society other than one that is harshly controlling, repressive, and predatory. Therein lies the root of mistrust among the stakeholders in Burma. Given this context, sustained international focus on Burma’s transition, as well as the involvement and even guarantees of the international community, might be very helpful, and would certainly be very positive. The author is a long-time Burma watcher and scholar, and has worked with the democratic movement in an advisory capacity for many years. The views expressed here are the author’s alone, and do not represent in any way whatsoever the views of any leaders or organizations within the democratic movement. _______ Mizzima News October 17 2002 Envoy returns to Burma with hope for better human rights By Htet Aung Kyaw October 17: The United Nations human rights special envoy to Burma Mr. Paulo Sergio Pinheiro is to arrive Rangoon today to promote rights conditions in this military ruled country. He plans to meet military government officials, judicial officers, lawyers as well as leaders of Rangoon-based non-governmental organizations during his eleven days visit. He also plans to meet Aung San Suu Kyi, leader of the opposition National League for Democracy and representatives of ethnic political parties. But officials form both the NLD and ethnic parties said they were not yet informed about envoy's schedule. However, an NLD official says Suu kyi will be back in Rangoon this evening from her 4-day political trip outside the capital and she will meet the envoy on weekends. Diplomats and observers at Rangoon suggested that Mr. Pinheiro will focus two special issues; a rape report by Thailand-based Shan Women's Action Network, named "License to Rape" which accuses 625-Shan women were raped by Burmese soldiers, and the death of a political prisoner U Sai Phat-69, vice chairman of NLD Shan State in custody this month. But it remains a big question whether the authorities will actually allow the envoy to do that? However, the military junta's spokesperson Col. Hla Min says that his government is ready to cooperate with UN officials. "We welcome Professor Pinheiro's independent review on this allegation of human rights abuses in Shan State. These accusations are false', he said in a statement. But Nang Hseng Noung, leader of the Shan Women's Action Network who writes the report says, "The SPDC never talks the truth. They are now trying to lie to Mr Pinheiro". "We have heard from Shan State that the junta's Committee ordered the locals not to talk about the case and forced them to put in writing that they know nothing about the sexual violations committed by the army", she added. In U Sai Phat's case, Col. Hla Min says it was a malaria problem. But Sai Phat's sisters and the NLD officials at Kyaing-ton claimed they don't agree with Hla Min's response. "My brother is very strong and never had malaria. Why he died in 25 days? I suspect he was tortured or something wrong was done to him while in custody", Sai Phat's sister told Oslo-based Democratic Voice of Burma in a telephone interview. According to Thailand-based Association Assistance for Political Prisoners (AAPP), at least 73 political prisoners had died in custody since 1989. "I believe the MI (Military Intelligence) killed our comrades systematically. The rate of deaths in custody is higher than before, as one person in every 3 months now", claimed Ko Tate Naing, Secretary of AAPP. "We welcome Mr Pinheiro's visit and the ICRC (International Committee for Red Cross) interference on political prisoners' cases. There was some little progress in Burma's prisons after Pinheiro's second visit. But we also want to inform him that some activists and the NLD members were continued to be arrested by the MI", the AAPP secretary added. In his report to the UN Assembly on Monday, Mr Pinheiro said that Burma's regime needs to do more reforms, especially in judicial areas. "The release of all political prisoners is the basic condition to continue political dialogue", he pointed in the report. However, there is no sign from the authorities of a mass release of political prisoners during Pinheiro's current visit. Meanwhile, the UN special envoy to Burma Mr. Razali Ismail was in China to explain the situation of "National Reconciliation" in Burma to the Chinese authorities. This is Razali's first trip to China although he had often visited US, EU and Japan regarding his Burma assignment. China is the closest friend of Burmese junta. "As Burma's affairs have become the world's affair, we feel it is not right to procrastinate any longer", commented the veteran Burmese politician Thakhin Thein Pe. "I think they (the SPDC) have reached the final stage to hold dialogue with the NLD. There is no alternative for them". Htet Aung Kyaw is a correspondent for Oslo-based Democratic Voice of Burma. _______ Myanmar Information Committee October 18 2002 MOFA Issues Press Release Regarding Report of Human Rights Watch The New York-based Human Rights Watch in its recent report has claimed that Myanmar Armed Forces have recruited large number of children as soldiers and that child soldiers constitute as much as 20 per cent of the total force. It is an allegation that has no basis whatever and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs completely rejects the assertion. The report is just another example of attempts to tarnish the image of Myanmar and the Myanmar Tatmadaw in the eyes of the international community. It is no accident that the report appeared on the eve of an important visit by a high ranking UN official and at a time the United Nations General Assembly is starting to consider human rights questions. As such, the report is nothing but an attempt to pressure on Myanmar and to interfere in the internal affairs of the country. Moreover, as the report appears to be based on the testimony of so-called deserters in Thailand, their statements are indeed very questionable. People in Myanmar are already very familiar with the practice of the anti-government elements based in Thailand and other countries to trot out so-called "witnesses’’ to make all sorts of statements. Indeed, many of these witnesses are none other than members and families of the insurgents and anti-government elements. It is regrettable that some organizations, in their prejudice against Myanmar, sought to give credence to such machinations. The Ministry would like to reiterate the fact that under the Defence Services Act of April 1974 and War Office Regulation 13/73, a person cannot be enlisted into the armed forces unless he has attained the age of 18. This regulation is strictly enforced. Moreover, the Myanmar Armed Forces is a purely voluntary army and those entering the military service do so at their own free will. There is neither a draft system nor forced conscription in the country. On the other hand, the use of child soldiers by the armed insurgent groups is well documented. To cite but one example, the Kayin armed terrorist group known as "God’s Army" which operated on the Myanmar-Thailand border was led by twin child soldiers, Johnny Htoo and Luther Htoo. It may be recalled that some western organizations and individuals even went so far as to laud the two children. _______ Democratic Voice of Burma October 17 2002 [Suu Kyi on last leg of journey] We have learned that leader of the Myanmar [Burmese] democracy movement Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, NLD [National League for Democracy] Vice-Chairman U Tin Oo, and members of the NLD are now in Tharawaddy, the last leg of their tour of Pegu Division. We understand that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and members of the NLD were enthusiastically greeted by people from villages and towns along the route. So far, there has been no interruption and their trip has proceeded smoothly. NLD Spokesperson U Lwin explains Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's today trip to DVB [Democratic Voice of Burma] as follows: [U Lwin] Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has now arrived in Tharawaddy where she opened an [NLD] office and had meeting with NLD township executive committee members. She will be returning directly to Yangon [Rangoon] after that. Her stopover in Letpadan took longer than scheduled. That is because in addition to holding a meeting with NLD executives, she also worked on forming an NLD youth wing. That was why it took longer than expected. She is expected to return just after 2100. A trip from Tharawaddy to Yangon only takes about two hours and the road is quite good and free of traffic. [End of recording] U Lwin also explained about the welcome accorded to Daw Aung San Suu Kyi along the way. [U Lwin] People came out to greet her in every town. Unlike the trips to Mandalay and (Ho-Mong), the towns along the Yangon-Prome route are quite close to each other and there is always a town after about a 15-minute drive. So, people do not go and group at a certain town to welcome her. They wait for her arrival in their own towns. I can only give you estimates, since it is not possible to know exactly. For instance, there were more than 3,000 people welcoming her in Prome the night before she left. In other towns, there were only about 1,000 to 2,000. But they say that in Minhla and Letpadan, over 3,000 people welcomed her. It looks like people in western Pegu region are satisfied with the visits. [End of recording] Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is expected to return to Rangoon today. _____MONEY_________ Xinhua News Agency October 18 2002 Foreign investment in Myanmar plunges in first half of 2002 Foreign investment in Myanmar plunged by 96.59 percent in the first half of 2002, compared with the same period of last year, registering only 1.516 million US dollars, according to the latest official figures. The single investment was injected into the manufacturing sector by an investor from China's Hong Kong, said the government- published Economic Indicators without identifying the investor. The sharp drop in Myanmar's foreign investment was attributed to the negative impact of the 1997 Asian financial crisis, the September 11 terrorist attacks on the United States, the slowing down of global economic growth and the unfavorable domestic investment environment. In 2001, Myanmar's foreign investment coming from 10 countries and regions amounted to 58.97 million dollars and the five sectors into which the investment was brought about were manufacturing, construction, hotels and tourism, oil and gas, and mining. According to official statistics, since opening up to the outside world in late 1988, Myanmar had absorbed 7,399.7 million dollars of foreign investment in 370 projects as of June 2002. Meanwhile, since March this year, Myanmar authorities has stopped issuing import and export permits to Myanmar-based foreign trading companies, resulting in the withdrawal of a lot of such companies. ____PRESS RELEASES_____ University of California Free Burma Coalition October 18 2002 Press Release: 4 Nobel Peace Prize Winners Join Growing Call for UC Divestment from Burma Los Angeles - Organizers of the growing movement to encourage the University of California (UC) Regents to divest Burma-related stock announced today that four Nobel Peace Prize winners have signed a letter to the UC Regents urging immediate action. The move is a clear escalation in a two-year effort to encourage the Regents to empty the University portfolio of stock in companies which continue to do business with the brutal military regime in the southeast Asian nation. Signatories to the letter to the Regents now include Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Mairead Corrigan Maguire, Betty Williams, and Jody Williams. All four esteemed Peace Prize Winners have expressed concern and support for divestment from University of California-owned stock in companies that are financially involved in Burma. Eric Blocher, a member of the UCLA Environmental Coalition, one of the organizations in a UC-wide Free Burma effort, said "This is an important step in the effort towards UC divestment. It is critical that the UC Regents recognize that this is an international movement supported by prominent world figures. We are hopeful that the Regents will listen to what they are saying and put this issue on an upcoming agenda." Desmond Tutu, who was a key figure in the struggle against apartheid in South Africa, has widely publicized his support of sanctions on Burma. In March 2002, Tutu issued a statement saying that "Burma is the next South Africa," emphasizing that "We cannot in good conscience turn a blind eye to the dollar that passes from the hand of the businessman to the hand of the General, that buys the bullet, or the landmine, or the mortar, that eventually ends the life of a child, woman or man in Burma. We must cut this life-line to the Generals in Rangoon, we must stop the investment." By divesting, the UC Regents would be joining a growing movement for democracy in Burma. The cities of Los Angeles and Minneapolis, as well as American University and the University of Virginia have taken steps towards divestment of Burma related stock and there are similar campaigns taking place nationwide and around the world. The military junta in Burma is widely considered to be one of the most brutal in the world and has been condemned by organizations ranging from the United Nations and the US State Department to Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. The letter signed by the Nobel Laureates urges the UC Regents to divest from Burma-related stock and to make a commitment to not buy stock in those companies until democracy is achieved in Burma. More specifically, the UC Free Burma Coalition is calling on the UC Regents to divest from both Unocal and Total, two oil companies that have implemented pipeline projects in Burma and have worked closely with the Burmese military regime in their endeavors. There have been documented cases of forced labor, rape, child labor, and forced relocation of Burmese citizens under the Unocal and Total pipeline projects. Aung San Suu Kyi, the Burmese democratic leader and Nobel Peace Prize Winner who was placed under house arrest for 11 years has repeatedly called on the international community to discontinue business in Burma until democracy is achieved. In May 2002, Suu Kyi was released from house arrest, but her freedom is still severely limited, she is denied her rightful power by the military, and the regime's empty promises for negotiations working towards democracy remain unfulfilled. "The Regents can no longer ignore this issue. The movement is growing and this call by the Nobel Laureates only makes us stronger," said Kevin Rudiger, of the Burma Forum, Los Angeles. "The Regents have a real opportunity here to take a position of moral leadership. It is time they do so." From editor@burmanet.org Mon Oct 21 17:14:41 2002 From: editor@burmanet.org (editor@burmanet.org) Date: Mon, 21 Oct 2002 12:14:41 -0400 (EDT) Subject: Burmanet News: October 19-21 2002 Message-ID: <32666.207.10.94.131.1035216881.squirrel@webmail.pair.com> October 19-21 2002 Issue #2108 INSIDE BURMA AFP: Myanmar activists welcome UN envoy’s decision to scrap Shan visit DVB: UN special envoy meets representatives of Burmese ethnic groups MONEY Myanmar Times: Bank boss welcomes overseas exposure INTERNATIONAL Reuters: Time says al Qaeda in Bangladesh; untrue, says Dhaka Independent Online: Embassy lied about girl's age, say police AFP: Denmark warns of terror threat in southeast Asia OPINIONS Christian Science Monitor: Why stop with Iraq? ___INSIDE BURMA_____ Agence France-Presse October 21 2002 Myanmar activists welcome UN envoy's decision to scrap Shan visit Myanmar activists on Monday welcomed UN human rights envoy Paulo Sergio Pinheiro's decision to scrap a visit to the country's Shan state, where he was to investigate allegations of systematic rape by the military. The claims that rape was being used as a weapon of war, detailed in a July report released by two Thai-based organisations representing the Shan ethnic minority, has drawn angry denials from the Myanmar junta. Pinheiro had been scheduled to visit Shan state from Tuesday to Thursday at the invitation of the regime as part of an 11-day mission to Myanmar, but over the weekend he said he would forego the trip. The Thai-based Shan Women's Action Network (SWAN), one of the groups which compiled the rape report, commended Pinheiro's decision to instead investigate the claims from across the border in Thailand. "I think he did not trust the arrangements made by the military regime," said SWAN spokeswoman Hseng Noung. "We do not believe that he could have had the chance to see the right people." SWAN has said that according to its sources in Shan state, Myanmar authorities have already taken steps to cover up the truth in many areas where major human rights and sexual abuses were taking place. Forced relocations of villagers in affected regions had taken place and residents were forced to sign documents saying that people in the area had experienced no problems with local authorities or soldiers, it said. Aye Mar from Social Action for Women, a leading Myanmar women's rights group, said Pinheiro's trip would have been a "mission impossible" that could never have properly examined the report which documented the rape of 625 women and girls in Shan State. Debbie Stothard, coordinator of activist umbrella group Altsean-Burma, said that Pinheiro was "preserving the integrity of his position" by refusing to go along with a stage-managed trip designed only to clear the junta of blame. "Professor Pinheiro is finally wising up to the tactics of the military regime," she told AFP. "If he had gone there and didn't find evidence of rape, which would probably have been the case, he would have been used by the military regime to justify their claims of innocence." However leading dissident Aung Zaw, editor of the Thailand-based magazine Irrawaddy, said Pinheiro should have pushed for a proper investigation instead of just cancelling his trip. "The UN should find a new person to replace Pinheiro. He has been too soft," he said. "He should insist he wants to conduct an in-depth monitoring in Shan state. It's his job to insist, to challenge, to demand that his trips be transparent and accountable." Pinheiro's trip which began last Thursday comes amid rising criticism of the ruling junta and accusations of gross human rights violations. He is due to see pro-democracy opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi before his October 28 departure, but no date has been set for the meeting. ________ Democratic Voice of Burma October 19 2002 UN special envoy meets representatives of Burmese ethnic groups It has been learned that United Nations special envoy for human rights Mr Pinheiro, who is currently in Rangoon, met with Gen Khin Nyunt, Secretary-1 of the State Peace and Development Council [SPDC], this evening. Both sides have declined to give the details of the meeting. At 1400 [local time], Mr Pinheiro met for about two hours with the UNA, United Nationalities Alliance. The seven organizations that attended the meeting were U Khun Tun Oo from Shan Nationalities League for Democracy, [SNLD], U Saw Mra Aung and U Aye Tha Aung from Arakan League for Democracy, U Cing Shin Htang from Zomi National Congress, Salai Lian Mung from Chin National League for Democracy, Mahn Peter Kyaw Yin from Karen National Congress for Democracy, and the representatives from Kachin State National Congress for Democracy and Mon National Democratic Front. The nationalities delegates presented three main points to Mr Pinheiro who promised he would try his best to fulfil the requirements. But the nationalities delegates told DVB [Democratic Voice of Burma] that Mr Pinheiro might cancel his [fact-finding] trip to the Shan State because he was not allowed to go to the regions he wanted to go. DVB correspondent Htet Aung Kyaw contacted U Khun Tun Oo, Salai Lian Mung, and Mahn Peter Kyaw Yin to learn more about the meeting. [Htet Aung Kyaw] Yes. U Khun Tun Oo, you have met Mr Pinheiro a few times. What do you think is the difference between this meeting and the previous ones? [U Khun Tun Oo] Well there are three points raised at this meeting. The first is, he said he would not go on a fact-finding trip to Shan State because he said he did not have enough facts. He also remarked that his trip would be futile because the victims of the abuses will no longer be in the country, they would have fled to Thailand. He said he would try to obtain the facts from the Thai side. He asked whether the nationalities' parties have gained permission to engage in political activities and I answered not yet. He promised he would try to request the authorities to grant permission. The third point is that he would strive for the early holding of the tripartite talks. He said it would affect his reputation if he just come and go without achieving anything. He said he met Mr Razali [UN secretary general's special envoy] three times before he came. [Salai Lian Mung] Another matter is the release of all political prisoners. [Htet Aung Kyaw] What did Mr Pinheiro say? [Salai Lian Mung] He said he would urge the release of all political prisoners and the holding of tripartite talks between the SPDC military government, the NLD, and the national races. [Mahn Peter Kyaw Yin] For national races like us the holding of tripartite talks is our hope [for the future]. As we live within the framework of the law and adhere to the existing laws our objective has become the tripartite talks. That is why we vehemently urged Mr Pinheiro for the emergence of the tripartite talks. We can only afford to do that because we have no other alternative. [Htet Aung Kyaw] Well, there are still over 1,000 political prisoners that remain incarcerated. How many national races are still detained? [Salai Lian Mung] There are still seven detained national race political prisoners... [Htet Aung Kyaw] What political activity is the national race parties currently engaged in? [Mahn Peter Kyaw Yin] Our political parties currently do not have an official status. Our parties have been deregistered for some time so we cannot perform any official political activity. [Salai Lian Mung] Of the eight political parties currently in the United Nationalities Alliance, UNA, only the SNLD is officially recognized. The remaining seven parties have been deregistered. Since the SPDC military government said that a new page has been opened in the political chapter of the country and that every citizen could freely engage in any political activity, we formed the alliance with the hope of preparing for the tripartite talks. [Htet Aung Kyaw] Yes. After meeting with Mr Pinheiro, what is the difference of this trip compared to the previous ones? [Salai Lian Mung] We think there is a certain degree of improvement. In light of the prevailing situation of our country, the least thing that we need is the tripartite talks. He gave more preference to the tripartite talks this time and we on our part presented to him what should be presented. We feel there is going to be some positive change. [End of recording] It has been learned that Mr Pinheiro is expected to meet tomorrow with the veteran politicians group led by Bohmu Aung who participated in the struggle for Burma's independence. Thakhin Thein Pe said the following. [Thakhin Thein Pe] He said he would not be going to the Shan State so he can spare more time in Rangoon. That is why he said he will meet with other political groups in Rangoon. It has not been officially confirmed but he is supposed to have told the UNA members. [Htet Aung Kyaw] Yes. This could be your first meeting isn't it because you haven't met before? [Thakhin Thein Pe] We have officially asked for a meeting the last time. We asked for the formation of a consultative board. After that, the board should convene parliament and form a coalition government. Then the coalition government formed with parliamentary approval will become a de jure government. The government will then, according to what we propose, hold elections. [Htet Aung Kyaw] Right, will you discuss the same topic when you meet with Mr Pinheiro tomorrow? [Thakhin Thein Pe] Yes, we will present the proposal. ____MONEY_____ Myanmar Times October 14-20 2002 Bank boss welcomes overseas exposure The head of one of Myan-mar’s biggest private banks says the ideas and knowledge he gains at international meetings are enabling him to contribute to the further development of the nation’s banking system. U Aung Ko Win, the chairman of Kanbawza Bank, cited as an example the "useful and valuable" discussions he held during the annual meetings of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund in the United States late last month. U Aung Ko Win was speaking to Myanmar Times after his return to Yangon on October 2. He was among an eight-member Myanmar delegation, headed by the Finance Minister, U Khin Maung Thein, which attended the meetings in Washington from September 27 to 29. U Aung Ko Win said the government had asked him to join the delegation because it wanted him to have opportunities to exchange views with other bankers and to broaden his exposure to the international banking sector. U Aung Ko Win has been attending meetings of international banking institutions since the Kan-bawza Bank was set up in 2000. He was a Myanmar delegation member at Asian Development Bank meetings held in the Philippines and Thailand in 2000. In 2001, he attended World Bank meetings held in Hawaii in the US and in Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic. He attended an ADB meeting in Shanghai earlier this year. U Aung Ko Win said the Kanbawza Bank was established with the legal proceeds of his other business activities, which include mining jade and precious gems. He said the bank is preparing for the introduction of more technological advancements in the country’s banking system. ___INTERNATIONAL___ Reuters October 20 2002 Time says Qaeda in Bangladesh; untrue, says Dhaka Al Qaeda militants fled to Bangladesh from Afghanistan late last year, U.S. magazine Time reported on the weekend, drawing strong denials from officials in Dhaka. A ship had carried 150 Taliban and al Queda fighters and a huge supply of arms and ammunition from Afghanistan on December 21, 2001, to Bangladesh's southeastern Chittagong port, Time reported. Later some of the militants had been transported to Kashmir, it said. ''The arrival of a large al Qaeda group...raises pressing concerns that Bangladesh may have become a dangerous new front in America's war on terror,'' the magazine said. ''Indeed, one Bangladeshi newspaper last month even quoted an unnamed foreign embassy in Dhaka as saying Osama bin Laden's number two, Egyptian Ayman al-Zawahiri, had been hiding out in the country for months after arriving in Chittagong.'' Bangladesh's government and the country's biggest Islamic group both said the report, in the Time issue dated October 21, was baseless, fabricated and part of an attempt to portray Bangladesh as a fundamentalist country. Time quoted an unnamed Bangladesh military intelligence agency official as saying ''al-Zawahiri is believed to have left Bangladesh in summer, crossing over the eastern border into Burma with Rohingya (Myanmar Muslim) rebels.'' U.S. intelligence, however, had no evidence that that report was true, it said. _____ Independent Online October 18 2002 Embassy lied about girl's age, say police By Peter Fabricius Police are still investigating charges that a young Asian girl was assaulted while working at the embassy of Myanmar (formerly Burma) in Pretoria. They are declining comment on news reports that she was also sexually abused. Police said this week that a medical examination had established that the girl was only 15 and not 21 as the embassy had claimed in their application for her diplomatic visa to enter South Africa. The girl has been held in protective custody by the Child Protection Unit for over a month while police investigate her claims. Police are investigating charges of fraud and assault with the intent to do grievous body harm, Senior Superintendent Mary Martins-Engelbrecht said this week. However, she added that no-one had been formally charged yet. She said the assault charges arose from claims that the girl had been assaulted while working at the embassy. Also, the fraud charge was initiated by South Africa authorities and involves the application which the embassy made for a visa for the child to enter South Africa. It includes the discrepancy about her age. Martins-Engelbrecht said she could not divulge whether or not the police medical examination of the girl had also confirmed that she had been sexually abused. According to reports in the Mail & Guardian newspaper a leaked police report said the Pretoria district surgeon who examined the girl found that she had been "sexually abused and possibly been misused for the purpose of prostitution". The embassy could not be reached on Friday for comment _________ Agence France-Presse October 21 2002 Denmark warns of terror threat in southeast Asia Denmark warned its citizens Monday to take extreme care in southeast Asia, which it considers to be at risk of extremist attacks, a week after a bomb in Bali killed more than 180 people. "Danish citizens must exercise the greatest vigilance and show prudence when in public places, near religious sites, restaurants and other entertainment venues frequented by large numbers of foreigners" the foreign ministry said in a statement. The warning also advises Danish companies operating in Southeast Asia to work with local authorities to review their security arrangements and warns people to take "particular care around British and international schools." The statement names Cambodia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines and Thailand as being places of heightened risk. The ministry has already advised Danish citizens to leave Indonesia where it considers there to be "a high level threat against Western targets." The warning follows an attack in Bali on October 12, in which more than 180 people, mostly Westerners were killed when a car bomb exploded outside a nightclub. Three Danes are among those still listed as missing in the explosion. ___OPINIONS/STATEMENTS___ Christian Science Monitor October 21 2002 Why stop with Iraq? By Robert I. Rotberg CAMBRIDGE, MASS. - If the US persists in enforcing regime change in Iraq, why not do so in every country where the ruler is odious and grossly mistreats his or her people? Among the many possible candidates for regime change are the cruel despots of Belarus, Burma (Myanmar), Cambodia, Equatorial Guinea, Liberia, North Korea, the Sudan, and Zimbabwe. If intervening in Iraq might take a few weeks and 400,000 troops, ousting some of these less formidable oppressors might need as little as a lunch hour and a small detachment of marines. Admittedly, Iraq is in a category of its own. Intelligence suggests that it possesses biological and chemical weapons capacity, and, once it secures fissile material, might be able to construct a nuclear device. Aside from North Korea, none of these other places harbors weapons of mass destruction. Yet, in each case, these rulers possess and have used weapons of destruction against their own people, causing the immiseration of millions. President Charles Taylor in Liberia, for example, has long embroiled his country and neighboring Guinea and Sierra Leone in crippling wars. The military rulers of Burma have insistently employed forced labor to build pipelines and roads, greatly impoverished their people, and refused to abide by the prodemocratic results of the 1990 election. The Sudanese government bombs its own (rebellious) citizens in the south, and has done so systematically for 19 years. Several if not all of the other places hold their own people in as much or more contempt than Saddam Hussein does his citizens. President Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe, for example, is now letting about half his population – a full six million people – starve. According to a UN special rapporteur's account in late September, standards of living in Iraq have recently improved; the quality of life in Iraq appears much better than in most of the other countries on our possible hit list. But in Zimbabwe, in North Korea, and in almost all of the other places, living conditions remain exceedingly difficult. If Washington is truly prepared to play policeman of the world on behalf of human rights concerns, and to prevent rulers from repressing their own citizens, we need a new political doctrine and a carefully enunciated set of criteria for action. If the US is truly ready to contravene international law and the UN charter, we need to decide whether it is only resource-rich states that are subject to attack, or if poorer autocracies also receive close American attention. Alternatively, if preemptive strikes are to be launched only when rogue states possess weapons of mass destruction and are prepared to use them against the US or its allies, then we need a different doctrine, a method of ascertaining sure intent, and a means of ensuring ourselves that the weapons are armed and poised. Under this last rubric, Washington might be compelled to act against Pakistan or India, or both. Clearly there is dissonance. Washington can only justify attacking Iraq and not Zimbabwe because of weapons of mass destruction, possible links to Al Qaeda, oil, and politics. Yet Zimbabwe (and Burma, Liberia, the Sudan, etc.) are the clearer cases and, in some ways, the easier cases. Whereas Mr. Hussein used poison gas against the Kurds more than a decade ago, and started the foolish assault on Kuwait in 1990, Mr. Mugabe is torturing opponents now, depriving literally millions of food, and destroying his country's entire capacity to prosper. Whereas Iraq's GDP per capita is growing, Zimbabwe's has fallen by about 20 percent in two years. Liberia is a failed state where the people continue to suffer from Taylor's greed and constant warfare. All of the new oil wealth of Equatorial Guinea is going into the hands of President General Teodoro Obiang Nguema. Alexander Lukashenko, in Belarus, behaves arbitrarily, like Mugabe, but with fewer convenient scapegoats. Hun Sen runs a punishing operation in Cambodia, as the military junta does in battered Burma. Each of these hapless and abysmally run countries merits intervention. Why not remove their rulers, and demonstrate to the world that the US means business? It may be much more salutary to bully with a broad, all-encompassing sweep than to focus only on the Middle Eastern country with the most oil, a legacy of having survived Desert Storm, and a ruler who has thumbed his nose at Washington and its presidents. • Robert I. Rotberg is director of Harvard University's Program on Intrastate Conflict at the Kennedy School and president of the World Peace Foundation.