Dr Sein Win Statement Submitted to

[ncgub@xxxxxxxxxxx]

NATIONAL COALITION GOVERNMENT OF THE UNION OF BURMA
OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER
----------------------------------------------------------------
815 Fifteenth Street NW, Suite 910
Washington, DC 20005
Tel: (202) 393-7342   (202) 393-4312;  Fax: (202) 393-7343

Statement by Dr. Sein Win
Prime Minister

Submitted Before the Subcommittee on Foreign Operations
of the
Senate Appropriations Committee

24 July 1995


I welcome the opportunity to submit this statement to the Subcommittee
on Foreign Operations of the Senate Appropriations Committee as chaired
by Senator Mitch McConnell.  At the outset, I wish to extend my thanks
to Senator McConnell for his efforts to offer leadership and assistance
to further democracy in Burma.  Senator McConnell has already given
public notice of his intent to introduce legislation that bans U.S.
investment and trade with Burma.  I wish to extend my gratitude and
support to Senator McConnell for his initiatives.

I am the elected representative for Paukkaung constituency. I am
currently serving as the Prime Minister of the National Coalition
Government of the Union of Burma (NCGUB) which was formed in December
1990. The NCGUB came into existence because the military junta known as
the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) refused to respect
the will of the people of Burma as expressed in the results of the May
1990 general elections. The National League for Democracy led by my
cousin Daw Aung San Suu Kyi won 392 of the 486 parliamentary seats
contested. The military-backed National Unity Party won only 10 seats.
Instead of handing over power, SLORC started arresting elected
representatives for "attempting to form a government".  Some of my
colleagues and I were mandated by the NLD caucus to form a provisional
government to restore democracy. The primary objective of the NCGUB is
to establish a multiparty parliamentary democracy in Burma within the
framework of a genuine federal union.

NATIONAL RECONCILIATION - The NCGUB recognizes that the root cause of
the problems in Burma is political. In order to bring about peace, maintain stability and re-build Burma there is a need for genuine political dialogue and negotiations between the Burmese Military led by SLORC; the democracy movement led by 1991 Nobel Peace laureate Daw Aung San Suu Kyi; and Burma's ethnic leaders. Therefore, the NCGUB welcomes the release on 10 June of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and fully supports her
call for national reconciliation.

SANCTIONS AGAINST SLORC - The NCGUB fully agrees with Daw Aung San Suu
Kyi that her release is only the first step in a long and difficult road towards achieving the kind of democracy that the people of Burma want. The NCGUB further agrees with Senator Mitch McConnell that unless concrete  steps are taken by SLORC in response to Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's offer of a dialogue, sanctions should be imposed to bring the junta to the negotiating table. For the record I would like to state the following facts:

<>  To date, SLORC has not responded to Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's offer of a dialogue,

<>  SLORC has broken its cease-fire agreement with the Karenni National  Progressive Party,

<>  SLORC is pursuing a policy of armed confrontation with Burma's ethnic peoples,

<>  Gross human rights violations such as forced labor are still being perpetuated,

<>  SLORC's National Convention to give the military a political role is still in progress,

<>  SLORC has not lifted its laws restricting fundamental rights of the people,

<>  Other political prisoners have not been released, and

<>  The International Committee for the Red Cross is still being denied access to prisoners.

Given these facts, it is undeniable that SLORC has taken no concrete
steps towards engaging in a substantial and meaningful political
dialogue with its opponents. Therefore, I urge Senator McConnell to
introduce legislation to ban US investment and trade with Burma, and
suspend bilateral and multilateral assistance to countries which trade
with Burma. I also urge the US Congress to facilitate the passage of
this bill and further urge the President of the United States to
implement the full requirements of the bill.

Furthermore,  I wish to reiterate the NCGUB's position on the following
subjects in light of the release of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.

OFFICIAL DEVELOPMENT ASSlSTANCE (ODA) - Burma can become developed only
when its people are allowed to fully participate in their own
development. Assistance to SLORC at this Time, will not bring about real
human development. It will only embolden SLORC to continue to ignore Daw
Aung San Suu Kyi's offer for a dialogue. Therefore, the NCGUB does not
support the renewal of ODA assistance to SLORC and is appalled by the
haste in which Japan and other nations are resuming aid, and trade and
diplomatic ties.

FOREIGN INVESTMENTS - The NCGUB fully supports Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's
position that Burma needs foreign investments in the long term but that
foreign firms should not rush to invest in Burma for the time being. The
NCGUB would like to further remind investors that SLORC is not a
legitimate government.  Signing a contract with SLORC is equivalent to
signing a contract with a group of private individuals.

DRUG ERADICATION ASSISTANCE - The Burmese military has for decades used
opium production and drug trafficking as a political tool. The extent to
which the military depends on this activity can be seen by the fact that
Burma is today the world's largest supplier of illicit opium and heroin
Drug eradication is one of the NCGUB's priorities. However, given the
military's use of the drug issue as a political tool, the NCGUB does not
recommend "drug eradication" assistance to SLORC in any form until a
political solution to Burma's problems can be found.

HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE TO BURMA - Under SLORC's current restrictions on
NGOs and international agencies, no assistance to the people of Burma
can be delivered without indirectly supporting SLORC. Therefore, the
NCGUB cannot support humanitarian assistance to Burma until substantial
progress is made towards a transition to democracy.

ASIAN AND OTHER REGIONAL BODIES - The military has isolated Burma from
the rest of the world for 33 years. Therefore, the NCGUB, in principle,
favor greater participation of Burma in regional and international
bodies. However, given the fact that SLORC is seeking to strengthen its
legitimacy through international recognition, the NCGUB recommends that
Burma not be welcomed at this time. Instead, the NCGUB would like to see
regional organization such as ASEAN coordinate its efforts with the UN
to find a political solution to Burma's problems.

UNITED NATIONS - Given SLORC's non-response to Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's
offer for a dialogue and the ongoing military offensive and gross human
rights violations against Burma's ethnic peoples, the NCGUB wishes to
underline the urgent need for the Secretary-General of the United
Nations to fully implement the December 1994 resolution of the General
Assembly which explicitly calls for the Secretary-General to assist in
the national reconciliation process.