Columbia Students' Action day

[ncgub@xxxxxxxxxxx]

INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS ACTION DAY ON 
BURMA, 
ROUND TABLE MEETING, COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY

27TH OCTOBER , 1995.

Presentation made by Dr. Thaung Htun, Central 
Executive Committe Member of 
the All Burma Students' Democratic Front (ABSDF) 


Dear Friends,

It is a great pleasure for me to talk  to you 
about the situation in Burma and why US 
investments should be withdrawn on this day of 
International Students Action for Burma. I am so 
encouraged to know that more than 50 Universities 
around the United States have organized similar 
meetings on this day. It is the university campus 
activism that led to US Economic Sanction against 
the apartheid regime in South Africa. It is the 
economic sanction that led to the apartheid 
regime having dialogue with Nelson Mandela.

Today South African people can enjoy peace and 
freedom in a non-racial, democratic society. It 
is a victory for international solidarity.  It is 
the victory of human beings that admire peace and 
freedom. Today, the US Administration's policy on 
Burma is, as yet, not clear cut.   Regarding 
investment, the Administration said it would not 
encourage or discourage investment. In reality, 
the commerce section of the US Embassy in Rangoon 
has been providing information to US businessmen 
in regard to  business potential in Burma and US 
investment has been increasing.  This is propping 
up the Burmese military regime. The US has 
consistently been among Burma's SLORC regime's 
top five foreign investors during the last few 
years. The activity we are undertaking today is 
the starting point and I believe that it will 
create the momentum capable of changing the 
present US policy on Burma.

Why should we impose sanction on Burma ? Let me 
explain to you the situation in Burma briefly. 
After the Nobel Peace Laureate and leader of the 
democracy movement, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, was 
released from house arrest, the international 
community looked  at the situation with the hope 
that it might lead to democratic change. As soon 
as she was released, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi called 
for dialogue to resolve the political and 
economic crises in Burma. However, the regime has 
yet to respond to her offer. We were very  
disappointed to hear last Tuesday that SLORC's 
Election Commission has declared illegal the 
reinstatement of Daw San Suu Kyi as the 
Secretary-General and U Tin Oo and U Kyi Maung as 
Vice-Chairmen of the NLD.   It is an obvious 
attempt by the SLORC to interfere with the 
internal affairs of the NLD and we cannot accept 
it.  It is the first signal of a confrontational 
stance chosen by the SLORC in response to the 
offer of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi for national 
reconciliation.

When we look at the human rights situation, we 
can see that it is actually getting worse. There 
are still one thousand political prisoners 
including 16 elected MPs. Political prisoners are 
subjected to various forms of torture such as 
beating, electric shock, half drowning, solitary 
confinement, sleep deprivation and other forms of 
inhumane and degrading punishment. Prison 
conditions are terrible. Prison Cells are crowded 
and enough food and medical care are not 
provided. The recent report of Amnesty 
International exposed  cases of death in prisons 
because of torture, disease and malnutrition. In 
order to cover up the atrocities SLORC denied 
access to the International Committee of Red 
Cross (ICRC). Finally, ICRC decided to close its 
office in Burma in stating that they could not 
work with the SLORC.

The worst abuse is the establishment of  Labor 
Camps where prisoners are forced to work on the 
construction of roads, railway lines and bridges. 
Hundreds of prisoners are dying because of 
exhaustion, accidents on work sites, malnutrition 
and diseases such as malaria and dysentery.

At this point, I would like to make a request to 
you. Min Ko Naing, Chairman of the All Burma 
Federation of Students' Union (ABSFU), outlawed 
by the regime after the coup in 1988, was 
arrested in 1989 and sentenced to 20 years 
imprisonment for his non-violent political 
activities. According to the information of UN 
Human Rights Special Rapporteur, Yozo Yokota, he 
is in bad Psychological condition because of 
torture and long solitary confinement. He should 
not be forgotten. We request that you  launch a 
campaign urgently for the release of Min Ko 
Naing.

Fundamental freedom of people such as freedom of 
expression, freedom of association and freedom of 
assembly are severely restricted by unjust laws 
and orders. SLORC's order 2/88 that prohibits the 
gathering of more than 5 persons still exists. 
Seven students including three female students 
were arrested and sentenced for seven years 
imprisonment just because of singing a popular 
democratic song Ka-ba-ma-kyae-bu  ('the world 
won't not forgive') at the funeral procession of 
U Nu, first Prime Minister of Independent Burma 
on February, 20. That is just one  example of the 
regime's intolerance to any kind of dissent and 
it's readiness to crush by any means. 

All media, television, newspapers are totally 
controlled by SLORC. Today, Burmese people have 
to rely on Foreign radio services such as Voice 
of America (VOA), British Broadcasting 
Corporation (BBC) and Democratic Voice of Burma 
(DVB), which is run by the National Coalition 
Government of the Union of Burma from Oslo 
(Norway), for uncensored news. After 1988, the 
military expanded its intelligence apparatus to 
ensure thorough monitoring of the political 
situation and any political activities. Criticism 
of the SLORC or Tatmadaw (Burmese Army) is 
regarded as crime and leads to harsh punishment. 
In such conditions, 44 million people of Burma 
have to live.  They live in a constant state of 
terror. 

Intellectuals and students are mostly suppressed 
and restrictions are imposed on academic freedom. 
Whenever a political movement led by students 
arises in university campuses, the military 
responds with brute force, killing, arresting, 
torturing and closing down universities for 
unlimited periods.

After the 1988 massacre, thousands of students 
and intellectuals ended up in prisons or in 
exile. Thousands of students were dismissed from 
their institutes of learning while thousands of 
teaching staff were dismissed from their jobs for 
their involvement in the democracy movement.  

When universities were reopened in 1991, teachers 
and professors were made to wear military 
uniforms and to take refresher courses.  SLORC 
policies, security measures and surveillance 
methods to control possible student activities, 
were taught to the teachers. Universities in 
Burma today resemble concentration camps with 
military informers watching day to day 
activities. 

Students' unions and educational workers' unions 
which re-emerged on the eve of the pro-democracy 
movement in the summer of 1988 have been outlawed 
since the military coup of that same year.

Since 1988, there has been an exodus of qualified 
teachers, and the educational standard in 
universities has declined noticeably. The 
situation has been made worse by the 
establishment of new regional colleges and the 
introduction of a "long-distance learning system" 
for higher education designed to avoid the 
concentration of students in major cities.

The departure for foreign countries of other 
professionals, such as doctors, engineers and 
economists is also depleting human resources. 
Restrictions on the freedom of academic 
expression; freedom of association of 
professional organizations; and the lack of 
research facilities and seminars, exchange 
programs, further studies, and free access to 
information on advanced technology have also 
hindered the emergence of a new generation of 
intellectuals.

Another cause of human rights violations is the 
regime's discrimination against ethnic 
minorities. SLORC is pursuing a policy of armed 
confrontation against ethnic minorities. In the 
course of the military campaign against ethnic 
resistance groups demanding equality and autonomy 
within the Federal Union, the Tatmadaw commits 
various forms of human rights violations. 
Arbitrary arrests, summary executions, torture, 
rape, forced porterage for the military and 
forced reallocations.  These violations are well 
known to and recorded by Human Rights watch and 
UN Human Rights Special Rapporteur.

In order to resolve the present political and 
economic crises in Burma, we believe that the 
best means is substantive political dialogue 
between democratic forces, led by Daw Aung San 
Suu Kyi, ethic leaders and SLORC. This is where 
the role of the international community becomes 
critical if it is serious about bringing about 
genuine changes and improvements in Burma.   It 
needs to be realised that SLORC will not enter 
into a dialogue unless the cost of not doing so 
increases significantly. How can we increase the 
cost for SLORC of not entering into such 
dialogue? Obviously,  economic sanction.

Whenever we raise the issue of economic 
sanctions, the counter argument from some 
political circles is that unilateral sanctions by 
the United States won't work without cooperation 
from other countries. I would like to say that 
this idea is wrong.  Why ? US investment in Burma 
is a substantial amount. US Oil Company, UNOCAL, 
invested in a natural gas pipe line project which 
is the SLORC's largest current and potential 
income generating scheme. Other US Oil & Gas 
Companies, TEXACO and ARCO, are also huge 
investors, having paid millions of dollars to the 
SLORC. 

The SLORC has great hopes for investment projects 
and "Visit Myanmar Year 1996", however,  little 
has come of it.  SLORC remains deeply in debt 
with low currency reserves and high inflation. 
They are, however, convinced that they will get a 
steady income,  US, $400 million a year, if the 
gas pipeline is finished in 1998 as scheduled. US 
sanctions would end these investments and it 
would probably not be worthwhile for other oil 
companies such as France's Total, Britain's 
Premier and Japan's Nippon Oil to continue their 
Burmese oil & gas investment without US 
companies.   Hence,  US unilateral sanctions 
would be an effective tool that can have an 
impact on the SLORC.

The other argument used by many who oppose 
sanctions is that "sanctions might hurt the 
general public". In the case of Burma, it is 
wrong. Income from US investment (Oil & Gas 
companies) usually goes directly to the SLORC or 
to various cronies of the military regime for 
example; Pepsico and Garment Manufacturing. As 
foreign investment increases the military elite 
and their cronies get richer and richer while 
ordinary people get poorer and poorer, further, 
the instance of slavery and porterage has 
increased dramatically. US Companies have 
employed few people in Burma and those employees 
usually must have the approval  of the regime.  
The majority of the population cannot enjoy those 
job opportunities. The cancellation of US imports 
to Burma through sanctions would have little 
impact on Burmese consumers as consumer goods are 
largely imported to Burma through neighbours on 
an informal basis.  Most people in Burma are 
living in a subsistence agricultural economy, and 
are not now using American goods.  
 
In conclusion, we need your support in order to 
achieve that goal of "Economic Sanction" against 
Burmese Military Regime. On behalf of students 
and people of Burma, I would like to request that 
you extend your solidarity by:
	
  Writing letters to President Bill Clinton to 
impose sanction on Burma,

  Writing letters to Congressmen in your 
constituency to support the bill of "Free 
Burma Act" initiated by Senator Mitch  
McConnell,

  Writing letters to Chairman of Senate/House 
Foreign Affairs Committee to support above 
mentioned Bill,

  Writing letters to CEO of companies investing 
in Burma requesting that they withdraw their 
investment and

  Writing letters to New York City Council 
members to support the "Selective Purchasing 
Law" which would place a boycott products of 
companies doing investment in Burma.

There is a Burmese Proverb "tayout-arr-nae-you-
thaw-maya, ta-thaung-arr-nae-you-thaw-ya-ee" (If 
the power of one fails,  achieve it by the power 
of ten thousand).I hope that all of you will 
agree to join in that ten thousands.

Thank you.