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Pickups on Uncle Leo



 Amnesty Demands Investigation Into Former Consul's Death 
   LONDON (AP) _ Amnesty International on Wednesday demanded an
investigation into the death of a former Scandinavian consul
imprisoned by Burma, saying he had been in ill health and was
mistreated.
   James Leander Nichols, 65, was discovered unconscious Saturday
in his cell at Insein prison, near the Burmese capital, Rangoon.
   Nichols, who held a British passport and was a friend of Burmese
pro-democracy campaigner Aung San Suu Kyi, was sentenced in May to
three years imprisonment for having two unauthorized fax machines
and a telephone switchboard at his home.
   ``Nichols' death merits a thorough and prompt investigation,''
said Donna Guest, the human rights organization's researcher for
Burma and Thailand.
   Nichols, who was also known as James Nicholas, had suffered from
heart disease and diabetes.
   Amnesty International said it was willing to believe he had died
of natural causes, but Guest added: ``you can prevent natural
deaths.
   ``He was an elderly man and wasn't very well. The prison
conditions are very bad in Burma,'' said Guest. Nichols had once
served as honorary consul for several Scandinavian countries, who
had vainly sought his release.
   ``I have reports saying that about 10 days before he died he was
deprived of sleep for four days,'' said Guest.
   Nichols' arrest and imprisonment was seen as a sign that Burma's
military regime intended to keep a tight rein over political
opponents.
   Burmese prison authorities said Nichols was in good health
shortly before he died. But Denmark's foreign minister has said
Nichols' poor health was well-known to the Burmese government.
   A prison official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said
Nichols was rushed to Rangoon General Hospital after he was found
unconscious, but he died Saturday afternoon.
   The official insisted that Nichols was frequently seen by the
prison doctor and had been in good health when his housekeeper
visited him last Thursday.
   Insein prison, where many political prisoners are detained, has
been described by former inmates and human-rights organizations as
a deplorable place where people are tortured.
   A military autopsy found that Nichols died of a brain
hemorrhage, his son, William, a university lecturer in Australia,
told The Associated Press in an e-mail.
   (rs-db)
   
261821 Jun GMT


Burmese papers print obituary of consul
    RANGOON, June 27 (Reuter) - Five days after his death,
official Burmese newspapers on Thursday carried for the first
time a brief obituary of an imprisoned honorary European consul
who died in a local jail.
    The state-run New Light of Myanmar and the Burmese-language
Mirror Daily carried brief obituaries of James Leander (Leo)
Nichols, a 65-year-old honorary consul for Norway and
representative for Denmark, Finland and Switzerland.
    The obituary, titled "Asleep in Jesus", said Nichols died on
Saturday without detailing the cause. It said he was buried at a
Christian cemetery on Sunday.
    It was the first mention of Nichols' death in the official
media.
    Nichols, an Anglo-Burmese and long-time friend of pro-
democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, was arrested by military
authorities in April and jailed for three years for operating
telephones and fax machines at his home without permission.
    But diplomats and opposition sources believe he was jailed
because of his close friendship and financial assistance to Suu
Kyi and her National League for Democracy party.
    Family members have planned a memorial service for this
weekend. But they said they were awaiting permission from the
ruling State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) to be
sure they can hold the service.
    Any gathering of more than five people must be approved.
    Diplomats and opposition sources said the SLORC appeared to
be pressuring churches not to hold the memorial service.
    Senior diplomats from the four European countries, who had
protested when Nichols was imprisoned in April, plan to travel
to Rangoon for the service.
    All four countries have written to the SLORC demanding a
full explanation of Nichols' death. Differing accounts said
Nichols died of a heart attack or a stroke.
    Diplomats in Bangkok said Nichols suffered from diabetes and
high blood pressure and they had been concerned about his
ability to survive harsh prison life.
    "We have given them a Monday deadline to give us details on
his death," a diplomat from one of the four countries said. "The
other three countries have done the same thing. If we don't hear
anything by Monday we will be reacting again."
 REUTER
0738 270696 GMT

Burma allows memorial service for dead consul
 (Recasts with approval for service)
    RANGOON, June 27 (Reuter) - Burma's military government
approved on Thursday a request to hold a memorial service for an
honorary European consul who died last week while imprisoned by
the government.
    Relatives of James Leander (Leo) Nichols, who died last
Saturday, told Reuters the government approved the request but
the service would not be held this weekend as planned.
    "We have permission to hold the memorial service. But since
the churches are fully booked right now, we expect to hold it
next Saturday," one of the people organising the service said.
    Any gathering of more than five people must be approved by
the ruling State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC).
    Earlier on Thursday, diplomats and opposition sources said
the SLORC appeared to be putting pressure on churches not to
hold the memorial service.
    Official Burmese newspapers on Thursday for the first time
carried a brief obituary of Nichols, a 65-year-old honorary
consul for Norway and representative for Denmark, Finland and
Switzerland.
    The obituary, titled "Asleep in Jesus", said Nichols died on
Saturday without detailing the cause. It said he was buried at a
Christian cemetery on Sunday. It was the first mention of
Nichols' death in the official media.
    Nichols, an Anglo-Burmese and long-time friend of pro-
democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, was arrested by military
authorities in April and jailed for three years for operating
telephones and fax machines at his home without permission.
    But diplomats and opposition sources believe he was jailed
because of his close friendship for and financial assistance to
Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy party.
    Senior diplomats from the four countries, who had protested
when Nichols was imprisoned in April and planned to travel to
Rangoon for the service, said they would still go next week.
    All four countries have written to the SLORC demanding a
full explanation of Nichols' death. Differing accounts said
Nichols died of a heart attack or a stroke.
    Diplomats in Bangkok said Nichols suffered from diabetes and
high blood pressure and they had been concerned about his
ability to survive harsh prison life.
    "We have given them a Monday deadline to give us details on
his death," a diplomat from one of the four countries said. "The
other three countries have done the same thing. If we don't hear
anything by Monday we will be reacting again."
 REUTER
1106 270696 GMT