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INFORMATION PLEASE - NO SENSATIONAL



Subject: INFORMATION PLEASE - NO SENSATIONALISM

INFORMATION PLEASE - NO SENSATIONALISM
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By Dr. San Win , Osaka, Japan

	I am a retired doctor who has served for more than (30) 
years in Myanmar and I am currently visiting my son who is a 
businessman doing business in Japan. On my way to Japan from 
Bangkok while I was on the plane I read the March 4th Bangkok 
Post newspaper where I came across an article written by Mr. Seth 
Mydan of the New York Times news service. The title of the story 
is "Fear of Burmese Troops Grow" and the lines below the news 
heading read as such. "Karen fleeing SLORC and its allies tell tales 
of rape and worse, and the males including children are being 
pushed back into the Jungle of Burma and possibly the hands of 
Rangoon forces."

	I was very much disheartened to read this sort of unconfirmed 
news from such prestigious news service. It came to my mind that 
such kind of reporting creates very much negative impression on my 
country by those who do not have adequate knowledge on 
Myanmar and its people. At the same time it also creates frustration 
and discredit the service when those who have proper knowledge 
of the country and situation come across such news reporting.

	Going through the story there is a paragraph mentioning that a 
55 old farmer watched from a hiding place where his neighbor by 
the mane of Cree May, 42 year was raped by a dozen soldiers until 
she died. It also went on to say that Mrs. Cree May's husband and 
father was tied up and made to watch. As a doctor who has served 
in various parts of Myanmar for more than (3) decades, I am very 
much aware of the developments taking place in the country and the 
evolution process my country is going in. The present government of 
Myanmar has successfully made peace agreements with (15) of the 
(16) armed groups that have been fighting against all successive 
governments since she regained her independence in 1948. The last 
remaining group (the Karen National Union) seems to have 
deliberately strayed away from the course other (15) groups have 
managed to stay. But as a Myanmar national, I would like to see this 
last remaining outlawed group came to its senses and return to the 
peace negotiating table with all sincerity while the government is 
keeping the gate to peace, tranquillity and national unity wide 
opened.

	The crime allegedly committed by government troops is 
nothing more than the usual standard accusation in areas where 
there have been armed conflicts. This kind of allegation was made in 
all areas experiencing armed  conflicts. The same sort of accusations 
were heard in other areas when experiencing similar armed conflict 
but disappeared once peace negotiation become successful.

	For substantive factual information reporting, I believe the 
New York Tines should ask the ethic armed groups that have 
agreed upon the peace negotiations with the government, whether 
their previous accusations on rape were real or they were just using 
the line for anti-government propaganda during that time.

	Similarly, we are hearing allegations of slave labor in many 
construction projects too. Mostly the sources of such accusation 
comes from anti-government groups and opposition parties. There 
are a lot of instances where the armed groups accused the 
government of using slave labor, child labor, rape, torture and etc... 
but once peace agreements have been achieved they not only 
dropped those standard accusations but surprisingly started to turn 
around and complain to the government that the authorities 
concerned are not implementing development projects for their 
areas fast enough.

	This is what I would like to point out, that if such hideous acts 
are actually committed as New York Times has mentioned. 
Resentment and anger will prevail among our national races and 
none of the armed groups will join hands with the government to 
strive for bringing peace, unity and tranquillity to develop the nation.

	In conclusion, I would like to suggest the New York Times 
news service to give her readers a sense of reality with simple 
straight forward facts rather than putting in too much sensationalism 
and distort the facts.

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