Mandela: S. Africa Willing To Deal

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Subject: Mandela: S. Africa Willing To Deal With ASEAN Despite Burma   6/3

Mandela: S. Africa Willing To Deal With
               ASEAN Despite Burma

               AP-Dow Jones News Service

               SINGAPORE -- President Nelson Mandela said Thursday that
South Africa
               has no hesitation in doing business with Southeast Asian
nations despite their
               close links with Burma's military rulers accused of
suppressing human rights and
               democracy.

               Mandela, whose anti-apartheid struggle inspired democracy and
human rights
               activism around the world, said the new democratic South
Africa cannot be
               influenced by the foreign policies of other countries.

               'If that were to happen we would be completely paralyzed,'
said Mandela, who
               is on a two-day visit to Singapore, the third stop in his
10-day Asian tour.

               'There are differences in systems of governments and we are
wiling to deal with
               any region, irrespective of internal policies of these
regions,' said Mandela, who
               earlier visited the Philippines and Brunei and goes on to
Malaysia.

               The four countries are members of the seven-nation
Association of Southeast
               Asian Nations, which is expected to soon admit Burma as its
newest member.