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Help needed



One and all, 

Has anyone compiled a list of COMPANIES that have pulled out of Burma,
or refused to go in, and their STATEMENTS OF WITHDRAWAL and CONDEMNATION
of the Slorc dictatorship. 

Its a lot of research editing, but it can be done, and would be useful
as well. And it should be compiled, edited and used now against the
arguments of BIG BUSINESS. 

I am working on TOTAL and the web, -- files which can be well accessed
for this purpose, but i am too swamped to do this editing job just now
when it should be done.

There has got to be a firm line of defense against this onslaught by Big
Business that is not going to weaken as the pressure mounts, and it IS
going to mount, in front of the facade of Clinton's sanctions
legislation as we face the fact, as Amnesty International has stated,
that last year has been the worst in recent years of human rights in
Burma, and now with Suu Kyi in "virtual house arrest", the businessmen
have only the spiders and selective purchasing to worry about in the US
and abroad.

Big Business has to be met head-on in this fight, and do not expect much
help from Clinton these days. He has a lot of his own problems and
concessions to make, as it appears he leaves the Burma problem to the
Burmese who use Suu Kyi for their purpose to deflect the outrage of
human rights activists while business leaders line up against sanctions.

 It seems that while we are all talking about sanctions, -- and we have
to --  but the focus should be on just how this sanctions issue is
getting twisted and deformed to the advantage of Big Business. 

Well, we only give them the advantage if we let them take it. And I do
not think any of us are going to do that. 

Therefore, in this regard, if anyone of you or some of you can team
together to compile such a document, please organise and do it. It will
be most useful to circulate to business and the press.

Among the several sites with information on business in burma, and
companies there, there is a section in the Euro-Burmanet archives
listing companies, in the index, for fast hypertext file building, that
should help quite a bit. In all, after a day or two, you would be well
on your way to having the work done.


Metta, 

dawn star
EURO-BURMANET ( Paris ) 
http://www-uvi.eunet.fr/asia/euro-burma/
http://www-uvi.eunet.fr/asia/euro-burma/total/



waterly@xxxxxxxxx wrote:
> 
> From: "nyi n. lwin" <waterly@xxxxxxxxx>
> 
>                           Copyright 1997 Asia Times
>                                    Asia Times
> 
>                                  March  11, 1997
> 
> HEADLINE: US businesses back ASEAN on  Myanmar
> 
> BYLINE: Kevin Hamlin
> 
> DATELINE: Singapore
> 
>  BODY:
>    A body representing more than 400 leading United States companies on Monday
> said it opposed unilateral economic sanctions against  Myanmar  and welcomed
> that country's likely accession to the Association of Southeast Asian
> Nations (ASEAN). The delegation, from the US-ASEAN Business Council, which
> represents the
> elite of US businesses active in Southeast Asia, began on Monday a week-long
> tour of Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia to convince ASEAN nations of the need
> to further liberalize the rules governing foreign trade and
> investment. Companies that joined the tour have combined revenues totaling more
> than US$ 300 billion.
> 
>    Leaders of the delegation criticized those who suggest  Myanmar  should be
> isolated and punished for abusing human rights and repressing democracy.
> 
>    "The United States achieves more abroad through conversation, dialogue and
> communication rather than by finger-wagging, criticism, blackmail or economic
> sanctions," said former US secretary of state Alexander Haig, co-chairman of
> the delegation.
> 
>    Imposing economic sanctions was "arrogant, wrongheaded and misreads the
> lessons of history," Haig added. "It's a very shortsighted approach."
> 
>    The group also urged ASEAN countries to further deregulate their economies
> and suggested a failure to do so could result in their losing foreign investment
> to the rapidly-emerging economies of China, Latin America and Russia.
>    "There is enormous competition for these funds," said Lloyd Bentsen Jr,
> former US secretary of the treasury. "Latin America is the second fastest
> growing part of the world today. Russia is opening up and privatizing. China is
> drawing billions of dollars into there that might be going into Southeast Asia."
> 
>    Bentsen said ASEAN could enhance its competitiveness by liberalizing its
> financial services sector and by improving transparency.
> 
>    Delegation leader George David, president of United Technologies, added that
> ASEAN received about US$ 20 billion in foreign direct investment last year,
> compared to US$ 40 billion in China. "It has grown well in the last few years
> but it has not grown as rapidly as has China," he said.
> 
>    The US delegation's opposition to sanctions against  Myanmar  will come as
> good news for the country's embattled leadership, which is pilloried by segments
> of the international community for its harsh treatment of a pro-democracy
> movement headed by Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.
> 
>    Public anger over reports of human rights abuses in  Myanmar  has already
> prompted the withdrawal from the country of two major international companies.
> US soft drinks giant PepsiCo and European beer company Carlsberg both said last
> year that they would leave the  Myanmar  market.
>    US President Bill Clinton late last year barred travel to the US by members
> of  Myanmar's  leadership and their families but disappointed the country's
> pro-democracy groups by failing to impose wider economic sanctions.
> 
>    Bills to discourage investment in  Myanmar  have been signed into law in
> Massachusetts and 11 other US cities and counties.
> 
>    The European Union also bars  Myanmar's  leaders from its member countries.
> Some European nations have said  Myanmar's  likely accession to ASEAN this year
> could be a stumbling block to the development of future relations between the EU
> and ASEAN.
> 
>    But the US-ASEAN Business Council, indicating politics would not be allowed
> to obstruct business, on Monday lined up squarely behind ASEAN, the regional
> grouping which adopts a policy of "constructive engagement" toward  Myanmar.
> 
>    The council includes among its membership corporate giants such as
> McDonald's, Chase Manhattan Bank, General Electric, Enron, Lockheed-Martin and
> Eastman Kodak.
> 
>    David said the US-ASEAN Business Council believed economic sanctions were not
> an effective device.
>    While members "tenaciously and passionately" believed in "human rights,
> workers' rights and democracy", they did not believe in unilateral economic
> sanctions. "We feel that the policy of engagement is a much better way to induce
> change in foreign countries," David said.
> 
>    David welcomed the possibility that  Myanmar  would later this year become a
> member of ASEAN, as is widely expected. "It would be good to see ASEAN expand
> from seven members to 10 with the accession of Laos,  Burma  and Cambodia," he
> added.
> 
>    Bentsen also spoke against unilateral economic sanctions, which he said "just
> don't work". "I would like to see  Burma  actually not be so isolated," he said.
> "I would like to see them knowing their neighbors better."
> 
>    Asked how he would explain the delegation's position to  Myanmar's
> opposition leader, who has requested sanctions against her country, Bentsen
> said: "I sympathize with her plight and her problem but we are a nation and we
> cannot govern by the ideas and recommendations of one person."
> 
> LANGUAGE: ENGLISH