The BurmaNet News, May 25, 1997

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------------------------ BurmaNet ------------------------     
"Appropriate Information Technologies, Practical Strategies"     
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The BurmaNet News: May 25, 1997     
Issue #731
   
HEADLINES:     
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SLORC: INFORMATION SHEET NO. A-0046
ABYMU & ABMU: JOINT LETTER TO ASEAN
REUTER: BURMA CONCERNS CLOUD ON ASEAN'S ENTRY
NEW YORK TIMES: FOREIGN ENERGY, DOMESTIC POLITICS
IHT: U.S. FIRM BEATS INVESTMENT BAN ON BURMA DEALS
XINHUA NEWS AGENCY: MYANMAR'S TELECOMMUNICATIONS 
HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH ASIA PRESS RELEASE: NEW ARRESTS
THE NATION: PETRONAS TIPPED FOR TEXACO STAKE 
SAMPLE LETTER: TO MAYOR GIULIANI
BOOK RELEASE: AUNG SAN SUU KYI-VOICE OF HOPE
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SLORC: INFORMATION SHEET NO. A-0046
May 24, 1997

Once again the NLD has made claims that nearly (200) of their party members
have been allegedly persecuted which is simply not true.

At this time, no members of the NLD have been arrested, but have only been
asked by local authorities to refrain from taking actions designed to create
chaos in the country.

A compelling illustration of propaganda at work would be made if
journalists and diplomats simply asked the NLD to provide a list of those
arrested and the police stations at which the arrest were supposedly made.
Then, their claims can be verified.

In the United States and in every civilized country around the world, the
government  frequently asks for control and sometimes detains individuals
who threaten actions to create chaos and cause social disruption. The NLD is
seeking to maganify these protective activities for their own political aims.

Regretfully, the western countries have been sold a barrel of propaganda,
and are crafting a biased and dangerous foreign policy upon it. Given the
recent history of the United States, they should know better.

********************************

ABYMU & ABMU: JOINT LETTER TO ASEAN
May 25, 1997
        
Joint Appeal Letter to the ASEAN from the All Burma Young Monks' Union
(ABYMU) and All Burma Muslim Union (ABMU)

Attention: 	The President
		Association of SouthEast Asian Nations (ASEAN)

Subject: 	Appeal letter to ASEAN to reconsider SLORC-ruled Burma's
entrance into the regional grouping.

Honorable Mr. President and distinguished leaders,

	We would like to convey our warm regards to your regional association,
ASEAN, during this celebration period of its 30th anniversary.

	We are writing with the hope of drawing your attention to our concerns
regarding the welfare of our people, and to suggest you reconsider your
intention to admit the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) into
ASEAN. SLORC is an illegitimate military regime which is currently
committing the worst human rights violations in the region. On behalf of the
Burmese people we would like to request you to consider the following
well-documented facts. Hopefully, these will encourage you to review your
policy concerning Burma.

	After savagely suppressing peaceful public protests for democracy in 1988,
a group of generals made a coup d'etat and illegally took power. These
generals made up the SLORC. They clearly lost all popular support in 1990,
during a free election held by themselves. The National League for
Democracy, the well-known pro-democracy party, won that election by a
landslide victory, with over 80% of the votes. SLORC has neither legitimacy
to rule the country nor they possess the right to represent Burma.
Basically, SLORC is only one of the 16 armed groups currently operating in
Burma.

	Strong animosity exists between the Burmese people and the SLORC military
government because of longstanding complicated problems.  The problems are;
(a) institutionalized and sometimes violent religious discrimination; 
(b) systematic, brutal violation of basic human rights;
(c) lack of equality and self-determination for ethnic nationalities; and
(d) a general political crisis due to SLORC's failure to honor the result of
1990 General Elections.

	The people of Burma continue to struggle for democratic reforms despite
accelerated persecution and restrictions by their oppressors. Several
strikes participated by various strata of society including students, monks,
and workers, have shown the strong desire for freedom and justice.  These
collective protests in the name of freedom include:
a) 1988 general uprising,
b) 1990 general elections,
c) 1990 Patta Nikujanna, Sangha strikes against the military in which the
Sangha refused to accept SLORC's religious offers,
d) 1990 Dec. 10-11 University Students demonstration to celebrate Nobel
Peace Prize Award to Aung San Suu Kyi,
e) 1996 December student demonstrations and 
f) 1997 Sangha strike against the regime for stealing valuables from
Mandalay Maha Myat Muni temple, one of the most famous Buddhist Shrine in Burma.

	We would like to remind ASEAN that such popular protests and SLORC's
violent reaction to them in the future could create a situation of further
instability and vulnerability to your investments inside Burma. Burma, once
the rich rice-bowl of Southeast Asia, is now one of the U.N. designated
least-developed countries in the world. SLORC has no ability to manage
political and economic development. We also would like to suggest to ASEAN
that only a truly democratic environment can provide good soil for your
investments.

	Both the Burmese people and the international community argue against
Burma's inclusion into ASEAN. To accept SLORC into your association will
further frustrate the efforts of the Burmese people to build a free and
prosperous country. To accept SLORC will also tarnish ASEAN's reputation as
a progressive organization.

	We believe the above facts warrant serious thought, and are sufficient to
encourage you to reconsider SLORC's membership in ASEAN. Please suspend
Burma's membership until its people achieve democratic freedom.

With metta,						
With regards,

Rev. Ashin Khay Mar Sarya					
Chairperson 				Chairperson
All Burma Young Monks' Union	 	All Burma Muslim Union 
(ABYMU). 				(ABMU).

Date:	May 25, 1997

****************************************

REUTER: BURMA CONCERNS CLOUD ON ASEAN'S ENTRY
May 22, 1997
By Ruben Alabastro 

MANILA, May 22 (Reuter) - Southeast Asian leaders run the risk of being seen
as legitimising a reviled regime if they accept Burma now as new member of
the Association of Southeast Asian Naitons (ASEAN), experts warned in a
paper on Thursday. 

The paper summed up discussions at a two-day Manila meeting of Southeast
Asian security experts that ended on Wednesday. The meeting happened to
coincide with the arrest in Burma of about 60 activists in a renewed
crackdown on Aung San Suu Kyi's opposition party. 

The experts, who included academic leaders from ASEAN countries, agreed
there was a need to expand the association to include Burma, Laos and
Cambodia, but questioned the timing of Rangoon's inclusion in the group. 

One point raised by some experts ``was the perception that Myanmar's
(Burma's) inclusion in ASEAN may be seen as a legitimisation of a
reprehensible regime,'' the paper said. 

University of the Philippines professor Carolina Hernandez, president of
Manila's Institute for Strategic and Development Studies, voiced concern
that Burma's membership ``may result in the undermining of the diplomatic
influence and political weight of ASEAN.'' 

``With the European Union's stand on Myanmar and the recent United States
sanctions against that country, ASEAN's dialogues with these countries will
prove to be difficult,'' warned Mohamad Jawhar Hassan of Malaysia. 

Jawhar, head of Malaysia's Institute of Strategic and International Studies,
said the ``ASEAN culture will create some impact on Myanmar, but change will
be mostly propelled by internal factors with some external help.'' 

``If ASEAN opts to include similar politically fragile members under its
roof, then ASEAN as a regional grouping would become fragile as well,'' said
Suchit Bunbongkarn, acting director of Thailand's Institute of Security and
International 

***************************************

NEW YORK TIMES: FOREIGN ENERGY, DOMESTIC POLITICS
May 22, 1997
Agis Salpukas

Burmese Project Tests Unocal Resolve

Ever on the hunt for rich discoveries abroad, American oil companies 
have long had to factor in fears about the unstable nature of foreign 
governments when considering huge investments in capital and 
equipment. But now the companies are finding that politics back home is the
new focus of risk.

The threat of unilateral economic sanctions, typically directed by 
Washington at governments accused of human rights violations, has become big
enough to cast a shadow over investment decisions stretching from Southeast
Asia to West Africa to the Caspian Sea, oil executives and 
other industry experts say.

No company has exposed itself more to the new unknowns than the Unocal 
Corporation. In an industry that is rapidly directing its investment 
focus offshore, Unocal has staked more of its future on overseas projects
than anyone else, concentrating on Asia. Last November, it even sold its 
refineries, gas stations and other assets on the West Coast to free 
capital to invest in the region.

It has placed its biggest bet so far in Myanmar, where it is part of 
an international consortium that is investing $1.2 billion to develop 
the Yadana natural gas field. And while the field will not start 
operating until next year, Unocal's presence in Myanmar has already 
become a case study in the politics and pressures that are increasingly 
affecting the energy industry.

Last month, the Clinton Administration approved the use of sanctions 
against Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, under legislation that the 
President signed last fall.

Even so, Unocal will remain in business there. The sanctions, which 
went into effect yesterday, prohibit American companies from making 
new investments in the country, which is ruled by a military 
dictatorship that human rights groups have called one of the most 
repressive regimes in the world.  The Yadana project as well as lesser 
ventures involving Texaco Inc. and the Atlantic Richfield Company, 
or ARCO, are shielded from the sanctions by a compromise in the 
legislation that exempts existing investments.

Unocal helped win that compromise through intense lobbying. It also 
succeeded because Washington appears to be more willing to talk tough 
than to act directly against the interests of American business. But 
Unocal's experience has exposed just how many problems sanctions can 
create and underscored how readily constituencies can rise up to pose 
obstacles to projects thousands of miles away.

While it is hanging on to its project, Unocal is also stuck with its 
critics, risking a legacy of bad publicity along with any profits. 
Just last month, the Oil, Chemical and Atomic Workers International 
Union joined the forces opposing the company, upset that Unocal's 
concentrated move abroad was unnecessarily costing American jobs.

And Unocal's victory is only partial and may not be permanent. Opponents 
are backing new legislation to force the company out of Myanmar. Even 
if that effort fails, Unocal will not be able to start new projects that 
may look promising.

"In the oil and gas business, you continually have to reinvest as you 
draw down reserves," said John H. Lichtblau, chairman of the Petroleum 
Industry Research Foundation. "This is an ongoing process and not just 
a one-time thing."

The result is a war for public opinion -- and lawmakers' support that 
is still being waged in the halls of Congress, in letter-writing 
campaigns and on the Internet. The fighting even reached the City 
Council in New York, where a bill was passed last week that would 
prohibit the city from buying products from any company doing business 
in Myanmar. The measure becomes law in 45 days unless Mayor Rudolph 
W. Giuliani vetoes it.

What seems clear is that what is happening to Unocal will happen other 
American oil companies. For example, in the Caspian S which has become 
one of regions for new development, "American companies are already 
feeling some reluctance to go into partnerships because of the sanctions 
that have already been applied and might be applied in the future," 
Mr. Lichtblau said.

Julia Nanay, a director of the Petroleum Finance Company, a consulting 
firm in Washington, added: "It's devastating for the U.S. oil industry. 
There is an increasing list of countries that are potential targets. 
It's having a terrible effect." Potential flash points include Nigeria 
and Indonesia, experts say.

Whatever the risks and the complications, the industry has little choice 
but to pursue most projects overseas because that is where the oil is 
and because American consumers show no signs of trimming their demand.

Indeed, Unocal went into Myanmar in 1993 knowing there were troubles 
ahead, but saw the potential rewards as justifying the risks.

Company executives recognized that they were in for a long battle with 
rights groups, Unocal's president, John F. Imle Jr., recalled, but 
were determined to see it through. " 'This project is going to happen -- 
there is no way they are going to stop it,' " he recalled the Unocal 
executives as saying.

The critics were not long in coming. Grass-roots groups of students and 
immigrants, linked through the Free Burma Coalition, spread reports of 
rights abuses by the military regime, known as the State Law and Order 
Restoration Council. The regime, which seized power in 1988, gained 
notoriety by refusing to recognize the 1990 election victory of the 
opposition party, whose leader, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, was put under 
house arrest for years.

The critics accused Unocal of everything from condoning the laundering 
of drug money -- Myanmar is the world's biggest producer of heroin -- 
to using slave labor. Through demonstrations and the Internet, the 
groups picked up support, including backing from American student 
groups.

By last year, Senators Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky, and 
Daniel Patrick Moynihan, Democrat of New York, were pushing for an 
immediate ban on investments, including existing projects.

Unocal fought back, denying the critics' charges and noting Washington's 
inconsistency when pressing for democratic reforms abroad. China, a 
neighbor of Myanmar's that is also accused of rights violations, has 
escaped Washington's wrath because it has far more commercial importance,
Unocal argued. Just this week, President Clinton began a campaign to renew
China's most-favored-nation status despite growing anti-China sentiment.

Top Unocal executives made the rounds in Washington, arguing that if 
the company was forced to quit the gas project, it would be replaced 
by another big foreign company, just not an American one. After all, 
Unocal said, it is not even the I participant in the project, which 
is led by Total S.A. of France. What's more, the company said, its 
prescence is helping the 35,000 people who live near the project 
area, where Unocal and Total are spending $6 million on education, 
medical care and other improvements.

To spread the message, Unocal made use of such prominent lobbyists as 
Tom Korologos, who served as an adviser to Bob Dole in his campaign 
for President.

Unocal also sought to influence public opinion by having the Washington 
office of Edelman Public Relations Worldwide write to professors and 
other foreign affairs experts, urging them to support its position.

Outside Washington, worked to head off resolutions in a number of cities 
that would barred local governments from doing business with companies 
that invest in Myanmar.

Without any direct interest in Myanmar, most oil companies kept a low 
profile in the dispute. One senior executive, who asked that his name 
not be used, said that they saw little chance to sway public opinion 
in a debate that pitted economic interests against human rights.

The battle in Washington reached a crucial point last summer. A 
breakthrough for Unocal, which is based in El Segundo, Calif., 
occurred when it persuaded one of its home state Senators, Dianne 
Feinstein, a Democrat, that any sanctions should be prospective in 
nature. The company argued that divestment would not only cost Unocal 
jobs at home, but would also lead to cutbacks at the many domestic 
contractors that it used.

In an interview yesterday, Senator Feinstein said she was concerned 
that foreign companies would have stepped in if Unocal had been 
forced to divest itself of its interest last summer.

"There's constantly the problem with these things -- that we can shoot 
ourselves in the foot and not accomplish what we hope to accomplish," 
she said.

Equally important to the outcome was the fact that the Clinton 
Administration also did not want to order divestiture, and worked 
with William S. Cohen, then a Republican Senator from Maine and now 
the Secretary of Defense, on a compromise proposal.

Ultimately, Senators Cohen and Feinstein co-sponsored legislation that 
limited sanctions to future investments and then only if the Myanmar 
regime committed further rights abuses, a judgment that would be left 
to the President.

Senator Feinstein said yesterday that she wanted the legislation to 
provide some flexibility, including time to see if the regime in 
Myanmar would open a dialogue with dissidents. "I wanted to create 
an opportunity for leverage," she said.

The legislation became law in the fall. In January, Unocal signed a 
contract with the state-owned Myanma Oil and Gas Enterprise to expand 
its operations. (Texaco and ARCO also signed deals in the wake of the 
legislation.)

Finally, in April, President Clinton, under renewed pressure from rights 
groups, activated the sanction provisions. The Treasury Department is 
expected to issue rules for carrying them out in the next two weeks.

Meanwhile, Unocal is proceeding with the Yadana project. Most of the 
gas to be produced by four offshore platforms will be delivered to 
Thailand through a 416-mile pipeline. Some will flow to Myanmar, which 
will reap $150 million or so a year in revenues by about 2000.

Unocal holds a 28.26 percent interest in the project. Total has a 3l.24 
percent interest. The PTT Exploration and Production Public Company of 
Thailand holds 25.5 percent and Myanma Oil has 15 percent.

Will Unocal and the other American companies in Myanmar get to finish 
their projects? Roger C. Beach, Unocal's chairman and chief executive, 
is cautiously optimistic. The fact that President Clinton has moved to 
stop future investments, he said, has taken the pressure off Congress 
"to implement a more onerous sanction bill."

But there are many minefields ahead. How will the Presidential order 
be carried out? Will opposition from the oil workers, union catch fire? 
Will events in Myanmar force Washington's hand?

Industry executives say that questions like these are going to come 
into play in one place after another where American companies will be 
searching for oil and gas. And while the industry has been slow to 
recognize the threat until now, Mr. Beach said that was no longer the 
case.

Six months ago, Mr. Beach said, "we were the Lone Ranger crying in the 
wilderness." Now, he said, "a lot of companies are sitting up and taking 
notice."

Unocal Capital Expenditures: 

1995:
United States: 60%
Foreign: 40%: 
total [not the company]: $1 billion

1997 Projected:
United States: 32%
Foreign: 68%
total: [not the company] $1.3 billion

**************************************

INTERNATIONAL HERALD TRIBUNE: U.S. FIRM BEATS INVESTMENT BAN ON BURMA DEALS
May 22, 1997
By Christopher Johnston International Herald Tribune

A U.S. telecommunications equipment company has sealed a $250 million
contract with the national telephone company of Burma just before the
signing of a U.S. ban on further foreign investment in the country.

InterDigital Communications Corp. said that it had concluded a contract
with Myanmar Posts & Telecommunications to provide equipment for a wireless
local telephone system. Myanmar is the military government's name for Burma.

Under the terms of the contract, details of which were released last week,
InterDigital will manufacture the equipment in the United States and then
ship it to Burma for assembly.

The contract also calls for technology transfer and the establishment of a
joint venture in Burma between InterDigital and MPT for the local
manufacturing of the systems as well as another InterDigital wireless
technology.

The company, based in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, said the order was its
largest to date and was subject to the two parties ''finalizing financing
arrangements, the joint venture agreement, certain pricing, payment and
other terms.''

The investment ban was announced by Secretary of State Madeleine Albright on
April 22 and signed by President Bill Clinton on Tuesday. The United States
said it announced the sanctions because of Burma's increased repression of
its democracy movement. Mr. Clinton also accused Burma of being the world's
leading producer of opium and heroin.

A White House spokesman declined to comment on the InterDigital contract,
but he said that because the ban was not in effect until it was signed, in
principle any deals concluded before the signing could proceed.

An InterDigital representative credited ''a real close friend'' in the U.S.
government, close ties to the national phone company and an existing stake
in Burma with landing the contract. She would not elaborate on the identity
or the position of the U.S. official.

She also said the manufacturing facility would produce phone systems for
local consumption, not for export. ''It's not an investment in Myanmar,''
the representative said. ''It's really more of a sale to Myanmar.''

''This is the height of chutzpah,'' said Maureen Aung-Thwin, director of
the Burma Project, a human-rights organization in New York. ''This new means
of communication will not help the ordinary Burmese citizen but those who
are beyond the law - the military elite and its supporters.''

Human-rights organizations have accused the Burmese military government of
using forced labor in its joint ventures with foreign companies, and
pressure from activists has caused a number of U.S. companies, including
Levi Strauss and PepsiCo Inc., to pull their investment out of the country.

The InterDigital representative said the company had thought about the
possibility of protests but said InterDigital was ''just thrilled to have
this type of order and to be selling equipment into Mynamar.''

*****************************************

XINHUA NEWS AGENCY: MYANMAR'S TELECOMMUNICATIONS 
SECTOR ACHIEVES 9 PERCENT GROWTH 
May 21, 1997

   Myanmar's telecommunications sector achieved a 9 percent growth in the
1996-97 fiscal year ended march 31 according to latest official statistics.
seventy-eight auto-exchange stations (aes) and 410 conventional exchange
stations (ces) in 14 states and divisions have been set up by the end of
February this year, up from the 33 aes and 210 ces in 1988.

   During the last four-year plan period from 1992-93 to 1995-96, some 
7,00 auto-exchange lines were installed in Myanmar's three cities --Bago, 
Taunggyi and Dawei. The number of towns, which have auto telephones, 
increased to 53 by the end of the fiscal 1995-96 from 29 in the fiscal 1990-
91.  Over 2,000 cellular phones were installed in the last four years in 
Yangon and 1,000 more are being installed in Mandalay, the second 
largest city of the country.  The number of telephones in Myanmar reached 
168,399 in the 1995-96 fiscal year, up from 73,545 at the beginning of the 
1990s.  Meanwhile, some foreign companies, including these from 
Australia, Israel, Japan, the US and Singapore, have been involved in the 
installation of communications systems in Myanmar in recent years.

*********************************

HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH ASIA PRESS RELEASE: NEW ARRESTS
May 23, 1997

     FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 
     May 23, 1997
     Contact:   Sidney Jones, NY: 212-972-8400, ext. 290; (h) 718-788-2899
Mike Jendrzejczyk, DC: 202-371-6592, ext. 113; (h)301-585-5824 
Jean-Paul Marthoz, Brussels: 32-2-732-2009
     
     Burma: New Arrests Require International Response 
     
     Human Rights Watch/Asia is alarmed by the arrest of at least 100
members of the Burmese opposition party, the National League for
Democracy (NLD), over the past few days. Those arrested include      elected
Members of Parliament and party members. Many of the arrests     took place
in Mandalay, Sagaing, Irrawaddy divisions and the Mon state     as the NLD
members were preparing to travel to Rangoon to attend  a      party congress
commemorating the seventh anniversary of the May 27,     1990 election. The
congress is due to take place at the home of the      General Secretary of
the NLD, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. The arrests come     only days after US
President Bill Clinton issued an executive order       prohibiting new
investment in Burma because of human rights violations      and less than
ten days before a key meeting of the Association of  South East Asian
Nations (ASEAN) in Malaysia that will decide whether to admit Burma as a
full member.
     
     "These most recent arrests make a mockery of any claim by Burma's
neighbors and allies that economic engagement will bring improvements     in
human rights," said Human Rights Watch/Asia's executive director
Sidney Jones. "Members of ASEAN should press Burma to cease these
arrests and permit immediate access by the Special Rapporteur to      Burma,
Judge Rajsoomer Lallah, as recommended by the United Nations     Commission
on Human Rights in April."  Lallah has tried unsuccessfully     to visit the
country since 1996 in order to carry out his UN mandate.
     
     Members of ASEAN have argued for "constructive engagement" and
vigorously opposed efforts to impose economic sanctions on the SLORC.
At a meeting on May 31, 1997 in Malaysia, senior ASEAN officials are
expected to decide the timetable for the admission of Burma, Cambodia
and Laos as new members.  
     
     Human Rights Watch/Asia said that ASEAN should make it clear at this
meeting that if such abuses continue, Burma will not be admitted to      the
association at its ministerial meeting in Malaysia this July.  The
ASEAN governments, it said, should use their influence to urge       Rangoon
to exercise restraint, to refrain from any further arrests, and to allow
members of the NLD to gather peacefully.  
     
     In a resolution adopted unanimously by the United Nations Commission
on Human Rights in Geneva in April, the SLORC was urged to "release
immediately and unconditionally detained political leaders and all
political prisoners" and to "ensure full respect for human rights and
fundamental freedoms, including freedom of thought, opinion,      expression
and assembly."  Three leading ASEAN nations --  Indonesia,      Malaysia and
the Philippines --  currently serve on the Commission.
     
      Japan is in a crucial position to help end the crackdown.  Last
December, Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto publicly criticized Burma's
arrest of hundreds of student activists. After the most  recent  arrests,
Japan urged the SLORC to immediately release those detained and to cease
further arrests of NLD members.  While welcoming  that statement, Human
Rights Watch/Asia said the Japanese government should consider backing up
its appeal by urging Keidanren, the powerful Japanese trade association, to
put off plans to send a  business delegation to Burma in June in light of
the increased repression.  It should also clearly state its opposition to
any  initiative by the Asian Development Bank  (ADB) to resume financial
assistance to Burma, suspended since 1988.  On May 11, 1997 during the ADB's
annual meeting in Fukuoka, Japan, the bank's president, Mr. Mitsuo Sato,
hinted that funding to Burma should perhaps be resumed. 
     
     The governments in the European Union (EU) should enact measures to
follow up the decision in March 1997 to suspend trade benefits to Burma due
to the massive use of forced labor on infrastructure projects.  For example,
the new British government,  which has already condemned the arrests, could
take the lead among EU governments by announcing that it will impose a ban
on any and all new private investment in Burma by British companies.
According to the  U.S. State Department, Great Britain is the third largest
investor in  Burma.  In addition, members of parliament in EU countries
should give a mandate to their respective foreign ministers to take
additional  steps, such as an EU-wide ban on all new private investment in
Burma, at the next meeting of the General Affairs Council.
     
     The most recent arrests come a year after the military government
detained a total of 261 NLD members in order to prevent them from
attending a similar congress in May 1996. Since then, over 2,000 NLD
members and other peaceful demonstrators were arrested or  detained in a
series of incidents in the past year as the military attempted to prevent
them from exercising their rights to freedom of association, expression and
opinion.  In September, 1996 nearly 500 NLD members were arrested as they
tried to attend another party meeting,  and in October and December some 700
students and their supporters took to the streets to demand the right to
form a union.  While most of those detained were released after being
detained without charge for up to three weeks, dozens of key party
officials, including Aung San Suu Kyi's personal secretary, were given
prison sentences of up to twenty years with hard labor.  
     
******************************************

THE NATION: PETRONAS TIPPED FOR TEXACO STAKE IN 
BURMA
May 23, 1997
By Pichaya Changsorn 

US sanctions prompt take-over talks 

MALAYSIAN national oil exploration company Petronas Carigari is one 
of the most likely buyers of the stake held by US-based Texaco Inc in 
Burma's Yetagun gas field, following US sanctions, informed sources said. 

Although the US administration announced sanctions only on new 
investments in military-ruled Burma last month, and they would not apply 
to an existing investment like the Texaco gas project, industry sources said 
Texaco is negotiating with a number of oil and gas companies to take over 
its 40 per cent stake in the Yetagun gas field. 

Among the most likely buyers is Petronas Carigari, the petroleum 
exploration and production arm of Malaysian national oil company 
Petronas. 

''Petronas is trying to build its empire in countries around Thailand, which
is the Southeast Asian's largest market for gas," a source said. 

Thailand, through national oil company Petroleum Authority of Thailand,
earlier this year signed a gas sale contract with the Yetagun consortium. 
To be combined with gas from the giant Yadana field, PTT will pipe it to 
the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand's (Egat) power plants and 
a private power plant in Ratchaburi partly owned by Texaco. 

Petronas has become a strong contender for buying the Yetagun stake from
Texaco since it is offering to swap its stake in a Malaysian field for the
Yetagun stake. 

James Houck, general manager of Texaco's global gas and power business 
who came to Thailand yesterday to sign the power purchase agreement 
contract with Egat, refused to comment on the Texaco issue. Texaco's Thai 
power project, which includes Thai energy and mining group Ban Pu Plc 
and Black & Veatch of the US as equity partners, plans to use gas from 
Burma. 

Houck, however, said according to his understanding, the US sanctions do 
not apply to the Texaco project. 

Texaco chief executive Peter Bijur was quoted earlier by wire service
agencies as saying at the company's annual shareholders meeting that the
company would consider selling its Yetagun gas stake. 

However, sources said Unocal Corp, which is the second largest 
shareholder in the Yadana project, has no plans to sell its stake in the gas-
rich block. 

''The Yetagun field is minimal to Texaco, but for the smaller Unocal, 
Yadana is important," said an analyst. 

Other contenders for the Yetagun stake include Ban Pu and Indonesian 
state oil company Pertamina, sources said. 

A senior executive of Ban Pu said due to the relationship in the power joint
venture, Ban Pu might have a chance to buy a stake in the Yetagun field 
from Texaco, although there is no agreement which obliges Texaco to 
make the offer. 

''The issue is price. However, we will certainly not purchase all of the 40
per cent stake because it would mean a huge amount of money," he said. 

Having a stake in the proven oil and gas field would fulfil Ban Pu's hopes
of becoming an integrated energy company, while helping its power 
generating business. 

The company is currently engaged in coal mining, trading and the power
business. 

Other existing shareholders in the Yetagun field are British firm Premier
Oil, Nippon Oil and PTT Exploration and Production Plc. 

It has not yet become clear the scope of US sanctions, especially regarding
existing projects. ''For example, could Texaco sign new contracts for
construction work at its existing Yetagun project? The company has now
stopped and can do nothing," said a source in Burma. The Ban 
PU/Texaco/Black & Veatch consortium, called Tri Energy Co (TECO), 
yesterday inked the PPA with Egat. TECO will use gas from Burma to feed 
its 700 megawatt power plant. The gas sales contract was also signed 
yesterday between TECO and domestic gas supplier monopoly Petroleum 
Authority of Thailand. 

The signing made TECO the second consortium, after the Thai
Oil/Unocal/Westinghouse consortium, to ink a power purchase contract 
with Egat under Thailand's first independent power producer programme. 

''This PPA is worth not less than Bt100 billion and the gas contract is
worth about 70 per cent of that," said Chira Phanupong, chairman of 
TECO and Ban Pu. 

Houck said the transparent manner in which Egat held independent power
producer bids has made investing in Thailand's power generating industry
attractive and Texaco will participate in the second IPP round by proposing
the expansion of the TECO generating capacity. 

The PPA was concluded at Bt1.303 per kilowatt-hour. TECO President 
Rawi Corsiri said the company is expected to wrap up its project financing 
deal within two months. TECO will lend 75 per cent of the project cost, 
which will total Bt11 billion. Over 80 per cent of the loan will be in US 
dollars. The construction will take place next summer and commercial 
operations are slated to begin on May 1, 2000. 

Egat, Electricity Generating Plc and General Electric are some of the
companies vying for operating and maintenance contracts for the TECO 
power plant. 

Yadana and Yetagun gas is scheduled to be shipped to Thailand beginning 
in mid-1998 and 1999, respectively.  (TN)

*****************************************************

SAMPLE LETTER: TO MAYOR GIULIANI
May 24, 1997

BURMA SANCTIONS DECISION SET FOR FRIDAY MAY 30

On May 14, The New York City Council voted 50-0 to bar companies doing
business in Burma from doing business with the City of New York. The council
acted unanimously to pass Bill 647A after three hearings which heard
extensive testimony detailing the Burmese dictatorship's human rights
abuses, links to heroin trading, and shameful environmental record.

Now, New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani can choose to sign or veto Bill.
The decision will is scheduled to be announced on Friday, May 30. The
Mayor is under strong pressure from major corporations and their
highly-paid lobbyists to veto Bill 647A. UNOCAL and other business groups
are spending money and gaining access. Their voices are already being heard.

Mayor Giuliani needs to hear from the rest of us, from people in New York
City, across America and around the world, who support New York's stand
for human rights. Please write, phone, fax or email the Mayor NOW. Urge
him to join the struggle for human dignity and against dictatorship in
Burma!

PLEASE SEND MESSAGES NOW TO:

Mayor Rudolph Giuliani
City Hall
New York, NY 10007

PH:	212-788-3000
FAX:	212-788-2975 or 212 788-2969
email:	giuliani@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

SAMPLE LETTER

Dear Mayor Giuliani,

We urge you to sign and fully support implementation of Bill 647A, which
will present companies doing business in Burma from receiving contracts
from the City of New York.

The Burmese military dictatorship is one of the most brutal in the world,
guilty of murder, torture and many other abuses. It is also allowing
massive heroin production and exports, and most of the heroin found in New
York City is of Burmese origin.

Bill 647A allows New York City to take a strong lead in demanding respect
for the rights of both Burmese and New Yorkers.

Bill 647A deserves your full support.

Sincerely,

************************************

BOOK RELEASE: AUNG SAN SUU KYI-VOICE OF HOPE
May 24, 1997

Just released by Penguin UK: 
              
Aung San Suu Kyi - The Voice of Hope - Conversations with Alan
Clements
Cost: U.K. 7.99 Pounds - $16.95 Aust. > 241 pages with photographs
Available in English language bookstores worldwide (available in USA &
Canada October. 1, 1997, Seven Stories Press, New York, NY).

In this wide-ranging series of interviews with writer, social activist and
former Buddhist monk Alan Clements, Aung San Suu Kyi and her
closest collaborators (NLD Vice-Chairman U Tin Oo and U Kyi Maung) reveal
the roots of her passion for justice, her refusal to hate her adversaries
and her unwavering commitment to the power of truth. With charm, humility
and many delightful touches of humour, she examines the influences of
Burmese history and her 'warrior-statesman' father on her philosophy of
non-violence and 'engaged Buddhism'. She explores her feelings between
politics and religion, and the vicious dishonesty of Burma's military regime.

Like Mandela, Solzhenitsyn and Havel before her, Aung San Suu Kyi
paints a vivid picture of dictatorship in action, and the ways even
ordinary people manage to resist. Her words challenge the values and
behavior of politicians everywhere, and provide a beacon of hope to all of
these who believe in human rights.

***************************************