The BurmaNet News, June 5, 1997

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------------------------ BurmaNet ------------------------       
"Appropriate Information Technologies, Practical Strategies"       
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The BurmaNet News: June 5, 1997       
Issue #742

Noted in Passing:

'...NLD leaders might understand, that for Asean members, 
the greatest sin in this region is to win a democratic election.'

-from The Jakarta Post (The Nation: A Regional Aversion To Democracy)

HEADLINES:       
==========     
BKK POST: BURMA RELEASES SUU KYI ACTIVISTS
BKK POST: RANGOON MULLS THAI, SOUTH ASIA ALLIANCE
BKK POST: CANADA TO UPHOLD 'CRITICAL ENGAGEMENT'
THE NATION: CHETTHA FIRES BROADSIDE AT BURMA JUNTA
BKK POST: PM WANTS MID-RIVER BORDER WITH BURMA
BKK POST: PIPELINE FIRM IN PLEA TO QUEEN
STRAITS TIMES: ASEAN-US SHOWDOWN NOT LIKELY
THE NATION: S'PORE PAPER SAYS JUNTA ON PROBATION 
THE NATION: A REGIONAL AVERSION TO DEMOCRACY
ABSL: STATEMENT ON ASEAN
ASIA TIMES: YANGON OUT TO PROVE THERE'S SMOKE
BURMANET: COMMENTS ON STEPHEN BROOKES' ARTICLE
BKK POST: INFLUX OF BURMESE SEX WORKER VIA MAE SAI 
THE NATION: BURMESE TOP PATIENT LIST AT HOSPITAL
-----------------------------------------------------------------     

BKK POST: BURMA RELEASES SUU KYI ACTIVISTS
June 4, 1997
AP

Rangoon - Burma's military regime yesterday freed hundreds of supporters of
pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi detained two weeks ago to stop her
from holding a party congress. 
     
Opposition sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, said most of the 316
activists believed to have been detained were released. But the status of
several members detained in Irrawaddy Division, just west of Rangoon, was
unclear.

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

BKK POST: RANGOON MULLS THAI, SOUTH ASIA ALLIANCE
June 4, 1997

Transport link vital to region cooperation

Burma wants to join a new economic cooperation scheme with Thailand and
South Asian nations, but not at its scheduled launching in Bangkok on
Friday, a foreign ministry official said yesterday.

Rangoon wants more time to study the details and is likely to be ready to
join by the end of this year or early next year, said Kobsak Chutikul,
Director-General of Economic Affairs.

The "Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka and Thailand Economic Cooperation", or
Bist-Ec, is due to be launched at a ceremony to be attended by Deputy
Foreign Minister Pitak Intrawityanunt and his counterparts from thr three
South Asian countries.

Burma conveyed to India its wish to join thr scheme after the May 31
decision by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations foreign ministers to
admit Burma into the fold in July.

Mr Kobsak said Thailand welcomed the participation of Burma as a
transportation link between Thailand and Southeast Asian countries.

But Burma's participation would require a change of name and this is one
issue on the agenda of senior officials meeting in Bangkok today and
tomorrow ahead of Friday's ministerial meeting.

Option to be considered include "Panja Phaki", Sanskrit term meaning a
five-member strong alliance, and the Bay of Bengal Economic Cooperation.

Once Burma is admitted, Thailand wants the scheme consolidated before more
members are admitted. Malaysia and Indonesia are among possible candidates,
Mr Kobsak said.

So far, members plan cooperation in nine fields: trade, investment,
industry, production standards, human resources development, tourism,
energy, transport and communication, fisheries, agriculture and natural
resources, Mr Kobsak said.

The new scheme will help facilitate cooperation between Asean and thr South
Asian Association for Economic Cooperation (Saarc). (BP)

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

BKK POST: CANADA TO UPHOLD 'CRITICAL ENGAGEMENT'
June 4, 1997

Canada will uphold its "critical engagement" policy toward Burma despite the
country's scheduled admission to Asean this July, Canadian ambassador to
Thailand Manfred von Nostitz said yesterday.

Canada, a dialogue partner of Asean, would fully engage Burma only when
there was significant progress in the country's democratisation process, Mr
Nostitz told Foreign Minister Prachuab Chaiyasan yesterday.

The ambassador, however, said the Canadian government did not bar its
businessmen from investing in Burma. (BP)

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

THE NATION: CHETTHA FIRES BROADSIDE AT BURMA JUNTA
June 4, 1997

Army Commander in Chief Gen Chettha Thanajaro yesterday criticised Burma's
military leaders with whom Thailand is known to enjoy good relations.

"Thailand has tried very hard to be good and has extended friendship towards
Burma, but Rangoon seems not to respond positively to the friendship
extended. I think there are many reasons behind such a response which I do
not want to explain," Chettha said.

Relations between the two countries were tested by a recent border dispute
over an island in the Moei River, off Tak's Mae Sot province, which was
sparked by Burma's decision to commence dredging on the island in an attempt
to divert the course of the river.

Tension escalated late last month when both countries deployed troops to the
area. Both sides have since agreed, however, to withdraw their forces and
let officials concerned negotiate the issue.

"I want to insist that in negotiating with Burma over the dispute, the army
will not put Thailand in a weaker position. However, I believe that it would
be for the best if both countries could settle the issues peacefully and by
compromising," Chettha said.

He said negotiations are in the hands of a joint technical committee. "Now
Burma is looking at its 1989 maps and Thailand will compare it with its 1992
maps to see the changes in the river," he said. The diversion of the river's
course resulted from flooding tow years ago which cut into a portion of the
river bank on the Burmese side, turning it into and island.

"The joint committee will have discussions on relevant treaties that each
side holds. Both sides will base [their findings] on facts so as to reach an
agreement. I think that anyone would find this issue difficult due to the
frequent changes to the river's course," the general said. (TN)

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

BKK POST: PM WANTS MID-RIVER BORDER WITH BURMA
June 4, 1997 [abridged]
Wassana Nanuam, Yuwadee Tunyasiri and Supamart Kasem

Move to prevent future disputes

Prime Minister Chavalit Yongchaiyudh has proposed that Thailand and Burma
agree on a permanent border to prevent future disputes, according to Supreme
Commander Mongkol Ampornphisit.

Gen Mongkol said Gen Chavalit had asked him to propose to Burmese
authorities to use the middle of the Moei River to demarcate the border to
avoid problems resulting from changes in the river's course or different
interpretations of the Thai-Anglo Treaty. He will soon discuss the proposal
with Army Commander-in-Chief Chettha Thannajaro and ask the premier to
assign Gen Chettha to lead a Thai delegation to Rangoon to settle the issue
once and for all.

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

BKK POST: PIPELINE FIRM IN PLEA TO QUEEN
June 4, 1997
Yuwadee Tunyasiri, Suebpong Unarat and Veera Prateepchaikul

Builder says project should follow roads

The company building the Yadana gas pipeline has petitioned Her Majesty the
Queen to have the project re-routed, a source said yesterday.

Prasit Supsakorn, chairman of the Tasco Mannesmann joint venture, wrote to
the Bureau of the Royal Household on March 24, suggesting an alternative
route along highways 3272 and 323i.

In his letter, Mr Prasit said the slightly longer route would spare the
environment in Kanchanaburi and avoid conflict with conservationists. He
maintained the detour route would be worthy.

The petition prompted the bureau to ask the prime minister to consider the
project carefully.

In the petition, Mr Prasit pointed out the existing route would cut a 50km
strip 21m wide through national forest reserves, destroying the environment.

He also said protests against the project by environment-conscious people
might disrupt construction to the point the project would not be completed
in time as specified in the contract with Burma.

The source said it was strange the chairman of the company contracted by the
Petroleum Authority of Thailand (PTT) was unaware of the pipeline route and
its environmental impact in the first place.

The source suspected Tasco wanted the deal with PTT re-negotiated because it
was afraid it could not complete the project in time and thus be fined by
PTT for breach of contract due to the opposition against the project.

Under the contract, Tasco would be fined 3.66 million baht a day for the
delay but not more than 365.9 million baht in total.

Tasco, said the source, offered a bid of 3,659 million baht for the
contract, about 726 million baht lower than the closest contender.

If the pipeline was re-routed, Tasco would stand to benefit on two points:
firstly, the construction period would be extended and the company would not
have to pay the fine and, secondly, the company would earn more from the PTT
because of the extended route.

Tasco Mannesmann is a joint venture between Mannesmann Demag AG of Germany
and Tipco Asphalt of Thailand.

Meanwhile, Gen Chavalit Yongchaiyudh urged groups opposed to construction of
the pipeline to meet and work out measures to minimise the environmental impact.

After yesterday's cabinet meeting, Gen Chavalit said he did not want the
issue to develop into conflict. Non-governmental organisations opposed to
the project, including a group of prominent Thai and foreigners led by Sulak
Sivaraksa, the social critic, should discuss with concerned agencies ways to
solve the problem, he said.

Gen Chavalit also expressed concern Burma would impose a daily fine of 45
million baht if the pipeline was not completed by July next year.

Korn Dabbaransi, the industry minister, has assigned the PTT to gather
details of the project and environmental protection measures so he can
discuss the matter with Chucheep Harnsawat, the agriculture minister.

It was the previous government that signed a contract with Burma to complete
the pipeline by July next year, he said. "If the pipeline is re-routed,
construction may not be completed by July next year," Mr Korn said.

Whether the pipeline would be re-routed or not depended on talks with Mr
Chucheep, he said.

On Monday, Mr Chucheep said the PTT had not obtained permission to build the
pipeline through Kanchanaburi forests. He said the ministry would have to
consider if the project would have adverse effects on the forests. The PTT,
he said, would be asked to clarify its proposed environmental impact
mitigation plan before approval could be made.

The agriculture minister confirmed he had assigned Pitiphong Phuengboon,
deputy permanent secretary for agriculture, to talk to the PTT, the Industry
Ministry and National Environment Board.

He said the ministry wanted details on the route of the pipeline from the
PTT. "There have been petitions from various groups over environmental
concerns. We will have to check if the claims are true. We will also see
what the PTT has done to minimise the impact," Mr Chucheep added. (BP)

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

STRAITS TIMES: ASEAN-US SHOWDOWN OVER MYANMAR NOT LIKELY
June 4, 1997
By Derwin Pe in Jakarta 

ASEAN has dismissed suggestions that it is heading for a showdown with the
United States over admitting Myanmar next month to the seven-nation grouping. 

Asean Secretary-General Datuk Ajit Singh told a news conference yesterday
that both Asean and the US wanted the same thing - positive developments in
Myanmar and regional stability-but differed on how to achieve it. 

"The difference is that Washington wants to achieve these goals through
enforcing sanctions," he said in response to a question. "Asean does not
believe in that. We believe in the policy of constructive engagement." 

The US has led the way in putting pressure on Asean to delay admitting
Myanmar over its human-rights record. Asean member states, however, have
stressed that a longstanding policy of engaging Myanmar would reap better
results. 

Datuk Ajit Singh said that Asean would have "very frank, very open and very
engaging discussions" with Myanmar once it joined the group. 

"Myanmar is now in the same compound with the rest of Asean which makes it
easier for us to talk to them," he said. 

He noted that Myanmar together with Cambodia and Laos were "working very
hard" to fulfil the obligations of becoming Asean members. 

Asean had agreed last Saturday to admit the three countries into the grouping. 

He said he had submitted a report to Asean foreign ministers on the state of
readiness of the three countries to join the grouping, which said the three
would: Accede to the Bangkok Declaration of 1967, which established the
grouping, and to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation. Contribute US$1
million (S$1.4 million) to the Asean fund. Assume responsibility for
chairing Asean meetings. Establish diplomatic missions in all other Asean
countries. Train government officials in the use of the English language. 

At the briefing, Datuk Ajit Singh also announced that Asean economic
ministers would meet in Jakarta on June 14 to discuss the group's economic
vision for the next century. 

He said older Asean member states, on their part, would help Cambodia, Laos
and Myanmar to standardise customs and immigration rules and harmonise laws
on legal, taxation and tariff systems to integrate them into the Asean Free
Trade Area (Afta). 

"This work is basic if the three countries want to implement Afta as quickly
as possible," he said. 

To create Afta, Asean countries had agreed to eliminate tariffs altogether
by 2003. 

He noted that Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar had already drawn a draft product
list for the Common Effective Preferential Tariff scheme - a requirement
under Afta in which Asean countries are given uniform preferential treatment
in intra-Asean trade. (ST)

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

THE NATION: S'PORE PAPER SAYS JUNTA ON PROBATION IN ASEAN
June 4, 1997 [abridged]
AFP

Singapore - Military-ruled Burma is on "probation" in the Association of
Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), and its ruling generals should be taught to
stay in line, Singapore's leading newspaper said yesterday.

Japanese Prime Minister Ruytaro Hashimoto's remarks that the Burmese State
Law and Order Restoration Council (Slorc) should not regard Asean membership
as a form of pardon "can be the grouping's watchword," The Straits Times said.

"Burma is on probation; nothing more, nothing less," the daily, which often
reflects official thinking in Singapore, said in an editorial on Asean's
decision last week to induct Burma, along with Cambodia and Laos, in July.

Rangoon, in welcoming its acceptance, only referred to economic cooperation
but the generals should be "made to learn that it is not in their interest
to let Asean down with actions that are beyond the pale," The Straits Times
said. The inclusion of Burma, Cambodia and Laos would "bring to fruition
theAsean founders' fond hope ... that all of Southeast Asia be banded
together one day in advancing common  interests," the paper said.

The editorial, entitled "Not a pardon for Myanmar," said Burma simultaneous
entry with Cambodia and Laos would benefit the grouping despite misgivings.

"With the three newest members .., Southeast Asia will become a production
centre and market of 500 million people when protective tariffs are brought
down gradually," it noted.

"But Asean is also about human decency," the paper opined. "Here, it
essentially means the responsibility of member-governments to give their
people the best deal possible, and to be respectful of their rights.

"On its record of political persecution and denying the people that results
of a free election in 1990, the military junta of Burma brings odium to
Asean's fair name." (TN)

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

THE NATION: A REGIONAL AVERSION TO DEMOCRACY
June 3, 1997
The Jakarta Post

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations is to include Burma within its 
ranks despite the move colliding head-on with the international 
community's repeated berating of the country's ruling junta for its human 
rights record.

The decision disillusioned many political observers because they had 
speculated that last week's crackdown on political dissent by the ruling 
junta, the State Law and Order Restoration Council (Slorc), would prompt 
Asean into delaying its decision to admit Burma.

Asean's decision looks like a tragic irony if it is viewed from its 
"constructive engagement" standpoint, as this has not been successful in 
persuading Burma to respect human rights. 
     
Viewing the complicated nature of this issue, Asean at last reached its 
decision, which NLD leaders might understand, that for Asean members, 
the greatest sin in this region is to win a democratic election. They might 
also take into consideration that some Asean member countries have yet to 
fully respect the noble values of democracy. 

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

ABSL: STATEMENT ON ASEAN
June 1, 1997

1st June 1997
=====================================================
              STATEMENT ON THE DECISION OF ASEAN
=====================================================

We,   the  All  Burma  Students  League  (ABSL),   strongly denounce  the 
decision of ASEAN to accept Burma as a member of  ASEAN.  The 
decision of ASEAN is an act of interference into  Burma's internal  matters 
as  the military  regime of Burma  continues to neglect the  result of the 
1990 general elections.  The  ASEAN  has  deviated  from  the  norms  of
international diplomacy with this decision. The Constructive   Engagement  
Policy  which   has  been  being pursued  by the ASEAN  since 1991 is a  
failed policy as it could not make any positive changes towards the 
restoration of democracy in Burma.

ASEAN  has  exploited  the political  crisis  of  Burma for their  
advantages  by accepting  Burma  as its  member.  It encourages  the  
military junta  of  Burma to  continue its repression  inside the country.  
The decision of ASEAN is a mistake  which was committed against the 
long-term interest of  the regional association.  It  could easily destroy the
mutual  cooperation and understanding amongst the countries in  the 
region.  Moreover,   it threatens the  unity of the regional countries in 
future.

                                       Central Committee
                                  All Burma Students League

A  B  S  L                         
All Burma Students League          
3, Krishna Menon Marg              
New Delhi - 110011                
Ph    : 91-11-3017172/3016035
Fx    : 91-11-3793397              
Email : shar@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 

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

ASIA TIMES: YANGON OUT TO PROVE THERE'S SMOKE WITHOUT FIRE IN THE HEROIN TRADE
June 3, 1997
Stephen Brookes, Yangon

Rising out of the dust like a pink and gold hallucination, Myanmar's new
Museum of Narcotic Drugs loomed above the crowd of soldiers, politicians,
ambassadors and journalists as Khin Nyunt - one of the top leaders of the
ruling State Law and Order Restoration Council - took the podium. 

"It is a well known fact," he said, "that in Myanmar, the government and the
whole populace residing in the border areas have wholeheartedly committed
themselves to eradicate the narcotics drugs problem. However, some Western
countries who turn a blind eye to our successful efforts in this regard are
still unfairly accusing Myanmar by disseminating untrue reports and
exaggerated news." 

The April 22 museum opening in northeastern Shan state was part of a broad
counterattack by SLORC against charges that it was not cooperating in the
fight against drugs - and, according to some United States officials, is
even involved in the trade itself, from trafficking to money-laundering. 

"Burmese authorities have made no discernible efforts to improve their
performance," senior US narcotics official Robert Gelbard stated last
November. "From a hardheaded, drug-control point of view, I have to
conclude that SLORC has been part of the problem, not the solution." 

In May, US Secretary of State Madelaine Albright took up the fight, saying
drug money had penetrated all reaches of society and traffickers were
becoming "leading lights" in Myanmar. "Drug money is so pervasive in the
Burmese economy that it taints legitimate investment," she warned. 

And in April, journalists Leslie Kean and Dennis Bernstein wrote in the
Boston Globe: "Burma is swiftly becoming a full-fledged narco-dictatorship,
with all aspects of the government either heavily influenced by or directly
incorporated into the burgeoning drug trade." 

Is there really a "narco-dictatorship" in Myanmar, reaping riches on the
backs of American junkies? Drug experts in Myanmar have said that was
nonsense - and argued that SLORC was being made the scapegoat for America's
failed war on drugs. 

"The State Department says that opium production has doubled since SLORC
came to power in 1988, therefore SLORC is responsible," one Western official
in Yangon said. 

"But that's a phony argument. The key factor in 1988 was that the US
decertified Burma and stopped its drug assistance. The US was providing
about 80 percent of the funding for fighting drugs, so naturally when that
money dried up, opium production increased. But rather than admit their
error, the US is blaming SLORC. It's a witch hunt." 

Other drug enforcement officials agree. "The Burmese were extremely
cooperative with US law enforcement during the time I was there," said Barry
Broman, who spent two years at the US embassy before retiring last year.
"They provided major assistance. The problem was the limited amount of
assistance we could give the Burmese." 

Broman, who spent several decades investigating the narcotics trade in
Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam before being posted to Myanmar in 1994,
is one of America's most knowledgeable experts on the complex world of Asian
drug trafficking. 

"There are a lot of accusations that SLORC is involved in narcotics, but no
one's produced any evidence - so where's the smoking gun?" he said, during a
recent trip to Yangon. "In my experience, the trade is not institutional in
Burma. That's not to say that people aren't profiting - there's indirect
profiting from the narcotics trade. But across the border, you find Thai
politicians and generals in bed with the traffickers. That's not the case
here." 

But critics like Albright point to the new role that former drug lords like
Lo Hsing Han and Khun Sa are allegedly playing in the Myanmar economy.
SLORC's refusal to extradite Khun Sa to the US, they said, is proof of its
complicity in the drug trade. 

But Broman takes a different view. "On their own, the Burmese effected the
capture of Khun Sa," he said. "They made a major dent in the drug trade, and
we gave them no credit. The human rights people say they cut a sweetheart
deal, but I don't believe that. In the US, we call it a plea bargain. And in
this case, justice was served, because Khun Sa is out of the drug business.
And that means 12,000 armed men [soldiers in Khun Sa's army] are no longer
in the drug business." 

Moreover, said Broman, it's unlikely that Khun Sa is as rich as many
people assume. "It's a mistake to think of him as a megabucks guy,
like the Columbian cocaine lords," he said. 

"With cocaine, you have cartels that control everything from the coca fields
to the dealers in New York, so the profits are huge," he explained. "But
unlike cocaine, heroin changes hands many times before it gets to the buyer.
Khun Sa would buy the opium from producers, then process it and sell it to a
politician or a general in Thailand, who would sell it to someone else in
Hong Kong or Vancouver. The big profit is all outside Asia." 

Myanmar government officials also discount the idea of drug lords as the new
economic kingpins. When asked how much money Khun Sa was pumping into the
economy, one officer from the Defense Ministry just laughed. "They cost us
money!" he said. "We have to support all those former Mong Tai army
soldiers. After Khun Sa surrendered, they were on
their own - we gave them money and resettled them. We don't want to
fight them anymore, so we have to find something else for them to do."

What the Western critics fail to understand, a number of diplomats and drug
officials say in Yangon, is that the opium-producing areas are
controlled not by SLORC, but by armed ethnic insurgent groups along
the border like the Wa, the Kokan and the Shan. 

SLORC is primarily interested in exerting political control over these
areas, so has had to come to political settlements with the insurgent groups
who have traditionally funded themselves with drug profits. "These guys were
shooting Burmese for a living," said Broman. "The drug profits buy bullets
that kill Burmese soldiers. So it's in the Burmese interest to control drugs." 

But to get rid of the existing opium economy and replace it with something
new, time is needed. "The US wants an instant solution to the problem, but
that's not realistic," said one drug expert in Yangon. 

Is Myanmar's anti-narcotic campaign real, or just an exercise in public
relations? Broman and others have said it's real, and is now getting
encouragement from an unexpected source. 

"The Chinese are putting pressure on Burma," he said. "China has a
growing addiction problem, and they've told the Burmese they want them
to get a handle on it. China and the US both have the same message,"
he added, "but the Chinese are doing a lot more in terms of helping."

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

BURMANET: COMMENTS ON STEPHEN BROOKES' DRUG ARTICLE
June 4, 1997

BurmaNet Editor's Note: Several individuals have written responses to
Stephen Brookes' recent article in the Asia Times entitled "Yangon out to
prove there's smoke without fire in the heroin trade".  Brookes makes the
argument that the SLORC has been trying to control drug production and
trafficking in Burma but drug production has increased because the US
government ceased giving assistance for drug eradication in 1988. Barry
Broman, formerly posted at the US embassy in Rangoon, is Brookes' primary
source of  information for the article. 

Interviews conducted by BurmaNet indicate that the SLORC army has been
involved in the transport of heroin to India and has in many cases allowed,
if not encouraged, local production. According to a source in Mandalay,
large scale drug dealers in Mandalay pay SLORC army personnel to transport
heroin in army trucks to the Indian border at Tamu.  The drug dealers then
have their men pick up the drugs there for distribution in India.

In Kachin State, the Kachin Independence Organization was able to eradicate
opium cultivation in areas under its control.  Since the 1993 ceasefire,
farmers living in areas close to new SLORC military posts have begun growing
poppies again and have told KIO officials that the KIO cannot stop them
because they have the protection of the SLORC.  In areas of Shan State where
opium poppies were never grown before, large areas are now under
cultivation.  These areas were previously under the control of armed ethnic
groups but are now controlled by the SLORC.  

Other people interviewed by BurmaNet in the past six months have attested 
that regional Military Intelligence units and army units have received
bribes for not checking specified vehicles when they pass through
checkpoints.  SLORC personnel are also paid off to not enter areas where
heroin factories are operating. The factories are regularly moved to
different places.

The opium museum that Brookes talks about is located in Lin Min Xian's
territory in Eastern Shan State. Lin Min Xian is reputed to be deeply
involved in many aspects of the drug business.  He is said to have a
monopoly on heroin production in his territory.  Middlemen bring opium to
him, his men refine it into heroin, he handles the sale of the heroin and
returns a percentage of the profit in shares.

Below are excerpts from responses by other Burma watchers.

FROM BERTIL LINTER, FEER CORRESPONDENT AND LONGTIME
BURMA WATCHER:

Re: BARRY BROMAN (who is now a "consultant" trying to put together 
business deals in Burma, through his company Raintree Consulting)

Barry Broman is the former Rangoon station chief of the CIA and as such 
he was in charge of the CIA's anti-narcotics work in Rangoon, which 
often was at loggerheads with official US drug policy as expressed by 
the State Department. Rangoon was Broman's retirement posting after 
having spent years doing clandestine work in Cambodia.

FROM LARRY DOHRS, FREE BURMA COALITION
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON

Broman might read the reports put out by the State Department for
starters.  He might note the satellite survey evidence that areas under
SLORC control, in Kachin State for instance, show a dramatic rise in opium
production. 

The US Embassy Rangoon estimates that income from opiates equals 
income from all legitimate sources in the Burmese economy.  This estimate 
is derived by taking the production figures from the satellite surveys, 
subtracting the amount of local consumption and wastage, and multiplying 
by the "farmgate" price of opium at Burma's borders. 

How strange that the drug business is the one aspect the SLORC claims 
not to be able to affect.

FROM AN ANALYST WHO HAS DONE EXTENSIVE RESEARCH
ON SOUTHEAST ASIAN DRUG TRAFFICKING

I find it most interesting that Brookes starts off with a colorful reference
to a ceremony recently stage-managed by the SLORC in Mong La to honor 
one of the Golden Triangle's up-and-coming heroin and amphetamine dealers --
Lin Ming Xian. Other traffickers, including the head trafficker and
commander of the United Wa State Army, Pao Yu-Chiang were also in 
attendence. 

To establish a museum to heroin and opium at such a spot is entirely
fitting, as Mong La has come to symbolize SLORC-sanctioned drug trafficking.
In this town, the headquarters of one of Burma's largest drug armies, are
several heroin and amphetamine labs.

Imagine if the event had taken place in Colombia, the key source of 
another major hard drug.   President Ernesto Samper flies the US ambassador
and other top Bogota-based diplomats to Cali, where under the kleig lights,
he bestows awards on the Cali Cartel's top traffickers.  The US ambassador
would probably be recalled instantly . .and later sacked.   Aid to Colombia
would be cut off instantly.   Only in Burma, where the names of the major
players hide in obscurity to most of the international community, can such
bizarre ceremonies go unanswered.  
 
That Brookes neglected to mention this key fact behind the opening of the
"Museum of Narcotic Drugs" is not surprising. He displays no understanding
of the history of the Burmese Communist Party and the new ethnic drug
factions which emerged from the BCP's internal split in 1989.  These groups,
referred to euphamistically by the SLORC as "legal fold members" include
some of Asia's biggest drug traffickers.   Lin Ming Xian, aka Sai Lin,
murdered the leader of the BCP's old 815 area, a Shan-Welsh named Michael
Davies when Davies refused to go along with Sai Lin's plan to expand the
group's involvement in the heroin trade.  Soon thereafter, Sai Lin formed
the Eastern Shan State Army, also known as the Myanmar National Alliance
Army -- Eastern Shan State, and diversified his criminal businesses to
include the smuggling of Fujianese migrants from Yunnan through the eastern
Shan State to Mae Sai, Thailand for onward illegal transport to the US
through Bangkok.  

It's odd that in a Burma so rigidly controlled by a omnipresent Military
Intelligence network, the drug trade somehow eludes the SLORC's otherwise
super-efficient police effort.  As shown recently during the NLD's attempts
at convening a National Convention to commemorate the seventh anniversary of
the 1990 elections, the SLORC's ability to identify, find and round up
political dissidents is extremely good and carried out with lightening
speed.  Why can't this skill be put to more productive use in finding and
arresting drug traffickers?  They are clearly operating in plain view in
Mandalay, Taunggyi, Lashio and Rangoon?   But they do have a marked
advantage over political dissidents.  They have drug money to line SLORC
pockets and fund the SLORC's investment projects.  Just look at Lo Hsing
Han's Asia World, which has secured over 60 percent of Singapore's
investment in Burma -- all of that committed by Lo Hsing-han ally Robert Kuok.  

Is the SLORC profiting from the drug trade?   You bet.  Benefits from Khun
Sa's supposed surender have been illusory.  He's deep in the drug trade, but
now protected by his newly-afforded status of SLORC ally and his new name -
U Htet Aung.

Brookes, I would urge you to learn a bit more about the drug issue from a
broader pool of sources.  Until then, your work will continue to be mistaken
for a supplement to the New Light of Myanmar.   

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BKK POST: INFLUX OF BURMESE SEX WORKER VIA MAE SAI ON 
THE RISE
June 2, 1997
Aphaluck Bhatiasevi 
Chiang Rai

An increasing number of young Burmese women have been crossing into 
Thailand through the checkpoint in Mae Sai district of this border province 
to work in the flourishing flesh trade business.

According to World Vision's Bansit Thathorn, who is a coordinator at the 
Mae Sai-based non-governmental organisation, most of the women were 
coming into the country on a day-to-day basis to work in restaurants, bars, 
karaoke clubs, massage parlours and brothels, and more than 60% of them 
were under 18 years of age.

According to the recently-passed anti-prostitution law, people involved in
procuring children under 18 years are liable to a prison term ranging from
4-20 years plus a fine of 80,000-100,000 baht.

Mr Bansit said World Vision helps women working at brothels in the 
province by providing counselling and educating them about safe sex but 
progress has been slow because most of them do not understand the Thai 
language.

To overcome the language barrier, Mr Bansit said, World Vision has now
started talking to their clients who are mostly local motorcycle-taxi drivers.

"It's difficult to change their behaviour because they were driven here by
poverty at home. The best we can do is provide counselling. We can't stop
them from coming here," he said.

Most of these sex workers ply their trade in Mae Sai for about two years,
sometimes less, and then move on to other parts of the country where 
rewards are higher.

Dr Sura Kunkongkaphan, director of Mae Sai District Hospital, said 
Burmese make up 30 percent of the patients at the hospital.

According to him, out of 103 sex workers tested at the hospital this year,
37.8 percent were HIV positive, most of them from Burma's Shan state.

Dr Sura said though some 2,000 illegal immigrants registered with
authorities under the amnesty programme granted last year, an equal 
number, perhaps more, work illegally in Mae Sai.

Director of Burma's Health Ministry, Dr Rai Mra, said his government was
trying to expand facilities at the Tachilek Hospital which is just 100
metres from the Thai border.

According to him, the incidence of Aids is high in Burma's eastern states
bordering Thailand with Shan state registering the highest number of 243
cases last year.

U Min Han, assistant director of Burma's Immigration and Population
Department, said the main factors driving young Burmese girls to work in
Thailand was poverty, illiteracy, changing social norms, the low value of
the Burmese currency, and the high demand in the sex industry in 
Thailand. (BP)

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THE NATION: BURMESE TOP PATIENT LIST AT HOSPITAL
June 3, 1997

THE Public Health Ministry's latest report shows that Burmese labourers 
were the largest group of foreigners who received medical treatment from 
Thai hospitals from August to December last year.

The ministry's permanent secretary, Withoon Saengsingkaew, said that 
according to the report, 77 per cent of 6,449 foreigners (4,939) were 
Burmese labourers who were allowed to work m the country on a 
temporary basis in 42 provinces since August 1, 1996. 

Of the 6,449, forty-five per cent were treated for malaria, 15 per cent for 
severe diarrhea, six per cent each for elephantitis and sexually transmitted 
diseases and four per cent for tuberculosis, he said.

Withoon said after the Burmese, Laotians were the second largest group to 
receive medical care at hospitals during the period of the survey.

A total of 1,607 foreigners received 4 treatment in Kanchanaburi, 1,241 
were treated in Mae Hong Son, and 1,611 sought treatment in Ranong 
province from August to December last year.
     
Since the government allowed in workers from Laos, Cambodia and 
Burma to work on a temporary basis, Withoon said, there have been 
reports of diseases that were previously rarely found in the country, 
including severe diarrhea, polio leprosy and rabies.

In the first two months of this year, about 2,000 migrant workers received 
treatment from 19 border hospitals. The majority were treated for malaria 
and severe diarrhea. Most of the foreign workers sought treatment at 
hospitals in Tak, Ranong, Kanchanaburi and Ratchaburi provinces.

Withoon said it was likely that border hospitals will see an increase in the 
number of foreigners it treats this year compared to last year as more 
Burmese escape fighting in their country.

"I have already instructed hospitals in the border provinces to keep a close 
watch on the possible spread of diseases mainly from the displaced persons 
in order to prevent an epidemic," Withoon said.

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