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SLORC HAVING BORDER DISPUTES



Myanmar seals post in escalation of border dispute
     with Thailand  14/6



     BANGKOK -- Myanmar has sealed a key frontier post facing Thailand, in a
sharp
     escalation of a simmering boundary dispute. 

     According to television reports on Thursday, the border post in Mae Sot
district of
     the western Thai province of Tak was closed during the day, cutting off
the passage
     of all trade people. 

     National television said that Myanmar shut the border after the two
countries failed to
     reach an agreement over a disputed boundary along the Moei River which
divided
     them, and also over a Thai ban on the export of a small onion native to
Myanmar. 

     The closure came after heavily-armed Thai and Myanmar troops were
locked in a
     tense stand-off last month and early this month on a disputed island in
the river. 

     Late last month, rival troops armed with tanks and heavy weapons manoeuvred
     within metres of each other, attempting to gain a better position to
claim the disputed
     land. 

     The two sides have been holding talks over the issue, but all attempts
to find a
     diplomatic solution have failed. 

     The stand-off began last month after Myanmar refused to act on a Thai
request that
     construction workers dredging the banks of the island in an attempt to
divert the
     Moei River cease operations. 

     Thai troops were stationed across from the workers in order to force
the issue, and
     Myanmar soldiers were sent in to protect them. 

     The showdown came after the river changed course after severe flooding
during the
     rainy season several years ago, and Thailand holds that under existing
agreements the
     demarcation of the border must change as a result. 

     Myanmar was said to be attempting to divert the river back to its
original course in a
     bid to win back territory lost through the natural phenomenon. 

     The Foreign Ministry said that Thailand had sent an aide memoire to
Myanmar on
     Nov 23, 1995, putting forth its claims. 

     A Thai official dealing with treaties and legal affairs has held talks
with his counterpart
     but Myanmar refused to accept the Thai position. 

     In another development, around 3,000 ethnic Karen villagers have fled
into northern
     Thailand from their homes in Myanmar over the past two months, sources said
     yesterday. 

     They said that the villagers wanted to escape abuses by forces of the
Yangon military
     junta. 

     According to the sources at the border, Myanmar troops have forced
whole villages
     in the Papun district of northern Karen state to relocate as part of a
drive to cut off
     support for ethnic rebel forces still battling Yangon. 

     The exodus came after Yangon began in February a massive sweep through
territory
     in eastern Myanmar held by the Karen National Union, the only major ethnic
     insurgency which has not reached a ceasefire with the junta. -- AFP.