The BurmaNet News, June 17, 1997

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The BurmaNet News: June 17, 1997       
Issue #750

HEADLINES:       
==========  
BURMA OFFICE : TRANSLATION OF NLD STATEMENT NO. 7/97
BORDER SOURCE SITUATION UPDATE: REFUGEES 
CFOB: UNDP REPORT - BURMA
ASIA WEEK: WHY SCHOOL IS OUT IN MYANMAR
ABSL REPORT: BURMESE POETS IN JAIL
NATION: CONSUMERS' ORGANISATION URGES PARAQUAT BAN
BKK POST: MEASURES TO BE BEEFED UP TO CONTROL
BKK POST: PM URGED TO BE WARY OF BORDER MOVE
AWSJ: ENLIST ASEAN'S HELP WITH BURMA
NATION: BURMA SEES ASEAN AS KEY TO ENDING ISOLATION
THE NATION: JAPAN INSURER SET FOOT IN BURMA
-----------------------------------------------------------------

BURMA OFFICE : TRANSLATION OF NLD STATEMENT NO. 7/97
June 16, 1997

National League for Democracy
No: 97/B, West Shwegonedine Road
Bahan township, Rangoon

Statement No: 07/97

1) At 4:00 p.m. on 08-06-97, the authorities concerned informed the
family of U Tin Shwe (Monywa), a member of the Central Committee of the
National League for Democracy, that he had died at 1:35 p.m. on the same day
in Insein jail.

2) After receiving this information, the wife and son of U Tin Shwe went
to the mortuary at Rangoon General Hospital (RGH) on 08-06-97, but the
concerned authorities would not allow them to view his body. They went
there again on 09-06-97. They were again not allowed to view the body,
instead they were informed at the autopsy which stated that he had died
as a result of succumbing to a blockage of the blood vessels to the heart. 

3) When his family requested for an obituary notice to be placed in the
newspapers, the authorities would only allow a statement that U Tin Shwe
(Monywa), a High Court lawyer, had passed away on 08-06-97. The
authorities would not allow any mention of when or where the body would
be cremated.

4) When the funeral took place on 12-06-97 at Rayway cemetery in
Rangoon, the family, relatives and friends were not allowed by the
authorities to take part in a procession to carry his body from the RGH
to the Rayway cemetery. They were told that they had to go and wait at
the cemetery.

5) The authorities arrested U Tin Shwe on 29-11-90. He was tried on the
accusation that he had violated Penal Code Section 5(a)(b)(j)and was
sentenced to serve 10 years imprisonment in Insein Jail. Before the
previous Water Festival [April 1997], he suffered heart disease and was
admitted to the hospital inside the jail.

6) On 21-04-97, his family made an appeal to the authorities for the
permission to allow him to have treatment by physicians and specialists
outside the jail. The appeal was made in vain. Instead, on the same day
he was taken out of the hospital in the jail to the cell where he had
been imprisoned.

7) On 23-04-97, learning that his health had greatly deteriorated,
Chairman of the NLD sent a letter to the SLORC in which the following
was stated:

"...Hereby, the NLD would like to inform that it will hold the authorities
responsible if U Tin Shwe was to pass away without enjoying proper rights of
a patient such as proper food and admission to a hospital in order to
receive proper care treatment."

8) On 30-04-97, due to his worsening condition, U Tin Shwe was admitted
to the Insein prison hospital again, but was discharged and sent back to
his cell on 03-06-97. When his family was allowed to meet him on
06-06-97, he told them that his health situation was not bad.

9) On the morning of 08-06-97, while he was meditating, his room-mate
went outside for a while. After a while, when the room-mate heard a
sound of something hitting the steel bars, he came back and had a look
only to find that U Tin Shwe had fallen and lay flat in the room. While
he was carried to the prison hospital, he died on the way.

10) From there, U Tin Shwe was taken from the prison hospital to the
RGH. Upon arrival at RGH, the officer-on-duty said that the patient
could not be admitted as he was already dead. It led to a dispute with
the jail staff who was assigned to take the body to RGH. This incident
is indicative of the attempts by the concerned authorities to hide their
actions conducted with a lack of conscience or responsibility.

11) U Tin Shwe should be highly honoured. He struggled actively and
selflessly for the restoration of democracy and devoted his whole life
for the goodness of the country. The NLD recognises his death as a loss
not only for the NLD but also for the country, and has bestowed high
honours on him.

Rangoon

Central Executive Committee
Nayon 7th waxing day, 1359
National League for Democracy
June 12, 1997
_____________________

Following is the translation of pamphlet distributed at his funeral.

Biography of U Tin Shwe (Monywa)

Monywa U Tin Shwe (B.A, B.L) was born on 17 April 1930 (Thursday) at Moe
Than village in Monywa Township. His parents are U Ba Moe and Daw Thaung
Yin, and he is the eldest among his siblings. Since he was young, his
favourite hobby was reading and writing. In 1950, he passed his
matriculation and attended Rangoon University. From 1950 to 1958, he
actively participated in the student movement in Mandalay and Rangoon
Universities. He graduated with Bachelor of Arts from Rangoon University
in 1961 and he attained Bachelor of Law in 1968.

He worked as a translation editor at an embassy from 1960 to 1976. He
wrote the following books under the pen-name of Maung Tin Shwe:
-Ivy Lenin, his life and his story
-Biography of Thakhin Ko Daw Hmine
-One hundred Laygyoe of ThaKhin Ko Daw Hmine
-Biography of Chu EnLay
-Biography of Chu Tay
-Biography of Suvanophon, the President of Laos
-Counter interrogation Techniques
- The Arts of Law and Testimonial Law

He also wrote articles on politics and literature and translated short
stories in Luduu (People) newspaper, Luduu journal, Karen Forwards
journal, Mawgun (Record) magazine, ShuDaunt (View Point) journal, Pyiduu
Kyae (People's Star) journal, Moe Wai magazine and Shumawa magazine.

His first printed story is titled "Return from Pwe" published in Rangoon
journal of 1952.

U Tin Shwe passed away on 08-06-97 (Sunday)

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

BORDER SOURCE SITUATION UPDATE: REFUGEES ARRIVING AT KANCHANABURI,
RATCHABURI, AND PROVINCES TO THE SOUTH
June 17, 1997

KANCHANABURI PROVINCE

Ban Don Yang
The new site for the refugees relocated from Thu Ka and Htee Lai Pah is now
officially known as Ban Don Yang, referring to the nearest Thai village to
the site.  The population is 1,552 and is a mixture of Karen and
Burmese/Tavoyans.

The area of land allocated is said to be narrow, and the sanitation to be
problematic due to the fact that the residents are all located along the
side of a stream.  Latrines have to be built some distance from that single
water source.  The refugees are all sitting on the ground and are not
allowed to build thatched dwellings or to have bamboo flooring.  A water
supply system has been put in by NGOs.  The site seems to be only temporary
in nature.  It is said that even the 9th Division Thai army is not happy
with the site.

Local Karen officials from Mergui-Tavoy District wish the Karen population
at this site to be relocated south and to be assimilated with the new site
at Tham Hin.  There are also other Karen refugees, having fled fighting in
Ler Doh Soe township (Nai E Taung area), living at Htee Wah Doh, near to
Halokanee on the Burmese side of the border, who wish to be able to enter
Thailand and come into the site at Baan Don Yang.  Border sources say that
there may be yet other refugees in the Sangklaburi area, originally from Thu
Ka and Htee Lai Pah, that would like to be allowed to join the camp.

Pu Muang
This camp was finally moved to Htam Hin on Monday, 16th June.  This ends the
long saga of indecision and delay that hung over the camp for some time.
Families are now united and school buildings can be planned.  The move was
well organised and plenty of trucks were on hand.  The refugees were all
moved to the new site by early afternoon.

RATCHABURI PROVINCE

Tham Hin
The new site for Bo Wi, Huay Sut and Pu Muang is at this location, near to
Suan Pung.  The combined population is some 6,400

The camp is overcrowded with the huts set up too close together.  It has
been pointed out by NGO workers that there could be major health problems
here.  Malaria transmission could be problematic due to the close proximity
of the dwellings, diarrhea could likewise spread easily in the rainy season.
The official policy of the 9th Division in the area is that the refugees
must remain sitting on the ground and without thatch roofs.  It is unlikely
that the plastic sheet roofs will withstand the rainy season.

Now that the three camps are on one site it is hoped that a school can be
put up without delay.

About 50-70 internally displaced people crossing the border south of the old
Bo Wi site were intercepted by the Thai authorities over the period 3-4th
June and refused access to the camp at Tham Hin.  They were told to return
to the Burmese side of the border.  Local Karen officials have tried to send
a small quantity of food and medicine to keep them going.  Local refugee
officials report that they are now being told that the time for arrivals of
refugees is over, and that people arriving after the end of May are not
legitimate refugees. Such a policy would prevent new arrivals from being
allowed to seek safety in the camps in Thailand.  The persons referred to
above were from Blaota village, which is on the west bank of the Tenasserim
River.  The village population was totally cut off by SLORC's occupation of
the river line.

PRACHUAB KHIRI KHAN PROVINCE

Huay Satu
This is the new official name for the site previously referred to by the
Karen as Htee Yaw Kee.  The site lies opposite Pranburi and Hua Hin.  Within
the last few weeks the 9th Division have finally allowed access to Burma
Border Consortium (BBC), American Refugee Committee (ARC) and Medecin Sans
Frontieres (MSF) - previously the site was off-limits to all NGOs, and the
refugees at this isolated place had been denied assistance.

It is thought that the authorities would like to make this the one and only
official site in the province to house refugees from Burma.  Over the 3rd
and 4th of June Burman refugees belonging to the Mergui Tavoy United Front
(MDUF), and some ABSDF students were brought down from further north by the
Thai authorities to this place; however they will not be allowed to stay on
Thai-side and have been asked to move back to the Burma-side of the border.
The 300 or so arrivals were said to be in very poor condition and were
walking very slowly to the borderline.  

On 13.6.97 other Karen refugees from Mu Kho Paw, to the south of Htee Yaw
Kee, were trucked north and joined at the one site.  The combined
poppulation of the two is about 1,700.  There are more people said to be
trapped inside the southern township wishing to leave for the safety of
Thailand, but they are more or less blocked by SLORC troops. Destruction of
villages inside Tenasserim township is said by local Karen officials to be
almost total, with little or no food stocks remaining in the area.

The whole area remains very unstable with SLORC troops near the Thai border
to the south at the former Mon base at Chong Chee, and to the north based
along the main Tenasserim River at Ler Pa Doh.  

NGOs have now started to stockpile supplies at this very isolated site.
During the rainy season the site will be totally cut off.  The dirt road
ends a 5 hour walk away from the camp.  It is not sure how long the Thai
authorities will allow the refugees to stay at this place.

OTHER MATTERS

On Friday, 6.6.97, about 800 Mon refugees were repatriated from a site near
the border opposite Thap Sakae.  This repatriation came hard on the heels of
the surrender of the Mon faction based at Chong Chee.  About 800 people were
repatriated to the Burma side of the border by the Thai 9th Division Army.
UNHCR and other NGO officials were on hand to observe the procedure.

About 30 families were not happy to be returned to Burma and were asked to
stand aside.  When asked by the authorities the reason for their not wanting
to return, it is reported that they mostly cited employment reasons.  The
army officials said that this was not sufficient reason to remain in
Thailand as a refugee, and they too were sent back.  There was no formal
interviewing of the refugees by UNHCR or any other neutral body to ensure
that the process was completely voluntary.  There is, of course, no
monitoring of the refugees by any international body once they return to Burma.

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

CFOB: UNDP REPORT - BURMA
June 16, 1997

Yesterday, on June 12th, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
launched its 1997 Human Development Report. Below is a statistical summary
of the report written by Canadian Friends of Burma member Dave Todd, author
of the CFOB garment report "Dirty Clothes-Dirty System". The report figures
clearly support what is already known - that the quality of life for the
Burmese peoples is continuing to rapidly deteriorate as they are forced to
endure brutal structural and military violence by the hands of the State Law
and Order Restoration Council. Readers are welcome to use this summary in
their work to push for tougher and more effective action from their
respective governments to help bring rule of law and respect for human
rights to Burma. 
                             ***********

The United Nations Development Programme is currently preparing a major
report on Burma. Little has been made public as to the scope of the study.
This is not surprising, given the extraordinary difficulties in working in
that country, and the unreliability - indeed mendacious nature -  of
official government data.

The extent of the challenge that the UNDP faces can be seen from its latest
annual survey of social development and quality of life indicators from
around the world. These contain a wealth of statistical data on how Burma
has changed for the worse under the dictatorship of the State Law and Order
Restoration Council.

The 1997 UNDP Human Development Report is especially striking in relation to
its 1992 report - which was the first to reflect in detail the situation as
it existed in the aftermath of the SLORC regime's seizure of power in Burma
in 1988.

The UNDP survey for 1997 ranks Burma as 131st out of 175 nations for which
data is included in its global accounting of key human development
indicators. Five years earlier, Burma was ranked as 111th out of 160
countries surveyed. (Under the UNDP's ranking system, the higher the number
the less well off a society is judged to be in terms of providing for the
general well-being of its citizens).

It should be noted that several of the statistics included in the UNDP
surveys have previously appeared elsewhere, as they are compiled annually
from a variety of sources. What is significant about the Human Development
Report indices however is that they are the most authoritative comparative
accountings produced by any international body - as they amount, for any
particular category of information, to a series of global snapshots for a
given year.

The 1997 UNDP report reflects benchmark years or periods from 1990 through 1996.

According to the report, life expectancy at birth in Burma dropped
catastrophically over the first half of the 1990s, to an average of 58 years
from 61 years at the start of the decade.

The death rate for children under 5 years of age in Burma has risen
enormously under SLORC. In 1990, the mortality rate for this age group was
8.8 per cent of all children born. In 1995, the rate was 15 per cent. By
comparison, in 1988, the then apartheid South Africa, also had a child
mortality rate of 8.8 per cent for under 5. By 1995, this rate had dropped
to 6.7 per cent showing the benefits of what even a little social investment
could do. 

During the 1980s, 38 per cent of children under the ago of five were
suffering from stunted growth; for the period of 1990-1996 the figure rose
to 43 per cent. In the first three years after SLORC took power, the
population per doctor tripled to 12,500-to-1.

In the mid-1980s, Burma had a doctor to population ratio twice as good as
that of Haiti, then ruled by the Duvalier family. Haiti now - its situation
has not improved but merely stood still - has a physician to population
ratio 50 per cent better than Burma's.

Finally, the report shows that Burma has the highest level of military
spending (in relation to health and education) of any country in East Asia
except North Korea.

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

ASIA WEEK: WHY SCHOOL IS OUT IN MYANMAR
June 20, 1997

The school year begins in June in Myanmar. But not this year. The
Education Ministry postponed the nationwide opening of grammar and high
schools until an unspecified date. There is no official explanation for
the move, but the understanding in Yangon is that the State Law and
Order Restoration Council (SLORC) wants to avoid any incidents that
could complicate the country's July induction into the Association of
Southeast Asian Nations. And it is the possibility of demonstrations -
one of SLORC's greatest fears - which many Yangon residents feel is the
reason for the shutdown. Parents in the capital have resigned themselves
to not having schools open before August.

There are recent historical grounds for SLORC's concern. High-school and
grammar school students were among those who filled the streets in 1988
to protest against former dictator Ne Win's government, which SLORC
replaced after a bloody crackdown. But the younger children are unlikely
to start anything on their own. In the past, they have taken their
activist cues from their older brothers and sisters. And undergraduates
have not been in school since the government shut down colleges and
universities last December, after dispersing a big student protest near
Yangon's main campus. Then, the target of student discontent was not
ASEAN, but the alleged mistreatment of some carousing colleagues at the
hands of the police. But the militancy was enough to set off alarm
bells. And with the appearance of pro- and anti- ASEAN elements within
the government (some of the generals prefer closer ties with China), the
authorities are taking no chances.

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

ABSL REPORT: BURMESE POETS IN JAIL
June 16, 1997

We  received  the  following information  of  Burmese poets being  arrested
by  the SLORC  recently.  We  would like to request  you either to confirm
or  to add specific facts if you have further information.

All Burma Students League
---------------------------------------------------------
News of Burmese Poets being arrested

1.   Burma's famous Poets U  Kyi Aung from Innwa,  Mandalay Division  and
Poet Ko Lay (Innwa Goan Ye) were arrested by the  SLORC recently  in Innwa
Township and are being detained without  any trial.  Their crime was that
they interviewed, without permission from the concerned authorities, some
people from Innwa  Market (Innwa  Township, Mandalay Division) to expose the
life of ordinary Burmese people.
2.   Phyar Poan  Ni Lon  Oo (who  was working  as Assistant Editor  in the
popular Cherry Magazine) was ousted from the job because of his political
activities for the NLD.  He is under trial.
3.   New Style-Poet Aung Zin Min was imprisoned recently by the SLORC for
his anti-SLORC writings.

The   military  authorities,  in  the  past,  censored  any anti-SLORC
writings either by covering with ink or tearing the whole page. However, due
to the international criticism for these undemocratic acts,  the Censor
Board of SLORC now force  the  publisher to  re-publish  the book  or
magazine without  the  particular literature  that the  Board thinks should
not be read by the public.  Although the authors of the   particular
literature  are  given  money  for  their writings  by the publishing
houses,  their writings are not published.  Due to various restrictions of
the authorities, many publishing houses in Burma are being closed down.  One
of  them is Cherry Magazine which is one of Burma's popular magazine.

News and Information Bureau
All Burma Students League

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

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

NATION: CONSUMERS' ORGANISATION URGES PARAQUAT BAN
June 14, 1997
James Fahn

A consumer's organisation has called for a ban on the sale of paraquat, an
extremely toxic pesticide currently being marketed in Thailand by d Danish
company despite a ban on the agro-chemical in Denmark.

Meanwhile, a report by the Southeast Asian Information Network (Sain) that
10,000 litres of the pesticide were sold in Burma was confirmed by the
company involved, but denied by the Burmese government.

Saree Angsamwong of the Consumers Foundation said that her organisation has
called for a ban on the sale of paraquat - a potent herbicide often used to
kill weeds along roadsides, around homes and on rubber, palm and sugar
plantations - because of its public health and environmental impacts.

Considered one of the "dirty dozen" pesticides, paraquat has already been
banned by nine countries, including Denmark, but the Danish firm East
Asiatic Co Ltd (EAC) still sells the agro-chemical in Southeast Asian under
the trade name Gramoxone.

"We would like to ask the Danish company whether it's right to sell paraquat
in Thailand and Burma, even though it's banned in Denmark," said Saree. "We
are quite concerned about this evident use of double standards."

Sajja Tinarakorn, of EAC's agricultural division in Thailand, said that
paraquat has been banned in Denmark because the Scandinavian country's
economy depends on dairy products rather than agricultural corps as in Thailand.

"Denmark has little need for herbicides as they mostly tend cows, but Asian
countries produce food for the entire world," Sajja said. He added that
paraquat has been used in Thailand for 30 years and no one had died from
using it on crops, although it is sometimes used to commit suicide.

The pesticide causes lung failure if ingested, as it concentrates in the
lung tissue and kills cells critical to the exchange of oxygen. A dose of
three to five grammes (less than a teaspoon) is considered lethal for adult
males. Milder exposure can cause skin problems, rashes and burns.

Officials at the Agricultural Chemistry Division in the Ministry of
Agriculture declined to speak to The Nation about the issue, but Supranee
Impitak, who analyses pesticide residues on crops for export, said she
believes paraquat is used extensively in sugar cane fields.

"I don't have any reports on paraquat residues in sugar or on sugar cane,
but I understand that residues don't show up on tests because the chemical
is used to clear the fields of weeds before the crop is planted," Supranee said.

Paraquat is produced at a factory in Thailand belonging to Zeneca Agro
Asiatic Co Ltd (ZAAC). EAC Thailand owns 49 percent of the venture,
according to Sain and Danish news agency Ritzau, while the UK-based company
Zeneca, formerly part of ICI, reportedly owns the remaining 51 per cent.

Sain reported on Monday that a representative of Zeneca is currently in
Burma to follow up on a previous sale of 10,000 litres of paraquat made
earlier this year, a sale the network condemned as "the lowest form of
business".

"There are no mechanisms used in Burma to ensure workers' health and
safety," said Sain's Faith Doherty. "It is certain that the pesticide will
be used by local people through the orders of local military authorities.
Information about the pesticide and safety and care will not be distributed
to the people.

"This substance is lethal no matter where it is used in Burma, the sale of
paraquat amounts to aiding and abetting more suffering death for the farmers
of Burma," Doherty claimed.

Burma's ruling State Law and Order Restoration Council (Slorc) subsequently
released an information sheet questioning  the accuracy of Sain's report and
declaring that, "Neither the government of Myanmar [Burma] nor the private
sector has any plans to buy or import paraquat".

But Ritzau said that EAC officials in Denmark and Zeneca officials in the UK
have both confirmed the sale. Meanwhile, ZAAC's Steve Renshaw told the
French news agency Agence France-Presse that the latest shipment of the
chemical was received by a Rangoon distributor named Forward Co Ltd in
January of this year. Zeneca has reportedly trained Burmese farmers and
civil servants in the proper use of agro-chemicals as recently as two weeks ago.

Sajja also pointed out that pesticide distributors in Thailand have teamed
up to educate Thai farmers in the proper handling and use of agro-chemicals.

Slorc's press release added that the chemical is still being used in the US,
the UK and Germany and has not been banned by the UN's Food and Agricultural
Organisation. But Sain's Doherty noted that the proper use of paraquat
requires applicators to wear rubber clothing, a practice rarely carried out
in tropical countries because of the extreme heat. (TN)

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

BKK POST: MEASURES TO BE BEEFED UP TO CONTROL REFUGEES
June 14, 1997
Supamart Kasem, Tak

Number of camps to be cut from 16 to 9

	Measures to control more than 90,000 Burmese refugees in Tak and Mae Hong
Son will be beefed up, according to the commander of the Third Army Area
Lt-Gen Thanom Watcharaput.
	Lt-Gen Thanom said representatives from government agencies responsible for
security affairs agreed at a meeting on Thursday in Phitsanulok to enforce
new measures to control Burmese refugees in Tak and Mae Hong Son to ensure
that Thailand can shoulder this long-lasting burden efficiently.
	The meeting's participants were Lt-Gen Thanom, commander of the 4th
Infantry Division Maj-Gen Chalor Thongsala, Tak Governor Pongphayome
Wassaphuti, Mae Hong Son Governor Pakdi Chompooming, representatives from
the National Security Council, the Interior, Foreign Affairs and Public
Health ministries, the Internal Security Operations Command and concerned
officials.
	Under the new measures, the number of refugee camps in both northern
provinces will be cut from 16 to 9 (five in Tak and four in Mae Hong Son)
and all camps will be fenced off.
	The Interior Ministry will transfer more officials to oversee refugee camps
which are now being run by a large number of volunteers, he said. 
	Public Health Ministry officials will offer medical services to the
refugees and check if medicines provided by non-governmental organisations
are properly used by them.
	He said any Burmese refugees living outside camps will face the same
penalties as illegal immigrants, adding police and camp staff will prevent
refugees from engaging in business activities and working outside the camps.
	The measures will be enforced after the government approves a proposal on
operational plans and a budget to be prepared by the Interior Ministry and
the Third Army Area, he said.
	According to an informed source, at least 5,000 Burmese refugees are now
living outside camps in Mae Hong Son and Tak. (BP)

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

BKK POST: PM URGED TO BE WARY OF BORDER MOVE
June 14, 1997

Burma's military buildup 'worrying'

	The House Committee on Foreign Affairs has urged Prime Minister Chavalit
Yongchaiyudh's administration to remain cautious over Burma's massive
military buildup.
	Although it has no external enemies, Burma has increased the size of its
military from 185,000 troops in 1988 to more than 400,000 today. Its
military leaders have said they will recruit a 500,000-strong army.
	Military spending has also increased from 25 percent of the government's
budget in 1988 to more than 50 percent, according to the World Bank.
	Democrat lawmaker Sukhumbhand Paribatr, who heads the committee, noted that
Thailand and Burma still have a number of border disputes.
	The Burmese have dealt with them in a belligerent way, closing down border
crossings and massing troops when talks over border demarcations reach a
difficult stage.
	The committee also said the Association of Southeast Asian Nations'
decision to admit Burma, along with Cambodia and Laos, this year was hastily
made.
	Western countries and Burma's pro-democracy movement, led by 1991 Nobel
Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi, had appealed to Asean to delay
admitting Burma because of the human rights record of its military regime.
	But the seven members of the regional grouping: Brunei, Indonesia,
Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam voted recently to
admit the three to its ranks in July.
	Meanwhile, Tak Chamber of Commerce has condemned Burma for ordering a
border closure on Thursday at Mae Sot which it said had violated the trade
agreement.
	The chamber called for an urgent meeting yesterday headed by its chairman
Paniti Tanpanit. 
	"Issuing the closure order without prior notice was a breach of agreement
which Thai and Burmese governments recently ratified," Mr Paniti said.
	"Either side must be informed of any planned closure at least three months
in advance," he added.
	He reminded Burma that it should adhere to the regulations to forge better
cooperations now that it has been accepted by the Asean to join the ranks.
	The meeting reportedly discussed the motive of the closure, saying the
demarcation dispute over the recent dredging of Moei River, the measures to
curb illegal alien workers and the ban on imports of Burmese garlic and
onion might have upset Burma causing the abrupt border closure.
	Lt Col Saing Phone, Burma's Thai-Burmese Border Committee has explained to
the Thai authorities that the Burmese officials needed time to implement new
border regulations.
	He said he was worried to learn that Thai authorities had arrested Burmese
residents who made border crossings while allowing members of the All Burma
Students Democratic Front to cross into Myawaddy early this month. (BP)

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

ASIAN WALL STREET JOURNAL: ENLIST ASEAN'S HELP WITH BURMA
June 13-14, 1997
By Ellen Bork

How does the administration of U.S. President Bill Clinton react to a slap
in the face in Asia? Earlier this month, the Association of Southeast Asian
Nations made Burma a member in spite, or perhaps because, of staunch U.S.
ambassadors to Asean countries embarked on a tour of three U.S. cities to
promote trade with the region.

The unfortunate symbolism of U.S. ambassadors on a  trade tour while their
host countries were busy spurning U.S. advice is bound to reinforce the
image of a Clinton administration preoccupied with trade at the expense of
its political objectives.

Nevertheless, the U.S. should take the Asean decision  in stride, and retool
its policy, if only slightly, to advance U.S. interests in the region.

First, however, it is important to analyse why Asean decided to let a rogue
regime such as Burma's State Law and Order Restoration Council into its
fold. One argument favoured by some analysts is that the organisation was
simply recognising the need to woo Burma away from China.

It is true that China and Burma have drawn closer. Recent signs of
cooperation include intelligence sharing as well as Chinese financial
assistance, training and supplies of military equipment to Slorc. But
Sino-Burmese ties have been developing for several years. Instead of forcing
Burma to sacrifice Chinese arms and political ties for Asean membership, the
Southeast Asian states that comprise Asean have ensured that Slorc now has both.

Asean may also have acted in response to Washington. Allies of the Burma
democracy movement were quick to link Asean's move to U.S. actions,
specifically State Department spokesman Nick Burns's May 21 remarks
explicitly opposing Burma's admission to Asean, and the announcement of a
new ban on U.S. investment in Burma.

Maureen Aung-Thwin, director of the Burma Project of the Soros Foundation
thinks that both were handled poorly. "The timing of the investment ban
provoked the hardliners in Asean, rather than the ban itself, which had been
expected by everyone for months," she says. "Sanctions should have been
announced as soon as the conditions were reached, which happened very soon"
after the Cohen-Feinstein amendment, which said that sanctions could be
imposed if political conditions in Burma worsened or democracy leader Aung
San  Suu Kyi was again placed under house arrest, passed last summer.

According to Ms. Aung-Thwin, Mr. Burns's statement "was way too loud, but
mostly too public. It would have been tremendously more effective had we
sent the same message, much sooner, and quietly." Another expert I spoke to
minimizes the role of the sanctions, and believes that Washington's public
challenge to Asean tipped the scales in favour of Burma's admission.

There's no denying that opposition from Washington may have rankled some of
Asean's most independent-minded leaders. Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir
Mohamad, who is becoming the region's leading proponent of  "Asian values,"
apparently sees the addition of Cambodia, Burma and Laos to the organisation
at least in part as an expression of regional solidarity and exclusivity.

The decision to admit Burma does not represent a repudiation of Washington's
role in the region, or even of its approach to Burma. However, it will
undoubtedly be portrayed that way by some opponents of sanctions and those
who are contemptuous of an idealistic American foreign policy. 

In fact, Malaysia and Singapore have already stepped back and emphasized
that membership does not obviate the need for Burma to change.

Washington should continue to seek support from Burma's neighbours against
Slorc even if it can't count on them to "urge Slorc to enter into a
productive dialogue with democratic forces in Burma," as Deputy State
Department spokesman John Dinger asked on June 2.

The democracy rationale was never the most useful with Asean. After all, the
majority of Asean's members are authoritarian states, unlikely to pressure
Slorc decisively on issues of democracy and human rights. In fact, it is in
the interests of most if not all Asean countries to have a member with an
abysmal human rights record about which they can say, "Hey, we're not that bad."

However, individual Asean members like Indonesia and Malaysia have on
occasion played constructive roles in discrete areas, like supporting a UN
presence in Burma to protect Muslims in the western state of Arakan.
Thailand and the Philippines, who resisted the decision to admit Burma,
should be enlisted to continue similar efforts and advance democratic
principles within Asean.

Democratic development, the rule of law and the human rights which they
guarantee should be at the top of the administration's priority list in
Southeast Asia, as elsewhere. In Burma, the primary goal must be restoring
the National League for Democracy government that Burma's people elected in
1990.

The U.S., understandably, devoted considerably more resources to putting the
unsavory but democratically elected Jean Bertrand Aristide back in power in
Haiti than it has in trying to restore the elected National League for
Democracy government, but the principle is the same.

To get to democracy in Burma, however, the U.S. needs to enlist the
above-mentioned regional allies and others on matters of self interest, and
use these as a wedge to topple Slorc.

Narcotics is a good bet. Burma's drug trade, and the corruption, addiction
and disease that go with it, pose a serious threat to the countries of
Asean, some of which have a reputation for their toughness with their own
drug offenders, making their embrace of Slorc all the more ironic.

Burma is the largest producer of opium in the world and a growing source of
methamphetamines in the region. According to the top anti-narcotics official
at the U.S. State Department, opium production in Burma has doubled since
the Slorc took power in 1988. Burma's traffickers are major players in the
country's economy, "buying real estate in Rangoon and Mandalay, investing in
Burma's economy and openly courting military officials," according to this
official.

The U.S. should draft Asean countries in an anti-narcotics approach to
Burma. Last summer the U.S. sent envoys to Asean capitals and Japan to rally
support for a multilateral policy on Burma. Very little came out of the
effort, which was spearheaded by Stanley Roth, the Clinton administration's
nominee to fill the long-vacant top post on Asia, and former Ambassador
William Brown. But the high levels at which they were received and the tone
of discussions suggested that many Asean leaders were listening. Now would
be a good time for the Clinton administration to follow up.

Secretary of State Madeleine Albright's June 26-29 visit to Hanoi and Phnom
Penh, and the July 24-25 meeting of the Asean Post-Ministerial Conference
and Asean Regional Forum offer the secretary a chance to reinvigorate the
U.S. role in the region and seek multilateral action on Burma.

The Clinton administration may not have handled the sanctions and the Asean
issues as deftly as possible, but ultimately, it was on the right side of
both. Burma's admission to Asean is a setback, but it need not keep the U.S.
from making progress on its agenda in Burma, and the rest of Southeast Asia.
(AWSJ)

Ms.Bork is majority senior professional staff member for Asia and the
Pacific on the U.S. Senate's Foreign Relations Committee.

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NATION: BURMA SEES ASEAN AS KEY TO ENDING ISOLATION
June 15, 1997 [abridged]
Reuter

Rangoon - Burma hopes to end nearly 30 years of isolation with its imminent
membership in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), official
media reported yesterday.

Lt Gen Khin Nyunt, Secretary One of the ruling military State Law and Order
Restoration Council (Slorc), was quoted as saying Burma hoped to exploit its
vast natural resources with help from members of the regional bloc.

"Although Myanmar [Burma] is not economically strong, it is the richest in
natural resources in the region and it is poised for economic development.
Although it lacks know-how it has technicians," Khin Nyunt said on Friday in
his first public comments on Burma's entry into Asean.

"With support and assistance from other Asean members, Myanmar will achieve
development within a short time contribute to the progress and stability of
the region," he said in an address to a Burmese committee he chairs that is
preparing for Asean entry.

"Myanmar has stood in complete isolation for nearly 30 years. Today's world
situation suggests that powerful nations are bullying small nations
increasingly," Khin Nyunt said.

"Therefore it is impossible for a nation to stand alone with the doors
closed and it is necessary to join hands with the nations which have mutual
understanding and respect." (TN)

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THE NATION: JAPAN INSURER SET FOOT IN BURMA
June 16, 1997
AP

Rangoon - Yasuda Fire and Marine Insurance Co, Japan's second-biggest
insurance company, has signed a memorandum of understanding to form a joint
venture with state-owned Myanma Insurance Co, official media reported Saturday.

The agreement was signed Friday by the managing directors of each company in
the presence of Finance Minister Brig Gen Win Tin, who said the venture was
the first in the industry and would "enhance healthy growth of the insurance
market."

The agreement will give Myanma Insurance Co, for 30 years the country's sole
insurer, added capacity as market-oriented reforms expand the Burmese
economy, the New Light of Myanmar newspaper reported. Other details were not
available. (TN)

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