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The BurmaNet News, July 1, 1997




------------------------ BurmaNet ------------------------     
"Appropriate Information Technologies, Practical Strategies"     
----------------------------------------------------------     
 
The BurmaNet News: July 1, 1997        
Issue #762

HEADLINES:        
==========   
NATION: NLD LEADER DISMISSES SLORC TERRORISM CLAIM
KNU UPDATE: SKIRMISHES
FAR EASTERN ECONOMIC REVIEW: FEELERS TO CIVILIANS
THE NATION: ASEAN FOREIGN MINISTERS GATHER IN HK
BKK POST: BOUNDARY TALKS TEST RANGOON'S RESOLVE
BKK POST: $20M PAID TO BURMA FOR GAS FIELD INTEREST
THE NATION: RAMOS SAYS ASEAN WILL SWAY BURMA
AISAWEEK: WILL RAMOS EXTEND A HAND OF FRIENDSHIP?
TT: BORDER POLICE INTERCEPT JOB-HUNTING ILLEGAL ALIENS
NATION: AFFECTED RESIDENTS TO RETURN COMPENSATION
ASIAWEEK: IN EVERYONE'S INTEREST
THE STAR: US GROUP BACKS MALAYSIAN STAND ON BURMA
THE NATION: REACH OF INVESTMENT BAN WORRIES US
THAILAND TIMES: ASEAN PASSPORT TO BE PROPOSED 
ANNOUNCEMENT: MYANMAR LIST SUBSCRIPTIONS
ALTSEAN ANNOUNCEMENT: ASEAN SUMMIT
BRC-J ANNOUNCEMENT: ECONOMIC INVESTMENT DEBATE
----------------------------------------------------------------- 

NATION: NLD LEADER DISMISSES SLORC TERRORISM CLAIM
June 30, 1997 [abridged]
AP

RANGOON - The Burmese government's charges that the United States is
sponsoring terrorism against it is groundless, a senior opposition leader
said yesterday.

Burma's powerful intelligence chief accused the United States on Friday of
financing democracy activists - including members of opposition leader Aung
San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy - who allegedly were plotting to
blow up foreign embassies and government leaders in Rangoon.

"It is the principle of the National League for Democracy not to accept
financial assistance from foreign organisations," the party's vice chairman,
Kyi Maung, said. "Did the authorities provide evidence, like a receipt that
Suu Kyi had accepted cash Nyunt, leader of Burma's military intelligence,
said that Suu Kyi accepted more than US$80,000 (Bt2.1 million) from US
citizens and labour organisations.

"It is ridiculous," Kyi Maung told journalists in Rangoon. "Eighty thousand
dollars is quite a considerable amount of money. Our party is not an
extravagant one and we don't need that amount of cash."

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

KNU UPDATE: SKIRMISHES
June 29, 1997

SKIRMISHES IN MAY

                         From 1.5.97 to 31.5.97, (75) clahses were broke out
between the KNLA troops and SLORC troops. (65) mines were exploded. 
(87) SLORC soldiers were killed , (104) SLORC soldiers were injured and 
(44) SLORC soldiers lost their legs. KNLA suffered (4) dead.

BATTLE NEWS

21.5.97
(KNLA, No(5)Bri, Mu Traw district Area) SLORC troops stepped on a 
KNLA mine at Hga Kho. One SLORC soldier was killed.

25.5.97
(KNLA, No(7)Bri, Pa-an district Area) SLORC troops stepped on two 
KNLA mines at Klu Htaw. Two SLORC soldiers were killed and one 
SLORC soldier was injured.

27.5.97
(KNLA, No(5)Bri, Mu Traw district Area) SLORC troops stepped on a 
KNLA mine at Oo Too Klo. One SLORC soldier lost his leg. At the same 
day SLORC troops stepped on two KNLA mines at Taw Plar Bler. Two 
SLORC soldiers lost their legs. At the same day SLORC troops stepped on 
two KNLA mines at Ta Ku Der. Two SLORC soldiers lost their legs.
                    KNLA troops attacked SLORC troops at a position between
the Ku Hsay and Mar Htaw. Casualties are unknown.

28.5.97
(KNLA, No(5) Bri, Mu Traw district Area) LIR (703) stepped on a KNLA 
mine at Ka Ru Kho. One SLORC soldier lost his leg.

29.5.97
(KNLA, No(5) Bri, Mu Traw district Area) A clash broke out between the 
KNLA troops and LIR (59) at  Ta Ko Kwee Lu. Casualties are unknown. 
At the same day a battle broke out between the KNLA troops and LIR 
(707) at Hto Kaw Lu. Casualties are unknown. At 1215 hours, KNLA 
troops attacked LIR (708) at Der Kyu Kyo. Two SLORC soldiers were 
killed and one SLORC soldier was injured. At 1500 hours, KNLA troops 
attacked SLORC troops at Ta Par Lu. SLORC casualties are unknown.
	(KNLA, No(3)Bri, No(8)BN, K'ler Lwee Hto district, Mone township Area) At
0700 and 0730 hours, two clahshes broke out between the KNLA troops and
SLORC troops at Htee Klu Day area. At the same time, SLORC troops stepped on
a KNLA mine. One SLORC soldier lost his leg.

31.5.97
(KNLA,No(3)Bri, No(8)BN, K'ler Lwee Hto district, Mone township Area) 
At 1040 hours, KNLA troops attacked SLORC troops at Kaw Thay Der. 
Casualties are unknown. At the same time SLORC troops stepped on two 
KNLA mines. Two SLORC soldiers lost their legs.
                         SLORC troops stepped on a KNLA mine at Thay Kar Paw
Kwee. One SLORC soldier was injured. At the same time, KNLA troops 
attacked SLORC troops at Thay Kar Paw Kwee. At 1000 hours, a KNLA 
mine exploded at Kaw Hta. One SLORC soldier was killed.

KNU information Center.

KNLA = Karen National Liberation Army
SLORC = State Law and Order Restoration Council
LIR = Light infantry Regiment

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

FAR EASTERN ECONOMIC REVIEW: FEELERS TO CIVILIANS
July 3, 1997

The Burmese military junta may be thinking of allowing some civilian
participation in the political process in Rangoon. To counter the National
League for Democracy, led by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu 
Kyi, the junta has held several rounds of talks recently with the Alliance 
for Democratic Solidarity (Burma), a civilian opposition group led by U 
Aung, the son of former Prime Minister U Nu.

Envoys from ADSB, who are based in the northern Thai city of Chiang 
Mai, have made several trips to the Burmese border town of Tachilek for 
meetings with military officials.

The brain behind the initiative is said to be Burma's intelligence chief,
Lt-Gen Khin Nyunt, whose military support has been eroded in recent 
months, but who is attempting to strengthen his political support base.

However, U Aung's popularity inside Burma is questionable. His late 
father's political party received approximately 2% of the vote in the 1990 
election, when the NLD won a landslide victory but was prevented from 
forming a government. (FEER)

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

THE NATION: ASEAN FOREIGN MINISTERS GATHER IN HK
June 30, 1997 [abridged]

THE seven foreign ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations
(Asean) will meet tomorrow to discuss and finalise preparations for the
admission of Burma, Cambodia and Laos to the grouping in July.

The luncheon meeting, to be hosted by Malaysian Foreign Minister Abdullah
Badawi, will take place in Hong Kong, where the foreign ministers have
gathered for tonight's ceremony to return the British colony to China.

Despite strong opposition from the West and Burmese democratic activists to
Burma's membership, Asean's foreign ministers agreed in late May to admit
the three countries during their annual ministerial meeting in July.

They also agreed to hold a final meeting in Hong Kong to evaluate the
progress made by the three countries towards Asean membership, and to
discuss the last stages of preparation before actual admission.

The Asean foreign ministers will hold an official ceremony to welcome the
three countries on July 23, one day ahead of the annual meeting. As full
members, foreign ministers of Burma, Cambodia and Laos will attend the
two-day meeting on July 24 and 25 and the Asean Regional Forum on July 27.

The 10 Asean ministers will subsequently meet their 10 dialogue partners on
July 28 and 29 in a gathering known as the Post Ministerial Conference.
Asean dialogue partners include Western countries such as the United States
and the European Union, which have been the strongest critics of the Burmese
junta's widespread human rights abuses and suppression of the democratic
movement.
     
Both the United States and the European Union have said that their relations
with Asean countries could sour as a result of the admission of Burma while
it is under the current military regime.

Apart from bilateral dialogue with existing members, foreign ministers of
the three new members will have talks with representatives of the UN
Development Programme to discuss fresh assistance for their smooth and quick
integration into the grouping, particularly their implementation of the
Asean Free Trade Area requirements.

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

BKK POST: BOUNDARY TALKS TEST RANGOON'S REGIONAL RESOLVE
June 30, 1997
Nussara Sawatsawang, Supamart Kasem

Any territorial loss could prove costly for Chavalit government

Senior Thai and Burmese officials today begin discussions in Rangoon that
will test how much prospective membership of Asean affects Burma's
willingness to cooperate with a neighbour and founding member of the club.

The three-day meeting will centre on a disputed border area caused by heavy
flooding in 1994 which changed the course of the Moei River, and Burma's new
plan to reclaim land it lost by dredging an. adjacent area.

Thai officials have also prepared to discuss the maintenance of boundary
stakes fixed in the Sai and Ruak rivers further north.

The disputed area near Wat Khok Chang Puek is part of a 2,400-kilometre,
largely undemarcated border that the two countries share. It is the fifth
disputed area along the border in addition to what Thailand claims to be in
Doi Lang in Chiang Mai, Three Pagodas Pass in Kanchanaburi, the Pak Chan
River in Ranong and Hill 491 in Chumphon.

Legal affairs specialists will lead the talks, the first negotiation of a
boundary problem between the two countries since the May 31 decision by
foreign ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to admit
Burma, Cambodia and Laos into the fold next month. Brunei, Indonesia,
Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam are current Asean
members.

Somboon Sa-Ngiambutr, director general of the Thai foreign ministry's
treaties and legal affairs department, and his Burmese counterpart Aye Lwin,
will co-chair the first meeting of the Thai-Burmese Joint Boundary Committee
since 1995. The results will be submitted to a ministerial conference to be
held at a later date.

The meeting of senior officials "will test Burma's foreign policy which so
far has given priority to security concerns", said a Thai foreign ministry
official, who asked not-to be named. 

Burma's stance will show how much Rangoon has been affected by its failure
to settle the dispute by force in late May, sources noted.

Thai and Burmese troops almost clashed on the border after local villagers
protested Burmese dredging of the river. The disputed area measures about
150 rai. The row stems from siltation since the floods in 1994 which has
connected the plot to Thai soil.

Thailand is hoping that the meeting will come up with a solution that will
help it deal with potential problems stemming from eight other islets
created by the river's sudden change of course two years ago.

These islets range from 50 to 300 rai in area, including Mae Mon Kane, 40
kilometres from Mae Sot, and measuring 300 rai, for which Thailand submitted
an aide memoire to Rangoon to claim its right to ownership.

Mapping is a major obstacle, with Burma insisting on use of the 1989 map,
and Thailand insisting on a later document.

Burma claims that Prime Minister Chavalit Yongchaiyudh gave his consent to
use 1989 map when Burmese leaders raised the matter during his mid-May visit
to Rangoon.

In early March, the Burmese used the map to dredge under the Thai-Burmese
Friendship Bridge. To meet Rangoon's demand, Bangkok had to dismantle
shophouses built on the reclaimed area.

Thailand wants to use the map that is "most appropriate" to conditions
pertaining in the area before the floods in 1994, Mr Somboon said. The 1989
map is too old, because the river's course changes every year, he said.

Burma's new dredging plan threatens to enlarge the disputed area "by several
times" and Bangkok will not allow any dredging of Thai territory, he
emphasised. 

Territorial loss to the country, through dredging by Burma, and to
individuals who have been issued land ownership documents to some parts of
Khok Chang Phuek threaten to be politically explosive issues for the
Chavalit government.

Pointing out that any loss of territory, however small, would be
unacceptable, former deputy foreign minister Prapas Limpaphan last week
urged the two countries to opt for joint development of the disputed area.

But Rangoon has insisted on reclaiming the area, for economic and political
reasons, sources noted. The Burmese government has already been paid 25
million baht in concession fees by a group of Thai and Burmese investors
planning to build a resort and casino there, one source said.

Failure, to settle the Moei River dispute will further delay settlement of
other boundary problems.

According to a military source troops are still poised at the 18
square-kilometre disputed area between Doi Lang and Burma's adjacent Shan
State despite the agreement in May, between Prime Minister Chavalit and his
Burmese counterpart Gen Than Shwe, for their withdrawal.

And Burma, which links one issue with another, may well reject Thailand's
proposal to open the Friendship  Bridge in  August, officials noted.

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

BKK POST: $20M PAID TO BURMA FOR GAS FIELD INTEREST
June 27, 1997
Boonsong Kositchotethana

Yadana partners say deal is typical of industry contracts

Burma has obtained US$20 million in payments as of February from the
international consortium that includes Thailand's PTT Exploration &
Production Plc (PTTEP) for the Yadana gas interests in the Gulf of 
Martaban.

The payments were made to Myanma Oil and Gas Enterprise (Moge), the 
Burmese state oil company, under the Yadana production-sharing contract, 
according to a report by Unocal Corp, the US partner in the $1-billion gas 
project.

Disclosure of the amount, in a report made available to the Bangkok Post,
comes amid continued allegations by anti-Rangoon groups that the Yadana
consortium was providing funds to the Burmese junta for cracking down 
on pro-democracy movements led by opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

But the consortium, led by the French oil company Total, maintains that 
the payments represent only standard contract bonuses typical in the 
petroleum industry.

The money also allows Moge to recover the exploration costs that led to the
discovery of the Yadana field, Burma's known largest gas field, in 1982.

However, the report said the significant capital expenditure required to
complete the project means that none of the Yadana partners will realise 
any significant income until at least 2001 or 2002.

The Burmese government's and Moge's net share of the revenue after 
expense and capital recovery - estimated at roughly $150 million annually 
- will be pegged to future fuel oil prices and inflation rates.

Fully one-third of this revenue will be paid "in kind" - with an amount of
natural gas equal in value to the taxes and royalties due, according to the
report.

The Burmese government will use the gas, up to 105 million cubic feet per
day (MMcfd), for domestic energy projects such as the "three-in-one" 
project.

The project includes a 214-kilometre gas pipeline from Yadana to shore, a
300-megawatt gas-fired powerhouse and a fertiliser plant with a production
capacity of 1,750 metric tons per day near Kyaiktaw, southwest of 
Rangoon. These projects cost up to $750 million.

Total's stake in the Yadana project is is 31.24%. Unocal holds 28.26%, 
PTTEP (part of the Petroleum Authority of Thailand) 25.5% and Moge 
15%.

By the end of last year, the consortium had awarded contracts worth $675
million to European, American and Asian companies for fabrication and
installation of offshore platforms, onshore infrastructure construction and
the offshore and onshore Burmese portion of the pipeline that will 
transport Yadana gas to Thailand, according to the report.

The 30-year gas sale contract signed with PTT committed the Total group 
to deliver an average 525 MMcfd of Yadana gas to Thailand starting in
mid-1998.(BP) 

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

THE NATION: RAMOS SAYS ASEAN WILL SWAY BURMA
June 28, 1997
AFP

MANILA- Burma's membership of the Association of Southeast Asian 
Nations (Asean) will draw the military regime back into the international 
community, Philippine President Fidel Ramos said yesterday.

Speaking before diplomats and government officials as part of a "report to 
the nation", Ramos said: "We are confident that membership in Asean will 
have an ameliorating effect on [Burma's] economy and society."

He added membership would "gradually draw the Rangoon regime into the 
international community", although he did not elaborate.

Ramos also defended the impending extension of Asean membership to 
Burma, saying: "To us in Asean, that [Burma] is part of the Southeast 
Asian family is reason enough to bring her into the fold." Asean, composed 
of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, as well 
as the Philippines, plans to admit Burma, Cambodia and Laos into the 
grouping next month.

However, Western nations, which have been isolating Burma's government 
due to its poor human rights record, have criticised the admission of the 
country into Asean. 

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

AISAWEEK: WILL RAMOS EXTEND A HAND OF FRIENDSHIP?
July 4, 1997

Plans are underway in the Philippines for President Fidel Ramos to visit
Myanmar later this year. The trip, which is still being arranged, has not
been officially announced. But if it pushes through, it will bring the
president of Southeast Asia's most rambunctious democracy face to face 
with the leaders of one of the region's most restrictive governments.

Ramos's frequently travels outside the country to promote bilateral trade
and investment, and his journeys are seldom controversial. But this visit is
sure to cause consternation at home. The Yangon government is shunned 
by many of Ramos's Western allies, and there are plenty of Filipinos
sympathetic to the beleaguered opposition in Myanmar.

Many would feel that Ramos was a traitor to the cause. He helped lead the
1986 Philippine "People Power" revolt, which ousted Ferdinand Marcos 
and partially inspired a popular uprising in Myanmar two years later. That
revolt was crushed by the generals who went on to form the State Law and
Order Restoration Council (Slorc).

And it was Slorc who refused a visa last year to Ramos's 1986 colleague,
former President Corazon Aquino. She made no effort to hide the fact that
she was going to Yangon to meet with opposition leader Aung San Suu 
Kyi.

Why is Ramos making the effort? His trip will definitely win points with 
the resource-rich pariah state, as well as show solidarity with the 
Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which will admit Myanmar as a 
member later this year.

Recently, the leaders of Vietnam, Cambodia, Indonesia and Thailand have 
made the trek to Yangon to shake hands with Slorc's generals. President 
Ramos's visit is sure to win more smiles in Yangon than in Manila. (AW)

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

THAILAND TIMES: BORDER POLICE INTERCEPT JOB-HUNTING 
ILLEGAL ALIENS IN MONK'S ROBES
June 29, 1997

TAK: Twenty foreigners who had shaved their heads -and dressed like 
monks in an attempt to deceive immigration police, were arrested at a 
border checkpoint in Tak province yesterday .

The border checkpoint chief, Pol Lt-Gen Sutee Ariyabut, said that
previously his police officers usually let those people dressed and shaved 
like monks pass through without inspection.

Sutee said that in the last 010 days, police had arrested 500 illegal aliens 
without the necessary work permit. Most of them were Burmese or Karen 
and were on their way to large cities to find work.

Two agents, Chaiwat Wongthanaboon and Padet Cherdkwan, had also 
recently been arrested. They were paid by the Karen and Burmese laborers 
to find them work in Thailand.
     
Both of them are from Nakhon Sawan. Police found in their possession 
evidence such as two cars, two mobile phones, and 33,360 baht in cash. 
The two suspects confessed that they were paid 10,000 baht each to bring 
the workers to Nakhon Sawan.
     
**************************************************

THE NATION: AFFECTED RESIDENTS PLAN TO RETURN 
COMPENSATION
June 27, 1997

KANCHANABURI - More than 200 residents of Dan Makham Tia district
plan to converge at the Petroleum Authority of Thailand's headquarters in 
Bangkok today to return the compensation paid to them in protest against 
the construction of the Yadana Gas pipeline project.

The PTT paid cash compensations to the residents in areas the pipeline 
passes, but the residents are now more concerned about their safety than 
money, the group's spokesman said yesterday. 

PTT's public relations director, Songkiat Thansamrit, said the PTT had 
spoken to legal experts and would not simply accept the money.

"It will involve the legal system because the villagers signed their names 
when they received the compensation. They might have to take the case to 
the police," he said. The pipeline, a joint venture between the PTT and US 
oil company Unocal, received world attention when 14 ethnic Karenni and 
Mon people from Burma sued Unocal-in the US People's World Court for 
disrupting their communities. 
     
The spokesman said residents were prepared to return the compensation to 
the PTT, as they believed the state enterprise had lied to them all along in 
claiming the gas was not flammable and was harmless to humans exposed 
to a leak.

The spokesman claimed residents had also been harassed to move out of 
the pipeline's route.

The residents, mostly from Chorakhe Phuak sub-district, are seeking legal 
aid from the Council of Lawyers to sue the PTT for misleading information 
about the project and for lying about the dangers of the gas pumped 
through the pipeline.

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

ASIAWEEK: IN EVERYONE'S INTEREST
July 4, 1997
Bunn Nagara

Homes issues shape US, Asean policies on Myanmar

Bunn Nagara heads Geopolicy Research, an independent consultancy based 
in Kuala Lumpur

When Washington announced sanctions against Myanmar, Asean pundits 
rushed to speculate on the implications as if the bilateral affair determined 
Asean policy on Yangon. The issue which ruffled US feathers was Asean's 
imminent admission of Myanmar together with Laos and Cambodia, which 
might be construed as legitimizing and rewarding a repressive regime. Few
commentators appreciated Asean's resolve in admitting Myanmar, the 
limits of US disaffection with Yangon, or the weight of everyone's 
domestic concerns on Myanmar policy.

Washington's angst against perceived human rights violations abroad is
familiar. After castigating then-President George Bush for "coddling
dictators in Beijing," candidate Bill Clinton became a president who 
decided instead to "engage" China. Fresh from "Asiagate" the same season, 
the White House could not afford to entertain Myanmar also. Besides, 
Myanmar's prospective market was no match for China's.

Last year, Sen (now Defense Secretary) William Cohen co-sponsored a bill
allowing for sanctions against Myanmar should widespread repression
escalate. On the bill's own terms, sanctions were questionable. One recent
incidents symbolizing for Washington a deterioration in human rights_the
return to house arrest of National League for Democracy (NLD) leader 
Aung San Suu Kyi_occurred last November, half a year before. But weeks 
of debate were to culminate in the April decision to implement sanctions in 
May. Since Clinton could not do business with Myanmar, the human rights 
groups "won."

Yet the sanctions were only a sop to anti-Slorc lobbyists. Non-American
companies were unaffected. Nor were the sanctions retroactive, so US
companies already in Myanmar could remain.

These were multi-purpose sanctions: good relations with Asean were
maintained, the White House looked better for not coddling Slorc, and US
firms were not completely excluded_thus avoiding another costly 
experience like the embargo against Vietnam.

But the US is not alone in letting domestic concerns rule Myanmar policy.
One of the pillars of Asean is the principle of non-interference in the
internal affairs of other states. This agnosticism approaches a diplomatic
indifference, now wedded to an indiscriminate inclusiveness for all
Southeast Asian states within the Asean family.

Sensing this, Washington did not bother pushing too hard for Asean
reciprocity on Myanmar.

Vietnam's 1979 invasion of Cambodia triggered an Asean rebuff of Hanoi
alongside recognition of the exiled CGDK coalition, including the
internationally reviled Khmer Rouge. Asean's principle of non-interference
ends at the twin parapets of national sovereignty and territorial integrity
(understandably, with niggling, multiple territorial disputes festering).

Asean government are not comfortable with judging their neighbors on
domestic issues, much less with exacting punishment. Indonesia in 
particular would not be amused when parallel situations can be drawn with 
Myanmar.

Asean is a cluster of governments with different styles, traditions and
degrees of popular accountability. When Ferdinand Marcos stole the 1986
Philippine election, Malaysia's oppositionists lobbied to withdraw  
recognition.

Malaysia instead adopted a wait-and-see approach, switching recognition 
to the new government as soon as it established itself. A member of the
Malaysian cabinet conceded privately that whatever one's reservations 
about the Marcos regime, Malaysia could not act unilaterally against a 
sitting government next door.

Reporters asked how Malaysia could reject sanctions against Myanmar 
after maintaining them against apartheid South Africa. Malaysia's 
domestic tasks have been monumental: not just to succeed in development 
and avoid repeating the race riots of 1969 by managing  ethnic relations 
peaceably in a country of large minorities, but to do so with an affirmative 
action program for  a small majority.

Malaysia's primary domestic concern has long been national unity through
racial and religious harmony, or at least the avoidance of ethnic bigotry.
Under the Internal Security Act, a considerable number of people have 
been held over the past decade not for political differences, but for racial or
religious chauvinism. Thus Malaysia's extra-regional foreign policy
orientation, where Asean consensus was immaterial: a visceral revulsion
against apartheid, "ethnic cleansing" and occupied Palestine.

Asean is less a communion of peoples or even a regional market than a 
group of neighbouring governments anxiously needing to work 
comfortably with one another.

The NLD therefore cannot expect moral or material support from Asean in
wresting power from Slorc, short of Yangon invading a neighbor. But if 
the NLD succeeds Slorc in an internal maneuver, it may find that the new 
Myanmar could be received as a more valued partner.

It is implicit in the Asean formula that once a working comfort level is
achieved between members states, much else in regional good 
neighborliness follows. This is why Asean believes Myanmar, whatever its 
politics, would make for better dialogue as a member than if it were not. 
(AW)

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

THE STAR: US GROUP BACKS MALAYSIAN STAND ON BURMA
June 29, 1997

KUALA LUMPUR: A US think tank has supported Asean's decision to 
admit Myanmar into the regional grouping so that the nation could be 
nudged towards democracy.

Heritage Foundation, a leading US research foundation, agreed with
Asean's method of "constructive engagement" rather than the US decision
to isolate Myanmar until it improved its human rights record.

"We hope that the influences and contacts of Asean countries would
encourage Myanmar to move towards democracy," said Edwin Mees, a 
former US Attorney-General who sits on the foundation's board of trustees, 
here yesterday.

Mees brushed aside the notion that Asean's decision in admitting Myanmar
would hurt its relationship with the United States.

"I don't think that differences in approach will in any way affect our
relationship as the objective of both governments is quite the same," he
said. ? Bernama

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

THE NATION: REACH OF INVESTMENT BAN WORRIES US COMPANIES
June 30, 1997
Evelyn Iritani
Los Angeles Times

LOS ANGELES - Unocal Corp and other US companies may find the White House
ban on new investment in Burma has implications extending far beyond that
country, potentially jeopardising projects in other Southeast Asian
economies as well, some experts say.

A broad interpretation of the presidential ban could threaten billions of
dollars worth of business throughout Southeast Asia, crippling US companies
in one of their fastest-growing markets, according to a group representing
450 major companies active in the region.

While business executives and trade lawyers are still studying the
just-issued executive order implementing the ban, the US-Asean Business
Council says it could even prohibit participation in regional projects that
extend from another country into Burma.

If Burma joins the Association of Southeast Asian Nations as expected this
year, "All of these regional transportation, telecommunications, all of
these regional networks are going to have a Burma element in them," said
Ernest Bower, president of the council. "We stand to lose enormous amounts
of business."

Other experts say the ban casts a wider net than expected around projects
within Burma and may create more problems for energy companies already
involved in projects there - like Unocal Corp., Atlantic Richfield Co and
Texaco Inc, the leading US investors - than those companies realise.

While the executive order allows companies to complete ongoing contracts, it
is not clear whether they will be able to engage in any additional work that
would require new funds, such as building a pipeline to get their gas to
market, according to legal and government sources.

"Unocal is going to have trouble going forward under this," said David
Schmahmann, an international legal expert with the Boston law firm of
Nutter, McClennen and Fish.

Schmahmann said the ban does not clearly define "new investment" and
unexpectedly prohibits investment into not only natural resources but
agriculture and financial, industrial and human resources.

And while it doesn't cover foreign subsidiaries of US companies, it
prohibits US businesses from approving or facilitating any transactions by
foreigners that would be considered illegal under the presidential ban. The
ban carries a penalty of up to 10 years in prison and a US$55,000 (Bt1.38
million) fine for violators.

But no one is certain yet just what is illegal, which is why these US
companies are lining up to meet with officials of the Treasury Department,
whose Office of Foreign Assets Control will be enforcing this measure.
Treasury is expected to issue its enforcement regulations for the Burma ban
in a month.

"There is a lot of gray area here," admitted a Treasury Department
spokesperson. "Where it is still unclear, is when it comes to an exploratory
deal or a deal that would require new investment down the road."

Anything that restricts future development off the coast of Burma would be
particularly harmful to Unocal, which has been a pioneer in energy
development in Southeast Asia, according to Julia Nanay, a director of
Washington-based Petroleum Finance Co.

"[The Burma project] is part and parcel of their business in Thailand and is
part of the whole Asian energy development scheme they would like to
promote," she said. 

Michael Malloy, a sanctions expert at the University of the Pacific's law
school in Sacramento, Calif, predicted the Treasury Department will probably
take a narrow view of the presidential ban, focusing its attention on
keeping new US players out of Burma But that could change, Malloy said, if
the political hsituation worsens. 

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

THAILAND TIMES: ASEAN PASSPORT TO BE PROPOSED AT 
SUMMIT
June 27, 1997 [abridged]

BANGKOK: At the Asean cooperation meeting to be held in Kuala 
Lumpur next month Thailand will propose an Asean passport project, 
which will allow holders of the Asean passport books to travel freely within 
the region, said Pitak Indaravittayanant, the deputy foreign affairs 
minister.

Pitak added, the Asean passport project will be similar to the international 
transport system of the European Union (EU) where EU passport holders 
are allowed to travel freely between all EU member countries.

Following earlier discussions held among Asean officials, it was revealed 
that the project would be developed into a liberalized system.

Next month's Asean meeting in Malaysia will be attended by the US
Secretary of State Madeline Albright, Pitak said yesterday.

The meeting will concentrate on economic cooperation among Asean 
members under the Asean Free Trade Area (AFTA) agreement, said Pitak.

"Financial services liberalization together with regional political and 
economic stability will also be high on the agenda," he added.

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

ANNOUNCEMENT: MYANMAR LIST SUBSCRIPTIONS
>From OKKAR66127@xxxxxxx
June 25, 19997

If you want to suscribe to Myanmar-list you can write to
"Majordomo@xxxxxxxxxxxx" with the message at the body text:

"Subscribe myanmar <your e-mail address>" 

        Then when you are subscribed you can post news to 
"myanmar-list@xxxxxxxxxxxx". 

         Although the list is moderated list, most of the posted news will be
distributed within the list including the Myanmar Embassies that have e-
mail access. Only the junk mails and very rude usages such as "F" 
languages will be omitted.

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

ALTSEAN ANNOUNCEMENT: ASEAN SUMMIT
Date: 29 Jun 1997 11:46:14

A warm welcome is extended to anyone who wishes to "celebrate" the entry 
of the Slorc into Asean.  The "festivities" will focus around the following
schedule:

21-22 July Asean senior official meeting
23    July ceremony to welcome the three new members at 3.30 pm
24-25 July Asean Ministers Meeting
27    July Asean Regional Forum
28-29 July Post Ministerial Conference

Apparently Asean is notorious for changing schedules, so please plan to
arrive in Kuala Lumpur a few days ahead in anticipation of any 
eventualities.

If you can cover your own travel expenses, our friends in Malaysia will be
happy to provide basic accomodation and apparel specially designed for the
occasion.

Please RSVP to <altsean@xxxxxxxxxx> but do NOT use your full name or 
provide travel details. Do name the group you are affiliated to.

This welcome is not extended to Burmese passport holders, as we cannot
guarantee your safety in the event of deportation.

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

BRC-J ANNOUNCEMENT: ECONOMIC INVESTMENT DEBATE
June 29, 1997

Resolved:  Economic Investment Will (or Won't) Make Suu Kyi Cry
JULY 4th, 1997

Amnesty International, Japan in cooperation with International Network of
Engaged Buddhists are presenting a debate on the subject:

Resolved:  Economic Investment Will (or Won't) Make Suu Kyi Cry
Economic development and human rights in Burma/Myanmar 

On the pro-economic investment side:
-  Mr. Nishizawa, from Kobe University
-  Mr. Oshita, from Keidanren
-  Mr. Kudo, from Asia Kaizai Kenkyusho

On the opposing side, arguing for sanctions and withholding economic 
investment:

+  Mr. Fukushima, lawyer
+  Mr. Nemoto, professor from Tokyo University of Foreign Studies
+  Ko Aung Thu, Burma Youth Volunteer Association

Organizer: 	Teruko Saito
Moderator: 	Hisao Tanabe

Date:		Friday, July 4th, 1997
Time:		Opens at 6, begins at 6:30, ends at 9 p.m. 
Place:		Tokyo, near Gaienmae Station (Ginza Line) 
Admission:	1000 yen

For more information:
Contact Amnesty International, Japan 
Tel:	03-3203-1050
Fax: 	03-3232-6775

http://www2.gol.com/users/brelief/Index.htm

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