The BurmaNet News, September 17, 19

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------------------------ BurmaNet ------------------------       
"Appropriate Information Technologies, Practical Strategies"       
----------------------------------------------------------       
   
The BurmaNet News: September 17, 1997          
Issue #822
  
HEADLINES:          
==========   
REUTER: THOUSANDS KILLED IN BIG BURMESE FLOODS 
VOA: REPORTS ON FLOODS IN BURMA
BKK POST: THREE BURMESE EXILED MPs SEIZED
ALTSEAN: TRANSCRIPT OF INTERVIEW WITH AUNG SAN SUU KYI
SLORC: INFORMATION SHEET NO. A-0128(I/L)
BCN:UNIVERSITIES REMAIN SHUT,SLORC FEARS DEMONSTRATIONS
BKK POST: OPPOSITION MEMBER SAYS NLD PARTY 'TOO RIGID'
KWIA: BELGIAN TOUR OPERATOR CANCELS BURMA TOURS
AP: BRIT ARRESTED IN BURMA FOR PROTEST
BKK POST: SPEED SEIZED IN BORDER OPERATION
ANNOUNCEMENT: HUMAN RIGHTS YEAR BOOK
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

REUTER: THOUSANDS KILLED IN BIG BURMESE FLOODS - DIPLOMATS 
September 15, 1997
By Deborah Charles 

BANGKOK, Sept 15 (Reuter) - Thousands have been killed in widespread
flooding across Burma over the past two months, and outbreaks of disease
and crop failures could bring even more deaths, aid workers and diplomats
said on Monday. 

The unusually heavy monsoon rains since late May have resulted in many
thousands of deaths, with whole towns being inundated or wiped out in
landslides, the sources who just returned from Burma told Reuters. 

They said one to two million people had been affected by the floods, and at
least 500,000 were driven out of their homes. 

``There is a lot of talk of bodies floating around. I didn't see that but I
saw lots of animal carcasses, which are polluting water supplies,'' said
one aid worker. ``Most of the water supplies are open ponds and with so
many dead bodies around these ponds ...it's going to pose a significant
health problem.'' 

He and diplomats said there is now the threat of major diseases, like
cholera, due to a lack of safe water. Health workers said there is about a
90 percent mortality rate from cholera in Burma due to a lack of medical
facilities. 

In a report obtained by Reuters on Monday, an international aid agency
which requested anonymity said nearly all of Burma's 14 states and
divisions were affected but the worst-hit areas were the central Pegu and
Irrawaddy Divisions and Mon State in the southeast. 

Up to 50 percent of the current rice crop is likely to be lost from the
flooding, aid workers said, which is expected to lead to a massive food
shortfall. 

The military government has not yet admitted the flooding is a serious
problem, diplomats said, and so has not addressed the resulting health
issues. Aid workers are not allowed to travel to many of the stricken areas
because they are off-limits. 

Government officials in Rangoon were not available for comment. There has
been little word of the flooding in official newspapers, but in August
officials said the flooding was the worst in almost 30 years in some areas.

Some officials recently declined to give an estimate of damage caused by
the floods, saying it was difficult to compile data due to poor
communications and problems with the roads. 

But diplomats said the government had requested assistance through the
United Nations and several countries and organisations had responded. 

The Japanese Embassy in Rangoon said it had donated emergency relief
materials worth about $98,000. 

Most nations and international agencies stopped all aid to Burma after the
State Law and Order Restoration Council seized power in 1988. The
governments and organisations said the human rights situation had to
improve before aid resumed, although some humanitarian assistance has been
provided on occasion. 

A U.N. report said UNICEF and the World Health Organisation were providing
medical and other emergency relief supplies to the value of about $25,000
each, as requested by the Burmese Ministry of Health. 

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

VOA: REPORTS ON FLOODS IN BURMA
[excerpts]

September 17, 1997

One of the private aid agencies assisting with flood relief, is US based
World Vision.  A World Vision team visited flood-hit areas at the beginning
of September.  Dan Robinson spoke with Jim Newton, World Vision spokesman in
California, and asked him when his organization was made aware of the problem:

?We received a project proposal at World Vision International on August 29,
so it was somewhere in that time-frame and we actually sent a relief team in
to the affected areas on the first of September to investigate the extent of
the damage.?

Mr. Newton says damage from the flooding was extensive -- with at least
90-thousand people affected.  Bago division was worst hit:

?World Vision is working specifically in the Waw township in Bago division,
where about 25-thousand people are affected, and we are focusing our efforts
in that area.?

World vision spokesman Jim Newton describes one area of Bago that appears to
have suffered the most from the flood waters:

?We understand that a 17-mile long embankment that protects the rice paddies
in southern Bago was breached by the flood waters.  We have heard that it is
the worst flooding in 90 years and the floods in the northern part of Bago
extended down to the south, and it is really a pretty tragic situation.  In
one area in the Waw township where we are working, the embankment broke
during the night causing very rapid flooding and the water level to rise
about four feet in two hours.?

Burma?s state-controlled newspapers have carried  reports about relief
supplies -- including rice, medicine, blankets and clothing -- being
delivered to villages in Bago division.  One report in the New Light of
Myanmar newspaper referred to 72 flood-hit villages in three townships.

A World Vision report earlier this month said many people drowned when they
were washed away by flood waters.  The report said 200-thousand acres of
paddy in Bago alone were flooded, with 10-thousand homes underwater or
damaged.  A UN report last month quoted what it called official figures as
saying 68 people had died.

September 12, 1997

Burma?s military government has not provided any official figures on the
number of people killed, displaced or affected in other ways by the floods.
The ruling state law and order restoration council (SLORC) issued an appeal
in August for aid.

Diplomats and aid sources say Burmese authorities initially asked that the
appeal not be publicized.  However, information about the appeal and the
response of UN and private relief agencies, and the International Federation
of the Red Cross, is being issued on a UN relief internet website. 

September 11, 1997

The only details about the situation came in a Japanese government statement
issued earlier this week.  The statement cited a UN report that 68 people
died in Pegu, Irrawaddy division and Mon state in southern Burma.

The report (by the UN Department of Humanitarian Affairs) said flash floods
at the end of July resulted in ?substantial damage and loss of life? with
103-thousand people affected.  There are reports of heavy damage to the rice
crop, especially in Irrawaddy division.

A spokeswoman for the UN Children?s Fund (Unicef) confirmed to VOA
(Thursday) that the agency has already delivered emergency medical supplies
in the amount of 25-thousand dollars -- including emergency medical kits. 

Speaking by phone from New York, Unicef spokeswoman Anna Wright said
emergency deliveries also included bleach to deal with what she called
?sanitary problems? in affected areas.  The aid is being delivered through
local relief organizations in Burma.

In Washington (Thursday), a state department spokesman said Washington is
aware of reports of ?widespread agricultural damage? from flooding but said
no statistics are available.

Asked if the United States would contribute to emergency aid efforts, the
spokesman (Lee McLenny) had this to say:

?Certainly if it were determined that were was widespread, or a significant
humanitarian problem of some kind of starvation, or something related to
that, or if there were an international call of some kind for assistance,
the US would very seriously consider such a request.  We have made it clear
on a number of occasions, most recently in the case of North Korea, that
there is no connection in our minds between humanitarian assistance and
people in need, and our political disagreements with the regime in one
country or another.?

Asked about the absence of public acknowledgment of the situation by Burma?s
military government, the state department says it appears to be consistent
with ?a reluctance on the part of the [Burmese military] government to
provide information on what is going on inside the country, as well as
?anti-democratic tendencies and a lack of transparency in government
operations.?

On Thursday, a spokesperson at Burma?s embassy in Washington said officials
were ?aware of the reports of flooding,? but had ?no additional information.?

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

BKK POST: THREE BURMESE EXILED MPs SEIZED WHILE SEEKING SANCTUARY
September 16, 1997
AFP

Raid on 'government' office nets thirteen

Thai authorities have detained three ministers of the Burmese
government-in-exile who have sought sanctuary in Thailand from the Rangoon
military regime, a Burmese dissident student said yesterday.

The three ministers of the National Coalition Government of the Union of
Burma (NCGUB) were all MPs elected in Burma's last general elections in
1990, said the student who requested anonymity.

Thai authorities raided the NCGUB's Bangkok office early yesterday and
picked up 13 people, who were taken to an immigration detention centre.

Two women and one child were later released, but the rest, including the
three ministers, were then taken to the northern border town of Mae Sot in Tak.

It was unclear whether the detainees would be deported to Burma and why the
Thai authorities had raided the NCGUB office, which had been open for over
five years, the student said.

Immigration authorities and police were not immediately available for comment.

The detained MPs were named as Teddy Buri, NCGUB minister for Asia-Pacific
affairs, San Aung, minister of health, and U Thein Oo, the minister of justice.

One American man, called Michael Beer, who was believed to have connections
with Burmese exiled opposition groups, was also taken to the immigration
detention centre.

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

ALTSEAN: TRANSCRIPT OF INTERVIEW WITH AUNG SAN SUU KYI September, 1997

A L T S E A N - B U R M A
[ALTERNATIVE ASEAN NETWORK ON BURMA]

VIDEO TRANSCRIPT
Asean, NLD & political dialogue in Burma: 
An interview with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi
[17 minutes September 1997]


Q:	What is your view of Asean?s hopes for economic development in Burma?

A:	I think the Asean countries have now realised they are not going to get
the economic benefit that they?d hope to get out of Burma. But I?ve been
saying that since my release. And not because I?m clairvoyant or because I?m
an astrologer but simply because I listened to the Burmese people and I
could tell from what they are saying that the economy was not going to take
off under the circumstances. And this is what I try tell the Asean nations
that the economy cannot take off under the present kind of political situation. 

Q:	How can Asean help Burma?s economy take off?

A:	If they want economic improvement in Burma, they?ve got to help the
political situation to improve. I do not think that there can be real
economic progress without democracy.

Q:	Aren?t Asean?s informal requests for dialogue sufficient?

A:	Well I think they should ask them formally, why not. If informally
doesn?t work then they should go a step further and ask them formally. I
think they should let Burma know what they think is necessary for the
economy to take off.

Q:	What are the specific policies and actions Asean should carry out in this
context?

A:	That is difficult to say because Asean is made up of several different
countries and I think is something they have got to work out for themselves,
what would be feasible. I am basically against any country dictating to any
another country as to what they should do or what they should not do but I
think I?m all for saying quite frankly what we think the ethical issues are.
And I think what we?ve got to remember in this case is that if the Aseans
are going to be interested purely in the economic benefits that they hope to
reap part of Burma  it would be self defeating. They will not be able to
reap any benefits from Burma as long as we go in this way because you must
have noticed that inflation is rampant. The economy is going downhill. There
isn?t a kind of accountable transparent government that is necessary to make
an economic success out of an open market system.

Q:	Do you think Asean would be more pro-active on Burma if there had been an
international treaty or agreement, as in the case of Cambodia?

A:	There is a general assembly resolution on Burma and they could refer to
that. Because that represents international opinion and that is passed
unanimously. Now they could always refer to the General assembly resolution
to Burma as a goal to work towards.

Q:	Was the meeting between NLD Chairman U Aung Shwe and Slorc?s Khin Nyunt
days before the Asean Ministerial Meeting a start to dialogue?

A	Well I don?t think we can call that meeting a dialogue. In fact the SLORC
does not refer to it as a dialogue. I think they simply refer to it as a
meeting. And we issued a statement after the meeting laying down what was
said, what was discussed at the meeting. I think at that meeting Gen. Khin
Nyunt repeated what he had said in the previous press statement. You know
the one accusing me of accepting US $80,000 or something quite ridiculous
from some American source or the other. And we always believed in cautious
optimism. At best we could think of it as a sounding out to see whether
dialogue is possible between the NLD and the Slorc. At worst, it could be
aimed at trying to create a split within the party. Because at one time Gen.
Khin Nyunt said the party could speak to U Aung Shwe  and the other two
members of the executive committee. He couldn?t speak to me because of this
allegation about the US $80,000 which was a whole lot of nonsense, anyway.

Q: 	Did U Aung Shwe make overtures for dialogue during the July meeting?

A:	When U Aung Shwe met with them in July, he assured them that if they open
dialogue with me he could guarantee that these talks would be a success.
What more could he say?

Q:	Is the Slorc correct in describing you as uncooperative in its initial
efforts at dialogue several years ago?

A:	Well they met with me a couple of times in 1994 and the answer to whether
or not the talks would rather simply to look at the official reports of
those talks in the newspapers. I think they said in those reports that the
talks have gone well. And this is an afterthought now to try to make out as
though I had been uncooperative during the course of those two talks.

Q:	Is the movement still calling for dialogue?

A:	Yes of course, I?m not afraid of dialogue. I?m not afraid of talking to
them. The NLD is not afraid of talking to them.

Q:	Has Slorc successfully undermined support for NLD by limiting your
contact with the public?

A:	I don?t think so because our access to the people has always been blocked
by Slorc and I think they find a lot of sympathy partly because of the
vitriolic articles that they write about us in the press, partly because of
the dismal economic situation, and I think the people are beginning to
realise more and more that this cannot go on. And the fact that we have not
been able to keep in touch with the public matters much less now than you
would imagine because one of the reasons why it?s not as bad as it might
have been is because of Radio Free Asia which is widely listened to
throughout, and of course the BBC and the VOA and the Democratic Voice of
Burma from Norway.

Q:	Has NLD become dormant because of the restrictions and mass arrests of
members and supporters?

A:	Well because we go on doing our work in spite of the fact that people get
arrested. Our people would not be arrested if they were not working. The
very fact that our people are getting arrested is proof of the fact that we
are working and I think the people realise that. Every time one of our
people is arrested, every time one of our MPs is forced to resign the people
realise and we are carrying on with our work. We are not a dormant party
that is why we are being harassed by Slorc. If we were dead and done for,
Slorc wouldn?t bother to arrest anybody.

Q :	How is NLD asserting itself as a viable political force?

A:	We have offices all over the country and our officers continue to
function. Some of our offices have been forced to close down. But that does
not mean that our people thereby stop working. There are such things as tea
shops where you can meet friends and colleagues and carrying on with your
work. And sometimes I think that Slorc does half our work for us. The way in
which unable to handle the economy and the way in which they attack us so
viciously in the press. That in result does a lot for our party. Helps us to
get a bit of rest, put our feet up and let them carry on.

Q:	Is dialogue the epicenter of NLD?s activities?

A:	Well we?ve always said we want dialogue but it doesn?t mean that?s all
we?re doing. We know that in the end we?ll end up with dialogue but there
are other things that have to be done to make everybody concerned understand
that dialogue is the only way.

Q:	Would you call the current political situation a political stalemate?

A:	People say political stalemate every time there isn?t a demonstration on
the street or people are not getting arrested or there isn?t some sort of
major catastrophe  You know politics is not like that. People think politics
is a series of drama. It?s not like that at all. A lot of politics is
humdrum everyday work.

Q:	Is the NLD?s lack of military backing a handicap?

A:	In the elections of 1990 the NLD won in all the areas which were
dominated by military forces. Places like Mingladon, places like Mhawbi. We
won in those places. I believe that we have strong support within the army.

Q:	Would the Slorc proposals for power-sharing be acceptable the NLD?

A:	If they want to know the answer to that they must start dialogue with us.

Q:	Have you recovered from your recent illness?

A:	I?m perfectly healthy now. I fell down the stairs, we issued a statement
about that. I suffered from spondylitis (?) during the years while I was
under house arrest and that fall set it off again; and it took me some time
to get back into the full swing of things. Apart from that it was a good
excuse for a rest - my doctor thought it was high time I had a good rest.

Q:	How do you view Burma?s current economic crisis?

A:	Economics and politics are intimately connected, so if the government is
unable to cope with the economy, there is bound to be push for political change

Q:	Do you think the crisis will force the Slorc to consider political dialogue?

A:	It would be very sad if the government were to go for dialogue only if
things were bad, if things were so bad that they cannot avoid dialogue, I
think they should look upon dialogue not as a way out of the worst possible
situation, as a way forward to the best possible solution.

Q:	Do you think that the state of abeyance of the national convention is
hinging upon any kind of interaction vis-à-vis between the NLD and the
SLORC, it would resume if the NLD were to change its stance on participation

A:	I think the real trouble with the national convention is that it is not
really a national convention, because a genuine national convention must be
one made up of people who have been elected or selected by the public in
some way or the other, which is not the case of this present convention and
that is its main trouble.

Q:	A Slorc general recently speculated to the media that you were applying
for a green card to live in the United States. Is this true?

A:	Perhaps he wants a green card, perhaps that?s what put the idea into his
head. I?ve never, never entertained such an idea. I don?t need an American
green card if I wanted to get out of Burma. I am married to a British
citizen, I could get British citizenship anytime I wanted , and I have never
in my life considered that, so I don?t see why I should consider getting an
American green card to live in America for goodness knows what reason , I
have many friends among Americans but I am Burmese and I intend to remain
Burmese until I die.

Q:	In the same interview, the general said that without Suu Kyi, NLD was
incapable of making decisions.  Your comment?

A:	Well, what a very, very high opinion he has of me. I think I?d better
thank him, but I don?t think he understands that much about democracy

Q:	Were key NLD meetings able to continue while you were ill?

A:	Yes of course the executive committee meetings have continued
uninterrupted, regardless of the fact that I have not been well enough to
attend them. 

Q:	Do you remain confident that NLD will bring democracy to Burma?

A:	I have always reminded the people that I alone cannot bring them
democracy, nor can the NLD by itself can bring them democracy. They've all
got to participate. So I believe that people want democracy and because of
that we shall get democracy. Obviously they have to be given some kind of
leadership because that?s the way it happens in any sort of movement and
there has to be some group to coordinate the aspirations of the people at
large. So I would like to think of the NLD as helping the people achieve
what they want rather than dragging them along to our common goal.'

Q:	Are you feeling optimistic  that dialogue is nigh?

A:	I?ve always said that I am a cautious optimist. I know that dialogue is
inevitable because that is the only way in which problems are solved in the
end. And I?ve always said, I?ve repeated this ad nauseam, that the
intelligent ones get to dialogue quicker whereas the not so intelligent drag
their feet until dialogue is really, really unavoidable, by which time of
course a lot of people have suffered unnecessarily.

Q:	Would it be acceptable if dialogue excluded you?

A:	It?s nothing to do with me, it?s to do with the NLD. According to the
mandate of the NLD any dialogue between the NLD and the SLORC must include me. 

Q:	Do you think that western nations have exhausted their support role for
the democracy movement?

A:	I think there?s a role for everybody in the world to play because when we
think of support from the West or from any other country from the
international community, we?re not simply thinking about governments, we?re
thinking about people.

Q:	Is the Slorc?s vitriolic campaign against the United States justified?

A:	Well the SLORC is somewhat experienced in the use of vitriol. perhaps if
they had considered another way of winning friends and influencing people it
might be better for them all around.

Q:	Do you think SLORC cares about what the United States government thinks
of them?

A:	Oh yes, I think so,  very much so. if they didn?t care about what the
government of the United States thought about  them then they wouldn?t waste
their energy attacking it so viciously.

Q:	What continues to motivate you in your work?

A:	People I suppose, people for whom I care, people I want to see happy.
people in the end.

Q:	Why have you not been actively reaching out to the people of Burma in the
past few weeks?

A:	Because I?ve not been well. As I say we never talk about our plans, we
never discuss our plans in advance. But obviously we have ways and means of
reaching out to the people at large.

Q:	Is it possible for you to leave your house?

A:	More or less, but there are lots of restrictions about who can come to
see me. That?s all completely against the law. There is no law to stop
people from coming to see me. I?m a free citizen. If they have a case
against me, they can put me on trial.

Q:	Did the Slorc explicitly ban your weekend talks with the people"

A:	Why no, they just shut off the roads so nobody can come!

Q:	Do these restrictions mean you are once again under arrest?

A:	No, I?m not under arrest again but my movements are quite restricted, and
the movements of those who wish to come and see me are restricted. So it's
quite obvious that the SLORC is very nervous about what the NLD is capable
of doing. If they were not nervous about the strength of the NLD they don't
need to impose these restrictions. they know that we are a powerful force
within the country, that?s why they have imposed so many restrictions upon us.

Q:	Do you think, in the light of the recent mass arrests and crackdowns,
that the people remain confident that democracy will come?

A:	Of course confidence ebbs and wanes, this is the way of human nature but
on the whole I think the public at large knows change is necessary and
change is inevitable and the change will be towards democracy

Produced by Altsean-Burma (Alternative Asean Network on Burma) 
Tel: ++ 66 2 275 1811
Fax: ++ 66 2 693 4515 
Email: altsean@xxxxxxxxxx
A L T S E A N - B U R M A
ALTERNATIVE ASEAN NETWORK ON BURMA

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

SLORC: INFORMATION SHEET NO. A-0128(I/L)
September 16, 1997

                         MEETING CALLED OFF

                On behalf of the State Law and Order Restoration Council,
Lt. Gen Khin Nyunt, Secretary (1) of the SLORC on the 15 Sept. at 4 pm
extended an
official invitation to the Chairman of the National League for Democracy, U
Aung Shwe and two other Central Executive Committee members for an open
discussion at one of the government guest houses in Yangon.

                The meeting was to take place 16 September at 9 am the next
day where Lt. Gen. Khin Nyunt will be accompanied by the Chairman of the
National Convention Convening Committee and Minister for Religious Affairs,
Lt. Gen Myo Nyunt; Chief Justice U Aung Toe; Attorney General U Tha Tun and
the Commander of Yangon Command Maj. Gen. Khin Maung Than.

                Yesterday, upon receiving the formal invitation the Chairman
of the NLD U Aung Shwe and other invited C.E.C members were extremely
delighted and the program to attend the next day?s meeting was immediately
discussed in detail with the liaison officer who brought the invitation
letter from Lt. Gen. Khin Nyunt.

                On the morning of 16 Sept. Secretary(1) Lt. Gen Khin Nyunt
and the above mentioned senior government officials arrived at the guest
house and were waiting there to welcome and receive the NLD Chairman U Aung
Shwe and (2) C.E.C members upon arrival.

                Disappointedly at about 9 am U Aung Shwe informed the
liaison officer who was there to take them to the meeting place that he no
longer can accept the invitation from the SLORC to have this meeting.
Instead he would like to have the other (2) Central Executive Committee
members U Lun Tin and U Soe Myint to attend the meeting without him. The
liaison officer was then told that he was not at liberty to have any
discussion with the
government without Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the general secretary of his party.

                The State Law and Order Restoration Council with sincere
intentions has invited the NLD Chairman and the C.E.C members to have
an open discussion where subject of national interest can be discussed and
exchange of views can be made for the benefit of both sides and the nation as
well.

                Unfortunately, the positive response from the Chairman of
the NLD and all the (6) other Central Executive Committee members were short
lived due to the wish of a single person. Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has
definitely placed her individual interest above all others and the NLD has
been transformed into a private political party which is created to fulfill
the desire of a single
individual.

                Ironically, the National League for Democracy has been
constantly asking for a dialogue with the SLORC. But regretfully the SLORC?s
willingness and efforts to have a more better understanding and cooperation
in the task of rebuilding a new united, modern and prosperous nation was
refused under an unreasonable pretext.

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

BCN:UNIVERSITIES REMAIN CLOSED AS SLORC FEARS DEMONSTRATIONS
September 16, 1997

According to student sources from inside Burma the SLORC may not reopen the
universities on 18th or 20th of September as was originally planned, for
fear of renewed demonstrations. Factors that may spark off unrest:
-At the beginning of this week a female 5th year RIT university student died
in a car accident. The case will appear in court on Sept. 20th. which may
coincide with the reopening date.
-Several students (4 according to one source, 7 according to another) were
arrested on Sept. 14 while they were trying to establish a small library in
the area of Hledan intersection. These students are known for their active
participation in the December demonstrations.
-Yesterday the results of the December matriculation exams were made known.
An unprecedented low percentage of the students passed the exams.

The authorities have already held meetings with university teachers in
Rangoon and possibly other cities to check whether the teachers could
guarantee that they were able to control the students. The teachers replied
that they could not give such a guarantee. One student from inside Burma
commented: "The SLORC violates the students rights. Even a basic right such
as access to education is denied to us."

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

BKK POST: OPPOSITION MEMBER SAYS NLD PARTY 'TOO RIGID'
September 16, 1997
Rangoon, DPA 

Tun Shwe calls for dialogue with Slorc

An elected member of the National League for Democracy (NLD) has criticised
the party for being too "rigid" in setting its conditions for initiating
talks with Burma's military junta, sources said yesterday.

Tun Shwe, an NLD member of parliament from Moe Nyo township, submitted a
28-page paper to the party's central committee urging them to adopt a more
flexible policy towards starting a dialogue with the military-run State Law
and Order Restoration Council (Slorc).

The proposal will be raised for consideration at the NLD's ninth anniversary
meeting on September 27 and 28, NLD sources said.

NLD Chairman Aung Shwe discussed dialogue conditions with Slorc
First-Secretary Lieutenant General Khin Nyunt on July 17.

At the time, Khin Nyunt implied that the military junta was open to the idea
of talks with Aung Shwe, but would not agree to a dialogue with NLD
Secretary General Aung San Suu Kyi.

Tun Shwe, a former member of the Burmese Socialist Party that ruled Rangoon
from 1962 to 1988, argued that the NLD should allow a dialogue to be
initiated between Slorc and Aung Shwe as a means of overcoming the current
political stalemate.

The NLD won more than 80 percent of the contested seats in the 1990 general
election in what was largely seen as a nation-wide protest vote against the
military for having jailed Ms Suu Kyi in July, 1989, and botched economic
management for 26 years of socialism.

Slorc has never acknowledged NLD's electoral victory on the argument that a
new constitution must be promulgated before an elected government may rule.

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

KWIA: BELGIAN TOUR OPERATOR CANCELS BURMA TOURS
September 16, 1997

16-09-1997 JOKER TOURISM CANCELS BURMA TOURS

Yesterday we received a letter from Belgian tour operator 'Joker Tourism' in
which it states not to organise tours to Burma anymore. Last Friday Joker
Tourism, together with the travellers' guides organisation 'Pik-Nik ', took
the decision not to organise any travel to Burma in 1998.

Joker Tourism is the market leader in Belgium in the field of the
'alternative and adventurous tourism'. Joker Tourism is the second Belgian
company that stops doing business in Burma following the call for a boycott
by the Burmese democratic opposition. In October 1996 the Brewery group
Interbrew (Stella Artois, Jupiler, Labatt Ice Beer, ...) cut all economic
links with Burma.

Last month the Burma Group KWIA launched a campaign directed to all Belgian
tour operators to stop organising and selling Burma tours.
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KWIA Steungroep Inheemse Volkeren - KWIA Supportgroup for Indigenous peoples
Werkgroep Birma - Burma Group
Breughelstraat 31-33, 2018 Antwerpen, BELGIUM
Tel. 32-3-2188488     32-3-2377615
Fax  32-3-2304540
KWIA@xxxxxx

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AP: BRIT ARRESTED IN BURMA FOR PROTEST
September 16, 1997

RANGOON, Burma (AP) -- A London resident handcuffed himself to a high school
in the capital Tuesday, shouting democracy slogans before being cut free by
police and taken in for questioning. 
The school was closed for a public holiday, and the protest, on the eve of the 
anniversary of the coup that brought the current military regime to power, did 
not spark any further unrest. 
Public High School No. 6 is on a moderately busy avenue in the capital, but 
police kept passersby on the other side of the street during the protest. A 
truckload of about 14 troops remained parked nearby. 
Such protests are virtually unheard of in Burma, where authorities keep a 
tight lid on dissent. 
Burmese dissidents in Bangkok, Thailand, told The Associated Press that the 
protester was James Mawdsley, 19, of London, a dual citizen of Britain and 
Australia. 
Bystanders said Mawdsley spray-painted the Burmese word "metta," or "love
and kindness," on the school wall, cuffed himself to the gate and shouted 
pro-democracy slogans. They also said he handed out pamphlets. 
Immigration police were seen at the site of Mawdsley's arrest, and it was 
believed he would be deported. 
A government official, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed that a 
foreigner had been taken in for questioning after a protest but had few other 
details. 
British Embassy officials in Rangoon said they were checking into his apparent 
arrest. 
There has been little public dissent in Rangoon since December, when
thousands of students demanding greater civil liberties took to the streets.
University classes have been suspended since. 
The protests were aimed at Burma's military regime, which took power Sept.
18, 1988, smashing a pro-democracy uprising. 

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BKK POST: SPEED SEIZED IN BORDER OPERATION
September 16, 1997

Thai and Burmese authorities have together seized 150,000 amphetamine pills.

Last month 50,000 pills were found in northern Thailand, with the rest being
found in Burma.

Narcotics Suppression Commissioner Pol Lt Gen Noppadol Somboonsap said that
Thai authorities were working with their Burmese counterparts in "Operation
Dao Nua 40" (North Star 40). Thai anti-drug forces were working along a
140-km stretch of border in Chiang Rai and Chiang Mai provinces.

The operation was launched about a month ago to prevent the influx of drugs
into Thailand.

Pol Lt Gen Noppadol said 50,000 pills were seized in Thailand and the
interrogation of suspects led to the Burmese authorities raiding drug
warehouses in Thachilek.

The commissioner also attributed the success of the mission to the United
States which had given a computer-controlled instrument able to detect
airborne amphetamine dust.

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ANNOUNCEMENT: HUMAN RIGHTS YEAR BOOK
September 16, 1997

Press Release
September 16, 1997

Human Rights Year Book 1996 Reveals SLORC Abuses

A book launch for the "Burma Human Rights Year Book 1996" will be held at
the Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand on September 17, 1997 at 7:00
pm.  A 664 pages book published by the Human Rights Documentation unit of
the National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma (NCGUB) reveals the
ranges of human rights violations committed by the State Law and Order
Restoration Council (SLORC), ruling military regime of Burma.

The Human Rights Year Book 1996, prefaced by Dr. Sein Win, the Prime
Minister of the NCGUB, covers the systematic persecution of the elected
representatives, leaders, and members of the national League for Democracy
(NLD), repression of pro-democracy activists and politicians, and atrocities
against the ethnic nationalities at the border.

Examples of repression and human rights violations by the SLORC are
documented in fourteen comprehensive chapters including "Extra-judicial,
Summary, or Arbitrary Execution, Rights of the Child, Freedom of Opinion,
Expression and Press, etc." along with the selected interviews conducted
along the Burma's borders and inside Burma. This book also presents the
SLORC original orders demanding forced labor, forced relocation and other
repressive orders as well as the photographs depicting various human rights
violations.

This book is dedicated to the countless citizens of Burma who have
sacrificed their homes, their freedom and their lives to lifting the veil of
terror that shrouds the truth in Burma today.

For more information, please contact Aung Myo Min at (662) 591-5839.

Human Rights Documentation Unit
National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma (NCGUB)

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