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The BurmaNet News - 18 February, 19



------------------------------ BurmaNet -----------------------------
"Appropriate Information Technologies, Practical Strategies
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

The BurmaNet News, 18 February, 1998
Issue #937

Noted in passing:

You took away all the oceans and all the room
You gave me my shoe-size with bars around it
Where did it get you?  Nowhere.
You left me my lips, and they shape words, even in silence.

-- Osip Mandelstam, prisoner poet who served time in Stalin's
Russia, and died en route to a Siberian prison camp.
(see THE INDEPENDENT: THEY WILL NOT BE SILENCED)

HEADLINES:
==========
BKK POST: SUU KYI URGES ON MANILA PROTESTERS
REUTERS: PHILIPPINES' RAMOS URGES GENTLE PERSUASION
KYODO NEWS SERVICE: MYANMAR LEADER GREETED BY
REUTERS: THAIS REPATRIATE THOUSANDS OF ILLEGAL
BKK POST: GOVT DEFENDS RIGHT TO REPATRIATE ALIENS
BKK POST: CHUAN VOWS TO HELP END STALEMATE
BKK POST: SCAM PROMPTS URGENT STEPS TO COUNTER
BKK POST: 6 BURMESE SOLDIERS ARRESTED AT BORDER
DAGENS NÆRINGSLIV: NORWAY WILL NOT BOYCOTT BURMA
LETTER TO THE BURMANET NEWS EDITOR: WHO'S

Human Rights Special:
THE INDEPENDENT: THEY WILL NOT BE SILENCED
AI: WRITERS / ARTISTS IMPRISONED IN BURMA

ANNOUCEMENT: BURMESE STUDENTS STILL UNDER
-------------------------------------------------------------

BKK POST: SUU KYI URGES ON MANILA PROTESTERS
17 February, 1998 [abridged]

THAN SHWE IS VISITING 'BASTION OF DEMOCRACY'

MANILA, AFP -- Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi urged the 
Philippines to impress upon visiting Burma Prime Minister Than Shwe 
the importance of democracy, as human rights activists vowed yesterday
to dog him with protests.

Than Shwe, a senior general and chair of the junta-dominated
State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), was due to arrive
last night for a three-day state visit that includes talks with
President Fidel Ramos.

"The Philippines is supposed to be the bastion of democracy in
Southeast Asia," Mrs Suu Kyi said in a videotaped message
released by the local chapter of the Free Burma Coalition.

"I hope that the people of the Philippines and the government
will make it quite clear to General Than Shwe that the
Philippines is the bastion of democracy," said Mrs Suu Kyi.

"You should be proud of it and there's no doubt that in spite of
the present economic problems, the Philippines is better off
under a democratic system than it was under an authoritarian
regime," she added.

Than Shwe's visit comes just days before Filipinos commemorate
the 12th anniversary of the ousting of dictator Ferdinand Marcos
after 20 years in power.

Mrs Suu Kyi has often been compared by the international press to
Corazon Aquino, the diminutive Filipino widow who led the fight
against Marcos.

Describing Than Shwe as a "dictator", the local chapter of the
Free Burma Coalition said in a statement that the visit was
"primarily an insult to the Filipino people who fought and
toppled the Marcos dictatorship".
   
The Burma leader is also due to tour the International Rice
Research Institute and a former US naval base turned
international free port outside Manila during his stay.

Merci Ferrer, coordinator of the Philippine chapter of the
coalition, said they will mobilise protesters "to show him [Than
Shwe] that he is not welcome."

Than Shwe's visit was also viewed as a "consolidation by some
Asian authoritarian rulers for the coming" Asia-Europe Meeting in
London this April, the human rights group said.

There has been opposition to Burma's participation in the
Asia-Europe meeting despite its newly acquired membership in the
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean).

The human rights group called on Mr Ramos "to persuade Senior
General Than Shwe that it would be to his and the SPDC's
interests to transit as soon as possible to democracy."

It called for a dialogue between the ruling junta, Mrs Suu Kyi
and ethnic minorities.

Philippine Foreign Secretary Domingo Siazon said yesterday US
assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs
Stanley Roth highlighted during a weekend meeting the lack of
"substantive contact" between the junta and Mrs Suu Kyi's
National League for Democracy.

Asked if Mr Roth had asked the Philippines to mediate a dialogue,
Mr Siazon told reporters: "No, but it is already implied."

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

REUTERS: PHILIPPINES' RAMOS URGES GENTLE PERSUASION
ON MYANMAR
17 February, 1998 [abridged]

MANILA -- Philippine President Fidel Ramos on Tuesday urged Filipinos
to lead by example rather than resort to violent street protests to
influence democratic change in Myanmar (Burma). 

"The objective to be attained here is precisely to get Myanmar to see
the operation of an open, deregulated, free and democratic society like
the Philippines," Ramos said at a news conference ahead of a three-day
visit by Myanmar leader Than Shwe that has sparked protests. 

"There are many ways to attain this.  But surely, it cannot be attained 
by violent street demonstrations, by loud, strident rallies, but much 
better through patient dialoguing and teaching."

Than Shwe, chairman of the ruling State Peace and Development Council, 
is in Manila at the invitation of Ramos, who in October became the 
first leader of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) 
to visit Yangon since it joined the regional grouping last July. 

About two dozen protesters from the Free Burma Coalition-Philippines,
spurred by an appeal from Myanmar's pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi,
gathered on Tuesday outside the hotel where Than Shwe was staying. 

Two protesters managed to get into the hotel, shouting "murderer" and
"dictator." The Free Burma group on Monday had vowed to "hound" Than 
Shwe during his visit. 

In a videotape shown to reporters by the Free Burma group, Suu Kyi had 
said: "I hope the people of the Philippines and the government will make
it quite clear to General Than Shwe that the Philippines is the bastion 
of democracy. You should be proud of it."

Suu Kyi's message was taped by one of the group's members during a
meeting with Asian journalists in Yangon on February 11, the group
said. 

Ramos said the Philippines, as the current chair of ASEAN, should 
Help Myanmar boost its economic potential. 

"This is a sign that the ASEAN policy of constructive engagement is
showing positive results,'' an Asian diplomat said. 

But any change in Burma's political structure would involve a long 
and tedious process, he said. 

"They (Burma's rulers) have been iconoclastic for as long as people
can remember. They are just coming out. There is still the inertia of 
the past decades,'' the diplomat said. 

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

KYODO NEWS SERVICE: MYANMAR LEADER GREETED BY PROTESTERS IN MANILA
17 February, 1998 [abridged]

MANILA -- The head of Myanmar's ruling military regime, Senior Gen. 
Than Shwe, arrived Tuesday in Manila on a two-day state visit amid
protests by critics of the junta's authoritarian policies and poor 
human rights record. 

Members of the Free Burma Coalition, a U.S.-based umbrella group of
organizations opposed to the junta, picketed the entrance of the Manila 
Hotel, where Than Shwe proceeded after arrival. 

Than Shwe, who is returning the visit of Philippine President Fidel 
Ramos to Myanmar last October, was earlier met at the Villamor Air 
Base in suburban Pasay City by Philippine officials led by Foreign 
Secretary Domingo Siazon and Defense Secretary Fortunato Abat. 

He made no arrival statement, but a press statement issued by Myanmar
officials said during the visit Than Shwe and Ramos are expected to 
hold "cordial discussions on matters related to enhancing friendly 
relations and further cooperation between the two countries and within 
the region."

The statement said they would also discuss "the implementation of the
principles and objectives of the ASEAN." Myanmar was inducted into 
the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) as a full member 
in July last year. 

Siazon told reporters minutes before Than Shwe's 47-member delegation 
arrived that the Philippine government "will try to encourage our 
friends from Myanmar to pursue their efforts towards national 
reconciliation." 

He said Ramos has decided to provide 5 million pesos (about 120,000 U.S.
dollars) worth of scholarship funds for training 60 Myanmar nationals, 
including journalists and military officers. 

At the Manila Hotel, about 20 protesters held banners and posters 
denouncing Than Shwe as a "dictator" and calling for freedom and 
democracy in Myanmar. 

Than Shwe's group evaded most of the protesters by passing through a 
side entrance of the hotel. 

But protest leader Merci Ferrer, who was a few steps from the side 
entrance, shouted ''Mr. Shwe, you are not welcome here'' before she 
was forcibly removed from the hotel premises by Philippine 
presidential guards. 

A statement distributed by the activists said the military regime "does
not represent the peoples of Burma (Myanmar), but rather embodies an 
illegitimate military power." 

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

REUTERS: THAIS REPATRIATE THOUSANDS OF ILLEGAL WORKERS
17 February, 1998 [abridged]

BANGKOK -- Thailand has repatriated about 30,000 illegal foreign workers 
in the past three months as the country grapples with an economic crisis 
and growing unemployment, officials said on Tuesday. 

Most, or about 85 percent of the repatriated illegal workers, had come 
from Myanmar (Burma), official immigration records show. 

The records show that as of February 5, 29,412 illegal Myanmar workers 
had been sent home through border checkpoints since the start of November. 

Demand for cheap but illegal foreign labour has fallen in the face of an
economic crisis which is forecast to almost double unemployment in 
Thailand to over two million. 

Labour and Social Welfare Minister Trairong Suwanakhiri has said he will
repatriate an estimated 300,000 alien workers registered to work in Thailand
when their current one-year terms expire. 

The number of aliens registered to work in Thailand has more than halved
from 300,000 in September, officials said. 

Foreign workers who once sought work on Thailand's formerly booming
construction and agricultural industries have found their skills no longer
required as building projects stall or newly unemployed urban Thais move 
back to the provinces. 

"We received reports from the provinces that employers had stopped hiring
nearly 30,000 Myanmar workers and 7,000 Thais have been hired to replace
them," a labour official said. 

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

BKK POST: GOVT DEFENDS RIGHT TO REPATRIATE ALIENS
17 February, 1998 [abridged]
by Bhanravee Tansubhapol

FOREIGNERS TOLD NOT TO LOOK FOR WORK HERE

Thailand yesterday defended its right to repatriate illegal
workers but admitted the need to do so in a humanitarian manner.

Foreign Ministry Spokesman Kobsak Chutikul said there were no
plans to repatriate illegal foreign workers at present. But he
appealed to foreigners not to seek work in Thailand during the
current economic downturn that is expected to deprive some two
million Thais of jobs.

The repatriation to Burma last Thursday of some 200 people,
including 63 Mon. 30 Karens, eight Muslims, and 99 Burmese, was
"a lesson for the Thai government to exercise more care," he
said.

The Thai government in future will emphasise to 'concerned
authorities the need to abide by human rights principles, to
refrain from use of force. and to allow the workers to return to
their countries on a voluntary basis, he added.

Foreign Minister Surin Pitsuwan in a letter to the Labour
Ministry on January 13, called for the repatriation of illegal
workers to be conducted in a gentle manner that is acceptable to
non-governmental organisations, the international community and
neighbouring countries, Mr Kobsak noted. 
     
Mr Kobsak's comments followed stinging criticism over the
repatriation of Burmese workers in the state run New Light of
Myanmar newspaper in Rangoon over the weekend.

The criticism may have stemmed from Rangoon not being informed in
advance of the latest move, either as a result of a lapse in high
level exchanges between the two countries or because local
authorities had not reported to them, Mr Kobsak said.

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

BKK POST: CHUAN VOWS TO HELP END STALEMATE
17 February, 1998 [abridged]

PREMIER ALSO VOICES SUPPORT FOR BURMA

REUTERS -- Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai yesterday pledged his 
full support for troubled neighbours Burma and Cambodia.

Mr. Chuan also said his seven-party coalition was stable enough,
despite its slim parliamentary majority, to stay in office and
help the two countries.

"I am confident that my coalition is stable enough to carry out
immediate tasks ahead," Mr Chuan told Reuters in an interview at
Government House.

Mr Chuan said Thailand would also play a role in Burma, where the
ruling military junta is at political odds with the main opposition 
led by Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, and with the West over the 
junta's human rights record.

Thailand, as a member of Asean, had long adhered to the grouping's 
principle of peaceful co-existence and non-interference in internal 
affairs, he said.

"But within the Asean family, there is certain expectation ... in
the case of Cambodia, Thailand is a member of the troika (Thailand, 
Indonesia, and the Philippines) that has been appointed to look into 
the issue," he said.

Mr Chuan also said he supported Burma's roles in any forum
attended by Asean members.

Burma is set to participate in the upcoming Asem-EU summit
scheduled to be held in London in early April but the European
Union has expressed its strong opposition to Burma's participation.

A spokesman for the Burmese military junta, the State Peace and
Development Council (SPDC), had urged Asean not to bow to EU and
Western pressure.

"We appeal to Asean members not to bow to pressure of westerners,
otherwise it will be a bad precedent for the future," a government 
spokesman said. 
     
On Thailand's stance on Burma's presence at the summit, Mr Chuan
said: "If the conference calls for Asean's participation as a
group, all Asean members must support one another as a group.

"But in the case of bilateral conferences at the summit involving
participation of each individual country, then it would be up to
each individual country to deal with the issue," he added.

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

BKK POST: SCAM PROMPTS URGENT STEPS TO COUNTER THREAT TO FORESTS
17 February, 1998 [abridged]
POST REPORTERS

TROOPS TO HELP PROTEST WILDLIFE SANCTUARIES

The five-million-baht logging bribery scandal has prompted urgent
measures to counter a serious threat to the forests.

The army agreed yesterday to help the Forestry Department by
sending troops to stamp out logging in the Salween wildlife
sanctuary and Salween national park in Mae Hong Son.

Gen Chettha Thanajaro, the army chief, said he would ask Gen
Maung Aye, his Burmese counterpart, in Rangoon next month, to
tell Democratic Karen Buddhist Army rebels not to help Thai
loggers falsify the origin of timber.

Logs have been hauled across the Salween river, given Burmese
seals and returned via passes in Tak.

Gen Charn Boonprasert, the army chief-of-staff, said after talks
with forestry officials that the first, second and fourth
regional commands were authorised by law to arrest illegal
operators in their areas of operation.

Emphasis would be placed on intelligence to keep track of logging 
gangs, said Gen Charn. Once illegal operations appear imminent,
patrols would be despatched.

Pongpol Adireksarn, the Agriculture Minister, said a total ban on
log movements was being considered. Auctions of seized logs by
the Forest Industry Organisation had indirectly encouraged
destruction, he said.

A source in Mae Hong Son said several thousand logs were about to
be smuggled in from Shan State by the two operators mentioned by
Mr Boonchu, former chief executive of Sirin Technology Co, an
importer of logs  from Burma in 1989.

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

BKK POST: 6 BURMESE SOLDIERS ARRESTED AT BORDER
17 February, 1998

TAK -- Thai border forces arrested six Burmese soldiers last
Saturday in Mae Sot district after they slipped across the border
in search of decent jobs. 
     
The deserters claimed that they were forcibly drafted in Rangoon
because they were unemployed and sent to the border about a year
ago. They said they were paid only 600 kyats (about 150 baht) a
month which was 'hardly enough to make a decent living  and
decided to look for greener pastures in Thailand.

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

DAGENS NÆRINGSLIV: NORWAY WILL NOT BOYCOTT BURMA
13 February, 1998 [abridged, translated from Norwegian]
by Morten Iversen in Bangkok

Prime Minister Kjell Magne Bondevik does not want to initiate a Norwegian
trading boycott of Burma despite the fact that Norwegian companies trade 
with this Asian dictatorial regime.

Last week, it became known that some 30 Norwegian companies have been 
dealing with Burma in 1996 and 1997. Norwegian business finds it difficult
to relate to what the Government really means with its Burma-policy. 

US has implemented a full stop in investments, but Norwegian companies 
and individuals have to relate to the recommendations of the Government 
not to trade with Burma. There is no law prohibiting this. 

"We prefer a voluntary stop in the trade with Burma from Norwegian 
companies. We will see how they deal with this in 1998, but for the time 
being there are no plans to implement a prohibition," Bondevik says. 

He points to the fact that EU-countries do not have trade sanctions 
with Burma, but that they rather limit the extension of travelling 
documents and visas to Burmese politicians and government servants. 

Bondevik is on an unofficial visit to Thailand. But yesterday he had talks 
with the Thai Prime Minister, Chuan Leekpai. "He says the ASEAN-countries 
will continue their constructive dialogue with Burma after it became member 
of ASEAN. I stressed the word "constructive" to the Thai Prime Minister," 
Bondevik said.

Norwegian products are being sold to Burma even though official Norwegian 
trade statistics indicate a minimal trade. Trade agents in Thailand, Malaysia 
and Singapore mediate in selling Norwegian products like artificial
fertilisers and chemicals to Burma. 

Bondevik admits that it is difficult to control this trade, and thinks 
it is up to each Norwegian company to take their responsibility. 

[Dagens Næringsliv is a financial newspaper in Norway]

*********************************************************
LETTER TO THE BURMANET NEWS EDITOR: WHO'S THREATENING STABILITY?
16 February, 1998


The 13 February 1998 issue of "BurmanetNews" featured an AFP wire 
of 11 February, "AUNG SAN SUU KYI THREATENS REGIONAL STABILITY AND
SECURITY: JUNTA", which quoted an SPDC spokesman as stating that "Aung San
Suu Kyi would pose a threat to Asian peace and security if she came to
power", "spark instability and tension by antagonising neighbouring China",
and that 
"Myanmar will then form part of the US containment belt around China" 
(which would "include India and Vietnam" ), threatening Beijing, a policy 
which would "just lead to instability in the region which nobody wants." 

Well, firstly, it's a bit simplistic politically to imagine Daw Aung San
Suu Kyi just "coming to power" without a rather complex and extended period 
of transition, during which foreign policy, among other things, would be
negotiated.  And secondly, if there's anything resembling a China 
"containment belt" being manufactured in the region, it's ASEAN and BIMST-EC, 
and it was SLORC and not NLD which took Burma into these groupings. However, 
my impression from a recent visit to the People's Republic of China (PRC) is
that China herself is not particularly worried about this "threat", and even
gave public support to Burma's accession to ASEAN. At the time I was puzzled
about the reasons for Chinese support for Burma's entry, and did not quite 
believe those analysts who said that for China, economic stability is the 
key factor, and that the PRC hoped Burma's membership in ASEAN would help 
to stabilise the economy. I moved closer to this view when I was told during
my visit that Chinese policy-makers now see the Burmese junta's failure to 
slow the decline of the economy as the greatest threat to stability in Burma,
and are beginning to look at alternatives to military rule. (For a discussion 
of some of the factors blocking economic well-being in Burma, see David
Arnott's "Once the Ricebowl of Asia", "BurmanetNews" 11 and 12 February 1998.)


The major objective of China's Burma policy is stability, since instability
in Burma might cross over into China, as well as threatening Chinese 
commercial, political and (according to some) military interests in Burma. 
Since 1989, the PRC's support for SLORC (now SPDC) has been based on the 
view that a strong, centralised military regime offers the best hope for 
stability in Burma. Since 1996, however, China has grown increasingly 
dissatisfied with the junta's economic performance, which is already 
damaging the economy of Yunnan and contributing to the mounting flow of 
heroin into China. China now fears that Burma's worsening economic crisis 
may lead to increased political instability.

It can be argued convincingly that a genuine political process in Burma could
lead to greater economic and political stability in the country and the
region, including China. Such a process, beginning (but not ending) with
dialogue 
between the junta and the National League for Democracy led by Daw Aung San 
Suu Kyi, could, under certain conditions, and if requested by the NLD allow 
the restoration of the international financial assistance that has been 
blocked since 1988.

Restoration of these financial inputs, including World Bank, IMF and ADB 
loans, UNDP economic development assistance and Japanese ODA, would allow 
serious infrastructure development, particularly in the border regions. 
Such development programmes, if carried out in full consultation and 
cooperation with the organisations of the ethnic groups concerned, with 
their informed and willing participation at every level of decision-making, 
and as part of the wider political process, could help improve and stabilise 
the economy, reduce dependence on poppy cultivation in certain regions, and 
lessen dissatisfaction among ethnic groups about their lack of development
assistance from Rangoon. 

Greater prosperity for the Burmese ethnic groups across the border from
China would serve to diminish Chinese fears that Burma might break up into
its ethnic components (this is also one of China's misgivings about a
federal Burma). 
One of China's concerns is that the fragmentation of Burma might encourage 
Chinese Wa, Shan and Kachin to seek political unity with the corresponding 
ethnic States in Burma. This would not only be a threat to China's
territorial integrity, but could have a destabilising impact on China's
other national minorities.  

This presentation of economic development as a base for political and
social stability reflects the logic that China herself uses, with the
difference, however, that in Burma, a specific political move, namely
dialogue involving 
an irreversible political process, is a minimum requirement for the
necessary financial inputs to be made available. 
 
It should also be pointed out that an early requirement in stabilising 
Burma's economy and reducing one of the factors behind the ill-paid 
Burma army's notorious tendency to live off the land, is radical tax 
reform (there is hardly any regular tax system), to provide revenues 
to pay the army and other worthy causes, and that only a popular 
government could undertake such a task without the risk of strong 
popular resistance. 

The choice for Chinese policy-makers is thus between continuing to 
support a politically compatible but economically incompetent and 
isolated military regime, and backing a political process which, 
however distasteful to China, would most likely bring greater 
economic and political stability to the country and the region.

The above analysis is based on a view of multilateral loans and 
development assistance as relatively benign.  However, there are 
some people, including figures in the Burmese leadership, who are 
not all that enthusiastic about surrendering Burma to the embrace 
of the IMF, the World Bank and transnational corporations. An 
alternative view might be that long-term stability for Burma could 
best be achieved through Gandhian, village-based economics, rooted 
in the Buddhist values of limiting desire and consumption 
(E.F. Schumacher's "Buddhist Economics, let us not forget, was based 
on his experience in Burma). Such an approach has some parallels 
with some of the more positive aspects of Ne Win's ill-conceived 
and ill-fated "Burmese Way to Socialism", and could possibly 
provide common ground between the NLD and some elements in 
the military. But that's another story. 

Yours sincerely,
David Arnott, 
Geneva, 16 February 1998

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

THE INDEPENDENT: THEY WILL NOT BE SILENCED 
15 February, 1998 [excerpts]
by Paul Vallely [in cooperation with The Yomiuri Shimbun]

As Salman Rushdie enters the tenth year of the fatwa against him, what of
the hundreds of other writers around the world who are living in danger or
forced into exile, far from the international spotlight?  Paul Vallely
reports.

Many writers are silenced by the ultimate sanction. During the years of the
Rushdie fatwa perhaps the most famous author to die was killed by a
government.  The potency of the stance of Ken Saro-Wiwa, writer of Nigeria's
most popular soap, and defender of the rights of the Ogoni people against
the uncontrolled despoliation of their land by transnational oil extractors
like Shell, is such that even after his execution in 1995 the Nigerian
military 
regime continues to forbid anyone in his birthland to mention his name in
public.

Saro-Wiwa's hanging had a traumatic effect on Pen, which was founded in 1921 
as an authors' club but which in 1960 set up a Writers in Prison committee
to speak up for authors silenced in their own countries.  "We pulled out
all the stops and we still failed.  It brought home our powerlessness,"
says one of 
Pen's officials, Siobhan Dowd.  "It also underlined that multinationals re the
new power in the post-Cold War world and that those corporations and
businesses must be persuaded to play a larger part in promoting democratic
reforms."

Yet, even among those oppressors who wish to still the pens of those who
seek to record their wrongdoing, execution or assassination is not the first
option. The world's jails are full of those who have used their position as
writers to speak out against intolerance and injustice.

Long-term imprisonment is the hallmark of countries where the political
process has stagnated: China (which holds more writers in prison than any
other country), Burma, South Korea, Syria and Vietnam all specialise in
jailing writers.  Sometimes they make use of laws which on the surface
sound reasonable enough.  "Betraying state secrets" was the charge laid
against Alexander Nitikin, who has recently become Russia's first post-Soviet 
political prisoner.  A former senior inspector at Soviet Inspectorate for 
Nuclear Installations, Nitikin was arrested in 1996 after contributing a
chapter to a book produced by a group of Norwegian environmentalists. He
was charged with passing on secrets- even though all the information it
contained came, according to Amnesty International, from material
previously published in Russian newspapers.  Nitikin was detained for 10
months in a secret police prison without trial before being charged with
offences for which the penalty could be 15 years in a penal colony, or death.

But where reasonable laws cannot be made to fit, repressive governments
have no compunction about creating catch-all legislation to silence
opposition. The military regime in Burma has a law which even prohibits
"descriptions that, 
though factually correct, are unsuitable because of the time or circumstance 
of their writing" Burma's most popular woman writer, San San Nue, a novelist 
and short-story writer, is currently jailed for 10 years for distributing 
"false news that could jeopardise the security of the state" and giving 
"one-sided opposite views" in interviews with foreign journalists.  She 
also made the mistake of contacting the UN Human Rights Rapporteur on Burma.
It is her second time inside: during the first she waskept for 10 months in
solitary confinement with no outside contact at all in a cell 9 ft long by 
7 ft wide in Rangoon's notorious Insein Prison.  Today, other writers are
forbidden to refer to her works or even to mention her name.

You took away all the oceans and all the room
You gave me my shoe-size with bars around it
Where did it get you?  Nowhere.
You left me my lips, and they shape words, even in silence.

So wrote Osip Mandelstam, the prisoner poet who served time in Stalin's
Russia, and died en route to a Siberian prison camp....

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

AI: WRITERS / ARTISTS IMPRISONED IN BURMA
16 February, 1998 

Daw San San Nwe (tha-ya-wadi)
===============
Daw San San Nwe, a 51-year-old journalist and well-known writer, 
was arrested  on 4 or 5 August 1994 in Yangon. A widow with four 
children, she was arrested with her daughter Ma Myat Mo Mo Tun and
two other political leaders.  According to the State Law and Order 
Restoration Council (SLORC, Myanmar's military government), the four 
were detained for passing on information to foreign journalists
and diplomats "against or critical of the government in order to 
make foreign governments misunderstand the government." They were 
also accused of sending information to the United Nations
Special Rapporteur for human rights on Myanmar.

Daw San San Nwe was sentenced on 6 October 1994 to seven years' 
imprisonment under Section 5(e) of the 1950 Emergency Provisions 
Act (for spreading false information) and three years under 
Section 17(1) of the Unlawful Associations Act (membership or 
contact with illegal organizations). However Amnesty
International believes that she is a prisoner of conscience, 
imprisoned solely for exercising her rights to
freedom of expression and assembly.  

Daw San San Nwe had been arrested previously in July 1989 during 
a nationwide crackdown by the military of the political opposition. 
She is a member of the National League for Democracy (NLD),
Myanmar's foremost opposition party founded by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi 
in 1988.  Her writing has been banned in Myanmar since the beginning 
of the 1988 democracy movement. All publications are heavily
censored there, and the government controls most of the media.
However, one of her banned short stories was featured in a book 
entitled "Inked Over, Ripped Out, Burmese Storytellers and the 
Censors", which was published by the PEN American Center in 1993. 

In March 1993 Daw San San Nwe made this comment about her role as 
a writer:

"I believe that it is not the duty of a writer to take part personally 
in political battles; it is my conviction that a writer discharges his 
or her duty simply by observing and putting on record the
rights and wrongs, the justices and injustices that result from 
these battles."

Once democracy was established in Myanmar, Daw San San Nwe had planned to
resign from the NLD in order to take an independent stand as a writer.
However, because of a lack of progress towards democracy, she felt that she
must continue to work on behalf of the party.

She was born on 28 August 1945 in the town of Tha-ya-wadi, about 
50 miles north of Yangon, and took Tha-ya-wadi as her pen name. 
She began her career at 13 when she wrote poems and stories for The
Children's Journal.  She also wrote for newspapers when she was a 
teenager, and later married another journalist in 1966 and moved to 
Yangon. Her first novel was written in 1974, but it was her third 
novel Prison of Darkness, critical of the ruling party's policies, 
which created interest among the general public and politicians.

Dr Ma Thida
===========
Dr Ma Thida, a surgeon and well-known writer, was arrested in July 
1993 together with a number of other members of the National League 
for Democracy (NLD). Prominent amongst Myanmar's political
opposition, she had earlier been a campaign assistant for Daw Aung 
San Suu Kyi, one of the leaders of the NLD. In October 1993 she was 
sentenced to 20 years' imprisonment and is currently detained in
Insein Prison, Yangon (Rangoon, the capital).  

Between March and September 1988, widespread civil unrest broke out in 
Myanmar as mass demonstrations were held to call for an end to 26 years 
of one-party military rule.  Although the demonstrations were put down 
by the army, often violently, the pro-democracy movement grew and
demonstrations continued for several months until a final crackdown 
by the security forces. The army reasserted military control in 
September 1988 through the newly-formed State Law and Order
Restoration Council (SLORC). In May 1990 the NLD won over 80% 
of the seats in a general election, but the SLORC has refused to 
accept the result and remains in power today. 

Dr Ma Thida and the others arrested with her were held  incommunicado 
before being brought to trial. The first attempt to start the trial 
had to be postponed because large crowds gathered at the courtroom.
The trial finally began on 27 September. Dr Ma Thida and the 10 other 
defendants were charged with endangering public tranquillity under 
Section 5j of the 1950 Emergency Provisions Act, having contact
with unlawful associations under Section 17(1) of the 1908 Unlawful
Associations Act, and distributing unlawful literature under Sections 
17 and 20 of the 1962 Printers and Publishers Registration Act.
Amnesty International believes that the vaguely-worded provisions 
of these laws have been used to sentence Dr Ma Thida and the others 
to long terms of imprisonment solely for their peaceful political
opposition activities. All defendants were sentenced to 20 years' 
imprisonment on 15 October 1993. 

At the time of her arrest Dr Ma Thida was working at the Muslim 
Free Hospital in Yangon. She had written many short stories, as well 
as several novels, none of which have been published. Although she
was given official permission to publish her latest novel, this has 
now been  banned. 

Dr Ma Thida has suffered from poor health since her detention, 
including digestive and gynaecological problems, and tuberculosis.
Although she has now  recovered from tuberculosis, Amnesty 
International remains concerned that she may not receive adequate 
treatment for her health problems.  During her detention she has 
also been held in solitary confinement with no access to reading 
or writing materials.

U Pa Pa Lay and U Lu Zaw
========================
Two comedians, U Pa Pa Lay, 49, and U Lu Zaw, 45, were sentenced in 
March 1996  to seven years' imprisonment for one of their comic 
performances. U Htwe and U Aung Soe, two political activists who
arranged this  performance, were also sentenced to seven years' 
imprisonment.

On 4 January 1996, the 48th anniversary of Myanmar's independence 
from the United Kingdom, some 2000 members of the National League 
for Democracy (NLD) attended a celebration at the home of NLD
leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi in Yangon (Rangoon, the capital). 
The NLD is a  political party which won over 80% of seats in the 
May 1990 elections. Despite this victory, the ruling military 
authorities - the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) 
- have not handed over power to the NLD, and continue to harrass 
and imprison its members for their opposition.  

The independence day  celebration included a performance by an 
Anyeint troupe, a traditional Burmese entertainment group who sing, 
dance,  and make satirical jokes. U Pa Pa Lay and U Lu Zaw were 
members of the Anyeint troupe, known as Myo Win Mar or "Our Own Way".
In their routine they reportedly made jokes which portrayed 
government cooperatives as thieves and sang a comic song about 
Myanmar's generals. Following the performance, members of the troupe 
returned to their homes in Mandalay on 7 January.  That evening they 
were arrested. The following day U Aung Soe and U Myint Thein, 
two NLD members who had arranged the performance, were also arrested.
For a time nobody knew what had happened to them or where they were.  

One month later eight of the troupe members were released, but 
U Pa Pa Lay, U Lu Zaw, U Aung Soe and U Htwe, the NLD Chairman 
for Mandalay southeast township, remained in prison.  The two comedians
were charged under Section 5(e) of the 1950 Emergency Provisions Act 
which imprisons anyone who "causes or intends to spread false news, 
knowing beforehand that it is untrue".  It is not known what U Htwe 
and U Aung Soe were charged with. On 18 March they were each sentenced 
to seven years' imprisonment. None was allowed legal representation.
Amnesty International believes they are prisoners of conscience, 
detained solely for the peaceful expression of their political views 
and is calling for their immediate and unconditional release. 
U Pa Pa Lay was previously imprisoned in 1991 for one year
because he made a joke about the popularity of the NLD.

In early April 1996 U Pa Pa Lay and U Lu Zaw were transferred from 
prison to Kyein Kran Ka labour camp, 25 miles from Myitkyina in Kachin 
State. They were forced to work with iron bars across their legs
and lost a  lot of weight. Both are now held in different prisons 
in Myitkyina.

[The above information is solely updated by the Amnesty International,
international secretariat, London, dated 6 Feb. 1998]

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ANNOUCEMENT: BURMESE STUDENTS STILL UNDER DETENTION IN THAI PRISONS
12 February, 1998

THAI ACTION COMMITTEE FOR DEMOCRACY IN BURMA

As of October 1997, eight Burmese exiles, former students, are still being
arbitarily detained in Bangkok's 'Special Prison', also referred to as the
Special Detention Centre (SDC). All of the former student activists from
Burma have already completed the term of detention required by the laws
under which they were initially detained. None of the students are likely to
be released soon, unless amnesties are granted by HRH The Queen of Thailand
at sometime in the near future. There is an additional question of where
some of
them will go if released. This question has been raised by the Burmese
Students Area Camp Commander in Ratchaburi refusing to accept some students
back into the camp. Action should be taken as a matter of urgency to ensure
their release and safety. UNHCR, the Thai Ministry of Interior and the Thai
Ministry of Justice should be lobbied. A list of contacts follows at the
end of this message.

LIST OF DETAINEES
1. THANT ZIN HTUN: UNHCR Non Indo-Chinese number 6229.
Date of detention: 26/11/96 until the present. 
Reason for detention: No camp pass.

Thant Zin Htun was arrested during Bill Clinton's visit to Thailand in 1996.
A group of students staged a demonstration and tried to hand an open letter
to Mr. Clinton. He has been incarcerated since this time. He applied for
resettlement to Australia and was granted an interview but could not attend
as he was in SDC at the time. Authorities for not permit Burmese to be
interviewed for protection (UNHCR) or for resettlement whilst under
detention here. Someone wants to sponsor them - cannot resettle unless in
Safe Area. 

2. TAY AZA THURA: UNHCR Non Indo-Chinese number 1235.
Date of detention: 26/11/96 until the present.
Reason for detention: No camp pass.

3. AUNG ZAW: UNHCR Non Indo-Chinese number 5850.
Date of detention: 26/11/96 until the present.
Reason for detention: No camp pass.

4. SHWE OO: UNHCR Non Indo-Chinese number 1372.
Date of detention: 26/11/96 until the present.
Reason for detention: No camp pass.

All of these students were arrested at the same time. Same reasons for
arrest and detention give on their records. They had applied to the Canadian
embassy for resettlement, but heard nothing more since the commencement of
their detention. 

5. SHWE HLA: UNHCR Non Indo-Chinese number 1359.
Date of detention: 12/5/97 until the present.
Reason for detention: Violation of camp rules.

Shwe Hla was arrested May 12, sent to IDC, transferred to SDC on the 16th
June 97. He was detained in April of 97 after being arrested outside of the
Malaysian embassy in Bangkok for peacefully demonstrating against Asean's
acceptance of Burma. Three other Burmese exiles were arrested with him- one
had an official outpass from the safe area so the authorities just gave him
a talking to and sent him back to the camp. All of his priviledges were
suspended as a result, in keeping with the provincial rules governing the
safe area. The other two, Nyein Moe and Ye Chan (UNHCR recognised), were
deported to Mae Sot after one months incarceration. This action by the Thai
authorities put their lives as Burmese dissidents, in grave danger. They
are again in Bangkok and continue to demonstrate. 

Shwe Hla has just recently been released from Bangkok's Central Police
Hospital where he suffered from severe asthma and respiratory problems. He,
reportedly, is fully recovered, but is a long term sufferer of asthma so
some concern remains over his health and well-being.

6. WIN MYINT: UNHCR Non Indo-Chinese number 2093.
Date of detention: 27/6/94 until the present.
Reason for detention: Violating camp rules.

He has been detained for almost three years. He was arrested in the safe
area for fighting with other Burmese. It is widely understood in the camp
that Win Myint suffers from some psychological impairment and that he needs
medical attention for as he sometimes hurts himself. He apparently sleeps
mosts of the time, but then gets aggressive off and on. Burmese in the camp
understand his condition and are concerned for his well-being. He is not
receiving any medical attention in SDC (well- no proper medication etc- I
think they give out paracetemol on a routine basis to placate medical NGO's
etc. The Prison authorities want to release him and return him to the Safe
area but the Camp Commander has said that he will not accept him back.
Actually, the camp commander is not fully empowered to make such decisions
and there is nothing that I can see in the provincial rules governing the
safe area that restrict this guy from entering the Safe Area.

7. SHAR SAN OO: UNHCR Non Indo-Chinese number 4274.
Date of detention: no date of arrest given on documents, entered SDC
9/2/95. Reason for detention: No camp pass.

(SHAR) has been detained almost two years. His case is a strange one. He was
asked in the camp if he had left illegally (without pass) to Bangkok. He
admitted to this being so and he was arrested and sent to the SDC in
Bangkok directly from the Safe Area, WITHOUT being to court. 

8. SAW JOSEPH: UNHCR Non Indo-Chinese number 2068.
Date of detention: 2/96 until the present.
Reason for detention: Violation of camp rules.

Please note that all of the above students have NI numbers and are
considered persons of concern by the United Nations High Commissioner for
Refugees (UNHCR). All are residents of the Burmese Students Area (Safe
Area) in Ratchaburi Province. Safe Area regulations provide for
imprisonment of former students for between 3 and 6 months period- not
longer than this. The Thai authorities actually have no right to detain
them any longer. They should release them as a matter of urgency and
permitted to return to the Safe Area and resume making applications and
arrangement for resettlement to a safe third country.

CONTACTS:
Please send your message of concern via e-mail to: govspkmn@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Send urgent faxes to:
His Excellency Chuan Leekpai, Prime Minister of Thailand 
Fax: +662-2801443; +662-2812536; +662-2825131
Or contact your nearest Thai Embassy and convey the same message.

Please urge the UNHCR, which is mandated to protect those fleeing 
their homeland with well-justified fears for their safety, to do their duty 
by ensuring the well-being of Burmese asylum seekers in Thailand:

Write: 
Protection Officer, Legal Section
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
United Nations Bldg. 3 fl., Rajadamnern Rd.
Bangkok, Thailand 10200
Tel:  +662- 288-1234; Fax: +662- 280-0555

Again, Urgent Faxes and letters  may be sent to;
Justice Ministry, Rachadamnern Nai Road
Pranakorn, Bangkok, Thailand 10200
fax: (+662) 221 3161

Chief Justice
Judicial Building, Rajchadapisek Road
Jatujak, Bangkok 10900
fax: (+662) 541 2303

Chief of Prisons
Nanthaburi Road, Nonthaburi 11000, Thailand.

The Chairperson
Human Rights Committee, Parliament of Thailand
fax: (+662) 244 1625 and 244 1626

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