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BKK Post, March 8, 1998. GAS PIPELI



March 8, 1998. GAS PIPELINE PROJECT

              Sulak to expose
              PTT's 'lies'

              Blasting Chuan for giving greenlight

              Kanchanaburi

              Prominent social critic Sulak Sivaraksa vowed yesterday he
              would expose in the court how the Petroleum Authority of
              Thailand (PTT) lied about the content of a gas supply contract
              with the Burmese government.

              Mr Sulak, who was arrested with 40 other protesters for
              allegedly obstructing the laying of the gas pipeline, was granted
              bail after he was taken to the provincial court to hear the charges
              of breaching the PTT Act. The campaigner for human rights
              protection in Burma denied all the charges, claiming that he was
              merely protecting national environment.

              The first hearing of the case was set for May 13.

              Mr Sulak spent the night at Thong Pha Phum police station.
              About 100 supporters, including Forum of the Poor leader
              Bamrung Kayotha and Phipob Thongchai, a key opponent of the
              pipeline project, went to the district to give him moral support.

              He refused to get in a police car which would have taken him to
              the court. Instead, he chose to walk for a distance of two
              kilometres, claiming that he wanted an exercise.

              Mr Sulak also heavily criticised Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai
              for allowing the project to go ahead and for complete ignorance
              of human rights abuses in Burma.

              He threatened to fly to the United States "to tell the world" about
              how the government had defied the constitution about human
              rights.

              Meanwhile, about 20 villagers and student activists were
              yesterday temporarily detained by police in Dan Makham Tai
              district for allegedly obstructing the construction work.

              No formal charges were lodged against them.

              In a separate development, the University of Minnesota
              administration announced its decision to offload its last remaining
              shares, valued at US$1.2 million, in French oil company, Total,
              which is operating the gas pipeline project on the Burmese side
              with Unocal, an American oil giant.

              The decision to dump the stock holdings came hours before the
              administration's investment advisory body, the Social Concerns
              Committee, was to pass a resolution calling for complete
              investment withdrawal from Total following pressure from
              students and human rights groups.

              The university's preemptive decision surprised the SCC board
              and student activists since it undercut the need for a resolution.

              However, SCC has redrafted the resolution to ensure that no
              new investment in Total is possible.

              In addition, SCC has been drafting a separate measure to guide
              the university away from investing in other companies still
              operating in Burma or financing the Rangoon military regime.

              The divestment of Total at the University of Minnesota is an
              influential endorsement for a city ordinance in Minneapolis.

              The Minneapolis city council is currently considering a "selective
              purchasing agreement" which would bar the city from contracting
              with any company operating in Burma.