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The BurmaNet News: April 29, 1998



------------------------ BurmaNet ------------------------
"Appropriate Information Technologies, Practical Strategies"
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The BurmaNet News: April 29, 1998
Issue #994

HEADLINES: 
=========== 
ABSDF: MEDIA RELEASE ON AUNG TUN'S ARREST 
ABSDF: MEDIA RELEASE ON DEATH SENTENCES FOR STUDENTS 
UNCHR: ARBITRARY DETENTIONS (BURMA) 
UNCHR: EXECUTIONS (BURMA) 
BKK POST: JAPAN'S EXIM BANK EXTENDS LOAN FOR GAS PROJECT 
THE NATION: CONFUSION OVER ILLEGALS 
BKK POST: JOINT PANEL TO DISCUSS BURMA'S REINFORCEMENTS 
BKK POST (EDITORIAL): A PRIME EXAMPLE OF WHAT MUST STOP 
UPI: BURMESE EXILES MEETING IN CANADA 
BKK POST: ON-LINE ACTIVISTS STEP UP FIGHT
****************************************************************

ALL BURMA STUDENTS' DEMOCRATIC FRONT: MEDIA RELEASE: BURMESE JUNTA
SENTENCES STUDENT LEADER TO 15 YEARS JAIL 27 April, 1998

Burma's ruling State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) sentenced
prominent student leader Aung Tun to 15 years imprisonment in March this
year for writing a history of the Burmese student movement.

Aung Tun, 30, was arrested earlier this year for writing the book and was
charged for violating the 1962 Printing and Publishing Act and Section 5(j)
of the 1950 Emergency Provision Act.

Aung Tun is a Central Executive Committee member of the All Burma
Federation of Student Unions (ABFSU) and wrote the seven-volume history of
the Burmese student movement at the request of his fellow ABFSU student
leaders. He started writing the book soon after he was released from prison
in 1994 and completed it two years later.

Aung Tun was first detained in November 1990 for his political activities
and was given a five-year prison term under Section 5(j) of the 1950
Emergency Provision Act. He was transferred from. Insein Prison to
Thayawaddy Prison in September 1991 and put in solitary confinement for two
years.

Aung Tun is a civil engineering student at Rangoon Institute of Technology
(RIT) and he was actively involved in the August 1988 uprising.

The chairman of the All Burma Federation of Student Unions, Min Ko Naing,
was jailed in 1989 for his role in the 1988 uprising. He is still being
detained in one of the ten special solitary confinement cells within Insein
Prison.

For more information please call 01-654 4984. 
****************************************************************

ALL BURMA STUDENTS' DEMOCRATIC FRONT: MEDIA RELEASE: BURMESE MILITARY
SENTENCES STUDENTS TO DEATH, OTHERS SENTENCED IN CONNECTION WITH DE SOTO VISIT
29 April, 1998 

In early April this year the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC)
handed down death sentences to two student activists who were accused of
subversive activities including an alleged plot to assassinate SPDC leaders.

The two student activists, Ko Thein (a.k.a. Thein Htun) and Khin Hlaing,
were part of a group of about 40 people arrested in connection with the
alleged plot and other political offenses in January 1998. None of the 40
accused were allowed legal representation and the sentences were handed
down by a judge at the Special Court located opposite Insein Prison in
Rangoon.

Ko Thein was accused of being an ABSDF agent and he and Khin Hlaing were
both given the death penalty. People who are handed the death penalty in
Burma are usually hanged. In the judgement the two were also each given a
14-year prison sentence.

The other 38 people arrested in January received from three to 14 years
imprisonment. Set Aung Naing, a leader of the All Burma Federation of
Student Unions (ABFSU), was imprisoned for 14 years for allegedly working
for the Communist Party of Burma (CPB) and carrying out destructive actions
against the State. A group of those arrested were sentenced from three to
seven years for having contact with Set Aung Naing. They are Aung Kyaw
Hein, Thet Naing Oo, Nay Lin Soe, Htun Htun Win and Aung Latt.

Among those sentenced to 14 years imprisonment are U Mya Han (a.k.a. U
Myint Han), Naing Aung (a.k.a. Fighter Aung), Letya Htun, Aung Din, U Han
Win, Daw Khin Myint and Naw Deisar.

According to former political prisoner Moe Aye, the 40 activists were only
engaged in political defiance activities. He says Set Aung Naing, Aung Kyaw
Hein and Nay Lin Soe were arrested for attempting to contact UN Special
Envoy De Soto during his visit to Burma.

"So far as I can tell, these people were arrested not for subversive
actions but for their attempt to hand over a letter to De Soto during his
Burma visit," said Moe Aye. "The letter contained accounts and records
detailing human rights abuses committed by the military."

According to sources, the SPDC detained more 100 politicians, students and
political activists in January this year and accused them of involvement in
various illegal activities at a press conference on 1 March 1998. An
unknown number of those arrested remain in prison awaiting sentencing.

For more information please call 01-654 4984. 
****************************************************************

UNITED NATIONS COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS: EXTRACTS ON BURMA FROM THE 1998
REPORT OF THE WORKING GROUP ON ARBITRARY DETENTION 
11 April, 1998 

Economic and Social Council Distr.
GENERAL  E/CN.4/1998/44 
19 December 1997
Original: ENGLISH/FRENCH/ SPANISH 

COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS
Fifty-fourth session
Item 8 of the provisional agenda 

QUESTION OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS OF ALL PERSONS SUBJECTED TO ANY FORM OF
DETENTION OR IMPRISONMENT 

Report of the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention 

OPINION No. 20/1997 (MYANMAR) 

Communication addressed to the Government on 11 July 1997. 

Concerning: Khin Sint Aung 

Myanmar is not a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political
Rights 

1. The Working Group on Arbitrary Detention was established by resolution
1991/42 of the Commission on Human Rights. The mandate of the Working Group
was clarified and extended by resolution 1997/50. Acting in accordance with
its methods of work, the Working Group forwarded to the Government the
above-mentioned communication. 

2. The Working Group conveys its appreciation to the Government for having
forwarded the requisite information in good time. 

3. The Working Group regards deprivation of liberty as arbitrary in the
following cases: 

I. When it manifestly cannot be justified on any legal basis (such as
continued detention after the sentence has been served or despite an
applicable amnesty act) (category I); 

 II. When the deprivation of liberty is the result of a judgement or
sentence for the exercise of the rights and freedoms proclaimed in articles
7, 13, 14, 18, 19, 20 and 21 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
and also, in respect of States parties, by articles 12, 18, 19, 21, 22, 25,
26 and 27 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
(category II); 

III. When the complete or partial non-observance of the relevant
international standards set forth in the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights and in the relevant international instruments accepted by the States
concerned relating to the right to a fair trial is of such gravity as to
confer on the deprivation of liberty, of whatever kind, an arbitrary
character (category III). 

4. The Working Group, in a spirit of cooperation and coordination, has also
taken into account the report of the Special Rapporteur prepared pursuant
to resolution 1997/64 of the Commission on Human Rights (E/CN.4/1997/64). 

5. In the light of the allegations made the Working Group welcomes the
cooperation of the Government. The Working Group transmitted the reply
provided by the Government to the source and received its comments. The
Working Group believes that it is in a position to render an opinion on the
facts and circumstances of the case, in the context of the allegations made
and the response of the Government thereto, as well as the observations by
the source. 

6. According to the communications received from the sources, a summary of
which was forwarded to the Government, after having been released from
detention under amnesty on 4 February 1995, Khin Sint Aung, aged 61, doctor
and elected member of the National League for Democracy (NLD), was
re-arrested on 23 July 1996 by the Myanmar authorities on charge of recent
activities in support of the opposition. He had been previously arrested on
3 August 1993 and sentenced on 15 October 1993 to 20 years in prison on
charges of destabilizing national unity, printing and publishing material
without official registration and improper use of official secret
documents. Dr. Khin Sint Aung's case had already been transmitted by the
Working Group to the Government in April 1994. The Working Group, by its
Decision No. 13/1994, declared his detention to be arbitrary. His re-arrest
was believed to be related with his membership of the NLD. He was believed
to be currently held in Insein Prison, Rangoon. 

7. In its reply the Government provides the Working Group with details
concerning the charges under which Dr. Aung Khin Sint had been sentenced in
1993 to 20 years' imprisonment. He was convicted under section 5 (j) of the
Emergency Provision Act, under section 17/20 of the Printers and Publishers
Registration Law and under the Burma Official Secrets Act, section 5 (1)
(4). The Government added that Dr. Aung Khin Sint had been granted an
amnesty under section 401 (1) of the Criminal Procedure Code, after he had
given a solemn pledge to the authorities that he would henceforth abide by
the law. But, added the Government, Dr. Aung Khin Sint did not abide by his
solemn pledge and as a consequence, the amnesty extended was revoked and he
resumed serving the remainder of his original sentence. 

8. The source, in its observations to the Government's reply, reiterated
its view that Dr. Aung Khin Sint's detention was based solely on his right
to exercise free expression. The charges against him were believed to be
specifically related to letters he sent out to NLD members during the
January 1993 NLD National Convention. 

9. As indicated by the source, the Working Group, in its Decision No.
13/1994, had already declared the detention of Khin Sint Aung to be
arbitrary. His re-arrest after being released on 23 July 1996 under the
Amnesty Law of 4 February 1995 was motivated, according to the Government,
by the fact that "he did not abide by his solemn pledge"; but the
Government failed to specify in what way Dr. Aung Khin Sint did not abide
by his pledge, what were the activities that led to the revocation of the
amnesty extended to him and in what way they constituted a violation of the
said pledge. 

10. The Working Group deems that the renewed detention of Dr. Aung Khin
Sint, just like the first one that was the subject of Decision No. 13/1994,
is linked to the fact that he peacefully exercised his right to freedom of
opinion and expression, guaranteed by article 19 of the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights. 

11. In the light of the foregoing, the Working Group renders the following
opinion:  

The deprivation of liberty of Khin Sint Aung is arbitrary, as being in
contravention of articles 9 and 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights, and falls within category II of the applicable categories to the
consideration of the cases submitted to the Working Group. 

12. Consequent upon the opinion rendered, the Working Group requests the
Government to take the necessary steps to remedy the situation, and bring
it in conformity with the standards and principles set forth in the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and to take the adequate initiatives
with a view to becoming a State party to the International Covenant on
Civil and Political Rights. 

Adopted on 2 December 1997. 
****************************************************************

UNITED NATIONS COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS: EXTRACTS ON BURMA FROM THE 1998
REPORT OF THE SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR ON EXTRAJUDICIAL, SUMMARY OR ARBITRARY
EXECUTIONS
11 April, 1998

Economic and Social Council  Distr.
GENERAL  E/CN.4/1998/68
23 December 1997
Original: ENGLISH 

COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS 
Fifty-fourth session 
Item 10 of the provisional agenda 

QUESTION OF THE VIOLATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS IN ANY
PART OF THE WORLD, WITH PARTICULAR REFERENCE TO COLONIAL AND OTHER
DEPENDANT COUNTRIES AND TERRITORIES 

Extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions 

Report of the Special Rapporteur, Mr. Bacre Waly Ndiaye, submitted pursuant
to Commission on Human Rights resolution 1997/61 

C. The right to life and mass exoduses 

1....In addition, the Special Rapporteur was informed of violations of the
right to life of refugees from Myanmar in Thailand. According to the source
of the information, attacks by government troops and/or members of the
Democratic Karen Buddhist Army, a Karen militia allegedly backed by the
Government, on several camps of Myanmar refugees in Thailand led to several
deaths. 

 G. Violations of the right to life of persons belonging to national,
ethnic, religious or linguistic minorities

2.In addition, the Special Rapporteur acted on behalf of the following
persons belonging to national, ethnic, religious or linguistic minorities
whose right to life was reportedly violated: .... several persons belonging
to the Karen ethnic minority and 1 person belonging to the Karenni ethnic
minority, all having fled from Myanmar to Thailand; 2 villagers belonging
to the Shan ethnic minority in Myanmar.

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

Economic and Social Council Distr.
GENERAL  E/CN.4/1998/68/Add.1
19 December 1997
ENGLISH  Original: ENGLISH/FRENCH/SPANISH

COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS
Fifty-fourth session 
Item 10 of the provisional agenda 

QUESTION OF THE VIOLATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS IN ANY
PART OF THE WORLD, WITH PARTICULAR REFERENCE TO COLONIAL AND OTHER
DEPENDENT COUNTRIES AND TERRITORIES 

Extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions 

Report of the Special Rapporteur, Mr. Bacre Waly Ndiaye,  submitted
pursuant to Commission on Human Rights resolution 1997/61, Addendum 

Country situations:  Myanmar 

Information received and communications sent 

283. For an in-depth analysis of the human rights situation in the country,
the Special Rapporteur refers to the reports submitted by the Special
Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar to the General
Assembly at its fifty-second session (A/52/484) and to the Commission on
Human Rights at its fifty-fourth session (E/CN.4/1998/50). 

284. The Special Rapporteur transmitted to the Government of Myanmar
allegations regarding the violation of the right to life of the following
persons: 

(a) Reportedly killed by members of the armed forces in attacks on refugee
camps in Thailand: Ei Pyin, Ai Pon and U Baw Ga, in or as a result of the
attack on Karenni refugee camp No. 2 on 3 January 1997; 

(b) Reportedly killed in attacks on refugee camps in Thailand by members of
the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA), a Karen militia group alleged to
be backed by the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC): one
unidentified person, reportedly a Thai trader, during the attack on Don Pa
Kiang refugee camp on 28 January 1997; one unidentified person in the
attack on Hway Kaloke refugee camp on 28 January 1997; Naw Eh G'Lu Pi alias
Maw Ywek Mo, during the attack on Mae La (Beh Klaw) refugee camp on 29
January 1997; 

(c) Reportedly killed by members of the armed forces: Zai Nyunt, a Shan
villager, on 13 November 1996 near Wan Lauy village in Murngkerng township;
and Loong Sa, a Shan villager, on 30 October 1996 in Khai Yern village, Wan
Keng Tract, Murngkerng township. 

Communications received 

285. The Government of Myanmar provided a reply to the allegations
transmitted by the Special Rapporteur during 1997. With regard to the cases
of Ei Pyin, Ai Pon and U Baw Ga, the Government stated that the armed
forces of Myanmar never violated the territorial integrity of the
neighbouring countries. 

286. Regarding the above-mentioned persons who died in attacks by the DKBA
on Karen refugee camps in Thailand, the Government referred to a reply of
13 March 1995 in which it described in some detail the situation prevailing
in certain areas of the Karen state near the border and in particular the
Government's efforts for national reconciliation. The Special Rapporteur
was also informed that the Government cannot be held accountable for the
behaviour and activities of the Karen National Union (KNU) or its splinter
group, the Democratic Kayin Buddhist Organization, armed groups which
remain outside the framework of the law. 

287. The Special Rapporteur was also informed that the other cases were
referred to the authorities in Myanmar (9 July 1997). 

Observations 

288. The Special Rapporteur thanks the Government for the reply but regrets
that it does not address all his concerns. The Special Rapporteur continues
to be distressed by the persistent reports of violations of the right to
life in the context of attacks on refugee camps in Thailand. The Special
Rapporteur urges the authorities to make every effort to ensure that those
responsible for these deaths are brought to justice.
****************************************************************

BANGKOK POST: JAPAN'S EXIM BANK EXTENDS LOAN TO FINANCE BURMA'S GAS PROJECT
29 April, 1998

Loan thought to be about B2,952 million

Tokyo -- Japan's Export-Import Bank said yesterday that it had extended a
loan for an offshore gas project in Burma.

A bank spokesman declined to disclose the specific amount of money advanced
to a Japanese joint venture, Nippon Oil Exploration (Myanmar) Ltd, which is
developing the Burmese gas field, but said it was between five billion and
10 billion yen (2,952 million baht).

A Foreign Ministry official said Japan was aiming to promote democracy in
the country by helping Burma's integration into the international community.

The United States prohibits US firms from making fresh investment in Burma
to protest against political repression by the government.

"Myanmar put itself in near isolation from the rest of the world for 26
years from 1962 to 1988. Isolation tactics are not likely to work on that
type of country," the official said.

Nippon Oil Exploration, equally owned by Nippon Oil Co Ltd and Japan
National Oil Corp (JNOC), holds a 17.2% stake in the Yetagun field, located
in the Gulf of Martaban in the Andaman Sea, within Burma's territorial
waters. 

Other stake holders in the project are PTT Exploration and Production Plc
(PTTEP) (14.2%), Premier Petroleum Myanmar Ltd (32.3%) and Petronas
Carigali Sdn Bhd (36.3%).

PTTEP is a unit of state-run Petroleum Authority of Thailand, while Premier
and Petronas Carigali are subsidiaries of the UK-based Premier Oil Plc and
Malaysia's state-run Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas), respectively.

Commercial production at the field is scheduled to start in early 2000, and
the entire output from the field, expected to total 200 million cubic feet
a day, will be sent to Thailand for thermal power production, a JNOC
spokesman said.

US oil major Texaco Inc sold its 42.9% share in the project after coming
under public pressure to withdraw from Burma because of the country's human
rights record, analysts said.

Texaco said the decision, which came soon after Washington announced
sanctions last year, was based on financial rather than political reasons.
****************************************************************

THE NATION: CONFUSION OVER ILLEGALS 
29 April, 1998 
By Piyanart Srivalo

The weekly meeting of the Chuan Cabinet briefly plunged into disarray
yesterday as ministers were left bemused and undecided by the ambiguity of
the Labour Ministry's policy on illegal foreign labour.

The confusion arose from the ministry's request for a Cabinet approval
yesterday to relax the repatriation of illegal immigrants employed in 13
provinces bordering Burma, Laos and Cambodia and in 23 other provinces
dependent on the fishing industry.

The ministry had earlier announced that the labourers would be forced out
by May 1.

Labour Minister Trairong Suwankhiri, who first declared his tough expulsion
policy and later retracted it by proposing the leniency, was absent
yesterday, being on a visit to Vietnam.

His deputy Jongchai Thiangtham failed to answer a barrage of questions from
confused fellow Cabinet ministers about the ambiguity of the ministry's
policy, prompting Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai to intervene by asking for
more information from concerned officials, an informed Government House
source said.

Chuan himself, the source said, told the meeting that he was worried about
the policy change since it was tabled only two days before the deadline for
the originally-planned repatriation on May 1.

The meeting finally agreed to defer taking a decision on the Labour
Ministry's proposed leniency after two-and-a-half hours of confusion and
referred the matter back to the subcommittee studying solutions to the
illegal labour problem, the source said.

The source said any decision announced by the sub-committee by May 1 will
immediately take effect without having to be forwarded to the Cabinet for
approval.

The Cabinet yesterday also appointed three more members to the
subcommittee, Vice Deputy Prime Minister Panja Kesornthong, Deputy Prime
Minister Suwit Khunkitti and National Security Council Secretary-General
Col Boonsak Kamhaengritthirong.

The same source said that the Labour Ministry's policy to repatriate
illegal foreign labourers was questioned by Cabinet ministers who are MPs
representing provinces where many of the immigrants are employed.

Deputy Agriculture Minister Newin Chidchob quizzed Jongchai as to why
northeastern border provinces like Si Sa Ket and Buri Ram were not included
in the leniency list and noted that there were many illegal immigrants
working in rock-grinding plants in those provinces and elsewhere, the
source said.

Before leaving for Vietnam yesterday, Trairong, in a clear reversal of his
earlier stand that some one million illegal labourers in Thailand must be
expelled by May 1, said it is impossible to push back all of them "in one
day".

"The repatriation will take time. We also have to ponder on who will
replace some 70,000 foreign labourers in the fishing industry. Sudden
massive expulsion will cause serious damage," he said. However, he said,
police will begin arresting illegal immigrants working at factories
nationwide as originally planned.

Trairong earlier said that Thailand would have to expel the illegal foreign
labourers and replace them with jobless Thais to help cushion the impact on
the native population.

Immigration Police Bureau Commissioner Pol Lt Gen Chidchai Wannasathit said
yesterday police will start an intensive crackdown on illegal labourers in
27 provinces first. As of yesterday, about 100,000 illegal immigrants have
been sent home, he said.
****************************************************************

BANGKOK POST: JOINT PANEL TO DISCUSS BURMA'S REINFORCEMENTS ALONG SAI RIVER
29 April, 1998
By Teerawat Khumtita in Chiang Rai

Security move blocks at least four passes

Burma's recent security beef-up along the Sai river opposite Mae Sai
district which has affected cross-border transport will be discussed at
tomorrow's Thai-Burmese Border Committee meeting.

Maj-Gen Picharnmeth Muangmanee, the Chiang Rai Military District commander
who chairs the TBC's military sub-committee, said yesterday Thai and
Burmese representatives would discuss border problems as well as the issue
of Burmese refugees in Thailand at tomorrow's meeting in Burma's Tachilek.

Thai authorities would also raise for discussion Burma's April 5-23
military reinforcements along the Sai river which had practically shut down
at least four border passes in Mae Sai, he added.

Local people believed Burma's action resulted from the murder of a Burmese
businessman in Tachilek by a gunman suspected to be from Thailand.

Mae Sai district chief Thavorn Cherdphan, a TBC member, said Thai and
Burmese representatives should discuss the problem at tomorrow's meeting to
prevent any misunderstanding between Thai and Burmese.

Meanwhile, the cabinet yesterday approved in principle a US proposal to set
up a landmine disposal and training centre in Thailand to remove all
landmines along its borders, government sources said.

The cabinet approved the proposal which was first raised by the US embassy
to the Foreign Ministry on February 2.

The proposal, which involves setting up a landmine disposal and training
centre in Thailand with US financial and technical assistance, was
discussed by Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai during his official US visit on
March 11-17.

Thailand must now acknowledge its interest in the centre to the US
government and put in an official request for assistance, said sources at
Government House.

Landmines, one of the most widespread weapons used in the Cambodian civil
war, continue to pose a hazard to Thai farmers and traders living along the
Thai-Cambodian border.
****************************************************************

BANGKOK POST EDITORIAL: A PRIME EXAMPLE OF WHAT MUST STOP 
29 April, 1998

Thailand for too long has allowed the powerful and the influential, and
those who can call on their aid, to ride roughshod over the rest of the
community and the natural environment. The latest example to come to the
public attention is the pollution of an important water source in
Kanchanaburi province.

Before the installation of a lead extraction facility in a Kanchanaburi
forest about two decades ago, Klity creek ran crystal clear all year round.
It provided water for consumption and agriculture for a few hundred
indigenous Karens who had been living in the forest peacefully and in
harmony with nature for generations. But not any more.

For years now, probably even from the start of operations, the plant, which
uses chemicals to extract lead from ore brought in from elsewhere, has been
discharging lead-contaminated effluence into Klity creek. The Karen people,
who are naturally peace-loving and docile, barely uttered a complaint to
the authorities. They confronted the threat with grace and tolerance.

But a few years ago they began witnessing their cattle die one after the
other after having drunk water from the creek, water which had taken on a
reddish tint, was smelly and was covered with rust-coloured scum most of
the time. It was then they decided enough was enough. Complaints were
lodged with the authorities through environment-related NGOs only to
receive a knee-jerk response. The plant's operations were suspended only to
be reopened soon afterwards on the basis that work had been done to prevent
the toxic effluence from escaping into the environment.

But really nothing was done to improve the situation. And the authorities,
in this case the Natural Resources Department, did not bother to find out
if the problem had been remedied.

It is simply beyond our comprehension how such a facility which represents
a health-threatening hazard can continue to operate despite a report by the
National Environment Board (NEB) in 1989 which indicated the plant did not
have the facilities to treat the lead-contaminated water. There is reported
to be a single pond without the capacity to store the discharge that often
overflows and finds its way into Klity creek, which flows into Tham Lam Ngu
stream and then into the reservoir of Sri Nakharin dam.

How much lead has flowed into the reservoir and Kwae Noi River, which is
the source of tap water to Kanchanaburi inhabitants? How much lead has
found its way into the food chain? We can never know the answer to either
question. But if the NEB report in 1989 pointing out that the lead content
in water near the facility was 700-2,000 times beyond the safety level is
any indication, then the prospects are worrying indeed.

If the lead extraction facility poses an immediate health hazard to the
Karen people at Lower Klity village and those who rely on water from the
reservoir for consumption, then a similar threat faces the flora and fauna
of Thung Yai Narasuan wildlife sanctuary from lead mining, carried out by
the same family that operates the extraction plant, near the sanctuary's
perimeter. Lead-contaminated water from the open pit is allowed to flow
unrestricted into the sanctuary. It is only a matter of time before we hear
reports of animals killed by lead poisoning similar to the Karens' dead
cattle.

Although no one in Kanchanaburi has died yet of lead poisoning, this is no
excuse for complacency on behalf of authorities such as the Natural
Resources Department and the Science Ministry. Tough action must be taken
against the company operating the lead extraction facility on the grounds
of gross irresponsibility and its total disregard of the law and the safety
of the people.

The problem with this country is that many people make a mockery of the law
by causing trouble and harm to many other people and then manage to escape
with impunity.
****************************************************************

UPI: BURMESE EXILES MEETING IN CANADA
24 April, 1998

Ottawa -- Members of the Burmese provisional government are meeting in
Ottawa for a conference focusing on human rights  violations in Burma and
ways to bring international pressure on the  military rulers.

The conference brings together Burmese leaders living in exile in the
United States, Europe, India, Bangladesh and Thailand.

An Ottawa-based watchdog group for human rights in Burma, the Canadian
Friends of Burma, organized the meeting.

A spokeswomen for the group, Christine Harmston, says the conference is
being attended by provisional Prime Minister Sein Win and several  members
of Parliament elected in 1990.

They belong to the National League for Democracy that swept 83 percent of
the seats in the 1990 election. But they never took power, after the
military thousands of pro-democracy demonstrators.

Party leader Aung San Suu Kyi lives under house arrest in the capital
Rangoon. Several members of the provisional government are currently based
in Washington.

The Ottawa conference, scheduled for Saturday through Monday, is the first
in Canada, and Harmston calls it a strategy meeting to look at the
situation in Burma and find means of introducing democracy there.

The provisional government wants more international support for pressure on
the military rulers.

So far economic pressure from the United States, Canada and the European
Union has made little headway in loosening the junta's grip on power.

Harmston says the United Nations has done little, because of China's
influence in the Security Council.

She says Beijing ``has a vested interest'' in supporting the military
rulers, and there is ``anxiety in Asia now because of China's growing
presence in Burma.''
****************************************************************

BANGKOK POST: ON-LINE ACTIVISTS STEP UP FIGHT
29 April, 1998 
By Peter Eng, Bangkok

Dissidence is no longer a ragtag endeavour. Today's opponents of autocratic
regimes are making good use of cyberspace. 

Once cornered in malarial jungles, dark prisons and lonely exile, Southeast
Asian dissidents armed with computers and modems are winning skirmishes as
they marshal the border-breaching Internet against autocratic regimes. 

Government clampdowns on the mainstream media can no longer silence
critics: news and vitriol zipping in via cyberspace are adding fuel to the
social unrest that has buffeted the region in recent months.

After having rattled Burma's military government, activists are using the
World Wide Web and electronic mail against Indonesia's President Suharto,
Cambodia's Hun Sen, and the rulers of Vietnam, one of the world's last
communist regimes.

They have raised the issues higher on the international agenda and forced
countries to give greater weight to human rights and democracy concerns
when dealing with these governments. It no longer makes any difference that
the activists are scattered worldwide.

"Before, Burmese expatriates remained isolated from one another," said
Zarni, a leading Burmese activist. "The Internet has not only enabled us to
share information, advise one another and coordinate action, but also has
been a shot in the arm psychologically. No feeling is more powerful than to
know that you are not alone in your fight for justice."

With anti-government street protests rocking Indonesia, opposition parties,
students, journalists, and non-government groups have been busy -posting
news and spreading their views on the most important Indonesia-related
list, INDONESIA-L (http://www.indopubs.com/archives). They include the
People's Democratic Party, which fled underground after the government
blamed it for riots last year and arrested its main leaders.

Up through the formation of, Mr Suharto's new cabinet in mid-March, an
average of 130,000 people a day were reading INDONESIA-L, compared with a
previous high of 100,000, said John MacDougall, who maintains the list from
the United States. The number of Indonesian readers inside Indonesia has
been growing vastly, he said.

"Posters [to the list] often compare Indonesia to the Titanic: Suharto is
taking Indonesia down with him," said Mr MacDougall.

"Posters are more fearful than ever," he said. "That's understandable,
given some of the new themes of the posters, such as very explicit,
thorough criticism of Suharto and his family, the rejection of the
legitimacy of Suharto's re-election as president, and the open mockery of
Vice-President Habibie and the new cabinet. There are very few
pro-government posters any more. Emotions and worries for country, families
and selves are running very high.

"Many INDONESIA-L posting get printed out, reproduced and distributed in
large quantities, bringing the reach of the Net far beyond the middle-class
elite which can afford computers. Postings get read by Indonesian
ministers, military officers and diplomats. Some rely on it for 'inside'
information."

Internet lists maintained inside Indonesia have proliferated, along with
new on-line magazines with names like X-Pos. Dissident voices travel
nationwide since Internet service providers now exist in every province in
Indonesia, including insurgency plagued East Timor and Irian Jaya.

In Cambodia, the first provider started up only last year, a welcome
development for dissidents since Hun Sen's formerly communist party now
controls all broadcast media, and has threatened the few opposition
newspapers.

Activists rushed on-line after Hun Sen ousted his co-prime minister, Prince
Norodom Ranariddh, in a bloody coup last July. While Hun Sen's army
overpowers the resistance's few troops, many resistance supporters are
Western-educated and versed in the new technology.

After fleeing abroad, the opposition politicians kept their voices heard,
on,-line. Activists organised worldwide demonstrations against Hun Sen.
Now, with most of the politicians back in Phnom Penh, the activists are
maintaining pressure on Hun Sen to hold a free and fair election in July.

Much of the campaign rallies around top dissident Sam Rainsy. The home page
of a US branch of his party (http://www.kreative.net/knp) reports on the
struggle of the "Cambodian People vs Saddam HunSen".

It casts fire-and-brimstone vitriol at Hun Sen, also termed "Pol Pot Number
Two", and contains graphic photographs of people murdered by his security
forces. On-line Cambodians in France, Australia and Thailand also spread
Sam Rainsy's message, and now people inside Cambodia have joined in.

Through the Internet, Sam Rainsy supporters also have publicised the
demonstrations in Phnom Penh by thousands of unionised garment workers who
say they are being abused by factory owners with the tacit support of Hun
Sen's party.

In Vietnam, the government wavered for many months before finally allowing
the first Internet service providers to start up last December. It worried
about Vietnamese exiles fomenting political instability, especially as
people inside the country have stepped up the challenge to the Communist
Party over the past year.

Just as other Internet activists have turned Burma into "the South Africa
of the 1990s", the exiles are trying to turn Vietnam into another Eastern
Europe.

When prominent figures in Vietnam including retired Gen Tran Do and
mathematician Phan Dinh Dieu wrote recently to the party urging it to
pursue democratic reforms, the exile groups triumphantly put the full texts
on-line. When thousands of villagers in Thai Binh province demonstrated
against corruption by officials, Vietnamese state-controlled media stayed
silent for months. But on-line activists quickly broadcast detailed
accounts that were spiced with mockery of the media's silence.

Many of these accounts were posted by-Vietnam Insight
(http:l/www.vinsight.org/), a US-based group sponsored by the National
United Front for the Liberation of Vietnam, which in turn was founded by a
former admiral of the South Vietnam government that the communists defeated
in 1975.

"Our service reaches and is sought by Hanoi's officials and offices both at
home and abroad," said Vietnam Insight's editor, Mrs Chan Tran. "Among many
of them, we believe, are dissident members who want to reach out. People in
Vietnam download en masse the information on our web pages. People in
Vietnam e-mail and ask us questions. We also reach Vietnamese students sent
abroad by the Hanoi regime."

In moments of doubt, activists can draw reassurance from the campaign
against the generals of Burma, who have been blamed for widespread human
rights abuses. In just a couple of years, Internet activists have turned an
obscure, backwater conflict into an international issue and helped make
Rangoon one of the world's most vilified regimes.

By using the Internet to rally around pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi
and to organise worldwide protests and consumer boycotts, the activists
have twisted the arms of many institutions dealing with Burma.

Last year, the United States and Canada imposed economic sanctions on
Burma. Many US local governments have restricted business with companies
that invest in Burma. Leading US companies including PepsiCo and Apple
Computer have pulled out of the country, as have European giants including
Heineken, and Carlsberg.

The spearhead is the Free Burma Coalition (http :/lwwwfreeburma.org); now
one of the world's largest on-line human rights campaigns, it groups
activists at over 100 educational institutions in North America and people
in 26 other countries. The coalition was founded in 1995 by Zarni, a
Burmese activist who is studying at an American university, and it grew
quickly.

"People downloaded campaign posters and ready-made flyers from the site,"
said Zarni. "The site also served as a 24-hour recruiting centre. During
the past three years, there has not been a single day when no one
subscribed to the Free Burma Coalition list server or offered to help with
the campaign."

In Burma, the unauthorised possession of a computer with networking
capability is a crime punishable by seven to 15 years, imprisonment. But
the government itself is starting to use the Internet to fight back at its
critics on the Internet.

Rangoon frequently dials up the Burmanet news mailing list that was created
by anti-Rangoon activists. Hiding behind pen names and using cryptic,
formalistic language, officials including diplomats at Burma's embassy in
Washington post attacks on their critics along with articles from the
Burmese state media glorifying the military. Then there's the official
Myanmar Home Page (http://www. myanmar.com), which describes a "Goldenland"
of tourist attractions and business opportunities.

Last December, Hun Sen's Cambodian People's Party launched a home page
(http://wwwcpp.com.kh or via http/lwww.cppusa.net) which aims, as it says,
"to refute liberalism and its allies in the media using the facts of the
issues rather than deception".

The site contains lengthy attempts to justify the coup, and in an attempt
to soften Hun Sen's image, offers photographs of him sitting on a mat with
elderly villagers, and happily clutching a giggling schoolgirl.

The cyberspace struggle is set to expand. Governments battered by the
regional economic turmoil feel they have little choice but to count on
information technology to drive economic growth in the next century.

The number of Internet users in Asia will rise by 63 percent during the
1995 to 2001 period, says a research firm, the International Data Corp
Asia-Pacific.

Malaysia has deferred other mega-projects to save money, but gays it still
will invest US$10 billion (400 billion baht) into the Multimedia Super
Corridor for high-technology industries.

To lure the multinationals, the government has guaranteed uncensored
Internet access. In a country where the authorities have emasculated the
traditional media, the Internet may give a new weapon to those opposed to
Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad. 

Peter Eng has covered Southeast Asia since the mid-1980s 
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