NEWS - UN Help Sought on Myanmar Go

[TheTruth@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]

NOTE: Suu Kyi is not the one causing problems within Burma.  The
military since before 1962 has had its own plans.  Its so called
governing practices don't work. The economy would be better if the
military would stop growing in size (1988 - approx. 200,000 troops /
1997 - 500,000 troops) and purchasing more weapons to kill and harass
the 135 groups within the region of Burma.  
  Since the military dissolved the pariliament and constitution in 1962,
they have NO LEGAL CONTROL OR AUTHORITY over the other groups.


UN Help Sought on Myanmar Govt, Suu Kyi Deadlock

            Reuters
            31-JUL-98

            YANGON, July 31 (Reuters)- The United States and Australia
asked U.N. Secretary
            General Kofi Annan on Friday to push Myanmar's military to
begin a dialogue with
            opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi as state media accused
her of being a
            trouble-making foreign agent. 

            U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright told Reuters that
the two countries had
            asked Kofi Annan to personally intervene in Myanmar after
the military forcibly
            ended a sit-in protest by Suu Kyi. 

            Albright said she and Australian Foreign Minister Alexander
Downer had ``urged''
            Annan to become ``personally involved'' in the effort to
persuade the country's
            military leaders to open a dialogue with Suu Kyi's National
League for Democracy
            party. 

            Annan had agreed to ``take a very careful look'' at the
proposal and talk with the two
            ministers again shortly, she added. ``We think increasing
international
            pressure...and our pushing for a dialogue is a way to
proceed,'' she said. 

            A government statement said Myanmar would not be ready to
meet Suu Kyi's
            demand for freedom to exercise political rights until the
unity of the 135 ethnic
            groups in the nation became stronger and people's basic
needs were met. 

            ``It is unrealistic for other nations to force Myanmar to be
at par with them in giving
            their citizens political rights...,'' the statement obtained
by Reuters added. 

            In Yangon, The New Light of Myanmar newspaper accused Suu
Kyi of being paid by
            Britain and the United States to destroy the country with
her campaigns. 

            ``Have the people noticed that the daughter of (independence
leader) Thakin Aung
            San is doing paid jobs as assigned by the British and the
U.S.?,'' it said in a
            front-page commentary entitled ``Hands off our nation.'' 

            ``It is totally unacceptable to us. We cannot allow the
entire people to be enslaved.''

            Suu Kyi was forcibly removed from her car on Wednesday night
by security men at
            a bridge near a village in the outskirts of Yangon and sent
back to her home in
            Yangon. 

            The Nobel peace prize winner had been blocked at the bridge
last Friday and
            prevented from going to the western township of Pathein to
meet supporters. But
            she refused to budge. 

            A weary Suu Kyi sent word to a news conference held by her
National League for
            Democracy (NLD) party on Thursday that she would go out
again as soon as she
            was well enough to travel. 

            The NLD said that her abduction was a criminal act but the
government has said it
            acted on her doctor's advice. 

            Diplomats and analysts said they were waiting for her next
move, although some
            believed that the military would tighten control over her
movements after the latest
            incident. 

            They said that with the approach of the tenth anniversary of
the August 8 1988
            pro-democracy student uprising which the military crushed,
the government would
            tighten the net around Suu Kyi. 

            ``They have completely sealed off entry to University Avenue
(where Suu Kyi lives)
            which was only partially closed before,'' said a
Yangon-based diplomat. 

            Witnesses said earlier on Friday that about 100 Suu Kyi
supporters had gone to
            University Avenue and sought permission at a check point to
visit her. But security
            men refused permission and they later left the area. 

            Although there was speculation that the military had
increased security presence in
            the capital, witnesses and some diplomats said Yangon
streets appeared normal. 

            ``But we heard that barricades have been placed on sides of
streets away from
            public eye for use in emergency,'' another diplomat said. 

            Diplomats said they also expected tension to escalate in
advance of the August 21
            deadline set by the NLD for convening of a parliament
comprising elected
            representatives from the May 1990 election, which the NLD
swept but was ignored
            by the military. 

            The government has rejected the demand to convene parliament
and said that the
            drafting of a new national constitution, which has already
been delayed for some
            time, must be completed first. 

            ``We don't think anything untoward will happen, but the
military is cautious and will
            take steps to maintain order,'' said a diplomat. 

            Another diplomat said: ``Suu Kyi will keep momentum as long
as the government
            rejects her call to convene parliament. I think she may rest
for some weeks in her
            house before making another moves.'' 

            The commentary in the state media said that ``the British
Broadcasting Corporation
            (BBC) from Britain is giving signals to Myanmar people to
start nation-wide riots and
            uprisings.'' 

            ``The people of Myanmar are no longer naive these days. They
are well aware of the
            fact that commodity prices will skyrocket once riots break
out,'' it said. 

            ``Hence nothing will happen on 8-8-98,'' it added. 

            Separately, the powerful Secretary One of the ruling State
Peace and Development
            Council (SPDC), Lieutenant General Khin Nyunt, scolded the
opposition and foreign
            media for what he said was false news being floated to
create disturbances in
            Myanmar.