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Burma junta lifts arrest rate



Burma junta lifts arrest rate 

By RON CORBEN		

11 September 1998		

THE Burmese junta's latest sweep of terror to thwart opposition leader Aung
San Suu Kyi's call to convene parliament was set to continue, opposition
sources said. 
The warning came as the numbers arrested from Ms Suu Kyi's National League
for Democracy continued to rise yesterday to more than 320 supporters and
parliamentarians. 
All Burma Students Democratic Front (ABSDF) spokesman Aung Naing Oo said
pressure was set to continue, including the arrests of students. 
"Given the current tension in the country, more arrests are expected.
However, despite the crackdown, more student demonstrations are expected to
take place," Mr Naing Oo said. 
The move to convene parliament from the May 1990 elections, in which the
NLD won a landslide, is an effort by the party to break the political
impasse which has gripped the country over the past eight years. 
The NLD said the numbers of supporters detained had climbed to 328 since
Sunday when the junta began its strategy, often swooping at night to take
NLD members from their homes to government guest houses. 
Mr Naing Oo estimated that since May up to 900 people have been arrested,
including NLD supporters, as well as those from Burma's ethnic minorities,
students and Buddhist monks. 
NLD vice-chairman Tin Oo said 187 members of parliament were among those
arrested and also members of political parties representing some ethnic
groups, such as the Shan and the Rakhines. Ms Suu Kyi has not been seen in
public since the arrests began. Her movements are restricted by the
military government. 
The ABSDF accused the junta of using Burmese Red Cross officials and
members in the latest crackdown. 
"The Red Cross (is) used to . . . control small crowds and monitor the
situation," he told The Australian. 
The junta has been widely criticised earlier in the week by the
international community over the arrests and harrassment of the NLD. 
British Foreign Office Minister Derek Fatchett said Britain and the
European Union were considering a visit by representatives to Rangoon to
meet with Ms Suu Kyi, secretary-general of the NLD. 
The NLD said the latest detentions had taken the arrest toll to 521 party
members since May. 

[The Australian, 11 September 1998]

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