NEWS Focus - Myanmar Says Nld Tryin

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Focus-Myanmar Says Nld Trying to Provoke Clampdown

            Reuters
            18-SEP-98

            YANGON, Sept 18 (Reuters)- Ten years after seizing power by
            bloodily suppressing a pro-democracy uprising, Myanmar's
ruling
            military accused the opposition on Friday of using a
declaration of a
            de facto parliament to provoke harsh counter-measures. 

            "They are trying to make the government take harsh reaction
against
            them," a spokesman for the ruling military council said. 

            "Only then will they be able to highlight anti-government
moves at the
            U.N. General Assembly that is to take place soon." 

            Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for
            Democracy said on Thursday that a 10-person committee it
formed
            this week would act on behalf of a parliament elected in
1990 but
            never allowed by the military to convene. 

            In what analysts called a largely symbolic but well-timed
challenge, the
            panel named a chairman of parliament and declared laws
introduced
            since the military seized direct control on September 18,
1988, illegal
            unless approved by the body. 

            Yangon residents said there was no sign on Friday of any
military
            move against the NLD leaders who made the declaration. They
said
            the capital was calm with no sign of increased security,
despite the
            anniversary of the takeover. 

            A government statement "noted with interest" the NLD
announcement. 

            "It would be interesting to hear more about how this
committee intends
            to govern," it said, adding that the NLD had never put
forward any
            specific policy ideas. 

            "While the NLD's committee puzzles over these issues, the
current
            government will continue to shoulder the real responsibility
of
            governing Myanmar." 

            The military ignored the 1990 election result when the NLD
won by a
            landslide. It argues that formation of a parliament requires
a
            constitution to replace that it abolished in 1988, when
troops killed
            thousands, according to most independent estimates, to crush
a
            natiowide pro-democracy uprising. 

            A national convention began painfully slow work on a new
basic law in
            1993, but it has been suspended since 1996. 

            The NLD said the parliamentary term would last until a
democratic
            constitution was approved by the parliament. 

            It made its move after the generals responded to its vow to
call a
            "People's Parliament" this month by detaining a large number
of its
            members. 

            The party says that since May, more than 800 of its members,
            including 196 elected representatives, have been detained.
Most have
            been picked up in the past two weeks. 

            "I think this is an act like in a game of chess," Josef
Silverstein, a
            professor at Rutgers University in the United States, said
in a
            telephone interview with Reuters in Bangkok. 

            "The military seized everybody they could and said 'now you
can't hold
            this parliament'. She (Suu Kyi) checks that move by saying
we have
            the proxies. 

            "It's up now to the military to check her again. The
question is are they
            now going to raid her house and arrest her, as in a sense
she seems
            to have outfoxed them once again." 

            Suu Kyi, daughter of Myanmar independence hero Aung San, was
            held under house arrest for six years until 1995. Recent
state media
            commentaries have urged that she be deported. 

            On Sunday, state media warned that NLD deputy leader Tin Oo,
            another member of the party committee, faced possible
arrest, saying
            he had been involved distributing leaflets aimed at sowing
discord in
            the military. 

            Maureen Aung Thwin, Washington-based director of the Burma
            Project of the Soros Foundation's Open Society Institute,
said the
            military would want to avoid criticism at the U.N. session
next week,
            when foreign ministers and other senior leaders deliver
policy
            statements. 

            "My guess is they won't overreact," she said. "In many ways
the NLD's
            timing has been brilliant. I think it's very difficult for
the military to act
            now, but they may decide to crack down again later once
attention is
            elsewhere." 

            The analysts said it was significant the NLD had said that
four ethnic
            minority groups, two of which have agreed ceasefires with
the
            government, had supported its move. 

            "I think what the military fears more than anything else is
an alliance
            between the NLD, which is dominated by ethnic Burmans, and
the
            ethnic minorities," Maureen Aung Thwin said. 

            Silverstein said the NLD action might provide a rallying
point for
            students, who led the 1988 uprising and staged rare protests
late last
            month and early this month.