Myanmar democracy forces defiant on

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Myanmar democracy forces defiant on 10th anniversary of junta takeover

Fri 18 Sep 98 - 10:57 GMT 

YANGON, Sept 18 (AFP) - Ten years after the Myanmar junta seized power and
launched a bloody crackdown on dissent pro-democracy forces remain defiant and
international pressure for change is mounting.

The capital Yangon was quiet Friday on the 10th anniversary of the "coup," but
the opposition has said it plans to convene a parliament in defiance of
government warnings.

Riot police were deployed at strategic locations around the city, as they have
been since the city earlier this month experienced its biggest anti-junta
student protests since universities were closed almost two years ago.

"They are dotted around sensitive places, but are fairly discreet," one
Western diplomat said. 

Exiled MPs from Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for
Democracy (NLD) party said Myanmar was "in a state of emergency" and military
rule was plunging the country deeper into chaos.

They also confirmed the party's intention to convene this month the parliament
elected in 1990 polls, which the NLD swept but the military has refused to
recognise.

"We are very clear about our commitment to the democratic movement and the
NLD's bid to have parliament convened," said NLD MP Tin Tut.

"Ten years after (the junta's) formation, 10 years after they massacred
thousands and (in) 10 years of utter deceit, nothing has changed," he said in
a statement from exile in Australia.

Myanmar's Bangkok-based government-in-exile Friday called on dissatisfied
elements within the armed forces to join with the opposition in its effort to
convene the assembly.

"Now is the most appropriate time for members of the armed forces to become
involved in the effort," the National Coalition Government of the Union of
Burma (NCGUB) statement added.

The junta's anniversary comes a day after the exiled government said the NLD's
plan to convene parliament could split the military and called on the
international community to support the move.

The NCGUB said pressure from the opposition was creating serious cracks within
the armed forces which could lead to the collapse of the junta.

The NLD this week announced the formation of a 10-member representative
committee to convene the national assembly. The junta has meanwhile rounded up
hundreds of democracy advocates in recent days in an effort to
stymie the planned parliament.

Pro-democracy students who fled to Bangkok after the junta's 1988 takeover
also issued a statement supporting the planned parliament, which they
described as "a direct challenge to the generals in Rangoon."

Diplomats in Yangon played down the significance of the anniversary, saying it
may be seen as more important by the military itself than any other parties.

The State Peace and Development Council, which until recently was known as the
State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC), assumed power on September
18, 1988 after months of pro-democracy demonstrations.

The unrest began in March of that year after several students were killed by
riot police and intensified through September as the military cracked down on
protests.

As the demonstrations continued, three heads of state were forced to resign in
quick succession, including Ne Win who had been in power since 1962, in an
effort to quell the uprising. But power remained vested in the military loyal
to the strongman.

On September 18, the military staged a "coup" and established the SLORC,
comprising 19 senior officers loyal to Ne Win. The SLORC immediately clamped
down on the popular movement. 

Estimates of the number killed in the crackdown range into the thousands.

Ne Win ostensibly stepped aside in a bid to placate protestors, but analysts
said 10 years on he still wields great influence in the junta, despite
reportedly suffering ill health.

"You couldn't really say it was a coup," another foreign diplomat in Yangon
said. "We all know it's basically the same players now as in 1988."

                                                                              
          ©AFP 1998

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