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Shan State Offer Help to Plug Flow



SHAN STATE IN BURMA OFFER HELP TO PLUG FLOW OF DRUGS 

No movement of  drugs without the knowledge of the Burmese government and
Khun Sa - says Commander-in-chief of the SSA Colonel Sao Yawdserk 

The Asian Tribune 
October 2 - 8, 1998 
BANGKOK: 

An armed rebel force in Burma?s Shan State has offered a proposal to fully
cooperate with the Thai military to uproot long-standing narcotics in
Slorc-controlled areas - known as the most notorious opium-producing zone
in the world, according to a top leader of Shan State Army (SSA). 

Commander-in-chief of the SSA Colonel Sao Yawdserk told The Asian Tribune
that he sent letters to Prime Minister and Defense Minister Chuan Leekpai
and armed forces' leaders calling for understanding and cooperation. 

He said he has appealed to the world community to observe if the Shan State
is involved in drug trade or poppy cultivation for their livelihood and
conduct studies about the lives of Tai (Shans) peoples as well as providing
assistance for social development. He said the humanitarian issue should be
taken before taking the issue of the Shan State to the United Nations for
consideration of whether or not it should be entitled to its own sovereign
state. 

Endless narcotics and human rights problems could be eradicated as demanded
by the world community if these proposals are positively responded, said
Yawdserk, who headed the resistant movement struggle for an autonomous Shan
State free from Burma. 

Yawdserk, whose minority ethnic group has unilaterally offered the proposal
to Thailand for a joint-military operation to suppress drugs trafficking,
have also strongly accused Burma and defected drug lord Khun Sa as the man
behind the continuation the whole illegal trade. He said the Burmese
government is using it as a political game to fool the world community that
the problem is a creation of the minority groups, who have to be held
accountable for the hard drug flow from the area. 

Col. Yawdserk said the contribution made by the world community be way of
aid given to Burma for drug suppression was not in the right direction
since the Burmese government itself has joined hands with Khun Sa to reap
from the illegal trade. 

Soon after kingpin Khun Sa?s defection to Burmese military regime in
February of 1996, Slorc had turned down a US request to extradite him to
face drug charges in US court. US charged that half of world drug supply
has been from the Golden Triangle Area. 

Khun Sa, a former leader of Shan State?s now-defunct Mong Tai Army, headed
a massive force of his own when defecting to Slorc two year ago. The
incident cause a large number of members of then MTA troops to refuse to
surrender along with him and instead chose to move north from the former
MTA areas along the Thai-Burma border to join other Shan resistant groups
such as the Shan State Army, Shan State National Army. However, they
regrouped themselves into a guerrilla force known as the Shan United
Revolutionary Army (SURA) and later the SSA along for its unity. 

As a forerunner to set up of an efficient operation against rampant drug
trafficking, the SSA leader said he also made a request for provision and
ammunition from the Thai military. He said he urged the Thai side to
cooperate and understand the position of SSA and Shans. He said there
should be a closer relation in the area of information between two sides. 

The Thai side should express sympathy with Shans rather than providing
assistance or cooperation to Burma any more in suppression of the minority
groups, added the guerrilla leader, who accused Burma of breaching 1947
Panglong Agreement detailing that an independent state was promised with a
period of time. 

"I am not a drug smuggler. All my resistance life has been spent solely in
non-commercial affairs. And had I wanted to traffic freely, what is better
than to join hands with Slorc that have accepted to Lo Hsing Han, Khun Sa
and scores of top kingpins among their ranks. "

Today the Slorc is collectively the undisputed "King of Kings" and if they
are still able to fool the rest of the world, we can forget the cause of
democracy and peace." Said Yawdserk in a separate statement, responding to
charges level against his group. 

The colonel also called Thailand to adopt an economic sanction against
Burma for seriously committing human rights, drug offense, rape, torture,
extrajudicial killings and forced relocation of its people in Shan State. 

Commenting on National League for Democracy leader and Peace laureate Aung
San Su Kyi?s fights against the Burmese government, Yawdserk said Su Kyi
could make the country more democratic if her struggle is successful. But
the country will be left with no peace or order unless Shan State conflicts
have been settled. 

The forced relocation, which became a worsening issue is currently carried
out by Slorc, a report recently published by the Shan Human Rights
Foundation (SHRF) said. It showed a total of 80 percent of over 80,000
fleeing into Thailand during the last two years were motivated to return
for forced relocation. Massive Shans were forcibly pushed into strategic
sites, which could be closely guarded and for favorable strategies over
resistant groups. 

Under forced relocation programs, "Four Cuts" operation were aimed at
cutting foods, funds, intelligence and recruits provided by local villagers
to resistance armies. 

The extensive forced relocation begun by Slorc in Central Shan State in
1996 and continuing in an unprecedented scale to this day, the report said. 

The Chiang Mai-based SHRF also called on ASEAN, the United Nations and
other concerned international bodies to pressure the Burmese military
regime to stop the forced relocation program and extrajudicial killings in
Shan State and allowed the Shan villagers to return to their original homes
without further abuses. 

It also calls on the royal Thai government to allow Shans fleeing this
relocation program access to safe refugee in Thailand and the right to
receive humanitarian assistance until such abuses are stopped. 

With the Thai policy to deny Shan safe refugee and the right to receive
humanitarian assistance, Shan refugees have therefore been forced to
survive as illegal immigrants, seeking shelter and food at construction
sites or on farms. 

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S.H.A.N. 
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