The BurmaNet News: January 6, 1999

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The BurmaNet News: January 6, 1999
Issue #1179

Noted in Passing: "The Chilton Park delegates act as though the military
rulers
were rational, reasonable and humane and could be reasoned with.  Sadly they
are not." - Josef Silverstein (see THE NATION: THERE MUST BE A DIALOGUE
BETWEEN
EQUALS IN BURMA) 

HEADLINES:
==========
THE NATION: THERE MUST BE A DIALOGUE BETWEEN EQUALS 
THE NATION: NLD AIDS POOR ON INDEPENDENCE DAY 
REUTERS: MYANMAR REOPENS CLOSED MEDICAL INSTITUTES 
XINHUA: JAPAN TO IMPLEMENT TWO TECHNICAL PROGRAMS 
THE NATION: "GROUND RULES" NEEDED FOR INTERACTION 
MSNBC: HASTERT'S TRIP TO MYANMAR QUESTIONED 
ANNOUNCEMENT: OSI SCHOLARSHIPS IN AUSTRALIA 
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THE NATION: THERE MUST BE A DIALOGUE BETWEEN EQUALS IN BURMA 
5 January, 1999 by Josef Silverstein 

ARE WORLD LEADERS LOOKING IN THE RIGHT PLACES?

If the meeting on Burma at Chilton Park on Oct 12-13 was intended to be
secret,
much of what took place and was said has leaked out. Officials from leading
countries in Europe, America and Asia sought to find new approaches because
those employed for the past decade were said to have failed. Demands
originating in the West called for the restoration of democracy,
recognition of
the 1990 election and the rights of the people to enjoy universal human
rights.

So long as the military rulers continue to ignore or refuse to comply with the
demands, Burma faces economic measures which, though intended to squeeze the
rulers, fall heavily upon the people. Those originating in the East,
especially
the nations of Asean, with their emphasis upon constructive engagement,
investment and aid as the vehicles for political change through economic
development, have done no better.

If neither the "carrots and sticks" of the West nor the "carrots" of the East
have worked, what, if anything, will?

Does anyone really believe that a financial carrot without a requirement for
something more than undefined political dialogue between the State Peace and
Development Council and the National League for Democracy will work better? In
exchange for a reported offer of US$1 billion, the soldier-dictators are being
asked to begin talks with the leaders of the NLD, the party which won the 1990
election but has not been allowed to form a government, release all political
prisoners and give Aung San Suu Kyi and the other leaders of the NLD
freedom to
move about and presumably meet members of their party and the people
generally.
Where are these steps supposed to lead?

Surely no one can believe that this offer will do anything except solidify the
power and position of the military rulers. There is no indication that the end
product will be the restoration of democracy, civilian government and the rule
of law. In fact from the information available there is no end product.

What can the democratic leaders of the NLD and the people look forward to in
this arrangement? What role, if any, do the Chilton Park negotiators plan to
play in the restoration of democracy, political and human rights and
freedom to
the people? Will they take a stand and demand that all schools and
universities
be permanently reopened so that real education can be resumed? And will they
assure the people that the future constitution of Burma will be a product they
produce and not one imposed upon them by the military?

What is the money for? To buy more weapons? To build more jails? To enrich the
military rulers and their civilian cronies?

PRIVATE DEAL

If what we hear is true, that there is agreement on the package and it soon
will be carried to Rangoon by de Soto as a private deal made over the heads of
the Burmese people and their elected leaders and against the unanimous
resolutions passed this and past years by the Commission on Human Rights and
the General Assembly, the golden carrot will only strengthen, enrich and
prolong military rule and provide neither nourishment nor hope to the people
who have suffered for so long. On one thing the. Chilton Park participants are
right: there is a need for new thinking and new tactics by the international
community.

The Chilton Park delegates were right in recognising that if change is to come
to Burma it must begin with a dialogue, but they were wrong to believe that
such a dialogue should be carried on only between the soldier-rulers and the
NLD leaders. Even a casual reading of Burma's last half-century of history as
an independent nation will show that at the heart of the nation's disunity is
the failure of governments past and present to face clearly and openly the
question of what needs to be done to achieve national unity amongst all the
people, Burmans and non-Burmans.

Aung San and the leaders of the AFPFL, who shared his vision of a united
Burma,
offered equality to the minorities and the right to preserve and protect their
cultures, religions, languages and traditions through local autonomy in
exchange for joining the Burmans in forming a union to which they would give
their political loyalty. A careful study of the rebellions that followed
independence will reveal that most were based on evidence and beliefs that
neither the letter of Aung San's promises was inscribed in the constitution
nor
the spirit of them carried out by the political and military leaders who
followed him.

PERMANENT PEACE

Today there can be no lasting solution to Burma's problem of national unity
unless and until the leaders of the minorities are included from the beginning
in any discussions of how to find permanent peace in the country. The
minorities have been studying for more than a decade the problems of union and
why the unions or federal structures of the past did not work. Today they know
what they want and what they will not accept. They are ready to participate
fully in any discussions which address the central problems and seek to
identify principles upon which a new and lasting union can be built.

The first step to peace and unity in Burma is to call a congress of the
Burmese
military rulers, the NLD leaders and the ethnic-minority leaders, both those
who remain in open revolt and those who have accepted the Slorc/SPDC
ceasefires. The meeting or meetings must take place outside Burma in the first
instance so that all delegates come as equals and no one group is in a
position
to intimidate the others.

The role of the international leaders should be something akin to that of the
Indonesian-hosted "cocktail party" which initially brought together the
leaders
of the various Cambodian factions. The originality of that idea and its
ultimate success stem from the fact that the host invited representatives of
all groups, not just some as implied in the Chilton Park plan. They came as
equals and not as rulers and ruled: thus there was no impediment for anyone to
talk to anyone else. Finally there was no agenda and thus no limit to the
subjects which could be raised and the manner of discussion. It was a
confidence- building exercise that led eventually to a situation where other
nations and the United Nations could enter and play a role to end the wars and
disunity in that country.

Today there is no trust in Burma between any two or more individuals or
groups.
The military rulers have seen to that: spying, informing and betraying are
everywhere, both inside of Burma and in the world beyond. When in the past
discussions have been held between Slorc/SPDC and the NLD or the ethnic
minorities, it has always been on the terms of the rulers who hold the weapons
and impose the rules and not on the basis of equals looking honestly for
solutions to problems which divide them. It is little wonder that no
discussions of the fundamental issues have taken place and are unlikely to
take
place in the near future unless the international community takes a hand. The
Chilton Park delegates would learn a great deal about the military rulers' way
of conducting talks by studying the process they imposed upon the National
Convention.

There is a second lesson to be learned from the Indonesian-led Cambodian
talks.
There was no money offered up front. Principles and issues were discussed, not
how many dollars it would take to bribe the power-holders. Burma needs
financial help - no one denies that - but that is a secondary question in a
nation which is divided and at war with itself.

Aung San Suu Kyi and the NLD leaders are on record for such a tripartite
dialogue. The Karen and other minority leaders have also called for such
talks-
only the military rulers say no. They believe that eventually they will
destroy
or neutralise all internal opposition and impose their will without
resistance.
They believe they can ignore the resolutions and information about their
crimes
and abuses which have been documented by international bodies,
non-governmental
organisations and individual governments which have studied the local
situation. All this evidence has been laid before the General Assembly, the
Commission on Human Rights and the International Labour Organisation. Despite
this, the Chilton Park delegates act as though the military rulers were
rational, reasonable and humane and could be reasoned with.

Sadly they are not. Sadly too there are international businesses,
organisations
and spokesmen ready to defend and enrich the Slorc/SPDC members in exchange
for
economic benefits which will not help the people or the nation until there is
real political change.

If financial aid is to be given on a massive scale to Burma, it should be
withheld until a constitution written by the people's representatives is in
place, a government which respects the law is in power, an independent
judiciary is established to hear and judge disputes between citizens and their
government and between citizens and the military is returned permanently to
the
barracks.

Yes, a dialogue between equals, looking for lasting solutions to the
fundamental problems which all can embrace, is the new approach which must be
undertaken. The representatives of the people of Burma must find and agree on
the basic principles for peaceful unity before a united nation can be
established, but it will not be achieved by a financial bribe to the
government
of Burma and a dialogue without representatives of all the people.

JOSEF SILVERSTEIN is a professor emeritus of Rutgers University.
 
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THE NATION: NLD AIDS POOR ON INDEPENDENCE DAY
5 January, 1999 

AP

RANGOON - In a symbolic criticism of how decades of military rule have
beggared
Burma, the opposition party led by Aung San Suu Kyi gave rice to the poor
yesterday as the country celebrated the 51st anniversary of independence from
Britain.

The ruling State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), meanwhile, marked
Independence Day by denouncing Suu Kyi - daughter of independence hero Aung
San
- and her National League of Democracy as traitors acting on behalf of foreign
powers.

The rival celebrations illustrated the deep gulf separating the government and
the struggling opposition, which was further weakened last week by the
resignation of 256 party members.

The resigning members join of hundreds of others who have quit in recent
months
after they were rounded up and detained until they agreed to quit politics.

The National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma, a government-in-exile
composed of members of parliament who have fled abroad, said the government
"is
bankrupt politically, economically, etc"

SPDC chairman Gen Than Shwe, in a statement read by Rangoon's garrison
commander at an official flag-raising ceremony, declared that Burma's citizens
were united "against the destructive threats of axe-handles and
neo-colonialists abroad".

"Axe-handle" means traitor and is often used against Suu Kyi, whom the
government considers a puppet of Western nations calling for more respect for
human rights and democracy in the country.

Suu Kyi, whose travel and activities are tightly restricted, was planning only
a simple ceremony at her home this year, largely because of the pressure her
party is under.

Outside, supporters distributed about five kilogrammes of high-quality rice to
some 60 children and poor women, something the party has regularly done of
late.

The donations amount to reminders that the country was the rice bowl of
Southeast Asia half a century ago but is now one of the region's poorest
nations.

The military has ruled since 1962, for the first 26 years under an
isolationist
form of socialism.

Younger officers who came to power after crushing anti-military riots in 1988
opened the economy to foreign investment.

The country is now more prosperous, but lack of expertise, international
boycotts because of human-rights abuses and the Asian economic crisis have
diminished many of the gains of the mid-1990s.

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REUTERS: MYANMAR REOPENS CLOSED MEDICAL INSTITUTES
5 January, 1999 

YANGON, Jan 5 (Reuters) - Myanmar's military government on Tuesday said it had
reopened four medical institutes -- three in the capital Yangon and one in
Mandalay -- after closing them down for about two years.

The universities and colleges were briefly opened in September 1998 to hold
examinations for students.

"Institute of Medicine-I (Yangon), Institute of Medicine (2) (Yangon),
Institute of Medicine (Mandalay) and Institute of Dental Medicine (Yangon)
reopened with effect from January 5, 1999," a statement from the defence
ministry's Office of Strategic Studies (OSS) said, without giving further
details.

About 5,000 students are enrolled at the four institutes. 

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XINHUA: JAPAN TO IMPLEMENT TWO TECHNICAL PROGRAMS FOR MYANMAR
5 January, 1999 

YANGON (Jan. 5) XINHUA - The Japanese government will implement two separate
technical programs for Myanmar's Central Forestry Development Training Center
(CFDTC) and the Irrigation Technology Center (ITC).

According to a press release from the Japanese Embassy here Tuesday, Japan,
for
the first program, will send two experts, provide necessary equipment and
training in Japan and third countries, and share the costs of program
activities from 1999 to 2000.

The CFDTC program, agreed upon by Japan International Cooperation Agency(JICA)
and the Forest Department of the Myanmar Ministry of Forestry last December,
aims to give aftercare to Yangon division's Hmawby green area, built in 1988
with Japanese aid.

For the second program for ITC, which will start in April this year at
Myanmar's Ngamoeik Dam project area in Hlegu, Bago and end in 2004, Japan will
send five experts to introduce and promote water management technology during
the five years, and provide equipment and training in Japan, the press release
said.

The Japanese government has been in cooperation with the ITC for 10 years to
promote irrigation technology in Myanmar. 

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THE NATION: "GROUND RULES" NEEDED FOR INTERACTION
5 January, 1999 by Marisa Chimprabha 

THAILAND expects Asean countries to have ''ground rules'' for implementing the
new platform of enhanced interaction which would allow a member country to
criticise another's internal affairs, Foreign Minister Surin Pitsuwan said
recently. He admitted that issuing the ground rules of the policy for the
nine-nation Asean (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) will not be easy
and
will take time because of different domestic structures and perceptions which
differ from country to country. 

''The ground rules for the enhanced-interaction policy is needed to prevent
any
possible conflict in the Asean grouping when implementing the policy,'' Surin
said. The policy is a review of Asean's long-adopted non-interference policy
which has been criticised for being an excuse of not trying to get involved in
others' internal affairs. 

Thailand has called for the review, saying that globalisation has made the
internal affairs of a country -- including mass migration, transitional crimes
and cross-border drug trafficking -- have an effect on the other members.
However, some countries in Asean, including Indonesia and Malaysia have voiced
reservation on the review. 

''There are many countries that have better understanding on the policy of
enhanced interaction. It has received more support,'' Surin said. ''We believe
that it is our right to react to an incident in another country which hurts
us.
It is also the right of one country to criticise us if our position towards
its
internal affairs hurts it,'' he added. 

The policy clearly reflects Thai culture and strong belief in democracy, in
particular because it requires transparency and respect for human rights and
democracy. ''The Thai people should be proud that their country implements the
policy as it is clearly reflects a love for democracy, human rights and
transparency,'' Surin said in an interview. 

Asean needs to stay abreast of the rapid change in globalisation and in the
wake of the economic crisis that has already spread to every region. ''Asean
has to admit that the world is changing, particularly where the economic
crisis
is concerned. It should learn to adjust itself to stay with the world,'' the
minister said. ''Some can adjust quickly, while others cannot. This could
create problems. But Asean [countries], which have proved their maturity and a
unified command, should help each other step across the difficulties,'' he
added. 

The minister said that in the past year, Asean has demonstrated a new trend of
frank speech in many of its meetings. ''In the past, I was informed that the
meetings among Asean foreign ministers, even the leaders, bear no substance.
But I have finally found that Asean discussions are substantive, which is
different from the past,'' he stated. Surin said the restructuring of Thai
agencies abroad is expected to become effective in March after the Foreign
Ministry finishes drafting the plan. 

When the plan is enforced, Thai ambassadors and consul generals in each
foreign
country would assist and unify the work of government agencies overseas.
''With
the plan, there would be a unified command among Thai authorities based in
foreign countries. We would step together in the same direction,'' he said. 

Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai had ordered the restructuring of the Thai
agencies
abroad in the wake of the economic downturn, resulting in the closure of some
agencies and reduction in the number of officials. Surin said that the
government agencies will also have a unified work plan, which will facilitate
monitoring and follow up of the plans. 

****************************************************************

MSNBC: HASTERT'S TRIP TO MYANMAR QUESTIONED
23 December, 1998 by Robert Windrem 

Human rights groups say new House speaker insensitive to human rights
abuses in
Southeast Asian nation

WASHINGTON, Dec. 23 - U.S.-based human rights advocates on Wednesday
criticized
House Speaker-designate J. Dennis Hastert for his 1996 contacts with Myanmar's
military junta, long accused of running one of the world's most brutal
dictatorships.

HASTERT, R-ILL., led a party of four Republican congressmen who visited
Myanmar, also known as Burma, in December 1996 on a trip paid for by a
foundation that was in turn financed by the U.S. oil company UNOCAL, which has
been accused of human rights violations in the Southeast Asian nation. Maureen
Aung-Thwin, director of the Burma Project at the Open Society Institute in New
York, said Hastert met with the vice chairman of Myanmar's ruling military
junta and was accompanied everywhere on his trip by representatives of the
junta, known as the State Law and Restoration Council, or SLORC. "It means
they
got a very narrow view, a SLORC's eye view if you will of Burma," said
Aung-Thwin, whose group advocates human rights and democracy for Myanmar.
"They
were totally in a cocoon." Hastert spent five days in Myanmar under the
auspices of the Washington-based Asia-Pacific Exchange Foundation, which is
sponsored in large part by UNOCAL, according to the Burma Project. Newspaper
reports in Myanmar at the time indicated Hastert visited a UNOCAL pipeline
project as a guest of the government. At the time, both the White House and
Congress were considering sanctions against Myanmar, and the pipeline
operation
itself was a potential target. Three months later, sanctions were imposed on
future business, but not on existing operations like the pipeline.

HASTERT, UNOCAL DEFEND THEMSELVES 

Hastert did not return requests for comment left at his offices in Washington
and Illinois on Wednesday. After the trip, he told the Chicago Tribune that he
had not been lobbied by UNOCAL. He said he checked complaints from human
rights
groups about the treatment of workers but found no wrongdoing. "They talked
about forced labor, but what I saw was positive," Hastert said. Campaign
finance records at the Federal Election Commission show that UNOCAL gave
$1,500
to Hastert's campaigns: $1,000 in 1996 before the trip and $500 in 1998. Barry
Lane, a spokesman for UNOCAL, said Wednesday that his company is "one of many
companies that finance" the Asia-Pacific Exchange Foundation and that his
company merely provided transportation to the pipeline for Hastert's group.
Hastert was accompanied on the trip by three other senior House Republicans -
House Majority Whip Tom Delay of Texas, Rep. Bill Paxton of New York and Rep.
Deborah Pryce of Ohio. News reports in Myanmar at the time referred to Hastert
as "the leader of the delegation," even though he was Delay's deputy.
Photographs in Myanmar newspapers showed him taking the lead in discussions
with government officials while Delay and the others sat in the audience.

LOOKING AT BURMA'S WAR ON DRUGS 

The official mission of the trip - as it was described afterward - was to look
at the country's drug-fighting efforts. Myanmar is the world's leading
producer
of opium poppies, and Hastert and the delegation did visit drug eradication
centers. But at the time of the visit, the Drug Enforcement Agency and CIA
were
telling the State Department that Asia's leading drug lord, Khun Sa, had been
granted clemency from prosecution or extradition by the Burmese government. A
State Department report said he continued "to be involved in the narcotics
trade." Several rights advocates also noted that Hastert met with army
leaders,
but not Nobel Peace Prize laureate and democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who
has been under house arrest since her 1990 victory in Burma's last free
elections. The military junta invalidated the elections and has held power
since. Hastert led the delegation in its meetings with Gen. Maung Aye,
described in a recent Asiaweek profile as the toughest of the council's
hard-liners, a man "who will keep a lid on political freedom."

VISIT FALLS ON HUMAN RIGHTS DAY 

The New Light of Myanmar, the state-run newspaper, ran stories on Hastert's
visit as front-page news with a large picture. Aung-Thwin said Hastert's trip
was treated like a state visit. Kenneth Roth, executive director of Human
Rights Watch, called the timing of the visit "pathetic" because it fell on
Human Rights Day and added: "It is wrong for any member of Congress to meet
with the murderous Burmese region without publicly protesting its horrendous
human rights record." The government's human rights abuses were well-known at
the time of the visit. By December 1996, the U.N. General Assembly had passed
resolutions condemning the junta on three occasions. A year before Hastert's
visit, a special U.N. representative assigned to look into human rights abuses
said there were "numerous allegations ... of kickings and beatings with rifle
butts or canes on the head and other parts of the body, causing head injuries,
loss of teeth and/or broken bones ... submerging victims into water for long
periods of time and pouring hot water over their bodies or into their
noses. In
some cases, victims alleged that they had suffered burns and the cutting of
parts of their bodies (e.g., ears and tongue)."

In its annual human rights report that year, the State Department accused
Myanmar's government of "extrajudicial killings, beatings and rape." It also
said the government "continued its restrictions on basic rights of free
speech,
the press, assembly, association and privacy."

UNOCAL FACES HUMAN RIGHTS SUIT 

Four months after Hastert's visit, in April 1997, a federal court in Los
Angeles ruled that UNOCAL may be liable for human rights violations committed
in areas of southeastern Myanmar, where it is building a natural gas pipeline
in partnership with the country's military junta and France's TOTAL oil
company. The court upheld the right of Myanmar citizens to sue UNOCAL and
TOTAL
for human rights abuses at the hands of government soldiers in the pipeline
area, but ruled that Myanmar's military junta itself could not be sued in a
U.S. court. The court said UNOCAL's payments to the military junta for labor
and security on the pipeline project would be akin to "participation in slave
trading" if the persistent reports of forced labor and other abuses were
proved
in court. Lane, the UNOCAL spokesman, reiterated the company's position that
the lawsuit is "false" and "without merit."

NBC News investigative producer Robert Windrem is based in New York. 

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ANNOUNCEMENT: OSI SCHOLARSHIPS IN AUSTRALIA
6 January, 1999 from azappia@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
 
Free Burma Coalition, Australia

Application forms for 1999 OSI Scholarships are available through this office
in Australia for Australian applicants only. If you are an active member of
the
pro-democracy movement and you intend returning to Burma when it is safe to
help rebuild the country please apply. 

Scholarships will be given to the most dedicated activists who are studying
tertiary causes of value to the reconstruction of Burma. 

Write, ring, fax or email and we will send the forms to you. See contact
details below. Contact: Amanda Zappia

Free Burma Coalition, Australia

Working for the: 
National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma 
Federation of Trade Unions, Burma 
Australia Burma Council
PO Box 2024, Queanbeyan NSW 2620 
Ph: +61-2-6297-7734 Fax: +61-2-6297-7773

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