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The BurmaNet News: April 8, 1999



------------------------ BurmaNet ------------------------
"Appropriate Information Technologies, Practical Strategies"
----------------------------------------------------------

The BurmaNet News: April 8, 1999
Issue #1246

HEADLINES:
========== 
SHAN: IMPENDING MASS FORCED LABOR IN SHAN STATE 
AFP: NLD TO WITNESS SHRINE RESTORATION 
THE NATION: ANTI- UWSA MOVES UPPED 
ANNOUNCEMENT: THIN GYAN PWE IN FREMONT, CA 
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SHAN HERALD AGENCY FOR NEWS: IMPENDING MASS FORCED LABOR IN NORTHERN SHAN
STATE
5 April, 1999 

[From the SHAN March, 1999 Monthly Report]

The SPDC Military Commander of the Northeastern Regional Command, Tin Aung
Myint Oo, has issued an instruction to all the battalions under his command
to engage in rubber plantations. Each and every battalion has been
compelled to plant at least 100 acres of rubber during this year, 1999. The
labor needed to implement this project is most likely to be exacted from
the civilian population. There are currently 21 battalions under the
Northeastern Command and 2,100 acres of arable land will be needed. The
people will not only have to provide thousands of unpaid laborers, but may
also have to give up many acres of their ancestors' lands.

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AFP: NLD TO WITNESS SHRINE RESTORATION
7 April, 1999 

RANGOON - Leaders of Burma's embattled opposition have been temporarily
released from detention to take part in a ceremony marking the restoration
of the country's most venerated Buddhist shrine, sources said yesterday.

Some 50 members of Aung San Suu Kyi's democratic opposition, including
elected members of Parliament, were given passes to see the hoisting of a
large gilt, gem-encrusted ceremonial umbrella atop the Shwedagon pagoda.

"I am out here because we made a special request to the authorities. For
Buddhists this is the event of a lifetime," one MP said, requesting anonymity.

The two-day passes were granted on Monday to enable top members from the
party's Rangoon division to witness the final stages of the restoration,
the temple's first in 128 years.

"We are okay," he said, referring to senior members of the National League
for Democracy (NLD), under detention since a renewed crack-down on dissent
which began in September last year.

Burma's main opposition party announced in September the formation of a
10-member "representative committee" to implement its decision to convene a
Parliament elected in 1990 polls.

The move led to the detention of hundreds of party faithful in what
authorities described as "government guest-houses."

The NLD won a landslide victory in 1990, taking 382 of a possible 485
seats, but the military have ignored the result and not allowed Parliament
to sit.

Tens of thousands of people were flocking to the Shwedagon pagoda in the
capital Rangoon yesterday as the final tiers of the umbrella were hauled
atop the shrine, considered by many to be one of the wonders of the world.

During the three-day ceremony, which began on Sunday, hundreds of thousands
of people have crowded into the temple complex to donate jewelry and gold
despite crushing economic hardship.


Burma is hit by Asia's economic crisis, compounded by sanctions imposed by
Western governments which have called on the junta to recognise the
election results and accused the military of widespread human-rights abuses.

State-run media yesterday cast the temple's restoration as a symbol of
national unity, with the event being beamed live on local television.

The top of the umbrella is adorned with a 76-carat diamond housed in a
carved lotus bud and surrounded by more than 4,000 small diamonds and close
to 1000 other precious stones.

"The brilliance of that bud is ... as if it was anointing and blessing the
close camaraderie that exists between the rulers and their subjects," one
newspaper said.

The junta said earlier that the people of Burma had by the end of March
donated some 111 kilogrammes of gold and nearly 68,000 items of jewelry to
help with the restoration. 

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THE NATION: ANTI-UWSA MOVES UPPED
7 April, 1999 

THE Thai Army has stepped up efforts to contain the movements of one of
Burma's largest armed narcotic-trafficking groups, amid the ongoing
investigation into the death of nine Thai villagers allegedly beaten to
death by soldiers from the rebel group.

Security and narcotics officers have been put on alert while drug-sniffer
dogs have been positioned just north of Chiang Mai's Ta Thon village at a
temporary border crossing point leading to an area controlled by the United
Wa State Army (UWSA), said Maj-Gen Cham Bong Photong, chief-of-staff of the
Thai Third Army Region.

One of the world's largest armed heroin-trafficking groups, the UWSA have
been accused of killing the Thai nationals by beating them while the
victims' hands were tied behind their backs. Their bodies were found last
week scattered along the Thai-Burma border.

The temporary checkpoint was opened last August under a proposal from
Chiang Mai province, approved by the National Security Council.
Cross-border trade was the justification for the opening of the checkpoint,
which leads to the UWSA-controlled region.

Currently, over 1,000 Thai nationals are working as hired hands in the
area, building everything from schools and hospitals to medium-size dams
and roads. The projects are financed by the Wa's heroin money, while the
road linking the checkpoint to Mong Yawn and Mong Hsat in Burma's Shan
State is financed by both the UWSA and the Burmese military government.

According to Pol Col Krajarng Lertkietdamrong of Chiang Mai's Fang
district, army and police officers investigating the murder agreed that
there was no evidence to suggest that the victims were linked to the UWSA's
drug network. There are at least a dozen heroin refineries in the area
along the Thai-Burma border, and it is very likely that the victims may
have stumbled onto the Wa's narcotics activities, he said.

The UWSA signed a cease-fire agreement with the Burmese military government
a decade ago as part of Rangoon's effort to neutralise the 20,000-strong
army, whose weapon inventory was large enough to last them at least 10
years, according to Chamlong.


The Army has proposed on a number of occasions that the border be closed
for security reasons, but local merchants and other parties have
consistently put up stiff resistance, Chamlong said.

Meanwhile, deputy governor for Mae Hong Son province Amornphan Nimanan
urged people in three districts along the border to stay away from the
border area, saying fighting between Burmese government troops and rebel
groups could spill over onto Thai soil during the dry-season offensive.

Thai intelligence sources consider that refugee camps in Mae Sareang
district could in the coming weeks come under attack by renegade rebel
troops siding with the Burmese government, Amornphan said.

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ANNOUNCEMENT: THIN GYAN PWE IN FREMONT, CALIFORNIA 
6 April, 1999 from: <zarni_maung@xxxxxxxxxxx>

Dear Burmese friends and friends of Burma,

We are celebrating the Burmese New Year (1361st in Burmese calander) on
April 25, 1999, Silicon-Valley Standard Time at the Newark Community
Center, and here are the highlights why you should Globally-Position
yourself there: First, the event will have all the essentials a good
celebration party should have: o Plenty of good food, including Dun Pauk,
Moo Hin Nga, Toe Hoo Doke, Far-Lu-Dar, just to name a few items on the
menu; o World-class music by prominent musicians and entertainers such as
Thein Tan (Myanmar Pyi), Sett Maw, Thiri, May Yu; o Raffle draws for lots
of exciting prizes including a round-trip airfare to Burma. Next, all the
proceeds of the event go to Dhammapala Monastery, a Theravada Buddhist
Monastery in Fremont. What we have here is a rare opportunity for all
individuals to fulfill noble Perfections, while having an insanely good
time :-) Last, but not least, all your friends are going to be there! Where
else would you rather be?

PLACE:          NEWARK COMMUNITY CENTER
                35501 CEDAR BLVD. 
                NEWARK, CA 94560

DATE: APRIL 25, 1999.

PROGRAM:          9:45AM Taking 5 Precepts from Venerable Sangha
                  		  10:00AM Honoring of Elders*
                               10:15AM Listening to the Dhamma talk from
Venerable Aggamahapandita   Bhaddhanta Vicara
                  11:00AM Offering lunch to Sangha
11:30AM Celebration begins:

Entertainment and food** 
2:00PM Raffle Draw*** 

'Elders' are defined as 70-years or older. If you qualify, please let the
Monastery know ahead of time, to give us time to prepare gifts for you.

** Like last year, you will need tokens for the food. Food tokens are $10
per 10 tokens. As mentioned above, all proceeds go to Dhammapala Monastery.
*** Raffle tickets will be sold in advance as well as at the event. You
have to be present at 2:00PM Raffle Draw to claim your prize. For comments
or questions, please call Dhammapala Monastery at (510) 445 0367 or (510)
656 2487.
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