SPECIAL POSTING - BURMESE EMBASSY S

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Subject: SPECIAL POSTING - BURMESE EMBASSY SIEGE

SHAN HERALD AGENCY FOR NEWS

SHAN - EU

OCTOBER 2, 1999

HEADLINES:

1. 'Warriors' show mixed characters
2. Treat to kill hostages denied
3. Chronology Of The Siege
4. Drawing Attention
5. The hostages

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THE NATION - October 2, 1999

Headlines

'Warriors' show mixed characters

THEY hurt at least one hostage and shot at a fleeing man but were reportedly
kind to most of the rest. They responded to initial attempts at negotiations
with gunfire and as tension mounted they allegedly threatened to start
shooting the captives, though police denied this.

Yet their demands are the same ones repeatedly made by the world community
and rejected to its dismay by the Burmese junta.

Who are these 12 ''warriors'', as the young terrorists call themselves?
Burmese student groups active in Thailand have distanced themselves from the
group. Thai police and intelligence officials, it appears, are still
struggling to find their identities.

''They shot at me when I was running away,'' said Polphan Laksanasut, 28,
who was inside the visa section of the embassy when the terrorists stormed
in.

''I was waiting for a visa for my boss when I heard a commotion. Then I saw
Thais and foreigners, about 20 of them, herded into the visa waiting room,
followed by a group of armed people. The men in control spoke in Burmese,
and one man, a Thai official apparently, told us that the gunmen wanted us
to lie down and follow their orders,'' Polphan said.

He decided to run past the group out of the door towards the Pan Road gate.
Polphan said the Burmese rebels had shot at him twice but missed.

One Thai hostage, an embassy worker who identified herself as Pattaya, told
reporters on the phone that the captors were not aggressive.

''There has been no violence so far,'' the woman said. ''The Burmese
students told everyone not to panic, vowing not to hurt Thai people. They
said they just wanted the Thai government's help to convey their messages.
They made no threat to us and allowed us to talk to relatives who called the
embassy.''

She added that gunshots heard had actually been fired to break through
locked doors.

Pol Pte Thanomsak Amorndet, who manned the embassy's Pan Road gate, was hit
with a gun by a terrorist but later set free.

''There were too many of them, and they were all armed. There was nothing I
could do,'' he said.

To Thai authorities the blitz, carried out in a swift and brazen manner, was
a big slap in the face. While nobody knows how the real-life drama will end,
one thing is certain: the warriors' seizure of the Burmese embassy will give
their exiled pro-democracy compatriots a much harder time in Thailand.

The Thai government has every reason to be enraged. This is how its leniency
with the Burmese in exile pays off. Having used Thailand as a haven, now
extremist students show their gratitude by riding roughshod over Thai law
and sovereignty.

But the government clearly does not want a bloodbath. Diplomatic efforts
were in full swing last night, and TV stations were even asked not to
broadcast movements outside the embassy.

Throughout the day traffic on South Sathorn Road barely crawled as police
blocked off North Sathorn Road. Local residents and workers from nearby
office buildings went up on rooftops to observe the stand-off between
hundreds of Thai police and the armed men.

By early afternoon the nearby Bayer building was turned into a temporary
command post for the Thai police as workers there were given the afternoon
off.

Curious onlookers on motorbikes on the opposite side of the road had to be
moved on by traffic police as they were holding up the already congested
traffic on South Sathorn.

Swat teams arrived on the scene at about 1 pm, and police snipers were seen
rushing to rooftops on nearby buildings after that.

Hope for a breakthrough in the negotiations surfaced when a Burmese refugee
leader, Soe Aung, arrived on the scene to negotiate on behalf of the
authorities, but his pleas were met with the sound of gunshots that
effectively silenced him despite the loudspeaker through which he was
speaking.

Food vendors who positioned themselves not too far from the scene were doing
good business as hungry reporters, some of whom were still soaked from the
afternoon rain, stocked up for what looked like being a long evening.

In an attempt to find a peaceful end to the crisis, Chalida Tacharoensuk of
Forum Asia had earlier in the day talked by phone with one of the
terrorists, named Johnny.

Chalida was apparently trying to act as a mediator to bring a representative
of the armed group to talk to Thai authorities, but as of late last night
nobody knew for sure who the terrorists were. A well-informed source said
there was a good possibility that San Naing, codenamed Ye Thi Ha, was among
the terrorists. San Naing is one of the two Burmese who hijacked a Burmese
domestic flight to Thailand in October 1989.

Whoever they are, the terrorists formed a dramatic plot to go after Burmese
Ambassador Hla Maung when they stormed in. They reportedly just missed him
as he had left the embassy only moments before.

BY DON PATHAN

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THE NATION - October 2, 1999

Headlines

Treat to kill hostages denied

TERRORISTS holding at least 39 hostages in the Burmese Embassy threatened
late last night to shoot one Burmese hostage every half hour, starting this
morning, if their demand for an escape helicopter was not met, the British
Broadcasting Corporation reported.

The BBC quoted a man who gave his name only as Johnny and who was identified
as the leader of the gunmen as saying in a telephone interview that they
would start shooting the Burmese hostages at the embassy at 8 am.

But Bangkok's police chief said that the gunmen had issued no such threat
during negotiations with the authorities.

Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai pledged an all-out effort to solve the crisis
peacefully and instructed the relevant authorities to ''keep negotiating
until the situation is solved''.

Police were trying to determine exactly how many people were being held
hostage at the Burmese Embassy, which was seized by 12 heavily armed Burmese
students at around 11 am.

Senior police officials, including Bangkok police chief Pol Gen Wannarat
Kajarak, confirmed that about 40 people were being held hostage inside the
embassy's main building, but police were also checking reports that up to
100 people could still be trapped, or detained, in a building at the back of
the embassy compound.

The confirmed hostages include 13 Burmese diplomats, 16 Thais and 10
nationals of third countries. Apart from the Burmese diplomats, the
identities of the other hostages were not immediately known.

The raiders, who call themselves the ''Vigorous Burmese Student Warriors'',
made their assault on the embassy in broad daylight. They have demanded the
unconditional release of Burmese political prisoners, a dialogue between the
Burmese junta and pro-democracy politicians and the convening of the
parliament elected in May 1990.

Armed with four AK-47 assault rifles and about 20 hand grenades, the group
began their assault at 11 am and later released a statement declaring they
were ready to die.

The violent act shocked both the Thai government and security authorities,
who were amazed by the relative ease with which the attackers had gained
entry to the well-guarded Burmese mission.

They were still trying to find out how the gunmen had come into possession
of the powerful and expensive weaponry, who their financial backers were and
what links they had with other Burmese political dissents and non-Burmese
supporters.

The unchallenged attack also sent a shock wave along the whole Thai-Burmese
frontier. Burmese border communities were being searched in the hunt for
clues to the identities and connections of the attackers.

Pol Pte Thanomsak Amorndet, a Thai security guard, said he had been struck
on the head as the attackers, some armed with rifles, barged into the
compound. They fired several shots into the air, he said.

Released after treatment, Thanomsak said he had been in a sentry box when
about five of the group entered, carrying a guitar case. One of them pulled
a rifle from the case and hit him. Seven others then moved in.

Police arrested a Burmese man they said had dashed out of the embassy just
after the rebels went in. He carried an identity card from Suan Pong, a camp
for Burmese refugees in Ratchaburi province.

Police and government officials turned the nearby Bayer building into a
temporary command post. Many officers wore flak jackets and carried M-16
rifles, some with sniper scopes.

Although the attackers won reluctant sympathy from some Thai and Burmese
political campaigners, who believed the step had been taken out of ''sheer
desperation'' at the fading global interest in the Burmese democracy
movement, their action was condemned and criticised as jeopardising
continuing and future efforts by non-violent groups.

The All Burma Students' Democratic Front (ABSDF) immediately issued a
statement denying any connection or involvement with the take-over of the
embassy. The Front ''is an organisation well known in recent years for its
non-violent strategies'', said its chairman, Dr Naing Aung.

''It is evident that the ABSDF has never had a history of terrorist activity
in the past and will never in the future,'' he added.

In a disapproving statement, a group of seven Thai human-rights
organisations which have campaigned for democracy in Burma issued a
statement disagreeing with the occupation. They urged the terrorists to
refrain from violence and seek a peaceful solution to the stand-off.

They also urged Thai authorities to refrain from the use of force to end the
occupation, saying that it ''will set the stage for the students to use
violence to harm innocent people''.

In an interview yesterday a senior officer of the Karen National Union,
which still holds out against a ceasefire pact with the Burmese junta, said
his organisation was not involved in the attack and unaware of the source of
the weapons.

Chuan, who visited the ad-hoc operations unit at the Bayer building at 7.40
pm for a debriefing with Thai authorities, said he was very surprised at the
swiftness of the raid and the failure of Thai intelligence to detect the
suspected Burmese movement.

He later ordered the establishment of a central command unit at Government
House to coordinate civil, police, and military operations to end the
embassy crisis and to serve as a focal point for contact with the Burmese
junta in Rangoon.

At about 6 pm, Chuan told reporters that he did not know how long the siege
would last and that the Burmese government had not yet got in touch with
Bangkok to inquire about the incident.

The premier added that he wanted a peaceful ending and would try to solve
the crisis through negotiation. ''We have to try our best to find a peaceful
solution without the shedding of blood,'' Chuan said.

As of 10 pm last night, the Burmese military government had not made any
comment about the seizure of its embassy.

It remained unclear if the terrorists were residents of or had connections
with Burmese living in the Maneeloy camp in Ratchaburi. The camp, which was
established by the Thai government and is run by the Interior Ministry, now
houses some 1,000 Burmese under the protection of the UN High Commissioner
for Refugees (UNHCR).

The UNHCR office in Bangkok yesterday said it ''is following events closely
through the media, and therefore we have no comment at this time''.

Foreign Ministry deputy spokesman Oum Maolanond said the Burmese Foreign
Ministry had summoned the Thai Ambassador to Rangoon, Pensak Chalalak, to
voice its concern over the situation and urge quick action to end the siege.

Oum said the director-general of the Burmese Political Department had also
asked the Thais to strengthen security at the embassy and the residences of
the ambassador and other staff.

Ambassador U Hla Muang and six other diplomats were away from the embassy
whenh the occupation began. Thirteen staff members, two female and 11 male,
were inside the embassy.

It was reported that the attackers had asked where the ambassador was when
they stormed in.

''Johnny'' initially warned the police the hostages would be harmed if the
Thai police force refused to move away from the embassy. He also asked the
Thai authorities to get a helicopter to take them and hostages to the
Thai-Burmese border.

Those trapped inside the embassy include nationals of Malaysia, Singapore,
Canada, France, Japan and the United States who were there to get visas.

Pattaya, a Thai member of the embassy staff, told police by telephone that
everyone was safe so far.

Somchai Homla-or of Forum Asia told The Nation last night that his colleague
Chalida Tajaroensuk had made a 20-minute phone call from the Thai centre in
the Bayer Building at around 10.40 pm and spoken to the terrorist called
Johnny.

Chalida tried to convince Johnny, whom she had talked to earlier in the day,
and other attackers to open negotiations with the Thai authorities.

Quoting Chalida, Somchai said Johnny was ''apparently very tense'' and had
expressed his unreadiness to begin a dialogue with the Thai officers.

The terrorist leader said the group had received a number of death threats
through the embassy fax and was very concerned about safety.

Somchai said the identity of the armed group remained unclear but that the
attackers claimed to have come from the Burmese border area opposite Mae Sot
district in Tak.

A well-informed source said it was likely that San Naing, one of the two
Burmese who hijacked a Burmese domestic flight to Thailand in October 1989,
was among the terrorists.

The hostages
Chronology Of The Siege
Drawing Attention

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THE NATION - October 2, 1999

Headline

Chronology Of The Siege

* 11 am: A group of 12 armed men enter the Burmese Embassy compound carrying
large bags concealing automatic rifles and take control of one section of
the embassy where only one Thai policeman is on duty while two others are on
lunch break. They take hostage 13 Burmese staff and a number of Thai staff
and foreigners waiting to get visas.

* 11.30 am: Thai Police surround the embassy area, close off the two roads
in front and at the side of the embassy and set up a command post in the
Bayer building next to the embassy.

* 12 pm: Police Gen Pracha Promnok and Metropolitan Police Chief Wannarak
Kocharat arrive at the scene and order police to move all onlookers and
reporters away from the embassy.

* 1 pm: Swat teams arrive on the scene. Snipers take positions on rooftops
around the embassy compound.

* 1.50 pm: The armed group lowers the Burmese flag and hoists a red one
emblazoned with a yellow fighting peacock in its place. They fire eight
rounds immediately after the new flag is raised.

* 2.30 pm: The armed group demands to see Soe Aung, a Burmese refugee leader
being held at a centre in Ratchaburi. They later reveal their identity as
the ''Vigorous Burmese Student Warriors'', faxing their conditions for
freeing the hostages to news agencies.

* 2.45 pm: Thai police detain two Burmese student outside the embassy for
questioning. They have reportedly been protesting in front of the embassy in
recent weeks.

* 3.30 pm: Soe Aung arrives at the scene to help police negotiate with the
armed group. He is accompanied by Aung Moe, a fellow refugee.

* 4.30 pm: Standing on a light truck and using a loudspeaker, Soe Aung reads
a statement in Burmese. About six minutes later the armed men fire three
rounds into the air, effectively silencing him.

* 5 pm: One of the armed students, named Johnny, demands a helicopter to
take the group and hostages to the Thai-Burmese border.

* 5.40 pm: Two Thais walk out of the embassy followed by a Burmese national.

These men were not in the section held by the armed men.

* 7.30 pm: Pol Gen Wannarak briefs reporters on negotiations with the armed
group, who have demanded food. The request is granted provided that they
release more hostages.

* 7.45 pm: Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai arrives at the scene.

The Nation

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THE NATION - October 2, 1999

Headline

Drawing Attention

Three major incidents staged by exiled Burmese dissidents to draw
international attention to their cause:

* Oct 6, 1989: Two Burmese students, Ye Yint and Ye Thi Ha, hijack a Burmese
domestic flight from Mergui bound for Rangoon. They force the plane to land
at Thailand's U-Tapao Naval Air Base in the east-coast province of Chonburi.
After 11 hours of negotiations, the duo release all 82 passengers and four
crew members on board the Fokker F-28 unharmed and peacefully surrender to
the authorities. The hijackers later admit that they used a fake bomb made
of fertiliser. They are arrested and sentenced to six years in jail.

The two are released on Aug 13, 1992, for good behaviour after three years
in prison.

* Nov 10, 1990: Calling themselves ''The Justice and Liberation Warriors'',
two Burmese students hijack a Thai International Airways jetliner with 203
passengers and 16 crew members on a Bangkok-Rangoon flight, diverting the
aircraft and forcing it to land in Calcutta. Hours after landing, the
hijackers release some of the passengers who have fallen ill. Shortly after
midnight, the two youths, who used a fake bomb made of soap and wire,
release the remaining hostages and surrender to Indian security forces.

The Indian government refuses to hand over to Burma the two hijackers, who
requested political asylum.

* Oct 1, 1999: Going by the name of ''Vigorous Burmese Student Warriors'', a
dozen heavily armed Burmese men make a daylight raid on the Burmese Embassy
in Bangkok, taking hostage some 30 people, including 13 Burmese diplomats.
The seemingly easy raid on the mission, which has been well guarded by
uniformed and plainclothes Thai policemen, shocks both the Thai government
and Thai and foreign campaigners for Burma.

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THE NATION - October 2, 1999

Headline

The hostages

13 Burmese Staff

* Nyang Lynn, Minister-Counsellor

* Daw Hla Myon Nwe, First Secretary

* Tun Myint,First Secretary

* Hlang Phone Myint, Second Secretary

* Aye Kyi, attache

* Sein Nyunt, attache

* Aung Thein, attache

* Daw Kyi Kyi Myint, attache

* Zaw Htut, attache

* Tunt Kyi, attache

* Thein Maung, attache

* Kyaw Win, attache

* Myo Thien, attache

There were reportedly 16 Thais held, 13 men and 3 women.

At least ten foreigners were also detained inside the embassy. They include
a German national, three French, a Canadian, two Malaysians, two
Singaporeans and one Japanese.

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