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The Nation (3-10-99) No. 3
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<font size=5><b>Top Burma rebel back in spotlight<br>
</font></b><font size=3>HARDLINE Burmese dissident student San Naing,
alias Ye Thi Ha, has once again succeeded in drawing international
attention to the political and social problems of his homeland. <br>
At 11.45 am on Friday, San Naing, along with four accomplices, calling
themselves the ''Vigorous Burmese Student Warriors'', staged a
daring daylight raid on the Burmese Embassy. The raid stunned and
embarrassed the Thai government and securityy officials. <br>
Questions are being asked how five heavily-armed men could slip into the
embassy without meeting the slightest resistance. The embassy has
always been heavily guarded by both armed uniformed and plainclothes Thai
police. <br>
But perhaps more questions should be asked about San Naing , who has more
than once resorted to violence on Thai soil in his decade-long quest for
democracy in his homeland. <br>
On Oct 6, 1989, San Naing and accomplice Ye Yint hijacked a Burmese
domestic flight between Mergui and Rangoon with a fake bomb made of
fertiliser. <br>
The pair planned to force the flight to Bangkok, but eventually it landed
at U-Tapao Naval Air Base. After 11 hours of negotiations, the two
hijackers released all the hostages unharmed and surrendered to
authorities. <br>
They were both sentenced to six years' jail, but were freed three years
later under a Royal pardon. <br>
After being released from prison, San Naing applied for political asylum
in Australia, where he said he wanted to continue his studies. But his
request was refused. He was left to eke out a livelihood in Thailand.
<br>
San Naing was again arrested in Thailand in November 1993 when police
raided his house and found explosives. He had planned to make a
suicide-bomb attempt during Independence Day celebrations in Burma in
January 1994. He was sentenced to six years in jail for possessing
explosives. <br>
San Naing was born on July 16, 1966, in the Burmese town of Pegu. After
leaving school, he spent most of his time looking after his family
business -- a textile factory. <br>
He became a political activist in 1988, taking up a position as an
organiser of a strike committee in Thayawati. At that time, Burma was
awash with peaceful anti-government demonstrations. <br>
After the military staged a bloody coup, San Naing was arrested and
detained by authorities. After being released, he made his way to Ranong
and joined the underground Burmese student movement. <br>
He later moved to Three Pagodas Pass in Kanchanaburi. <br>
Ironically, in a letter pleading for resettlement in Australia, which he
wrote in jail in Thailand, San Naing said he no longer wanted to stay in
Thailand or participate in any more acts of violence. He said he wanted
to build a new life in Australia. <br>
As the dust settled and the 25-hour Burmese Embassy siege thankfully came
to a peaceful end, no one has yet to come forward with guarantees that
these kinds of violent political acts will not happen again on Thai soil.
<br>
And, more importantly, no one knows if one day San Naing and his militant
cohorts might once again try a similar stunt in Thailand to remind a
forgetful world of his country's problems. <br>
Given San Naing's mercurial and unrepentant background, no one is willing
to bet he won't come back and try something similar again. <br>
The Nation</font>
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