The Thais need to get tough with th

[dawnstar@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]

Subject: The Thais need to get tough with the Junta!!!

If the junta keeps insulting the Thai government like this, it can only
be good for the rebels and exiles, because it means the harder the Thais
will come down on the junta. The Thais have closer links to Washington
than Peking, and the Thai government doesnt really like the Burma junta
anyway. 

It would be good if they just broke off the YADANA contract completely,
and refused to buy Burmese gas, its cheaper and not as good anygood
anyway, and the Thais dont need it!

ds


 
> THE NATION - October 4, 1999
> 
> Headlines
> 
> Diplomatic relations with Burma sour
> 
> DIPLOMATIC tension between Thailand and Burma grew yesterday following the
> closure of border checkpoints and suspension of concessions for Thai
> fishermen by Burma and a strong response by Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai to
> Rangoon's criticism of Bangkok's handling of last week's hostage crisis.
> 
> The military government in Rangoon has yet to reopen the border checkpoints
> or allow Thai fishermen into its waters, bringing cross-border trade to a
> standstill over the past five days.
> 
> Chuan, in what is considered the strongest remarks on the situation by a
> senior Thai official so far, accused Rangoon of sending mixed signals.
> 
> ''On the one hand Burma sends an official letter to thank us. But on the
> other, its officials have been issuing critical statements,'' Chuan said.
> 
> He insisted that the Thai authorities had done their best to peacefully
> solve a problem which had its roots in Burma.
> 
> ''They cannot escape anywhere,'' Chuan said, referring to Burma's
> pro-democracy students in general. ''So they come to our country, which is
> helping to solve the problem. So, in fact, Burma cannot criticise us.''
> 
> Burma should understand that Thailand had to put the safety of embassy staff
> and other hostages first, he added.
> 
> A state-run newspaper in Burma on Wednesday attacked Thailand's handling of
> the hostage crisis. It said that bilateral relations could be harmed if
> Bangkok did not tighten security over ''terrorist'' refugees from Burma
> residing on Thai soil.
> 
> Col Thein Swe, former military attache at the Burmese Embassy in Bangkok,
> went on government radio on Tuesday to accuse the Thai intelligence service
> of being a sham for not being able to anticipate the embassy takeover.
> 
> Thein Swe is a leading member of the Office of Strategic Studies, a powerful
> think-tank under the command of security chief Lt Gen Khin Nyunt.
> 
> But the statements made by the state-run media contradicted those made by
> the Burmese head of state.
> 
> Chairman of the ruling State Peace and Development Council Gen Than Schwe
> had sent a letter thanking Chuan for his efforts in solving the crisis
> peacefully.
> 
> He also praised Deputy Foreign Minister Sukhumbhand Paribatra for his
> courage. Sukhumbhand volunteered to travel with the rebels when they flew by
> helicopter to the Thai-Burmese border in exchange for the release of the
> hostages.
> 
> The five attackers, who called themselves the Vigorous Burmese Student
> Warriors, stormed the Burmese Embassy last Friday, taking 38 people hostage
> at gunpoint, while holding 51 others in a different section.
> 
> Interior Minister Sanan Kachornprasart had earlier referred to the five
> gunmen as ''students fighting for democracy'', instead of ''terrorists''.
> 
> Infuriated by the statement, Rangoon issued a reply on Monday saying: ''One
> wonders if at any point during the entire siege of the embassy, the
> trigger-happy gunmen's ... activity had resulted in the death of not only
> the embassy staff but families including children, can they still be
> regarded as 'not terrorists, but students who are fighting for democracy',''
> the statement said.
> 
> Speaking at the Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand, Sukhumbhand tried
> to clarify Sanan's statement, saying that although the five armed attackers
> were not ''international terrorists'', nevertheless, what they did
> constituted a ''terrorist act''.
> 
> ''We will proceed legally because they have committed a crime under Thai
> law,'' he said. ''However, there is a void in the Thai legal system in
> giving a legal definition of international terrorist.''
> 
> Although the Thai security agencies has vowed to restrict the movement of
> dissident groups operating in and around the Thai border, it was
> nevertheless understood that these students had escaped persecution and
> sought refuge here, Chuan said.
> 
> In a separate interview, Sukhumbhand reaffirmed the National Security
> Council's decision to impose stricter controls on the movement of Burmese
> dissident groups in Thailand.
> 
> However, the country's policy towards refugees residing on Thai soil would
> not be changed.
> 
> Thailand must continue its present policy of providing temporary refuge for
> the Burmese, he said.
> 
> The security council has said that the raid on the Burmese Embassy
> constituted a threat to national security.
> 
> But Sukhumbhand emphasised that the Burmese had not requested more security
> measures despite numerous reports last month saying that Burmese dissidents
> throughout the world were planning a series of protests against the military
> government.
> 
> ------------------------
> THE NATION - October 4, 1999
> 
> Headlines
> 
> Junta revokes Thai trawler rights
> 
> BURMA has temporarily closed its waters to Thai fishing boats operating out
> of southern Thailand following the dramatic hostage crisis at the Burmese
> Embassy last Friday.
> 
> Thai trawlers licensed to fish in Burmese waters under the Burmese flag had
> been asked to stop fishing and report to Burmese authorities within 20 hours
> from Oct 6, Wanchai Sangsukiam, the Thai Overseas Fisheries Association,
> said.
> 
> A Rangoon military spokesman was quoted by The Associated Press as
> confirming that fishing concessions granted to Thais had been ''suspended
> for the time being for security reasons''.
> 
> About 400 Thai fishing boats operate under Burmese flags in Burmese waters.
> 
> In addition, the Burmese authorities asked 300 Thai boats with Thai flags
> operating in the Burmese territorial waters to report to Burmese authorities
> within five days.
> 
> Bancherd Viphakkit-anan, chairman of Ranong Fisheries Association, said that
> several Thai trawlers have already paid the advance payment worth several
> hundred thousand baht to Burmese authorities. ''I estimate that the damage
> would be Bt200 million,'' he said.
> 
> In a separate development, an official source on the Thai-Burmese border in
> Tak province said Burmese troops had rounded up 60 of its nationals and
> placed them under detention for trying to cross over to the Thai side. The
> move reflected the seriousness of the Burmese authorities towards the order
> to close the border, according to the source.
> 
> The decision to shut down the border came after five armed students stormed
> the Burmese Embassy last Friday, taking 38 people hostage at gunpoint and
> preventing 51 others from leaving the compound.
> 
> A deal to release all the hostges was struck 25 hours later when Thai
> authories agreed to give the five gunmen a safe passage by helicopter to the
> Burmese border.
> 
> Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai said he had ordered the Agriculture Ministry to
> examine the impact behind closing Burmese waters to Thai fishermen who were
> earlier granted concessions by Rangoon to work there.
> 
> Chuan said he has instructed the Foreign Ministry to check if the initiative
> to ban Thai boats had came from the central government or local authorities.
> 
> ''We have to admit that the central government and the local authotiries in
> Burma implement double-standard policies,'' the premier said, suggesting
> that the action taken may not have come from Rangoon.
> 
> There was no indication how long Burma's waters would be closed to Thai
> fishermen.
> 
> Wanchai is hopeful that the suspension would be temporary, considering the
> mutual benefit to Burma in businesses with Thai partners.
> 
> At present, about 400 Thai trawlers pay between US$8,000 and US$10,000
> (Bt304,000-Bt380,000) in monthly licence fees to the Burmese authorities,
> which also collected taxes on every fish as the catch has to be exported
> from a Burmese port.
> 
> Wanchai said he was not certain whether the fishing licence would be valid
> after the ban. ''We will wait for a week to see if the Burmese authorities
> lift the ban on Thai boats,'' Wanchai said.
> 
> Wanchai said the move would not only affect about 1,000 Thai trawlers but
> also a higher number of migrant workers from Burma who have jobs aboard the
> vessels.
> 
> Bancherd said Thai trawlers have urged the association to file a petition to
> the Foreign Ministry to solve the problem quickly.
> 
> Thamrong Prakobboon, director general of the Fisheries Department, said that
> so far about 120 Thai boats have reported to Burmese authorities to
> acknowledge the revocation of fishing rights. The licence would be extended
> on the year-on-year basis. Thamrong indicated that Burmese authorities would
> refund the licence fee for licences which have not yet expired.
> 
> ------------------------
> THE NATION - October 4, 1999
> 
> Editorial & Opinion
> 
> Siege outcome: Who's fooling who?
> 
> THE fearless attack on the Burmese Embassy last Friday by five disgruntled
> Burmese gunmen was a shocking incident, but the Thai government's haphazard
> efforts and soft-handed approach to resolve the tense 25-hour siege were no
> less astonishing.
> 
> Predictably, the government did not fail to proclaim success after the
> heavily-armed assailants, who called themselves ''Vigorous Burmese Student
> Warriors'', released all 89 people in the compound, including 13 Burmese
> diplomats, in return for their escorted escape to the border.
> 
> Although the government can argue that the safety and freedom of the
> captives were of paramount importance, its overall performance in countering
> and dealing with such an act of terrorism was far from professional, and
> thus put the lives of the civilian hostages at precarious risk.
> 
> In fact, many of the authorities involved in the rescue operation
> acknowledged in private that it was a matter of ''sheer luck'' that the
> whole embassy ordeal ended as it did, with no serious casualties or
> bloodshed, taking into account the ''unorganised and uncoordinated''
> negotiating efforts, which involved uncontrolled interference by uninvited
> ''well-wishers'', private negotiators, as well as local and foreign
> journalists, who scrambled to get their scoops from the horse's mouth.
> 
> What happened at the embassy is a tough lesson for all parties involved in
> resolving the crisis and a standing testament to how unprepared the country
> is for a terrorist emergency. It also shows that the personal whims of the
> powers-that-be are still more important, as they override well-laid rules
> and procedures in dealing with terrorists.
> 
> Thailand, in fact, has a world-class anti-terrorist blueprint which lays out
> detailed contingency measures to be followed and executed. It states first
> and foremost the establishment of a command post headed by a top
> well-trained bureaucrat. The head of the command post, who is appointed by
> the prime minister, has the full authority to mobilise all government
> resources to resolve the crisis.
> 
> The rationale behind such an appointment is to give the government a
> breather to negotiate and identify the terrorists. If a senior politician
> decides to take command then there is no room for manoeuvre or negotiation
> as terrorists can force that person into making a swift political decision.
> 
> At last Friday's siege, the national contingency plan to counter terrorism
> crumbled like a house of cards when confusion erupted as to who was actually
> calling the shots as top police and administrative officials and government
> ministers were seen visiting and being stationed at the scene to direct
> measures to end the crisis.
> 
> To give an example, at the height of the crisis on Saturday, Interior
> Minister Sanan Kachornprasart decided to commandeer the whole operation and
> negotiations, which were conducted through a mobile phone with a Thai
> hostage and subsequently relayed to the captors. Dramatically, the whole
> conversation was simultaneously broadcast live on a local community radio
> station to the attentive Thai public. It is still unclear how the station
> managed to tap into the phone negotiations.
> 
> Throughout the highly tense stand-off, the attackers also made full use of
> the embassy's fax and telephone lines to air and negotiate their demands
> with Thai authorities. It was, surprisingly, through the same communications
> lines that some of the ''well-wishers'', as well as local and foreign
> journalists, called in to talk and conduct live interviews with the group's
> key leader Kyaw Ni, or Johnny.
> 
> There are strong indications that the group also used the phones to
> communicate with their collaborators outside the compound. A well-informed
> official confirmed that there was an official instruction to cut off all of
> the embassy's telephone lines to prevent tampering calls during official
> negotiations. But why the order was not executed is not yet known.
> 
> The Thai negotiating team was reportedly very upset with a leading question
> posed in a live radio interview in which Kyaw Ni was asked ''whether the
> assailants would kill the hostages if the government did not give in to
> their demands?'' Until then, the hostage-takers had not threatened to kill
> any of their captives if their demand for a helicopter flight to the border
> was not met.
> 
> Surprisingly, the group did not persist with their demands that the Burmese
> junta release all political prisoners, open dialogue with pro-democracy
> politicians and convene the elected parliament.
> 
> According to hostages' accounts, the ''aggressive'' Kyaw Ni had, at one
> time, become very upset and tense after telephone conversations and
> arguments with other Burmese student groups and faxed messages threatening a
> pending Thai assault. He occasionally fired his machine-gun or punch his
> fist into the wall to release his anger and tension.
> 
> Outside the command post at the Bayer Building adjacent to the embassy,
> curious crowds of onlookers and a large army of Thai and foreign media
> camped less than 10 metres from the compound. At times they mingled easily
> with officers and government officials involved in handling the crisis.
> 
> Throngs of vehicles -- live television vans, private cars, ambulances,
> police trucks, rescue pickups, a mobile toilet van and official cars -- were
> also allowed to park close to the embassy and even obstructed some emergency
> traffic in the operation. As it turned out, the authorities did not bother
> to totally shut off traffic which flowed on the other side of the street.
> 
> The most controversial part of the Thai handing of the crisis is, perhaps,
> what is now being called the ''Bangkok Syndrome'' -- in which not only the
> hostages but also government leaders and officials seemed to have developed
> sympathetic feelings towards the Burmese raiders. Publicly, Sanan said he
> preferred to call them ''student activists who fight for democracy'' in
> Burma instead of ''terrorists'', while Deputy Foreign Minister MR
> Sukhumbhand Paribatra told iTV that he considered them ''as his own
> children''.
> 
> Despite warnings from the international community, particularly from the
> United States, Britain and Israel, successive Thai governments have opted
> for hasty decisions to get terrorists out of the country instead of
> prosecuting them for their crimes. In the Burmese Embassy case, the five
> attackers were given a VIP escort to the safe haven of their choice.
> 
> Although the siege was resolved in what many call a ''happy ending'', the
> government cannot expect to bet on luck every time a terrorist crisis takes
> place. Moreover, many more unpleasant questions remain for the governments
> of Thailand and Burma to answer.
> 
> What went wrong with their intelligence and security systems which were
> supposed to be well aware of potential attacks on the Burmese Embassy? How
> could five young radical Burmese travel through the streets of Bangkok
> carrying AK-47 and M-16 assault rifles and a number of hand grenades, and be
> let through the highly-protected embassy front gate without resistance?
> 
> Most important of all, who were the five daredevil culprits whose identities
> still remain pretty much unclear nearly a week after their incredible
> flight? Did they act unilaterally or with political and financial back-up?
> If the latter, who or which other groups were involved?
> 
> The government's proclaimed success and self-congratulations only serve to
> compromise national security standards, and regrettably invite more
> potentially violent terrorist acts within the country.
> 
> BY YINDEE LERTCHAROENCHOK
> 
> ------------------------------