CIA FACTBOOK 1999 (BURMA) (r)

[maungt@xxxxxxxxxx]

Reply-To: "Maung Maung Than" <@one.net.au>

Dear Friends ,

it is interesting that a well resourced intellegent netork like CIA does not
mention any thing about Committee Repreenting People's Parliament ( CRPP)
which is  formed by five political parties including NLD on 16th of Sept
1998. Please check under Legislative branch , political Parties , Political
Pressure groups.

It could not be the update error since the latest date of the data used is
already  1998/99 .

May be CIA thinks CRPP is not worth or mentioning in its Burma factbook Or
CIA simply ignore the very turning point of the Burmese comtemporary
politics.

Please, fix it!

mmt in Sydney



Legislative branch: unicameral People's Assembly or Pyithu Hluttaw (485
seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 27 May 1990, but Assembly never convened
election results: percent of vote by party?NA%; seats by party?NLD 396, NUP
10, other 79
Judicial branch: limited; remnants of the British-era legal system in place,
but there is no guarantee of a fair public trial; the judiciary is not
independent of the executive
Political parties and leaders: National Unity Party or NUP (proregime) [THA
KYAW]; National League for Democracy or NLD [AUNG SHWE, chairman, AUNG SAN
SUU KYI, general secretary]; Union Solidarity and Development Association or
USDA (proregime, a social and political organization) [THAN AUNG, general
secretary]; and eight minor legal parties
Political pressure groups and leaders: National Coalition Government of the
Union of Burma or NCGUB [Dr. SEIN WIN] consists of individuals legitimately
elected to the People's Assembly but not recognized by the military regime;
the group fled to a border area and joined with insurgents in December 1990
to form a parallel government; Kachin Independence Army or KIA; United Wa
State Army or UWSA; Karen National Union or KNU; several Shan factions; All
Burma Student Democratic Front or ABSDF

Date: Sunday, November 21, 1999 6:45 AM
Subject: CIA FACTBOOK 1999 (BURMA)


>[NOTE FROM DAVID ARNOTT: I REMEMBER SOMEONE WANTING
>TO KNOW WHERE JM GOT HIS CIA FIGURES FOR BURMESE
>MILITARY EXPENDITURE. ( $3.904 billion (FY97/98)
>
>WELL I WENT TO MR HOTBOT AND TYPED IN CIA AND IT
>CAME UP WITH A FEW OPTIONS AND I CLICKED ON CIA FACTBOOK AND
>THEN CLICKED ON COUNTRIES AND THEN BURMA AND GOT HERE:
>
>http://www.odci.gov/cia/publications/factbook/bm.html#comm
>
>BUT JUST IN CASE PEOPLE'S FINGERS ARE TIRED OF CLICKING, HERE IS
>THE PAGE CUT AND PASTED. I'M NOT GOING TO EVEN UP THE LINES FOR
>YOU. IF YOU WANT A PRETTY VERSION, GO TO THE URL AND CLICK FOR IT.]
>
>
>CIA FACTBOOK 1999
>Burma
>
>                                             Burma
>
>                                            Geography
>
>
>Location: Southeastern Asia, bordering the Andaman Sea and the Bay of
>Bengal, between Bangladesh and Thailand
>
>Geographic coordinates: 22 00 N, 98 00 E
>
>Map references: Southeast Asia
>
>Area:
>total: 678,500 sq km
>land: 657,740 sq km
>water: 20,760 sq km
>
>Area?comparative: slightly smaller than Texas
>
>Land boundaries:
>total: 5,876 km
>border countries: Bangladesh 193 km, China 2,185 km, India 1,463 km, Laos
>235 km, Thailand 1,800 km
>
>Coastline: 1,930 km
>
>Maritime claims:
>contiguous zone: 24 nm
>continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
>exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
>territorial sea: 12 nm
>
>Climate: tropical monsoon; cloudy, rainy, hot, humid summers (southwest
>monsoon, June to September); less cloudy, scant rainfall, mild
>temperatures, lower humidity during winter (northeast monsoon, December to
>April)
>
>Terrain: central lowlands ringed by steep, rugged highlands
>
>Elevation extremes:
>lowest point: Andaman Sea 0 m
>highest point: Hkakabo Razi 5,881 m
>
>Natural resources: petroleum, timber, tin, antimony, zinc, copper,
>tungsten, lead, coal, some marble, limestone, precious stones, natural gas
>
>Land use:
>arable land: 15%
>permanent crops: 1%
>permanent pastures: 1%
>forests and woodland: 49%
>other: 34% (1993 est.)
>
>Irrigated land: 10,680 sq km (1993 est.)
>
>Natural hazards: destructive earthquakes and cyclones; flooding and
>landslides common during rainy season (June to September); periodic
droughts
>
>Environment?current issues: deforestation; industrial pollution of air,
>soil, and water; inadequate sanitation and water treatment contribute to
>disease
>
>Environment?international agreements:
>party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea,
>Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber
>83, Tropical Timber 94
>signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
>
>Geography?note: strategic location near major Indian Ocean shipping lanes
>
>
>                                             People
>
>
>Population: 48,081,302 (July 1999 est.)
>
>Age structure:
>0-14 years: 36% (male 8,883,099; female 8,542,087)
>15-64 years: 60% (male 14,343,888; female 14,293,233)
>65 years and over: 4% (male 906,517; female 1,112,478) (1999 est.)
>
>Population growth rate: 1.61% (1999 est.)
>
>Birth rate: 28.48 births/1,000 population (1999 est.)
>
>Death rate: 12.39 deaths/1,000 population (1999 est.)
>
>Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1999 est.)
>
>Sex ratio:
>at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
>under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
>15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female
>65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female
>total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (1999 est.)
>
>Infant mortality rate: 76.25 deaths/1,000 live births (1999 est.)
>
>Life expectancy at birth:
>total population: 54.74 years
>male: 53.24 years
>female: 56.32 years (1999 est.)
>
>Total fertility rate: 3.63 children born/woman (1999 est.)
>
>Nationality:
>noun: Burmese (singular and plural)
>adjective: Burmese
>
>Ethnic groups: Burman 68%, Shan 9%, Karen 7%, Rakhine 4%, Chinese 3%, Mon
>2%, Indian 2%, other 5%
>
>Religions: Buddhist 89%, Christian 4% (Baptist 3%, Roman Catholic 1%),
>Muslim 4%, animist beliefs 1%, other 2%
>
>Languages: Burmese, minority ethnic groups have their own languages
>
>Literacy:
>definition: age 15 and over can read and write
>total population: 83.1%
>male: 88.7%
>female: 77.7% (1995 est.)
>
>                                           Government
>
>
>
>Country name:
>conventional long form: Union of Burma
>conventional short form: Burma
>local long form: Pyidaungzu Myanma Naingngandaw (translated by the US
>Government as Union of Myanma and by the Burmese as Union of Myanmar)
>local short form: Myanma Naingngandaw
>former: Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma
>
>Data code: BM
>
>Government type: military regime
>
>Capital: Rangoon (regime refers to the capital as Yangon)
>
>Administrative divisions: 7 divisions* (yin-mya, singular?yin) and 7 states
>(pyine-mya, singular?pyine); Chin State,
>Ayeyarwady*, Bago*, Kachin State, Kayin State, Kayah State, Magway*,
>Mandalay*, Mon State, Rakhine State, Sagaing*, Shan State, Tanintharyi*,
>Yangon*
>
>Independence: 4 January 1948 (from UK)
>
>National holiday: Independence Day, 4 January (1948)
>
>Constitution: 3 January 1974 (suspended since 18 September 1988); national
>convention started on 9 January 1993 to draft
>a new constitution; chapter headings and three of 15 sections have been
>approved
>
>Legal system: does not accept compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
>
>Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
>
>Executive branch:
>chief of state: Prime Minister and Chairman of the State Peace and
>Development Council Gen. THAN SHWE (since 23 April
>1992); note?the prime minister is both the chief of state and head of
>government
>head of government: Prime Minister and Chairman of the State Peace and
>Development Council Gen. THAN SHWE (since
>23 April 1992); note?the prime minister is both the chief of state and head
>of government
>cabinet: State Peace and Development Council (SPDC); military junta, so
>named 15 November 1997, which initially assumed
>power 18 September 1988 under the name State Law and Order Restoration
>Council; the SPDC oversees the cabinet
>elections: none; the prime minister assumed power upon resignation of the
>former prime minister
>
>Legislative branch: unicameral People's Assembly or Pyithu Hluttaw (485
>seats; members elected by popular vote to serve
>four-year terms)
>elections: last held 27 May 1990, but Assembly never convened
>election results: percent of vote by party?NA%; seats by party?NLD 396, NUP
>10, other 79
>
>Judicial branch: limited; remnants of the British-era legal system in
>place, but there is no guarantee of a fair public trial; the
>judiciary is not independent of the executive
>
>Political parties and leaders: National Unity Party or NUP (proregime) [THA
>KYAW]; National League for Democracy or
>NLD [AUNG SHWE, chairman, AUNG SAN SUU KYI, general secretary]; Union
>Solidarity and Development Association
>or USDA (proregime, a social and political organization) [THAN AUNG,
>general secretary]; and eight minor legal parties
>
>Political pressure groups and leaders: National Coalition Government of the
>Union of Burma or NCGUB [Dr. SEIN WIN]
>consists of individuals legitimately elected to the People's Assembly but
>not recognized by the military regime; the group fled to
>a border area and joined with insurgents in December 1990 to form a
>parallel government; Kachin Independence Army or
>KIA; United Wa State Army or UWSA; Karen National Union or KNU; several
>Shan factions; All Burma Student
>Democratic Front or ABSDF
>
>International organization participation: AsDB, ASEAN, CCC, CP, ESCAP, FAO,
>G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM,
>IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user),
>Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OPCW, UN,
>UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
>
>Diplomatic representation in the US:
>chief of mission: Ambassador TIN WINN
>chancery: 2300 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
>telephone: [1] (202) 332-9044
>FAX: [1] (202) 332-9046
>consulate(s) general: New York
>
>Diplomatic representation from the US:
>chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Kent M. WIEDEMANN
>embassy: 581 Merchant Street, Rangoon (GPO 521)
>mailing address: Box B, APO AP 96546
>telephone: [95] (1) 282055, 282182 (operator assistance required)
>FAX: [95] (1) 280409
>
>Flag description: red with a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner
>bearing, all in white, 14 five-pointed stars encircling a
>cogwheel containing a stalk of rice; the 14 stars represent the 14
>administrative divisions
>
>                                            Economy
>
>
>
>Economy?overview: Burma has a mixed economy with private activity dominant
>in agriculture, light industry, and transport,
>and with substantial state-controlled activity, mainly in energy, heavy
>industry, and the rice trade. Government policy in the last
>10 years, 1989-98, has aimed at revitalizing the economy after three
>decades of tight central planning. Thus, private activity has
>markedly increased; foreign investment has been encouraged, so far with
>moderate success; and efforts continue to increase the
>efficiency of state enterprises. Published estimates of Burma's foreign
>trade are greatly understated because of the volume of
>black-market trade. A major ongoing problem is the failure to achieve
>monetary and fiscal stability. Although Burma remains a
>poor Asian country, its rich resources furnish the potential for
>substantial long-term increases in income, exports, and living
>standards. The short-term outlook is for continued sluggish growth because
>of internal unrest, minimal foreign investment, and
>the large trade deficit.
>
>GDP: purchasing power parity?$56.1 billion (1998 est.)
>
>GDP?real growth rate: 1.1% (1998 est.)
>
>GDP?per capita: purchasing power parity?$1,200 (1998 est.)
>
>GDP?composition by sector:
>agriculture: 59%
>industry: 11%
>services: 30% (1997 est.)
>
>Population below poverty line: NA%
>
>Household income or consumption by percentage share:
>lowest 10%: NA%
>highest 10%: NA%
>
>Inflation rate (consumer prices): 50% (1998 est.)
>
>Labor force: 18.8 million (FY95/96 est.)
>
>Labor force?by occupation: agriculture 65.2%, industry 14.3%, trade 10.1%,
>government 6.3%, other 4.1% (FY88/89
>est.)
>
>Unemployment rate: NA%
>
>Budget:
>revenues: $7.9 billion
>expenditures: $12.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $5.7 billion
>(FY96/97)
>
>Industries: agricultural processing; textiles and footwear; wood and wood
>products; copper, tin, tungsten, iron; construction
>materials; pharmaceuticals; fertilizer
>
>Industrial production growth rate: 9.2% (FY95/96 est.)
>
>Electricity?production: 3.75 billion kWh (1996)
>
>Electricity?production by source:
>fossil fuel: 61.33%
>hydro: 38.67%
>nuclear: 0%
>other: 0% (1996)
>
>Electricity?consumption: 3.75 billion kWh (1996)
>
>Electricity?exports: 0 kWh (1996)
>
>Electricity?imports: 0 kWh (1996)
>
>Agriculture?products: paddy rice, corn, oilseed, sugarcane, pulses;
hardwood
>
>Exports: $940 million (1997)
>
>Exports?commodities: pulses and beans, teak, rice, rubber, hardwood
>
>Exports?partners: India 17%, Singapore 14%, China 11%, Thailand 9%, Japan
>4% (1997)
>
>Imports: $2.2 billion (1997)
>
>Imports?commodities: machinery, transport equipment, construction
>materials, food products
>
>Imports?partners: Singapore 30%, Japan 17%, China 10%, Thailand 10%,
>Malaysia 7% (1997)
>
>Debt?external: $4.3 billion (1997 est.)
>
>Economic aid?recipient: $156.9 million (1995)
>
>Currency: 1 kyat (K) = 100 pyas
>
>Exchange rates: kyats (K) per US$1?6.1163 (January 1999), 6.3432 (1998),
>6.2418 (1997), 5.9176 (1996), 5.6670
>(1995), 5.9749 (1994); unofficial?310-350 (1998)
>
>Fiscal year: 1 April?31 March
>
>                                         Communications
>
>
>[Top of Page]
>
>Telephones: 122,195 (1993 est.)
>
>Telephone system: meets minimum requirements for local and intercity
>service for business and government; international
>service is good
>domestic: NA
>international: satellite earth station?1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean)
>
>Radio broadcast stations: AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 3 (1998)
>
>Radios: NA
>
>Television broadcast stations: 2 (1998 est.)
>
>Televisions: 88,000 (1992 est.)
>
>                                          Transportation
>
>
>[Top of Page]
>
>Railways:
>total: 3,740 km
>narrow gauge: 3,740 km 1.000-m gauge (1997)
>
>Highways:
>total: 28,200 km
>paved: 3,440 km
>unpaved: 24,760 km (1996 est.)
>
>Waterways: 12,800 km; 3,200 km navigable by large commercial vessels
>
>Pipelines: crude oil 1,343 km; natural gas 330 km
>
>Ports and harbors: Bassein, Bhamo, Chauk, Mandalay, Moulmein, Myitkyina,
>Rangoon, Akyab (Sittwe), Tavoy
>
>Merchant marine:
>total: 41 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 464,478 GRT/695,923 DWT
>ships by type: bulk 14, cargo 20, container 2, oil tanker 3,
passenger-cargo 2
>note: a flag of convenience registry; includes ships of 2 countries: Japan
>owns 2 ships, US 3 (1998 est.)
>
>Airports: 80 (1998 est.)
>
>Airports?with paved runways:
>total: 11
>over 3,047 m: 2
>2,438 to 3,047 m: 2
>1,524 to 2,437 m: 5
>914 to 1,523 m: 2 (1998 est.)
>
>Airports?with unpaved runways:
>total: 69
>over 3,047 m: 2
>1,524 to 2,437 m: 12
>914 to 1,523 m: 23
>under 914 m: 32 (1998 est.)
>
>Heliports: 1 (1998 est.)
>
>                                             Military
>
>
>[Top of Page]
>
>Military branches: Army, Navy, Air Force
>
>Military manpower?military age: 18 years of age
>
>Military manpower?availability:
>males age 15-49: 12,475,987
>females age 15-49: 12,224,947 (1999 est.)
>note: both sexes liable for military service
>
>Military manpower?fit for military service:
>males age 15-49: 6,660,309
>females age 15-49: 6,510,730 (1999 est.)
>
>Military manpower?reaching military age annually:
>males: 496,912
>females: 477,803 (1999 est.)
>
>Military expenditures?dollar figure: $3.904 billion (FY97/98)
>
>Military expenditures?percent of GDP: 2.1% (FY97/98)
>
>                                       Transnational Issues
>
>
>[Top of Page]
>
>Disputes?international: sporadic conflict with Thailand over alignment of
>border
>
>Illicit drugs: world's largest producer of illicit opium (cultivation in
>1998?130,300 hectares, a 16% decline from 1997;
>potential production?1,750 metric tons, down 26% due to drought and the
>first eradication effort since the current
>government took power in 1987) and a minor producer of cannabis for the
>international drug trade; surrender of drug warlord
>KHUN SA's Mong Tai Army in January 1996 was hailed by Rangoon as a major
>counternarcotics success, but lack of serious
>government commitment and resources continues to hinder the overall
>antidrug effort; growing role in the production of
>methamphetamines for regional consumption
>
>
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