Information Sheet No. B-1157 (I)

[OKKAR66129@xxxxxxx]

MYANMAR INFORMATION COMMITTEE
YANGON

Information  Sheet
No. B-1157 (I)                         22nd November 1999
                  

(1)  Thai Foreign Minister to Visit Myanmar
        
     At the invitation of Minister for Foreign Affairs
of the Union of Myanmar U Win Aung, Minister for
Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Thailand Dr. Surin
Pitsuwan will pay a friendly visit to the Union of
Myanmar in the near future. 

(2)  Auditor-General Leaves for Philippines 
        
     Chairman of Myanmar Accountancy Council,
Auditor-General left Yangon on 21 November morning to
attend the 11th Conference of ASEAN Accounts Council
to be held in Davao City in the Philippines from 23 to 27 November. 

(3)  Myanmar Tourism Delegation Holds Talks in LPDR
        
     At the invitation of Deputy Minister of Economic
and Tourism Services and Chairman of Lao National
Tourism Authority of Lao People's Democratic Republic
Mr. Cheng Sayavong, the Myanmar delegation led by
Deputy Minister for Hotels and Tourism let Yangon by
air on 16 November to attend a ceremony to mark
1999-2000 Visit Laos Year held from 18 to 23 November
in Vientiane, Lao PDR. Deputy Minister and party
attended the opening ceremony of 1999-2000 Visit Laos
Year on 18 November morning and also met the Deputy
Minister Mr. Cheng Sayavong at the Lane Xang Hotel in
the evening. They discussed promotion of tourism
services between Myanmar and Laos. Over 300,000
tourists visited Lao PDR within the first six months
of 1999. The members of the delegation arrived back
Yangon on 20 November evening.  

(4)  MOB  Opens Branch in Mandalay
        
     The opening ceremony of a branch of Myanmar
Oriental Bank was held the Sedorna Hotel in Mandalay
on 21 November morning. This is MOB's 12th branch
which is situated on 35th Street between 81st and 82nd
Streets in Mandalay and also the second branch of MOB
in Mandalay. The first branch is situated on 84th
Street. Two more branches will be opened in the
beginning of year 2000 - one in Yangon and another in Toungoo. 

Special Feature
        
     This office is presenting a letter to the Editor written by a travel 
writer Mr. Nicholas Greenwood to the Independent on Sunday of London for your 
information.

RIGHT NOW BOOKS (BURMA)
36c Sisters Ave
London SW11 5SQ

21st November 1999

The Editor
Independent on Sunday
1 Canada Square
Canary Wharf 
London M14 5DL
Fax No: 0171 293 2043 (2 pages)
---------------------------------------------

Dear Sir,

As the UK's Burma (Myanmar) travel specialist, I have
always found it ironic that your newspaper is called
the "Independent (on Sunday)", when it is well known
amongst media folk, that, with regard to the
Government of Burma (Myanmar), you are anything but
(independent). Your views and opinions on this matter
are well known for being wholly biased.

In this connexion, you are only too keen to publish
Patricia Barnett's letter ("Ethical  Holiday") today,
even though Ms. Barnett is quite incapable of getting
even the most basic of facts correct about Burma.
Frankly it astonishes me that someone holding the
responsible position  she does in Tourism Concern can
write "Aung San Suu Kyi, the democratically elected
leader of the country", when Ms. Suu Kyi has never
been elected in any capacity whatsoever. If Ms.
Barnett is not even aware of this most fundamental of
facts, it also follows that everything else she has to
say on a country about which she has practically no
first-hand experience can be taken with an exceedingly
large pinch of salt. 

As then first  Westerner for over 30 years to have
gained access to all areas of the country, and the
veteran of a mere 23 trips in the past decade, I can
tell Ms. Barnett (and your readers) that the only
person I have ever met in all my travels who opposes
tourism is Ms. Suu Kyi herself--the remainder of the
population is 100 % in favour of tourism and
completely against, Ms. Suu Kyi's views on this
subject. Thus Ms. Barnett is way off target when she
asks "who are we to put our opinions and needs above
those of the people of Burma?" What she should have
stated was "why should we kowtow to one unelected
woman as opposed to heeding the wishes of 99.9% of the
population?"

Lastly in your , where once again you attack Burma, it
would appear that your writers are as ignorant about
the country as Ms. Barnett. Under the heading "BEST
MONUMENT", there can be no doubt whatsoever that the
Shwedagon Pagoda should have been listed--to fail to
do so not only displays total ignorance about the
country, but it is also an insult to the Burmese
people (and other Buddhists worldwide), for whom the
Shwedagon is not only the country's most sacred site,
but also by a long way the country's "BEST MONUMENT".

Yours Sincerely

Sd
Nicholas Greenwood
TRAVEL WRITER & TOUR CONSULTANT (BURMA)

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