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BurmaNet News, February 7, 2000
- Subject: BurmaNet News, February 7, 2000
- From: strider@xxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Mon, 07 Feb 2000 03:08:00
=========== The BurmaNet News ===========
Monday, February 7, 2000
Issue # 1456
=========================================
=========
Headlines
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Inside Burma--
AP: MYANMAR REBELS DREAM OF INDEPENDENCE
US NEWSWIRE: SPREAD OF HIV IN SOUTHEAST ASIA LINKED TO OVERLAND HEROIN
ROUTES
ARNO: NA SA KA AND MI CARRY OUT AGRICULTURE PROJECTS WITH MUSLIM FORCED
LABOUR
ARNO: BURMESE FRONTIER FORCE NA SA KA AND BANGLADESH BORDER SECURITY
FORCE BDR TRADE FIRE
===
International--
AFP: UN SAYS BANGKOK TRADE MEET AIMS TO HEAL WOUNDS OF SEATTLE
===
Editorial--
NCGUB: BURMA INTO THE MILLENNIUM
NCUB: QUICK-FIX RESPONSE TO INTERNATIONAL PRESSURE DAMAGES BURMESE
EDUCATION
Other--
FBC: A CONFERENCE FOR FREEDOM, DEMOCRACY, AND HUMAN RIGHTS IN BURMA
=========================================
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INSIDE BURMA
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AP: MYANMAR REBELS DREAM OF INDEPENDENCE
Sunday, February 06, 2000
By DENIS D. GRAY
ASSOCIATED PRESS
LOI TAI LIANG, Thai-Myanmar Border - High up on a cold mountain, amid
the swirling mists, die-hard rebel leaders dream of winning their
half-century-old and little-known struggle for independence.
Chances for victory seem as remote as the location: the bloodied,
impoverished and Shangri-La-looking swath of eastern Myanmar known as
Shan State.
The ethnic Shans, who are related to the Thais across the border, have
been fighting for autonomy since Myanmar, also known as Burma, achieved
independence from Britain in 1948. They have never been close to
victory, but neither have their ragtag armies ever been snuffed out.
They are putting their latest hopes in yet another alliance among
Myanmar's rebellious minorities - there have been dozens over the years
- and in the recent foreign interventions to protect oppressed peoples
in places like Kosovo and East Timor, a new trend in world affairs.
"It will be difficult, but who would have imagined 25 years ago that
East Timor would be independent today?" said Sao Ood Kase, spokesman for
the Shan State Army at Loi Tai Liang, a ragged bamboo-and-thatch
encampment whose name translates as "The Mountain of Shan Hope."
The forces arrayed against the Shan State Army and other insurgents are
formidable: a powerful Myanmar army that employs scorched-earth tactics,
a lack of global strategic importance and, in some cases, tarnished
reputations for suspected narcotics trafficking.
"We have reached our hands out for help from the international community
but so far there is no response," said Col. Yawd Serk, the 41-year-old
Shan State Army commander who says he took to the hills as a teenager
after ethnic Burman youths gang-raped his girlfriend.
No military threat The Myanmar government says the Shan State Army poses
no military threat and brings only harm to the local population.
The rebels, who claim to field 12,000 fighters but probably have fewer,
have a wish list including a United Nations seat, international
condemnation of the military regime's human rights abuses, and foreign
aid to help refugees and eradicate opium by planting alternate crops.
At the recent Shan new year, the rebel army sought to spread its message
by inviting a few foreign journalists and non-governmental organizations
to join the festivities.
Hundreds of guerrillas, refugees and villagers gathered at the mountain
base, some 6 miles from the nearest Myanmar military outpost.
For two nights, from dusk to dawn, drums and gongs resounded over the
surrounding forest. Huddled by fires, the celebrants watched folk plays
and dancers costumed as mythical creatures drawn from a history
stretching back 2,500 years.
Although the jury is still out on whether the Shan State Army is tied to
the narcotics trade, the deeply ingrained spirit of Shan nationalism has
often become entangled with drugs.
Some Shan leaders in the past, like the notorious Khun Sa, were
basically drug warlords, while others used the only available source of
funds - opium and heroin - to fuel a genuine struggle against Myanmar's
oppressive regime.
"The world still believes we are drug traffickers but nobody has come
here to see the reality," said Yawd Serk. "We learned that if you become
involved in drugs, it will corrupt you in the end."
The bespectacled colonel, reputed to be a tough, effective commander,
fought alongside Khun Sa until the latter cut a deal with Myanmar's
rulers in 1996 and absconded to the capital, Yangon.
Yawd Serk contends his cause is financed only by taxes and donations
from rich Shans. But sources within his command said that while the
rebel army shuns drug trafficking, it does tax narcotics passing through
its area.
The Shans say they have suffered abuses from Myanmar's government on a
par with those inflicted in Kosovo, East Timor and other places where
the world intervened.
Forced from villages Amnesty International estimates more than 300,000
people in Shan State have been forced from their villages into towns or
holding centers in a military drive since 1996 to deprive the rebels of
support in the countryside. The campaign is similar to those conducted
farther south in Myanmar, where ethnic Karen and Karenni insurgents
operate.
Shan refugees speak of villages set aflame, residents shot, women raped
and relocated people forced to work for the Myanmar army without food or
pay.
The government in Yangon denies mistreating the Shans. It says the Shan
State Army is trying to secure international support and sympathy by
leveling charges of ethnic cleansing and repression.
At the new year celebration, Shans talked about abuses at the hands of
the government's army.
With her 3-year-old daughter clinging to her legs, Nang Seng Tong told
of soldiers shooting her 82-year-old grandmother and uncle when they
were too slow to leave their village. She said the troops also burned
houses with children trapped inside.
Nothing to hope for "There is nothing to hope for," she concluded.
But then she listened with other refugees, many of them widows and
children, as Yawd Serk spoke of sacrifice and hope ahead.
Yawd Serk said an alliance among the five ethnic groups - Shan, Karen,
Chin, Karenni, Arakanese - still fighting the government could soon
coalesce. And he predicted other groups that had made peace with the
military would rejoin the struggle.
If that happened, Myanmar's hidden war, which began at the twilight of
the British Empire, could last well into the new century.
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US NEWSWIRE: SPREAD OF HIV IN SOUTHEAST ASIA LINKED TO OVERLAND HEROIN
ROUTES
U.S. Newswire
4 Feb 14:04
Spread of HIV in Southeast Asia Linked to Overland Heroin Trafficking
Routes
Contact: Johns Hopkins School of Public Health,
Office of Public Affairs, 410-955-6878;
E-mail: paffairs@xxxxxxxxx
BALTIMORE, Feb. 4 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Using groundbreaking
methods, a team of international researchers led by an investigator at
the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health has found that outbreaks of
injection drug use (IDU) and HIV-1 in Burma, India, China, and Vietnam
are associated with overland heroin trafficking routes originating in
Burma and Laos.
Injection drug users are well known to play important
epidemiologic roles in the early spread of HIV through their
needle-sharing and sexual behaviors; until now, however, the
relationship between overland heroin trafficking routes and the spread
of HIV in South and Southeast Asia has not been appreciated. The study
appeared in the January 2000 (14:1) issue of AIDS.
According to lead author, Chris Beyrer, MD, MPH, associate scientist,
Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, "Our findings
suggest there is a clear and urgent need for India, China, Vietnam,
Burma, and their neighbors to consider and, where appropriate, implement
strategies to reduce HIV transmission
risks." However, he cautioned, "Single-country narcotics and HIV
programs are unlikely to succeed unless the regional narcotic-based
economy is also addressed." Dr. Beyrer has also written a book, "War in
the Blood: Sex, Politics, and AIDS in Southeast Asia," which shows how
the interplay of culture and politics within seven
countries in the region influenced each nation's response to the AIDS
epidemic.
Dr. Beyrer and his team developed a unique research approach using tools
from widely varying disciplines. For the first time, the molecular
epidemiology of HIV-1, field-based research with drug users and their
communities, and existing information on narcotics
production and control were all brought together. The results
demonstrated how molecular epidemiology can be used for mapping the
spread of HIV along heroin trafficking routes. Of equal importance
was the use of this methodology in identifying and characterizing
overland drug routes. The team was also able to assess the impact of
heroin trafficking on local communities through a series of confidential
key-informant interviews with injection drug users,
drug traffickers, local and ethnic leaders, public health staff, and
narcotics control personnel in India, Burma, China, and Thailand.
The study found that recent HIV outbreaks coincided closely with four
main drug trafficking routes -- eastern Burma to China's Yunnan
Province; eastern Burma to northwestern China; Burma and Laos through
northern Vietnam and into southern China; and western
Burma to the Manipur State in northeastern India.
The Golden Triangle region of Southeast Asia, composed of
northern and eastern Burma, western Laos, and northern Thailand, has
been a major center of opium poppy cultivation since the nineteenth
century. Burma now produces about 60 percent of the world's heroin, and
heroin use in Burma has been on the rise since
1988. Predictably, the country has one of Asia's most severe epidemics
of HIV infection. Laos is the world's third leading producer of opium.
Thailand is no longer a significant producer, largely through government
efforts aimed at reducing poppy cultivation.
------
This study was supported in part by a grant from the Fogarty
International Center of the National Institutes of Health.
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ARNO: NA SA KA AND MI CARRY OUT AGRICULTURE PROJECTS WITH MUSLIM FORCED
LABOUR
Feb, 2000
Arakan Rohingya National Organization
The Na Sa Ka (border security force) and MI (military Intelligence)
personnel have been confiscating Muslim lands and carrying out
agricultural projects with the forced labour of Muslims in all parts of
north Arakan.
Muslim slaves have to till the land, water the plot, plant the seeds,
spread fertilisers and fence the project site. In the course of their
work they are being abused and beaten. Recently, 5 acres of land
belonging to Yin Ma village mosque endowment property and 7 acres of
farmland west of Taungbazar township have been confiscated and the said
agricultural projects have been carried out over the same.
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ARNO: BURMESE FRONTIER FORCE NA SA KA AND BANGLADESH BORDER SECURITY
FORCE BDR TRADE FIRE
Feb, 2000
Arakan Rohingya National Organization
On the night of 27.12.99 Burmese and Bangladesh border security forces
traded heavy machine gun and mortar fire at Taungbro on their common
border about 40 Km south of Cox'' Bazar. The firing lasted for more than
three hours. A BDR official Col. Wali told the news media that the BDR
came under unprovoked fire from the Burmese side. Interestingly the
incident coincided with the naming Monday of Ohn Thwin, a 48-year old
army brigadier, as Burma's new ambassador to Bangladesh. Brigadier
Thwin, who was Divisional commander of the Military operation command in
Rangoon before being posted to Bangladesh, will succeed incumbent Tint
Lwin, an official announcement said, but did not specify when Thwin will
arrive in Dhaka. In the year Dec.1991, Burmese forces overran a Rayzu
Para BDR camp near the border killing one paramilitary soldier. A BDR
official also alleged "They often intrude into our territory and abduct
fishermen and wood cutters" adding nearly 300 Bangladeshis, mostly
fishermen were now in Myanmar jails. The official said the fishermen had
been charged falsely with illegal fishing.
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INTERNATIONAL
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AFP: UN SAYS BANGKOK TRADE MEET AIMS TO HEAL WOUNDS OF SEATTLE
Agence France Presse
February 6, 2000, Sunday
BANGKOK, Feb 6
The UN's global trade meet which gets underway in Bangkok next
week-end aims to heal the wounds of previous violence-marred talks in
Seattle and Davos, top officials said Sunday.
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) secretary
general Rubens Ricupero said he hoped to lay the groundwork for new
rounds of revitalised trade liberalization talks where developing
nations were given a real voice.
"For us trade is not the end. Trade is a means towards development," he
told reporters on arrival in Bangkok.
"We are confident in our conference there will be opportunity for what
could be called the healing process after Seattle ... regaining the
momentum, particularly as far as developing countries are concerned."
December's World Trade Organisation (WTO) talks in Seattle, Washington,
collapsed as members failed to reach common ground on how to fairly
tackle agriculture, biotechnology, workers' rights and environmental
safeguards in a new round.
The Seattle talks, and a high-powered meeting of the World Economic
Forum in Davos, Switzerland last week were marred by bitter and
sometimes violent protests by groups warning the new global economy
risks widening the gap between the haves and the have-nots.
Ricupero said the UNCTAD meet in Bangkok would seek to forge new
relationships between governments and non-state sectors concerned about
the affects of trade liberalisation on the ability of less powerful
developing nations to compete in the global marketplace.
"It is necessary to take their concerns very seriously and try to
identify what the reasons are behind all those manifestations, and what
we can do in international organisations to channel those feelings
towards a constructive cause.
"I hope that our conference will provide them with a public space,
because I think it is dangerous to confine the protests to the street
level," Ricupero said.
He said the week-long UNCTAD meeting would deal with many of the same
issues as the WTO and World Economic Forum in terms of liberalising
trade in agriculture, industrial goods and services and how to tackle
problems of implementation of previous rounds of talks.
The UN's trade and development chief, Rubens Ricupero, warned on Sunday
that protests must be allowed at the world body's global trade meet
starting in Bangkok next weekend.
The warning comes amid a security crack-down by Thai authorities eager
to prevent a repeat of violence by anti-globalisation activists which
marred World Trade Organisation talks in Seattle last year and the more
recent World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
Ricupero, United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)
secretary general, said it was vital dissenting voices be heard and that
the Bangkok meeting be used to heal old wounds.
"I hope that our conference will provide them with a public space,
because I think it is dangerous to confine the protests to the street
level," Ricupero said.
"It is necessary to take their concerns very seriously and try to
identify what the reasons are behind all those manifestations, and what
we can do in international organisations to channel those feelings
towards a constructive cause."
He said the UN had "full confidence" in Thailand's security arrangements
for the conference to be held between February 12 and 19.
"We trust that they will do what they find is necessary," he told
reporters at a press conference after arriving in Bangkok Sunday
morning.
Thai police chiefs Wednesday promised to permit anti-globalisation
protests during the meeting, but have banned demonstrations near the
venue.
"As of now we haven't found a suitable venue for demonstrations, but we
are looking for potential places," National Police Chief General Pracha
Promnog said.
Security in the capital has been stepped up, with police already on
alert following last month's seizure of a hospital west of Bangkok along
with hundreds of patients and staff by Myanmar insurgents.
Thai authorities insist a current round-up of illegal immigrants in
Bangkok follwoing the hostage crisis is unrelated to UNCTAD security
preparations.
"There is no direct connection between the delegates from the countries
who are coming to the conference and any kind of round-up based on
countries of origin," said Kobsak Chutikul, director of the foreign
ministry's economics department.
"The press reports perhaps are reporting over-enthusiasm and a sense of
concern by those who have been entrusted with the responsibility of
making security arrangements."
More than 6,622 police officers will be deployed across the capital
during the week-long conference, while thousands of delegates, including
a number of heads of state, from more than 100 nations are expected to
attend.
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EDITORIALS/OPINION
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NCGUB: BURMA INTO THE MILLENNIUM
Facilitating Policy Options for a Democratic Transition
January 29-30 2000 Washington D.C
OPENING REMARKS OF DR. SEIN WIN (PRIME MINISTER, NATIONAL COALITION
GOVERNMENT OF THE UNION OF BURMA)
Saturday, January 29, 2000
I am very pleased to have opportunity to join all of you this morning to
open important conference on Burma. The location of the conference, the
American University, one of great learning centers in the US, is a very
appropriate venue for a conference like this where we can learn from one
another, share experiences, and work together on strategies to advance
the struggle for a just and democratic Burma.
As an active participant of the democratic movement in the last twelve
years, I have come to realize the importance of information and
knowledge as essential tools for our movement. If it is often said that
knowledge is power. And that is why this conference is so important. We
are deeply grateful that so many distinguished thinkers, researches,
analysts, scholars
and leaders have been willing to join us to share the power of their
knowledge and experience. Your knowledge and your commitment to our
cause are enormous assets. It is my conviction, and it is the
fundamental premise of this conference, that these assets, the power of
your knowledge and insight, are sources of power that can help to end
the nightmare of the people of Burma. We are committed to doing
everything possible to put the power of the knowledge to work in the
most effective ways possible. We begin with this conference. And this
conference begins with you. And, may I say on behalf of the people of
Burma, thank you for being willing to support the struggle for a free
and democratic Burma. Thank you for joining in this important
conference. it is my hope that it will serve as the starting point
of a process that will continue to strengthen our cause.
In many ways, our struggle is a struggle of ideas. Our struggle began
with the basic idea of freedom and democracy where the citizens of
Burma have the basic right to control their own destiny. We offered this
idea to the people of Burma, as an alternative to the repression and
tyranny of a military dictatorship. The citizens of Burma responded
overwhelmingly.
And, while the generals have been able to hold the people of Burma
captive by the force of the gun, they have utterly failed to capture
their minds and hearts, now extinguish their thirst for the vital ideals
of democracy and freedom. The generals are powerless before these ideas.
That is why there ideas and principles continue to flourish in Burma,
just as they did in 1990 when the National League for Democracy was
chosen by the people of Burma to lead our nation forward.
Today, the idea of "democracy" is widely accepted in Burma. Even the
military regime is forced to publicy claim that they support
"democracy". They seem to think, however, that it too can be controlled
by the force of
their will, as they try to come up with a so called "democratic system"
that will keep them in power, despite the popular will of the citizens
of Burma. As powerful as their guns might be, they are no match for the
power of the idea of democracy and freedom.
A while ago, many of our Asian friends advanced the idea that strong
economic growth will lead to open political systems. Many Asian
countries, therefore, poured huge investments into Burma claiming that
their investments will eventually bring an end to the police state. This
'constructive engagement' idea, long opposed by the National League of
Democracy, never kept its promise to the people of Burma. Instead, they
produced miserable consequences and human suffering where our people
experienced a wide range of human rights abuses while the economy of
Burma continued to fail.
Recently, we have heard from certain scholars advancing the idea of
so-called 'civil society' in Burma. They argue that the only road to
democracy is to work with the generals, within the current system, and
nature a civil society that will somehow overcome an oppressive
dictatorship. While they may be sincere and well meaning, the advocates
of this from or engagement are just as wrong as those committed to
economic engagement. The consequences are equally disastrous. Increasing
the capacity of a civil society that is built on oppression and tyranny
will only sustain and strengthen that tyranny. It also negates the
efforts of concerned government and institutions that are pressuring the
regime to start a dialogue with the NLD. These ideas are another example
of good intentions that, if left unchallenged, lead to bad consequences.
The losers, again, are the long suffering people of Burma. They deserve
better.
To prevail, the powerful idea of a free and democratic Burma needs
powerful and committed allies. That is why it is so important that you
are here. You all bring strengths to this struggle. The power of your
knowledge, insight and commitment can give life to the idea of a true
democracy in Burma. What we need is to focus the power of this knowledge
in a way that gives maximum strength to our movement and therefore,
maximum support to the people of Burma. That is the purpose of this
conference. It is also one of the primary reasons that we were eager to
help create the Burma Fund. Its mission is to use the knowledge and
experience that we have gained in our twelve years of democratic
struggle to build a foundation for a democratic transition in Burma. It
will also serve as a resource to organize the follow-up activities and
research that we hope that this conference will generate. It is my hope,
therefore, that the Burma Fund will become a resource for every one here
as we move forward together.
Once again, on behalf of the people of Burma who dream of the day when
they are free, thank you for your support and for your willingness to
participate in this important conference. Let us dedicate ourselves to
converting the enormous power of knowledge and commitment that is here
today into a force that no totalitarian regime-regardless of how many
guns in their arsenal-can withstand
Thank you.
****
(Burma into Millennium: Facilitating Policy Options for the Democratic
Transition)
Organized by The Burma Fund
Sponsored by National Endowment for Democracy, the Open Society
Institute, and the School of International Services, American University
in partnership with Free Burma Coalition, Joint-Action Committee,
Burmese Women Union and Democratic Burmese Student Organization At
Beeghly Chemistry Building, Lecture Theater 1
January 29 to 31 2000
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NCUB: QUICK-FIX RESPONSE TO INTERNATIONAL PRESSURE DAMAGES BURMESE
EDUCATION
NCUB Information Committee
Date : 7th February2000
On February 3, 2000 the Burmese military regime shut down recently
reopened Government Technological Colleges (GTC) in Thanlyan and Hmabe
(Rangoon Division) after student protests. Elsewhere, GTCs from Hin
Thada and Ma U Bin were also closed in mid January of 2000 because of
prevailing instability among students.
Students are calling for the cancellation of the newly introduced
education system and its accompanying repressive regulations. They are
also demanding access to high-level university degrees instead of the
college degrees offered under the new system. The ongoing protests
testify to the anger and frustration of students who have repeatedly
been denied access to education and basic student rights.
Most universities in Burma have been closed since the 1996 student
demonstrations. On 16 December 1999, in response to pressure from the
international community, particularly Japan, the junta selectively
opened newly founded Government Technical Colleges (GTCs) in 30
different locations. These GTCs are designed to replace the Yangon and
Mandalay Institutes of Technology (YIT&MIT).
Under the new education system, students previously admitted to YIT/MIT
are dispersed throughout 30 regional GTCs. Students are unable to
organize or hold discussions, and classes are taught by sub-standard
teachers in make-shift classrooms. In addition, course time has been
drastically cut. Achieving a degree at a GTC will take 4 academic years
instead of the 6 years previously required at YIT or MIT. GTCs will only
offer college level degrees, instead of the university level education
offered by YIT/MIT. The administration of the GTCs has been transferred
from the Ministry of Education to the Ministry of Science and
Technology.
The opening of the GTCs was a superficial gesture designed to placate
the international community. U Maung Maung Aye, the General Secretary of
NCUB, said, "The current student unrest proves the regime is not sincere
in its desire to effectively solve the country's social crisis,
particularly in education. Whenever they deal with international
pressure, the regime is clearly fishing for quid pro quo benefits of an
up front financial nature. Finally these superficial quick fixes turn
out to be failures and in some cases damage the situation."
The recent protests and closures of the GTCs demonstrate the
regime痴 unwillingness to implement real change in Burma痴
education system. A comprehensive strategy is needed to prevent the
regime from manipulating the good will of the international community.
For further information please contact: 66 55 533 067
For information regarding NCUB please see:
http://www.freeburma.org/lokanat/ncub/ncub.html
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OTHER
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FBC: A CONFERENCE FOR FREEDOM, DEMOCRACY, AND HUMAN RIGHTS IN BURMA
Help Free Burma! Join students, professionals, and any person who takes
in interest in freedom and democracy and attend the international Free
Burma Coalition conference.
On April 1-3rd, 2000, hundred of people from around the world will join
together in Washington, DC to promote freedom and democracy in Burma. We
will invite members of Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, the
Sierra
Club, Earthrights International, and students from over 100 universities
in the United States, Canada, Thailand, Sweden, England, France,
Ireland, Japan, and more. Jennifer Quigley from George Washington
University
jquigley@xxxxxxx is the conference convener.
We will also discuss the possible pending action at the World Trade
Organization. A couple of years ago, Japan and the European Union filed
suit against the State of Massachusetts for refusing to do business with
companies that operate in Burma. The state law in Massachusetts would
probably have been overturned by the WTO, simply because Massachusetts
didn't want to support human rights abuses in Burma! However, a United
States federal district court overturned the law and now we're appealing
it to the U.S. Supreme Court, which will hear the case on March 22nd. If
the court agrees with us, then chances are the WTO will again try to
force Massachusetts to go to bed with brutal dictators!
Speakers
In addition to speakers from the groups mentioned above, former
political prisoner Rachel Goldwyn has agreed to serve as a keynote
speaker for the event. Goldwyn spent several weeks in prison in Burma
during 1999 for singing a pro-democracy song in Burma. FBC launched a
Free Rachel Goldwyn campaign in response to her arrest. In addition, FBC
has obtained a video tape recently smuggled out of Burma by Aung San Suu
Kyi, and we will premier
it at the conference!
Also attending will be four members of the Rangoon 18, students who were
arrested in Burma in 1998 for handing out pro-democracy leaflets.
Stutdents Michele Keegan, Nisha Anand, and Sapna Chhatpar will share
their experience.
For more information:
Jeremy@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx,
jquigley@xxxxxxx,
and
zarni@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
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To contact The BurmaNet News--
Email: strider@xxxxxxx
Voice mail: +1 (435) 304-9274
Fax: +1 (810)454-4740
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