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Subject: [theburmanetnews] BurmaNet News: June 23, 2000
______________ THE BURMANET NEWS ______________
An on-line newspaper covering Burma
______________ www.burmanet.org _______________
June 23, 2000
Issue # 1562
The BurmaNet News is viewable online at:
http://theburmanetnews.editthispage.com
NOTED IN PASSING:
"Whatever its regime may proclaim, Myanmar seems to be relying on
ever more horrible methods to sustain an indefensible export trade."
The Economist magazine. (See THE ECONOMIST: DRUGS AND SLAVERY IN
MYANMAR)
*Inside Burma
THE ECONOMIST: DRUGS AND SLAVERY IN MYANMAR
FAR EASTERN ECONOMIC REVIEW: IF THAN SHWE HAS GONE, EXPECT A LONG-
STANDING POWER STRUGGLE BETWEEN MAUNG AYE AND KHIN NYUNT
MYANMAR INFORMATION COMMITTEE: JICA AND MAPT DISCUSS ENERGY SECTORS
FOR RURAL DEVELOPMENT
NEW LIGHT OF MYANMAR: MINISTER MEETS OFFICIALS OF UPM OF MALAYSIA
*Regional
BANGKOK POST: BURMESE GOVERNMENT WAS THE ONLY COUNTRY IN ASEAN
EXPORTING PROBLEMS TO OTHER MEMBERS--NON-INTERVENTION IS NO LONGER
RELEVANT
*International
THE JAPAN TIMES: REFUGEE ATTACKS JAPAN'S ASYLUM PROCESS--U.S.
WELCOMED ACTIVIST
*Economy/Business
FP: TOTALFINA-ELF CHAIRMAN DEFENDS MYANMAR INVESTMENT DECISION
*Opinion/Editorials
EARTHRIGHTS INTERNATIONAL: SUPREME COURT DECISION HURTS DEMOCRACY
MOVEMENT IN BURMA AND U.S.
*Other
JOINT ACTION COMMITTEE: BURMESE LITERATURE TALK IN DC
TREND MICRO US VIRUS RESEARCH GROUP: NEW VIRUS ALERT00VBS_STAGES.A
(A.K.A. SCRAPWORM AND LIFESTAGES)
__________________ INSIDE BURMA ____________________
THE ECONOMIST: DRUGS AND SLAVERY IN MYANMAR
June 24, 2000 , U.S. Edition
A MEASURE of the fear and repression in Myanmar can be readily
found by talking to its refugees in neighbouring Thailand. About 1m
have fled to border towns like Mae Sot to avoid economic collapse and
repression by a brutal military regime. Many have found their way
into the growing Thai economy, but some 90,000 refugees remain in
camps on the border. Among the more worrying stories they tell are of
a homeland that increasingly relies on slavery.
To judge by the reports of recent refugees, slavery seems
particularly widespread in such states as Shan and Karen. Myanmar's
army only recently took full control of these remote border areas.
The regime, which ten years ago ignored an unambiguous election
victory by the opposition National League for Democracy, has arranged
ceasefires with most of the rebel ethnic groups, but keeps control
only by using slaves to build defences, roads and bridges. Locals are
forced to clear land, act as porters for the army and provide food
and housing. Refugees claim that forced labourers are even made to
march along roads that have been mined by rebels.
"It is a matter of life or death. Now we have people coming from deep
inside Burma [Myanmar], not just the border," explains the leader of
the Um Phiem refugee camp, on a muddy, crowded hillside on the Thai
border. Their stories, and other accounts collected clandestinely
inside Myanmar, tell of horrific forced labour. Sometimes they
involve prisoners, even petty criminals. One man says he was plucked
from a train for not having a ticket and forced to work for the army
on a starvation diet.
In this deeply Buddhist country, the army usually describes the work
demanded of forced labourers as a traditional merit-earning activity.
Unfortunately, the
800,000 or so people who are thought to be exploited in this way have
little say about it. Their numbers have been estimated by groups
compiling evidence for the UN's International Labour Organisation. In
a conference in Geneva last week, the ILO urged that Myanmar should
face further international isolation because of its use of forced
labour. The regime, which has lately been making renewed efforts to
gain recognition abroad and to woo foreign investors, has responded
angrily, denying that it uses forced labour and giving warning that
foreign meddling would "only impede the process of democratisation".
This is not a process, however, that has been much in evidence. The
army has about 400,000 men and takes the lion's share of government
spending. Even so, its soldiers are ill-equipped. Most of them are
frightened conscripts, of whom many are also forced to work unpaid
for the various businesses run by their officers. These may be as
innocuous as, say brick making. Or they may involve illegal logging,
smuggling or Myanmar's flourishing drugs industry.
The United States has condemned Myanmar as the biggest producer of
opium after Afghanistan. The Thais are concerned about the quantities
of what are called yabba flowing across the border. These potent
amphetamines are increasingly being manufactured in Myanmar's border
region. Whatever its regime may proclaim, Myanmar seems to be relying
on ever more horrible methods to sustain an indefensible export trade.
____________________________________________________
FAR EASTERN ECONOMIC REVIEW: IF THAN SHWE HAS GONE, EXPECT A LONG-
STANDING POWER STRUGGLE BETWEEN MAUNG AYE AND KHIN NYUNT.
Issue cover-dated June 29, 2000
BURMA'S GEN. THAN SHWE never wished to become head of the country's
military junta. As deputy chairman he was forced into the role in
1992 after his late predecessor, Gen. Saw Maung, was forced to step
down on health grounds. But in light of recent reports that Than Shwe
himself is now seriously ill, attention is shifting to his two
closest underlings, army commander Gen. Maung Aye and intelligence
chief Lt.-Gen. Khin Nyunt. If Than Shwe goes, diplomats in Rangoon
expect a long-standing power struggle between the two to spill into
the open. The significance of such a development is more than a
matter of domestic concern. A power struggle could change
Rangoon's relationship with the outside world, most notably with
China and its main strategic rival in the region, India. Khin Nyunt
is seen as pro-Chinese. Maung Aye, however, is said to be concerned
about Burma's heavy dependence on arms supplies from China, and
Chinese migration into northern parts of the country. While senior
Indian officials are reluctant to characterize Maung Aye as anti-
Chinese, New Delhi has nonetheless been conducting a charm offensive
to encourage him to take a more independent foreign-policy stance.
Signs that Maung Aye is preparing for the post-Than Shwe era are
already evident. Thai intelligence officials say he recently visited
the Mong Yawn base of the United Wa State Army, where he informed
combatants that in future they would have to report to him. The UWSA,
a former rebel army of 10,000-20,000 fighters that made peace with
the government in 1989, has so far been close to Khin Nyunt. It
controls most of the Golden Triangle's lucrative drugs trade and has
close ties with China.
India's main concern in Burma has long been China. New Delhi has
sought to counter Beijing's influence by supporting Burma's pro-
democracy forces. But since 1993, India has shifted its strategy out
of concern that its policies had achieved little while pushing Burma
closer to Beijing. "While our hearts are with the pro-democracy
movement, we can't wait for them to come to power," says an overseas-
based Indian diplomat, who asked not to be identified. "We have to
counter China's influence here and now."
INDIA REAPS ECONOMIC BENEFIT
Swaran Singh, a Burma expert at New Delhi's Institute for Defence
Studies and Analyses, says that in the early 1990s, Burma was seen as
another province of China. "Today," he says, "it is completely
different. Asean [the Association of Southeast Asian Nations] and
India have also moved in."
Part of that new policy appears to be to exploit the rift between
Maung Aye and Khin Nyunt. In January this year, Maung Aye paid a
highly publicized visit to India--notably without Khin Nyunt. Since
then it has emerged that he offered military cooperation to help
tackle cross-border insurgencies in India's volatile northeastern
states. Government officials in New Delhi say India has been
supplying nonlethal military aid to Burma in return, including boots
and combat gear for soldiers. India has also leased helicopters.
Indian companies have also begun to promote trade and investment in
Burma. In late May, Bombay industrialist G.L. Goenka headed a
business delegation to Rangoon. The visitors discussed projects from
copper exploration near the Indian border to a natural-gas pipeline
from Burma to India. Government officials in New Delhi say talks are
at an advanced stage on a 1,000-megawatt hydroelectric project on the
Chindwin River that would supply power to both countries.
Maung Aye also played a tough negotiator during a trip to Beijing
this month. China and Burma had been expected to conclude an accord
during the trip, providing China's southwestern provinces with access
to the Indian Ocean via the Bhamo river port in northern Burma. But a
firm deal wasn't reached. "While China will get some concessions, it
won't get all that it asked for," says a Thailand-based Asian
diplomat.
For Burma's pro-democracy movement, the emerging power struggle and
the big-power games being played out in back rooms during foreign
visits are bad news. "It shows that more and more countries in the
region now believe that the junta is there to stay," says the
Thailand-based diplomat. And Maung Aye, a military hardliner, may be
better poised to ensure this state of affairs prevails than the
relatively more outgoing and mundane Khin Nyunt.
____________________________________________________
MYANMAR INFORMATION COMMITTEE: JICA AND MAPT DISCUSS ENERGY SECTORS
FOR RURAL DEVELOPMENT
YANGON
Information Sheet
N0. B-1419 (I) 23rd June, 2000
A delegation led by Director Mr. Yuji Otake of Energy and Mining
Development Study Division of Japan International Cooperation Agency
(JICA) met a Myanmar Delegation led by Managing Director of Myanma
Agricultural Produce Trading at the meeting hall of MAPT on 22 June.
They discussed matters related to energy sector for the development
of rural areas in Myanmar.
[BurmaNet adds: The Japan International Cooperation Agency is the
Japanese government agency involved in sponsoring the feasibility
study for the Salween dam project in Burma's Shan State. The
feasibility study is either completed or all but completed. One
diplomat from a country urging Japan not to fund the dam told
BurmaNet that "crunch time" comes once the feasibility study is
finished and Japan has to decide whether to go forward. That time is
essentially now.]
____________________________________________________
NEW LIGHT OF MYANMAR: MINISTER MEETS OFFICIALS OF UPM OF MALAYSIA
YANGON, 22 June- Minister for Livestock and Fisheries Brig-Gen Maung
Maung Thein met Dean Dato Dr Sheikh Omar Abdul Rahman of UPM of
Malaysia and party at his office at 5 pm today.
Also present were Deputy Minister U Aung Thein, Director-General U
Kyaw Lwin of Directorate of Livestock and Fisheries, Director-General
U Maung Maung Nyunt of Livestock Breeding and Veterinary Department,
Director-General U Than Tun of Fisheries Department and Head of
Office U Myint Shwe
___________________________ REGIONAL ___________________________
BANGKOK POST: BURMESE GOVERNMENT WAS THE ONLY COUNTRY IN ASEAN
EXPORTING PROBLEMS TO OTHER MEMBERS--NON-INTERVENTION IS NO LONGER
RELEVANT
June 22, 2000.
Bhanravee Tansubhapol
Asean's policy of non-interference in the affairs of member states is
no longer relevant, Deputy Foreign Minister Sukhumbhand Paribatra
said yesterday. Asean must become more responsible for its own
affairs, he told a seminar on the future of the regional bloc.
Adjustment was necessary to strengthen the grouping internally to
cope with future challenges and prevent outside interference.
Global and regional integration were two challenges for Asean. It
needed to be alert and well prepared for economic, political,
environmental, health and human rights issues, M.R. Sukhumbhand
said. Member states must improve the quality of their political,
economic and social institutions, to allow the people more political
participation, and to have transparent rules and accountable
governments. He praised Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia, all new members,
for their co-operation with other members.
Surapong Jayanama, director-general of the East Asian Affairs
Department, said a collective approach to problems was needed,
including reconsideration of the policy of constructive engagement
with Burma.
Asean should modify its non-intervention policy so it could tackle
problems which had a political and security impact on the region, he
said. Failure to do so could provide a loophole for interference by
countries outside the region. Vittaya Sucharithanarugse, former
director of the Asia Studies Institute, said the Burmese government
was the only country in Asean exporting problems to other members.
The Rangoon junta was building up its internal security, but that was
affecting the security of Burma's neighbours, he said.
__________________ INTERNATIONAL __________________
THE JAPAN TIMES: REFUGEE ATTACKS JAPAN'S ASYLUM PROCESS--U.S.
WELCOMED ACTIVIST
June 23, 2000
By TAKUYA ASAKURA
Staff writer
Over 10 years have passed since Myanmar democracy activist Than Htay
fled to Japan from his military-ruled motherland on May 26, 1990, the
day before a general election whose results were nullified by the
junta. His life in Japan, however, has been a bitter experience
because Japanese authorities refused to recognize him as a political
refugee.
His anger at the Japanese government has been exacerbated since the
United States granted him asylum status after his application last
September, thus allowing him to become actively engaged in political
activities in that country without fear of deportation.
"My wife and I have been deeply hurt in Japan during the last 10
years," said Than Htay, who served as vice president of a democracy
advocacy group, the Burmese Association in Japan, for three years.
Than Htay first applied for asylum here in winter 1992, with the help
of a lawyer he met during a Japanese conference on democracy in
Myanmar. He recalled several interviews with immigration officers
during which he was treated like a criminal suspect.
"They sometimes yelled at me, accusing me of over-staying my visa,"
he recalled.
One of his most telling memories of the interviews are of the
immigration officers serving tea only for themselves during the all-
day interviews, which only had a short lunch break.
Nearly two years after he applied for refugee status, his application
was denied because it had not been filed within 60 days of his entry,
as stipulated by law.
He immediately appealed the decision to the Justice Ministry.
Because Than Htay and his wife were placed under provisional release
from deportation procedures, for years they had to travel every month
to the immigration office in Tokyo's Kita Ward from their residence
in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture.
In March 1999, after waiting for more than six years under unstable
conditions and fear of deportation, Than Htay received his final
denial for a refugee visa.
Then later that month, as if by way of consolation, the justice
minister granted him special residency permission, which is usually
given only to a foreigner married to a Japanese or to a permanent
resident here.
"I can work as long as I have the special residence permission," Than
Htay said. "But my pride (as a leading democracy activist) was hurt."
His experience with U.S. immigration authorities provided a striking
contrast to his experience in Japan.
He was treated "as a human with respect" in the U.S., where he sought
asylum during a visit to attend a seminar last September.
An immigration officer who introduced himself as "Thomas" knew a lot
about Myanmar, he said. "And my cup was filled with tea and his cup
was filled, too."
When he spoke about his 17th birthday, which he spent in a concrete
prison cell in Myanmar because of his political activities, the
American immigration officer listened with tearful eyes, he said.
At the end of the 90-minute interview, Thomas saw him off by shaking
his hand, Than Htay recalled, noting that it took only about three
months for the U.S. government to officially grant him asylum.
Nevertheless, Than Htay said, he and his wife now feel too tired to
think of starting a new life in another country, where he would have
to deal with a new language, different customs and hunt for a job.
"My wife said she neither wants to stay in Japan nor go to America,"
he said in fluent Japanese.
He said he felt especially stressful when high-ranking officials of
Myanmar's junta were invited to Japan by the same government that
treated him as an offender.
"I believe that Burma will be democratized in the coming few years,"
Than Htay said. "Considering the future relationship between Japan
and Burma, the Japanese government should support us instead of
hurting us."
Japan, which he describes as a major financial supporter of the
military junta, can play a more active role in the effort to bring
democracy to Myanmar, he said.
Tokyo-based lawyer Shogo Watanabe, who has supported many asylum-
seekers, said Than Htay's case proved the government has been failing
to fulfill its obligation to appropriately protect refugees. "It is
against the international convention on refugees," he said.
Like Than Htay, there have been a number of cases in which asylum-
seekers in Japan failed to meet the "60-day rule" of application or
never dared to even apply for refugee status.
While some claimed a lack of knowledge about the application process,
others said they were so afraid of being denied asylum and sent back
home that they could not turn to the authorities.
"I really like the people of Japan," Than Htay said. "But I think the
way the Japanese government and the Justice Ministry treat us is
wrong."
_______________ ECONOMY AND BUSINESS _______________
AFP: TOTALFINA-ELF CHAIRMAN DEFENDS MYANMAR INVESTMENT DECISION
PARIS, June 22 (AFP) - The chairman of French oil giant TotalFina-
Elf, Thierry Desmarest, has defended his company's decision to invest
in Myanmar, a country ruled by a military junta.
Speaking to the foreign affairs commission of the French
parliament, the National Assembly, Desmarest argued that the politics
of the embargo had never produced results.
It was not up to private enterprises to judge whether or not
countries were behaving in accordance with internationally accepted
norms, he said. Responding to deputies' questions Wednesday,
Desmarest said that he "did not regret the decision to invest in
Myanmar" and added that the country's people would benefit directly.
But the parliamentary commission chairman, the Socialist deputy
Francois Loncle, said the company's presence in Myanmar "balckened
its image, as well as that of France".
In May, Myanmar opposition leader and Nobel peace prize winner
Aung San Suu Kyi criticised what she termed the support shown by the
French oil giant forthe military junta.
Only the military and a small group of businessmen would profit
from the investment, she said.
French Foreign Minister Hubert Vedrine said in April that
TotalFina-Elf could go ahead with its Myanmar investments, providing
it worked to improve living conditions for the local population.
The company was doing its best to make a contribution, but it was
not reasonable to expect it to organise the development of a country
of 40 million people, Desmarest said.
_________________OPINION/EDITORIALS________________
EARTHRIGHTS INTERNATIONAL: SUPREME COURT DECISION HURTS DEMOCRACY
MOVEMENT IN BURMA AND U.S.
June 22, 2000
On June 19th, the U.S. Supreme Court announced a decision that
amounts to a slap in the face of the democracy movement in Burma and
its supporters in the U.S. The decision stings for a moment, but it
does not gravely injure the movement, nor will it stop its progress.
The unanimous decision struck down the Massachusetts Burma law, which
effectively prohibited Massachusetts from purchasing goods or
services from corporations with investments in Burma. This selective
purchasing law was modeled after similar measures to discourage
companies from doing business in South Africa, measures widely
credited with helping to end apartheid.
The Massachusetts law had an impressive array of supporters. Among
them were religious leaders, socially conscious investors, the
student-led Free Burma Coalition, 78 Members of Congress, and Aung
San Suu Kyi, leader of the party that won democratic elections in
Burma ten years ago. (Ironically, the Supreme Court decision was
announced on her birthday.) These groups are already adjusting their
plans, and are now preparing a new legislative campaign for selective
purchasing laws that will not be affected by the Supreme Court ruling.
Meanwhile, big business is celebrating the decision. The National
Foreign Trade Council (NFTC), a business group which filed the
challenge to Massachusetts Burma law, called it a "victory for the
the U.S. Constitution." Their celebrations should be muted, however.
The Supreme Court did not rule on the most significant constitutional
issues, but rather issued a narrow decision that does not affect most
other selective purchasing laws.
To a large extent, the decision comes about as a result of the
special history and circumstances of the Massachusetts Burma law. The
landmark legislation was passed in 1996, and about two dozen
municipalities and counties around the U.S. followed suit with
selective purchasing laws of their own.
Soon after the law was enacted, Congress passed its own sanctions law
against Burma, allowing the President to prohibit U.S. corporations
from new investments in Burma. (Already existing investments,
including Unocal's Yadana gas pipeline project were "grandfathered"
in under that law.)
In 1998, the NFTC challenged the law on a number of grounds, and
after the lower courts struck down the law, the case went to the
Supreme Court. The Supreme Court's ruling is based on their finding
that Congress had intended federal sanctions to be the sole means by
which the U.S. exerted economic pressure on the Burmese miitary
regime.
This interpretation is dubious, for two reasons. First, the federal
sanctions law of 1996 does not mention the Massachusetts law, even
though it was enacted three months before the federal law. Second, 78
Members of Congress signed an amicus brief stating they understood
the federal law was designed to complement, rather than supplant,
state and local laws. However, the Massachusetts law did have a few
differences from the federal law: it affected all corporations, not
just U.S. companies, it did not give the President authority to
revoke it at any time, and did not grandfather in current investors.
These differences were enough for the Court to find that the
Massachusetts law conflicted with federal sanctions. (For a thorough
legal analysis of the decision, click here.) [- link to Stumberg memo]
The NFTC and the corporations it represents claim the decision
represents a move toward a single, coherent foreign policy. But even
a cursory look at the webpage of the NFTC's lobbying arm,
USA*ENGAGE, reveals their true agenda. These corporations want no
sanctions, no selective purchasing laws, no interference whatsoever
with their business plans in any part of the world at any time. Give
them credit for consistency: they oppose sanctions on Cuba, Burma,
Iraq, China, Indonesia. They even oppose the federal sanctions
policy they were "protecting" from interference by the Massachusetts
law! For U.S. big business, the issue of foreign policy coherence is
not a cherished principle but a pretext for challenging a law they
just don't like.
For the companies that make up NFTC and USA*ENGAGE, there has never
been a regime so heinous as to make sanctions appropriate. According
to these companies, "constructive engagement" is always the best way
to deal with repressive regimes, environmental destruction, and
violations of human rights. The mere presence of American business,
they seem to suggest, promotes freedom and democracy and improves
lives.
The Burmese people, like the South Africans, know better. They know
that Unocal's investment in the Yadana gas pipeline, for example,
benefits the generals, while harming local villagers. Aung San Suu
Kyi says that "the real benefits of investment now go the military
regime and their connections." Even some U.S. companies have
recognized that you can't do business in Burma without violating
human rights, and have pulled out. But Unocal has stayed in, and not
coincidentally, is one of the main forces behind the USA*ENGAGE and
NFTC offensive against the Massachusetts Burma law.
The real question behind the debate over the Massachusetts law is
what will be the role of U.S. citizens and local governments in the
age of corporate globalization. If the NFTC has its way, business
will trade and invest around the world with no impediment,
irrespective of the consequences for human rights. If citizen
movements have their way, local efforts to restrain corporate
activities abroad as well as at home will gain momentum. These
movements are asking a simple question: If we can choose to shop with
a conscience when spending our money at the mall, why not when our
city, county or state is spending our money?
Fortunately, the Supreme Court decision does not interfere with the
principle of citizen power behind selective purchasing laws. Byron
Rushing, the Massachusetts legislator who sponsored by Burma law,
says "It is a shame we no longer have available one of the strategies
that helped end Apartheid." But, says Rushing, "the Court's decision
does leave room for state and local governments to heed moral
concerns in the way they do business in the global economy. I want
all advocates for human rights and democracy, especially in Burma, to
be assured that the campaign for human rights and democracy is
redirected, not blocked."
_____________________ OTHER ______________________
JOINT ACTION COMMITTEE: BURMESE LITERATURE TALK IN DC
June 21, 2000
Announcement
Joint Action Committee
Contact: U Tin Maung Thaw ((703) 834-5670)
Ko Aung Kyaw Oo (301) 762 0006
Ko Thein Htike Oo (301) 984 7599
Literature Talk To Be Held in DC
Rockville, MD_The Joint Action Committee and Burmese community in
Washington D.C. metropolitan area have decided to have a Burmese
literature talk in the community meeting held on last Sunday. Burmese
community had such a similar literature talk in last year as
literature talks were a kind of knowledgeable social appetite in
Burmese society. Although the details of the program are still under
the process, the following is the information related to the talk.
Date: Sunday, July 23, 2000
Time: 1 p.m. to 6 p.m.
A temporary committee was formed to make arrangements for the
literature talk. The details of the arrangement will be discussed in
the next meeting at Ko Thein Htike Oo's house 3 p.m., June 25.
Everyone interested in this event is welcomed to the meeting. Please
contact the listed persons for more information
____________________________________________________
TREND MICRO US VIRUS RESEARCH GROUP: NEW VIRUS ALERT00VBS_STAGES.A
(A.K.A. SCRAPWORM AND LIFESTAGES)
June 23, 2000
[BurmaNet adds?This message has no Burma related content but is
included because if you are receiving this as email, you are by
definition vulnerable. Use anti virus software and keep it updated!]
VBS_STAGES.A is a new worm, which was first reported last week. Since
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The message body always reads:
" The male and female stages of life " or
" The male and female stages of life. Bye. "
To read more about Microsoft scrap (.SHS) files and this virus,
please visit our website at:
http://www.antivirus.com/corporate/media/2000/pr061900.htm and
http://www.antivirus.com/vinfo/virusencyclo/default5.asp?
VName=VBS_STAGES.A
________________
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