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ILO team completes mission to asses



ILO team completes mission to assess forced labor in Myanmar


AFP, Rangoon, 27 October 2000.  An International Labor Organisation
(ILO) team has completed a six-day mission to Myanmar to assess
the junta's efforts to stamp out forced labor, officials said Friday.

The ILO office in Bangkok confirmed the team, led by Frances Maupain,
had left Yangon late Thursday and returned to Geneva where they will
report their findings to the ILO leadership.

Both Myanmar's military government and the ILO team have declined
to comment on the substance of the discussions, but sources close
to the mission told AFP that they were disappointed with the outcome
of the visit.

"They are not completely happy with what they have seen so far, and
want to see more progress being made (on ending forced labor)," the
source said.

"However, there are signs of goodwill on the part of the Burmese, who
were cooperative. The team managed to see everyone they wanted to see."

It was not known whether the team would recommend that the ILO
carry out its threat to invoke more sanctions on Myanmar.

The ILO has given the ruling generals until the end of this month to act
on the issue or face an unprecedented review of relations with the body's
member states, which could be extremely damaging to the regime.

If it is ostracised by the ILO, Myanmar risks attracting further international
sanctions, adding to the load that has already helped cripple its economy.

Myanmar has been in the ILO's sights since 1998 when a commission of
inquiry found that forced labor, which is considered a form of slavery, was
"extremely widespread in the country."

Labor Minister General Tin Ngwe promised to carry out the necessary
reforms in a letter written in May after the ILO delegation's first visit,
implicitly acknowledging for the first time that the problem existed.

A senior spokesman for the junta told AFP this week that some
headway had been achieved during the ILO team's visit to Myanmar.

"There has been positive progress made during the course of
discussions," he said.