BurmaNet News: April 5, 2001

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______________ THE BURMANET NEWS ______________
        An on-line newspaper covering Burma 
         April 5, 2001   Issue # 1771
______________ www.burmanet.org _______________

INSIDE BURMA _______
*Australian Broadcasting Company:  UN human rights rapporteur meets 
Burmese junta leaders 
*BBC: Envoy meets Aung San Suu Kyi
*The Nation: Un Envoy's Trip Caps Year of Change in Burma
*AP: Myanmar to open border within few days
*Mizzima: E-mail Users in Burma
*The Nation: Burma offers Thai officials a tour of Mong Yawn
*The Nation: Shan State declares itself drugs-free
*The Nation: 'I Will Shoot Them' 

REGIONAL/INTERNATIONAL _______
*AFP: Malaysia to deport Myanmar democracy activist
*Reuters: Thailand says Myanmar talks improve ties
*Free Burma Coalition: Results of Free Burma Senate letter
*The Hartford Courant: A Royal Tribute to Human Rights

ECONOMY/BUSINESS _______
*Free Burma Coalition: 35 U.S. Senators Press President Bush to Maintain 
Sanctions on Burma and Support Suu Kyi
*Xinhua: Myanmar Earns More Foreign Exchange from Gems Sales

OPINION/EDITORIALS_______
*The New Light of Myanmar: Thai dailies carry ambiguous news

OTHER______
*Freedom House: Burma Entry in ?THE WORLD?S MOST REPRESSIVE REGIMES,? A 
Special Report to the 57th Session of the United Nations Commission on 
Human Rights	


__________________ INSIDE BURMA ____________________



BBC: Envoy meets Aung San Suu Kyi


Thursday, 5 April, 2001





UN special human rights envoy Paulo Sergio Pinheiro has met opposition 
leader Aung San Suu Kyi in the capital Rangoon. 

Aung San Suu Kyi, who leads the National League for Democracy, has been 
kept under virtual house arrest by the military regime since September 
last year. 

A car carrying Mr Pinheiro was seen entering the compound of her home. 

He stayed for just over one hour - but no details of the meeting are 
available. 

Mr Pinheiro's three-day visit to Burma is the first of its kind in 
nearly five years and is being seen as a sign that significant changes 
are taking place in Rangoon. 

'Exploratory' talks

The UN envoy met a senior figure from the National League for Democracy 
on Wednesday - although it was not clear at that stage if Burma's 
generals would permit a meeting with Aung San Suu Kyi. 

Mr Pinheiro, who ends his visit on Thursday, has also held talks with 
senior figures in the military, and visited a gas pipeline project 
south-east of Rangoon. 

Mr Pinheiro has given little away about his talks - except to describe 
them as "exploratory". 

He has already spent nearly a week in the region talking to Burma's 
neighbours, including Japan, Malaysia and Thailand. 

Slow progress 

Analysts believe that the military government has permitted Mr Pinheiro 
to visit Burma in the hope of deflecting criticism of the country's 
human rights record. 

Another hopeful sign recently has been the renewed dialogue between the 
government and Aung San Suu Kyi. 

However, BBC correspondent Jonathan Head says if there is movement 
towards reform, it is happening very slowly. 

He says it is too soon to say if Burma's generals are ready to relax 
their hold on power.

The military took over in 1988 after suppressing a pro-democracy 
uprising. 

They refused to honour the result of elections in 1990, which were won 
by the National League for Democracy. 



___________________________________________________








Australian Broadcasting Company:  UN human rights rapporteur meets 
Burmese junta leaders 

April 5, 2001

The United Nations Human Rights Rapporteur on Burma, Paulo Sergio 
Pinheiro, has held talks with members of the opposition National League 
for Democracy Central Executive Committee, in Rangoon.

He met the N-L-D leaders after returning to the capital from a visit to 
Kanbauk, southeast of Rangoon, where he inspected part of an offshore 
gas pipeline owned by a consortium of American and French oil companies.

Dissidents allege that forced labour and human rights violations were 
committed in building a 65-kilometer land-based portion of the pipeline.

A U-N official declined to give details of the 45-minute discussions. 

Mr Pinheiro, accompanied by an official of the Office of the U-N High 
Commissioner for Human Rights, arrived in Rangoon on Tuesday and later 
met leaders of Burma's military junta.

Mr Pinheiro's trip is the first the junta has accepted by a U-N human 
rights investigator in more than five years. 





___________________________________________________


The Nation: Un Envoy's Trip Caps Year of Change in Burma

Tuesday, April 3, 2001



Sa-nguan Khumrungroj

The upcoming visit to Burma by newly appointed United Nations 
human-rights envoy Paulo Sergio Pinheiro comes at a time when Rangoon is 
showing signs of being willing to make some concessions to its critics.

Pinheiro was quoted by a senior Thai government official as having said 
he would try his utmost not to leave Rangoon empty-handed.

The 57-year-old Brazilian political science professor, the first special 
UN rapporteur to be allowed entry into Burma in nearly five years, has 
been in Bangkok for the past week holding a series of quiet meetings 
with diplomats and Thai and UN officials to prepare for his trip.

He will head to Rangoon today for a three-day visit to meet Burmese 
generals and opposition leaders including Aung San Suu Kyi, who has been 
under house arrest since September. Suu Kyi's National League for 
Democracy won Burma's general election in 1990 by a landslide but has 
never been allowed to govern.

Pinheiro's fact-finding trip includes a visit to Tokyo and Kuala Lumpur 
before returning here.

His predecessor, Rajsoomer Lallah - an Oxford-educated judge from 
Mauritius who resigned in November after four years in the post -had 
criticised the junta for failing to abide by its commitment to uphold 
democracy. Lallah was banned from visiting the country.

His last report, in October, even accused the military government of 
torturing, raping and executing civilians, particularly members of 
ethnic minority groups.

Pinheiro's mission, on the other hand, comes amid a series of positive 
developments in the military-ruled, trouble-plagued country. 

"There appears to be a number of changes inside Burma," an informed 
source quoted
Pinheiro as having said.

Over the past year, the relationship between the UN and the Burmese 
junta has improved gradually. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan sent his 
special envoy Razali Ismail, a Malaysian career diplomat, to Rangoon 
twice last year. And in January a delegation from the European Union's 
Troika was also permitted to visit Rangoon, a month after the EU-Asean 
foreign ministerial meeting in Vientiane.

Soon after Razali's visit, a senior member of the ruling State Peace and 
Development Council, Lt-General Khin Nyunt, and opposition leader Suu 
Kyi started what appeared to be a very significant development: They 
began holding direct talks after six years of bickering and mudslinging. 

But leaders of armed ethnic groups fighting for autonomy have warned 
against being too optimistic, saying details of the dialogue are not 
known. Moreover, they add, any real reconciliation dialogue in the 
ethnically diverse country would include them.

Late last week Japan approved aid for a hospital in what appeared to be 
another significant development as Tokyo had earlier followed Western 
countries in imposing sanctions on Burma following the junta's bloody 
crackdown on pro-democracy students in 1988.

Rangoon officials have been receiving training from Canberra on human 
rights, and the military state is now looking to form a human-rights 
commission of its own. The Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia are the 
only Asean members so far with a national human-rights body.

However, Burmese human- and labour-rights activists have opposed 
Rangoon's move to form the commission, accusing the junta of being 
deceptive. 
According to a Thai government official, Pinheiro was keen to gain 
better understanding of Thai-Burmese relations. "We told him that it was 
complicated," the official said.



___________________________________________________




AP: Myanmar to open border within few days 

April 5, 2001

BANGKOK: Myanmar has agreed to open within a few days a key border 
checkpoint that was closed in February after the worst military clashes 
between the two sides in years, a senior official was quoted as saying 
on Wednesday.

A 40-member Thai delegation led by northern army commander Lt. Gen 
Wattanachai Chaimuanwong met with Myanmar officials on Monday and 
Tuesday in the eastern Myanmar town of Keng Tung in a bid to ease 
tensions.

The talks between the two sides went well and were "very successful," 
Wattanachai was quoted as saying by the Thai News Agency in a report 
from Keng Tung.

However, Myanmar's state-controlled media kept up its diatribe against 
Thailand with several anti-Thailand articles Wednesday including a 
cartoon suggesting that Thailand was a Western stooge.

Relations between the two countries plunged after fighting between 
Myanmar troops and anti-government rebels based along Thailand's 
northern border spilled into Thailand on Feb. 10. At least five 
civilians and a number of Myanmar soldiers were killed when Thai troops 
joined the fray to keep the Myanmar troops from intruding.

Following the battles, several crossing were closed by both sides 
including the Mae Sai-Tachilek checkpoint, which lies at the 
northernmost point of Thailand, bringing trade there to a standstill.

Two weeks ago, Thailand reopened its checkpoint at Mae Sai, but Myanmar 
has kept its gate at Tachilek shut.

The Thai News Agency quoted Wattanachai as saying that Myanmar was 
expected to reopen the Tachilek crossing within two or three days.

The bilateral ties have also been strained by Thai allegations that 
Myanmar is allowing an ethnic army, which has reached a cease-fire with 
the regime, to produce hundreds of millions of methamphetamines at the 
border every year and smuggle them for sale in Thailand.

Wattanachai said that during his talks Myanmar officials promised to 
cooperate with Thailand in its efforts to crack down on drug smuggling.



___________________________________________________






Mizzima: E-mail Users in Burma

Rangoon, April 4, 2001 


While the Internet and electronic mail (Email) have become an easily 
available mean of communication for people in many countries around the 
world, it is still a tightly-controlled business privileged to a few 
ones in this military-run country. At present, the Myanmar Post and 
Telecommunications (MPT), which is one of the departments of Ministry of 
Communications, Posts & Telegraphs, control all the Email accounts in 
the country. Besides military generals and their associates, some 
private companies such as members of Myanmar computer entrepreneurs 
association, hotels and travel tours can apply to get Email accounts. 
But in applying Email account, they have to submit the documents such as 
company registration certificate, type of modem, the reason for the use, 
etc. But the most important thing to do is to ôhookö someone in the 
Junta and bribe him, which in turn, will make it easier and faster. At 
present, a common citizen cannot get an Email account at all.  

There are also some business groups, which are using others? Email 
accounts, as their companies do not have own Email. Moreover, there are 
four or five shops in Rangoon downtown, particularly on Pansoedan Street 
in Kyuaktadar Township, which give you email service to send or receive 
messages. Kyat 300 (US $ 0.6) for one-time use either for sending or 
receiving! But you will have to make sure yourself that there is nothing 
on politics in your email messages because all these shops are strictly 
surveillanced or controlled by the countryÆs notorious military 
intelligence.    



___________________________________________________




The Nation: Burma offers Thai officials a tour of Mong Yawn 



BANGKOK, April 5 (The Nation) -- Burmese authorities have offered to 
open Mong Yawn, a border township in Burma identified by the Thai 
government as drug-producing centre, for inspection by Thai officials 
and journalists, according to Third Army Region chief Wattanachai 
Chaimuenwong.  

Gen Wattanachai, speaking this morning, also quoted the Burmese 
delegates attending the Regional Border Committee meeting in Burma's Ken 
Tung province on April 3-4 as saying that the construction of the new 
township was financed by proceeds from mining concessions granted to the 
Wah ethnic minority group.  

"The Burmese authorities said they would arrange an inspection trip to 
Mong Yawn for members of Thai border committees and the press," 
Wattanachai said, adding that no schedule had been set such trip.  

Earlier, Thai authorities have alleged that the building of Mong Yawn 
was funded by drug proceeds.  

The regional army chief said the Burmese authorities had promised to 
cooperate more closely with Thailand, including exchange of information 
on drug-producing and trafficking activities along the Thai-Burmese 
border.



___________________________________________________





The Nation: Shan State declares itself drugs-free

April 05, 2001


REMNANTS of the disbanded Mong Tai Army seek to regroup and start new 
lives under a peaceful arrangement with the Rangoon government. Don 
Pathan reports from Hua Muang, Shan State.  
A faded wooden sign inscribed with "Mong Tai Army" hangs besides the 
dusty road leading to the heart of this small town and serves as a vivid 
reminder of how this 14-kilometre stretch of valley had managed to land 
itself on the world map.  
It was here that world famous opium warlord Khun Sa and his 
15,000-strong Mong Tai Army (MTA) maintained their headquarters five 
years ago before giving themselves up to the military government of 
Burma in return for a generous amnesty. It was also from here that 
experts say about half of the world's heroin was produced and then 
smuggled out to flood the streets of America and Europe.  
During a recent two-day visit by The Nation, the new king of the valley, 
Mahaja, tried desperately to shake off the ugly past and the stigma that 
still haunt many of his former colleagues and other ethnic leaders in 
Shan State.  
In early 1996, Mahaja, a feared MTA commander, joined Khun Sa in 
surrendering to the Burmese but stayed behind to form the Southern Shan 
State enterprise to look after various business ventures, primarily in 
garment manufacturing, logging and gem mining.  
Though Mahaja insisted that he no longer harboured any political 
ambitions to form an independent Shan State, this hardened tiny man 
nevertheless looks every bit a fighter.  
Mahaja never leaves home without his bodyguards and two loaded pistols 
on his belt.  
"I have given up the armed struggle in return for rural development," 
said the wizened 50-year-old leader who has been a soldier ever since he 
was 13, as his armed bodyguards look on a few feet away.  

As a reward for entering Burma's "legal fold", Mahaja was given the 
reins to a semi-autonomous region stretching from this former MTA 
stronghold across the Salween River over to Taunggyi, a major commercial 
centre in southern Shan State.  
A tacit but cosy arrangement has the Burmese government troops providing 
security along the perimeter and Mahaja and his paramilitary troops 
handling their own internal administrative and economic affairs. Rangoon 
has dispatched three battalions to the area as well as a military 
intelligence unit to look after the rugged border crossing that links 
Hua Muang to Thailand's Mae Hong Son. Rangoon also helped out with 
sculpting out rice paddies and other infrastructure projects.  

"In return, they asked us to stop trafficking in drugs and to stop 
engaging in arms sales to other rebel groups," Mahaja said, as he blew a 
big puff of smoke from his bamboo tobacco pipe. "This is the best 
set-up. I urge all other armed ethnic groups to do the same," he added.  


Mahaja has in mind to establish a new trade route passing through Hua 
Muang and linking Mae Hong Son and Taunggyi. This would save lots of 
time and money considering that the current outlet for goods from 
Taunggyi is the faraway Tachilek-Mae Sai crossing, he said.  

Living in the area under his control are nearly 10,000 people, mostly 
ethnic Shan but also some Karen and Wa, and about 3,000 paramilitary 
soldiers. The Southern Shan State, set up two years ago, looks after the 
community's wide range of investments.  
The main road that runs through the town is being upgraded, while Khun 
Sa's old homes and other official residences are being renovated to 
accommodate foreign VIPs. The spacious marketplace is as busy as usual, 
though locals said it was a much more bustling place when the MTA ruled 
the area.  

A hospital, once packed with wounded MTA soldiers, is up and running 
with Burmese physicians overseeing it, while a church and two Buddhist 
monasteries are well attended. Unlike in the past when the Burmese 
language was prohibited, a Hua Muang school now teaches in both Shan and 
Burmese languages.  

"When Khun Sa was here, we were taught to hate the Burmese," said an MTA 
veteran who finally came to grips with reality, joined Mahaja's outfit 
and now works alongside the Burmese. "It's still tough for many Tai 
(Shan) here. Many are still uncomfortable with all the Burmese officials 
around."  

Mahaja, himself half Shan and half Wa, gained a reputation as a fierce 
soldier in the early 1990s when his unit successfully fended off MTA's 
arch rival, the United Wa State Army (UWSA), in a series of bloody 
attacks on Doi Lang - the 32-square kilometre patch of land adjacent to 
Chiang Mai's Mae Ai district that is now the focus of dispute by 
Thailand and Burma.  

During Khun Sa's time, Mahaja said, resources were plentiful. Soldiers 
were paid regularly and the town, about one hour from the border 
crossing in Mae Hong Son, was vibrant.  

"Today, these militia join me willingly. They don't get any pay but the 
Southern Shan State helps them with rice and other expenses, including 
health care," Mahaja said.  
Burma's old hands and Mahaja himself said he is in the best position to 
run Hua Muang. Over the years the man has managed to establish dialogues 
with various rebel groups, including those who have cease-fire 
agreements with Rangoon, such as the UWSA, and those who are still 
fighting the junta for autonomy, including his former colleague Colonel 
Yawd Serk, the leader of the Shan State Army.  

When asked why ethnic rebels are still fighting the junta government, 
Mahaja replied: "It's partly because of foreign influences and partly 
because of the selfishness of the leaders themselves."  

But his dream of turning Hua Muang into a commercial centre may not be 
realised any time soon. Thai and Burmese relations are currently 
experiencing one of their lowest ebbs in the past decade following 
crossing border shelling on the northern border over a month ago.  

"They accused one another of supporting this and supporting that rebel 
group. I don't think either side is blameless," Mahaja said without 
elaborating.  

Nevertheless, Mahaja said he still has hopes that the international 
community will take him seriously. He urged international anti-drug 
agencies, including the US Drug Enforcement Agency, to visit his area to 
verify for themselves that it is drugs-free. He also expressed interest 
in seeing United Nations development assistance programmes for his 
people.  

Rangoon's peace deals with these rebel groups vary from one to the 
other, depending on the bargaining power of each group.The UWSA, for 
example, has managed to keep its 20,000-strong contingent and over the 
year extended its supremacy from its stronghold on the Chinese border to 
an area adjacent to Thailand's Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai provinces. 
Burmese government troops have to disarm before entering Wa territory.


___________________________________________________





The Nation: 'I Will Shoot Them' 

April 05, 2001.


HUA MUANG, Shan State, Burma - Despite having laid down his weapons in 
return for limited self-rule, Mahaja, once a fierce military commander 
in Burmese drug lord Khun Sa's Mong Tai Army, said he would not hesitate 
to pick them up again if the Wa and Kokang Chinese invade his area.  

"I will shoot them," Mahaja said during a recent interview with The 
Nation from one of his homes overlooking the 14-kilometre valley that 
served as the stronghold of Khun Sa's army.  

"If these groups enter our territory we are more than ready to fight. We 
won't be the first to shoot but we will definitely defend our 
territory," Mahaja said.  

Mahaja said he has been somewhat heavy-hearted by the ongoing mass 
relocation of the ethnic Wa and Kokang Chinese into the area by another 
pro-Rangoon group, the United Wa State Army (UWSA).  

Mahaja, who is of mixed Wa and Shan ethnic backgrounds, followed Khun Sa 
five years ago in surrendering to Rangoon in return for amnesty, but 
remained behind to pursue business opportunities. He now controls a 
3,000-member militia, and is still regarded as a fierce, battle-hardened 
warrior.  

He said the Burmese government has asked if the Wa and Kokang Chinese 
could move into the area under his control.  

"They said they want to help us develop the area. We said no because we 
can look after ourselves," he said.  

When asked why he was so opposed to sharing his territory with the Wa 
army, Mahaja said it was the stigma of drugs.  

Thai authorities have accused the UWSA of flooding the Kingdom with 
millions of methamphetamine pills and see the unwanted neighbours as a 
security threat. But Rangoon defends the relocations to Hua Muang as 
part of the UWSA's drug-eradication programme.  

"If the UWSA moves here, what will the international community think of 
us? They'll look at us as another drug trafficker and won't have 
anything to do with us," said Mahaja, adding that he is ready to let the 
UN and the US Drug Enforcement Agency inspect the area, once a major 
outlet for the world's heroin supply.  
"But if they don't find anything [drugs], they should help us develop 
the area," he added.  

For the past year or so, the UWSA has carried out mass relocations of 
ethnic Wa and Kokang Chinese from the area along the Chinese border to 
recently built towns adjacent to Chiang Mai's Mae Ai and Fang districts. 
 

Rangoon defended the moves as part of the Wa's anti-drug programme, 
saying Thailand's closure of the border checkpoint leading to Mong Yawn 
has hampered the UWSA's efforts to become drug free.  

For decades, Rangoon has come under constant condemnation from the 
international community over the treatment of its people, including the 
practice of forced labour. Mahaja asked the world to put the situation 
in perspective.  

"There are wars going on. All sides violate the rights of their own 
people. In the end, it's the people who suffer," he said.  

Mahaja also urged the general public not demonise the ethnic Wa, many of 
whom are living under his control, just because some armed groups call 
themselves Wa.  
"Wa is just a name. The real culprits are the Chinese drug dealers from 
the mainland. You can take a methamphetamine and show it to any Wa 
villager and he won't know what it is," Mahaja said.  

Mahaja also accused the international community of being biased against 
Burma's military junta, especially its relationship to the Wa.  

"Burma doesn't give permission to ethnic groups to produce drugs. But 
some of these groups do it anyway," he said.  

But convincing the international community, especially neighbouring 
Thailand, that he is drug free has not been easy, he said.  

In the past, some Thai officials have made their way here to talk about 
possible investments, he said. "But for the past two years, because of 
the tension along the border over drug trafficking, these visitors have 
pretty much disappeared," he said.  
Indeed, shaking the ghosts of the past must not be easy for a man who 
once worked under the notorious Khun Sa, reportedly one of the 
wealthiest men in Burma.  
Experts said no anti-drug policy in Burma will succeed unless it is 
linked with a real political solution that includes the armed ethnic 
groups fighting the government for autonomy. 



___________________ REGIONAL/INTERNATIONAL___________________
				


AFP: Malaysia to deport Myanmar democracy activist 


KUALA LUMPUR, April 5 (AFP) - Malaysia will deport a Myanmar 
pro-democracy activist who staged a protest in Kuala Lumpur but will not 
send him back to his home country, a security official said Thursday. 

 "Just like any other Myanmar detainee he will be deported to the 
Malaysian-Thai border in a month," said Nasri Mokhtar, head of the 
centre where Peter Hee Man was being held. 

 Hee Man was arrested with three Malaysians on March 27 after some 20 
activists gatecrashed a Myanmar embassy party and stripped off to reveal 
T-shirts depicting Myanmar's pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi. 

 The Malaysians were detained overnight and released while Hee Man was 
held in police custody. 

 On Tuesday he was transferred to the Macap Umboo detention centre for 
illegal immigrants in the southern state of Malacca. 

 The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and human 
rights groups have urged the government not to deport Hee Man to his 
home country saying they feared for his safety at the hands of Myanmar's 
military junta. 

 Nasri told AFP that Hee Man was considered an illegal immigrant and 
would be deported. There had been no cases of illegal immigrants from 
Myanmar being sent back directly to their country, he added. 

 Burma Solidarity Group Malaysia member K.P. Lee, one of those arrested 
with Hee Man, repeated a call for the UNHCR to interview Hee Man 
urgently to determine if he could be granted political asylum. 

 "We are trying to push the UNHCR to interview Hee Man," he said. 
 Nasri said UN officials had not requested to meet Hee Man. "They can 
come and see me anytime to make arrangements to interview the detainee," 
he said. 

 The Malaysian rights group Aliran said last week that to deport Hee Man 
to his home country would be "an inhuman act that would condemn him to 
torture or even death at the hands of the ruthless Burmese military 
junta." 

 Another rights group Altsean-Burma said it also had "grave concerns" 
for the safety of Hee Man should he fall into the hands of Myanmar's 
State Peace and Development Council. 




___________________________________________________




Reuters: Thailand says Myanmar talks improve ties

April 5, 2001

By Nopporn Wong-Anan 

BANGKOK (Reuters) - A three-day meeting of Thai and Myanmar officials 
aimed at soothing tension along their common border ended on Wednesday 
with relations improved, the head of the Thai delegation said.  

Lieutenant-General Wattanachai Chaimuanwong, commander of Thailand's 
third army which defends the northern border with Myanmar, told 
reporters the talks had helped improve understanding between the two 
sides.  

"The meeting was 90 percent successful," he told a news conference after 
returning to Bangkok.  

Relations between the two countries dived in February amid battles 
between Myanmar troops, their allies in the United Wa State Army (UWSA), 
and anti-government Shan rebels.  

Thailand has said the battles spilled over on to Thai soil, forcing a 
response. Myanmar denies this.  

The drugs trade has also damaged relations. 

"The talks have indeed mended the soured ties, and Myanmar has agreed to 
help Thailand solve our border and drugs problems," Wattanachai said.  
Bangkok has said the UWSA is the source of hundreds of millions of 
methamphetamine tablets flooding Thailand each year, and has accused 
Yangon of turning a blind eye to the problem.  

Myanmar says the Shan rebels are the region's main drug traffickers.  
Wattanachai, often a vocal critic of the Myanmar military, said Major 
General Thein Sein of the Triangle Region Command, the chief of 
Myanmar's delegation, agreed Myanmar soldiers would co-operate more 
closely with Thai troops in combating drugs.  
The two countries, which share a 2,400 km (1,490 mile) border, have 
waged a war of words since the February clashes.  

Wattanachai said Myanmar officials had conceded there were 
methamphetamine factories on their soil, but had said much of the 
drug-making equipment was imported from Thailand while the precursor 
chemicals were brought in from China.  
Thailand has agreed with China and Myanmar that the three countries 
should work together to crack down on drug production.  

After ending the meeting in the northeastern Myanmar town of Kengtung, 
the Thai delegation paid a courtesy visit to senior Myanmar government 
generals in Yangon before returning to Bangkok.  

The border committee last met in the Thai resort of Phuket in March 
1999.  
Thai Foreign Minister Surakiart Sathirathai said on Wednesday the two 
countries would hold more regular meetings at various levels to 
strengthen ties.  
Surakiart is due to make an official visit to Myanmar on May 1 and 2 
after an informal meeting of foreign ministers from the Association of 
South East Asian Nations in Yangon on April 3


___________________________________________________



Free Burma Coalition: Results of Free Burma Senate letter

April 4, 2001

"Who knew that so many people in North Carolina know about Burma?" 
--staff  member from North Carolina Senator's office after receiving 
dozens of phone  calls (not exact quote, but close)

The Senate sign-on letter was far more successful than anyone had  
predicted. We obtained 35 (!) signatures on the letter to President 
Bush,  no small feat for a letter that explicitly states "we believe any 
change in  sanctions pressure could remove the incentive for the regime 
to  negotiate".  Last summer, a concurrent resolution on Burma was 
pressed into  the U.S. Senate. At that time, only 18 members agreed to 
be  co-sponsors.  The fact that we've now included 35 on a letter means 
we have  potentially DOUBLED our results in the last six months.

When I would call up so many offices to ask them if they had received 
the  letter, they almost always stated in surprise "I've heard from many 
of our  constituents already!" One Senator's office even stated 
something to the  effect of "Who knew there was so much interest in 
Burma in our state?" 
In addition, we have several members that did NOT sign the letter for  
numerous reasons.  Some of these members informed various FBC callers 
that  they supported freedom in Burma but couldn't get the letter done 
in time.  We know DEFINITELY of at least one Senator who would have 
signed the letter  given more time.  We should definitely consider these 
members a victory as  well, since they are our "hidden" support base in 
the Senate and will be  valuable next time we take action.

So what does this all mean?  First and foremost, it means that our 
movement  in the United States is bigger and stronger at a critical time 
in Burma.  While the regime attempts to whitewash its horrific record on 
drug  production, human rights abuses, and denial of democracy, the U.S. 
Senate  (because of us--woo hoo) has taken a strong stand for freedom 
and given a  definitive measure of support for Aung San Suu Kyi.

Second, it means that President Bush will now be in a more difficult  
position if he decides to revoke sanctions against Burma.  With many of 
his  close allies such as Mitch McConnell and his archenemies such as 
Paul  Wellstone on board, we have at least made the case that Burma is 
firmly  supported on both sides of the proverbial "aisle".

Third, it means that we have effectively educated a huge portion of the  
U.S. Senate about Burma and are now poised and ready if we decide to 
take  stronger action.  So far, the United States has not responded 
strongly to  the ILO and apparel imports to the United States continue 
to skyrocket.  Indeed there are many new options that we can take in the 
Senate. 
Fourth, we have shown the European Union and other international actors  
that the United States does not intend to relax the pressure.  This  
statement is crucially important for our allied organizations in other  
countries who can continue to use U.S. action as an example for their 
own  governments.

Fifth, the letter keeps critiques of the regime in the media, certainly 
a  challenge in the midst of its international charm offensive. 
We should all have a celebratory beer, wine, or diet coke, or a few!  
There  were literally thousands of calls to the Senate, and everyone 
deserves  credit for all the hard work.
=======================================================
Republicans
Mitch McConnell (R-KY)
Sam Brownback (R-KS)
Jesse Helms (R-NC)
George Voinovich (R-OH)
Wayne Allard (R-CO)
Bob Smith (R-NH)
Judd Gregg (R-NH)
Robert Bennett (R-UT)
George Allen (R-VA)
Susan Collins (R-ME)

Democrats
Jack Reed (D-RI)
Patrick Leahy (D-VT)
Joe Lieberman (D-CT)
Kent Conrad (D-ND)
Tom Harkin (D-IA)
Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)
Dick Durbin (D-IL)
Charles Schumer (D-NY)
Paul Sarbanes (D-MD)
Barbara Mikulski (D-MD)
Herb Kohl (D-WI)
Jay Rockefeller (D-WV)
Jim Jeffords (D-VT)
Daniel Akaka (D-HI)
Carl Levin (D-MI)
Mark Dayton (D-MN)
Paul Wellstone (D-MN)
Russ Feingold (D-WI)
Ted Kennedy (D-MA)
John Kerry (D-MA)
Patty Murray (D-WA)
Ernest Hollings (D-SC)
Jean Carnahan (D-MO)
Barbara Boxer (D-CA)
Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)
___________________________________________________







___________________________________________________


The Hartford Courant: A Royal Tribute to Human Rights


March 31, 2001 Saturday 

[Abridged]

Rachel Gottlieb and Matt Burgard; Courant Staff Writers

Human rights is an issue that needs the world's attention and to help 
attract it, the queen of Jordan was in Hartford on Friday to honor three 
 political prisoners in Southeast Asia she has never met.

"It's a real pleasure for me to be here to help in the effort to steer 
the world toward justice, humanity and democracy," Queen Rania  
Al-Abdullah said at ceremonies marking the first presentation of Trinity 
College's new Human Rights Award. The recipients --Daw Thida Htway, U Ye 
Tint and Daw Khin Khin Leh -- are two teachers and an activist's wife 
from Myanmar, the Southeast Asia  country formerly known as Burma.

They could not attend because they are in prison for their efforts to 
organize a freedom movement in their country. Accepting the award from 
Trinity President Evan S. Dobelle on their behalf was Zar Ni, a Myanmar 
dissident-in-exile who is trying to get the  world to pressure the 
Myanmar military, which now runs the country, to accept democracy. "It 
is obvious that the generals [who run Myanmar] feel most threatened by 
educated, liberal-minded people who have the power to influence  minds," 
Ni said. "The fight must continue."

The queen, wife of Jordanian King Abdullah Bin Al-Hussein, is an 
energetic advocate for the world's disenfranchised. The 30-year-old 
former banker who married the king in 1993, said she admired Trinity's 
groundbreaking human rights program and its director,  Maryam Elahi.
Elahi met the queen during a visit to Jordan a few years ago. Elahi's 
program is believed to be the first in the nation to offer an  
undergraduate minor in human rights issues.
"I'm here to draw inspiration from your achievements and your vision," 
said the queen, who planned to travel to Washington, D.C., after her  
stop in Hartford.
While she was highlighting the plight of the Myanmar prisoners, news of 
the arrest in China of an American business professor was breaking  
around the world.



_______________ ECONOMY AND BUSINESS _______________
 


Free Burma Coalition: 35 U.S. Senators Press President Bush to Maintain 
Sanctions on Burma and Support Suu Kyi

April 4, 2001
Contact: Jeremy Woodrum, (202) 547-5985, jeremy@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 


35 Senators, including Republicans Jesse Helms and Mitch McConnell and 
Democrats Pat Leahy and Tom Harkin signed a letter sent to President 
George W. Bush on April 2 calling on his administration to maintain 
sanctions placed on BurmaÆs military regime in 1997.  ôWe are convinced 
that the sanctions have been partially responsible for prompting the 
regime to engage in political dialogue with Aung San Suu Kyi and her 
supporters,ö read the letter, and ôWe believe any change in sanctions 
pressure could remove the incentive for the regime to negotiate.ö

Highlights of the letter include:

╖	The Senators view support for Suu Kyi similarly to support for 
Nelson Mandela. ôUnited States maintained sanctions on South Africa 
until Nelson Mandela declared his support for lifting them, we believe 
no change should be made without full consultation and concurrence from 
Aung San Suu Kyi.ö 

╖	The International Labor Organization ôgraphically illustrated 
the scale and depth of the regimeÆs abuses of its citizens.ö

╖	Burma is ôone of the largest producers of opium for the heroin 
which plagues our communities.ö

After its de facto expulsion from the International Labor Organization 
late last year, BurmaÆs military regime announced that it had entered 
into preliminary talks with opposition leader and 1991 Nobel Peace Prize 
winner Aung San Suu Kyi.  UN envoy to Burma Razali Ismail has received 
credit for brokering the talks.

In response to news of the talks, then Secretary of State Madeline 
Albright said ôIn the absence of significant progress, ILO members, 
including the United States, should be prepared to consider additional 
measures, including trade sanctions, to respond to the ILOÆs call to 
action.ö (January 18, 2001) 
Secretary of State Colin Powell expressed skepticism about the talks 
after a visit with Razali in March.  Said State Department Spokesperson 
Richard Boucher ôAlthough weÆre encouraged by the ongoing dialogue and 
recent release of some political prisoners, weÆre mindful that the 
Burmese regime continues to systematically violate the fundamental, 
basic, human rights of its citizens.ö (March 1, 2001)

The International Labor Organization is poised to meet in June. (Letter 
below)
##



The Honorable George W. Bush
President
Office of the White House
Washington, DC 20500

Dear Mr. President:

In 1997, legislation was signed into law requring the Administration to 
impose sanctions on Burma if the regime engaged in wide scale repression 
or took action against Aung San Suu Kyi.  Within a matter of months, the 
regime escalated its attacks on the legitimately elected government of 
Aung San Suu Kyi and her supporters in the National League for 
Democracy;  more than 800 people were arrested, and dozens were tortured 
or executed.  Aung San Suu Kyi was placed under house arrest and remains 
restricted in her movements. In response, President Clinton signed an 
Executive Order restricting new investment in Burma and suspending visas 
for senior officials.  These sanctions encourage similar action by our 
European allies and have been in place ever since.

More recently, the International Labor Organization (ILO) representing 
governments, employers, and employees from virtually every nation met to 
consider Burma's abhorrent abuse of forced labor.  A study completed by 
the U.S. Department of Labor graphically illustrated the scale and depth 
ofthe regime's abuse of its citizens.  The ILO recommended that members 
report back by February on additional steps they intend to take, 
including economic sanctions, which would support efforts to end the 
regime's repugnant practices.  This is the first time in the ILO's 
81-year history that it has taken such action against a member.

While we strongly believe the United States should stand by the 
internationally-recognized results of the 1990 elections, and we support 
an end to forced labor practices, we believe there is an additional 
national security consideration which encourages us to maintain the 
pressure of sanctions.  Burma is one of the largest producers of opium 
for the heroin which plagues our communities.  There is strong evidence 
directly linking members of the regime to this narcotics trafficking.  
Although Burma may have the capability to combat trafficking, no serious 
effort has been made to restrict the production or flow of opium.  This 
pattern persuades us that only a democratically-elected government will 
share our commmitment to end this lethal trade.

We are convinced that the sanctions have been partially responsible for 
prompting the regime to engage in political dialogue with Aung San Suu 
Kyi and her supporters.  While it is too soon to determine if these 
talks will produce a plan for national reconciliation, we believe any 
change in sanctions pressure could remove the incentive for the regime 
to negotiate. 
Just as the United States maintained sanctions on South Africa until 
Nelson Mandela declared his support for lifting them, we believe no 
change should be made without full consultation and concurrence from 
Aung San Suu Kyi.  To date, her position has been courageously firm in 
support of the sanctions. We encourage you to support her and the NLD's 
efforts to restore democracy. 
Sincerely,

(Free Burma Coalition Has Typed Names of Signers Below For Your 
Convenience) Republicans
Mitch McConnell (R-KY)
Sam Brownback (R-KS)
Jesse Helms (R-NC)
George Voinovich (R-OH)
Jack Reed (D-RI)
Wayne Allard (R-CO)
Bob Smith (R-NH)
Judd Gregg (R-NH)
Robert Bennett (R-UT)
George Allen (R-VA)
Susan Collins (R-ME)

Democrats
Patrick Leahy (D-VT)
Joe Lieberman (D-CT)
Kent Conrad (D-ND)
Tom Harkin (D-IA)
Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)
Dick Durbin (D-IL)
Charles Schumer (D-NY)
Paul Sarbanes (D-MD)
Barbara Mikulski (D-MD)
Herb Kohl (D-WI)
Jay Rockefeller (D-WV)
Jim Jeffords (D-VT)
Daniel Akaka (D-HI)
Carl Levin (D-MI)
Mark Dayton (D-MN)
Paul Wellstone (D-MN)
Russ Feingold (D-WI)
Ted Kennedy (D-MA)
John Kerry (D-MA)
Patty Murray (D-WA)
Ernest Hollings (D-SC)
Jean Carnahan (D-MO)
Barbara Boxer (D-CA)
Jeff Bingaman (D-NM)



___________________________________________________



Xinhua: Myanmar Earns More Foreign Exchange from Gems Sales


YANGON, April 5 (Xinhuanet) -- Myanmar earned 47.8 million U.S.  dollars 
in the fiscal 2000-2001 which ended in March from its gems sales. 

According to sources at the Ministry of Mines, the country  fetched 
16.57 million dollars in 1998-99, while it obtained 23.46  million 
dollars in 1999-2000. 
Meanwhile, the Myanmar authorities are taking systematic  measures to 
collect more tax through proper management on gems  mining and trading. 

According to official statistics, Myanmar earned over 330  million 
dollars from its 38 annual and nine mid-year gems  emporiums.


_______________OPINION/EDITORIALS_________________



The New Light of Myanmar: Thai dailies carry ambiguous news 

Thursday, 5 April, 2001



Yangon, 4 April-The 18th Meeting of the Myanmar-Thailand Regional Border 
Committee was held in Kengtung from 2 to 4 April. Tatmadaws of the two 
countries discussed matters related to eradication of narcotic drugs, 
border issues, return of the illegal immigrants and promotion of tourism 
at the meeting. The discussions were made based on goodwill relations 
band mutual respect between the two Tatmadaws avoiding complicated 
matters. Regarding these discussions, news reports carried on 4 April 
2001 issue of Bangkok Post in Thailand are not in conformity with the 
facts discussed at the meeting and the paper reported incorrect 
information. News about the border issue discussed at the meeting was 
erroneously reported by the newspaper. 


______________________OTHER______________________



Freedom House: Burma Entry in ?THE WORLD?S MOST REPRESSIVE REGIMES,? A 
Special Report to the 57th Session of the United Nations Commission on 
Human Rights


[Abridged]

Each year, Freedom House appears before the United Na-tions Commission 
on Human Rights at its session in Geneva to present its findings and to 
highlight areas of concern. In this yearÆs report, Freedom House again 
emphasizes the most repressive regimes in the world. 
The "Most Repressive" reports that follow are excerpted from the 
2000-2001 Freedom House survey, Freedom in the World. The ratings and 
accompanying essays are based on information re-ceived through the end 
of December 2000. The countries judged to be the worst violators of 
basic political rights and civil liberties are: Afghanistan, Burma, 
Cuba, Equatorial Guinea, Iraq, Libya, North Ko-rea, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, 
Syria, and Turkmenistan. These 11 states are joined by the territories 
of Chechnya and Tibet.
March 2001



Burma        Political Rights: 7            Civil Liberties: 7           
 Status: Not Free  
Overview:

Ten years after it nullified a landslide opposition victory in free 
elections, BurmaÆs ruling junta continued in 2000 to crack down on and 
marginalize the democratic opposition, flout international hu-man rights 
norms, and sanction the large-scale production and trafficking of 
illicit narcotics. 

The present junta has been in power since the summer of 1988, when the 
army opened fire on peaceful, student-led pro-democ-racy demonstrations, 
killing an estimated 3,000 people. After sup-pressing the protests, army 
commanders General Saw Maung and Brigadier General Khin Nyunt created 
the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) to rule the country. 
In 1990, the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) won 392 of 
the 485 parliamentary seats in BurmaÆs first free elections in three 
decades. The SLORC refused to cede power and jailed hundreds of NLD 
members. 

The SLORC reconstituted itself as the State Peace and De-velopment 
Council in November 1997. The relatively young generals who took charge 
sidelined more senior officers and removed some of the more blatantly 
corrupt cabinet ministers. The junta appeared to be trying to improve 
its international image, attract foreign investment, and encourage an 
end to United States-led sanctions. Since then, the regime has sentenced 
hundreds of peaceful pro-democracy activists  to lengthy jail terms, 
forced thousands of NLD members to resign from the party, and 
periodically detained dozens of NLD activists, particularly in advance 
of planned demonstrations. 

In one of the largest single crackdowns in 2000, authorities arrested 
more than 100 NLD members and at least two dozen monks in the weeks 
leading to the tenth anniversary of the 1990 elections. The government 
also twice prevented NLD leader Aung San Suu Kyi and other party members 
from traveling outside Rangoon, and in late September placed Suu Kyi and 
nine other senior NLD members under effective house arrest. The regime 
had held Suu Kyi under house arrest between 1989 and 1995, and it 
continues to reject the 1992 Nobel laureate?s call for a dialogue on 
democratic reform. 

The ethnic minorities that constitute more than one-third of BurmaÆs 
population have been fighting for autonomy from the Bur-man-dominated 
central government since the late 1940s. Since 1989, the regime has 
co-opted some 17 ethnic rebel armies with ceasefire deals that allow 
them to maintain their weapons and territory. With the juntaÆs support, 
many former rebel groups have become major heroin traffickers. The Far 
Eastern Economic Review reported in April that one of these ex-rebel 
groups, the United Wa State Army, has 20,000 to 30,000 soldiers and 
controls most of the drug-producing areas in the Golden Triangle. 
Rangoon has also angered Bangkok by tolerating the widespread 
trafficking of illicit methamphetamines from Burma to Thailand. 

Early in the year, the army and troops from the pro-regime Democratic 
Karen Buddhist Army carried out what has become an annual dry season 
offensive against the Karen National Union, the largest of three active 
insurgency groups. Several thousand Karen refugees fled to Thailand. 

Political Rights and Civil Liberties:

Burma continued to be ruled by one of the world?s most repressive 
regimes. The junta controls the judiciary, and the rule of law is 
nonexistent. Authorities have imprisoned or driven into exile most vocal 
dissidents; severely restrict fundamental rights; and use a tightly 
controlled mass movement, the Union Solidarity Development Association, 
to monitor forced labor quotas, report on citizens, and intimidate 
opponents. General Than Shwe is nominally the junta leader and head of 
state. However, observers say that the real strongmen are Lieutenant 
General Khin Nyunt, the intelligence chief, and his rival, the more 
hardline General Maung Aye, the army commander. Former dictator Ne Win, 
89, also wields influence. A state-controlled constitutional convention 
began in 1993 drafting a new constitution that 

would grant the military 25 percent of seats in a future parliament and 
formalize the army?s leading role in politics. However, the convention 
has not met since 1996. 
The United Nations Human Rights Commission adopted in April a resolution 
condemning torture, disappearances, and other ôsystematic and 
increasingly severeö human rights abuses in Burma. The UN Special 
Rapporteur for Burma similarly noted in October the ôcontinuing 
deterioration of the human rights situationö in the country. Some of the 
regime?s worst human rights abuses occur in Burma?s seven 
ethnic-minority-dominated states in the context of the army?s 
counterinsurgency operations against ethnic-based guerrilla move-ments. 
The tatmadaw, or Burmese armed forces, are responsible for extrajudicial 
killings, beatings, and arbitrary detentions of civilians, sometimes for 
refusing to provide food, money, or labor to military units. Soldiers 
also force civilians to work without pay as porters or human 
minesweepers and frequently press-gang children and other recruits into 
the services. Soldiers also occasionally arrest civilians as alleged 
insurgents or insurgent sympathizers and reportedly com-mit 
widespread incidents of rape.

Tens of thousands of civilians in Shan, Karenni, Karen and Mon states 
and in Tenasserim division remained in designated relocation sites. The 
army forcibly relocated them in the 1990s as part of its 
counterinsurgency strategy. The relocation centers generally lacked 
adequate food, water, health care, and sanitation facilities, and 
soldiers subjected the villagers to looting and other abuses. Thailand 
also continued to host some 120,000 mainly Karen, Karenni, Shan, and Mon 
refugees. Amnesty International released in 1999 reports documenting 
widespread abuses against civilians in the context of  forced relocation 
programs, but also noted that armed opposition groups from the Shan, 
Karen, and other communities committed some killings and other abuses 
against ethnic Burman civilians in these states. Some ethnic-minority 
insurgencies reportedly also recruit child soldiers. 

The International Labor Organization (ILO) called in November for its 
members to impose sanctions on Burma after an ILO monitoring team that 
visited in October found that while the regime had made progress in 
changing its laws to end forced labor, it had done little to put the 
changes into practice. The ILO had in 1999 adopted a resolution calling 
the regimeÆs use of forced labor ôa con-temporary form of slaveryö and 
suspended Burma from most of the organizationÆs activities. In addition, 
an ILO Commission of Enquiry reported in 1998 that the regime used 
forced labor in a ôwidespread  and systematic manner.ö Forced labor 
appeared to be most prevalent in ethnic-minority-dominated states, where 
soldiers force civilians to work without pay under harsh conditions, 
generally on infrastructure projects or military-backed commercial 
ventures. While the use of forced labor appears to be down somewhat from 
the peak years be-tween 

1993 and 1996, the ILO estimates that there may be as many as 800,000 
forced laborers in Burma. 

Some 250,000 Muslim Rohingya refugees fled to camps in Bangladesh in 
1991 and 1992 to escape extrajudicial executions, rape, forced labor, 
and other abuses in northern Arakan state. By mid-l997, all but 22,000 
had returned to Burma. However, Rohingya continued to flee forced labor, 
arbitrary confiscation of property, and other abuses,  and by mid-2000 
an additional 100,000 Rohingya lived in Bangladesh outside the existing 
refugee camps. The refugee situation occurs in the context of the 1982 
Burma Citizenship Law, which effectively denied most Rohingya 
citizenship. Consequently, Burmese authorities subjected Rohingya to 
restrictions on their freedom of movement and barred them from secondary 
education and civil service jobs. 
While releasing several high-profile political prisoners during the 
year, the junta continued to arrest opponents for participating in 
peaceful political activities. Amnesty International said in November 
that authorities were currently holding 1,700 political prisoners. 

Agence France Presse reported in April that officials of the 
International Committee of the Red Cross said that 1,450 of some 30,000 
prisoners it had visited over the past year in Burmese jails are held 
for ôsecurityö reasons. Burmese authorities acknowledged in 1999 that 
107 NLD members of parliament elected in 1990 were imprisoned or 
detained, although the actual number is believed to be far higher. The 
regime imprisons opposition activists and supporters under numerous 
broadly drawn laws that criminalize peaceful activities including 
distributing pamphlets, and distributing, viewing, or smuggling out of 
Burma videotapes of Suu Kyi?s public addresses. The frequently used 
Decree 5/96 of 1996 authorizes jail terms of 5 to 25 years for aiding 
activities ôwhich adversely affect the national interest.ö The 

decree also authorizes the home ministry to ban any organization 
violating a separate law against public gatherings of five or more 
people. Prison conditions are abysmal. Amnesty International said in 
December that ôtorture has become an institutionö in the country and 
that victims include political activists, criminals. and members of 
ethnic minorities. Dissidents say that more than 40 political prisoners 
have died in RangoonÆs Insein prison since 1988. 

The junta continued to control tightly all publications and broadcast 
services. The Paris-based Reporters Sans Frontieres (RSF) reported in 
January that authorities had released a journalist who had been held 
since 1996 after participating in an opposition rally, but that the 
regime continued to jail 12 other journalists. The 1996 Computer Law 
requires Internet users to obtain official authorization and pro-vides 
for lengthy jail terms for unauthorized use. According to RSF, the 
regime amended in January the 1996 law to also prohibit citizens from 
using electronic mail to spread political information, and closed in 
December 1999 two private Internet service providers. The state owned 
the sole remaining Internet service provider. The Directorate of Defense 
Services Intelligence continued to arbitrarily search homes, intercept 
mail, and monitor telephone conversations. The regime?s high-tech 
information warfare center in Rangoon reportedly can intercept 
telephone, fax, e-mail, and radio communications. 
The government reopened in July many of Burma?s universities, which it 
had closed in the wake of student-led demonstrations in 1996. However, 
authorities made students pledge loyalty to the government, barred 
political activity on campuses, and shortened the academic term at many 
universities. Authorities also continued to closely monitor monasteries, 
interfere in Buddhist religious affairs, and hold many of the 300 monks 
arrested during a violent 1990 crack-down on monasteries. 

Criminal gangs have trafficked thousands of Burmese women and girls, 
many from ethnic minority groups, to Thailand for prostitution. 
Independent trade unions, collective bargaining, and strikes are 
illegal. Several labor activists continued to serve long terms for their 
political and labor activities. The junta?s economic mismanagement 
continued to contribute 

to persistently high inflation rates, stagnant economic growth, and a 
hugely overvalued currency. Official corruption is reportedly rampant. 
The European Union and the United States maintained sanctions on Burma 
because of its human rights record and prevented it from receiving some 
multilateral aid. 








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