BurmaNet News: April 10, 2001

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______________ THE BURMANET NEWS ______________
        An on-line newspaper covering Burma 
         April 10, 2001   Issue # 1775
______________ www.burmanet.org _______________

INSIDE BURMA _______
*Reuters: Myanmar court summons Suu Kyi in new house lawsuit
*Kyodo: Suu Kyi refuses to accept court summons
*DVB: Rangoon urged to announce Suu Kyi talks outcome
*Kyodo: 6-nation drug-control meeting to be held in Yangon in May
*Shan Herald Agency for News: Thai Buddha images forbidden from public 
display

REGIONAL/INTERNATIONAL _______
*Kyodo: EU extends sanctions against Myanmar for six months
*Kyodo: Japan considers financing power station renovation in Myanmar
*The Nation: All Roads Lead to Misery

ECONOMY/BUSINESS _______
*AFP:Price of heroin triples in Myanmar after poor opium harvest
*AP: Myanmar drug official predicts further fall in opium output
*Reuters: Myanmar says tackling currency, price woes

OPINION/EDITORIALS_______
*The Nation: Good Start, but Burma must Keep its Promises
*The Nation: Thailand Faces Tests of Human-rights Commitment

OTHER______
*International Burmese Students Conference to be held in US, June 2001


__________________ INSIDE BURMA ____________________



Reuters: Myanmar court summons Suu Kyi in new house lawsuit

YANGON, April 9 (Reuters) - A Myanmar court on Monday summoned 
opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi to appear in court over a new lawsuit 
filed by her brother for the administration of her home, court officials 
said. 

 ``Yangon Division Court this morning served the summons on Daw Aung San 
Suu Kyi to appear at the court on April 23 in connection with the suit 
of administration of the residence filed by her brother,'' one official 
told Reuters. 

 The court had dismissed a previous suit by Suu Kyi's brother, Aung San 
Oo, in January on the grounds that he had filed the case on the wrong 
form. 

 Suu Kyi's brother, who lives in the United States and has U.S. 
citizenship, wants the immediate division of the property, which local 
real estate agents say is worth about $2 million. 

 The dismissal of the suit in January was widely interpreted as a sign 
Myanmar's military government was easing its crackdown on Suu Kyi and 
her National League for Democracy (NLD). 

 An order to divide the property would have intensified pressure on Suu 
Kyi. 

 Suu Kyi, awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991 for her efforts to bring 
democracy to Myanmar, has been confined to her house in Yangon since 
September and access to her has been tightly controlled. 

 The NLD won Myanmar's last democratic elections in 1990 by a landslide 
but has never been allowed to govern. 

 But tension between the government and the NLD has eased in recent 
months. Secretive talks between Suu Kyi and the military began at the 
end of last year and open criticism by both sides has gradually ceased. 

 Legal sources in Yangon said Suu Kyi was unlikely to appear in court 
but would authorise an agent and lawyers to act on her behalf. 

 Suu Kyi and Aung San Oo are children of Myanmar independence hero 
General Aung San, who was assassinated in 1947 when the country was on 
the threshold of independence from Britain. 

 The Yangon house was owned by Suu Kyi's family. 

 Suu Kyi has lived there -- much of the time under house arrest -- since 
returning from Europe in 1988 to nurse her ailing mother. 






___________________________________________________



Kyodo: Suu Kyi refuses to accept court summons


YANGON April 9 Kyodo - Myanmar democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi refused 
Monday to accept a summons from the Yangon Division Court to appear in 
court April 23 in connection with a suit filed by her brother Aung San 
Oo for ownership of their parent's estate where Suu Kyi lives. 
The summons server left the summons on the gate to her house. 

Suu Kyi's brother, who lives in the United States, filed suit for 
ownership of the estate at 54-56 University Avenue where Suu Kyi has 
lived since 1988. 

A suit filed last year for partition of the estate was dismissed in 
January for procedural error. 

Under Burmese Buddhist Law, a claimant in an inheritance case must 
establish ownership before applying for partition. 

Aung San Oo's therefore lawyer filed a suit April 5 for ownership of the 
estate as first step in applying for partition. 

The siblings are expected to be represented in court by their legal 
counsel only. 
	
The estate in question is said by some to be worth several million 
dollars. 

 

___________________________________________________



DVB: Rangoon urged to announce Suu Kyi talks outcome

8 April

Bohmu Aung, a leader of Burma's struggle for independence, and party 
have issued an appeal on Resistance Day, 27 March, to publicly announce 
the result of talks between the SPDC [State Peace and Development 
Council] and Daw Aung San Suu Kyi as soon as possible. Bohmu Aung and 
group's appeal urged the SPDC and Daw Aung San Suu Kyi to issue a joint 
statement at the earliest instant for the joy of the entire public. 
Furthermore, all political prisoners should be unconditionally released. 
The appeal noted that this matter could be immediately agreed upon and 
would enhance the expectation of the populace.

Bohmu Aung, a leader of Burma's fight for independence, and over 20 
veteran political colleagues, have repeatedly written and urged the SPDC 
to hold talks to find solutions for Burma's political problems. The 
letter also claimed that they were overjoyed when they heard the news 
about the talks between the SPDC and Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. Bohmu Aung 
and colleagues have mentioned in their previous letters that dialogue is 
the only solution for the emergence of peace and development in the 
nation. Bohmu Aung fought together with National Leader General Aung San 
[father of Aung San Suu Kyi] in the struggle for independence and he is 
now over 90 years old. At the moment his health is not good and his 
hearing is failing.

The appeal finally stated, on the 56th Anniversary of the Resistance Day 
we wish the ongoing talks between the two sides be materialized quickly 
for the good of the nation and its people.


___________________________________________________



Democratic Voice of Burma, Oslo, in Burmese 1430 gmt 8 Apr, 2001


Kyodo: 6-nation drug-control meeting to be held in Yangon in May


YANGON April 9 Kyodo - China, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and 
Vietnam will hold drug-control talks in Myanmar from May 9-11, Myanmar's 
junta said Monday. 
The meeting comes at a time when opium production in Myanmar has dropped 
to its lowest levels in 12 years and opium producers and traffickers are 
moving into amphetamine-type stimulants (ATS), Col. Kyaw Thein of the 
Defense Ministry's Office of Strategic Studies said at a press 
conference. 

Citing a joint U.S.-Myanmar survey, the colonel said opium production 
fell 38% in 1999 to its lowest level since 1988, but the price of opium 
and heroin has increased two to three times because of that. 

Kyaw Thein also noted opium producers and traffickers made up from 
splinter groups once led by drug warlord Khun Sa and other rebel groups 
such as the Shan United Revolutionary Army (SURA) and Karenni National 
Progressive Party (KNPP) that have been producing and trafficking ATS 
since 1996 are becoming even more dependent on ATS. 

He said Myanmar is aiming towards total eradication of illegal drugs in 
the country, but international cooperation is needed to meet that goal. 



___________________________________________________



Shan Herald Agency for News: Thai Buddha images forbidden from public 
display


9 April 2001

Thai monks of Shan descendents who recently returned form Monghsat  
District, opposite Chiangmai and Chiangrai provinces, told S.H.A.N. 
Buddha  images of Thai styles have been ordered to be kept out for 
public view by  the Burmese authorities since last month.

The monks said all the Buddha statues, big or small, old or new alike,  
residing in all the temples had to be put away. "What upset the local  
people the most was the removal of the 5 cubit (7¨` feet) tall Sitting  
Buddha from Mae-sawn Temple within Monghsat's city limits itself," said 
a  monk. "It is now dwelling at the abbot's abode."

"This single act symbolizes the hatred the Burmese feel against the 
Thais,"  said another monk. "The lord Buddha had always counselled 
against hatred,  but it seems many of us so-called Buddhists are only 
Buddhists outwardly." 
"At least, they have yet to order them destroyed like the Talebans did," 
he  said, smiling benevolently.

The Muslim fundamentalist Taleban authorities of Afghanistan demolished 
the  two 5th century giant Buddha statues last month.

 



___________________ REGIONAL/INTERNATIONAL___________________
				



Kyodo: EU extends sanctions against Myanmar for six months


LUXEMBOURG April 9 Kyodo - The European Union (EU) said Monday it will 
extend sanctions against Myanmar for another six months and urged the 
Myanmar military government to take ''concrete steps'' toward national 
reconciliation with the opposition camp. 
The EU foreign ministers, who gathered in Luxembourg for a regular 
monthly meeting, said the EU sees ''no substantial progress'' with 
regard to the human rights situation in Myanmar. 

The EU ministers noted that ''for the moment, there had been no 
substantive progress toward the objectives set out in the common 
positions,'' a statement released after the meeting said. 

The statement expressed hope that a direct dialogue initiated between 
the junta and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi in January would ''soon 
lead to concrete steps toward national reconciliation.'' 

The EU imposed sanctions on Myanmar -- including an arms embargo, the 
suspension of all non-humanitarian aid, and banning members of the junta 
from visiting EU member countries -- in protest against the junta's 
crackdown of the opposition camp and Myanmar's human rights record. 

The EU decided in April last year to tighten the sanctions, adding a ban 
on the export of any equipment that might be used for internal 
repression or terrorism, publishing the list of persons affected by the 
visa ban, and imposing a freeze on the funds held abroad by the persons 
named in the list





___________________________________________________



Kyodo: Japan considers financing power station renovation in Myanmar 

TOKYO (AP) _ Japan is considering a plan to help Myanmar renovate an 
aging hydroelectric power station, a project expected to cost more than 
3 billion yen (dlrs 24 million), a government official said Monday. 

 Japanese Foreign Minister Yohei Kono told Myanmar's Deputy Foreign 
Minister Khin Maung Win earlier in the day that Japan will send a team 
of experts to evaluate the extent of repairs needed at the Baluchaung 
power station, said Motosa Matano, a Foreign Ministry official. 

 In 1960, Japan help fund the construction of the power station, which 
is badly in need of repairs. 

 The Cabinet is expected to reach a final decision by the end of the 
year, he said. Last month, Japan promised 850 million yen (dlrs 6.8 
million) in aid for Myanmar, the first such promise in six years. 

 With the financial aid, Japan hopes to prod the Southeast Asian 
country's ruling junta to continue its talks with pro-democracy leader 
Aung San Suu Kyi, who has been kept under virtual house arrest since 
Sept. 22 for defying a travel ban. 

 Suu Kyi and the regime began talks in October, their first direct 
dialogue in more than six years. The NLD won general elections in 1990 
but the military has refused to honor the result. 

 ``We want to encourage the regime to proceed in a positive direction in 
its talks with Suu Kyi,'' Matano said. 

 Japan has been critical of the junta's human rights record and 
suppression of democracy but does not participate in trade sanctions and 
a ban on new investment imposed by the United States. 


___________________________________________________



The Nation: All Roads Lead to Misery

Monday, April 9, 2001



Driven across the border bu desperate circumstances at home, Burmese 
women are obvious targets for sexual abuse and exploitation. as their 
illegal status makes it impossible for them to demand their rights. 
Attempts to assist them have had little effect, 

Subhatrs Bbhumiprabhas

It is not difficult to find Thai women working in brothels in Germany or 
Japan, but it is much easier to find Burmese sex workers in Thailand. 

What makes these women decide to walk into an unknown future outside 
their homeland? " For a better income," they will say. What they won't 
tell you is: to achieve this goal they will live a miserable existence 
and be treated as though they weren't human beings.

" Sometimes I feel I am worthless. But I have to be strong, right? I 
have to fight for my children. Ou hometown is a tragedy. We don't know 
what to do. It's so painful to see young girls coming to sell their 
virginity. Who wants to be far away from their hometown? Who wants to be 
far away from the ones they love? It's a hard life here. If we get 
arrested or die, our parents never see us again. It's no fun at all that 
we have to sell our bodies, " says Hseng Kaew, a Shan woman from Mong 
Yang.


Hseng Kaew is quoted in the book In Search of Sunlight: Burmese Migrant 
Workers in Thailand, written by Pim Koetaswang. In 1993, the writer 
began five years of research into the fate of Burmese migrant workers in 
Thailand that resulted in the publication of her book in the late 1998. 

Recently, Pim helped to organise a seminar entitled " Cooperation 
between the Government and Private Sector in Solving the Problems in 
Migrant Workers in Thailand " at the International YMCA Hotel in Chiang 
Mai. 
Pim told the seminar that although several years had passed since she 
had written the book, she had found no improvements in the lives of 
Burmese migrant workers.

Bupoe Yebeing or "Anna", a Burmese woman at the seminar, confessed that 
she crosses the border to visit her hometown in Tachilek every week. 
" I go back to update other women in Burma about the conditions they 
will have to accept if they decide to work in Thailand," said Anna. " I 
told them that they might make much more money than working in Burma, 
but they could be physically or sexually abused anywhere and anytime 
because of their illegal status."

Anna, now 29, migrated to Thailand with her parents when she was 13 
years old, and for many years worked as a housemaid, baby-sister and 
restaurant waitress. She has just been given Thai citizenship and is now 
waiting for her ID card.

Today, Anna helps EMPOWER foundation (a non-governmental organisation 
that promotes opportunities for women), to organise a monthly workshop 
for sex workers in the Mae-Sai district in Chiand Rai province. She 
calls brothels in the Koa Sai area ' Baan Sao'.

"Most women who work in the Baan Sao in Mae-Sai are from Burma and can't 
speak Thai. We invite them to attend our workshop and tell them how to 
prevent being infected with HIV-Aids," said Anna who speaks Burmese, 
Akha, Tai and Thai.

As an NGO worker, she is allowed to speak to the 60 or so Burmese women 
who are working in 12 'Baan Sao' in the Koa Sai area. From her 
conversations with these women, Anna has learnt much about how these 
women feel. and what was truly happening in the brothels. She confessed 
some of their stories left her speechless.

" A woman who was four-months pregnant told me she wanted an abortion 
this was while she was standing in front of her boss. But later she 
confided that the brothel owner had forced her to day that. In the end 
she fled, even though she still owed the owner Bt 20,000, "said Anna, 
adding she hoped the mother and baby would be okay.

"I know how difficult it is for illegal migrant women to find a safe 
place in Thailand. That's why most women in Baan Sao don't think about 
running away or working further from the border as long as they can't 
speak Thai." Anna added.

The fate of these women is nothing new for Pim, who spent months 
visiting brothels as part of the research for her book. In one chapter, 
Pim tells the story of 'Meena', an 18 years old Burmese-Indian woman 
from Marid, in Tenasserim Division, who was forcibly sold to a big 
brothel in a southern province of Thailand. Meena told Pim that the 
brothel's owner bought her for Bt 5, 000 but she had to pay back Bt 10, 
000 by sleeping with over 300 customers.

" I got pregnant twice. The owner forced me to have it taken out. He 
brought a woman from Kaw Taung to do it. I was left to rest just for a 
few days and had to work again. my wages were eaten into for water, 
electricity, immigration police tea-money, abortions  and so on, so we 
had not much left. I was arrested five times, and every time the owner 
paid me out, a thousand, three thousand baht, it depended. Then he 
deducted that cost from my wages again. You know, I ran away once but 
was caught and beaten.After that he didn't allow me to go anywhere 
anymore. 

" Most Burmese women are treated badly in Thailand either from their 
employers or the police," says Anna. " They are discriminated against 
even in the brothels where they are always sexually abused, but dare not 
ask for help or justice because of their illegal status."


Anna knows that the government policy to allow illegal workers to 
continue working in Thailand until August 1 does not include Burmese 
women in brothels. What's more, she isn't trying to help these women to 
continue working here.

"I just want to see them treated as human beings," she said. Living 
along the border, Anna has seen the condition of women being sent back 
to Burma. Even though they had worked here, they were treated like 
animals and couldn't even take their possessions back home, where they 
will also be discriminated against.

Anna still remembers when she was only 16 and didn't have Thai 
nationality. "It was normal for the police to search your body anytime 
if you were non-Thai and came from Burma. I was lucky when the 
policewoman who found money that I hid in my bra took pity on me and 
didn't toll the others about it," she recalled.

Manuy women from Burma have not been so lucky. Moreover, Anna is well 
aware that she is only a small player and can't really do anything 
except give useful information to Burmese sex workers in Thai brothels 
and other women across the border.

"For those who have already been arrested and are waiting to be sent 
back to Burma, I would like to see someone make sure they get home 
safely with their possessions they have bought after spending years 
working in trying conditions.

Although many of the women working in brothels in Tachilek told Anna 
they didn't want to return to Thailand again, Anna still sees plenty of 
young Burmese women being brought to Mae-Sai district before being moved 
to other parts of Thailand.

" There are a lot of brokers here. So what I would like to say is that 
it is useless to solve the problem of illegal migrant workers simply by 
arresting the women," she said.

This is echoed by Pim at the end of her book:

"With the endless lust of some men, both Thai and foreign, the rapid 
expansion of trafficking networks has reaped huge benefits. And while 
many women have decided to seek a path into the light, some who have 
already left have returned to the shadow again and again. Moreover, a 
big new group of targets will be dragged in to this dark tunnel, one by 
one, in an endless stream. Although the job of being a sex object might 
be one where, as Pin (one sex worker that Pim interviewed) put it, " you 
could press the off button of feeling," the fact is that all women are 
warm with flesh and blood. They have emotions and complex feelings. They 
have both beautiful dreams and painful despair. Whilst each life may not 
be characterised as a bitter tragedy, the trade in women as mere goods 
and the perception of women as sex objects, are definitely among the 
ugliest of shames of human being."

*The search of Sunlight is mow available in Thai, Burmese and English, 
at Asia Books outlets.




_______________ ECONOMY AND BUSINESS _______________
 



AFP:Price of heroin triples in Myanmar after poor opium harvest 

YANGON, April 9 (AFP) - The street price of heroin has tripled in 
Myanmar as supplies run short after the poorest opium production season 
in more than a decade, the military government said Monday. 

 Drug eradication efforts, bad weather and pests have slashed the opium 
poppy harvest and narcotics production, said Kyaw Thein, spokesman for 
the Office of Strategic Studies intelligence agency. 

 "The latest opium yield survey conducted with the United States has 
shown that there was a 31 percent decrease in cultivation and 38 percent 
decrease in opium production ... an all-time low since 1988," he said. 

 "Production this year is expected to be lower, especially due to the 
efforts of the former armed groups to create opium-free zones in their 
respective areas of jurisdiction, helped along by the vagaries of 
weather and destruction by pests. 

 "Due to the decrease in production, street prices of opium and heroin 
inside the country have increased two or three-fold," he said. 

 In a narcotics control report released in March, the United States 
acknowledged that drug production had fallen in the military-run 
country. 

 But it said that despite the junta's efforts at crop eradication and 
bad weather that reduced the harvest, the country "remains the world's 
second largest producer of illicit opium and heroin." 

 Afghanistan continues to be the world's largest producer, accounting 
for 72 percent of the world's illicit opium supply. 

 Myanmar this month gave an undertaking to neighbouring Thailand that it 
would help wipe out drug factories along their border after persistent 
criticism that it has turned a blind eye to the problem. 

 The massive production of methamphetamines, mostly destined for the 
Thai market, has become a major irritatant in relations between the two 
countries. 

 Kyaw Thein said that apart from the bilateral agreements made with its 
neighbours, Myanmar was in the process of establishing border liaison 
offices to increase the effectiveness of its drug eradication program. 

 "The biggest common problem being faced in the Asia pacific region is 
the illicit trafficking of drugs and this problem must be addressed 
through mutual cooperation using a balanced approach," he said. 



___________________________________________________


AP: Myanmar drug official predicts further fall in opium output 

YANGON, Myanmar (AP) _ Opium production in Myanmar, on a steady decline 
since 1997, will fall again over the next year due to eradication 
efforts and bad growing conditions, a top Myanmar anti-drug official 
said Monday. 

 According to the U.S. State Department, Myanmar _ also known as Burma _ 
currently accounts for approximately 80 percent of Southeast Asia's 
opium production, and 20 percent of the world's production, second only 
to Afghanistan. 

 Col. Kyaw Thein, the military intelligence officer coordinating 
Myanmar's anti-drug effort, said at a press briefing Monday that the 
annual joint U.S.-Myanmar opium survey showed a substantial annual drop 
in opium production since 1997, with output hitting its lowest level 
since 1988. 

 As a result, he said, the price inside Myanmar of heroin, which is 
derived from opium, has increased 233 percent over the past year. One 
kilogram (2.2 pounds) of heroin which last year costs 1,500,000 kyats 
(about dlrs 3,000 at the free market rate of exchange, or dlrs 250,000 
at the official rate) in Yangon now costs 5,000,000 kyats (dlrs 10,000 
at the free market rate, or dlrs 833,333 at the official rate), he said. 

 Myanmar government figures show opium output of 599 metric tons (665 
tons) in 1998, 404 metric tons (449 tons) in 1999 and 357 metric tons 
(397 tons) in 2000. 

 The U.S. State Department, in its latest survey of the world drug 
situation, agrees that ``since 1996 ... opium production has declined 
sharply to levels that are now less than half Burma's annual production 
during the early 1990s.'' 

 However, it put 1999 opium production at 1,090 metric tons (1,199 
tons), and 2000 production as 1,085 tons (1,194 tons). Myanmar officials 
in the past have said they consider the US figures greatly inflated. 


 Myanmar authorities have destroyed more opium poppy plantations and 
seized more drugs due to stricter enforcement, Kyaw Thein said. 

 ``The military in Shan States, in northern Myanmar, had stepped up law 
enforcement and instructions have been given by local ethnic leaders 
since October last year to stop growing poppy in the region,'' he said. 

 He also told reporters that due to drug elimination efforts by ethnic 
leaders and the declaration of ``Opium Free Zones'' in poppy cultivation 
regions, as well as bad weather and infestation of insect pests, opium 
production will decline over this year. 

 More than 26 million psychotropic drug tablets were seized in 2000 and 
4 million tablets were seized in the first three months of year 2001, 
said Kyaw Thein. Authorities have destroyed 8,497 hectares (21,242 
acres) of opium poppy plantations this year compare to 4,395 hectares 
(10,987 acres) in 2000.



___________________________________________________


Reuters: Myanmar says tackling currency, price woes

By Jalil Hamid 

 KUALA LUMPUR, April 8 (Reuters) - Military-ruled Myanmar wants to boost 
exports and food production to tackle inflation and a thriving black 
market in its currency, a senior government official with 
responsibilities for economic management has said. 
 Myanmar was making efforts to sustain the ``remarkable'' economic 
growth seen in recent years, the official, who declined to be 
identified, told Reuters in an interview on Saturday. 

 He said Myanmar's economy was estimated to have grown ``at least eight 
percent'' in the fiscal year to March 2001, fuelled by the agriculture 
and energy sectors, but gave no comparison for 1999/2000. The growth 
came off a very low base, however. 

 Western analysts say the country's economy is far from robust. 

 Myanmar's ruling generals took tentative steps to open up the economy, 
after 26 years of isolation and central planning, at the end of the 
1980s, after they suppressed a pro-democracy uprising. 

 But the country, which is rich in natural resoures and was once one of 
the region's top rice producers, remains one of the poorest in Asia. 

 Many foreign aid donors and investors are reluctant to get involved in 
Myanmar because of its poor human rights record. 

 Among the country's economic problems are hyperinflation and the 
collapse of the kyat currency, analysts say. 

 The official exchange rate is six kyat to the U.S. dollar, a level 
fixed for more than 30 years, but the black market rate is near 600. 

 ``We are aware there is a large gap between the official exchange rate 
and the prevailing market rate,'' the official said on the sidelines of 
a meeting of southeast Asian finance ministers in Malaysia's capital. 

 ``In order to lessen the speculation as well as to increase the foreign 
exchange reserves, the focus is now on export promotion,'' he said. 

 He said the government had permitted cross-border trade to be conducted 
in kyat and the currencies of neighbouring countries, as well as U.S. 
dollars. Earlier, such trade was allowed only in dollars. 

 But the time was not yet appropriate to introduce a unified rate of the 
kyat, he said, with limited forex reserves a factor. 

 Government figures show inflation has fallen sharply to about 3.4 
percent, from a peak of 30 percent in the mid-1990s, he said. 

 ``In order to (further) contain inflation, the government has taken 
measures which include cutting unproductive expenditures and increasing 
sales of Treasury bonds.'' 

 Cheap loans to spur large-scale agriculture projects and the making of 
import-substitution goods are another step. 



_______________OPINION/EDITORIALS_________________



The Nation: Good Start, but Burma must Keep its Promises

Monday, April 9, 2001


 
After the end of the Thai-Burma Regional Border Committee meeting in 
Kengtung, Burma, last week, there was a sense of dij` vu among the 
Thais, who hailed Burma's positive responses to their proposals, 
especially calls for anti-narcotics cooperation along the border. Burma 
pledged to destroy any drug factories identified by the Thai military. 

Third Army Region Commander Lt-General Wattanachai Chaimuengwong said it 
would  point out three drug factories belonging to the United Wa State 
Army (UWSA). But only time will tell if Burma intends to actually 
cooperate. Of course, it has promised to work with the Thai military in 
anti-narcotics efforts in the past, especially those aimed at the UWSA. 
But it has never kept those promises. 

This time Burma seems more enthusiastic and cooperative, and for good 
reason. Junta 
leaders believe they can manage relations with the Thaksin government 
more easily than they did with the previous government, which was tough 
on human rights and other issues. They also understand that Thaksin and 
their good friend Defence Minister Chavalit Yongchaiyudh will need some 
strong justification to improve ties with Burma. 


Given the high priority Thaksin has placed on the anti-drugs campaign, 
it is only natural that Burma should pledge its cooperation.  
Junta leaders have cast an eye towards the future in their relations 
with Thailand, especially regarding human rights and labour issues. Last 
June Thailand broke with Asean and abstained from voting in support of 
Burma at the International Labour Organisation (ILO). Now Burma is under 
sanctions and is working hard to have them lifted. Officials from the 
Burmese Foreign Ministry were in Geneva to lobby for support. 

They argued that Burma had changed and cited a visit by the UN special 
envoy on human rights. In this context and others, any improvement in 
its relations with Thailand would, from a broader perspective, have a 
positive impact on Burma's image. 

Of course, Burma would like to see Thailand adopt the Asean position in 
Geneva. Rangoon's posturing is aimed at an international audience. Over 
the past three years, Thailand has stood against Burma on issues such as 
drug trafficking and human rights. It has become the template by which 
the international community has chosen to deal with Burma. Now, with UN 
envoys engaged in a dialogue between the junta leaders and the 
opposition, Burma hopes it can improve its image. 

Beyond the issue of drug trafficking, Thai-Burmese ties must return to 
the point where 
 people-to-people relations can be encouraged. Too much effort has been 
focused on government-to-government relations. Thailand provided 
technical assistance and scholarships worth more than Bt50 million to 
the Burmese people prior to the economic crisis. The government should 
continue this aid programme. Cultural and academic ties should be 
further boosted. In fact, these ties are the strongest, even though the 
two governments are at odds with one another. The Kathin procession 
during Buddhist Lent has continued for the past year. Burmese scholars 
have been invited to give papers and air their views on Thailand. 

In the short run, Burma will seek a quick fix to its relations with 
Thailand. However, long-term relations between the two countries will 
require much more work. It is imperative that Thailand and Burma work 
together to reach long-term solutions to their differences. Otherwise, 
ties will continue to be trapped inside their current restraints.



___________________________________________________



The Nation: Thailand Faces Tests of Human-rights Commitment

Monday, April 9, 2001


 
Kavi Chongkittavorn 

Foreign Minister Surakiart Sathirathai spoke on Thailand's human-rights 
policy at the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) in Geneva last week. In 
an effort to please, he said all the right things about Thailand and 
human rights. 

Surakiart said Thailand approached human rights in a holistic and 
comprehensive manner. That is, all rights - political, civil, economic, 
social and cultural, as well as the right to development - and other 
freedoms, including freedom from fear and from want, are interrelated 
and interdependent, he said. Moreover, there must be a strategic balance 
between those various rights, he said. 

"Governments should make decisions on behalf of their people with the 
consultation and endorsement of the people," Sathirathai said. "People 
should be empowered to make their own decisions. Their voices must be 
heard and respected." 

The international community, he said, has an important role to play in 
promoting the right to development and human-centred development. "Human 
rights, however, should not be set as a condition to international 
development assistance," he said. 

Surakiart wrapped up his speech by saying that based on its political 
and economic progress, Thailand's experience could be shared with and 
benefit the international community. "We hope to facilitate the 
convergence of divergent views and practices regarding human-rights 
promotion and protection of the developed and developing countries," he 
said.  

Surakiart could have said the same thing in five words--all human rights 
to all--the slogan used by UN High Commissioner on Human Rights.  
When the Thaksin government outlined its foreign policy recently, it 
discarded one of the pillars of the previous government's policy - to 
promote human rights and democracy. It was exactly for this reason that 
Thailand worked very hard to become a member of the CHR last year.  
As one of the 53 member countries, Thailand wants to play a constructive 
and active role. 

It is proud of its human-right records, imperfect as it may be in the 
eyes of the world. 

There is no need for it to protect or counter-attack any criticism of 
its human-rights records. But with several resolutions coming up before 
the CHR soon, Thailand will have to vote. For the first time it will be 
forced to act, to prove its worth by backing up its rhetoric on human 
rights with real action. 

The United States has already introduced a resolution condemning 
violations of human rights in China, especially related to the arrests, 
mistreatment and deaths of members of the Falungong religious sect. At 
the moment Thailand is considering two options: abstaining and voting 
against the US resolution. The first option is the most viable, 
considering the importance of the United States in Thai foreign policy 
and the long-term support the US has given Thailand. It would also tally 
with Thailand's long-standing policy of avoiding conflicts, particularly 
with the US and China.  

However, if Surakiart's speech was any indication, Thailand might vote 
against the US resolution to deliver the message that Thailand believes 
in so-called Asian values. So far Thailand and China have strengthened 
their cooperation under the Thaksin government. 

Thailand has been willing to trade its commitment to human rights for 
economic gain and political expediency. Obviously, the Thai government 
will go the extra mile to assist China and strengthen Thai-Chinese 
relations.  

When the International Labour Organisation (ILO) holds its an-nual 
meeting in June, Thailand will be tested again - this time on Burma. 
Last June, Thailand broke with Asean and abstained from a crucial vote 
to impose sanctions against Burma over the use of forced labour. The 
decision was based on Thailand's international standing on rights 
issues. The ILO action, the first in its 81-year history, called for 
governments, workers and employers to " review their links with Burma 
and take appropriate measures to ensure Burma cannot take advantage of 
such relations to perpetuate or extend the system of forced or 
compulsory labour".  

Burma is hoping that at the ILO meeting this year Asean will speak with 
one voice to support it, especially because of its willing-ness to 
cooperate with the UN special envoys. Burma wants to end the ILO 
sanctions because they have harmed the country's worsening economy and 
furthered its isolation.  

Thailand's human-rights policy will also face numerous challenges at 
home. The National Committee on Human Rights will soon be finalising its 
membership. Once it begins its work, this committee will monitor the 
country's commitment to human rights and international human-rights 
agreements. It will present an annual report on the country's human 
rights, including practices in neighbouring countries if they affect the 
situation in Thailand. 

So we can expect to learn a great deal in coming weeks and months about 
whether Thailand is serious about protecting human rights, or whether it 
is a country full of apologists. 




______________________OTHER______________________




International Burmese Students Conference to be held in US, June 2001


The first International Burmese Students Conference will be held in 
June,  2001 in the United States of America to make democracy promotions 
more  effective in Burma. 
We, the Burmese students who initiated the 1988 affairs, were seperated 
all  over the world due to different situations and facing new 
survivals.  But we  still remember why we left our mother land and what 
our aim was.  It is time  we need to sit together and thoroughly discuss 
our country's political  situations.  From that, we believe, we may 
reach a resolution and  suggestions which may be helpful to consider for 
the future of Burma.  Burmese students political analysts and scholars 
put current events into  perspective by examining the political, social, 
and cultural factors that  effect the institutionalization of Burma. 

Contact information:

AMERICA: 
(219) 492-9589 
(301) 519-1907 
burmesestudentsconference@xxxxxxx 

AUSTRILIA: 
(613) 9515-7704 
(612) 9588-2580 
maungt@xxxxxxxxxx 
zawlatt@xxxxxxxxxxxx 

CANADA: 
(416) 532-1094 
hhmay@xxxxxxxxxxx 
yaungnioo@xxxxxxxxx 

ENGLAND: 
(44207) 261-1492 
uuttara@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 

INDIA: 
(91115) 529-817 
mizzima@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 

JAPAN: 
(813) 954-8435 
(813) 232-3262 
kyi@xxxxxxxxxxx 









________________


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Burma News Summaries available by email or the web

There are three Burma news digest services available via either email or 
the web.

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Frequency: Biweekly
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Published by: Open Society Institute, Burma Project

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Availability: E-mail, fax or post.  To subscribe or unsubscribe by email 
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Note: News sources are cited at the beginning of an article. 
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Published by: PD Burma (The International Network of Political Leaders 
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