231
Youngmen and 4 women detained at Maungdaw
Maungdaw, October 28: From 11th to 15th October
2002,
police arrested 231 young men and 4 women from Baggona village,
a place 2 miles south of Maungdaw, Arakan State, said a trader
of Maungdaw.
On 10th October, Maung Lun, the Chairman of the
Rwa
Thaya Village Peace and development Council (VPDC), friendly
invited 5 young men from Baggona, an adjacent village to Rwa
Thaya, to watch the pwe (dance drama) being staged at his
village. They are Kabir, Kamal, Juhar, Mohamed Yunus and Monzia
(a Hindu). While they were watching the pwe, the duty police of
the pwe, at
the instigation of Maung Lun, suddenly rounded the up and
arrested 4 of them. But, Mohamed Yunus managed to escape from
the scene. All of them were sent to Maungdaw police custody with
false and fabricated accusation of rape of two Rakhaing girls of
the
village, he further added.
On the following day, the 11th of October, a
police
team came to the village from Maungdaw. On the pretext of
looking for Mohamed Yunus, who had gone into hiding, the police
in collaboration with some Rakhaing goons, had arrested 15
Rohingya young men and
were sent and detained in Maungdaw police custody,
said a villager to our source.
Again on 12th October , a 5 member police team
together with the collaboration of 15 Rakhaing muggers went to
the said with the same pretext and held up16 young men, who were
at once sent to Maungdaw police custody, he further added.
It was on 15th October, when the Western
Commander
Brigadier General Maung Oo was visiting Maungdaw, the inspector
of police of Maungdaw apprised him of the matter, the General
instructed the police inspector to give him detail report after
making inquiry. This made the inspector encouraged and , in that
very night, he
dispatched a team of 12 police men with 20 Rakhaing
robbers with the alleged intention of harassing and extorting
the villagers. The police made house to house searches and
picked up the young occupants. A total of 200 young villagers
with 4 women, namely
Jahanara Begum,17, Noor Jahan,22, Samida Begum, 26,
and Ayas Jahan, 31, were arrested and carried to Maungdaw police
custody. All of the four arrested women belong to a same family
and are daughters of Sayed Ahmed, said victims' relatives.
On 17th October, 69 detainees were released with
a
bribe of Kyats 10,000/- for each and the remaining 166 persons,
including the 4 women, who are unable to offer bribe, are still
kept in police custody and they have been reportedly tortured.
On the other hand, the police inspector is threatening the
villagers of more
punishment unless Mohamed Yunus is not arrested, they further
added.
An old man from Maungdaw town said," the
arrest is
totally illegal. It is a fabrication to intimidate and extort
the Muslim villagers. Rwa Thaya is a Rakhaing village well known
as a place of prostitutes and
country made wine. The corrupt army, police,
government servicemen and bad elements used to visit it".
Source: Kaladan Press
Network ,( Editor ), October 28 ,2002
TOP
The
Agents of Terror in Southeast Asia
After the bombing in Bali, Southeast Asia
nations are on terrorism alert.The upcoming Asean Summit, to be
held in Cambodia, will review international security issues,
including the looming threat of a possible war on Iraq, North
Korea's nuclear reserves and the recent attack on Bali.
However, so far the reaction of Asean leaders’
reaction to the Bali attack and other terrorist threats has been
inharmonious and has been met with criticism.
In Thailand, immediately after the Bali bombing,
the government was quick to assure travelers that Thailand was
the safest of havens. While the statement merely reflected
Thailand’s need to sustain the tourism industry, some critics
have said Thailand is in a state of denial.
Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra insisted that
his country is not a target. However, Denmark has warned that
the kingdom was a potential terrorist target and considers
Phuket a particular concern. It asked Danes to exercise
"the greatest vigilance" in public places in Thailand.
Australia has told its citizens that risks in Thailand are
"high" and urged visitors to take extreme caution.
However, it is confusing listening to
conflicting statements from government officials with terror at
the doorstep. After learning the seriousness of the terrorism
strike, Thai security officials have beefed up security in
Pattaya, Phuket and the southern beaches in Thailand that
attract foreign holiday-makers.
Now we wait for Bangkok governor Samak
Sundaravej’s to get tough on firecrackers for Loy Krathong
celebrations next month. The governor said, "Anyone playing
with fireworks will be regarded as a security threat." He
went on to say that, "They will be treated as terrorists
and arrested." But these "terrorists" will be
detained in police vans, and released after midnight.
While no one really knows if, when or where the
real terrorists (not firecrackers!) will strike in Thailand and
Southeast Asia; many tourists will not feel safe after hearing
such a comment from Samak.
Bangkok doesn’t have a clue about the
invisible hands of terrorism. Have agents of terror arrived in
Thailand? Are they sipping fruit shakes on the beach in Phuket?
Since the Bali bombing, Thailand’s tourism
industry has seen an increase in arrivals. It is understandable
Thai officials and tourism industry don’t want to jeopardize
business—particularly as tourism operators prepare for the
high season. Over the last ten years, tourist arrivals in
Thailand have doubled to 10 million people, and visitors’
spending has almost tripled, adding Bt300 billion to the Thai
economy.
Thai Hotels Association president Sithi
Tandavanitj said, following the Bali attack, more tourists are
coming to Thailand’s island resorts, including Phuket.
Undeterred by the Bali blast, many people in the
tourism business don’t want to see terrorism stories in
newspapers scaring off holiday-makers; they insist Thailand is
safe.
Still, Thailand’s newspapers are warning that
Thailand is definitely in the line of fire. Tourist hotspots
including Pattaya in the east, Patpong and Khoa Sarn Rd in
Bangkok and Patong on Phuket are potential targets because of
the high concentration of tourists and foreigners in those areas
at any given time.
Opposition leader Sukhumbhand Paribatra warned
the Thaksin government to reveal information on terrorists and
to get serious about the possibility of war in Middle East,
instead of playing down the situation.
Sukhumbhand, the former deputy foreign minister
said, "We want the government to accept the reality and be
prepared. The Thai people are mature enough to know [the details
of] the situation."
Beyond Bangkok, military-ruled Burma may now be
a safe destination for foreign tourists in the wake of the Bali
blast.
In a recent Xinhua report, tourist arrivals in
Burma were said to have risen more than 23 percent to 170,858 in
the first half of 2002 from 138,385 in the same period of last
year. In 2001, 278,951 foreign tourists came to Burma, according
to government figures.
Burma hopes to draw 500,000 foreign tourists
annually. In 2001, only 278,951 foreign tourists came to Burma,
according to official figures.
Unlike Thailand, Burma’s tourism promoters
have less to lure tourists.
With on-going human rights problems in the
country, Burma has faced a tourism boycott and its ambitious
"Visit Myanmar Year 1996" was a total failure.
Moreover, authorities in Burma have restricted
many areas in the country as no-go zones for tourists. Applying
for a visa can be laborious and complicated. In some cases,
tourists are followed and harassed by local intelligence
officials who suspect them of staging anti-government protests.
Indeed, Burma’s image is different from
Thailand and not so encouraging. Burma’s image is now the
subject of scrutiny by the UN human rights envoy and his team,
currently in Burma investigating gruesome rape cases committed
by Burmese army.
Around 1,500 political prisoners remain behind
bars and a climate of fear terrorizes many. Activists have often
accused Burma’s military regime of state-sponsored terrorism
and called for international intervention to stop human rights
abuses. Military intelligence officers keep a close eye on
activities of suspected "destructive elements".
Burma has had its own share of terrorists attack
in the past. In October 1983, 21 people were killed in sudden
bomb blast. Among the dead were four South Korean ministers who
were on official visit to Burma. Three North Korean army
officers had led the secret mission to kill the visiting
ministers while in Burma.
When asked about a possible terrorist attack in
Burma now, a veteran journalist in Rangoon answered "in
terms of security, they [officials] are always cautious."
Burma differs from nations like Thailand, the
Philippines and Indonesia, vulnerable to attack because their
involvement with the west. Tight surveillance and security
throughout the country would make a terrorist threat in Burma
difficult. With an iron-fisted military regime, Burma is somehow
safer from terrorist elements who seem keen to destabilize
western structures since Sept 11.
Tourists may feel safe on a visit to the
internationally isolated country of Burma. But the irony is, too
many Burmese people do not feel safe living in their own
country.
Will agents of terror go to Burma? The answer is
No; because they are already there.
Source: Irrawaddy on line, ( By Aung Zaw ), October
25,2002
TOP
Burma
Army building anti-tank ditches
Across the border from Chiangmai, the Burmese
military have for over a
month been busy constructing a mile long anti-tank ditch, report
several sources.
"You can just see it from the Thai
side," said one source. "Mounds of
earth dug up by excavators are all facing Thailand."
When asked, a Burmese sergeant from Infantry
Battalion #245, based in
Kengtung, that was manning the outpost in BP-1, Mongton
Township, replied
it was intended to prevent foreign tanks and armored vehicles
from crossing into Burmese territory.
"The ditch is about six feet deep and six
feet wide," said a Shan who paid
a hundred baht to the Burmese unit and another hundred to a Wa
unit nearby
in order to be allowed to slip across the border. Other sources
also confirmed the fact.
One Thai security official in Chiangmai said he
was not sure what
agreements were reached between Bangkok and Rangoon during the
last few
months. "But we cannot afford one unguarded moment when it
comes to Burma," he said, pointing out that a similar ditch
was being built in
Namon near Homong, opposite Maehongson.
One observer thought it could be a signal that
the expected campaign
against non-Burman rebels along the border would take place
where no sign of interference from Thailand would be allowed.
Many Thai intelligence sources have agreed that the military
offensive is a long forgone
conclusion unless "something goes wrong in Rangoon."
That "something" was the current
tit-for-tat test of strength between
Burma's top generals, especially Maung Aye and Khin Nyunt, both
of whose close relatives and associates are under investigation
for business fraud.
Shan State Army's Kengtung Forces commander,
Lt-Col Gawnzuen, said up to
now the only unusual movement by "the enemy" was the
Wa unit opposite Loi Kawwan, across Chiangrai, moving up closer
to Shan positions earlier this month. "Apart from that,
Burmese units: Light Infantry Battalion 331, Light Infantry
Battalion 526 and Light Infantry Battalion 311 continue holding
their old positions around us," he said.
Sources in Tachilek also say the only curious
thing they are able to
witness has been the substantial import of fuel, both diesel and
gasoline,
from Thailand since the border was reopened on 15 October.
"They might
need it in case there were a campaign and the border closes
again," said
a Shan business man in Maesai.
Fuel is sold to Burma for 9.50 baht per liter,
whereas in Thailand it cost
15-17 baht, he added.
Source: Shan Herald Agency News, October 24,2002
TOP
Burmese
near end of tether as rice supply shrinks and prices rocket
In Rangoon, it is often said that the
long-suffering Burmese people can bear almost any hardship, as
long as they still have enough rice to eat. Such endurance stems
from an acute awareness of the price to be paid for open
expression of discontent. In 1988, the army slaughtered
thousands of
pro-democracy protesters, who took to the streets after months
of
skyrocketing food prices and shortages.
But 14 years on, Burmese patience again appears
to be wearing thin, as the spiralling price of rice, cooking
oil, and medicine puts basic necessities out of the reach of
many common people, including the country's growing
number of landless labourers and urban poor.
Since last October, the price of a 46lb (20kg)
bag of low-grade rice - the
most commonly eaten in Burma - has risen more than 200 per cent
- from Kt1,470 (ý0.76) to Kt4,480, straining even
middle-class pocketbooks in a
country where the average monthly government salary is just
Kt13,000.
Prices of other essentials have also risen
significantly - thought not as fast as rice - driven by Burma's
persistent inflation, due to the junta's reliance on printing
money to cover chronic budget deficits.
With most Burmese spending around 70 per cent of their household
income on
food, there are signs of growing public frustration at the lack
of affordable food.
Western diplomats say they have received reports
of mobs attacking a rice
storage warehouse in the Mudon district in Mon state and in
several other rural provinces, though such incidents are nearly
impossible to verify due
to the tight control of information and the movement of foreign
observers.
Residents of the normally tranquil capital have
been unnerved by an
unprecedented crime wave, including a rash of break-ins and
daytime
muggings of pedestrians, a development that many link to
increasing public
desperation.
As a hedge against further price increases,
speculators - and many people with a bit of cash to spare - are
hoarding rice, which has made it even tougher for the rest to
meet their daily needs.
One western diplomat said everybody was
expecting a shortage in November at the next harvest. "That
is leading to people speculating on rice."
Burma was once the rice bowl of Indochina,
exporting as much as 3m tons of rice a year in the decades
before and after the second world war. But
rural conditions have deteriorated sharply since then, as a
result of under-investment in agriculture and misguided policies
that have worsened
soil degradation and imposed punitive tax burdens on small
farmers.
In a drive to boost rice production, Burma's
military regime requires
farmers in the fertile delta region to grow two, and sometimes
three, rice
crops a year, breaking from their traditional pattern of
alternating rice in the wet season with nitrogen-fixing legumes
- which help rehabilitate
the soil - in the dry season.
At the same time, though, fertiliser use has
plummeted - to almost none -since few farmers can afford the
expensive imports.
In the absence of fertiliser, and since
irrigation and drainage systems are weak, the intensifying
cultivation has led to a sharp increase in soil salinity and
acidity - and worrying declines in rice yields.
Rural incomes are also under pressure from the
junta's mandatory rice procurement, which forces farmers to turn
over a fixed amount of paddy each year at less than half the
market price. The cash-strapped regime
then distributes that rice to favoured groups - state employees
and the army - and uses it to barter for essential imports, like
oil.
The annual procurement quota is based not on
farmers' actual production, but rather on what the junta
estimates production should be. Farmers who fail to meet the
requirement are jailed, which forces families to scramble
to secure the required paddy at high prices in the market if
their own
production falls short.
Diplomats say that distressed farmers this year
resisted the extraction of their crops and local rice traders
say the government failed to meet its intended procurement
target.
Burma's junta is acutely sensitive to the
political implications of rice
prices, which it considers a matter of national security. With
the stocks
that it has available, the government has begun to distribute
subsidised
rice - particularly in urban areas - though people who wish to
buy it must wait in lengthy queues to buy tiny quantities.
But analysts said the government did not appear
to have enough grain reserves to quell the surging prices as
they had done in the past by making more rice available in the
market.
Instead, the government appears to be waiting
for what it hopes will be a bountiful harvest.
If the harvest disappoints, however, tensions are likely to
intensify.
That concern is creating acute anxiety in
Rangoon, where people are
already whispering about the potential for unrest if economic
pressures do
not ease.
One Rangoon-based analyst said: "People
have been wondering when is the breaking point, and it does seem
increasingly that there are certain areas where we have reached
the breaking point. There are all these little outbreaks
suggesting that we really are getting to the line here."
Source: Financial Times ,( By Amy Kazmin ), October 24,2002
TOP
Burma
inaugurates new naval deep-sea port, base in Bokpyin Township
DVB Democratic Voice of Burma has learned that
Kyaukhtanaung deep-sea port
and a security naval base were opened at Bokpyin Township in
Tenasserim
Division on 18 October. Officers from the Defence Ministry and
the Navy came and opened the facility. DVB correspondent Myint
Maung Maung filed
this report.
Myint Maung Maung The deep-sea port and office
building of Tenasserim
Division Naval Tactical Base and No 38 Security Naval Base near
Karthidi Village at the mouth of Kyaukhtanaung Creek in Bokpyin
Township were inaugurated at 0930 on 18 October. Lt-Gen Maung Bo
from the Defence Ministry, Navy Chief of Staff Rear Admiral Soe
Thein, and Coastal Military Region Commander Maj-Gen Tha Aye
opened the facility. The construction of the deep-sea port began
on 29 March 2000 and was a joint undertaking between the SPDC
State Peace and Development Council naval engineers and
Dagon International Construction Company. The SPDC naval sources
say that
the Kyaukhtanaung naval deep-sea port is the biggest tactical
deep-sea port in southern Burma that could handle large
strategic naval vessels.
Source: Democratic Voice of Burma, October 20,2002
TOP
Jockeying
for power in Myanmar
What should one make of the sentences of death
by hanging of the
son-in-law of former Myanmar dictator Ne Win and his three
grandsons? Was
there really a coup attempt?
For one thing, it means General Than Shwe, the
current strongman of
Myanmar, wants to become an even stronger man, if that were
possible. But
he has to keep looking over his shoulder at other members of the
ruling
troika: vice-chairman Maung Aye and first secretary Khin Nyunt.
It also means that the former strongman, ex-dictator General Ne
Win, variously
said to be either 92 or 94 years old, is apparently still
capable of mustering a rabble of dissenters. And all these
questions arise only because Gen Ne Win's family has lost no
opportunity to enrich themselves.
As their wealth grew, they developed political
ambitions as well. But
strongmen rulers do not tolerate dissent well (and sometimes not
at all). Gen Than Shwe did what the political science textbooks
say he would do:
crack down on Gen Ne Win's family. And so four of them were
sentenced to death. By making an example of them, the message
goes to the generals, brigadiers and colonels in the ruling
junta: don't mess with Gen Than
Shwe.
The 'ruling strongman versus ex-strongman' drama
had been simmering on the
back burner for several years in the economically- devastated
country and
would have gone on but for the fact that Gen Ne Win and his
supporters started baiting Gen Than Shwe. So, just a few days
before the sentences
were handed down, the National Unity Party (NUP) - a political
reincarnation of Gen Ne Win's Burma Socialist Programme Party
that ruled
till 1988 - suddenly came out with stinging criticism of the
ruling military junta for mishandling the economy.
Everything the party said was, of course, true -
that people are suffering
from rising consumer prices and inflation, and that life is
generally miserable. Of course, the irony is that Myanmar was
one of South-east Asia's most dynamic economies in the 1950s,
and it was Gen Ne Win's very rule that turned it into an
economic disaster. By the time the present junta had worked on
the economy, the country had become a basket case.
But the NUP went too far in calling for the
emergence of a
constitutionally elected government to solve the country's
political and
economic problems. Gen Than Shwe found the criticism from Gen Ne
Win's
supporters just too hard to swallow. On top of that, he was fed
up with the bad behaviour of Gen Ne Win's family members, many
of whom were involved in murky business partnerships with
military officers in the ruling junta.
Many of those deals broke one law or the other,
and everyone involved
ought to have been charged a long time ago. But they were
tolerated. The latest provocation was just too much to bear.
That Gen Ne Win should again be attempting to exercise power
through the NUP, while his children incite some junta officers
to rebellion, was, in Gen Than Shwe's eyes, more than any mortal
strongman could bear.
So thus it was that on Sept 26, a court in
Yangon sentenced Gen Ne Win's
son-in-law Aye Zaw Win, 54, and the latter's three sons - Aye Ne
Win, Kyaw Ne Win, and Zwe Ne Win, all in their 20s - to death by
hanging for high treason. They were accused of attempting to
recruit senior military
officers to stage a coup earlier this year.
Aye Zaw Win is the husband of Sandar Win, the
wealthy favourite daughter
of Gen Ne Win. He is thought to be mainly interested in making
money; but Sandar is known to harbour political ambitions, and
may have even seen a role for herself in promoting her father's
questionable legacy. So her husband may have paid a price for
her ambitions. The junta then turned on its own unruly ranks.
Four senior military officers, including two regional
commanders, were sacked for their involvement with the Ne Win
clan.
With the threat from the Ne Win clan and their
political supporters
neutralised, Gen Than Shwe now controls power unmolested. But
his problems
are not over. Jockeying for power continues within the ruling
troika, along with vice-chairman Maung Aye and first secretary
Khin Nyunt. Gen
Khin Nyunt is Ne Win's protege and is seen as a rival to Gen
Maung Aye.
Moreover, Gen Khin Nyunt was the man who
personally held endless rounds of talks with National League for
Democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, and he is believed to be
leaning towards a settlement with her more than his troika
colleagues. With Ms Suu Kyi demanding greater democracy, and
rivalries running through the ranks of the junta, Yangon is not
a place a strongman can sleep easy at night.
Source: Business Times Singapore,(Harish Mehta) ,October 17,2002
TOP
KNU
Statement on Explosions in Myawaddy
1. We, the KNU,
have learned that two explosions occurred in
Myawaddy, a border town in Kawkareik District of Karen State,
opposite
Tak Province of Thailand, on October 15 and 16, 2002.
2. October 15 was
the date on which the Thai-Burma
friendship- bridge was reopened for border crossing, after
closure for
five months. We view the reopening of border crossing as
beneficial to
the peoples of both Thailand and Burma, and we have no policy
against
it.
3. We would like
to categorically state that the two explosions
have nothing to do with us, the KNU. We have no doubt that it
was the
work of one of the factions in the SPDC, which would lose by
reopening
of the border crossing or which wanted to hurl allegations
against the ethnic and democratic opposition groups in order to
tarnish their
image.
4. Factions in the
SPDC are involved in high-paying illegal
activities, directly or indirectly, such drug smuggling,
consumer
goods smuggling, gambling, human trafficking and extortion of
traders
and legitimate businesses. Each faction is controlled by a head
at the highest level of the SPDC hierarchy. Each faction tries
to keep out of the way of the other, but a clash of interest and
show of force occur at times at the lower levels.
5. A clash of
interest at high levels normally leads to
elimination of the opposing faction or leader. A case in point
is the elimination the SPDC 2nd Secretary Gen. Tin U or the
elimination of Ne Win's son-in-law. As the economic condition is
getting worse, we may
expect more clashes among the various factions.
6. In conclusion,
we would like to affirm that we, the KNU,
always bear in mind the interest of the peoples of Thailand and
Burma
and we have no policy to harm in anyway the good relations
between the two countries.
Source: Karen National Union,( Burma net online
) October 17 ,2002
TOP
Burma
blames Karen National Union for Thai border bombs
The government has been striving on all fronts
to establish a modern and
developed nation. However, the KNU Karen National Union
terrorist insurgents have been engaged in destructive activities
aimed at disturbing
local peace and tranquillity in villages and causing death,
injury, and
fear among innocent citizens. They have also been consistently
committing acts of terrorism and brutal murders.
At the time of reopening of Myanmar Burma -Thai
border checkpoints, the
KNU terrorist insurgents carried out acts of sabotage in
Myawaddy with the
aim of causing death, injury, and fear among the innocent
people.
Two time bombs were set off at 1040 on 15
October and at 0605 on 16
October. Authorities concerned discovered in time a US-made M-16
A-1 anti-personnel mine set up with a remote control near No 3
Middle School in No 3 Ward in Myawaddy at 0700 on 16 October.
There were no casualties and loss of property from the bomb
explosions.
Similarly, at 0730 on 15 October, KNU terrorist
insurgents launched a mine
attack at a car carrying a monk from Thamanya Aung (Theikdi
Shin) Monastery as it was leaving Kawkareik for Myawaddy,
destroying the vehicle.
It has been learned that the KNU terrorist
insurgents plotted and carried
out these attacks on 15 October at the time of reopening of
Myanmar-Thai border checkpoints to cause death, injury, and fear
among the people, to disrupt border trade, and to undermine
normalization of Myanmar-Thai relations.
Source: TV Myanmar, October 17 ,2002
TOP
Myawaddy
Bridge Hit in Explosion
October 17, 2002—Just days after the
re-opening of the Thai-Burma border checkpoint, a bomb nearly
destroyed the Tada Kyoe concrete bridge near Thaingan Nyi Naung,
30 km west of Myawaddy. According to Myawaddy residents, the
bomb exploded hit the bridge at about 7am this morning.
"One bomb destroyed the bridge while
another bomb exploded opposite the Light Infantry Battalion 356,
which is close to the bridge", a Myawaddy man said.
"The area is very close to a Burmese army base. I don’t
know who would dare to plant a bomb there," he said.
Authorities were scanning Myawaddy in vehicles
with loudspeakers, calling on anyone who knew the culprit’s
whereabouts to inform authorities straight away, he added.
A Burmese trader who came to Mae Sot, on the
Thai side of the border, said that damage from the explosion
meant, only small cars are allowed to cross the bridge.
Some Burmese traders anticipated explosions
after the checkpoint opened on Tuesday morning. Traders are now
wondering whether the checkpoint will close again.
"Since the day of opening the checkpoint,
authorities on the Burma side have not collected the tax on both
exported and imported goods. We have to use the old method of
bribing," one trader said.
On the Thai side of the border, customs for both
export and import have been operating as usual, said Boontiang
Chokewiwat, chief of customs at Mae Sot.
Though the night bazaar in Myawaddy was ordered
to close after another bomb explosion downtown, both Thai and
Burmese traders were crossing the Myawaddy-Mae Sot Friendship
Bridge as normal today.
Source: Irrawaddy (Aung Su Shin / Mae Sot
), October 17 ,2002
TOP
Bangladesh
sent its new envoy to Burma
Dhaka, 16 October 2002: The newly
appointed Ambassador of Bangladesh to
Burma A.B Manjoor Rahim presented his credentials to Senior
General Than Shwe, Chairman of the State Peace and Development
Council and Head of State of Myanmar yesterday, according to
today’ the independent.
While presenting his credentials, he conveyed to
the senior General the
greeting from President Professor Dr. Iajuddin Ahmed and Prime
Minister Begum Khaleda Zia.
The new Bangladesh envoy said the government
headed by Prime Minister
Begum Khaleda Zia was keen to further develop the existing
relations with its neighbouring countries. He said he would work
for furthering the existing close relations between Myanmar and
Bangladesh. Reciprocating the
sentiment, Senior General Than Shwe appreciated Bangladesh’s
initiate towards fostering relationship with its neighbours.
He praised the success achieved in
socio-economic, micro credit programs,
women empowerment and female education in Bangladesh.
The Senior General Than Shwe also appreciated
Bangladesh’s positive
contribution towards regional peace and development. He assured
the new ambassador of Bangladesh of all possible help and
assistant during his tenure in Myanmar.
Source: Narinjara News, October 16 ,2002
TOP
World's
Highest Number of Child Soldiers( Burma )
New Report Details Widespread Forced Recruitment
New York, October 16, 2002 : Burma has the
largest number of child
soldiers in the world and the number is growing, Human Rights
Watch said
in an extensive new report released today. The overwhelming
majority of Burma's child soldiers are found in the national
army, which forcibly recruits children as young as 11, although
armed opposition groups use child soldiers as well.
"Burma has a poor human rights record, but
its record on child soldiers is the worst in the world,"
said Jo Becker, advocacy director of the Children's Rights
Division at Human Rights Watch.
Burma's army has doubled in size since 1988, and
with an estimated 350,000
soldiers is now one of the largest armies in Southeast Asia.
According to the accounts of former soldiers interviewed by
Human Rights Watch, 20 percent or more of its active duty
soldiers may be children under the age of 18.
The 220-page report, "My Gun was as Tall as
Me: Child Soldiers in Burma,"
is the most comprehensive study of child soldiers in Burma to
date.
Drawing on interviews with more than three dozen
current and former child soldiers, the report examines child
recruitment by 19 different armed opposition groups in addition
to Burma's national army.
Recruiters for Burma's army frequently apprehend
boys at train and bus stations, markets and other public places,
threatening them with jail if they refuse to join the army. The
boys are given no opportunity to contact their families, and are
sent to camps where they undergo weapons training,are routinely
beaten, and brutally punished if they try to escape. Human
Rights Watch received several accounts of boys who were beaten
to death after trying to run away.
Once deployed, boys as young as 12 engage in
combat against opposition
groups, and are forced to commit human rights abuses against
civilians, including rounding up villagers for forced labor,
burning villages, and
carrying out executions. Human Rights Watch interviewed two
boys, ages 13 and 15 at the time, who belonged to units that
massacred a group of 15
women and children in Shan State in early 2001.
"Burma's army preys on children, using
threats, intimidation and often
violence to force young boys to become soldiers," said
Becker. "To be a boy in Burma today means facing the
constant risk of being picked up off the street, forced to
commit atrocities against villagers, and never seeing your
family again."
Human Rights Watch noted that there is no way to
precisely estimate the number of children in Burma's army, but
it appears that the vast majority of new recruits are forcibly
conscripted, and there may be as many as 70,000 soldiers under
the age of 18.
Children are also present in Burma's myriad
armed opposition groups, although child recruitment is generally
decreasing as many opposition groups have shrunk in size and
resources in recent years. The United Wa State Army, the largest
of the opposition forces, forcibly conscripts children and has
the largest number of child soldiers of the opposition
groups. The Kachin Independence Army also forcibly recruits
children, and
according to witnesses interviewed by Human Rights Watch, is the
only armed group in Burma to recruit girls. Other opposition
forces, including the Shan State Army (South), Karen National
Liberation Army and the Karenni Army, have stated policies
against recruiting children under the age of 18, but appear to
accept children who actively seek to join their
forces. Although many armed opposition groups have ceasefire
agreements
with the government, children in opposition forces may also
participate in combat, sometimes with little training.
"The international community has
increasingly recognized the use of child soldiers as
unacceptable," said Becker. "Burma's armed forces and
groups
must immediately stop recruiting children, and demobilize all
children in their ranks."
International law prohibits government forces or
armed groups from
recruiting children under the age of fifteen. Such recruitment
has been
recognized as a war crime under the statute for the
International Criminal
Court. In 2000, the United Nations General Assembly adopted an
optional protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child
that raised the minimum age for participation in armed conflict
to 18, and prohibits all forced recruitment of children below
age 18. Burma is a party to the
Convention on the Rights of the Child, but has not yet signed
and ratified
the optional protocol.
The International Labour Organization convention
on the worst forms of child labor, adopted in 1999, also
recognizes the forced recruitment of children under age 18 for
use in armed conflict as one of the worst forms
of child labor.
Human Rights Watch called on Burma's army and
all armed opposition groups to immediately end all recruitment
of children under the age of 18, and to demobilize all children
currently serving as soldiers. It urged the government and armed
groups to cooperate with international agencies such
as UNICEF to reunify former child soldiers with their families
and
facilitate their rehabilitation and social reintegration.
Human Rights Watch also appealed to other
governments to strongly condemn
the recruitment and use of child soldiers by the Burma
government and other armed groups, and to use diplomatic and
other appropriate means to end the use of child soldiers in
Burma.
Around the world, an estimated 300,000 children
under the age of 18 are
currently participating in armed conflicts in approximately 30
countries.
[ Note: to read this report, please visit the
following link:
http://hrw.org/reports/2002/burma/
]
Source: Human Rights Watch, October 15 ,2002
TOP
Price-hike
of rice make people starve in Arakan
Maungdaw, October 14:
The price of rice hikes up over twofold in northern Arakan,
western part of Burma, compared to previous two months and poor
people of the area are now facing starvation, said a trader of
Maungdaw.
At present, in
northern Arakan the prices of essentials have gone up to
unprecedented level. Rice costs Kyats 400-560 per Pri (1
Pri = 2 kgs ), soybean Kyats 2,300 per Viss (1 Viss = 1.75
kgs ), onion Kyats 400 per Viss, garlic between Kyats
700 to 900 per Viss, dry chilli 1,400 to 1,500 per Viss, suger
Kyats 550 per Viss, salt between Kyats 90 to100 per Viss, potato
Kyats 350 to 400 per Viss, pea Kyats 600 per Viss, green
chilli Kyats 600 per kg, egg plant Kyats 250 per kg, a
packet of 400 gms of Chinese milk powder Kyats 1,000 and
one can ( 250 gms ) of condensed milk Kyats 400. Beef Kyats
2,000 to 2,200 per Viss, mutton Kyats 1,900 to 2,500 per Viss,
chicken Kyats 2,200 per Viss, egg Kyats 50 each, petrol one
gallon Kyats 1,400 to 1,900, a cup of tea Kyats 60, the
first grade fish Kyats 1,600 per kg, the second grade fish Kyats
1,000 and the third grade fish Kyats 800 per kg, he
further added.
According to the
government sources, price-hike is created by insincere and
crocked businessmen who hoard rice and paddy.When asked
some traders at Maungdaw told that the military government has
exported much rice and paddy leaving nothing for the people of
the country. So, the price of rice is hiking up
unusually.According to the consumers, the military junta has
exported huge quantity of rice and paddy to neighboring
Bangladesh and has left very little for the people of Arakan.
Therefore, the price of rice is skyrocketing.
The price-hike of the
essentials in Arakan has taken the people by surprise, as it has
not developed through a gradual process. For this reason, most
of the poor families are facing starvation and some of them
becoming beggars and even prostitutes knowingly or unknowingly.
They include all communities such as, Rohingyas, Rakhings and
Hindus, said another trader.
Not only the general
people but also the rice traders are restricted to carry rice
from one township to another without permits issued by the
authority. Therefore, the traders are mostly using illegal ways
to carry rice from place to place bribing the authorities. Most
of the traders who did not bribe the authorities, while carrying
rice to northern Arakan from the townships of Mann Aung,
Kyaukpru and Sittwe ( Akyab), were arrested, said a trader of
Sittwe.
The official exchange
rate is 6.80 Kyats to one US dollar but in black market it is
1,250 Kyats to one US dollar and 21.00 Kyats to one Bangladesh
Taka in Burma- Bangladesh border, said our
sources.
Source: Kaladan Press
Network ,( Editor ), October 14 ,2002
TOP
Rohingya
repatriation yet to be completed
Cox'sbazar, 12 October 02: A decision of an
inter-ministers meeting
regarding completion of repatriation of all the Rohingya
refugees to their
home land could not be executed as their actual number could not
be determined, according to today's the independent.
The decision was taken in the meeting held Dhaka
on June 3 to the effect
that the repatriation of all the Rohingya refugees must be
completed by 2003 and that check posts of army be set up at the
borders to check the intrusion of the Rohingya.
The factor that delayed the execution of the
decision was the lack of
non-coordination among the people who were entrusted with the
task of preparing the lists of Rohingya living illegally in
Ukhia Township of
district.
The preparation of lists of the Rohingyas as per
directives from the
higher authorities for the determination of the actual number of
the
Rohingyas was not done properly.
The Home Ministry under the urge from the
Director General of the BDR,
Hill Tracts Zone to take necessary measures for repatriation of
the Rohingyas and to check their further intrusion issued an
order to the Deputy Commissioner of Cox'sbazar on June 3, to
prepare the lists of the
Rohingyas.
The order was handed down to the union parishad
chairmen via Upazila
Nirbahi Officers, who received it from the Deputy Commissioner
on June 18.
No lists containing the actual number of the
Rohingyas excepting the lists
prepared by five union parishad chairmen reached the Deputy
Commissioner.
The number of Rohingyas mentioned in the fives
lists was not reliable as
different sources indicated that the number of the Rohingyas
living illegally in Ukhia Township would be 50,000.
The sources said the chairmen and members of the
union parishads under the
township elections ahead, do not dare to run the risk of losing
the voters bank. In preparing the lists, they did not include
the names of thousands of Rohingyas in the lists as they had
already been enrolled as voters.
Earlier, the commission of Rohingya Refugees and
Repatriation, Cox'sbazar
mentioned the number of the Rohingyas living illegally in the
districts of Cox'sbazar and Bandarban above two hundred
thousands.
Meanwhile, Member of Parliament fro Teknaf-Ukhia
constituency, Shahjahan
Chowdhury mentioned the number above 2.50 lakh, saying that it
is high
time that the government took measures for the repatriation of
Rohingyas.
Source: Narinjara News, October 12 ,2002
TOP
Burmese
leader urges officials to minimize loss, wastage in development
tasks
Gen Khin Nyunt, chairman of the Work Committee
for Development of Border
Areas and National Races and Secretary-1 of the State Peace and
Development Council SPDC , met with departmental personnel and
members of
social organizations of Arakan State at the City Hall in Akyab
at 1030 ( 0400 gmt ) today.
In his address, SPDC Secretary-1 Gen Khin Nyunt
said that he would like to
clarify measures being taken by the state, work to be carried
out by the
departments concerned and the individual duty of the citizens
while meeting with the departmental officials, town elders, and
members of social organizations. He said he came with the
ministers, deputy ministers and departmental heads to fulfil the
needs for the development of
education, health, economic, and social sectors of Arakan State.
He added that he had fulfilled the requirements for development
of Mrauk-U, the ancient cultural region, and preservation of
cultural heritage... He said, the government with the
participation of the national races and the people
has been making efforts for the emergence of a peaceful, modern,
and
developed nation. As Myanmar Burma is a union made up of the
national races, emphasis has been placed on national solidarity.
Armed insurgency
emerged in the past due to lack of communication among the
national races and the instigation of imperialists making the
national races
misunderstood the government.
SPDC Secretary-1 Gen Khin Nyunt added in the
time of the SPDC, national
solidarity has been attained, thus contributing to the cessation
of armed
insurgency and priority has been given for the development of
border areas
including Arakan State and uplift of the living standard of
national races. As emphasis has been placed on development of
border areas which lagged behind in development, progress has
been made in transport, education, health, economic, and social
sectors of border areas including Arakan State. He added that so
far about 30bn kyat about 4.5bn US dollars has been spent on
development projects of border areas...
Gen Khin Nyunt stressed that at a time when the
government is making
all-out efforts for the development of Arakan State, it is
incumbent upon departmental officials and private entrepreneurs
to strive together with the local people to fulfil the project
targets. Efforts are to be made for success in implementing the
five rural development tasks in accord with the guidance of SPDC
Chairman Sr Gen Than Shwe. Thus, with the successful
implementation of the project various parts of the country
including
remote areas and rural regions would develop.
Just as regional development tasks are being
implemented, he added,
priority has been given to the development of agricultural and
industrial sectors. He also emphasized the need for the states
and divisions to make
concerted efforts for food sufficiency and to make arrangements
for providing surplus food to other regions...
SPDC Secretary-1 Gen Khin Nyunt noted the need
for responsible officials
to lay emphasis on minimizing loss and wastage and practice
thriftiness in efforts to develop all sectors of the nation. At
the time when the government is making endeavours for national
development and uplift of living standard of the people,
officials at different levels are to discharge their duties
conscientiously with goodwill. He finally urged the
people to participate in the regional development tasks with
patriotism under the leadership of the government and in accord
with the cultural tradition, civic duties, and responsibilities
of a citizen. The meeting later ended.
Source: Radio Myanmar, October 12 ,2002
TOP
Burma
bans free trading of rice, other basics in Arakan,Mon States
The SPDC State Peace and Development Council
authorities have banned the
trading of four kinds of commodities to Arakan State. Four basic
commodities - rice, cooking oil, chilies, and onions, have been
prevented from trading in Arakan State from 25 September.
Narinjara News reported
that although these four commodities were allowed to trade
freely previously, now anyone who wants to trade in these four
commodities needs
an import and export licence. DVB Democratic Voice of Burma has
contacted
a truck depot that used to send the commodities from Rangoon
warehouses to Arakan State. DVB Correspondent Aye Aye Mon
conducted the interview.
Aye Aye Mon: We heard that trading of rice,
cooking oil, and onions to Arakan State have been prohibited.
Did you know anything?
Unidentified employee: We did not receive any
official letter. Well, many companies phoned and ask us about
the prohibition but unfortunately we
could not give any concrete confirmation. Some people took some
rice in their baggage but of course they were caught when
searched. So now the
authorities say other commodities are also prohibited.
Aye Aye Mon: Although there has been no official
letter, did you hear any relevant news?
Unidentified employee: We heard that the ban
includes whole and split peas,garlic, onions, dried chillies,
and edible palm oil.
Aye Aye Mon: Have you stopped sending
commodities to Arakan State?
Unidentified employee: Of course, we have
stopped sending the banned commodities. Otherwise we could not
trade. We cannot stop our work, so we
send other commodities.
Aye Aye Mon: What you mean is you are not
sending rice, cooking oil, chillies, and onions but you are
sending other commodities to Arakan State?
Unidentified employee: Yes, we are sending
(?slippers), tea leaves, rice flour, among others.
Aye Aye Mon: We heard that in future you might
need a licence to trade in these four basic commodities.
Unidentified employee: We have not heard
anything.
Aye Aye Mon: Suppose if they impose such
restrictions, what do you think would be the ramifications to
the trading business, warehouses, and car
terminus?
Unidentified employee: We have to monitor the
situation closely. We cannot just let it go. Otherwise the
people on the other side will suffer and the prices will go up.
The people will face difficulties for their food... End
of recording
Similarly, trading in six basic commodities
including rice and yarn has
been prohibited in Mon State, and many home weaving industries
have faced a yarn. The necessary yarn for the weaving industries
in Mon State has been sent from upper Burma. Local residents
said the ban was imposed after a convoy of Shaysaung freight
trucks carrying yarn from Mandalay was stopped and the
merchandise confiscated at the Sittang Bridge checkpoint on 3
October.
Source: Democratic Voice of Burma , October 9 ,2002
TOP
Burma
appoints new police director-general, promotes military officers
As the top three generals in the SPDC State
Peace and Development Council
have been promoted, there were also promotions in the army,
navy, air force, and other armed organizations.
In accord with the promotion notification dated
10 September, Col Khin
Maung Tin, commandant of Shande Air Training School in Meiktila,
was
promoted to brigadier-general and Col Thein Swe, head of
External Intelligence Division, Ministry of Defence, was also
promoted to brigadier-general. Lt-Col Si Thu, General Staff
Office Grade-1 from the
Directorate of Defence Services Intelligence DDSI , was promoted
to
colonel and Lt-Col Ko Ko Maung, military attache of the Burmese
embassy in Thailand, was also promoted to colonel.
Col Kyaw Thein, Col Than Tun, Col Thein Swe, Col
Myint Zaw, and Col Kyaw
Han, all heads of division from the DDSI, were also promoted to
brigadier-generals. Furthermore, senior military officers from
the army,navy, and air force with the rank of lieutenant-colonel
and above were also given a one step promotion.
At the same time, regional Military Operations
Management Command MOMC
commanders were also promoted and reshuffled. Among them,
Brig-Gen Khin
Yi, commander of MOMC 21 based in Mong Mit, has been transferred
and
appointed as Director-General of Myanmar Burma Police Force.
DVB Democratic Voice of Burma has learned that
tactical commanders and
regional military operations commanders from the regional
military commands were also transferred, removed, and permitted
to resign.
Source: Democratic Voice of Burma , October 9 ,2002
TOP
Rice
Pilfering Authorities Arrested
October 07, 2002— Due to the skyrocketing
price of essential commodities
in Burma, the regime has been subsidizing daily rations of these
necessary products in hopes of quelling public dissent. However,
according to sources in the capital, several members from
Rangoon's Sanchaung Township Peace and Development Council were
arrested during the last couple of weeks for pilfering rice and
cooking oil that was destined for the distribution program.
Sources said that the chairman of a quarter
located within Sanchaung
Township was arrested along with four of his aides, and that the
group was reportedly sentenced to five years in prison.
The government is selling each family two kilos
of rice and three kilos of oil each day at a price five times
lower than the current market value. The regime also issued a
directive banning the export of rice and
other essential goods including chili and onions outside of
Rangoon Division.
Reports of residents looting rice and other
foodstuffs last month
preceded the government's decision to begin rationing rice and
oil. Also
last month dozens of villagers from the Mon State's Mudone
Township were
arrested after they raided a warehouse in search of rice.
Source: Irrawaddy
,( By Naw Seng), October 7 ,2002
TOP
UN
human rights rapporteur to visit Rangoon on 12 October
The United Nations special human rights
rapporteur on Myanmar, Mr Paulo
Sergio Pinheiro, is due to return for an 11-day fact-finding
mission,the government said last week. A statement issued by the
government spokesman, Col Hla Min, said the Brazilian academic
is due to arrive in Yangon on 12 October. It will be Mr
Pinheiro's fourth visit since his appointment to the UN post in
December 2000. "The government welcomes Professor Pinheiro
for further cooperation and to witness the ongoing progress with
regard to human rights on behalf of all of Myanmar's
citizens," the statement said. It said the government's
invitation for Mr Pinheiro to visit was "responding to
allegations of human rights abuses in Shan State." The
allegations were not specified, but claims which have been
strenuously denied by the government, two Thai-based Shan groups
last June accused the Myanmar army of committing sexual
atrocities against Shan women.
The itinerary for Mr Pinheiro's mission was not
known last week. During
previous visits he held talks with Secretary 1 of State Peace
and Development Council, Gen Khin Nyunt, and also met members of
National League for Democracy, including its leader Daw Aung San
Suu Kyi.
Previous visits have also included meetings with
academics, religious leaders, diplomats, and representatives of
UN agencies and non-government organizations. Mr Pinheiro, who
has impressed the government with his approach towards building
trust, has called for flexibility from the government and
political parties, as well as the international community, to
help achieve a better standard of human rights in Myanmar.
Source: Myanmar Times , September 29-October 6 ,2002
TOP
Tactics
change, smuggling goes on
Maungdaw, 6 October 2002: Smuggling syndicates
on both sides of the
Burma Bangladesh border have recently scaled up their operations
along
the border, a source in the law enforcement agency in Western
Burma told
Narinjara on condition of anonymity.
The alleged cross-border traffickers have been
adopting newer ways to
trick the law enforcement agencies on both sides of the Naaf
River, he said. Consignments of illegal traffic including
narcotics are now shuttled through different border routes by
land or by sea.
When asked the source said that at present there
is no bilateral
cooperation between Burma and Bangladesh on suppression of
illegal
smuggling along the common porous border.
In mid-September the air in the south-eastern
Bangladeshi border town of
Teknaf was ripe with a rumour of a large transhipment of illegal
weapons
through the sea. The law enforcement agencies in the area were
put on red alert for at least two weeks. But the long wait
proved to be a hoax.
Meanwhile, it is now realized that a large
consignment of narcotic
drugs, not weapons, was delivered by sea route into the
Bangladeshi
seaport of Chittagong, far north from Teknaf the smugglers used
the 'rumour' to divert the attention of the law enforcement
agencies including the navy, border security forces and coast
guards on both sides of the border! The red alert actually
helped for the safe passage of the consignment!
While big syndicates of Burmese smuggling rings
operate in conjunction
with the high-ups in the Burmese junta, on the Bangladesh side,
it is usually the political pressure upon the law enforcement
agencies that prevent them from taking any actions, the
Bangladeshi press has often suggested. Besides, many corrupt
officials on both sides of the border
act as party to the illegal cross-border trafficking, a renowned
trader in Maungdaw town, western Burma, alleged.
The smuggling rings operate at Maungdaw and
Sittwe in Rakhine State in
Western Burma, close to Bangladesh, and in Teknaf, Cox's Bazaar
and Chittagong in Bangladesh. Large cargo vessels and trawlers
are loaded with electronic goods, crockery, agricultural
produce, fish and shrimps at points under the 'safe control' of
the Burmese law enforcement agencies in Burma including Sittwe
in Rakhine State and Pyi in Burma Proper before they are sailed
to the coastline between Chittagong and St
.Martin's Island in Bangladesh. There the
Bangladeshi operators under
the political guardianship of the ruling coalition unload the
illegal contraband in safe havens.
With growing numbers of drug pushers and vendors
throughout Bangladesh,
there is a rising concern about the trafficking of drugs from
Burma. In a recent haul a contingent of troops from the
Bangladesh Rifles Battalion 23 of Teknaf in south-eastern
Bangladesh unearthed illegal narcotic drugs and textile goods
worth US $20,000 from an underground store in the area, reported
the Janakantha, a Bengali Dhaka daily.
A veteran journalist from Cox's Bazaar added
that, in the guise of
border trade, volumes of goods imported from Burma are under
invoiced,
and through shady deals and arrangements narcotics are filtered
into Bangladesh. Many of the illegal drug traffickers in the
area are so powerful that no government agencies dare take
action against them for fear of loosing life or jobs.
Source: Narinjara News , October 6 ,2002
TOP
Slow
repatriation of Burmese refugees makes Bangladeshi authority
impatient
Teknaf, October 6: Our correspondent from Teknaf,
the south eastern
border town of Bangladesh said that, a total of ten families, 26
female and 25 male members, from Buthidaung and Maungdaw
Townships across the border were repatriated on Wednesday,
October 2, to the Maungdaw Repatriation Camp on the Burmese side
across the Naaf River that serve as the border between the two
countries.
The Burmese authorities now accept one or two
families of Rohingya
refugees every Wednesday, while the process being very slow
Bangladesh
is growingly becoming impatient about the Burmese authorities'
reluctance to take back their own citizens who on various
occasions have
fled into Bangladesh.
Bangladeshi State Minister for Disaster
Management and Relief Ebadur
Rahman Chowdhury has sought cooperation of the international
community
for the repatriation of the Rohingya refugees to their homeland
in Burma, according to official sources in Dhaka_ including
yesterday's the
Daily Star.
The State Minister called for the cooperation
while addressing the 53rd
Executive Committee meeting of the United Nations High
Commissioner for
Refugees (UNHCR) in Geneva on Monday.
He requested the international community to
undertake effective steps
for returning of the 22,000 refugees from Bangladesh immediately
through
fruitful dialogue between Bangladesh and Burma.
In the meeting, Ebadur Rahman stressed on
immediate solution of the
Rohingya problem in order to assist the ongoing development
activities
of Bangladesh and Burma, said an official handout yesterday.
Meanwhile, the Bangladeshi business community
has shown more interest in
business opportunities with Burma since daily necessities
including medicine, fertilizer, cooking oil and fuel oil from
Bangladesh are the hot items in the list of articles being
smuggled into Burma, speakers in
the inauguration ceremony of Bangladesh Burma Friendship Society
said in
a recent get-together in the capital city of Dhaka.
Source: Narinjara News , October 6 ,2002
TOP
Police,
firemen given riot control training as commodity prices soar
It has been learned that as there is a genuine
fear of mass unrest due
to sky-rocketing commodity prices, the SPDC State Peace and
Development Council has begun conducting riot control training
courses for police and fire brigade members. These training
courses conducted nationwide at
the district capitals for police and fire brigade platoons and
companies
included dispersing crowds and use of small arms. When DVB
Democratic Voice of Burma contacted a fire brigade member in
Central Burma about the training course he replied that he
finished the training course at the end of September.
Unidentified fireman - recording Yes, it was a
one-month training course
and it ended at the end of September. There was a military
training course without the use of weapons. The term they used
was providing the necessary training course for the nation's
reserved forces. That's about
it. There is nothing much about the training course. It included
anti-leprosy campaign and some talks. The training lasted about
a month.
The auxiliary fire brigade members and the police were combined
together
to attend the course. End of recording
It is also known that these riot control
training courses will be
conducted at various towns in the Shan State. Furthermore, DVB
has
learned that the SPDC has ordered responsible personnel to
continuously
monitor people who are believed to have contacts with the BCP
Burma Communist Party and those who are deemed to be very active
in party politics.
Source: Democratic Voice of Burma , October 4 ,2002
TOP
Myanmar
ex-dictator's kin appeal death Sentences
YANGON, Oct 3 (Reuters) - Lawyers for four
relatives of Myanmar
ex-dictator Ne Win convicted of plotting to topple the country's
military government have filed appeals against their death
sentences, a
legal source said on Thursday. Ne Win's son-in-law and three
grandsons were sentenced to death by hanging on September 26 for
high treason and had been given seven days to appeal.
"Lawyers Tun Sein and Thein Zaw on Monday lodged appeals to
the Supreme Court," a source close to the lawyers told
Reuters on condition of anonymity. Supreme Court officials
declined to comment. The court has a range of options, including
confirming the sentences, acquitting the four men or lessening
their sentences. "Even if their sentences are confirmed
they may not be executed. Death sentences have not been carried
out in Myanmar for more
than two decades," said a Myanmar legal expert. Diplomats
in Yangon say
they are sceptical that the four ever seriously planned a coup.
Some have seen the trial as a way of isolating Ne Win and of
giving more power to other members of the military government.
Ne Win's grandsons Aye Ne Win, 25, Kyaw Ne Win, 22, Zwe Ne Win,
21, and son-in-law Aye Zaw Win, 54, were arrested in March in a
Yangon restaurant where they were allegedly plotting the coup
with a senior army officer. All four had pleaded not guilty
during the trial. The death sentences last week, coming 44 years
to the day after Ne Win first took power as head of a brief
caretaker government, represent a sudden fall from grace for
him.
Ne Win ruled Myanmar, formerly known as Burma,
with an iron fist after toppling a later elected civilian
government in a 1962 coup. Despite
relinquishing formal power in 1988, he was widely believed to
have retained considerable influence. Some analysts say the
trial had the twin aims of crushing the influence of Ne Win's
daughter, Sandar Win, who had built up a significant business
empire, and strengthening the head of the junta, Senior General
Than Shwe, at a time when the economy is crumbling. Ne Win and
his daughter are under virtual house arrest at their lakeside
home in Yangon
Source: Reuters , October 3 ,2002
TOP
Another
Rohingya youth gun down by Nasaka at Maungdaw
Maungdaw, Oct 3: A Rohingya youth was gun down
into the Naaf River by
Burmese Nasaka forces at Maungdaw Township, western part of
Burma, according to our correspondent.
The victim was identified as Nurul Alam, 17, son
of Kala Meah of Nga Khura village, northern part of Maungdaw
Township, opposite Teknaf town
of Bangladesh.
On 25th September , a group of Nasaka from
Thepyi Binrin outpost led by
Corporal Zaw Min Oo belong to Nasaka area No (5) shot dead him
while he was trying to cross the Naaf River with his some
partners by the small machine boat from Burma side to Teknef
Town of Bangladesh, source said.
Nasaka officials told the local people that its
troops have recovered
some smuggled goods including Betel-nut of worth over 80,000
kyat on the
boat and no were arrested on the spot.
Narinjara has learned that the dead body was not recovered from
the Naaf
River till the writing news.
In 10th September 02, the similar murder case
occurred in Indin village,
southern part of Maungdaw where one Rohingya people named as
Moktul Hussain,42, son of Moniruzzaman, was allegedly shot dead
by Nasaka area No (8) and later the dead body was thrown into
the water of Naaf, the Kaladan press said.
Source: Narinjara News , October 3 ,2002
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A
fisherman shot dead, his dead body thrown into the bay by NASAKA
Maungdaw, October 1: A Rohingya fisherman
was shot
dead and his dead thrown into the Bay of Bengal by the Burmese
Nasaka forces, said a fisherman to Kaladan Press.
On 10th September 2002, one Moktul
Hussain, 42
years, son of Moniruzzaman of Indin village under Maungdaw
township, was arrested by a 3-member patrol group
belonging to Camp No.18 of the Nasaka Area No.8,while he was
returning home after fishing in the sea, with the
accusation that he was coming from
Bangladesh, he further said.
On 11th September, at about 8.00 a.m.. some
members of
Village Peace and Development Council ( VPDC ) accompanied by
other village elders went to the Nasaka Camp and requested the
Camp in-charge for his release explaining that Moktul
Hussain was a poor man of good character living on fishing, and
that he had never
committed any crimes, had not gone to Bangladesh as
alleged and had gone to the sea simply for fishing
only. But their request was turned down, said a source
in Nasaka Headquarters.
Then VPDC members and village elders of Indin
went to
the local Nasaka Headquarters of the Area and
requested for their help to get release of the
victim. But this made the in-charge of Nasaka camp No.18
annoyed and Moktul Hussain was shot dead in the
camp by his order. After that his dead body was thrown
into the Bay of Bengal by the Nasaka forces
themselves, he further said.
On 12th September, 2002, when some fishermen saw
the
dead body floating in the sea, they picked it up and
informed the villagers of the same. As soon as the
message reached the village, many villagers that included young,
old and women came to the spot and
carried the dead body straight to the local Nasaka
Headquarters. But they did nothing. Instead, the Camp
in-charge confined both the parents of the victim in the camp
while the villagers were ordered to bury the dead body, said a
relative of the victim.
On 13th September, the parents of the victim
were
forced to sign a paper stating that their son Moktul
Hussain was released before his death. After that they were set
free, he further said. However, the Nasaka source at camp
insists that Moktul Hussain was
released well before his death.
Source: Kaladan Press Network ,(The
Editor), October 1 ,2002
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Airlines
Now Accepting Kyat
October 01, 2002—Burma's military government
has long used airplane
tickets to augment their hard currency reserves by only allowing
their purchase with US greenbacks or government issued Foreign
Exchange Certificates (FEC). But due to the continued plunge of
the country's currency, the kyat, as of today the government is
permitting Burmese residents to purchase domestic tickets with
the almighty kyat, according
to Rangoon-based business sources.
The new system, which was announced last month,
will cut the ticket
prices in half due to the kyat's recent slide to over 1,000 kyat
to the dollar. The price of a ticket from Rangoon to Tachilek,
in Burma's Shan State, is now only 42,000 kyat, which previously
was over 90,000 kyat due to the current exchange rate. The
ticket for foreigners remains 90 USDs or FECs.
Residents say, however, by allowing tickets to
be purchased in kyat the
airlines have had to scale back the number of flights inside
Burma. And one Rangoon-based travel agent told The Irrawaddy
that since today's changeover, Air Mandalay has yet to set a
definite flight schedule.
The country's two private airlines, Yangon
Airways and Air Mandalay,
also both began paying their workers in kyat this month instead
of FECs.
Before 1994 there was only one airline in Burma,
the state-owned Myanmar
Airways, however, two private companies have since been founded.
Air Mandalay began operations in October 1994 and Yangon Airways
in October
1996. Both companies are involved in joint ventures with Myanmar
Airways.
Source: Irrawaddy ,(by Naw Seng ), October
1 ,2002
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