BurmaNet News, Feb 26, 2004

[editor at burmanet.org]

Feb 26, 2004 Issue # 2429
www.burmanet.org


INSIDE BURMA
AFP: Rebels end second round of peace talks with Myanmar junta
WMA: Second Round of Peace Talks with Myanmar's Ethnic Rebels Registers
Little Progress
Irrawaddy: Senior KIA Officer Assassinated
DVB: We did not say that we support the ‘roadmap’ plan says NMSP
DVB: NMSP supports our ‘roadmap’ plan boasts Burma junta, but no comment
says NMSP
Xinhua: Myanmar leader attaches importance to border development with China
Shan: "New bonanza" jilted by specialists

BUSINESS / MONEY
IFI-Burma: India NHPC to help Tamamthi dam project

REGIONAL
Narinjara: Burmese prisoners completing jail term in Bangladesh to be
deported
DVB: Asian Rights Commission demands release of Burmese boy

INTERNATIONAL
AFP: Myanmar lashed in US rights report after year of killings, detentions
Irrawaddy: Commercial Interests Driving Refugee Policy, Says Report

MEDIA RELEASE
Burma Campaign UK : Tories welcome BAT withdrawal from Burma: Support
grows for Burma investment ban




INSIDE BURMA
___________________________________

Feb 26, Agence France Presse
Rebels end second round of peace talks with Myanmar junta

ittle progress appeared to have been made towards ending half a century of
insurgency Thursday as Myanmar's biggest rebel group said it had wrapped
up three days of "frank" talks with the ruling junta.

The Karen National Union (KNU), which has been fighting for autonomy for
53 years, met with military government officials in the Myanmar town of
Moulmein, the headquarters for the junta's southeastern division command.

The talks, which followed a ceasefire agreement reached last month,
addressed the relocation of armed forces, delineation of KNU territory and
the fate of some 200,000 Karen displaced by the years of bitter fighting.

"We had frank discussions," KNU foreign affairs spokesman David Taw told
AFP from a rebel base near the Thai border after returning from Myanmar
late Wednesday.

However he declined to describe the negotiations as successful.

"I think we cannot say it's a failure, but it is in process. We will look
at these results and decide whether there is progress or failure," he
said.

After a surprise December agreement to end hostilities, the commander of
the KNU's military wing, General Bo Mya, led a delegation on an historic
trip to Yangon in January which produced a provisional ceasefire deal.

Although the deal fell short of the written settlement sought by the
Karen, the red-carpet treatment extended to the delegation was seen as
proof of a warming relationship.

A broader arrangement is now being sought to conclusively end one of the
world's longest-running insurgencies and bring the KNU an element of
political legitimacy.

The KNU spokesman said the two sides had tentatively agreed to meet again
at the end of March or in early April.

"From our point of view (the ruling generals) are eager to have a good
understanding and would like to reach an agreement, so I think they are
serious on this," he said.

Bo Mya did not travel to Moulmein for the talks, but said he had been
briefed about them.

"We didn't reach any agreement," Bo Mya told AFP from KNU headquarters.

"When we talked about delineation of the KNU border and armed forces
relocation, the Yangon representatives asked for more time to look into
the details."

Bo Mya added that he was "satisfied" with the negotiations even though no
breakthrough was reached.

The peace talks are also seen as crucial to the junta as it attempts to
line up support from ethnic groups for a democracy "road map" which is due
to kick off this year with a national convention to draft a new
constitution.

This week's discussions were led by the KNU's joint first secretary, Htoo
Htoo Lay, and the junta's deputy chief of military intelligence Major
General Kyaw Win.

Taw said the ruling State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) proposed
that the KNU place its central and battalion headquarters on official maps
so that troops and civilians can be better aware of the delineation of
territory.

The Karen side also brought forward the issue of internally displaced
civilians, many of whom are living in extremely harsh conditions.

"Some of their villages have been totally destroyed, and some have been
abandoned," Taw said. "We discussed allowing the villagers to return and
the provision of accommodation for those whose homes were destroyed."

The KNU is the largest of a handful of rebel groups still resisting
Yangon's rule, with the junta estimating it has 7,000 members.
__________________________

Feb 26, World Market Analysis
Second Round of Peace Talks with Myanmar's Ethnic Rebels Registers Little
Progress

The ruling State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) and one of the
country's largest rebel groups, the Karen National Union (KNU), today
finished a second round of peace talks. It does not appear that much
progress was made, with a KNU spokesman describing the discussions as
having been frank. The move follows a surprise ceasefire that was
informally agreed in December 2003. Following this, the two sides met last
month to discuss formalising the agreement but, despite apparently cordial
talks, no such agreement was reached. There are a number of issues that
need to be decided, including the fate of around 200,000 internally
displaced Karen civilians, who have lost their homes and often livelihoods
as a result of fighting between the KNU and government troops. Other
issues involve the relocation of the armed forces and the delineation of
Karen territory. According to the spokesman, the SPDC proposed that the
KNU put its central and battalion headquarters on official maps as a move
to better highlight the delineation of territory.

Significance: The two sides appear committed to finding a broader peace
arrangement; for the KNU this would bring a degree of political
legitimacy, while such a move would aid the junta politically. The SPDC is
currently attempting to draw up a framework for a National Conference,
which is expected to take place later this year. The conference will be
tasked with creating a new constitution, but such moves will be
meaningless without the support and involvement of all parties and ethnic
groups.
__________________________

Feb 26, Irrawaddy
Senior KIA Officer Assassinated - Naw Seng

A senior Kachin Independence Army officer was assassinated in Northern
Burma this early morning, said the group’s Chief of Staff.

At about 6:40 am Col Lazing Bawk, Deputy Chief of Staff of the KIA, was
terminally injured by a bomb that exploded in the bathroom of his house in
Laiza, a town abutting the Chinese border in Kachin State, said Chief of
Staff Gen N’ban La by telephone. Lazing Bawk died at the hospital an hour
later.

Gen N’ban La said it was not clear who was responsible for the bomb. An
investigation is underway. "This is bad for our organization," he said.

There is speculation that the assassination may be related to a power
struggle last month for control of the Kachin Independence Organization,
the Kachin governing body, headquartered in nearby Liaison Bum.

On January 7 a coup attempt took place and was put down by Col Lazing
Bawk. Chief of Staff Gen N’ban La was in the hospital in China at the
time.

Two senior Kachin leaders were purged, including vice chairman of the KIO
Brig-Gen Hpauyam Tsam Yan, who was placed under arrest, and intelligence
chief Col Lasang Aung Wa, who is believed to have escaped to China.

In February 2003, Brig-Gen Hpauyam Tsam Yan and Gen N’ban La were allies
in a successful bloodless coup that ousted KIO chairman Gen Zau Mai and
installed Brig Gen Tu Jai in his place.

Col Lazing Bawk’s assassination took place only two days after the tenth
anniversary of the February 24, 1994 ceasefire agreement with Rangoon,
which ended a long-running insurgency.
__________________________

Feb 26, Democratic Voice of Burma
We did not say that we support the ‘roadmap’ plan says NMSP

Burma’s military junta, State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) said on
24 February that leaders of New Mon State Party (NMSP) said that they
support seven-point ‘road-map’ plan of the junta, and ‘adding that they
will participate in the tasks for successful implementation of the roadmap
under the leadership of the government’.

But, the NMSP’s General Secretary Naing Hantha said on 25 February that
the junta’s comments are not true. A team of NMSP delegates led by its two
vice-chairmen went to see the junta’s Prime Minister, General Khin Nyunt
on 23 February to discuss political matters but the junta is ‘spinning’
facts for its own benefit, he added.

‘
I want to ask DVB to tell the people of Burma what really happened and I
want to urge all political parties and their leaders to be honest and
forthright when doing political actions,’ said Naing Hantha referring to
the junta’s dishonest action.
__________________________

Feb 26, Democratic Voice of Burma
NMSP supports our ‘roadmap’ plan boasts Burma junta, but no comment says NMSP

Burma’s military junta, State Peace and Development Council said on 24
February that its ‘Prime Minister’ General Khin Nyunt received
Vice-Chairman-1 of the New Mon State Party (NMSP) Naing Htaw Mon and
Vice-Chairman-2 Naing Raw Sa and party at Zeyathiri Beikman on Konmyinttha
in Rangoon on 23 February.

The junta also claimed that NMSP leaders said that they support its
seven-point ‘roadmap’ plan, ‘adding that they will participate in the
tasks for successful implementation of the roadmap under the leadership of
the government’.

SPDC also boasted that the leaders reported on ‘assistance of the State
(SPDC) to be provided for development of education, agriculture, livestock
breeding, road and economic enterprises of the region’.

The NMSP is still refusing to comment on the claims of the junta but it is
clear that the ethnic national organisation which is keeping a ceasefire
with the SPDC is not happy with the impressions given by the junta.
__________________________

Feb 26, Xinhua
Myanmar leader attaches importance to border development with China

Myanmar leader Vice Senior-General Maung Aye has attached importance to
the development of border areas linking neighboring China, calling for
concerted efforts to maintain bilateral friendship between the two
countries.

Maung Aye, Vice-Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council, made
the emphasis when he inspected the border area development projects in
northern Shan state in the past few days, official newspaper The New Light
of Myanmar reported Thursday.

"There is friendship and understanding between the leaders and the
governments of  Myanmar and the People's Republic of China," he said,
adding "there is love and friendship between the two peoples of the two
nations."

He also urged safeguarding of Myanmar-China bilateral friendly relations.

He pinpointed that the rapid growth of the border town of Muse is achieved
out of peace and stability in the region.

According to Myanmar official statistics, in 2003, Myanmar-China bilateral
normal trade reached 319 million US dollars with Myanmar's export to China
amounting to 57 million and its imports from China 262 million. China
stands as Myanmar's second top import partner after Singapore, while the
9th in terms of export partner.

Meanwhile, Myanmar-China border trade amounted to 213.7 million dollars in
the first three quarters of 2003 with Myanmar's exports to China
registering 109 million and its imports from China 104.7 million.

Myanmar has so far opened six border trade points with China including Muse.
__________________________

Feb 25, Shan
"New bonanza" jilted by specialists

After spending nearly two weeks in October in the mountains where a
rubymine was said to have been discovered, a 9-men team of gem specialists
dispatched by Rangoon had finally decided that the rock formations there
were still to young to be worthwhile, said gem traders close to the local
militia.

"Samples that the experts obtained melted when they were heated, unlike
Monghsu stones," one of the gem traders who also occasionally deal in
drugs told S.H.A.N..

Loi Hpaleng, "the mountain of red cliff", is located west of the
Mongton-Chiangmai highway and became known to the Burmese commanders after
a local militia leader, Ja Pikoi, became unusually rich without noticeable
dealings in drugs like his peers. On 30 September, the gem specialists
arrived under heavy security to investigate.

"The experts, after climbing a few hills, decided to trust their Lahu
militia escorts to get the samples for them and just stayed in their
camp," a businessman in Fang recounted, "so nobody knows whether Ja Pikoi
had refused to show where he had found his stones or whether he had just
made good by selling his stones mixed with those from Monghsu. In any
case, the terrain there is so rugged it is a real challenge for the
get-rich-quick outsiders."

Ja Pikoi, leader of the militia force at Hwe Aw, 21 miles north of the
Chiangmai border, has apparently escaped persecution by Rangoon for the
unfortunate incident and has been allowed to carry on with his duties.
"But the fact is that while his fellow militia chiefs who deal in drugs
are facing financial hardships due to suppression in Thailand, he appears
to have remain unaffected," observed a local trader.

Apart from Mogok and Monghsu, another rubyland in Panglong in Namtu
township, northern Shan State, was reported to have been located. However,
the discovery has never been publicized and the place remains off-limits
to non-military members, said a Shan ceasefire officer.


BUSINESS / MONEY
_____________________________________

Feb 25, IFI-Burma
India NHPC to help Tamamthi dam project

Compiler's note:

According to one dam engineering expert, the Chindwin River has a
potential electricity generation capacity of 4000 MW, and that if a dam
were built at Htamanti/Tamanthi, it would have a comparable impact on
Burma's economy as the enormous and controversial Three Gorges dam in
China is expected to have on the Chinese economy.   Such a dam at
Htamanthi likely would have proportionate negative social and
environmental impacts as well.

NHPC to help set up 800 MW power plant in Myanmar – Vivek Sinha
Source: Times News Network

National Hydroelectric Power Corporation(NHPC) is likely to get involved
in a 800-MW power plant in Myanmar. According to Mr R K Bhatia, Indian
Ambassador to Myanmar, the Tamanthi project is currently at a feasibility
stage. On completion, the project will also supply power to the northeast
states of India.

Incidentally, it was five years back when an Indian delegation had first
visited Myanmar and held discussions with the government officials for
development of the project. The project site is about 80 km from the
Indo-Myanmar border on Chindwin river in the north-western part of
Myanmar.

Speaking on the sidelines of a CII conference as part of its Made in India
exhibition at Yangon, Mr Bhatia also informed that another proposal under
discussion is of laying down an optic fibre link between the two
countries. This would lead to a sharp cut in communication costs.
"Currently it costs about $3.5/minute to call India from here which is
prohibitive," he said.

TCIL, the public sector telecom engineering and consultancy entity, is
expected to get involved in this project and will link Moreh in Manipur
with Tamu in Myanmar. It is learnt that TCIL will also be involved in a
proposed rural telephony project within Myanmar. "The proposal which
basically entails providing low-cost telephone connection to the rural
areas will be taken up by the joint working group on telecom soon,"
informed Mr Bhatia.

Moreover, Border Roads Organisation(BRO) and RITES will be involved in
constructing the road linking the second border checkpoint between the two
countries which was
opened last month.

The 150-200 km road would link the Rhi-Tiddim-Falam sector with Mizoram on
the Indian border. Till now border trade with Myanmar has been undertaken
at the Moreh checkpoint at Manipur-Myanmar border. However, trade has been
negligible through this route due to various reasons including security
issues.


REGIONAL
_____________________________________

Feb 26, Narinjara
Burmese prisoners completing jail term in Bangladesh to be deported

Dhaka: 289 releases prisoner (RPs) of Burma origin have been languishing
in Cox'sBazar district jail for a long time though their conviction
periods have been over six to seven years ago, according to local sources.

In Bangladesh, there are 730 foreign prisoners, some of whom have already
completed their conviction period about 10 years ago.

Some of them had to remain in jail even for more than 10 years' without
any reason', an official from Bangladesh said, adding that most are
Burmese nationals.

The number of under-trial prisoners of Burmese nationals in Cox's Bazar
jail is 101, including three females.

Bangladesh officials of the Ministry of Home affairs are sitting at a
meeting today (Thursday) to thrash out a workable plan to send back those
prisoners as they financial burden of Bangladesh.

Bangladesh government budget is not sufficient to provide them all
necessary things except only food. Thus Bangladesh government will take
necessary measures to send all of foreign prisoners back to their
countries as early as possible, the official added.

But a number of Burmese prisoners do not want to be released and deported
to Burma due to fear of persecution by Nasaka, the Burma border security
force, after deportation. Even the released prisoners are not willing to
be ' pushed backed' for the same reason.

Most of the Burmese prisoners in Cox's Bazar jail hail from northern
Arakan state of Burma dominated by ethnic Muslims. People from Arakan
state flee the area and intrude into Bangladesh illegally due to fragile
socio-economic and alleged political causes like forced labour,
persecution, torture, violence against women, restriction on free
movement, lack of opportunity for employment and medical facilities, said
a local human rights activist of Cox's Bazar.  He added that the condition
of the detained prisoners from Burma is very miserable.

The number of convicted person of Burma nationality in Cox's bazaar jail
is 289 of whom seven have been recognized as refugees by the United
Nations High Commissioner for Refugees ( UNHCR), it is learnt
__________________________

Feb 26, Democratic Voice of Burma
Asian Rights Commission demands release of Burmese boy

Hong Kong based Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) in a letter has
demanded the military junta of Burma, State Peace and Development Council
(SPDC) to release a minor Maung Chan Thar Kyaw from Monywa from a juvenile
training camp.

Monywa Township Court in central Burma has sentenced Maung Chan Thar Kyaw
to a juvenile training camp in violation of the provisions of the Child
Law (1993, amended 2001). He was a 15-year-old high school student at time
of sentencing on 7 July 2003, and was ordered to go into the custody of
the Chan (Nget) Awsan Training School, Rangoon Division, until 4 October
2005, when he will become an adult.

AHRC points out that procedure and sentencing of the Monywa Township Court
violate many provisions of the Child Law, of which the presiding judge
appears to be almost entirely ignorant. In particular, the following
provisions were violated, says the letter as follows:

1. Under section 41(c) the accused should have been released into the
custody of his parents or other suitable persons during the trial, but he
was kept under detention. Additionally, he was charged under section
333/114 of the Penal Code, which applies only to non-bailable offences,
and therefore should not have applied in this case.

2. Under section 42(c) the accused should have had legal counsel unless
his parents waived this right, however in this case the accused was given
no assistance by the court, and nor were his parents permitted to assist
him. He appeared before the court alone.

3. As the accused lacked legal counsel, no witnesses were called on his
behalf, although it is within the powers of the judge to take steps to do
so, in order to ensure fair trial.

4. The accused was committed to the custody of the training school under
section 47(d) of the Child Law, however this provision is a last resort
for children without parents or guardians, or who are otherwise of such
bad character that no alternative exists. A number of lesser sanctions are
outlined in section 47 (a)(b)(c), however the judge sentenced the accused
without due consideration of these and without consulting with the child's
parents or others appearing on his behalf.

Clearly, the proceedings of this trial violated not only national law, but
also the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which Myanmar acceded to
in 1991, and in relation to which the Child Law was subsequently enacted.
It is not enough to enact a law and expect that it will bring the country
into compliance with international law. The provisions of the law must be
applied. In the case of Maung Chan Thar Kyaw they most certainly have not.

Under Section 59(a) of the Child Law, as Minister for Social Welfare,
Relief and Resettlement, you have the power to release children from
detention. I therefore urge you to exercise your power to release Maung
Chan Thar Kyaw and clear his record without delay. I also urge you to
ensure that the Child Law is correctly applied and cases such as this do
not continue to occur in Myanmar.


INTERNATIONAL
_____________________________________

Feb 26, Agence France Presse
Myanmar lashed in US rights report after year of killings, detentions

Myanmar's ruling junta was slammed Thursday by arch-critic the United
States which condemned its worsening human rights record including attacks
on democracy activists and abuses by security forces in 2003.

In its annual report on worldwide rights abuses, the US State Department
said Myanmar's ruling generals, who currently have opposition leader Aung
San Suu Kyi under house arrest, had trashed the once-prosperous nation.

"Four decades of military rule, economic mismanagement, and endemic
corruption have resulted in widespread poverty, poor health care,
declining education levels, poor infrastructure, and continuously
deteriorating economic conditions," it said.

"The government's extremely poor human rights record worsened, and it
continued to commit numerous serious abuses."

In one of the most critical report cards handed out this year, the US
focused on the ruling junta's bloody May 30 strike against Aung San Suu
Kyi and her supporters which left an unknown number of people dead.

It said the regime had not investigated the assault on the National League
for Democracy (NLD) leader and her convoy of supporters during a political
tour of the northwest, and that the generals involved were subsequently
rewarded.

At least six democracy campaigners were killed in the assault and
eyewitnesses said the toll may have risen up to 70 as
government-affiliated forces set upon the convoy with bamboo staves and
metal pipes.

"According to credible reports, throughout the rest of the night following
the attack, security forces clashed with and may have killed scores of
other villagers, students, and Buddhist monks in the villages surrounding
the attack site," it added.

The US criticised the ensuing crackdown on the NLD, which has left it
crippled with all its branch offices closed, and the arrest of more than
270 democracy supporters in 2003.

It also dismissed the junta's claims that it was steadily releasing
political prisoners, estimating that some 1,300 remained behind bars.

"The government stated it released approximately 120 political prisoners
(in 2003), but the majority of them had already finished their sentences,
and many were common criminals and not political prisoners," it said.

The NLD's entire leadership was jailed or detained during the crackdown,
but while most of them have been freed, Aung San Suu Kyi and others remain
under house arrest.

Myanmar's military, or Tatmadaw, which has previously been accused of
using rape as a weapon of war against ethnic minority women in restive
provinces, also came in for strong criticism in the report.

"Security forces continued to commit extrajudicial killings and rape,
forcibly relocate persons, use forced labor, conscript child soldiers, and
re-established forced conscription of the civilian population," it said.

Prisoners and detainees were also tortured, beaten and abused by security
forces, the report said, while citizens were subject to arbitrary arrest
without appeal, it said.

The US pointedly ignored the junta's "road map" to democracy launched with
much fanfare last August, which it says will begin this year with a
national convention to draft a new constitution and eventually lead to
"free and fair" elections.

The road map was announced as part of the regime's campaign to
rehabilitate its image after the May 30 incident triggered intense
criticism and tightened economic sanctions from the international
community.
____________________________

Feb 26, Irrawaddy
Commercial Interests Driving Refugee Policy, Says Report - Kyaw Zwa Moe

The Thai government is appeasing Burma’s military regime by cracking down
on refugees from Burma living on Thai soil, an international rights group
reported yesterday.

"Thailand shouldn’t be toughening its stance towards Burmese refugees when
there has been no improvement in the abysmal conditions causing them to
flee Burma," said Brad Adams, executive director of New York-based Human
Rights Watch’s Asia division.

"Thailand should not allow commercial or diplomatic interests to interfere
with the ability of Burmese to seek safety in Thailand," the director said
in the report, Out of Sight, Out of Mind: Thai Policy toward Burmese
Refugees and Migrants.

Thailand is Burma’s third most important investment partner, and Thai
exports to Burma generate around US $1.26 billion each year. Last year,
Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra promised Burma aid and support
worth $45 million.

The Thai government’s crackdown puts the lives of many Burmese at risk.
—Brad Adams

In addition, Shin Corp, the telecom company owned by Thaksin’s family,
signed a deal with Bagan Cybertech, the Internet service provider run by
Ye Naing Win, the son of Burmese Prime Minister Gen Khin Nyunt in 2002.

Currently, about 140,000 Burmese refugees are living in refugee camps
along Thai borders close to Burma, fleeing persecution by Burmese forces
and fights between government troops and ethnic armed groups. About one
million migrants from Burma are also working in Thailand.

The report says Thailand regularly expels as many as 10,000 migrants a
month to Burma informally. It added that under an agreement with the
junta, Thai government officially deports 400 illegal migrants every
month.

Besides deporting refugees and asylum seekers, the report says, the Thai
government is arresting and intimidating Burmese political activists
living in Bangkok and along the Thai-Burmese border, and harassing Burmese
human rights and humanitarian groups.

"Among those deported, many will face severe persecution once back in
Burma," said Adams. "The Thai government’s crackdown puts the lives of
many Burmese at risk."

Last month, the Thai authorities put more pressure on refugees, suspending
the acceptance of new refugee applicants from Burma by the UN High
Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

The rights report criticized the decision as an effort to maintain
friendship with the junta. The inability to apply for refugee status has
put thousands of Burmese asylum seekers into "legal and practical limbo,"
the report says.

"Thailand must not forcibly return any Burmese who may have a claim to
refugee status," Adams said. And the director added that the Thai
government should ensure that the UNHCR is able to identify and protect
those who have a fear of persecution in Burma.

According to the report, Thailand and the United States agreed last month
to send at least 4,000 of the 140,000 refugees for resettlement in the US.

Meanwhile, the US condemned Burma in its annual report on the state of
human rights worldwide. The report says the human rights situation
worsened in Burma in 2003. It specifically cites the May 30 attack on a
convoy led by Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi by
government-affiliated thugs. Several hundred pro-democracy supporters and
activists were missing, under arrest, wounded, raped or killed, the report
says.


OPINION / OTHER
_____________________________________

MEDIA RELEASE

Feb 26, Burma Campaign UK
Tories welcome BAT withdrawal from Burma: Support grows for Burma
investment ban

The Burma Campaign UK is welcoming cross-party support for its campaign to
persuade companies not to invest in Burma.

Speaking in a debate in the House of Commons on Wednesday, shadow foreign
minister Richard Spring MP stated: "We welcome BAT's decision last year,
and Premier Oil's decision before that, to pull out of the country,
thereby sending a very clear message to the regime."

He went on to say: "I pay tribute to the untiring efforts of the Burma
Campaign UK, which does so much to keep the profile of this issue high and
to persuade companies of the error of supporting such a brutal regime -
however indirectly - by investing in the country."

During the debate MPs from all three main political parties called on the
government to impose tougher sanctions on Burma. Liberal Democrat MP
Alistair Carmichael, who introduced the debate, repeatedly pressed foreign
office Minister Mike O'Brien to introduce legislation banning new
investment in Burma. In opposition the Labour Party supported economic
sanctions called for by the Burma Campaign UK.

In the last parliamentary session 243 MPs supported an EDM calling for a
ban on new investment in Burma, making it the 12th most supported EDM in
the Parliamentary session.

"Foreign investment has played a key role in propping up the regime in
Burma," said John Jackson, Director of the Burma Campaign UK. "Today, if
any British company decided to invest in Burma the government would be
powerless to stop them. They need to introduce the legislation now. If
they wait till a company makes an announcement it will go in, it will be
too late."

Orient Express is currently considering expanding its operations in Burma,
despite government demands that they pull out of the country.

Britain ranks as the second largest investor in Burma in the past decade,
with $1.4 billion of approved investment.  This compares to just $64
million by neighbouring China, which is ranked 15th.

The call for a ban on new investment in Burma is supported by the Burma
Sanctions Coalition, whose members include the Co-operative Bank, UNISON,
Anti-Slavery International, Friends of the Earth, World Development
Movement, United Nations Association, GPMU, People and Planet, Tourism
Concern, Free Tibet Campaign, The Body Shop and National Justice and Peace
Network.

For more information contact Mark Farmaner, Media Officer on 020 7324
4713, or John Jackson, Director of the Burma Campaign UK, on 020 7324
4712.
Mark Farmaner, Media and Campaigns Officer, Burma Campaign UK

E-mail mark.farmaner at burmacampaign.org.uk , www.burmacampaign.org.uk