BurmaNet News April 22, 2004

[Editor]

A listserv covering Burma
April 22, 2004 Issue # 2461
www.burmanet.org


“It is very difficult to topple dictatorships. Political change only
becomes possible when the ruling group finds the status quo unacceptable.
We are at that "tipping point". Unfortunately the window of opportunity
for a negotiated political settlement has closed and political change will
have to be forced. The real issue in Burma is sanctions, and not the
National convention.” – Myin Thein, editorial, Asian Tribune


INSIDE BURMA
Irrawaddy: Karen Peace Talks Postponed Due to Convention
DVB: SPDC increases its delegates to the National Convention in Burma

ON THE BORDER
DVB: More NLD activists flee Burma due to increasing repressions
Green Empowerment: Solar Energy Benefits Thousands of Burmese Refugees

BUSINESS
Irrawaddy: Tak-Moulmein Flights Ready for Take Off

INTERNATIONAL
BBC News: Veterans of Burma war honoured

OPINION/ OTHER
Asian Tribune: Real Issue in Burma is sanctions, and not the National
Convention

STATEMENT
www.chinforum.org: Comment on the Chin Consensus Building Seminar

PRESS RELEASE
Reporters Without Borders, Burma Media Association
Forum for Democracy in Burma

INTERVIEW
ABC Australia: Mixed messages from Burma over Suu Kyi's status


INSIDE BURMA
_____________________________________

April 22, Irrawaddy
Karen Peace Talks Postponed Due to Convention - Kyaw Zwa Moe

Peace talks between Burma's largest ethnic Karen rebel group and the junta
will be delayed until after May because the government is busy reconvening
the National Convention, a senior Karen leader said.

The Karen National Union, or KNU, reached a tentative ceasefire agreement
with the military regime last December when the two parties met for the
first round of peace talks. The Karen group, which has been fighting for
autonomy from Rangoon for 55 years, was scheduled to resume talks in late
April to work out a formal agreement.

Chief of the KNU foreign affairs committee, David Taw, said the KNU
informed the junta that it was ready to hold the talks at the end of
April. The military government responded by saying that it is busy with
preparations for holding the National Convention, he added.

The military government is preparing to reconvene the National Convention
on May 17 to draw up a new constitution. The convention is the first step
of Prime Minister Gen Khin Nyunt’s seven-step road map to democracy,
announced last August.

David Taw couldn’t say the exact date the talks would resume since it is
unknown how long the convention will take. If the talks resume,
discussions will touch on military demarcation to reduce casual skirmishes
between the two sides, he continued.

Though the KNU has reached an informal agreement with the junta, casual
skirmishes have broken out between the two sides.

Recently, the KNU sent a delegation of four members to Rangoon to
celebrate the water festival Thingyan, in a bid to boost relations with
the junta. During the trip the delegate met with the junta’s military
spokesperson, Col San Pwint, but political issues were not discussed,
David Taw said.

____________________________________

April 21, Democratic Voice of Burma
SPDC increases its delegates to the National Convention in Burma

Burma’s military junta, State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) is not
only increasing its unelected delegates to be sent to the forthcoming
National Convention but also failing to invite opposition delegates who
replaced those that passed away.

A local resident from Kale, Sagaing Division in northwest Burma told DVB
that the number of SPDC delegates increased from 2 for each township at
the previous convention to 3 for the forthcoming one, but the junta is not
inviting the substitute of local elected representative U Aung Thaung who
passed away recently.

Similarly, the number of unelected delegates of the SPDC in Arakan State
in western Burma has increased from 1 to 4. At Magwe Division in central
Burma, the junta has been replacing all its dead delegates who attended
the first convention with new ones but the NLD members are still not
allowed to replace theirs with new delegates.

These unelected delegates of the junta have been trained personally by
respective local military commanders at army bases on how to represent
themselves at the convention, and analysts say that the sheer number of
these ignorant ‘yes men’ shows that the junta is determined to push for a
constitution which guarantees the perpetuation of military dictatorship in
Burma.


ON THE BORDER
_____________________________________

April 21, Democratic Voice of Burma
More NLD activists flee Burma due to increasing repressions

Ko Naing Zaw Win, the joint secretary of the organising committee of
Kachin State National League for Democracy (NLD) and another NLD member
fled to the Thai-Burma border on 20 April because it was impossible for
them to continue their political activities inside Burma.

Ko Naing Zaw Win was arrested and detained three times by Burma’s military
junta for his active role in the NLD from 1990 to the time of his flight.
According to him, the military intelligence (MI) agents have been
restricting and watching the movements of the activists to such and extent
that they are unable to take part in their political activities freely as
promised by the junta to the outside world.

He added that he fled the country with the hope of continuing his
political activities and the struggles for democracy and human right from
abroad.

Ko Naing Zaw Win was last arrested in June 2003 and detained for more than
seven months for helping to organise Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s trip to the
Kachin State before she and her supporters were brutally attacked by the
junta sponsored thugs at Dipeyin in upper Burma on 30 May.

 _____________________________________

April 21, Green Empowerment
Solar Energy Benefits Thousands of Burmese Refugees

The clinics, scattered over 600 miles in the conflicted jungles of eastern
Burma, each serve 3,000-5,000 people, for a total of 33,000-55,000 people.
All of the clinics are in a highly contested zone within Burma where the
indigenous people are resisting the army of the brutal Burmese
dictatorship. In late March, medics from each clinic walked up to two
weeks to get to the training center on the Thai side of the border. There,
Walt Ratterman of Green Empowerment, and Chris Greacen of Palangi Thai
taught participants how to build, troubleshoot and maintain photovoltaic
systems that will provide lighting and electricity for medical equipment.
The training participants then carried the solar panels and other
equipment for weeks to reach their isolated bamboo clinics. The solar
systems will allow doctors to address nighttime emergencies, have proper
lighting for medical procedures, and use electric medical devises. Having
built the systems themselves, the medics are fully trained to install,
operate, and move the specially-designed mobile systems if necessitated by
shifts of the conflict in the Burmese border zone. According to Eh Kalu of
the Karen Medical Welfare Department, who coordinated the pilot project
and organized the training, "Our dream 10 years ago was to have some kind
of lighting for these clinics. And when we did the 2 clinics last summer,
I could only hope that we would be able to do so many more."

For more information, contact:

Anna Garwood . Program Coordinator, Green Empowerment, Portland, OR
anna at greenempowerment.org


BUSINESS
_____________________________________

April 22, Irrawaddy
Tak-Moulmein Flights Ready for Take Off - Aung Su Shin

Mae Sot: Airline flights will soon link Thailand’s Tak Province to the
coastal Burmese city of Moulmein in order to promote a special economic
zone along the Thai-Burma border, said Tak’s deputy governor Somchai
Hatayadandi today.

"Airline companies are now surveying the route," the deputy governor said,
adding that a yet unnamed airline plans to fly a route linking the Thai
towns of Tak and Mae Sot to Moulmein. He said the name of the airline
would be revealed closer to the launching date of the inaugural flight.

Thai investors plan to invest in agricultural projects in the Burmese
border town of Myawaddy, across the Moei River from Mae Sot. To encourage
investment, Burma will waive taxes on revenue, imports and exports, he
said.

In November, leaders from Thailand, Burma, Cambodia and Laos met in
Burma’s ancient city of Pagan and agreed to cooperate in alleviating
poverty and spurring economic growth.

The Bagan Declaration, as the summit has been called, is the brainchild of
Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, and is part of the Economic
Cooperation Strategy in which Thailand would work to reduce disparities
between it and its immediate neighbors.


INTERNATIONAL
_____________________________________

April 22, BBC News
Veterans of Burma war honoured

Veterans of World War II's Burma campaign have been remembered at a
reception 60 years after the conflict.

They were dubbed the Forgotten Army because the soldiers believed their
hard-won campaign was ignored at home.

The men fought some of the fiercest battles of World War II during the
four-year campaign in order to prevent Japanese expansion.

More than 100 veterans gathered at London's Imperial War Museum for the
anniversary event.

"We were always a forgotten army," Wing Commander Mahinder Pujji told BBC
Radio 4's Today programme.

"The recognition has come now, so very late. With my age and experience, I
don't feel that bitter now. In the beginning, I did."

'Terrible time'

Wing Cdr Pujji, who was the first Indian to win the Distinguished Flying
Cross, said he believes people now understand how crucial the campaign
was.

Fighting in the Far East against the Japanese army continued for three
months after the Allied forces were victorious in Europe.

The celebrations of VE Day and relief over the end of the land war in
Europe overshadowed the continuing fighting in the east, Countess
Mountbatten of Burma told Radio 4.

"The war went on for three months after the war in Europe ended," she said.

"During those three months, people in (the UK), who had really been
through the most terrible time, relaxed and forgot about the war."

Lady Mountbatten's father, Admiral Lord Mountbatten - who was later
Admiral of the Fleet Mountbatten of Burma - was the Supreme Allied
Commander of the South East Asia command.

And though the veterans have felt slighted, Lady Mountbatten told Today
there was a huge outpouring of gratitude for the Fourteenth Army during
the 50th Anniversary celebrations of VJ Day.

Public gratitude

"The feeling of gratitude from the public was absolutely immense," Lady
Mountbatten said.

"I think they suddenly realized here were people who didn't get their fair
share of our thanks for what they did - to save the world, really, from a
terrible situation."

Dame Vera Lynn, who went to Burma to entertain the troops, attended the
reception. She remembered her visit to the Fourteenth Army as an important
one.

"I mostly chatted with the troops," she said. "What they needed was
contact from home rather than a concert."

Dame Vera agreed that the Fourteenth Army was a little-known unit: "They
used to say to me, 'When you go back home, tell them of us, tell them
we're here. We are the forgotten Fourteenth."


OPINION/ OTHER
___________________________________

April 21, Asian Tribune
Real Issue in Burma is sanctions, and not the National Convention - Myint
Thein

The Bangkok Process is simply a support group to secure resumption of
foreign aid to the Narco-Dictatorship in Burma.

The latest talks between ASSK and SLORC/SPDC representatives ended
inconclusively because of ASSK's third demand which was the establishment
of an Independent  Commission, to include reputable international
observers, to investigate the May 30th Massacre.
ASSK's first demand was the release of all political prisoners. SLORC/SPDC
has offered to release senior NLD leadership.

ASSK's second demand was the right of free speech and the right to
organize NLD membership. SLORC/SPDC has offered to re-open some NLD
offices.

It is very difficult to topple dictatorships. Political change only
becomes possible when the ruling group finds the status quo unacceptable.
We are at that "tipping point". Unfortunately the window of opportunity
for a negotiated political settlement has closed and political change will
have to be forced.

The real issue in Burma is sanctions, and not the National convention.

SLORC/SPDC's National Convention will soon provide clear evidence that
SLORC/SPDC is not capable of and/or does not have any real interest in
restoring freedom and democracy in Burma.

World-wide sanctions worked in South Africa. World-wide sanctions also
worked in Libya. And world-wide sanctions will also work in Burma.

Sanctions are working in Burma. We need more sanctions to expedite the
restoration of freedom and democracy in Burma.

However, the International Community will not impose world-wide economic
sanctions on SLORC/SPDC until they kill ASSK.

In the final analysis, the International Community will be responsible for
the murder of ASSK.


STATEMENT
___________________________________

April 20, www.chinforum.org
Comment on the Chin Consensus Building Seminar (Camp Victoria) - Pu Lian Uk
1.  It is a great pleasure for all of us the Chin people that this Chin
National Consensus Building Seminar is over successfully within April 7 to
10, 2004. We congratulate those who took part in it. We all have our aims
and objects, which we all can not discover in each other until we
practically and personally meet together face to face in such get together
seminar. We have discovered practically in each other now that we have the
same aim and objective for our state and people as it has been issued in
the Victoria Agreement.  These same aims and objectives should make all
local and party consciousness melt away. Thus there should be equality
among the participants no matter they be party or non party in PACC
formation as the common aims and objectives will be the principles that is
to lead the PACC to achieve the agreement and there will be open also for
other Chin national political parties to join in.
2.   That notion of having the same aim and objective for our state and
people will make us have good understanding on each other.  That good
understanding will in turn lead us to the same destiny even when we depart
and live in different parts of the world. Our meeting and good
understanding we have got from the seminar will always be in our
consciousness wherever we are. That good understanding among us will ever
strengthen our unity in our common cause for our state and people. That
good understanding we get from this seminar can solve our differences if
there is any in the future. That is one of the main aims of the Seminar
itself .
3.  We all have to be aware that we, the Chin people, are a people who
have a territory bounded by definite boundaries with our neighbors. We
have every rights of legitimacy to be our own self as the Chin people,
within our territory bestowed to us by God to our ancestors. We have
inherited this motherland and our being to be the sons and daughters born
of the Chin people from our forefathers who have defended our being as a
people and our beloved land with their sweat, blood and lives. The fact of
being a people in a definite territory of the landmass larger than many
independent sovereign nations makes us have common aims and objectives,
which we have discovered in each individual by participating in such
seminar.
4. Our Common aims and objectives we could see through the seminar and
Victoria Agreement are:-
(1). We and our people at home and everywhere else want to live a peaceful
and prosperous life, which will give us happiness throughout our life in
our own-self as the Chin people in our own national territory.
(2). In order to lead a peaceful and prosperous life, we want a peaceful
co existence with our neighbors. We know that we are not alone in this
world. We are surrounded by other people .We do not want to intrude and
violate into their rights and space. We do not want them to intrude into
our space and rights.  We do not want to impose anything against their
will. We do not want them to impose on us anything against the will of the
Chin people.
(3). We can achieve this by becoming a sovereign independent nation as a
member of the United Nations or to share some of our sovereign power with
other people as a constituent state of a federal Union. Our fore fathers
have signed in the chore of Panglong Agreement to be free from any
colonialism. Thus we are now choosing to join the Federal Union of Burma
as a constituent state of the Federal Union.
(4). If there is any problem with our neighbor states or among us we want
to settle it peacefully according to the  law we all together could agree
with. We can achieve this through the principles of democratic
constitution in federalism.
5. People who are against the four principles above are the enemy of all 
people who want to live in peaceful co existence. It is now the  Burmese
military regime that has against these principles.  They have been our
common enemy. The enemy of the Chin people and the enemy of all the people
who want to live in peaceful coexistence according to the democratic
principles.  So the democratic principles, which will guide us to achieve
our common aim and objective in the statement of the Chin National
Consensus Building Seminar are:
(a). Declaration of the Burmese military Regime as the insurgent
government who has formed the government against the will of the Chin
people and the people of the Union of Burma and intrude into our space and
rights and thus they have been our common enemy with whom to deal with by
all means.
(b). We have now also chosen to negotiate with that enemy by having
dialogue with them to restore peace and democracy in the country.  The
power they have in hands now is not given to them by the people. The ranks
and files they are having as generals and the post of the Presidency and
Prime-ministership are not given to them by the elected representatives
and government of the citizens of the Union of Burma. They are
illegitimate government and insurgent government.  We are to see now how
to transform this illegitimacy into legitimacy. This could be done with
the consent of the representatives of the people elected in 1990 general
election.
6.   The proposed transitional procedure thus is:
(a). To have the tripartite dialogue of the representatives of NLD, the
non Burman ethnic group and the military regime together at the same time.
The three groups to have dialogue together at the same time is certainly
essential; because to let the military regime has the dialogue with any
one as the only two groups will be the same as to allow them to have
compromise between the two neglecting the third which could create doubt 
that they would care for the third after the two could get compromise
between them.
(b) What to compromise in the Tripartite dialogue will include:
1). .to convene Parliament so that it will give democratic legitimacy to
any decision it makes as the voice of the people being elected just and
fair by the people in 1990 general election.
2).  To form interim legitimate governments of the existing states and the
Union government
3). The states to draft and adopt their respective state constitutions
4).To convene national convention on constitutional principles of the Union
5).To arrange Union constitution drafting and adoption
6).To held general election according to the new constitutions
7).To form new governments according to the new constitutions.
Thank you,
Lian Uk (Member of Parliament-elect
Haka Constituency of the Capital city of Chin State)

___________________________________

PRESS RELEASE

April 22, Reporters Without Borders, Burma Media Association

Reporters Without Borders and the Burma Media Association ask judges for
mercy for sports journalist Zaw Thet Htwe

Reporters Without Borders and the Burma Media Association appealed for
leniency for sports journalist Zaw Thet Htwe to two supreme court judges
set to give their verdict on his appeal against a death sentence within a
few days.

Zaw Thet Htwe, editor in chief of the sports magazine First Eleven is one
of nine people who have been condemned to death for ³high treason².

The international press freedom organisation and the BMA said after
observing the trial in the lower court and studying the court records,
they were convinced the journalist had been sentenced to death without any
evidence or testimony proving he was implicated in an act of ³high
treason².

Both organisations urged the judges, Doctor Tin Aung Aye and U Tin Aye to
accept the innocence of the journalist and the other three defendants.
They said that Zaw Thet Htwe¹s only crime was to head a popular and
independent magazine.

The two supreme court judges sat on 6 April 2004 to take the statements of
lawyer U Naing Ngwe Ya defending Zaw Thet Htwe and the three others. The
defendants were also heard at a court within Insein prison where they are
being detained.

The lawyer, who protested the innocence of his clients, confirmed that
three of them had been condemned to death for sending reports to the
International Labour Organisation (ILO). He said, ³Nobody found explosives
and anti-government documents in their possession (Š) There was no act of
high treason and they should be released unconditionally.² The
journalist¹s wife and a colleague were able to attend the hearing.

The lower court trial record showed that Zaw Thet Htwe was convicted of
contacting Burmese exiles abroad who had themselves plotted against the
military junta. The journalist was only allowed to call one witness, his
wife, and no lawyer was present to defend him.

The Burma Lawyers' Council described the charges and the trial as being
tainted by irregularities. The charge was laid by a police officer when an
accusation of high treason should have been brought by the State. The
Military Secret Service (MIS) had carried out the interrogations, when it
had no competence to take confessions for a trial. The trial itself had
been held behind closed doors.

Amnesty International released a report in April 2004, describing Zaw Thet
Htwe as a ³prisoner of conscience" sentenced after a trial at which
neither the right to a defence nor the presumption of innocence had been
respected.

A military court sentenced the sports journalist and eight others to death
on 28 November 2003 under Article 122 (1) of the criminal code. They were
accused of "high treason" for attempting to kill leaders of the military
junta. The editor of First Eleven was accused of having sent reports to
opposition militants based abroad. He was tortured during interrogation by
the MIS.

The journalist¹s arrest is believed linked to the success of his sports
magazine, that specialises in football, and its independent editorial
line. It carried one article in particular on a donation of four million
dollars from the international community to promote football in Burma.
First Eleven questioned what use the money had been put to.

___________________________________
April 22, Forum for Democracy in Burma
"Forum for Democracy in Burma" Begins Official Operations, Calls for
National Convention Boycott

Forum for Democracy in Burma (FDB) formalized its operational structure
and denounced the current call of SPDC (State Peace and Development
Council) for a National Convention as a sham process for democratization
at a meeting held on April 20-21, 2004 along the Thai Burma border.

FDB was established on February 26, 2004 by the senior leaders of the 1988
generation of Burma's democratic movement.  FDB is a collective of
multi-faced organizations and individuals that have utilized a wide range
of tactics for 15 years in the struggle for democracy.  The FDB stands as
alternative task force for the achievement of democracy and national
reconciliation in Burma.

At this meeting, FDB leaders stressed that the only way out of the current
political impasse is substantive and meaningful dialogue among the
concerned parties, rather than a one party led forced process like the
SPDC's road map. The lack of political will of SPDC leadership to create
an atmosphere conducive to a participative democratization process is the
main obstacle.  The FDB is calling on all parties to boycott the national
convention in order to make the SPDC aware of their erroneous behavior.

Dr. Naing Aung, the elected Secretary General of the Forum said, "SPDC
still thinks that they are unchallenged and untouchable. It is the totally
wrong political move to organize this National Convention as a
continuation of the halted 1996 convention and launch the road map without
political dialogue with other stake holders. It goes nowhere but towards
catastrophe. We would like to call all concerned parties to boycott and
the international community to step up pressure against the regime."

This call to boycott the SPDC's sham national convention was made at the
Forum meeting which finalized the policy and working program of the Forum,
and structuralized its operational mechanisms. A secretariat to lead this
Forum was also elected to a two year term.

The Forum has been formed in order to provide a new generation of
leadership that can energize the current democratic movement, and to
ensure that the views and perspectives of the new generation of Burma is
heard during all phases of the democratization process. It aims to work
closely with ethnic forces, other democratic organizations, and existing
alliances of a future democratic federal union of Burma.


For Media Contact and further information
Dr. Naing Aung		01-883 7230
U Kyaw Ko 		01-375 6033


INTERVIEW
_____________________________________

April 21, ABC Australia
Mixed messages from Burma over Suu Kyi's status - Mark Colvin

MARK COLVIN: A rare interview from Burma. There are mixed messages coming
out of the dictatorship at the moment.

On the one hand, with a so-called national convention coming up next
month, some members of Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy
have been let out of jail or house arrest, and international reporting has
suggested that Aung San Suu Kyi herself may also be finally released in
time for the convention.

On the other hand, Burma's ruling military junta said today that it
intended to entrench the role of the military in any future constitution.
That would appear to squelch any hopes for a real move back to democracy,
or freedom for the NLD, which was democratically elected more than a
decade ago before the junta removed it.

But one small sign of liberalisation is the interview you're about to
hear. Only months ago it wouldn't have been possible to contact any senior
member of the Opposition, let alone interview them.

This afternoon I managed to contact a senior member of Aung San Suu Kyi's
party hierarchy, the NLD National Secretary U Lwin. He's scornful of the
idea that Aung San Suu Kyi will be released and highly critical of
Australia's role in providing human rights training to the junta's police
force.

And U Lwin says the so-called national convention will actually be
stacked, because the majority of delegates will be representatives of the
peasantry, the workers and the regions, handpicked by the junta.

U LWIN: I can certainly tell you that they are picked by the SPDC people.

MARK COLVIN: They're picked, in other words, by the military


U LWIN: Yes.

MARK COLVIN: 
government?

U LWIN: Yes.

MARK COLVIN: Will the National League for Democracy, your party, Aung San
Suu Kyi's party, will it have any real voice at this convention?

U LWIN: No. No. No. Not at all.

MARK COLVIN: Now the military say that they want any new constitution to
guarantee a major role for the military in the future. Is that acceptable
to you?

U LWIN: No. No. I think something like they have ... the Indonesians have
done, you know, in the past. The previous, I mean Suharto government,
mostly, you know, represent by the military people. They, you know, got
the seats in parliament as a right, you know, of the military I mean.

MARK COLVIN: And you think that's what the military want to do in the new
constitution?

U LWIN: Yes. Yes, they are trying to do like that.

MARK COLVIN: Now can you tell me the situation? How many NLD people still
remain either in prison or under house arrest? We know that Aung San Suu
Kyi herself is still under house arrest. How many more of your leaders are
still either in jail or under house arrest?

U LWIN: At the jail I think about 20 MPs, and under detention, I mean
house arrest, Aung San Suu Kyi and Tin Oo. There are only two.

MARK COLVIN: And do you think ...

U LWIN: The rest are released now.

MARK COLVIN: And do you think that Aung San Suu Kyi will be released soon?

U LWIN: I don't think so.

MARK COLVIN: You don't think so?

U LWIN: No.

MARK COLVIN: Because the world's press is reporting that it may be any
time in the next few days. You think that's not right?

U LWIN: No.

MARK COLVIN: Why?

U LWIN: Because if she is free it is a great, you know, problem to them.
They cannot do the same thing like where they treated her during
(inaudible). They can't repeat that any more, so they must have some
alternative to, you know, not to move or not to be active again.

MARK COLVIN: Are you saying that she's too much of a problem if she comes
out, because she will move around the country...

U LWIN: Yes.

MARK COLVIN: ... and people will see how much support she has?

U LWIN: Yes, that's right.

MARK COLVIN: But how can they have this convention without her? The world
will be watching this convention, won't it? And if she's not there, won't
that be a problem for them too?

U LWIN: Yes. This is not an immediate threat to them. They are that sort
of people. They don't think very widely or, you know, comprehensively.
They're very limited people and they're very narrow-minded.

MARK COLVIN: What should Australia do?

U LWIN: Ah. This is very strange some times. You don't agree with
sanctions, for example, and you don't even care about any political
situation. That is why you go ahead with these, you know, training of the
human rights. They are giving training to those police officer. The police
officer has to obey the orders from the military group.

So, the most, I think, useful thing may be you could start human rights
(inaudible) to all instead of the police officer. Once I, you know, tell
like that to the ambassador.

MARK COLVIN: So you have told the Australian ambassador...

U LWIN: Yes.

MARK COLVIN: ... that you don't approve of the system whereby Australia
sends people to train Burmese police in human rights training?

U LWIN: Yes. You're spending your public money, you know.

MARK COLVIN: What did the Australian ambassador say to you?

U LWIN: This man is very, very obliging, very good, very nice man, but he
said this is the government decision, and government, I mean policy, they
are just the executives so can't do anything.

MARK COLVIN: U Lwin, what would you like Australia to do?

U LWIN: I think Australia should go along with the West community, like US
and UK or EU.

MARK COLVIN: Sanctions?

U LWIN: Yes. Europe, for example, the EU sanction is not very severe like
US, but still as a token or something, is a very big moral support to us.

MARK COLVIN: U Lwin, the National Secretary of Aung San Suu Kyi's National
League for Democracy, on the line from Rangoon. As I say, a rare
interview. He was only recently released from house arrest, where he'd
been for 11 months, and Aung San Suu Kyi, as he said, remains in house
arrest and may remain so according to his assessment.