BurmaNet News October 15, 2004

[Editor]

October 15, 2004, Issue # 2580

INSIDE BURMA
AFP: Jail terms cut of five Myanmar men formerly on death row for treason
AFP: New legal bid to free Myanmar democracy leader fails

DRUGS
Thai News Service: Criminal court acquits major heroin trafficker due to
flimsy evidence

REGIONAL
The Hindu: Sein Win denied visa to attend pro-democracy conference

INTERNATIONAL
The Economist: Face-off - Asia, Europe and Myanmar
 M2 Presswire: EU action on Burma judged insufficient

OPINION / OTHER
Irrawaddy: CPJ honors Burmese journalists

PRESS RELEASE

CPJ To present annual International Press Freedom Awards
______________________________________
INSIDE BURMA

October 15, Agence France Presse
Jail terms cut of five Myanmar men formerly on death row for treason

Five men who successfully appealed against death sentences for high
treason in military-run Myanmar have had their jail terms cut after a new
court challenge, a lawyer said on Friday.

The appeals of four other men were unsuccessful and they continue to serve
life sentences for their supposed roles in plans to overthrow the junta,
lawyer Naing Ngwe Ya told AFP.

One man's life term was cut to five years on appeal at the Supreme Court
in Yangon on Thursday. Four others had their sentences cut from three to
two years, scotching hopes that they would be freed immediately.

All nine had been sentenced to death in November last year, sparking an
international outcry. The sentences were commuted in May.

One of them, sports magazine editor Zaw Thet Htway, was arrested in July
last year after publishing a story alleging misuse of a
four-million-dollar international grant to promote football in Myanmar.

Shortly afterwards the magazine published an article on a fine imposed by
the organisers of the Asian Champion Club tournament on a Myanmar football
team for its failure to participate in the event.

The editor still has nine months to serve of his now two-year sentence.

The magazine is the country's most widely read sports publication, with a
circulation of more than 50,000.

The other men now serving two-year terms were originally sentenced to
death in November last year over contacts with the International Labour
Organisation (ILO).

The ILO had objected to the death sentences handed down to the three,
saying it cast doubt on the credibility of the regime's cooperation with
the organisation, which is trying to stamp out forced labour in Myanmar.

____________________________________

October 15, Agence France Presse
New legal bid to free Myanmar democracy leader fails

Yangon--A new legal attempt to free Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu
Kyi from more than a year of house arrest has failed, her party said
Friday.

The National League for Democracy (NLD) lodged papers with the country's
Supreme Court on Thursday for her and her deputy Tin Oo to be freed, and
party offices across the country allowed to reopen, the party said in a
statement.

However the application was dismissed as "irrelevant", it said.

Aung San Suu Kyi was detained after a violent clash between her supporters
and a pro-junta mob in May 2003 and was later put under house arrest for a
third time.

The arrests, accompanied by the closure of NLD offices across the country,
sparked international fury and tightened sanctions on the military regime
that has ruled Myanmar since 1962.

The party said Friday the arrests and the office closures left an "angry
mark on our so-called civilised society".

The NLD won elections by a landslide in 1990 that the international
community considered free and fair but the party was never allowed to
rule.
_____________________________________
DRUGS

October 18, Thai News Service
Criminal court acquits major heroin trafficker due to flimsy evidence

A Thai criminal court in Bangkok Friday acquitted a suspect in a major
heroin trafficking lawsuit, citing public prosecutors of lacking
substantial evidence to prove against the accused, a TNA reporter said

Laota Sanlee, 64, was reportedly a former close aid to Khun Sa, the
notorious opium warlord who surrendered to the military government of
Myanmar years ago.

Laota was arrested by police after he was accused of heroin trafficking.
He was accused of having paid Mr. Panom Sap-anek, a then local politician
in the northern province of Lampang, three million baht to traffic heroin
from Chiang Mai, also in the north, to Songkhla in the south by a truck.

Laota, who denied all charges since the beginning, told reporters after
the hearing that he was delighted that the judged acquitted him because he
was innocent and said he held no disgruntlement against anyone.

Meanwhile, his defence lawyer expected his client to be released from
court custody within next week.

''We have proved to this court that the accused was innocent. He won
although the public prosecutors had testified 5 witnesses against him.
With this verdict, I would submit a petition to secure his release next
week,'' said Rerm Chaoangthong, the lawyer.

The criminal court judges said they had to acquit the accused because the
public prosecutors failed to come up with substantial evidence. The judges
said they were most skeptical with the fifth witness's testimonial of
which they described as flimsy and groundless.

The judges also said the witness failed to produce any hard evidence to
show that he really saw the accused handing three million bath of cash to
his accomplice as a wage to deliver the drugs to his clients.

The rest four witnesses who testified against Laota were policemen who got
involved in the case as investigators. The police had to arrest Laota
because the fifth witness who was arrested earlier on a drugs charge made
an allegation against him.

_____________________________________

October 15, Shan Herald News Agency
Poppy farmers point to want of options

Rising demands on their hard-earned income by the Army that offer little
or no decent way out have been blamed by the farmers as the reason for
their continued dependency on poppy cultivation, reports Hawkeye from the
border:

"We Pa-Os used to thrive on the traditional Thanatpet (cheroot leaf)
plantations," said a trader from Tawngni, 8 miles north of
Taunggyi-Shwenyaung road, a village tract under the control of Pa-O
National Army, officially known as Shan State Special Region #6. "But an
increasing number of our people are now engaging in poppy cultivation,
once a taboo among us. There are at least 15 out of every hundred
households in Tawngni alone (that has 2,065 households) who either make or
supplement their living by growing opium poppies."

The Thanatpet plant normally has a 20-30 year life expectancy and, in the
past, an agreeable market both of whom had served its owners well.
However, dwindling prices coupled with soaring expenditures are forcing
the Pa-Os to give up their time-honored calling.

As PNA areas have been declared opium-free zones, most farmers leave their
homes during annual season to grow poppies in the neighboring areas under
the control of Shan State Nationalities Peoples Liberation Organization,
another ceasefire group, that taxes 10% of each field's output. "The
Loimai, Loihon and Loimaw ranges are packed with poppy fields this time of
the year," he claimed. "The PNA knows we're here but there is good
understanding between us."

Lahus coming from areas north of the Monghsu gemland agree. "Each
household work at least half an acre there," explained one Lahu visitor.
"Even in the least productive year, it produces about 0.75 viss (1 viss =
1.6 kg) which will fetch us at least 75,000 kyat (75$). There's no
comparison with other crops."

For example, he said, half an acre of land would produce the following
outcomes with each different crop:

• Soya beans 10 pails x 5,000 kyat = K 50,000 ($50)
• Peanuts 20 pails x 2,000 kyat = K 40,000 ($40)
• Maize corn 20 pails x 1,500 kyat - K 30,000 ($30)

"Moreover, farmers everywhere are being forced to share their proceeds
with the (Burma) Army that never knows enough is enough," he added.

Wa and Lahu farmers in Mawfah, south of the Wa region, in Mongpiang
township, could not have agreed more. The Burma Army-controlled area
wedged between south of Panghsang, the Wa capital, and the Salween, is
abundant with jackfruits which are just pig-feed there, when in Kengtung,
65 miles away, the price is K 5,000 ($ 5) a piece. [Army controlled Wa
also, S.H.A.N., 31 October 2003] The alternative is to grow more poppies,
the proceeds from which are used to feed both their families and the local
Army units.

All three areas confirmed an increase in the acreage compared to last year
though how much is anybody's guess.

According to All Burma Students Democratic Front that has been monitoring
Burma's Army Forces, the Army has grown to 599 infantry battalions and 80
artillery battalions in 2003, from 168 infantry battalions in 1988.

For further information, please contact S.H.A.N. at:
Shan Herald Agency for News.
Phone: 66-1-5312837
e-mail: <shan at cm.ksc.co.th> http://www.shanland.org
_____________________________________
REGIONAL

October 15, The Hindu
Sein Win denied visa to attend pro-democracy conference

The Government has denied a visa to Sein Win, "Prime Minister" of the
National Coalition "Government" of the Union of Burma (Myanmar), to attend
a three-day international convention for the restoration of democracy in
Myanmar, which begins here on Friday.

Addressing a press conference today, the former Defense Minister, George
Fernandes, one of the organisers of the conference, said there was not
much change in the situation in Burma between the time he had organised a
conference in 1996 and now.

Mr. Fernandes faced a barrage of questions about his silence on restoring
democracy in Myanmar when he was in Government. Mr. Fernandes said that as
Defense Minister he had a job to do, but as a citizen he was entitled to
his views.

Denying that the timing of the conference was in any way linked to the
October 25 visit of Myanmar's State Peace and Development Council (SPDC)
Chairman, Senior General Than Shwe, Mr. Fernandes said this meeting had
been planned months in advance.

Message

Dr. Sein Wein, in a message to the convention, was polite, but direct in
his concerns about India's role and relationship with Myanmar. "Even
though I cannot be there to meet you all personally for various reasons, I
am confident that my message will be taken seriously both for the sake of
my country, Burma, and also for India."

"India, the world's largest democracy, has regrettably been a
disappointment these past several years. Today, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the
1993 winner of the prestigious Jawaharlal Nehru Award for International
Understanding, remains under house arrest after she and members of her
party — the National League for Democracy — were brutally attacked by
military-sponsored thugs in 2003. India's response on that occasion was a
complete letdown for the Burmese people," his message said.

Dr. Sein Win, who was denied a visa to visit New Delhi, maintained that
India's multi-faceted policy should not be restricted to business dealings
and short-term military cooperation with the Burmese generals and it
should include engagement with the Burmese people and their chosen
representatives of the democracy movement on moral grounds.

"We do not ask India to be a country unilaterally championing the cause of
democracy in Burma but are only appealing to you to join the other
democracies in bringing about a U.N.-facilitated peaceful change in our
country," he stressed.

"We are hopeful that India will become the type of neighbor that we would
like it to be. We want India to look at the long-term future of Indo-Burma
relations and live up to its reputation as the world's largest democracy
and promote democracy in Burma as well.

"We want it to be objective and persuasive when it needs to be dealing
with Burma. We want it to be part of an international drive, a
multilateral effort to bring about national reconciliation and democracy
in Burma. We are eagerly looking forward to India taking such moves in the
near future," the message added.
_____________________________________
INTERNATIONAL

October 16, The Economist
Face-off - Asia, Europe and Myanmar

When half the world meets up for a chin-wag, little more than platitudes
can usually be expected. Yet the two-yearly ASEM (Asia-Europe Meeting)
summit in Vietnam that ended on October 9th was even shorter on real
substance than it might have been. The assembled 38 governments (25 from
the European Union and ten from the Association of South-East Asian
Nations, ASEAN, plus China, Japan and South Korea) said all the expected
things about encouraging trade, protecting the environment, fighting
terrorism and crime, and ridding the Korean peninsula of nuclear weapons.
But they could not manage a proper public rebuke (some harder words were
spoken in private) of the military dictatorship in Myanmar for stifling
dissent and keeping Aung San Suu Kyi, the leader of the country's
democracy movement, under house arrest.

ASEM has said harsher things in the past about the Myanmar regime's nasty
little ways. This time, however, under a deal to save the summit series
from complete collapse, Myanmar was at the table (along with two other new
ASEAN recruits and ten newcomers to the EU), albeit represented by its
labour minister, not its boss.

Some European governments, particularly Britain's, had wanted Myanmar kept
out of ASEM altogether. But the compromise was not just that Myanmar would
lose face over who was invited; it was also supposed to take steps towards
democracy and release Miss Suu Kyi. Since none of this had happened, on
October 11th the EU's foreign ministers tightened sanctions: a visa ban on
regime stalwarts will now extend to senior members of the armed forces and
their families; the EU will oppose lending by international financial
institutions; and EU-registered companies and organisations will be barred
from financing state-owned companies with close ties to the military
regime.

Such sanctions can have only modest effect. While the generals and their
families may fume about being unable to send their offspring to schools
and universities in Europe, most European companies, with government
encouragement, already shun the place—with the exception of Total, a large
French oil company. Nonetheless, the regime had been sufficiently livid at
its lowly representation at the summit that it fired its civilian foreign
minister, and replaced him with a general.

Yet it is Myanmar's neighbors, and especially China, that can wield the
greatest influence. They prefer dialogue to confrontation. But they too
seem to be losing patience with the generals' repeatedly broken promises
to release Miss Suu Kyi. Nor will outside pressure let up. In 2006 Myanmar
is due to chair ASEAN and host its widely attended Regional Forum. Without
democratic changes, America, for one, has already said it will not show
up.

____________________________________

October 15, M2 Presswire
EU action on Burma judged insufficient

Brussels--Following the biannual ASEM summit in Hanoi (8-9 October 2004),
the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) and the
European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) are expressing their deep dismay
over the organisation's decision to admit Burma (also known as Myanmar) as
one of its members. The south-east Asian country has long been the subject
of heavy criticism from the ICFTU, the world's largest trade union body,
for its continued violations of human rights, especially its systematic
imposition of forced labour on the civilian population, as well as the
ruling military junta's lack of respect for democracy.

Before the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) summit, the European Union's
statements concerning the possible participation of Burma in the meeting
seemed to indicate a clear position that, on this occasion, human rights
violations had a higher priority than commercial considerations. It is
therefore all the more surprising that the summit neglected to demand that
the Burmese authorities release opposition leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and
other National League for Democracy (NLD) leaders. This also contrasts
strongly with the European Council's conclusions of September 2004 which
declared the EU's intention to take determined measures unless the Burmese
military junta released opposition leaders, allowed the NLD to operate
freely, and invited the NLD and other political parties to participate
freely in the National Convention.

Observing that none of its three conditions had been met, the EU Council
decided on 11th October 2004 to maintain existing measures against the
military regime in Burma; to add a few more names to its 'visa ban' list;
and to adopt some measures in the area of foreign investment. Regrettably,
the wording of the provisional text on foreign investment renders its
effectiveness somewhat doubtful. Without urgently needed, adequate
clarifications as to the meaning of the new measures, they risk being
meaningless.

Concerning other issues at the ASEM Summit, the ICFTU and ETUC expressed
their support for the ASEM Leaders' recommendation to expand the
Asia-Europe dialogue on labour and employment at all levels. The union
organisations emphasized that such dialogue should focus on decent work
based on respect of fundamental workers' rights, with full involvement of
trade unions.

The ICFTU represents over 148 million workers in 234 affiliated
organisations in 152 countries and territories. ICFTU is also a member of
Global Unions: http://www.global-unions.org

M2 Communications Ltd disclaims all liability for information provided
within M2 PressWIRE. Data prepared by named party/parties. Further
information on M2 PressWIRE can be obtained at http://www.presswire.net on
the world wide web. Inquiries to info at m2.com.

ICFTU Press Department | Tel: +32 2 224 0232
_____________________________________
OPINION / OTHER

October 15, Irrawaddy
CPJ honors Burmese journalists

Two Burmese journalists are among the recipients of the Committee to
Protect Journalists’ 2004 International Press Freedom Awards, which will
be given in November, the CPJ announced on its website on Thursday.

Aung Pwint and Thaung Tun, who is better known by his pen name Nyein Thit,
were arrested separately in Burma in 1999 and have been imprisoned ever
since. Svetlana Kalinkina, from Belarus, and Alexis Sinduhije, from
Burundi, will also be honored. The four journalists were selected for
enduring “years of harassment, death threats, or imprisonment to report to
the news,” CPJ announced.

Aung Pwint, also known by his pen name Maung Aung Pwint, is a poet and
video producer and media personality. He was arrested and sentenced to
eight years in prison for the illegal possession of a fax machine and for
sending information to banned Burmese publications. He is now detained in
the notorious Insein Prison in Rangoon.

Thaung Tun (Nyein Thit) worked for the Padaut Pwint Thit magazine in
Rangoon. He was sentenced to eight years in prison for sending information
about human rights violations in Burma to overseas groups. He is being
detained in Moulmein Prison.

“Journalists everywhere take inspiration from the courageous work of these
awardees,” said CPJ Executive Director Ann Cooper. “In honoring them, CPJ
seeks to bolster support for their work, and to win freedom and justice
for these journalists.”

Also to be honored with separate awards are Paul Klebinikov, the former
editor-in-chief of Forbes Russia, who was gunned down in Moscow in July,
and John Carrol, editor and executive vice president of the Los Angeles
Times. The awards will be presented at a ceremony at the Waldorf-Astoria
Hotel in New York on November 23.

The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists is an independent,
nonprofit organization founded in 1981 to promote press freedom worldwide
by defending the right of journalists to report the news without fear of
reprisal.

_____________________________________

PRESS RELEASE
October 14, The Committee to Protect Journalists

CPJ TO PRESENT ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL PRESS FREEDOM AWARDS

[Excerpted from the Committee to Protect Journalists, to view complete
list of awardees visit
http://www.cpj.org/awards04/awards_release_04.html---Ed.]

New York—The Committee to Protect Journalists will honor four
journalists—from Belarus, Burma, Burundi, and the United States—with 2004
International Press Freedom Awards in November.

Svetlana Kalinkina (Belarus), Aung Pwint and Thaung Tun, also known as
Nyein Thit (Burma), and Alexis Sinduhije (Burundi) have endured years of
harassment, death threats, or imprisonment to report the news. CPJ will
also posthumously honor Paul Klebnikov (United States) the slain
editor-in-chief of Forbes Russia, who was gunned down in a contract-style
killing in Moscow in July.

2004 CPJ International Press Freedom Awardees:

Aung Pwint, a documentary filmmaker, editor, and poet, and Thaung Tun, an
editor, filmmaker, and poet better known by his pen name, Nyein Thit, were
arrested separately in Burma in early October 1999 and have been
imprisoned ever since. CPJ sources said they were arrested for filming
independent video documentaries that portrayed the grim reality of
everyday life in Burma, including footage of forced labor and hardship in
rural areas. Aung Pwint worked at a private media company that produced
videos for tourism and educational purposes, but he also worked with
Thaung Tun on documentary-style projects. Their videotapes circulated
through underground networks.

The ruling military junta had prohibited Aung Pwint from making videos in
1996 "because they were considered to show too negative a picture of
Burmese society and living standards," according to Human Rights Watch. A
notable poet, he has also written under the name Maung Aung Pwint.

The same year they were arrested, the two men were tried together, and
each was sentenced to eight years in prison. Pwint was convicted of
"illegal possession of a fax machine" and of "sending news" to banned
Burmese newspapers. CPJ sources say that Pwint still plays an active role
in defending press freedom from prison. Pwint's family has been severely
impoverished as a result of his imprisonment, and Tun is reportedly
suffering from a brain ailment as a result of his confinement.