BurmaNet News, March 10, 2006

[Editor]

March 10, 2005 Issue # 2916


INSIDE BURMA
Irrawaddy: Detained NLD deputy allowed brief freedom
Irrawaddy: Ceasefire group seeks justice for killings
Deutsche Presse-Agentur: India boosts cooperate with Myanmar
AP: Myanmar border areas minister appointed mayor of new capital city
DVB: 24 Shan fighters sentenced to death by Burmese court
DVB: Disgruntled Burmese soldiers at the new capital

ON THE BORDER
Narinjara News: Flag meeting for prisoner exchange

BUSINESS / TRADE
Thai Press Reports: Thailand experts warn of higher cost of electrical
power for Thai users due to Salween River hydroelectric project

REGIONAL
AP: Indonesia urges Myanmar to give regional monitors access before mid-April

PRESS RELEASE
Reporters without Borders: U Win Tin, denied Red Cross visits, to spend
76th birthday in jail

____________________________________
INSIDE BURMA

March 10, Irrawaddy
Detained NLD deputy allowed brief freedom - Aung Lwin Oo

The house arrest of the deputy leader of Burma’s opposition National
League for Democracy was temporarily lifted yesterday to allow him to pay
his respects to the family of a deceased relative, an NLD spokesman told
The Irrawaddy today.

Tin Oo, NLD Vice Chairman, was allowed to leave his home briefly after the
death of his nephew in order to present his condolences personally to the
dead man’s family. Officials, however, refused to grant his request to
attend his nephew’s funeral. They told him his appearance in public would
be inappropriate, NLD spokesman Nyan Win said.

Tin Oo has been held, first in prison and then under house arrest, since
the attack on opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and her entourage in
Sagaing Division in May 2003. He was among Suu Kyi’s followers arrested in
the regime-instigated attack.

He was initially held in Kale prison, Sagaing Division, 700 km north of
Rangoon, and later transferred to the capital, where he was placed under
house arrest.

Last month, his detention was extended for a further year. The extension
order came three days after his party proposed a reconciliation plan,
providing for  a people’s parliament according to the results of the 1990
general election in return for the parliament’s recognition of the regime
as a de jure, or lawful, transitional government.

____________________________________

March 10, Irrawaddy
Ceasefire group seeks justice for killings - Shah Paung

A Karen ceasefire group has called the Burmese military government to task
for the shooting deaths of two of their soldiers, the group’s battalion
commander told The Irrawaddy today.

The Democratic Karen Buddhist Army alleged that Burmese soldiers from
Battalion 18, led by Hla Min, attacked DKBA positions near Three Pagoda
Pass, Karen State, over the weekend and shot two soldiers from Battalion
901.

Burma’s State Peace and Development Council claimed that the deaths were
the result of friendly fire.

“It was not friendly fire,” said the Battalion 901 commander. “They
attacked our position and shot our soldiers in the head.” The two soldiers
killed in the attack—Poe Aye and Hsa Naw—were both 18.

The commander added that the attacking Burmese soldiers were newly arrived
to the area after having been rotated from other regions.

“Our soldiers did not see the SPDC soldiers as enemies, because we’ve
signed a ceasefire agreement,” said the commander. “So we did not return
fire.”

The case is now under discussion between Burmese authorities and leaders
from the DKBA.

“We are now waiting for the leaders to reach a decision and for the law to
be upheld,” the commander said. “We want the [SPDC] commander who ordered
the attack to be removed from his position and the soldiers to be sent to
jail. This is what they would do to us.”

In 2005, a member of the DKBA was imprisoned for the killing of an SPDC
soldier and required to pay compensation to the Burmese army. He is still
in prison and faces a 10-year sentence.

“We will not be satisfied without a just resolution,” said the DKBA
commander. “If the case cannot be resolved at the commander level, we will
pursue the matter with Deputy Snr-Gen Maung Aye, the head of the Burmese
army.

The DKBA is a Karen National Union splinter group that signed a ceasefire
agreement with the Burmese junta in 1995.

____________________________________

March 10, Deutsche Presse-Agentur
India boosts cooperate with Myanmar

India and Myanmar (Burma) have agreed to enhance bilateral cooperation in
the fields of remote sensing, petroleum and Buddhism during an official
visit by Indian President APJ Abdul Kalam to the country, diplomatic
sources said on Friday.

Kalam, who arrived on Wednesday, on Friday gave a lecture to students at
Yangon University and was scheduled to visit Mandalay city, in central
Myanmar, in the afternoon. He departs on Saturday. The Indian president,
whose trip to military-run Myanmar sparked criticism at home, has
impressed many of his hosts.

"In Burma we say a leader must be father to the military, father to
Buddhism and father to the students. The Indian president has covered all
three while here," said one Yangon observer, who asked to remain
anonymous.

The two neighbouring countries on Thursday signed three agreements,
including one that committed the Indian government to providing Myanmar
with access to its remote sensing data from Indian satellites IRS-PS and
IRS-P6 at subsidized rates.

"The service, which will be extended by Antrix Corporation Limited to the
Myanmar Economic Corporation at a cost of 1.6 million dollars per annum,
will be subsidized by the government of India to the tune of 600,000
dollar per annum for a period of three years," said the agreement, which
was signed by Indian Foreign Secretary Shri Shyam Saran and Myanmar Deputy
Foreign Minister Kyaw Thu.

In the petroleum sector the two countries agreed to enhance cooperation in
the exploration of Myanmar's offshore reserves and confirmed that Myanmar
would threat India as a "preferential buyer" of its natural gas exports.

Currently Myanmar only exports natural gas to its neighbour to the east,
Thailand.

India and Myanmar also signed a pact to cooperate in Buddhist studies in
the exchange of students, teachers and monks, and compiling and publishing
glossaries on Buddhist terms, conserving old manuscripts and holding
seminars and exhibitions on Buddhism that originated in India and spread
to Myanmar where it is now the national religion.

During Karam's talks with Myanmar leader Senior General Than Shwe, the
sensitive topic of the ongoing detention of opposition leader Aung San Suu
Kyi has been studiously avoided but India, as the world's largest
democracy has offered to contribute to "capacity building" in Myanmar's
"democractic transition process," diplomatic sources said.

Myanmar is deemed a pariah state among most Western democracies for its
ongoing imprisonment of Suu Kyi, a Nobel peace prize laureate who has been
under house arrest for the past two and a half years, and its failure to
introduce political reforms to edge out the military junta that has ruled
the country since 1988.

____________________________________

March 10, Associated Press
Myanmar border areas minister appointed mayor of new capital city

Myanmar's ruling military junta has appointed the border areas minister as
mayor of Pyinmana, soon to be declared the country's new capital city, the
government announced Friday.

Col. Thein Nyunt, 57, will continue as border areas minister when he
becomes mayor of the city, 400 kilometers (250 miles) north of Yangon, the
current capital, said an announcement in a government gazette.

The central government began moving its offices last November from Yangon
to Pyinmana, a trading town surrounded by mountain ranges and forests. It
is expected to be officially declared the new capital sometime after the
move is completed, but it is not clear when.

The new administrative city had not been officially renamed, but the
announcement Friday called it "Naypyidaw," which means "royal capital."

Thein Nyunt, border areas minister since 1997, was appointed mayor on Feb.
27, it said.

The government says the move will allow more efficient administration of
the country, but many people in Myanmar believe the shift was made because
of worries about possible internal unrest.

____________________________________

March 10, Democratic Voice of Burma
24 Shan fighters sentenced to death by Burmese court

24 members of Shan State Army – South (SSA-S) Brigade – 241 including its
commander Sa Khun Kyaw who surrendered to the Burmese army earlier this
year were sentenced to death by a martial court inside Lashio Prison in
northern Shan State near the Sino-Burmese border.

The sentences were passed on 4 March and the prisoners had already been
transferred to Mandalay Jail in central Burma, according to Shan news
sources.

The Shan fighters were accused of involving in drug-trafficking, murder
and the use of child soldier. A spokeswoman of SSA-S refuted the
accusations of the junta.

____________________________________

March 10, Democratic Voice of Burma
Disgruntled Burmese soldiers at the new capital

According to sources close to the Burmese military HQs, there have been
some problems between Burmese troops who have been arriving at Burma’s new
‘administrative’ capital Pyinmana to take part in a military parade and
their commanding officers.

Many soldiers were said not to have been informed that the Army
(Resistance) Day which falls on 27 March, is to be held at Pyinmana and
some of them were enticed to take part in the parade by the commanding
officers with the prospect of visiting Rangoon. But when they found out
that they were not to go to Rangoon, the soldiers were said to be feeling
very disappointed and angry.

During previous years, soldiers were allowed to go sightseeing in Rangoon
on Sundays, but at Pyinmana, they have nowhere to go for sightseeing and
they have not been allowed out of their camps for security reasons. Some
commanding officers, especially those who had been to Rangoon for the
annual parade, themselves are said to be angry also. Due to the tension
caused by this, the military police controlling the soldiers are watching
the situation closely.

Rehearsals for the parade are not to be carried out this year like
previous years due to ‘uncertain’ security measures. Some people say that
the parade for this year is to be carried out as a way of warding off evil
and no proper ceremony will be held, the sources told DVB.

It is not known who are going to present flower garlands to the soldiers
during the parade, but sources close to the military said that civil
servants and local residents are likely to be forced to do the honour of
presenting the garlands on the necks of the soldiers.

_____________________________________
ON THE BORDER

March 10, Narinjara News
Flag meeting for prisoner exchange

A commander level flag meeting between Burma and Bangladesh was held in
the border town of Teknaf on March 7, for exchanging prisoners between the
two neighbours.

A seven-member team led by Lt Col Myint Shwe in charge of Nasaka area No.
7, represented the Burmese side while Deputy Commander Major Abul Kalam
from BDR battalion 23 based in Teknaf led seven officials from Bangladesh.

During the flag meeting, six Bangladeshi prisoners, who were arrested from
their fishing boat by Nasaka recently in Burmese territorial waters were
handed over to BDR officials by the Nasaka team

The Bangladeshi prisoners are Abadu Gawri (41), Zawshin Ahudin, (27) Gawbi
Ahmed (25) Nawsa Ahmed (40) Zawli (40) and Ami (28). All of them are from
Teknaf Township in Bangladesh.

Recently, the Bangladesh authorities also handed over 75 Burmese prisoners
confined in several jails. They were mostly Buddhists from Burma's Arakan
State and some had been lodged for two or three more years than their jail
terms.

In Cox's Bazaar jail Bangladeshi jail authorities have brought together
496 Burmese prisoners to hand over to Burmese authorities in the near
future. Among them, only 133 prisoners are Buddhists.

It was learnt that the Burmese authorities will accept 133 prisoners out
of the 496 during the next prisoner exchange.

_____________________________________
BUSINESS / TRADE

March 10, Thai Press Reports
Thailand experts warn of higher cost of electrical power for Thai users
due to Salween River hydroelectric project

Thai-Burmese hydro-electricity projects on the Salween River could hit
Thai consumers with higher electricity costs once the dams are
operational, experts have warned, the Bangkok Post reports.

Electricity from the Salween dam projects will likely cause an over-supply
of electricity which could force consumers to bear unnecessary investment
costs in the dam projects, Witoon Permpongsacharoen, a former member of
the National Economic and Social Advisory Council told a recent seminar in
Mae Hong Son.

Mr Witoon said that Egat Plc's electricity demand forecast was based on a
Thai economic growth rate of 6.5%, but the rate declined to 5.2% last year
and Egat did not adjust their forecast.

Instead of recalculating its electricity demand projection, he said, Egat
went ahead with its plan to seek out new electricity sources in
neighbouring countries, including the Salween dam projects.

"Egat has over-estimated electricity demand. For instance, in 2003, 19,600
megawatts of electricity demand was forecast, while actual use was 19,326
megawatts, nearly 300 megawatts below forecast," he said, adding that a
power investment policy based on distorted electricity projections would
adversely impact taxpayers.

"Moreover, once Thailand and Burma ink the electricity purchase deal, it
is likely that Thailand will have to pay Burma whether we take the
electricity or not," said Mr Witoon.

The investment costs and financial losses derived from the deal's
take-or-pay condition would be added to the electricity fees that Thai
consumers would have to pay, he said.

The Ministry of Energy, on behalf of the Thai government, signed a
memorandum of understanding with Burma's Ministry of Electric Power in May
last year to develop the dam projects on the Salween River.

Five hydropower dams, with combined capacity of about 12,000 megawatts,
are expected to be built on the river --- the last free flowing river in
the Mekong region.

Egat said the 1,000-megawatt Hutgyi dam would be the first dam
constructed. The dam site is about 50km deep in Burmese territory,
opposite Tak province.

Chavalit Vidthayanon, head of World Wildlife Fund Thailand's Marine and
Freshwater Unit, voiced concern about the ecological impact of the dams.

The Salween, which flows for more than 2,000km from the Himalayas, has a
diverse ecosystem that supplies food to millions of people in the region,
he said.

According to a study by Mr Chavalit, at least 170 fish species inhabit the
river, of which 60 are endemic species.

The proposed five-dam mega-project would devastate fish habitat, he said,
sharp decreasing the fish populations on which people along the Salween
rely.

Geologist Prinya Nutalaya warned of possible damage from earthquakes since
there are at least three active faults along the river.

"Egat should take into account the earthquake risk before going ahead with
the projects," he said.

Somsri Kruenae,42, an ethnic Karen villager from Ban Tha Ta Fang in Mae
Hong Son, called on the government to scrap the dam projects, which would
inundate vast areas of land.

He said his village was on the riverside and would likely be flooded,
forcing the eviction of hundreds of villagers.

____________________________________
REGIONAL

March 10, Associated Press
Indonesia urges Myanmar to give regional monitors access before mid-April

Indonesia called on Myanmar on Friday to allow a special envoy to visit
the military-run country within the next month to assess its pledges to
move toward democracy.

Myanmar, after intense diplomatic pressure from its neighbors, agreed
three months ago to allow Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar to
visit and verify the ruling junta's claims greeted with skepticism by the
United States and European Union that the isolated nation is making
progress toward democracy.

However, the generals refused set a date, prompting calls for the visit to
begin before the next Association of Southeast Asian Nations meeting on
April 19-20 on the Indonesian resort island of Bali.

"It's logical to raise this because (Albar) has a mandate that has to be
implemented and reported on," Indonesian Foreign Ministry spokesman Yuri
Thamrin told reporters.

Myanmar, the outcast member of ASEAN, has refused to allow special United
Nations envoys into the country for more than two years and continues to
ignore international demands to release pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu
Kyi from house arrest.

Albar sent an envoy to Myanmar, also known as Burma, last month to discuss
an agenda for the proposed visit. But, he said, the authorities have still
not said whether he can meet Suu Kyi and other opposition figures. Last
week, Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono paid a state visit to
Myanmar but did not meet with the detained opposition leader.

In January, U.N. special envoy to Myanmar Razali Ismail resigned because
the junta had not let him visit the country since March 2004, and a trip
by Albar scheduled for last month was abruptly canceled.

Myanmar's junta took power in 1988 after violently suppressing
pro-democracy protests. It held a general election in 1990, but refused to
recognize the result after a landslide victory by Suu Kyi's National
League for Democracy.

Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, is among some 1,100 documented
political prisoners and has spent 10 of the last 16 years in detention.
The international community has repeatedly called for her release.

ASEAN is comprised of Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar,
Laos, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

____________________________________
PRESS RELEASE

March 10, Reporters Without Borders
U Win Tin, denied Red Cross visits, to spend 76th birthday in jail

Reporters Without Borders and the Burma Media Association called for the
unconditional release of Burma’s best-known journalist, U Win Tin, as he
prepared to spend his 76th birthday on 12 March in his special cell in
Rangoon’s notorious Insein prison.

The two press freedom organisations have also appealed for people to sign
on www.rsf.org an international petition for his release.

Since his arrest on 4 July 1989, U Win Tin, who is serving a 20-year
sentence on charges including “anti-government propaganda”, has been
deprived of his basic rights, including proper medical treatment and being
able to write.

Since the start of 2006 he has no longer been able to receive visits from
the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

According to recent information, U Win Tin currently needs treatment for
high blood pressure and inflammation of the prostate. Even though he is
checked twice a month by a prison doctor, he is dependent on the help of
his relatives who regularly bring him medication and food.

His health has seriously deteriorated after 16 years in prison and he has
suffered two heart attacks.

U Win Tin is entitled to a twice-monthly visit from a relative for 20 to
25 minutes. They are allowed to bring him medication, food and magazines,
but a censorship bureau within the prison checks all documents brought in
to him.

The authorities twice wrongly announced his release, in November 2004 and
in July 2005. Under Burmese law he has been eligible for release for good
behaviour since July 2005.

Over the past six years, U Win Tin had been receiving regular visits from
ICRC representatives, but the Geneva-based organisation no longer visits
Burmese prisoners, since the members of the UDSA movement, close to the
government, demanded to be present during interviews.

Reporters Without Borders and the Burma Media Association pointed out the
importance of Red Cross visits to Burmese political prisoners and urged
the government to stop obstructing the organisation’s work. Since May
1999, the ICRC has made more than 450 visits to around 80,000 prisoners.

Reporters Without Borders has obtained two previously unpublished photos
showing U Win Tin with Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, to
whom he was a close advisor. The leader of the National League for
Democracy has been under house arrest since May 2003 and has spent ten of
the past 16 years in detention.