BurmaNet News, July 8-10, 2006

[Editor]

July 8-10, 2006 Issue # 3000

INSIDE BURMA
AFP: Myanmar frees activist lawyer amid ILO pressure
Xinhua: Myanmar terminates some publications
Kaladan Press: Nasaka forces detainees into construction work

ON THE BORDER
Irrawaddy: Shan rebels dismiss claims of mass defections
AP: Hundreds of Shan ethnic rebels surrender arms to Myanmar government
Mizzima News: Illegal Burmese arrested in Chae Khuang
DVB: Burma junta attacks KNU from all fronts

BUSINESS / TRADE
Bangkok Post: Nesac studying Burma townships
Mizzima: Bangladesh plans BIMSTEC deal

REGIONAL
Xinhua: S.Korea to set up technological education center in Myanmar

OPINION / OTHER
New Straits Times (Malaysia): India moves gently to win over Myanmar

PRESS RELEASE
WLB: Women’s testimonies of ongoing abuses

____________________________________
INSIDE BURMA

July 10, Agence France Presse
Myanmar frees activist lawyer amid ILO pressure

Myanmar, under pressure from the International Labor Organization (ILO) to
end forced labor, has freed an activist lawyer jailed last year after
exposing abuses, an official said Monday.

Aye Myint, a member of democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi's National League
for Democracy (NLD), was released Saturday from a prison in Bago, some 80
kilometers (50 miles) north of Yangon, NLD spokesman Myint Thein said.

Aye Myint, aged in his early 50s, was sentenced to seven years in prison
for reporting government labor abuses of farmers to the ILO.

"He was suddenly released on Saturday. I cannot think of any reason for
his release other than pressure from the ILO," the NLD spokesman said.

The ILO has been trying for almost a decade to get Myanmar's military
government to crack down on forced labor. In 1998 an ILO inquiry found
that forced labor was pervasive and systematic throughout the country,
particularly with the military.

The UN labor agency gave Myanmar until July 31 to release anyone jailed
for complaining about forced labor. The ILO office in Yangon could not be
reached for comment Monday.

Myanmar could face sanctions if it fails to comply.

Last month the military government released Su Su Nway, a 33-year-old
rights activist who was imprisoned last year after suing village officials
for imposing forced labor.

Su Su Nway is also a member of the NLD.

____________________________________

July 8, Xinhua General News Service
Myanmar terminates some publications

The Myanmar Information Ministry has terminated some 13 journals and 23
magazines, while granting more publications, according to a report of this
week's Weekly Eleven News.

The 13 journals, revoked from publication, included Myanmar Economic
Journal, Shwe Myanmar Journal, Interview Journal, Myawaddy Journal and
Bulletin Journal, and the 23 magazines comprise English-English
Everywhere, Echanting Myanmar, Shwe Pyi Aye, Shu Ma Wa, Panorama, Taw Win
and Nawaday, the Press Scrutiny and Registration Board (PSRB) under the
ministry was quoted as saying.

The report did not carry the reason about the move.

Last month, 16 more magazines, journals and booklets were granted by the
PSRB for publication and circulation in the country, the Voice Weekly also
quoted the authorities as reporting earlier.

The 16 granted publications include three magazines and five journals
published on weekly basis.

The introduction of the 16 new publications has brought the total number
of them granted since July last year to 42 magazines and 72 journals.

Myanmar readjusted its press scrutiny and registration policy in February
last year with the information ministry taking over the press scrutiny and
registration power from the Ministry of Home Affairs, saying that the
publication and distribution of journals and magazines will be continued
to be granted as long as it conforms to the prescribed policy.

The number of journals covering domestic news has grown over the past
eight years in Myanmar, thanks to market demand and the emergence of more
such journals also contributes to the development of journalism, readers
said.

According to official figures, there have been so far 216 journals and 276
magazines in circulation in Myanmar since 1988 when the present government
assumed office.

____________________________________

July 10, Kaladan Press
Nasaka forces detainees into construction work

Maungdaw, Burma: The Nasaka, Burma’s border security force has been using
detainees to provide forced labour for the construction of a road, which
was severely damaged during heavy rains this monsoon, reports our
correspondent.

On July 2, four sections of the Nasaka went to Fokira Bazaar (Khamaung
Zeik) in Nasaka area No.2, Maungdaw Township, Arakan State and began
searching the village at night after closing all exits.

The Nasaka arrested 17 villagers who had came to the village to visit
relatives from nearby villages without obtaining village out-passes from
the concerned authorities. Besides, two other family members were also
arrested for not taking any transfer permission from the authorities to
live there.

The 17 villagers and two other family members are now being forced to work
on the road construction site as punishment. The road connects Aung Zu
(Shidar Para) and Khamaung Zeik in Maungdaw Township,

Rohingya villagers have to take a village out-pass to go to other villages
within the township. For this they have to pay money to the Village Peace
and Development Council (VPDC) Chairman to acquire it.

Sometimes, villagers don’t take the village out-pass being under the
impression that they are not going to another town but to a nearby
village. That is the reason they don’t take the so called village out–pass
to visit another village near their own, said a village elder.

____________________________________
ON THE BORDER

July 10, The Irrawaddy
Shan rebels dismiss claims of mass defections - Aung Lwin Oo

Armed ethnic group the Shan State Army-South has rejected claims by
Burma’s ruling junta that hundreds of its members have recently defected.

“Realizing the national development endeavors and sincerity of the
government, the entire people and the Tatmadaw (Armed Forces), 848 members
of Shan State Army-South 
 returned to the legal fold,” official The New
Light of Myanmar reported on Saturday.

The SSA-S disputes these figures. “According to our early reports, the
numbers were about 60,” said the group’s spokeswoman, Nam Khur Hsen. “It
later turned out to be around 30,” she added.

Burma’s official press reported that the group of defectors, led by SSA-S
Col Moengzuen, commander of Brigade 758, surrendered to the State Peace
and Development Council with scores of arms, including heavy weapons,
following peace talks with the Burma Army’s eastern command last week.

“We haven’t seen the numbers of SSA-S members and weapons that have been
claimed by official media,” Khuensai Jaiyen, editor of the Shan Herald
Agency for News, told The Irrawaddy on Monday. He added that the defectors
who allied themselves with the junta have done so amid pressure from the
military government and disputes with the SSA-S.

Col Moengzuen was previously involved with a group of Shan in exile
conducting a preliminary census prior to forming an independent Shan State
in 2004. The following year, he support the Interim Shan Government, which
declared a Federated Shan State in April 2005.

These actions, taken independent of the SSA-S leadership, led government
troops to respond with increased military campaigns in the region.

According to Khuensai Jaiyen, Col Moengzuen was summoned in recent weeks
to SSA-S headquarters, while a 300-strong contingent of Shan troops was
deployed in central Shan State.

Group spokesperson Nam Khur Hsen said that Col Moengzuen had been
stationed in central Shan State for years, but had kept only minimal
contact with SSA-S headquarters.

Official press reports claim that Brig-Gen Thaung Aye, head of the
military’s eastern command, provided Col Moengzuen’s group with land and
30 million kyat (about US $22,500) for rural development.

Unlike previous armed Shan groups who’s ended their resistance to
“exchange arms for peace”—a phrase that amounts to surrender—Col
Moengzuen’s group of defectors appears to have been awarded ceasefire
status, under which they would retain their arms, Khuensai Jaiyen said.

____________________________________

July 8, Associated Press
Hundreds of Shan ethnic rebels surrender arms to Myanmar government

Nearly 900 Shan ethnic rebels have surrendered their weapons to Myanmar's
military regime, turning in hundreds of guns, grenades and mines, state
media reported Saturday.

The 848 men from a breakaway faction of the Shan State Army relinquished
over 800 guns, 55 hand grenades, 63 mines and communication equipment at a
ceremony Thursday in the northeastern Shan States, said the Myanma Ahlin
newspaper.

Shan rebels began turning in their arms after a government crackdown on
Shan organizations, including the arrests of at least a dozen Shan
politicians since February and heavy shelling of the Shan State Army's
headquarters in April.

Those who surrendered came from a breakaway group led by Commander Mein
Sein, the newspaper said.

In exchange for their surrender, the rebels were given "assistance for
their livelihood" and land, the newspaper said.

"The people and all ethnic minorities from southern, northern and eastern
Shan States along with the (the army) warmly welcome those who realized
the goodwill of the government and returned to the legal fold," the paper
said.

The majority of the Shan State Army, led by Yawd Serk, remains hostile to
the junta and is opposed to the truce. The junta had previously estimated
the size of the rebel's army at about 5,000 troops.

____________________________________

July 9, Mizzima News
Illegal Burmese arrested in Chae Khuang - Nem Davies

More than 160 Burmese people, including a number of children, have been
arrested in the China-Burma border town of Chae Khuang and charged with
illegally entering the country.

Chinese police raided the town on Friday and took the Burmese citizens to
a drug rehabilitation centre in Chae Lai, according Aung Kyaw Zaw, a
Burmese analyst based on the China-Burma border.

"The Chinese police are vigilant and they were on 24-hour alert in the
downtown area. They arrested people who were staying illegally," Aung Kyaw
Zaw said.

"Among the arrested Burmese people were some businessmen, drug addicts,
drugs traffickers and those who did not have legal stay permit within the
country," he said.

Between 20 and 30 children were also arrested after being caught begging
or working in the city.

Last month Burmese authorities sent 600 Chinese—who had been arrested for
illegally entering Burma and illegal logging—back to China as part of a
repatriation deal between the two countries.

More than 200 Burmese were arrested by authorities in the Chinese town of
Shwe Lee last month and while the police sent a repatriation request to
Burmese officials in Muse, they received no response, Aung Kyaw Zaw said.

____________________________________

July 8, Democratic Voice Burma
Burma junta attacks KNU from all fronts

Burma’s military junta, the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC)
troops have been launching offensives in Karen National Union (NKU)
-controlled regions, and the KNU claimed that the junta is launching the
offensive to block media news.

Furthermore, the SPDC is said to be negotiating with other KNU factions,
on a one on one basis, to disunite the KNU.

KNU information officer Col Saw Hla Ngwe said the current SPDC offensives
are intended to block the media.

“Now that the media is covering the junta's offensives from the grass
roots level, and their human rights and forced labour issues have become
known, they wanted to get the upper hand and they will continue with their
offensives. They have deployed MOMC (Military Operations Management
Command)-15 and MOMC-16 in the KNU regions occupied by brigades 2, 3, 5,
and 1. It will not be easy for us as well as them but we have made certain
preparations.”

At the same time, the SPDC has stopped bilateral talks with the KNU and
preparing to hold separate talks with KNU factions. Some high-level SPDC
officers came to Myawadi at the end of June and met some prominent KNU
members without the knowledge of the KNU leadership. Phado David Htaw, who
was deputy leader of the KNU delegation at all the meetings with the SPDC,
said the following:

“We have not sent any official delegation to hold talks. We consider the
meeting as personal. The junta is so desperate they will take whatever
they can get, whether one, or a few or a group. They have already
persuaded people like Phado Aung San, and Mahn Aung Tin Myint, so this is
not new. It has been in existence since we began talks in 1996. We would
like to remind the revolutionaries to be vigilant.”

Col Saw Hla Ngwe said the following concerning the SPDC's media-blockade
offensive and the underhand trick to organize KNU factions.

“They will have to be aware of the KNU's activities. Otherwise they will
have to face the consequences. If we are slack then we will suffer but we
are trying very hard not to be inefficient. Since they started the
offensive, we are in a better position in the international arena. We will
fight them and the prospects are good for victory.”

____________________________________
BUSINESS / TRADE

July 10, Bangkok Post
Nesac studying Burma townships - Anucha Charoenpo

The National Economic and Social Advisory Council (Nesac) is making a
feasibility study of tourism and fisheries investment in Burma's Tavoy and
Mergui townships, opposite the western provinces of Ratchaburi and
Kanchanaburi.

The study follows a recent request from local businessmen, who said
cross-border investments would generate economic growth and improve the
lives of people in the western region.

Parinya Sirisarakarn, secretary of Nesac's committee on industry and
commerce, said the two Burmese towns were ideally located for Thai
businessmen.

Tavoy and Mergui were within 150km of the Thai border. The
Kanchanaburi-Tavoy highway would open the area up to investment and
development.

Mr Parinya said the highway was a joint venture between Thai contractors
and Burmese military authorities.

Construction should have started several years ago but was delayed because
of the Thai companies' financial problems and lack of support from the
Thai government.

"Kanchanaburi and Ratchaburi provinces are likely to become a tourism and
business hub once the investment plan in neighbouring Burmese cities
materialises," he said. The scheme would also boost Burma's economic
growth through increased employment.

The Nesac committee members had recently made a study trip to Tavoy and
Mergui and concluded Tavoy had a high potential for tourism because of its
abundant natural resources and Mergui was suited to the fishery industry.

Under the Burmese government's economic development policy, Mergui would
be developed into a regional centre for the fishery industry. The town
also had long beaches that could compete with Thailand's famous beaches in
Phuket and other islands.

It was very likely foreign investment would flow into the two townships
once the Burmese government opened the country for tourism, said Mr
Parinya.

However, Thai businessmen could possibly be left behind. He gained the
impression the Burmese prefer investors from countries other than
Thailand.

Investors from Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea and Japan already had
joint investments with local businessmen and Burmese authorities in Tavoy
and Mergui.

"The Thai government should work harder on fostering Thai-Burmese
relations, so the Burmese have more trust and better attitude towards Thai
investors," he said.

Mr Parinya said the feasibility study was due for completion in a year.

Tiwa Supajanya, director of the Thai Settlement Institute, said the study
should not only focus on Kanchanaburi and Ratchaburi provinces, but also
on Prachuap Khiri Khan, which was also close to Mergui.

In the old days, merchants and armies used Prachuap Khiri Khan as one of
the main routes to travel to Mergui, he said.

Mr Tiwa suggested the Nesac committee study geographical information and
aerial maps in the drafting of the cross-border investment plan, so Thai
business investors would be better informed.

____________________________________

July 10, Mizzima News
Bangladesh plans BIMSTEC deal - Siddique Islam

A five-point plan to turn the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral
Technical and Economic Cooperation, or BIMSTEC, into an effective economic
bloc was aired in Bangladesh on Saturday.

Bangladeshi foreign minister M Morshed Khan unveiled the plan to establish
a free trade area and promote transport links between members of the
group—Bangladesh, Bhutan, Burma, India, Nepal and Thailand—at a seminar in
Dhaka.

Khan also proposed the development of the necessary institutional
framework for monetary and customs cooperation between BIMSTEC countries
by 2020.

According to a recent study, between US $43 billion and $59 billion worth
of trade could be generated by the establishment of a free trade area
among members.

But former director for the United Nations Economic and Social Commission
for Asia and the Pacific, Dr M Rahmatullah, said a strong political
commitment would be needed from BIMSTEC members if the plan were to be
successful.

____________________________________
REGIONAL

July 10, Xinhua General News Service
S.Korea to set up technological education center in Myanmar

South Korea will set up a technology, culture and business education
center (TCBEC) in Myanmar, aimed at promoting the development of the
fields in the country, according to business sources Monday.

The TCBEC will be jointly run by the Gwangju-Jeannam e-Learning Research
Center and the Chonnam National University under a memorandum of
understanding initiated here recently between the Union of Myanmar
Chambers of Commerce and Industry and Korean university.

Myanmar and South Korea have maintained cooperative relations in various
areas including economic, technical and cultural cooperation since decades
ago.

As one of the most recent cooperation projects in the technology aspects,
a South Korean consortium comprising the Daewoo International Corporation
and the KCOMS has reached a 12- million-U.S.-dollar contract with the
Myanmar communications authorities to help build an
e(electronic)-government system for the country over the next few years,
local reports said earlier.

Under the project, the Korean consortium is to provide information and
communication technology infrastructure for the Myanmar government to link
its 38 ministries to a high-speed internet network and computerize its
personnel management system.

In the culture aspects, South Korean artists visited Myanmar in September
last year for cultural exchange to help create better understanding
between the peoples of the two countries and enhanced bilateral
friendship.

In the business field, South Korea has been enhancing exploration in the
field with several trade missions visiting the country since late last
year. The missions, which include representatives from over a dozen small
and medium enterprises, are to strengthen exploration of market potential
for exporting products to Myanmar and importing raw materials from the
country.

According to official statistics, South Korea's investment in Myanmar has
reached over 190 million U.S. dollars since the country opened to foreign
investment in late 1988. The investment involved about 100 Korean
companies in 34 projects.

The statistics also show that their bilateral trade amounted to 127.14
million U.S. dollars in the fiscal year 2004-05 with Myanmar's exports to
Korea amounting to 36.86 million U.S. dollars and its imports from Korea
taking 90.28 million U.S. dollars.

____________________________________
OPINION / OTHER

July 10, New Straits Times (Malaysia)
India moves gently to win over Myanmar - Mahendra Ved

At the end of the first-ever state visit to Myanmar in March this year,
President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam asked his host, the Senior General Than Shwe:
"How is your daughter doing?"

The question caught the military strongman off guard. The reply was
respectful, although non-committal. But the import of the question was not
lost on him.

A voracious reader, Kalam, who does thorough homework even on the smallest
task he undertakes, had found out that Than Shwe had written about Nobel
Laureate and democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi as being "like my
daughter".

"Indians care for your daughter's well-being," Kalam said. He was
speaking, not only for India but for much of humanity that is concerned
about democracy and its proponents in Myanmar but can do little.

Kalam told his hosts that the world would appreciate them better if they
made their ongoing national convention all-inclusive, taking the religious
and ethnic minorities along.

He was gently "engaging" Myanmar. After some years of misunderstanding
over India's approach, the international community, New Delhi hopes, has
come to accept that as a stable democracy in Myanmar's immediate
neighbourhood, India is best placed to perform that role.

It has taken the community long to realise that pressures and sanctions
have a limited impact in places and situations like Cuba, Myanmar or North
Korea. Shutting them out does not really help.

In October 2004, when Than Shwe visited India, no less than 23 missions in
New Delhi sought to "understand" why it was legitimising a military junta
that holds Suu Kyi - and democracy - hostage. Kalam's visit did not invoke
such diplomatic queries.

It would be wrong to think that India is acting purely for idealistic
reasons - no country does. Kalam's visit was unusual for another reason:
During what could have otherwise been a ceremonial, goodwill visit, a
clutch of agreements was signed.

India hopes to double by 2010 the bilateral trade that now stands at US$1
billion (RM3.65 billion). It wants to become a serious partner in oil and
gas exploration.

Two state-owned firms, ONGC Videsh and GAIL, have a 30 per cent stake in
the explorations in two offshore blocks in Arakan state. Delhi is upbeat
that decisions likely to be taken in Yangon at the end of the month would
see this partnership grow.

For all its physical proximity and historical ties, Myanmar remains remote
in the Indian psyche. The 2.4 million Indians living there are forgotten.
Not many Indians visit Myanmar, even as tourists. The isolation of the
Indian northeast and Myanmar's years of military rule have contributed to
this.

Indians realised Myanmar's importance only recently when they began
"looking east". It is the only country with a common border that is a
member of Asean.

They realise that to reach Asean effectively, they must perform a hop,
step and jump - hop on to their own northeast, step into Myanmar and then
jump towards the Asean region.

The "hop" requires political stability and economic viability of the
remote northeast. More southeast than south Asian in its geography and
culture, it has remained neglected. It is constantly on the boil with
militant, even armed, separatist groups. Worse, the whole area is awash in
drug trafficking.

The strong presence of security forces at times leads to human rights
violations causing protests by civil society. New Delhi has not really
understood the complexities of the tribes that inhabit the region and has
been engaged in off-again-on-again parleys. Governance is poor and the
politicians, who talk of change, actually prefer the status quo in the
name of preserving their cultural identity.

But the "hop" is necessary to take the "step". A major mutual concern for
India and Myanmar is not allowing their respective territories to become
safe havens. Delhi and Yangon have been co-operating along the border to
curb the movements of militants. Officials say the efforts are marred by
inefficiency at lower levels, compounded by the presence of narco-money.
The area is also home to avian flu and HIV/AIDS.

Until all this is tackled, the India-Myanmar-Thailand highway - one of
cement-concrete and the other of trade and travel - cannot be laid and
traversed easily.

After a decade's effort, the "jump" remains tentative. India is developing
the Sittwe port, the former Akyab, spending an estimated US$103 million,
to connect it with Vishakhpattanam, Vizag for short, in the Bay of Bengal.
The Tamu-Kaleva-Kaladan road would effectively link Myanmar with India's
Mizoram, ending the isolation of a volatile region.

Here comes the big picture. With the Vizag-Sittwe sea route, India could
bypass Bangladesh, allowing it to bring Myanmar's gas to its northeastern
region without using the Bangladeshi corridor. Its dependence on the 23km
corridor north of Bangladesh would be that much less for transporting
goods to and from the northeast.

And then comes the bigger picture. All-round co-operation with Myanmar
helps India counter China's influence in the region. India had lost out to
China during the period it sang the pro-democracy song and joined the
international criticism, if not the sanctions. Now it wants to make up for
the lost time and space by posing as a security alternative to China.

Indeed, China occupies so much strategic space in Myanmar that India feels
the need to counter it, but will not say it for fear of cooling the
current warmth in Sino-Indian relations that is seen as working wonders
for both.

Says Udai Bhanu Singh, who studies the region closely: "There is
convergence of interests in Myanmar's future not only for Southeast Asia
but also the West, since thoughts and actions of all are driven by the
need to counter the overpowering Chinese presence."

Singh sees the military junta softening with time, if not sought to be
throttled with sanctions. It is difficult to think of Myanmar without a
role for the military, but the military could meet the democratic forces
halfway at some stage. An imposition from outside, he warns, would lead to
chaos, which would be bad for the entire region.

____________________________________
PRESS RELEASE

July 8, Women’s League of Burma
Women’s testimonies of ongoing abuses

Women’s testimonies of ongoing abuses, including sexual violence, belie
SPDC’s “Myanmar
Women’s Day” propaganda

Further evidence of recent rape and sexual slavery by SPDC troops, added
to testimony from women suffering from forced displacement and failed drug
policies, give the lie to statements issued by local state-sponsored
women’s organisations throughout Burma on the occasion of “Myanmar Women’s
Day” since July 3. The statements denied reports by WLB members concerning
sexual violence, drug production and forced displacement.

Many international reports have detailed the current offensive against
civilians in Karen State, which has already displaced over 18,000
villagers. Refugees, mainly women and children, arriving at the Thai-Burma
border are clear evidence of the ongoing forced displacement policies of
the military regime.

At the same time, abuses by the regime’s troops have been continuing in
other parts of Burma. Between January and April 2006, in six Palaung
villages in Murng Kerng township, central Shan State, at least 29 Palaung
women suffered sexual violence, including gang-rape, sexual slavery and
torture to death, committed by SPDC officers and soldiers from LIB 514,
515 and IB 64. Women were seized by patrolling troops and kept for sexual
abuse for up to five nights. In one village, women were gang-raped in
front of their husbands, who had been tied up. One mute woman was beaten
to death and her body left outside her village.

The testimony of these rape survivors, the hundreds of thousands of
displaced women, and the wives and mothers of drug addicts interviewed for
the Palaung Women’s Organisation’s report “Poisoned Flowers”, reflect the
true reality of life for women inside Burma today. Such testimonies
constitute the strongest evidence of the regime’s crimes and failed
policies.

“By attempting to conceal their crimes, and using women as false
witnesses, the regime is not fooling anyone but themselves,” said Nang
Yain, the General Secreatary of WLB “Despite all the risks, women inside
Burma are continuing to speak out, and we will continue to collect and
compile their testimonies.

We fully believe that this evidence will be a decisive factor in bringing
about change in Burma.”

Media Contact:
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Nang Hseng Noung Presidium Board Member + 66 1 8844963
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