BurmaNet News, October 25, 2006

[Editor]

October 25, 2006 Issue # 3073


INSIDE BURMA
Irrawaddy: ILO advisor concludes Burma visit
Irrawaddy: Activists organize prayer campaign
DVB: 88 Generation Students insist signature campaign a success
DVB: Heartbreak: Political prisoner’s mother dies

GUNS
Pittsburgh Tribune Review: Kennametal officials face buyout, Myanmar
questions

BUSINESS / TRADE
AFP: Myanmar's Air Bagan to fly to Thailand, Singapore, China

INTERNATIONAL
Irrawaddy: British opposition MPs urge stronger action on Burma
AFP: Rights group praises US for allowing Myanmar's Chin refugees
AFP: Myanmar, Thai coup stand in way of US-ASEAN summit

OPINION / OTHER
Irrawaddy: Burma and lessons from the Hungarian revolution

PRESS RELEASE
CSW: MPS call on UK Government to be more proactive in putting pressure on
Burma’s military regime

____________________________________
INSIDE BURMA

October 25, Irrawaddy
ILO advisor concludes Burma visit - Clive Parker

Francis Maupain, a special advisor for the Geneva-based International
Labour Organization, left Burma on Tuesday after concluding discussions
with the regime on a possible mechanism for assessing cases of forced
labor in the country.

Nearly a year after the junta told Maupain it would leave the ILO, talks
this time come during a period in which Burma has released high-profile
labor activists and initiated a moratorium on prosecuting forced labor
complainants-steps that the ILO demanded during its annual convention in
Geneva in June. The regime previously treated all forced labor complaints
as lies, punishable in some cases with life imprisonment.

Maupain met with Burmese Minister of Labor U Thaung and his staff, as well
as director-generals from other ministries in the hope of reaching a
suitable framework to assess individual cases of forced labor in Burma,
described as the “main issue” by the ILO’s representative in Rangoon,
Richard Horsey.

Maupain was traveling and unavailable for comment on Wednesday.

In June, the ILO called on the regime to agree to a system of arbitration
by the end of October, or prior to the ILO’s next Governing Body meeting,
which is again set to discuss Burma’s case between November 14 and 17.

The junta earlier this year rejected a “Joint Panel” system, which would
include a representative of the ILO and the regime, as well as a possible
third independent individual. The Irrawaddy understands talks are now
focusing on an alternative solution that would make use of the current set
up, namely the ILO’s Rangoon office headed by Horsey. The junta is still
thought to be reluctant to allow the ILO to expand its presence in Burma.

Paolo Sergio Pinheiro, the UN special rapporteur on human rights in Burma,
last week said in a report to the UN General Assembly that forced labor
and dealings with the ILO were one of the few areas in which the junta had
made “some progress.”

____________________________________

October 25, Irrawaddy
Activists organize prayer campaign

Burma’s leading opposition group is following up its petition campaign
with a multi-denominational prayer week during which candlelight vigils
will be held in Buddhist monasteries, Christian cathedrals and churches
and Muslim mosques throughout the country.

The week of “Multiple Religious Prayer” is being organized by the 88
Generation Students group days after it ended its campaign to gather
signatures on a petition calling for democracy in Burma and the release of
political prisoners. The petition was signed by 535,580 people and will
now be sent to the UN.

During the week-long event, from October 29 until November 4, sympathizers
will be urged to wear white clothing and hold candlelight vigils in places
of worship. The organizers say prayers will be offered for a peaceful
resolution of the country’s political crisis, for political prisoners and
for victims of the recent floods.

“Our campaign is to show our loving kindness, not confrontation,” Kyaw Min
Yu, one of the organizers, told The Irrawaddy.

Another campaign, “White Expression”-which urged people to wear white
clothing as a demonstration of their support-ended on the 44th birthday on
October 18 of Min Ko Naing, a former student leader arrested at the end of
September, together with four former student comrades, Ko Ko Gyi, Pyone
Cho, Min Zeya and Htay Kywe.

____________________________________

October 23, Democratic Voice of Burma
88 Generation Students insist signature campaign a success

88 Generation Students of Burma said that their signature campaign,
calling for the release of all political prisoners and a start to the
national reconciliation process, which started on 2 October and ended
today was a success and that 535,580 signatures had been collected.

When asked what they are going to do next one of the students, Mya Aye
said that copies of the signatures, accompanied by a letter, will be sent
officially to the ruling military junta, the State Peace and Development
Council (SPDC) and the UN organisations.

He also insisted the campaign was a success even though nothing
extraordinary happened during it as the people from all walks of life
bravely came forward and gave their signatures despite the difficulties,
harassments and threats of arrest from the authorities.

“You cannot say that it is not successful by looking at it in a distorted
way. The reason is, if we want to get to a place we have to go it step by
step. You can’t take just one large step. Therefore, if we are to assess
it, we will be stepping towards our desired destination by peaceful means
and by using the path which could be followed by the public within the
legal boundary,” said Mya Aye.

When asked why the public had come forward bravely, leaving aside their
fears, Mya Aye said that the main reasons are economic and social dire
straights, and that they are starting to have the pragmatic and strong
belief that under the current system there would be no security for them.

____________________________________

October 24 Democratic Voice of Burma
Heartbreak: Political prisoner’s mother dies

The mother of Phyo Zaw Latt who was arrested with Monyo Township National
League for Democracy (NLD) members Win Ko, died from anxiety and
heartbreak yesterday.

Shwe Yin has been lying in bed with stress and extreme anxiety since her
son was arrested early this month.

“His 58-year-old mother Daw Shwe Yin had been lying in bed and suffering
since the arrest of Phyo Zaw Latt and died at 1pm yesterday,” said Ant Bwe
Kyaw, a student leader. “Phyo Zaw Latt’s mother had no previous illnesses.
I learnt that she died from anxiety for her son alone.”

The grieving family members tried to see Phyo Zaw Latt, who is being
detained at a police station with no clear charges against him, to inform
him of his mother’s death, but the authorities refused them the
permission. They also pleaded with the authorities to let him attend his
mother’s funeral tomorrow on humanitarian grounds.

Win Ko and Phyo Zaw Latt were arrested on 6 October at the Letpa(n)dan
train station, 160 kilometres (100 miles) north of Rangoon, in possession
of some 400 signatures in support of the petition campaign demanding the
release of all political prisoners and a kick-start to the national
reconciliation process. Win Ko was approached by officers from the
military junta-sponsored Union Solidarity and Development Association
(USDA) and, searched his bag and asked him to explain the petitions, he
declined. The officers also allegedly ‘found’ illegal lottery tickets in
his possession.

He was sentenced to three years in jail at a trial on 18 October where he
was denied a lawyer and defence witnesses and sent to Tharawaddy Jail on
the same day, according to 88 Generation Students who led the signature
campaign. The court in Letpa(n)dan sentenced him to two years in prison
for ‘obstructing the work of a government officer’ and to another year in
prison for possession of illegal lottery tickets.

Recently, detained 88 generation student leader Pyone Cho was not allowed
to attend the funeral of his brother Thet Win Aung who died in Manadalay
jail on 16 October.

____________________________________
GUNS

October 25, Pittsburgh Tribune Review
Kennametal officials face buyout, Myanmar questions - C.M. Mortimer

Questions from Kennametal Inc. shareholders were the focal point Tuesday
at the company's annual shareholder's meeting.

The queries enlivened a recap of a fiscal 2006, in which the Unity-based
industrial toolmaker reported sales totaling $2.3 billion, up 6 percent
from $2.2 billion the previous year.

"Last year was one of the best in the company's 70-year history, and
Kennametal enters 2007 with a strong sense of identify and confidence,"
said Markos I. Tambakeras, executive chairman of Kennametal's board of
directors, in the event at the company's headquarters. Tambakeras served
as president and CEO from 1999 until January 2006, when he turned the job
over to Carlos M. Cardoso.

Shareholder Francis Yandrick of Ligonier questioned whether Kennametal was
engaged in acquisition talks. Yandrick said he retired from the company in
1987 with 35 years service.

Tambakeras responded that rumors about companies routinely pop up from
time to time. "We are not aware of anyone interested in our company. It's
just speculation," he said.

Shareholder John Howland of Greensburg questioned whether Kennametal
violated International Traffic Arms Regulations stemming from a series of
sales to the government of Myanmar, also known as Burma, and whether trade
sanctions in place at the time prohibited such trade.

Howland said he was a marketing manager for Kennametal in its Asia-Pacific
operations when Kennametal allegedly ran a $250,000 order to make tools
--- which he claimed are turning up in improvised explosive devices in
Iraq.

"Burma trades with everyone and everybody. I just want Kennametal to
acknowledge that it happened," Howland said. He said he retired from
Kennametal in 2004 with 24 years service.

"We did not violate U.S. trade policy," Joy Chandler, Kennametal
spokeswoman, said later yesterday.

Chandler said the alleged sale probably occurred in 1997, a time when
Myanmar was not on the U.S. government's embargo list.

However, she said Kennametal has its own, additional "cautionary" list of
companies. She said potential deals in this category are carefully
scrutinized by the company's legal department and export trade policy
experts.

Chandler said the deal Howland raised involved four separate transactions,
three of which occurred before Myanmar was either on the government's or
Kennametal's embargo list. A fourth transaction was made after Kennametal
put Myanmar on its own restricted list.

"It is absolutely legal to sell or trade with any country not on the U.S.
government list. It's even stricter if a company has its own list. Myanmar
is currently not on the government's list, but it's still on ours. There
is no requirement to have a secondary list. We have one because we don't
want to be on the wrong side of export requirements," Chandler said.

Chandler said she didn't know what material or tool was involved in the
deal. "We work with a lot of hard materials and composites, a lot of which
can't be used militarily," she said.

C.M. Mortimer can be reached at cmortimer at tribweb.com or (724) 836-5252.

_____________________________________
BUSINESS / TRADE

October 25, Agence France Presse
Myanmar's Air Bagan to fly to Thailand, Singapore, China

Myanmar's privately owned Air Bagan has received an Airbus A310-200, one
of three planes the airline has purchased to begin flying to neighboring
countries, official media said Wednesday.
A second Airbus A310-200 and a Fokker 100 are expected to arrive soon, as
the airline begins new routes to Thailand, Singapore and China, the
official New Light of Myanmar said.

Air Bagan plans to start daily flights from Yangon going to Bangkok and
Singapore, while offering three flights a week to Kunming, in China's
southwestern Yunnan province, it added.

The airline already has one Fokker 100, three ATR 42s and two ATR 72s
which fly domestic routes, the paper said.

An airline official declined to confirm the arrival of the aircraft, but
said that Air Bagan did expect to begin flying internationally soon.

"We will be the first (private airline) to fly to an international
destination," she said.
Myanmar's military rulers agreed in June to allow Air Bagan to fly
internationally.

Air Bagan is one of three private airlines in Myanmar. It opened in
November 2004, mainly to bring tourists to the ancient city of Bagan,
which is home to thousands of world-famous 11th and 12th century Buddhist
temples.

_____________________________________
INTERNATIONAL

October 25, Irrawaddy
British opposition MPs urge stronger action on Burma - Clive Parker

British opposition members of parliament urged the UK government on
Tuesday to make Burma a higher priority in foreign policy.

The plea was made at a special session attended by members of the main
opposition Conservative Party and a government minister, held in
parliament’s Westminster Hall.

The session was called by Conservative Party MP Stephen Crabb, who
demanded “greater engagement” in the Burma question by the British Prime
Minister Tony Blair as well as a more proactive approach on Burma by the
UK within the European Union and UN.

“The European Union and others in the international community have been,
in my view, far too timid in the language they have been willing to use,”
said Crabb.

Citing atrocities by the regime in Karen State, the continued use of child
soldiers and the plight of the Burmese opposition and political prisoners,
Crabb joined other MPs in calling for a review of Britain’s investment
practices in Burma. Recent Burmese government figures show that the UK is
the second largest investor in the country, despite EU restrictions on
investment in Burma. The British government says the data is flawed, not
least because it includes investments that have already been withdrawn.

Special interest groups and a number of British MPs have claimed that
multinational companies are pouring money into Burma through UK overseas
territories, including Bermuda and the British Virgin Islands.

“It seems to me that propping up the regime through trade is a key area
where it has benefited and one that we can do something about,” said
Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, a Conservative MP.

In response, the Minister for Europe, Geoffrey Hoon, said Britain had “a
long-standing policy of discouraging British firms from trading with or
investing in Burma,” adding that there was “no evidence that large-scale
investments are reaching Burma via British overseas territories-registered
companies.” The British government had reviewed the situation and would do
so again, he said.

A number of opposition MPs attacked the EU’s attitude on trade with the
Burmese regime, singling out France in particular over the investment of
energy company Total in the Yadana Gas pipeline. Conservative MP John
Bercow asked whether the British government agreed that “the rest of the
European Union should
name, shame, denounce and humiliate the French
government for their outrageous collusion in the regime’s unethical
practices?”

Requesting a stronger EU Common Position on Burma, Crabb noted that less
than £4,000 (US $7,507) in assets belonging to the Burmese regime had been
frozen as part of European sanctions.

There were also calls for Britain to increase efforts at the UN Security
Council and to consider demanding that the Burmese government allow
independent observers to monitor a referendum on a new constitution, the
next step in the junta’s “Roadmap to Democracy” scheduled to take place
after the conclusion of the ongoing National Convention. Crabb labeled the
convention process a “sham” and a “desperate bid by a brutal military
regime to rubber-stamp its own agenda and give itself a civilian face.”

Recalling British government efforts to call the junta to task for its
behavior, Hoon noted that Mark Canning, the British ambassador to Burma,
had on Tuesday expressed concern to Burmese Minister of Home Affairs Maung
Oo over recent unspecified abuses by the regime.

____________________________________

October 25, Agence France Presse
Rights group praises US for allowing Myanmar's Chin refugees

A rights group that advocates for Myanmar's ethnic Chin minority Wednesday
applauded the US government for waiving a law that would allow Chin
refugees to come to the United States.

More than 80,000 Chin refugees currently live in Malaysia, India and
Thailand. Many fled their homes in western Myanmar due to fighting between
Chin rebels and the country's oppressive military regime.

"This will give the Chin the opportunity to live a normal life," said Amy
Alexander, legal consultant for the Chin Human Rights Organization.

The waiver exempts the Chin from a provision in a US anti-terrorism law --
put in place after the September 11 attacks -- which bars refugees who
have supported armed groups from resettling in the country.

Many Chin refugees provided support for the Chin National Front or its
armed wing, the Chin National Army, which has battled Myanmar's military
regime for autonomy since 1988.
Myanmar's government stands accused by rights groups of killings, torture,
rape and other abuses against ethnic minorities.

The secretive regime is also regularly criticized over the treatment of
political opponents, particularly prodemocracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, who
has been under house arrest for most of the past 17 years.

The Chins, who are 95 percent Christian in a mostly Buddhist nation, have
also been persecuted for their religious beliefs.

Many fled to neighboring countries where they have received few
protections, often unable to work, attend school or access social
services.

"The Chins are living in pretty deplorable conditions in exile," Alexander
said. "They are treated as illegal immigrants."

The waiver could allow up to 2,000 Chin refugees into the US annually,
according to the Chin Human Rights Organization.

In addition to the Chins, the Karen, another ethnic minority in exile in
Thailand, received the same waiver in August.

"Hopefully this is a sign that the US is looking to extend waivers to
other groups," Alexander said.
Some 17 ethnic groups have battled Myanmar's government to seek autonomy
for their regions. Although most have now signed ceasefires, the Chin have
not. A 2002 Human Rights Watch report estimated that the Chin National
Army had about 500 fighters.

____________________________________

October 25, Agnece France Presse
Myanmar, Thai coup stand in way of US-ASEAN summit - P. Parameswaran

Planned talks between US President George W. Bush and Southeast Asian
leaders next month are hanging in the balance over such issues as Myanmar
and the fallout from a military coup in Thailand, diplomats and analysts
say.

The second summit between the two sides was proposed on the sidelines of
the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Hanoi scheduled on
November 18-19.

All seven Southeast Asian member states of APEC -- Brunei, Indonesia,
Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam -- attended the
inaugural meeting held alongside the APEC summit in Busan, South Korea in
2005.

This time, the region wants all 10 members of the Association of Southeast
Asian Nations (ASEAN), including Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar, to
participate in the talks with Bush.
But ASEAN officials say the United States wants to maintain the "7 plus
one" arrangement in a bid to keep Myanmar out technically as the
military-ruled state as well as Laos and Cambodia are not APEC members.

Some analysts however said Washington was not keen on having the summit
altogether this year due to the September military coup that ousted Thai
premier Thaksin Shinawatra.

The United States has for years imposed sanctions on military-ruled
Myanmar and recently for the first time managed to put the issue of
Yangon's repression and human rights violations on the UN Security
Council's formal agenda.

"By having only seven leaders from the region meeting the US president,
you cannot call it an ASEAN-US summit," said a regional diplomat, speaking
on condition of anonymity considering the "sensitivity" involved.

"What all 10 nations of ASEAN want is an ASEAN summit with the US
involving all 10 nations," he said.

The US position against such an arrangement was last conveyed by US deputy
assistant secretary of state Eric John to ASEAN diplomats at a meeting in
Washington earlier this month aimed at fleshing out details of the
ASEAN-US Enhanced Partnership agreement, signed in July by Secretary of
State Condoleezza Rice and her regional counterparts.

"Both sides are sticking to their positions but the door to further
discussions isn't closed yet," the ASEAN diplomat said.

But Oxford Analytica, an international independent consultancy, said the
US-ASEAN Summit was "ill timed" be-cause the Bush administration was not
anxious to embrace the interim Thai government of military-installed Prime
Minister Surayud Chulanont.

"If Thailand is included in the Hanoi Summit, it could be seen as a US
validation of the Surayud government," said the consultancy, which draws
on a network of over 1,000 senior faculty members at Oxford and other
major universities and research institutions around the world.

"Therefore, Washington is likely to downplay the US-ASEAN summit or even
postpone it until next year, when Thailand will presumably have an elected
civilian government in place," it added.
Yet, the United States has to deal with Thailand, which is the designated
liaison between ASEAN and Washington for the Enhanced Partnership
agreement.

The reality may be more painful to swallow for Bush, whose administration
has imposed US sanctions on Bangkok.

He is designated to sit next to Surayud at the APEC summit under a seating
arrangement based on alphabetical order of the 21 member economies of the
forum.

_____________________________________
OPINION / OTHER

October 25, Irrawaddy
Burma and lessons from the Hungarian revolution - David I Steinberg

This week marks the 50th anniversary of the start of the 1956 Hungarian
revolution against the Soviet-imposed regime, an heroic uprising
commemorated in the US, elsewhere in the West and, of course, in Hungary
as a major national movement against foreign-imposed rule. All this is
accurate and appropriate. More problematic is the question of where one
would stand if the US, as a stalwart opponent of the Soviet Union in the
Cold War, were to attempt to take credit for the revolution. Our
moralistic stance would leave something to be desired.

That the US morally supported risings against Soviet-controlled Eastern
Europe is beyond question. Through such public means as Radio Free Europe
and Radio Liberty, and perhaps other non-public means, we gave our
diplomatic and moral blessings to those opposed to Soviet control. But
when the revolution did come, the US, perhaps fearful of triggering World
War III, did nothing to assist those brave people, except to take in the
refugees who fled as Soviet control was reimposed. In effect, our
bellicose, hortative language was contrary to our subsequent inaction.
US-financed Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty never fully recovered from
the charge that they had led the Hungarian people to believe that American
military assistance was on the way.

What can we learn from the tragedy of 1956? Some lessons are obvious, but
still not properly understood. The rhetoric of those times reinforces the
siege mentality of some regimes, fostering what has been called the
“garrison state” and thus encourages internal repression. Simultaneously
and indirectly, it encourages rebellions which the US is not prepared
materially to support. Both actions are morally and diplomatically
reprehensible

Burma is a case in point. Language characterizing the Burmese military
regime as a bunch of thugs in a rogue, failed and pariah state makes the
military insecure. This vituperative language is reinforced by the US
calling Burma, in UN Security Council sessions, a danger to international
peace and security. Whether or not fear of a US invasion was one reason
for the movement of the Burmese capital away from Rangoon, when this
writer attempted to convince a Burmese military intelligence officer that
the US was not going to invade Burma, he started to tick off on his
fingers past US invasions and military interventions-Granada, Panama,
Somalia, Kosovo, Afghanistan....

More importantly, such language encourages some of the opposition,
including Burmese expatriates, to hope for, indeed to call for, a US
invasion to bring about the democratic change that they feel was denied
them when the military ignored the results of the May 1990 election, which
the opposition easily won. Although the opposition National League for
Democracy and its leader Aung San Suu Kyi have repeatedly rejected
violence for political ends (if they advocated it the party would
doubtless be banned), many of their more exuberant followers feel
differently.

This attitude results in increased opposition dependency on the US, which
in turn is used against them by the highly nationalistic military. The
joke a few years ago in Rangoon was: “After diamonds, gold"-a play on
words meaning that after Saddam Hussein ("sein" in Burmese means diamonds)
would come Than Shwe ("shwe" in Burmese being gold). It was a clever
political play on Burmese words, but the distance between hope and
expectation is sometimes very narrow.

Knowledgeable observers know full well that the US has articulated no
national interests in Burma except for human rights and democracy. In
spite of the rhetoric of UN Ambassador Bolton about the dangers of Burma
to peace and security, our close ally Thailand is under no perceptible
threat, despite the spill-over of disease, drugs, refugees and illegal
workers across a porous border (think Mexico in this context).

The American military is seriously overstretched in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The last thing the US needs is to antagonize China, whose influence
Washington seeks in relations with North Korea and whose restraint is
sought in the Taiwan Straits. Burma is the most heavily Chinese-penetrated
state in the world, and it is in the Sino-sphere of influence, exacerbated
in part because of its diplomatic isolation.

However much we may deplore the excesses and restrictions on human rights
by the military in Burma, our threatening posture simply reinforces their
predilection, partly propaganda and partly strong belief, to employ the
concept of the garrison state to stay in power to protect the country from
external threats.

We have little choice for effective action in Burma, but as the medical
oath stipulates, “do no harm.”  Do not even indirectly encourage the
opposition to sacrifice their youth for an impossible goal based on our
inadvertent, implicit support. Let them save their resources for the time
when they will be needed-when inevitable and positive changes do take
place in the country.

David I Steinberg is Distinguished Professor and Director, Asian Studies
Program, School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University, and the author
of Turmoil in Burma: Contested Legitimacies in Myanmar (2006).

_____________________________________
PRESS RELEASE

October 25, Christian Solidarity Worldwide
MPS call on UK Government to be more proactive in putting pressure on
Burma’s military regime

MPs yesterday sought assurance that the government would raise Burma at
tomorrow's UN Security Council meeting. They also called on the British
government to be less "reactive and passive" in dealing with British
companies that trade with Burma.

Stephen Crabb MP opened a Westminster Hall debate on Human Rights in Burma
by appealing to the government to press forward with work on behalf of the
people of Burma. He urged the government raise the situation in Burma
during the UN Security Council debate on Women and peace and security, and
to call on Burma to "bring an end to the system of impunity for grave
violations committed by state actors, including rape and sexual violence"

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown MP highlighted the Burma Campaign's "Dirty List",
which catalogues dozens of British companies involved in trade and
investment in Burma. He called on the government to be more proactive in
contacting each of the companies listed and "explain to them what they are
doing in propping up the regime".

The Minister for Europe, Geoff Hoon MP, insisted that the government seeks
to discourage British companies from trading in Burma.

The government was also urged to re-think its current cross-border aid
policy. John Bercow MP said that the level of British humanitarian aid to
Burma "saddens and angers me greatly" and stated that current government
aid can only be used on the border and not inside Burma.

Christian Solidarity Worldwide's National Director, Stuart Windsor says:
"The human rights atrocities committed by the ruling military regime in
Burma demand the immediate attention of the international community. We
urge the MPs that attended this debate to push the government to act by
providing aid for the people of Burma who are suffering so greatly and by
holding businesses involved in Burma to account. We call upon the UK to
fully play their part at the UN Security Council to bring about a binding
resolution on Burma."

For more information, and interviews please contact Penny Hollings,
Campaigns and Media Manager at Christian Solidarity Worldwide on 020
8329 0045, email or visit www.csw.org.uk

CSW is a human rights organisation which specialises in religious freedom,
works on behalf of those persecuted for their Christian beliefs and
promotes religious liberty for all.