BurmaNet News, October 18, 2007

[Editor]

October 18, 2007 Issue # 3323

INSIDE BURMA
October 18, Burmese actor and critic Zarganar released
DVB: Government bans writers for supporting protests
Irrawaddy: Junta hopes for PR plus points from Premier’s funeral
DVB: Head monk held in exchange for brother
Irrawaddy: Five NLD members, one monk sentenced to prison
KNG: Nine monks, four NLD members detained in Myitkyina
DVB: Burmese overseas protesters arrested on return to Burma

DRUGS
KNG: Drug addiction and smuggling rampant among Myitkyina youth
Kaowao News: Drug dealer set free by Major General

REGIONAL
AP: Gambari says incentives for Burma may help break deadlock
Reuters: U.N. envoy to push China to do more on Myanmar
Jakarta Post: Myanmar junta reassures SBY on cooperation

INTERNATIONAL
AFP: WFP appeals for Myanmar funding
Mizzima News: China should intervene in Burma crisis: HRW
Irrawaddy: “Panties for Peace” campaign wins wide support
AFP: US proposes banking, gem trade sanctions on Myanmar

OPINION / OTHER
Rediff News: India's policy flounders on Burma Praful Bidwai
New York Sun: Road to Rangoon (Editorial)
Wall Street Journal Online: In Myanmar, the dissident as comedian
'Zarganar' kept joking until thrown in prison; What makes God cry

PRESS RELEASE
Shwe Gas Movement calls on international corporations to suspend projects
and support un efforts for dialogue in Burma

____________________________________
INSIDE BURMA

October 18, Mizzima News
Burmese actor and critic Zarganar released

The famous Burmese actor and comedian Zarganar was released by the Burmese
military junta on Wednesday after being detained for nearly a month for
his involvement in the recent protests, a colleague of his said.

Zarganar (alias) Ko Thura, was arrested on September 25 along with veteran
politician U Win Naing, for offering 'Swan' (food and water) on the
previous day to protesting monks at Shwedagon Pagoda.

"I talked to him [Zarganar] over telephone last night after his release.
He is not feeling well and I have told him to take rest. We plan to meet
today," a colleague of Zarganar, who is also a film actor, told Mizzima.

The colleague added that the actor and critic was released last evening at
about 6:30 p.m. (local time). He is reportedly suffering from high blood
pressure.

Meanwhile, another actor Kyaw Thu, who along with Zarganar joined the Swan
offering at Shwedagon, was also reportedly freed last night along with his
wife, Shwe Zikuat.

However, the information could not be independently confirmed as
communication lines to the actor and his family remains inaccessible.

Several Burmese celebrities including prominent authors and actors joined
veteran Burmese politician U Win Naing in offering 'Swan' to protesting
monks at Shwedagon pagoda during when the protests peaked in Rangoon and
other parts of the country last month.

The junta, besides opening fire on protesters on September 26 and 27,
conducted raids in several monasteries and residents, who it believed took
part in the protests, and arrested thousands.

The junta also banned the pseudonym of several writers, artists, and
cartoonists who joined the Swan offering at Shwedagon pagoda.

____________________________________

October 18, Democratic Voice of Burma
Government bans writers for supporting protests

The information ministry's censor board has issued a ban order on over 20
writers and cartoonists who supported last month's protests.

An editor of a weekly journal in Rangoon told DVB that magazines and
journals have received an order from the censor board instructing them not
to publish the work of 22 writers and cartoonists, including 88-year-old
high profile writer Dagon Taryar, veteran journalist Ludu Sein Win and
cartoonist Aw Pi Kyae.

"This is not an official order. [The censor board] also told us to cancel
publication of any articles written by banned writers which had previously
been approved by the board," the editor said.

"They are going to ban everyone who showed courage and spoke out against
the government. There will be only cowards left."

Dagon Taryar, who was involved in the student-led fight for independence
from the British, said yesterday he was “not surprised” hear about the ban
on him but felt sorry for other banned writers as writing was their only
form of employment.

"I have no enemy and I don't regard anyone as my enemy when I talk about
them. I'm not surprised to hear about the ban," said Dagon Taryar.

"But still, this is bad for a lot of writers as they rely on writing to
make a living."

Dagon Taryar spoke to DVB last month and urged the military junta to stop
their brutal crackdown on protesters if they were serious about moving
towards democracy.

“Peaceful protests are common in democratic countries. If you look at the
history of Burmese political movements, you’ll see that even monks have
played a part,” he said.

____________________________________

October 18, Irrawaddy
Junta hopes for PR plus points from Premier’s funeral - Wai Moe

It was to be the funeral of a Than Shwe’s favorite, but in reality it was
much more than that.

The state-run Burmese language newspaper, The Mirror, devoted a front page
report on October 15 to the obsequies for Prime Minister Gen Soe Win, who
died last week.

Ambassadors and other diplomats were among the mourners, and Asean nations
sent delegations.

The regime, faced with international condemnation of its ferocious
crackdown on protesting Buddhist monks, may have wanted to exploit Soe
Win’s funeral as a way to boost its image at home and regain legitimacy.

The junta’s chairman, Snr-Gen Than Shwe, together with his deputy, Vice
Snr-Gen Maung Aye, and other top brass attended the funeral, and
photographs showed him shaking hands with diplomats at a funeral ceremony
at a military hospital in Rangoon.

Soe Win died on October 12, and the military announced the next day that
he would be accorded a state funeral, the first time a top general has
been honored at his death in this way since the current regime came to
power in 1988.

Three days of state mourning were declared and flags were flown at half-mast.

Not even the former junta chairman, Sen-Gen Saw Maung was given a state
funeral when he died in 1994. Nor was the honor extended to the junta’s
fourth ranking leader, Lt-Gen Tin Oo, the military council’s secretary 2
and chief of staff, when he died in a helicopter crash in Mon State in
February 2001.

Soe Win, who was 59, replaced Gen Khin Nyunt when the premier and military
intelligence chief was toppled in 2004.

The year before, he had been suspected of helping to orchestra an attack
on a convoy carrying opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi in Depayin, in
northern Burma’s Sagaing Division He was said to have been acting,
together with other military officers, under instructions from Than Shwe.

Soe Win always served his boss well and was reported to enjoy the junta
leader’s trust and favor.

Photographs carried by state-run papers showed that the ambassadors of
Israel and Italy and a special delegation from Singapore signed the book
of condolences. Ambassadors from all Asean nations attended the funeral.

Senior monks belonging to the State Sangha Maha Nayaka Committee (the
junta-backed State Monks Committee) were also among the official mourners.

____________________________________

October 18, Democratic Voice of Burma
Head monk held in exchange for brother

The abbot of Thitsar Mandai monastery in Gontalabaung village was arrested
on 2 October and is to be held until his brother, a monk wanted for
involvement in last month’s protests, is detained.

According to locals from the village in Mingaladon township, Rangoon, the
monastery was raided by government troops from Rangoon military
headquarters but only the head monk was taken into custody.

When villagers went to the military headquarters to find out about the
monk, officials told them that his younger brother, also a monk, was
wanted for involvement in last month’s protests.

The officials said the abbot would not be released until they have
detained his brother.

Arrests have continued in Rangoon and elsewhere in Burma despite the
government’s claim that the situation has returned to normal.

State-run newspaper the New Light of Myanmar reported on Tuesday that
2,927 people have been arrested in total in the crackdown on
demonstrators, 2,284 from Rangoon and 643 from other states and divisions.
This is significantly short of the 6,000 arrests claimed by some
opposition groups.

The report stated that nearly 2,500 of those detained have been released
“on pledge” as of yesterday, leaving fewer than 500 in detention.

Details of the pledge were not given, but other sources have said that
detainees were made to sign a form agreeing never to take part in
demonstrations again.

____________________________________

October 18, Irrawaddy
Five NLD members, one monk sentenced to prison - Shah Paung

Local courts in Arakan State in western Burma have sentenced five members
of the National League for Democracy and one monk to prison for taking
part in pro-democracy activities.

Information on the charges against them was not immediately available from
family members or the NLD, the main opposition political party.

According to family members, a court in Thandwe Township on Wednesday
sentenced Min Aung, 35, the joint-secretary of the Taunggok Township, to
nine years and six months imprisonment.

The mother of Min Aung said local authorities arrested him on October 13
at his home and took him to Thandwe Prison.

She said her son did nothing wrong while working for the NLD, and he was
working for the people of Burma.

“I feel sad, because I am his mother,” she said. “But I know there are a
lot of mothers like me in Burma.”

Four other NLD members, three from Taunggok Township, and one from Gwa
Township in Arakan State were also sentenced last week.

NLD sources said Kyaw Khine, the chairman of the Taunggok NLD, was
sentenced to seven years and six months imprisonment; Tun Kyi and Than Pe,
senior members of the Taunggok NLD, were sentenced to seven years.

A court in Gwa Township sentenced Sein Kyaw, 75, the chairman of the Gwa
Township NLD, to five years imprisonment.

All five are detained in Thandwe Prison.

Since the demonstrations began in late August, the Burmese military
government has arrested nearly 300 NLD members, according to the NLD.

An abbot in Sittwe said the military government district court on
Wednesday sentenced a Buddhist monk, U Indriya, a member of Sait-Ta-Thuka
monastery, to seven years and six months imprisonment. He was one of the
leaders of a peaceful demonstration in Sittwe.

State-run media reported on Wednesday that nearly 3,000 people were
arrested throughout the country during demonstrations in September. More
than 2,000 have been released, and 468 remain in prison, according to the
military-run government.

____________________________________

October 18, Kachin News Group
Nine monks, four NLD members detained in Myitkyina

Nine monks and four members of the National League for Democracy (NLD)
arrested at the same time during night raids by security forces of Burma's
ruling junta on September 25 are being detained at Myitkyina, capital of
Kachin State in Northern Burma, said local sources.

Both groups are detained separately in No. 1 and No. 2 Police stations in
Myitkyina Township and all of them are residents of Myitkyina, sources
close to them told KNG today.

The four detainees of Kachin State's NLD unit are Daw Ngwe Kyaing, U Nyut
Hlaing, U Ne Win and U Hla Myint. They are allowed to meet their family
members.

Eight other NLD members from Monyein city in Kachin State have been
detained in the city since September after night raids by the authorities,
said local NLD sources.

Earlier this month, several Buddhist monks who took part in last month's
protests against the ruling regime in Myitkyina were released in groups
after being scrutinized by the authorities, locals said.

During the night raids, over 200 monks were detained and four monks died
of serious head injuries after being beaten up by the junta's security
personnel. Among the monks who were killed was Sayadaw Thihlasara of
Yuzana Monastery in Yuzana quarter.  He was very popular among the student
community because he offered free tuitions in English at the monastery to
local high school and university level students who belonged to
economically weaker sections, locals said.

The monks were from Tatkone Monastery in Tatkone Quarter, Du Kahtawng (Du
Mare) Monastery in Du Mare Quarter, Yuzana Kyaungthai Monastery in Yuzana
Quarter, Myo-Oo Monastery in Yangyi Aung Quarter and Khemartiwun Monastery
in Khemartiri Quarter in Myitkyina Township.

There is a rumour doing the rounds now in Kachin State that, the regime's
Kachin State's Commander Maj-Gen Ohn Myint has offered millions of Kyats
to several monasteries in Myitkyina Township in order to prevent further
demonstrations by monks in the township, residents said.

Prior to the monks' demonstration in Myitkyina last month, Maj-Gen Ohn
Myint and Kachin State born Brig-Gen Thein Zaw of Minister of the ruling
junta's Post and Telecommunication Ministry donated GSM phones, rice and
money to all Christians Churches in Myitkyina – the Kachin Baptist
Convention (KBC), KBC (Fundamental), Church of Christ, Assembly of God and
others, said church sources.

The crack down on monks in Kachin State was ordered by Commander Maj-Gen
Ohn Myint.

____________________________________

October 18, Democratic Voice of Burma
Burmese overseas protesters arrested on return to Burma

Burmese nationals returning from overseas are being arrested by government
officials on their arrival at Rangoon airport if they are suspected of
having participated in anti-government protests while they were away.

Following the government’s brutal crackdown on demonstrations in Burma,
protests were held around the world to show support for those killed and
arrested. Many Burmese nationals who were abroad at the time joined in
protests outside Burmese embassies.

According to Rangoon airport employees, government officials have lists
and photos of people who joined protests in front of Burmese embassies
abroad and are checking every Burmese passport holder who comes through
the airport and taking some of them into custody for questioning.

"Recently, we saw them arrest two people; one from Tamwe and another from
San Chaung township, at the airport arrival gates. They are checking
everyone's faces against the photos," said a Rangoon airport employee.

Additional sources told DVB that some people who were taken into custody
were released after about three days of questioning while those who were
confirmed to have been involved in protests were beaten up and sent
directly to Insein prison.

____________________________________
DRUGS

October 18, Kachin News Group
Drug addiction and smuggling rampant among Myitkyina youth

Youngsters in Myitkyina, the capital of Kachin State in northern Burma
have taken to drug addiction and smuggling in a big way. Smuggling is a
daily affair, a resident in Myitkyina said.

Selling and buying drugs at the Myitkyina port in Kachinzu quarter by
youth addicts is increasing by the day, eyewitnesses said.

In Myitkyina port in Kachinzu, there is a billiard ground and most of the
youths who came to play billiard use drugs. Wanting to play billiard is an
excuse because the youths assemble there to buy drugs, said a youth who
used to play in the port area.

"Everyday I see youths buying drugs. Even my friends buy from there," said
a youth. "I think most of the drug smugglers get help from the police so
they don't get arrested for drug smuggling," he added.

The youth who do get arrested for drug smuggling and using it, bribe the
police. But youths who cannot pay the money that the police demand are
detained, said a youth who was addicted to drugs earlier.

A police officer from the No. (2) Police Station denied that they took
bribes from drug smugglers and said that they arrest according to the law.

"I think smuggling and using drugs is rampant among the youth because of
soaring unemployment in Myitkyina. Since the youths have nothing to do
they get involved in smuggling and become addicts," said a resident.

____________________________________

October 18, Kaowao News
Drug dealer set free by Major General

Though arrested by both Thai and Burmese police, a Three Pagodas Pass
based Major General of the Burma Army today released a known drug dealer
after just two days behind bars.

The drug dealer was released by a specific order from Major General Hla Oo
from the Burmese Infantry Battalion No.308, based in Three Pagodas Pass,
according to a Thai police spokesman.

Min Htay Win (29) from Ye Town, Mon State was arrested by a joint force of
Thai and Burmese police officers on October 12 as part of a major
crackdown on the booming narcotics trade in the area.  Townspeople were
shocked at seeing Win walk free after such a short stint in detention.

"They (Burmese authorities) failed to punish the drug dealer and allowed
him to walk free.  This type of action or inaction makes it really
difficult to control the narcotics trade," said a source from the town's
police.

Also on October 12, the Thai Army seized 10,000 amphetamines from a
student aged 12 from the Thai side of the Three Pagodas border town and
160 amphetamines from a woman based in Sanghklaburi village.

____________________________________
REGIONAL

October 18, Associated Press
Gambari says incentives for Burma may help break deadlock - Chris Brummit

Incentives could be offered to Burma's military rulers in exchange for
democratic reforms following a bloody crackdown that sparked international
outrage, the UN envoy for the country said Thursday.

Ibrahim Gambari, who was visiting Indonesia on a six-nation tour to press
Asia to help resolve the Burma crisis, also called on regional economic
powerhouse China to "continue to do more to really move" the authorities
in Burma along the path of change.

"We are going to continue to see China as an ally," he told reporters.

Gambari said one approach could be "a combination of strong encouragement
of the authorities in Myanmar [Burma] to do the right thing along with
some incentives to say that ... the world is not there just to punish
Myanmar."

He did not elaborate, but his remarks come as the EU and other countries
are threatening to widen sanctions imposed on the country, suggesting a
carrot-and-stick approach may be applied to the nation.

British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said this week that economic
support could be given to Myanmar if it opens a dialogue with its
opponents, including democracy leader laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.

Gambari met with junta leader Snr-Gen Than Shwe and Suu Kyi during a
recent trip to Burma, but has so far failed to bring about a dialogue
between the two sides. He is scheduled to revisit the country next month
after first stopping in Japan, India and China.

On Wednesday, Gambari said he wanted the Association of Southeast Asian
Nations to help "deliver concrete results" in efforts to encourage talks
between the junta and the pro-democracy opposition in Burma.

The grouping, which does not believe in sanctions and traditionally avoids
interference in the internal affairs of member states, has never been able
to influence events in the country.

Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda said his country, which moved
from a brutal military dictatorship to a multiparty democracy in 1998, was
open to sharing its experience with Myanmar.

"We were able to transform ourselves into a fully fledged democracy,"
Wirajuda said after meeting Gambari. "We wish Myanmar can come to us and
we can share our experience."

____________________________________

October 18, Reuters
U.N. envoy to push China to do more on Myanmar - Adhityani Arga

A U.N. envoy said on Thursday he would press China to lean harder on
Myanmar's junta to open dialogue with detained opposition leader Aung San
Suu Kyi following last month's brutal crackdown on democracy protests.

Ibrahim Gambari praised Beijing, the closest the former Burma's military
rulers have to an ally, for helping to arrange his visit to Yangon after
the suppression of the Buddhist monk-led street protests in which at least
10 people died.

"They have helped a lot," the special envoy told a news conference in
Jakarta, the latest stop on a regional tour to drum up support for efforts
to persuade the generals to talk to Suu Kyi, who has been detained for 12
of the last 18 years.

"Therefore, in the recognition of that, I've been asked to come to Beijing
to encourage the Chinese authorities to continue to do more, to move the
authorities in Myanmar to move along the path which will sustain
dialogue," he said.

"We need to go on one path that is a combination of strong encouragement
to authorities in Myanmar to do the right thing along with some incentives
to the extent that the world is not going out there to punish Myanmar," he
said.

Gambari is due to go to India and then China next week. Both nations
bordering Myanmar are seen as having some sway over the military junta,
whose official media say 10 people were killed as the protests were
stamped out.

Western governments say the toll was probably much higher.

Gambari will also go to Japan, which is still mourning the death of a
journalist whom video images suggested was shot at close range by a
soldier during a protest.

MILLIONS HUNGRY

The junta says it arrested 2,927 people after the protests, but has
released 2,459 after questioning. The latest freed were well-known
comedian Zagana and acclaimed movie director Kyaw Thu and his wife.

"It's a clever choice," a Yangon-based diplomat said. "They're high
profile, but not key activists."

Washington has urged China to do more and the two have differed over what
action the Security Council should take.

Japan cut aid to Myanmar on Tuesday, a day after the European Union
stiffened its sanctions and U.S. President George W. Bush threatened to
follow suit.

The U.N.'s World Food Program (WFP) is worried the toughening of sanctions
could lead to cuts in humanitarian aid to Myanmar's 56 million people -- 5
million of whom are going short of food due to junta restrictions on
farming and the free market.

"The world now is saying how concerned it is about the people of Myanmar,"
WFP regional director Tony Banbury told a news conference in Bangkok. "But
so far, with the exception of Australia, we have not seen that turn into
donations."

The agency was $35 million short of its $51 million budget for 2007-09,
Banbury said, meaning it could only reach half of the 500,000 people its
programs were meant to feed.

Unlike the West, most Asian governments are reluctant to impose sanctions
because of trade and investment ties and a desire for Myanmar's huge
energy reserves.

Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda said Myanmar should follow the
path of Indonesia.

"We could transform ourselves from a military-dominated government to a
full-fledged democracy," Wirajuda told a news conference with Gambari
after they talked.

"It was not easy," he said. "Myanmar can come to us and we can share."

Indonesia is a member of the 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian
Nations (ASEAN), which has attempted without success to nudge the junta
politely into a democratic path and freeing political prisoners through
"constructive engagement".

(Additional reporting by Nick Macfie in Beijing and Ed Cropley in Bangkok)

____________________________________

October 18, The Jakarta Post
Myanmar junta reassures SBY on cooperation

Myanmar's military junta leader Senior Gen. Than Shwe promised President
Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in a letter sent last week to continue
cooperating with UN special envoy Ibrahim Gambari to find a peaceful
solution to the country's problems

Presidential spokesman Dino Patti Djalal said the letter showed there was
continued communication between both leaders

"I can't disclose details of the letter but Senior Gen. Than Shwe did
highlight two points. First, he told Pak President that he would continue
to work with (UN special envoy) Gambari, and second, he vowed to keep the
roadmap to democracy on track," he told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday

Following a violent crackdown on peaceful protests in Yangon and other
major cities, Myanmar is under increased international pressure to speed
up a roadmap to democracy the junta promised almost 10 years ago

The international community has urged the junta to open a dialogue with
opposition leader and democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi to find a way to
share power, to stop the arrests of political activists and to release
political prisoners, including Suu Kyi

The UN dispatched special envoy Ibrahim Gambari earlier this month to
initiate a dialogue between Than Shwe and Suu Kyi. Although Gambari met
with both Than Shwe and Suu Kyi, a meeting between the two Myanmarese has
not been realized

An international relations expert at the Centre for Strategic and
International Studies, Bantarto Bandoro, said the letter showed Than Shwe
wanted to maintain his country's close ties with Indonesia

He said the letter was also a nod to Jakarta's more sympathetic stance
toward the military junta than taken by other members of the Association
of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which includes Myanmar

"Than Shwe needs to assure Indonesia about its seriousness in its roadmap
to democracy to ease mounting pressure from ASEAN and the international
community. But Indonesia must also be careful that the junta is only
aiming to buy time," he told the Post

Indonesian government ministers have been generous toward the military
junta, saying it should be given a transition period and warning of the
danger of rushing Myanmar to democracy

Defense Minister Juwono Sudarsono recently said that Suu Kyi's opposition
movement was not a credible alternative to the junta, warning a rush to
democracy could create "another Iraq" by leading to a power struggle
between the country's ethnic minorities

Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirayuda also suggested the Myanmar
military be allowed to share power with civilian leaders for five years,
after which the country could hold a democratic vote

Foreign Ministry spokesman Kristiarto Soeryo Legowo said Hassan would meet
Gambari, who arrived in Jakarta on Wednesday evening after a visit to
Malaysia, on Thursday morning. There will be a joint press conference at
the Foreign Ministry after the meeting

"Ibrahim Gambari will brief Indonesia on his visit to Myanmar, and Pak
Hassan will convey Indonesia's view on the matter," he told the Post

____________________________________
INTERNATIONAL

October 18, Agence France Presse
WFP appeals for Myanmar funding

The UN's World Food Programme (WFP) on Thursday made a global appeal for
funding its operations in Myanmar, which is under international pressure
over the junta's bloody crackdown on dissent.

Tony Banbury, WFP's regional director for Asia, said 10 percent of
Myanmar's 52 million people do not have enough food, adding that a lack of
money and the junta's restrictive policies were only "making things
worse."

Despite an outpouring of international sympathy for the people of Myanmar,
Banbury said that has not translated into greater global support for
humanitarian work in the country.

"There is a lot of goodwill around the world toward the people of Myanmar.
The most recent events in the country have exposed the situation to a
larger number of people around the world," said Banbury, who recently
returned from the country.

"I hope that goodwill and now the expanded goodwill will translate into
funding for all the aid agencies working in the country," he said.

Since the junta's clampdown in Yangon on September 26, which killed at
least 13 people, so far only Australia has given money to the WFP for its
operations in Myanmar, Banbury said.

In the wake of the violence, the junta has been hit with a barrage of
international measures aimed at putting pressure on the regime, with the
United States and the European Union tightening sanctions.

Even Japan, one of Myanmar's biggest donors, has cancelled grants of
around 4.7 million dollars over the fatal shooting of a Japanese video
journalist when security forces put down the September protests.

"We are concerned that political factors prevent many governments from
funding our food assistance program in Myanmar," said WFP spokesman Paul
Risely.

Banbury also said the junta's strict policies limiting movements of food
and people had made the situation in Myanmar worse.

"Myanmar authorities really must undertake critical reforms for the
benefit of poor people of the country now. In a food surplus country like
Myanmar, no one should be going hungry, but millions are," he said.

"Humanitarian assistance from the WFP and other aid organisations can only
be a band-aid, and the sad thing is right now the world is not even
willing to pay for the band-aid," Banbury said.

Australia has given three million Australian dollars (2.7 million dollars)
to support the WFP's three-year food operations in Myanmar, but Banbury
said the project was only 30 percent funded.

Due to the fund shortage, the WFP can only deliver food to 250,000 people
per month, far short of its target of reaching 500,000 people, mostly
children, he added.

____________________________________

October 18, Mizzima News
China should intervene in Burma crisis: HRW - Mungpi

China, being the biggest investor and nurturing a close relationship with
Burma, should immediately initiate concrete steps to help end state
repression in the Southeast Asian country, US based Human Rights Watch
said.

HRW, in a letter to the Chinese President Hu Jintao on Wednesday, urged
China to make use of its influence to pressure the Burmese military junta
to end its unabated crackdown on monks and activists.

"As one of Burma's neighbours, its biggest investor, and its main supplier
of weaponry, China indisputably wields the power to positively influence
this situation," Ken Roth, Executive Director of HRW said in the letter.

China, which vetoed a draft UN Security Council resolution on Burma along
with Russia earlier this year, reportedly has signed over 200 MoUs with
the Burmese junta in various business sectors.

HRW criticized China for failing to condemn the Burmese junta for its
recent brutal crackdown on protesters.

"Public criticism from China would have had an immediate effect in Burma,"
said Roth citing that even ASEAN countries, which traditionally practices
non-interference in internal matters of member states, has voiced concern
and publicly condemned the junta for its acts.

HRW called on China to immediately place an arms embargo that will halt
all weapon transfers from China to Burma and suspend all military
training, transport, assistance, and cooperation, and to support or
abstain from vetoing UN Security Council resolutions calling for sanctions
or other collective action to address the crisis in Burma.

The human rights watchdog also called for the suspension of involvement by
state-owned China National Petroleum Corporation and Sinopec, which are
both official Olympic partners, in the proposed Burma-China oil and
natural gas pipelines.

The Rights group also called on President Hu to instruct Chinese firms,
including stated-owned firms, with business ties in Burma to publicly and
fully disclose all payments made to the Burmese military, directly or
through the entities it controls.

Roth said August 8, 2008, the official opening day of Beijing Olympic,
also coincides with the 20th anniversary of the 1988 pro-democracy
protests in Burma, during which an estimated 3,000 people were killed.

"Recent events in Burma mean that the spotlight on that date will also be
on the continued suffering of the Burmese people," Roth said.

"If China takes a strong stand on Burma now, it will be credited rather
than criticized on 08-08-08 ," added Roth. "Doing so isn't just right;
it's also in China's self-interest."

____________________________________

October 18, Irrawaddy
“Panties for Peace” campaign wins wide support - Violet Cho

The “Panties for Peace” campaign aimed at Burma’s military regime is
gaining momentum, with the establishment of a committee to drum up support
in Thailand.

The campaign began on October 16, with women throughout the world sending
packages to Burmese embassies containing panties. Burma’s superstitious
generals, particularly junta chief Than Shwe, believe that contact with
any item of women’s wear deprives them of their power.

“Panties for Peace” campaigns have sprung up in Australia, Europe,
Singapore—and now Thailand, where a Lanna Action for Burma committee has
been formed in Chiang Mai to support the feminine protest.

Ying Tzarm, a co-founder of Lanna Action for Burma, told The Irrawaddy
that the campaign was aimed at undermining the superstitious beliefs of
the military regime.

Liz Hilton, a supporter of the Lanna Action for Burma and a member of the
Empower foundation, said that by sending underwear to the men of Burma’s
overseas embassies women would be delivering a strong message to the
regime.

“The SPDC is famous for its abuse of women, so this can be a very strong
signal from women around the world supporting the women in Burma,” she
said.

“Many feel there’s little we can do. It is like living next to domestic
violence when we see the military government brutal crack down in Burma.
We can hear that fighting in the next-door house or in the same village.
We have tried to talk, we have tried to do many things. But we need to
express our feelings.”

In another unusual popular protest action, people in Rangoon are hanging
pictures of Than Shwe around the necks of stray dogs. It’s a very serious
insult in Burma to associate anybody with a dog.

Graffiti anti-regime messages are also appearing on trains and buses in
Rangoon. “Killer Than Shwe” is a popular slogan.

“The people of Burma are doing what they can inside [the country],” said
Liz Hilton. “We should do whatever we can outside. Most of us are not
politicians, we are not powerful people. But women do have the power of
their panties—let’s use that.”

____________________________________

October 18, Agence France Presse
US proposes banking, gem trade sanctions on Myanmar - P. Parameswaran

The United States on Wednesday proposed more sanctions against
military-ruled Myanmar Wednesday, including blocking critical access to US
financial institutions via third countries.

Other measures unveiled in the US House of Representatives were intended
to stop the import of Myanmar gemstones through third countries and
tighten a freeze of assets on its political and military leaders.

In addition, steps will be taken to prevent US visits by officials from
the military junta directly linked to a recent violent crackdown on
pro-democracy protests led by monks.

"This legislation will turn off a huge cash spigot for the thuggish
Burmese regime," said Tom Lantos, the chairman of the House's foreign
affairs committee, who introduced the sanctions package, known as the
"Block Burmese JADE (junta's anti-democratic efforts) Act."

Burma is the former name of Myanmar, on which the United States already
imposed substantial trade, investment and diplomatic sanctions.

Amid reports that Myanmar largely used third countries to access the US
banking system, Lantos said, "These overseas banks process accounts in and
through the United States for Burma's rulers, providing the regime with
much-needed hard currency.

"The regime uses these funds to purchase weapons and luxury goods, while
the bulk of Burma's population lives in poverty," he said.

In order for sanctions to be effective, the US Treasury should seek more
cooperation from financial institutions in Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan
and Dubai, where most of the assets of Myanmar's leaders are believed
held, said Southeast Asian expert Bridget Welsh from the Johns Hopkins
University.

Myanmar has also been reportedly circumventing a US import ban by
exporting gems via third countries.

Only three percent of Myanmar's rubies entering the United States market
indicate their true country of origin, while the rest are imported via
neighbors, China, Thailand and India, a statement from Lantos office said.

"There is a direct link between these blood-red gemstones and the bloodied
robes of monks who were brutally suppressed when they took to the streets
to demand democracy and human rights," Lantos said.

This year, his office said, Myanmar's military rulers would pocket more
than 300 million dollars from the sale of gems, with rubies and imperial
jade being the biggest money-makers.

In the last year, it said, Myanmar's income from gem exports increased 45
percent.

The United States on Wednesday also sought UN Security Council
intervention in case Myanmar's military rulers rebuff plans by a UN
special envoy to push for democratic rule in the Southeast Asian state.

Washington also called for global pressure on Myanmar to allow the swift
return of special envoy Ibrahim Gambari to pave the way for a dialogue
between the military junta and democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi and ethnic
minorities.

"Should the regime turn its back on special advisor Gambari's proposals,
we believe the matter should be referred back to the Security Council for
further consideration," US deputy assistant secretary of state Scot
Marciel told a congressional hearing.

He said the United States was working with Gambari and Asian nations to
enable his "rapid" return to Myanmar following the junta's appointment of
a moderate general to promote dialogue between the regime and Aung San Suu
Kyi.

There has been no indication of when the dialogue would take place.

Gambari met Aung San Suu Kyi, who is under house arrest, and military
strongman Than Shwe during a lightning visit last month to convey
international outrage over the regime's violent suppression of
anti-government rallies that left at least 13 people dead.

Gambari, currently on a regional tour, said Wednesday he had confirmed an
invitation to visit Myanmar by the third week of November but US officials
said he should be allowed in much earlier due to the seriousness of the
crisis.

The UN Security Council last week scolded the junta for its bloody
crackdown on protests, and urged the regime to heed the UN's calls for
talks and called for the release of political prisoners.

____________________________________
OPINION / OTHER

October 17, Rediff News
India's policy flounders on Burma Praful Bidwai

Nothing has exposed the grave failure of India's recent policy towards its
immediate neighbourhood as thoroughly as New Delhi's support for Burma's
military dictatorship -- just when the hated junta was confronted with the
greatest pro-democracy upsurge since 1988.

Thanks to this support, backed by lethal arms supplies, India has become
complicit in the ruthless repression of the popular movement, which killed
up to 200 people and led to the detention of 6,000. The repression hasn't
ended. Opposition leader Win Shwe reportedly died due to torture by the
ruling State Peace and Development Council.

India has reluctantly, unconvincingly, revised its stand under
international and domestic pressure, but this hasn't salvaged its
credibility. Last week, India voted at the United Nations Human Rights
Council for a resolution calling for the release of incarcerated National
League for Democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, and condemning the 'violent
repression' of demonstrations, 'including thorough beatings, killings,
arbitrary detentions and enforced disappearances.' The motion called for a
'reinvigorated national dialogue with all parties with a view to achieving
genuine national reconciliation, democratisation and the... rule of law.'

India voted for the motion, but only after regretting that its text isn't
'fully in conformity' with its own 'forward-looking, non-condemnatory'
approach. India's 'explanation of vote' said the resolution's tone won't
contribute to 'engaging constructively' with the Burmese authorities.
India's kid-glove approach to the junta sits ill with the latter's grave
human rights violations, against which the world community is duty-bound
to protect the Burmese people.

India wants the Burmese regime to conduct an investigation into the
violence which saw soldiers raining bullets and tear-gas shells upon
peaceful demonstrators. What this investigation will achieve is unclear.
The violence was clearly state-ordered and�-- executed.

Yet, India opposes economic sanctions or other tough measures against the
Burmese regime. Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee said in New York: "We
should instead try to engage [them] in negotiations... Sanctions...
[can]... end in the suffering of innocent people." Blanket sanctions can
be ineffectual. But 'engagement' has proved futile in Burma. This was
again confirmed on September 23-24 when Petroleum Minister Murli Deora
accepted an invitation to visit Burma to sign a $150 million gas deal --
just when state repression was peaking.

"This sent a terrible message," said Soe Myint, a Burmese pro-democracy
activist exiled in India, and editor of the Mizzima news agency
(www.mizzima.com). "The message was that democratic India wouldn't lift
its little finger to restrain the Burmese regime. Instead, India would
tail the generals as they butchered innocents. We were greatly
disappointed."

Mukherjee has again given a clean chit to the junta. On October 7, in
Guwahati, he pledged India's commitment to Burma-specific projects "in
diverse fields such as roads, railways, telecommunications, information
technology... and power" --- as part of the so-called 'Look East' policy,
itself linked to 'a strategic shift' in India's world vision.

Ironically, he was only reading out excerpts from an earlier speech he
made in Shillong in June! So much for the attention India pays to 'Look
East!' Now, India is about to reward Burma with a $100 million
transportation project (Kaladan), which will give it overland access to
Sittve port.

India's ultra-conservative Burma position derives from four
considerations: eagerness to enlist Burma's help in fighting insurgencies
in the Northeast; interest in Burma's natural gas; anxiety to counter
China's regional influence; and concern for 'stability' in the
neighbourhood.

It's shameful that India's Burma policy should be determined by such
narrow, parochial factors. This involves jettisoning universal principles
and doctrines, including democracy and human rights, which India loudly
stresses in the Western-sponsored Concert of Democracies. This speaks of
double standards. 'Look East' also means turning a blind eye to
dictatorship.

Yet, Burma isn't just another country. It is India's land bridge to
Southeast Asia. Until 70 years ago, it was part of India, and bound to it
through close cultural, economic and political ties. Without 'Burma Teak,'
Asia's best-known hardwood, many of our historical buildings might never
have been built. Burmese rice was as important in our kitchens as is
Afghanistan's heeng.

Rangoon, now Yangon, was as Indian/subcontinental in ethnic composition
and character as Bombay, Madras or Karachi. Many eminent Indians -- BG
Verghese and Prakash Karat, to name two -- were born in Rangoon. Not long
ago, we had a Burmese-origin First Lady (Usha Narayanan). India's South,
East and Northeast all have major 'Burma connections.'

Like India, Burma is a multi-ethnic, multi-lingual, multi-religious
society. The two share a great modern legacy as well -- the Freedom
Movement. Aung Sang, Suu Kyi's father, who led Burma's anti-colonial
struggle, was inspired by Gandhi and Nehru. Suu Kyi studied here and
regards India as her second home, with which she has a deep, abiding
relationship.

The SPDC stands for the destruction of all these bonds. It represents the
dominant ethnic group (Burman) and excludes 17 others. This predatory and
super-corrupt regime has brutalised 50 million people with a huge
490,000-strong army. (This is like having an Indian army 10 times its
present size!) It consumes a third of Burma's budget -- 10 times the
allocation to education.

The military is selling Burma's magnificent resources cheap and
perpetuating the poverty of three-fourths of its people. It routinely
practises forced conscription, slave labour and torture. Its censorship is
so drastic that anyone with an 'unauthorised' fax machine or computer is
jailed for 7 to 15 years. The SPDC conducts extra-judicial executions,
'disappears' dissidents, and recruits child soldiers. It stands accused of
arbitrary detention and violating freedoms of belief and religion, and of
association and assembly. Regime-sponsored or tolerated drug smuggling and
gun-running are Burma's biggest businesses.

India's Burma approach was spelt out in a crudely forthright manner by the
new army chief, Gen Deepak Kapoor. He said the state violence is Burma's
"internal affair", and "we should maintain" our "good relations" with its
government. This policy statement is an intrusion into the executive's
prerogative. Yet, it captures the essence of the government's
'realism'-driven stand, which hypocritically professes 'non-intervention'
when that suits it, while practising the opposite when it can. In fact,
serious rights violations anywhere are everybody's concern.

Ironically, India's policy has yielded none of the desired results. Burma
has been ineffectual in preventing Northeastern insurgents from
establishing camps on its soil. It has only restrained the National
Socialist Council of Nagaland (Khaplang), with which it has a ceasefire
agreement. It has taken token or desultory action against other groups.
Burma has played China off against India, while milking both for
assistance. India has walked into this trap.

India's famed 'interests' in Burmese gas have produced international
embarrassment. Four Indian companies figure among the 'Dirty 20'
implicated in terrible human rights violations and environmental
destruction, detailed by EarthRights International and other groups.

However, India has received no gas or gas supply contracts from Burma.
Just recently, Burma awarded two gas blocks off the Arakan coast to China.
Originally, two Indian public-sector companies had a 30 percent stake in
these. India does have other gas sources. Besides, Burma's gas delivery
will crucially depend on transit through Bangladesh. Bangladesh isn't
cooperating.

It's specious to argue that India should befriend Burma's regime to
contain China. Those who demand that India must act as a countervailing
force to China advocate a new Asian Cold War -- with disastrous
consequences for India's long-term security. An arms race with China --
that too with a nuclear component -- will sharply raise India's already
bloated military expenditure.

Finally, 'stability,' defined independently of legitimacy, is a recipe for
freezing existing iniquities. India's long-term interests don't lie in a
neighbourhood with 'stable' but tyrannical regimes.

India's major political parties, including the Congress, the Communists,
and even the Bharatiya Janata Party, have demanded a change in its Burma
policy. So have civil society groups. Particularly significant here are
Northeastern groups whose ethnic identities cut across the Burma border.

Their pressure can bring Indian policy more in line with the position of
the early 1990s, when India advocated a dialogue with Ms Suu Kyi, who had
won the 1990 election with a thumping majority, and awarded to her the
1993 Nehru Prize for International Understanding. India made a strong
political point -- without severing its relations with the Burmese
government. But it soon shamefully reversed its stand.

There's a lesson in this: India can stand its ground if it wants to. In
the 1960s, it did so on Vietnam despite its 'ship-to-mouth' dependence on
the US for food. Later, India backed the African National Congress in the
face of Western pressure. The ANC eventually triumphed.

India can and should follow a broad-horizon policy based on a universal
international vision, which gives it many options in the neighbourhood
too. Ironically, India's vision is shrinking just when its global profile
has risen, opening up new opportunities to engage with the world. This
isn't a sign of a confident rising power with an independent foreign
policy.

http://in.rediff.com/news/2007/oct/17praful.htm

____________________________________

October 18, New York Sun
Road to Rangoon (Editorial)

The generals who rule Burma, trying to deflect criticism over their
oppression, are pressing a plan they claim will take them to
democratization. Known as the seven-point roadmap, this plan is a way to
assure that the junta headed by General Than Shwe remains in power.
Meanwhile, on the streets of Rangoon, unarmed monks were murdered in cold
blood by the government's soldiers all of last month. Thousands of
activists have been arrested and are held in torture dungeons.

Decent people living in the world's democracies turned to an institution
that was established to counter such naked brutality: the United Nations.
But the mandarins of Turtle Bay, where delicate diplomacy always trumps
regime change as a policy tool, are unequipped to deal with the Burmas of
this world. This was underscored Tuesday when Secretary General Ban said
he "would strongly urge the Myanmar authorities to implement the
seven-point road map for democratization."

Mr. Ban's spokesmen yesterday clarified his statement, pointing out that
in recent briefings to the Security Council, the secretary-general's envoy
to Burma, Ibrahim Gambari, had said that "other elements" need to be added
to the plan. The fact is that nothing would please Mr. Shwe and his
henchmen more than protracted negotiations over implementation of their
plan. Indeed the ideology of protracted negotiations have emerged as what
might be called U.N.-ism, an ideal in and of itself to the inhabitants of
the U.N. system.

The right policy is one that aims at strengthening the democratic forces
underground and in exile against the day when they will be able to accede.
And let such a policy be declared. Only those forces can usher a new
democracy to replace their rule. Yesterday the only three leaders of the
movement known as the "88 Generation Students" who have been able to evade
the junta's dragnet wrote a letter to Mr. Ban and the Security Council,
detailing some of their ideas for the course change they seek.

The letter, our Benny Avni reported yesterday, focused on a call for the
generals to allow all ethnic groups and political forces to participate in
the country's political process. The writers of the letter, who no doubt
fear death and torture, do honor to the Security Council. They call on it
to impose arms embargo on Burma. They write that they see in China and
Russia "friends" and then "respectfully request that they exercise maximum
understanding when considering our plight."

China is more interested in "stability" in its client state next door, and
Russia will rather sell weapons than impose a ban. It would be nice were
the Security Council to invite the legitimately elected, but currently
imprisoned, leader of Burma, Aung San Suu Kyi, a Nobel laureate in peace,
to address the world at Turtle Bay. But with China and Russia as veto
holders, we know this is impossible. It underscores the irrelevance of the
world body whose envoy, Mr. Gambari, is the only person beside Ms. Suu
Kyi's jailers who is allowed to visit her.

Rather than going immediately to Burma and staying there until democracy
takes root, as the letter writers ask, Mr. Gambari was at Malaysia
yesterday on his way to Indonesia, India, China, and Japan. At the end of
the week he is due back in New York. Only some time next month, if the
authorities are graceful enough to allow it, will he go back to Burma for
a quick visit with the generals and, possibly, with Ms. Suu Kyi. What will
the U.N. do with whatever she tells the pleasant gentleman who used to
represent one of Africa's most ruthless dictators, Sani Abacha of Nigeria?

____________________________________

October 18, Wall Street Journal Online
In Myanmar, the dissident as comedian 'Zarganar' kept joking until thrown
in prison; What makes God cry - Christopher Rhoads

On the eve of Myanmar's violent crackdown on demonstrators last month,
friends implored Maung Thura to flee his home in the capital city, Yangon,
and go into hiding. Instead, he cracked jokes.

Maung Thura is one of Myanmar's best-known dissidents, a thorn in the side
of the military dictatorship that has ruled this Southeast Asian country
for more than four decades. Popularly known as Zarganar ("tweezers" in
Burmese), he also is considered Myanmar's Charlie Chaplin.

"George Bush, Hu Jintao [China's president] and Than Shwe [Myanmar's
military leader] went to visit God," Zarganar emailed a friend at just
after 9 o'clock Sept. 25, the evening before the crackdown. "Bush asked
God, 'When will the U.S. become the most powerful nation in the world?'
God replied, 'Not in your life,' driving Bush to tears." Mr. Hu then asked
when China would become the richest nation in the world, which drew the
same "not in your life" answer from God and tears from the Chinese
president, Zarganar wrote.

Finally, Myanmar's ruler asked when his country would have enough water
and electricity. This time it was God who broke into tears, saying, "Not
in my life!"

Prominent dissidents often are scientists or writers. In Myanmar, one of
its most famous is a comic.

Later on the evening of Sept. 25, shortly after 11, Zarganar's wife called
from Los Angeles, where she has been living with their two children since
leaving Myanmar, formerly called Burma, a year ago. She pleaded with him
to go into hiding. "I have nothing to hide," he replied, says his wife,
Lwin Mar Oo. "With my bald head, they'd recognize me right away -- there's
no point in running."

Hours later, at about 2 in the morning, Zarganar was arrested. For the
next three weeks, relatives and friends heard nothing. Though he had been
jailed before, including for four years in the 1990s, the severity of
September's crackdown on Buddhist monks and other demonstrators gave cause
for worry. If the country's sacred monks were being physically abused,
friends and family reasoned, what would happen to an irritating comedian?

Yesterday, Zarganar was released, according to three people who have
spoken with him individually. Early yesterday morning, according to these
people, he was told he was being taken to another place for further
interrogation, then suddenly brought to his home and released. He had been
moved during his imprisonment to four different prisons for extensive
interrogations, often through the night. Those who spoke to Zarganar said
that though he sounded tired, he was back to making jokes.

"The more intense and threatening the situation becomes, the more jokes he
comes up with," says Maung Yit, a friend from their student days and now
an information-technology consultant in a San Francisco library. "This is
how he survives the regime."

Zarganar, 46 years old, once studied to be a dentist, but in the early
1980s discovered his talent for the stage. With other students he formed a
troupe, using a traditional form of Burmese entertainment combining
dancing girls and jokes told by clowns.

Performing at a party at the dental school, he was given a choice of stage
names relating to the profession, including pliers, chewing gum and
tweezers. Since tweezers aren't really a dental tool and made little
sense, he chose that name, friends recall. His troupe, called Gangaw
Grove, increasingly took on social and political matters.

In the mid-1980s he began performing on national television, gaining a
wide following. Not surprisingly, he also caught the attention of the
government, then led by Gen. Ne Win.

"Every country has a success story to tell," Zarganar joked during one
performance at the time. Some like to boast about a citizen with no hands
who can still write, or another with no legs who can still run. "But
there's no other country like Burma," he continued. "Here we have generals
able to rule a country for 40 years with no brains."

Zarganar's fame grew as he appeared in a handful of Burmese films. He
continued to use satire to focus on the country's ills, such as a lack of
adequate water, power and education. "Any joke that came out about the
regime, people said it must be a Zarganar joke, even if it wasn't," says
Maung Yit, his student friend.

During a major uprising in 1988, Zarganar was made a leader of the student
movement. In the ensuing crackdown, which human-rights groups estimate
resulted in 3,000 deaths, Zarganar was imprisoned for about eight months,
according to people who know him.

Shortly before a 1990 election, Zarganar was arrested again, this time for
giving political speeches for his mother, who was running for parliament.
He drew a sentence of five years in prison, later reduced to four. The
political opposition, led by eventual Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San
Suu Kyi, won that election in a landslide, but military men took power
again instead.

After his release from prison in the 1990s Zarganar was allowed to perform
again. He participated in videos raising awareness of AIDS, among other
social issues.

Last year, he began running afoul of the regime again. The government
banned a film he directed, called "Running Out of Patience." Then he
himself was banned after giving a British Broadcasting Corp. interview in
which he criticized government regulations on the country's annual water
festival. He complained the government had disallowed traditional elements
of the festival, including a portion devoted to performances touching on
current events. He also said government cronies were allowed to sell
liquor at the event.

The ban meant he could not perform publicly.

In February of this year, following a small antigovernment demonstration
in Yangon, he was criticized by the country's state-run newspaper, the New
Light of Myanmar, for "inciting public unrest and violence." The newspaper
claimed his participation in a debate at a Yangon location operated by the
U.S. Embassy had prompted the demonstration. He denied the charge.

Despite the personal ban, Zarganar jokes kept circulating, sometimes
passed by him on the phone to contacts outside the country who then posted
them on Burmese exile Web sites operated from the U.S.

One of them referred to a daughter of Gen. Than Shwe giving birth quite
soon after getting married. "In other countries, instant noodles and
instant coffee are popular," went Zarganar's joke. "Only in Burma are
there instant babies."

The most recent demonstrations in Myanmar were sparked in mid-August by an
increase in fuel prices, tapping into long-festering discontent about the
nation's economic troubles. As the marches grew, led by the monks, several
celebrities began to come forward to show their support. During the two
days before the crackdown, Zarganar brought water to the monks and urged
others to back them.

On the night of Zarganar's arrest, Myo Thein Htun, a graphic artist in New
York and a fellow comedian from their university days, called Zarganar.

"What are you doing at home?" Myo Thein Htun says he asked Zarganar.

"I am not afraid if they arrest me," Zarganar replied, according to Myo
Thein Htun.

"What are you doing then?"

"Writing jokes."

Write to Christopher Rhoads at christopher.rhoads at wsj.com

____________________________________
PRESS RELEASE

October 18, Shwe Gas Movement calls on international corporations to
suspend projects and support un efforts for dialogue in Burma

Thailand / Dhaka / New Delhi, As the violent crackdown on people continues
in military-ruled Burma, the Shwe Gas Movement calls on multinational oil
and gas companies with investments in Burma to suspend their projects and
take concrete steps to coordinate support for the UN-sponsored efforts on
reconciliation and dialogue in Burma.

In recent statements, multinational oil and gas companies operating in
Burma have attempted to distance themselves from the military regime’s
gruesome violence and abductions of peaceful protestors. Daewoo
International of South Korea claimed “Politics is politics. Economics is
economics,” while Chevron, Total, CNOOC, and Thailand’s PTTEP separately
claimed their projects benefit the people of Burma.

“The massive protests have conveyed the cries of the people, affirming
that investments have not benefited the people of Burma,” says Wong Aung,
Global Coordinator of the Shwe Gas Movement. “The revenue from these oil
and gas projects has armed soldiers that kill and torture peaceful
protestors.”

Oil and gas is by far the regime’s largest source of revenue. Oil and gas
corporations last year provided the regime with US$2.16 billion in export
revenues and an additional US$2.94 billion in Foreign Direct Investment.
Export of gas from the Shwe Gas Project in western Burma to China would
double gas exports and the project will create further abuses of the local
population and environment, according to the Shwe Gas Movement.

“The regime can not survive without oil and gas revenue and FDI in the
industry. This makes the companies particularly responsible,” says Jockai
Khaing of the Arakan Oil Watch, a Shwe Gas Movement member. “The world is
looking at China, India and ASEAN to influence change in Burma. The Oil
and Gas industry can be just as influential and should now be called upon
to use that influence.”

“Corporations are generally very resourceful in communicating with a wide
range of private and state actors about their business interests. They
should put those skills to supporting UN efforts and human rights,” says
Naing Htoo of EarthRights International. “If corporations like Daewoo
International, GAIL, CNOOC, Chevron, Thai PTTEP and others want to have a
sustainable presence in Burma, then now is the time to act.”

The Shwe Gas Movement is an international coalition of non-governmental
organizations with offices in Thailand, India, and Bangladesh.

Contact: Mr. Wong Aung (Thailand) +66-850322943; Mr. Kim (India)
+91-9810476273; Mr. Soe Lunn (Bangladesh) +880-1710939498; www.shwe.org;
email global at shwe.org