BurmaNet News, November 6, 2007

[Editor]

November 6, 2007 Issue # 3336

INSIDE BURMA
Irrawaddy: Suu Kyi unwell—Gambari meeting uncertain
Mizzima News: Suu Kyi needs more frequent medical attention: NLD
AP: Gambari still waiting to meet Than Shwe
DVB: Opposition groups seek meeting with envoy
Irrawaddy: NLD member dies after being beaten in demonstration
Kaowao News: Over 1000 SPDC landmines on Karen state highway

BUSINESS / TRADE
Reuters: Myanmar tycoon says sanctions will not hurt regime
Bloomberg via International Herald Tribune: PTT pushes to develop Myanmar
gas fields
The Straits Times (Singapore): US pressures Singapore to cut financial
ties with junta

ASEAN
Irrawaddy: 88 Generation Students receive letter from Singapore government
DVB: Seminar to discuss Burma ahead of ASEAN summit

REGIONAL
Asia Times: India bends over for Myanmar's generals

INTERNATIONAL
DPA: Myanmar invites UN special rapporteur back

OPINION / OTHER
Irrawaddy: Junta don’t have the political will to address the humanitarian
crisis
Irrawaddy: Capital punishment in Naypyidaw

____________________________________
INSIDE BURMA

November 6, Irrawaddy
Suu Kyi unwell—Gambari meeting uncertain - Wai Moe

Burma’s detained opposition leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, was visited twice by
a doctor at the weekend in an unusual break from the regime-ordained
routine, which allows her only two medical calls a month.

Nyan Win, spokesman of her National League for Democracy, said it wasn’t
known why Suu Kyi needed medical treatment, but he had been told she was
now better.

Another NLD spokesman, Myint Thein, said the party would ask permission
for Suu Kyi to receive one doctor’s visit a week.

“Her heath is important not only for herself but also for the country,” he
said.

Suu Kyi’s last bout of illness, needing medical attention at her home, was
in June 2006. She had a hysterectomy operation in September 2003.

The daughter of the country’s independence hero Aung San has spent more
than 12 of the past 18 years under house arrest. Her current period of
house arrest began in late May 2003, after troops and hired thugs ambushed
her convoy in Depayin, Sagaing Division in northern Burma.

The last time she was seen in public was at the height of the September
demonstrations, when she welcomed monks at the gates of her home on
Rangoon’s University Avenue. She later met visiting UN special envoy
Ibrahim Gambari, and was due to have a further meeting with him during his
current visit to Burma.

However, a row between the UN representation in Rangoon and the Burmese
Foreign Ministry has cast doubt on the meeting, according to a diplomatic
source.

Suu Kyi met for about one hour on October 25 with the official appointed
to act as liaison officer between her and the regime, retired Maj-Gen Aung
Kyi.

____________________________________

November 6, Mizzima News
Suu Kyi needs more frequent medical attention: NLD

Alarmed over detained Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's deteriorating health, the
National League for Democracy leadership said she needs more frequent and
proper medical attention.

Suu Kyi, who has been detained for 12 of the last 18 years that she has
spent in Burma, needs more frequent and better medical care as her health
is not what it used to be, Myint Thein, NLD spokesperson said.

"We have learnt that she is not in good health. The monthly medical
check-up by her family doctor, allowed by the Burmese military junta,
needs to be changed to a weekly visit," Myint Thein said.

Nobel Peace Laureate Burmese pro-democracy leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi
goes through a monthly medical check-up by her family doctor, Tin Myo Wai,
at her lake side villa, on University Avenue where she has spent most of
her years in solitary confinement cut from the outside world.

While Suu Kyi's illness would be difficult to pinpoint, her health as well
as that of Burmese junta supremo Than Shwe is critically important for the
nation's reconciliation process for a change over to democracy, Myint
Thein added.

"Because they are expected to negotiate for the country [Burma]'s future
they need to be in sound health," Myint Thein said.

Myint Thein, who was detained for over a month, said he is also taking
rest and is under medication after his release.

Commenting on the ongoing visit of United Nations' Special envoy to Burma,
Ibrahim Gambari, Myint Thein said besides meeting junta officials, Gambari
should ensure that he meets leaders of opposition parties including ethnic
leaders.

"We want to urge him [Gambari] to implement what he has set out to do. We
believe he will continue to strive until he achieves his goal. We also
urge him to get the views of all sides," Myint Thein said.

After arriving Burma on October 3, Gambari on Sunday met the junta's
Foreign Minister Nyan Win and Labour and Liaison Minister Aung Kyi in
Naypyidaw. Today he met several other Burmese officials including
Information Minister Lt-Gen Kyaw San.

According to the UN office in Rangoon, Gambari is scheduled to meet
detained Burmese democracy icon Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and junta supremo
Snr. Gen. Than Shwe before leaving for New York on November 8.

"Mr. Gambari is scheduled to meet the Prime Minister, other senior members
of the government and the junta leadership as well as Daw Aung San Suu Kyi
and other relevant interlocutors," said a UN office statement in Rangoon.

However, NLD spokesperson Nyan Win said they had not received any notice
for a meeting with the visiting UN diplomat.

"So far we have not received any notice for a meeting. And we don't know
who Gambari is meeting," said Nyan Win.

Meanwhile, ethnic armed groups such as the Kachin Independence
Organization expressed their desire to meet the Nigerian diplomat during
his five-day visit to Burma.

Gambari should meet ethnic groups including armed groups, said James Lum
Dau, Foreign Affairs in-charge of the KIO.

"But so far we haven't received any advice of a meeting. We the KIO
support his good work and are also keen to meet him," Lum Dau added.

____________________________________

November 6, Associated Press
Gambari still waiting to meet Than Shwe

The UN envoy to Burma, Ibrahim Gambari, still has not managed to hold
talks with the leader of the country's ruling junta, days into his second
visit since the military's brutal suppression of monk-led anti-government
protests in September.

Gambari—who is seeking access to all relevant parties in his effort to end
Burma's political crisis and promote democratic reform—met both junta
leader Snr-Gen Than Shwe and detained pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu
Kyi when he last visited shortly after the September demonstrations.

On Monday, Gambari and Foreign Minister Nyan Win discussed future
cooperation between the government and UN agencies, as well as the agenda
for the rest of Gambari's visit, scheduled to end Thursday, the UN office
in Burma said in a statement.

The envoy also met with representatives of the Red Cross and ethnic
minority groups in Naypyidaw, the new remote capital, said officials who
were aware of the meetings but insisted on anonymity because they are not
authorized to speak to the press. Information on those discussions was not
immediately available.

Diplomats said they hoped Gambari would also visit Nobel laureate Suu Kyi
in Rangoon, and the noticeable easing of security outside her lake-side
home, where she is held under house arrest, indicated such a visit would
be allowed.

But a meeting with Than Shwe was far from certain this time, because of a
rift between the UN and Burma's military government.

On Friday, the day before Gambari's arrival, the junta announced its
intention to expel the top UN official in the country, resident
coordinator Charles Petrie.

It accused Petrie of going beyond his duties by issuing a statement
criticizing the generals' failure to meet the economic and humanitarian
needs of the people, and by saying this was the cause of September's
protests.

In Washington, State Department spokesman Tom Casey said the US wanted
Gambari to be allowed to "convey his message directly to all the parties
he wishes to see" so he could tell Burma's leaders of "the need for them
to change their policies."

Gambari met Sunday with Foreign Minister Nyan Win and Labor Minister Aung
Kyi, who was appointed last month as the government's liaison officer with
Suu Kyi, the UN said.

They spoke at length about "an agreed-upon framework for meaningful
dialogue" between Suu Kyi and the military, the UN said.

The military stamped out the demonstrations September 26-27 by firing on
the peaceful protesters. Authorities said 10 people were killed, but
diplomats and dissidents said the death toll was much higher. Thousands of
people were detained.

There have been only two open demonstrations since.

On Saturday, about 50 Buddhist monks dispersed on orders of riot police
and soldiers after a peaceful march through the ruby mining town of Mogok,
residents reached by telephone said. The residents, who asked not to be
named for fear of reprisals, said there were no arrests.

Last Wednesday, more than 100 monks chanted prayers while marching in
another northern town, Pakokku.

____________________________________

November 6, Democratic Voice of Burma
Opposition groups seek meeting with envoy

Representatives of two opposition groups have urged United Nations special
envoy Ibrahim Gambari to ensure they are involved in national
reconciliation efforts.

National League for Democracy spokesperson Nyan Win said the party had not
been told if a meeting would take place.

"We have heard nothing on [Gambari's] schedule to meet with the NLD. But
we have been making the necessary preparations from our side since before
he arrived in the country," Nyan Win said.

"As the NLD is the main opposition group that should be included in talks
for the national reconciliation, we think Mr. Gambari should meet with our
party's leaders to discuss the situation. And we are hoping this will
happen."

Nyan Win previously told DVB that he was hopeful Gambari would push for a
meeting with the party’s executive committee.

Naing Aung Ma Ngae of the New Mon State party stressed the importance of
the special envoy including ethnic minority organisations in his
discussions.

"We would like to urge Mr. Gambari to conduct independent meetings with
ethnic groups including political parties and armed-groups," he said.

"There have been a lot of times in our history where confidence-building
between the government and the ethnic groups fails at the halfway point.
We fear Mr. Gambari's plan might end the same way."

Gambari arrived in Burma on 3 November and has so far met government
ministers and the United Nations resident coordinator, but he has yet to
meet any opposition representatives on this trip.

On his last visit to the country from 29 September to 2 October, Gambari
met detained NLD member Daw Aung San Suu Kyi twice but was denied access
to other NLD members despite his requests.

On this trip, the special envoy has said he hopes to meet a wide range of
people, including those he was not able to speak to on his last visit.

He is due to leave Burma on 8 November, but has said he will stay “as long
as necessary to complete his mission”.

____________________________________

November 6, Irrawaddy
NLD member dies after being beaten in demonstration - Shah Paung

A young member of the National League for Democracy died one month after
being beaten by Burmese authorities while participating in the monk-led
demonstrations in September, according to a party spokesperson and a
member of the 88 Generation Student group.

According to Myint Thein, a spokesperson for the NLD, twenty two-year-old
Ko Ko Win lost consciousness, began bleeding from the nose and mouth, and
then subsequently died on Saturday at San Pya Hospital in Rangoon’s
Thingangyun Township, some 11 days after he had felt faint and vomited at
home.

His funeral service was held on Monday at Yayway cemetery in Rangoon. Ko
Ko Win was an NLD member in South Okkalapa Township who was working as
office staff at the township level.

According to a member of the 88 Generation Students group who knew him, Ko
Ko Win was beaten on the head by the Burmese authorities on September 27
during the demonstration at Sule Pagoda in central Rangoon. He apparently
did not consider his injury serious and continued working for the NLD.

The eldest child of five, Ko Ko Win could not continue his education after
high school as his family could not support him. Indeed, Ko Ko Win became
the main breadwinner in the home—active in the NLD, holding down a
part-time job and supporting his family.

His family were poor and did not have enough money for his hospital
treatment and so they cared for him at home until he lost consciousness on
Saturday.

“Because of the military government’s cruelty during the September
demonstrations people in Burma are currently in shock and are afraid,” the
88 Generation Students group member said. “The authorities are now trying
to catch the parents if they can not arrest the children.”

His family now fears that the Burmese authorities will come and ask about
him as he was a member of the NLD and involved in the demonstrations, she
added.

During the peaceful demonstrations the Burmese security forces killed
about 200 people and arrested over 3,000 monks and their supporters. More
than 2,000 detainees have now been released, according to the government.

Ko Ko Win is the first person who has died with a head injury sustained
during the September 2007 uprising.

____________________________________

November 5, Kaowao News
Over 1000 SPDC landmines on Karen state highway

The Burmese Army has replanted over 1,000 landmines along the Kot Ka Rait
and Tingun Nyi Noun highways in Karen State, Burma , in an effort to
'clean up' the highway. Sources from the Karen National Union (KNU) said
replanting of mines started two days ago.

"Three Burmese military groups have come together to replant landmines in
the north Kot Ka Rait area, along with Khi Mu Hta and Noe Poe villages,
General Hla Ngwe said.

"On the October 24 and 25 the KNU fought the Democratic Karen Buddhist
Army (DKBA)-assisted Burma Army. Soon after the gun fight, it became clear
that the SPDC planned to plant over 1000 landmines in the area between
October 29 and October 31," he added.

The plan was communicated directly from the Burma Army groups of Light
Infantry Battalions (Kha Ma Ya 545, 355 and 356)," added General Hla Ngwe.
 "The SPDC's army didn't design the mines carefully and they planted them
in protest against the way we came and fought them, so they didn't cover
the mines. Sometimes we hear the mines exploding in the jungle but it is
difficult to discern who has set them off."

"Whenever we hear bombs exploding in the jungle nobody dares to go and
look at the situation, so it's hard to say whether it's villagers or wild
animals stepping on the mines," a Kot Ka Rait villager said.

On October 25 and 27 the DKBA, assisted the Burmese Army Kha Ma Ya (545)
and fought the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) and KNU in the areas
now heavily laid with landmines.

"In Karenni State in early October the Burmese Army increased the number
of landmines because they thought that the revolutionary groups were
coming to attack them," the Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP)
said.

In Three Pagodas Pass on Thai-Burma border on October 27 a land mine
exploded in a DKBA head-person's home.  One person was injured.

____________________________________
BUSINESS / TRADE

November 6, Reuters
Myanmar tycoon says sanctions will not hurt regime

Myanmar business tycoon Tay Za has slammed U.S. sanctions against his
airline and other businesses with reputed links to the ruling junta,
saying only the people of the former Burma would suffer.

"I condemn the sanctions which will hurt the general public and have
little effect on the government," Tay Za told employees and officials
gathered at a Yangon hotel on Monday to mark Air Bagan's third
anniversary.

Air Bagan, owned by Tay Za's Htoo Trading conglomerate, is among seven
Myanmar firms targeted by U.S. sanctions last month after the September
crackdown on monk-led democracy protests in which at least 10 people were
killed.

A Singapore newspaper reported last week that Air Bagan, which was
struggling with declining passenger numbers after the crackdown, was
suspending flights to the city state after Singapore banks decided to
"stop dealing with" it.

"Air Bagan Ltd is a legally constituted company with funds earned through
100-percent legitimate means" and no government official or party outside
the Htoo group held shares in the airline, Tay Za said.

Washington has imposed economic and trade sanctions on Myanmar for years,
but last month it took aim at individuals and companies reputed to have
close ties to the regime.

The Treasury Department blacklisted Tay Za, his wife and son, Air Bagan
and other companies within the Htoo group on October 19. It also named
Myanmar tycoons Htay Myint and Khin Shwe and their companies.

Experts say tightening the screws on the junta will only work if Myanmar's
regional neighbors do so too.

A top U.S. diplomat told Singapore and its banks on Monday to sever
financial links with the junta, widely believed to use the city-state as
its main off-shore banking centre.

"We believe that there are regime officials with accounts in Singapore,"
senior State Department official Kristen Silverberg told reporters in
Thailand during a regional tour to drum up support for a tougher Asian
stance against the regime.

"We hope that they ensure that their financial institutions are not being
used as sanctuary for Burmese officials," said Silverberg, who is
responsible for U.S. liaison with groups such as the Association of South
East Asian nations (ASEAN).

Despite Washington's assertion that Myanmar's generals park their cash in
banks in Singapore -- also their favored destination for shopping and
medical treatment -- Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong insists the
financial system is clean.

"We don't play dirty money. We don't condone money-laundering," he told
CNN recently.

____________________________________

November 6, Bloomberg via International Herald Tribune
PTT pushes to develop Myanmar gas fields - Suttinee Yuvejwattana and
Reinie Booysen

PTT Exploration & Production, the second-largest natural gas producer in
Thailand, may start developing five wholly owned natural gas fields in
Myanmar by March next year once it has proven that they have sufficient
reserves.

The company has drilled 10 wells in its license area, known as the M9
block, and found petroleum in nine, the company's president, Maroot
Mrigadat, said.

Three or four more wells are planned by January before moving to the first
phase of development, which will cost at least $1 billion.

PTT Exploration is expanding outside the country to benefit from rising
demand for energy, especially for natural gas.

Myanmar is the largest offshore operation for the firm. The company has
exploration rights in other countries, including Vietnam, Indonesia,
Malaysia, New Zealand, Oman and Algeria.

''It's a good discovery,'' Maroot said Oct. 31. ''We have explored only
one third of only one block and we have five blocks. We can't explore the
whole area as it's huge. Our strategy is we will establish the minimum
amount of reserves, so we can go ahead with the first phase,'' of
development.

The company plans to establish minimum reserves of 1.5 trillion to 1.8
trillion cubic feet, or 42.5 billion to 51 billion cubic meters, to
justify a venture producing 300,000 million cubic feet a day in the first
phase, Maroot said.

''This is quite a good asset for the company,'' said Itphong Saengtubtim,
an analyst at CIMB-GK Securities in Bangkok. ''But, it will take at least
three to four years before the production can start. The field will help
PTT Exploration in long term.''

Maroot said the company has agreed to sell a 5 percent stake in all five
wholly owned drilling areas in Myanmar to the Oman government to diversify
its risk as the development of the area requires ''huge'' investments. The
formal agreement is expected to be signed soon.

PTT Exploration, a unit of state-controlled PTT, planned to invest 281
billion baht, or $8.3 billion, to 300 billion baht from 2007 to 2011 in
exploring and developing its fields. Still, this is the ''minimum amount''
as the company will increase the investment when it starts the development
phase in Myanmar, Maroot said.

The company expects its production volume this year to fall below the
target of 188,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day by 3 percent to 5
percent because of production disruptions at its fields in Oman and
Thailand.

''We are catching up,'' Maroot said. ''The Oman field is now back to
normal and we think we can meet the target for next year.''

PTT Exploration plans to produce 214,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day
next year, lifted by gas output from its Arthit field, the second-largest
gas deposit in the country, which will start production in February.
Production has been delayed from April this year because of construction
delays.

The company is grappling with rising costs and a scarcity of petroleum
exploration equipment as higher prices spur drilling. It now takes 28 to
30 months to have a production platform delivered.

''You need to allow more lead time for developing the projects,'' Maroot
said. ''Even though the costs go up, the economics are still good. Oil
prices have risen faster than costs.''

Crude oil prices rose to a record of $96.24 a barrel in New York on
Thursday. Oil producers, including the Organization of Petroleum Exporting
Countries, are powerless to stop prices from reaching $100 as few
countries can produce more crude, Mohammed bin Hamad al-Rumhy, Oman's
energy minister, said Thursday.

____________________________________

November 6, The Straits Times (Singapore)
US pressures Singapore to cut financial ties with junta

The United States has put pressure on Singapore and its banks to cut
financial ties with Myanmar's junta.

However, Singapore has reiterated an earlier statement that it operates a
strict regime against money-laundering and continues to support the
inclusion of Myanmar as a member of Asean.

According to Reuters, senior US State Department official Kristen
Silverberg told reporters yesterday: 'We believe that there are regime
officials with accounts in Singapore.'

Ms Silverberg, who is responsible for US liaison with organisations such
as Asean, was speaking in Thailand during a regional tour to garner
support from Asian countries for a hardline stance against Myanmar.

'We hope that they ensure that their financial institutions are not being
used as a sanctuary for Burmese officials,' she said.

In response to Straits Times queries, a Monetary Authority of Singapore
(MAS) spokesman referred to Foreign Minister George Yeo's reply to
Parliament on Oct 22, where he addressed the issue of sanctions against
Myanmar as well as Singapore's financial links with it.

Mr Yeo had noted that MAS 'does not track the amount of money remitted
into or out of Singapore by any country'. Singapore is an international
financial centre and 'funds can be transferred for various purposes
including payments for goods and services, trades on the stock exchange,
even for school fees', he had said.

Mr Yeo had said that MAS requires banks and financial institutions to have
strict procedures to monitor and report any suspicious transactions.

____________________________________
ASEAN

November 6, Irrawaddy
88 Generation Students receive letter from Singapore government - Violet Cho

The Singapore Foreign Ministry has replied to an open letter from the 88
Generation Students group that called for Asean to suspend the Burmese
military government from membership.

The student group received a letter in reply this week, signed by Chi
Chiew Sum, a special assistant to Minister of Foreign Affairs George Yeo.

The letter says: “Singapore is very concern about the situation in Myanmar
[Burma]” and it will give full support to UN envoy Ibrahim Gambari's
mission.

"The process will require genuine dialogue involving all parties,
including the military, Daw Aung San Suii Kyi and her National League for
Democracy."

Singapore currently holds the Asean chair—a geopolitical economic
organization that represents 10 member states. Its annual summit will be
held in Singapore on November 17-23. Burma became a member of Asean in
1997.

Soe Htun, a member of 88 Generation Students group who is now in hiding
from Burmese military authorities, told The Irrawaddy on Tuesday the group
welcomes the positive response and for Singapore's support for genuine
national reconciliation in Burma.

"We hope that Singapore will take the initiative to work closely with UN
body and to push the government for change in Burma.”

The Burmese student activists sent an open letter on November 1 to
Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsein Loong and Foreign Minister George
Yeo, urging Asean to “consider suspending the SPDC [State Peace and
Development Council]” and enter into a meaningful dialogue with all
opposition groups. The group also asked Asean countries to refrain from
selling weapons and intelligence technology to the junta, since they are
frequently deployed in suppressing peaceful demonstrations.

The students’ association also called on Asean not to support the Burmese
military government’s draft constitution which forms the basis of the
junta’s “seven-step roadmap to democracy,” drafted without the
participation of the NLD and ethnic political parties.

The letter of reply did not comment on the student group's requests, but
referred to a speech by Foreign Affairs Minister George Yeo, which he
delivered to a parliamentary session on Oct 22, expressing Singapore's
views on the situation in Burma.

The Burmese government claims to have released more than 2,000 detainees
arrested during the recent pro-democracy demonstrations. However, it is
estimated that more than 1,000 activists remain in custody, including more
than 40 members of the 88 Generation Students group, including well-known
student leaders Min Ko Naing, Ko Ko Gyi, Min Zeya and Htay Kywe.

____________________________________

November 6, Democratic Voice of Burma
Seminar to discuss Burma ahead of ASEAN summit

The ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Myanmar Caucus is holding a seminar in
Singapore on 9 November to discuss possible solutions to the crisis in
Burma.

The seminar will be attended by politicians, diplomats, academics and
activists, AIPMC executive director Roshan Jason told DVB.

These include members of parliament from countries in the region,
representatives of foreign missions in Singapore from ASEAN countries,
Europe, America and South Asia, Burmese MPs in exile, civil society
activists and academics from a variety of areas.

The AIPMC has timed the seminar to bring additional pressure to bear on
ASEAN leaders, who will hold their annual summit in Singapore from 18
November.

“[We chose the timing] knowing that decisions will be made on Burma, or at
least we can urge decisions to be made on Burma when they are lacking,”
said Roshan Jason.

“Knowing that representatives of the junta will be [at the ASEAN summit]
and engaging with other leaders means we need a strong reminder to tell
the leaders of ASEAN what the current situation is and reiterate calls for
greater action by ASEAN,” he said.

The AIPMC executive director was hopeful that the group could have some
influence on policymakers within ASEAN.

“I think we have some level of influence, being members of parliament,
being lawmakers, to create an influence within our parliaments and
thereafter get our message to the presidents and prime ministers on what
the views of the people are,” he said.

He cited Burma’s exclusion from taking up the rotating chair of ASEAN and
the Security Council’s discussion of Burma in January 2007 among the
group’s achievements.

“All these are reflections of what happens when you have members of
parliament and civil society working together and speaking out loudly
enough on various issues,” he said.

The AIPMC’s next steps will depend on the outcome of the ASEAN summit, and
in particular on the prospects for the ASEAN charter, Roshan Jason said.

“If it’s a strong enough document to be able to address the human rights
situation in Burma, we will see some kind of hope, and we will want to
work with ASEAN leaders to use that tool,” he said.

However, he also emphasised that ASEAN members should consider the
possibility of other methods of engagement, including targeted sanctions
against the Burmese regime.

“ASEAN should be talking about [sanctions] – not blanket sanctions, please
be very clear about that, we’re talking about things like the banking
assets of members of the junta within the region, like the kind of
sanctions the US came up with,” he said.

The AIPMC will also continue to advocate for the suspension of the
military regime from ASEAN, in the hope that this threat will compel the
junta to make changes, and will escalate this campaign if action is not
taken to resolve the crisis.

The AIPMC was formed in November 2004 and is made up of members of
parliament from Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Cambodia, Singapore,
Thailand and Burma’s government in exile.

The organisation also has partner groups outside the ASEAN region,
including in India, South Korea, Japan and Europe, and works closely with
civil society movements.

____________________________________
REGIONAL

November 6, Asia Times
India bends over for Myanmar's generals - Sudha Ramachandran

India has finalized a multi-million dollar project with Myanmar aimed at
boosting the economy of its underdeveloped and strife-torn northeast
region. Loose ends of the project have been tied up and a deal sealed with
the generals, even as sections of the international community call for
sanctions against Myanmar's military rulers.

The Kaladan multi-modal transport project envisages connecting India's
northeastern region with the Bay of Bengal. It involves constructing roads
linking the Indian state of Mizoram with Kaletwa in Myanmar, development
of the Kaladan River as a waterway and improving the infrastructure of the
port at Sittwe, capital of Myanmar's Arakan province. Sittwe is situated
at the point where the Kaladan River empties into the Bay of Bengal. The
project will give goods from India's landlocked northeast access to the
sea.

The project, which India first proposed in 2003, was agreed to in
principle by both sides in February. Its finalizing would not have grabbed
as much media attention as it did had it not coincided with the political
crisis in Myanmar.

The India-Myanmar handshake over the Kaladan project comes at a time when
Myanmar's military rulers are being internationally criticized for their
refusal to restore democracy in the country and for their crackdown on
ongoing pro-democracy protests. It comes at a time when India's (and
China's) economic and military support to Myanmar's generals is being
blamed for the junta's survival in the face of international sanctions.

It was at the height of the pro-democracy protests in Myanmar and
international criticism of India's support of the generals that India's
Petroleum Minister Murli Deora visited Myanmar, pledging an investment of
US$150 million in gas exploration. Three agreements between India's
state-run Oil and Natural Gas Corporation and its counterpart the Myanmar
Oil and Gas Enterprise were signed during the visit, providing for
exploration for gas in three deep-water exploration blocks, AD-2, AD-3 and
AD-9, off the Arakan coast.

Within weeks of that controversial visit, India has sealed another deal
with the generals. Agreement on the Kaladan project was not easy to reach.
India has been more keen than Myanmar to clinch the deal. Delhi appears to
have bent over backwards to get the generals on board.

Given that India is investing heavily in the project, it wanted to retain
control over Sittwe port. This was not acceptable to the generals. India
subsequently agreed to hand over the port after its upgrade. Besides, the
generals after initially committing to put in $10 million backed out.
India has now agreed to extend Myanmar a soft loan of $10 million. Thus
the project deal was done on the generals' terms.

India's interest in the Kaladan project stems from latter's potential to
transform the economy of its northeastern states. Once completed - it is
expected to take about four years - the Kaladan project will facilitate
the transport of goods by road and river from the landlocked northeastern
states - the Kaladan River runs from Mizoram in India through Myanmar's
China and Arakan states to empty into the Bay of Bengal - to Sittwe port
and from there on to markets in Southeast Asia and beyond.

The project is not the only one that India is pursuing with Myanmar with
an eye on improving the connectivity of its northeast with Southeast Asian
markets. India has constructed a road linking Moreh in the the
northeastern state of Manipur with Kalewa in Myanmar. Called the
Indo-Myanmar Friendship Road and built at a cost of $30 million, the road
will eventually run up to Mandalay.

Then there is the old Stilwell Road, which runs from Assam in India
through Myanmar to Yunnan in China. Vast stretches of this World War II
road are in abysmal condition or simply don't exist. Efforts are on to
repair and renovate the road. India (and China) are hoping that once the
entire road is repaired and ready for use, Myanmar will be willing to
reopen it. Stilwell Road will open Chinese markets to goods from the
northeast.

There is a plan too to link by rail the northeastern state of Manipur with
Myanmar. This project will involve construction of the
Jiribam-Imphal-Moreh railway line in Manipur and the Tamu-Kalay-Segyi line
in Myanmar, as well as repairing Myanmar's existing Segyi-Chaungu Myohaung
line.

With the construction of the rail line between India and Myanmar, India
will be linked by rail to Southeast Asia. And "since Myanmar is getting a
rail link with China, to be completed in around three years, a link with
Myanmar could help India reach China and then right up to Russia", Jay
Prakash Batra, chairman of both the Indian Railway Board and the
International Union of Railways (the Paris-based organization that works
for cooperation between different railway systems), said late last year.

Indian officials point out that economic development of the northeast
requires greater interaction with neighboring countries such as Myanmar.
India's northeastern region shares a 4,500 kilometer international border
with Bangladesh, Bhutan, Myanmar and China but connects with the rest of
India by a 22-kilometer strip of land called the Siliguri Corridor.
Ninety-eight percent of the northeast's borders are with other countries,
and only 2% with India. Improving ties with these neighbors is essential.
Unlike Bangladesh, Myanmar's rulers have been more willing to trade with
India.

Besides, links with Myanmar are essential for India, if Delhi is serious
about taking its "Look East" policy forward. Myanmar is, after all,
India's land bridge with Southeast Asia.

There are other reasons behind India's courting of the generals. It is
concerned with China's immense influence and presence in Myanmar, which
has implications for India's security. Another is to get the generals to
shut down camps run by anti-India insurgent groups on Myanmar's soil.
India realized that its counter-insurgency operations in the northeastern
states would not be effective unless it had the support of Myanmar's
military rulers.

There is also the question of India's energy security. Myanmar has rich
gas reserves, which India is eager to access. An Indian government
official told Asia Times Online that the visit of the petroleum minister
to Myanmar at the height of the protests was poorly timed but cancelation
of the visit would have jeopardized India's already tenuous relations with
the generals.

Indian officials, who until recently believed that the decision of Asia's
largest democracy to tone down its expression of support to the
pro-democracy movement and deal with Myanmar's military rulers had paid
off, have in recent months become more cautious in their assessment of the
influence they wield over the generals.

The Sino-Indian contest for access to Myanmar's gas reserves has gone in
favor of China. A couple of months ago, Myanmar announced that it was
withdrawing India's status of "preferential buyer" on the A1 and A3 blocks
of its Shwe gas fields off its Arakan coast and said it intended selling
gas to China.

"India is unable to match what China is willing to offer the generals -
supply of whatever military equipment they demand and use of the veto in
their defense in the Security Council. Over a decade after it began
engaging the junta, India is still not as comfortable with the generals as
China is," the official pointed out.

The limited gains wooing the generals notwithstanding, India is not about
to reverse its policy of doing business with the junta. "It is because
India refused to engage the Myanmar generals for decades that the space in
that country was left open for China to fill. A pullback now would be a
repeat of that blunder," the official said.

Indian officials dismiss Western criticism of India's Myanmar policy.
India shares borders with Myanmar; the US and others do not. Their
economic investment in Myanmar is limited; hence the pontification and
their support for sanctions against Myanmar, the official said.

Besides, if India were to do business only with democracies, it would be
hard-pressed to find suitable partners in its neighborhood.

Sudha Ramachandran is an independent journalist/researcher based in
Bangalore.

____________________________________
INTERNATIONAL

November 6, Deutsche Presse-Agentur
Myanmar invites UN special rapporteur back

Myanmar's embattled junta has invited United Nations Special Rapporteur
Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, barred from the country since 2003, to return
Sunday to access the human rights situation, UN sources said Tuesday.

Pinheiro will join UN special envoy Ibrahim Gambari who has been in the
country pressing for progress in national reconciliation since the
weekend.

"Pinheiro, welcomes the invitation by the authorities of Myanmar to visit
the country from 11 to 15 November 2007," said the UN Information Centre
in a statement out of Geneva.

In his capacity as special rapporteur Pinheiro made scant progress in
dealing with Myanmar's military rulers. He has been barred from re-entry
since 2003.

But the regime has been under growing international pressure to move
forward with political reconciliation with the opposition and protection
of basic human rights since it's brutal crackdown on monk-led protests on
September 26-27, that left at least 10 dead, and others claim up to 200.

Gambari has been in Myanmar since Saturday and has vowed to stay on until
real progress is achieved in the national reconciliation process.

On Tuesday, he met with three government ministers in the military's new
capital of Naypyidaw, but he had yet to be granted an audience with the
ruling junta's chief Senior General Than Shwe or opposition leader Aung
San Suu Kyi, sources said.

Gambari, tasked with persuading Myanmar's military leaders to open a
political dialogue with opposition leaders such as Suu Kyi and
representatives of ethnic minority groups, has spent his first fourdays in
Naypyidaw meeting government ministers.

On Tuesday he met with National Planning and Economic Development Minister
Soe Tha, Religious Affairs Minister Brigadier General Thura Myint Maung
and Information Minister Brigadier General Kyaw Hsan.

He is scheduled to meet with diplomats who have flown to Naypyidaw, 350
kilometres north of Yangon, on Wednesday, informed sources said.

Last September's army-led attacks on Buddhist monks and their laymen
followers have again brought Myanmar's junta back into the limelight of
international condemnation.

The UN dispatched Gambari to the country from September 29 to October 3,
when he was granted interviews with Suu Kyi and military supremo Than
Shwe.

Than Shwe at the time vowed to personally hold talks with Suu Kyi,
provided she renounces her support for economic sanctions against the
regime that were first put in place in 1988 after another army crackdown
on demonstrations that left an estimated 3,000 people dead.

There is great skepticism that the military, which has ruled Myanmar for
the past 45 years, has any intention of sharing power with civilian
politicians in the near future.

Gambari, the third UN special envoy to Myanmar in eight years, faces a
tough job in persuading Myanmar's xenophobic generals to initiate a
dialogue which will ultimately loosen their iron grip on power.

On the eve of Gambari's arrival, the junta denied UN country chief Charles
James Petrie a renewal of his visa, meaning he must depart immediately
after the expiry of his current visa later this month.

Petrie's effective expulsion was reportedly prompted by a statement he
issued on October 24, in which he said the September protests "clearly
demonstrated the everyday struggle to meet basic needs and the urgent
necessity to address the deteriorating
humanitarian situation in the country."

The statement outraged Myanmar's military rulers, who have styled
themselves the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC).

____________________________________
OPINION / OTHER

November 6, Irrawaddy
Junta don’t have the political will to address the humanitarian crisis -
Lin Htet Myat

The Burmese military government’s recent move to expel UN Resident and
Humanitarian Coordinator Charles Petrie has proved once again that they
lack the political will to address the country’s urgent social problems.

A humanitarian disaster has been unfolding in Burma for some time;
international aid agencies have been quietly passing warnings to the
authorities, hoping for cooperation in order to effectively deliver aid to
those in need.

According to a statement by the United Nations Country Team in Myanmar
[Burma] on October 24, 2007:

“Myanmar’s [Burma’s] estimated per capita GDP is less than half of that of
Cambodia or Bangladesh. The average household is forced to spend almost
three quarters of its budget on food. One in three children under five are
suffering from malnutrition, and less than 50% of children are able to
complete their primary education. It is estimated that close to 700,000
people each year suffer from malaria and 130,000 from tuberculosis. Among
those infected with HIV, an estimated 60,000 people needing
antiretrovirals do not yet have access to this life-saving treatment.”

The UN and other aid organizations have called on all parties in Burma not
to hold humanitarian assistance hostage; but instead, the Burmese regime
has imposed tighter restrictions on their activities with the intention of
controlling the flow of aid and co-opting them for their own benefit (In
2006, the junta issued highly restrictive guidelines for UN agencies,
INGOs/NGOs and International Organizations).

Finally, in the aftermath of the crackdown on peaceful demonstrations
triggered by the fuel price hikes in August, the aid agencies could remain
silent no longer

The statement by the UN country team on October 24 highlighted the fact
that the basic needs of the majority of the population are not being met.
It also called on the Burmese government and the international community
to take the necessary action: improve the operational environment for aid
agencies; increase public expenditure on health and education; and
significantly scale up international assistance.

The junta responded to the statement of the UN country team in its usual
manner—with rejection, accusations, and the expulsion of the UN Resident
and Humanitarian Coordinator in Burma who was himself responsible for
drafting the statement.

The regime’s mouthpiece newspapers, The New Light of Myanmar and Myanma
Ahlin, reported that the UN Country Team’s statement neglected the
prevailing conditions in Myanmar [Burma] and accused “superpowers” of
manipulating UN staff into issuing groundless statements.

The Burmese Ministry of Foreign Affairs declared that the statement “harms
the country’s image despite its all-out cooperation with the UN,” and
gives the wrong message to the international community.

These responses show that the junta is determined to hold on to power at
the expense of immense human suffering and that it does not have the
political will to address the country’s socioeconomic issues, including
the humanitarian crisis.

We are all aware that the underlying cause of all the socioeconomic woes
in Burma is over 45 years of military rule, compounded by hopeless
mismanagement of the economy and widespread corruption and greed.

The military leaders’ reluctance for change is wholly understandable—they
have huge vested interests in maintaining the status quo; and they and
their cronies are amassing an immense fortune out of the situation.

Any attempt to address the humanitarian crisis is doomed to failure due to
an absence of political will on the junta’s part. Even if the generals
agree to establish a broad-based poverty alleviation commission, as
proposed by UN special envoy Ibrahim Gambari on his previous trip, this
will not produce the desired results—it will simply be another of the
junta’s showpieces for foreign and public consumption.

The only way to generate political will with the generals is to launch
fundamental reforms to address the country’s urgent socioeconomic issues
by hitting them where it hurts—hitting their business interests hard until
they realize that maintaining the status quo will no longer benefit them.

Otherwise, the humanitarian situation will continue to deteriorate and
poverty will keep increasing. The future of Burma—already bleak—will
become bleaker.

Lin Htet Myat, a Burmese, currently lives in Thailand, but used to be an
NGO worker in Burma

____________________________________

November 6, Irrawaddy
Capital punishment in Naypyidaw - Aung Zaw

Two years ago, at the astrologically auspicious time of 6:37 a.m. On
November 6, 2005, the big move to Burma’s new capital, Naypyidaw, began,
with the departure from Rangoon of a convoy of military trucks carrying
civil servants and office equipment.

The Burmese regime’s unannounced decision to relocate the country’s
capital to dusty Naypyidaw, in central Burma, caught the world by
surprise. The Burmese people only got to know officially of the move a
month or two after it had taken place—further proof of the regime’s utter
disdain for its own citizens.

Was the decision to move the capital to Naypyidaw a strategic one? Or was
it rooted in the paranoid military leaders’ fear of foreign invasion and
mass uprisings? Or did Than Shwe move his power base to Naypyidaw on the
advice of his chief astrologer?

For all the popular opposition to the move and the criticism of
inconvenienced foreign governments and embassies, Than Shwe and his ruling
junta have no reason to regret the decision to move the capital after
seeing what happened on the streets of Rangoon in August and September.

Securely established in remote, strategically located Naypyidaw, far from
the scene of the uprisings and anti-regime crowds, the junta were able to
command and control the troops in their suppression of the monks and
activists who bravely challenged their rule.

This was also a rare opportunity for Than Shwe, who is also
commander-in-chief of the armed forces, to test his authority over the
armed forces and the nerve of the command center that has been established
in Naypyidaw.

If astrology was at all involved in the relocation of the capital, Than
Shwe might have thought that the decision was timely.

At the time of the move two years ago, the Than Shwe family’s chief
astrologer is rumored to have foreseen bloodshed on the streets of Rangoon
and the regime at the brink of collapse. Moving the capital from Rangoon
was thus imperative.

When months-long protests in 1988 grew into a mass uprising, joined by
civil servants and police officers, the government became almost
nonfunctional and faced a serious breakdown.

A mass rally held near the War Office in Rangoon also touched the raw
nerve of the generals who, during the crisis, slept in the fortified
ministry compound in case of an emergency and bloody crackdown. A day
later, on September 18, military forces violently crushed the
demonstrations and staged a coup.

Nearly 20 years later, it is impossible to imagine protesting monks and
citizens marching to remote Naypyidaw, let alone locating Than Shwe’s
fortified mansion.

In the security of Naypyidaw, more centrally and strategically located
than Rangoon, the generals can easily control the Shan, Karen and Chin
ethnic regions, where ethnic armies are based. Moreover, just a phone call
to Rangoon would now suffice to order the suppression of street protests
and raids on monasteries and homes.

Sympathizers among the civil servants, now working in Naypyidaw, would be
unable to show their support for the demonstrators.

The newly constructed kingdom is also a “convenient” location for the
generals to entertain foreign guests and keep them far from real action
and the spotlight.

UN special envoy Ibrahim Gambari has fallen victim to this tactic, which
allows the junta to keep him on tenterhooks, waiting for an invitation to
enter the inner sanctum of power, far from Rangoon, where the real action
takes place.

Isolated from well-informed citizens, diplomats and representatives of the
opposition, Gambari is virtually a hostage of Than Shwe, confined by
necessity to a fruitless waiting game in Naypyidaw—truly a form of
“capital punishment.”

Two years after the relocation, the new capital has become the perfect
location for the paranoid generals to rule the country by remote control.