BurmaNet News, December 21, 2007

[Editor]

December 21, 2007 Issue # 3368

INSIDE BURMA
Irrawaddy: VCD political comedy draws laughter in Rangoon
Mizzima News: Anti-riot training in Rangoon and Pakokku
Mizzima News: Posters exhorting monks' to protest on Independence Day in
Pakhokku
DVB: Monk detained in mental hospital
DVB: DKBA soldiers killed by regime troops

ON THE BORDER
Irrawaddy: Exiles considering formation of new government in exile

BUSINESS / TRADE
Xinhua: Largest pharmaceutical factory established in north Myanmar
Irrawaddy: Burma’s largest IT center opens—But for how long?
Irrawaddy: Australian Oil Company to invest in Burma gas fields

HEALTH / AIDS
Irrawaddy: The Tatmadaw’s hidden enemy—HIV/AIDS

GUNS
Mizzima News: Weapons seized after truck turns turtle

REGIONAL
AFP: Thailand to grant citizenship to 353,000 people

INTERNATIONAL
Jurist: US Senate approves tougher sanctions against Myanmar
Mizzima News: EU allocates 18 million Euro more to Burma

OPINION / OTHER
The Nation: Dignity and justice for us all - Nai Nai
Irrawaddy: Facing the endgame - Min Zin

STATEMENT
US Department of State: Burmese regime continues arresting democracy
activists

____________________________________
INSIDE BURMA

December 21, Irrawaddy
VCD political comedy draws laughter in Rangoon - Shah Paung

The generals who run Burma don't like it when the joke's on them, but
political satire and humor are alive in military-ruled Burma.

A popular VCD depicting a traditional anyein performance is now selling
like hot cakes in Burma. An anyein is like a variety show with comedians,
singing and dancing.

Well-known comedians including Godzilla, King Kong and Kyaw Htoo and four
comedians known as “Thee Lay Thee" performed live in spite of a warning
from authorities.

Before going on stage, Godzilla was asked to sign a document saying he
would not make political jokes.

The comedian troupe is known as “Say Young Sone” (The Colorful).

The comedians quickly ignored the authorities and began cracking jokes
about the military and the September uprising, drawing laughter and cheers
from the audience.

The comedians targeted the September uprising, the regime’s municipal
policy, the junta-backed Union Solidarity Development Association,
religion and UN envoy Ibrahim Gambari.

A VCD of the performance is now widely available in Rangoon despite a ban
imposed by the government.

One youth in Rangoon said that since last week the VCD has been on sale on
the streets. He said he bought 10 copies to share with his friends.

One of the most popular bits is when two comedians portray UN Special
Envoy Ibrahim Gambari and Minister of Information Brig-Gen Kyaw Hsan, who
is dubbed as “Comical Ali.”

Kyaw Hsan begins touching the legs of Gambari—the duo then gradually begin
to touch mouths, eyes, ears and heads.

“This man does not know about “Myanmar!” [Burma],” says Kyaw Hsan.

Finally, the two stand up and can not touch each other any more.

“Your dollars are falling out!” says Kyaw Hsan, pointing to the floor.

Gambari quickly bends over and picks up a US dollar. Kyaw Hsan kicks
Gambari in the rear, shouting “This is Myanmar!”

Recently, the UN special envoy’s budget of more than $800,000 was approved
for 2008 to work toward national reconciliation. The Nigerian diplomat has
a Burmese nickname, “kyauk yu pyan,” which means “one who takes gems and
then leaves.”

The performance also touched on Bagan Airline, which is  owned by Burmese
business tycoon Tay Za.

Snr-Gen Than Shwe was satirized as a man who acted like a king and who
treated his "servants" (comedians) like slaves. The servants finally
punished the king by beating him.

The Norway-based Democratic Voice of Burma began broadcasting the VCD
performance on its satellite television network on Thursday.

____________________________________

December 21, Mizzima News
Anti-riot training in Rangoon and Pakokku - Maung Dee

The police force in Rangoon and Pakokku are undergoing anti-riot and crowd
control training to crack down on future uprisings. The riot police
battalion from Syriam was found taking anti-riot training in the football
field near Rangoon Eastern University Thihadipa stadium located in Tarwa,
the Rangoon suburbs, a student from this university said.

"I found about 40 to 50 people lining up on one side while I was going to
school. There were about three instructors of officer rank and the
trainees were kneeling and aiming their sticks as if they were guns.
Beside there were police batons", this student told Mizzima. They seem to
be showing their strength and capability to intimidate students at a time
when students are sitting for their examinations, the student added.
Similar training was conducted for the local police force in Pakokku,
Magwe Division early this month. The local people said that the training
will last one month and focus on crowd control and basic military
training.

Pegu Division Zigone based Light Infantry Division (LID) 66 conscripted
the new recruits through the local wards and village Peace and Development
Committees. The LID 66 ordered the local authorities to conscript a new
recruit per village tract. "We have administrative village tracts units in
rural areas. There are about three to four villages in each village tract.
Now they are recruiting forcibly at least one soldier from each village
tract. On refusal each family has to pay Kyat. 2,000 to 3,000. They
conscript the new recruits only from the villages, not from urban areas",
a local resident from Zigone said.

As the Zigone Township has 29 village tracts, they have to conscript 29
new recruits. The local authorities collected Ks. 3,000 from each family
and paid over Ks. 200,000 to the new recruit. Recently the regime honoured
those who brutally cracked down on the September uprising by the monks and
the people with the Distinguished Social medal in the Tatmadaw (Army)
museum. And also about 100 police vehicles are taking part in military
exercises inside the Aung San Stadium in Rangoon.

____________________________________

December 21, Mizzima News
Posters exhorting monks' to protest on Independence Day in Pakhokku -
Htein Linn

Posters have appeared exhorting Buddhist monks to once again take to the
streets on Burma 's Independence Day. In what appears to be an effort to
renew the 'Saffron Revolution' posters were seen pasted in Pakhokku town
in central Burma, sources said.

The posters calling for a mass rally of monks on the 60th anniversary of
Burma's Independence Day on January 4, 2008, were pasted on the northern
gate of the Mahawihzayarrama monastery, also Known as the East monastery,
in Pakhokku, a town in Magwe Division where the September Saffron
Revolution was sparked, the source said.

"This morning posters that call for a demonstration to be staged on
January 4, were seen pasted at the northern gate. A number of monks and
novices went to read the posters," a teaching monk from the monasteries
told Mizzima.

However, the posters were removed soon by the local police force, the monk
added.

Similarly, on November 9, posters exhorting monks to re-launch a boycott
were also seen pasted on the walls of the monasteries.

Following the brutal crackdown on the September protests, the authorities
raided several monasteries across the country and sent back most of the
monks who were learning and novices to their native hometown, in a bid to
weaken the monks' agitation.

Local residents said, only one-third of the monks could be seen present in
Pakhokku town after the authorities forcibly drove away many monks and
novices to their native hometown.

"Earlier there were about 600 monks but now there are only 200 left. Since
there will be no more examinations, the monks left for their hometown
after the September protests and did not return," the monk added.

A monk, who wished not to be named, said, authorities under the
'teacher-pupil' project ordered government employees to be informers by
serving the monks at the monasteries and watch the activities of the monks
closely.

"I have been ordered to work at one of the monasteries on the west of Shwe
Street . Since there is no choice we have to do it," a government employee
in Pakhokku told Mizzima.

Monks in Pakhokku planned to boycott the monks' examination to be
conducted by the local authorities as opposition against the treatment
meted out to the monks by the authorities during the Saffron 'Revolution'.

____________________________________

December 21, Democratic Voice of Burma
Monk detained in mental hospital

A 76-year-old monk who was detained for one month following the September
protests was rearrested ten days after his release and held in a
psychiatric hospital.

U Tayzaw Bartha, from Kalyarnithein monastery in Bago, was arrested on 26
September for staging demonstrations and giving public speeches.

He was detained in Insein prison for one month and was released on 25
October.

About ten days later, he was arrested by the military affairs security
officers at Shwe Dagon pagoda and sent to Ywar Thar Gyi psychiatric
hospital in the outskirts of Rangoon.

U Tayzaw Bartha said he was held there, together with patients suffering
from mental disorders, for 25 days.

"I spent 45 days in detention this time. I was kept in a mental hospital
for the first 25 days,” he said.

“The kept me in several rooms together with different psychopaths. I was
so scared and, I finally told them I could not stand there anymore and
they sent me to a monastery."

U Tayzaw Bartha was sent to a monastery in Sakhan Gyi village, Hle Ku
township, where he continued his detention for a further 20 days before
asking to be released.

"After about two weeks at the monastery, I told them I wanted to go home
and they asked me to write a formal letter about it. So I did and I was
released about five or six days later," the monk said.

U Tayzaw Bartha criticised the authorities’ decision to hold him in a
psychiatric hospital, and said his movement remains restricted.

"I am very disappointed that the authorities sent me to a psychiatric
hospital when I have no mental disabilities,” he said.

“Even though I have been released now, I am still not allowed to go back
to my monastery in Bago and am staying at my daughter's house in Rangoon."

____________________________________

December 21, Democratic Voice of Burma
DKBA soldiers killed by regime troops

Five soldiers from the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army were reportedly shot
dead by government troops after the DKBA refused to attack a Karen
National Union stronghold.

The five were from DKBA battalion 901 under battalion commander Yan Min,
and were shot on 16 December in an attack by troops from Light Infantry
Battalion-203 of the 12th Military Operations Command, according to a DKBA
official.

The attack happened soon after the DKBA had refused to follow the ruling
State Peace and Development Council’s order to attack KNU strongholds in
the area.

There have been regular clashes on KNU brigade 6 territory between the KNU
and soldiers from the SPDC and the military-backed DKBA.

DKBA marks the anniversary today of its split from the KNU in 1994.

____________________________________
ON THE BORDER

December 21, Irrawaddy
Exiles considering formation of new government in exile - Wai Moe

Some opposition leaders in exile are said to be planning to form a new
exile government or to reform the current exiled government, the National
Coalition Government Union of Burma (NCGUB), according to exiled
opposition sources.

Opposition sources on the Thai-Burmese border told The Irrawaddy on Friday
that two approaches are being considered: one reforming the current NCGUB,
which has a headquarter office in Rockville, Maryland in the United
States.

It was founded on December 18, 1990 when the National League for Democracy
and other opposition groups elected Sein Win, a first cousin of Aung San
Suu Kyi, as the NCGUB's prime minister.

Sein Win recently told The Irrawaddy that his government in exile supports
the continuation of the initiative and mediation of the UN special envoy
to Burma, Ibrahim Gambari.

However, NCGUB led by Sein Win is not highly regarded in Burmese community
in and out of Burma.

The former university professor is, political observers say, sincere but
lacked charisma and political vision thus unfit to lead the government in
exile.

“Many people in exile politics have argued that the NCGUB is currently
irrelevant to leading the exiled opposition movement,” said a source who
asked to remain anonymous.

A second concept is to form an exile-based "federal government," sources
said, to be led by the National Council Union of Burma (NCUB).

According to the source, there have been many debates over the two
approaches. Some suggested a new "federal government" should be formed
under the old NCGUB title. But most people opposed that idea, according to
the source.

The NCUB is an umbrella organization in Burma including ethnic minority
groups. It was founded in September 1992 and is based on the Thai-Burmese
border. The Democratic Alliance of Burma (DAB), the National Democratic
Front (NDF), the National League for Democracy (Liberated Area) (NLD-LA)
and the Members of Parliament Union (MPU) are members of the NCUB.

“People who disagree argued that it is not time to talk about creating
governments in exile, but time to think urgently about how to endorse
dissident movements in Burma,” said a politician in exile who asked for
anonymity.

Some politicians also expressed doubts about whether governments in exile
could make common ground and decisions for the dissident movement abroad.
Other voiced concerns that forming exiled governments could lead to more
problems for pro-democracy forces inside Burma.

People who lobby for a new exiled "federal government" argued that it
could lead to more a legitimate opposition movement in exile, and could be
a more effective lobby group, said sources.

If formed, the new exiled government would include 15 ministers and
include ethnic representatives.

San Aung, a member of the current government in exile, the NCGUB, on
Friday denied there were talks about reforming the government.

“We are standing for the democracy movement,” he said. “If it is
necessary, we could dissolve the NCGUB.”

Political sources in exile believe that Maung Maung, General Secretary of
the NCUB, is lobbying to form a new government. Maung Maung is
controversial political figure in exile. San Aung said, “You (The
Irrawaddy) should ask the NCUB about it, because the rumors spread from
it.”

Many lives have been lost in the democracy struggle and people should
think carefully before rushing into the political arena, said San Aung.

The National League for Democracy (NLD) announced its opposition to the
formation of a new government in exile in February 2006.

____________________________________
BUSINESS / TRADE

December 21, Xinhua
Largest pharmaceutical factory established in north Myanmar

The largest and most up-to-date pharmaceutical factory was set up in
Myanmar's northern city of Pyin Oo Lwin, starting to produce 162 kinds of
medicines, the official newspaper New Light of Myanmar reported Friday.

Pyin Oo Lwin Pharmaceutical Factory, inaugurated on Thursday, will produce
high-quality modern medicines such as tablet, capsule, intramuscular,
intravenous, lotion and powder, the report said.

There has been some five other pharmaceutical factories in Myanmar,
including two special ones, respectively located in Yangon, Sagaing and
Inyaung, according to the report. These factories are supplying 40 percent
of the domestic market.

Meanwhile, reports said German entrepreneurs plan to set up pharmaceutical
factories in Myanmar to produce home-use capsules and tablets soon as part
of foreign engagement in the development of the sector.

According to statistics of the Ministry of Commerce, Myanmar imported
pharmaceutical products valued at 100 million U.S. dollars in 2006-07
which ended in March, an increase by 25 percent from 2005-06 when it was
80 million dollars.

These pharmaceuticals were mainly imported from Asian nations, including
India, Bangladesh, China and Indonesia. Of the imports, only 10 percent
came from European countries.

____________________________________

December 21, Irrawaddy
Burma’s largest IT center opens—But for how long? - Shah Paung

The largest information technology center, or cyber city, in Burma opened
in mid-December. However, the project has been criticized as of little
benefit to the people of Burma.

The opening ceremony of the Burma Yadanabon Information and Communication
Technology (ICT) Park, also known as “Yadanabon Cyber City,” took place on
December 14 and was attended by Burmese military government leader Snr-Gen
Than Shwe and several top military officers.

According to Burmese state media, the center is situated on 10,000 acres
of land, over one-fifth of which will house the production of software and
hardware. The project is located in the town of Yadanabon Myothit, near
Pyin Oo Lwin, about 67 km east of Mandalay.

However, several sources from the media and from computer departments at
universities in Burma say that the objective of the project is simply to
show foreign government visitors that the authorities are successfully
developing the economy and to attract more foreign investment in Burma.

According to the editor of a weekly journal, Rangoon will remain the IT
and business center of the country, because most students and IT experts
were based either there or in Mandalay. He added that it would not be easy
to contract IT personnel to work in Yadanabon Cyber City and that
transportation costs would become a problem.

According to a writer in Mandalay, most of his friends who are working in
IT are not interested in investing in Yadanabon Cyber City because it is
located too far from the cities for most people to want to travel to.

The New Light of Myanmar reported on Monday said that during the opening
ceremony Than Shwe “gave guidance, saying that in accord with weather and
environmental conditions Yadanabon Myothit was set up for the development
of modern information and communication technologies in Myanmar [Burma].”

“As the government has provided a water and power supply, communications
and administration facilities for the new town, it is necessary to create
good opportunities for enabling local and foreign entrepreneurs to make
investments at the teleport and to smoothly carry out modern information
and technological tasks,” Than Shwe added.

However, the source in Mandalay said: “It will offer some benefit for a
few foreign companies, but I cannot see that it will benefit Burmese
people much.”

The Burmese military authorities began construction of the IT center’s
main building at the end of June, 2006, after the area was cleared of
jungle. The state media said that a total of 11 local and foreign
companies had proposed investments in the project. Foreign investors
include: Shin Satellite from Thailand; ZTE and Alcatel Shanghai Bell of
China; IP Tel Sdn Bhd (Malaysia); and CBOSS (Russia).

However, sources inside Burma said that many people doubt whether the
project will come to fruition, because even in large cities like Rangoon
and Mandalay, the government cannot provide enough electricity to run
businesses. Electricity is currently rationed to six hours per day in
rotation across those cities.

Internet café owners in Burma still have to use their own generators to
power their work stations. According to the Open Net Initiative Bulletin,
Burma is one of 30 counties that has less than one percent Internet
penetration, an estimate of just under 300,000 Internet users nationwide
in 2005.

Burma has two Internet service providers, or ISPs—state-owned Myanma Posts
and Telecommunications (MPT); and BaganNet/Myanmar Teleport, formerly
known as Bagan Cybertech.

____________________________________

December 21, Irrawaddy
Australian Oil Company to invest in Burma gas fields - Violet Cho

Human rights and environmental activists have criticized Australian owned
Twinza Oil's decision to invest US $30 million to conduct exploratory
tests in Burma's offshore Yetagun East Block in the Gulf of Martaban.

Twinza Oil is the parent company of Danford Equities Corporation, which
will conduct the tests in the Yetagun East Block, located in shallow
waters in the far south of the Gulf of Martaban adjacent to the towns of
Dawei and Myeik.

John Kaye, the president of the Australia Coalition for Democracy in
Burma, said Twinza's involvement with Burma will help prop up a government
that practices brutality, rape, torture and murder.

“That investment money, the services that Twinza is giving to the
oilfields, should not go ahead until democracy has been restored in
Burma," he said. "When Twinza invests that money it will entrench the
system of the dictatorship. And there’s only misery ahead.”

“In any investment in Burma none of the benefits will go to the Burmese
people," he said. "The Burmese military capture all the benefits.”

According to Dow Jones, an American publishing and financial information
firm, the Twinza Oil Ltd country manager for Myanmar [Burma], Christopher
Drew, said the company will conduct seismic studies and drill in the
shallow-water block, which has estimated crude oil reserve of about 100
million barrels.

"If things go well, we'll be able to start production in 2010, which would
require an investment of several hundred million dollars," Drew said.

In November 2006, Bill Clough, CEO of Twinza Oil, signed a joint venture
contract for offshore oil and gas exploration and production with Burma's
energy minister Brigadier-General Lun Thi. The deal covered the
21,000-square-kilometre Yetagun East Block.

"Along with the necessary investment, we are looking forward to bringing
in new, advanced technology, creating job opportunities for Myanmar
[Burmese] people and contributing to the thorough assessment of the
national resource base," Clough was quoted as saying in The Myanmar Times'
November 20-26, 2006, edition.

CEO Clough has a longstanding investment in The Myanmar Times, which is
run by Australian journalist Ross Dunkley.

"We have developed a close relationship with the ministry over time and an
in-depth understanding of the specific challenges of operating in Myanmar
[Burma]," he said.

The Burma Campaign UK has placed Danford Equities Corporation, the
subsidiary of Twinza Oil, on its ‘Dirty List,’ which seeks to pressure
companies from doing business in Burma.

John Kaye of the Australian democracy coalition said, “Australians are
feeding the military government that has dominated Burma for far too long.
The Australian government needs to come down hard on its donors and tell
them it’s not on. If they want to deal with the Burmese military and
enrich the military then they need to get out of Australia.

“Australia has an obligation to the people of Burma to ensure that
Australian companies are not profiteering from the misery of the Burmese
people. Those resources belong to the Burmese people, and it’s only under
a democracy that they will enjoy the benefits.”

Burma has abundant natural resources in the Yadana, Yetagun and Shwe fields.

Petronas Carigali of Malaysia is also carrying out explorations near the
Yetagun gas field.

Naing Htoo, the coordinator of EarthRights International (Burma) project,
said Burmese people who live along gas pipelines built by foreign
companies have lost property and failed to benefit from the economic
activity.

“As the foreign companies have a close connection with the military
regime, we want them to use their influence to push the military
government to end its human rights violation on civilians,” he said.

____________________________________
HEALTH / AIDS

December 20, Irrawaddy
The Tatmadaw’s hidden enemy—HIV/AIDS - Min Lwin

Tun Maung, a 36-year-old sergeant with the Burmese Tatmadaw’s No 391 Light
Infantry Battalion, in Hmwe Be, on the outskirts of Rangoon, hobbles
through the gates of the base, leaning on a bamboo stick. He’s a sick
man—infected, like many other Burmese soldiers, with the HIV virus.

Treatment at a military hospital hasn’t helped him much, and now he’s
hoping to find relief in a private clinic.

The nature of a Burmese army soldier’s job exposes him to a heightened
risk of contracting HIV/AIDS from contaminated blood and poorly
disinfected needles and other surgical equipment.

The need for blood in field hospitals is sometimes so urgent that supplies
aren’t properly checked, according to one medical assistant.

Officially, the Burmese armed forces have no HIV/AIDS patients. An army
medical told The Irrawaddy: “Our tetchuk (chief-of-staff) doesn’t
recognize the existence of the virus among his men. So we don’t have
HIV/AIDS patients, and we don’t get permission to treat them.”

The husband of Aye Win, Cpl Khin Aung Than, died of AIDS six month ago,
after serving in the Tatmadaw for 20 years.

“I don’t know how he came to be infected,” she said. “He suffered leg
injuries five years ago in Karen State, though.

“When he was dying with AIDS, I went to the battalion health unit to seek
medical treatment for him. But treatment was refused by a medical
assistant.”

One source close to the directorate of medical services said more than 80
patients had died from HIV/AIDS at a 1,000-bed military hospital in
Naypyidaw.

Yet, in a speech in Naypyidaw on December 2—World AIDS Day—the chairman of
the National Health Committee, Lt-Gen Thiha Thura Tin Aung Myint Oo,
insisted that everything was being done to assist HIV/AIDS patients and
their families.

Despite the general’s assurances, HIV/AIDS patients who are too ill to
continue serving in the armed forces are denied a pension if they have
served less than 10 years. Early retirement through ill health is resisted
by the army command.

Contributing to the problem is the lack of education within the armed
forces about the risks of contracting HIV/AIDS. “Most soldiers don’t know
how the HIV virus is contracted,” said the son of a sergeant-major.
HIV/AIDS sufferers are ignored by their comrades, he said.

Wives of underpaid soldiers are known to boost meager family incomes by
resorting to prostitution, adding to the risk of the HIV virus penetrating
army ranks.

Representatives of international organizations working in Burma say army
commanders resist any attempt to offer awareness programs to the troops.
Statistics of HIV/AIDS patients within the armed forces are unavailable.

Assistance for bereaved families is non-existent. Aye Win says she was
ignored by the army command after the death of her husband. She weeps as
she says: “They don’t want me and the children to remain on the base.
We’ll have to return to my family home, but I don’t know how we’ll
survive. I have no job.”

____________________________________
GUNS

December 21, Mizzima News
Weapons seized after truck turns turtle - Myo Gyi

Local authorities seized a Toyota Hilux light truck transporting 50 rifles
and ammunition last Friday when it was travelling along Ching Shwe Haw-
Theinni ( Hsenwi) Road in northern Shan Sate.

The light truck lost control while over speeding and overturned near Holi
village, 25 miles from Theinni . The local authorities arrested the owner.

"He was not arrested on a tip-off. The truck turned turtle while it was
going uphill near Holi village. After which, other passengers found out
what the vehicle was carrying and it was leaked to the authorities. The
driver fled from the scene," a source close to military circles told
Mizzima.

Though the driver managed to flee, the authorities traced the consignor of
the military goods from the addressee of other goods carried by the pickup
truck. Then the authorities arrested U Li Kyin Kwan, the owner of the
warehouse in Theinni.

____________________________________
REGIONAL

December 21, AFP
Thailand to grant citizenship to 353,000 people

Thailand will grant citizenship to 353,000 people, mostly hill tribesmen
living in the country's north bordering Myanmar and Laos, coup leader
General Sonthi Boonyaratglin said on Friday.

General Sonthi, who is also deputy prime minister responsible for
security, said the 353,000 people have lived in Thailand for at least 10
years.

There are more than one million migrant workers in Thailand. The majority
are from neighbouring Myanmar, one of the poorest countries in the world,
and at least half are here illegally.

The army-backed government will refer the matter to the next government,
to be elected after Sunday's election, and the 353,000 people are likely
to get citizenship by 2009, said Prakit Prachonpachanuk, secretary-general
of the National Security Council, which oversees domestic security.

Thais cast their ballots this weekend in the first elections since last
year's bloodless coup ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

____________________________________
INTERNATIONAL

December 20, Jurist Legal News and Research
US Senate approves tougher sanctions against Myanmar - Mike Rosen-Molina

The US Senate passed the Block Burmese JADE (Junta's Anti-Democratic
Efforts) Act of 2007 [HR 3890 materials] Wednesday, a bill that would
impose new economic sanctions and travel restrictions on leaders from
Myanmar [JURIST news archive]. The bill is intended to push the military
government to restore democratic rule. US Sen. Joe Biden (D-DE), one of
the sponsors of the Senate version of the sanctions bill, praised the
passage of the legislation [press release], which he described:

    The Burma Democracy Promotion Act imposes new financial sanctions and
travel restrictions on the leaders of the junta and their associates.
In addition, the legislation tightens the economic sanctions Congress
imposed in 2003 by outlawing the importation of Burmese gems and
timber to the United States. The bill also creates a new position of
Special Representative and Policy Coordinator for Burma. The Special
Representative will work with Burma's neighbors and other interested
countries, including the members of the European Union and the
Association of Southeast Asian Nations, to develop a comprehensive
approach to the problem, including pressure, dialogue, and support for
non-governmental organizations providing humanitarian relief to the
Burmese people.

The House has already passed a version of the bill but must still approve
minor differences with the Senate-passed version. US President George W.
Bush has indicated that he will sign the bill.

The UN General Assembly Third Committee passed [JURIST report] a draft
resolution [press release] last month condemning the recent crackdown
against political dissidents in Myanmar, calling on the country's military
government to release all political prisoners. The crackdown started when
Myanmar security officers arrested hundreds of Buddhist monks
demonstrating against rising fuel prices and human rights abuses by the
military regime. At least 10 people were killed when government soldiers
shot into protesting crowds [JURIST report] and the government has said
that some 3,000 people were arrested for participating in the protests. AP
has more.

http://jurist.law.pitt.edu/paperchase/2007/12/us-senate-approves-tougher-sanctions.php

____________________________________

December 21, Mizzima News
EU allocates 18 million Euro more to Burma

The European Commission's decision to allocate another 18 million Euros
(USD 26 million) on Thursday is welcome but it has to be ensured that the
aid reaches the needy and not the ruling generals, an ethnic leader said.

Harn Yawnghwe, director of Euro-Burma office in Belgium, said with the
deteriorating economic and political system in Burma, the EU's
humanitarian aid for the people of Burma is needed more than ever.

"But it must be ensured that the aid reaches safely to the people and not
the generals, otherwise it will be meaningless," Yawnghwe said.

The European Union on Thursday said the aid will be targeted for
vulnerable rural people living in remote frontiers including Arakan, Shan,
Mon, Karen states and Sagaing and Thanintharyi division.

Besides, the fund will also target 138,000 Burmese refugees living in
camps along the Thai-Burmese border.

The European Union has been providing humanitarian aid to Burma since
1994. It has allocated more than 100 million euros to the country since
2000.

____________________________________
OPINION / OTHER

December 21, The Nation
Dignity and justice for us all - Nai Nai

We celebrated Human Rights Day on December 10, and in a year's time we
will be commemorating the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration
for Human Rights.

For two important reasons, December 10 was an important day to stop and
think.

As a Burmese student, after the political unrest in my country this
September, it was not a day for me to celebrate but rather to pay tribute
to my people and my country.

Since September's Saffron Revolution, many defenders of human rights have
been forced into hiding; others have disappeared and many more are in
custody.

Dignity and justice for all will never be achieved if international human
rights obligations are not met for everyone in all the corners of the
world. Many countries, including my own, have ratified some of the human
rights instruments. However, this doesn't change people's lives unless the
respect for human rights becomes truly universal in practice.

Although, as a human rights defender I recognise the role played by the
UN, we still need to find out how to truly improve the situation in
oppressive countries.

Besides, we need to supplement the role of the UN in making human rights a
reality for people. Only then can the UN ensure that "all" means "all the
people" and "everywhere", and can find ways of dealing with countries that
have been violating the UN recommendations.

In many countries, people who simply express their need for justice are
persecuted. The world shouldn't just sit back and watch these human rights
violations take place.

For me as a student, dignity and justice can't be achieved without having
total respect for the freedom of expression, which is one of the key
rights in the Universal Declaration for Human Rights that will turn 60
soon. Sixty years is a long time, so it is about time the declaration is
fully achieved.

Man's freedom of expression is a basic right, and no one should be
subjected to torture or imprisonment for it. In this time of
globalisation, the lack of respect for human rights in one country should
be the cause of shame for its neighbours.

In conclusion, since the society's respect for human rights is still poor,
we the people of Burma, lose our dignity and justice not just in our own
country but also around the world. In my case, I dare not speak out for
fear of being judged by my background and not by who I really am. There
are many Burmese people undergoing serious discrimination, not only in
their own country but everywhere they go. There is almost no justice for
them both inside and outside Burma.

For me, I simply want to be treated as an equal wherever I am. I believe
you should treat others the way you want to be treated yourself. That
shows your dignity, your value of human rights as well as justice. In my
opinion, human rights don't mean demanding and defending your individual
rights, it also mean "balancing your society by using your rights". So, we
need self-actualised rights defenders in all walks of lives for the sake
of keeping our society in good shape.

Ms Nai Nai, a Burmese student, is currently pursuing a master's at the
Faculty of Education, Assumption University, Bangkok.

____________________________________

December 21, Irrawaddy
Facing the endgame - Min Zin

Recent weeks have been frustrating for Aung San Suu Kyi, Burma's democracy
icon. Hope of starting political dialogue with the regime's supremo,
Snr-Gen Than Shwe, is now dim.

Although there was an agreement on holding weekly meetings every Monday
between Suu Kyi and government liaison minister Aung Kyi, the regime has
gone back on its word. No meeting has taken place between Suu Kyi and Aung
Kyi since November 19. Moreover, the military's promise of allowing two
liaison officials from her party, the National League for Democracy (NLD),
to see her regularly has yet to be realized.

"Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has been trying very hard to keep the communication
channel open,” said a senior party official on condition of anonymity
because he was not authorized to speak to the media. “She even plans to
make a positive response to the preconditions of junta leader Snr-Gen Than
Shwe. But the regime has simply ignored her,"

The frustration is now spreading within the international community. UN
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon warned Burma during his recent trip to Asia
that the international community's patience is wearing thin. "I know the
international community is very much impatient, and our patience is
running out," Ban said in Bangkok.

Meanwhile, the junta is sending mixed signals to the international
community. In his official briefing on November 6, Information Minister
Brig-Gen Kyaw Hsan, a staunch junta hardliner, threatened UN Special Envoy
Ibrahim Gambari that the government's cooperation with the UN could be
jeopardized if his performance were viewed to be "unfair and one-sided.”
Kyaw Hsan told Gambari straight that "your opportunity to play a
constructive role in the matter may be in harm's way."

However, when Burmese Prime Minister Gen Thein Sein received Gambari on
the following day the general reiterated his government's full confidence
in and support for the Secretary-General's good offices.

"The Prime Minister invited me to return to Myanmarin his words"again,
again and again"," Gambari said at a briefing to the UN Security Council
on November 13.

Moreover, as a gesture of response to the UN's persistent demand for an
inclusive constitutional process, Thein Sein told Gambari that the
government would allow him to meet with its Constitutional Drafting
Commission to discuss ways of broadening the constitutional process.

On the other hand, at his press conference on December 3, Kyaw Hsan said
that the government's 54-member commission for drafting the new
constitution is sufficient for the task.

"No assistance or advice from other persons is required," he said, adding
that "it is not reasonable or fair to amend those principles adopted by
the delegates (of the National Convention)." Kyaw Hsan ruled out the
possibility of a role for the opposition to play in the constitutional
drafting process, the most important and first three stages of the
regime's "Seven-Step Road Map to democracy."

In fact, the military is testing the responses of the international
community by sending out such mixed messages. If the international
community, especially China and Asean takes a passive stand or backs down,
the regime will push forward with its hardline stance. When Asean caved in
to the demands of the regime by not allowing Gambari to give a Burma
briefing at the Asean summit in November, hardliners in Rangoon celebrated
their victory and started scratching regular scheduled meetings with Suu
Kyi.

"Burma's military leadership is just trying to do the absolute minimum
transition and reconciliation possible,” Priscilla Clapp, a US diplomat
who served as Chief of Mission in Burma from 1999-2002, told The
Irrawaddy.  “They will continue with their seven step plan, moving very
slowly, and wait for the international community to lose interest and turn
the other way."

However, some analysts and activists believe that the junta's seven-step
“Road Map” can still be a potential and viable option for Burma's
transition if it were modified to become inclusive and time-bound. They
think that the junta is resisting, not rejecting, the possibility of
accommodating its “Road Map.”

"It is not too late yet. If the international community could push the
regime to open up the constitutional drafting process before a national
referendum, the fourth stage of the seven-step ‘Road Map,’ we can still
have time and find common ground for negotiation for Burma's political
transition," said Dr Thaung Tun, UN representative of National Coalition
Government of the Union of Burma (NCGUB), the Burmese government in exile.

In fact, this is just what 92 elected Members of Parliament from inside
Burma called for in August 2007. They urged the regime to modify the “Road
Map,” which is now aimed at legalizing military supremacy in Burma's
future with the military's new constitution. The elected MPs said that if
the regime made it inclusive, they would like to cooperate and find a
political solution within the ‘Road Map’ framework. Almost all major
political and ethnic groups in Burma have agreed with the political
proposal of the 92 elected MPs.

This is also in line with the UN's persistent demand as Gambari made clear
when he said: "The Secretary-General did not reject the seven-step ‘Road
Map’ and what he would like to suggest were inclusiveness and time frame."

However, if the regime refused to modify the ‘Road Map’ and continued its
unilateral plan, the nature of Burma's conflict would become zero-sum. The
92 elected MPs have vowed to oppose the junta's sham constitution and to
educate and organize the people of Burma to vote against it in the
referendum.

Pro-democracy grass-root activists inside Burma as well as abroad also
declare that the regime's planned referendum will be showdown time for
Burma if the military fails to modify the ‘Road Map.’ They say there will
be almost no chance to reverse legalization of military domination after a
referendum, since the rest of the ‘Road Map’ will be to "(5) hold free and
fair elections; (6) convene elected bodies and (7) create government
organs instituted by the legislative body."

 "The principles of constitution drafted by the military are laid out with
the premise of 'military the master and civilian the slave' concept,"
said Tun Myint Aung, a leader of the 88 Generation Students Group,
speaking from his hideout inside Burma. "We are now preparing to educate
the people and launch a 'No Vote Campaign' against the referendum."

Some analysts even argue that another mass protest against the junta may
break out before the time of the referendum, and lead to political
turmoil, as a combination of poverty and repression fuels the public's
anger.

No matter whether or not the opposition activists could succeed in
derailing military's ‘Road Map’ with mass protests, the nature of Burma's
conflict and its consequences will be devastating, with more violent
crackdowns and human suffering. The international community must be aware
of this grim scenario and act resolutely to prevent it.

Min Zin is an exiled journalist living in the US

____________________________________
STATEMENT

December 21, Sean McCormack, Spokesman, the US Department of State
Burmese regime continues arresting democracy activists

The Burmese regime, led by Than Shwe, continues cracking down on democracy
activists for peacefully expressing their political beliefs, arresting at
least six more members of the 88 Generation Students this week, including
Khin Moe Aye, Kyaw Soe, Zaw Min, Htun Htun Win, Min Min Soe, and Myo Yan
Naung Thein.

These ongoing arrests belie the Burmese regime’s claim that it seeks a
genuine and peaceful transition to democracy, and demonstrate that it is
not fulfilling the expectations of the UN Security Council as expressed in
the October 11 UN Security Council Presidential Statement.

We deplore the regime’s actions and call on Than Shwe to release all
political prisoners, including Aung San Suu Kyi, to cease arrests of
democracy and human rights activists, and to begin a meaningful and
time-bound dialogue with Burma’s democratic and ethnic minority
representatives on a transition to a civilian, democratic government.

http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2007/dec/97954.htm