BurmaNet News, January 11, 2008

[Editor]

January 11, 2008 Issue # 3378

INSIDE BURMA
Irrawaddy: Suu Kyi meets junta’s liaison officer again
Reuters: Detained Suu Kyi meets Myanmar junta minister
Mizzima News: Bomb Blast near Burma's New Capital kills one
DVB: NLD chairperson in San Chaung arrested
SHAN: Youth arrested for singing political song
Narinjara News: Ten imprisoned, three held for interrogation
Narinjara News: Nasaka checks family list in Western Burma
Kachin News Group: Kachin State Day ignored, commander uses inappropriate
words
AFP: Myanmar arrests two over human trafficking: state media

HEALTH / AIDS
Xinhua General News Service: Myanmar warns against using
illegally-imported medicines

REGIONAL
Xinhua: Myanmar leaders meet Chinese NPC Standing Committee Vice-Chairperson

INTERNATIONAL
Irrawaddy: Gambari to visit India, China in January
CFOB: York University Students launch divestment campaign on Burma

____________________________________
INSIDE BURMA

January 11, Irrawaddy
Suu Kyi meets junta’s liaison officer again - Wai Moe

Burma’s detained opposition leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, met with the Burmese
junta’s liaison officer, ex Maj-Gen Aung Kyi, on Friday, according to
sources in Rangoon.

A convoy of vehicles, which was said to transport Suu Kyi, left her
lakeside residence about 1 p.m. and returned about 2 p.m.

A protester residing in Japan holds a poster of pro-democracy leader Aung
San Suu Kyi during a march demanding human rights in Burma [Photo:
Reuters]
The meeting between Suu Kyi and Aung Kyi, who is also Minister of Labor,
was the forth since the crackdown on pro-democracy protests in September.
The meeting has not been officially confirmed by authorities or Suu Kyi
supporters.

“In the past we couldn’t talk with the junta. If we can talk, it is a good
sign for the political process,” said Nyan Win, a spokesperson for the
National League for Democracy (NLD).  “To reconcile with each other, we
must start talks.”

The third meeting between Suu Kyi and Aung Kyi was on November 19, during
the Association of Southeast Asian Nations meeting in Singapore.

The NLD openly criticized the process in December, after two months
without any meetings, saying the government needed to move faster and that
no NLD officials had been allowed to meet with Suu Kyi, which was a
specific request made by Suu Kyi during her meeting with the United
Nation’s special envoy to Burma, Ibrahim Gambari, in early November.

Aung Kyi, who was appointed as liaison officer on October 9 last year,
said during s press conference in December in Naypyidaw that his three
meetings with the Nobel peace prize winner had yielded "positive
developments."

“I met with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi for three times. We have made progress at
the meetings. The first meeting was aimed at gaining understanding between
us. The second meeting was to discuss frameworks for the future. The third
meeting was to discuss the facts that should be included in the
framework,” said Aung Kyi during the press conference.

“We will release information related to the meetings when necessary,” he
said. “Regarding the time frame, we will continue to hold meetings with
Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. We need to consider what to discuss and why. We are
choosing ‘What’ and ‘Why.’ So, we will take ‘Where,’ ‘How’ and ‘When’ into
consideration in the future.”

Some members of the international community and dissident groups say the
junta is not really interested in dialogue, noting that Snr-Gen Than Shwe,
the head of the junta, has shown no sign of honoring a commitment to meet
with Suu Kyi himself, which he made in talks with Gambari.

The junta leaders offered to meet with Suu Kyi, who is under house arrest,
but only on condition she renounce calls for international sanctions
against the military regime, which has been widely condemned for its
crackdown on the anti-junta protests in September.

The NLD sent a letter to U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon recently
expressing its readiness to accept the U.N. special envoy’s mediation
efforts for political dialogue and national reconciliation.

____________________________________

January 11, Reuters
Detained Suu Kyi meets Myanmar junta minister - Aung Hla Tun

Myanmar's detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi met a senior junta
official on Friday, state media said, but it was not known what they
discussed.

MRTV showed footage from the fourth meeting between the Nobel laureate and
ruling junta member Aung Kyi since he was appointed as a go-between after
last September's crackdown on pro-democracy protests triggered world
outrage.

"We have no idea what exactly they talked about, but we welcome their
meeting. The more they meet, the better for the country," NLD spokesman
Nyan Win said.

Witnesses told Reuters they had seen a car leave Suu Kyi's Yangon home,
where she is under house arrest, and drive to a state guesthouse. The
meeting lasted about one hour.

They last met on November 19 when diplomats speculated that their talks
might have focused on the junta's preconditions for negotiations between
Suu Kyi and regime leader Senior General Than Shwe.

He has offered direct talks if Suu Kyi, who has been under some form of
detention for more than 12 of the last 18 years, abandons confrontation
and her support for sanctions against the military, which has ruled the
former Burma for 45 years.

Suu Kyi has said her previous meetings with Aung Kyi were constructive and
she was ready to work with the military to establish proper negotiations.

But critics say the regime is sending mixed signals.

Than Shwe has repeatedly insisted the only path to political reform is via
the junta's own "roadmap to democracy," suggesting that any talks would
have to take place within that framework.

Western governments have dismissed the roadmap as a blueprint for
legitimizing the army's grip on power.

Under an outline for a new charter, the head of the army will be the most
powerful person in the country, with the right to appoint key cabinet
figures and suspend the constitution in the event of an emergency that he
defines.

At least 31 people were killed in September when the junta crushed the
biggest pro-democracy protests in nearly 20 years, prompting international
condemnation and tougher sanctions.

Indonesia, the largest member of the Association of Southeast Asian
Nations (ASEAN), which includes Myanmar, has been increasingly critical of
Myanmar's foot-dragging on reforms.

On Tuesday Jakarta urged the generals to take more credible steps towards
democratization, including releasing political prisoners, ahead of Myanmar
Prime Minister Thein Sein's visit to Indonesia next week.

Neither diplomacy nor sanctions have brought changes in Myanmar, but
Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajudait said it was important to
continue to engage Myanmar.

"Some countries in the region choose to be indifferent but for Indonesia,
we can't afford to ignore this problem," he said. "We have to be
pro-active."

(Writing by Darren Schuettler; editing by Roger Crabb)

____________________________________

January 11, Mizzima News
Bomb Blast near Burma's New Capital kills one

In a rare instant, a small bomb today exploded at the Pyinmana railway
station near the tightly guarded Burma's new jungle capital Nay Pi Taw
killing a woman, a railway official said.

The bomb exploded at about 4:30 a.m. (local time) in the toilet of the
Pyinmana railway station, instantly killing a woman, who was believed to
be using the toilet, said the railway officer, who spoke on condition of
anonymity as he is not authorized to speak to the press.

"The blast killed one woman on the spot and destroyed the toilet. There
were no other casualties or damages," the officer said.

Security has been tightened at the station but train schedules have not
been altered or disrupted, the officer added.

A nurse at the Pyinmana hospital, speaking on condition of anonymity, said
the body of the woman victim has been brought to the hospital and will be
sent for post-mortem.

"Only one woman has been brought to the hospital and she has been brought
dead. The body will be sent for post-mortem," the nurse told Mizzima.

While the culprit behind the bomb blast could not be identified yet, an
officer at the Nay Pyi Taw police station said, they are investigating.

"As of now we cannot give any clue as to who is behind the blast. We are
still investigating the case," said the police officer, of the rank of a
sergeant.

Though the dead woman could not be identified, sources in Rangoon said,
she belongs to a Karen ethnic group.

Though such small bomb explosions are not uncommon in Burma, the blast is
the first in Nay Pyi Taw, which the ruling junta made its new capital in
November 2005.

The ruling junta, which has been quick at pointing to its political
opposition and dissidents for any such blasts in the past, has so far said
nothing.

____________________________________

January 11, Democratic Voice of Burma
NLD chairperson in San Chaung arrested

The chairman of the National League for Democracy in San Chaung township,
Rangoon, was arrested by authorities while attending a court hearing on
Wednesday.

An eyewitness said the San Chaung NLD chairman and former political
prisoner U Thet Wei, 50, was arrested by police at Kyauktada township
court at a hearing for solo demonstrator U Ohn Than.

"It was around 1pm in the afternoon when I saw him having an argument with
a police officer at the court," said the eyewitness.

"The deputy police chief arrived and he and another police officer took U
Thet Wei into an empty room where they questioned him for about 30
minutes. Then the security vehicle arrived and took him to Kyauktada
police station."

U Thet Wei's family said their enquiries about him at the police station
met with no response yesterday.

An NLD spokesperson, U Nyan Win, said that the party was frustrated by the
continued arrests and harassment of NLD members.

"There are currently 102 people detained; some awaiting trial and some are
serving prison sentences,” he said.

“It is unclear on what grounds they have been given these punishments; we
are getting very frustrated with this."

As of 9 January, six NLD party members and five other people had been
arrested so far this year.

The NLD members were Ko Kyaw Kyaw, Ko Kyaw Zin Win and two others from Daw
Pon township, and Ma Htet Htet Aung from [New] South Dagon township.

Ko Ko Maung and Ko Min Han from Mingalardon township were among the other
people detained, along with an unknown monk and two students.

____________________________________

January 11, Shan Herald Agency for News
Youth arrested for singing political song - Kwarn Lake

A Shan youth was arrested by the Burmese authorities. His crime -- singing
a Shan song at the Shan New Year celebration in Mong Yai, northern Shan
State, Burma , local sources said.

Sai Maung Tun (25) a member of Shan Literature and Cultural Committee
(SLCC) – Mong Yai, was arrested after he sang a Shan political song called
'The day Shans gain freedom', according to the sources.

The song written by the late song writer Sai Mu, is popular not only among
Shan communities but also among the resistance groups.

He was arrested on January 7 by the local police from his home, said the
source.

"He works in the farm to support his family and he has never had any
connection with any political organization and never talks about
politics", said a resident of Mong Yai.

The SLCC had invited a local music band of four youth singers to entertain
the Mong Yai residents during the New Year celebration.

Colonel Kyi Myint, a local authority, had also ordered his subordinates to
arrest the band. However, he withdrew the order after receiving an apology
from the president of the SLCC, said the source.

Shan New Year in Mong Yai was celebrated from January 1 to 4, while the
actual date of the Shan New Year 2102 fell on December 10, 2007.

The Mong Yai Shan Literature and Cultural Committee had initially decided
not to organize the celebrations due to lack of funds. However, the event
took place because Col. Kyi Myint had ordered the SLCC to collect cash
from local communities and organize it.

Meanwhile, the celebration of 60th  anniversary of Independence Day was
also ordered by the authorities to be held on the same days in Mong Yai
high school.

____________________________________

January 11, Narinjara News
Ten imprisoned, three held for interrogation

Ten people in Arakan State, including three monks, were sentenced to long
terms in prison, while three monks continue to be detained in
interrogation cells by the Burmese military junta. The arrests and
prosecution come in the wake of the 'Saffron Revolution' in the country,
said a National League for Democracy report in Arakan.

The NLD report listed the following monks as those recently sentenced by
military authorities in Arakan:

U Ithiriya (28) from Sithuka monastery in Sittwe who was arrested on
September, 29 ,2007, and sentenced to seven and a half years in prison. He
is currently being held in Buthiduang prison.

U Kow Mala (67) from Adidan monastery in Sittwe, who was arrested on
October 8 ,2007 and sentenced to two and a half years in jail. He is
currently detained in Sittwe prison.

U Wana Tha Ra, (23) from Radana Gon Bonmay monastery, who was arrested on
September 29, 2007, and sentenced to three years in prison. He is also
being held in Sittwe prison.

Three other monks, U Panya Thiri, U Than Yama, and U Wayama, are still
being held for interrogation in Sittwe prison and have not yet been
sentenced despite having been held by authorities for over three months.

The military regime has also sentenced seven civilians for their alleged
involvement in the recent monk-led protests. They are:

Ko Aung Naing Soe (22) from Pauktaw Township was arrested in October and
sentenced to three years and nine months in prison. He is currently in
Thandwe prison in southern Arakan State.

Ko Aung Naing (32), from Sittwe, was arrested on October 12, 2007 , and
was sentenced to two years and three months in prison. He is currently in
Sittwe prison.

Ko Win Maung, who was a member of a village council in Manaung Township,
was arrested on November 27 and sentenced to two and a half years. He has
been sent to Kyaukpru prison from Manaung.

Ko Min Min Oo from Gwa Township has been detained in the notorious Insein
prison, and has been charged by authorities on seven counts.

Three NLD Arakan State members were also sentenced to long prison terms:
Ko Min Aung (35), is the secretary of the financial department of the NLD
Arakan State . He was arrested on October 13, 2007, and was sentenced to
nine and a half years in prison. He is currently in Thandwe prison. His
sentence was reduced by the authorities to seven and a half years after an
appeal at the high court.

U Khin Hla (60) is the secretary of the organization department for the
NLD Arakan State and was arrested on November 28, 2007. He was sentenced
to four years in prison and is currently in Thandwe prison.

Ko Ray Thein, alias Bu Maung, is a member of the NLD from Buthidaung who
was arrested on November 19, 2007. He is currently missing and the
location of his detention is unknown.

The NLD in Arakan stated in the report that they have only collected the
names of the aforementioned individuals in Arakan State after the 'Saffron
Revolution,' but many more people have been reported arrested and are
missing around the state after the junta cracked down on those they
believed played a part in the protests.

____________________________________

January 11, Narinjara News
Nasaka checks family list in Western Burma

Maungdaw: Nasaka, Burma's border security force, has been checking the
lists of family members in all quarters of the western border town
Maungdaw, and taking photographs of family members in every household,
said a teacher in Maungdaw.

"This year the check on the list of family members in Maungdaw is very
different from last year because this year the Nasaka is not only checking
the list but also taking photographs of all family members in all
households," he said.

During the check, Nasaka collected 2,000 kyat from each household as fees
for taking the photographs of family members.

Nasaka has also been checking the lists of family members of the Rakhine
community in Maungdaw, which was not done last year.

"Last year, the authorities checked only the list of family members of the
Muslim community, not the Rakhine community, but this year Nasaka
authorities have checked the lists of the Rakhine community in Maungdaw
and are taking photographs of all family members from each household. They
also have been forced by Nasaka to pay 2,000 kyat as fees for the
photographs," the teacher said.

The checking of lists and taking of photographs is likely for two reasons;
the first is to check for family members that have left to go abroad for
work, and the second is to collect the list of all townspeople for the
forthcoming referendum to be held after the constitution drafting is
complete

"I think it is also a new method of collecting money from local people, by
checking the family member list, because many people from Maungdaw have
left home for work in the Middle East," a politician in Maungdaw said.

Nasaka typically extorts large sums of money from families if they are
unable to present any family member on the list during the scrutiny.

"If anybody is not present before Nasaka during the checking of the list
of family members, the Nasaka threaten to remove the name of the missing
people from the family list. At that time, family members may pay bribes
of at least 100,000 kyat to Nasaka officials to prevent deletion of the
name of the missing person from their family list, the politician said."

If a missing family member's name is removed from the family list, they
will effectively have their Burmese citizenship revoked and will be unable
to regain it. Family members are afraid to have the name of their missing
relatives removed from the list, so they pay bribes to the Nasaka forces
in order to keep all the names on the list, the politician added.

____________________________________

January 11, Kachin News Group
Kachin State Day ignored, commander uses inappropriate words

The Burmese military junta has completely ignored the Kachin State Day.
The regime's military commander addressed the inaugural ceremony with
inappropriate words in front of audiences at a special ceremony of the
60th anniversary of Kachin State Day, yesterday, sources said.

Maj-Gen Ohn Myint, commander of Kachin State (northern command) greeted
the inaugural ceremony with romantic words "Ngou (wou) Ai Nii" in Chinese
and "Nang hpe ngai tsawra ai" in Kachin, meaning "I love you" in English
when he started to deliver his speech of about 15 minutes, said a local
participant.

The commander's speech was delivered to thousands of majority Kachin
participants at the special ceremony marking the 60th anniversary of
Kachin State Day in Kachin National Manau Park in Myitkyina, capital of
Kachin State, Northern Burma, the attendees said.

This is not the first times the Commander Maj-Gen Ohn Myint has spoken
inappropriate words. He has already said several unacceptable words
related to ethnic identity to native Kachins and Red Shans, said local
sources.

He has also tried to divide the Kachin ceasefire groups and militia
group—Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), New Democratic Army-Kachin
(NDA-K), Lasang Awng Wa Peace Group and the Rebellion Resistance Force
(RRF) led by a businessman Ahdang since he took over in Kachin State in
late 2005, according to Kachin ceasefire group sources.

Before the commander's speech, Majoi Gintawng Yup Zau Hkawng, head of
Kachin Cultural Office gave an hour long special anniversary day speech
but his speech was censored by the authorities, according to the sources
close to Manau office.

Local analysts said, the speech started with the formation of Kachin State
and its culture but concluded by praising the political process following
the national convention in the junta's roadmap to democracy in Burma.

The 60th anniversary of Kachin State Day yesterday was ignored by Burma's
ruling junta and all governmental departments, offices and schools were
opened as usual, said locals.
The Union of Burma was formed by the joint effort of Burmans and ethnic
nationalities leaders in January 4, 1948 in accordance with the February
12, 1947 Panglong Agreement signed by Burman leader General Aung San and
ethnic leaders--- Shan, Kachin and Chin.

____________________________________

January 10, Agence-France Press
Myanmar arrests two over human trafficking: state media

Authorities in military-ruled Myanmar, listed by Washington as among the
world's worst human trafficking offenders, arrested a couple trying to
smuggle four women to China, state media said Thursday.

In a rare acknowledgement of the problem, the Myanmar-language Mirror
paper said the two were held as they tried to bring four women to board a
train in the commercial hub Yangon to the border town of Muse.


>From there they would have been smuggled into China to work as maids, the

newspaper quoted police as saying, and identified the couple.

The government admits women from Myanmar have been lured to China with the
promise of good jobs but were instead sold and forced to marry older men.

Myanmar made human trafficking illegal in September 2005, but in an annual
report last year the United States accused the government of complicity in
the smuggling of people to Bangladesh, China, Malaysia and Thailand.

Among the reasons were sexual exploitation, domestic service and forced
labour.

Myanmar sentenced 33 human traffickers to life in prison in February last
year, while in 2006, Chinese and Myanmar police arrested 64 people for
human trafficking.

____________________________________
HEALTH / AIDS

January 11, Xinhua General News Service
Myanmar warns against using illegally-imported medicines

The Myanmar health authorities have warned local people not to use
illegally-imported medicines, saying the quality of such medicines can not
be guaranteed, the official newspaper New Light of Myanmar reported on
Friday.

An announcement of the Ministry of Health carried on the newspaper said
that some medicines, which were seized recently, were illegally imported
across border and not registered in Myanmar.

The report cited such medicines as Magnesia tablet, Dezawin tablet and Lin
Chee Tan Rheumatism pill manufactured by some four Thai companies and one
unknown manufacturer.

The Myanmar health authorities are strengthening the supervision of
security of food and drug on sale in the markets and examination is
occasionally carried out to ensure that drugs imported are only genuine,
potent and quality ones, and those produced locally shall meet the set
standard for public safe consumption.

Myanmar enacted the National Food Law in March 1997, forming a special
food and drug authority in a bid to enable the public to consume food of
genuine quality, free from danger and hygienic problem, and to control and
regulate the production, import, export, storage, packaging, distribution
and sale of them systematically.

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

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

____________________________________
REGIONAL

January 11, Xinhua General News Service
Myanmar leaders meet Chinese NPC Standing Committee Vice-Chairperson

First Secretary of the Myanmar State Peace and Development Council
Lieutenant-General Thiha Thura Tin Aung Myint Oo met with visiting
Vice-Chairperson of the Standing Committee of the Chinese National
People's Congress He Luli in the new capital of Nay Pyi Taw Friday.

The two sides exchanged views on bilateral ties and issues of common
concerns.

He Luli, who is also Chairperson of the Chinese People's Association for
Peace and Disarmament, arrived here Thursday on a five-day goodwill visit
to Myanmar at the invitation of U Htay Oo, Secretary-General of the Union
Solidarity and Development Association (USDA).

Shortly after she touched down in Yangon on the same day, He Luli met with
U Htay Oo.

Myanmar is He Luli's first leg of her tours to two Southeast Asian nations
and she will proceed to the Philippines after Myanmar visit.

____________________________________
INTERNATIONAL

January 11, Irrawaddy
Gambari to visit India, China in January - Lalit K Jha

The UN Special Envoy on Burma, Ibrahim Gambari, is scheduled to visit
India and China in January to continue his consultations with two of
Burma’s key neighbors, a top UN official said on Thursday.

Calling India and China two major players in Burma, the UN spokesperson
said the dates of his visit to the two countries have not yet been
finalized.

“He is planning during this month to go to India and China,” said the
spokesperson. It is understood that Gambari is trying to schedule
appointments with top leaders of India and China before announcing the
dates.

“As you know, a number of things have happened in terms of consultation
with different actors and different international leaders involved with
the crisis,” his spokesperson said.  “As far as I know, he is just going
to go further into discussions with two major actors in the situation in
Myanmar [Burma].”

Gambari has an invitation from the Burmese government to return to the
country to carry forward his mission of restoration of democracy and
protection of human rights in the country.

“He has a standing invitation to go back to Burma,” said the spokesperson.
The visit will be scheduled sometime after his Gambari’s visits to India
and China.

____________________________________

January 10, Canadian Friends of Burma (CFOB)
York University Students launch divestment campaign on Burma

The York Coalition for Responsible Investment (YCRI), an initiative of
concerned York students and professors seeking to put a social and
environmental spotlight on the university’s investments launched a
petition calling for the university to review its Burma-related
investments.

The group compiled information on the scope and nature of these
investments and identified 13 companies including Total, Chevron,
Petrochina, Mitsubishi, Toyota, Hyundai, LG, and Samsung.

In the petition, the York Foundation and Endowment Fund is urged to stand
up for its stated mission statement “a commitment to global concerns and
social justice,” and to respond to the calls of the Burmese people, and
divest from corporations that are doing business with Burma.

YCRI participants have great hopes that this campaign marks the beginning
of growing awareness about York investment.

A similar campaign was successfully launched at McGill University in 2006,
and McGill Board of Governors eventually adopted an ethnical investment
proposal. Canadian Friends of Burma coordinated the campaign at McGill
University in Montreal.

York students had led a five-year boycott of Pepsi products in the mid
1990s following the opening of their operation facilities in Burma for
gross human rights violations there.