BurmaNet News, April 3, 2008

[Editor]

April 3, 2008 Issue # 3436

INSIDE BURMA
Mizzima News: NLD urges people to cast a 'NO' vote on constitution
Mizzima News: Solo protester sentenced to life imprisonment
Irrawaddy: Burmese authorities stifle opposition to constitution
Narinjara: More Muslim leaders arrested, others in hiding in Maungdaw
DVB: Karenni rebels clash with government troops

ON THE BORDER
Kaladan: Refugees and police clash, ten injured

BUSINESS / TRADE
AP: India, Myanmar sign multimillion-dollar transport deal
DVB: Transport and commodity costs hit by diesel price rise
Reuters: Burma's gas pipeline to be fixed in 5 days

GUNS
DPA: China-made police trucks arrive in Yangon
Reuters: N Korea sells Rocket Launchers to Burma
AFP: Singapore to probe alleged NKorea rocket exports to Myanmar

REGIONAL
Irrawaddy: Maung Aye visits India, activists protest

INTERNATIONAL
Irrawaddy: US, Britain and France seek UN statement on Burma

____________________________________
INSIDE BURMA

April 3, Mizzima News
NLD urges people to cast a 'NO' vote on constitution - Nay Thwin

The National League for Democracy (NLD) party today urged people to cast a
'NO' vote in the upcoming constitutional referendum, believing the draft
favors the continuation of military rule.

This latest statement from Burma's main opposition party reinforces the
stance of pro-democracy forces against the constitution.

In the statement, the NLD said that the constitution was not drafted by
the elected people's representatives, but drafted by the army as they
wished. Therefore they call on the people to unanimously cast a 'NO' vote
in the forthcoming referendum to be held in May.

"We request people from all walks of life to go to the polling stations
and resolutely and bravely cast a 'NO' vote," the NLD statement reads.

"We can assist in the constitutional referendum by going to the polling
stations. We take part in the referendum in this way. But we request
people to cast 'NO' votes in this referendum as per the rights granted by
the law, as this constitution is contrary to generally conceded norms and
principles, does not ensure equal rights and denies the people
sovereignty," NLD lawyer U Than Nyunt elaborated to Mizzima.

NLD issued a special announcement along with their statement on important
facts voters need to be aware of in the constitutional referendum, U Than
Nyunt added.

This special announcement has 2 pages with 17 points, explaining how to
act and what to do before, during and after voting.

Similarly, the party also issued a special announcement (4/03-2008) which
points out how the military will play a future role in state affairs.

According to the new constitution draft, the army will play the leading
role in state politics. The President and Vice-President must have a
military background and experience. The Commander-in-Chief of the Armed
Forces will directly appoint three key ministerial berths and the army
will occupy a majority of seats in the National Defense and Security
Councils. The special announcement criticized all these points.

Moreover the army has full authority over the administration of all
military affairs, and is reserved 25 percent of the seats in both houses.
Seventy-five percent of all MPs in both houses are to be needed for
constitutional amendments.

NLD won an overwhelming victory in the 1990 general election, winning over
80 percent of seats, but the junta has refused to honor the verdict for
almost two decades and is now planning to hold a new election in 2010.

In the NLD's statement issued on the 27th of March, 2008, the party called
on the junta to recognize the 1990 general election result by convening
parliament.

Meanwhile, NLD Youth members are agitating and organizing the entire
country to cast a 'NO' vote in May's forthcoming constitutional
referendum.

The draft constitution also includes provisions which bar NLD leader Aung
San Suu Kyi from holding office.

Copies of the draft constitution have yet to be made publicly available.

____________________________________

April 3, Mizzima News
Solo protester sentenced to life imprisonment

Western District Court in Rangoon sentenced solo protester Ohn Than to
life imprisonment yesterday.

Ohn Than was sentenced to life imprisonment and received a 1,000 kyat fine
(1 dollar = 1,100 kyat) under section 124(a) of the Criminal Code,
disaffection towards the State by staging a protest on the 23rd of August
2007 in front of the U.S. Embassy.

In his protest he shouted slogans in support of democracy, for economic
reform and development, the establishment of a government representing the
people, for self determination, the abolition of the dictatorship and for
U.N. supervision in Burma.

"He said in his final argument that the government is not the lawful
government under the constitution, since it assumed power by staging a
coup. So the punishment given to him is unlawful too," a man who attended
the court hearing repeated.

He also raised the question to the court as to why the authorities let
protesters led by Aye Lwin of the 88 New Generation Students (Union of
Myanmar) stage a protest in front of the U.S. Embassy against sanctions
imposed by Western countries. They are not punished like him and even
protected by the authorities, he argued.

Ohn Than staged a solo protest for the first time in front of the U.N.
Development Programme's office in 2004, for which he received a sentence
of 2 years imprisonment. He was subsequently arrested about six times in
2007 alone for protesting against rising commodity prices and expressing
his desire.

Ohn Than can appeal the judgment within 2 months.

____________________________________

April 3, Irrawaddy
Burmese authorities stifle opposition to constitution - Min Lwin

Burmese authorities are stepping up their campaign to silence opposition
to the proposed constitution, prompting the US on Wednesday to issue a
statement condemning recent arrests.

US State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said in a statement that on
March 29 six “youth activists” had been arrested for taking part in “a
peaceful rally against the regime’s draft constitution.”

McCormack said the US was renewing its call “for the Burmese regime to
release all detainees and political prisoners including Aung San Suu Kyi,
and begin a genuine dialogue between the regime leadership and Burma’s
democratic and ethnic minorities leading to a transition to democracy.”

According to the Thailand-based Assistance Association for Political
Prisoners—Burma (AAPP), some 1,890 political prisoners are currently held
in Burmese prisons, 52 of them detained in the past three months. An
estimated 700 people arrested during and after the demonstrations in
September 2007 were still behind bars, AAPP said. Activist sources say
most of the political prisoners are in poor health.

The latest victim of the regime’s continuing crackdown, solo protester Ohn
Than, was sentenced to life imprisonment by Rangoon’s west district court
on Wednesday for protesting in August 2007 against sharp rises in fuel
prices. Rangoon lawyer Aung Thein said Ohn Than was convicted under a
provision of article 124 (A) of the criminal code relating to “acts that
destabilize the government.”

Ohn Than, who graduated from Rangoon University in 1971, was sentenced to
eight years imprisonment in 1988 for taking part in that year’s
pro-democracy uprising.

National League for Democracy (NLD) sources in Taunggok township, Arakan
State, said three activists had been detained there for their opposition
to the proposed constitution.

An NLD source in Mandalay said three detained party members—Shwe Maung,
Wunnar Aung and Zaw Win Lay—and two monks had been moved from the city’s
prison to Rangoon’s notorious Insein prison on March 30.

Shwe Maung was imprisoned for making a symbolic gold-coated copper hat,
known as kha mauk (usually worn by Burmese farmers) in 2002. The hat is a
recognized NLD symbol and was intended as a gift for NLD leader Aung San
Suu Kyi.

____________________________________

April 3, Narinjara News
More Muslim leaders arrested, others in hiding in Maungdaw

Maungdaw: The arrest of Muslim leaders continues unabated. Three more
Muslim leaders were arrested by the Burmese military junta authorities on
Wednesday in the western border town of Maungdaw, said a local Muslim
resident.

Dr. Kyaw Myint, Dr. Tun Aung, and Nur Kobi, a car driver, were arrested by
Burmese intelligence agency personnel yesterday and brought to the Sarafa
Intelligence headquarters for interrogation.

"This is the second roundup of Muslim community leaders in our town in
three days, with the first roundup taking place on March 30," the resident
said.

In the first raid, 10 Muslim community leaders, including the chairman of
the Maungdaw Distrtict Myanmar Muslim League U Than Tun, were arrested.

"I heard the leaders were severely tortured by intelligence agents during
the interrogation and their health has started deteriorating after the
torture in the interrogation cell," he said.

Another source said many educated Muslim leaders in Maungdaw have been
hiding in fear of arrest since the first raid took place on Sunday.

The Burmese military authorities have not disclosed the reasons behind the
arrest, but there are rumors that the Muslim community leaders were
preparing to oppose the ensuing referendum.

There is also a rumor that they were arrested by authorities because they
made contact with the NLD Rangoon headquarters to conduct their
anti-referendum campaign in Maungdaw Township.

However, town's elders in Maungdaw could not confirm this rumor because
the authorities have not disclosed any details of the arrest, said a
resident.

____________________________________

April 3, Democratic Voice of Burma
Karenni rebels clash with government troops

Karenni National Progressive Party troops have clashed with State Peace
and Development Council forces, causing two deaths and one injury on the
government side, a KNPP representative said.

On 25 March, the government’s Light Infantry Battalion 336 clashed with
the Karenni commando battalion 3 near the border between Karenni and Shan
states at Tamusoe mountain.

One injury from the SPDC side was reported, according to a KNPP
representative.

On the same day, a skirmish between LIB-427 troops and Karenni rebels took
place in Phrusoe township in Karenni state.

In a third clash on the same day, two SPDC soldiers were reportedly killed
in the Phrusoe township area between Par Htaw village and Htaleh village.

The KNPP representative said about ten clashes take place every month
because of the government’s increasing offensives in the area and human
rights violations against locals.

____________________________________
ON THE BORDER

April 3, Kaladan Press Network
Refugees and police clash, ten injured

Teknaf, Bangladesh : Clashes broke out between the police and refugees in
a Burmese refugee camp in Bangladesh yesterday at about 3 p.m. when
refugees obstructed Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF)- Holland officials to
leave the camp. The medical unit was leaving the refugee camp after their
tenure was over. Two policemen and eight refugees were injured, according
to a Majee, who was unwilling to give his name.

Yesterday, when MSF staff was holding a meeting at the IDP centre for
their withdrawal from the refugee camp, the refugees were upset because
they did not want the unit to go given the good treatment the refugees
got. Therefore, they blocked the MSF car while it was leaving the camp.

Some refugees said, “We are very sorry for destroying the mirror of MSF
car. It is our great mistake.”

Initially, only five refugee women blocked the MSF car, and later another
refugee Salay Ahmed joined them. He damaged the mirror of the car because
he was angry. He was caught by the police and was severely beaten up. He
was admitted to the Ministry of Health (MOH) clinic in the camp. But,
later he fled from the clinic. The four women were also severely tortured
by police. This news spread to all the refugees.

A few minutes later, police reinforcement came to the camp and the police
beat up the refugees on the street, in the sheds and even in the mosques.
In reprisal, refugees threw stones and bricks at the police.  At first,
the police tried to disperse the refugees by firing warning shots in the
air. However, within half an hour the situation was brought under control
by the police. The refugees destroyed Research and Training Medical (RTM)
office, an NGO.

Eight refugees were injured. They are: Rashida Khatun, Salay Ahmed, Md.
Ayub (18), son of Noor Md.  Sayed Hussain (26), MRC No. 598, Block -D,
Shed No.41/6, Jamal Hussain (19), MRC No.35027, Block- D, Shed No.46/6,
Md. Noor (20), MRC No. 9459, Block-B, Shed No. 56/5, Rashida Begum, MRC
No. 29601, Block-E, Shed No. 25/6 and Abdu Suban (21), MRC No.31231. Among
them Rashida Khatun, Abu Suban and Md. Salay received bullets injuries and
Rashida Khatun is in critical condition. They all are from the Nayapara
refugee camp. Except Salay Ahmed, seven refugees were arrested by the
police, according to a Majee.

Besides, two policemen were injured, one on his face and the second in his
hand when the refugees hurled stones at them.

After the incident, the Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) of Teknaf Md. Altaf
Hossion Chowdhury, the Assistant Superintend of Police (ASP) of Teknaf
police Station, the army and Rab (Rapid Action Battalion) visited the
refugee camp.

Last night, most of the refugees slept in jungles in fear of arrest.

Today at about 6:00 am, the camp police arrested five refugee women namely
Rabiya Khatoon (40), Kismat Ara (17), four months pregnant, Zura Khatoon
(25), Halema Khatoon (30) and Noor Jahan (55) from Nayapara camp. They
were severely tortured while they were going to Teknaf police station to
see their relatives who were arrested last night. The women were later
released.

Today, at around 9 am, the camp-in-charge and UNHCR held a meeting,
regarding the incident.

When asked Fiido Herimcks, the head of Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF)
mission of Holland said, "We had to withdraw from the refugee camp as our
tenure is over. But, before leaving the camp, we handed over duty to an
NGO named RTM (Research and Training Medical). We will support the NGO. We
gave them training.  Besides, our car was attacked by the refugees."

The head of the MSF mission further added that the makeshift camp will be
transferred to another place named Leddha and the makeshift camp refugees
will be supported by International Islamic Relief Organization (IIRO). The
(MSF) will also support it.

According to local Banglar newspaper, 15 policemen were injured and two
cars were destroyed and only five refugees were arrested. It also
mentioned that 32 bullets were fired. But according to refugees, over 50
bullets were fired. But all were fired in the air.

____________________________________
BUSINESS / TRADE

April 3, Associated Press
India, Myanmar sign multimillion-dollar transport deal

India has agreed to build a multimillion-dollar (euro) seaport and
transportation system in Myanmar as it presses ahead with investment in
its much-criticized neighbor.

The agreement was signed Wednesday by officials during a meeting between
the second-highest member of Myanmar's ruling junta, Vice Senior Gen.
Maung Aye, and Indian Vice President Mohammad Hamid Ansari, India's
Foreign Ministry said.

India has been investing in Myanmar despite international calls for
sanctions on the Southeast Asian country's military government, which
violently suppressed pro-democracy protests several months ago.

A ministry statement gave no details of the deal. Earlier, Indian
officials said India would upgrade waterways and highways along Myanmar's
Kaladan River and develop the port of Sittway in the country's northwest
in the US$120 million (euro81 million) project.

"This project will greatly enhance connectivity between Myanmar and India,
in particular with India's northeast states," the ministry statement said.

India has established deep economic and military ties with Myanmar's
ruling junta over the past decade and has said it believes talking quietly
is a better approach than sanctions.

During his six-day trip to India, Maung Aye has also met Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh, who reiterated New Delhi's commitment to support Myanmar
in telecommunications and information technology, the statement said.

The general, whose visit ends Saturday, said he appreciated India's
assistance with infrastructure projects, road construction, lines of
credit and setting up an information technology center in Myanmar, it
said.

The agreement was signed the same day as detained Myanmar democracy leader
Aung San Suu Kyi's opposition party urged voters to reject a
military-backed draft constitution, saying it was undemocratic and written
under the junta's direct control.

The charter will be voted on in a referendum next month. The junta has
also announced general elections in 2010.

The Indian ministry's statement quoted Prime Minister Singh as saying
Myanmar needs to speed up its promised democratization process.

India shifted its policy from supporting Suu Kyi to engaging the junta's
generals in the early 1990s, partly because of a desire for access to
Myanmar's large natural gas reserves.

The transportation system will give India greater access to the reserves,
which it needs to fuel its rapid economic growth.

India has also recently sought to increase its influence in Myanmar in an
attempt to counter China, which has become the junta's main ally.

In addition, India has been eager to secure the cooperation of the Myanmar
military in containing separatist groups fighting New Delhi's rule in
northeastern India near the Myanmar border. Several of the groups have set
up bases across the 1,331-kilometer (830-mile) border and used them to
launch attacks in India.

____________________________________

April 3, Democratic Voice of Burma
Transport and commodity costs hit by diesel price rise

The price of diesel has gone up by about 1000 kyat per gallon, causing a
rise in the cost of transportation and basic commodities, according to a
Rangoon resident.

Diesel previously cost less than 5000 kyat per gallon, but has increased
to 6000 kyat and may be higher elsewhere, the resident said.

“It seems like it’s going to keep going up to more than 6000 kyat,” he said.

“I think it will be more expensive in Moulmein, because the fuel price
there is already about 500 kyat more than in Rangoon, so it would be about
6500 kyat there now.”

The knock-on effect of the price increase has been a rise in the cost of
transport and basic commodities.

“It costs around 3000 or 4000 kyat to travel from South Okkalapa township
to downtown,” the Rangoon resident said.

“People can’t even afford to pay for bus fares at this rate, let alone
taxis.”

The cost of rice has also risen as a result of the diesel price hike.

____________________________________

April 3, Reuters
Burma's gas pipeline to be fixed in 5 days - Khettiya Jittapong

A leak in a pipeline from  Burma's Yetagun offshore gas field will be
fixed in five days by Malaysia's Petronas, Thai Energy Minister Poonpirom
Liptapanlop said on Thursday.

Petronas, operator of the gas-rich offshore field in the Gulf of Martaban,
had found two cracks on the onshore part of the pipeline near Thai and
Burma border, Poonpirom told reporters.

"They are fixing the problem and gas supply from Yetagun should be back to
normal in five days," she said.

Burma natural gas accounts for about 30 percent of Thailand's consumption,
mostly in power generation.

About 1.16 billion cubic feet per day (cfd) of gas from the Yetagun and
nearby Yadana fields is exported to Thailand.

Thailand's PTT Exploration and Production PTTE.BK said on Wednesday the
leak caused a loss of supplies to Thailand of about 400-500 million cfd.

PTTEP, a subsidiary of top energy firm PTT PCL PTT.BK, owns 19.3 percent
of the Yetagun gas field and Petronas has a 40.9 percent stake. Other
shareholders include Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise and Nippon Oil
Exploration (Myanmar).

State-controlled PTT PCL, a buyer of gas from the Yetagun and Yadana
fields, was importing 10 million litres of fuel oil a day from Malaysia
for power generation as a precaution, Poonpirom said.

The leak also prompted PTT to postpone a plan to shut down the gas
pipeline to Burma for routine maintenance from April 11-20, she said.

____________________________________
GUNS

April 3, Deutsche Presse-Agentur
China-made police trucks arrive in Yangon

China has delivered 80 FAW transport trucks to police grounds on the
outskirts of Yangon in what may be an effort to beef up preparations for
more protests, witnesses said Thursday.


They reported seeing about 40 of the 2.75-ton trucks at the Kyaik-Ka-San
police grounds in Bahan Township, Yangon.

Informed sources said another 100 trucks for transporting police and
troops were due to be delivered soon.

There was speculation that the trucks were part of preparations for more
disturbances in the former capital, as the country gears up for a
controversial referendum on a new constitution in May.

Opposition groups are urging citizens to vote against the new charter,
which was drafted by a military-appointed forum and will legitimize the
military's role in Myanmar's political future.

On Wednesday, the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) issued a
statement requesting all people to "bravely vote no" against the
constitution because it was drafted without participation by elected
members of parliament.

Although the NLD, led by Aung San Suu Kyi, won the last general election
of 1990 in a landslide, the party has been blocked from power by Myanmar's
ruling junta for the past 18 years on the claim that the country needed a
new charter before civilians could rule.

Myanmar has been under military rule since 1962, when General Ne Win
seized power in a coup that toppled the elected government of former
premier U Nu, and turned the once-prosperous nation into a socialist
state.

Anti-military riots first rocked Myanmar in 1988, before they were stopped
by an army-led bloodbath that left estimated 3,000 protesters dead.

In August and September, peaceful protests broke out against the regime's
mismanagement of the economy, led by Buddhist monks. Troops cracked down
on the protesters on September 25 to 26, killing at least 31 people.

____________________________________

April 3, Reuters
N Korea sells Rocket Launchers to Burma - Teruaki Ueno

North Korea has been selling multiple rocket launchers to military-ruled
Burma since the two countries restored ties last year in violation of UN
sanctions, Japan's NHK public broadcaster reported.

Quoting unspecified diplomatic sources, NHK said in a report late on
Wednesday that the launchers were the same type as those deployed near the
demilitarized zone separating the Korean peninsula.

The report could not be independently confirmed.

A Security Council resolution passed after North Korea's 2006 nuclear test
blocks trade with the secretive communist country in dangerous weapons,
heavy conventional weapons and luxury goods.

Many Western countries, including members of the European Union, the
United States and Australia, maintain economic and military sanctions on
military-ruled Burma, which was widely condemned in 2007 for a crackdown
on monk-led protests.

Diplomatic relations between North Korea and Burma were cut off following
the 1983 Rangoon bombing in which Pyongyang agents killed 17 South Korean
officials, but were restored in April, 2007.

North Korea is locked in a dispute with the international community over
its nuclear ambitions. It has agreed to give up its nuclear programs in
exchange for economic and diplomatic benefits, but has yet to produce a
full declaration of those programs.

NHK report also said 'full-scale' exports of the weapons had been handled
by an unnamed Singapore trading company. The report gave no further
details.

In response to media queries on the report, Singapore's foreign affairs
ministry said: "We take such allegations very seriously and will certainly
investigate. We are committed to fulfilling our international obligations
to prevent the proliferation and illicit trafficking of arms and weapons
of mass destruction."

____________________________________

April 3, Agence France Presse
Singapore to probe alleged NKorea rocket exports to Myanmar

Singapore will investigate allegations that a local trading company was
linked to North Korean exports of rockets to military-ruled Myanmar, the
foreign affairs ministry said Thursday.

Japan's public broadcaster NHK reported Wednesday, citing unnamed
diplomatic sources, that Pyongyang has started exporting multiple-launch
rockets to Myanmar after the two nations agreed to normalise ties last
year.

It said "full-scale" exports of the weapons had been handled by an unnamed
Singapore trading company but gave no further details.

"We take such allegations very seriously and will certainly investigate,"
a spokesman with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.

"We are committed to fulfilling our international obligations to prevent
the proliferation and illicit trafficking of arms and weapons of mass
destruction."

NHK said the weapons exports are in violation of economic sanctions
imposed on North Korea after the communist state conducted a nuclear test
in October 2006.

Multiple-launch rockets are 24 centimetres (9.4 inches) in diameter and
about one metre (yard) long, each with a range of about 65 kilometres (40
miles), according to the report.

Myanmar and North Korea have been branded "outposts of tyranny" by the
United States, which imposes sanctions on both countries.

____________________________________
REGIONAL

April 3, Irrawaddy
Maung Aye visits India, activists protest – Wai Moe

Burmese, Indian and Tibetan activists joined in a demonstration in New
Delhi on Thursday against the Indian government’s policy on Burma, which
coincided with the visit of the No 2 general in the Burmese military
junta, Maung Aye.

Ashin Pyinnyawara, a Burmese monk based in India, told The Irrawaddy on
Thursday that more than 1,000 people, including 200 Burmese activists, had
gathered in downtown New Delhi.

 “However, the guest house where Vice Snr-Gen Maung Aye and his team are
staying is quite far from the place that the Indian police designated for
the demonstration,” he said, adding: “The prime minister of India
recently said that legitimate power come from the votes of the people,
not from a gun. However, Indian foreign policy is centered on just taking
goods from Burma. Therefore, New Delhi’s policy is set on double
standards.”

T.D. Singh, an Indian activist for Burmese democracy, said that Indian
citizens had joined the demonstration because they wanted to protest
against the Burmese junta as it refuses to honor the 1990 election results
and also to stand up against the Indian government’s policy on Burma.

“We, Indian activists, believe that the Indian government’s policy of
trading with the murderous regime in Burma is a bad idea,” he said.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh (R) speaks with Vice Snr-Gen Maung
Aye during their meeting in New Delhi on April 2. (Photo: Reuters)
A report by The New Light of Myanmar said that the Burmese army’s chief,
Maung Aye, and his entourage, which included the junta’s No 5 general,
Thiha Thura Tin Aung Myint Oo, left for India on the morning of April 2.
The head of the ruling junta, Snr-Gen Than Shwe, saw off Maung Aye at the
airport in Naypyidaw accompanied by No 3 general, Thura Shwe Mann and
Prime Minister Gen Thein Sein.

After his arrival in New Delhi, Maung Aye met with India’s foreign
minister, Pranab Mukherjee, and India’s chief of army staff.

India’s foreign ministry said in a statement that India has agreed to
build a multimillion-dollar seaport and transportation system in Burma.
The agreement was signed Wednesday by officials during a meeting between
Maung Aye and Indian Vice President Mohammad Hamid Ansari.

“Several agreements were signed in the presence of the Hon Vice President
[Ansari] and H.E. Vice Sen-Gen Maung Aye, including the agreement and two
protocols of the Kaladan Multi-modal Transit Transport Project and Double
Taxation Avoidance Agreement,” said the statement.

Under the terms of the US $120 million Kaladan agreement, India would
upgrade waterways and highways along Burma’s Kaladan River and develop the
port of Sittwe in the country’s northwest.

The statement by the Indian foreign ministry also said that Maung Aye had
talked with Vice President Ansari over the forthcoming referendum in May
and general elections in 2010 as part of the Burmese junta’s “political
reform” and “national reconciliation” process.

The Indian vice president confirmed India’s support for the efforts of the
UN Secretary-General’s special envoy, Ibrahim Gambari, and conveyed that
India did not believe that sanctions were helpful and could prove to be
counterproductive.

Apart from New Delhi, Maung Aye is expected to visit places of economic,
scientific, historical and religious interest. He is due to travel to
Boddhagaya in northern India, the site of the Buddha’s enlightenment.

Maung Aye is reputed to be anti-Chinese and has wanted to be the architect
of stronger military and economic ties with Burma’s western neighbor ever
since the Indian administration set up its “Look East” foreign policy in
the early 1990s, based on economic ties with Southeast Asian nations.

In late November, India had put on hold the sale and transfer of all arms
to the Burmese government, a decision that followed the junta's brutal
crackdown on peaceful demonstrations led by Buddhist monks in September.

Meanwhile, however, reports surfaced that North Korea was secretly
exporting rockets to Burma. A Japanese broadcaster, NHK, citing unnamed
diplomatic sources, reported Wednesday that Pyongyang had exported
multiple-launch rockets to the Burmese junta since the two countries
normalized relations last year. The multiple-launch rockets are reported
to have a range of 65 kilometers (40 miles).

____________________________________
INTERNATIONAL

April 3, Irrawaddy
US, Britain and France seek UN statement on Burma - Lalit K Jha

Undeterred by a veto threat from Russia, three permanent members of the UN
Security Council-the US, Britain and France-will seek a UN Security
Council presidential statement on Burma.

The three countries will draft a presidential statement on Burma, which
the Deputy Permanent Representative of the US Mission to the UN,
Ambassador Alejandro D Wolff, told reporters Wednesday would be circulated
among the 15 members of the Security Council.

The draft, a copy of which was obtained by The Irrawaddy, calls on the
Burmese military junta to allow full political participation of all
factions, including the detained democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

The proposal will spark intense debate between the two dominant groups
inside the Security Council. While the pro-democracy group is led by the
US, Britain and France, two permanent members, Russia and China, have
resisted all moves to take stronger action against Burma's military
government.

The draft statement reiterated the importance of the "early release" of
all political prisoners and detainees.

"The Security Council again stresses the need for the Government of Burma
to take, in a timely manner, concrete, meaningful steps that result in
genuine dialogue with Aung San Suu Kyi and all concerned parties and
ethnic groups in order to achieve an inclusive national reconciliation
with the direct support of the United Nations," said the draft statement.

Referring to the junta's announcement of a referendum on the draft
constitution in May followed by multi-party elections in 2010, the draft
said: "In order for this process to be inclusive and credible, it calls on
the Government of Burma to allow full participation of all political
actors, including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi."

The draft stresses that the importance of the guarantee of freedom of
expression, association and assembly in the political process leading up
to the referendum, as well as independent poll observers.

"A presidential statement is very important.  Burma is going to be listed
(on the Security Council program for the month of April) because we are
obviously following the situation there very closely.  We expect there to
be a presidential statement," Wolff said, when he was asked about Russian
opposition to such a statement. It was during the Security Council
discussion on Burma last month that the US Ambassador to the UN, Zalmay
Khalilzad, said the US would seek a presidential statement.

"The situation in Burma is something that this Council and certainly the
US and other members are very concerned about and merits close scrutiny,
including on the referendum on this constitution," Wolff said. "This is
all part of a process that we believe should be to open up the society to
give people a voice and allow a democratic process that's serious, and
real, and transparent to enfold," he said.

The Security Council president for the month of April, Ambassador Dumisani
Kumalo of South African expressed doubt about the need for a presidential
statement on Burma's referendum. However, he confirmed that Burma would be
on the council's agenda in April.

"No draft presidential statement has been circulated yet. But the United
States delegation is putting together elements for a text, though it was
not certain that it would focus on the elections there or if there would
be a Council mandate for monitoring those elections," he said.