BurmaNet News, September 17, 2008

[Editor]

September 17, 2008 Issue # 3558


INSIDE BURMA
Irrawaddy: Fourteen activists arrested
Mizzima News: NLD leader sentenced for trying to complain to ILO on use of
child soldiers
Mizzima News: Websites of three Burmese news agencies in exile under attack
AP: Monk attempts suicide at Shwedagon Pagoda
SHAN: Villagers live and die for Burmese army
Radio Australia: Burma seeks help to revive cyclone-affected rice region

BUSINESS/ TRADE
The Telegraph (India): Moreh gate to facilitate trade

HEALTH / AIDS
IRIN News: Health of cyclone-affected children improves
Bangkok Post: Killer baby formula sold to Burma, Bangladesh

REGIONAL
AFP: Myanmar activists 'undesirable'

DRUGS
AP: US faults Myanmar for drugs

OPINION / OTHER
IMNA: Ceasefire groups on cross roads

PRESS RELEASE
Amnesty International: Arms: 'Irresponsible' trade fuelling human rights
abuses



____________________________________
INSIDE BURMA

September 17, Irrawaddy
Fourteen activists arrested - Lawi Weng

As part of its ongoing campaign to preempt a repeat of last year's massive
monk-led protests, Burma's ruling junta has arrested 14 activists over the
past week, according to the Thailand-based Assistance Association for
Political Prisoners-Burma (AAPP).

The AAPP reported that six people were arrested on September 9 in the
former capital Rangoon, while another eight activists were taken into
custody on September 11 in Meikhtila, Mandalay Division.

A local member of Burma's main opposition party, the National League for
Democracy (NLD), said that one of the eight people arrested in Meikhtila
was activist Aung Ko Ko Lwin, the younger brother of prominent
activist-monk U Gambira, who played leading role during last year's
protests.

According to the NLD source, five plainclothes security officers raided
Aung Ko Ko Lwin's home last Thursday at 10:30 a.m., arresting him and his
wife. A second group of security officers appeared later in the day to
conduct a thorough search of Aung Ko Ko Lwin's residence. His wife was
released that evening.

AAPP secretary Tate Naing told The Irrawaddy on Tuesday that six activists
who were arrested in Rangoon last week are now being held in Insein
Prison. One of the detained activists was identified as U Gambira's
brother-in-law, Ko Moe Htet Hlyan. He was arrested at his home in Rangoon
at 7:30 p.m. On September 9.

Tate Naing said that the authorities arrested the 14 democracy activists
because of concerns about the possibility of protests like the ones that
occurred last September, when tens of thousands of people took part in the
largest uprising in nearly 20 years. According to the United Nations, at
least 31 people were killed in the subsequent crackdown.

Sources said that security has been stepped up in many areas that were at
the centre of last year's demonstrations, including Burma's second-largest
city, Mandalay; Sittwe Township in Arakan State; Pegu Division; and
Pakokku Township in Magwe Division.

In Sittwe, the authorities have imposed a curfew on three monasteries.
Around 500 monks have been told that they must not go out at night unless
they have permission from the abbots of their monasteries.

A monk in Sittwe told The Irrawaddy on Monday that there has been an
increased security presence around Pa Thein, Nan Tha Yar Ma and Sein Than
Thu Ka Monasteries. He said that monks are under close scrutiny, and that
officials sometimes visit at night to see if any monks have left their
monasteries without authorization.

In Pegu Division, the authorities have also deployed nighttime security at
monasteries. Mon monasteries in Pegu have been told to inform the
authorities if guests stay overnight.

________________________________

September 17, Mizzima News
NLD leader sentenced for trying to complain to ILO on use of child
soldiers - Phanida

Thet Wei, Chairman of the Sanchaung Township National League for Democracy
(NLD) was sentenced to two years in prison on Tuesday for trying to lodge
a complaint to the ILO on the use of child soldiers by the Burmese
military junta.

The Rangoon, Pabedan Township court found him guilty after charging him
with 'obstructing discharge of duty by public servant'.

Before being sentenced the opposition leader was frequently charged and
then his charges were dropped. Again he was released on bail and
rearrested soon after, repeatedly.

"U Thet Wei has been sentenced to a prison term. He was charged under
section 359 and 189 of the Penal Code. Then the Pabedan Court dropped the
charges under section 189 (threat of injury to public servant) and
sentenced him in another case under section 359," Ko Pho Phyu, the defence
counsel said.

The police arrested him in January for being in possession of a 'memory
stick' in which complaint letters on the use of child soldiers to be sent
to the ILO was stored.

He was arrested on January 19 while he was visiting a friend who was
facing trial and then released on bail later. Then the police revoked the
bail and framed charges against him again under Section 33(a), 33(b) of
the Electronic Law. He was sent to Insein prison.

Yet again the charge under the Electronic Law was dropped on February 22
and he was released on bail.

"He was sentenced to two years in prison with hard labour. I feel
extremely upset and do not want to say anything," his wife Daw Than Than
said.

Thet Wei had revealed that initially junta officials came and told him
that he would be acquitted on the condition that he issue a statement
saying all the complaint letters were bogus and based on wrong information
but U Thet Wei refused.

___________________________________

September 17, Mizzima News
Websites of three Burmese news agencies in exile under attack- Zarni

The websites of three Burmese news agencies in exile – the Democratic
Voice of Burma, The Irrawaddy and the New Era Journal – almost
simultaneously have come under persistent and severe Distributed Denial of
Services attack, leading to the websites becoming inaccessible since
Wednesday afternoon.

DDoS attacks flooded the communication channel of web servers with data to
an extent that the sites could no longer handle it. The attack is a
blatant attempt to disable websites, by overwhelming the sites with
information requests so that it cannot respond to regular traffic.

Surfers said the websites of the three Burmese news agencies had failed to
respond to their request since Wednesday afternoon.

"It is pretty certain that we are under attack. We have been attacked at
about 11 a.m. today," Toe Zaw Latt, chief of DVB Thailand bureau told
Mizzima.

Similarly, the Chiang Mai based 'The Irrawaddy' said its website has been
facing problems since Tuesday evening.

"But technically, we could confirm it only today that we are being
attacked," Aung Zaw, Editor-In-chief of 'The Irrawaddy' told Mizzima.

The Bangkok based 'New Era Journal' also confirmed that its website had
been facing an attack where surfers were unable to access the site.

The attack is the second for the Oslo based DVB in the past three months,
after its website was down for several days due to a similar attack in
July.

In July the Burmese website of Mizzima News, another Burmese news agency
based in New Delhi, India, also suffered a similar DDoS attack.

The webmaster of the DVB said, it is difficult to determine the level of
the attack and it is also difficult to predict when the sites will be
accessible again.

"Though we do not know who is behind the attack, it is certain that the
attacks are targeted," Toe Zaw Latt said.

________________________________

September 17, Associated Press
Monk attempts suicide at Shwedagon Pagoda

A Buddhist monk on Tuesday attempted suicide at the famous Shwedagon
Pagoda in Rangoon, Burma's former capital out of desperation over
financial hardship.

The monk, thought to be in his fifties, was immediately rushed to the
Rangoon General Hospital after he had slashed his throat on Tuesday
afternoon, according a report by the Associated Press (AP).

"The monk later said he tried to kill himself because he was desperate. He
said he came to Yangon [Rangoon] for treatment and ran out of money," the
AP quoted a member of the Shwedagon Pagoda trustees as saying.

The trustee said the monk was in a stable condition, the report added.

However, with Rangoon General Hospital staffs refusing to talk, the
information could not be independently verified by Mizzima.

The suicide attempt by the monk is the second suicide bid at the pagoda
this year. Earlier in March, Kyaw Zin Naing, a 26-year-old man, set
himself ablaze at the shrine, after shouting anti-government slogans.

Kyaw Zin Naing later died of burn injuries after he was taken to the
hospital.

____________________________________

September 17, Shan Herald Agency for News
Villagers live and die for Burmese Army - Hseng Khio Fah

To escape relentless persecution and human rights abuse, including forced
labour by the Burmese Army villagers in Southern Shan State are fleeing to
the Thai-Burma border, according to SHAN sources on the border.

Soldiers belonging to the Light Infantry Battalion (LIB) No. 524 and
Infantry Battalion (IB) No. 246 based in Kunhing have been subjecting
villagers to forced labour including security, portering duty and domestic
work like collecting firewood and building fences for the battalion, said
Sai Panti (28) from Kunhing who fled to Fang district on August  20.

"Each person from every household has to take turns for sentry duty at the
local command post five days a week. If we refuse to comply, we will be
fined Kyat 1,500 (US $ 1.25) per day," said Sai Panti.

"Moreover, widows are required to pay Kyat 2,500 (US $ 2) if they can't go
to work and a person who is absent from portering must pay Kyat 10,000 (US
$ 8). We have no time to eke out a livelihood," complained Sai Panti's
wife Nang Herng (23).

Similar incidents took place in Keng Tawng sub-township, Mongnai Township.

On July 16, a group of Burmese soldiers from Light Infantry Battalion
(LIB) No. 569 based in Keng Tawng, went on patrol around Kunhing area and
called on the headman of Hsai Khao village, Hsai Khao village tract, and
ordered villagers to carry soldier's weapons and to show troops the
shortcut to the location of the rebels, according to a local villager who
fled to the border.

Sai Nanda (28) who is not a native of Hsai Khao was chosen as the guide,
but as he was not able to show the way, he was beaten on his head until
blood flowed, said a source.

"You must be a member of the rebel group, as you don't know the way," a
villager quoted soldiers as saying.

He was sent back to the village after he sustained many injuries. But no
one including the village headman dared to report the incident to top
authorities.

"The soldiers did not even go to the place where they said they wanted to
go," complained the villager.

The human rights situation in Shan State is reported monthly by the Shan
Human Rights Foundation based in Chiangmai.

____________________________________

September 17, Radio Australia
Burma seeks help to revive cyclone-affected rice region

Burma's junta is seeking foreign help for seeds and fertiliser to revive
its main rice-growing region, devastated by Cyclone Negris last May.

Cyclone Nargis left an estimated 140,000 people dead or missing when it
swept through the Irrawaddy delta

The International Rice Research Institute says it sent a team to the
disaster zone last month and held talks with agriculture officials.

The officials asked fos salt resistant rice strains, fruit tree seedlings
and vegetable seeds and fertilizer.

The disaster slashed Burma's food crop output by six per cent or 1.2
million tonnes.

____________________________________
BUSINESS / TRADE

September 17, The Telegraph (India)
Moreh gate to facilitate trade

Imphal, A two-member team from the Centre visited Moreh today to finalise
the site for an integrated checkpost that would facilitate trade between
India and Myanmar.

The joint secretary home, border management, Sada Kant, and the under
secretary of the commerce ministry, P.C. Pandey, arrived in Imphal
yesterday to take a final call on the site.

Moreh is one of 13 towns where integrated checkgates were proposed under
the Look East policy.

The checkpost in Moreh will be set up near border gate number one, which
connects Myanmar through a river bridge, half of which belongs to Myanmar
and the other half to India.

Though nearly 100 houses will need to be dismantled to make space for the
checkpost, the move will benefit traders who have long complained of far
too many checkpoints on the 109-km-long Moreh-Imphal Road.

Close to Rs 5 crore of goods are traded through Moreh daily.

The central officials inspected the proposed site and the trade exchange
through gate number two at Moreh. They also spoke to leading traders at
the border town.

Construction of the checkpost will begin within the current financial year
on a 45.5-acre plot. The entire expenditure will be borne by the Centre.

Border trade between Myanmar and India through Moreh in Chandel district
began in April 1995 with specified 22 items.

Most of these 22 items include agricultural produce like betel nuts,
rajma, moong dal, gram, ginger, garlic, wheat flour, chillies and peas.

The Manipur government has now proposed to include 18 more items in the
trade list, including bicycle parts and life-saving drugs.

____________________________________
HEALTH / AIDS

September 16, IRIN News
Health of cyclone-affected children improves

The health of children under five in cyclone-affected Myanmar is
improving, say specialists, despite huge challenges.

Initially, children living in the storm-hit areas were thought to be at a
higher risk of acute malnutrition and micronutrient deficiencies because
of poor access to food and a balanced diet.

“The situation is getting better... curative and preventive services in
health and nutrition have been reaching most of the vulnerable children
and women even in hard-to-reach areas, and damaged health facilities and
services are being rehabilitated,” Osamu Kunii, chief of health and
nutrition at the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), told IRIN in Yangon, the
former capital.

The nutritional status of children was poor even before Cyclone Nargis
slammed into Myanmar, leaving almost 140,000 people dead or missing and
affecting 2.4 million people more.

Approximately one-third of children in Myanmar are malnourished, and about
one-fifth of newborns are underweight, according to this year’s State of
the World’s Children report.

Added to that was an increased risk of communicable diseases, with many
children lacking access to safe drinking water and sanitation in the
aftermath of Nargis, Kunii said.

According to the Post-Nargis Joint Assessment (PONJA) report 42 percent of
households lost all their food stocks during the cyclone, with another 33
percent losing most or some of their stocks.

In addition, about 75 percent of health facilities in the storm-hit areas
were damaged.

Initial fears not realised

Yet initial fears of nutrition rates deteriorating further were not
realised, aid workers noted.

“As per our findings, the condition of health and nutrition of the
children is almost back to normal. It's not a big problem any more,” said
Souheil Reaiche, head of mission for Médecins Sans Frontières-Switzerland.

According to its survey of more than 22,000 children screened for
malnutrition at mobile clinics in the cyclone-affected townships of Bogale
and Pyapon, 0.2 percent of the children were severely malnourished, while
2.6 percent and 14 percent were moderately malnourished and at risk of
malnutrition respectively.

In Ngaputaw and Myaungmya, 0.6 percent of the children were severely
malnourished, while 6.6 percent and 10 percent of the children were
moderately malnourished and at risk of malnutrition respectively, reported
Save the Children.

In Labutta, said Merlin, 0.25 percent of under-fives were severely
malnourished, while 3.6 percent and 21 percent of the children were
moderately malnourished and at risk respectively.

“These indicators are not high, they are just average,” said Khin Maung
Pyone, a medical coordinator for the NGO in Labutta.

According to the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (2003) conducted by the
Department of Health Planning and National Nutrition Centre, severe acute
malnutrition rates averaged 1.7 percent for all under-fives in Myanmar.
____________________________________

September 17, Bangkok Post
Killer baby formula sold to Burma, Bangladesh

Two Chinese firms where tests found tainted milk products had exported
baby formula milk powder to five countries including Bangladesh and Burma,
the government said on Wednesday.

The Suokang and Yashili companies had started to recall their exported
milk powder products, which were also sent to Yemen, Burundi and Gabon,
said Li Changjiang, the head of the State Administration of Quality
Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ).

An earlier report said no melamine was found after experts tested samples
of Yashili's milk powder earmarked for export.

Suokang was based in the eastern city of Qingdao and Yashili in the
southern province of Guangdong, Li told reporters.

Both firms were among the 22 companies where the ministry found 69 batches
of milk powder tainted with melamine, he said.

Three babies have died, 158 children have developed "serious kidney
problems" and 6,244 infants have been sickened by baby formula
contaminated with melamine, health officials said on Wednesday.

Police in the northern province of Hebei have charged four people in
connection with the largest case of melamine contamination and detained 22
others, state media said.

____________________________________
REGIONAL

September 17, Agence France Presse
Myanmar activists 'undesirable'

Singapore has defended its decision not to renew the visas of some Myanmar
nationals working or studying in the city-state, saying they were
'undesirable' people.

Minister for Home Affairs Wong Kan Seng said there was no political
pressure to move against the Myanmar nationals, who had participated in a
Singapore protest against their country's military rulers.

'The recent immigration actions taken by ICA (Immigration and Checkpoints
Authority) against a few Myanmar nationals were not the result of
political pressure or requests from the Myanmar government,' he said in a
written reply, released on Wednesday, to a question in parliament on
Tuesday.

Mr Wong denounced the Myanmar activists for politicising the visa issue
and said the immigration office had 'rightly decided that such persons are
undesirable and that they should leave'.

While the majority of Myanmar nationals in Singapore are law-abiding, Mr
Wong singled out a small group he said 'had persistently defied our laws
in pursuing their political agenda'.

Members of this group had participated in an 'illegal' demonstration
during a summit of Southeast Asian leaders hosted by Singapore last year,
he said, adding that their protest was deliberately held near the venue to
attract public and media attention.

Three Myanmar nationals who joined the protest were forced to leave
Singapore this year after their visas were not renewed, said Myo Myint
Maung, a student speaking for the group.

Three others, who are Singapore permanent residents and who had also
joined the protest, had their visas extended for one year instead of the
usual five years, Myo Myint Maung told AFP.

Protests are rare in Singapore, where a gathering of five or more people
without a permit is illegal.

International rights groups have accused Myanmar's military leaders of
committing massive human rights violations against their citizens.

Singapore and Myanmar belong to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations
which also covers Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the
Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam.

____________________________________
DRUGS

September 17, Mizzima News
Burma again singled out for anti-narcotics negligence

For the seventh year running, Burma has been labeled as having "failed
demonstrably" in its efforts to combat illicit narcotics, according to the
United States government.

Notification of Burma's dubious distinction as the only country to be
labeled such since the classification originated in fiscal year 2002, came
yesterday in Washington, D.C. during a press conference by the United
States Assistant Secretary of State in charge of International Narcotics
and Law Enforcement Affairs.

Assistant Secretary of State David Johnson informed assembled reporters
that "Bolivia, Burma, and Venezuela, "failed demonstrably" during the last
12 months to make sufficient or meaningful efforts to adhere to the
obligations they have undertaken under international counter-narcotics
agreements."

Johnson pointed to Burma's continuing place of origin for the majority of
methamphetamine pills in Asia, in addition to an upward trend in poppy
cultivation previously judged to be in decline, as definitive statistics
in determining Burma's placement on the State Department's 2008 list of 20
Major Illicit Drug Producing Countries.

"The military regime has made little apparent effort to curb production of
the pills and little effort to stop poppy cultivation," continued Johnson
in his indictment of the junta's anti-narcotics activities. "Their efforts
to reduce demand, interdict drug shipments, and combat corruption and
money laundering continue to be lackluster."

The United States President is responsible for categorizing which of the
designated countries, if any, are to be deemed as having "failed
demonstrably," a categorization that opens the door for sanctions against
the country in question.

However, the President may also waive the inference of any sanctions if
such punitive measures would be understood as counterproductive to the
interests of the United States.

In his notice of Presidential Determination, also issued Tuesday,
President Bush informed the State Department that "support for programs to
aid Venezuela's democratic institutions and continued support for
bilateral programs in Bolivia are vital to the national interests of the
United States," thereby forfeiting the possibility of sanctions tied to
narcotics production against the government's of Hugo Chavez and Evo
Morales.

The Presidential 'pardon' for Venezuela and Bolivia means that Burma
remains the only country on this year's list of the Major Illicit Drug
Producing Countries to face possible sanctions in connection with their
failure on the narcotics front.

However, when Johnson was questioned by reporters as to what additional
sanctions this could possibly imply for the already heavily sanctioned
regime in Naypyitaw, the Assistant Secretary of State declined to go into
any depth as to what, if any, measures were open for the United States to
pursue.

The list for fiscal year 2008 is identical to that of 2007, with Burma's
neighbors India and Laos – in addition to Venezuela and Bolivia – being
joined on the register by Afghanistan, the Bahamas, Brazil, Colombia, the
Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guatemala, Haiti, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria,
Pakistan, Panama, Paraguay, and Peru.

____________________________________
OPINION / OTHER

September 17, Independent Mon News Agency
Ceasefire groups on cross roads

Over a 15 year period over 15 armed ethnic groups in Burma reached
ceasefire agreements with the ruling military regime, the State Peace and
Development Council (SPDC). The groups signed the pact with different
political objectives. Despite being aware of the separate strategies of
the groups the SPDC did sign ceasefire agreements. Some groups surrendered
to the junta and the SPDC recognized them as ceasefire groups or 'ethnic
peace organizations'.

Only a few organizations, like the New Mon State Party (NMSP), the Kachin
Independence Organization (KIO) and Shan armed groups fighting for greater
autonomy and the establishment of a federal union in Burma signed a
ceasefire pact with the SPDC for a 'political dialogue'. But many small
groups with limited political ideology were just targeting 'business
activities' while dealing with the junta.

The strategy of the SPDC towards the ceasefire groups was quite clear. The
regime did not have plans for a political dialogue with these groups at
all. It adopted a systematic plan to assimilate them by offering business
opportunities, weakening their political ideology, and alienating them
from their own people. The bottom line was to bring them to a situation
where they would surrender their arms to the Burmese Army under the agenda
of 'working for peace'.

The leaders of some ceasefire groups amassed wealth cornering business
opportunities from the regime. There has been a huge gap in terms of
assets between the leaders and their followers. More and more followers
left the organizations, and finally only opportunists remain in some
ceasefire groups.

Probably before the 2010 general elections, the regime will mount pressure
on these ceasefire groups to surrender their arms or put their armies
under the Burmese Army's command. It is only then that the junta will
allow group leaders to contest the elections. In the manipulated
elections, the ceasefire group's leaders will be elected as MPs to local
parliaments in the ethnic States.

However, some ceasefire groups with a semblance of political ideology face
an uphill task to decide on the surrender of arms and contest the
elections as a political party under the SPDC's militarized Constitution.
Some ceasefire groups are likely to break the ceasefire while many leaders
may not go back to the revolt they had started. A split among ceasefire
groups is likely.

Extension of existing civil war and an unstable situation in various ethic
areas will be the order of the day if the regime refuses to go for a
political settlement with ceasefire groups. The people in the frontier
areas will again suffer from gross human rights violation as a result of
ceasefire pacts being broken.

____________________________________
PRESS RELEASE

September 17, Amnesty International
'Irresponsible' trade fuelling human rights abuses

Weapons transfers that fuelled the military crackdown in Burma and the
ongoing conflict ravaging the Darfur region of Sudan may have been
prevented had an international Arms Trade Treaty been in place, said
Amnesty International today (17 Sept) as it published its new report.

The 125-page report - Blood at the crossroads: Making the case for a
global arms trade treaty - reveals how serious human rights violations are
allowed to occur because of the variation and loopholes in the
multi-billion pound global arms trade.

It discloses evidence of weapons continuing to flow into Darfur despite an
UN arms embargo in place; shows that approximately 360,000 weapons are
unaccounted for in Iraq due to a poorly managed and unaccountable
arms-trading process, and documents how huge quantities of arms are still
being supplied to Burma despite the ongoing state repression.

At the UN next month discussions will start on whether to move forward on
an international Arms Trade Treaty. In its report Amnesty International is
urging world leaders to ensure that central to the Treaty is the 'golden
rule' on human rights: that governments must prevent arms transfers where
there is a substantial risk they may be used for serious violations of
international human rights and humanitarian law.

Amnesty International UK Director Kate Allen said:

'Next month's decision at the UN is crucial.  Governments around the world
cannot go on ignoring the untold suffering and dreadful abuses caused by
irresponsible global arms transfers.

'World leaders have to uphold their obligations on human rights and to
move forward on an international Arms Trade Treaty which is underpinned by
the 'golden rule' on human rights.'

Last week UK Foreign Secretary David Miliband expressed commitment to push
for a robust and effective Arms Trade Treaty to be delivered at next
month's UN meeting. However a few states - including China, India,
Pakistan and the USA - are likely to block, delay and water down
proposals, which would make the treaty fail in its objectives and allow
the continued unchecked trade in arms.

Kate Allen continued:

'A small minority of countries want to turn a blind eye to blatantly
irresponsible arms transfers, rendering most national arms controls and UN
arms embargoes weak and ineffective.

'The UK cannot afford to rest on its laurels at next month's meeting. Its
challenge - along with the other countries that support of the Treaty - is
to ensure that human rights remains integral to the Treaty, and to deliver
a working system in the shortest possible time frame.'

Blood at the Crossroads uses detailed case studies from Colombia, Côte
d'Ivoire, Guatemala, Guinea, Iraq, Burma, Somalia, Sudan, Chad and Uganda
to graphically demonstrate the catastrophic human rights consequences of
unrestrained arms trading.

In Darfur weapons have been used to commit multiple human rights abuses.
China and Russia are the largest suppliers of conventional arms to Sudan.
Chinese weapons have been witnessed as being used in the Darfur conflict.

On 19 February 2008, two Chinese fighter jets called Fantans were used in
an aerial attack in the town of Beybey in Darfur where three large bombs
were dropped in a settlement killing eight people including children and
wounding others. The Fantans had recently been serviced by Chinese
technicians and Sudanese pilots were allegedly trained in China to fly the
jets.

Meanwhile in Iraq, despite the context of serious violations of human
rights and humanitarian law by all parties to the conflict in Iraq, the
threat posed by the proliferation of small arms in Iraq has been made
worse by poor systems of arms management by arms suppliers like the US and
UK, as well as by the Iraqi government.

Amnesty International shows that there appears to be no accountable and
transparent audit trail for approximately 360,000 infantry weapons
supplied to the Iraqi security forces, making the weapons now almost
totally untraceable.

The easy availability of small arms and lack of accountability in Iraq has
contributed to sectarian killings by armed groups, as well as torture and
other ill-treatment; extra-judicial executions by Iraqi government forces
and the continuing arbitrary detention of thousands of suspects by Iraqi
soldiers backed by US armed forces since 2003.

In Burma, despite the persistent pattern of well-documented human rights
violations committed by government forces, China, Serbia, Russia and
Ukraine have supplied armoured personnel carriers, trucks, weapons and
munitions, while India has recently offered to supply yet more arms.

Blood at the Crossroads also graphically shows how UN arms embargoes
continue to be breached in Cote d'Ivoire, Somalia and Darfur because of
weak national laws and a lack of commitment and capacity by some
governments, making the case for an effective treaty even stronger.

Kate Allen said:

'The time for an Arms Trade Treaty is now. Sixty years after the signing
of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the same governments that
sought a better world after the horrors of the Second World War can, and
should, deliver an effective agreement on international arms transfers
with human rights at its heart.'