BurNet News, Jan 21, 2004

[editor at burmanet.org]

Jan 21, 2004 Issue # 2409


INSIDE BURMA
AFP: Myanmar rejects UN claims on child soldiers in army
AP: Myanmar's Karen guerrillas deny holding talks with junta leader
Irrawaddy: KNU to Conclude Historic Trip
BBC Monitor: Freed Burmese opposition members vow to continue activities
Yearbook: Scores of Burmese Buddhist Monks Held At Notorious Prison

ON THE BORDER
Yearbook: Burmese Deserters Describe Lives of Child Soldiers

REGIONAL
Yearbook: Malaysia calls on Burma to free opposition leader 'as soon as
possible'
Hindustan Times: N-E CMs demand demolition of militant camps in B'desh,
Myanmar

INTERNATIONAL
NY Times: N.B.A. Pulls Sweatshirts Illegally Imported From Myanmar

OPINION / OTHER
Asian WSJ: “A Gun as Tall as Me”

REPORT
Dictator Watch: Message from a Relief Team Leader


INSIDE BURMA
___________________________________

Jan 21, AFP
Myanmar rejects UN claims on child soldiers in army

Myanmar on Tuesday angrily rejected a report by UN Secretary General Kofi
Annan that accuses the government army of using child soldiers.

The south Asian state, one of 15 nations where Annan told the UN Security
Council that children are used by governments or rebel groups to fight,
said its inclusion on the list was a bid to pressure the ruling military
junta.

It dismissed the "preposterous allegations" which it said came from
non-governmental organisations as well as "insurgents and dubious
deserters", and had not been proven.

"The report, without checking and verification, used second-hand
information provided by politically motivated NGOs to include Tatmadaw Kyi
(the government army) in the list," it said in a statement to the Security
Council.

"The preparation of the report as far as Myanmar was concerned was very
political and the discussions were sometimes even acrimonious," it said.
"No UN agency in Myanmar has verified this allegation."

The council was holding an open debate on the use of children in conflict
as France prepares a draft UN resolution that would establish a system to
monitor the use of children in conflict.

"This is a scandal the international community must not tolerate," said
France's UN ambassador, Jean-Marc de la Sabliere. He said he hoped the
measure would be approved by the council before the end of January.

His German counterpart Gunter Pleuger said the council should consider
widening the scope to include other rights violations such as rape.

"Systematic rape as a weapon of war, often combined with murder and
mutilation, as well as contemporary forms of slavery, especially the
abduction of children as sex slaves, are not covered in the current list,"
Pleuger said.

"The vast majority of victims of these crimes are girls," he said,
stressing "the gender aspects of this issue."

The Annan report cites Afghanistan, Burundi, the Russian republic of
Chechnya, Colombia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast,
Liberia, Myanmar, Nepal, Northern Ireland, the Philippines, Somalia, Sri
Lanka, Sudan and Uganda. It also names more than 40 rebel groups
worldwide.
_____________________________

Jan 21, AP
Myanmar's Karen guerrillas deny holding talks with junta leader

Myanmar's main rebel group on Wednesday denied reports that it met with
junta leader Senior Gen. Than Shwe during peace talks with the military
government.

Karen National Union representatives, led by vice chairman Bo Mya, arrived
in Yangon last Thursday for talks aimed at formalizing a tentative
cease-fire to end one of the world's longest running insurgencies.

The guerrillas have been fighting for more than five decades to establish
an independent state for the Karens, an ethnic minority in eastern
Myanmar. They verbally agreed to a cease-fire during an initial round of
peace talks in December.

Some media reports have said leaders from the KNU delegation met with Than
Shwe for two hours at a military reception center on Tuesday.

"It is wrong information," KNU Secretary-General Mahn Sha told The
Associated Press. "Our leader only met with (Prime Minister Gen.) Khin
Nyunt, not Than Shwe. I don't know if he will meet with Than Shwe or not,
but I think not because the talks are not progressing."

The delegates met with Khin Nyunt last Friday.

During the talks the two sides have discussed the cease-fire agreement and
efforts to halt fighting in the countryside, Mahn Sha said.

"I don't think that talking one time will allow us to complete an
agreement," said Mahn Sha, noting that fighting had intensified in eastern
Myanmar in recent days.

Another senior KNU official, who asked not to be identified, said the
delegates would leave Thursday, after postponing their departure from
Monday. It was unclear when they might return for further talks.

In Yangon, a Karen source close to the mediators said on condition of
anonymity that "a few more rounds of discussions are required to thrash
out some differences," and that there will be more visits by the KNU.

The two sides are dealing with issues such as refugees, the source added.

On Tuesday, Myanmar's hardline rulers made the uncharacteristic gesture of
throwing a birthday party for Bo Mya, who turned 77. The junta had
previously branded Bo Mya a murderer.

The KNU is the last major guerrilla group in Myanmar that has not signed a
formal agreement with the junta to lay down arms.

Government offensives in 1995 and 1997 wiped out the KNU's main
headquarters, and the rebels now wage a low-level war.

Myanmar's military government took power in 1988 after crushing a
pro-democracy uprising. It has reached cease-fire agreements with 17 armed
groups since 1989.
_____________________________

Jan 21, Irrawaddy
KNU to Conclude Historic Trip

The historic trip to Rangoon by senior delegates from Burma’s largest
ethnic rebel group will conclude tomorrow. The leaders of the Karen
National Union (KNU) are in the Burmese capital for discussions about a
ceasefire agreement with the Burmese military.

Yesterday, Burma’s top junta leader, Sr-Gen Than Shwe met the KNU
delegation headed by its Deputy Chairman, Gen Bo Mya, according to the
French news agency Agence-France Presse. This cannot be confirmed
independently. Senior Karen leaders who are based in Mae Sot said that
meeting did not take place. The two groups hope to put an end to 55 years
of fighting.

A verbal ceasefire agreement was reached after a KNU delegation met with
the Prime Minister Gen Khin Nyunt in Rangoon in early December.

The KNU’s current trip began last Thursday. The delegation previously
expected to leave on Monday, but decided to remain in the capital for more
talks.

According to KNU sources, the Karen leaders will meet with Than Shwe again
today.

Khin Nyunt hosted a dinner party for the Karen delegation at the Kandawgyi
Palace Hotel in Rangoon yesterday, which marked Bo Mya’s 77th birthday.

The KNU is Burma’s largest ethnic insurgency group and its fight for the
autonomy of the ethnic Karen people is Burma’s longest running military
campaign.
_____________________________

Jan 21, BBC Monitor
Freed Burmese opposition members vow to continue activities

Recently freed National League for Democracy (NLD) leaders of Kachin
State, who spent almost eight months in detention, vow to step up the
activities of the NLD on their release. The leaders were arrested a few
days after the Tabayin incident (30 May 2003) on 3 June for their active
organizing roles during Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's visit to Kachin State.

The seven NLD members from Kachin State, including the chairman, the
secretary, and the joint secretary, were arrested by military
intelligence, denied permission to meet their families and imprisoned in
Myitkyina Prison. They were released recently.

A few days after his release, U Ne Win, secretary of the Kachin State NLD,
told Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB) that he would be calling on the five
senior NLD Central Executive Committee (CEC) members in Rangoon to discuss
the future programme of the NLD.

(Ne Win - recording) We will be contacting them as soon as possible. We
are preparing for a trip to Rangoon to meet the senior CEC members and we
will continue to work on our future programmes as directed by them. With
regard to Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's trip, we first welcomed her at Indaw. In
Kachin State, we accompanied her from (Masein) until she reached Mohnyin,
and during the tour of Waingmaw, Bhamo and Shwegu, and then left for our
homes. U Naing Zaw Win, however, went along until she reached Mogok. We
were summoned, interrogated, and arrested on 3 June. We knew it was coming
and had been expecting the authorities to do it. (End of recording)

That was U Ne Win, secretary of the Kachin State NLD. Joint Secretary U
Naing Zaw Win said he was committed to making sacrifices for the NLD and
he would continue the struggle to the very end.

(Naing Zaw Win - recording) We have sacrificed everything from the very
onset to do this work and I am determined to carry on until the very end.
We were just released yesterday and our organizing committee members have
not met each other yet. Our chairman was also sent back to his home. Once
we meet, we will discuss about the preparation to visit Rangoon to contact
central headquarters. (End of recording)

That was a report about the NLD Kachin State members. Recently released
members of the Mandalay Division NLD and elected representatives are also
reported to be making plans to meet with the five CEC members soon in
order to report to them about their experiences at Tabayin and to discuss
the future programme of the NLD.

Source: Democratic Voice of Burma, Oslo, in Burmese 1430 gmt 20 Jan 04
_____________________________

Jan 20, The Yearbook of Experts, Authorities and Spokespersons
Scores of Burmese Buddhist Monks Held At Notorious Prison

Up to 100 Buddhist monks have been jailed in Burma since November for
allegedly breaking a government curfew aimed at quelling religious
disturbances, Radio Free Asia (RFA) reports.

An estimated 100 monks are detained at the notorious Insein Prison for
allegedly flouting a 7 p.m.-4 a.m. curfew on monks imposed in November
last year, sources who spoke on condition of anonymity told RFA's Burmese
service.

Most of the detained monks are from in and around the capital, Rangoon,
and security personnel have been posted at a number of Buddhist
monasteries. Some of the monks are undergoing treatment at the Insein
Prison hospital, according to one source.

The Burmese junta announced the curfew following unrest between Buddhists
and Muslims in the Upper Burma regions of Kyaukse and Mandalay late last
year.

Burmese Buddhist monks objected to the government's handling of those
disturbances, according to U Khemar Sarya, chairman of the All Burma Young
Monks Association. The curfew was aimed at keeping them from expressing
their discontent openly.

The unrest broke out in the central town of Kyaukse on Oct. 19, spreading
to Mandalay and Rangoon and unnerving the ruling junta, the State Peace
and Development Council (SPDC). Fires and clashes ultimately left dozens
of people dead, including a pregnant woman.

"Soon we saw one corpse after another. They were taking them away to the
hospital," one eyewitness told RFA's Burmese service. While corpses were
taken to hospital, relatives of the victims were barred from entering the
local morgue.

The British government suggested that the junta may have incited the
unrest, citing "a widespread belief amongst the Burmese people, whether
Muslim or Buddhist, that these incidents have been contrived by the
government to distract attention from the stalled political process, and
to justify a continued military clampdown." The SPDC rejected that
accusation as baseless.

In an usual admission of trouble, the junta on Oct. 28 issued a statement
to foreign media confirming "disturbances between people of different
faiths" and acknowledging casualties and property damage.

In 1997, anti-Muslim riots in central Burma were characterized by some
reports as being provoked by the junta. Human rights groups also point to
evidence detailing anti-Muslim persecution by the government in Kayin
State the same year, during which mosques were burned, Korans destroyed,
and Muslims evicted from their homes.

Only about 4 percent of the Burmese population is Muslim, while Buddhists
account for 90 percent.


ON THE BORDER
____________________________________

Jan 21, The Yearbook of Experts, Authorities and Spokespersons
Burmese Deserters Describe Lives of Child Soldiers

Two deserters from Burma's government army have recounted in exclusive
interviews with RFA's Burmese service how they were forced into military
service as children, beaten, and prevented from contacting their parents.

Corporal Than Naing was a member of a Burmese military group that deserted
in the Thai-Burma border region to the opposition Shan State Army (SSA) on
Nov. 24. He said army personnel in his hometown lay in wait for young boys
of 13 and 14 in teashops and forced them to join the army.

"At the end of school, students would take pocket money from their parents
and go to teashops," he told RFA after his arrival at an SSA camp. "The
SPDC [State Peace and Development Council] government was lying in wait
for that. As soon as the classes were dismissed, they would run to snatch
the students. They would go and drag them away."

Children who didn't have national registration cards on them would be
beaten up under interrogation, before being sent away to the army and
prevented from contacting their parents, Than Naing said. He added that he
was conscripted in exactly that manner in Ma U Bin city for failing to
carry identification, at the age of 16.

"They would interrogate the children: 'Do you have your national
registration card?' If they didn't have it, they would hit and beat them.
Only after that did they send them away to the army," Than Naing said.

Another deserter, Yan Paing Soe, said he was dragged away by soldiers in
spite of having an identification card, and a reference letter on him-his
captors tore up these documents and accused him of not having them.

"They took me to the army camp in Tamwe and punched me," Yan Paing Soe
said. "There were about two people in front of me. They had also been
punched that way. There was bleeding, so I got scared and said I would
join them."

He said that poor food, constant deductions from salaries, and
backbreaking toil even for those just returned from fighting meant that
many more government troops would desert if they got the chance.

"It was as if they were torturing the soldiers. And that's why the
soldiers who remained back there didn't want to do it any more. Everyone
knew that we could come here but there's been no opportunity yet... I'm 75
percent certain that they'll come here," he said.

According to Than Naing, the Burmese junta runs many training schools and
recruitment centers. "There are quite a lot of them. The training schools
are in Pyin Oo Lwin, Mingaladon, Mandalay, and Toungoo," he said.

"They did say that we could contact our parents and that we would get a
reply if we wrote them a letter. We did write them letters but we never
got a reply," he added.

Some parents were able to redeem their children by paying steep fines, but
most heard nothing more from their children for several years-seven years
in Than Naing's case, he told RFA.

Once in the military, the children were expected to shoulder the same
tasks as grown men, he said. "They would beat or swear at children who are
unmanageable when climbing mountains. There were children who couldn't
climb the mountains. They beat them and made them climb," Than Naing said.

"Some died because of their health conditions. Some became ill and died.
Some caught malaria. Malaria was really bad. They were buried when they
died... But what difference is it going to make for the parents? They're
already dead," he said.

The government has denied recruiting or using child soldiers. According to
a 2003 report by New York-based Human Rights Watch, thousands of boys,
some as young as 11, have been forced into Burma's national army, with
soldiers under the age of 18 making up around 20 percent of troops.

Once deployed, conscripts are forced to fight against Burma's ethnic
minorities and other opposition forces, and to participate in human rights
abuses against civilians, including rounding up villagers for forced
labor, burning villages, and carrying out extrajudicial executions.

On Dec. 3, RFA reported Than Naing and Yan Paing Soe's defections--along
with two dozen other soldiers--to opposition forces in the Shan States
border region, after killing their commanding officers.

One group of 13 soldiers led by Lt. Kyaw Win of the 132nd Light Infantry
Division based in Mauk Mai, southern Shan State, surrendered to the rebel
Shan State Army (SSA) Nov. 24. Another group of 13 soldiers from the 4th
platoon of the 514th Light Infantry Division from Tone Long Camp
surrendered to the SSA Nov. 26.

The military is the single most powerful institution in Burma, having run
the country without interruption for four decades. Military officers and
their families enjoy privileges unknown to civilians, and desertion by
such a large group of soldiers is unprecedented.


REGIONAL
____________________________

Jan 21, The Yearbook of Experts, Authorities and Spokespersons
Malaysia calls on Burma to free opposition leader 'as soon as possible'

Malaysia is urging the military government in Burma to free detained
opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi "as soon as possible," Radio Free Asia
(RFA) reports. Malaysian foreign minister Syed Hamid Albar also told RFA's
Burmese service that ASEAN could still expel Burma "as a last resort" if
it fails to move forward.

"We would like to encourage Myanmar to not derail the reconciliation
process and to release Aung San Suu Kyi as soon as possible," he said,
using the junta's own name for Burma. "We think it would be good for
Myanmar to listen to the voice of the ASEAN countries, to show visible
signs to undertake the political process as well as the release of Aung
San Suu Kyi so that they can avoid pressure from other members of the
international community and other actions that may be attempted...by
countries outside ASEAN," Syed Hamid, whose government opposes sanctions
against Burma, said in an interview.

"We would like to send a delegation of ASEAN member countries...but so far
Myanmar has not responded to that. But they have sent and continue to send
special envoys to various ASEAN countries and East Asian countries in
order to explain their situation. So the only thing is we would like to
see some visible signs and some very clear deeds so we will be able to
assist them in their desire to make the political changes that are
suitable to their country."

Asked about Malaysia's suggestion that ASEAN could expel Burma from the
regional association if it fails to make political progress, he replied:
"The Prime Minister [of Malaysia, Mahathir Mohamad] mentioned this as a
last resort. If they ignore everybody, that will be the pressure that
people will put... Dr. Mahathir was just giving them a reminder of the
consequences that may take place if they ignore the requests and the
desire of the international community. We hope they will be able to do
something positive that will be of benefit to them."

Earlier Wednesday in Bali, ASEAN nations said they would send a delegation
to Burma to press for the release of Aung San Suu Kyi--one day after the
European Union warned that her detention could hurt Europe's relations
with all of Asia. The announcement was made on the sidelines of the
Asia-Europe Meeting, or ASEM, which brings together foreign ministers and
senior officials from 25 Asian and European countries.

Burmese authorities detained the Nobel Peace Prize winner and hundreds of
her followers May 30 following a clash with pro-government supporters that
left an unknown number of dissidents dead.
____________________________

Jan 21, Hindustan Times
N-E CMs demand demolition of militant camps in B'desh, Myanmar
Buoyed by the Centre's persuasion to Bhutan Government to take action
against militants taking shelter there, northeastern states on Wednesday
demanded similar steps vis-à-vis Bangladesh and Myanmar to "close down and
demolish" the camps of militants in those countries.

"The Centre should also arrange for the extradition of the identified
militants from the neighbouring countries," Chief Ministers from five
northeastern states on Wednesday said at a press conference.

Observing that the problem of militancy in the North-East should be
recognised as a national problem and tackled accordingly, they said that
in view of the camps the militants have in the neighbouring courtiers,
border management has to be accorded highest priority.

The Chief Ministers from Assam, Nagaland, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Tripura,
who called on Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on Tuesday to present
him a memorandum in this regard, said the 1,880 km border with Bangladesh
should be fenced immediately.

"The strength of Border Security Force is totally inadequate and needs to
be substantially increased to cater to the needs of the long and difficult
border," they said pointing out that the northeastern region has been
facing terrorist onslaught for several years with many terrorist groups
having "the goal to secede from India".

Expressing concern over the militant outfits resorting to kidnapping and
killing of innocent civilians as well as security personnel and extortion
of money, the Chief Ministers said "cross border terrorism is being
supported by the ISI and the terrorist outfits have their hideouts across
the border".

Militants have not only tried to create ethnic disturbance within the
North-East states, but also tried to subvert the democratic election
process in the past, they said adding that such activities have an
immediate adverse impact on the development programmes in the region. They
suggested that the Centre should take the responsibility, in consultation
with the State Governments, to arrive at settlement packages with the
militants.

They also said that the militants who surrender should be given a larger
rehabilitation package and funding for their self-employment should be
included in the package.

The Chief Ministers, comprising N Rio (Nagaland), Zoramthanga (Mizoram),
Tarun Gogoi (Assam), Manik Sarkar (Tripura) and DD Lapang (Meghalaya),
also demanded a "special and financially attractive" package for
infrastructure development and employment generation in the region.

The Chief Ministers pointed out that for the rapid economic growth of the
North-East states, it is necessary to give a substantial boost to the
trade with neighbouring countries as well as with the "tiger" economies of
the South- East Asian countries.

"It is, therefore, necessary to improve our linkages with them through
major improvements in the infrastructure. This would imply rail, road, air
and water connectivity with these countries as well as reliable and modern
telecom linkages," they said.

They also said that construction of Trans-Asian Highway and railway
network covering Thailand, Myanmar, India and Bangladesh should also be
pursued for development of North-East states.

The Chief Ministers were perturbed over the pruning of the Rs 750 crore
budget approved by the Planning Commission for the North East Council
(NEC) to Rs 500 crore by the Finance Ministry and said they had learnt
that it had been further curtailed to a mere Rs 386 crore.

Lapang said an Infrastructure Development Board was being set up in
Meghalaya to create an enabling policy environment and facilitate
implementation of infrastructure projects in the state.

The Chief Ministers were in the capital in connection with the North-East
Business Summit which pledged a pro- investor climate in the region.

Myanmar's war on terror

Myanmar has reportedly launched an offensive against N-E rebels but NSCN
claims that all its bases were intact and ready to fight. Fight is said to
be on along porous border that separates Nagaland from Myanmar's Sagaing
area.

Targets are bases of NSCN's Khaplang faction and anti-Myanmar rebels. 
Indian Intelligence says up to 1000 ULFA men could be staying with NSCN
men in Myanmar.

Background

Rebels have been active at Nagaland-Myanmar border for 40 years.  NSCN has
been fighting for independent homeland for Nagas since the early 1980s.


INTERNATIONAL
_____________________________________

Jan 21, New York Times
N.B.A. Pulls Sweatshirts Illegally Imported From Myanmar

The National Basketball Association removed several dozen sweatshirts made
in Myanmar from its Fifth Avenue store yesterday after a labor rights
advocate accused the league of violating federal law by selling goods made
in that country.

The advocate, Charles Kernaghan, director of the National Labor Committee,
an anti-sweatshop group, accused the N.B.A. yesterday morning of selling
"I Love This Game" sweatshirts that had tags saying they were made in
Myanmar, formerly known as Burma. Last July, President Bush signed the
Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act, which barred imports from Myanmar.
Congress enacted it because of displeasure with the military junta there
and repression of the democratic opposition and its leader Daw Aung San
Suu Kyi, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize.

Mr. Kernaghan said, "You have the N.B.A. and its contractor knowingly
flying right in the face of what Congress and the president have done to
help 50 million people suffering under this brutal dictatorship."

At lunchtime yesterday, dozens of red, blue, black and gray hooded
sweatshirts made in Myanmar were displayed on the first floor of the
N.B.A.'s store at 52nd Street and Fifth Avenue, 25 feet from the front
door. Two and a half hours after receiving an inquiry from The New York
Times about the sweatshirts, Matt Bourne, an N.B.A. spokesman, announced
that the league was pulling those items off the sales floor.

"We're removing the sweatshirts from the shelves immediately," Mr. Bourne
said. "We inspected all items from the store -- that is the only piece
that was manufactured in Burma."

Mr. Bourne said the manufacturing contractor that the basketball league
had used violated the N.B.A.'s code of conduct by failing to tell the
league that it was using a factory in Myanmar to make the sweatshirts.
"The sweatshirts could have been imported from Burma months or years
before the sanctions were enacted," Mr. Bourne said.

Mr. Kernaghan made records available that showed that the contractor had
rushed in shipments of the sweatshirts last August, after the import ban
was enacted, but before the ban took effect on Sept. 1.

Mr. Kernaghan, whose group receives funds from foundations and labor
unions, said that in Myanmar many apparel factories pay workers just 7
cents an hour and less than $3.50 a week.

He said the failure of the sweatshirt contractor to tell the N.B.A. that
it was using a factory in Myanmar showed how ineffectual the league was in
enforcing its code of conduct.

"It was a good step that they're taking these sweatshirts out of their
store, but it's unconscionable that they were there in the first place,"
Mr. Kernaghan said. "The fact that these sweatshirts entered the store
with the label 'Made in Burma' and the fact that they were prominently
displayed on the first floor speaks volumes that the N.B.A. is not on top
of their code of conduct and not on top of their suppliers."

Mr. Bourne maintained that the N.B.A. worked hard to enforce its code of
conduct, saying that the league required all factories that made apparel
for the league to post it prominently.


OPINION / OTHER
_____________________________________

Jan 20, Asian Wall Street Journal
“A Gun as Tall as Me,” Child Soldiers in Burma  - Jo Becker

Burma has more child soldiers than any other country in the world. They
account for approximately one-fourth of the 300,000 children currently
believed to be participating in armed conflicts around the globe. Forced
recruitment of children by government forces is so widespread that the
United Nations secretary-general recently placed Burma on an international
list of violators that flout international laws prohibiting the
recruitment and use of children as soldiers. As a result, today Burma will
come under U.N. Security Council scrutiny for the first time, and the
Council will debate what steps to take against such violators.

A 2002 investigation by Human Rights Watch found that as many as 70,000
children under the age of eighteen may be serving in Burma's national
armed forces. Another 6,000-7,000 serve in Burma's myriad armed ethnic
opposition groups. Army recruiters apprehend boys as young as 11 at train
stations, markets and other places, and use threats and coercion to force
them into the army.

One boy was recruited at age 13 while attending a festival with friends.
He told Human Rights Watch that army recruiters threatened him and his
friends with jail if they refused to join. He said, "We were all students
so we showed our student cards, but they tore them up. Then he [a
corporal] threatened us and showed us his gun. We were afraid, so we
agreed. We didn't dare try to run away." The boys are given no opportunity
to contact their families, and are sent to camps where they undergo
weapons training, are routinely beaten, and brutally punished if they try
to escape.  Boys as young as 12 are sent into combat against ethnic
opposition groups.

Child soldiers are forced to commit human-rights abuses against civilians,
including rounding up villagers for forced labor, burning villages, and
carrying out executions. One 14-year-old boy described witnessing his unit
massacre a group of 15 women and children during operations in Shan State.
He said that the soldiers blindfolded the women, "then six of the
corporals loaded their guns and shot them.  They fired on auto. The women
had no time to shout. I felt very bad because there were all these people
in front of me, and they killed them all. After the mothers were killed
they killed the babies. They swung them by their legs and smashed them
against a rock."

Many child soldiers eventually find life in the army unbearable. Despite
fears that they will be killed or imprisoned if caught, they try to flee.
But even those who succeed have few options. Afraid to return home, many
end up working illegally in neighboring countries, or join opposition
groups to fight against their former captors.

Children are also present in Burma's armed opposition groups, although
child recruitment has declined in recent years as many opposition groups
have shrunk in size and resources. Meanwhile, the number of children in
government forces has grown. Since 1988, Burma has doubled the size of its
army, and recruiters have found children to be most easily coerced or
intimidated into joining.

A year ago, the Security Council asked the secretary-general for a
progress report on governments and groups known to recruit and use child
soldiers. It indicated its willingness to engage in dialogue with such
parties to develop action plans to end child-soldier use. The Council also
stated its intention to consider additional steps -- which could include
sanctions -- in cases where there is no progress. In other countries where
child-soldier use is also widespread, programs have been put in place to
demobilize child soldiers and help them reintegrate into their
communities. But in Burma, no such program exists, and the
secretary-general has reported that child recruitment continues unabated.
The government flatly denies any recruitment of children into its forces.

In the past, Burma and its political allies have persuaded the Security
Council that Burma's armed conflict is an internal matter that should not
concern the Council.  Now the Council has begun to reject such arguments
in the case of egregious violations against children in conflict. The
secretary-general has recommended a range of targeted sanctions against
parties that persist in recruiting and using child soldiers. These include
travel restrictions on the leaders responsible for the practice, bans on
military assistance and the export or supply of small arms, and
restrictions on the flow of financial resources to those who continue to
engage in this horrifying practice.

Burma should take concrete steps to end child recruitment and demobilize
the children from its forces. Until this happens, other governments,
including Burma's Asian allies, who have the most leverage with the
Burmese government, should make clear that they will withhold military and
other support. Forcing children to fight and carry out atrocities should
not be tolerated.

--- Ms. Becker is advocacy director for the Children's Rights Division of
Human Rights Watch and the author of "My Gun Was as Tall as Me: Child
Soldiers in Burma" (Human Rights Watch, 2002). The report can be found at:

http://hrw.org/reports/2002/burma/

The United Nations Security Council's fourth open debate on children and
armed conflict is taking place today. The Coalition to Stop the Use of
Child Soldiers released a new report on child soldiers last week that
include recommendations to the U.N. Security Council members. To read the
report, please see:

http://hrw.org/reports/2004/childsoldiers0104/
____________________________

REPORT

Jan 21,  Dictator Watch
Message from a Relief Team Leader - Free Burma Rangers

Dear friends,

Thank you for all your help, love and prayers. We could not do much
without you and are grateful that you care about these people here.  The
following is not a standard report, it is what I feel and what we see
here. I hope it is informative and I hope you feel our gratitude for all
you are doing. This is a team effort and we thank God for all of you.

The attacks of the Burma Army in this part of the Karen State have driven
over 3,500 people from their homes. These people are in hiding in the
jungle with only what they could carry on their backs.  Temperatures on
the 16th and 17th of  January were extremely cold with the freezing level
down to 3,000 feet. Most of the IDPs are hiding between 3,000- 4,500 feet.

Two days ago in a hiding place at about 3,700 feet,  I was surrounded by
children, most of whom were wearing nothing more than t-shirts and shaking
in the cold. The night before, as we approached a group of villagers
hiding in a ravine below their village, I first heard the sounds of babies
crying and when we got closer I could see the terrified looks on the faces
of  children huddled next to small fires. Mothers nursing babies looked at
us imploringly and all we could do is say, "We are sorry, we  know this is
very bad, we will try. We have no power, but we will pray to God". "God
sees and God understands. Also many in the world are praying for you and
care
about you".

We spent the night with this group and the next day went up to their
village with some Karen soldiers and a few of the village men. The
villagers wanted to know if it was safe to go back or at least if it was 
possible to recover some of their livestock and belongings. We knew that
three Burma Army battalions were in the area and that the night before one
of the battalions had shot at fleeing villagers so we approached carefully
and decided to observe the village first. We climbed a hill next to the
village and three Karen soldiers (KNLA), and a villager went to a higher
hill to watch from there. We were observing the empty village when
shooting broke out on the hill above us and one of the Burma Army
battalions (we found out later it was LIB 512), attacked. They chased the
3 Karen soldiers and villager off the higher hill and attacked us with
mortars, RPGs, M-79, and machine-gun fire. We had no casualties and
rejoined the villagers below and led them to safer place. The next day
another battalion of the Burma Army (IB3), attacked a group of five
families hiding in the jungle nearby, all escaped and are now hiding in a
different place.

One Karenni soldier (KNPP) who was with a group of Karen (KNLA) after
being chased out of Karenni State earlier, came to assist the families and
was shot and badly wounded by the Burma Army troops. He was treated by one
of our medics and then sent back to a mobile clinic 4 days walk away.
Note: In an earlier report this man was named as a Karen- KNLA soldier but
we now know he is Karenni. The Burma Army has launched an all out
offensive against the Karenni for the past three months and have 
relocated  and displaced thousands of Karenni villagers.

They extended their offensive into northern Karen State on 30 December
2003 and this offensive now against the Karen continues. The people here
are terrorized and though they are grateful to see people come to help
them, always tell us, "If you do not stay with us we can not even stay
here in this hiding place, we will have to run further away from our
village, so please stay with us". "When can we go home"?, they ask us.

We do not have an answer but try to treat their medical problems, care for
them and pray with them. Whether they are Buddhist, Christian or animist,
all are human beings who know the common language of love. They give us
love and even offer us food at every hiding place. We know we have no
power to save them but are standing and sometimes running with them the
best we can. We hope to be witnesses of God's love to them as well as
another witness out to the world that these people are in trouble and they
are human beings who count.

We could do none of this without you and are grateful for all of you who
care, love, pray, help, report and keep us and others going.

Thanks and God Bless you,
A Free Burma Ranger Relief Team Leader