BurmaNet News, April 3 - 5, 2004

[Editor]

April 3 - 5, 2004 Issue # 2449

INSIDE BURMA
The Age: Burma's Junta Ready To Free Aung San Suu Kyi
Australian: Junta cagey on Suu Kyi release date
Irrawaddy: Rape Report Not a Bid to Derail Ceasefire
Australian: Rape 'used as Burma war weapon'
AFP: Myanmar rejects "absurd" new rape allegations
AP: Myanmar says Suu Kyi's party will be invited to constitutional
convention, but unclear on her release
NMG: Karenni Peace Talk halted

BUSINESS / MONEY
Xinhua: Myanmar's largest paper plant to go into operation
Xinhua: Myanmar PM calls for rapid development of private enterprises

REGIONAL
Irrawaddy: Compensation Set for Burmese Workers
Shan: Dam activists win first round

INTERNATIONAL
Daily Times: EU welcomes reports of Suu Kyi’s possible release

OPINION / OTHER
Mizzima: Burma: Violence During Transition
WP: No Excuse for Inaction on Burma
BP: Talks give new hope for progress

PRESS RELEASE
KWO: Karen women shatter silence on military rape in Burma

REPORT
KWO: “Shattering Silences”


INSIDE BURMA
___________________________________

April 5, The Age
Burma's Junta Ready To Free Aung San Suu Kyi - Mark Baker Asia Editor

Singapore -- Burma's military junta has indicated that it is preparing to
free democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi ahead of resumed talks next month
on drafting a new constitution to return the country to civilian rule.

But it is still uncertain whether Ms Suu Kyi would accept release from
house arrest or agree to her National League for Democracy joining in the
talks that the party walked out of in 1995 after accusing the regime of
stonewalling on political reform.

Burmese Foreign Minister Win Aung announced at the weekend that the NLD
would be invited to the new constitutional convention scheduled to begin
in Rangoon on May 17.

In an interview with Japanese and Thai television, Mr Win Aung said Ms Suu
Kyi - who has been detained since a violent crackdown on her party in May
last year - would be freed ahead of the talks. But when pressed on the
timing, he added: "It is too early to say."

After a later meeting with Thai officials in Bangkok, he said the most
important thing was the scheduling of the convention. "The problem of Aung
San Suu Kyi will be taken care of," he said.

United Nations special envoy Razali Ismail, who met the 57-year-old Nobel
Peace laureate and leaders of the regime last month, has predicted that
she will be released by the middle of the month.

Ms Suu Kyi has previously insisted that she will not accept an end to her
latest period in detention until dozens of NLD officials and supporters
held since last year's crackdown are released. She has spent nine of the
last 14 years under house arrest.

A senior NLD official last week said that a decision on whether the party
would attend the convention would not be made until Ms Suu Kyi was able to
discuss the issue with her nine-member executive committee. The four top
officials of the party are still in detention, including Ms Suu Kyi and
party vice-chairman Tin Oo, who was moved last month from a prison in
northern Burma to house arrest at his Rangoon home.

A report last week by Amnesty International said an estimated 1300 to 1400
political prisoners remained in custody and arrests were continuing
despite plans for the constitutional convention.

The resumed convention is the first step towards democracy. Last August
Prime Minister Khin Nyunt made the latest in a string of promises to
dismantle the military dictatorship.

The regime permitted elections in 1990, only to repudiate the result after
the NLD won a landslide victory.
_______________________

April 5, The Australian
Junta cagey on Suu Kyi release date

Source: AFP

Burma’s military junta said it was too early to name a date for democracy
leader Aung San Suu Kyi's release, despite speculation she will be freed
before a constitutional convention starts on May 17.

Foreign Minister Win Aung said on the weekend that the opposition leader's
party, the National League for Democracy, would be invited to take part in
the forum, which is the first step in the junta's self-proclaimed "road
map to democracy".

"The NLD were original members of the national convention. They will be
invited," he said in an interview with Japan's NHK network.

But when asked on the sidelines of talks in Bangkok with his Thai
counterpart whether Ms Suu Kyi -- who was taken into custody during
political unrest last May -- would be freed by then, Mr Win Aung said:
"It's too early to say."

Amid reports Mr Win Aung had stated Ms Suu Kyi would be released ahead of
the convention, Thailand Foreign Ministry spokesman Sihasak Phuangketkeow
said he had been misquoted.

"I talked to him personally and he said he was misquoted and the story was
a misunderstanding," Mr Sihasak said. "He said it was too early to give a
specific date for the release of Aung San Suu Kyi."

In the NHK interview, Mr Win Aung referred to May 17, but apparently only
to confirm the convention would begin then.

Before leaving Bangkok he again sidestepped the question of the Nobel
Peace Prize-winning leader's future, saying "we are doing our best to
solve our problems".

"The most important thing is that the road map announced by my Prime
Minister is now taking shape and the problem of Aung San Suu Kyi will be
taken care of," he said, without elaborating.

Mr Sihasak said that during the one-day talks on Saturday, Mr Win Aung
briefed Thai Foreign Minister Surakiart Sathirathai on progress towards
implementing the road map, which the junta says will lead to "free and
fair" elections.

Since announcing the date of the convention last Tuesday, Burma's ruling
generals have come under pressure from the UN, US and many other countries
and rights groups to free Ms Suu Kyi before it begins.
_______________________

April 5, Irrawaddy
Rape Report Not a Bid to Derail Ceasefire - Kyaw Zwa Moe

An ethnic Karen women’s group said that its report on rape cases committed
by Burma Army soldiers was not a bid to destroy the current ceasefire
talks between the military and Karen leaders.

The Thai-based Karen Women’s Organization, or KWO, released Shattering
Silences on Friday, a report that details 125 cases of sexual abuse
committed against women in Karen State by the junta's soldiers. Yesterday,
the military government reportedly said in a statement that the report was
an attempt to discredit and derail its transition to democracy.

How can we believe that the regime is trying to bring about peace and
democracy in Burma, when their troops continue to commit rape with
impunity? —KWO Secretary Zipporah Sein

The largest ethnic opposition group, the Karen National Union, or KNU, has
been negotiating with the Burmese military junta to reach a formal
ceasefire since last December when the two sides verbally agreed on a
truce.

Khaing Mar Kyaw Zaw, a KWO information officer, said today the report was
not aimed at harming the current ceasefire talks between the junta and the
KNU but was just reporting abuses against women in Karen State.
"We need to report human rights violations against our people," Khaing Mar
Kyaw Zaw said on the phone. "Yes, the talks are going on. On the other
hand, human rights violations are also going on."

She continued that there has been several rape cases in recent months
while meetings between the KNU and the junta have continued. The report
alleges that the Burma Army uses systematic rape with impunity as a war
strategy.

During January and February, at least three women were raped by Burma Army
soldiers in Karen State and Taungoo in Pegu Division, according to the
report. Khaing Mar Kyaw Zaw said the number of rapes committed by Burma
Army soldiers against women is in reality much higher then the figures
shown in the report.

In the KWO press release, Zipporah Sein, the group’s secretary, said: "How
can we believe that the regime is trying to bring about peace and
democracy in Burma when their troops continue to commit rape with
impunity?"

The KWO report comes nearly two years after the release of License to
Rape, a report which documented 173 incidents of sexual abuse committed by
the Burma Army, involving 625 girls and women in Shan State.
_______________________

April 4, The Australian
Rape 'used as Burma war weapon'

Burmese soldiers have raped more than 100 ethnic Karen women, using sexual
assault as a weapon of war, even as the country's military government
negotiates a ceasefire with Karen guerrillas, according to a new report.

"These rapes occur as part of a strategy designed to terrorise and
subjugate the Karen people, to completely destroy their culture and
communities," said the report by the Karen Women's Organisation, a
voluntary group based in Thailand.

The report, which was released yesterday, documents 125 case histories
between October 2002 and March 2004. Some of the cases were from witnesses
or survivors in Burma while others were obtained from Karen men and women
staying in refugee camps along the Thai border.

A similar report by another group in June 2002, documenting cases of rape
and sexual violence by Burmese troops against girls and women from the
Shan ethnic minority, triggered an international outcry.

The US State Department backed that report's conclusions, though Burma's
junta dismissed it.

The junta did not immediately react to the latest document, which came
after it launched informal peace talks late last year with Karen rebels,
who have been fighting for autonomy for more than 50 years. Both sides
have declared a provisional truce to the fighting.

"How can we believe that the regime is trying to bring about peace and
democracy in Burma, when their troops continue to commit rape with
impunity?" said Naw Zipporah Sein, KWO Secretary.

Burma has long been criticised by Western governments for its human rights
record. The current junta came to power in 1988 after brutally crushing
pro-democracy protests.

Tens of thousands of Karens have fled to neighbouring Thailand. Karen
women have rarely spoken out about the rapes because of the stigma and
fear of retribution, said the KWO.

It said half of the rapes were committed by military officers; 40 per cent
were gang-rape. In 28 per cent of the cases, the women were killed after
being raped.

In 10 of the 35 fully documented cases in the report, women recounted
being abducted from their villages and forced to work as porters.

In some cases women were able to escape within a few weeks but in others
they were enslaved for periods of up to three years. All of them were
routinely raped almost every night by one soldier or by groups of
soldiers, the report said.

The report narrated the case of a woman named Naw Hsar Paw who was forced
to carry heavy things in daytime and raped by one to five men every night.

"When she was raped by many of them ... she was unconscious sometimes. At
that time they jumped on her body with their boots," the report said.
_______________________

April 4, Agence France Presse
Myanmar rejects "absurd" new rape allegations

Myanmar's ruling junta Sunday denied claims by a women's group that
soldiers have raped over 100 ethnic Karen women and continue to use sexual
assault as a weapon of war.

A report released Friday by the Karen Women's Organisation (KWO), a group
based in Thailand near the Myanmar border, alleged that soldiers have
raped more than 125 ethnic Karen women -- many even as Yangon negotiates a
peace agreement with Karen rebels.

"The cases reported demonstrate how rape is actively being used as a
strategy by the SPDC (the ruling State Peace and Development Counci)
military to intimidate, control, shame and ethnically cleanse Karen groups
in Burma," the report said, calling the country by its former name.

The KWO's secretary, Naw Zipporah Sein, said the documented cases go back
to 1988, when the government crushed mass protests against the
dictatorship, and have continued through 2004 in "systematic" fashion.

"The military government has committed sexual violence against women as a
strategy of war, and we are concerned that the sexual violence and rapes
are still happening in the ethnic areas," she told AFP.

The actual figures are believed to be far higher than the documented cases
as very few of the rapes were recorded or reported, the KWO said, and
Karen women have rarely spoken out for fear of retribution and the stigma
of rape.

"Military rape in Burma is a well-kept secret," the report added.

However the junta said the report was produced by dissidents bent on
derailing democracy.

"While the whole country is preoccupied in the building of a unified and
peaceful nation some individuals and interest groups based in foreign
countries are resorting to malicious allegations in the derailment of the
positive steps being taken in the country," the junta said in a statement
Sunday.

"Their latest ploy, such as 'rape used as weapon of war' against the Kayin
(Karen) women is not only absurd, but regretful to realize that nothing
will stop (them) in their attempt to discredit the government and to
derail its systematic transition to a sustainable democracy."

Myanmar has announced it will launch the first step of its self-proclaimed
"road map to democracy" on May 17 when it kicks off a convention to draft
a new constitution.

The junta is also currently engaged in negotiations with the Karen
National Union (KNU), the last major ethnic rebel army opposed to Yangon
rule.

The regime's human rights record is routinely criticised by foreign
governments and watchdogs. A July 2002 report by two Thai-based ethnic
Shan rights groups detailed the sexual assault of 625 Shan girls and
women.
_______________________

April 3, Associated Press
Myanmar says Suu Kyi's party will be invited to constitutional convention,
but unclear on her release – Vijay Joshi

Pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi's party will be invited to join a
constitutional convention beginning May 17, Myanmar's military government
has said, though it was unclear Sunday if she would be freed from house
arrest by then.

Myanmar Foreign Minister Win Aung initially appeared to indicate to
reporters in Bangkok on Saturday that Suu Kyi would be released next
month, but later backed away from that assertion.

The participation of Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy party is
considered critical to the success of the National Convention, last held
in 1993 and suspended in 1996 after the NLD walked out saying it was being
forced to rubber stamp the junta's decisions.

The convention is the first step in a seven-point "roadmap" that the
government announced last year to establish democracy in the country,
which has been under military rule since 1962.

Win Aung told reporters during a brief stop in Bangkok that all "original
members who had attended (the previous National Convention) including the
NLD will be invited."

But it is not clear how the convention could proceed without Suu Kyi. The
Nobel Peace Prize winner has been detained and released several times
since the current junta seized power in 1988 - earning the government in
Myanmar, also known as Burma, widespread international criticism.

Her latest detention occurred last May after a clash between her
supporters and a pro-junta mob in northern Myanmar.

In what appeared to have been a misunderstanding among people speaking
English as their only shared language, Win Aung was believed to have said
Suu Kyi would be freed from house arrest in conjunction with the
convention. Later, however, he was unclear.

"I am not in a position to inform you right now about it," Win Aung said.

"The problem of Aung San Suu Kyi will be taken care of," he said after
meeting his Thai counterpart, Surakiart Sathirathai. "We don't have any
hate, any animosity ... against Suu Kyi."

Speaking to Japan's NHK and Thailand's ITV television networks after
arriving at Bangkok's airport, Win Aung said the NLD would be invited to
attend the constitution-drafting convention, which the junta has said will
begin May 17.

A reporter asked him: "Will Suu Kyi be released before May 17?" He
replied: "Yes, May 17."

Asked again to give an exact date for Suu Kyi's release, he said, "It is
too early to say."

Thai Foreign Ministry spokesman Sihasak Phuangketkeow later said "it might
have been a misunderstanding. But Win Aung said (in his talks with
Surakiart) he did not give a date."

"It is too early to give any specific date but we believe the developments
are moving in the right direction," Sihasak added.

Responding to Win Aung's comments, the European Union called for Suu Kyi's
immediate release on Saturday.

"The European Union wants to see the return of democracy to Burma, an end
to all human rights violations and the realization of peace and prosperity
for the people of Burma," said Irish Foreign Minister Brian Cowen,
speaking for the 15-nation bloc.

"The release of Aung San Suu Kyi and an inclusive National Convention
would constitute an important first step toward that goal."
_______________________

April 2, Network Media Group
Karenni Peace Talk halted

The talk between military government and the Karenni rebel group which
seems to break the ice at the end of March has been postponed as per
government response, Mann Aung Than Lay, the Prime Minister of Karenni
rebel government, revealed yesterday.

Burmese military government rejected the term used for the Karenni
delegation as ‘Karreni Government Delegation’ and the peace trip halted,
said Mahn Aung Than Lay.

Mann Aung Than Lay said, “In facsimile message we sent to Burmese
government, the KNPP stated that we are sending a ‘delegation of Karenni
Government’ for cease-fire negotiation with the Burmese government.
However, the government does not want to recognize the word ‘Karreni
Government’ and said the talk does not mean to inter-governmental talk.
They only want to accept us as a party, the KNPP.”

As per request of the government, the KNPP on March 26 sent a fax message
to Burmese Embassy in Bangkok for sending their delegation for the talk.
KNPP received the reply on April 1.

Burmese government asked KNPP to come to Loikaw through the border post 14
if KNPP still wants to talk as a party.

KNPP is preparing to hold series of meeting among them so as to reinstate
the talks with junta, Mahn Aung Than Lay said.

The postponement of the talk is due to failure of willingness from the
government side while KNPP government and party are striving for it, the
KNPP said.

KNPP claims the 1995 cease-fire agreement is already over and wants to
start talk from the beginning. But, Burmese government supposed the
previous agreement is still valid and asked the KNPP to come back to
‘legal fold’ on the basis of previous agreement.

According to the 1995 cease-fire agreement, it is mentioned that the KNPP
lay down their weapons and return to the legal-fold. The agreement was
infringed within three months and the bloodsheds have been going on.

The KNPP decided to negotiate the government in March after receiving
information from the ‘Kayar State Peace Delegation’.

Network Media Group, Phone: +66 1 322 7194
E-mail: netmedia at cscoms.com


BUSINESS / MONEY
_____________________________________

April 5, Xinhua
Myanmar's largest paper plant to go into operation

Myanmar's largest paper plant in southwestern Ayeyawaddy division will
formally go into commercial production by October, paving way for a major
saving of the country's paper imports, Myanmar Times reported Monday.

The nearly-completed Thabaung plant, which costs more than 5 million US
dollars and was built on a 445-hectare plot, has the capacity to process
200 tons of pulp daily, far exceeding the output of two existing plants in
other areas with a combined capacity of less than 100 tons a day, said the
report.

The pulp will be produced from bamboo with 1,600 tons a day and paper of
varying grades and quality will be manufactured, it said.

About 75 percent of the pulp produced will be exported for repayment of
the cost of machinery and equipment, most of which were imported from
China, while the remaining 25 percent will be turned into high-quality
paper for the domestic market.

The paper plant, whose construction began in 2001, was an
import-substitute project to cut the country's paper import which
currently totals about 60,000 tons annually.

Paper factories in Myanmar, including state and private operated ones, can
produce a total of 56,200 tons of paper a year, accounting for only 40
percent of the country's annual demand of 135,200 tons for its over 52
million population.

The country's per capita paper consumption stands at 2.6 kg annually.
_______________________

April 4, Xinhua
Myanmar PM calls for rapid development of private enterprises

Myanmar Prime Minister General Khin Nyunt has called for rapid development
and strongness of private enterprises to lay good and firm foundation for
competition in the region.

When addressing the annual general meeting of the Union of Myanmar
Chambers of Commerce and Industry here Saturday, he urged the UMFCC
members, who represent the major national economic force of the private
sector, to cooperate with international economic organizations, especially
those of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) for the
realization of the region's economic vision, The New Light of Myanmar
reported Sunday.

Khin Nyunt stressed the need for Myanmar entrepreneurs to be prepared that
their commodities be competitive in the ASEAN Economic Community which is
to ensure smooth flow of commodities, services and investments freely
among the regional members in near future.

The UMFCC, which serves as a bridge between the state and private
entrepreneurs, has now a membership of over 12,000.

Myanmar's private sector plays a leading role in the country's foreign
trade sector taking up about 78 percent of its import value and 55 percent
of the export value. The country's bilateral trade with ASEAN members
totaled about 2.5 billion US dollars annually, accounting for about 48
percent of its total foreign trade.


REGIONAL
_____________________________________

April 5, Irrawaddy
Compensation Set for Burmese Workers - Naw Seng

Thailand’s Labor Protection & Welfare Department in Tak Province on March
25 ordered Nasawat Apparel Co Ltd, which operates a garment factory in Mae
Sot, to pay more than 16 million baht in compensation to Burmese workers,
said a labor activist in Mae Sot.

Moe Swe, leader of the Yaung Chi Oo Burmese Workers Association, which
does advocacy work for Burmese migrants in border areas, said the Labor
Protection Department directed the firm to compensate 217 former employees
within 15 days of the order. The 217 workers were fired after striking on
December 11 in demand that the company pay them the legal minimum wage as
stipulated in contracts signed the previous month.

We are fighting for the workers’ legal rights according to Thai law.
—Labor activist Moe Swe

"We are fighting for the workers’ legal rights according to Thai law," Moe
Swe said. The Migrant Assistance Program, the Law Society of Thailand and
the Yaung Chi Oo Burmese Workers Association advocated for the former
Nasawat Apparel employees.

The factory employed 269 Burmese nationals, mostly female, who earned
about 50 baht per day. The legal minimum wage for Thai workers in Mae Sot
was 133 baht last year and is now 135 baht. The employees were also
required to perform overtime, sometimes until 2 am, for which they were
paid only eight baht per hour. The legal minimum overtime pay is 25 baht
an hour.

In some earlier cases companies have not complied with Labor Protection
Department orders to pay compensation to workers. In such an event
employees can seek redress through the Labor Court, according to Moe Swe.

In Mae Sot, a border town abutting Burma where the majority of the
inhabitants are Burmese migrants, 80 to 85 percent of garment factories
pay less than the minimum legal wage to Burmese workers, regardless of
whether they have valid work permits, said the labor activist.

On December 11 last year, 269 Nasawat Apparel factory employees staged a
demonstration after management reneged on a contract agreed on November 26
that stipulated that it would pay the legal minimum wage due. Most of the
workers were fired and took temporary shelter at a nearby monastery.

In December 2001 Nasawat Apparel factory employees, not having been paid
for three months, went on strike. Five of the strike leaders were deported
to Burma.

Employers in Mae Sot routinely blacklist labor leaders and strikers as
troublemakers. The names and photographs of workers involved in industrial
demonstrations are passed between factories, said Moe Swe.

He claimed that most Burmese workers have no knowledge on how to sue
employers for their rights. Many are also afraid of getting fired and
deported or blacklisted by factory owners.

Not all the 269 former Nasawat Apparel workers pressed for compensation.

_________________________

April 3, Shan
Dam activists win first round

Apparently in response to the anti-dam activists' efforts that had drawn
so much media attention in China, Premier Wen Jia-bao has issued on order
scrapping the controversial dam project on the Nujiang, known in Thailand
and Burma as Salween, reported Hong Kong-based papers, Ta Kung Pao (1
April) and Ming Pao (2 April).

He was quoted as saying that such a large dam project should be "seriously
reviewed and decided scientifically," given the enormous contradictions
between proponents and opponents in terms of environmental protection.

Both the Yunnan province government and He Daming, a professor from Yunnan
University's Asia International Rivers Center and a leading opponent of
the dam project, confirmed that the plan had been suspended. "We oppose
dam projects on the Nujiang, not because we oppose development, but
because we need a sustainable, people-centered development," he said. "We
should avoid the old wrong way of development."

However, Kevin Li, a dam opponent who translated and summarized the
newspaper reports, cautioned against undue optimism. "(The) Huadian
Company (that had previously won the right to develop the Nu) is
discussing the matter, probably with the Yunnan government," he said.
"(Also there is the) lesson from the past: despite the huge opposition
against the Three Gorges dam, the project still went ahead."

The plan could be "revised or simply repackaged", he warned.

In October, 62 campaigners in China began petitioning against the project.

On 16 December, 83 groups in Thailand and Burma made a call on Beijing to
consult downstream countries before going ahead with the plan.

On 4 March, International Rivers Network, with endorsement by
organizations from 33 countries, wrote to President Hu Jintao to suspend
the project.

Nine of the proposed 13 dams on the Nu-Salween are in Yunnan's Three
Parallel Rivers area, recognized by the UNESCO last year as World Heritage
Site.


INTERNATIONAL
_____________________________________

April 5, Daily Times
EU welcomes reports of Suu Kyi’s possible release

BRUSSELS: The European Union welcomed reports that the military government
in Myanmar may release detained pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi so
she can attend a constitutional convention.

“The European Union has consistently called for the release of Aung San
Suu Kyi and for the inclusion of the National League for Democracy in the
National Convention,” Irish Foreign Minister Brian Cowen said Saturday,
speaking for the 15-nation bloc.

In a statement, Cowen said the EU welcomed an announcement Saturday by
Myanmar’s Foreign Minister Win Aung suggesting Suu Kyi would be released
ahead of the convention which is scheduled to start May 17.

In later comments however, Win Aung declined to confirm that she would be
freed from house arrest, or give a date.

Cowen called for Suu Kyi and other members of her National League for
Democracy party to be released immediately by authorities in Myanmar,
which is also known as Burma

“The European Union wants to see the return of democracy to Burma, an end
to all human rights violations and the realisation of peace and prosperity
for the people of Burma,” he said. “The release of Aung San Suu Kyi and an
inclusive National Convention would constitute an important first step
towards that goal.”

Moves to release Suu Kyi could sway EU governments who are demanding steps
towards democracy before allowing Myanmar to join the European bloc’s
eight-year progrmme of economic and political cooperation with Asian
nations.

European foreign ministers are due to discuss the issue at a meeting this
month with their Asian counterparts in Ireland, which holds the EU’s
rotating presidency.

The EU also has to decide this month whether to extend sanctions on
Myanmar, including an arms embargo, a travel ban on members of the ruling
elite and a freeze on their financial assets.

Meanwhile Myanmar’s foreign minister Win Aung said on Saturday it was too
early to name a date for Aung San Suu Kyi’s release despite speculation
she will be freed before a constitutional convention begins May 17.

Convention: Pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s party will be invited
to join a constitutional convention beginning May 17, Myanmar’s military
government has said, though it was unclear Sunday if she would be freed
from house arrest by then.

Myanmar Foreign Minister Win Aung initially appeared to indicate to
reporters in Bangkok on Saturday that Suu Kyi would be released next
month, but later backed away from that assertion.

The participation of Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy party is
considered critical to the success of the National Convention, last held
in 1993 and suspended in 1996 after the NLD walked out saying it was being
forced to rubber stamp the junta’s decisions. The convention is the first
step in a seven-point “roadmap” that the government announced last year to
establish democracy in the country, which has been under military rule
since 1962. Win Aung told reporters during a brief stop in Bangkok that
all “original members who had attended (the previous National Convention)
including the NLD will be invited.”


OPINION / OTHER
_____________________________________

April 1, Mizzima
Burma: Violence During Transition – Aung Naing Oo

The first anniversary of the May 30 Depayin Massacre is two months away. 
Time has allowed reflection on how and why the incident happened, and how
the conditions for violence within Burma contributed to the event.  When
focussed analysis is conducted on the violence that the Burmese junta has
initiated, we find an almost perfect match for what international
development expert Dr David Keen describes as the necessary conditions for
"top-down violence".

In his book, "The Economic Functions of Violence in Civil Wars" published
by the International Institute for Strategic Studies in 1998, David Keen
outlines seven conditions that encourage violence. They are: a weak state,
rebel movements that lack strong external finance or support, an
undemocratic or 'exclusive' regime under threat, economic
crisis, ethnic divisions that cut across class lines, the existence of
valuable commodities, and prolonged conflict.  Current day Burma fits the
bill in every category.

Nothing has changed in Burma since the May 30 event.  Aung San Suu Kyi and
all of the NLD top leadership remain incarcerated.  Political activists
are being served harsh prison sentences, including the death penalty, for
activities that are taken for granted in democratic societies.  All other
forms of human rights abuses continue unabated.
And the regime seems ever more entrenched.

In short, conditions for violence in Burma are still rife.  One does not
need to think hard in order to figure out why all this violence is
possible.  However, the question is whether violence will be the order of
the day once Burma embarks on a transition to democracy.  The answer is:
probably yes.  Violence is likely even if Aung San Suu Kyi is released
during or after the Burmese New Year, as some have speculated, and even if
some form of political progress takes shape following this.

This is because the conditions for violence in the country, as outlined
above, are likely to remain. And once the country enters into a transition
stage, violence is likely to move away from what has been state-sponsored
and towards new forms of violence initiated by ordinary people, or what
Keen describes as "bottom-up violence".

Whether or not Burma's transition directly follows the regime's current
roadmap, some type of negotiation is bound to transpire, possibly even
during the proposed National Convention.  Therefore, while protagonists
negotiate a transition to democracy, violence may still ensue.  One should
recall that more people died in South Africa during the
negotiations to end apartheid than were killed before negotiations began.

What are the potential sources of violence during transition in Burma? 
There will be numerous aggrieved ex-soldiers from both the national and
rebel armies.  These unemployed men will no doubt find jobs hard to come
by in a volatile political environment.  Many of them will be desperate to
put food on the table for their families.  Whether or not the
decommissioning of weapons is accomplished, there will still be
thousands of military weapons left over from more than 50 years of civil
war.  As many of the men know nothing more than using weapons against
their fellow countrymen, violence of some form or another is sure to
materialise.

There will be harsh competition for jobs among returning refugees and
migrant workers, who will demand their share of a limited job pool.  With
the possible opening up of the country towards limited freedom, the poor
and underprivileged will demand their piece of the ever-shrinking pie. 
With the country's judiciary also in transition, it will be difficult for
the government of the day to combat the expected surge in crime and
violence.

However, violence committed by ordinary people as a direct product of
transition is likely to be sporadic and unsystematic.  Other sources
capable of producing systematic and more serious violence are known as
'third forces'.  They consist of mostly hardliners from the former regime
who oppose any deal with the opposition.  'Third forces' can greatly
undermine a  transition process, such as in South Africa where some 'black
on black' violence was engineered by white elements who were dissatisfied
with the Apartheid government's negotiations with the African National
Congress.

Another potential source of deadly violence stems from Burma's drug
kingpins.  They have had an ongoing cosy relationship with the Burmese
junta and as a result have enjoyed the operating in the status quo with
impunity.  Over the course of a decade and a half, they have earned many
millions of dollars from the drug trade and have built empires of their
own.  Some of them have even publicly declared that they are opposed to
Aung San Suu Kyi.

It is hardly surprising that these drug lords may sponsor violence, as
transition and democracy will compel them to adhere to different rules of
the game.  The freedom they currently enjoy under the dictatorship will no
longer be possible.  One can be sure that they will not give up their
power without a fight, and that they will utilise their wealth
amassed through drug trafficking and their pocket armies against those who
threaten the status quo.

The leaders of any new regime are likely to be the targets of such kinds
of violence during the transition period.  The violence that the drug
lords may initiate is likely to be as deadly as that of the third forces,
if not more systematic.

I may have painted a bleak picture but the idea is for all political
entities to look far ahead at the possibility of violence in the future. 
And this is exactly the scenario that the regime can use to delay the
liberalisation process.  Ultimately it is the Burmese junta that must be
held responsible for its continued entrenchment and unwillingness to work
with opposition groups for the rebuilding of the nation.

Is there any way to contain violence during a transition stage in Burma? 
The answer is yes, but it all depends on what form of transition Burma
takes.  The best way, perhaps, is a form of government that comprises all
of the key stakeholders - the military, ethnic groups and the
pro-democracy opposition - after a power-sharing agreement is made.

Since this form of transitional arrangement contains the key element to
resolving a conflict - ownership of the solution - all stakeholders are
likely to contribute greatly towards stability and suppress any forms of
violence that may arise from their respective groups.

Furthermore, by developing strategies to create jobs, putting greater
emphasis on the competency of the judiciary, and the careful handling of
the disbanding or assimilation of various resistance armies into the
national defence forces, the country may be able to avoid "bottom-up"
crimes and violence.  Through open dialogue and negotiations over thorny
issues during the transition, the partners in government can develop
effective strategies to combat large-scale violence.  Only by working
together is it likely that they can avoid the type of violence that is
often driven by the elite.

The real question remains.  Are all of the protagonists, especially the 
Burmese junta, thinking far enough into the future to make this happen?

Aung Naing Oo is a research associate with Washington-Based the Burma Fund.
_______________________

April 5, Washington Post
No Excuse for Inaction on Burma - Fred Hiatt

On the 10th anniversary of South Africa's peaceful transition from
apartheid to majority rule, outsiders may want to congratulate themselves.
After all, didn't we all stand with Nelson Mandela, imposing economic
sanctions until the white-minority regime gave in?

Well, yes, some countries did, eventually. But the rosy history forgets
how controversial sanctions were -- how many people argued for
"engagement" and against sanctions, which they said would only harm the
oppressed black majority.

Self-congratulation is particularly misplaced when so many nations are
slinking away from a moral challenge not all that different from the one
presented by South Africa before 1994. No two situations are identical,
but Burma, a Southeast Asian nation of 50 million people, presents some
striking similarities:

* Egregious violations of human rights. The military generals who rule
Burma, led by Gen. Than Shwe, maintain such an iron grip that possessing
an "unlicensed" fax machine or quietly criticizing the nation's school
system can land someone in jail for years. "Murder, rape, forced labor,
child soldiers," was the recent summary by Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) of
the regime's official policy. Amnesty International has identified some
1,300 political prisoners, many of whom have been tortured.

* A viable political alternative with moral authority. In South Africa,
there was little doubt that Mandela and the African National Congress
enjoyed the support of most people. In Burma, there is no doubt that Aung
San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy enjoy majority support:
When the regime, in a momentary spasm of self-deluded confidence, allowed
elections, the democrats won more than four out of five parliamentary
seats.

* Support for sanctions from the people who know best. The ANC understood
that international trade and investment barriers would hurt some of its
supporters in the short run; that was a price, it believed, that had to be
paid to win freedom. The NLD has been similarly clear.

* Experts ready to blame the democrats. South Africa's regime tried to
promote fears of Mandela and his colleagues as radicals, Communists or
revenge-seekers. In the case of Suu Kyi, a Buddhist committed to
nonviolence, such vilification would sound preposterous. Instead, critics
turn her principles against her: Georgetown University scholar David I.
Steinberg recently suggested that she is "rigid and uncompromising." U.N.
Secretary General Kofi Annan's special envoy to the country "emphasized
the need for all the parties . . . to turn over a new page."

Given that Suu Kyi has been held virtually incommunicado since May 30,
when government goons attacked her and her supporters, killing scores and
injuring many more, it's hard to know how she could "turn a page" even if
she were so inclined. Many of her top advisers remain in prison, and no
supporters or journalists are allowed to speak with her.

That leaves the field clear for those who argue against sanctions. And
sanctions are a blunt instrument; one can certainly be opposed to them
without being an apologist for the regime. Steinberg and others argue that
they only entrench the regime by impoverishing the people.

But it's also true that sanctions haven't really been tried. The United
States imposed an import ban last summer, after the May 30 attacks, but
the Europeans haven't followed suit, and the Bush administration hardly
has pressed them to do so. Meanwhile, the administration is cozying up to
the autocratic prime minister of Thailand, Burma's neighbor, who is busy
shoring up Burma's regime even as he erodes human rights in his own
country.

"Myanmar is not South Africa," writes another pro-engagement scholar,
Robert H. Taylor. "Its politics are more complex than a battle of
democracy versus authoritarianism."

By that standard, South Africa wasn't South Africa either; its politics
were complex, too. And that complexity was often cited as an excuse for
inaction.

"When we called for international action, we were often scorned,
disregarded or disappointed," Archbishop Desmond Tutu recently recalled.
But, he said, dismantling apartheid required international pressure, as
will promoting democracy in Burma: "Sadly, tyrants choose not to
understand the language of diplomacy or constructive engagement, but
rather respond only to the action of intense pressure and sanctions."

Than Shwe and his generals are rumored to be planning Suu Kyi's release in
a couple of weeks. Diplomats will be eager to claim credit and declare a
problem solved. But undoing one of their many outrages is just a small
step. Whether it becomes the first step toward democratic reform will
depend in large part on whether the generals feel pressure from overseas,
or whether they think they can keep blaming their prisoner for her
"intransigence."

mailto:fredhiatt at washpost.com
_______________________

April 5, Bangkok Post
Talks give new hope for progress – Larry Jagan

Rangoon's generals are said to be talking to Aung San Suu Kyi about their
road map to democracy, which includes a national convention aimed at
coming up with a constitution acceptable to all parties.

There is growing evidence that Burma's military rulers and the opposition
leader Aung San Suu Kyi may be on the verge of agreeing to work together
on shaping the country's political future.

There are secret talks taking place between them on a regular basis, and
the pro-democracy leader has been allowed to meet some of the other top
leaders of her National League for Democracy in preparation for an
agreement.

Burma's military leaders are also about to take the first step towards
drawing up a new constitution by reconvening the National Convention next
month after a nine-year adjournment. The National Convention is to draft
the principles upon which the new constitution will be based. For the
national reconciliation process to be credible, Ms Suu Kyi and the NLD
would have to be involved.

Ms Suu Kyi is now almost certain to be released from house arrest within
the next few weeks and the NLD allowed to re-open its offices across the
country.

The ``closed temporarily'' sign on the NLD headquarters in Rangoon has
been removed, according to eye-witnesses. This seems to point to the fact
that Burma's military rulers are preparing to allow the pro-democracy
leader and her party to function normally _ all part of the deal that is
being discussed between the two sides.

``It is now essential that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and other NLD leaders are
released immediately, party offices re-opened and that the NLD and other
political parties and groups are able to operate freely,'' said a western
diplomat in Rangoon on condition of anonymity.

These are all things that are now likely to happen in the coming weeks.
``Aung San Suu Kyi will be fully free, able to meet other members of her
party, and conduct normal political activities before the National
Convention convenes,'' Burmese Foreign Minister Win Aung told the Bangkok
Post recently on the Thai island resort of Phuket. ``The NLD will also be
allowed to re-open their offices before the convention gets under way.''

But for this to happen, it seems likely that the regime must have struck a
deal with the opposition leader, or at least feel it is in the process of
doing so. ``We are working on creating a good atmosphere between us,''
said Win Aung. ``Before we fought, now we talk.''

There is no doubt that Burma's rulers have been talking to her while she
is still under house arrest.

A delegation of three senior military representatives have been meeting Ms
Suu Kyi once a month since December. These are the deputy military
intelligence chief, Major-General Kyaw Win, who is regarded as close to
leader Senior General Than Shwe, Home Minister Tin Hlaing, a supporter of
Prime Minister Khin Nyunt, and the military intelligence liaison officer,
Brigadier-General Than Tun.

Both sides seem to be happy with the level of discussion during these
monthly sessions. ``The talks have been frank and open,'' according to
military intelligence sources, ranging from the government's fear that the
opposition leader is a pawn of the West and Ms Suu Kyi's support for
sanctions.

The triumvirate is believed to have met Ms Suu Kyi in the past week or so,
according to Rangoon-based diplomats. ``There must have been a deal struck
during those talks on the NLD's participation in the National
Convention,'' said a western diplomat who is responsible for relations
with Burma. ``It is possible that she may also have sent a letter to
Senior General Than Shwe pledging the NLD's commitment to the government's
national reconciliation.''

But this is unlikely to be the case unless the government has promised to
change the procedural rules of the National Convention and allow a free
debate and discussion on the principles upon which the constitution is to
be based. This is something which has not happened previously as
everything was tightly control by the government-appointed committee which
oversaw the convention's proceedings. All speeches had to be submitted to
the censors and no impromptu interventions from the floor were allowed.

If a deal is on the table, Ms Suu Kyi would want to discuss this with the
rest of the NLD's central executive committee, several of whom are still
under house arrest. And this is just what seems to be happening at the
moment.

At least one secret meeting between Ms Suu Kyi and some of the other NLD
leaders has taken place, according to an Asian diplomat who closely
follows developments in Burma.

They met around March 22. NLD officials are not prepared to reveal what
was discussed at this meeting, and some continue to deny it even took
place, so sensitive is the situation.

The next steps if a deal is to be struck may also involve Ms Suu Kyi
meeting with the prime minister to seal any agreement that might have been
reached between her and the military's negotiating team. The opening of
the NLD offices and the release of all the NLD leaders should also happen
in the next few weeks if the regime is committed to involving Ms Suu Kyi
and the NLD in the National Convention.

The announcement of the reconvening of the National Convention has caught
most Rangoon-based diplomats and seasoned observers by surprise.

``The fact that it was announced on local television seems to suggest that
it was aimed at the domestic constituency rather than posturing for the
international audience,'' said a Asian diplomat in Rangoon. ``It also
shows the SPDC [State Peace and Development Council] is taking the
initiative and not allowing international pressure to dictate to them. It
emphasises the importance of the National Convention in the national
reconciliation process and that means Aung San Suu Kyi's release is less
significant.''

While there have been growing signs in Rangoon over the past few weeks
that the regime was preparing to release Ms Suu Kyi after the Water
Festival celebrations for the Burmese New Year next week, there has been
little evidence that the National Convention was to about to start its
work any time soon.

It seems it may have been the strong urging of the Chinese deputy prime
minister, Wu Yi, who has just completed a significant visit to Rangoon,
that may have convinced Senior General Than Shwe to allow the prime
minister to take the first real step in the government's road map to
democracy.

``It is difficult to see how a constitution drafting process in which the
participants are not free to discuss and debate issues, within their
organisation and with the wider population, could be viewed as credible,
or could lead to genuine national reconciliation,'' said a western
diplomat in Rangoon.

So while the announcement of the start of the National Convention on May
17 is another tentative step in General Khin Nyunt's national
reconciliation process, its real significance will only emerge when the
National Convention actually meets. Many diplomats in Rangoon fear that
once the National Convention reconvenes it will then go into recess until
after the rainy season.
_______________________

PRESS RELEASE

April 2, Karens Women Organization
Karen women shatter silence on military rape in Burma

Breaking a culture of silence on sexual violence, the Karen Women's
Organisation is releasing today a report documenting the systematic use of
rape as a weapon of war by the Burmese military regime in Karen State.

The report Shattering Silences, documents 125 cases of sexual violence
committed by the regime's troops in Karen State from 1988 until 2004. Half
of the rapes were committed by military officers; 40% were gang-rape.  In
28% of the cases, the women were killed after being raped.

The pattern of sexual violence has continued during 2004, despite the
truce declared during the ongoing ceasefire negotiations between the
regime and the Karen National Union.  This is highlighting concerns about
the safety of refugees who may be repatriated prematurely after a
ceasefire agreement.

“How can we believe that the regime is trying to bring about peace and
democracy in Burma, when their troops continue to commit rape with
impunity?” said Naw Zipporah Sein, KWO Secretary. “There must genuine
political reform and a complete withdrawal of troops from Karen State
before women will feel safe to return.”

The report can be viewed at: www.womenofburma.org

For further information please contact:
Naw Zipporah Sein (KWO Secretary) +66 1 952-7145 (or) + 66-53 682572
Naw Paw Keyu: + 66 6 927-7265
Naw Khaing Mar Kyaw Zaw  +66 6 211-5647
Naw Nyaw Nyaw: +66 1 029-5503 (or) +66 53 682572
_________________________

REPORT

Women of Burma

Karen Women's Organization has launched a new report named "Shattering
Silences" documenting sexual violence committed by the Burmese military
regime in Karen State.

http://womenofburma.org/Report/Shattering_Silences.pdf
_________________________

February, 2004, Project Maje
Mithuns sacrificed to greed

Introduction

This report is a brief summary of information about the mithun, a type of
domesticated bovine found in the Himalayan foothills of South/Southeast
Asia, particularly addressing its situation in the Chin State of Burma.
The spelling "mithun" (accurate in terms of pronunciation) is used here
for the bovine species Bos frontalis, although "mithan" is also a common
spelling, and "mythun" is another spelling in use. This name probably came
from Assamese dialects. The Chin people, one of the Zo ethnic groups, who
live in western Burma, call these animals "sia." Mithuns are also known as
"gayals" in India.

This report is by no means a comprehensive or scientific document on
mithuns. It is inspired by accounts of mithun confiscation and
commercialization of mithun raising in the Chin State. It is intended as
an alert about the present situation of this particular mammal in this
particular area. Under Burma's military dictatorship, the Chin people have
been subjected to numerous human rights violations, including religious
persecution. Most Chins are Christians, with Animist traditions. Their
relationship to the mithun has strong elements of remaining Animist
culture. The Chins' mountain forest environment has been in jeopardy in
recent years, as Burma's military regime carries out logging and
unsustainable harvest of forest products, and promotes plantation
agriculture.

[Please visit : http://www.projectmaje.org/mithuns.htm for the whole
report – Ed]