BurmaNet News, December 8, 2005

[Editor]

December 8, 2005 Issue # 2860

INSIDE BURMA
DVB: Nine people given lengthy jail terms for contacting ILO in Rangoon
Irrawaddy: Forced labor reported in scheme to open up ski area
Khonumthung: The Prime Minister visited border villages in Chin state
SHAN: Human rights crackdown follows Shan New Year
Narinjara: Narinjara’s rape case reports trigger further reports of abuses

BUSINESS/TRADE
Irrawaddy: Four foreign companies quit Burma

ASEAN
AFP: Myanmar issue once again sours the mood at ASEAN summit
AFP: ASEAN trade talks with region hit snag

OPINION / OTHER
Mizzima: Pyinmana: Living with fear
New Straits Times: Good governance and good neighbours
____________________________________
INSIDE BURMA

December 7, Democratic Voice of Burma
Nine people given lengthy jail terms for contacting ILO in Rangoon

Nine people including Thein Lwin Oo from Rangoon North Okkalapa Township
who stand accused of ‘informing’ the International Labour Organisation
(ILO) and having contacts with exiled ‘illegal’ organisations, were given
lengthy prison terms on 11 November, it has emerged.

The shortest sentence is 8 years and the longest is 25 years which was
given to Wai Lin from Pegu and another defendant Win was given 17 years.

The remaining seven people, Thein Lwin Oo, Ye Myint, Hla Myint Than, Aye
Chan (f), Aye Thi Khaing (f), Yin Kyi (f) and Myint Lwin were each given 8
years.

They were all arrested in July and charged with the notorious Emergency
Provision Act – 5J, Act 17-1 for having contacts with illegal
organisations and Communication Act 16-3.

They have not been allowed to see their family members since their
arrests, and they were not allowed to hire lawyers when they were on trial
in Rangoon Insein Jail. Now that they have been officially sentenced, they
are entitled to see their family members but the authorities recently
imposed a one month ban on the meeting with their love ones for no
particular reasons.

____________________________________

December 8, Irrawaddy
Forced labor reported in scheme to open up ski area - Khun Sam

Villagers in upper Kachin State are being forced to construct a road
leading to one of Burma’s highest mountains, Phonkanrazi, to improve
access for tourists, according to sources in the region.

A western tourist who recently visited Putao region and photographed
people working on the road construction told The Irrawaddy: “On the way
from Hsangoung to Wasadan we were shocked and sickened to find more than
500 villagers (children to elderly) chopping down trees, bamboo, moving
huge rocks, cleaning bush.”

He went on: “We were told that it had been announced in all of the local
churches that every household had to provide one person a week to work
without pay 
on widening the footpath into a road.” The enforced laborers
had to provide their own food and shelter, he said.

A Kachin man, who gave his name as Sompong, said the work had been in
progress since early October between the upper Putao villages of Hsangoung
and Ziyadan. He said the local authority had told the villagers they were
to work without pay on a “self reliance” program to develop their region.

The road construction scheme appears to be part of the Rangoon
government’s “Visit Myanmar 1996” program, which includes plans to develop
the mountainous region of Kachin State and open a ski resort on
Phonkanrazi mountain. Tour companies are already reported to be bringing
visitors to the area.

The office of Township Development Committee in the Kachin capital
Myitkyina confirmed to The Irrawaddy that road construction work had been
going on since last year. A spokesman said the government had allocated
10,000,000 Kyat (US $8475) for a 30-mile stretch, but work had been
suspended because the budget had been over-spent.

The International Labour Organization office in Rangoon has often
expressed concern about forced labor in Burma, but its head, Richard
Horsey, said he could not comment on the latest case. It was not his
office’s policy to comment on individual cases of alleged forced labor, he
said.

____________________________________

December 8, Khonumthung News
The Prime Minister visited border villages in Chin state

A late report has been received that the Prime Minister of Burma, General
Soe Win, visited Cikha, Indo-Burma border village, bordering Manipur state
of India and Chin State, North western Burma last November.

The Prime Minister was reported as visiting the village, with two
helicopters, on 27 November. The visited lasted for an hour and General
Soe Win flew towards Tedim town, according to our source.

Meanwhile, the people of the areas had been exploited prior the visit of
the Prime Minister. The people were forced to clean the villages,
government offices, village roads and helipad was prepared for the
distinguished guest, as a preparation for his visit.

A villager of Cikha narrated, "We had to do all these preparation as
direct order came from the Administrative Officer, Aung Kyaw Than."

A village of Cikha area, Mauvom, were order to provide five hundreds
bamboos for the necessary preparation for the Prime Minister's visit,
report our source. These preparations for the General Soe Win's visit had
been reported as underway for a month prior the scheduled date.

The Prime Minister of Burma had been reported as presenting a packed of
dry fish to the chiefs of Cikha sub-township villages. He inaugurated the
High School Cikha village and promised the people of the area a government
sanction of one lakhs donation for the School, ten lakhs for Civil
Hospital and fund for Hydro-Electric Project in the area, before he left
the village after an hour stay.

The Prime Minister visited Rih Khuadar and Tio villages, Indo-Burma border
village, bordering Mizoram state of India and Chin state earlier this
month. General Soe Win promised the people of this an area government
sanction for the construction of a bridge between these two villages.

Top official visit of Indo-Burma border areas has been reported as the
first of its kind in Chin state. The ousted Head of State, General Khin
Nyunt had visited Chin state during his tenure but not the border areas.

____________________________________

December 7, Shan Herald Agency for News
Human rights crackdown follows Shan New Year

Authorities in northern Shan State have launched an operation against some
prominent organizers of the recent Shan New Year celebrations that ended
on 2 December, according to several sources from the border.

Among the 8 who were taken into custody on 3 December included Dr Sai Mawk
Hkam, Chairman of Shan State Literature and Culture Committee; Sai Hpawn
Hseng Moeng, 33, a popular singer and Sai Kyaw Ohn "Namkham", one of the
organizers. Four more were arrested on the following day, according to an
unconfirmed report.

"We have already reported to the Mizzima (News Agency)," said a source
from the Sino-Burma border," hoping the impact would lessen if it is
reported through a news agency other than S.H.A.N."

One of the sources has also blamed S.H.A.N. for reporting Dr Sai Mawk
Kham's meeting with Maj-Gen Myint Hlaing in early November when the former
was given the green light to go ahead with his celebration plans for the
New Year that falls on 1 December this year. (Junta wants Shans to
celebrate New Year, 28 November 2005) S.H.A.N. however had obtained the
news from two other sources. Fearing he might be endangered, S.H.A.N. had
refrained from calling the doctor for confirmation.

Many others were however bitter against the regional commander Myint
Hlaing. "He had allowed them to celebrate so he could get an excuse to
arrest them later," said one.

In Muse, where the biggest merrymaking takes place each year, no arrests
are reported. "The organizers had taken care not to allow any singing of
political songs composed by Sai Mu, Sakhaha and their exiled Freedom Way
band," said a border source.

The Shan New Year is calculated in accordance with the lunar calendar. The
First Waxing Moon of the Burmese Naddaw or the Chinese 11th Month is the
Shan New Year's Day.

____________________________________

December 8, Narinjara News
Narinjara’s rape case reports trigger further reports of abuses

Family members of many of the victims of rape committed by the Burmese
military have written to Narinjara News to tell of their suffering and to
seek justice.

So far we have received detailed accounts of nine rape cases and two gang
rape cases committed by military personal in Arakan State.

In one case, six soldiers believed to be from the Light Infantry Battalion
(378) gang raped four women near Oat Phaw Kan village in Mrauk-U Township.

Further accounts of rapes committed by the Infantry Battalion (550) in
Ponna Gyan Township have been sent to us by the family members of the
victims, including one involving a group of night patrol soldiers entering
the houses of four women and abusing them. One of the cases
involves a 16-year old child.

In another case, a senior monk who complained to senior officials about
rape cases involving local Chin women was beaten to death by soldiers in
the northern most part of the state, in the upper reaches of Laymyo River
in Arakan.

We have not been able to independently confirm all the claims, but such
violations of women by Burmese military personal have long been widely
reported. Narinjara News will be contacting human rights and women’s
organizations regarding these claims.

____________________________________
BUSINESS/TRADE

December 8, Irrawaddy
Four foreign companies quit Burma - Shah Paung

Austrian Airlines has finally dropped its flights between Rangoon and
Vienna and three other foreign companies have also said they want no more
business with Burma, according to the Burma Campaign UK on yesterday.

Austrian Airlines, Austria’s national carrier, suspended flights to Burma
earlier this year and has now confirmed the Vienna-Rangoon route has been
permanently dropped from its schedule, Burma Campaign UK said.

The three other companies ceasing involvement with Burma are the British
company Gill Clothing, the travel company Eastravel and the American
travel guide publishers Frommers.

Gill Clothing, which specializes in outdoor and marine clothing, had been
asked by Burma Campaign UK to stop its involvement with Burma. “We are
pleased that Gill have responded positively to our request to stop
sourcing from Burma,” said Anna Roberts, campaigns manager of Burma
Campaign UK. “Gill join more than 150 retailers and manufacturers who
refuse to source from Burma.”

Clothing exports are an important source of revenue for the military
regime that rules Burma. In 2004, clothing worth more than US $100 million
was imported into the UK from Burma.

Burma Campaign UK vowed to continue its campaign to clean British shops of
clothing sourced from Burma. “Any company sourcing clothing from Burma
faces a powerful boycott campaign and a PR disaster,” said Anna Roberts.

British-based Eastravel also confirmed to the campaign group that it has
discontinued tours to Burma. Frommers, one of the leading American
guidebook publishers, had dropped Burma from the new edition of its
guidebook to Southeast Asia, Burma Campaign UK reported.

“It is good to see companies responding to public pressure to stop
promoting tourism to Burma,” said Anna Roberts, “Companies don’t want to
operate there, and the public don’t want to visit, as they don’t want to
put money into the pockets of Burma’s generals.”

Last year, the travel companies Carnival Corporation/P&O, Magic of the
Orient and Explorers Tours and Oddessy Guidebooks ended their involvement
in Burma.

Burma Campaign UK plans to publish next week an updated version of its
black list of companies doing business with Burma, and only around 20
companies are expected to be listed.

The International Confederation of Free Trade Unions issued its own black
list this week, naming 468 foreign companies doing business with Burma.
Six of them are American— Atwood Oceanics, Ceylon Express International,
Dr Reddy’s Laboratories Inc, Interra Systems Inc, R Crusoe & Son and
Tiffany & Co.

____________________________________
ASEAN

December 8, Agence France Presse
Myanmar issue once again sours the mood at ASEAN summit - Sarah Stewart

The embarrassing presence of Myanmar will again weigh heavily on regional
summits here next week as the United States ramps up pressure on Southeast
Asia to isolate the military junta.

But Malaysia's Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar made it clear that while
the bloc did not relish the thought of again standing shoulder-to-shoulder
with the pariah regime on the world stage, ASEAN felt it had few options.

"I think Myanmar realises that we have a problem, and I think it is an
embarrassment, because these are the issues that are current now -- the
question of democracy, of the rule of law," he told AFP.

"We are unhappy with the way that democratic processes are pursued there.
But the question we always ask ourselves is -- if Myanmar is isolated or
out, would that be better for their citizenry? It's not the most perfect
situation, but at least we do keep on asking the right questions."

Lawmakers from the 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations
(ASEAN) have called for Myanmar -- previously known as Burma -- to be
expelled or suspended from the grouping unless its ruling generals carry
out substantial democratic reforms within a year.

And at last month's summit of Pacific Rim leaders, US President George W.
Bush pressured ASEAN to take a tougher stance on Myanmar to win the
release of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and force the pace of
reform, describing the state as an outpost of "isolation, backwardness and
brutality".

But Syed Hamid said that the shock October 2004 ouster of Myanmar's prime
minister Lieutenant-General Khin Nyunt, who was seen as a moderate within
the regime, raised suspicions that pressure on the junta may have
backfired.

"At one time we used to have very good (contacts) like Khin Nyunt.
Actually by our very actions, the very people who could work and make a
difference are all out. So maybe we have overplayed our hand," he said.

"Khin Nyunt was seen as a possible reformer, very conciliatory, willing to
make room. But I suppose he himself became a threat. So of course now he
is in this current position, there is not much we can do."

Human Rights Watch's Bangkok-based consultant on Myanmar, Sunai Phasuk,
said Southeast Asia was feeling the heat from Washington over the issue,
but was still trying to duck responsibility.

With the United Nations Security Council's recent decision to hold a
formal briefing on Myanmar, ASEAN could no longer keep the problem
in-house, he said.

"Why does it have to take international bodies to tell the world that
Burma is a threat? ASEAN is here. This is a major embarrassment for those
who failed to be aware that its next door neighbour is in fact a
criminal."

Sunai urged regional leaders to grasp the issue at the December 12-13
ASEAN summit, which will be followed by the inaugural East Asia Summit
that also takes in China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand and
India.

"That to me is a major test case for ASEAN, whether it will wake up to the
new reality or not. If Burma is treated as non-urgent, something to be
discussed in the back of the room, then ASEAN has missed the train," he
said.

There are some signs that the gloves are coming off over Myanmar. Senior
Malaysian lawmaker Zaid Ibrahim recently likened the junta to the regimes
of Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin, and condemned nations who trade with
it.

Zaid, a member of the outspoken Inter-Parliamentary Myanmar Caucus (AIPMC)
which is made up of regional lawmakers, said it is high time for ASEAN to
show it is not complicit with the regime in Yangon.

"I think the longer the situation goes, this lack of progress and this
lack of reform in Myanmar, for ASEAN to do nothing would suggest ASEAN is
supporting the regime," he said.

____________________________________

December 8, Agence France Presse
ASEAN trade talks with region hit snag

ASEAN's trade negotiations with East Asian partners like South Korea and
Japan have hit a snag over rice that is showing the difficulty in opening
up regional markets, officials said Thursday.

A row over Asia's staple food is threatening to scuttle a proposed
free-trade deal between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)
and South Korea, which opposes cutting tariffs to protect its rice
industry.

Thailand, the world's biggest rice exporter, said it would not join any
deal as long as South Korea excluded rice from the list of goods facing
tariff cuts, according to senior officials preparing for next week's
regional summits here.

They said Thailand wanted concessions from South Korea if Seoul insists on
protecting its rice market.

Vietnam, the world's number-two exporter, ironed out similar problems with
South Korea, which agreed to some concessions on industrial goods, they
said.

Under the proposed Free Trade Agreement (FTA), South Korea and ASEAN's six
more advanced countries -- Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines,
Singapore and Thailand -- would abolish tariffs on 80 percent of traded
goods by 2009.

ASEAN's less developed members -- Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Vietnam --
would comply by 2017.

The proposal allows South Korea and each ASEAN country to choose 40 items
that can be excluded from tariff reductions, provided the exclusion list
does not exceed three percent of a nation's total trade.

A senior Southeast Asian trade official told AFP that rice was an
"emotional issue" in Asia, the world's biggest producer and consumer of
the commodity.

"In my mind these are all national prerogatives. The beauty of it is
Thailand is not saying 'I will smash this deal.' Thailand is saying 'help
me to get on board the deal.' That's why we support them," the official
said.

Bounsom Phommavihane, director general for the economic affairs department
of the Laotian foreign ministry, said he thought "roughly the same"
problems existed with Japan, which has a large and protected agricultural
sector.

But he declined to respond to questions about rice and automobiles being
stumbling blocks between the two sides.

While Southeast Asian and Japanese trade negotiators have a two-year time
frame until March 2007 to wrap up negotiations, they have met only twice
since April as they prepared bilateral FTA deals.

Officials insist the talks were back on track and that another meeting of
the ASEAN-Japan economic partnership committee had been scheduled for
February.

"It is just that we have not had the time to meet. We recognise that, and
we are now back on track," said Ramon Vicente Kabigting, a senior trade
official for the Philippines.

"There are always sensitivities but we will handle them with open minds on
both sides," he told reporters without giving details.

"We haven't walked away from each other. We have not said 'I'll stop
talking to you...' We are finding ways to move forward," Kabigting said.

ASEAN trade ministers are expected to meet with their Japanese counterpart
on Friday.

Meanwhile China and ASEAN are in negotiations to reduce tariffs to between
zero and five percent on certain types of goods by 2010 for ASEAN's more
advanced economies and by 2015 for its poorer members.

Kabigting said free-trade talks with India will diversify ASEAN's portfolio.

"We cannot run our FTA business with only a select few. We're not going to
do it with the whole world but we would like to do it with all our FTA
partners, and India is a valued candidate for an FTA partner," he said.

____________________________________
OPINION / OTHER

December 8, Mizzima News
Pyinmana: Living with fear - Nyo Ohn Myint

Senior General Than Shwe’s men in uniform ordered eleven key ministries to
move to Pyinmana a month before reconvening the National Convention. The
junta’s unexpected order was a shock to civil servants and their families.

Before the National Convention reconvened, the military decided to setup a
new defensive position for itself incase of a popular uprising. Colorful
costumes worn by various ethnic people at convention may mark a further
baby step on a road to reform but the junta appears to know there are
dangerous times ahead.

The regime moved the National Convention to a remote area 30 kilometres
from Rangoon showing, coupled with the Pyinmana move, the government is
not ready to face unrest.

Security reasons and isolationism might be a contributing factor but Than
Shwe may be backing away from a repeat of the 1988 massacre orchestrated
by Sein Lwin, the butcher of Burma.

He exercised marshal law and curfews marginalising his supporters until
they removed him from power after just 18 days.

Looking back to 1988 popular democracy uprising, the socialist regime was
unable to maintain its tailored-made economy and rice shortages caused
government servants to join demonstrations from early August until the end
of September. In fact, many Armed Forces personnel joined the people’s
democracy movement in August 1988. This alarmed the socialist regime and
the current SPDC leaders.

But unlike the socialist government in 1988, the current regime faces more
political, social and economic pressure.

The regime set an example when they sentenced several Shan leaders to
ridiculously long jail terms, sending a message saying, “we will get you
anytime”. Indeed, Burma’s national reconciliation process is moving
backwards.

The war on the National League for Democracy becomes more brutal day by day.

“Than Shwe’s anger has created more political enemies while failing to
provide decent life for all citizens,” a western diplomat said in Rangoon
recently.

Unnecessarily issuing tough restrictions on NGO operations may confuse
humanitarian efforts.

The current ecological crisis and the military’s ignorance of inflation or
government subsidies mean people are becoming increasingly dissatisfied
with the situation in their country. But the regime’s iron rule remains
steadfast.

The move to Pyinmana seemed to signal that the military was also
unsatisfied with the way things were working out. Western diplomats in
Burma said, “this could be only a short-term solution of moving important
eleven ministries right now and whole thirty some ministries before April
2006.”

Besides security issues, the regime may dream of creating a new capital.
The reality is that this can not be done. It is likely they removed
government workers from the possible site of protests to make sure they do
not start batting for the other team.

An official who was ordered to move to Pyinmana said, “There could be more
silent confrontation by the officials and how long regime uses this
curtail treatment on them or how long they could tolerate wartime
condition”.

The regime’s new initiative may not be well planned but caused by a need
to run from domestic and international political pressure. It seems the
regime is no longer able to face up to their problems and has resorted to
holding themselves hostage in Pyinmana.

____________________________________

December 8, New Straits Times
Good governance and good neighbours - Zaid Ibrahim

Good governance is a fundamental right that is interlinked with human
rights, democracy, rule of law, stability and the eradication of poverty.

Most members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations have taken the
commitment to good governance seriously. Malaysia has embraced Islam
Hadhari as the approach to good governance and social justice to benefit
all Malaysians, regardless of race or religion.

It is critical that we maintain the momentum that has propelled Asean
towards considerable level of success in fostering democracy. We should
never allow our efforts to be eroded by the effects of one country's
misrule, even if it is that of fellow Asean member Myanmar.

This is why, a year ago, a group of Asean MPs formed the Asean
Inter-Parliamentary Myanmar Caucus (AIPMC).

Our main aims were to secure the release of Aung San Suu Kyi and to
prevent the Myanmar regime from chairing Asean in 2006. As we proceeded
with our programme, we were told that we were pursuing an impossible dream
- Asean would never budge on such treasured traditions as the rotating
chair.

Well, we achieved half of that dream. At the end of July, the unthinkable
happened - the pressure, concern and "active persuasion" over the Asean
chair led to Myanmar's withdrawal.

This is the first time that parliamentarians have crossed party and
national boundaries to work together to support democratisation within our
own region. In doing so, we have come in direct confrontation with Asean's
precious tenet of "non-interference".
In April, I wrote an article in the Asian Wall Street Journal that
identified Myanmar's regime as a threat to regional security. Months
later, the same analysis was echoed in a report commissioned by Nobel
Laureate Bishop Desmond Tutu and former Czech President Vaclav Havel.

They have asserted, just as we have, that the misrule in Myanmar continues
to pose a security threat. Hundreds of thousands of people have fled
Myanmar as refugees and illegal migrant workers. The absence of good
governance has also contributed to the thriving drug trade and the spread
of HIV/AIDS.

Our efforts toward good governance will always be threatened by the
spill-over effects of Myanmar's misrule. It is clear that our destinies as
neighbouring countries are linked, and we need to seriously address good
governance as a regional issue.

Regional good governance must be a fundamental right for Asean citizens.
Without regional stability, how are we going to achieve economic
integration and sustainable economic growth? The Myanmar authorities have
refused to publish national economic statistics since 2002. With the chaos
started last month by Myanmar's 800 per cent rise in fuel prices and
sudden decision to move the capital, the situation could be worse than we
imagine.

Asean Governments need to seriously review the relevance of the so-called
"non- interference principle". We should not be willing to politely ignore
the misbehaviour of a neighbour when the consequences impinge on our
internal and regional stability. We must not allow "non-interference" to
blind us to the suffering of 50 million of our own neighbours.

It is time the Asean Charter becomes more responsive to the needs of our
people. We need an Asean that is credible, pragmatic and practical when it
comes to addressing conflicts of interest and security.

We need an effective mechanism to deal with the effects and causes of poor
governance and misrule. Without a realistic approach to prevent the
escalation of threats caused by bad governance, we are dis-empowering
ourselves.

What I am saying may not be considered polite or diplomatic. However, it
is the responsibility of elected representatives to speak up and defend
the rights of the people who entrusted us with their votes.

We cannot afford to be shortsighted and ignore the fact that our local and
national interests are affected by regional problems.

Aung San Suu Kyi, who remains detained in Myanmar, has asked us: "Use your
liberty to promote ours." It is a call that applies not just to Myanmar
but to the entire region.

Southeast Asia has a rich tradition of struggle for human rights,
democracy and justice. We have struggled against colonialism and, in more
recent times, against dictatorship.

Thousands have given up their lives and liberty so that we, the citizens
of Asean, can enjoy freedom and development.

We should not squander the sacrifices of those who came before us. Our
national commitment to accountability must be reflected at the regional
level if we are to secure our collective destinies.

Good governance and democracy are not magic wands that will instantly
erase our problems. However, this is the continuation of a struggle for
dignity and freedom that we cannot afford to abandon. We cannot accept
compromises or excuses. Such lack of conviction betrays the vision of what
Asean is supposed to be standing for.

We cannot afford to surrender our future to the outmoded idea of
"non-interference".

Datuk Zaid Ibrahim is MP for Kota Baru and president of the Asean
Inter-Parliamentary Myanmar Caucus. This article is extracted from his
opening speech at the AIPMC's Conference on Good Governance, Democracy and
Asean held in Kuala Lumpur on Dec 2-3.