Daily News- December 08 - 2001- Saturday

  • Amnesty urges junta to release Suu Kyi on eve of Nobel centennial
  • 'Free Aung San Suu Kyi'
  • 97 Indian signatures under ‘MP Declaration on Burma’
  • Suu Kyi Tributes Planned
  • Burma bans stamp of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi from Norway
  • WEBCAST Information, FINAL UPDATE!
  • Václav Havel adds his voice of support
  • Nopporn had sights on drug lord
  • Myanmar Implementing Long-Term Teak Project
  • Britain pays tribute to Burma opposition leader
  • Burma nudist colony plan reveals senator's barefaced cheek
  • Muted Nobel peace anniversary for Aung San Suu Kyi
  • Thailand holds concert of peace on Nobel anniversary
  • Myanmar opposition reopens key office on Nobel anniversary

    • Amnesty urges junta to release Suu Kyi on eve of Nobel centennial

    BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) _ Human rights watchdog Amnesty International urged Myanmar's military regime Friday to release democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest, as other former Nobel Peace Prize winners gathered in Oslo to commemorate vhe centennial of the award.

    Suu Kyi, who won the peace prize in 1991, has been detained at her Yangon lakeside home since September 2000 after she defied official restrictions by attempting to travel outside the capital for a political meeting.

    "On this occasion we renew our calls for her release, and for the release of hundreds of other prisoners of conscience there (in Myanmar)," the London-based group said in a statement received in Bangkok.

    The Norwegian Nobel Institute has invited all 39 living peace laureates or winning organizations to its celebrations leading up to Monday's presentation of the 100th award to United Nations Secretary-general Kofi Annan. Other former prize winners attending include South Korean President Kim Dae-jung, the Dalai Lama, Desmond Tutu, David Trimble and Lech Walesa.

    Suu Kyi has not left Myanmar, also known as Burma, since she emerged as opposition leader during a 1988 peaceful uprising against military rule. The uprising was crushed by the military, which gunned down hundreds, possibly thousands of civilians. Suu Kyi has spent most of those 13 years under some form of house arrest _ including when her National League for Democracy, or NLD, party won 1990 general elections by a landslide. The party was never allowed to take power. Amnesty said Myanmar, ruled by the military since 1962, holds some 1,600 other political prisoners.

    "We strongly urge the Myanmar government to free these people immediately _ not only because they should never have been arrested in the first place, but also because"kt would build international and domestic confidence in the ongoing talks between the NLD and the government," Amnesty said.

    Suu Kyi and the regime began closed door talks last October, resulting in the release of nearly 200 prisoners, but there is no sign of an end to the political deadlock.

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    'Free Aung San Suu Kyi'

    BBC

    Amnesty International has called on Burma's military rulers to release Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest, as other former laureates gathered to commemorate 100 years of the award. It is 10 years on Saturday since Aung San Suu Kyi won the award, but she will not be joining other living laureates gathering in Oslo.

    Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy convincingly won the elections held in May 1990, but the military junta failed to hand over power.

    Since last October, the democracy leader has been holding secret United Nations-brokered talks with junta leaders, which have led to the release of nearly 200 political prisoners.

    Amnesty is renewing its appeal for Aung San Suu Kyi to be allowed her freedom. "On this occasion we renew our calls for her release, and for the release of hundreds of other prisoners of conscience," the London-based group said in a statement received in Bangkok.

    Husband's death

    Aung San Suu Kyi has not appeared in public since September 2000, when she was put under de facto house arrest for attempting to travel outside the capital Rangoon for a political meeting. Her telephone has been disconnected, but she reportedly has access to a shortwave radio.

    She has been detained at her lakeside home for much of the last 13 years, including the year she was awarded the Nobel Peace prize. Her son Alexander Aris collected it on her behalf.

    Aung San Suu Kyi, 56, was unable to travel to the UK when her academic husband Michael Aris died of cancer in 1999, fearing the junta would not allow her back into Burma.

    In a videotaped statement released last year, Aung San Suu Kyi said she remained optimistic. "We are absolutely confident that democracy will come to Burma," she said. "It is important that we achieve our goal quickly because people suffer too much."

    The Norwegian Nobel Institute has been holding a series of celebrations to mark the 100th anniversary of the peace prize, in the run-up to Monday's presentation of this year's award to UN Secretary General Kofi Annan. Other former prize winners due to attend include South Korean President Kim Dae-jung, and the Dalai Lama.

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    97 Indian signatures under ‘MP Declaration on Burma’

    December 7, 2001 Mizzima News (www.mizzima.com)

    Tomorrow "8 December" a day of celebration in solidarity with Burma’s democratic leader and Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi is observed in many locations all over the globe. As Mizzima News Group reported previously, various activities are undertaken worldwide in support of the celebration, among them a worldwide signature campaign organised by the India-based All Burma Students League and the Norway-based PD Burma and Worldview Rights organisations.

    Since 28 November, the number of signatures by Indian MPs to the ‘MP Declaration on Burma’ increased from fifty-two to ninety-seven.

    The Declaration which has attracted signatures from over 2.400 parliamentarians in 89 countries calls for the release of Aung San Suu Kyi and her fellow activists, the recognition of representatives elected democratically in 1990 to form a parliament and for effective dialogue between the regime and the National League for Democracy and ethnic nationalities’ representatives towards a peaceful transition to democracy in Burma.

    Tomorrow’s celebrations in New Delhi at the India International Centre, organised by the All Burma Students League and the Women’s League of Burma, and in various locations and settings all over the world mark the 10th Anniversary of Aung San Suu Kyi's reception of the Nobel Peace Prize and a worldwide salute and demonstration of solidarity with the cause of democracy in Burma.

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    Suu Kyi Tributes Planned

    By Zarny Win
    The Irrawaddy

    December 07, 2001-- Thousands of pro-democracy supporters are coming out tomorrow to show their support for detained Burmese pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and political prisoners in Burma at ceremonies around the globe.

    Ceremonies are being planned in Thailand and the United States as well as other countries throughout the world. The Norwegian Nobel Committee is also going to host a major anniversary celebration in Norway tomorrow. Every living Nobel Peace Prizewinner has been invited to attend as part of the 100th anniversary celebration of the Nobel Peace Prize.

    “While the world is taking a determined stand against international terrorism, it should not forget one of the world’s most courageous and principled champions of human rights and democracy, Aung San Suu Kyi," said Thomas Andrews, former US congressman and secretariat of the Nobel Peace Laureate Campaign for Aung San Suu Kyi and the People of Burma.

    "Supporters from every corner of the globe are looking forward to joining this unprecedented event to demand the release of Aung San Suu Kyi and an end to the suffering of millions in Burma."

    In Bangkok tomorrow the Voice of Peace concert is being held at Thammasart University in Suu Kyi's honor. Thai folk band Caravan is set to take the stage as well as dance troupes that will be performing traditional Burmese dance.

    "Aung San Suu Kyi is the only Nobel Peace Laureate currently under detention for her commitment to human rights and democracy in Burma," said Min Kyaw a Burmese student activist working for the Free Aung San Suu Kyi Campaign in Malaysia.

    Aung San Suu Kyi has been under house arrest for the last fourteen months. Suu Kyi and the National League for Democracy won a landslide victory in a 1990 election that the military regime has never recognized.

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    Burma bans stamp of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi from Norway

    by Worldview Rights 2001-12-07

    The Burmese military regime banned letters posted with stamps of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, issued in Norway.

    To commemorate the 100th Nobel peace prize ceremony, the Norwegian postal authorities, in cooperation with the Nobel Institute, issued eight new stamps with pictures of former Nobel laureates, including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and Alfred Nobel himself, on September 14th 2001.

    At the same day, the Norway-based radio station Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB) offered to give the stamps of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi free to the first 300 people who wrote to the station. Within weeks, DVB received dozens of letters from inside Burma and hundreds of letters from abroad, requesting the stamps of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.

    "I know that it is very risky to write to your station, but I take a chance because I am so eager to see our beloved leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi‘s stamp," wrote one of DVB‘s listeners from Burma.

    DVB promptly replied to all the letters, and included the stamp of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. However, none of the listeners who requested the stamp have received the letters sent by the DVB. DVB contacted some of the listeners by phone.

    "No, I haven‘t received your letter. I believe they (the military regime) did not want to give it to us," one of them told the DVB. The DVB has also received letters from listeners who have written twice before,complaining about not receiving the stamp of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.

    Normally, it takes about one month for a letter from Europe to reach Burma.According to the Universal Postal Union (UPU), "no risk or mail violations were identified in Burma during a Quality of Service test conduced by the UPU in 1996. The UPU added that the "postal staff in Myanmar (Burma) are security checked and they need a police clearance before they are employed." UPU, based in Berne, Switzerland, is a specialized agency of the United Nations.

    "What do you expert from this regime? I am not surprised." said Mr John Pedersen, head of the Postal sector of Union Network International. But he said "it is a violation of the UPU constitution." Ms Juliana Nel, spokeswomen for the UPU agrees.

    "If it is true, it is a violation of our constitution," she said. All members of the UPU have an obligation to deliver all private mail without delay. Besides, the postal authorities need to maintain the confidentiality of the mail, except when suspecting dangerous substances in it.

    The Norwegian Post Stamp Bureau Director Mr Halvor Fasting said: "It is very sad that the Burmese people can not see the stamp of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi."

    "It is strange that the Burmese authorities did not deliver the letters because they don‘t like the stamp, which is officially issued in Norway. It should not happen," he concludes.

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    WEBCAST Information, FINAL UPDATE!

    The following links are FINAL and will be the links to use for the LIVE Oslo ceremony. Until the Live ceremony starts on Saturday, a testwindow will show that you have the correct software installed.

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    MIRRORSITE 1 (CITS/University of Oslo)

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    Václav Havel adds his voice of support

    by Worldview 2001-12-07

    Ladies and Gentlemen;

    It has been ten years since the Nobel Prize for Peace was conferred upon Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, who became a symbol of the struggle for democracy and human rights not only in Burma but throughout the entire world. At that time I was happy to support the presentation of this prize. I believe that, indeed, as the world expressed solidarity against the battle with totalitarian regimes in Central Europe in the past, it is now the duty of the Czech Republic, and of all of us, to repay this debt by supporting democratic powers throughout the world.

    Czech citizens remember well the years of oppression under the Communist regime and are aware that not all nations in the world were lucky to free themselves from the chains of dictatorship. I believe that, during the few years of democracy and freedom in our country, we have been able to build the fundamentals of Civil Society. A number of civic associations in the Czech Republic have also attempted to help the Myanmar nations in their difficult situation, and regularly keep Czech citizens informed.

    Recently, that is on 17 November 2001, we recalled the 12th Anniversary of student demonstrations in Prague which led to the fall of the communist regime. Let these two anniversaries remind us that values, such as human rights and democracy, are universal and valid throughout the world. The people of Burma, just as the Czech people or anyone else, have the right to freedom and a dignified life.

    Therefore, I add my voice to the support of all events which aspire to achieve justice and democracy in Burma by peaceful means. I wish Mrs. Aun San Suu Kyi, and all those who believe in democracy, great success and, as it appears in the motto of our presidential flag: "Truth Prevails".
    Thank you for your attention.

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    Nopporn had sights on drug lord

    The Nation

    Nopporn Suwanprueksachat first walked into The Nation's editorial office over a year ago to get some information on Wei Xieu-kang, one of the world's most wanted drug lords.Nopporn appeared polite and courteous but said he was determined to capture Wei, a senior commander in a pro-Rangoon drug army, the United Wa State Army operating out of Burma's Shan State.

    Wei was indicted by a United States Federal Court on charges of drug trafficking about a decade ago and carries a US$2-million (Bt88-million) price on his head from the US government.

    Nopporn said he had worked in America and received his residency permit, commonly known as a "green card", but offered no proof.He insisted he was not ready to go public with his story about hunting down Wei because it would blow his cover.

    The tiny, lean man, only 1.65 metre tall, claimed to have links with the US Drug Enforcement Administration but would not elaborate on their nature. During one of his seven or eight visits to this newspaper, he showed a Thai passport with lots of stamps to show that he had travelled in and out of the country.

    His plan was to enter Wa-controlled territory along the Thai-Burmese border, where he would plant a light weapon that would be used to assassinate the drug lord, or he would take him alive.During all of his visits, Nopporn said he was at the "planning" stage and was collecting information from various newspapers about the Wa's activities.

    He wanted to know the natural features of the area and which checkpoints he could use. He intended to cross over and blend in with the hundreds of Thai nationals working in the Burmese town of Mong Yawn., where they were building everything from a hydroelectric dam to schools and hospitals for the newly created town that was to become a major stronghold of the drug army.

    Nopporn said he like to read magazines about weapons and had always wanted to be a soldier but believed that he would not get very far because of his Chinese ethnicity.

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    Myanmar Implementing Long-Term Teak Project

    YANGON, Dec 7, 2001 (Xinhua via COMTEX) -- Myanmar is implementing a 40-year long-term teak cultivation project, aiming at growing teak plantations of 324,000 hectares during the plan period, local weekly journal The Myanmar Times reported in its latest issue.

    Quoting an official of the Forestry Department of the Myanmar Ministry of Forestry, the journal said the project began in 1998 and the department had planted 32,400 hectares of teak in the last four years. It added that the plantations are being established in five divisions of Bago, Mandalay, Yangon, Sagaing, Magway and Ayeyawaddy.

    Myanmar's teak enjoys a good reputation in the world and 85 percent of the teak in the world market is produced in Myanmar. In the international market, Myanmar fetches about 1,400 U.S. dollars per ton with its teak logs and 1,800 dollars per ton with its sawn teak.

    According to official statistics, in the first half of this year, Myanmar exported 154,842 cubic-meters of teak, while in 2000, it sold abroad 302,810 cubic-meters of teak, earning nearly 200 million dollars of foreign exchange. Timber is Myanmar's second major export earner only after agricultural products, accounting for 20 percent of the country's total export. Myanmar's forest covers 50 percent of its total land area, registering 33 million hectares.

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    Britain pays tribute to Burma opposition leader

    Source : AFP

    British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw paid tribute to Burma's opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, 10 years after she was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

    "I would like to join EU colleagues and many others around the world in paying tribute today (Saturday) to Daw Aung San Suu Kyi on the 10th anniversary of her award of the Nobel Peace Prize," Straw said in a written statement.

    The democracy campaigner, whose victory in Burma's last elections in 1990 was quashed by the ruling military junta, has been under house arrest for more than a year.

    "Aung San Suu Kyi has suffered greatly for her cause," Straw said, calling on the Burmese authorities to make good on recent announcements that they were considering a return to democracy.

    "The Burmese authorities are once again talking to Aung San Suu Kyi. Senior members of the Burmese regime have said that a return to democracy is planned, but we now need unmistakeable evidence that change is under way," he insisted.

    "We hope and pray that the Burmese people's long wait may be nearing its end," the British foreign minister said.

    In an effusive tribute, he said "her strength has given hope to the thousands of Burmese who have endured great hardship for holding firm to these beliefs."

    "Since returning to Burma in 1988, she has stood true to her belief in the principle of non-violence in pursuit of human rights, national reconciliation and the return of democracy in Burma," he added.

    "The United Kingdom stands ready to respond to any such positive developments. I urge the regime not to let this opportunity pass them by."

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    Burma nudist colony plan reveals senator's barefaced cheek

    Source : South China Morning Post

    A Thai senator plans to build a nudist colony on an island leased from Burma's military Government - which frowns on even short skirts or "provocative" clothes.

    The resort on St Luke's Island, near the tip of Burma's southern panhandle, will target those Europeans who like to shed more than their everyday worries on holiday, according to an adviser to businessman Vikrom Isiri.

    The senator already owns the nearby Andaman Club, which is popular with Thais who like to gamble in its casino after crossing into Burma from the city of Ranong. The casino is never mentioned in the Burmese press because, like nudity, gambling is frowned on by the uniformed "protectors of the nation".

    Senator Vikrom clearly has excellent contacts with the military regime and one hotelier on nearby Phuket Island said he had no doubt that the nudes-only scheme would go ahead. "Foreign exchange is very precious to Burma so they can't afford to turn away good business like this," the hotelier said.

    Yet other observers said that only authorities who paid little attention to popular opinion - and who controlled the media - would dare such a scheme.

    "We promote modesty - even we Thais who have a reputation as fun-loving people really feel quite uneasy about frank nudity," Buddhist activist Sulak Sivaraksa said.

    "You hear reports of foreigners coming to Thai beaches and dropping everything because they think anything goes in the tropics. It's not true."

    The guidebooks almost invariably advise tourists not to embarrass the locals by stripping off in public.

    Some expert Burma watchers said it was unclear whether the ruling generals in Rangoon, who are devoted to religious monuments and the like, really understood that what was being proposed.

    "It would look very odd to the Burmese, who are the world's most Buddhist people, if the generals were seen to be condoning a club for naked people," one member of the exile community in Chiang Mai said.

    Senator Vikrom is also the principle founder of Phuket Air, which will start regular services this month.

    The first aircraft was delivered on Wednesday.

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    Muted Nobel peace anniversary for Aung San Suu Kyi

    AFP

    A century of the Nobel Peace Prize was marked in Myanmar with one of the most high-profile laureates, opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, under house arrest and far from the celebrations.

    Laureates marking the anniversary in Oslo were to launch a plea for the release of the 1991 winner, the only recipient under detention, 10 years after her award dragged military-ruled Myanmar back into the spotlight.

    British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw paid tribute to the National League for Democracy (NLD) leader, whose quiet campaign to free Myanmar of military rule has won her a large international following. "I would like to join EU colleagues and many others around the world in paying tribute today (Saturday) to Daw Aung San Suu Kyi on the 10th anniversary of her award of the Nobel Peace Prize," Straw said in a statement.

    The democracy campaigner, whose victory in Myanmar's last elections in 1990 was quashed by the military junta, has been under house arrest for more than a year.

    "Aung San Suu Kyi has suffered greatly for her cause," Straw said, calling on the Myanmar authorities to make good on recent announcements that they were considering a return to democracy. In an effusive tribute, he said "her strength has given hope to the thousands of Burmese who have endured great hardship for holding firm to these beliefs".

    Activists across the globe have seized on the anniversary to renew their calls for the opposition leader's "liberation" and the establishment of democracy in military-ruled Myanmar.

    As more than 30 recipients of the Noble Peace Prize gathered in the Norwegian capital, Amnesty International urged Myanmar to release Aung San Suu Kyi and hundreds of other political prisoners as a confidence-building step.

    "On this occasion we renew our calls for her release and for the release of hundreds of other prisoners of conscience there," the human-rights watchdog said in a statement Friday. "We strongly urge the Myanmar government to free these people immediately -- not only because they should never have been arrested in the first place, but also because it would build international and domestic confidence in the ongoing talks between the National League for Democracy and the government."

    Historic reconciliation talks between Aung San Suu Kyi's NLD and the junta started in October 2000 and have been carried out under the strictest secrecy.

    Far from the protests raised by her supporters, "The Lady" devotes herself to quiet meditation, reading and, above all, the historic dialogue with the military regime aimed at democratic transition. She has not appeared in public since September 2000 and has been careful, like the junta, to maintain total silence about the contents of the talks.She is visited regularly only by her senior lieutenants from the NLD and foreign diplomats, including Razali Ismail, the special envoy to United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan.

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    Thailand holds concert of peace on Nobel anniversary

    BANGKOK, Dec 8 (AFP) - Democracy activists in Thailand Saturday were to hold a peace concert in Bangkok to support the struggle for democracy in neighbouring Myanmar, where Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi is held under house arrest.

    The concert was planned to coincide with celebrations in Oslo and around the world to mark a centenary of the Nobel Peace Prize and notably the 10-year anniversary of Aung San Suu Kyi's award, Chalida Tajaroensuk of Forum-Asia, a Bangkok-based non-governmental organisation, coordinating the event, said.

    The choice of a cultural event rather than a political demonstration was taken to ensure that hundreds of Myanmar migrants could attend without fear of arrest, Chalida said.

    "This event is for them. They are not allowed to take part in political demonstrations or they will be sent back," either to Myanmar or refugee camps, she said. But the concert was also intended for Thai people to lend their voice to the growing calls for democracy in military-ruled Myanmar, and the release of its most celebrated dissident Aung San Suu Kyi, Chalida said.

    The democracy campaigner, whose victory in Myanmar's last elections in 1990 was quashed by the military junta, has been under house arrest for more than a year.

    In a speech due to be delivered by satellite link to Oslo late Saturday, Thai Senator Kraisak Choonhavan, on behalf of the Thai Action Committee for Democracy in Burma, appealed for Aung San Suu Kyi's release.

    "Tonight at the concert we will orchestrate our voice of peace to tell those who harm to lay down their weapons and bring peace to the people of Burma," the text said. "We may not be able to join the struggle of the brave Burmese but we assure them we are on their side and will do what we can and pray for them to achieve their goal."

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    Myanmar opposition reopens key office on Nobel anniversary

    AFP

    Mynamar's opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) reopened a key office here, 10 years after their leader Aung San Suu Kyi won the Nobel Peace Prize.

    Sources said Suu Kyi, who has been been under house arrest for the last 15 months, was spending the day quietly at her lakeside property on University Avenue.Only authorised cars are allowed to drive past the residence and there appeared to be no indication of any visitors. The discreet Yangon headquarters of the NLD were closed for the weekend.

    The opening of the office in Kamayut township, which coincided with celebrations in Oslo to mark the Nobel anniversary, is of strategic importance because of its proximity to the university of Yangon, where a 1988 student uprising against the government was crushed by the military junta.

    "We are very happy that we could open the office on this particular day, when everyone is celebrating the anniversary of Aung San Suu Kyi's Nobel Peace Prize," one NLD township official attending the opening, told AFP.

    Thirty Nobel Peace Prize laureates gathered in Oslo were to issue a plea for the release of the 1991 winner, the only recipient currently in detention, later on Saturday. On December 10, 1991, the eldest son of Aung San Suu Kyi received on her behalf the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo. She was under house arrest at the time. The restriction was lifted in 1995 but reimposed in September 2000 after she tried to visit supporters outside Yangon.

    In December 1991, students celebrating the news of her Nobel peace prize were arrested. The majority have been released but some still remain, according to reliable sources.

    "The NLD, for the past 13 years, has faced trials and tribulations," Chairman of the NLD's Central Organisation Committee U Soe Myint said at the reopening ceremony Saturday. "But we have stayed true to the principles of achieving democracy through non-violent means."

    The simple ceremony of some 200 people, was also attended by the vice chairman of of the NLD, Tin Oo, who was photographed by the military junta's plain clothed police.

    Since the start of historic reconciliation talks in October 2000 between Aung San Suu Kyi and the junta, the military has authorised the reopening of at least 25 NLD offices which had been forced to close since 1995.

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