Daily News-September 06 - 2001- Thursday

  • Than Shwe to hold talks with Malaysia's Mahathir
  • Myanmar general a 'reserved man' on Thai visit
  • Princess, Supreme Patriarch will both visit Rangoon soon
  • Thai-Burmese relations 'improve' after visit
  • Unocal closer to trial
  • US clothing company pulls out of Burma
  • Tourist Arrival In Myanmar Declines In First Four Months
  • SEA-Games: Myamar beat Laos 4-0

    • Than Shwe to hold talks with Malaysia's Mahathir

    KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 5 (AFP) - Myanmar's powerful leader, Senior General Than Shwe, will visit Malaysia for three days from September 25 to discuss domestic political development and reinforce bilateral ties.A senior Malaysian government official told AFP that Than Shwe's visit is on the invitation of Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, who visited Yangon in January.

    Top of the agenda will probably be issues related to trade and investment," the official said on condition of anonymity.He said Malaysian investors had expressed concern about investing in Myanmar over red tape, land lease and ownership, and taxation.Than Shwe is keen to learn Malaysia's strategy in wooing foreign investments and related laws, he said.

    Malaysia is ranked fourth among foreign investors in Myanmar. Total investment stands at 587 million dollars -- mostly in timber, hotel construction, tourism and trading.This is Than Shwe's third visit to Malaysia.The official said the paramount leader would also discuss Myanmar's political developments with Mahathir.

    Describing ties between the countries as "warm and cordial", he said Myanmar had always considered Malaysia "a close friend in ASEAN.""They have always looked to PM Mahathir," he said.

    Military ties between Kuala Lumpur and Yangon entered a new phase after Myanmar last month agreed to send a technical team to Malaysia to study the country's defence technology.Defence Minister Najib Razak said Myanmar's military was keen to acquire local defence technology and in turn Malaysia would tap the investment opportunities there.

    The official said Malaysia hoped for political reconciliation in Myanmar but opposed any form of pressure for change on the country."We want Myanmar to emerge out from its shell. We want to see the negative stigma on Yangon removed. Our policy of engagement has shown some results," the official said."We want to see a stable and developed Myanmar. That is good for Southeast Asian countries," he added.

    UN envoy Razali Ismail in August made a four-day visit to Yangon.During the trip the Malaysian envoy met twice with democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi to discuss the progress of the talks -- her first with the junta since 1994 -- which began in October.Razali remained characteristically tight-lipped during the visit, but business people and diplomats whom he briefed said he remained quietly optimistic that the dialogue would pave the way for democratic reforms.
    Myanmar general a 'reserved man' on Thai visit

    source : Straits Tmesbr>
    BANGKOK - Little is known about Myanmar's No. 3 general, Lt-Gen Khin Nyunt, who is on a rare official visit to Thailand in the latest effort to patch up ties between the two uneasy neighbours.

    But the historic visit has offered a glimpse of the chief of military intelligence, who was a leader of Myanmar's junta that took power after a crackdown against a democracy uprising in 1988.

    During a dinner cruise hosted by Defence Minister Chavalit Yongchaiyudh on Monday after Lt-Gen Khin Nyunt and his 32-member delegation arrived, Thai and Myanmar officials enjoyed drinking whisky together and singing songs.But the general appeared to be a reserved man and focused on his work, a Thai official present at the dinner said. He spoke on condition of anonymity.

    Myanmar delegates advised their Thai hosts that the general did not drink alcohol nor play golf, but enjoyed reading.

    The general made a tightly-guarded trip to the seaside resort of Hua Hin yesterday for an audience with Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej, police said.The general's motorcade was trailed by a Thai military helicopter for the three-hour journey south, which skirted sensitive areas along the Myanmar border, including a camp for exiled student activists.Thailand has laid on 'maximum' security precautions for the general, intent on preventing demonstrations from shadowing the three-day visit, which cements a return to friendly ties after a bitter six-month row over the drug trade.

    On Monday, Thai democracy activists staged a small protest against the visit.They say a democracy such as Thailand should not entertain the representative of a regime that has oppressed its opposition.

    Yesterday, the general also visited a satellite station operated by Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's telecommunications company. --AP, AFP
    Princess, Supreme Patriarch will both visit Rangoon soon

    Bangkok Post, Thursday 06 September 2001
    By Wassana Nanuam

    Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn and the Supreme Patriarch will visit Rangoon at the invitation of Khin Nyunt, first secretary of Burma's ruling junta.

    Gen Sanan Khachornklam, secretary to the defence minister's advisory team, yesterday said Khin Nyunt extended the invitation to His Majesty the King during their meeting at Klaikangwon Palace in Hua Hin on Tuesday. The King agreed to let the Princess visit Burma on his behalf. The date has yet to be fixed.

    During his meeting with the Burmese delegation, the King stressed the importance of bilateral relations and suggested the Burmese government launch occupational training programmes for hilltribes and other ethnic minorities similar to royal-sponsored projects in Thailand, defence spokesman Col Jongsak Panichkul said Burmese authorities would visit some of the royal projects later.

    Also in Khin Nyunt's company in the audience with the King were Maj-Gen Thein Sein, Burma's Triangle Region commander, and Burmese ambassador Myo Myint. Defence Minister Chavalit Yongchaiyudh said the Supreme Patriarch also planned to visit Burma soon.
    Thai-Burmese relations 'improve' after visit

    source : BBC
    By regional analyst Larry Jagan in Bangkok

    One of Burma's most senior military leaders has completed what he called a very satisfactory trip to Thailand. General Khin Nyunt, head of Burmese military intelligence, said relations had been restored following fierce fighting between Burmese and Thai troops earlier this year and they were now good neighbours again.

    Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who took office in January, has been keen to improve relations with Burma despite clashes along the border. However, the smuggling of drugs produced in Burma's so-called Golden Triangle remains a major issue of contention between the two countries.

    Symbolic

    General Nyunt's trip was his first major visit to Thailand for several years and was high on symbolism. Treated like a visiting head of state, Khin Nyunt was even granted a rare hour-long audience with the Thai king. Both sides are anxious to see their relations enter a new era.

    As he was leaving, the general said the trip had achieved its goal. "We have come to Thailand with only one objective in mind, that is to strengthen the tradition of friendship and mutually beneficial co-operation between our two countries and our two peoples. "Both sides are completely satisfied with the results of the talks and we were able to reach amicable solutions on the topics we discussed," he said.

    Golden Triangle

    There are still major differences between the two countries that need to be overcome. The trafficking of drugs from Burma's Golden Triangle remains the biggest problem.

    Khin Nyunt told his Thai hosts that the Wa - the ethnic rebel group which is responsible for most of the drugs trade - had agreed to make the area drug free by 2005. Most anti-drug experts, however, remain sceptical.

    But this has not deterred the Thai Government, which has promised to support the project financially with some half a million dollars and has offered preferential treatment for the imports from the crop substitution programme.This was not the only financial incentive the Thais offered for improved relations with Rangoon.

    Road building programmes and joint ventures in fishing were also sealed during the trip. For Burma, Thai financial aid is crucial if they are to halt the economic collapse the country is experiencing.

    The Defence Minister, Choiut Lung Chavalit Yongchaiyudh, who hosted the Burmese general during the trip, was certainly pleased that the policy of doing business with Burma was working. He said Khin Nyunt had told him that the talks between the opposition leader and the Burmese military government were going very well. "He already told me he did have a talk with [opposition leader] Aung San Suu Kyi every two weeks and they get together, they understand each other very well. He also told me that everything has made good progress, maybe you have a good year soon."
    Unocal closer to trial

    source : The Nation
    Pravit Rojanaphruk
    Published on Sep 6, 2001

    California Superior Court Judge Victoria Chaney yesterday rejected Unocal Corp's bid to dismiss claims that it facilitated and abetted human rights abuses on its Yadana Pipeline project in Burma.

    "This is a minor victory," said Pipob Udomittipong, a member of the board of directors of EarthRights International, a non-governmental organisation based in Washington that is suing Unocal over alleged human rights abuses.Pipob said the move was just the beginning, as the trial itself has yet to begin.

    In a companion case, a federal court in Los Angeles found last summer that "Plaintiffs present[ed] evidence demonstrating that before joining the Project, Unocal knew that the [Burmese] military had a record of committing human rights abuses; that the Project hired the military to provide security for the Project; that the military, while forcing villagers to work and relocate, committed numerous acts of violence; and that Unocal knew or should have known that the military did commit, was committing and would continue to commit these tortious acts."

    Unocal argued that the case should be dismissed on a number of grounds, including an assertion that the US Constitution prohibits such claims as they could impede US foreign policy. Judge Chaney rejected all of Unocal's arguments.

    Co-counsel for the plaintiffs Anne Richardson said: "This puts the plaintiffs one step closer to having their day in court. We are confident a jury reviewing the facts of this case will be horrified. We expect a huge verdict on their behalf."

    Pipob said many ethnic Mon and Karen affected by the construction project had fled to the Thai side of the border. The Petroleum Authority of Thailand is the local partner in the joint Thai-Burmese pipeline project.

    The plaintiffs in John I et al V. Unocal Corp et al are Burmese villagers who lived near the pipeline. EarthRights claims some were forced to work on the project by Unocal's pipeline partner - the notoriously repressive Burmese military.

    The remainder suffered egregious abuses during the military's provision of "security" for the project. The alleged atrocities range from sexual assault to a reported case of an infant who died after being kicked into a cooking fire.
    US clothing company pulls out of Burma

    Sydney Morning Herald

    Washington: Activists have claimed a new victory in their battle with Rangoon's generals after a United States underwear seller pledged to halt production in Burma.

    "Sara Lee's Hanes licencees were caught with their pants down," said Mr Jeremy Woodrum, of the Free Burma Coalition. "But we commend Sara Lee for ending its support for Burma's military regime by stopping its licencees from producing in Burma."

    Sara Lee Corporation, which makes clothing under various brands, is the latest in a string of companies to pull out of Burma, which has been strongly criticised by Western governments for its suppression of a democracy movement and for its human rights record.

    The Free Burma Coalition condemned the firm on its Web site three weeks ago, after an investigation found that some items sold under the Hanes Her Way and Hanes University brands were made in Burma. In a letter released by the coalition, the firm's vice-president, Mr Melvin Ortner, said the company looked into the claims and found two licencees were using Burmese factories in violation of their contracts.

    "We have taken immediate steps with both licencees to confirm that neither will make our product in Burma again," Mr Ortner said. "Sara Lee looks forward to a time when positive political and human rights changes in Burma allow us to reconsider our policy and provide opportunities for Burmese citizens."

    The Sara Lee withdrawal follows the decision of 15 other US-based companies, including Wal-Mart, to quit Burma. Agence France-Presse
    Tourist Arrival In Myanmar Declines In First Four Months

    YANGON, Sept 5 (Oana-Xinhua) -- A total of 51,291 foreign tourists visited Myanmar in the first four months of this year, dropping by 44.2 percent compared with the corresponding period of 2000, the country's Economic Indicators said in its latest issue.

    The declination of tourists arrival was obvious in the number of those travelling across border, reaching only 4,771 during the four-month period and constituting a fall of 89.4 percent in the cross-border arrivals from the same period of 2000 when it was 45, 378.

    The sharp reduction of cross-border tourists arrival was seen as being due to the outbreak of border clashes between Myanmar and Thailand in February which lasted until June. Thailand is one of Myanmar's two neighbouring countries supplying most of the tourists to the country.

    According to official statistics, in 2000, the number of tourists arrival was registered at only 234,900, falling by 9.3 percent from 1999. Of them, 49 percent entered the country by land through border points.
    SEA-Games: Myamar beat Laos 4-0

    KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 5 (Bernama) -- Myanmar beat Laos 4-0 in a men's Group A football match at the MPPJ Stadium near here Wednesday.Halftime: 3-0.Scorers.Myanmar: Nay Thu Hlaing (21st min), Aung Tun Naing (27th min, 33rd min), Tint Naing Tun Thein (51st min)

    Myanmar Archers Pledge To Give Their Best

    JOHOR BAHARU, Sept 5 (Bernama) -- Myanmar, despite not fixing any medal target for their archery squad, have pledged to give the best in the SEA Games archery competition at the City Square here on Sept 11-15.

    Team manager Tin Win said his charges had started preparing for the SEA Games since early this year and they were ready for action. "We have no specific target but we will be out to win as many goals as possible," he said when met at a Myanmar training session at Padang Sri Gelam here Wednesday.

    The Myanmar archery squad, comprising eight members including four women, arrived here from Singapore last Monday. Their men archers are Nyi Htun, Nan Aung, Win Min Saw and Yan Aung Soe while the women's team are made up of Thin Thin Win, Thin Thin Khine, Myad Thu Zar Myind and Thin Thin Oo.

    Tin Win, who is the Myanmar Archery Federation vice-president, said the Myanmar women's archery squad won a bronze in the Asian championships held in Bangkok, Thailand last February.They won a gold in the same competition held last year.He said South Korean trainer An Seung Pum handled the Myanmar archery squad in the last four months.They also went for training for one and half months in South Korea, he said.

    At the Jakarta SEA Games in 1997, Myanmar won a silver medal through their women's squad. Archery was left out from the Myanmar SEA Games. Laos, Myanmar, Indonesia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia will be competing in the 21st SEA Games competition.