|
Myanmar
minority women take leadership role in embattled villages
In the tradition-bound villages of eastern
Myanmar, dozens of women have
been thrust into leadership roles to take the place of menfolk
killed or persecuted by the ruling military.
Of some 100 settlements dotted through a vast
swathe of jungle running
along Thailand's western flank, more than 60 are now headed by
women, refugees from the troubled region say.
Until now the prospect of a woman being elected
to take responsibility
for the safety and development of villages which are each home
to between 200 and 800 people was unheard of.
But for many male elders, it has become just too
dangerous to identify
themselves as leaders to the army commanders who patrol the
region in search of ethnic minority rebels like the Karen
National Union (KNU).
And they say women have proved themselves
skilled at handling delicate
and dangerous negotiations with the militaages, life is not
safe," says Saw Kawe-lu, a 31-year-old Karen from Kya-In
district who fled to Thailand to escape the regime.
"We are afraid that soldiers will take us
off to be used as porters, and
we are often accused of being agents of the KNU. So we don't
want to stay any more," he told AFP.
He and other refugees say that many headmen have
been killed by
"out-of-control" military officers who shoot them as
punishment for
failing to warn of attacks by rebel armies like the Karen
National Union
(KNU).
"To avoid this kind of of incident an$/x;:save the lives of
good fathers, husbands and brothers we have selected women aged
between 40 to
50 years to lead the villages," he said.
Young women are not chosen for fear they would be targets for
sexual assault. A report prepared by Shan minority groups made
world headlines
recently by alleging the military uses rape as a systematic
weapon of war.
So far the leadership gamble has been working,
refugees say, explaining
that Myanmar army officers are generally reluctant to mete out
the beatings and humiliations exacted on male leaders.
Karen elder Saw Maw Htoo, who now lives in a
Thai-Myanmar border town of
Mae Sot, says the women have turned out to be instinctively
talented
negotiators and communicators.
"I think women speak softly and are much cleverer than men.
They consult
with the soldiers better," he says, adding that the
unsophisticated
village men were often unsuited to the task.
"The women are being treated better by the
army. Sometimes they are
abused but not to the extent the men were," he adds.
However, there have already been casualties. The
KNU said last month
that the 40-year-old female village head of Hpapya village in
Kya-In district was killed by Myanmar troops during a clash with
the separatist
forces.
The rebels said the junta suspected the woman was relaying
details of their front-line positions to the ethnic militia.
Exiled villagers say these sorts of killings are
commonplace, as are
beatings with the butt of a rifle or steel-capped boots if
village
leaders fail to provide the goods and services that are demanded
of
them.
"I think all village headmen had been
experience of physical abuse by
soldiers because they doesn't comply the orders perfectly every
time,"
says Saw Maw Htoo who is aged in his 50s.
Myanmar's government insists that it has cracked
down on the practice of
forced labour, which has drawn condemnation from the
international community and the International Labor Organisation
(ILO).
But refugees say that one of the hardest parts of the women
leaders' jobs is to decide which of the poor families living in
their districts should give up their menfolk or their livestock
to assist and feed the army.
They are also responsible for deciding when to
order the evacuation of
children, the elderly and young women who typically take cover
in the jungle when a column of soldiers passes through the
villages.
Three villages were torched in Karen state last
week, in an action
typically carried out when soldiers suspect local people have
links to
the anti-government insurgents.
For many, the grinding poverty and constant
danger is too much to bear.
Saw Kawe-lu says he and a group of friends made the long walk to
the border in November 2000 to find work in Thailand.
Now he works 60-hour weeks in a garment factory
and lives six-to-a-room
with other illegal migrants. It's a difficult life, he says, but
at least he has enough money to buy food.
Senior KNU spokesman Mahn Nyein Maung, whose
force is one of the few
militias not to have signed ceasefires with the Yangon junta,
says the government troops are indifferent to the people's fate.
"One of them told me: 'You people are like water and the
rebels are fishes, so we don't care if we have to pump out all
the water from the pond to catch the fish, we don't care at
all'.
Source: Agence France-Presse ,(by Sonmo Wai
), September 27,2002
TOP
Taka by No
Choice!
Maungdaw: Sep 27: Beginning mid-August the
unofficial exchange rate for
the Burmese currency kyat, dropped at least 17% against the US
dollar and other regional currencies. At the rate of 18 (going
up to 20) to the
Bangladesh taka, the nose-diving kyat has set off a price spiral
and uneasy market in Rakhine (Arakan) state, in the western part
of Burma, sources and a company director said.
"As day go by, the life of the common people is becoming
miserable with starvation visible everywhere," a private
banker from Maungdaw, a town
on the Naaf River bordering Bangladesh said, "The
traditional role of Arakan state as rice exporter to Bangladesh
has changed. Now a large number of the people of the border
areas have to depend upon the rice smuggled from
Bangladesh."
Many blame the situation to the ruling Burmese
SPDCjunta's suicidal approach of exporting rice from the state
for its cash- starved coiffure disregarding the demand for rice
at home. Exports of rice increased last
year by over 273% compared to the fiscal year 2000-1, for a
total of 939,100 tons, according to official estimate.
Systematic neglect by successive Burmese junta
since 1962 has rendered
the state an economic backwater, making the state to heavily
rely on smuggled Goods from Bangladesh including medicine,
fertilizer, fuel oil,
soaps, cooking oil and articles of clothing. Though there is a
brisk trade and commerce under an official trade agreement
between Bangladesh and Burma, smuggling has remained the
preferred and ubiquitous mode of trade as ever, said a
businessman.
The illegal smuggling, carried under active
tutelage of the Burmese
junta officials, has made hundreds of thousands of people of the
state economically dependent upon the illegal trade with
Bangladesh.
Agriculture produce including rice, pulses,
onions, chilli, peanuts,
shrimp, fish and cattle are regularly smuggled out of the state.
Other
smuggled items include Chinese electronics and electrical
products and hand tools.
The volatile kyat, unpredictable due to
inflation and the threat of
intermittent demonetization, has made people along the border
areas in
western Burma to stash Bangladeshi taka.
"Even junta officials including the Nasaka
border security forces
officials take bribe in taka or US dollar," a local trader
said, "they
refuse to accept the kyat."
There is no estimate of how much taka or dollar
is circulated this way
in Burma. But for now there is no other choice than using the
taka as legal tender in the western front.
What a long shadow the practise will cast over
the economy of the
country may not be very difficult to guess.
Source: Narinjara News , September 27,2002
TOP
A
Mockery of Justice: The State Peace and Development Council's
investigation into the " Licence to rape " report
The "Licence to Rape" report was
launched internationally on 19 June
2002. Following statements in the U.S. Congress and by the U.S.
State Department in late June and early July, deploring the use
of sexual violence by the Burmese military regime against Shan
women, the regime
began publicly denouncing the report. In the regime's first
public statement on 3 July 2002, the Burmese Ambassador to the
U.S. called the report "unverified testimonies" of
"so-called victims." On July 12th and
30th, the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) held press
conferences, and denounced the report as "fabrications of
the insurgents."
On 2 August, it was announced that the SPDC had
launched an
investigation into the report. SPDC Deputy Home Minister
Brig-Gen. Thura
Myint Maung was quoted in the state-run New Light of Myanmar
newspaper
as saying that the investigation was being made to
"refute...preposterous accusations."
Investigation teams were sent to Shan State from 18-30 August.
The teams
were led by Brig-General Thura Myint Maung himself, and Dr. Daw
Khin Win
Shwe, wife of General Khin Nyunt.
On 23 August (before completion of the
investigation), the SPDC held a
briefing for heads of diplomatic missions and UN agencies in
Rangoon, claiming to have found the allegations in the "Licence
to Rape" report as "groundless and malicious." *
* http://www3.itu.int/MISSIONS/Myanmar/n020824.htm#3
SWAN refutes the findings of this staged
"investigation" by the SPDC.
Reports received have revealed that the
"investigation" was fraudulent.It is clear that under
the current military regime, with no rule of law and no faith in
its institutions, no-one will dare testify against perpetrators
who have absolute power in their communities. The Burmese army's
"licence to rape" continues (see Appendix II for
recent incidences).
SWAN has compiled available evidence to counter
the SPDC's "findings":
1. The SPDC claims their
"investigation teams met and interviewed
thousands of inhabitants of the region as well as government
officials,
including military officers and members of non-governmental
organizations." (New Light of Myanmar, August 23, 2002)
SWAN has detailed information about how the investigation was
carried out in Murng Hsat and Murng Ton townships, in southern
Shan State. In summary, the investigation in these areas was
carried out as described below (see Appendix I for further
details):
The investigations were carried out in an
intimidating manner. Male
military officers led the investigation. The team travelled in a
12-truck military convoy, each truck filled with 8-9 armed
soldiers.
Headmen in selected localities were ordered
several days in advance by
local military units to provide a specific number of villagers
(between 15-40) to meet the visiting team. The headmen were
threatened not to mention any incidences of rape by the Burmese
military in their area. If
a headman did not attend the meeting, he was threatened with a
fine of 3,000 kyats (equivalent to 10 days of labour at the
current daily wage-rate in Shan State). The headmen randomly
chose people who were available. Male villagers, on the whole,
met the investigation team.
At each locality, the team's armed escorts and
local soldiers scoured
the area in advance, and stood guard while the meeting took
place. The
venue was either in front of a local district office, a school,
a
village headman's house, or in a military base.
As villagers arrived at the venue, a military
officer wrote their names
on a prepared Burmese language document. When the required
number of
villagers had arrived, the visiting SPDC team came to the venue.
The officer in charge of the team then stated he was there to
confirm there had been no incidences of Burmese troops raping
women in that area. He spoke in Burmese; there was no
translation. Villagers who could not understand Burmese did not
know what was being said. Those that could speak Burmese, did
not dare mention any cases. All the villagers were ordered to
sign next to their names on the prepared document, which stated
that there had been no incidences of Burmese troops raping women
in their area. Those that could not write had to stamp their
fingerprints, and did not know what the document said.
Outside the township office in Murng Hsat, after
signing the statement,
the villagers were forced to chant publicly three times:
"The Burmese army have not raped Shan women," and
raise their hands as they chanted. Pictures were taken of them
doing this.
2. "Judicial,
police and military records show there had only been three
rape cases and only two involving Shan women; and the three
soldiers involved have already been given heavy prison sentences
by military courts." (New Light of Myanmar, August 23,
2002)
No details have been provided by the SPDC about
these cases. It cannot be confirmed whether or not the
perpetrators in these incidences were punished. However, there
is evidence that the SPDC investigation teams uncovered rape
cases but they did not report these publicly in their findings.
Sources from Laikha Township, southern Shan
State, reported that the SPDC #3 Team investigating the "Licence
to Rape" report found evidence of a case covered-up by
local military authorities. This case involved six Shan women
who had been severely tortured as well as sexually abused.
On 30 July 1997, Aung Win, a Burmese army
private from Company 4,Infantry Battalion 64, deserted after
killing Lance Corporal Min Din and
Private Thet Oo. Captain Khin Maung Toe and his unit, Company 2,
from the same battalion was assigned to track down Aung Win as
he had seized some weapons. The Captain ordered six women from
Wan Mawn village to accompany the unit as guides. When the unit
returned, the parents of the
women filed a complaint that their daughters had been raped and
tortured
by the troops. The women were hospitalised for 5 days at Laikha
civil hospital. In addition to wounds resulting from the rapes,
they had been beaten and scratched, their sex organs burnt and
their pubic hair pulled
out. Major Hla Moe, the acting Commander of IB 64, ordered Major
Moe
Zaw, in charge of the battalion's affairs, to suppress the case.
No
action was taken against the perpetrators.
3. "Some of
the villages where the incidents were supposed to have taken
place were non-existent." (New Light of Myanmar, August 23,
2002)
The SPDC has not publicly listed the names of
the villages from the
"Licence to Rape" report which it claims do not exist.
It can be
illustrated from the SPDC's response to the ILO on 24 January
2002,
regarding an SHRF report in September 2001 documenting the
extrajudicial
killing of 7 Shan villagers for complaining to authorities about
being subjected to forced labour, that the regime classifies
villages that have been forcibly relocated as non-existent, and
does not recognize Shan names of villages.
In the SPDC's response to the ILO, it claimed
that four of the seven
villagers were "non-existent", as the villages they
came from did not
exist: namely, "Kun Hoong," "Kun Keng," and
"Nawng Ook" in Nam Zarng
township.The SHRF pointed out to the ILO in its letter dated 18
March 2002, that these three villages did exist, but were
deserted following the 1996-1997 forced relocation campaign by
the SPDC in central Shan State. The victims had been living as
internally displaced persons when they were killed.
The SPDC report to the ILO, sought to discredit
the SHRF by stating that
one of the villages which SHRF names in its report as "Nam
Tum Tai" is in fact called "Taung Nam Tung." SHRF
explained to the ILO the difference in its letter dated 18
March:
"'Nam Tum Tai' is the name it is called by
the native Shans. 'Nam Tum' is the Shan name of the village and
'Tai' means 'south' or 'lower', so that 'Nam Tum Tai' means
'Southern Nam Tum'. Likewise, the Burmans call it 'Taung Nan
Tung' which means 'Southern Nan Tung' because 'Taung' in Burmese
means 'south', and 'Nam Tum' becomes 'Nan Tung' because they
have no 'm' final sound in the Burmese language."**
** For details about the case, see
http://www.ilo.org/public/english/standards/relm/gb/docs/gb282/
pdf/gb-4-ax.pdf
(or) ILO Document No: GB282/4/Appendices, 282nd
sessions, Geneva,
November 2001, Page 27
This illustrates that the SPDC has overridden
local Shan terminology for their own villages. Therefore, it is
not surprising that the SPDC team investigating the "Licence
to Rape" report, which was compiled by members of the Shan
community, has apparently been unable to locate some
of the villages in the report.
4. "Moreover,
one of the assertions was that some of the raped women received
treatment at a hospital in Wiang Haeng town, Chiang Mai
district, Thailand. Enquiries made by the Myanmar National
Committee on Women's Affairs and the Myanmar Embassy in Bangkok
showed that there were no such cases and there were no hospital
records of Shan women admitted and treated as alleged."
(New Light of Myanmar, August 23, 2002)
There is no mention in the "Licence to
Rape" report of any survivors
being treated at Wiang Haeng town, Chiang Mai district. This
clearly
indicates that the investigators have not read the report.
Appendix I:
Details of the Investigation carried out in
Murng Hsat and Murng Ton
townships
Dates of investigation
:18-30 August 2002
Investigation team
:5-man SPDC investigation team
August 18, Murng Hsat township: the SPDC team
flew by helicopter to
Murng Hsat. Messages were given to SPDC military units both in
Murng Hsat and in various locations in Murng Ton township to
order local headmen to prepare villagers to meet the visiting
team. The local military units informed local headmen and
village committee members that
a team of high-ranking SPDC officers were coming to meet them to
ask about incidences of rape. The headmen and committee members
were told they would be fined 3,000 kyats each if they did not
show up on the day of the SPDC team's visit and did not bring
with them a specified number of villagers. It was not specified
whether the villagers should be men or women. The local military
units warned the headmen and village committee members that they
must not reveal information about any incidences of rape
committed by the Burmese army in their area or they would face
problems after the meeting.
August 20: Local headmen arranged for 40
villagers from the local
vicinity to gather in front of the Mong Hsat township office at
9.00 am
in the morning. There were armed SPDC soldiers guarding the
area. One SPDC military officer wrote the names of the villagers
as they arrived on a Burmese language prepared statement. After
the assigned number of villagers had arrived, the SPDC
investigation team came. The officer in charge of the team told
the villagers he was there to check that no Burmese troops had
raped women in their area in the last 5-6 years. He asked the
villagers to confirm this. He spoke in Burmese, with no
translation. Not everyone understood Burmese, and no one dared
ask any questions. Those that did understand Burmese, did not
dare mention any cases. The SPDC officer in charge of the team
ordered the villagers to sign next to their names, which had
been listed as they arrived on the prepared document. The
document stated that they had not heard of any incidences of
Burmese troops raping Shan women. Those that could write, signed
their names, and those that could not, stamped their
fingerprint.
Some people did not know what they were signing.
The villagers were then ordered to chant
publicly in front of the
township office in Burmese three times: "The Burmese army
have not raped
Shan women!" and to raise their hands as they chanted.
Pictures were taken of them doing this.
The whole process took about one hour.August 24,
Murng Ton township: The SPDC team travelled from Murng Hsat to
Murng Ton in a military convoy of about 12 trucks. Each truck
contained about 8-9 armed soldiers from Infantry Battalion 49
and Light Infantry Battalion 278 from Murng Hsat. Soldiers from
these military units were ordered to stand guard at intervals.
Thirty villagers were ordered to meet the SPDC
investigation team in front of the district office in Murng Ton.
The meeting with the SPDC team was carried out in Murng Ton in
the same way as in Murng Hsat. However, there was no forced
chanting afterwards.
August 26, Mae Ken village: The SPDC team
travelled in a military convoy
to Mae Ken village. Security was provided by troops from LIB
519. Fifteen villagers were ordered to meet the SPDC
investigation team outside a school in Mae Ken. The process of
the meeting was the same as in Murng Ton.
August 28, Na Kong Moo: The SPDC team travelled
in a military convoy, with guards (from LIB 333 and IB 49) to Na
Kong Moo village. Twenty villagers were ordered to meet the SPDC
team in a headman's house in Na
Kong Moo. The process of the meeting was the same as in Murng
Ton.
August 30, Pong Ba Khem: The SPDC team travelled
in a military convoy to Pong Ba Khem, with security provided by
IB 65. Thirty villagers were ordered to meet the SPDC team in
the military camp of LIB 524. The process of the meeting was the
same as in Murng Ton.
Appendix II:
Reported Rape Cases after the publication of
Licence to Rape in June,
2002
No. of Cases: 10
No. of women and girls raped:
11
No. of girl under 18 : 4
No. of Cases in each ethnic State
Arakan State: 1
Karen State: 1
Karenni State: 2
Mon State: 1
Shan State: 5
Tennessarim Division:
1
(Note: exact details withheld for reasons of
confidentiality)
URL: http://www.shanland.org/shrf/License_to_Rape/A_mockery.htm
Source: Shan Women’s Action Network ,
September 24 ,2002
TOP
Burmese
ex-leader’s relatives to face death
A Burmese court has sentenced four relations of
former leader Ne Win to
death for treason.
Ne Win's son-in-law Aye Zaw Win and three grandsons were
sentenced to death by hanging for plotting to overthrow the
military government.
The defendants, who had pleaded not guilty to
all charges, have seven
days to appeal.
The sentence was harsher than expected. The BBC's Burma analyst,
Larry Jagan, says many people in Rangoon now expect the sentence
to be commuted to life imprisonment.
The court case signalled a dramatic slide in
influence for Ne Win, who ruled Burma for more than 20 years
until 1988, and his daughter Sandar Win.
Our correspondent says observers remain
sceptical that Ne Win's family members were really plotting a
coup, and suspect that the allegations have more to do with
conflicts within the military leadership.
In an earlier ruling, one of the grandsons, Kyaw
Ne Win, was also found guilty on corruption charges of
purchasing, importing and using 15 unregistered vehicles and
satellite phones.
He was jailed for seven years with hard labour on each of seven
counts.The court did not indicate whether the sentences would be
served concurrently.
Voodoo
The Associated Press news agency reported that during the trial
the prosecution had piled strong circumstantial evidence against
the defendants.
This included three miniature dolls of the
junta's top three leaders,
Generals Than Shwe, Maung Aye and Khin Nyunt, which the family
allegedly
used in black magic rituals.
The government has said Ne Win's relatives
planned the coup because they
were upset at losing some of their economic and political
privileges as the former leader's behind-the-scenes influence
waned.
Aye Zaw Win denied this in his testimony.
"We never discuss politics at home and we have no interest
in politics or have any political ambition," he told the
court.House arrest Dozens of Ne Win aides are already being
punished for their role in the alleged coup plot.
On 12 September a military tribunal sentenced
more than 80 soldiers from
Ne Win's security detail to 15 years in prison.
Ne Win himself, and his daughter Sandar Win, have been under
house arrest since the rest of the family were detained.
The military government has hinted that they
believe Sandar Win is
actually implicated in the plot, and that she is also likely to
face
trial in due course.
Some analysts say that the junta is intent on
crushing Sandar Win, who
has built up a significant business empire.
Source:British Broadcasting Corporation
, September 26,2002
TOP
Nine
company chiefs arrested in Burma
Dhaka, September 24: The heads of nine private
import and export
companies have been arrested and had their assets seized in the
latest
crackdown on trading irregularities, according to yesterday's
the daily star quoted from AFP.
The effected nine companies are Diamond Million,
Golden Optic, Green
Green one, Kyaw Myint Moe, Min Min Tun, Shwe Myet Hman, Thaung
Htike,Thein Htick, Zabu Yit and they are also major trading
firms, the sources
said.
"The nine are some of the 299 private
exporting companies presently
being investigated for malpractice from among 15,000 companies
listed with the trade minister, "according to an anonymous
businessman.
"The nine were found to have fudged
official import permits issued by
the trade department worth over three million dollar." He
did not
identify those arrested.
Some of the firms are known to be fronting for
foreign companies, which
are banned from conducting import and export business on their
own, he said.
Source:
Daily Star, ( Narinjara News ), September 24,2002
TOP
Myanmar's
former ruling party criticizes junta for mismanaging economy
Myanmar's former ruling party emerged from
obscurity Tuesday with a sharp criticism of the military
government for its handling of the
economy.
The National Unity Party was established in 1988
as a new incarnation of
the Burma Socialist Program Party, the vehicle for single-party
rule by former dictator Gen. Ne Win from the 1960s until 1988.
Party chairman Tha Kyaw's anniversary message,
read out by a party
member, said that people are suffering from spiraling consumer
prices and inflation due to weaknesses and loopholes in the
government's economic policies and its implementation. It called
for the emergence of
a constitutionally elected government to solve the country's
political and economic woes.
The anniversary celebration, held at party
headquarters in Yangon, was
attended by more than 300 party members and guests. The press
was also urged to attend, unlike previous occasions.
When Myanmar, then known as Burma, was under the
rule of Ne Win, it
turned from one of the most prosperous countries in Southeast
Asia into one of the poorest.
Ne Win's rule was overturned in 1988 when
discontent over economic
issues sparked pro-democracy demonstrations. Ne Win was forced
to yield the last of his power when the military took over.
The military staged a general election in 1990,
but refused to recognize
the results after a landslide victory by the opposition National
League for Democracy.
The NLD won 392 parliamentary seats, while the
National Unity Party -
which had been seen as a strong contender acceptable to the
military - came in a poor third with 10 seats, trailing an
ethnic Shan party with 23 seats.
Myanmar has been in a political deadlock since
then, with the NLD
seeking to have power turned over to a democratically elected
government.
NLD leader Aung San Suu Kyi, the 1991 Nobel
peace laureate, entered into
closed-door political reconciliation talks with the junta in
late 2000.
Tuesday's statement from the National Unity
Party said it could not
support the talks as "the national reconciliation process
has to be
carried out by all national forces and not by a party or
two."
It urged all forces to "strive for the emergence of a new
constitution through the process of National Convention and to
work for peaceful transition for the emergence of a democratic
nation."
Myanmar has had no constitution since the
military takeover in 1988. The
government opened a national convention to draw up guidelines
for a new constitution in 1993, but it has been inactive since
1996. The NLD had originally taken part in the convention but
later withdrew, calling it undemocratic.
Source:
Associated Press, ( By Aye Aye Win ), September 24,2002
TOP
Opposition
Leader Calls for More Western Pressure on Reforms
Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel Peace Prize winner
and leader of Myanmar's
democratic opposition, has used the Asia Europe Meeting (ASEM)
in Copenhagen (Denmark) to call for international support for
democratic reforms in the South-east Asian country, which is
ruled by a military junta. The urgent appeal by Aung San Suu Kyi,
the leader of the National
League for Democracy (NLD), in which she stated that more speedy
change was required, marked a notable turnaround from recent
statements.
Following her release from house arrest by the
military in May 2002,
Aung San Suu Kyi has kept a low profile. Recent statements that
she
maintained a neutral attitude towards sanctions reinforced
speculation
that she might have struck a deal with the military regime
concerning a gradual democratic transformation. However, her
Copenhagen appeal suggests that the opposition leader is
determined to speed up the momentum of ongoing talks with the
military.
Source: World Markets Analysis
, ( By Dr Tobias Nischalke ), September 23,2002
TOP
Bangladesh
seizes weapons from Myanmar refugees
COX'S BAZAR, Bangladesh (Reuters) - Police in
Bangladesh have
confiscated nearly 160 swords and knives and two guns from
Muslim
refugees from neighbouring Myanmar, who have been protesting
against a
government repatriation plan.
Police raided the Nayapara refugee camp in Cox's
Bazar district on
Saturday night, seized the weapons and arrested eight inmates,
Cox's
Bazar police officer Farid Ahmed told Reuters.
Nayapara houses 9,000 of the Myanmar refugees,
known as Rohingyas.
Another 12,000 live in nearby Kutupalong camp. Both camps are
about 450 km from Bangladesh's capital, Dhaka.
Some 250,000 Rohingyas crossed the Naaf river
into Bangladesh from west Myanmar's Arakan province in early
1992, denouncing persecution by Myanmar's military rulers.
Most were repatriated under the supervision of
the U.N. High
Commissioner for Refugees before Myanmar, which was formerly
known as
Burma, stopped the process more than two years ago.
Officials said Bangladesh was trying to persuade
Myanmar to take back
the remaining refugees without delay. The refugees say they want
to live
permanently in predominantly Muslim Bangladesh.
At least 20 people, including five police
officers, were injured in
Nayapara camp on September 14 during a protest by the refugees
against
repatriation.
Source: Reuters , September 22,2002
TOP
SPDC
officers rape three Burmese migrant workers repatriated by
the Thai authorities
1. On August, 25, 2002, five Burmese Border
Security (Na Sa Ka) officers
(names unknown) in Mya Waddy, raped three Burmese female migrant
workers
continuously for two days, according to two migrant workers who
escaped from Burmese authorities, speaking on condition of
anonymity.
The three Burmese female workers were among over
one hundred Burmese
migrant workers repatriated by Thai authorities from Mae Sot on
24/8/2002, to Mya Waddy, the two migrant workers said.
On this fateful day, the five Burmese security
officers came to a house
where the three female migrant workers lived in and called them
out to allegedly investigate background history of them in
Thailand, the two migrant workers said.
However, the five SPDC officers gave each victim
Kyats 1,500 ( Baht 60)
and warned them not to disclose the brutalities, the two
workers said.
The three female victims are Ma Thu Za (20
years old), Ma Than Da (22
years old) and Ma E E Moe (25 years old), which are not their
real names.
2.
SPDC's brutalities towards Muslims in Burma
On August, 20, 2002, SPDC's court
sentenced 7 years imprisonment to a
Muslim father (name withheld) from Arakan state, because his son
went to
Rangoon, the capital of Burma, according to a Buddhist
merchant,speaking on condition of anonymity.
On August, 3, 2002, the son, Mohammad, ( 26
years old)(not his real
name), from Pipa Run village, Marauk Oo township of Sittwe (Akyab)
district, paid Kyats 300,000 to a steamer
owner, who arranged, by his
steamer, to bring the son secretly to Rangoon, the merchant
said.
When Marauk Oo township immigration officer, U
Hla Win knew it, he
arrested the father and sent him to the Marauk Oo township SPDC
court, the merchant said.
When our reporter asked the merchant why he
refused to mention the name
of the victim, the latter said that he was afraid the
authorities would additionally brutalize all the relatives of
the victim and increase the jail term of him.
Muslims are not allowed to freely move from one
place to another
especially in Arakan State of Burma.
3.
Forced labour going on in Burma
SPDC troops have been using forced labour in
Arakan State, according to a Buddhist merchant, speaking on
condition of anonymity.
SPDC Light Infantry Battalion (LIB) No.
379 and LIB No. 541 ordered
every village head, in Min Bya township of Akyab district,
to provide them, in rotation, with 7 to 10 porters daily, the
merchants said.
These porters are used in construction of roads,
in growing seasonal
plantations, in digging wells etc; said the merchant.
SPDC is ruling military junta, the State Peace and Development
Council.
Source: Muslim Information Center of Burma , September
20,2002
TOP
Myanmar
military promotes top generals
Myanmar's ruling junta has granted promotions to
several of the
country's key army generals, a military intelligence source said
Friday.
Army Commander-in-Chief General Maung Aye was
promoted to the rank of
vice senior general and Lieutenant General Khin Nyunt, who is
chief of military intelligence, was promoted to the rank of
general, effective from September 19, according to the source.
In addition, the source said
the following major generals were promoted to the rank of
lieutenant general: Khin Maung Than, Maung Bo, Aung Htwe, Ye
Myint, Thura Shwe Mann, Soe Win, Thein Sein, Thiha Thura Tin
Aung, Mynt Oo, Tin Aye and Kyaw Win.
Rumours that State Peace and Development Council
(SPDC) Chairman Senior
General Than Shwe would retire and become a senior minister, in
the same
style as Singapore's leader Lee Kwan Yew, and that General Khin
Nyunt would retire and serve as advisor to the SPDC, could not
be verified.
Military titles hold crucial importance in
Myanmar. The country formerly
known as Burma has been ruled by a series of juntas since 1962.
Before the present junta seized power in 1988, calling itself
the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC), there had
never been a commissioned rank of senior general. General Saw
Maung assumed that rank
shortly after the takeover.
After his removal, the title of senior general was taken by Than
Shwe.
Several key military commanders were forced out of their posts
earlier this year after they were suspected of taking part in a
coup that had allegedly been plotted by family members of former
military dictator Ne Win.
Source: Deutsche Presse-Agentur , September
20,2002
TOP
Townspeople
ordered to construct sidewalks in Western Burma
Sittwe, 20 September 02: The Burmese
junta, State Peace and Development
Council, have issued an order to the townspeople of Sittwe, the
capital of the western Burmese state of Arakan, to construct
sidewalks in front of their respective houses on 10 August this
year.
The mandatory order requires the house owners to
build 3 foot wide and
two foot deep sidewalks extending to the entire length of
respective
houses with their own money and manpower. The official
order further stated that the respective house owners will be
jailed for not less than
three years and will face eviction for non- compliance.
According to a houseowner, as the junta have no
funds for renovation of
the roads and drains it has ordered to dig drains and build
sidewalks by the own efforts of the townspeople.
Most of the drains, roads and lanes in the state
capital have
deteriorated beyond repair due to incessant rain during the
monsoon
months this year that prompted the Burmese junta officials to
issue the order for compulsory repair of roads, ditches,
sidewalks and drains in the capital. Every Saturday the
townspeople have to offer 'voluntary labour' a euphemism
for forced labour for digging ditches and
drains,holding cleanliness drives, and constructing sidewalks.
The burden on the townspeople due to the order has already
proved harsh.
Our correspondent found many worried houseowners
who were apprehensive
of the similar eviction of the owners of the houses near the
main road who could not build brick houses with corrugated iron
roofs in 1989 as ordered by the Burmese junta.
Source: Narinjara News, September 20,2002
TOP
Burma
introduces first internet cafés
In a country notorious for restricting access to
international media,
Burma is now prepared to grant internet-hungry citizens limited
access
to cyberspace.
According to the Rangoon-based monthly business
journal Living Color,
Burma will introduce the country’s first Internet café next
month, but customers will not be allowed to use to email
services.
Any company wishing to open an Internet café must do so in
cooperation
with Bagan Cybertech, one of Burma’s two Internet service
providers. The company was founded in Oct 2000, and its CEO is
Dr Ye Naing Win, the son
of Military Intelligence chief Lt-Gen Khin Nyunt.
"For the last two years, Information
Technology (IT) companies have been
trying to get permission to run Internet cafes, so I am thrilled
that we
will have the chance to finally get a taste of the
Internet," said a journalist with close connections to
Burma’s two Internet providers.
In addition to Bagan Cybertech, the Myanma Posts
and Telecommunications
(MPT), a department of the Ministry of Communications, Posts,
and Telegraphs, also provides limited Internet services to its
corporate clients. Burmese law currently restricts IT access to
government and government related organizations.
According to Living Color, anyone can contact
Bagan Cybertech to apply
for Internet access. Individuals must pay 260 Foreign Exchange
Certificates (FEC) while businesses are required to pay 600 FEC
(1 FEC =
US $1). Services will be restricted to 1,400 websites, but
businesses can pay 800 FEC for unlimited access to the Web. Some
have expressed disappointment at the steep access fees.
"Now, Internet access is too expensive
putting it out of reach for most
people," said a computer trainer in Rangoon. "But once
the service providers can compete freely and more users have
access to the services, Internet will become cheaper."
Bagan Cybertech currently provides email
services to about 3,000 users and MPT has opened about 5,000
email accounts.
In Rangoon, Internet and email training has
reportedly experienced a
small boom in preparation for the opening of the cafés.
Source: Irrawady on line, ( By Zarni Win ), September
20,2002
TOP
Students'
disgust traffic police in Magwe Institute of Medicine
Traffic police in Magwe, central Burma had got
into conflict with
students from Magwe Institute of Medicine on 14 September. The
incident
took place when the traffic police took action against a student
and a lecturer riding motorcycle without having safety helmets.
An eyewitness told DVB that the traffic police
forcefully drag U Kyaw
Thet Naing, lecturer, from the motorcycle. He got head injure
and the
motorcycle was damaged.
The hostel students nearby went to the police
office and demanded that the politce officer be taken action.
Later, lecturers from Magwe
Institute of Medicine and authorities came and eased the
problems.
The next day, on 15 September 2002, the
authorities came to Institute
and asked teachers to order to follow rules of riding and
driving. "The real problem is students buy cheap
motorcycles without registration
license and helmets because of shortage of school buses" a
teacher from the institute told DVB. And the traffic polices
usually take action against drivers only to get bribe, he added.
Source: Democratic Voice of Burma ,
September 20,2002
TOP
Forced
Closure of Shrimp Farms lands people into Trouble
Sittwe, 19th September 02: Shrimp farms in
a number of townships in Western Burma have been destroyed by
digging their raised banks, according to a shrimp farm owner who
escaped to Teknaf in the south-eastern part of Bangladesh.
The Rakhine State Peace and Development Council
junta have ordered its
troops to destroy many of the shrimp farms in the state alleging
that the shrimp farms were constructed on rice paddies illegally
so that the rice production of the state is being hampered.
Many shrimp farms in the townships of Maungdaw, Rathedaung,
Pauktaw, Minbra, Mrebon and Kyaukpru were destroyed, said Maung
Maung Tun, an owner of shrimp farm at Minbra to our
correspondent.
While the Commnder of the Western Command,
Brigadier General Maung Oo
was aboard the Malikha, a fast motor vessel, on a trip to
Taungoup 5 March this year, he saw the shrimp farms at Pauktaw
Township and inquired about the feasibility of the farms.
When some of the officials
of the Fisheries Department aboard the vessel told him how
successful the farms were he got jealous about the huge income
the farms were generating to the Rakhine shrimp farm owners and
on his return to his headquarters at Ann, he issued orders to
close down all the shrimp farms
constructed on farmlands.
The shrimp farm owner told our correspondent
that the shrimp farms were
actually constructed on shallow dams built in saline areas that
can never be used for growing rice, since rice grows only in
fields
irrigated by sweet water. Besides they were constructed
with due
permission from the Livestock and Fisheries Department and the
Department of Land Affairs. The owners also had to pay
huge bribes to
get the permissions and necessary licences. The shrimp
farms helped Rakhine shrimp farmers to earn huge amount of
foreign currency for themselves as well as the country.
Now they are left puzzled about what
to do with the whimsical order of the Burmese junta.
At least twelve shrimp farmers were arrested
from Minbra Township in
recent months. It is alleged that the shrimp farmers later
bribed kyat
30 million to the Western Commander to get permission to rerun
the farms. From Pauktaw Township the shrimp farm owners
collected kyat 50 million and bribed the sum to Dr Khin Win Shwe,
wife of Secretary 1 of Burmese junta, Khin Nyunt.
In Maungdaw Township all the shrimp farms have
been ordered to close
down and dismantled. In all the 17 townships of Rakhine
State the Burmese junta have erected big signboards declaring
severe legal measures whoever tries to 'build shrimp farms on
rice paddies.'
Source: Narinjara News, September 19,2002
TOP
U
Aung May Thu, an eminent political prisoner died
U Aung May Thu, 62, an eminent political
prisoner from Tharawaddy prison
died at Rangoon General Hospital at 16:00 on September 17, 2002.
More than 100 mourners including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, U Tin Oo
and U Nyunt Wai attended the funeral at Yay Way Islamic cemetery
today, September 18.
U Aung May Thu, chairman of Min Hla NLD, Pegu
Division was arrested on
November 6, 1989 and sentenced for 10 years imprisonment.
Although he has completed his sentence in 1999 he was prolonged
custody under Article 10(A).He was transferred from Tharyawaddy
prison to Rangoon General Hospital in the evening of September
16. He died of perforation of colon while he
was in Intensive Care Unit (ICU) after an operation at 16:00 on
September 17, U Ohn Myint vice chairman of NLD Humanitarian
Assistance Committee told DVB.
DVB also learn that he was arrested several
times and detained at
notorious Coco Island during the Burma Socialist Programme Party
(BSPP).
Source:
Democratic Voice of Burma ,September 18,2002
TOP Arakan
Independence Alliance (AIA):Joint Press Release
Since September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on United States the
Burmese military junta known as State Peace and Development
Council ( SPDC ) has been in a restive mood to tarnish the image
of the freedom movement of the people of Arakan. The junta is
trying to secure international support, particularly to gain the
support of the United States, through the prism of terrorism
with intent to divert the attention of the people of the world
away from the serious situation in the country. Especially
Rohingyas are implicated, for being simply Muslims, to have link
with al-Qaeda and Taliban.
The Arakan Independence Alliance (AIA), an umbrella Organisation
of the Arakan Rohingya National Organisation (ARNO) and National
United Party of Arakan (NUPA), states that none of its component
organisation is involved in any activities that are not in line
with its policies and programmes and are not in conformity with
its goal. The CNN videotape number C205 showing alleged fighters
training in 1990 in Burma is of no linkage to us.
AIA, is a joint freedom movement of the all the peoples of
Arakan, without distinction as to race, colour or religion, to
shape and charter the national destiny of the people of Arakan
as an independent nation in accordance with their freewill in
order to ensure their future and that of their children and
their generation to come. AIA is committed to preserve the
composite nature of the Arakan society and uphold the principle
of ‘peaceful co-existence’ among all or different national
groups of Arakan. It believes that the joint struggle of the
Buddhist and Muslim communities of the homeland is absolute
imperative to liberate their homeland from the yoke of the
Burman colonialism for founding a peaceful democratic Arakan.
Burma under military regime has totally lost its image among the
international community because of its worst human rights
violation records and autocratic rule. It has been facing
increasing global pressures. For long time, the SPDC is trying
to gain international support while continuing its policy of
suppression against the democracy activists and country’s non-Burman
nationalities and nations. Particularly it aims at the people of
Arakan to cleanse them racially. The junta sees the 11/9
terrorist attacks on United States and US led war on terrorism
as an opportunity to seize and to gain the support of the United
State and international community by trying to link the Rohingya
freedom fighters with al-Qaeda and Taliban while offering its
cooperation with the US in its war on terrorism.
We call upon all the compatriots with their organizations
opposed to the military junta for unified actions against the
SPDC to bring an end to its autocratic and colonial rule.
Joint Executive Committee
Arakan Independence Alliance
Arakan.
Source: ARNO,Press & Publication Dept: September 11,2002
TOP
Crime Wave
Linked to Hunger
September 05, 2002—A wave of violent crime appears
to be spreading across Burma, as the country’s crumbling economy
continues to drive its poorest citizens to increasingly bold acts of
desperation.
Sources report that robbery and looting have become
rampant in the impoverished satellite towns of Rangoon and Mandalay,
Burma’s two largest cities. Elsewhere in the country, there have
been reports of travellers being confronted by local people demanding
food and money.
"A bus on the Rangoon-Mandalay highway was
stopped and robbed by hungry-looking villagers near Pyinmana last
week," confirmed the assistant manager of a tour agency in
Rangoon. "Company vehicles have also been targetted," he
added.
"In some cases, the villagers, including
children, stopped vehicles and begged for food and money from bus
passengers and private car owners. They didn’t steal anything, but
they looked so desperate that the motorists were afraid to
refuse," the source continued.
The crime wave has even hit relatively prosperous
areas of the Burmese capital, where there have been a rash of reports
of daytime looting and break-ins.
"In our neighborhood alone, there have been five
break-ins since last week," said Myo Lwin, a resident of
Rangoon’s Tamwe Township. "In most cases, a group of people
knocked on the apartment door and then rushed in when the tenant
answered." Similar incidents have occured in nearby Yankin
Township, he added.
News of skyrocketing crime rates comes amid evidence
that Burma’s poor have been hard hit by the recent plunge of the
kyat and a concomitant rise in food prices. The kyat was valued at
1,100 kyat to the US dollar yesterday, up from all-time lows of 1,200
to the dollar earlier in the week.
Reliable sources report that in many rural areas, some
villagers have nothing to eat except bamboo shoots. Meanwhile, in the
Rangoon satellite townships of Shwe Pyithar and Hlaing Tharyar, many
families have been reduced to eating just a thin rice gruel, or in
some cases, just water used in cooking rice.
Burma’s strictly controlled media has been
instructed not to report on the recent dramatic rise in hunger-related
crimes.
Source: Irrawady on line, ( By Ko Thet ), September
5,2002
TOP
Bangladesh
Keens to Establish Seaport at Teknaf for Trade with Burma
Bangladesh government plans to establish a seaport at
Teknaf, opposite
Maungdaw, in Cox'sbazar district mainly for export- import business
with
Burma, according to yesterday's daily star.
The Bangladesh hopes that the port will also be used
for trade with
Thailand and other South East Asian countries later on. It will help
expedite transport of goods on the proposed Asian Highway through
Burma.
The Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) is now carrying
out a feasibility
study and is likely to submit the report in a month. The final
decision
will be taken upon receipt of the report, the Bangladesh shipping
minister said.
CPA will implement the project includes a berthing facilities for at
least three ocean-going ships. The Bangladesh government will tap into
only local resources and will neither float international tenders nor
appoint foreign consultants to set up the ports, sources said.
Contacted, shipping secretary of Bangladesh told the
daily star that the
initial decision was to establish a river port Tekanaf.
Later, the government decided on establishing a medium-range seaport
for
the ships with seven to eight meters draft. "But it's not an
alternative
to the Chittagong seaports," the secretary said.
According to sources, the main obstacle for a seaport
to be established
on the bank of the Naff River is less depth of water than needed.
There are around five meters in depth of water, whereas at lease ten
meters are required. The Bangladesh government has to go for dredging
to set up
the port, source said.
Earlier, the government established a land port at Teknaf to
facilitate
trade with Burma.
Source: Narinjara News, September 7,2002
TOP
EU mission to
visit Myanmar next week
YANGON,(AP)Myanmar - A European Union ( news - web sites) mission will
arrive in Myanmar next week for a three-day visit, the first since the
release of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest in
May, diplomats said Monday.
The four-member E.U. mission will arrive Sept. 8, led by Carsten
Nilaus Pederson, regional director at the Danish Foreign Ministry. The
other members include two E.U. officials and the first secretary of
the Greek Embassy in Bangkok, the diplomat said, speaking on condition
of anonymity. Greece will take over the E.U. presidency in January.
The E.U. team is scheduled to meet with Suu Kyi, government leaders,
senior members of Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy party and
some leaders of ethnic groups, the diplomat said.The European Union,
one of the strongest critics of the ruling military junta, imposes
heavy restrictions against members of the regime from traveling in
Europe.
The junta came to power in 1988 after crushing a pro-democracy
movement. It called elections in 1990 but annulled the results after
the National League for Democracy won. It has held reconciliation
talks with Suu Kyi since October 2000 and but no substantial progress
has been made.
Source: AP ,(Rebound88), September 2,2002
TOP
Huge
Myanmar offshore gas field near Bangladesh
AFP, Yangon: Sep 2: An offshore gas field near Myanmar's border with
Bangladesh could be significantly larger than Myanmar's other two
operating fields and eventually be piped to India, a report here said.
The reserves could be more than double those found at
either the Yadana or Yetagun gas fields, a report in the Myanmar Times
cited South Korea's Daewoo International as saying.
There "is most likely around 13.4 to 47.3
trillion cubic feet of natural gas at the site where we are going to
drill a test well in November next year," H D Lee, deputy
managing director of affiliate Myanmar Daewoo, told the weekly in its
edition to be published Monday.
The reserves at Yadana and Yetagun are 6.7 and 3.2
trillion cubic feet respectively, he was quoted as saying.
Daewoo International holds a major interest in an
exploration project at the field, the report said, which plans to
start seismic interpretation and geological surveys of the field off
western Rakhine state in October.
The company reportedly signed a production-sharing
contract with Myanmar's Ministry of Energy in August 2000 and in
January assigned 20 per cent and 10 per cent stakes respectively to
India's Oil and Natural Gas Commission and Gas Authority.
Depending on the quantity of gas found, the consortium
will consider transporting the gas by ship or through a direct
pipeline to India, the report added.
The issue of gas pipeline construction in Myanmar is
controversial.
Last week France's TotalFinaElf faced accusations that
it had used forced labour in the construction of the Yadana pipeline,
which carries gas from Myanmar to Thailand.
In June, a US court ruled that a lawsuit against
Unocal, a partner of TotalFinaElf on the pipeline, would go ahead this
month.
The suit also alleges forced labour was used to build
the pipeline.
Rights activists have estimated that the junta
receives around 150 million dollars annually from the Yadana pipeline,
cash that they allege bankrolls its
Source: Daily star , September 2,2002
TOP
Myanmar
supports Dhaka-Yangon road
BSS, Dhaka: Sep 2: The Myanmar government supports direct road
communications between Dhaka and Yangon through Teknaf-Sitwe border
points to help improve economic and trade relations between Bangladesh
and Myanmar.
"This highway will also greatly help towards
further developing the bilateral relations as well as establishing
link with the South Asian and South East Asian countries,"
Communications Minister Nazmul Huda said this while he was talking to
newsmen at the airport after his return from an official visit to
Myanmar and Thailand.
During his separate meetings with several ministers of
the Myanmar government in Yangon, they supported his proposal for
'Bangladesh- Myanmar Friendship Highway' or 'Bangladesh-Myanmar
Friendship Bridge,' he said.
He held meetings with Secretary-1 of the State Peace
and Development Council Lt. Gen Khin Nyunt, Foreign Minister U Aung
Win, Minister for Economic Development and National Planning U Soe Tha,
Construction Minister Major General Saw Tun and Commerce Minister
Brigadier General Pyi Sone.
"When I placed my proposal before them in support
of increased bilateral relations for mutual benefit in trade and
commerce between the two countries, Lt Gen Khin Nyunt and other
ministers welcomed it," he said.
Huda during his meeting with the Myanmar Commerce
Minister stressed increasing the trade volume and supply of goods on
reduced rates through establishing direct road link between the two
countries. "The Myanmar Commerce Minister reciprocated the
same," he told the journalists.
He also proposed launching a ferry service across the
Naaf River and said his visit to Myanmar from August 25 to 27 was a
grand success. "This visit will in fact bring about a fruitful
outcome in establishing Dhaka-Yangon direct road link to promote the
bilateral trade and economic relations between the two
countries," he said.
Communications Secretary Syed Rezaul Hayat, Chief
Engineer of Roads and Highways Division Md Fazlul Huq and concerned
senior officials of the ministry of communications accompanied him.
Source: Daily star , September 2,2002
TOP
Myanmar
to investigate ‘terror tape’ allegation
RESPONDING to the disclosure by the international
television network CNN
that al Qaeda members have been active in Myanmar, the Government of
Myanmar last week reaffirmed its determination to stand with the
United States and the international community on anti-terrorist
cooperation.
"The Government of Myanmar has not had the
opportunity to review the relevant portions
of the cache of videotapes obtained by CNN in
Afghanistan," said spokesman
Lt-Col Hla Min. "However, reports by both the Associated
Press and CNN
indicate that the CNN tapes reveal "material from militant
Islamic groups
in other countries such as Somalia, Myanmar and Bosnia." The
Washington
Post reported the tapes include "documentation from al Qaeda
members during
operations in Burma,
Uzbekistan, Tajikistan…and Bosnia." "The Government of
Myanmar will investigate this allegation with the utmost urgency, and
we will share this information with the United States," said
Lt-Col Hla Min. "We are already sharing information with the
United States on Islamic armed terrorists operating along Myanmar’s
Western border and within the region, with connections to Taliban and
al Qaeda, now being held and questioned in Yangon," Hla Min said.
The Government of Myanmar signed
the United States-ASEAN Joint Declaration for Cooperation to Combat
International Terrorism on
August 1, 2002 in Brunei Darus-salam. "As
we
have previously stated, Myanmar has vigorously confronted the
activities
of a Muslim separatist armed terrorist group calling themselves
Rohingya.
Today, we are pleased that many of these individuals
have given up their armed terrorism. However, we shall remain
vigilant in safeguarding Myanmar and steadfast in cooperation in the
war
on terrorism."
Source: Myanmar Times, August 26- September 1,2002
TOP
Clash
between monks and police in Bahan
It has been reported that a conflict between Bahan
police station and
monks from Nyaungdon monastery took place in Bahan Township, Rangoon
last Tuesday (27 August). The monks surrounded the Bahan police
station from 1000 to 1100 (local time) and smashed and destroyed the
security station situated on the ground floor of the Dagon Tower
building which is behind the Bahan police station. A monk who does not
want to be identified recounted the incident to the DVB as follows:
(Unidentified monk in Bahan) A female student was propositioned and
other students who were with her urged not to do so and a clash ensued
and the student was arrested. The other students urged the police not
to
arrest the student as he had not committed any offence and asked he be
released. The student was not released and the conflict ensued.
According to additional reports obtained by the DVB,
the detained
student was arrested while trying to protect a female student who was
being harassed by the police at the Shwegondine traffic lights. When
the
student was not released, the monks went to the police station to
demand
the release of the innocent student. But the police were rude in their
response and the clash resulted between the police and the monks.
Source: Democratic Voice of Burma
, August 29,2002
TOP
|
