-------------------------- BurmaNet -------------------------------
"Appropriate Information Technologies, Practical Strategies"
----------------------------------------------------------------------------


The BurmaNet News: July 17, 1996 
Issue #468

Noted in Passing:               
                It's not a matter of hope, ASSK said in an interview 
                with The Associated Press. That's how problems are 
                resolved in the end -- through dialogue. (see: AP: THE 
                DESIRE OF BURMESE PEOPLE FOR CHANGE)
HEADLINES:
=========
REUTER: SLORC REJECTS AUTOPSY CALL
REUTER: BURMA SEEKING EXPORT ORIENTED INVESTMENT
WSJ: ASEAN SHOULD PUSH BOTH SIDES
LETTER: FROM YANGON 
THE NATION: FIGHTING DISPLACES 4,000
BKK POST:GOVT PLANS MOEI EMBANKMENT
BKK POST: COMMITTEE TO TACKLE BORDER ISSUES
DEMONSTRATION: ANTI-MILITARY DICTATORSHIP ACTION 
AP: THE DESIRE OF BURMESE PEOPLE FOR CHANGE
MYANMAR ALIN: WANT TO SHOUT FROM THE ROAD JUNCTION
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

REUTER: SLORC REJECTS AUTOPSY CALL FOR DEAD BUSINESSMAN
July 16, 1996
From: ktint@earthlink.net

 JAKARTA,- Burma rejected calls on Tuesday for an independent 
autopsy on an unofficial envoy for several European countries who 
died in prison last month, saying allowing it would compromise national
sovereignty.
    
The Burmese embassy in Jakarta said in a statement that James Leander
(Leo) Nichols died in June due to a stroke and heart attack.

His death while in custody angered several European governments which
have since been calling for an independent autopsy, as well as sanctions
against Burma.
     The embassy statement said the demands for another autopsy were not
acceptable. "The 'demands' for an 'independent autopsy, etc" is not 
acceptable not because the Myanmar (Burmese) government has anything 
to hide," the statement said.
     
"No truly independent Myanmar government, before or now, will
compromise the principles of national soveignty and non-interference in
internal affairs," it said.
     
The statement also denied that Nichols had been tortured while in
prison, saying there are no "torture chambers" in Insein jail where Nichols
was held.
     
Norway said recently it had evidence Nichols, a 65-year old diabetic
with a heart condition, was tortured before he died. Norwegian Deputy
Foreign Minister Jan Egeland said last week the military government
deprived Nichols of sleep and did not give him adequate medical treatment.
     
The statement was the first government comment on Nichols death though
Rangoon's state-run media has printed derisory commentaries about him 
since his death.
     
A commentary in an official newspaper on Monday said Nichols was a
"bad-hat" and a "crook."

**********************************************************

REUTER: BURMA SEEKING EXPORT ORIENTED INVESTMENT
July 16, 1996
From: ktint@earthlink.net
By Deborah Charles

     BANGKOK, - Burma is seeking foreign investment in all sectors, 
with emphasis on export-oriented projects, to help boost the economy, 
government officials said on Tuesday.

"We are promoting every area of business in the economy, by exploiting
our resources in cooperating with your capital and expertise," Thinn Maung,
director of the Myanmar (Burma) Investment Commission's directorate of
investment and company administration, told a seminar.

"Generally speaking we would be promoting export-oriented projects,"
he said in a speech to the Thai Board of Investment's Greater Mekong
Subregion business workshop.
     
Thinn Maung and other Burmese officials said the sectors with the
largest potential for foreign investors were in the downstream petroleum
and agriculture industries.
     
Burma's ruling State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) 
opened up the economy when it took power in 1988 and has been seeking 
foreign investment to help the economy which suffered during more than 
a quarter century of socialist rule and the isolationist policies of former 
leader General Ne Win.
     
Thinn Maung said as of July 15, the government had approved 196
projects from about 20 countries since 1988, for promised total direct
investment of $4.1 billion.
To date, about $2.5-$3.0 billion has actually been invested in Burma,
he said.
     
Under the Foreign Investment Law passed by the SLORC soon after it
assumed power, foreigners are allowed to invest in Burma through a 
wholly foreign-owned or joint venture with any Burmese parter.
     
Burma has set a 35 percent minimum and no maximum limit for the 
amount of total equity capital that must be foreign-owned in any joint 
venture orpartnership between Burmese and foreigners, Thinn Maung 
said. Kyi Win, director of the Agriculture Ministry's department of
agriculture planning, told the workshop the agriculture sector is a
promising one for investors.

He said traditionally the crop sector contributes about 40 percent of Burma's 
gross domestic product, about half of its foreign exchange earnings and 
employs more than 65 percent of the country's total workforce.
  
Thinn Maung said only 13 percent of Burma's total 67.6 million
hectares of cultivable land is under cultivation.
     He also emphasised the energy sector and its potential.
     
"In the oil and gas sector, discovery of new off-shore gas fields
developed by foreign investors on a production sharing basis shows that
this sector could well be the prime driving force in the development of the
Burmese economy in the near future," he said.
     
"A lot of potential can be seen in the establishment of downstream and
related industries in this particular sector," he said.

***********************************************************

WSJ: ASEAN SHOULD PUSH BOTH SIDES
July 12, 1996
From: John Scherb <mcs@primenet.com>
By BARRY WAIN

HONG KONG--Less than two years ago, the Association of Southeast Asian 
Nations received a friendly warning against embracing a rogue Burma.

It came from Kusuma Snitwongse, chairman of the Institute of Security and 
International Studies at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok. In an 
assessment prepared for Asean-ISIS, a nongovernmental organization 
linking think tanks, she saw no problem in Asean expanding to accept 
communist Vietnam and Laos, or even Cambodia.

But Rangoon run by the State Law and Order Restoration Council was 
another matter. That Slorc nullified the results of an election it organized 
in 1990 raised questions about the regime's legitimacy.

Asean's usual insistence on noninterference in the internal affairs of other 
countries might justify Burma's membership, she noted. But inclusion "at 
this stage" would diminish Asean's standing and reduce its influence and 
effectiveness in the international arena.

"I stand by my paper," Dr. Kusuma says today. "Burma certainly hasn't 
made any improvement. In fact, I think it has taken a step backward."

Dr. Kusuma's comments are pertinent as Asean leads efforts to confer 
respectability on the 21-officer junta that seized power in 1988 after 
slaughtering thousands of unarmed democracy demonstrators. The annual 
Asean meetings, starting in Jakarta next week, will bring the widely 
shunned and reviled Slorc in from the cold.

Burma will attend the seven-member Asean gathering as an observer for 
the first time. And, along with India, it will join the 19-member Asean 
Regional Forum on security, taking its place alongside such heavyweights 
as the U.S., Japan and China. Short of things unexpectedly falling apart at 
home, Burma will ride this momentum into Asean's ranks between 1998 
and 2000.

While the argument for engaging Burma is strong--I support it--it is 
important that the issues be understood. For engagement is opposed by 
Burmese democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and could backfire.

Without altering its policy, Asean would be wise to become much more 
active, urging Rangoon to open a dialogue with its opponents and make 
greater efforts at national reconciliation. If Asean continues its passive 
approach, it could end up severely embarrassed by a recalcitrant Slorc.

In pushing to get all 10 Southeast Asian states under one roof as soon as 
possible, Asean is keen to reorient Burma toward Southeast Asia and lessen 
Rangoon's dependence on China.

Less than perfect democracies themselves, some of the Asean members 
have a considerable degree of sympathy for Burma and the difficulties it 
has faced with autonomy-seeking ethnic groups since independence in 
1947. Never mind that the military created many of the troubles itself 
after toppling an elected government in 1962 and ruining the country with 
socialist central planning.

For example, Indonesian Foreign Minister Ali Alatas told me recently that 
Burma, saddled with a constitution that permitted "separatism," faced a 
"unique" situation from the 1960s. Since then, he said, the government 
had been at war with its minorities, "with disintegration always being a 
threat."

Urging that the Burmese be given time to sort out their problems, Mr. 
Alatas added, "We want them to join the mainstream of Southeast Asia, 
politically and economically."

While the West employs denunciation and sporadic pressure to get Burma 
to ease its repression, Asean thinks in terms of cooperation. While the 
West talks tough and withholds assistance, Asean relies on close contact and 
example, giving "various hints in a very delicate way," as one ranking 
Southeast Asian official puts it.

Whether "carrots" are more effective than "sticks" in getting Burma to 
open up politically remains unsettled, according to a study John Bray made 
last year for the London-based Royal Institute of International Affairs. 
Both sides claimed victory when Slorc released Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi last 
July from five years of house arrest, he noted.

The weakness in Asean's tactics, if not strategy, was exposed in late May, 
when Slorc arrested 262 delegates of Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi's National 
League for Democracy as they met in Rangoon for a party congress. The 
roundup reddened faces in Southeast Asia because it occurred only a 
fortnight after Asean officials had spearheaded Burma's entry to ARF.

Sources say Asean considered various options, including sending a 
ministerial envoy to Burma to express concern, just as Malaysian Foreign 
Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi went to Cambodia in May carrying a 
similar message from the association. But the idea died because Asean 
couldn't contemplate intervening. "It's a very delicate thing to send 
someone senior," says an official. "It could easily be misinterpreted."

Asean was reduced to holding its breath as rumors circulated that Ms. Aung 
San Suu Kyi would be rearrested. Eventually, Slorc let Asean off the 
hook--it would have been an extreme step to withdraw the invitation for 
Burma to become an observer--by releasing most of the detainees and 
defusing the situation.

The U.S., Canada, Australia and others no doubt will arrive in Jakarta 
loudly voicing disapproval of Slorc. They are sure to air their grievances 
in the Post-Ministerial Conference between Asean and its so-called 
dialogue partners, and in the ARF, where doubts about Burmese stability 
can easily translate into questions of regional instability.

Asean also must take up the matter with Burma to ensure that it is never 
again held hostage by Rangoon. Asean doesn't have to follow the West and 
publicly condemn the Burmese. Indeed, its willingness to extend the hand of 
friendship and keep its views private give it an excellent opportunity to 
make a case to Rangoon.

An ideal place to start is the hour or so allocated for Asean to confer 
separately with each of its four observers. But that should be only the 
beginning of a regular exchange that continues through the year.

>From the outset, Asean should draw a sharp distinction for Burma between 
observer status and membership, which carries numerous obligations, not 
the least of which is a commitment to an Asean Free Trade Area. At the same 
time, those Asean countries that are disturbed by events in Burma should 
speak up.

By all means soften the criticism by praising Slorc for some of its efforts. 
It has, for instance, adopted market-oriented economic policies, signed 
cease-fires with many ethnic insurgents and is overseeing the drafting of a 
new constitution.

But those moves fall far short of what it will take to resolve the standoff 
between the military and the NLD.

The Philippines and Thailand, the two Asean countries known to maintain 
contact with Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi, should continue to meet with her 
periodically to explain Asean's stand. They should also nudge her toward 
compromise.

Asean must modify the definition of "nonintervention" to allow it to act for 
the good of the group. Otherwise, as Dr. Kusuma warns, it will end up 
undermining its own credibility.

************************************************************

LETTER: FROM YANGON 
July 15, 1996
From: Stephen Brookes <sbrooke@asiatimes.com>

One year ago today[July 10], Myanmar's ruling military junta suddenly, 
and somewhat to the world's surprise, released pro-democracy leader 
Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest. She had been locked away for six
years while the junta consolidated its grip on the country -- six dark years 
during which hundreds of dissidents were jailed, a democratic election was 
held and ignored, and Suu Kyi herself was expelled from her National 
League for Democracy.

Despite the junta's efforts to open up the economy, the detention of Suu 
Kyi had hung like a shadow over everything they did: a reminder that, 
market reforms notwithstanding, this was still a tough,  authoritarian 
regime. So when she emerged, blinking, into the light of freedom, the 
world reacted with relief and anticipation. Her release, many hoped, 
would launch a whole new chapter in the country's history. 

But twelve months later, the relationship between Suu Kyi and the 
ruling State Law and Order Restoration Council has gone steadily downhill. 
Both sides are mired in a bitter war of wills, pursuing self-destructive and
intransigent strategies.

Suu Kyi's position is roughly this: The NLD won the 1990 elections and has
both a moral and legal right to the leadership of the country. The SLORC is
therefore illegitimate and the international community should withhold any
support for it until it hands over power -- or, at the very least, engages in
a serious "dialogue" with the NLD. 

For its part, the SLORC insists that the stability of the state and the unity
of the country take priority over democracy. It says it is a temporary body
whose responsibility is to maintain order and implement multiparty 
democracy, and claims it will hold elections once a constitution is in place 
and political conditions are stable. But until then, "destructionists" -- as
it
labels political dissidents -- will not be tolerated.

Neither side trusts the other --  nor seems to be able to defeat, outflank,
ignore or engage the other, either. More worryingly, both seem to see the
conflict in winner-take-all terms. And in the angry standoff that has
resulted, economic progress has slowed, investors have been scared off 
by the threat of sanctions, and the ordinary people of Myanmar are paying 
the price in terms of lost jobs and opportunities.

In fact, the fight is a no-win situation for everyone involved. The SLORC's
daily, vitriolic attacks on Suu Kyi in the press appear to be backfiring, as
they keep her in the public eye and may be winning her a sympathetic
response. But at the same time, Suu Kyi's calls for foreign investors to 
stay away disturb even her supporters; the best jobs are with foreign 
companies, and most people want them to come in. She's seen as playing 
a "spoiler's game" rather than a pragmatic, constructive role. And, while 
she continues to be widely loved and admired in Myanmar, a strong 
sense of disillusionment with the NLD has set in after a year of little more 
than platitudes and ineffectual calls for dialogue. 

And as her second year of freedom opens, Suu Kyi appears ready to go 
to war with the SLORC, using the threat of US sanctions as her heavy 
artillery. But the SLORC is fighting back by systematically dismantling 
the pro-democracy movement. The end of this path is clear: A crippled 
economy, high unemployment, no effective NLD structure to develop 
pro-democracy politicians or strategies -- and, probably, an electorate 
completely alienated from the political process.

Is there a way out of this internecine mess? Given that both sides claim 
to want the same thing -- a prosperous, stable, multi-party democracy in 
Myanmar --  there ought to be. Moreover, while they clearly dislike each 
other, each side needs the other. Without Suu Kyi, the SLORC can survive, 
but its image (and its ability to attract investment) will continue to suffer.

And the NLD, if it seriously intends to ever lead this fractious country, 
will need a strong, effective military to back it up. Both sides, moreover, 
are seriously lacking in administrative and economic expertise, and need 
the involvement of the international community to achieve the country's 
full potential. 

But both Aung San Suu Kyi and SLORC may be missing a unique 
opportunity. Either side, at this point, could win support by seizing the 
initiative and moving the stalemate forward in a constructive way. The
 SLORC, for example, could affirm that it genuinely wants to move 
toward political liberalization. It could release the remaining political 
prisoners and meet with Suu Kyi -- a dramatic and convincing gesture 
that would strengthen its support both at home and abroad, and would 
certainly forstall the threat of U.S. sanctions. In fact, it would probably 
draw in hesitant foreign investors, and disarm Suu Kyi of her only 
political weapon: the threat of an economic boycott. 

For her part, Suu Kyi could also seize the initiative. With her enormous
international influence, she could singlehandedly bring about profound 
and very real change in Myanmar, and bring it about quickly. Merely by 
saying, "I don't agree with the SLORC and I don;t suport them, but in 
order to help the people we need to develop the economy," she could 
move from being a symbol to an actual player in Myanmar's development. 

Consider it. She could put that Nobel Peace Prize to good use,  prodding 
the international investment community to come in and create jobs. She 
could say to the IMF and the ADB: "Please restart lending immediately, 
so that the military won't use forced labor to build roads. Give us advice 
on how to develop properly." If she called Tokyo and asked for development 
aid, the answer would be: "How much do you want, and how soon do
 you want it?" Myanmar could be transformed into the darling of the 
international investment community. U.S. Congressmen would be falling 
all over themselves to create scholarships for Myanmar students, rather 
than economic sanctions. And by this time next year -- the second 
anniversary of her release -- she could have helped to dramatically 
transform the lives the lives of tens of millions of Myanmar people.

Would that be a setback for democracy? It's hard to see how. Not only 
would it win back her disillusioned supporters, it would give her a real 
seat at the bargaining table. She would be contributing something to 
Myanmar besides speeches about democracy. Yes, the SLORC would 
still be in power. Yes, she would have to compromise her principles. 
And many of her more idealistic supporters would be terribly 
disappointed in her. But she'd be helping the country develop, and 
improving the lives of the people she says she represents. And by 
her second anniversary of freedom, there might be more to look back 
on than stalemate, poverty and disillusionment.

*********************************************************

THE NATION: FIGHTING DISPLACES 4,000
July 16, 1996

MAE HONG SON - Fighting between Rangoon and Karenni rebel 
soldiers inside Burma's eastern state of Kayah has forced more 
than 4,000 Karenni refugees to flee across the Thai border into 
Mae Hong Son province since Thursday, the provincial governor 
said yesterday.

Somjetn Viriyadamrong said the refugees poured into Ban Pang Moo 
of Muang District and will go through the normal process of 
immigrant registration before being given temporary shelter. 
Somjetn said they will be sent back once the situation returns to 
normal.

Thai authorities joined by local public health office and non-
governmental organisations have sent doctors into to the village 
to try to control the spread of malaria believed to be carried by 
some of the refugees. 

*********************************************************

BKK POST:GOVT PLANS MOEI EMBANKMENT
July 16, 1996

THE  Government has allocated an emergency fund of over 200 
million baht from the 1996 national fiscal budget for the 
construction of an embankment a long the Moei River in Mae Sot 
district of this northern province to prevent soil erosion.

The piling of stakes and building of concrete walls by Burma 
along a five-kilometre stretch of the river has caused massive 
land erosion and on the Thai side.

A special committee set up to study help ease border tensions as 
a direct result of the river bank's erosion of the river bank's 
erosion approved the fund when its representatives from the 
Public Works Department, Deputy National Security Council 
secretary-general Kachadpai Buruspattana and Third Army Chief-of-
Staff Maj Gen Prasit Mongkoltham met last Wednesday.

The Public Works Department had requested that the fund be used 
to build the embankment at Ban Mae Kon Ken in Thai territory due 
to a change in the river course and at Tha Sai Luad near the 
Thai-Burmese Friendship Bridge, where the erosion is heaviest.

The Government has also approved a 20-million baht fund from the 
1997 national budget to build an embankment at Ban Tha Ard and 
Wang Takien which have been affected by the construction of 
Burmese dykes.

Myawaddy authorities have built dikes and concrete walls at some 
30 spots along the Moei River which were found to overstep the 
river boundary.

Meanwhile, the border at Kooteng-nayong Hill in Mae Sai of Chiang 
Rai may have to be jointly demarcated, according to the 
secretary-general of the National Security Council.

Charan Kullavanijaya said he hoped there would be a settlement 
after the setting up of a joint demarcation committee.

Gen Charan was presiding over a meeting here to review the 
Council's security policy in the North.

He said both Thailand and Burma had laid claim to the area.

It was not unusual for neighbouring countries to have border 
problems, he pointed out.

Among the issues raised at yesterday's meeting was that of 
illegal immigrants from Burma employed in border provinces.

The agencies concerned were monitoring the situation closely, he 
said.

Late last month the government agreed to allow 700,000 illegal 
immigrants in 39 provinces to continue working  in order to help 
ease the country's labour shortage.

The government had decided to allow aliens to take up employment 
for a period of up to two years while awaiting deportation.

In another development, villagers in Mae Sot district of Tak 
province have called on provincial authorities to take legal 
action against more than 2,000 illegal Burmese immigrants who 
have been encroaching on a forest reserve for three years.

Tambon Mae Pa Council chairman Manop Yakhiew and councillor 
Amporn Prasertsomboon field a complaint with Tak MPs Therdpong 
Chaiyanand and Thavorn Kasomsan on Sunday, asking them to help 
push the authorities to take action against the encroachers.

A large number of illegal Burmese immigrants and Karen refugees 
had escaped from Huay Kaloke Camp and settled on a 100-rai plot 
in Mae Sot National Forest Reserve where they built some 500 
shacks for themselves, Mr Amporn said.

The aliens were allegedly making their living by selling logs and 
other forest products as well as occasionally stealing 
motorcycles, farm products and other belongings of villagers in 
Huay Toei and Ban Huay Fon. (BP)

*********************************************************

BKK POST: COMMITTEE TO TACKLE BORDER ISSUES
July 16, 1996
by Saritdet Marukatat and Nusara Sawatsawang 

LAOS and Burma will form a joint border committee to promote 
trade and tackle problems along their common frontier, Lao 
Ambassador to Rangoon Ly Bounkham said yesterday.

Mr Ly said the ministerial level body would encourage cross-
border trade, which is currently hampered by poor road 
conditions, and settle potential border problems.

"One of the obstacles is communications because there is no 
development road network to facilitate contracts," the Lao envoy 
said.

He added better transportation would enable Laos to export 
agricultural products top northern Burma.

Talks to set up the proposed body could be finalised in time for 
approval by the two countries' foreign ministers at the scheduled 
Joint Commission meeting next year in Rangoon, Mr Ly said.

A stretch of the Mekong River forms the 236-kilometre border 
between Laos and Burma.

The demarcation of the border took one year to settle and was 
formalised i 1994 during a visit to Vientiane by Than Shwe, 
chairman of Burma's ruling State Law and Order Restoration 
Council (Slorc).

The proposed joint border committee is part of efforts to deepen 
already close political, economic and cultural relations.

Mr Ly added the commencement of weekly direct flights between 
Vientiane and Rangoon by Lao Aviation in October 1995 aimed to 
foster tourism between the two neighbours, said Mr Ly.

However, the service has not proved popular and would need 
greater promotion, he said.

Laos is believed to have the closest ties of all countries with 
Burma. (BP)

***********************************************************

DEMONSTRATION: ANTI-MILITARY DICTATORSHIP ACTION 
July 16, 1996
From: ABSDF-MTZ <lurie@mozart.inet.co.th>
        
A group of students from All Burma Students' Democratic Organisation 
(Australia) and ethnic associations were on the anti-military dictatorship 
(pro-democracy) demonstration in front of the illegitimate delegate 
institution so-called Burmese Embassy in Canberra in Australia during
7 July and 12 July 1996.

The anti-military dictatorship rally had been carried out since July 7th 
to commemorate the demolition of Student Union building in Rangoon 
University and brutal massacre pro-democracy student activists by 
military regime in 1962.

In 1988, many more thousands of students and civilians lost their lives, 
during the pro-democracy movement, to the military regime in a different 
guise, the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC).

The students denounced the ongoing detention and persecution of 
innocent students and political activists by the SLORC and demanded 
their  immediate and unconditional release.

In the anti-military dictatorship demonstration, the students demanded
that the SLORC to hand over power to those elected representatives of the 
people in the 1990 general election and SLORC's delegate to leave the 
embassy which belongs to the people of Burma. The students said that the 
SLORC's delegate are not the representatives of the people and they have no 
rights to do diplomatic affairs represented the will of the people of Burma. 

The students had read the political statements issued by ABSDO, 
ABSDF and democratic organisations every half an hour when SLORC's 
illegitimate delegate come in and out from the institution. 

On 12 July, the final day of the demonstration, the SLORC delegate's 
car, DC 7802, was blocked in front of the gate of the embassy by the 
demonstrators. The SLORC delegate was not allowed to enter the embassy 
for 20 minutes. The delegate got angry with the Australian Protective 
Service and said "Remove and arrest the students those blocked the delegate's 
car". The Protective Service said " The students are on the footpath in front 
of the gate and we have no rights to arrest them". Finally, The SLORC's 
delegate got out of the car and walked through into the embassy.

The students highlighted the illegitimate position of SLORC, illegitimate 
regime, which has no right to represent the people of Burma. The 
representation of SLORC military regime that came to power by coup 
does not deserve international recognition and it is not entitle to use 
the Embassy of public property as their overseas outpost.

The students from ABSDO and ethnic organisations,

1.   demand that the SLORC hand over power to those elected 
representatives of the people in the 1990 general election,

2.   call on the Australian government to take further resolute 
action by immediately withdrwaing recognition of the 
illegitimate military regime in Burma,

3.   urge the Australian government to terminate all forms of 
dealings with the SLORC Embassy in Canberra, as it does not 
represent the will of the people of Burma.

******************************************************

AP: THE DESIRE OF BURMESE PEOPLE FOR CHANGE
July 12, 1996
From: ktint@earthlink.net
By DENIS D. GRAY

   RANGOON, "The Lady" made herself perfectly clear: She'll
stay in Burma, open a dialogue with its ruling generals and eventually 
the country will come around to her democratic way of thinking.
   
Aung San Suu Kyi, Burma's 51-year-old pro-democracy leader, said 
Friday she believes a very different Burma will emerge within her 
lifetime, despite the military regime that crushed the uprising she led 
in 1988.

"It's not a matter of hope," she said in an interview with The Associated 
Press. "That's how problems are resolved in the end -- through dialogue. 
But as I keep repeating ad nauseum, intelligent people get to dialogue 
quickly whereas the stupid guys take longer."

Suu Kyi, the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize winner widely known as "The Lady"
has not said much about her next move against the military regime. After
two months of tension, she and the junta -- the State Law and Order
Restoration Council -- appear to have reached a stalemate.
   
"We never announce our next move.... But we have to carry on with our
party work," she said. "It's not as if we sit and wait to see what's happening

with SLORC."

Although repressing dissent, the military has allowed Suu Kyi to hold
weekend rallies outside her lakeside home and voice criticism that would
earn other Burmese long jail terms.
   
The generals -- who call the country Myanmar -- have arrested and
intimidated many of Suu Kyi's followers. Her international stature and
widespread domestic support probably account for the liberties she's been
allowed, but that could change if the generals feel threatened.
   
She wondered if she would be imprisoned next: "Perhaps they are waiting
for the right time."

After the 1988 uprising, the military council placed Suu Kyi under a
six-year house arrest. Since her release a year ago, the council has
refused to meet with her. But she has no plans to leave Burma.
   
Of official media reports last week that the military would compromise
with democratic forces if Suu Kyi left Burma, she said: "When you consider
the number of promises SLORC has made and broken, we're not interested.
It's just a ploy."
   
In May, Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy announced -- and 
later held -- a conference to bring together candidates who won the 
1990 election that had been annulled by the military.
  
The regime countered by arresting 273 of her followers and reportedly
intimidating at least 14 party members into resigning. Many of those
arrested since have been released, but Suu Kyi said 45 of the 1990 
election winners remained behind bars.
   
Defections, she said, are "inevitable in any kind of revolution. You
cannot achieve great changes without some casualties."
   
Still, she's convinced that through dialogue and "the desire of the
people for change," a democratic Burma will emerge.
   
"What is eight years in the life of a nation?" she asked, referring to
the regime's period in power. "Yes, of course it's long for those who have
suffered. But change always takes place sooner or later."

*********************************************************

MYANMAR ALIN: WANT TO SHOUT FROM THE ROAD JUNCTION
June 30 1996 (SLORC article in Burmese)
From: strider@igc.apc.org
Article by Chan Mye Khin

[Translated Text] I have wanted to write this for a long time, but I was 
unable to do so.  I was inspired to write this after reading Ma Shwe's 
article- on 28-5-96.  My mother, who would be over 100 years old if she 
were still alive, once asked, "Hey, where are Thakhin Aung San's [Aung 
San Suu Kyi's father] children and what are they doing?" I answered, 
"Mother, they live in England and I heard they are married to English 
people.  My mother said, "Oh -- what kind of kids are they?  I am very 
sad to know that they have discarded their father's country to live in 
England and marry the English.  They have no regard for their father or 
their country.  If only Thakhin Aung San were alive, I do not know 
whether he would kill or exile his daughter who married an Englishman.
My mother told us when we were young that U Phan was a head coolie, a 
colonial era usage, engaged in carrying sand and gravel from the Shwebo 
canal.  A lady laborer named "Ma San Set" was in his laborer group.  Ma 
San Set was attractive and had a pleasant personality.  An English 
officer, who knew a little Burmese, approached U Phan and said he wanted 
"Ma San Set."
U Phan said, "Hey, Ma San Set, the Englishman is giving preference to me 
and my work.  I know he is doing it because of you.  I feel bad and I do 
not agree.  You do not like him because he is from another race, so why 
don't you quit this job?"
Ma San Set replied, "My goodness, I couldn't even work peacefully as a 
coolie and now that this Englishman is after me I cannot continue to 
work.  Uncle Phan, I cannot become an Englishman's wife so I am quitting 
my job tomorrow.  I would rather sell roasted beans and jaggery, it would 
be more dignified than being a foreigner's wife and rich.,,
The poor Ma San Set's spirit is commendable.  She knew that she would be 
rich and her life would be secure if she had married the English officer, 
but she still preserved her country and her own status.  We should be 
proud of her strong will.
I feel, today's Myanmar [Burmese] ladies do not think of Ma San Set as an 
example, but instead envy Ma Suu Kyi.  I see frequent advertisements in 
the newspapers about Myanmar ladies marrying English, American, and other 
foreigners with parental consent.  Their parents might think it is 
prestigious to be married to a foreigner and I do not know whether they 
can feel proud of their race and religion.
I do not know they feel that marrying a foreigner like Ma Suu Kyi, the 
daughter of a national leader, is a prestigious act, or if it makes them 
feel great, proud, and able to use foreign things, or if they think the 
English and the Americans are better.
I would like to shout from the road junction, Myanmar ladies do not 
envy the race-destruction act!

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