BI Weekly No. 271

March 16th - March 22nd, 2006

The BI Weekly archive is available on our website: www.burmaissues.org

Inside

Government officers in disguise to escalate intimidation of opposition
Burma earns more income from tourism

Border

International

ASEAN's special envoy visits Burma
US condemns Junta for the brutal murder of Thet Naing Oo


* denotes BI commentary

The Junta have lately escalated intimidation of opposition groups, particularly student activists, by using local thugs and government officers in disguise, according to the Assistance Association of Political Prisoners ( Burma ).

According to the statement released by the AAPP(B), Ko Thet Naing Oo, a student activist and former political prisoner, was severely beaten by 12 police and fire officials at the Market in Kyih Myin Dine township after police identified him as a thief . The former political prisoner was beaten continuously until he lost consciousness. He was later taken to Rangoon Civil Hospital , and died the following morning.

Following the military crackdown on student activists in 1988, Ko Thet Naing Oo fled Burma and joined the All Burma Students' Democratic Front operating along the Thai-Burmese border. He returned to Rangoon in 1991. He was arrested in 1998 for distributing pamphlets on the Burmese economy and sentenced to 10 years. He was released from Tharawaddy prison in November 2002.

"Junta use new strategy of assaulting oppositions, student activist", Mizzima News, March 21, 2006

A total of 660,000 foreign tourists visited Burma in 2005, hitting a record high in five years, the local Khit Myanmar News Journal reported.

Quoting the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism, the tourist arrivals were up from about 470,000 in 2001 and 2002, 590,000 in 2003 and 656,000 in 2004.

The tourists came in through entry points of Rangoon , Mandalay , Pagan as well as border points, it said, adding that cross-border tourists accounted for the majority.

In 2005, earning through tourism in the country rose to US$153 million, up 17 million from the previous year, official statistics show.

"Tourist arrivals in Myanmar hit record high in 2005", Asia Pulse, March 17, 2006

New wave of Karens flee to the Thai-Burma border

More than 700 Karen villagers have fled their homes for the Mae Ra Moo refugee camp in the wake of the Burmese government's relocation to Pyinmana and renewed fighting between the Karen National Union and the Burmese military, according to officials of the Karen Refugee Committee.

The chairman of the KRC office in Mae Sot said the Burmese military are trying to push villagers off their in order to clean the area because of the move to new Capital. Moreover, the fighting in Taungoo Township , in Burma 's Pegu division, has increased in recent days, and more refugees are fleeing to the Thai-Burmese border.

In January 2006, some 301 Karen refugees arrived at Mae Ra Moo, with 355 arriving in February and 141 so far this month, according to a source along the border who wished to remain anonymous.

However, the camp does not as yet have housing prepared for new residents, but that new arrivals are staying in a temporary “boarding house” building or at the homes of relatives or friends. Most have also not registered for refugee status with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, but it would support Thai government to provide asylum for them. Even though, Thai authorities are not happy with new arrivals

"Counterinsurgency creates fresh wave of refugees" , Irrawaddy , March 17, 2006

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ASEAN's special envoy visits Burma

ASEAN's special envoy, Syed Hamid, arrived in Burma on March 23 to press the military junta on democracy and human rights but will reportedly be blocked from seeing detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid's visit had been delayed due to wrangling with the regime over meeting the opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who has spent most of the last 16 years under house arrest.

But Syed Hamid will hold talks with Prime Minister Soe Win on March 24, with the 10-member ASEAN stepping up pressure on Burma in the face of mounting global criticism.

Burma agreed at last year's ASEAN summit to invite Syed Hamid in January but the visit apparently stalled over the envoy's insistence on meeting Aung San Suu Kyi, however, Burma kept rejecting the request.

"Envoy to press Myanmar but no Suu Kyi visit", Agence France Presse, March 23, 2006

The US condemned Burma 's military government for the beating death of former political prisoner Thet Naing Oo.

US State Department spokesperson Sean McCormack said this incident is the latest in a string of increasingly violent acts targeting members of the political opposition that highlight the brutality and repressiveness of the Burmese regime.

McCormack also urged the junta “to engage all elements of Burmese political life in a meaningful dialogue that empowers the people to determine their own future.”

Meanwhile, the Hong Kong-based Asian Human Rights Commission, the All Burma Federation of Student Unions and the Thailand-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners ( Burma ) jointly condemned the Burmese government and demanded justice for the slain former political prisoner.

"US Criticizes Junta on Thet Naing Oo Case ", Irrawaddy , March 22,2006 .