Burma's leaders attack Western powers

Burma’s ruling military lashed out at Western powers and foreign media today for fomenting recent protests that were put down in a brutal crackdown.

The state-owned New Light of Myanmar newspaper described protesters, who continue to be hunted down in raids across the country, as “stooges of foreign countries putting on a play written by their foreign masters”.

In what is now a daily staple of the government press, the newspaper said some 30,000 people gathered at a sports ground in the remote Chin State yesterday to support the regime’s national convention and forthcoming constitution.

It signalled out “big powers” and radio stations – the BBC, Voice of America and Radio Free Asia – as behind the demonstrations, which were brutally put down by the junta to vehement condemnation by nations around the world.

The ruling council’s top leader, Senior Gen Than Shwe, offered to meet Suu Kyi following a visit early this month by UN special envoy Ibrahim Gambari. And both Suu Kyi’s political party and the military have taken some conciliatory steps.

But no mention of talks was made while the official press stressed the regime was bent on following its own timetable to a so-called “roadmap to democracy”, which includes a draft constitution and referendum to be followed by elections at an unspecified date.

Critics describe such a scenario as a sham to hoodwink world opinion and silence domestic opposition.

Meanwhile, reports from Burma indicate the crackdown on dissidents is continuing underneath a seemingly calm surface.

A Thailand-based exile group said a Burmese opposition party member died during interrogation and two activists were arrested.

The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners also said yesterday that security officers had been threatening dissidents’ relatives and neighbors attempting to find those involved in last month’s pro-democracy protests.

The opposition member’s alleged death drew a harsh reaction from the US, which called for an investigation and threatened further sanctions against the impoverished country unless the junta halts violence toward dissidents.

The Burma exile group said authorities had recently informed the family of Win Shwe, 42, that he had died during interrogation in central Myanmar. He had been arrested in the crackdown’s first day, September 26.

The group said Win Shwe, a member of Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy or NLD, was cremated at the detention centre.

The group said the backlash against dissidents continued.

“The security forces have become more severe in raiding houses of, and searching for, anyone whom they suspect to have been involved in the protests,” it said.

The prisoners’ association said at least seven people were arrested – including two yesterday – in the past two days in Burma’s largest city, Rangoon, even as the junta and the NLD appeared to be taking cautious steps toward talks.

The NLD won a landslide election victory in 1990, but the junta never allowed the parliament to convene.

At the United Nations, Security Council members met for hours behind closed doors last night to discuss changes to a draft statement on the situation in Burma. The statement could be approved as early as today.

Western nations are trying to find a consensus position acceptable to China and Russia, which have blocked previous resolutions on the grounds that Burma’s political unrest is an internal matter and not a threat to security in its region.

Troops crushed the protests by shooting at demonstrators on September 26-27.

The regime said 10 people were killed, but dissidents put the toll at up to 200 and say 6,000 people were detained, including thousands of monks who led the rallies.