Gandar Mount P.S.O

Bush signs law to ban gems trade

WASHINGTON: President George W. Bush on 29 July 2008 renewed a ban on imports from military-ruled Burma and also signed a new law that aims to keep Burma’s Gems from entering US markets via third-party countries.

In parallel the US treasury slapped financial sanctions on 10 companies owned or controlled by the Burmese Government or Government officials, including companies involved in the gem trade.

“On the Burmese regime,our message is: the United States believes in democracy and freedom,” Mr. Bush said during a White House ceremony in which he signed the two laws.

The Burmese freedom and Democracy Act renews a sanctions regime imposed since 2003 over the suppression of opposition leader Aung Sun Sukyi’s democracy movement.

Mr Bush also signed a new sanctions regime aimed at stopping gems including jade and rubies from entering the United State via third nations such as Thailand, Taiwan, Singapore and Malaysia.

The so-called Tom Lantos Block Burmese jade Act will deprive its ruling junta of hundreds of millions of dollars in annual revenue.

The gems trade is one of the most lucrative sources of profit for the Junta, accused of blatant human rights abuses and stifling democratic opposition.

The bill also makes the generals and their families ineligible for visas to the United States and enhances existing financial sanctions against the regime.

It includes new reporting requirements that will provide greater transparency about the Junta in terms of financial holdings,information about countries that provide military aid to the regime,and background on Burma’s timber trade.

The US sanctions targeted two state-controlled conglomerates, the Union of Burma Economic Holdings Limited and the Burma Economic Corporation, which are both involved in the gem trade, banking and construction directly and through subsidiaries. AFP

The Shan State Army (SSA), which has been struggling for Shan Freedom as long as over 30 years, suffered from total lost by its miscount that providing assistances to Khun Sa and Lo Shin Han when they fled to SSA strongholds for temporarily shelter. (Following to stories of Khun Sa and Lo Shin Han)

Khun Sa and Lo Sin Han both of them were in anyway forced to tell the truth of the SSA’s strengths, arms, military equipments, etc and the strongholds’s whereabouts to the Burmese Junta.

The Burmese army had frequently launched out an attack the SSA’s longstanding strongholds and headquarters in the north and central State.

The strenth of 1500 with full arms from the strongholds and outposts seperatedly posed to attack the Burmese invaders.

Heavy fighting and Skirmish between the SSA rebells and the Gonernment had to be occurred when the Burmese military operations moved in on the SSA’s vast controlled areas.

The situation around the battle fields in north,south and central state had become quiet when the villagers fled to towns while some fled toThai border.

The villagers uncocerned with the politics had to be questioned and tortured by the Burmese soldiers.

Some villagers were died from gun shots during exanged fires.

Livestocks were also killed for foods.

Young women were raped.

Tens of thousands of houses left behind were burnt down.

This had been the burdensome for them.

The Company was established in 1993 when Lo Sin Han’s son Steven Lo, who is being the key person in it’s trade business with companies in Singapore, was interested in hotel-business and housing projects as Gen.Khin Nyunt paved the way for overseas ex-pension in 1993.

Kuok-Singapore Ltd. Lo Sin Han’s Asia wolrd and the Burmese Ruler are also partners in the luxuious Traders Hotel situated in corner of Su Le Pagoda and Bo Aung Kyaw roads, Rangoon.

Singapore’s economic link with the Burmese is one of the factors for the survival of Junta’s regime.

This link is also expension of the heroin trade.

Singapore is being the Junta’s top business partner and largest foreign investor.

Steven’s wife, native of Singapore, operates underground and is contact for people in Burma to get their drug money into Singapore, overseas branches of Asia World financial activity.

As both countries continue to celebrate their complementary relationship is the powerful support to its booming billion dollar drug-trade.

A pattern Singapore’s investment in Burma open door for the drug traffickers, giving them access to banks and financial systems.

Junta and drug lords have been able to take advantage of Singapore Bank Law and Money laundering opptunity.

For instance, Junta laundered $400 million through a Singapore bank.

Singapore had become a major player in Asian comerce.

STEVEN LO AND WIFE CECILIA NG

CECILIA NG

LO SHIN MIN                            GEN. KHIN NYUNT

CHINESE TEMPLE IN LASHIO

The Go Gang Force of drug running headed by Lo Shin Han and the Khun Sa’s drug trafficking force had been once engaged strongly in mid 1973.

The heavy fighting bursted out when the Khun Sa’ soldiers promptly ambushed the Go Gang armed troops of goods transportaion from the Thai border of Mae Hong Son.

About 50 horses, on back of which goods included textiles, shoes, clothes, electrical appliances and radio- cassettes are loaded, guarded by about 100 armed Go Gang Chineses tried to escape the stormed fires from battle field as they did not want to lose their belongings.

The strong exchanged fires spent almost 3 days in which Go Gang group suffered heavy casualities.

Ten horses with loaded goods left behind were seized by 800 strentgh of Khun Sa’s force, it was initially SUA (Shan United Army), differently basing around mountainous areas strategically under control by the strong Shan State Army (SSA), the real Nationalist group.

Khun Sa’s force headed by Fa Lung and Khun Seng fled to SSA’s area for shelter after being Khun Sa was arrested by the Burmese Ruler on 17 October 1969.

He was in jail for 6 years and outside jail under training of Burmese Military Intelligence Service for over a year.

He was later said to have signed an agreement of Mutual interests with the Burmese Junta.

After Khun Sa was released on 7 Februay 1976, his force was swiftly moved to Ma Hin Dek border of Chiang Rai in ordre to build the SUA Headquaters where Khun Sa was able to reinfoce his army and had become strong Army in a shot time.

Khun Sa’s armed force which attacks Go Gang defence force was angered Lo Shin Han.

The Go Gang Boss at that time confronting with serious crisis that the Burmese Govrnment had isued an urgent ordered to capture him and his family and to eradicate his opium trade with Ku Ming Tong and its Burmese Commnistally.

Therefore the way he could do is run away.He also fled to SSA.

British Documentry film-maker Adrian Cowel had apportunity to record the fightings.

Consequently, both drug lords, the long time bitter enemies, have become friends in Burma.

Gen.Khin Nyunt was the peace maker.

The General at that time was dubbed as TV star but said anti Gen.Moung Aye who prefers “the rebels must surrender, no talk for cease-fire to them.”

Although Mr. Khun Sa died his two sons Sam Seng and Sam Huarn, both aged over 40, have to be carrying on their profiable busines which is under protection of the Burmese Junta. The 2 brothers have long time been working the business and have well experience since before the surrender.

Sam Huarn permanently stays in Tachilek opposite Mae Sai border while Sam Seng stays in Bangkok to keep contacts from America, Singapore and Australia.

After the Surrender, Sam Seng moved to America where his three sisters living as permanently.

Khun Sa and his close alliance, family - linked smugglers and importers who are members of Chinese Triads.

They operate solely with relatives and transact million-dollar deals on a whispered word or a nod.

Their livelihood depends on a steady supply of heroin’s raw meterial,which they purchase from other supplyers.

They process the raw-opium into first-grade heroin and take it to Bangkok, where they smuggle it on to international flights or load it into false-bottomed fishing boats bound for Hong Kong or Penang, Malaysia.

From there it’s shipped to the Pacific Islands and to the West Coast of the Uinited States.

The key figure in this process is Khun Sa, for he controlls the supply of opium.

Khun Sa is directly responsible for about one-thard of the heroin used by the drug addicts in the United States.

The U.S is primarily interested in Asian heroin.

Which is usually very pure and comparatively cheap and represents about 35 percent of the heroin that’s available in the States.

The flow of heroin from the Shan State had become doubled as Khun Sa was concessionaire of drug corporation.

He spent about 250 million US dollar for road construction Between Rangoon and Mandalay, about 800 miles distance,which is for good transportaion.

Air conditioned coachs imported from Singapore to run between the two cities.

The purpose of this report is to expose the devasting extent of the forced relocation program carried out by The Burmese Junta in Shan State since last decade (1996) which has affected over 100,000 villagers and led to vast numbers of Shans becoming internally displace and fleeing to Thailand border.

With the location area sealed off to foreign media, there has been virtually no inter nation coverage of this brutal and systematic depopulation of the fertile valleys in the central “rice bowl” of Shan State.

The report has been based on interviews with various victims of forced relocation and with the people who witnessed the situation inside The Shan State.

By providing a brief background about victims of Shan race, it is hope that the report can convey a sense of the heritage that has been lost by the destruction of these long standing communities.

During the relocation, people were killed when the Burmese soldiers burned down their houses while trying to force them to move to the border area with Thailand.

Story of Politics and Drug Trafficking in Shan State will be continued