Crossing closed in bid to stem flow of drugs

Don Pathan
The Nation

NATIONAL Security Council chief Kachadpai Burusapatana yesterday announced the widely expected closure of a northern border checkpoint to prevent the flow of drugs from Burma.

The closure will also help eliminate the flow of chemicals used for making methamphetamines into the area where a large number of heroin and amphetamines labs are situated, Kajudpai said.

He added that China, which borders Burma, would be urged to do more to help curb narcotic activities in the area.

After meeting with a number of government agencies -- including the military, foreign ministry, police, and the Office of Narcotic Control Board -- Kachadpai said the all party-committee had agreed that the closing of Baan San Ton Doo checkpoint would help restrict the flow of drugs from the Wa Hills.

The area is controlled by the United Wa State Army, one of the world largest armed narcotic trafficking group operating out of Burma Shan State along the Thai-Burma border. Baan San Ton Doo is situated in Chiang Mai's Mae Ai District.

The committee's finding was forwarded to the Ministry of Interior yesterday and the provincial authorities are expected to close the checkpoint in the near future, he said.

The multi-agencies committee agreed yesterday that the closure would not detrimentally affect the local economy as only Bt70 million of goods were transported through the checkpoint last year, Kachudpai said.

The controversial checkpoint was opened last year at the request of the provincial authorities and the approval of the National Security Council. It links Mae Ai District to the United Wa State Army (UWSA) southern command in Mong Yawn, which is about 3O kilometers inside Shan State.

Kachadpai defended last year's decision to open Baan Son Ton Doo, saying that the government agencies were not aware of the UWSA's narcotic activities in the area at the time when the opening of the checkpoint was being considered.

He suggested that the checkpoint could be reopened if the Burmese government agreed to set up the necessary agencies, such as customs and immigration, at the crossing point.

UWSA was allowed to shift its operations from Panghsang on the China-Burma border after signing a cease-fire agreement with the Burmese junta in 1989. The deal was arranged by Burma's powerful security chief Lt Gen Khin Nyunt as part of Rangoon's effort to neutralise the 20,000-strong rebel group.

Since the opening of the checkpoint last year, UWSA has welcomed outsiders, allowing Thai merchants to transport everything from household goods to construction materials. Twice a week, hundreds of local Thai merchants line up at the checkpoint waiting to be screened by immigration and customs officers before entering what has long been a no-go area.

Thousands of Thai nationals are involved in a mix of projects including small dams, hospitals and schools in and around Mong Yawn. A road construction project -- financed by both the junta and the UWSA -- which will link Chiang Mai's Mae Ai district to Mong Yawn and Mong Hsat some 90 kilometres inside Burma's Shan State -- is expected to be completed this year. A loop linking Mong Hsat to the popular border town of Tachilek opposite Chiang Rai's Mae Sai district is also underway.

Rangoon has been accused by the international community of turning a blind eye to narcotic activities in the country, while the government insists that it does not have full control of its rebel-plagued border.

''The closure of the checkpoint is just one measure,'' said Kachadpai. ''We plan to involve the local villagers in the fight against drugs.''

In recent months, Thai border officials have engaged in a number of gunfights with drug trafficking groups crossing over from the Burmese side.

Kachudpai said about 80 per cent of all the amphetamines flooding the country originated from the area.

UWSA is on the verge of becoming the next controller of the Golden Triangle's illicit drug trade, replacing Khun Sa and his Mong Tai Army who surrendered to the Burmese government three years ago in return for amnesty.

Thai and US drug agencies estimate that about 1,700 tonnes of raw opium were cultivated in the Triangle last year, down from 2,300 tonnes the previous year, partly because of bad weather. About 10 kilogrammes of opium is needed to make a kilogramme of heroin.

Play more meaningful role, Surin tells ARF

July 22, 1999

SINGAPORE -- Foreign Minister Surin Pitsuwan yesterday called on the Asean Regional Forum (ARF) to go beyond being a mere talk shop and take on a more meaningful role by adopting mechanisms aimed at preventing disputes in the region. 

Speaking to a foreign correspondent yesterday, Surin said a number of countries in Asean agree with Thailand that the security forum should expand its focus from ''confidence-building measures'' or CBMs to ''preventive diplomacy'' aimed at eliminating possible conflicts in the region. 

Asean ministers issued a statement at last year's ARF meeting in Manila that there was still ''considerable scope to further develop and deepen cooperation on confidence-building measures'' but at the

     same time noted that the distinction between

     CBMs and preventive diplomacy was blurred.

     The move would make the 32-year-old

     regional bloc more active in managing

     conflicting claims, in order to prevent possible

     conflicts within the region, Surin said. 

     The foreign minister admitted however that

     there are some sceptics. ''There are some

     who feel that we are not ready enough, but

     also some who feel that we should move in

     that direction,'' he noted. 

     Nevertheless, the annual meeting remained a

     good opportunity for Asean members and

     their dialogue partners including China, the

     US, Russia and the European Union to

     explore such a possibility. 

     Surin's statement came just days after a

     Filipino gunboat sank a Chinese fishing boat

     after chasing the vessel for several hours

     around the Spratlys, a cluster of

     hotly-disputed, resource-rich islands and

     reefs in the South China Sea. 

     The incident, said Surin, has affected the

     ''mood'' of the international community which

     has a vested interest in stability in the Spratly

     area's sea lanes because of commercial

     shipping. 

     The disputed islands are claimed wholly or in

     part by the Philippines, China, Taiwan,

     Brunei, Malaysia and Vietnam. Beijing has

     insisted on treating the dispute bilaterally with

     the other claimants, but some Asean

     members would like to see it discussed at an

     international forum such as the ARF. 

     The Philippines and Vietnam are to propose a

     code of conduct for Spratly claimants to

     abide by, but Malaysian Deputy Foreign

     Minister Lauro Baja said that concerned

     Asean members should have a common

     position when engaging China on the matter. 

     Disputes and clashes over the Spratlys have

     long been a sour point for the regional

     grouping. 

     Surin said the bilateral agreement between

     Thailand and Malaysia on joint development

     of the previously-disputed area in the Gulf of

     Thailand could serve as a model for the

     claimants. It took the two countries over 20

     years to agree on the joint development

     scheme, enforced over a 720-square

     kilometre area. 

     Chairmanship of the ARF rotates among

     member countries. Thailand is scheduled to

     take over from current chair Singapore within

     the next few days. 

     Surin also noted that the issue of social

     safety nets are to be included on the agenda

     for the first time during the forum. 

     ''The spectres of underemployment, poverty

     and malnutrition that grip many nations are

     the seeds of instability which threaten to wipe

     away much of the progress that we have

     achieved over the past decades,'' he said. 

     Asean now covers the full complement of

     Southeast Asian nations, including Malaysia,

     Singapore, the Philippines, Indonesia,

     Thailand, Brunei, Cambodia, Vietnam, Burma

     and Laos. 

     BY DON PATHAN 

     The Nation

Tension Between Burmese Junta, UWSA

Don Pathan

The Nation

24 Mar 1999  

Doi Sam Sao, Burma __ Something is cooking in Burma's northeastern frontier along the Thai border, and it's more than just chemicals being boiled in one of the numerous heroin labs belonging to Burma's narcotics trafficking groups. 

For the past year or so, tension between the Burmese junta and the United Wa State Army (UWSA) has been building up, threatening to end a decade-old ceasefire agreement between Rangoon and the armed ethnic group--dubbed the world's largest armed narcotics' trafficking organization by the United States government. The generals in Rangoon have ordered the UWSA to move back to their stronghold in Panghsang on the Burmese border with China, so far issuing two ultimatums without specifying the consequences should the armed rebels not comply. 

Naturally, the UWSA chose to ignore the demands and instead beefed up its logistics along the Thai-Burmese border opposite Chiang Mai province. At the same time, the group has begun to welcome outsiders, allowing Thai merchants to transport everything from household goods to construction materials. Twice a week, hundreds of local Thai merchants line up at the checkpoint just north of Chiang Mai's Ta Thon district to be screened by immigration and customs officers before entering what has long been a no-go area and only a couple of decades ago a place where headhunters roamed. 

Border officials said thousands of Thai nationals are currently working in the Wa-controlled territory, building everything from a small dam to hospitals and schools. The checkpoint, located in Mae Ai district, was opened last August. A road construction project--financed by both the junta and the UWSA--which will link Chiang Mai's Mae Ai district to Mong Yawn and Mong Hsat, some 90 kilometers inside Burma's Shan State, is expected to be completed this year. A loop linking Mong Hsat to the popular border town of Tachilek opposite Chiang Rai's Mae Sai district is also on the way. 

"They are here to stay," said Maj Gen Chamlong Photong, chief-of-staff of the Thai Army's Third Region. "The pressure is on us to do something about it." 

In fact, the Thai general added, the UWSA is on the verge of becoming the next druglord of the Golden Triangle, replacing Khun Sa and his Mong Tai Army, who surrendered to the government three years ago in return for amnesty. 

Thai and US drug agencies estimate that about 1,700 tonnes of raw opium were cultivated in the Triangle last year, down from 2,300 tonnes the previous year, partly because of bad weather. About 10 kilogrammes of opium is needed to make a kilogramme of heroin. 

"The Wa are responsible for nearly half this amount," said Sorasit Sangprasert, deputy chief of Thailand's Office of the Narcotics Control Board. 

The UWSA came into existence shortly after the Communist Party of Burma crumbled a decade ago. A ceasefire agreement, orchestrated by Burma's security chief Lt Gen Khin Nyunt, was reached soon afterwards. The idea, say Burma watchers, was to neutralize a 20,000-plus strong army that had enough weapons to last them at least a decade. Rangoon didn't want these weapons, most of which came from China, to fall into the hands of other rebel groups. For the Wa, it was an opportunity to expand their heroin empire from their stronghold in Panghsang to a new frontier along the upper Thai-Burmese border. 

But nothing comes easy in trouble-plagued Burma. The expansion meant that a war between Wa and the Khun Sa's Mong Tai Army, the Wa's arch-rival and business competitor, was inevitable. Three years ago, Khun Sa and his army surrendered to the junta and the territory once controlled by the former opium warlord was left up for grabs as Burmese, Thai and Wa troops rushed in to plant their flag poles. 

A Wa commander overseeing the crossing point to Thailand said the UWSA will not make the same "mistake" as Kun Sa. Indeed, it's a very different story nowadays. With Khun Sa and his army out of the picture, the decade-old agreement is losing its appeal as territorial control along the rugged conflict-plagued borders becomes a higher priority for certain sectors in the junta's ruling body known as the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC). 

The SPDC has demanded that the UWSA retreat to the Chinese border. Essentially, this would mean that their heroin and methamphetamine network through Thai gateways would be shut. Thai military officers, however, say the implications are too great for the Burmese to begin a war with the Wa. 

"The situation makes it difficult for us," Chamlong said. "Besides, the Chinese don't want them along their border either." In fact, the growing drug problem in Yunnan province forced the Chinese authorities to summon UWSA leader Pao Yochang for a stern warning. At one point, the Chinese threatened to cut off the flow of food to Wa territory. 

Nevertheless, the pressure is on Thailand to do something about the flow of drugs into the Kingdom. No longer is the group producing heroin for European and American markets. Instead, narcotics officials insist, millions of methamphetamines--known locally as yaa baa--produced cheaply by the group have flooded into Thailand. 

"It's cheap to produce and the market is right here in Thailand," Sorasit said. 

During a recent two-day visit to Thailand, Burmese Foreign Minister Aung Win dismissed allegations that Rangoon is to blame for the rise in the methamphetamine problem in Thailand, saying the precursor chemicals needed for producing the stimulants come from abroad. 

"Besides, how do you know the drugs are not made here (in Thailand])" he added. "They could be produced anywhere." 

Burma has come up with an ambitious plan to end opium cultivation nationwide within 15 years. The plan has received praise from some in the international community. 

Critics say the ruling junta is too willing to appease insurgent groups as foreign condemnations take a back seat to stability in the hinterland. 

"They choose to ignore the reality (in Burma)," Win Aung said. Nevertheless, it remains to be seen if the junta is willing to pick a fight with one of the world's largest producers and traffickers of illicit drugs. 

Besides, the generals in Rangoon have other pressing issues to deal with, namely the dry-season offensive against armed ethnic groups who refused to sign a cease-fire agreement with the government, Chamlong said. 

Meanwhile, all parties agree that it is a matter of time before the Wa and Burmese begin fighting each other again.

NEW DRUG ARMY RULES ATOP 'GOLDEN TRIANGLE'

Seatle Times

Don Pathan
The Associated Press

UWSA soldiers in Panghsang HQ (Credit: Don Pathan, 2003)

LOI SAM SAO, Myanmar - Cradling an assault rifle, a teenage rebel sits at a guard post watching trucks hauling consumer goods and construction material into northeastern Myanmar over the dusty road from Thailand.

Across the border sits a Thai army command post that overlooks the hills of Southeast Asia's "Golden Triangle," the region where experts say nearly half the world's heroin is produced and then smuggled out to the streets of America and Europe.

The young rebel is the first line of contact between outsiders and the United Wa State Army, one of the numerous ethnic groups not controlled by the central government of Myanmar, or Burma.

"Welcome to the land of the Wa," Capt.  Sadorn Sae-chang, the taciturn commander of the Wa army battalion in this area, tells a journalist allowed a rare, brief visit.

A generation ago, the Wa were feared headhunters.  Now, they are the world's largest producers of heroin and a major supplier of amphetamines in East Asia.  But a cozy arrangement with the Myanmar military government that allowed their rise is fraying, and the Wa are preparing for war.

Sadorn and the 1,000 Wa soldiers positioned along this part of the border are part of what the U.S.  State Department calls "the world's biggest armed narcotics-trafficking organization."

Thai officers monitoring the border say the Wa are becoming the masters of the Golden Triangle, where the frontiers of Myanmar, Laos and Thailand converge.

"They are definitely moving in that direction, establishing a sound network with outsiders," said Thai Maj.  Gen.  Chamlong Phothong.  "The pressure is on us to do something about it."

Thai officials and the State Department estimate about 1,900 tons of raw opium were cultivated in the Triangle last year, down from 2,300 tons the previous season, partly because of bad weather.  About 10 kilograms of opium are needed to make a kilogram of heroin.

"The Wa are responsible for nearly half of this amount," said Sorasit Sangprasert, deputy chief of Thailand's Office of the Narcotics Control Board.

The Wa filled a vacuum left by Khun Sa, the warlord who once ran the largest narcotics outfit in Myanmar at the head of an army of ethnic Shan.  Khun Sa surrendered to the government three years ago in exchange for amnesty and now lives in the capital, Yangon.

Wa fighters were once the foot soldiers of the now-defunct Communist Party of Burma, whose insurgency sputtered out a decade ago.  Soon after, they formed the United Wa State Army and worked out a cease-fire with the military government.

For Myanmar's army, the truce neutralized a rebel group that had a weapons inventory large enough to last 10 years.

For the Wa, it was a green light to expand heroin activities southward from their stronghold in Panghsang on the Chinese border, gaining additional smuggling routes across the Thai and Chinese borders.  Along the way, they clashed with Khun Sa, hastening his surrender.

But with Khun Sa out of the picture, the truce is losing appeal for the government, which would like to extend control over the troublesome border territory and the ethnic groups it has fought for decades.

Tensions have risen over the past year, with the government demanding that the Wa head back toward their old strongholds near China.  The Wa, unwilling to lose heroin gateways through Thailand, have ignored the order and begun beefing up their supplies.

The Myanmar government insists it is working with the Wa to bring development to the area.  Some Wa, however, suspect the roads being built in the hills will eventually bring Myanmar troops against them.

The government may think twice about tangling with the Wa.  The United Wa State Army is believed to be able to field 20,000 fighters.  Myanmar's army approaches 500,000 men, but its troops are committed throughout Myanmar.  Some corrupt Myanmar troops are also believed to profit from letting the drug traffickers do business.

Westerners see heroin as the biggest threat emanating from the Golden Triangle, but for Thais and other Asians, it's something else - cheaply produced amphetamines.

Use is exploding, from 250,000 amphetamine users in Thailand in 1995 to between 500,000 and 1 illion today.

But as the fall of Khun Sa demonstrated, putting the Wa out of business might just open the way for another armed group.