Part III

lmpeding Eradication of

our way by car from Pan San to Mongyang to visit Hsilu of Special ReglonNo .4.

After meeting with responsible personnel of Special Region 4 we proceeded to

Mong La. The Hsilu / Mong La journey was not rough at all because the road was a

paved road: On the way we saw the Hydroelectric Power Plant of Special Region 4.

It had been completed quite recently and had yet to be put into commission.

Being here brought to mind the background history of this region that had now

become Special Region No.4. I believe almost everyone will recall that the

overseas Burma Communist Party headed by Ba Thein Tin began to enter the Kokang

and ‘Wa’ regions at the beginning of January 1968. They entered and occupied the

region as the Northeast Military Command. In 1969 they mobilized the armed

national groups that  had originally operated in East Kyaingtong and

reorganized them under No: 815 Military Region to carry on with armed

activities. In 1976 the units of the Shan Shate Independent Army joined the BCP.

At first they were absorbed as part of the No: 815 Military Regional Command but

later in August 1976 they were reconstituted as Brigade No: 768 Brigade operated

in Mong La and Hsi Lu in the east Kyaingtong Region. In March 1989 however, the

Kokang faction broke away from the BCP to be followed by the ‘Wa’ faction on 17

April. That left only the original forces of Brigade No: 768 and Military Region

No: 815. On 19 April Commander of Military Region 815 U Sai Lin detained the

District Commander of Mong La and announced the break away of his regional

military command from the BCP. Not long afterwards, Brigade No: 768 composed

largely of Shan nationals joined the forces of Regional Command No: 815. These

two forces then formed a new organization, The National Democratic Alliance,

East Shan State Military and Admini-strative Committee, Shan / Akhar. U Sai Lin

headed this new alliance as Chairman and U Kyi Myint as Secretary. The groups

that had formed this umbrella organization also wished to make peace like the

Kokang and Wa groups. So they enlisted the help of U Saw Sitt Thin and party to

hold discussions with representatives ofthe Armed Forces. They reached a peace

agreement with the Government on 30 June 1989. When I

arrived at Mong La I saw that many more changes had taken place since the last

time I was there for the inauguration of the Khaymar Wara Bridge. Lightening

Changes seem to take place in Mong La because when one sees it again after an

interval of 4 to 6 months, the landscape has again taken on a new look. When we

arrived at Mong La Hotel U Kyi Myint and party was on hand to greet us. I said

the Nant Man Hydroelectric Power Station.

hundred thousand and kyats and has a capacity of 800 kilowatts. When funds 

permit and we install another turbine it will be capable of producing 3000

fairly large. Yon already have three other hydroelectric power stations, don’t

sure. We have the Nant Lan Power Station that produces 400 kilowatts, the His Lu

Station that produces 380 kilowatts, and the Nant Pan Station on the Mong Yaung

just arrived, but Chairman U Sai Lin is waiting for you. So shall we go and

Hotel and headed for U Sai Lin’s residence. We saw many tourists as well as

motor cars from China on the road. “

tourists now because the rainy season has almost ended . There are fewer

tourists during the rains.” ” Approximately, how many tourists do you

was over 401 thousand. In 1997 it was over four hundred and thirty thousand. I

280 kyats) per head. We charge 5 yuan (about 200 kyats) for a small car and 10

paying for our development. projects. Well, here we are. U Sain Lin waiting

Lin were old friends U Chet Vwee, Ko Nway Oo and Ko Win Aung who warmly welcomed

us. We were served delicious food in the living room accompanied by interesting

Mong La is Like Yangon. The scene changes after an absence of about S to 6

referring to the new bridge across the creek and the buildings on the opposite

nothing there when I came for the opening ceremony of the ” Khaymar Wara”

Bridge. By the way, I read the declaration of your organizations that clearly

spelled out your political stance. But I want to know more about your views on

The views of our Special Region 4 are identical with those of the Military

Government.- We

reject any move that will disrupt or obstruct peace and stability. That is our

person even sent us the announcements and pamphlets issued by this party. A

certain person from another organization who was wavering a bit came by to see

me and sound me out and sort of enlist my support. I told him quite bluntly and

firmly that the Military Government had my support a hundred per cent and that

there was no way I would endorse any opposition movement that would jeopardize

statement on the narcotic drug situation in Myanmar issued by the U.S. State

Department, charges were made that national groups who had made peace with the

Government were still involved in the narcotic drug trade. Their list of those

involved included U Pauk Yo Chan, Li Zi Yu and Wai Shauk Kan of the ‘Wa’ group;

U Hpone Kyar Shin and Liu Kwai Chi of the Kokang; U Mone Hsar Lar of the MND; U

Ma Htu Naw of the KDA; U Sai Lin of Special Region 4 and Ywet Hsit of the SURA.

They also say that although the Mong La region had been declared an Opium Free

knows the tremendous efforts that we have  made for the elimination of

narcotic drugs. These are just trumped up charges that are politically

motivated. Just ask U Kyi Myint for the  details. He’ll give you a full

account of our efforts. For now I think you need to rest after your tiring

to U Sai Lin we returned to the  hotel. U Kyi Myint hosted dinner for us

let’s continue our discussions on the  American allegations on narcotic

the western bloc are really impossible.  They simply refuse to acknowledge

the attempts we have made and are making to eradicate narcotic drugs. They have

nothing good to say.  What they’re doing is like deliberately pushing down

someone who’s trying to struggle up the side of a steep precipice to get to

see. We try to establish an opium free zone and are doing our utmost to get rid

of narcotic drugs from our region. But instead of helping us, all they do is

heap all the blame on us. So it’s like they’re trying to push us back towards

the narcotic trade, isn’t it? Our people are beginning to say that it’s

insufferable being accused  unfairly like this and that it would at least

be tolerable if we had really  become involved again in narcotic drugs. Our

young people resent it  very much and you can’t blame them. You have seen

for yourself how we had to struggle against all odds to be able to set up this

the peace agreement with the Government  there were 262 villages growing

2,700 acres of opium poppy annually and it was estimated that it produced over

9800 kilos of opium approximately. And there were over 2,100 addicts in the

region. Since we’re in the Golden Triangle region it was also a centre of the

correctly, you started on anti-narcotic drug  action in cooperation with

destroyed cultivated poppy fields and  burned down refineries, heroin,

yellow and brown opium and precursor  chemicals working together with the

military authorities. The total value of all that was destroyed, amounted to

justice to our project just to mention the Opium Free Zone. Our goal was much

more comprehensive than that. It covered total elimination of production,

trafficking and abuse of drugs. We carried out the project from 1992 to 1997 in

was not enough to realize our objectives. We had to educate the public on the

evils of opium  cultivation. We had to send our members to the villages to

hold meetings and discussions  with the villagers. We also had to provide

crop substitution, open up clinics to cure addicts, carry out regional

development by improving roads and communications, and create jobs to alleviate

interdiction measures are very tough and strict. I am told even your chairman’s

Within those six years we were able to seize 10.8 kilograms of heroin, 60.1

clinics at Pan Homong, Hsi Lu and Nant Pan  villages. The clinics are still

open and functioning. Over 400 addicts have been cured during these 6 years.

cultivation we’ll first have to say something about the dams and irrigation

canals that we have built with the financial assistance of the Government partly

supplemented with our own funds.  The first thing we did as soon as peace

was reached was to start construction of dams and canals for agriculture . For

instance, the Won  Tong dam which irrigates over 600 acres of land; the Nant Haint Nant Ha dam that irrigates over 500 acres; the Mong Nam dam that

supplies  water for over 400 acres and the Nant Sam dam that irrigates over

170 acres. The Won Pone dam has been completed but land is still being reclaimed

for cultivation. Then there is the Nant Mar canal that now  irrigates over

45 acres of reclaimed land. There is also the Kyin Ye Dam still under

construction plus numerous irrigation ditches and small weirs. In the Hsi Lu

area there are altogether 7 of them. Up till now, the acreage under paddy

cultivation is nearly 2,000. Sugar cane grown exceeds 2,100 acres and about

500 acres have been planted with rubber trees. We plan to grow sugar cane on

four to five thousand acres in the future. After the paddy has been harvested

each year we grow water-melon; cardamom, castor and tea. These are all

from the Government and from neighbouring China. Responsible officials of

Xixxaobana District

give us some technical assistance and we are able to purchase the necessary

regional development. There is a Chinese proverb with the exhortation ‘ Build

roads if you wish to

amass wealth’. We have already constructed 101.4 kilometers highway, 112

kilometers of minor roads, 641 kilometers of

village roads, 4 large bridges and 18 srnaller ones. We plan to make the 89.4

kilometer Kyaingtong – Mong La road, one that

meets the highest specifications. The Government has already given approval for

a loan. Soon it will be one of the best asphalt

is a total of 30 schools, both elementary and middle schools. There are 4

privately funded schools and 1 established with UN aid which makes a total of 37

mill with a daily milling capacity of 700 tons of sugar cane. Then the smaller

factories include a

cigarette factory, a sewing workshop and a soap factory. We also have a rock

grinding plant, a water cleansing plant, a brick kiln and a concrete pipe

encourage freedom of worship. But because most people in the region are

Buddhists there are now 6

Cedis. We invite the learned abbots from Kyaingtong and Mong Hpone for public

meritorious donations and to preach sermons. We have been able to eliminate drug

from our region because we make approaches from all directions to help resolve

declaration to all individuals and organizations that are making these false

allegations that with the

permission of the Government they can come to any part of our region at any time

they choose to inspect and seek out any shred of evidence they can. Yet, knowing

all this, the Americans and the western bloc will persist in making these

accusations. The main reason is because they have no genuine desire to eradicate

narcotic drugs, since they wish to politicize the issue to suit their own

accusations are so unfair, we resent it very much. At the same time we pity the

the matter seriously, these people, instead of giving their whole-hearted

cooperation and assistance

to rid the source of narcotic drugs are instead hampering and impeding us. It’s

like trying to burn the tail of another but also

explicit example produced a roar of laughter towards the end of the dinner. What

he said was the actual truth. The actions of the Americans and the western bloc

have boomeranged. It should pay heed to the fact that in the final analysis it