Burma gets tough with graft

Rangoon has reacted to pressure from outside to clean up its house. Two of seven senior members of the ruling junta sacked at the weekend are thought to have been dismissed for corruption.
LARRY JAGAN
Bangkokpost(15/11/01)

Burma appears to be going through its biggest government shake-up in years. Two top generals have been sacked and five other ministers have been retired only two of them voluntarily.Diplomats in Rangoon say the country's governing State Peace and Development Council brought the country's 12 regional commanders to the capital on Saturday for discussions on the cabinet changes and possibly to fill the vacated military and ministerial posts.

There have been constant reports of division within the army ever since Burma's military leaders started reconciliation talks with the opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi more than a year ago.

On the face of it, the removal of the seven government members is the most sweeping change in Burma since 1997 when the military junta changed its name to the State Peace and Development Council and brought the regional commanders into the political structure. But like most things in Burma, it is difficult to interpret.

There is certainly no evidence of a power struggle at the top of the military government. While sources in Rangoon believe that the head of state, General Than Shwe, initiated the moves, there is no doubt that the other two members of the country's ruling triumvirate, army chief General Maung Aye and military intelligence chief Lieutenant-General Khin Nyunt, fully supported it.``The changes, in fact, show the unity and strength of the top three,'' said a Western diplomat based in Rangoon. ``They seem to have a tight grip on the government.

Lieutenant-General Win Myint, secretary three and regarded as the fourth-most powerful man in Burma, and Lieutenant-General Tin Hla, the military affairs minister and a deputy prime minister, were almost certainly fired because of their excessive involvement in economic corruption. They are being confined to their homes and have been questioned over their business dealings.

There is growing concern among Burma's top leaders that their Southeast Asian neighbours are getting increasingly annoyed at the country's growing problems of corruption.At last week's Asean meeting in Brunei, several countries raised the matter with Gen Than Shwe.

Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohammad is reported to have complained about specific cases involving Malaysian business. Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi also is believed to have told the Burmese leader that there must be more economic transparency if Japan, and the international community, are to offer more financial assistance and humanitarian aid in the near future.

``The Singaporean government has raised the issue of corruption and the lack of transparency in the economy repeatedly in the past year or so,'' a Singaporean official said.

Lt-Gen Win Myint and Lt-Gen Tin Hla certainly seem to have been dismissed because of their personal business connections with the private sector. Both headed major government economic enterprises, Myanmar Economic Holdings Company and the Myanmar Economic Corporation, which many foreign businessmen have complained about in private.

``These two generals were sacked because their involvement in corruption was too blatant,'' a Western diplomat said. But most analysts remain sceptical that these sackings will have any real impact on corruption in Burma.

The other sackings, however, appear to be more to do with government plans to revitalise the country's administration and to root out the hard-liners who may be opposed to the government's reconciliation process with Ms Suu Kyi.

Several of the deposed ministers were known hard-liners. But it remains difficult to see whether this change is going to make any difference to the on-going talks. It will depend on who is appointed to replace them.

The two ousted generals will probably be replaced by regional commanders, although it is possible that Lt-Gen Win Myint will not be replaced at all.

Burma's third most-powerful leader, Lieutenant-General Tin U, the second secretary who was killed in a helicopter crash in February this year, has not been replaced. His tasks were simply shared between other members of the ruling SPDC.

``It is possible that this will be repeated,'' said an Asian diplomat. ``If that happens then it will show the military leaders' commitment to streamlining government administration.''

But many analysts believe the government will use the opportunity to promote several regional commanders and bring them into the ruling council. Ever since the talks started with Ms Suu Kyi, there have been reports that many of the regional commanders were critical of the process.

But there also are reports that the local commanders, especially in sensitive border areas, are unhappy with the government's attempts to stop the use of forced labour as guides, porters and to build military installations a practice highlighted by the recent International Labour Organisation investigative mission to Burma.

This government shake-up certainly provides Gen Than Shwe with the opportunity to bring the most-resistant regional commanders to Rangoon and sever their connection with their soldiers. This would help Rangoon re-establish control over the regional commanders.

Diplomats in Rangoon also believe there may be more changes to come, lower down the bureaucracy. But it is too early to tell whether all this massive government shake-up is part of a larger strategy to prepare for concrete talks with Ms Suu Kyi about power-sharing. Only when the government announces the replacements for the deposed generals and ministers will their intentions be any clearer.

Larry Jagan is the BBC World Service's regional editor for Asia and the Pacific currently based in Bangkok.