Established 1914

15th Waning of First Waso 1369 ME Saturday, 14 July, 2007Volume XV, Number 89

Emergence of the State Constitution is the duty of all citizens of Myanmar Naing-Ngan.

* Development of agriculture as the base and all-round development of other sectors of theeconomy as well

* Proper evolution of the market-oriented eco-nomic system

* Development of the economy inviting partici-pation in terms of technical know-how andinvestments from sources inside the countryand abroad

* The initiative to shape the national economymust be kept in the hands of the State and thenational peoples

* Uplift of the morale and morality of theentire nation

* Uplift of national prestige and integrity andpreservation and safeguarding of culturalheritage and national character

* Uplift of dynamism of patriotic spirit* Uplift of health, fitness and education stand-

ards of the entire nation

* Stability of the State, community peace andtranquillity, prevalence of law and order

* National reconsolidation* Emergence of a new enduring State Consti-

tution* Building of a new modern developed nation in

accord with the new State Constitution

Four economic objectives

Four social objectives

Four political objectives

INSIDE

PAGES 8+9

Senior General Than Shwe sends messageof felicitations to French President

NAY PYI TAW, 14 July — Senior General Than Shwe, Chairman of the State Peace andDevelopment Council of the Union of Myanmar, has sent a message of felicitations to HisExcellency Mr Nicolas Sarkozy, President of the French Republic, on the occasion of theNational Day of the French Republic which falls on 14 July 2007. — MNA

YANGON, 13 July —The 2nd Plenary Meetingof Sixth 47-member StateSangha Maha NayakaCommittee was held atState Pariyatti SasanaUniversity (Yangon) onKaba Aye Hill, here, thismorning.

J o i n t - S e c r e t a r ySayadaw Agga MahaPandita BhaddantaManitabhivamsa of MahaWithokdayon Monasteryof Mandalay Divisionacted as MC.

Chairman of theSSMNC Magway MahaWithotayama TaikthitMonastery SayadawAbhidhaja Maha RatthaGuru Abhidhaja AggaMaha SaddhammajotikaBhaddanta Kumara, whopresided over the meet-ing, gave SaraniyaOvadakatha.

J o i n t - S e c r e t a r yD v i p i t a k a d h a r aBhaddanta Nimala ofKyaukhtongyi Monastery

2nd Plenary Meeting of Sixth47-member State Sangha MahaNayaka Committee commences

of Katha submitted thereport of the SSMNC(Second Branch).

Agga MahaGanthavaçaka PanditaBhaddanta Sumana ofNatmaw Monastery ofMawlamyine and

Bhaddanta Nandavamsaof East ShwepandawMonastery of Aunglanpresented the report ofViniççhaya affairs; AggaMaha Pandita Agga MahaSaddhamma JotikadhajaBhaddanta Sirinda of

Lewun Monastery ofThaton, Agga MahaPandita Agga MahaSaddhamma JotikadhajaBhaddanta Garava ofMaha ZawtikayamaMonastery of Monywa

(See page 10)

The 2nd Plenary Meeting of Sixth 47-member State Sangha Maha Nayaka Committee meeting in progress.—MNA

Let'sunite fornationalinterest

Daw Suu Kyi, in particular, should realize her position, which is like that of Galon U Saw,a stooge, who brutally conspired the assassination of her father; she should be repentantand try to escape from the present position today when the Martyrs Day is approaching.They should immediately cooperate with the government and the people unconditionallyin the interest of national unity and national interest. The entire people of Myanmar aredesirous of achieving national unity. They all believe that Myanmar will surely achieverapid economic development overcoming all the socio-economic problems being confrontedtoday if the entire people are united in national interest.

NGAR MIN SWE

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2 THE NEW LIGHT OF MYANMAR Saturday, 14 July, 2007

PERSPECTIVES* Oppose those relying on external elements, acting as stooges, holding negative views* Oppose those trying to jeopardize stability of the State and progress of the nation* Oppose foreign nations interfering in internal affairs of the State* Crush all internal and external destructive elements as the common enemy

People’s DesireSaturday, 14 July, 2007

Blood is indispensable for medicaltreatment. This being the case, the donationof blood amounts to donation of life. Donat-ing blood and striving for increasing thenumber of blood donors is a great offering.

The World Health Organization des-ignates 14 June yearly as Blood Donors Day,and this highlights the pivotal role of blooddonors.

The sufficient amount of disinfectedblood is required in order to enhance thestandard of health care services of breast-feeding mothers, reduce the child mortalityrate and prevent the infection from blood.

The sufficient amount of blood needsto be obtained in time for patients who needblood transfusion. So also, it is required forblood donors to donate disinfected blood.Hence, blood donors need to be healthy andfree from infected diseases.

The Ministry of Health is taking sys-tematic measures in diagnosing infected dis-eases including HIV virus and controllingthe quality of blood. At present, altogethersome 2,500 blood donors who donate bloodonce every four months and some 1,500 whodonate blood once a year are donating bloodat 15 hospitals in Yangon.

Saving a life through donating bloodis a noble and benevolent task. The increasein the number of blood donors and socialorganizations that are directly or indirectlyengaged in blood donation will contributemuch towards saving many more lives.

Save lives throughdisinfected blood

NAY PYI TAW, 13July — Minister for For-eign Affairs U Nyan Winextended greetings at theceremony to mark the 10thAnniversary of the Bay ofBengal Initiative on Multi-Sectoral Technical andEconomic Cooperation(BIMSTEC) Day at theMinistry of Foreign Af-fairs here this afternoon.

At the ceremony,documentary photos onmeetings of BIMSTEC,the list of meetings andreports were displayed.

Also present onthe occasion were DeputyMinister for Energy Brig-Gen Than Htay, DeputyMinister for Agricultureand Irrigation U Ohn

Myint, directors-generaland officials.

The BIMSTECwas established on 6 June1997 in Thailand to set upa new sub-regional eco-nomic group comprisingcountries situated on theBay of Bengal to fostersocio-economic progressby promoting the coop-eration in various sectors.The group now comprisesof seven countries namelyBangladesh, Bhutan, In-dia, Nepal, Myanmar, SriLanka and Thailand.

The aim and ob-jectives of the BIMSTECare: to create an enablingenvironment for rapideconomic developmentthrough identificationand implementation ofspecific cooperationprojects in the sectors oftrade, investment and in-dustry, technology, hu-man resources develop-ment, tourism, agricul-ture, energy, infrastruc-ture and transportation;to accelerate the eco-nomic growth and socialprogress in the sub-re-gion through joint en-deavours in a spirit ofequality and partnership;to promote active col-laboration and mutual as-sistance on matters ofcommon interest in theeconomic, social, tech-nical and scientific fields;to provide assistance toeach other in the form of

training and research fa-cilities in the educational,professional and techni-cal spheres; to cooperatemore effectively in jointefforts that are support-ive of and complemen-tary to national develop-ment plans of memberStates, which result in tan-gible benefits to the peo-ple in raising their livingstandards, includingthrough generating em-ployment and improvingtransportation and com-munications infrastruc-ture; to maintain close andbeneficial cooperationwith existing interna-tional and regional or-ganizations with similaraims and purposes; andto cooperate in projectsthat can be dealt with mostproductively on a sub-re-gional basis among theBIMSTEC countries andthat make the best use ofavailable synergy.

Throughout the10 years tenure, India,

Myanmar, Sri Lanka,Thailand, Bhutan and Ne-pal signed the FrameworkAgreement for BIMSTECFree Trade Area at theSixth BIMSTEC Ministe-rial Meeting and the FifthTrade/Economic Minis-ter’s Meeting in Phukhetof Thailand. Bangladeshjoined the FTA by signingthe agreement on 25 June2004 in Bangkok, Thai-land. The organizationlaunched the VisitBIMSTEC Year 2004-05and the year-long Plan ofAction on Tourism. In ad-dition, the BIMSTECChamber of Commercewas set up. The organiza-tion sponsored the FirstFootball Tournament inPhukhet of Thailand andset up the BIMSTEC Cen-tre in Bangkok. Further-more, they established abiomass gasifier plant inKokke Village inMyingan Township ofMyanmar.

MNA

10th Anniversary BIMSTEC Day observed in Nay Pyi Taw

Shan State (South) ForestDepartment holds seminar

YANGON, 13 July — A seminar on growing ofphysic nut plant and production of bio-fuel was held atthe office of the director of Shan State (South) ForestDepartment in Taunggyi on 6 July, attended by Direc-tor U Maung Maung Htwe, Assistant Director U WinMyint, officials and writers and editors from mediacircle.

Those present participated in discussions onthriving of perennial trees and progress of agriculturaltasks. — MNA

Minister for Foreign Affairs U Nyan Win speaks at 10th Founding Anniversaryof BIMSTEC.—MNA

Gem merchants examine jade lots at Jade, Gems and Pearl

Special Sales. (News on page 16) —MNA

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THE NEW LIGHT OF MYANMAR Saturday, 14 July, 2007 3

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NAHR AL-BARED CAMP,12 July—Six Lebanesesoldiers and a civilianwere killed on Thursdayduring exceptionallyfierce fighting betweenthe Lebanese Army andFatah al-Islam militantsin Nahr al-Bared, a dayafter an evacuation thatreportedly cleared allremaining civilians, withthe exception of the

LONDON, 13 July—The United States Houseof Representatives hasvoted in favour of pullingmost combat troops outof Iraq by April nextyear.

The legislation callsfor the Pentagon to beginwithdrawing combattroops within fourmonths.

The vote comesdespite President GeorgeW Bush’s threat to vetoany timetable.

Correspondents saythe House of Repre-sentatives, controlled bythe Democrats, is hoping

LONDON, 13 July—Severe flooding in centralChina has brought a massinvasion of mice, raisingfears of outbreaks ofdisease. The floods forcedabout two billion micefrom islands in DongtingLake in Hunan Province,local officials said.

Health authorities havebeen sent to three cities onthe lake and crops havebeen destroyed by the fieldmice.

Flooding and land-slides have killed at least360 people across south-ern and central China inrecent weeks, with morerain expected, officials

Singaporean SeniorMinister Goh ChokTong (R) meets with

visiting ChineseVice-Premier Wu Yi inSingapore on 11 July,

2007. — XINHUA

A diamond-studded Mont Blanc Pen that wasbought by Al Parish for $170,000 is displayed atthe Al Parish auction at the North CharlestonConvention Centre in North Charleston, SC,

on 11 July, 2007. — INTERNET

US House votes for trooppullout from Iraq

to pressure the Senate toapprove a similartimeline.

It is the third time thisyear the House has votedto end US militaryinvolvement in Iraq.

Two previous effortseither failed in the Senateor were vetoed byPresident Bush.

The latest attemptwould allow some USforces to stay in Iraq totrain the Iraqi army andcarry out counter-terrorism operations.

“It is time for thepresident to listen to theAmerican people and do

what is necessary toprotect this nation,” saidSenate Majority LeaderHarry Reid, a Democrat.

Internet

Actresses of theYinguang

performance trouperehearse in TianjinMunicipality, northChina, on 10 July,2007.—INTERNET

Egypt criticizes proposed USconditions on aid

CAIRO, 12 July—Egypt said onWednesday US moves tolink some military aid toimprove-ments in itshuman rights record andefforts to halt weaponssmuggling from Egyptinto Gaza wereunacceptable.

The US House ofRepresentatives advan-ced legislation last monthto withhold 200 millionUS dollars in military aiduntil Cairo takes steps tocurb police abuses,reform its judicialssystem and stop armssmuggling.

“Egypt clearlyrejected these condi-tions,” the state-ownedAl-Ahram newspaper

quoted Foreign MinisterAhmed Aboul gheit assaying during a visit toWashing-ton thatincluded talks with Vice-Presidetn Dick Cheneyand Secretary of State

Condoleezza Rice.“This is an internal,

private matter forEgyptians, and no partyhas the right to interfere.”

Aboul ghiet saidCheney had told him the

Six Lebanese troops die as Armypounds Nahr al-Bared

militants’ families. In amarked intensification offighting, the armyappeared to throw its fullforce into its new offensiveagainst the militants.

Nonstop powerfulbombardments from landand sea struck all sides ofthe camp, leaving a veil ofheavy black smoke.

The army announcedthe names of three soldierskilled Thursday: CaptainWalid Yassen al-Shaar,born in 1969; FirstAdjutant Khalil Moham-med Shouman, born in1972; Sergeant MahmoodMahmoud Darwish, bornin 1979. Ninety soldiershave been killed in theconflict so far.

Adel al-Ajel, a residentof Menih, was also killedaround 5:30 pm onThursday by a stray bulletalong the Menih-Aabdehhighway.

The main northernhighway via Akkar thatgoes all the way to Syriawas closed off on Thursday,with the army only allowingmedia and emergencycrews to pass through.

Army sources said that23 soldiers were alsowounded in Thursday’sfighting, which began inthe early morning afterFatah al-Islam snipers shotdead two soldiers,prompting a response withheavy artillery andgunfire. — Internet

China rodents spark disease fearssay.

The rodent rampagebegan on 23 June, whenthe flooded Yangtze Riverraised water levels inDongting Lake, forcing

the mice from their holeson islands in the lake,China’s state-run newsagency Xinhua said onMonday.

Internet

US airstrike killsfour in Iraq

MOSUL, 12 July—A UShelicopter struck twohouses in the city of Mosulin Iraq’s northern provinceof Nineveh on Wednes-day, killing four peopleand wounding 14 others, aprovincial police sourcesaid. “A US helicopter atdawn struck two adjacenthouses in the Zanjielyneighbourhood in south-western Mosul, killingfour people and wounding14 others, four of theoperations told Xinhua oncondition of anonymity.

The source said that theUS military told his officethat its helicopter receivedgunfire from the attackarea.—MNA/Xinhua

US Administration wasopposed to the legislationand had pledges to workwith Congress to “correctthis siutation”, al-Ahramsaid.

MNA/Reuters

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4 THE NEW LIGHT OF MYANMAR Saturday, 14 July, 2007

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The carcass of a giant two-metre squid, which was washed up on the shoresof Tasmania’s Ocean Beach on Tuesday night, is seen near Strahan in this

10 July, 2007 handout photo. — INTERNET

Participants perform during the opening ceremony of the 9th All AfricaGames in the stadium of Algiers in Algeria on 11 July, 2007. The All Africa

Games take place until 23 July . — INTERNET

A Typhoon jet fighter takes off from RAF Coningsby, central England, on 11July, 2007. The planes were on display as it was announced by the RAF that

they will take up a role to become responsible for protecting southern UKairspace from potential 11 September style attacks. — INTERNET

BEIJING, 12 July — Astudy in the US finds wiveshave more power thantheir husbands in makingdecisions and dominatingdiscussions, mediareported on Wednesday.

“The study at leastsuggests that the marriageis a place where womencan exert some power,”said lead author DavidVogel, a psychologist atIowa State University(ISU).

Most of the previousresearchessuggested thatwomen have less power,but that is not the case inthis study. “They havelargely based that on thefact that traditionally menearn more money and sotherefore would have theability to make big deci-sions in the relation-ship,” said Vogel.

Vogel, Megan Mur-phy, also of ISU, and their

BAGHDAD,12 July — US and Iraqi forces killed 20suspected al-Qaeda in Iraq militants in a two-dayoperation north of Baghdad this week, the US militarysaid on Wednesday.

The military also said eight suspected militantswere killed during raids in eastern Baghdad on Monday.

In a statement, the military said the operation northof Baghdad targeted al-Qaeda leadership membersnear the town of Sherween in volatile Diyala Province.It said 20 al-Qaeda militants were also detained.

The operation began early on Tuesday with aircraftdropping bombs on three river crossings and onebridge to prevent militants from escaping, the statementsaid. It said the locations were also used by al-Qaeda toconduct attacks.

It said residents of Sherween “played a vital role inthis operation as they fought side-by-side” with theIraqi security forces to help them capture and killmilitants. The statement did not elaborate but membersof some Sunni Arab tribes in Diyala along with membersof Sunni Arab insurgent groups that have previouslyfought American troops have joined with Iraqi securityforces to fight al-Qaeda.

Sunni Islamist al-Qaeda has fallen out with someinsurgent groups it previously cooperated with partlyover its indiscriminate killing of civilians and harshinterpretation of Islam. — MNA/Reuters

CANBERRA, 12 July —One of the largest giantsquid ever found haswashed up on a remoteAustralian beach, spar-king a race against timeby scientists to examinethe rarely seen deep-oceancreature.

The squid, the mantleor main body of whichmeasured two-metre (6.5-feet) long, was found by awalker late on Tuesday onOcean Beach, near Stra-han, on the western coastof island state Tasmania.

“It’s a whopper,”Tasmanian Museum

BEIJING, 12 July—AChinese city suburb hasset a bounty on dead fliesin a bid to promote publichygiene, Xinhua newsagency said on Tuesday.

Xigong, a district ofLuoyang in the centralprovince of Henan, paid

China city suburb putsa bounty on flies

out more than 1,000 yuan(125 US dollars) for about2,000 dead flies on 1 July,the day it launched thescheme with the aim ofencouraging cleanliness inresidential areas. “I andcolleagues believe it is thebest way to push residentsto do more for their livingenvironment,” Hu Gui-sheng, the office chief, wasquoted as saying.

The payment schemeis the first of its kind inLuoyang, a city of 1.55million people which isstriving to earn the title of“state-level hygienic city”.

But critics have ques-tioned the benefits ofpaying 0.5 yuan (seven UScents) per insect turned in,a scheme which hassparked an on-line debate.

MNA/Reuters

Rare giant squid washed up in Australiasenior curator GeneforWalker-Smith told localmedia on Wednesday.“The main mantle is aboutone metre across and itstotal length is about eightmetres.”

Scientists would takesamples from the creature,identified by state parksofficials as an Architeu-this, which can grow tomore than 10 metres (33feet) in length and weighmore than 275 kilogram-mes (606 pounds).

The Tasmanian animalwas 250 kilogrammes,Pemberton said.

The tentacles had beenbadly damaged, so theoverall length of theanimal could not bedetermined, a TasmaniaParks and Wildlifespokeswoman said. Parkrangers had moved theremains from the water.

Giant squid, oncebelieved to be mythicaldespite occasional sigh-tings by mariners, feed onfish and other squid. Lastyear, fishermen off theFalkland Islands caught acomplete animal mea-suring 8.62 metres.

MNA/Reuters

US mily claims killingalmost 30 militants in Iraq

Study finds wives have more powerat home than hubbies

colleagues video-taped 72married couples, whowere on average 33 yearsold and had been marriedfor about seven years.

The study participantsdiscussed each of theissues for 10 minutes.

Wives were more de-manding — asking for

changes in the relationshipor in their partner — andwere more likely to gettheir way than the hus-bands. “[Women] werecommunicating morepowerful messages, andmen were responding tothose messages byagreeing or giving in,” said

Vogel. According toMurphy, one reason whywives are in charge couldbe that “women areresponsible for overseeingthe relationship, makingsure the relationship runs,that everything gets done,and that everybody’shappy.” — Xinhua

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THE NEW LIGHT OF MYANMAR Saturday, 14 July, 2007 5

E C O N O M I C N E W S

China Shipbuilding Industry Corp (CSIC), one of the nation’s leadingshipbuilding groups, will seek an initial public offering (IPO) in 2007,according to sources close to the State-owned Assets Supervision and

Administration Commission (SASAC).— XINHUA

China bans diethylene glycolas toothpaste ingredient

BEIJING, 12 July—China has forbiddendomestic enterprises fromusing diethylene glycol asan ingredient in toothpasteafter a number of countriesbanned the sale fotoothpaste containing thischemical, according to theGeneral Administration ofQuality Supervision,Inspection and Quaran-tine.

Imports and exports oftoothpastes containing thissubstance known as DEGare banned startingWednesday.

In exceptional caseswhere the chemical findsits way into toothpastemixed up with otheringredients, quantitiesmust not exceed limits setby importing countries orregions.

Most Chinese tooth-paste firms have aban-doned DEG as aproduction raw material.The administration main-tained that toothpastecontaining DEG wouldnot jeopardize the health

of consumers.Citing a report by

experts from the Ministryof Health, the admini-stration said the long-termuse of toothpaste in whichthe DEG content was lessthan 15.6 per cent wouldhave no adverse affect onpeople’s health. None ofthe data suggested thattoothpaste containing this

substance had directly ledto the human poisonings.

Recent random ins-pections by domesticquality authorities foundmost domestically madetoothapste contained nosuch substance. Thequantities of DEG in thefew detected were lessthan 10 per cent, it said.

MNA/Xinhua

Japan asks for materials ofUS fighter jets on order list

TOKYO, 12 July— Japanese Defence Minister YurioKoike said on Wednesday that Japan wants to havematerials of US fighter jets which are in plannedprocurement of the Japanese Air Self -Defence Force.

The newly-appointed minister expressed the desirewhen meeting with US Ambassador to Japan ThomasSchieffer earlier in the day, local media reported.

Schieffer said Japan should think more about how toenhance Japan-US joint military capabilities than whichtype of aircraft to buy, according to the officials of theministry. The Japanese Government will diecide bynext summer which type of US fighter jets to buy toupdate the Self-Defence Forces’ major fighters, thereport said. When talking about the importance ofstrengthening Japan-US ally Koike pledged that Japanwill faithfully implement the realignment of US forcesin Japan.—MNA/Xinhua

Models show creations by Hong Kong designer Lo Sing Chin during theHong Kong New Fashion Collection Award at the Hong Kong fashion weekfor Spring/Summer 2008 on 12 July, 2007. The show has attracted a record

1,147 exhibitors from 19 countries and regions. —INTERNET

Journalists look at the famous painting ‘The Two Fridas’ done in 1939 byMexican artist Frida Kahlo, during a preview to the Press of the National

Homage to Frida Kahlo on the 100th anniversary of her birth at the palace offine arts in Mexico City, in this 12 June, 2007 file photo.— INTERNET

Malaysian company wins bid to manage Istanbul airport China’s agriculturaltrade deficit falls

67.2% in Jan-May

KUALA LUMPUR, 12July—Malaysia AirportsHoldings Bhd (MAHB)has edged out four otherinternational airportoperators to win a bid tomanage Sabiha GokcenInternational Airport inIstanbul, Turkey, localmedia reported on

Wednesday. The job scope includes

taking over the opera-tions, maintenance andrevenues of the inter-national and domesticterminals of the airportand all their relatedbuildings, equipment andgroundhandling, fuel

supply and bondedwarehousing operationsin the airport, the NewStraits Times reported.

“This project alsoinvolves the constructionof a new internationalterminal with a 10 millioncapacity in 30 months.The current international

terminal will be convertedto an all domestic ter-minal subsequent to con-struction of a new ter-minal,” MAHB said in astatement

The total concession feeis 1.93 billion euros (2.61billion US dollars) that isstructured over a 20-yearconcession period, with noconcession fees payablein the first three years.

“This is indeed a greatnews for Malaysia air-ports as it further rein-forces our status as one ofthe most sought-afterservice providers in thefield of airport opera-tions,” MAHB ManagingDirector Auk Seri BashirAhmad said.

Sabiha Gokcen Inter-national Airport is thesecond largest airport inIstanbul with two ter-minals, covering an areaof 1,337 hectares.

MNA/Xinhua

BEIJING, 12 July—China’s trade deficit inagricultural productsdropped to 490 millionUS dollars in the first fivemonths, down 67.2 percent from the same periodlast year as export growthoutpaced imports, accord-ing to figures from theMinistry of Agriculture.

From January to May,exports of agriculturalproducts rose to 14.42billion US dollars, up 22.5per cent, while importsrose by 12.4 per cent to14.92 billion US dollars.

The total trade volumestood at 29.34 billion USdollars, up 53.4 per centfrom the same period lastyear. According to theministry, China exported5.078 million tons of

cereals between Januaryand May, up 53.4 per cent,while its cereal importslid by 51.4 per cent to797,000 tons.

That makes a net cerealexports of 4.281 milliontons, up 156 per cent. Abreakdown shows exportsof rice, corn and wheatgrew markedly, whileimports of barley declined,the ministry said.

The trade surplus inaquatic products enjoyeda steady increase to hit1.91 billion US dollars,up 10.4 per cent.

The deficit in livestockproducts widened in thepast five months, up 150per cent from the sameperiod of last year to 910million US dollars.

MNA/Xinhua

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6 THE NEW LIGHT OF MYANMAR Saturday, 14 July, 2007

An Algerian policeman stands guard as security forces block the road toLakhdaria, 70 kms (45 miles) southeast of Algiers recently. The Al-Qaedabranch in North Africa claimed responsibility for Wednesday’s suicide car

bombing at an Algerian barracks that killed 10 soldiers, Al-Jazeera televisionreported. — XINHUA

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Mohamed ElBaradei (L) and South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun meet at the

Presidential Blue House in Seoul on 11 July , 2007. — XINHUA

In an image provided by Equi-Photo, Florida Snow Fall, with Chuck C Lopezaboard, leaps over a shadow on the track in the final yards of the third race at

Monmouth Park in Oceanport, NJ, on 11 July , 2007. Florida Snow Fallrecovered in time to win the horse race. — INTERNET

BERLIN, 12 July — AGerman woman who waskidnapped by militants inIraq in February is freebut her son remains incaptivity, German ForeignMinister Frank-WalterSteinmeier said onWednesday. “After 155days, Hannelore Krause’scaptivity is over. She hasbeen free since yesterdayafternoon,” Steinmeiertold reporters in Berlin,declining to talk about thecircumstances of her

GENEVA, 12 July—Heavy rain and unsea-sonably low temperatureshave marred the beginningof the summer holidayperiod in many parts ofSwitzerland, the official

One of two Germanhostages in Iraq free

release.“We are relieved that

Mrs Krause is now free,but the worrying uncer-tainty about the fate of herson, who is still in cap-tivity, remains,” he added.

Iraqi militants hadthreatened to kill the two,seized from their homein western Baghdad on6 February, unlessGermany withdrew itstroops from Afghanistan.

In April, the Arrows ofRighteousness group

posted a video on theInternet showing Hanne-lore Marianne Krauseurging Germans to presstheir government to heedthe demands of themilitants.

Krause, who brokedown in tears on the video,is married to an Iraqiphysician and moved toIraq 40 years ago. Her son,Sinan, is reported to be inhis mid-20s and has dualGerman-Iraqi citizenship.

MNA/Reuters

Switzerland experiences unseasonablycold weatherSwissinfo website re-ported on Tuesday.

While the mixedweather appears to havehad no major impact ontourism, the authoritiesissued warnings as the

levels of several lakesreached a critical point,according to the report.

Several weeks of badweather with violentthunderstorms and inter-mittently heavy rain havefilled up many riverbedsand lakes, particularly inthe region around thecapital, Bern, as well as insouthwestern Switzer-land. The authorities havecalled on people livingnear lakes to watch waterlevels carefully andevacuate their basementsto limit damage to pro-perty. On Monday regionsin central and easternSwitzerland were also hitby heavy rain.

A drop in temperaturesled to snow falling in theAlps above 1,800 metresat the beginning of theweek.—MNA/Xinhua

Suicide bomb kills eight in Algeria

ALGIERS, 12 July—Asuicide bomber detonatedan explosives-ladenvehicle near an Algerianmilitary barracks onWednesday, killinghimself and about eightother people in the restiveKabylie Region east ofAlgiers, residents said.

The explosion occur-red in Lakhdaria villagenear Bouira town 120kilometres (75 miles) eastof the capital, the residentssaid. They said several

other people werewounded.

There was no immedi-ate claim of responsibilityfor the attack. An al-Qaeda-aligned rebelgroup previously knownas the Salafist Group forPreaching and Combat(GSPC) has claimedresponsibility for suchattacks in recent months,including a triple suicidebombing in Algiers on 11April that killed 33 people.

MNA/Reuters

MANILA, 12 July—Atleast eight people werekilled while two otherswere still missing after apassenger ferry sank in thecentral Philippines onThursday morning, ac-cording to the updatecounts of the Coast Guard.

Eight killed, two missing after Philippine ferry sinksFifty people were

finally rescued from theship that carried a total of60 passengers, a report byGMA news networkquoted the PhilippineCoast Guard as saying.

In earlier reports, 28passengers were said to

be travelling on the vessel.The vessel M/B Blue

Water Princess, had justleft Lucena City in QuezonProvince and was boundfor Masbate Provincewhen it sank at around 3:00 am said the report.

MNA/Xinhua

Multiple suicide bomb attackskill 21 in west of Baghdad

FALLUJAH (Iraq), 12July—Multiple suicidebomb attack the house ofa Sunni tribal leaderduring a gathering in atown near the city ofFallujah Wednesday, kil-ling at least 21 people andwounded some 50 others,local police and medicalsources said.

“Two suicide bomberswearing explosive beltsblew themselves up atabout 5;00 pm (1300GMT) among a crowd ofthe al-Jumailat tribe in thehouse of Sheikh Meshhin

al-Khalaf in the town ofGarmah,” a police sourcein the town told Xinhuaon condition of anony-mity.

Afterwards, two moresuicide bombers sneakedamong dozens of peoplegathered of help eva-cuating casualties andblew themselves up, thesource said.

Earlier, Khalaf calledon a gathering in his houseto urge his tribesmen jointhe Iraqi security forcesto fight the al-Qaedamilitants in Iraq’s western

Anbar Province, thesource added.

Many of the woundedpeople were in criticalcondition, he said.

Khalaf’s house wastotally destroyed by theblasts, the source said,adding that several nearbyhouses and a police stationwere also damaged.

Ambulances, policevehicles and private carstransferred killed andwounded people to theGeneral Hospital inFallujah.

MNA/Xinhua

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THE NEW LIGHT OF MYANMAR Saturday, 14 July, 2007 7

(from page 16)At Paunglaung Sports

Ground, Ministry of Re-ligious Affairs will playagainst Ministry of Ho-tels and Tourism in themorning match, and Min-istry of Social Welfare,Relief and Resettlementwill meet with Ministryof Electric Power No 1in the afternoon match.

At Lewe TownshipSports Ground, Ministry ofHealth will compete withMinistry of Sports. — MNA

(from page 16)In his instructions, Lt-

Gen Khin Maung Thansaid that the plan has setto put 550,000 acres ofland under edible oilcrops in 2007-08 for en-suring edible oil suffi-ciency in the whole divi-sion. Hence, Pyay Dis-trict is to contribute tocultivation of edible oilcrops to meet the target.Mixed cropping of peaand sunflower are to begrown in Pyay Districtand Paukkhaung Town-ship to increase sownacreage. Pyay Districtand Paukkhaung Town-ship are to distributequality strains of sun-flower, sesame andgroundnut to other town-ships.

They viewed thriv-ing monsoon sesameplantations. Next, theylooked into display ofsesame strains.

Pyay District set aplan to grow edible oilcrops on 190,000 acresand Paukkhaung Town-ship on 56,000 acres thisyear.

Lt-Gen KhinMaung Thaninspects …

Labour and RailTransportation…

At the local battalionin Paukkhaung Town-ship, Lt-Gen KhinMaung Than cordiallymet with servicemen andfamily members.

In Tituk Model Vil-lage of Pyay Township,Lt-Gen Khin MaungThan and party attendedthe physic nut cultiva-tion ceremony on 200acres of land. Lt-GenKhin Maung Than andthe commander pre-sented physic nut sap-lings to responsible per-sons of social organiza-tions. They viewed par-ticipation of departmen-tal personnel and socialorganization membersin the physic nut culti-

vation ceremony.They looked into

physic nut oil-burningstoves and lamps, oil,seed and bulbs of physicnut plants displayed byAgricultural Mechaniza-tion Department and useof physic nut oil at Leyar-22 power-tiller.

The 1,440-acre TitukFarm has so far been putunder physic nut plants.

Bago Division (West)has cultivated 110,000acres of land underphysic nut against thetarget of 120,000 acresthis year. Officials arestriving for growing theremaining 10,000 acresof physic nut in rainyseason. — MNA

NAY PYI TAW, 13 July—Proficiency CourseNo 26 for Auditors concluded at the training school ofthe Auditor-General’s Office here this afternoon.

Auditor-General Maj-Gen Lun Maungdelivered a speech at the ceremony.

Sixty-nine trainees completed the two-monthcourse.

Now, plans are under way to conduct courses(Grade, I, II and III) for clerks, and on-job trainingcourses for chief auditors of the Auditor-General’sOffice at the same venue.—MNA

Proficiency Course No 26 forAuditors concludes

YANGON, 13 July— The fifth cash dona-tions ceremony for theconstruction of TheravadaBuddhist MissionaryMyanmar Monastery inParis, France was held atthe Mahapasana Cave thisevening, attended by Min-ister for Religious AffairsBrig-Gen Thura MyintMaung.

First, the minis-ter and the congregationreceived the Five Preceptsfrom the Chairman ofState Sangha MahaNayaka Committee

Abhidhaja Maha RatthaGuru AbhidhajaSuddhamma JotikaSayadaw BhaddantaKumara of Magway MahaWithotayama TaikthitMonastery.

Next, MissionarySayadaw Ashin NandaSiri from France suppli-cated the matters on themonastery in France andthe minister and party of-fered provisions to themembers of the Sangha.

Later, the minis-ter and officials acceptedK 400,000 each by Daw

Khin Than Nwe, wife ofLt-Gen Tin Oo, and fam-ily and Vice-Chairman ofYangon City Develop-ment Committee Vice-Mayor Col Maung Pa andfamily, K 3.2 million byThabawa Mothinga inSouth Okkala Township,K 2.6 million by U Ko KoHtwe and Thiri ThudhamaTheingi Daw Aye AyeThan (Tawwin Co), K 2.1million by Daw Khin HtarLatt, K 2 million by Prin-cipal U Win Thein andstaff of Institute of Ma-rine Technology and overK 8 million and FEC 1,000donated by otherwellwishers and presentedcertificates of honour tothem.

After that thosepresent shared the meritsgained. The donation fromfirst to firth times for theconstruction of the mon-astery in France totaled K434,365,512, FEC 3,833and US$ 29,810.

MNA

Minister accepts cash donations forconstruction of Theravada Buddhist

Missionary Myanmar Monastery in Paris

YANGON, 13 July — Members of Sagaing Township National League forDemocracy in Sagaing Division U Soe Myint, U Marmad, U Thaung, U Kyaw Myaand U Gani Bai of Ywathitkyi Village, U Aung Kyaw Moe, Daw Khin Lay Maw, UNay Lin, U Myint Kyaw, U Myint Htoo and U Thaung of Ywama Village and U ThanTun of Padu Village resigned from the party of their own accord and sent copies oftheir resignations to the NLD Headquarters and authorities concerned.

In the resignation letter sent to Sagaing Division Multi-party DemocracyGeneral Election Subcommission, they said that there was a strong disagreementamong the NLD leaders and they had no genuine political programme, that it wasseeking self-interest bent on grabbing the State power without giving any hand tonational development tasks, and that the leaders were playing political tricks lackingpolitical skills. That was why, the NLD members who resigned said, they quit the partyof their own violation as they no longer wanted to stand as its members. — MNA

Lt-Gen Khin Maung Than views running of physic nut oil-run power tillers.—MNA

Minister for Energy Brig-Gen Lun Thiviews the match of Ministry of Information

and Ministry of Energy.—MNA

NLD has no genuine political programmeStrong disagreement among its leaders

Not giving any hand to national development tasksSagaing Township NLD members quit

14-7-07 NL 8/7/18, 01:08 AM7

8 THE NEW LIGHT OF MYANMAR Saturday, 14 July, 2007

The date on which Arzani leaders died passes 60years on the forthcoming Arzani (Martyrs) Day whichfalls on 19 July. Bogyoke Aung San, the architect ofindependence, and Arzani leaders died long ago, butthe entire people of Myanmar never forget them.Bogyoke was only 32 when he was brutallyassassinated. Citing his age, morale and efficiency,he could serve the national interest much. Theassassination of Bogyoke is an invaluable loss to thenation.

The root cause of the atrocious assassinationwas the breaking up of national unity resultingfrom disagreements among the people. Thecolonialists made instigation to break up nationalunity and supported the plan to murder BogyokeAung San and Arzani leaders.

On 20 December 1946, the British House ofCommons invited the delegation led by BogyokeAung San to London to hold talks with the Britishgovernment. The delegation to hold talks forMyanmar's independence comprised Britishsympathizers such as U Saw and Thakin Ba Sein.Those sympathizers tried to disturb the meeting.U Saw wanted dominion instead of independence.Those sympathizers refused to sign the Aung San-Atlee Agreement. The British faced an uneasysituation, when the Panglong Agreement wasreached to unitedly strive for independence inaccord with the Aung San-Atlee Agreement.

When AFPFL conference held in May 1947and Taing-pyu Pyi-pyu Hluttaw organized in Junepassed a resolution demanding total independence,the British dream of granting dominion toMyanmar or granting her total independence asCommonwealth member ended.

The colonialist had no choice, but to install U Sawas the leader through violent means. U Saw too came

Let's unite for national interestNgar Min Swe

to realize that although independence was imminent,he had no hope of getting a senior position. In addition,he calculated that the people would entrust power to noother organization or persons than the AFPFL. So, hetried to grab power through violent means, whilerelying on the colonialists.

In the early 1946, U Saw received a submachine gun,three carbines, one Sten gun, two Tommy guns, oneLugar pistol and one revolver and rounds of ammunitionfrom Maj Yang, a commander of the British army. Yangvisited U Saw's house and presented in person sealedpapers to get guns and bullets from Botahtaung OrdnanceDepot. On 24 June 1947, 200 Bren guns, 200 extrabarrels and 800 magazines were trucked to U Saw'shouse. On 1 July, U Saw received 100,000 point 303bullets for Bren guns, 25,600 Sten gun rounds and 200hand grenades from Mingaladon-based Britishammunition unit. It was obvious that the Britishmilitary brass got involved in the case as the act ofpermitting U Saw to receive such a large haul of armsand ammunition was beyond the authority of midlevel army commanders like Captain Vivian andMaj Yang.

Meanwhile, news was spreading that 200 Bren gunsof the British army went missing and that the colonialistsand national traitors were hatching a secrete plot toassassinate Bogyoke Aung San. U Saw's house by theInya Lake on AD Road was frequented by visitors. Itseemed that Bogyoke was able to calculate his fate. Athis meeting with British governor Dorman Smith,Bogyoke said that a national hero could not live long inthe country for he had so many enemies; and that hemight live only three more years. Bogyoke also told himthat as for him he could live no more than another 18months. However, intelligence and security personnelwere not able to fully protect Bogyoke Aung San.

When Bogyoke Aung San and other AFPFL leaders

came to know that U Saw received arms andammunition from the British army, Bogyoke and UNu on 16 July met with the British governor anddiscussed the case with him. A special cabinet meetingwas going to be convened on 19 July to discuss thematter. U Saw was under suspicion in connectionwith the case. But U Saw got complete information onthe cabinet meeting on 18 July evening. He summonedhis men at 9 pm and ordered them to assassinateBogyoke Aung San and the ministers.

(Dear readers, I have referred the book “The HighTreason I Have Witnessed" compiled by Ko Than(Kyimyindine) to write the above facts). During thetime, the Myanmar people tried in unity to freethemselves from the yoke of colonialists who hadexploited them for over 100 years and to rebuild thenation that was reduced to ashes. Later, nationalunity was lost because of the conspiracy of thecolonialists, and U Saw assassinated Bogyoke AungSan and Arzani leaders. The colonialists raised USaw as their stooge and made plots and helped himto commit the high treason. The loss of nationalunity and national leaders had immense negativeimpacts on the national interest.

Myanmar regained independence on 4 January1948. Burma Communist Party (BCP) wentunderground on 28 March 1948 saying thatMyanmar was granted only sham independence.BCP's act ignited the internal armed strife leadingto destruction of the national unity and a lot ofpublic lives and property while seriously harmingthe national interest.

In 1958, the ruling AFPFL party split into twofactions due to its disunity, and that meant the collapseof the national force into two groups. In consequence,the nation was on the verge of collapse. So, theTatmadaw took over State power and formed theRevolutionary Council on 2 March 1962. TheRevolutionary Council held peace talks with the BCPwith the aim of gaining national reconsolidation,however the talks did not come to fruition. Then, thecouncil nationalized all private enterprises, large andsmall, thereby harming the national economy.

The Revolutionary Council drew a Stateconstitution and approved it through a referendum.Under the new State constitution, it practised thesole party system to rule the country. The rulingMyanma Socialist Programme Party was incapableof building unity with the BCP and national racearmed groups, which were taking a stronghold inborder areas and rising against the government withthe assistance given and abetted by certain foreigncountries. At the time, the Myanma SocialistProgramme Party exercised the centralized economicsystem. The failure to introduce the market-orientedeconomic system and to achieve nationalreconsolidation reduced Myanmar to a leastdeveloped country (LDC).

While the nation was facing crises in varioussectors, the Myanma Socialist Programme Partydemonetized the currency in circulation. As a result,the entire people lost their trust in it and took to thestreets and staged mass demonstrations, shouting“No party or council”, culminating in the 1988 unrest.The nation would not have faced the 1988

(See page 9)

A review of the above facts will show that the big foreignnations interfered with Myanmar’s politics raising lackeysbeginning from the period of independence struggle in 1946-47. Their interference undermined national unity and causeda lot of hardships in the national economy. The nation becamebackward. For 60 years from 1946-47 to this day, someMyanmar politicians became lackeys and puppets of foreignnations, As a result, national unity was in jeopardy and thepeople of Myanmar faced many adversities. Some citizenswere not a position to escape from these adversities the wholelife. This has been most saddening and shameful. There may bedifferences of opinions in personal beliefs but such differencesshould not harm national interests in any way. All must beunited for the sake of national interest. Realizing the acts ofDaw Suu Kyi and NLD harmful to national unity and nationalinterests, members have been resigning from NLD continuouslyin the interest of national unity and national interest.

14-7-07 NL 8/7/18, 01:08 AM8

THE NEW LIGHT OF MYANMAR Saturday, 14 July, 2007 9

(from page 8)unrest had the party practised themarket-oriented economic system andbuilt internal peace at the time of about1980. And if it had served nationalinterests and built national unity,today’s Myanmar would have enjoyedthe fruits of development better thanthe People’s Republic of China andVietnam that are now enjoyingcumulative economic growth.

The 1988 unrest dealt a devastatingblow to the Myanma SocialistProgramme Party. Therefore, theTatmadaw, the only strong force, had totake a leadership role in the nation’spolitical sector to avert possibledisintegration of the Union. With a viewto enhancing the national interest, theTatmadaw government introduced themarket-oriented economic system, andpermitted the people to form politicalparties as part of the drive for theemergence of the multi-party systemaspired by the people. It held the multi-party election freely and fairly in 1990.It achieved success in building peacewith national race armed groups throughpeace talks. It launched the NationalConvention in January 1993 to draw aState constitution.

The nation is now enjoying rapideconomic growth thanks to theearnest efforts the government hasbeen making to serve the nationalinterest and regain national unity.In addition, the living standard ofMyanmar people is getting high. Thenation has seen many housingestates, and many people who hadonly huts in the past have becomeowners of apartments andautomobiles. Around 1995, anapartment in downtown Yangon wasworth about 400,000 to 500,000 kyats,and Corolla Van, 300,000 to 400,000kyats. Moreover, government servicepersonnel and staff of companies couldlead an easy life with own cars andflats. Many small entrepreneurs fromrural areas like me have migrated toYangon and owned residences and cars.

The Tatmadaw government’sefforts brought prospects for economicgrowth to the nation. In 1995, thegovernment lifted the restrictionsimposed on Daw Suu Kyi, the leaderof NLD, to enhance nationalconsolidation.

One of the basic principles theongoing National Convention haslaid down is “No foreign troops shallbe permitted to be deployed withinthe borders of the Union”. Thus, theWestern power that eyes Myanmarsituated between two Asian giantswas not happy with that principle.

Let's unite for national interestNgar Min Swe

❒ In response to Daw Suu Kyi’s outright order in 1995,NLD delegates turned their back on the NationalConvention. This led to temporary adjournment of theNational Convention thereby disrupting national unity.

❒ Daw Suu Kyi and NLD’s calls for economic sanctions onMyanmar were immensely harmful to national interests.Myanmar people suffered a lot of hardships after 1996due to their acts to undermine the national unity andharm national economy.

❒ People of Myanmar forgave them according to the fourcardinal values such as loving-kindness, compassion,rejoicing at somebody’s success and indifference, thatare much higher than democratic practices. Still, thepeople of Myanmar are no saints; their tolerance,therefore, is limited.

Due to the principle, the big nationwas beyond the hope of installing apuppet government and stationing itstroops in Myanmar. AmericanAmbassador to the UN MadeleineAlbright visited Myanmar and held aprivate discussion with Daw Suu Kyi.Soon after Madeleine Albright wenthome, under the irrevocable order ofDaw Suu Kyi, NLD representativeswho were attending the NC that hadbeen launched in January 1993 walkedout of the NC. Daw Suu Kyi’s attackson the NC had adverse effects onnational unity and she became a lackeyof an alien country.

In order to expedite themomentum of success in the economywhich began to bear fruits in 1995, thegovernment launched the Visit MyanmarYear in 1996. If the plan had provedsuccess Myanmar would have earnedbillions of dollars a year from the tourismindustry. However, Daw Suu Kyi andNLD dissuaded the tourists from visitingthe country. Daw Suu Kyi and NLDtrampled on the move, which wasdesigned to serve national interest.

Furthermore, Daw Suu Kyi andNLD had gone so far as declaring thatthere would be utter devastation unlessthere was a dialogue. They also calledon the West bloc to impose sanctionson Myanmar. Myanmar people werehit hard by the sanctions, imposed bythe West bloc. More than 80,000workers lost their jobs in the garmentindustry alone. In their broadcasts on25 June VOA and RFA disclosed thatMyanmar earned 180 million USdollars only in 2006, compared with850 million US dollars in 2001 fromthe industry. When the garmentindustry of Myanmar collapsed that inthe neighbouring countries flourishedrapidly. Bangladesh, for instance,earned as much as 9,000 million USdollars every year.

In response to Daw Suu Kyi’soutright order in 1995, NLD delegatesturned their back on the NationalConvention. This led to temporaryadjournment of the NationalConvention thereby disrupting nationalunity. Daw Suu Kyi and NLD’s calls foreconomic sanctions on Myanmar wereimmensely harmful to nationalinterests. Myanmar people suffered alot of hardships after 1996 due to theiracts to undermine the national unityand harm national economy.

Although Myanmar citizens had beenable to live in peace enjoying life with theirfamilies in the past many were separatedfrom their families as they had to go toneighbouring countries to earn their living.An apartment in downtown Yangon cost

about K 400,000 or K 500,000 previouslybut its price has risen to K 20-30 milliontoday. A Corolla van that could be boughtfor K 300,000 or K 400,000 costs K 90million or K 100 million at present. Underthe circumstances, the people of Myanmarseem to be returning to the hutments fromthe brick buildings and some have to sell offtheir private cars and take buses or slow-moving vehicles. What is worse, tens ofthousands of garment factory womenworkers lost their jobs. Some had to engagein the flesh trade. Some got infected withHIV/AIDS.

Daw Suu Kyi and NLD that causedsuch hardships were sure to face legalaction and get punished in thedemocracy nations they held in esteemif they committed similar offences there.However, the people of Myanmarforgave them according to the fourcardinal values such as loving-kindness,compassion, rejoicing at somebody’ssuccess and indifference, that are muchhigher than democratic practices. Still,the people of Myanmar are no saints;their tolerance, therefore, is limited.This should be realized by Daw SuuKyi and NLD.

A review of the above facts willshow that the big foreign nationsinterfered with Myanmar’s politicsraising lackeys beginning from theperiod of independence struggle in1946-47. Their interferenceundermined national unity and causeda lot of difficulties in the nationaleconomy. The nation becamebackward. For 60 years from 1946-47to this day, some Myanmar politiciansbecame lackeys and puppets of foreignnations. As a result, national unity wasin jeopardy and the people of Myanmarfaced many adversities. Some citizenswere not in a position to escape from

these adversities the whole life. This hasbeen most saddening and shameful.There may be differences of opinions inpersonal beliefs but such differencesshould not harm national interests inany way. All must be united for the sakeof national interest. Realizing the acts ofDaw Suu Kyi and NLD that have beenharmful to national unity and nationalinterests, members have been resigningfrom NLD continuously in the interestof national unity and national interest.

In order to bring about nationalunity and serve national interests, DawSuu Kyi and NLD will have to try toescape from foreign influence anddomination. Daw Suu Kyi, in particular,should realize her position, which is likethat of Galon U Saw, a stooge, whobrutally conspired the assassination ofher father; she should be repentant andtry to escape from the present positiontoday when the Martyrs’ Day isapproaching. They should immediatelycooperate with the government and thepeople unconditionally in the interest ofnational unity and national interest. Theentire people of Myanmar aredesirous of achieving national unity.They all believe that Myanmar willsurely achieve rapid economicdevelopment overcoming all the socio-economic problems being confrontedtoday if the entire people are united innational interest. It is the strong desireof the Myanmar people to be freefrom the socio-economic evilsresulting from the deterioration ofnational unity. In order to fulfil thisardent desire of the people soonest Iwould like to urge one and all to unitekeeping national interest in mind.

Translation: TMT+MS+AKMyanma Alin & Kyemon

(13-7-2007)

14-7-07 NL 8/7/18, 01:08 AM9

10 THE NEW LIGHT OF MYANMAR Saturday, 14 July, 2007

2nd Plenary Meeting of…(from page 1)

and Agga Maha Ganthavaçaka Pandita BhaddantaÇandima of Zeyathukha Waso Monastery of Mohnyinthe report on religious affairs; Agga Maha PanditaBhaddanta Panditabhivamsa of Maha Bawdi Monasteryof Yankin Township the report on promotion andpropagation of the Sasana; Agga Maha Pandita AggaMaha Saddhamma Jotikadhaja BhaddantaVepullabhivamsa of Shwebontha Monastery ofNyaungshwe Township and Maha SaddhammaJotikadhaja Bhaddanta Janeya of KhemayamaMonastery of Hpa-an the report on education sector.

Members of SSMNC discussed the Viniçchaya, religious and education affairs.Minister for Religious Affairs Brig-Gen Thura

Myint Maung supplicated on the religious affairs.The second-day session of the meeting continues

tomorrow.Today, under the aegis of Sayadaw Bhaddanta

Manita of Kyaikkasan Weluwun Shwegyin NewMonastery, disciples offered a day meal to membersof the Sangha.

Also present at the meeting were Adviser U ArntMaung, Director-General U Myo Kyaw of ReligiousAffairs Department, Director-General Dr Myo Myintof Department for Promotion and Propagation of theSangha and officials.

MNA

Foreign Minister sendsfelicitations to French

Republic NAY PYI TAW, 14 July — U Nyan Win, Ministerfor Foreign Affairs of the Union of Myanmar, hassent a message of felicitations to His Excellency MrBarnard Kouchner, Minister of Foreign Affairs ofthe French Republic, on the occasion of the NationalDay of the French Republic which falls on 14 July2007. — MNA

Minister receivesBangladeshi guests

NAY PYI TAW, 13 July — Minister forElectric Power No 1 Col Zaw Min receivedSecretary Mr M Fouzul Kabir Khan of the Ministryof Power, Energy and Mineral Resources of theGovernment of the People’s Republic of Bangladeshwho was accompanied by Bangladeshi AmbassadorMr M Khairuzzaman and party at the ministry hereon 11 July afternoon.

Also present at the call were DeputyMinister U Myo Myint, directors-general ofdepartments and officials under the ministry.

MNA

MinisterBrig-Gen

ThuraMyint

Maungsupplicates

onreligiousmatters.

MNA

Vietnamese delegation paying a visit to Union National RacesVillage.—MNA

General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Lieutenant General KS Jamwal AVSM, VSM of EasternCommand (Kolkata) visits Defence Services Museum.—MNA

Announcement on illegalincoming calls

NAY PYI TAW, 13 July—The Myanma Posts andTelecommunications under the Ministry ofCommunications, Posts and Telegraphs todayannounced that it is now working hard to ensure astandard communication system for both local andlong-distance calls. However, some dishonestpersons in collusion with some foreign companiesare illegally making incoming calls to Myanmar. Inconsequence, the nation is facing tax losses andreceiving poor incoming telephone calls and Faxand e-Mail messages.

If there is an illegal incoming call through a localtelephone number, the owner of the local telephoneshould note the local number, and dial MPT complaintTel No (106) or Fax No 067-422106 and giveinformation. — MNA

Vietnamese delegation visitsNational Races Village

YANGON, 13 July — The goodwill Vietnamesedelegation headed by Mr Pham Duy Hung of Radio theVoice of Vietnam, accompanied by the officials ofMRTV, visited Union National Races Village inThakayta Township this evening.

Officials conducted them around the village.MNA

Lieutenant General KSJamwal AVSM, VSM ofEastern Command(Kolkata) of IndianArmed Forces leftMandalay this morningand arrived here at 9.30am.

They were welcomedat Yangon InternationalAirport by Chairman ofYangon Division Peaceand DevelopmentCouncil Commander ofYangon Command Maj-Gen Hla Htay Win andwife Daw Mar Mar Wai,senior military officersand officials.

Accompanied byofficials concerned, theIndian delegation andparty visited Myanma

Indian General Officer Commanding-in-Chief visitsNational Defence College, Defence Services Museum

YANGON, 13 July—The visiting Indiandelegation led byGeneral OfficerCommanding-in-Chief

Gems Museum of theMinistry of Mines onKaba Aye PagodaRoad.

On arrival at theNational Defence Collegein Dagon Township theywere welcomed byCommandant of NDCMaj-Gen Mya Win andofficials.

At the hall of thecollege, the commandantbriefed the Indiandelegation and party onthe background history ofthe institution.

Next, Commandantof NDC Maj-Gen MyaWin and GeneralOfficer Commanding-in-Chief LieutenantGeneral KS Jamwal

AVSM, VSM of EasternCommand (Kolkata)exchanged gifts.

After observingbooths and library of thecollege, General OfficerCommanding-in-ChiefLieutenant General KSJamwal AVSM, VSMsigned the visitors’ book.

Next, the Indiandelegation and partyproceeded to the DefenceServices Museum onShwedagon Pagoda Roadwhere they werewelcomed and conductedround by Commandant ofDefence ServicesMuseum and HistoricalResearch Institute ColZaw Win and officials.

MNA

MagwaySayadaw

AbhidhajaMaha

Rattha GuruAbhidhajaAgga MahaSaddham-majotika

BhaddantaKumara.

MNA

14-7-07 NL 8/7/18, 01:08 AM10

THE NEW LIGHT OF MYANMAR Saturday, 14 July, 2007 11

PORTHARCOURT (Nigeria), 13 July — A 3-year-old Nigerian boy has been kidnapped in the oil-producing Niger Delta in southern Nigeria, policesaid on Thursday, four days after a British girl of thesame age was released by her kidnappers.

Police spokeswoman Ireju Barasua said the boywas the son of a traditional ruler in the community ofIriebe, on the outskirts of Port Harcourt, the delta’smain city. Barasua gave the father’s name as EzeFrancis Amadi.— MNA/Reuters

ASMARA, 13 July —Eritrea has arrested twoBritish Councilemployees in Asmara, theRed Sea State said onThursday, and alsoaccused a British diplomatof breaking its laws.

“Only one is (still) indetention. I don’t want toenter into details. The lawhas been violated,”Ambassador PetrosFessahazion, head of theEuropean desk at Eritrea’sMinistry of ForeignAffairs, told Reuters bytelephone.

“If there is aninfraction of the law, wecan’t stay without reactingjust for the sake of having

HOUSTON,13 July —Venezuela’s ambassadorto the United States calledon Wednesday forcooperation between thetwo often-hostile nations,but said Washington firstneeds to show somerespect.

Ambassador Ber-nardo Alvarez saidVenezuela’s push towardsocialism and recentnationalization of foreignoil operations in theOrinoco heavy oil beltwere an effort to bring“equilibrium” to thesociety.

Neither that nor therecent rise of other leftistgovernments in LatinAmerica were a threat tothe United States, he said.

ATHENS, 13 July — Fifty-three people wereinjured in a head-on collision between a passengertrain packed with commuters and a cargo train inAthens on Thursday, police said.

Greek television showed that both trains hadsuffered extensive damage, with the drivers’ cabinscompletely wrecked.

Police said the crowded passenger train washeading towards central Athens from the northernsuburbs when the driver saw a goods train from the cityof Corinth, south of Athens, approaching on the sametrack.

“The reasons for the accident will beinvestigated immediately,” the OSE rail company saidin a statement.

Police said about half of those hurt had seriousinjuries. The rest would be released from hospital soonafter treatment. They said the driver had rushed downthe train, shouting to passengers to prepare for animminent crash.

Eyewitnesses at the site of the crash, in theworking-class district of Sepolia, told television theysaw dazed passengers stumbling out of the train rightafter the collision.— MNA/Reuters

BAGHDAD, 13 July — Fierce clashes and snipershooting killed nine people in two incidents in Baghdadon Thursday, an Interior Ministry source said.

“US troops backed by helicopters fiercely clashedwith militiamen in Baghdad’s eastern neighbourhoodof al-Amin,” the source told Xinhua on condition ofanonymity.

At least eight people were killed and 15 otherswounded in the clashes, the source said.

US troops sealed off the neighbourhood as fightingcontinued in the afternoon while helicopters could beseen hovering over the area, he added.

Separately, clashes erupted in the afternoonbetween police forces and gunmen in the neighbourhoodof Saidiyah in southwestern Baghdad, the source said.

It was not known what caused the clashes orwhether there was any casualty, he said, adding that theSaidiyah Sunni enclave was frequently attacked bymilitias from neighbouring Shiite neighbourhoods.

MNA/Xinhua

Two British Council employeesarrested in Eritrea

bilateral relations.” A British Council

spokesman said both itsemployees where Eritreannationals, and said itwould be unhelpful tospeculate on the reasonsbehind the arrests.

“We are concernedabout this and we areworking closely with theBritish Embassy and arealso in contact with theEritreans,” the spokesmansaid. “We believe it is amisunderstanding we aretrying to resolve.”

Media reports havealso said Eritrea stopped aBritish diplomat based inneighbouring Ethiopia fromleaving Eritrea following a

visit, but Asmara dismissedthat.— MNA/Reuters

Nine killed in Baghdadviolence

Venezuela ambassador calls forUS cooperation

Three-year-old Nigerian boyabducted in Niger Delta

“With all this newreality, we think thatVenezuela and the UShave a clear role ofcooperation. We have togo beyond our selfishinterests and look at theinterests of the hemispherewith a sense of mediumand long-term,” Alvarezsaid in a speech to theGreater HoustonPartnership.

Venezuela is one ofthe largest energyproducers in the WesternHemisphere and theUnited States the largestconsumer, he pointed out.

The Bush Admini-

stration has had frostyrelations with VenezuelanPresident Hugo Chavez.Its recently departedambassador, WilliamBrownfield, had aparticularly rocky stay inCaracas, where eggs andtomatoes were thrown athim and Chavezthreatened him withexpulsion.

When asked whatmessage Chavez hoped tohear from the nextambassador, Alvarezreplied curtly: “We areready to respectVenezuela,’ period.”

MNA/Reuters

VVVVVIn this file picture, police search streets around Haymarket, the Londonstreet where a vehicle containing an explosive device was discovered, on29 June , 2007. A Briton wanted in connection with failed car bomb plotsin London has been found by police in Thailand and sent back to the UK,a senior Thai police officer said on Wednesday. — INTERNET

A man walks out from his house after a landslidetriggered by heavy rains hit the district insouthwest China’s Chongqing municipality on9 July, 2007. Torrential rains battered largeswathes of China on Monday after killing 94people and displacing more than half a millionover the pastweek, state media said. — INTERNET

Over 50 injured in Athenshead-on train collision

A woman wearing a coat, hat and scarf walks herdog on a cold day in Buenos Aires on 11 July ,2007. The cold weather is expected to last several days, local media reported. — INTERNET

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12 THE NEW LIGHT OF MYANMAR Saturday, 14 July, 2007

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

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CLAIMS DAY NOTICEMV FRIENDLY SEA VOY NO ( 9)Consignees of cargo carried on MV FRIENDLY

SEA VOY NO ( 9) are hereby notified that the vesselwill be arriving on 15.7.2007 and cargo will be dis-charged into the premises of Myanma Port Authoritywhere it will lie at the consignee’s risk and expenses andsubject to the byelaws and conditions of the Port ofYangon.

Damaged cargo will be surveyed daily from 8 amto 11:20 am and 12 noon to 4 pm up to Claims Day nowdeclared as the third day after final discharge of cargofrom the vessel.

No claims against this vessel will be admitted afterthe Claims Day.

SHIPPING AGENCY DEPARTMENTMYANMA PORT AUTHORITY

AGENT FOR: EASTERN CAR LINER LTDPhone No: 256924/256914

Gunmen kill 11 byblowing up house in Iraq BAGHDAD, 12 July—Gunmen killed at least 11

people when they locked them inside a house west ofBaghdad on Wednesday then blew it up, the USmilitary said.

Major Jeff Pool, a spokesman for US Marines basedin Iraq’s western Anbar Province, said the attack in thetown of Garma may have been a “vendetta” against theowner who is involved with the provincial securityforces.

He said 11 civilians had been killed, although Iraqipolice said the death toll could be as high as 30. Policeearlier said at least seven of those killed were membersof one family.

“According to eyewitnesses, two vehicles drove toa house in the village, locked the occupants inside anddemolished the house with explosives,” Pool said.

It was unclear if any people had been forced insidethe house before the explosives were laid.

MNA/Reuters

Romaniawarns of

heavy rain BUCHAREST, 12 July—

Eight counties in Romaniareceived orange codewarnings of heavy rainon Tuesday from theNational Weather For-ecast Administration.

From Wednesdayevening through Thursdaymorning, rainfall in thecentral and easterncounties of Prahova,Buzau, Vrancea, Bacau,Neamt, Suceava, Harghitaand Covasna are expectedto exceed 50-60 liters persquare metre, according topredictions by theadministration.

MNA/Xinhua

Peru bus crash kills 14,injures 25

LIMA, 12 July—At least 14 people were killed and25 more injured when a long-distance coach fell into aravine in the department of Cusco, the Peru NationalPolice said Tuesday.

The accident took place on Monday night, when thevehicle hit a bridge in the Saya area, turned over andfell off a 100-metre cliff. It was travelling on theOcongate-Cusco route in the southern Andes.

Rescue teams are still searching for victims and theinjured were sent to hospital Tuesday morning. Thenames of the passengers and the causes of the accidenthave not been released yet.—MNA/Xinhua

Tories propose tax breakfor married couples

LONDON, 12 July—Married couples would geta tax break worth 80pounds a month underConservative proposalsthat seek to challengePrime Minister GordonBrown on family values, asenior Tory said onTuesday.

Former Conservativeleader Iain Duncan Smithsaid that rewardingmarried couples throughthe tax system was at theheart of the party’scampaign to “fix Britain’sbroken society”.

“What we are saying isthat the system at themoment is jigged againstmarried couples and wewant to set that right,” he

told GMTV.Duncan Smith, chair-

man of a Tory groupprobing social problems,will publish a report onTuesday that will identifyfive “paths to poverty” —family breakdown, per-sonal debt, addiction,failed education andunemployment.

His group’s final report,Breakthrough Britain, willrecommend nearly 200ways to tackle socialproblems. Speaking aheadof the report’s release,Conservative leaderDavid Cameron said thereneeded to be a “big culturalchange” in favour ofmarriage. “I think it isabsolutely the big

question, the big argumentof our times,” he said.“Kids do best if mum anddad are there to look afterthem.” After 10 years outof power, the Tories havetried to draw electoralbattle lines with Labourover social issues such ascrime, drugs and debt.

Labour has repeatedlyrejected Conservativeclaims that society is“broken”, pointing torecord economic growth,falling crime rates andimproving school results.

Labour’s CabinetOffice Minister EdMiliband said it would bewrong to help only marriedcouples rather than allparents.—MNA/Reuters

Libya court upholds deathsentence on medics

TRIPOLI, 12 July—Libya’s Supreme Courtupheld on Wednesdaydeath sentences on sixforeign medics for in-fecting Libyan childrenwith HIV, but the judg-ment could clear the wayfor the government to freethem. Experts said theruling completed the roleof the judiciary in thehighly-politicized trial ofthe five Bulgarian nursesand a Palestinian doctor,and Libya's executive cannow seek their releasesubject to a deal withfamilies of the children.

The case is expected togo to a government-controlled High JudicialCouncil which will havethe power to commute thesentence or even pardonthem. “The court rejectsthe appeals of the defen-dants and confirms thedeath penalty,” judgeFathi Dhan told a five-minute hearing. The six

medics were not in courtto hear the ruling.

European Union leadersexpressed regret at thecourt ruling but said theywere still confident asolution could be found.

“I firmly hope thatclemency will be grantedto the medical staff,” EUExternal Relations Com-missioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner said.

The case has blockedMoammar Kadaffi’sefforts to deepen links tothe West after shaking offdecades of isolation in2003 when Libya scra-pped its programme ofprohibited weapons.

The six medics weresentenced to death inDecember after beingconvicted of infecting 426Libyan children with thedeadly virus while theyworked at the children'shospital in the city ofBenghazi in the 1990s.

MNA/Reuters

14-7-07 NL 8/7/18, 01:08 AM12

THE NEW LIGHT OF MYANMAR Saturday, 14 July, 2007 13

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Actors dance in the final rehearsal of a ballet based on one of Hans ChristianAndersen’s classics, ‘The Tinder Box,’ on 12 July, 2007. Denmark’s Queen

Margrethe designed the costumes and scenery for the 30-minute ballet, whichopens on Saturday at Tivoli’s Chinese-inspired pantomime theater in

Copenhagen.—INTERNET

The world’s tallest man, 56-year-old Bao Xishun,embarks on a trip to receive his bride during his

traditional wedding ceremony on 12 July, 2007, inInner Mongolia Autonomous Region. — INTERNET

Little-known virus causesoutbreak in Pacific isles

HONG KONG, 12 July — An epidemic caused by a little-known virus hasbroken out on a group of islands in the western Pacific Ocean, as warmerweather and heavy rain fuel the spread of mosquito-borne diseases in manyparts of the world.

The outbreak of Zika,carried by mosquitoes,has made 60 people ill inthe Yap islands inMicronesia since Apriland experts are trying toconfirm a further 65probable cases.

“It’s spread bymosquitoes and when thevirus got carried todifferent individuals inour community. Nobodyhad the right antibodiesto fight the virus, so alarger number of ourcommunity got ill fromit,” media director ThaneHancock of a regionalhealth network, Yap

Epinet, said in an in-terview.

The epidemic comesas dengue, which is alsomosquitoborne, is makingan aggressive comebackin Southeast Asia, in-fecting tens of thousandsthis year. Like dengue, zikabelongs to a class knownas flaviviruses.

Although zika hassimilar symptoms asdengue, such as fever, painin the joints, headache,fatigue, diarrhoea, conjun-ctivitis and a rash, it ismilder.

There have been nodeaths so far, and no one

has been admitted tohospital.“Our healthcaresystem is doing fine. Wehaven’t been overloadedby heaps of patientscoming in. We have beenfortunate in that way,” saidHancock, adding thatmeasures, such as re-moving breeding sites, hadbeen implemented to curbthe spread.

MNA/Reuters

From Russia to Mars without leaving MoscowBEIJING, 12 July — From Russia to Mars and back without leaving Moscow. That’s what Russian

scientists have in mind after creating a section of a mock spacecraft that will simulate a 520-day roundtripmission, an official at the Moscow institute leading the project said on Wednesday.

The barrel-shaped metalstructure will serve asliving quarters for six crewmembers picked fromthousands of applicantsaround the world. Thesimulated space flight willbegin late 2008, and ismeant to set the stage for atrip to Mars by testing thehealth, performance andcrew interaction under the

trying conditions of sucha journey.

“In order to later helpthe guys who really do goto Mars, we must modeleverything on Earth,” saidMark Belakovsky, chiefmanager of the Mars500project at the Institute ofBiomedical Problems,part of the RussianAcademy of Sciences.

The living quarters arelarger than a railroad carand will be part of awindowless warren of fivelinked modules being builtat the institute off abusy street near centralMoscow.

The institute and theEuropean Space Agency,or ESA — a “strategicpartner” in the project —are separately consideringapplications for the mock

Tropical fish swim in the newly installed Sky Aquariumwater tanks during a press preview atop 250-metre(820 feet)-tall Roppongi Hills, one of Tokyo’s landmark tower buildings, on 11 July, 2007. — INTERNET

Moderate earthquake jolts N-E IranTEHERAN, 12 July— A moderate earthquake mesuing

5.1 on the Richte Scale jolted Iran’s northwesternprovince of Ardebil Wednesday morning, but nocasualties ere reported the official IRNA news agencysaid.

The quake was registed at 10:21 am (0651GMT) ,head of the seismological base of teh GeophysicsInstitute of Teheran University Mehdi Rezapour toldIRNA.

The epicentre of the quake was near Namin City inan area measuing 48.51 degrees in Logitude and 38.58degrees in Latitude, he said.

MNA/Xinhua

Endangered ghost orchidfound in Florida sanctuary

BEIJING, 12 July — Ghosts high up in a oldcypress tree in a southwest Florida nature preserveare not easy to spot; but luck, a pair of binocularsand good lighting helps.

Two visitors looking for owl Saturday at CorkscrewSwamp Sanctuary in Naples discovered an endangeredghost orchid in a tree about 45 feet off the ground.

The orchid, featured in the nonfiction book “TheOrchid Thief” and the fictional movie spinoff“Adaptation,” is about 150 feet from the sanctuary’sboardwalk and can be seen only with binoculars andgood lighting.

The orchid, which blooms for about two weeks, hasnine flowers, triple the usual number.

It is not clear how long this ghost orchid has beenblooming. Naples photographer Ralph Arwood spenthours waiting to get a shot of the rare blooms.

“They’re very rare, and this one is unusual becauseit has so many flowers,” Arwood said. “They’re prettyimpressive flowers, too, as big as your hand. It’s niceto have it at Corkscrew. If it’s here, it’s safe.”

Park Manager Ed Carlson said the orchid could havebeen in the tree for decades.

It is the first ghost orchid discovered near thesanctuary boardwalk in 12 years.

“It’s got a big, old root mass on it,” he said. “We’vejust never seen it before. —Xinhua

voyage as well as twoshorter, preliminary ex-periments — also withcrews of six. The ESA lastmonth announced it waslooking for candidates.Once the main studybegins, the crew memberswill remain aboard for theduration barring emer-gencies, Belakovsky said.“They will have taken off,and that’s it.”

Xinhua

14-7-07 NL 8/7/18, 01:08 AM13

14 THE NEW LIGHT OF MYANMAR Saturday, 14 July, 2007

S P O R T S

Masters champion Zach Johnson, seen here inaction in June 2007, heads the field at the 4.1

million-dollar John Deere Classic, whichstarts here on Saturday. — INTERNET

Mourinho upbeat over Chelsea’spre-season work ethic

Qatar burst Vietnam’s bubble with late strike

Vietnam’s goalkeeper Duong Hong Son (C) andPham Hung Dung clash with Qatar’s Sebastian

Soria (R) during their 2007 AFC Asian CupGroup B soccer match at the My Dinh stadium in

Hanoi on 12 July, 2007.—INTERNET

Wenger convinced Fabregasto spurn Real

MADRID, 13 July — Arsene Wenger convinced Spainmidfielder Cesc Fabregas to turn down another ap-proach from Real Madrid to stay and help Arsenal, theplayer’s agent said on Thursday.

“Wenger met with him yesterday and convincedhim to stay. It’s like a father and son relationship,”Joseba Diaz told Spanish television station Antena 3.

“Wenger said with Thierry Henry gone (to Barce-lona) they were going to need his services more thanever to help see them through and Cesc is never goingto let down the person who showed confidence inhim.”

Real Madrid have made no secret of their interest inthe 20-year-old playmaker after they were warned offAC Milan’s Brazilian international Kaka.

“We would like to thank Real for the interest theyhave shown. President Ramon Calderon and sportsdirector Predrag Mijatovic have been very good to usand it is the second time Real have shown an interest inthe player,” he added. — MNA/Reuters

HANOI, 13 July — Striker Sebastian Quintana burstVietnam’s bubble with a 79th-minute equalizer thatenabled Qatar to salvage a 1-1 draw with the AsianCup co-hosts on Thursday.

Vietnam were within sight of becoming the firstteam to reach the quarterfinals after Phan ThanhBinh’s fortuitous strike after 32 minutes.

Qatar goalkeeper Mohamed Saqr’s attempt tosmother Binh’s speculative long-range strike wenthorribly wrong as he let the ball squirm under his bodyand trickle across the line. But Uruguay-born Quintana,who scored in Qatar’s 1-1 draw with Japan in theiropening game, headed home from close range withjust over 10 minutes left to throw Group B wide open.

Vietnam, who beat United Arab Emirates 2-0 at theweekend, were almost undone completely when Qatarsubstitute Ali Hassan hit the crossbar five minuteslater.— MNA/Reuters

Argentina’s Juan Roman Riquelme (R) vieswith Mexico’s Aleardo Torrado during theirsemifinal match at the Copa America 2007 inPuerto Ordaz, Venezuela, on 11 July, 2007.

Argentina won 3-0. — XINHUA

Oman's Fawzi Basheer(L) fights for ball withThailand's Kiatprawut Saiwaeo during group A

match at the Asian Cup 2007 football tournamentat the Ratchamangla Stadium in Bangkok.

Thailand won 2-0.—INTERNET

Brazil refuse to seeArgentina as favourites

Pipat double sends Thailand top of Group A

BEVERLY HILLS (Cali-fornia), 12 July — CoachJose Mourinho believesFA Cup holders Chelseaare in much better shapepreparing for next seasonthan they were this timelast year.

The London club areon their fourth consecu-tive pre-season tour to theUnited States, andMourinho is delighted hehas a squad close to fullstrength with a strongwork ethic.

“Last year was a dis-

aster because we startedthe season with half of theteam,” Mourinho told anews conference at theBeverly Hills Hotel onWednesday after introduc-ing new signing, Israel de-fender Tal Ben Haim.

“And after that, everytwo to three days, someplayers arrived dependingon their (national) team’sperformance at the WorldCup.

MNA/Reuters

BANGKOK, 13 July —Striker Pipat Tongkanyascored twice in eight min-utes to lift hosts Thailandto a convincing 2-0 winover Oman and top spot inAsian Cup Group A onThursday.

Pipat combined withfellow substituteTeerathep Winothai in the70th and 78th minutes togive the Thais a well-earned victory.

The goals came after69 minutes of relentless

Thai attacking, with theOmanis, who drew 1-1with tournament favour-ites Australia on Sunday,rarely looking dangerous.

Thailand had the bestof the early action andcame close on 19 minuteswhen Sutee Suksomkit’spass flashed across theface of the goal and fellshort of the onrushingKiatisak Senamuang.

They threatened againsix minutes later whenplaymaker DatsakornThonglao’s lofted passfound Therdsak Chaiman,who headed wide.

Therdsak found him-self in space again close tohalftime, latching on toNattaporn Phanrit’s passdown the right and blast-ing the ball into the sidenetting from a tight angle.

Oman had numerousbookings and few chancesbut could have gone aheadnear the interval whenFawzi Bashir roundedNattaporn before shootingwell wide.

The Thais wasted agolden opportunity toscore right after halftimewhen Kiatisak squared theball to the unmarkedTawan Sripan, who firedwide with men in space.

The crowd had theirhearts in the mouths whenAhmad Halid’s specula-tive free kick from nearthe halfway line wentthrough to keeper KosinHaithairrattanakool, whotipped the ball on to thecrossbar.

Pipat and Teerathepmade an instant impactafter being sent on.

Within a minuteTeerathep delivered a lowcross from the right to theunmarked Pipat, whofired home from five me-tres.

Eight minutes later,the diminutive Teerathepheaded Tawan’s pass onto Pipat, who chesteddown and blasted the ballinto the top corner.

MNA/Reuters

MARACAIBO (Vene-zuela,) 13 July — Brazil’splayers have rejected theidea that Argentina willstart as favourites in Sun-day’s Copa America fi-nal.

Argentina havebrought a full strength-team and have cruised tothe final, scoring 16 goalson their way to winningall five games.

Brazil, on the otherhand, kicked off with a 2-0 defeat against Mexicoand needed a penaltyshootout to beat Uruguayin their semifinal. The de-fending champions arealso without Kaka andRonaldinho, who asked tobe rested from the tourna-ment.

“We can’t talk aboutfavourites before the gamehas even started,” said

midfielder Elano. “Theseare two great teams. Any-thing can happen on theday.”

Anderson said: “Theyhave excellent playerswith excellent quality butso do Brazil.”

MNA/Reuters Mourinho saysMalouda noreplacement

RobbenBEVERLY HILLS (Califor-

nia), 13 July — Chelseacoach Jose Mourinho hasdenied rumours thatFrench internationalFlorent Malouda was re-cruited to replace Dutchwinger Arjen Robben.

Midfielder Malouda,signed from Lyon earlierthis week, had been widelyregarded in the media as areplacement for Robben,who has been linked witha move to Real Madrid.

“I want to make it very,very clear that Florent isnot here to replace any-body,” Mourinho told anews conference at theBeverly Hills Hotel onThursday after introduc-ing his new signing.

“The objective is tohave a very good playerwith a very good mental-ity who will very easilyadapt, in my opinion, toEnglish football. He is alsoa player with ambition.

MNA/Reuters

14-7-07 NL 8/7/18, 01:08 AM14

THE NEW LIGHT OF MYANMAR Saturday, 14 July, 2007 15

Friday, 13 July, 2007Summary of observations recorded at 09:30 hours

MST: During the past 24 hours, weather has been partlycloudy in lower Sagaing Division, rain have been isolated inChin and Kayah States, upper Sagaing and Magway Divi-sions, scattered in Shan and Kayin States, Mandalay andYangon Divisions, fairly widespread in Kachin State andwidespread in the remaining areas with locally heavyfall inTaninthayi Division and isolated heavyfall in Mon State. Thenoteworthy amounts of rainfall recorded were Longlon (5.91)inches, Ye (4.84) inches, Dawei (3.98) inches, Kawthong(2.76) inches, Gwa (2.44) inches and Thandwe (2.28) inches.

Maximum temperature on 12-7-2007 was 89°F. Mini-mum temperature on 13-7-2007 was 75°F. Relative humidityat 09:30 hours MST on 13-7-2007 was 88%. Total sunshinehours on 12-7-2007 was (3.0) hours approx.

Rainfall on 13-7-2007 was (0.16) inch at Mingaladon,(0.09) inch at Kaba-Aye, (0.60) inch at Central Yangon. Totalrainfall since 1-1-2007 was (70.51) inches at Mingaladon,(74.76) inches at Kaba-Aye and (72.72) inches at CentralYangon. Maximum wind speed at Yangon (Kaba-Aye) was(8) mph from Southwest at (06:30) hours MST on 12-7-2007.

Bay inference: Monsoon is strong to vigorous in theAndaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal.

Forecast valid until evening of 14-7-2007: Rain will beisolated in Kayah State, lower Sagaing and Magway Divi-sions, scattered in Chin and Shan States, upper Sagaing andMandalay Divisions, fairly widespread in Kachin and KayinStates and widespread in the remaining areas with isolatedheavyfalls in Rakhine and Mon States and Taninthayi Divi-sion. Degree of certainty is (80%).

State of the sea: Squalls with rough seas will be experi-enced at times off and along Myanmar Coasts. Surface windspeed in squalls may reach (40-45) mph.

Outlook for subsequent two days: Strong Monsoon.Forecast for Nay Pyi Taw and neighbouring areas

for 14-7-2007: Likelihood of isolated rain. Degree of certaintyis (60%).

Forecast for Yangon and neighbouring areasfor 14-7-2007: One or two rain. Degree of certainty is(80%).).

Forecast for Mandalay and neighbouringareas for 14-7-2007: Likelihood of isolated rain. Degree ofcertainty is (60%).

Weather outlook for third weekend of July 2007:During the coming weekend. Rain will be windespread inYangon Division and likelihood of isolated in Nay Pyi Taw,Mandalay Division.

WEATHER

*R 489 Published by the News and Periodicals Enterprise, Ministry of Information, Union of Myanmar. Edited and printed at The New Light of Myanmar Press,No 22/30 Strand Road at 43rd Street, Yangon. Cable Newlight, PO Box No. 43, Telephones: Editors 392308, Manager 392226, Circulation 392304, Advertisement 392223,Accounts 392224, Administration 392225, Production/Press 392369

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