(continued from the following post)
Singapore cares little about human rights, in particular the
plight of the ethnic and religious minorities in Burma, Selth
writes. Having developed one of the regions most advanced armed
forces and defence industrial support bases, Singapore is in a good
position to offer Burma a number of inducements which other ASEAN
[Association of South-East Asian Nations] countries would find hard
to match.
Selth says Singapore also provided the equipment for a cyber war
centre to monitor dissident activity, while training Burmas
secret police, whose sole job appears to be ensuring democracy
groups are crushed.
Monitoring dissidents is an area where Singapore has expertise.
After almost five decades in power, the Lee family-controlled
Peoples Action Party ranks behind only the communists of China,
Cuba and North Korea in leadership longevity.
This centre is reported to be closely involved in the monitoring
and recording of foreign and domestic telecommunications, including
the satellite telephone conversations of Burmese opposition
groups, Selth writes.
Singaporean government companies, such as the arms supplier
Singapore Technologies, dominate the communications and military
sector in Singapore. Selth writes: It is highly unlikely that any
of these arms shipments to Burma could have been made without the
knowledge and support of the Singapore Government. He notes that
Singapores ambassadors to Burma have included a former senior
Singapore Armed Forces officer and a past director of Singapores
defence-oriented Joint Intelligence Directorate. It is curious
that Singapore chose to assign someone with a military background
to this new member of ASEAN and not one of its many capable
professional diplomats.
Selth writes that after Burmas 1988 crackdown, in which 3000
democracy protesters were killed, the first country to come to the
regimes rescue was in fact Singapore.
In an interview with the chief executive officer of Singapore
Technologies, Peter Seah, at his office in Singapore, the Herald
asked about the model of an armoured personnel carrier made by his
company that sat on his office table. Seah said his company sold
the vehicles only to allies. Did that include Burma, given
Singapore helped sponsor the military regime into ASEAN? Seah was
not specific: We only sell to allies and we make sure they are
responsible. He did not say how. For its part, Temasek does not
respond to questions about its activities in Burma.
A Singaporean diplomat to Burma, Matthew Sim, wrote a handbook for
Singaporean businesspeople, Myanmar on My Mind. It is full of tips
for doing business in Burma, although odd given Singapores
contempt for corruption and lawbreakers. A little money goes a
long way in greasing the wheels of productivity, he writes.
A chapter headed Committing Manslaughter When Driving describes the
appropriate action for a Singaporean if they accidentally kill a
pedestrian in Burma. Firstly, the international businessman could
give the family of the deceased some money as compensation and
dissuade them from pressing charges. Secondly, he could pay a
Myanmar citizen to take the blame by declaring that he was the
driver in the fatal accident. An international businessman should
not make the mistake of trying to argue his case in a court of law
when it comes to a fatal accident, even if he is in the right. He
highly probably will spend time in jail regretting it. It is a sad
and hard world. The facts of life can be ugly.
Describing Singapores usefulness to Burma, Sim says many
successful Myanmar businessmen have opened shell companies in
Singapore with little or no staff, used to keep funds overseas.
The companies are used to keep business deals outside the control
of Burmas central bank, enabling Singaporeans and others to make
transactions with Burma in Singapore, he says.
Sim may be referring to junta cronies such as Tay Za and the
druglord Lo Hsing Han. Lo is an ethnic Chinese, from Burmas
traditionally Chinese-populated and opium-rich Kokang region in the
countrys east, bordering China. Lo controls a heroin empire and
one of Burmas biggest companies, Asia World, which the US Drug
Enforcement Agency describes as a front for his drug trafficking.
Asia World controls toll roads, industrial parks and trading
companies.
Singapore is the Lo familys window to the world, a base for
controlling several companies. Los son Steven, who has been denied
a visa to the US because of his drug links, is married to a
Singaporean, Cecilia Ng. The two reportedly control a
Singapore-based trading house, Kokang Singapore Pty Ltd. The couple
transit Singapore at will. A former US assistant secretary of state
for the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement
Affairs, Robert Gelbard, has said half of Singapores investment in
Burma has been tied to the family of narco-trafficker Lo Hsing
Han.
Tay Zar, who is linked romantically to a daughter of Than Shwe, is
also well known in Singapore. His fleet of Ferrari, Lexus and
Mercedes cars was shipped to Burma from Singapore. When on the
island, he likes to stay at the tacky Meritus Mandarin hotel on
Orchard Road, close to the hospitals favoured by his senior
military patrons from Burma.
Tay Za was featured in the Singaporean media last year toasting the
launch of his new airline, Air Bagan, with the head of Singapores
aviation authority. Dissident groups say the trade-off for Tay Zas
government business contracts in Burma is to fund junta leaders
medical trips to Singapore.
So when the Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, vows to impose
financial sanctions on Burmas regime, as he did this week, perhaps
he should be calling Singapores bankers rather than
Australias.
