CHRONOLOGY 1998

That pushed the manufacturing sector from sixth place in terms of dollar value of foreign investment to second place, behind the energy sector.

Rangoon denies plan to void 200,500 kyat notes

Burma denied rumours it will void 200 and 500 kyat notes because of counterfeiting as value of the currency plummeted to a record 260 kyat to the dollar, the state-run New Light of Myanmar newspaper said.

The rumour falsely claimed that a government newscast had announced that 500-kyat bills with serial numbers beginning with the letters AL and AM would be demonetized, said Rangoon residents.

In 1987 the government demonetized 25, 35 and 75 kyat notes, offering no compensation to people who held them.

The move eliminated 60 to 80 per cent of the money in circulation and wiped out the saving of millions of people.

August

Canada boosts sanctions to maintain heat on Slorc

Canadian Foreign Minister Lloyd Axworthy announced additional economic sanctions against Burma to increase pressure on the country’s military leaders to improve human rights and move toward democracy.

Canada would withdraw Burma’s General Preferential Tariff eligibility, require all Canadian exporters to Burma to have an export permit and encourage businesses not to invest in the country, he said.

“The actions we have taken today are intended to convey the seriousness of our concerns over the suppression of political freedoms and our frustration with Burma’s failure to curb the production and trafficking of illegal drugs,” said Mr. Axworthy who spent much of his news conference seeking to justify differences in treatment by Canada, which has applied sanctions against countries such as Nigeria and Burma while opting for dialogue with China, Cuba, and Indonesia.

Junta jails Suu Kyi’s relatives

Three democracy supporters, all of whom are related to Aung San Suu Kyi, were each sentenced to 10 years in prison, the government said in a statement.

Suu Kyi’s cousin and close aide Cho Aung Than, his sister Nge Ma Ma Than, and her husband Myint Swe were found guilty and sentenced under national security laws in Insein court in Rangoon.

“Cho Aung Than, Myint Swe and Nge Ma Ma Than have been sentenced for three years imprisonment for breaching the Unlawful Associations Act and a further seven years under the Emergency Provisions Act,” the statement said.

The three were detained in June and questioned in relation to smuggling videotapes of Suu Kyi’s speeches abroad.