Myanmar junta blames foreign influence for acts of sabotage

Jan 13, 2008, 6:25 GMT

Yangon - Myanmar's state-run press on Sunday blamed two deadly blasts on insurgents with backing from a 'foreign organization' bent of 'practicing hegemony over Myanmar.'

The New Light of Myanmar, a government mouthpiece, blamed two separate bomb attacks on Friday on saboteurs who died trying to detonate their 'US-made powerful explosives.'

On Friday morning a bomb went off in a public toilet in Naypyitaw, Myanmar's new military headquarters, killing one woman who was originally described by the state press as an innocent victim.

On the same day another bomb was detonated near a football field in Nyaungbintha Village, Bago Division, killing the man who was suspected of planting the bomb and wounding four people.

State media identified the Bago bomber as an insurgent from the Karen National Union (KNU), an ethnic minority rebel group that has been waging a war against Myanmar's military for the autonomy of the Karen State since 1948.

A second suspect, Saw Ra Makee, was arrested.

'According to his confession, the man who was killed in the incident was Saw Di Thaw Mu with the rank of corporal in charge of collecting extortion money of battalion 8, brigade 3 of KNU,' said The New Light of Myanmar.

'A major group from abroad that is desirous of practicing hegemony over Myanmar provided terrorist insurgent saboteurs with cash and related equipment with the intention of harming the public, causing panic among the people and undermining peace and stability,' said the English-langauge daily.

The paper's Sunday edition also claimed that an investigation had revealed that Naw Gay Lar, the woman killed in the toilet blast, had died trying to plant the device.

'It can be assessed that the same major organization masterminded these atrocities, for explosives used in both incidents are the US-made powerful explosives and they are identical,' the paper said.