Title 3--The President 250 political prisoners, including all but 20 of the MPs elected in 1990 and all of the NLD's Central Executive Committee members with the exception of Aung San Suu Kyi. The regime has also halted the virulent attacks on Aung San Suu Kyi and the NLD which had become a staple of newspaper coverage in Burma. In addition, the military government has allowed the NLD to reopen 32 party offices in Rangoon Division and to resume some normal party activities. These included public meetings on Burma's Na- tional, Independence and Union Days, all of which were attended by Am- bassadors and Chiefs of Mission from the United States, the United King- dom, Australia, and other countries. The NLD, in turn, has moderated its public criticism of the regime and announced that it is now prepared to work with the regime on political transition. Over the past 6 months, the regime has gradually increased access to Aung San Suu Kyi, who has been under house arrest since the talks began in 2000. Visitors have included U.N. Special Rapporteur for Human Rights Paulo Pinheiro, U.N. Special Envoy Razali Ismall, the ILO's High Level Team, representatives of the European Union and U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Matthew Daley, among others. Aung San Suu Kyi is also now in daily contact with fellow NLD members, including NLD Chairman U Aung Shwe, and NLD Vice Chairman U Tin Oo. The abrupt postpone- ment of U.N. Special Envoy Razali's planned March 19 visit to Burma is of particular concern, especially in light of approval for other meetings. The connection, if any, between this event and the arrest of members of Ne Win's family is unclear. The United States welcomed the confidence-building process between the government and Aung San Suu Kyi and the release of political prisoners and resumption of some NLD activity. However, we have also urged the re- gime to move beyond confidence building to a genuine political dialogue with Aung San Suu Kyi that would chart the course for a return to democ- racy and civilian rule. Critical next steps include release of all remaining political prisoners, the unconditional release of Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest and increased political rights and freedom of operation for the NLD and other political parties. Counternarcotics Burma is one of the world's largest producers of illicit opium, heroin, and methamphetamines. However, its overall output of opium has declined sharply in recent years. In 2001, Burma produced an estimated 865 metric tons of opium, barely one-third of the 2,560 metric tons of opium produced in Burma 5 years earlier. Unfortunately, as opium production has declined, methamphetamine production has soared, particularly in outlying regions that are governed by former insurgents. According to some estimates, as many as 800 million methamphetamine tablets may be produced in Burma each year. There is no evidence that the government is involved on an institutional level in the drug trade. However, there are reliable reports that individual Burmese officials in outlying areas are either directly involved in drug traf- ficking or provide protection to those who are. In addition, while the gov- ernment has encouraged ethnic insurgents who have signed cease-fire 334
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