Heroin stockpiled at junta post

Heroin stockpiled at junta post, say locals

A Burma Army post in the eastern Shan State has for several years been doubling itself as a storehouse for drugs, said locals coming to the weekly market at the border. 

IB 65 from Mongton in Monghsat District, eastern Shan State, opposite Chiangmai Province, has under the command of Lt-Col Myint Sway, long been an establishment for safe-keeping drugs, they said. 

On 16 April, 10-civilian trucks in Mongton and the nearby Nawngpayen were rounded up by Capt Than Aye, 4th Company, IB 65. The next day, under the security of his command, the convoy drove to Hwe Khailong in the north and Hopang in the east to pick up 150 blocks (1 block = 700 grams) from each place. The trucks were released only after the goods were unloaded at the battalion post warehouse, according to the sources. 

A Shan State Army source also reported all refineries have recently been ordered to move away from the border following a bilateral agreement made at the 2-4 April talks in Kengtung for joint suppression of drugs along the border areas. 

"It might also be due to Cobra Gold ", he commented. 

Cobra Gold, a yearly joint Thai-American military exercises, begins this month in the northern provinces. In the past, the exercises were usually conducted in southern Thailand. The Burmese forces along the Thai border have been placed on alert since 14 April according to Democratic Voice of Burma. 

Note IB stands for Infantry Battalion.