Fri Sep 28, 12:53 AM ET

YANGON, Myanmar - Soldiers with automatic rifles fired into crowds of anti-government demonstrators Thursday, killing at least nine people in the bloodiest day in more than a month of protests demanding an end to military rule.

Bloody sandals lay scattered on some streets as protesters fled shouting "Give us freedom, give us freedom!"

On the second day of a brutal crackdown, truckloads of troops in riot gear also raided Buddhist monasteries on the outskirts of Yangon, beating and arresting dozens of monks, witnesses and Western diplomats said. Japan protested the killing of a Japanese photographer.

Daily demonstrations by tens of thousands have grown into the stiffest challenge to the ruling junta in two decades, a crisis that began Aug. 19 with rallies against a fuel price hike then escalated dramatically when monks began joining the protests.

With the government ignoring international appeals for restraint, troops fired into packs of demonstrators in at least four locations in Yangon, witnesses and a Western diplomat said. Protesters — some shouting "Give us freedom!" — dodged roadblocks and raced down alleys in a defiant game of cat and mouse with soldiers and riot police that went on for most of the day.

Some 70,000 protesters were on the streets at the height of the chaos, though the total was difficult to estimate as different groups broke up and later reformed.

On Friday, Myanmar's military rulers declared no-go zones around five key Buddhist monasteries in an effort to quash the demonstrations, a diplomat said after Southeast Asian envoys were called in by Myanmar authorities for a meeting.

The diplomat, who spoke on condition of anonymity citing protocol, said regime members told the envoys that security forces had the monks "under control" and would now turn their attention to civilian protesters.

The protesters won support from countrymen abroad as more than 1,000 Myanmar immigrants in Malaysia rallied peacefully Friday outside their country's embassy in the capital of Kuala Lumpur. Riot police backed by water cannon stood watch as the demonstrators shouted "We want democracy!" and held banners that read "Stop killing monks and people."

In Yangon, sandals were strewn by a pool of blood at one spot where people fled approaching police. In a brave challenge, a bare-chested man emerged from one crowd to advance toward riot officers, then was felled by a rubber bullet and suffered a beating by officers who took him away.

The junta's heavy-handed tactics did not bode well for the monks and pro-democracy activists who are trying to bring down a military regime that has ruled since ousting a civilian government in 1962.

State radio said security forces fatally shot nine people, including a Japanese citizen, and wounded 11 people.

Some of the day's most striking photographs showed a gunshot victim identified as the dead Japanese journalist lying in the street, camera still in hand, after two or three bursts of gunfire sent protesters running. One picture, posted on the Web site of the Japanese television network Fuji, showed a soldier pointing his rifle down at the man lying face up on the ground clutching a camera.

Japan's new foreign minister, Masahiko Komura, told reporters in Washington that his country held Myanmar's government accountable for the killing of journalist Kenji Nagai, 50, who was covering the protests for the Japanese video news agency APF News.

The bloodshed followed lesser violence Wednesday, in which the government said police bullets killed one person, while media and dissident reports said up to eight died on the first day of the crackdown in Myanmar, which is also known as Burma.

Dramatic images of bloodied protesters and fleeing crowds have captured world attention and prompted the United Nations and many governments to call for the junta to end the confrontation peacefully.

The United States imposed economic sanctions Thursday on more than a dozen senior Myanmar officials, including the junta's two top generals, and it again urged China as Myanmar's main economic and political ally to use its influence to prevent further bloodshed.

"We feel admiration and compassion for the monks and peaceful protesters calling for democracy," President Bush said. "Every civilized nation has a responsibility to stand up for people suffering under a brutal military regime like the one that has ruled Burma for too long."

Every other time the regime has been challenged, it has responded with harsh force, including in 1988 when troops killed as many as 3,000 pro-democracy protesters. Negotiations are unlikely and compromise is not in the military's vocabulary, analysts said.

"Judging from the nature and habit of the Myanmar military, they will not allow the monks or activists to topple them," said Chaiyachoke Julsiriwong, a Myanmar scholar at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, Thailand.

Some people had hoped the widespread reverence for Buddhist monks in Myanmar might weaken the resolve of rank-and-file soldiers to pursue the crackdown. Most males, including soldiers, serve briefly as monks as their youth. But so far no soldiers have changed sides as happened in 1988 when some air force personnel joined demonstrations.

"The soldiers shooting might be special troops, recruited from the hill country, often from orphanages. They have no family. They are raised (by the military) to do whatever they are told to do," said Aye Chan Naing, chief editor for the Democratic Voice of Burma, an opposition shortwave radio station based in Norway.

The second day of the crackdown began just after midnight Wednesday, with security forces raiding several monasteries considered hotbeds of the democracy movement.

At Ngwe Kyar Yan monastery, chief abbot U Yaywata said soldiers shot up the complex, stole gold and dragged off 70 monks and lay disciples. He said he saw bullet holes in the walls and blood stains on some beds.

"This was not just a robbery. We have been attacked by rebels," he told The Associated Press.

A Western diplomat said she had reports from another monastery where soldiers stormed the compound, destroyed images of Buddha and stole gold. They arrested as many as 80 monks, the diplomat said, speaking on condition of anonymity citing protocol.

Photos said to be from one of the monasteries show smashed up furniture and bloodstains.

Angry protesters threw stones and shouted at soldiers as word spread about the early morning raids.

"I really hate the government. They arrest the monks while they are sleeping. These monks haven't done anything except meditating and praying and helping people," said a 30-year-old service worker who watched the confrontations from his workplace.

Soldiers also staged a raid on the Mahamuni Paya pagoda in Mandalay, the country's second-largest city, about 430 miles north of Yangon. Witnesses said troops blocked the road to the pagoda from downtown and locked hundreds of monks inside the compound.

As it has in the past, the junta accused protesters of instigating the violence and suggested that a vast conspiracy of "domestic and external elements" — its usual code words for Western governments and democracy activists — was trying to destabilize the country.

The regime uncharacteristically did little to stop demonstrations as they grew last week, but authorities leaped into action after Monday saw some 100,000 people take to the streets of Yangon, the country's largest city.

First came official warnings Tuesday against protests, then an overnight curfew was ordered. On Wednesday, the regime finally flexed its military might as soldiers and police beat demonstrators, arrested monks and political activists and, for the first time, fired into some crowds.

Still, by Myanmar standards, the crackdown has been somewhat restrained.

Though no one doubts the military's aim is to snuff out the threat, its response may reflect how the political landscape has changed since the bloody crushing of the 1988 uprising.

Myanmar is now part of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which has called for the regime to show restraint, and the regime has opened up the economy to foreign investors.

China also has been quietly counseling the junta for months to speed up its long-stalled transition to democracy. Some analysts say Beijing wants to avoid a bloodbath in an ally that could taint its hosting of the 2008 Olympic Games.

"China hopes that all parties in Myanmar exercise restraint and properly handle the current issue so as to ensure the situation there does not escalate and get complicated," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said Thursday.

Fri Sep 28, 12:01 AM ET

YANGON - Fuelled by "revulsion" at Myanmar's violent crackdown on popular protests against military rule, Southeast Asia rounded on the generals on Friday and critics planned demonstrations at embassies across the region.

While the streets of Myanmar's former capital were quiet early on Friday, protests were expected at embassies in Taipei, Canberra, Manila and Tokyo, where government officials were trying to formulate a response to the crisis.

In Canberra, some protesters were detained and an axe seized after a group of around 100 clashed with police while trying to charge the Myanmar embassy there.

Myanmar state media said nine people were killed when soldiers fired on crowds in Yangon on Thursday, drawing unprecedented outrage from the Association of South East Asian Nations, one of the few international groups to have the generals as a member. It expressed "revulsion" at the crackdown.

Australian Ambassador Bob Davis said the actual death toll could be far higher.

Asked for an unofficial estimate of the number of those killed, Davis told Australian Broadcasting Corp. radio: "Several multiples of the 10 acknowledged by the authorities."

One of the dead was a Japanese photographer, shot point-blank according to video footage, when soldiers charged crowds near Sule Pagoda, the focus of more than a week of mass protests against decades of military rule and economic hardship.

Japan said it would decide whether to suspend humanitarian aid for Myanmar after investigating the killing.

The monks who have turned what started as small protests into a mass uprising by lending their huge moral weight to demonstrations against the junta, said they were not going to quit.

Speaking anonymously to Burmese-language foreign radio stations, they said they had formed a "united front" of clergy, students and activists to continue the struggle.

That could mean more to come of the bloodshed which drove ASEAN into a rare condemnation of a fellow member of an organization which operates on consensus.

ASEAN foreign ministers, excluding Myanmar, said they were "appalled to receive reports of automatic weapons being used" and demanded an immediate end to the use of force against civilians.

U.N. ENVOY TO BE ALLOWED IN

In one small concession, the military which has ruled the former Burma under various guises for the last 45 years, agreed to admit U.N. special envoy Ibrahim Gambari, who is now in Bangkok waiting for a visa.

The White House said President George W. Bush had thanked China, the closest the junta has to an ally, for helping win consent to a visit by Gambari, charged with ending the harshest crackdown since 1988 when an estimated 3,000 people were killed.

Gambari is expected to brief the U.N. Security Council on his return to New York.

A day after troops cleared central Yangon, telling protesters they had 10 minutes to leave or be shot, the streets of the former Burma's main city were unusually quiet during the morning rush hour.

Yangon and the second city of Mandalay were placed under night curfew this week after crowds estimated at up to 100,000-strong took to the streets, the biggest challenge to the junta since the 1988 uprising.

Despite seething anger among Myanmar's 56 million people, far fewer demonstrators took to the streets on Thursday after soldiers raided at least 10 monasteries and carted off hundreds of monks accused of spearheading the protests.

One monk was killed in the raids, a monastic source said, taking to six the number of the Buddhist clergy to have died in the crackdown against protests that started on August 19 with small marches against shock rises in fuel prices.

The monks, the country's highest moral authority now on a direct collision course with the military machine, said late on Thursday they would not be cowed despite the arrest of more than 500 of their brethren.

It is not known where the hundreds of detained maroon-robed clergy are being held.

The junta told diplomats summoned to its new jungle capital, Naypyidaw, that it was "committed to showing restraint in its response to the provocations," one of those present said.

Thu Sep 27, 11:29 PM ET

YANGON - Security forces swept through Myanmar's main city Thursday, killing nine people including a Japanese journalist, and arresting hundreds more in a brutal crackdown on anti-government protests.

At least 50,000 people, many of them youths and students, swarmed into Yangon undeterred by the deaths the day before of at least four protesters, including three Buddhist monks, and repeatedly defied orders to disperse.

As the shots rang out, they ran for their lives, only to regroup and face down the might of Myanmar's junta which has exerted iron rule over the impoverished country for more than four decades.

Southeast Asian nations demanded Thursday that Myanmar's military junta immediately stop using violence against pro-democracy protestors, as US President George W. Bush urged China to put pressure on the regime to move toward democracy.

As security forces swept through Myanmar's main city Thursday arresting hundreds in a brutal crackdown on the 10th straight day of protests, world outrage mounted while the US slapped sanctions on 14 junta leaders.

In an indication that global pressure was beginning to work, UN leaders were told by Myanmar officials that UN chief Ban Ki-moon's special envoy, Ibrahim Gambari, would be granted a visa to visit the country to assess the situation.

In a previously unannounced meeting, Bush told Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi he hoped China would use its influence to help bring a peaceful transition to democracy in Myanmar.

Bush also thanked Yang, who was at the White House for talks with US national security adviser Stephen Hadley, for China's help in facilitating Gambari's visit to Myanmar, said US national security spokesman Gordon Johndroe.

In six hours of chaotic protests, state media said nine people were killed and another 11 protesters injured including one woman.

"The protesters threw bricks, sticks and knives at the security forces, so because of the desperate situation the security forces had to fire warning shots," it said, adding 31 police and soldiers were also wounded.

Japanese national Kenji Nagai, 50, a journalist for Tokyo-based video and photo agency APF News, is the first foreign victim of the crackdown.

It was the 10th straight day that large protests have erupted against the ruling junta, which caused outrage in this impoverished Southeast Asian nation by doubling fuel prices on August 15.

British diplomatic sources said there was evidence that monks whose monastery was raided before dawn were "badly beaten", with large amounts of blood found in their dormitories after they were hauled away.

The raid was one of at least three in Yangon's east, which each triggered clashes as hundreds of supporters tried to prevent monks from being hauled away by authorities in an apparent bid to prevent them from leading the protests.

In the city centre, at least 100 other people were taken into custody, thrown into military trucks after troops issued an ultimatum threatening "extreme action" unless they dispersed.

Groups of people were forced to lie on their stomachs while they were searched, and if found with cameras or cellphones -- which are rare in Myanmar -- they were beaten and their equipment was smashed.

State media accused Aung San Suu Kyi's opposition party, the National League for Democracy, of fomenting the unrest by paying people to take part in the protests.

It said that two NLD members, Hla Pe and Myint Thei, had been questioned along with two ethnic party leaders, Htaung Ko Htan and Chin Sian Thang, for their role in the "uprising".

NLD officials said earlier that the two prominent members had been arrested in raids on their homes during the night.

In scenes of naked defiance and anger that the heavy-handed tactics have failed to crush, ordinary people screamed abuse at soldiers and cried openly as they exchanged news of deaths and injuries.

"You are eating food given to you by the people. Yet you kill people and you kill the monks!" an elderly man screamed at the impassive soldiers in Yangon's downtown.

The protests, led by the monks whose revered status had previously made them almost untouchable, have drawn as many as 100,000 people onto the streets in the biggest challenge to the regime for 20 years.

The violence triggered a new round of worldwide condemnation. The United States called the crackdown "outrageous" and tightened sanctions, freezing the assets of Myanmar's military leader and 13 other senior officials.

President George W. Bush met with China's Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi and told him he hoped China would "use its influence in the region to help bring a peaceful transition to democracy in Burma (Myanmar)," said a US spokesman.

Foreign ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) -- of which Myanmar is a member -- broke with their policy of non-interference in the country's affairs.

"They were appalled to receive reports of automatic weapons being used and demanded that the Myanmar government immediately desist from the use of violence ," Singapore Foreign Minister George Yeo said after a meeting at the United Nations.

The ministers "expressed their revulsion to Myanmar Foreign Minister Nyan Win," he said.

China, Myanmar's biggest trading partner and chief ally, issued its first public call for the regime to show restraint Thursday, but did not directly condemn the crackdown.

The UN said it welcomed news that its special envoy, Ibrahim Gambari, would be allowed to visit Myanmar from Saturday in an attempt to find a way to end the turmoil.

International media rights group Reporters Without Borders said it was shocked at the death of the Japanese journalist.

Thailand-based analyst Win Min, who fled a 1988 crackdown when at least 3,000 people were killed, predicted the movement would grow, saying pictures of security forces attacking monks would fuel anger.

"They also believe that this is the best chance ever since 1988" to bring democracy, he added.

Thu Sep 27, 11:09 PM ET

TOKYO - Japan will decide whether to suspend humanitarian aid for Myanmar after investigating the killing of a Japanese photographer during anti-government protests, the chief cabinet secretary said on Friday.

Japan's Foreign Ministry said on Thursday that 50-year-old photographer Kenji Nagai was shot dead in Yangon. Pictures smuggled out of the country showed him taking photos with a small camera even as he lay dying on a street near Sule Pagoda, a focus of the protests in the capital.

"We will urge the Myanmar government to find out the truth about his death," Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura told a news conference. "At this stage, we have not decided to suspend grant aid."

Machimura, who is also the chief government spokesman, added it was not clear whether the shooting was on purpose or at close range, as reported by some Japanese media.

Nagai is the first foreign victim of the protests that began as sporadic marches against fuel price hikes but have swelled over the past month into mass demonstrations against 45 years of military rule in the former Burma.

Foreign journalists have generally been barred entry into the country in recent days.

Japan will only decide about imposing sanctions on Myanmar after watching responses from the international community including the U.N. Security Council, Machimura said.

"With respect to the issue of sanctions, we would like to monitor discussions at the U.N. Security Council," he said.

Japan has in the past been criticized for not taking a hard line on Myanmar's military government.

Tokyo has withheld new aid to the country since democracy activist Aung San Suu Kyi was detained in 2003, but still funds emergency requirements including health projects.

There are 615 Japanese nationals and 74 Japanese companies in Myanmar, Machimura said on Thursday.

Thu Sep 27, 10:55 PM ET

TOKYO - Japan, a top donor to Myanmar, said Friday it would continue aid for now despite the killing of a Japanese in a crackdown on protests and was considering sending an envoy to the military-ruled nation.

A Japanese videojournalist, Kenji Nagai, was shot dead as he filmed the military regime's clampdown on demonstrations, becoming the first foreigner to die in the turmoil.

"We have not decided to stop grant aid immediately," chief government spokesman Nobutaka Machimura told a news conference.

"Regarding the nature of the aid, the government will consider it by watching how the situation develops and what facts we get," he said, referring to the probe into Nagai's death.

Machimura said Japan would also "closely watch how discussions develop at the UN Security Council and other places regarding the issue of sanctions."

Machimura had earlier said Japan would lodge a protest over the journalist's death.

The United States and European nations have decided to tighten sanctions on Myanmar and called for the world to ramp up pressure due to the bloody crackdown on protests.

In a rare break with its Western allies, Japan has opted for the approach of most Asian nations of trying to engage the military regime.

Japan said it was considering sending Deputy Foreign Minister Mitoji Yabunaka to Myanmar for talks.

"We are considering sending him to Myanmar, but the exact dates or the length of his trip have yet to be decided," a foreign ministry official said.

Myanmar agreed Thursday to issue a visa for UN special envoy Ibrahim Gambari to visit.

Japan in 2003 suspended low-interest loans for major projects, such as infrastructure, to protest the continued detention of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

But Japan continues to supply aid for what it calls humanitarian purposes.

Thu Sep 27, 8:52 PM ET

BEIJING - China issued an evenhanded plea for calm in Myanmar on Thursday after refusing to condemn the military-run government, while Southeast Asian nations expressed "revulsion" at the violent repression of the demonstrations.

The United States said it was imposing economic sanctions against 14 top officials in the military junta.

A statement issued after a foreign ministers' meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly's ministerial meeting in New York strongly urged Myanmar's government "to exercise utmost restraint and seek a political solution."

The ASEAN ministers called for the release of all political prisoners, including Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, who is under house arrest.

"They expressed their revulsion to Myanmar Foreign Minister Nyan Win over reports that the demonstrations in Myanmar are being suppressed by violent force and that there has been a number of fatalities," the statement said.

"They strongly urged Myanmar to exercise utmost restraint and seek a political solution," it said. "They called upon Myanmar to resume its efforts at national reconciliation with all parties concerned, and work towards a peaceful transition to democracy."

Myanmar is an ASEAN member, along with Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice talked with officials from Myanmar attending the ASEAN meeting.

"The U.S. is determined to keep an international focus on the travesty in Burma," Rice told reporters, using the other name the country is known by.

Rice also made the U.S. displeasure clear in a direct response to a statement made by one of the Myanmar officials, according to State Department spokesman Sean McCormack.

"She was very direct," he said. "She made it very clear it is unacceptable for the government to use violence against these peaceful protesters."

McCormack refused to characterize the statement by the Myanmar official, but said that Rice "felt it was important to provide a response."

China has come under increasing pressure to use its regional influence to urge Myanmar's ruling junta to show restraint in dealing with the protests.

On Wednesday, China refused to condemn Myanmar and ruled out imposing sanctions, but for the first time agreed to a Security Council statement expressing concern at the violent crackdown and urging the country's military rulers to allow in a U.N. envoy.

The U.N. special envoy, Ibrahim Gambari, headed for Myanmar at Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's request to try to promote a political solution and reconciliation efforts. U.N. deputy spokeswoman Marie Okabe said Ban had been told by Win that Gambari "will be welcomed by the Myanmar government."

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said in Beijing that "China hopes that all parties in Myanmar exercise restraint and properly handle the current issue so as to ensure the situation there does not escalate and get complicated."

The crackdown puts China in a bind. Its communist government has developed close diplomatic ties with junta leaders and is a major investor in Myanmar. But with the Beijing Olympics less than a year away, China is eager to fend off criticism that it shelters unpopular or abusive regimes.

China and Russia contend the situation in Myanmar is an internal affair and doesn't threaten international peace and security — as required for Security Council action — so getting them to agree to the press statement was considered a positive step.

The Bush administration announced that 14 senior officials in Myanmar would be subject to sanctions. Those targeted include the junta leader, Senior Gen. Than Shwe, and the No. 2 man, Deputy Senior Gen. Maung Aye. The action freezes any assets the 14 have in U.S. banks or other financial institutions under U.S. jurisdiction, and also prohibits any U.S. citizens from doing business with those individuals.

At the United Nations on Tuesday, Bush accused Myanmar of imposing "a 19-year reign of fear" that denies basic freedoms of speech, assembly and worship.

"The world is watching the people of Burma take to the streets to demand their freedom, and the American people stand in solidarity with these brave individuals," Bush said in a statement.

European Union diplomats agreed to consider imposing more economic sanctions on Myanmar. Sanctions were first imposed in 1996 and include a ban on travel to Europe for top government officials, an assets freeze and a ban on arms sales to Myanmar.

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill told reporters in Beijing that the use of force by the junta "will solve nothing."

"We all need to agree on the fact that the Burmese government has got to stop thinking that this can be solved by police and military, and start thinking about the need for genuine reconciliation with the broad spectrum of political activists in the country," he added.

Hill was expected to discuss the violence in Myanmar with Chinese officials on the sidelines of North Korean nuclear disarmament talks this week in Beijing. He declined to say whether Washington would request specific measures from Beijing.

Among those killed Thursday was Kenji Nagai, a journalist for the Japanese video news agency APF News. Nagai, 50, had been covering the protests since Tuesday, APF representative Toru Yamaji said in Japan.

In Washington, Japanese Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura said Tokyo held Myanmar "strictly" accountable for Nagai's death. The 50-year-old journalist had been covering the protests in Yangon, APF representative Toru Yamaji said in Japan.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura said Japan will lodge a protest with Myanmar, a Japanese Foreign Ministry official said. "We strongly protest the Myanmar government and demand an investigation" into the death, Machimura was quoted as saying by the official, speaking on customary condition of anonymity, as saying. "We demand (Myanmar) take appropriate steps to ensure the safety of the Japanese citizens in that country."

Japan will send Deputy Foreign Minister Mitoji Yabunaka to Myanmar to protest Nagai's death, said Tomohiko Taniguchi, a deputy press secretary traveling with Komura in Washington.

Australian Prime Minister John Howard said his government would also press Beijing to urge the junta to end its violent repression.

Thu Sep 27, 8:08 PM ET

WASHINGTON - The Bush administration imposed economic sanctions against more than a dozen senior officials of Myanmar on Thursday, condemning the military-run government's crackdown on protesters. President Bush also urged China to use its influence in the region to find a peaceful end to the standoff.

"The world is watching the people of Burma take to the streets to demand their freedom, and the American people stand in solidarity with these brave individuals," Bush said as the Treasury Department announced the sanctions against officials of Myanmar, also known as Burma.

"We feel admiration and compassion for the monks and peaceful protesters calling for democracy," Bush said. "Every civilized nation has a responsibility to stand up for people suffering under a brutal military regime like the one that has ruled Burma for too long."

National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley met at the White House on Thursday with Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi. During their meeting, Bush invited Yang to the Oval Office to thank him for helping facilitate U.N. special envoy Ibrahim Gambari's visit to Myanmar.

"President Bush expressed his concern for the people of Burma and asked Minister Yang that China use its influence in the region to help bring a peaceful transition to democracy in Burma," said Gordon Johndroe, a spokesman for the National Security Council.

The White House called on the junta to allow the U.N. special envoy full access to all relevant parties, including those jailed by the junta and religious leaders, while he is in Myanmar, beginning Friday.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice talked with officials from Myanmar while in New York attending a meeting of Southeast Asian nations.

"The U.S. is determined to keep an international focus on the travesty in Burma," Rice told reporters.

Rice also made the U.S. displeasure clear in a direct response to a statement made by one of the Myanmar officials, according to State Department spokesman Sean McCormack.

"She was very direct," he said. "She made it very clear it is unacceptable for the government to use violence against these peaceful protesters."

McCormack refused to characterize the statement by the Myanmar official, but said that Rice "felt it was important to provide a response."

The action by Treasury will freeze any assets that the individuals targeted have in U.S. banks or other financial institutions under U.S. jurisdiction. The order also prohibits any U.S. citizens from doing business with the designated individuals. Among those targeted for the sanctions are the junta leader, Senior Gen. Than Shwe, and the No. 2 man in the military regime, Deputy Senior Gen. Maung Aye.

"The president has made it clear that we will not stand by as the regime tries to silence the voices of the Burmese people through repression and intimidation," said Adam Szubin, director of Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control.

The Chinese government on Thursday issued a plea for calm in Myanmar after refusing the day before to condemn the military-run government or impose sanctions.

At the United Nations on Tuesday, Bush announced that the administration would impose new sanctions against the military dictatorship in Myanmar, accusing it of imposing "a 19-year reign of fear" that denies basic freedoms of speech, assembly and worship. Since the president's speech, the State Department has entered the names of a number of Burmese government and military officials, regime supporters and their family members into its visa system to ensure they are not granted permission to visit the United States, Johndroe said.

Bush said that by its own account, the junta already has killed at least nine nonviolent demonstrators, and many others have been injured and arrested as they seek to express their views peacefully.

"I urge the Burmese soldiers and police not to use force on their fellow citizens," he said. "I call on those who embrace the values of human rights and freedom to support the legitimate demands of the Burmese people."

Thu Sep 27, 7:38 PM ET

WASHINGTON - Voice of America and Radio Free Asia have doubled their broadcasts to Myanmar in response to the military-run government's crackdown on protesters.

The two U.S. broadcasters made the change Wednesday, but it was announced Thursday by the agency that oversees them. Voice of America increased Burmese language programs from 1 1/2 hours to 3 hours daily; Radio Free Asia boosted broadcasts from 2 to 4 hours daily.

"The Burmese people are starving for accurate information, both about the world's reaction to their struggle for democracy and also about what is happening in their own land," said James K. Glassman, chairman of the Broadcasting Board of Governors, the federal government agency that oversees both VOA and RFA. "Our expanded Burmese-language broadcasts are more important than ever in satisfying this hunger."

Separately, Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., recorded a video message Thursday for the people of Myanmar, which is also known as Burma.

In the video, the two senators sought to let the people know that the U.S. supports their efforts for freedom and democracy.

"Your struggle is our struggle. The world is watching and we are cheering you," McConnell says.

Some 20 percent of adults weekly in cities across Myanmar listen to VOA and RFA.

Programs are available through the Internet at http://www.voanews.com/burmese and http://www.rfa.org/burmese.

Thu Sep 27, 5:20 PM ET

WASHINGTON - President George W. Bush reached out to China to exert its influence on Myanmar on Thursday, an admission that new U.S. sanctions alone will not be enough to stop the ruling junta's crackdown on protesters.

Trying to rally the international community against Myanmar's generals, Bush met Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi and asked Beijing "to help bring a peaceful transition to democracy in Burma," the White House said.

The surprise talks came after at least nine people were killed in Myanmar as police and soldiers cleared the streets of central Yangon in a two-day-old crackdown on the country's largest protests in 20 years.

Even as tightened U.S. sanctions went into force on Thursday against Myanmar's military leaders, Bush appeared to acknowledge the limits of Washington's power in the crisis.

"I call on all nations that have influence with the regime to join us in supporting the aspirations of the Burmese people and to tell the Burmese junta to cease using force on its own people who are peacefully expressing their desire for change," Bush said in a written statement.

But he focused his personal diplomacy on China, the closest the isolated junta has to an ally. Beijing is a key trading partner and arms supplier to Myanmar and is seen as the linchpin for any international effort to defuse the situation.

Bush invited Yang to the Oval Office during the Chinese official's previously scheduled White House meeting with national security adviser Stephen Hadley.

He thanked China for helping to win Myanmar's consent to a visit by U.N. envoy Ibrahim Gambari and asked that Beijing "use its influence" with the junta, White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said.

For its part, China has said it is "extremely concerned" about the situation in Myanmar and has urged restraint by all parties. But it has not given any sign it is willing to go further in pressuring Myanmar's government.

U.S. SANCTIONS

The United States has been pushing for years, to little avail, to get Myanmar to free Nobel laureate and pro-democracy politician Aung San Suu Kyi and has led a campaign of isolation while demanding political reform.

Bush announced new sanctions at the U.N. General Assembly earlier this week, adding to U.S. measures long in effect.

The U.S. Treasury on Thursday said it had targeted 14 Myanmar leaders, prohibiting financial transactions with them and freezing any U.S. assets. It also broadened a U.S. travel ban on Myanmar officials and their families.

"Every civilized nation has a responsibility to stand up for people suffering under a brutal military regime like the one that has ruled Burma for so long," Bush said in Thursday's statement.

The European Union has threatened tougher sanctions but has yet to take action.

"U.S. efforts alone are not enough," said Derek Mitchell, an Asia expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. "We shot our bullet on sanctions a long time ago."

He said China may have leverage to convince Myanmar to "take a less aggressive approach," but that the junta won't take orders from Beijing for deeper political reform.

A leading European Parliament lawmaker suggested that European countries should boycott the 2008 Beijing Olympics unless China does more to resolve the Myanmar crisis.

The White House played down any prospect of the United States staying away from the games or Bush canceling plans to attend if China fails to put pressure on Myanmar. But Bush spokeswoman Dana Perino reiterated the president's view the "world is going to be watching" in the run-up to the Olympics.

"He thinks that the Olympics is a time when people can pay attention to a lot of different issues. This would be one of them," she said, referring to the Myanmar situation.

Thu Sep 27, 5:15 PM ET

Questions and answers about the protests in Myanmar:


Q: What touched off the current demonstrations in Myanmar?

A: The trigger was the military regime's huge hike of fuel prices, which caused the cost of public transport — used by most people in Myanmar — to also rise. But the protests also reflect long-standing discontent with the repressive military regime, and were initiated by veteran pro-democracy activists.

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Q: What do the demonstrators want?

A: The original demands were for the fuel price to be dropped again and other measures to ease people's economic burdens in one of Asia's poorest nations. But they also include apologies for mistreating monks during a demonstration. More importantly, they have broadened to include the release of all political prisoners including opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi. There is no official leadership of the protest movement, however, so the demands are not universally recognized.

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Q: Why are monks involved and what role do they play in society?

A: Buddhist monks have traditionally spearheaded movements for social and political change, against British colonialism as well as post-independence military dictatorships. They were very active in a failed 1988 pro-democracy uprising, as well as 1990 protests that were put down over several months with raids on hundreds of pagodas and the arrests of hundreds of monks. Monks are revered by the majority of the nation's predominantly Buddhist population as the conscience of society.

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Q: Will the military government pay heed to international pressure? Who has leverage on the junta and why?

A: Myanmar's government so far has been able to shrug off harsh criticism and economic and political sanctions applied by the U.S. and other Western nations. It has survived by cultivating investment in its potentially vast oil and gas reserves. Neighboring China and India curry favor with the junta because of Myanmar's strategic location and resources. China is the regime's main ally, supplying the most aid and diplomatic muscle at international forums.

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Q: The U.S. government announced sanctions on Myanmar; will they have an impact? What is the history of the U.S. in Myanmar?

A: As long as the military government can turn to other sources for support, any sanctions are likely to be ineffective. Some analysts argue that by so completely ostracizing the regime, Washington loses any chance at influencing it or elements in the military to make reforms. To Americans, the country is best know for its role as a World War II theater that was a back road into China, with troops fighting in the jungle and pilots flying supply missions over the nearby Himalayas. Its most famous citizens are Suu Kyi, the 1990 Nobel peace laureate, and the late U Thant, who served as U.N. secretary general

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Q: What does Myanmar have that the world wants?

A: Myanmar's location on the Indian Ocean makes it a desirable outlet to the sea for its northern neighbor China. That fact makes it important for China's regional rival, India. The country is rich in natural resources, with offshore natural gas topping the list. But it also has valuable mineral deposits and is one of the world's biggest suppliers on gem stones. It is also a source of illicit drugs, being the world's second-biggest producer of opium and its derivative, heroin, as well as a major exporter of methamphetamine. The government claims to be trying to suppress the drug trade,

Thu Sep 27, 4:24 PM ET

UNITED NATIONS - Southeast Asian nations issued a rare rebuke to Myanmar Thursday, demanding the military junta immediately stop using violence against pro-democracy protestors after nine people were killed.

As security forces swept through Myanmar's main city Thursday arresting hundreds in a brutal crackdown on the 10th straight day of protests, world outrage mounted with the US slapping sanctions on 14 junta leaders.

UN leaders were told by Myanmar officials that UN chief Ban Ki-moon's special envoy, Ibrahim Gambari, would be granted a visa to visit the country.

"The secretary general has been informed that his special envoy will be welcome in Myanmar," spokeswoman Marie Okabe said. "He is pleased."

But ministers from the 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which has long had a policy of non-interference in the affairs of Myanmar, had unusually sharp words for its fellow member at a meeting at the United Nations.

"They were appalled to receive reports of automatic weapons being used and demanded that the Myanmar government immediately desist from the use of violence against demonstrators," Singapore Foreign Minister George Yeo said.

The ministers "expressed their revulsion to Myanmar Foreign Minister Nyan Win over reports that the demonstrations in Myanmar are being suppressed by violent force and that there has been a number of fatalities," he said.

They strongly urged Myanmar to exercise restraint and seek a political solution and wanted the ruling junta to resume national reconciliation with all parties and work towards a peaceful transition to democracy.

The unfolding drama on the streets of Yangon has dominated the agenda of the UN General Assembly here, and prompted calls from around the world for the junta to lay down its arms.

At least 50,000 people, many of them youths and students, swarmed into Yangon Thursday undeterred by the deaths the day before of at least four protesters, including three Buddhist monks, and repeatedly defied orders to disperse.

In six hours of chaotic protests, Myanmar state media said nine people were killed on Thursday, including a Japanese journalist, and another 11 protesters injured.

US President George W. Bush said the world must press Myanmar's military rulers to end the violent crackdown and urged the junta to cooperate fully with UN envoy Gambari.

"I call on all nations that have influence with the regime to join us in supporting the aspirations of the Burmese people and to tell the Burmese junta to cease using force on its own people, who are peacefully expressing their desire for change," he said in a statement.

Bush told visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi he hoped Beijing in particular would use its influence with the military regime to help bring a peaceful transition to democracy.

China on Thursday issued its first public call for Myanmar's military rulers to show "restraint" in handling anti-government protests but did not condemn the ongoing crackdown.

The US administration has also ordered a freeze on the assets of Myanmar's military leader and 13 other senior officials.

Beleaguered Myanmar Foreign Minister U Nyan Win had skipped the ASEAN meeting at the last minute, instead sending his representative Thaung Tun, a senior government official, an ASEAN diplomat told AFP.

Yeo also said ASEAN ministers urged the junta to grant Gambari "full access" to all parties in Myanmar, including Nobel peace laureate and democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, who has spent most of the last 17 years under house arrest.

ASEAN also warned Myanmar that the bloody crisis was having "a serious impact on the reputation and credibility of ASEAN."

French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said meanwhile the ASEAN stand was a victory for the thousands of demonstrators.

"This is a success for democracy and this is a success for the demonstrators in Myanmar," he told reporters in New York.

Japan, a top donor to Myanmar, had summoned the military regime's ambassador in Tokyo on Thursday to protest against the crackdown while South Korea urged the junta to refrain from suppressing the protesters.

The ASEAN ministers later held talks in New York with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who described ASEAN's comments as "a very good statement."

"I can just assure you that the US is determined to keep an international focus on the travesty in Rangoon (Yangon)," she added.

Thu Sep 27, 4:17 PM ET

WASHINGTON - The United States tightened sanctions Thursday on Myanmar's military rulers and urged countries like China and India to do more to help end a bloody crackdown on anti-government demonstrators.

As the US Treasury Department froze the US assets of 14 top junta members, the White House urged the regime to let Myanmar-bound UN envoy Ibrahim Gambari meet with protest leaders and detained democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi.

In a previously unannounced meeting, US President George W. Bush told Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi he hoped China would "use its influence in the region to help bring a peaceful transition to democracy in Burma (Myanmar)," said US national security spokesman Gordon Johndroe.

Bush also thanked Yang, who was at the White House for talks with US national security adviser Stephen Hadley, for China's help in facilitating Gambari's visit to Myanmar, Johndroe said.

Earlier, the US president pointedly urged "all nations that have influence" with Myanmar to throw their weight behind global efforts to end the crackdown, which has left nine people dead including a Japanese journalist.

"I call on all nations that have influence with the regime to join us in supporting the aspirations of the Burmese people and to tell the Burmese junta to cease using force on its own people, who are peacefully expressing their desire for change," he said in a statement.

US officials did not deny that his message was largely aimed at China and India, Myanmar's potent neighbors, but cautioned against reading it as a sign that Washington was worried they may hobble pressure efforts.

Energy-hungry India and China, besides other Asian countries, have been jockeying for a share of Myanmar's vast energy resources, triggering accusations that this was weakening US and European economic sanctions.

Under existing sanctions, 375 members of the junta and their families are banned from entering the European Union and are subject to an asset freeze.

"The world is watching the people of Burma take to the streets to demand their freedom, and the American people stand in solidarity with these brave individuals," said Bush, who made a direct appeal to Myanmar security forces.

"I urge the Burmese soldiers and police not to use force on their fellow citizens. I call on those who embrace the values of human rights and freedom to support the legitimate demands of the Burmese people," he said.

White House spokeswoman Dana Perino urged the junta to give Gambari "full access to all relevant parties while he is in Burma beginning tomorrow. This includes those jailed by the junta, religious leaders and Aung San Suu Kyi."

The Nobel Peace Prize winner's opposition National League for Democracy won 1990 parliamentary elections, but the results were rejected by the junta, who have kept the 62-year-old activist under house arrest for most of the past two decades.

Meanwhile, the US Treasury Department tightened US sanctions, first imposed in 1997 and expanded in 2003, by freezing assets of top regime leaders, and a visa ban on alleged human rights violators and their families was pending.

Among those designated for sanctions were junta leader Than Shwe, who is minister of defense and chairman of the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC); Vice Senior General Maung Aye, commander of the army and vice chairman of the SPDC; Lieutenant General Thein Sein, acting prime minister and first secretary of the SPDC; and General Thura Shwe Mann, joint chief of staff and member of the SPDC, along with other senior officials and military officers.

The US State Department has been adding Myanmar officials, regime supporters, and family members to a list of people barred from entering the United States, Johndroe said.

On a more symbolic front, the White House also indicated that it would continue to refer to the country as "Burma" instead of "Myanmar" in a show of support for the pro-democracy activists there. The military government changed the name in 1989.

Thu Sep 27, 4:06 PM ET

BANGKOK, Thailand - Confronted by a military junta willing to pull the trigger, Buddhist monks and democracy activists in Myanmar face long odds in trying to uproot an institution that has wielded absolute power for 45 years.

Every sign of dissent over the decades has been crushed, including a major uprising in 1988 that ended when troops gunned down thousands of peaceful demonstrators and imprisoned the survivors.

The world has changed in many ways since 1988. The Iron Curtain fell a year later, showing freedom can emerge if authoritarian regimes aren't ruthless. Globalization brought increasing economic integration to Asia, including investment in a poor place like Myanmar. The Internet has made it increasingly difficult for governments to control information and dissent.

But in Myanmar, which is also known as Burma, there are no outward signs of any change in the cardinal principle of the generals: Retain power at all costs, no matter international pressure and condemnation.

"The risk of not cracking down is infinitely greater than risk incurred in cracking down," said Mary Callahan, an expert on Myanmar at the University of Washington. "What we've seen in the last two days is a very clear message they are moving to put down what they consider a threat to the nation."

The protests began more than a month ago, involving a few hundred activists who used a sudden increase in fuel prices as their catalyst. The regime uncharacteristically allowed the demonstrations to escalate, and by Monday some 100,000 people led by Buddhist monks were in the streets of Yangon, the country's largest city.

First came official warnings, then a curfew, and on Wednesday and Thursday the army finally flexed its muscles, sending its soldiers to beat demonstrators, arrest monks and political opponents and shoot into some crowds, killing several people.

Typically, the junta blames the protests on a conspiracy by "domestic and external elements," meaning the West and those in Myanmar who look to its support in the demand for civilian rule. The military trots out a motto underlining a different value system — "peace, stability, unity."

By Myanmar standards, the crackdown so far has been muted. Though the military will not be satisfied until it has won, several restraining forces may be at work that would prevent a replay of 1988 and indicate some willingness to make compromises later.

One is the rise of neighboring China — the regime's leading trade partner and military supplier. Beijing has recently made low-key but telling statements urging the rulers to reconcile with the opposition and restore stability.

Some analysts say Beijing would hate to be viewed as party to a bloodbath as it prepares to host the 2008 Olympic Games, a sort of coming-out party for China after the bloody crushing of the Tiananmen Square democracy movement in 1989.

Support from China — and to a lesser extent other Asian nations investing in Myanmar, notably India, South Korea and Singapore — has undercut the effectiveness of economic sanctions imposed by the U.S. and other Western nations.

Another mitigating factor is the prominent protest role of Myanmar's monks, who outnumber the military 500,000 to 400,000. They are highly revered in the deeply Buddhist nation, and the regime knows killing them in large numbers could trigger a maelstrom of fury.

"Will the soldiers shoot at the Buddha? Or will the generals try something else this time? A `straightforward massacre' as in 1988 may not be possible this time," said Bertil Lintner, a Myanmar expert and author of a book on that uprising two decades ago.

The military does have a new card to play: Its policemen and soldiers have been better trained in riot control and the use of non-lethal force, Myanmar journalists say.

The protests, meanwhile, have failed to produce a visible leader for anti-junta forces to rally around. The iconic democracy activist and Nobel Prize winner, Aung San Suu Kyi, remains under house arrest while others are jailed or have fled abroad. The only opposition party — Suu Kyi's decimated National League for Democracy — has shown no initiative over the past month.

Although monks have been spearheading the demonstrations and filling most of the ranks in protest marches, they aren't likely to emerge in a leadership role, Lintner said.

"They can mobilize the people, get them to rise up, but as monks they cannot provide political leadership," he said. "It's in a sense leaderless and rudderless. No one can bring (the protests) forward, to come up with specific demands. The monks can take the moral high ground, but not more than that."

Some experts think that once the unrest is quelled, the regime may be willing to take some conciliatory steps, depending on the intensity of pressure from China, the United Nations and others in the world community as well as from within.

These could include speeding up work on drafting a constitution, already a decade old, and holding a referendum and election along a so-called "roadmap to democracy." The regime also could open talks with Suu Kyi and her party.

But there are no signs the generals, ensconced and safe in the remote new bunker-like capital of Naypyitaw, intend to relinquish any of the real power they have held since the last civilian government was toppled in 1962.

Questions have been being raised about whether soldiers — who are virtually all from the Buddhist ethnic Burman majority — would defy the taboo on mistreating monks and other countrymen. Most Burmese males spend at least a token few weeks as monks as a show of devotion.

However, there are no signs of cracks among the military's rank and file. Soldiers have shown no sympathy for protesters, and none has changed sides as happened in 1988 when some air force personnel joined demonstrations. Troops are kept isolated in barracks; their families get free housing and medical care.

"Judging from the nature and habit of the Myanmar military, they will not allow the monks or activists to topple them," said Chaiyachoke Julsiriwong, a Myanmar scholar at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok.

"They will fight at all costs because these people have grown to believe they are only institution that can uphold the nation's security. They think of themselves as the center of the nation."

Thu Sep 27, 1:59 PM ET

WASHINGTON - The United States on Thursday ordered a freeze on the assets of Myanmar's military leader and 13 other senior officials in sanctions imposed after a crackdown on dissent in the Asian nation.

"We are today imposing sanctions against senior officials of the government of Burma," said Adam Szubin, director of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control.

Szubin said US President George W. Bush "has made clear that we will not stand by as the regime tries to silence the voices of the Burmese people through repression and intimidation."

The announcement came after Bush said the world must press Myanmar's military rulers to end a violent crackdown on protests and urged the junta to cooperate fully with a UN special envoy.

"I call on all nations that have influence with the regime to join us in supporting the aspirations of the Burmese people and to tell the Burmese Junta to cease using force on its own people, who are peacefully expressing their desire for change," he said in a statement.

Among those designated for sanctions were junta leader Than Shwe, who is minister of defense and chairman of the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC); Vice Senior General Maung Aye, commander of the army and vice chairman of the SPDC; Lieutenant General Thein Sein, acting prime minister and first secretary of the SPDC; and General Thura Shwe Mann, joint chief of staff and member of the SPDC, along with other senior officials and military officers.

Bush spokeswoman Dana Perino said that Myanmar-bound UN envoy Ibrahim Gambari must be able to meet with "all relevant parties" including political prisoners and detained democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi.

"The world is watching the people of Burma take to the streets to demand their freedom, and the American people stand in solidarity with these brave individuals," the US president said.

"Every civilized nation has a responsibility to stand up for people suffering under a brutal military regime like the one that has ruled Burma for too long," said Bush, who made a direct appeal to Myanmar security forces.

"I urge the Burmese soldiers and police not to use force on their fellow citizens. I call on those who embrace the values of human rights and freedom to support the legitimate demands of the Burmese people," he said.

Thu Sep 27, 11:37 AM ET

WASHINGTON - The United States demanded Thursday that Myanmar's military rulers end an "outrageous" and deadly crackdown on anti-government protestors and called for more global pressure on the junta.

"The Burmese government should not stand in the way of its people's desire for freedom. They must stop this violence against peaceful protesters now," said White House national security spokesman Gordon Johndroe.

US President George W. Bush was expected to issue a statement later calling for increased global pressure on Myanmar, while the US Treasury Department was due to release a list of individuals there targeted by new US sanctions.

But US officials declined to criticize China and India, Myanmar's giant neighbors, over braking diplomatic efforts to bring about change there.

"I think it's clear that the president wants increased international pressure on Burma," spokesman Tony Fratto said, pointing to Bush's warnings to the junta in his speech this week to the UN General Assembly.

"I also expect the Treasury dept soon to move on their role in imposing some sanctions with respect to Burma," he said, referring to travel restrictions and financial sanctions that Bush announced in New York.

"We must see continued stepped up international pressure on Burma," said Fratto, who called the crackdown on anti-government protests there "an outrageous situation."

"The world is watching, we also need the world acting and that's why we're going to continue to work with our partners in the international community and the other countries on the UN Security Council to continue work to step up pressure on Burma until they change their practices," he said.

Fratto also declared that the United States would continue to call the country "Burma" in a show of support for pro-democracy activists there.

"We choose not to use the language of a totalitarian dictatorial regime that oppresses its people," he said. "And we have freedom of speech here, maybe they don't."

His comments were in line with the US State Department and the Central Intelligence Agency, which pointedly note that the 1989 name change never won approval from the country's legislators.

"The democratically elected but never convened parliament of 1990 does not recognize the name change, and the democratic opposition continues to use the name 'Burma.' Due to consistent support for the democratically elected leaders, the US government likewise uses 'Burma,'" the State Department website says.

The CIA "World Fact Book" notes that the new name is a derivative of the Burmese short-form name Myanma Naingngandaw.

Earlier, security forces in the country formerly known as Burma swept through the heart of the capital city Yangon, arresting hundreds of people and firing warning shots as they intensified a violent crackdown on anti-government demonstrators.

At least 50,000 people, many of them youths and students, swarmed into Yangon undeterred by the deaths of at least four protesters, including three Buddhist monks, the day before, repeatedly defying orders to disperse.

Reports were sketchy after a chaotic six hours of protests, but witnesses and diplomats said at least four people were shot, including a Japanese video journalist who was killed.

It was the 10th straight day that large protests have erupted against the ruling junta, which caused outrage in this impoverished Southeast Asian nation by doubling fuel prices on August 15.

Thu Sep 27, 10:38 AM ET

YANGON - A Japanese journalist was shot and killed in Myanmar Thursday, becoming the first foreign victim of the violent crackdown on anti-government protests, officials and his employer said.

International media rights group Reporters Without Borders said it was "appalled" at the death of 50-year-old Kenji Nagai, a journalist with Tokyo-based video and photo agency APF News.

A company spokesman said Nagai had entered Myanmar two days ago on the eve of the bloody crackdown against mass protests led by Buddhist monks. He worked on a contract and had been sent to trouble spots in the past.

"The foreign ministry informed us today that the passport bearing the name of our journalist, Kenji Nagai, was found with the body and right now the foreign ministry is trying to make the final assertion it is him," he said.

Paris-based Reporters Without Borders condemned the death, and said the ruling junta continued to disrupt communications in the isolated nation, disconnecting mobile phones and making blogs inaccessible.

"Despite these restrictions, pictures and reports continue to get out of the country thanks to the foreign journalists present there and to Burmese journalists," it said.

Myanmar's state media confirmed that a Japanese national was one of nine people killed in the country's biggest city, including eight protesters.

At least four people including three Buddhist monks were killed in Yangon on Wednesday as security forces attempted to crush growing anti-government protests.

Japan, which is a top donor to Myanmar, on Thursday summoned the regime's ambassador to protest against the crackdown.

"Something deplorable is happening there," Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda told reporters before ambassador Saw Hla Min visited the Japanese foreign ministry.

"We must consider what on earth we should do to resolve the situation."

Thu Sep 27, 9:34 AM ET

NEW DELHI - India is walking a diplomatic tightrope, juggling energy and strategic concerns with a commitment to democracy as military-ruled neighbour Myanmar cracks down on pro-democracy protesters, analysts say.

But New Delhi's "nuanced approach" towards Myanmar is not an exception, said former foreign secretary S. Shashank, pointing to a decades' old policy of "doing business with (military) governments in Pakistan and Bangladesh."

India, which rolled out the red carpet for military strongman Than Shwe in a 2004 visit, was till the mid-1990s a staunch supporter of pro-democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi.

It bestowed on Aung San Suu Kyi the prestigious Jawaharlal Nehru Award -- named after India's first prime minister -- in 1993.

But New Delhi, which kept the military junta at arms length after the 1988 crackdown on democracy protests, then changed track realising its security interests in the northeastern region were in jeopardy, said former ambassador to Myanmar, G. Parthasarthy.

"Insurgents from India's northeast were taking shelter there (in Myanmar). There was an intensification of attacks on Indian targets. Drugs were also flowing into India from Myanmar," he told AFP.

But since India began engaging with the generals, "there has been cooperation between Indian and Myanmarese security forces with some joint efforts to flush out the rebels," the ex-envoy noted.

"There are instances of Myanmarese soldiers being killed fighting Indian insurgents in the jungles there. Our policy of engagement has been paying dividends."

A government official, who asked not to be named, said India was also looking at Myanmar to provide an alternative access route to the under-developed, landlocked northeast.

"We have been requesting Bangladesh for transit facilities to reach the northeast which has not been forthcoming. Transit facilities would help the region develop economically and Myanmar has responded positively," he said.

Myanmar's large reserves of natural gas have proved another major reason for India to stay engaged.

Energy-hungry India and China, besides other Asian countries, have been jockeying for a share of Myanmar's vast energy resources -- triggering accusations that this was weakening US and European economic sanctions.

But Shashank noted that "economic sanctions in place for decades have not worked. It's only through engagement that you can exercise some kind of leverage. If you isolate someone, what influence have you got there?"

India's policies were no different from those of the influential economic grouping the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which enrolled Myanmar as a member in 1997, the former foreign secretary said.

"If you look at the investment made by India in Myanmar, India must be at number 50 or 60 in a list which is headed by European companies," he added.

For retired army general Ashok Mehta India's response on Wednesday to the crackdown on pro-democracy activists was carefully crafted and deliberately low-key.

The foreign ministry issued a statement calling for "a broad-based process of national reconciliation and political reform" in Myanmar. Mehta said that allows India the flexibility to "not dump the junta" but "express its displeasure."

"Those accusing India of fostering close links with Myanmar and weakening sanctions are continents away, without the security concerns that India has.

"When the US talks of curbing terrorism, it does not look at who is in power. Take the case of Pakistan. The US has been talking to Pakistan and President (Pervez) Musharraf about democracy in whispers," Mehta said.

A western diplomatic source summed up the situation saying, "India is caught on one side between the defence of democratic values and its ambitions of becoming a superpower and on the other between protecting its national interests such as energy needs which puts pressure on its diplomacy."

Thu Sep 27, 9:08 AM ET

BEIJING - China must use its influence with Myanmar's rulers to stop them from cracking down violently on anti-government protesters there, a senior US envoy said here Thursday.

"The use of force will solve nothing, this is about arriving at a political arrangement,"

Christopher Hill, the US assistant secretary of state for East Asian affairs, told reporters.

"All countries need to use all the influence that they have. I think every country has some influence with Burma, and I think China is certainly one of those," he added, referring to Myanmar by its former name.

China, one of the Myanmar junta's closest allies and most important trading partners, has refrained from taking a tough public stand against the generals despite the crackdown on the protesters.

China's UN envoy Wang Guangya said in New York on Wednesday that sanctions against Myanmar's military rulers would not be "helpful."

But China's foreign ministry has urged Myanmar's government to bring about stability, and diplomatic sources in Brussels told AFP that the Chinese have privately advised the junta "not to over-react."

Hill said the United States, China and all countries need to consult closely and do what they could to pressure Myanmar's government not to use violence.

"It's something that all countries need to be very concerned about... to use the influence they have to prevent the Burmese authorities from cracking down on these peaceful protesters.

"We all need to agree on the fact that the Burmese government has to stop thinking that all this can be solved by police and military (action) and start thinking about the need for some genuine reconciliation."

Hill, who is in Beijing for six-nation talks on North Korea's nuclear weapons programme, was due to meet with Chinese deputy foreign minister Wu Dawei later Thursday.

Thu Sep 27, 8:57 AM ET

TOKYO - A Japanese man who Thursday became the first foreigner killed in protests in Myanmar was a video journalist, his agency said.

Kenji Nagai, 50, was working for APF News, a video and photo agency based in Tokyo, a spokesman for the company said.

He said Nagai worked on a contract and was dispatched in the past to trouble spots. He had entered Myanmar two days ago on the eve of the crackdown against the mass protests led by thousands of Buddhist monks, he said.

"The foreign ministry informed us today that the passport bearing the name of our journalist, Kenji Nagai, was found with the body and right now the foreign ministry is trying to make the final assertion it is him," he said.

A foreign ministry official said an embassy official confirmed that the dead man was carrying a Japanese passport with him.

Thu Sep 27, 5:45 AM ET

YANGON - Thousands of protesters emptied the streets of central Yangon on Thursday after Myanmar's soldiers issued an ultimatum threatening "extreme action" unless the crowd dispersed, witnesses said.

Pockets of people remained on balconies and bridges, as soldiers and police worked systematically through the city centre to ensure that no protesters remained.

At least 100 people were arrested and thrown into military trucks after the ultimatum. Security forces had earlier fired warning shots, but the crowd only broke up after soldiers issued their warning.

Thu Sep 27, 4:20 AM ET

NEW DELHI - India expressed concern at the situation in Myanmar as reports from the military-run nation said at least four people had been killed in a crackdown on protesters including three monks.

"We are concerned at the situation in Myanmar and are monitoring it closely," Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee said in a statement from New York, where he is attending the UN General Assembly session.

"It is our hope that all sides will resolve their issues peacefully through dialogue.

"As a close and friendly neighbour, India hopes to see a peaceful, stable and prosperous Myanmar, where all sections of the people will be included in a broad-based process of national reconciliation and political reform," he said.

Mukherjee also said that "Myanmar's process of national reconciliation initiated by the authorities should be expedited."

An earlier statement from Mukherjee's ministry said that process "should be more inclusive and broad-based."

At least four people, including three Buddhist monks, protesting against the military government died Wednesday in clashes with security forces, including two who were beaten to death, officials and hospital sources said.

Political watchdog International Crisis Group on Tuesday urged UN chief Ban Ki-moon to push Myanmar's allies China and India into talks with the junta.

Energy-hungry India and China, along with other Asian countries, have been jockeying for a share of Myanmar's vast energy resources -- weakening US and European economic sanctions.

Indian Oil Minister Murli Deora on Sunday signed accords pledging to invest 150 million dollars for gas exploration in Myanmar during a visit to the country's new administrative capital, Naypyidaw.

The meeting came as pro-democracy protests gathered steam, with crowds swelling to 100,000 people on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.

Anti-government protests began after a surprise huge rise in the price of fuel on August 15, a heavy blow for people already battling to make ends meet in the impoverished nation.

Thu Sep 27, 2:56 AM ET

UNITED NATIONS - Southeast Asian foreign ministers were to meet here Thursday under pressure to join the Security Council in urging Myanmar rulers to allow a visit by a UN envoy to defuse world anger over a bloody crackdown on pro-democracy protests.

The 15-member council met in emergency session here Wednesday but failed to condemn the brutal repression in Yangon.

Members merely expressed "strong support" for a visit to Myanmar by UN envoy Ibrahim Gambari "as soon as possible," expressed "concern" about the government crackdown and called for "restraint."

Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) foreign ministers will meet on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session before holding separate talks with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in New York later in the day.

ASEAN, which groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, has adopted a soft stance on Myanmar in line with its general policy of non-interference in domestic affairs.

A Western diplomat said council members were hoping that the grouping would use its influence on Myanmar to persuade it to meet Gambari and free political prisoners, including democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi.

US officials said Rice was also expected to ask Myanmar's ASEAN partners to crank up the pressure for an end to the violent crackdown on pro-democracy protests in Yangon and the start of a dialogue with the opposition.

Rice said Wednesday that Gambari should be issued a visa by the military junta "immediately" and allowed to see Nobel peace prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.

Gambari visited Myanmar twice last year, including last November when he met Aung San Suu Kyi, who has been under house arrest for most of the past 18 years.

At least four people were killed and 100 injured Wednesday as Myanmar's security forces clamped down on protests led by Buddhist monks in Yangon, according to officials and witnesses.

Up to 100,000 people defied heavy security to take to the streets, despite warnings from the ruling generals who are facing the most serious challenge to their rule in nearly two decades.

UN chief Ban Ki-moon said Wednesday he was sending Gambari to the region and urged Myanmar's junta "to cooperate fully" with his good offices mission aimed at assisting "in the process of national reconciliation through dialogue."

Gambari, who briefed the council on the latest developments in Myanmar, told reporters that he was heading for Southeast Asia late Wednesday to await a visa for Myanmar.

Diplomats said the issue of sanctions was not raised during the session.

"We found common ground in support of Gambari's mission," said China's UN envoy Wang Guangya.

Singapore on Thursday urged Myanmar to give full access to the United Nations envoy and said it was "deeply troubled" by reports that violence had been used against demonstrators. Singapore is the current chair of the 10-member Association of ASEAN, which includes Myanmar.

On prospects for tougher action, including sanctions, if things escalate in Myanmar, US Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad told AFP late Wednesday: "I do not exclude that. That is certainly on the table for us and several other members. But the council is not there yet."

The council reaction Wednesday constrasted with expressions of global outrage, with governments vowing to hold Myanmar's military rulers to account.

In a joint statement issued in Brussels, the European Union and the United States said they were "deeply troubled" by reports that security forces had fired on demonstrators and arrested monks spearheading the protests.

The statement called on the Security Council to consider further steps "including sanctions."

Tuesday, US President George W. Bush unveiled new sanctions on Myanmar's military rulers and urged global pressure for democratic reforms to end the junta's decades-old "reign of fear."

French President Nicolas Sarkozy Wednesday urged French businesses including oil giant Total -- accused over labor rights abuses in Myanmar -- to freeze investments in the country and called for the swift adoption of UN sanctions.

But Western diplomats said a push for council sanctions was likely to run into stiff resistance from veto-wielding council members China and Russia.

Wang said sanctions would not be "helpful."

In Moscow, the foreign ministry said the bloody crackdown on mass street protests by Myanmar authorities was an "internal matter."

In January, China and Russia vetoed a draft resolution in the Security Council that would have urged Myanmar's rulers to free all political detainees and end sexual violence by the military.

They then argued that the Myanmar issue did not represent a threat to international peace and security and was best handled by the Geneva-based UN Human Rights Council.