Myanmar denies lax stance on Golden Triangle narcotics

Myanmar soldiers take eradication of opium-producing poppy plants into their own hands

In this story: Brazilian doctors take to streets to feed tiny mouths Festival brings medieval flavor to Italian villages Japan transplant makes vocation of popular potable Pets, some pampered, strut their stuff in Russia RELATED STORIES, SITES

By Kevin Grieves
CNN World Report

For many, the name has become synonymous with illegal drug production and trafficking: the Golden Triangle. The area around the common borders of Myanmar, Thailand and Laos has earned that reputation because of the large volume of narcotics alleged to be produced there, primarily opium and heroin. Currently, Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, has the dubious distinction of being listed as the world's second largest producer of opium and heroin.

Some Western nations charge the leaders of Myanmar with not taking adequate measures to stem the flow of drugs from the Myanmar side of the border. The United States recently announced it would extend a ban on economic aid to Myanmar, citing an apparent lack of progress in implementing anti-drug laws.

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Myanmar defended its response to the drug trade in the region on CNN World Report. A report from Myanma Radio and Television noted some of the strides it says the government has made in stopping the traffic of narcotics. Reporter Aung Tun Oo says authorities have put the brakes on more than US $45 billion worth of heroin destined for the United States, noting that the fight against drugs has cost the lives of 828 Myanmar law enforcement officers in the past two decades.

Myanmar has embarked on a 10-year plan to eliminate opium cultivation, and Myanma Radio and Television reports that the Mongla region in the east of the country has achieved the status of an "opium-free zone," with other areas aiming to reach that goal by 2005. This goal could be stepped up with the help of international aid, Aung said.

"But even if aid is late in arriving," Aung said, "this fight to eliminate narcotic drugs from our beloved soil is a vital national cause, a solemn pledge that Myanmar vowed to keep to herself and to the world community."

A Brazilian doctor checks a child for healthy development and proper nutrition

Brazil is for some a land of plenty, a land where the wealthy members of society possess significant amounts of money and enjoy an impressive quality of life. But the gap between those wealthy Brazilians and the country's poor is equally significant: More than half of the country's 165 million inhabitants earn less than the minimum wage of US $77 a month.

The chasm between the haves and have-nots is equally pronounced in the Amazonian metropolis of Manaus. Brazil's Amazon Network says at least half of the city's residents live in poverty, sometimes unable to provide basic food for themselves and their families. The resultant malnutrition leads to scores of other health problems down the road, so a group of doctors has taken up the fight against the problem of inadequate nourishment.

Amazon Network reporter Marcela Rosa followed some of the 100 doctors who made house calls to the impoverished areas of Manaus. The doctors examined severely malnourished babies, and provide additional food where necessary. "When we arrive in these people's houses, we see the lack of food," Jorge Akel, one of the doctors, said. "Sugar, beans, milk ... food is all that they need."

Babies and young children are priorities for the doctors, since youngsters need good nourishment for proper health later in life. The program includes a special treatment for women who are pregnant.

Many cultural traditions change to adapt to modern lifestyles over the years. But the Barbaricino Carnival on the Italian island of Sardinia has managed to maintain the mood of a centuries-old festival.

Italy's INN brought the sights and sounds of this year's Carnival to CNN World Report viewers. The annual event features a parade of masked characters representing the range of human emotions, and the parade was punctuated by the ringing of cow bells.

Rice wine, commonly known by its Japanese name of sake, has been a mainstay of Japan's culinary heritage for centuries. While sake is an integral part of Japanese culture, many visitors to Japan also like to sample the beverage, and some acquire a taste for the unique wine.

Philip Harper checks on the progress of his latest batch of sake

Japan's TV Asahi introduced viewers to one such visitor, Philip Harper from Great Britain. Harper has taken his enjoyment of sake to what for him was the logical conclusion: He now makes the drink in one of Japan's sake breweries.

Harper told TV Asahi reporter Meg Shirokawa that after his arrival in Japan over a decade ago as part of a teaching exchange program, he got his first taste of sake, and things haven't been the same since. He now spends his days taking care of "koji," the microorganisms used to ferment steamed rice to produce sake. The process is painstaking, requiring plenty of patience.

So, a "Westerner" brewing sake? According to TV Asahi, Harper is the only non-native sake brewer in the country, a fact that raises some eyebrows among Japanese. "I would prefer a Japanese to make sake. But I think he's trying hard," the brewmaster said.

Harper told Shirokawa he has no intentions of abandoning his passion for the drink of his adopted culture. "I think it's something to make life fun," he says. "Almost everything I know about Japan, sake has taught me, so it's certainly something I learned a lot from."

Four-legged friends have special places in the hearts of their owners in countries around the world, no less so in Russia. And as elsewhere, Russian pet owners engage in a bit of friendly rivalry over the respective merits of their breed of dog or cat.

Russia's NTV took viewers out into the Moscow cold for a peek at the Russian Dog Championships, where hardy canines didn't seem to mind the brisk air as they showed off their training -- stopping, sitting, or lying down at their owner's command. "Despite the snow, subzero temperatures and clumsy owners, most dogs did a good job," said NTV reporter Olga Podkopaeva.

Is this the face of feline perfection? Visitors to the Moscow International Cat Show had a chance to decide for themselves

Cats and their human companions had a more comfortable time of it at NTV's next stop, the Moscow International Cat Show, held in the warm indoors. The cat show featured a variety of different breeds, and entrants sported a variety of appearances, from long-hair to short-hair to completely hairless. Proud owners introduced their feline friends to NTV's Podkopaeva, including a distinctive Russian sphinx breed, and a cat dubbed "the hairy heartbreaker."

CNN World Report contributors

South Africa grapples with charges of racism in military
February 25, 2000
Belgians bridle under legacy of Waterloo showdown
February 18, 2000
Brazilian children take up cause of cleaner surroundings
February 11, 2000
Slovenia extends helping hand to Kosovo refugees
February 4, 2000
China pledges commitment to freedom of worship
January 24, 2000
Angolan strife spurs wave of refugee flight
January 17, 2000

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