ON BURMA'S SITUATION. There have been many uninformed news reports dealing with Burma lately. There are many sides of this story most of them misleading and not understood by news reporters, gem dealers and others involved in the issue. The true information regarding the gem mining and trading in Burma are discussed in depth in my two books Mogok - Valley of Rubies & Sapphires and Gems & Mines of Mogok. These are the only books dealing exclusively in the subject matter and closely related to the current situation. I DO support the human rights issue, but I DO NOT agree with the boycott on banning Burmese gems. You cannot just ban trading Burmese gems in the western markets but allow trading Burmese oil and gas as you lose credibility. Burma's situation is indeed very complex. I write the true facts about the region and the people of Burma, and let the readers understand for themselves that things are not just in plain black and white.

BURMESE BLOOD RUBIES - IN DEFENSE OF A MUCH ABUSED NAME. This issue has gone too far with stories fueled by various activist groups aiming to achieve political gain. The fact is that Burma is China' child. You talk to Burma, you are actually dealing with China. China's decisions on Burma's situation will always prevail. The US and UK can scream all they want.
Get more facts: How about the emerald mines in Colombia controlled mostly by FARC guerillas and/or corrupted government army officers? You cannot forget the Tamil guerillas still control many sapphire mines in Sri-Lanka... How about the gems controlled by Somali guerillas and freely traded in Kenya? How about those gems controlled by Taliban and freely traded in Peshawar (Pakistan)? Do you really believe that all diamonds in the market today are non-blood dripping?
Regarding the killings in Yangon on Sept. 29: In any political disturbance there are victims. For example, in 1970, at the Kent State University the US National Guard opened fire on unarmed protesting students, killing 4 and one permanently paralyzed. FOOD-FOR-THOUGHT.. Human rights abuses are taken place in every country, what can be done? Ban the products of that country (except oil and gas)? THE BOTTOM LINE: No matter what laws are passed by the various governments, no matter what "Kimberley-type processes" are invented, the fact is that Burmese gems will always be available in the Western markets and around the world.

CONSUMER ALERT - IMITATION GEMS. Once more, I would like to inform the naive consumer that buying those "ultra rare", "fine quality", "dazzling", "natural", "genuine" gems at rock-bottom prices from certain websites via e-Bay are actually buying imitation gems. This is plain cheating and unfair trade practice. Specific cases have been reported to US Federal Trade Commission and to the Jewelers Vigilance Committee. It appears that nothing has been done, since these websites still continue to operate making hundreds of thousands of dollars damaging the reputation and integrity of our trade. What can you do about it?