Burma Newscasts

Friday, February 20, 2009

NLD Criticizes Gambari-Japan Joint-statement

By WAI MOE
The Irrawaddy News

Ahead of the United Nations Security Council’s closed session on Burma on Friday, the main opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) said it disagreed with a joint-statement by UN Special Envoy to Burma Ibrahim Gambari and Japan’s foreign minister on Thursday.

Nyan Win, an NLD spokesperson, told The Irrawaddy, “The party issued two statements yesterday because we want to response to The United Nations Special Envoy to Burma Ibrahim Gambari’s co-statement with Japan’s foreign minister in Tokyo on February 12.”

“As well, as we want to make a clarification on our stand on unconditional dialogue as well as NLD willingness for UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s trip to the country,” he said.

The joint-statement issued by Gambari and Japanese Foreign Minister Hirofumi Nakasone said they agreed to encourage the Burmese junta to hold general elections in 2010 in a form that could be accepted by the international community.

The NLD said it was concerned that the joint statement was not consistent with NLD demands as well as resolutions by the UN General Assembly which honor the 1990 election results.

In the joint-statement , Hirofumi Nakasone said, “Even though there are few positive moves by the Myanmar [Burma] government, it's a huge step for them to have announced that they would hold a general election in 2010, compared with two past decades of silence about its democratization process.”

“If they [the junta] take favorable action, the international community should react in a manner that encourages more positive actions,” he said.

Japan is one of the main donor countries to Burma. Japan cut its assistance to Burma after the crackdown on demonstrators in September 2007. During the crackdown, Japanese videographer Kenji Nagai was killed by Burmese security forces. Japan has never applied economic sanctions against the Burmese junta, as have the United States and European countries.

In early 2006, Japan, along with China and Russian, rejected a proposal to take the Burma issue to the UN Security Council. Analysts say that Japan has sometimes worked to tone down criticism of Burma in the UN, because it wants to counter Beijing’s influence in the regime.

In its statement, the NLD also outlined three policy principles that it said were presented to Gambari when he met with the NLD leader Aung San Suu Kyi and other NLD officials during his most recent visit to Burma.

The first was the release of all political prisoners unconditionally. Human rights groups claim there are more than 2,100 political prisoners in Burma’s prisons.

The second was face-to-face dialogue between Suu Kyi and the junta’s leader, Snr-Gen Than Shwe, to resolve political problems in the country. The third was a review of the 2008 junta-backed-constitution.

The NLD has said it will not take part in the election unless their demands are met.

When Gambari asked what was the first NLD priority, the officials said it was the release of all political prisoners, according to the statement.

NLD sources have said that on Gambari’s visit to Burma in August 2008, the party met with him twice. In the first meeting, Gambari pushed the NLD to join the 2010 election. Party officials criticized his request, saying it went beyond his role as a mediator.

The United Nationalities Alliance, which represents ethnic parties in Burma, declared its support of the NLD on Friday, calling for the release of political prisoners, a political dialogue and opposition to the 2010 general election.

It urged the UN and the international community “to refrain from supporting the regime’s unilateral roadmap [to democracy] and planed election.”

Following Gambari’s recent four-day trip to Burma, the Karen National Union (KNU) issued a statement on Thursday.

“We are concerned that once again a United Nations envoy has visited Burma without also meeting with genuine representatives of Burma’s ethnic nationalities, such as the Karen National Union,” the statement said.

The KNU said ethnic people should not be sidelined in any future discussion on a national reconciliation process in Burma.

Divide and Conquer, Than Shwe Style

By Buffalohair Gazette

With dissention throughout Burma over Than Shwe’s latest attempt to legitimize his criminal reign with his proposed 2010 election. It is all too obvious his new publication, The New Lie of Myanmar, is in need of fodder to spread vial propaganda. Already there is news of old rivalries and religious differences springing up around Burma. Clearly this is a tactic to keep a suffering nations divided with old fears and past intercessions. With everyone arguing over forgotten differences his campaign of hate can continue while people are at odds with one another. The Roman’s called it “Divide and Conquer”.

The New Lie of Myanmar already tried to smear the KNU to UN Human Rights emissary Tom Quintana with total falsehoods and blatant lies. This propaganda machine tried to place blame for the rape and murder of the Karen’s on the KNU when in fact it was committed by Than Shwe’s death squads who rape and kill with impunity. With eye witness accounts, volumes of photos and video identifying Burmese Troops as the true perpetrators, it is still odd to me why Quintana needed to go to Burma and investigate. Shades of Gambari I fear.

But nothing highlights this act of divide and conquer than an event that took place on February 10. A military unit of 70 well armed soldiers dressed in camouflaged uniforms, AK-47’s M-22’s and other Chinese ordinance, typical of the Burmese Army, robber a convoy of trucks on the bustling Mandalay-Muse border trade route according to an article in the *Kachin News. This event might have passed as a rouge group if it were not for the fact the Burmese Army has done this kind of operation time and time again. The only thing missing were the unite patches but they clearly were the same players who robbed this trade route before.

Obviously this was an attempt to cause animosity between the different ethnic groups by casting suspicions between them. There is no question The New Lie of Myanmar will identify Shan or Kachin troops or even the KNU in the blatant armed robbery. Maybe they will blame the Free Burma Rangers or me. No matter who this trash liner of a publication tries to identify, it is clear Than Shwe’s psychological warfare tactics will try to divide ethnic groups. With this in mind one must weigh the facts fore the truth will be known eventually.

With many people living in the big cities, this propaganda machine could possibly taint public opinion to show cause for continuing Than Shwe’s war on truth and democracy. The outcome would be the continued wholesale arrests and murders of all opposition to his 2010 election. There is a saying that if you tell a lie long enough people will accept it for truth. By poisoning public opinion and causing dissention between ethnic groups Than Shwe will effectively divide a country with his acts of terrorism and placing blame on others. He would also show the world that he is fighting criminals to keep the peace in Burma and justifying his holocaust. Maybe this is just a show for Quintana and the rest of the UN or an excuse the UN needed to qualify the 2010 elections. We must stand vigil since there will be more events such as the one on the Mandalay-Muse trade route. If it smells like a rat, it most probably is. And we all know Than Shwe will stoop to any level to fool the public and the world.

Indonesia's Foreign Minister criticises Burma's lack of progress

Indonesia's Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda has criticised Burma's lack of progress towards democracy, as well as its human rights record.

But he says the international community must stay engaged with Indonesia's fellow ASEAN member, arguing that pressure and sanctions have proved ineffective in achieving change.

Dr Wirajuda has told Radio Australia's Connect Asia program that the regional problem created by the outflow of Rohingya refugees only emphasises the need for an international approach.

"There is a sign of moving here and as a process of course you cannot expect that we can change tomorrow," he said.

"But we are all working and in fact I would say that the neighbouring countries of Burma not only ASEAN have also worked together."

The Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda is in Sydney for two days of discussions with the Australian government.

Calls for Australia to lift Indonesian travel warnings

The Indonesian Foreign Minister, Hassan Wirajuda says he will keep raising the issue of Australian travel warnings, despite failing in his latest appeal for them to be lifted.

Australia says travel advisories are assessed regularly on the basis of expert advice.

But Dr Wirajuda says the there haven't been been any recent terrorist bombings, and potential threats are often exaggerated.

He's told Radio Australia's Connect Asia program, Australia should follow the example of countries such as the United States and lift its travel advice.

"It's more a matter of Australians to decide of course, but it has to be commensurated through the developments on the ground," he said.

"First there has been no incidents of terrorism bombings in Indonesia in the past three years and countries like the United States and Canada have lifted their travel warnings since last year.

"The fact there has been quite a flowing of tourists from Australia it is also a fact, the Australian people themselves decide whether to travel to Indonesia by their own judgement, so it is in this context that we see that it is timely for the Australian government to lift the travel advice.

"Indonesia is one of the most successful countries in combating terrorism so the potential threat was often overblown, our police have been very effective in their task to combat terrorism."

Radio Australia News

Rohingya, Tha Shwe and Burmese racism

For years we have known who and what Than Shwe is. I read so many tags about him and his junta that I lost count already.

The Rohingya have brought into the spotlight human rights in Burma once more in a more tangible way as “a regional hindrance” that needs attention. Although a very sad situation, I am thankful to the Rohingya for bring human rights into the regional focus demanding prompt attention. I wish and hope they return home to lead a peaceful life. BTW, the Rohingya are not a hindrance, the situation they have been forced by the junta to create in order to survive is.

But this Rohingya boatpeople situation has caused a bit of havoc among the community, the Rohingya lovers versus the ones against coloured skinned. True compassionless colours bloomed for the meme only, only the satin skinned Burmese deserve outside help. The dark chocolates aaaah too bitter to swallow, “ignore them or move onto someone else that needs help like the ivory skinned relations left behind”. My comment sounds racist unfortunately, I am here for ALL, no matter the color, the size, or deformities inflicted by the cruel select few junta and their litter.

The amazing part comes when I learned through a comment that Than Shwe has written to Mr Obama not once but twice asking the “skin coloured” new US President to remove the sanctions. Than Shwe won’t even shake hands with Mr Gambari, because Mr Gambari is just another “black” public servant doing his job. But the Than Shwe envoy at the United Nations had to swallow hard, smile, shake hands and accept a cheque from the Zimbabwe’s envoy as a donation towards the Nargis program.

I was told over and over again that the junta is greedy and now I think is not only the junta, the pure, satin, handsome skinned Burmese prostitute themselves not for love to humanity or their country but love for money and/or greed. (By the way for the ones lacking the language prostitute as in lowering self standards with the means to obtain something wanted)

President Obama knows who and what he is. He is a man with colour skin; he also knows he has a human value and a big brain. Mr Obama a very special person values people for who they are, whether they are Rohingya, Black Americans, Porto Ricans, Muslims or Christians etc, he feels and he is letting us know we are ALL EQUAL and we all have rights to enjoy our lives on earth.

Mr Obama wants to apply UNITY to his country and extend it to the world, we are part of that world and we also need to accept reality. We are many and we all come in different colours and shapes. There is plenty of room for ALL of us to share our corners.

For a racist who thinks life brought him into this life to live among the ‘selected few’, who feels the earth is only to be habituated by him and his kind. This person needs to think again, as one day this racist could be laying in a hospital bed waiting to extend his life a bit longer only if a blood/organ donor that matches his blood/organ type arrives on time to keep him alive.

Nobody has obligations with anybody, we are all capable to take responsibilities for our lives, some choose to help other’s choice is to be selfish. The blood donor makes a choice to donate his blood to save the racist, and the blood donor is black and ogre looking,

Oh what a dilemma… The racist comes at this point of his life and has to make a decision, “do I take the blood transfusion that will extend my life? Do I want to carry the ogre’s blood in me? Will I turn ogre look alike with the transfusion? Or do I wait for the next selfish white skinned to make up his mind to donate and save me?”

Rangoon, the Delta were savagely affected and neglected last year, accidents happen, do you think you are free from misfortune? The roller-coaster goes up and must come down we all need each other at certain point in our lives.

We just have to learn to live with each other and practice tolerance, that is if we want to practice true democracy where everybody is treated equally.

Jeg
Source: Burma Wants Freedom & Democracy

Also READ: Divide and Conquer, Than Shwe Style

Thursday, February 19, 2009

Soldiers loot trucks at gun point

(KNG) - In a daring armed robbery unidentified soldiers stopped over 30 goods trucks at gunpoint between Kutkai and Nam Hpak Ka towns in northeastern Shan state on the Mandalay-Muse border trade route, Burma's largest China border trade route on February 10 and looted an estimated 20 million Kyat (US $19,802), said local sources.

According to a resident of Kutkai, the soldiers turned robbers pulled off the daring act between 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. Burma Standard Time. They set off bombs and exploded three trucks injuring five people who were hospitalized in a public hospital in Muse.

The troops stopped all vehicles at gunpoint on the road. They demanded money only from container trucks with 18-wheels and 12-wheels one after another, said sources close to truck drivers who were robbed.

During the looting, some soldiers quickly demanded money from the trucks while some soldiers took up position to fight back soldiers of Burma's ruling junta should they appear on the scene, the sources close to trucks' drivers added.

A truck driver who witnessed the armed robbery said, over 70 soldiers were involved and they wore camouflage BDU (Battle Dress Uniform) and camouflage caps but it had no label. The robbers used China-made M-22 and Russian-made AK-47 automatic weapons, added eye witnesses.

Until now, no armed group has owned up responsibility and the Burmese Army is also yet to identify who organised and took part in such a daring robbery, Muse residents said.

On the Mandalay-Muse route, Burmese military authorities also frequently stop trucks calling it "supply check" and demand money from container trucks, according to truck drivers.

In the areas between Nam Hpak Ka and Kutkai, the two local ethnic ceasefire groups--- the Shan State Army-North (SSA-N) and Kachin Independence Army (KIA) operate, said residents of Kutkai and Muse.

Junta Declares War on Lawyers

By MARWAAN MACAN-MARKAR / IPS WRITER
The Irrawaddy News

MAE SOT — To be a lawyer in military-ruled Burma is to court danger, invite arrest and risk being jailed in the country’s notorious prisons.

It is the price to be paid for what, in most countries, would be standard practice for the legal profession: defending a person facing a trial for an alleged crime that he or she has been charged with.

But the ongoing targeting of lawyers reveals that life marches to a different tune in the South-east Asian country that has been under the oppressive grip of a military dictatorship for the past 47 years.

More so if the legal battles involve the countries pro-democracy activists who dare to stand up, speak out and be counted among the eternally harassed opposition. More so if the ones facing charges in what are largely political trials have links to the National League for Democracy (NLD), the largest opposition party.

Saw Kyaw Kyaw Min is among the fortunate, though. The soft-spoken, slightly-built lawyer gave the authorities the slip in Rangoon, the former capital, and fled to Mae Sot in December to relate disturbing accounts of the new pressure on his profession.

"It is difficult for pro-democracy activists to get a fair trial in Burma," said the 29-year-old during a late-night interview in the Thai town near the Burmese border that has become home to many political activists who have fled oppression back home. "I did not have rights to talk with the political prisoners in private to prepare for their cases."

"There were times when a request to meet my clients was denied," added Saw Kyaw Kyaw Min, whose legal practice has largely been dedicated to helping political activist from the NLD arrested for protesting against the junta. "There were always men from military intelligence and the special branch monitoring the discussions I was having with my clients."

What prompted his flight to Thailand was when a judge hearing a case where Saw Kyaw Kyaw Min was appearing charged him and his colleague for coming to the defence of three clients during a trial in October last year. "Our clients protested in court by turning their backs and saying that they didn’t trust the trial process," he revealed.

Not so lucky was his colleague, Nyi Nyi Htwe. The latter was arrested at a teashop on Oct. 29 and is currently serving a six months jail term. The same sentence was handed down to Saw Kyaw Kyaw Min in absentia.

Since then, three other lawyers appearing for pro-democracy activists have been jailed. In early February, the authorities issued arrest warrants for six lawyers who have been defending political activists.

And if not that, the junta has pursued an alternative route to bar opposition figures from securing legal aid during their political trials. The outcome of a case that ended in mid-February is typical: the lawyers chosen to assist two elected parliamentarians were barred from attending court proceedings until their clients were sentenced to 15 years in jail.

"There is no rule of law in Burma," says Bo Kyi, a former political prisoner who heads the Assistant Association for Political Prisoners in Burma, a human rights group based in this town. "There is no separation of powers, no independence of the judiciary."

"It is getting more difficult for lawyers to defend political activists," he revealed. "The lawyers who appear for the activists are very brave. They don’t get much money and they know that their practice will suffer."

And the need for such lawyers with courage could not have been greater, he explained, in the wake of the on-going crackdown of all dissenting voices and the harsh jail terms handed down to leading, respected political activists.

In November last year, the courts handed down verdicts for 215 political activists who were linked to the pro-democracy street protests, led by thousands of Buddhists monks, held in September 2007.

A 21-year-old student was given a 104-year-sentence, a Buddhist monk who led the protests was given a 68-year-jail term, and leading female dissident was imprisoned for 65 years.

The junta’s aggressive use of the courts to target all political dissidents became clear in late 2003, following a 106-year-sentence handed down to a leading member of the Shan ethnic community, says Aung Htoo, general secretary of the Burma Lawyers’ Council. "Since that time the regime started using the judiciary as a tool of oppression."

"This is the worst period for the non-independence of the judiciary," he added. "We are seeing outrageous rulings. The situation was bad before, but not this bad."

And the judgments delivered after the political trials do not emerge from the court proceedings either. "The Home Ministry instructs the judges and the prosecutors about the verdict they want," says U Myo, a former state prosecutor who fled Burma for Thailand. "They have to follow the orders."

Saw Kyaw Kyaw Min witnessed such travesty since he graduated in 2005 with a law degree from Burma’s Dagon University and began his practice.

"Once the trial starts, the judge, the prosecuting lawyers, the prosecuting officers, and the prosecution’s witnesses follow the (junta’s) instructions," the lawyer noted in a statement released soon after he arrived in Mae Sot.

Abuse is rampant during the trial, too, he added. "Questions asked in court by the defence lawyers are deemed inadmissible by the judge, and so are not officially recorded in the court transcript."

Stephen Smith welcomes Bali talks on Rohingya migrants in Thailand

(News.com-AAP)- FOREIGN Minister Stephen Smith says the issue of Rohingya migrants, cast adrift by Thai authorities, will be discussed at a regional people smuggling forum later this year.

Mr Smith and his Indonesian counterpart Hassan Wirajuda held a formal bilateral meeting in Sydney today, where they discussed the fate of Burma's minority Muslim Rohingya, many of whom have had to be rescued in Indonesian waters.

Human rights groups claim nearly 1000 Rohingya landed on Thai shores late last year before being beaten and towed out to sea with few supplies.

Dr Wirajuda said 400 subsequently landed on the Indonesian province of Aceh.

Earlier this month, Thailand agreed to Dr Wirajuda's suggestion their fate be decided through the "Bali process", a regional network set up in 2002 to tackle people smuggling and people trafficking.

Mr Smith said the issue would be discussed at the ministerial conference, likely to be held in Bali at the end of March or April.

"We discussed and welcomed the fact that the question of the Rohingyas will form part of the discussion of forthcoming ministerial meeting of the Bali process," he said.

Mr Smith said he and Dr Wirajuda also discussed the recent visit to Indonesia by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, April's G20 meeting in London, the global financial crisis, and Burma.

Dr Wirajuda is in Sydney for an Australia-Indonesia conference, which will be officially opened by Kevin Rudd tonight.

Burma's 2010 election: New election, old promises

By Naing Ko Ko

(DVB)–An election in Burma is supposedly going to be held in 2010 by the elite generals. Within the half century from 1960 to 2010, it will be the second election held by the military.

Elections in Burma are precisely identical to scarce goods, with neither availability nor choice for the public. Since Burma became an independent state, it has had only three “democratic general elections" that were held in 1952, 1956 and 1960 respectively, all under the administration of the Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League which ruled Burma for 10 years.

Within the 28 years from 1960 to 1988, unsurprisingly, there were no democratic general elections held by the Revolutionary Council or the Burma Socialist Programme Party that was formed after the first military coup. However, the BSPP ran a "synthetic election" as a totalitarian and bureaucratic mechanism in 1974. As the BSPP was a military-based-party, the election was absolutely managed by the party bosses and generals. The voters did not have any choice and were ordered to vote for both the single party system and "pioneer dictators".

Although millions of people demanded democracy during the four-eights uprising, the military seized state power again on 18 September 1988 and branded itself the State Law and Order Restoration Council. The junta held its first ever multiparty democratic general election on 27 May 1990 and reappointed an election commission and promulgated a multiparty democracy election law that were both formulated by the BSPP regime during the “summer of democracy” in September 1988.

There were more than two thousand candidates from 93 political parties who stood in the 1990 election full of dreams and promise. Although the election campaigns of the 93 political parties were heavily controlled by the junta, the National League for Democracy won 392 out of 485 seats. The Shan Nationalities League for Democracy won 23 seats and the BSPP’s new incarnation, the National Unity Party, won just 10 seats. Here, most Burma watchers claimed that it was a free and fair election although there was no freedom of expression and no free international monitoring system.

According to Huntington's third wave democratisation thesis of 1993 and many other political theorists, elections are a major tool for the democratisation process. In 1990, the 38-million-strong population of Burma overwhelmingly honoured the legitimacy and authority of the election to bring about the rule of law and to manage the state mechanism. But the military generals have neither transferred state political power to the election winning parties nor convened a people's parliament.

Consequently, the elected MPs of all election winning parties have not convened a parliament themselves, though they have the moral and political responsibility to carry out the people's legitimate decision as reflected in the election result. While the winners of the 1990 election claim that they have political legitimacy, the military junta argues that it has de jure legitimacy. Consequently, the military has not honored the election result, while the 1990 MPs-elect have not formed a democratic government themselves in the sovereign mainland of Burma. Thus, Burma has become a paradox of bulletocracy and representative democracy.

In addition, the MPs of 1990 election have been applying elite-driven transition models, including policies of national reconciliation and UN-brokered dialogue with the generals, while the generals have repeatedly and officially rejected their demands. Yet again, the situation since the 1990 election has remained absolutely stagnant and the opportunity for a civilian-initiated transitional process has not yet been consolidated.

There is no comprehensive winning strategy or policy platform on how to apply a regime change model for Burma after the election, either from within the military junta or from the leaders of political parties or MPs who are regularly asking international agencies such as the United Nations, the European Union and ASEAN to intervene in the power games in Burma.

During the last 20 years, all stakeholders, the military junta and all political parties have released occasional statements calling for dialogue with the elite military generals or for parliament to be convened. But there has not been a paradigm shift regarding regime transition or a power reconfiguration resulting from the 1990 election. It has not brought about either a break-even point or a balance of power between the competing claims about democracy in Burma.

On the other hand, the generals have also applied their own non-democratic transition plans such as the National Convention, national reconciliation and the Seven-Point Road Map towards "disciplined democracy". The junta has given many promises that these plans are leading towards a democratic Burma, but there have been no tangible results yet. The people of Burma have suffered from the broken promises from the both the junta and the election winners of 1990.

Now, once more, the junta has repeatedly promised another election will be held in 2010. As the time draws nearer, there will be many political parties that aim to participate in the junta’s planned election. On the exile front, the political legitimacy of the 1990 MPs will shrink and there will be a dilemma of how to claim political legitimacy after the new 2010 election. Some demographic figures have estimated that there is a population of 56 million in Burma at the moment; there are millions of young voters who have never voted in any elections.

Will this 2010 election override the results of the 1990 election?
Will the 2010 election be postponed, or will the junta transfer political power to the 1900 election winners or share power with them?
Will the MPs elected in 1990 withdraw from being MPs or will they go back to Burma to join the armed resistance?
Will they maintain the status quo and ask the UN to fight for them to get political power?

Essentially, the people of Burma have been waiting for the fulfillment of the promises from the 1990 election winners and still millions of members of the new generations are driven to neighboring counties to meet their basic needs.

Naing Ko Ko is a postgraduate scholarship student in the Department of Political Studies at the University of Auckland in New Zealand. He is a former political prisoner.

Junta’s Spies Active among Ethnic, Exiled Groups

"exiled organizations don’t place a high priority on security,”

By MIN LWIN
The Irrawaddy News

Burmese spies actively gather information on Burmese ethnic groups and the exiled community along the Thai border, opposition leaders have long contended.

Such claims appear to be substantiated by a confidential Burmese military intelligence report obtained by The Irrawaddy on Wednesday.

The 42-page report was compiled by the Burmese Southeast Regional Military Command based in Moulmein, the capital of Mon State, and sent to three key army departments: the Bureau of Special Operation (BSO 4); the operation department of the Burmese army; and the military security affairs department, also known as the War Office, in Naypyidaw.

The report outlines details of the KNU’s 14th Congress in October 2008, includes information on its new leaders and speculates about anticipated KNLA military activities, in addition to outlining information about exiled dissident groups in Mae Sot and along the Thai-Burmese border.

The report sketched activities of numerous groups, including the All Burma Students Democratic Front, the Womens’ League of Burma, the Democratic Party for a New Society, the Democratic Alliance for Burma, the Karen Youth Organization, the Mon National League for Democracy (Liberated Area) and other groups.

Several nongovernmental organizations are mentioned including the Burma Media Organization in Thailand, the Human Rights Education Institute of Burma, whose headquarters is in Chiang Mai and the Thailand Burma Border Consortium in Thailand

In addition, the report mentioned information about specific Thai military intelligence officers and also included accounts of the protests by the Peoples’ Alliance for Democracy in Bangkok in October 2008.

The report, while not containing any information of immediate strategic value, was judged to be a valuable overview of the reformed KNU and activities among exiled groups along the border.

Exiled dissident and ethnic groups have always maintained that the Burmese government uses spies, informers and police agents to keep track of what goes on inside exiled dissident groups and uses military intelligence communication units to intercept military radio transmissions and other communication of ethnic groups and exiled groups inside and outside the country.

“They [intelligence agents and spies] also get information from migrant workers and the DKBA,” said Maj Hla Ngwe, joint secretary (1) of the Karen National Union, referring to The Democratic Karen Buddhist Army, which operates in alliance with the Burmese military.

It’s believed that much of the information is of a low priority, he said, and has no real intelligence value. Much of the information is believed to be similar to published news reports.

“Mostly, they pass on made-up information to their bosses,” said Hla Ngwe.

One activist in Mae Sot said, “The information is often fabricated, but based true events.”

Of more significance, perhaps, are the disinformation and psychological warfare campaigns waged against ethnic groups inside the country and the exiled community, designed to create distrust and disunity.

Hla Ngwe said Burmese Military Security Affairs distributes disinformation among dissident alliance leaders. “Exiled dissidents need to be more aware of security issues,” he said.

Htay Aung, a member of the Thailand-based Network for Democracy and Development (NDD), said opposition groups are generally lax on security matters and not fully aware of the effects of disinformation campaigns.

“The government spies can get the exiled groups’ information because the

exiled organizations don’t place a high priority on security,”

he said. “They can easily penetrate the exiled groups, because spies have no horns.”

The powerful Office of the Chief of Military Intelligence was abolished in October 2004, several months after a new military government took power. Military intelligence was weaken by the removal of hundreds of officers and renamed Military Security Affairs.

“After military intelligence was abolished, the new military security department was weak,” said Htay Aung. “But now it may have become more powerful and have more funding.”

There are those in the exiled community who believe that Mahn Sha, the late Karen National Union general-secretary, was assassinated on February 14 by junta-backed agents. The murder remains unsolved, and no arrests have been reported.

US Sanctions Taking Toll on Burmese Gems Industry

By WAI MOE
The Irrawaddy News

Mogok, the historic center of Burma’s gems industry, is struggling to cope with the effects of US sanctions targeting the country’s military rulers and their cronies, according to industry insiders.

A gem trader in Mogok told The Irrawaddy that at least 50 mine sites in the area have decreased production and several have closed completely since the US Congress approved a law restricting gem imports from Burma last July.

“Work at many gem sites has slowed down because it is becoming more difficult to export the gems now that they are on the sanctions list,” the trader said.

He added that many investors are reluctant to spend money to fuel earthmovers and other heavy equipment because they are no longer sure they will be able to sell the gems they find.

Although the sanctions are intended to block imports into the United States, other markets are also becoming less receptive to Burmese gems. According to traders, Thailand’s cross-border imports of precious stones from Burma have declined in recent months, and many Thai traders are now offering lower prices for the gems they buy.

Chinese traders have also become relatively scarce in Mogok.

“Even Chinese gem traders are not coming to Burma like they used to,” said one Burmese journalist who closely follows developments in the gems industry. “I think if the Chinese don’t come, there won’t be any gem auctions.”

Although the Burmese junta has continued to hold gem auctions in Rangoon, buying by international jewelers has dropped by at least 50 percent, according to jewelers in the city, who say that market prices across the country have also fallen by half.

Official statistics show that Burma exported US $647.53 million worth of gems in the fiscal year 2007-08. However, Burma’s gems production decreased from 7.178 million carats in the 2nd quarter of 2007 to 6.491 million carats in the 2nd quarter of 2008, according to The Economist Intelligence Unit.

In Burma, the gems industry is owned by the state, but since the 1990s, the government has allowed private investment through join-venture enterprises. But licenses are only granted to cronies of the ruling generals, including Tay Za, who runs Htoo Trading Co, and Ne Win Tun, of Ruby Dragon Jade & Gems Co Ltd.

In May 2008, former US President George W Bush issued an executive order putting three Burmese state enterprises—the Myanmar Gem Enterprise, Myanmar Timber Enterprise and Myanmar Pearl Enterprise—on a sanctions list.

Two months later, the US Congress approved the Tom Lantos Block Burmese JADE (Junta’s Anti-Democratic Efforts) Act, which renewed a 2007 act restricting the import of gems from Burma and tightening sanctions on mining projects.

The law said that over 90 percent of the world’s ruby supply originates in Burma, but only 3 percent of the rubies entering the US are designated as being of Burmese origin.

According to Human Rights Watch, gems mined in Burma are first exported to countries such as Thailand or India to be cut and polished, and then exported to other countries around the world.

Prime markets for jewelry made with Burmese rubies are in the US, Europe and Japan. The highest quality and most expensive stones are exported to Switzerland for onward sale to other markets, the group said.

The Islamic Development Bank group to support rebuilding of Nargis-destroyed schools in Ayeyarwady Delta

This must be a joke, Than Shwe and his junta do not want the Muslim Rohingya but
here they are accepting the Muslim's money???

Yangon, Myanmar, ReliefWeb - A group of officers from the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) Group visited cyclone-affected communities yesterday as part of the IDB's plan to help build schools in the Ayeyarwady Delta that were destroyed after Cyclone Nargis last year.

Headed by Country Projects Officer Samih Ahmad Faruqi, the IDB Group, assisted by its implementing agency, Asian Resource Foundation, visited seven schools in the townships of Kombu, Kunyangon, Dedaye, Oyapon, and Bogale. The IDB Group plans to donate approximately US$300,000 to build five schools in the Delta to accommodate about 100 students in each school.

In Bogale Township, accompanied by ASEAN Hub Officer and ASEAN volunteers, the Group visited local communities to discuss the reconstruction of two schools in Khun Tee Chaung village of Kyunnyo Village Tract and Tha Htay Gone village of Hayman Village Tract where ASEAN volunteers are currently supporting a Tripartite Core Group pilot project (1). The schools in the two villages were almost destroyed but are still being used to accommodate about 400 students.

Sharing his view after visiting the Bogale Township, Mr Faruqi said, "Schools reconstruction project is the first IDB supported emergency assistance project in Myanmar. After the successful completion of this pilot project, the Special Assistance Office of IDB will consider funding support for projects in education and health sectors at the community level."

The IDB Group's project will complement the current ASEAN Volunteer projects in order to effectively address the needs of the community as recommended in the Periodic Review, which emphasizes cross-sectoral assistance.

Dr Surin Pitsuwan, Secretary-General of ASEAN, said "We appreciate IDB Group's cooperation and support, which further strengthens ASEAN's leading role in humanitarian assistance and recovery efforts for the cyclone-affected people of Myanmar."

A Memorandum of Understanding between ASEAN Secretariat and the IDB Group was signed in September 2008 with a view to promoting economic and social development in their common constituencies. The areas of cooperation include capacity building in the areas of health, education, halal food supply and agriculture, investment promotion, and economic cooperation.

Notes: (1) The Disaster Risk Management Project in Hayman Village Tract, Bogale Township seeks to raise community awareness of disaster risk (DR) and DR management through meetings and workshops with stakeholders in the targeted villages; gather data and develop initial DRM action plan to build the community's capacity; to improve community infrastructure and plant mangrove with community participation. This project is being implemented by Mingalar Myanmar, a local NGO, in cooperation with six ASEAN volunteers from ASEAN Member States, namely Cambodia, Malaysia, Myanmar, and Thailand.

Contact details:

ASEAN Humanitarian Task Force
Coordinating Office in Yangon
Mai Phuong Tang
Communication Officer
Tel: +951 544500 Ext. 430
Email: mai.aseanhtf@gmail.com

Source: Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Three Rohingya couples flee to Bangladesh for fear of torture and imprisonment

Maungdaw, Arakan State (Kaladan Press): Three couples recently fled to Bangladesh for fear of torture and imprisonment, since they married without permission from the concerned authorities, a school teacher from a refugee camp said on condition of anonymity.

The three couples were identified as (1) Minara Begum (20) and Zakaria (30), (2) Elema Khatoon (27) and Habi Rahaman (30) and (3) Anwara Begum (25) and Md. Noor (25). All of them belong to Phur Wut Chaung village of Maungdaw town.

The three couples had submitted three applications to the Nasaka, but they did not get permission for marriage, as they were unable to bribe the Nasaka authorities. They did not get permission though a year had passed since their application.

The three couples tied the knot recently, without getting any permission from the concerned authorities. However, this information reached the Nasaka, so the Nasaka has been trying to arrest them. As a result, the three couples secretly crossed the Burma-Bangladesh border on January 23, and are currently living near the Nayapara refugee camp.

According to one of the couples, "If we are arrested by the Nasaka, we will be tortured and sentenced to at least 5 years in jail. Besides, my wife will be physically tortured and insulted."

Another couple said, "We fled to Bangladesh, fearing torture, imprisonment and physical abuse in custody."

Earlier, the concerned authorities ordered the Rohingya community not to marry without taking permission from them. To get permission, a couple has to bribe the Nasaka. Some couples are unable to pay huge amounts to the Nasaka. Therefore, they are barred from marrying.

In order to get permission for marriage, the bridegroom will have to be 24 years and the bride will have to be 18.

Besides, serious restrictions are imposed on the Rohingyas on their marriage. They are not allowed to marry without official permission which takes some two years to obtain from the authority and again no permission is granted without signing a commitment not to have more than two children. Couples caught getting married or sleeping together without this approval can be arrested. And there are innumerable cases where Rohingyas have been jailed for even seven years for not complying with the requirements of the marriage rules which are only applicable to Rohingyas in Burma.

However, the stories of groaning Rohingyas which has started since long are still continuing. They have been bleeding and their tears have been rolling down their cheeks generation after generation. Sometimes they die in silence or perish in the deep sea beyond the notice and sometimes they cry in the corner. Nobody knows when the stories of their bloods and tears will come to an end, said Faroog from Norway.

Prison terms commuted for two political prisoners

By Than Htike Oo

Chiang Mai (Mizzima) – Two political prisoners put in prison for having contact with a Thai based opposition organization had their sentences commuted by 16 years each by a divisional court.

The authorities accused Kaythi Aung and Wei Myo Htoo of attending a training conducted by 'Forum for Democracy in Burma' (FDB) in April last year and they were sentenced and are now serving their terms in Oboe prison, Mandalay. Now they have to serve the remaining 10 years each.

"The divisional court commuted their prison terms in keeping with the law. Moreover these two pleaded guilty at the trial court and it was difficult to acquit them. They had no access to legal counsel during the court proceedings and we could not get chance to re-examine the prosecution witnesses. So we are trying to get their current prison terms commuted to lenient ones", their legal counsel Myint Thwin told Mizzima.

These two were arrested from their homes in Mandalay in September 2008. First they were held in Oboe prison and then sentenced to 26 years each on 24 November last year.

They were handed out 16 years prison term each in two cases under Unlawful Associations Act and another 10 years each in two cases charged under the Immigration (Emergency Provisions) Act.

"According to the provisions in the Criminal Procedural Code (CrPC) and court rulings, their sentences could be commuted. For instance, in four cases of Kaythi Aung, all the alleged crimes were committed on the same date and same time. And the course of events was the same too. According to the law, in such a case, if the course of crime is the same, the prison terms must be served concurrently", he said.

The news of commuting sentences of some political prisoners coincided with the ongoing visit of UN rights envoy and human rights expert Mr. Tomas Ojea Quintana to Burma.

The famous comedian and film director Zargana a.k.a. Thura was first sentenced to 59 years in prison for disaffection to State and Government allegedly committed through internet and was charged under Electronic Law. However, the Rangoon Division bench commuted his prison sentence by 24 years on 13 February.

The Thailand based 'Association for Assistance to Political Prisoners in Burma' (AAPPB) Joint GS Bo Kyi said that the ongoing visit of UN right expert's to Burma has nothing to do with commuting prison sentences of some political prisoners.

"The commuting of sentences is not because of Mr. Quintana's visit to Burma. Even arresting these people is going too far. And they are not only arresting these innocent people, they are even handing out harsh prison sentences to them. And now they are commuting some of these prison sentences. I don't think it is because of Mr. Quintana's visit to Burma," he said.

Rohingya boatpeople's fate hangs in balance

By Solomon

New Delhi (Mizzima)– The fate of Rohingya boatpeople, who in recent months were stranded in Indonesia, India and Thailand, is still hanging in balance as authorities continue discussing what to do with them.

An official in India's Andaman Island told Mizzima on Wednesday that they are still waiting for representatives from the government of Bangladesh to be able to deport the Rohingya boat people.

"Their [Bangladesh government] representatives will be coming here within this week," the official said. "The representative will come and take them."

The Indian official said the boatpeople were rescued from the Andaman Sea after they were found to be adrift in boats without engines and were given necessary medical treatment.

Since December 2008, different batches of Rohingya boatpeople were rescued from the sea by India and Indonesia. Survivors said they boarded boats from Bangladesh and were first caught by the Thai Navy, who then towed them off to the sea and set them adrift.

Thailand also arrested some of the boatpeople who had arrived on their coast, saying they will be tried in a court for illegally entering the country.

Kitty Mckinsey, spokesperson of UNHCR in Thailand said, "We are trying to find a solution for them [boatpeople]. We are talking with the Thai government on what will be the best solution for them."

Thailand has detained 78 Rohingya at the Immigration detention centre in Ranong, southern Thailand while three of them are still in hospital. The UNHCR said it is still uncertain whether they will be recognized as refugees.

"That is [giving refugee status] very premature we are not discussing this right now," said Mckinsey. "There is really not much going on right now."

The UNHCR in Indonesia also said they are waiting for permission from the government to get access to the nearly 400 boat-people in Sabang Island in Ache province.

Anita Restu, spokesperson of the UNHCR in Jakarta said, "the UNHCR doesn't yet have access to the group of Rohingya. Though Indonesia has announced that it has agreed in principle to give UNHCR access but till now we are still waiting to hear about the detail of the access."

She said the UNHCR is still into discussions with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs since last week. But it is sill not certain as to whether they will be given refugee status.

"We have not decided yet on the plan of access because we are still discussing. We hope to get it this week," said Restu.

Meanwhile, the Red Cross in Indonesia said they are providing food and other necessities to the boat-people in Sabang Island.

"We have been providing them relief since January 7," said an official of the Red Cross in Indonesia.

The official said about 400 Rohingya are living in three tents set up by the Red Cross and one is under medical care in the hospital for Tuberculosis (TB).

Saturday, February 14, 2009

The Truth and Legality of the Panglong Agreement

Shan Herald Agency for News

According to the state-run news paper, New Light of Myanmar Than Shwe’s message on the 62nd.anniversary of Union Day said that the Union Day marks the signing of the 'Panglong' agreement between Burmese independence architect General Aung San and ethnic leaders to form the Union of Burma in 1947 and urged the people to nurture the Burmese spirit regardless of where they were.

Only the Union Spirit is true patriotism that will ever protect and safeguard all the national races," the paper quoted Than Shwe as saying.

Has anyone ever wonder why Than Shwe gave such a speech?

Is he admitting that the Union of Burma was formed because of the Panglong Agreement, after being in denial for decades?
Is he admitting to the legality of the Panglong Agreement?
Is he beginning to realise that he cannot break up the Union and glue the pieces together by force?
Is he in trouble, and now needs the loyalty of all ethnic nationalities
Or could this be his first step towards reconciliation with the ethnic nationalities? If it so, wonder will never cease
Has he misunderstood the meaning of Panglong Agreement altogether?
If he meant to accept that the Union of Burma was formed due to the principes of the Panglong Agreement is he willing to accept all the clauses that are contained in the Agreement? For instance

All ethnic nationalities are to be treated as equal partners, with equal status and opportunities?
All states have the right to self-determination?
Each state has the right to secede after ten years? And etc.

The Panglong Agreement is a whole package with many built in clauses. Bogyoke Aungsan and the Ethnic Leaders signed an agreement to all the clauses that made up the Panglong Agreement. The Panglong Agreement is a fact and legal

It has been decades since the military regime has been in conflict with citzens of Burma. It is about time the Generals realise that conflict can be resolved only through talking with all Leaders of the Opposition? It is about time they release all political prisoners. The citizens are tired and weary with this unresolved dire situation.

S.n. Oo
The author is from the former illustrious State of Lawkzawk in the Federated Shan States, as today's Shan State of Burma was known until 1948. Opinions expressed here are those of the author – Editor

Another boat laden with refugees ready to leave for Malaysia

Kaladan Press

Teknaf, Bangladesh: A boat filled with refugees is ready for departure to Malaysia, within two days from the Bangladesh coast near Nafit Khali village of Chakoria police station under Cox's Bazaar district, Hakim from the border area said.

The broker is Habi Ullah (42), son of Nazir Ahmed, and hails from Kol-loon (Thinn Baw Gwe) village of Maungdaw Township. He fled from Burma 10 years ago and now lives in Oliabad village of Teknaf Union. He is the son in-law-of Ali Ahmed of Teknaf. Therefore, he has a lot of influence in the local area and continues trade in human trafficking for his personal benefit.

He collects refugees from Arakan, from refugee camps and border areas of Bangladesh, who have been living in Bangladesh illegally. He has collected Kyat 20,000 per head for the trip to Malaysia through the sea route

Most of the people, who died in the Andaman Sea in the last two months, were sent to Malaysia, under the broker-ship of Habi Ulla. However, he is again preparing to send refugees to Malaysia, through the risky sea route. After the death of nearly 300 people in the Andaman Sea, the concerned authorities of Bangladesh have been taking action against the people, who are involved in human trafficking. In such a situation, broker Habi Ullah still dares to send people to Malaysia, a refugee said.

On the other hand, how the new refugees were again daring to go to Malaysia by the sea route, despite knowing about the current situation through the radio, TV and the print media, was surprising, according to a Rohingya elder from Arakan.

When contacted, a new refugee, who intends to go to Malaysia by boat said, "We know very well the situation of the boatpeople, who reached Thailand, Indonesia and India. We have no alternative except to flee the motherland by sea as we have been locked in a big cage, without sufficient food, movement restriction, without work, marriage restriction, while the torture and political persecution is still continued by the military junta. It is better to die at sea, I think."

According to a trader from the border area, the authorities need to stop the boat laden with refugees before it leaves for Malaysia, or the refugees will face tremendous hardships.

Thailand has been accused of mistreating up to 1,000 Rohingya boatpeople, hundreds of whom were rescued off India and Indonesia last month, claiming that they had been beaten by Thai soldiers and dragged back to sea, with little food and water and left to die, sources said.

Consul General Ye Myint Aung wrote to his fellow diplomats in Hong Kong yesterday, explaining that the Rohingya were not actually Burmese and were not accepted as one of the ethnic groups of his country, or indeed as citizens. He wrote "You will see in the photos that their complexion is 'dark brown' and "ugly as ogres" in contrast to the complexion of Burmese, which was "fair and soft, good looking as well," according to the South China Morning Post dated 11 February 2009. But, ARNO, a political group stated on her statement dated February 13, 2009, “We know and everybody knows, the skins of the people of Burma – not the skins of Rohingya alone - have been daily faded under the iron heel of U Aye Myint Aung and his tyrannical military regime...”

According to history “until 10th century, the people of Arakan were Indians similar to that of East Bengal”. The Rohingya are the only people who look like people of East Bengal or Bengalis. The then Chairman of the Burma Historical Commission Col. Bashin stated from 1430 to 1531, for more than one hundred years, Arakan was virtually ruled by the Muslims. It is a gross lie to say that the Rohingya have no ‘historic right’, the right of the first occupier of Arakan.

In spite of clear affirmation of Rohingya as an indigenous group by the former parliamentary government (1948-1962), U Bo Hla Tint described Rohingya issue a matter of political complication in all three periods of U Nu, U Ne Win and SPDC and it has to be decided by the would-be parliament. This view contradicts the NCGUB’s earlier statement, expressed in its “Position paper on Persecution of Muslims in Arakan State” dated September 24, 1992, submitted to the United Nations, affirming “Muslim Rohingyas have lived in Arakan for centuries; Muslims Rohingyas are Burmese citizens; Muslim Rohingyas have the same rights and privileges as other citizens of Burma regardless of their ethnic beliefs or ethnic background.”, according to ARNO statement dated February 13, 2009.

Burmese group deported to Bangladesh by BSF

By Mithu Choudhury
Mizzima News

Guwahati/Assam - A group of 10 alleged Burmese nationals, including 4 children, have been arrested and detained by the police at Badarpur Railway Station in Southern Assam's Barak Valley in Northeastern India, on Tuesday, according to the police.

According to Additional Superintendent of Police, Himanta Kumar Das, of Assam state's Karimganj district, they have arrested and detained the Burmese nationals, who arrived in the north-eastern state from neighbouring Bangladesh, on February 10, 2009.

He said the Bardarpur police, after identifying them, had sent them back to the Border Security Force (BSF) in the Indo-Bangla border area of Mahisasan, and was awaiting the response of Bangladesh's Border Security forces to accept them.

Citing a victim's confession, Das told Mizzima that the 10 foreigners had crossed into Bangladesh from Burma's western state of Arakan. They had made their way into India, through the border state of Tripura.

Das said the police sent the group back to the Indo-Bangla border on Friday night and they were still in the custody of the BSF in Mahisasan town.

According to their confession the Burmese nationals were lured by a Bangladeshi agent, who allegedly took Rupees 35,000 and promised them better paying jobs in northern India's Rajasthan state.

Friday, February 13, 2009

Kachin refugee status seekers increase in Burma's neighbouring countries

Written by KNG

The number of ethnic Kachin in Burma seeking refugee status has gradually increased in the two neighboring countries --- Malaysia and Thailand since 2005, said Kachin refugees in the two countries.

Kachin refugees from northern Burma in Malaysia

Till date over 3,000 Kachin refugees and refugee/asylum seekers have arrived in Malaysia's capital Kuala Lumpur and in the three refugee camps (Mae La, Nu Po and Umpiem) along the Thailand-Burma border, said Kachin refugees.

There are fewer Kachin refugees and those seeking refugee statuses in Malaysia and Thailand when compared with thousands of refugees from Burma in these countries, said Kachin refugees in the two countries.

According to Kuala Lumpur based Kachin Refugee Committee (KRC), the number of Kachin people seeking refugee status has now risen to nearly 3,000 from some 500 till 2003 in Malaysia. During 2003-2008, over 300 Kachin refugees in Malaysia departed to third countries like Canada, United States of America, Denmark, New Zealand and Norway.

On the other hand, there were no Kachin refugees or those seeking refugee status in refugee camps along the Thailand-Burma border before the year 2000, but there are now over 40 Kachin refugees and some 500 refugees status seekers in these camps, said a Kachin refugee called Lamung Brang Gam who is waiting to leave for a third country for 10 years in Nu Po camp.

About a dozen Kachin refugees from the camps along Thailand-Burma departed to third countries during the past four years, added Lamung Brang Gam.

Most Kachin refugee status seekers in these countries have economic problems in their areas in Burma rather than political problems with Burma's ruling junta, added refugees.

Refugee and refugee status seekers live an unsafe life in Malaysia and Thailand because the two countries do not recognize the 1951 Geneva Convention related to the Status of Refugees.

In Malaysia, refugees and refugee status seekers have to live and work and hide from being sent to jail and are expelled by Malaysian authorities whereas refugees and refugee status seekers on the Thailand-Burma border have to live only in refugee camps, added refugees in the two countries.

For the first time, Kachin refugees started to resettle in third countries Europe and North America after the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) signed a ceasefire agreement with Burma's ruling junta in February 24, 1994.

During the civil war from 1961 to 1994 between the KIO and the ruling junta in Kachin state and Northeast Shan state, thousands of Kachin people had their homes burnt and lost their live stock when the Burmese Army launched operations but they had to hide within the states.

Two elected MPs jailed for 15 years

(DVB)–Elected members of parliament Dr Tin Min Htut and Nyi Pu were sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment today by Insein prison court, according to Dr Tin Min Htut’s son.

Khaing Win Hlaing, son of Dr Tin Min Htut, said his father and Nyi Pu were sentenced at 4.40pm this afternoon.

Kyaw Hoe, the lawyer for the two MPs-elect, was barred from attending the court proceedings right up until the sentencing.

Nyi Pu is the elected representative for Gwa township and an Arakan National League for Democracy organising committee member, while Dr Tin Min Htut is an elected MP from Panatanaw township in Irrawaddy division.

Khaing Win Hlaing said he expected to find out more details when he visits his father tomorrow.

The two men were among five elected MPs who signed a letter to United Nations secretary-general Ban Ki-moon at the end of July last year, along with Pu Cin Sian Thaung, Thein Pe and Dr Myint Naing.

In the letter, the five declared their opposition to the 2010 elections and called for the 1990 election result to be honoured and for tripartite dialogue.

Dr Tin Min Htut and Nyi Pu were arrested by police special branch soon after the letter was sent, in the early hours of 12 August.

They were charged with disrupting the national convention, causing a public disturbance and offences under the electronic communication law.

Reporting by Aye Nai

Mizzima's correspondent released - Kyaw Moe

By Nem Davies

New Delhi (Mizzima) - Mizzima's Bangladesh-based journalist was released on Wednesday, after being detained for a year and four months in a jail in Kolkata city.

Kyaw Moe, who was arrested in September 2007, under the Foreigners Act and detained at Dum Dum jail, has been finally acquitted. He was deported to the Bangladesh border, from where he had originally crossed the border into India.

"Two days ago, the jail authorities told me that Kyaw Moe would be released within two-three days. I was called on Wednesday and told that he was being deported to Bangladesh," Anil Sharma, Defense Counsel of Kyaw Moe, told Mizzima.

Kyaw Moe, alias Nyein Chan, a Burmese journalist based in Bangladesh's capital Dhaka, is a news stringer for Mizzima News, a Burmese independent news agency based in New Delhi. He was arrested by the Indian Border Security Force near the Indo-Bangladesh border, while returning from Kolkata after a journalism training course, organized by Mizzima in September 2007.

On May 26, 2008, after pleading guilty to the terms of the Foreigners Act, Kyaw Moe was sentenced to a term of 250 days in prison.

Despite being a recognized refugee by the Bangladeshi office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), he was charged under the Foreigners Act for illegally crossing the border.

The Solidarity Committee for Burma's Freedom Fighters, a committee formed to advocate on behalf of the 34 Burmese rebels arrested in February 1998 by Indian authorities at Andaman and Nicobar Islands, took up the case of Kyaw Moe and appealed for his early release.

Despite efforts by Mizzima, activists and the UNHCR, Indian authorities continued to detain him and a request by Mizzima for his bail was also turned down.

Although he had completed his jail term, the West Bengal government, however, did not deport him to Burma, where he would face a distinct threat of persecution if he was deported, but sent him back to Bangladesh as requested by the UNHCR, Mizzima and activists.

The activist cum journalist was finally reunited with his wife and three children yesterday, after being separated for over one year.

"I feel like a person, who has won a lottery," Kyaw Moe's excited wife told Mizzima.

Skin Color and Prejudice Endangers Rohingya

By KYAW ZWA MOE
The Irrawaddy News

Unbelievably in this day and time, skin color has become an issue in the case of the Rohingya boat people.

While much of the world has moved beyond discrimination due to the color of one’s skin (think President Obama), pockets of prejudice still exist, including in Southeast Asia.

“You will see in the photos that their complexion is dark brown,” said Burmese Counsel Ye Myint Aung in Hong Kong, in a letter to fellow diplomats, referring to the Rohingya boat people. He went on to describe the complexion of Burmese as “fair and soft, good looking as well.”

His own complexion, he said, was typical of a Burmese gentleman and his fellow diplomats could easily contrast their diplomatic colleague with Rohingya.

“Rohingyas are as ugly as ogres,” he said.

In essence, what he said was that Rohingyas couldn’t qualify as Burmese citizens because of their appearance, and they are not recognized as an ethnic group of Burma.

Thousands of Rohingyas have fled their homes in Burma and Bangladesh to Thailand and Malaysia in recent years. In 2008 alone, reports estimated 4,880 Rohingyas were arrested for illegally entering Thailand.

It’s fairly clear now that no country in Southeast Asia is willing to accept the desperate Rohingyas who wash up on their shore or enter a country by other means.

One reason is that they don’t look like ordinary economic migrants or refugees. They take to the ocean in dilapidated boats, reminiscent of the Vietnamese boat people, who also were desperate to leave an unforgiving land and would do anything—even risk their lives—to escape. In addition, they are Muslims, another strike against them in some people’s eyes.

The boat people have become an irritant for many countries in the region, especially Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia. Compounding the problem is the unwillingness of Burma and Bangladesh to recognize the Rohingya as citizens.

When various groups of Rohingya boat people were arrested in Thailand recently, they were beaten and tortured by Thai authorities, according to reports, and eventually towed back out to sea and set adrift with inadequate water and food in boats without working engines.

Earlier, Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva was quoted by reporters as saying, “They [the Rohingyas] are not refugees. Our policy is to push them out of the country because they are illegal migrants.”

More than 1,000 Rohingyas were towed out to sea and set adrift late last year by the Thai navy. Fortunately, they were rescued by Indonesian and Indian authorities. Unknown numbers, however, disappeared at sea.

Recently, the Thai premier changed his tune to acknowledge the claims of human rights groups, telling CNN in an exclusive interview, “It’s not exactly clear whose work it is.” He added, “All the [Thai] authorities say it’s not their policy, but I have reason to believe some instances of this happened, and if I can have the evidence of who exactly did this, I will certainly bring them to account.”

Clearly, the issue is now a regional issue, and the Thai government is feeling the heat of world opinion. Even a simple statement in support of the Rohingya boat people made by Hollywood actress Angelina Jolie, who is also a goodwill ambassador of the United Nations, during a visit to Thailand last week drew a curt response from Thai foreign ministry spokesman Tharit Charungvat, who pounced on her remarks, saying, “It’s not her role to comment on the matter.”

Thailand’s army commander is now scheduled to visit Burma next week to discuss the Rohingya issue with the military government.

Really, the issue would be best addressed in a regional forum with the gravity that it deserves.

The secretary-general of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), Surin Pitsuwin, said in an interview: “This is not an issue for a particular country. It is a regional issue. It is also an issue for the international community.”

When Asean leaders gather for the regional summit which is scheduled to be held at the end of this month in Thailand, Surin and other Asean leaders must responsibly address the Rohingya issue.

If they fail to do so and paper over the issue with rhetorical flourishes, they will bring further discredit to the region.

Burma’s Rice Exports Soar, While Millions Remain Malnourished

Burmese farmers plant rice near new capital Naypyidaw. (Photo: AP)

By MIN LWIN
The Irrawaddy News

Driven by strong demand from Africa and Bangladesh, Burma’s rice exports have increased rapidly since the beginning of this year, according to traders in Rangoon, who say that sales in January have already nearly quadrupled the total for the first half of the current fiscal year.

“Exports to Africa, Mauritius and Bangladesh have gone way up,” said a rice exporter from Rangoon, adding that export prices remain unusually low, while domestic prices are continuing to rise.

“The increase in rice exports is having an impact, making rice more expensive locally,” he said.

According to a Reuters report, Burma has exported around 400,000 tons of rice so far this year. A Burmese agricultural official told The Irrawaddy on Friday that the country’s exports over the period from April to September 2008 amounted to around 100,000 tons.

One reason for the strong sales has been the cheap price of Burmese rice on the international market. Burma is selling 25 percent broken rice at US $270-$280 per ton, compared with $348-US$353 quoted for a similar Vietnamese variety.

Speaking early last December, Prime Minister Gen Thein Sein said that Burmese rice exports could reach as high as three million tons in 2009. “Myanmar is to strive for ensuring local self-sufficiency in rice and [exports of] about three million tons of rice annually,” he was quoted in the state-run media as saying.

However, some Burmese agricultural experts said they didn’t expect the country’s rice surplus to exceed two million tons, far short of the three million projected by the government.

A senior official from the Myanmar Rice Traders Association said that rice production would likely decrease as a result of lower prices, as farmers say they could end up selling at a loss because of the high price of inputs.

“Fertilizer, seeds, pesticides and equipment such as pumps and ploughs are all very expensive,” he said, adding that the impact of Cyclone Nargis, which hit Irrawaddy and Rangoon divisions last May, would also be felt for some time.

“Total rice production was about 18 million tons last year, including summer paddy,” he said. “In the coming fiscal year, rice production will fall at least 20 percent.”

Meanwhile, a joint report by the World Food Program and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, released on January 22, said that there are more than five million people below the food poverty line in Burma.

The report also said that two divisions and five states were found to be a priority for emergency food assistance, requiring 186,000 tons of food aid.

The report pointed out that after Cyclone Nargis hit the Irrawaddy delta—an area known as the “Rice Bowl” of Burma—last May, rice harvests in the affected townships fell by about a third.

In Chin State, near Burma’s border with India, at least 30 children were reported to have died as a result of a famine caused by a plague of rats that has been devouring rice stocks since December 2007. According to exiled Chin rights groups, at least 100,000 ethnic Chin, or 20 percent of the state’s population, has been affected by the food emergency.

Mahn Sha’s Spirit Lives On

General Secretary Mahn Sha (right) of KNU pictured with
Gen Bo Mya at Karen Revolution Day in 2004.
(Photo: Htain Linn)

By SAW YAN NAING
The Irrawaddy News

On February 14 last year, two unknown men pulled up in a pick-up truck outside Mahn Sha’s house in Mae Sot. He was upstairs resting on the balcony at the time, family members say. The men walked into the house armed with shotguns. They marched up the stairs and a series of loud gunshots was heard. The gunmen ran downstairs and escaped. The Karen National Union (KNU) general-secretary lay dead in a pool of blood.

On Saturday, Karen people around the world, Burmese opposition leaders, international Burma watchers and exiled Burmese will pay respects to Mahn Sha, considered a visionary Karen leader—a man respected by all, especially his adversaries.

Ceremonies of remembrance to Mahn Shah, who was 64 when he died, will be held on Saturday in Norway and other countries around the world.

Mahn Sha was born in Irrawaddy Division on July 5, 1944. After majoring in history at Rangoon University in 1962, he joined the Karen movement at its jungle headquarters, Manerplaw, on the Thai-Burmese border.

He was involved in ceasefire talks with the Burmese military regime, which came to see him as a strong leader who repeatedly called for genuine political dialogue. He was regarded by many as one of the leading lights in the KNU and was being groomed to take over the troubled KNU leadership.

In its six-decade war for autonomy, the KNU never signed a ceasefire agreement with the Burmese armed forces and, in recent years, had to contend with the splinter Karen group, the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army, as an enemy too.

With so many enemies, it has never been confirmed who ordered the Karen leader’s assassination.

Brig-Gen Johnny, commander of the Karen National Liberation Army’s Brigade 7, said that Karen youth should look at Mahn Sha’s example and the way he sacrificed his life for the Karen people.

Brig-Gen Johnny said, “Mahn Sha didn’t work for his own family. He worked for his people. He didn’t even possess any belongings of worth when he died.”

The current general-secretary of the KNU, Zipporah Sein, said she encouraged Karen youths to learn from Mahn Sha as he was the one who always supported education and politics, and even prompted youngsters to get involved in the democracy movement.

Burmese opposition leaders in exile also spoke out in support of Mahn Sha’s vision. Most agreed that the death of Mahn Sha was a huge loss for the Burmese democracy movement as no one in the KNU leadership could substitute for him.

Aung Moe Zaw, the chairman of the Thailand-based Democratic Party for a New Society, said that Mahn Sha was an ethnic leader who spoke for the whole Burmese democracy movement, including ethnic people and the Burmese opposition.

The secretary-general of the Forum for Democracy in Burma, Naing Aung, agreed that Mahn Sha was a strong ethnic leader who knew and understood the history of the Burmese opposition alliance and who dealt harmoniously with the Burmese opposition groups.

In Norway on Saturday, a posthumous award will be presented to Mahn Sha as well as four other ethnic leaders for their efforts toward national reconciliation in Burma.

The four others are Khun Htun Oo, Aye Tha Aung, Cin Sian Thang and Nai Ngwe Thein.

Mahn Sha’s daughter, Zoya Phan, will receive the award on her father’s behalf.

Burma Extends Detention of NLD Leader - Tin Oo

By AP and THE IRRAWADDY

Burma's military government on Friday extended the house arrest of Tin Oo, the deputy leader of Aung San Suu Kyi's pro-democracy party.

Several policemen were seen visiting Tin Oo's house to inform him that the restrictions had been extended, according to a neighbor who asked not to be named for fear of government reprisal.

Photo: Tin Oo, the deputy leader of NLD.

The extension was for one year, said a government official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to release such information. Burma's junta tightly controls the release of all news.

Tin Oo, 82, the vice chairman of the National League for Democracy, was arrested with Suu Kyi in May 2003, when a pro-government mob attacked their motorcade as they were making a political tour of northern Burma. Both party leaders have been in either prison or under house arrest since then.

Meanwhile, two elected members of parliament from the NLD were sentenced to 15 years imprisonment on Friday by the notorious Insein Prison special court, according to their family members.

Nyi Pu, a elected member of parliament from Gwa Township, Arakan State, and Dr Tin Min Htut, a elected member of parliament from Pantanaw Township, Irrawaddy Division, were convicted of three charges, including the State Offence Act 505 B, said Khine Win Hlaing, one of Dr Tin Min Htut’s sons.

The two parliamentary members were arrested and detained on August 12 last year.

“No lawyer was allowed to represent them in the special court,” Khine Win Hlaing said.

According to Thailand-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners—Burma, 2,137 political activists and their supporters are currently being held in prisons across Burma.

Thursday, February 12, 2009

Ethnic groups: No Panglong Agreement, no Union of Burma

“Non-Burmans could struggle on their own,
but no one can predict how long it will last.
But if you join hands with the Burmese,
independence at the same time is assured,”
--Aung San, at the Panglong Conference, 12th February 1947

By Hseng Khio Fah
Shan Herald Agency for News

The exile Ethnic Nationalities Council (ENC) released a statement marking the 62nd anniversary of the historic Panglong Agreement today that were it not for the Agreement, there would not have been the Union of Burma.

“The statement reflects the background of how the Union Day come into being,” said Saw David Taw, ENC Joint General Secretary.

The said treaty between the non-Burman leaders and Aung San was the basis for the Union, he added.

Aung San and his delegation had gone to England in January 1947 to demand Independence. As a result, Burma was promised freedom which did not include the Frontier Areas, as the non-Burman States were known at that time.

He returned to Burma to convince the ethnic leaders to join hands for Independence. On 8 February evening he delivered a speech at Panglong promising adequate safeguards for non-Burman rights should they decide to join Burma.

Aung San said, “Non-Burmans could struggle on their own, but no one can predict how long it will last. But if you join hands with the Burmese, independence at the same time is assured,” according to a SHAN report in 2000.

Later on 12th February 1947, the Panglong agreement was signed between leaders of the Frontier Areas and Aung San to unite and jointly fight for independence, and to establish a sovereign country, composed of co-independent equal states, in accordance with the principle of the Right of Self-determination.

Likewise, Shwe Ohn, 87, a participant at the Panglong Conference, wrote in his Toward the Third Union of Burma (1993), to the following effect:

What would have happened if the Panglong Agreement was not signed?
The answer is clear. The country would have been divided into two parts: Burma and the Frontier Areas. The former would become independent in 1948, while the latter would continue to remain under British rule.

How long would that rule be?

The Federated Malay States, also under British rule, became independent in 1957 without having to fight for it. By the same taken, I believe the Frontier Areas, in which Federated Shan States was a part, would also be an independent country by now.

Warning by Britishers to Kachins comes true

"Don't take independence together!", the British had warned ethnic Kachin leaders and this has come true today, the 62nd anniversary of the Union Day in Burma, which commemorates the ethnic Shan, Kachin, Chins leaders and Burmese (Burman) leader General Aung San signing the Panglong Agreement for forming the multi-ethnic Union of Burma on February 12, 1947.

Kachins have lost their autonomous rights since Burma's Independence Day on January 4, 1948 during successive Burmese-national leaderships---from the first elected Prime Minister U Nu to Senior General Than Shwe, current chairman of the military junta's so-called State Peace and Development Council (SPDC). Now it is the worst phase.

Kachin Duwa Wabaw Zau Rip

Written by KNG

It was a historic mistake where Kachins lost political rights when Kachin leaders decided to take independence together with Burmese and form the Union of Burma in 1946 under the leadership of the two Kachin Duwas (leaders) in Myitkyina --- Sama Duwa Sinwa Nawng and Duwa Wabaw Zau Rip, said Duwa Maran Zau Awng in Florida in the US of the National League for Democracy, NLD's People Representative of Waingmaw Township in Kachin state and Awng Wa, the former 88 Kachin students' leader on the Sino-Burma border.

On August 15, 1946, Mr. Stevenson, officer of Burma's Frontier Areas Administration and Mr. North, special commissioner of Bhamo and Myitkyina met about 100 Kachin Duwas from Myitkyina, Bhamo, Danai (Tanai), Putao and Lashio in Myitkyina and warned them not to claim independence together with the Burmese.

Mr. Stevenson warned Kachin Duwas in a meeting held in a football field in Manhkring primary school in Myitkyina, "So, We are to give independence to Burmese soon, you (Kachin) don't take independence together with them. If you receive it together, you may be depressed by the Burmese someday."

Mr. Stevenson had continued, "We'd like to rule continuously for 10 years and give you independence. As we'd like to be grateful to you for your great help in fighting against Fascist Japan in northern Burma during WW II, we'd like to teach you and educate you 'how to rule country'.

Sama Duwa Sinwa Nawng angrily stood first and fought back with words against Mr. Stevenson saying "If Burmese depress us, we'll slaughter them again. We have slaughtered them in the past."

Duwa Wabaw Zau Rip had complained regarding the promise of political education programs for Kachins by the two British officers, "You did not build any school in Bhamo in 75 years of rule, Myitkyina during 50 years of rule and Putao in 35 years of rule. We don't believe you."

All Kachin leaders in the meeting raised their hands and rejected the warning and the offer of the two British officers as soon as they heard the voices of Duwa Sinwa Nawng and Wabaw Zau Rip, said Duwa Zau Awng who was teenager at that time and informally attended the meeting.

Duwa Zau Awng added, Kachin leaders at that time had also thought of forming the People's Republic of Kachin as the next step in the future after independence together with Burmese.

The London-based Duwa Mahkaw Hkun Sa, general secretary of Kachin National Council accused Burma's ruling junta pointing at Article 9 (c) under Chapter (1) in the junta's newly drafted constitution which was forcibly approved in the public referendum in May, 2008, "The Burma's ruling junta is trying to delete the name 'Kachin state' from Burma."

Now, all Kachin leaders believe that the lost rights of Kachins following Burma's Independence Day will be regained if a democratic system is ushered into Burma, first.

Lawyers denied entry to Insein prison court

(DVB)–Six members of the All Burma Federation of Student Unions and four others who were arrested after helping victims of Cyclone Nargis appeared in Insein prison court without their lawyers on 10 February.

Phyo Phyo Aung, her father Dr Ne Win, Shein Yarzar, Aung Thant Zin Oo, Aung Kyaw San, Phone Pyit Kywe, Yin Yin Waing, Tin Tin Cho, Ni Mo Hlaing and Myat Thu were arrested for collecting rotting corpses in the aftermath of the cyclone and burying them.

Kyaw Hoe, Khin Htay Kywe and Maung Maung Latt, the lawyers representing the ten people, were not allowed to enter the court on the orders of special branch, a lawyer said.

Lawyer Kyaw Hoe said that MPs-elect Nyi Pu and Dr Tin Ming Htut had also appeared at the court without legal representation.

Kyaw Hoe said it was special branch, not the prison authorities, who had barred him from attending.

The lawyers wrote a letter to Tin Htut, the presiding judge at Western Rangoon district court, but he also rejected their appeal on the orders of special branch.

National League for Democracy legal advisor Thein Nyunt insisted that action should be taken against those who interfere with court procedures.

"If we are to maintain the right to a free trial, the court has a duty to prevent outside interference," he said.

"It won't be a free trial if lawyers are not allowed to represent their clients; this should be reported to the court. Their relatives should also report it to justice ministry."

NLD members Ma Cho and Theingi were also denied legal representation on 11 February, when their lawyer Myint Thaung was refused access to the court to defend them, according to party spokesman Nyan Win.

The two women were arrested five months ago and charged with having contact with illegal organisations.

Reporting by Nan Kham Kaew and Aye Nai

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