By Dennis Guild
Green Left Weekly (radical newspaper)
New South Wales, Australia
The last time I saw Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, general secretary of Myanmar's National League for Democracy (N.L.D.), was in 1996.
Aung San Suu Kyi was then under house arrest, but this did not stop her from addressing a crowd of thousands who came regularly to hear her "voice of hope" every Saturday outside her house on University Avenue in Yangoon, formerly Rangoon.
Aung San Suu Kyi looked at ease as she spoke to a crowd that obviously adored her. It was then that I decided to learn more about the N.L.D. and why the ruling junta, which overwhelmingly lost the democratic vote to the Aung San Suu Kyi-led N.L.D. in 1990, had not respected the voice of the people.
I returned to Myanmar, formerly Burma, in 2003, and became mired in the jungle of bureaucracy.
"No, you cannot buy tickets for Bhamo, it is out of bounds for foreigners," the official behind the counter at Myanma Airways declared. "The Lonely Planet says Bhamo is now open, you must sell us a ticket," I insisted.
The official examined the guidebook carefully, showed his superiors, before returning to declare, "I am sorry sir, you must gain a permit from the Ministry of Defense," a 30-kilometer (18.6-mile) taxi trip from the city.
I asked to speak to the manager and minutes later, I am being directed outside the building, along the road and back inside another building, that backs onto the same building I have just left. I sat and patiently waited. Finally, a man dressed in army uniform entered from the street. He asked, "Why do you want to travel to Bhamo?"
"I want to catch the ferry to Mandalay," I replied. "O.K., I will authorize the tickets," he said. As we left, I asked who he was. He said, "U Kyaw Myint, deputy minister for transport."
Disappeared
Bhamo is situated some 50 kilometers (31 miles) from the Chinese border on the banks of the Irrawaddy River in Kachin State. Foreigners are forbidden to travel more than 5 kilometers (3.1 miles) from the city center.
Forbidden, perhaps, because January is poppy season, when the flowers open to reveal an orb that is lanced to extract opium.
A local we spoke to told of people who simply disappeared if they opposed the rule of the junta; their relatives are imprisoned. Similar tales of intimidation were echoed throughout our journey on the road to Mandalay, Bagan, and Taunggyi.
A human rights worker in Mandalay spoke of the daily struggle to buy food. She said a hotel worker was jailed just for dining with Westerners and, on release, forbidden to work in the industry.
An academic in Taunggyi likened Australia's "constructive engagement" with the junta to "watering a poisonous plant." He said Australia was wasting its time and money on a regime that was not committed to political reconciliation. "There will be no improvement in Myanmar without regime change…"
Aung San Suu Kyi seemingly agreed when she referred to the Australian sponsored "human rights program" designed to improve rights for Burmese as "a fox looking after the chickens," as most involved in the program were from the military.
Back in Yangoon, we looked forward to our meeting with Aung San Suu Kyi. Under the shadow of the majestic Shwedagon pagoda, the N.L.D. headquarters on Shwegon Road is inconspicuous—a teak shop on one side and a residence on the other. Across the road, small shops among trees are usually staked out by military intelligence, ready with their Nikon cameras and walkie-talkies.
The atmosphere inside is electric. A young man approached us smiling, reached into his pocket, and "awarded" us N.L.D. badges (depicting the golden peacock and Aung San Suu Kyi), which we pinned to our lapels. He informed us sadly that Aung San Suu Kyi was in hospital that day undergoing an operation so we could not see her. But we were quite welcome to interview her spokesperson, U Lwin.
While we waited, we learned that the N.L.D. headquarters also served as a venue for social service provision. Some 100 babies come monthly to be weighed, fed, and given vitamins, while their parents receive tuition on early childcare. One volunteer mentioned that almost half the children in Myanmar suffer from malnutrition. The N.L.D. also conducts biweekly adult/children education classes.
An elderly man in his late 70's appeared and slowly, with the aid of a walking stick, made his way up the teak staircase. U Lwin had arrived.
We were summoned to join him in his office. His English was polished as he spoke at length about the years of struggle and oppression endured by the Burmese people. "The N.L.D. has tried to engage the junta in dialogue regarding peaceful negotiations and reconciliation but these have been sabotaged by the regime," he said. "Ms. Suu Kyi's latest attempt at engaging ASEAN leaders as possible arbitrators was fruitless, as the junta cancelled Malaysian P.M. Mahathir's meeting with her late last year."
Australian Complicity
The next day we returned to the N.L.D. office and were fortunate to be able to talk to U Tin U (Oo), N.L.D. vice-chairperson. Tin U, also currently under house arrest, assured us we were in no danger as Australia and China had "most favored nation" status with the junta. "They won't touch you," he said.
He spoke vehemently of the 1,200 Burmese imprisoned for their political beliefs. Tin U was highly critical of Australia's ongoing "constructive engagement" human rights workshops with the regime—criticism he said the Australian ambassador in Yangoon agrees with.
"The problem is, this program of the Australian government makes a lot of people outside Burma think that the junta is doing everything in accordance with the universal declaration of human rights, but this is not accurate, as underneath there is a lot of oppression and many violations of human rights."
I have since visited Myanmar in 2005, when I traveled to Kengtung, and also Tachilek in 2008. The oppression of the Burmese people remains, forcing many to take refuge in Thailand where there are more than 150,000 Burmese in refugee camps, and where more than 2 million survive as migrant workers.
Aung San Suu Kyi remains under house arrest, extended for another year, in Yangoon where she has not been allowed to see her doctor since January. She survives in a house that was badly damaged by Cyclone Nargis.
June 19 was her 63rd birthday. Let us hope the world will place principle before profit and help free Aung San Suu Kyi and her people before she turns 64.
Friday, 11 July 2008
Villagers’ woes continue in Bogalay
Jul 11, 2008 (DVB)–Residents of Phoe Lay village, south of Bogalay, are lacking food, shelter and clean water and have been unable to restart farming after a tiller provided by the government broke.
A private donor who visited Phoe Lay village said locals were unable to repair the tiller.
"Villagers from Phoe Lay did receive one tiller from the government but unfortunately, the machine was broken,” the donor said.
“It is going to cost about 300,000 kyat to repair it and since the villagers have no job and no income, they are unable to afford it."
The donor said the villagers have no money, food or shelter and have been forced to eat wet rice as they cannot afford to buy new rice.
Aid projects that are helping villagers in surrounding areas have not yet come to Phoe Lay, the donor said.
"They were also facing problem getting clean water,” he said.
“That problem has already been solved in some villages as some private donors have dug wells there but this has not yet happened in Phoe Lay village and so people have to boil water from a nearby lake before they can use it," he explained.
"A lot of elderly people and children are getting diarrhoea."
Reporting by Naw Say Phaw
A private donor who visited Phoe Lay village said locals were unable to repair the tiller.
"Villagers from Phoe Lay did receive one tiller from the government but unfortunately, the machine was broken,” the donor said.
“It is going to cost about 300,000 kyat to repair it and since the villagers have no job and no income, they are unable to afford it."
The donor said the villagers have no money, food or shelter and have been forced to eat wet rice as they cannot afford to buy new rice.
Aid projects that are helping villagers in surrounding areas have not yet come to Phoe Lay, the donor said.
"They were also facing problem getting clean water,” he said.
“That problem has already been solved in some villages as some private donors have dug wells there but this has not yet happened in Phoe Lay village and so people have to boil water from a nearby lake before they can use it," he explained.
"A lot of elderly people and children are getting diarrhoea."
Reporting by Naw Say Phaw
Burst embankment floods 30,000 acres of farmland
(DVB)– A burst embankment caused by heavy rain in Bago’s Nyaung Lay Pin township has flooded nearly 30,000 acres of farmland south of the Sittaung river, local residents said.
A farmer from Nyaung Lay Pin said there had been continuous rain for almost two weeks.
"The rain has been falling since 28 June and it still hasn't stopped yet," the farmer said yesterday.
"An embankment near Natkadaw Khin village to the north of Nyaung Lay Pin was burst by the rain."
The farmer said inadequate drainage facilities had exacerbated the flooding.
"The flooding was even worse than it was supposed to be because an embankment on east of Nyaung Lay Pin did not have enough gates to release the water," the farmer said.
"Now all the rice crops on south of Nyaung Lay Pin are under water because the government's irrigation department did not do their job properly," he said.
"Rice plants cannot survive more than four days under water – we need more seeds to start a new rice plantation to replace those destroyed by the flooding."
He said township authorities had not done anything to help the flooded farmlands apart from visiting the site to look at the damage.
Reporting by Naw Say Phaw
A farmer from Nyaung Lay Pin said there had been continuous rain for almost two weeks.
"The rain has been falling since 28 June and it still hasn't stopped yet," the farmer said yesterday.
"An embankment near Natkadaw Khin village to the north of Nyaung Lay Pin was burst by the rain."
The farmer said inadequate drainage facilities had exacerbated the flooding.
"The flooding was even worse than it was supposed to be because an embankment on east of Nyaung Lay Pin did not have enough gates to release the water," the farmer said.
"Now all the rice crops on south of Nyaung Lay Pin are under water because the government's irrigation department did not do their job properly," he said.
"Rice plants cannot survive more than four days under water – we need more seeds to start a new rice plantation to replace those destroyed by the flooding."
He said township authorities had not done anything to help the flooded farmlands apart from visiting the site to look at the damage.
Reporting by Naw Say Phaw
Commentary: Is trafficking inevitable?
By Ali Fowle
Jul 11, 2008 (DVB)– Thailand's new anti-trafficking law aims to help put an end to human trafficking in the country. But without a migration policy that allows legal or low-cost movement, is this addressing the real problem?
Tackling trafficking
At the beginning of June the Thai parliament introduced a new trafficking act that broadens the definition of human trafficking and strengthens protection for victims.
These changes are an undeniable improvement on Thailand's previous trafficking act, which failed to acknowledge men as potential victims.
However, the new law also ignores some of the glaring issues that are vital in tackling trafficking from Burma.
The International Labour Organisation believes that the new trafficking law offers positive advances in the protection it offers victims.
"The new law is no doubt quite effective in the protection of trafficking victims, it helps all the people involved and the operational guidelines are clear," said Suvajee Good, an ILO specialist on the trafficking of children.
She added that the law gives more people power to act against traffickers, empowering all officials to help victims of trafficking.
However, some see this as one of the negative aspects of the new laws. They will have to be enforced by the notoriously corrupt Thai police force - consistently reported to be susceptible to bribery and often directly involved in smuggling illegal immigrants themselves.
Jackie Pollock from MAP Foundation thinks that more should be done to protect the rights of all people migrating and more protection should be in place for migrants who have been exploited, abused, held captive, or trafficked.
"At the moment, the only protection available is through the anti-trafficking law. This protection itself is very limited, but also it also excludes many migrants who desperately need protection because criminal acts have been committed against them," said Pollock.
She cites the example of 54 Burmese migrants who died while being transported in a container in Ranong. Once the survivors were deemed not to be victims of trafficking, any protection they had been given was taken away.
"Only while they make the case against the trafficker is the victim protected, and then when the case is finished they are sent home," Pollock explained.
Sending migrants who have left Burma back home may mean returning them to a situation where they are persecuted, starving or even in direct danger from the dictatorial rule of the military government. Some will have spent any money they have paying the trafficker to help them escape these hardships and may end up in a far worse situation than before.
"Their country of origin needs to be taken into account; people don't want to go back. Within the law, they should be allowed to apply for asylum," said Pollock.
In order to properly address these problems, perhaps more attention should be paid to the individual needs of the victims rather than the law surrounding the perpetrators.
"The trouble with trafficking laws is that they are about international crime, not about human rights," said Pollock.
Necessary reaction
The Thai government needs to look at trafficking not only as a crime but as a necessary reaction to circumstances in both Burma and Thailand. Adults are trafficked from Burma to Thailand because they need to leave, and in Thailand there is a need for workers.
This problematic situation needs to be addressed by creating a migration policy that will make movement legally possible.
Jackie Pollock feels the problems are clear.
"The basic problem is that Burma doesn't have an exit programme whatsoever," she says.
An economic migrant from Burma is unable to seek asylum as a refugee and cannot migrate to another country through legitimate, safe and normal methods.
"There's no facilitation of migration from Burma, so everyone who enters Thailand to work enters illegally," said Pollock.
More than forty years of military rule and economic mismanagement has crippled Burma's economy, and the actions of the regime have transformed Burma from an affluent country to one of the most impoverished nations in the world.
Many people capable of work are driven out of the country by starvation due to lack of employment opportunities or having been forced into unpaid labour. With more than half the population below the poverty line, many migrants leave Burma illegally to find work in other countries in the hope of sending some money home to their families.
Once inside the country there are opportunities to register as a migrant worker, but of the alleged 2 million migrants working in Thailand, only a quarter are registered.
"One of the reasons that Thailand does not allow incoming migrants to register immediately on entry to Thailand may be that they are afraid that this will encourage more migrants to leave Burma and come to Thailand,” said Pollock.
“In reality, migrants have little choice but to leave Burma in order to survive."
Obstacles to legal migration
Difficulties with registration, language barriers, desperation and manipulative employers mean that many migrants entering Thailand are led straight into exploitation. Unregistered illegal migrants are denied legal rights by current Thai law, and are therefore left without protection.
Often, having been promised or expecting legitimate work, migrants are forced to work in exploitative conditions or sold into the sex trade.
The fear of arrest and deportation drives many people to rely on the help and advice of "carriers" who transport them into Thailand without being reprimanded by authorities.
The ILO’s Suvajee Good thinks it is insufficient education that causes these problems.
"A lot of the people who come from Burma will have no information on migration policy," said Suvajee.
"They don't know what is available to get into Thailand, they don't speak the language and so they find a 'guide' to take them in. They don't know they are breaking the law," she said.
The situation in both countries and the lack of communication surrounding it means that trafficking is unlikely to diminish in the near future if migration laws don't change.
People are left with no choice but to become migrants working in illicit circumstances, where they are exploited and their human rights are abused.
Vulnerable targets
The position of desperation that Burmese migrants are in makes them vulnerable targets for traffickers. The offer of help to leave Burma and a job at the other end is simply too good to refuse, despite the risks.
Since the cyclone, even more people have been trying to leave Burma from the affected areas. Traffickers have allegedly posed as aid workers and lured people into Thailand with promises of aid.
The government, however, has stepped up its actions on trafficking of late, and border police recently rescued more than 80 women and children from human traffickers.
In September 2005 Burma also introduced a law against human trafficking which carries strict penalties for the perpetrators.
More recently the junta has urged members of the public to report any evidence of human trafficking, which will hopefully also make potential victims more aware of the risks.
David Mathieson, Burma consultant for Human Rights Watch, said the SPDC “sees trafficking as an internationally prominent issue that can get them some kudos".
Mathieson further commented that although these efforts may be partly for PR, they are also partly genuine efforts on behalf of the government to make a change.
"It is important to acknowledge that some efforts have been made and that some positive things have come out of it," he said.
However, many of these efforts are futile given regular allegations that local Burmese authorities are involved in human smuggling and the absence of laws that are properly enforced in Burma.
"The problem is you cannot have an effective anti trafficking regime without a functioning rational legal system," said Mathieson.
Burma has laws against trafficking but its other policies continue to treat people in a way that forces them to migrate in an act of desperation despite the risks associated with leaving the country illegally.
Following April’s tragedy in which 54 Burmese migrants died of suffocation while being transported illegally, Thailand called for the Burmese government to cooperate and sign a joint agreement on the Cooperation to Combat Trafficking in Persons. The Burmese authorities declined to do so.
Such a Memorandum of Understanding to tackle human trafficking could set a framework for cooperation to help the two countries address the issues that trafficking raises together.
Addressing the causes
However, while Thailand concentrates on trafficking laws, it is neglecting to address many of the problems that lead to trafficking in the first place.
Thailand's constructive engagement policy means that it is reluctant to criticise the Burmese regime. Thailand also benefits from trading with Burma and directly supports the Burmese government through this trade.
Despite the fact that the Thai economy depends hugely on the cheap labour that Burmese migrants supply, over the past two years the Thai government has increased restrictions on and decreased funding for migrant workers.
The number of migrants crossing the Thai-Burma border every day is got getting any smaller. People continue to leave due to extreme poverty, fighting and repression and these people need to be protected.
As long as people are desperate to leave Burma and Thailand is in need of cheap labour, Burmese migrants will continue to leave Burma illegally. Changing the trafficking law will not solve these undeniable problems.
If Burma and Thailand hope to make even a dent in the number of Burmese migrants being exploited, misled and trafficked, they need to accommodate for the huge numbers of people forced to leave their homeland and establish legal, safe and controlled methods to allow them to enter and work in Thailand.
Addressing the issues surrounding migration will in turn address the horror of people trafficking.
Jul 11, 2008 (DVB)– Thailand's new anti-trafficking law aims to help put an end to human trafficking in the country. But without a migration policy that allows legal or low-cost movement, is this addressing the real problem?
Tackling trafficking
At the beginning of June the Thai parliament introduced a new trafficking act that broadens the definition of human trafficking and strengthens protection for victims.
These changes are an undeniable improvement on Thailand's previous trafficking act, which failed to acknowledge men as potential victims.
However, the new law also ignores some of the glaring issues that are vital in tackling trafficking from Burma.
The International Labour Organisation believes that the new trafficking law offers positive advances in the protection it offers victims.
"The new law is no doubt quite effective in the protection of trafficking victims, it helps all the people involved and the operational guidelines are clear," said Suvajee Good, an ILO specialist on the trafficking of children.
She added that the law gives more people power to act against traffickers, empowering all officials to help victims of trafficking.
However, some see this as one of the negative aspects of the new laws. They will have to be enforced by the notoriously corrupt Thai police force - consistently reported to be susceptible to bribery and often directly involved in smuggling illegal immigrants themselves.
Jackie Pollock from MAP Foundation thinks that more should be done to protect the rights of all people migrating and more protection should be in place for migrants who have been exploited, abused, held captive, or trafficked.
"At the moment, the only protection available is through the anti-trafficking law. This protection itself is very limited, but also it also excludes many migrants who desperately need protection because criminal acts have been committed against them," said Pollock.
She cites the example of 54 Burmese migrants who died while being transported in a container in Ranong. Once the survivors were deemed not to be victims of trafficking, any protection they had been given was taken away.
"Only while they make the case against the trafficker is the victim protected, and then when the case is finished they are sent home," Pollock explained.
Sending migrants who have left Burma back home may mean returning them to a situation where they are persecuted, starving or even in direct danger from the dictatorial rule of the military government. Some will have spent any money they have paying the trafficker to help them escape these hardships and may end up in a far worse situation than before.
"Their country of origin needs to be taken into account; people don't want to go back. Within the law, they should be allowed to apply for asylum," said Pollock.
In order to properly address these problems, perhaps more attention should be paid to the individual needs of the victims rather than the law surrounding the perpetrators.
"The trouble with trafficking laws is that they are about international crime, not about human rights," said Pollock.
Necessary reaction
The Thai government needs to look at trafficking not only as a crime but as a necessary reaction to circumstances in both Burma and Thailand. Adults are trafficked from Burma to Thailand because they need to leave, and in Thailand there is a need for workers.
This problematic situation needs to be addressed by creating a migration policy that will make movement legally possible.
Jackie Pollock feels the problems are clear.
"The basic problem is that Burma doesn't have an exit programme whatsoever," she says.
An economic migrant from Burma is unable to seek asylum as a refugee and cannot migrate to another country through legitimate, safe and normal methods.
"There's no facilitation of migration from Burma, so everyone who enters Thailand to work enters illegally," said Pollock.
More than forty years of military rule and economic mismanagement has crippled Burma's economy, and the actions of the regime have transformed Burma from an affluent country to one of the most impoverished nations in the world.
Many people capable of work are driven out of the country by starvation due to lack of employment opportunities or having been forced into unpaid labour. With more than half the population below the poverty line, many migrants leave Burma illegally to find work in other countries in the hope of sending some money home to their families.
Once inside the country there are opportunities to register as a migrant worker, but of the alleged 2 million migrants working in Thailand, only a quarter are registered.
"One of the reasons that Thailand does not allow incoming migrants to register immediately on entry to Thailand may be that they are afraid that this will encourage more migrants to leave Burma and come to Thailand,” said Pollock.
“In reality, migrants have little choice but to leave Burma in order to survive."
Obstacles to legal migration
Difficulties with registration, language barriers, desperation and manipulative employers mean that many migrants entering Thailand are led straight into exploitation. Unregistered illegal migrants are denied legal rights by current Thai law, and are therefore left without protection.
Often, having been promised or expecting legitimate work, migrants are forced to work in exploitative conditions or sold into the sex trade.
The fear of arrest and deportation drives many people to rely on the help and advice of "carriers" who transport them into Thailand without being reprimanded by authorities.
The ILO’s Suvajee Good thinks it is insufficient education that causes these problems.
"A lot of the people who come from Burma will have no information on migration policy," said Suvajee.
"They don't know what is available to get into Thailand, they don't speak the language and so they find a 'guide' to take them in. They don't know they are breaking the law," she said.
The situation in both countries and the lack of communication surrounding it means that trafficking is unlikely to diminish in the near future if migration laws don't change.
People are left with no choice but to become migrants working in illicit circumstances, where they are exploited and their human rights are abused.
Vulnerable targets
The position of desperation that Burmese migrants are in makes them vulnerable targets for traffickers. The offer of help to leave Burma and a job at the other end is simply too good to refuse, despite the risks.
Since the cyclone, even more people have been trying to leave Burma from the affected areas. Traffickers have allegedly posed as aid workers and lured people into Thailand with promises of aid.
The government, however, has stepped up its actions on trafficking of late, and border police recently rescued more than 80 women and children from human traffickers.
In September 2005 Burma also introduced a law against human trafficking which carries strict penalties for the perpetrators.
More recently the junta has urged members of the public to report any evidence of human trafficking, which will hopefully also make potential victims more aware of the risks.
David Mathieson, Burma consultant for Human Rights Watch, said the SPDC “sees trafficking as an internationally prominent issue that can get them some kudos".
Mathieson further commented that although these efforts may be partly for PR, they are also partly genuine efforts on behalf of the government to make a change.
"It is important to acknowledge that some efforts have been made and that some positive things have come out of it," he said.
However, many of these efforts are futile given regular allegations that local Burmese authorities are involved in human smuggling and the absence of laws that are properly enforced in Burma.
"The problem is you cannot have an effective anti trafficking regime without a functioning rational legal system," said Mathieson.
Burma has laws against trafficking but its other policies continue to treat people in a way that forces them to migrate in an act of desperation despite the risks associated with leaving the country illegally.
Following April’s tragedy in which 54 Burmese migrants died of suffocation while being transported illegally, Thailand called for the Burmese government to cooperate and sign a joint agreement on the Cooperation to Combat Trafficking in Persons. The Burmese authorities declined to do so.
Such a Memorandum of Understanding to tackle human trafficking could set a framework for cooperation to help the two countries address the issues that trafficking raises together.
Addressing the causes
However, while Thailand concentrates on trafficking laws, it is neglecting to address many of the problems that lead to trafficking in the first place.
Thailand's constructive engagement policy means that it is reluctant to criticise the Burmese regime. Thailand also benefits from trading with Burma and directly supports the Burmese government through this trade.
Despite the fact that the Thai economy depends hugely on the cheap labour that Burmese migrants supply, over the past two years the Thai government has increased restrictions on and decreased funding for migrant workers.
The number of migrants crossing the Thai-Burma border every day is got getting any smaller. People continue to leave due to extreme poverty, fighting and repression and these people need to be protected.
As long as people are desperate to leave Burma and Thailand is in need of cheap labour, Burmese migrants will continue to leave Burma illegally. Changing the trafficking law will not solve these undeniable problems.
If Burma and Thailand hope to make even a dent in the number of Burmese migrants being exploited, misled and trafficked, they need to accommodate for the huge numbers of people forced to leave their homeland and establish legal, safe and controlled methods to allow them to enter and work in Thailand.
Addressing the issues surrounding migration will in turn address the horror of people trafficking.
Public Generator Commandeered by Army
Narinjara - A generator that was bought with public funds to supply electricity in Sittwe was taken by the army for use in a cantonment in the Arakan state capital, said a local resident.
He said, "The generator was owned by the townspeople of Sittwe but the army has grabbed it for the army cantonment without any concern for the public."
The generator was bought by Sittwe residents through the Sittwe Electricity Committee in 2000, and it was used to distribute nearly two hours of electricity per day to three or four wards located downtown.
"The Sittwe Electricity Committee lost profit by distributing electricity to the town with the generator, so the committee stopped distributing electricity and kept the generator in the compound of U Ottama garden," he said.
When army authorities heard the generator was being kept by the townspeople, they took the generator to the army headquarters located outside of Sittwe.
A source said even though the generator was taken by the army, electricity is still being distributed to people from 7 pm to 10 pm every day. However, the electricity is being distributed by EPC using an older generator.
"We have received one hour more of electricity every day since the public-owned generator was grabbed by the army. We received only two hours a day before. I think it is being done with the intent of luring people to support the army's commandeering of the generator," he said.
A witness said the army authorities have been using the generator for the army cantonment after taking it from the people.
Although Sittwe is the capital of Arakan State, it receives only two to three hours of electric power in a day. Most towns in Arakan State are facing a power supply shortage as the government authority does not provide support or fuel to run the generators.
He said, "The generator was owned by the townspeople of Sittwe but the army has grabbed it for the army cantonment without any concern for the public."
The generator was bought by Sittwe residents through the Sittwe Electricity Committee in 2000, and it was used to distribute nearly two hours of electricity per day to three or four wards located downtown.
"The Sittwe Electricity Committee lost profit by distributing electricity to the town with the generator, so the committee stopped distributing electricity and kept the generator in the compound of U Ottama garden," he said.
When army authorities heard the generator was being kept by the townspeople, they took the generator to the army headquarters located outside of Sittwe.
A source said even though the generator was taken by the army, electricity is still being distributed to people from 7 pm to 10 pm every day. However, the electricity is being distributed by EPC using an older generator.
"We have received one hour more of electricity every day since the public-owned generator was grabbed by the army. We received only two hours a day before. I think it is being done with the intent of luring people to support the army's commandeering of the generator," he said.
A witness said the army authorities have been using the generator for the army cantonment after taking it from the people.
Although Sittwe is the capital of Arakan State, it receives only two to three hours of electric power in a day. Most towns in Arakan State are facing a power supply shortage as the government authority does not provide support or fuel to run the generators.
Western Command Commander Asks for "Manpower Donation"
Narinjara - The new western command commander at a meeting on Thursday requested people to donate manpower to help reconstruct the Buthidaung and Maungdaw motor road, reported a townsperson.
He said, "Commader Major General Thaung Aye came to our town yesterday and met us in the Thiri Mingla hall. During the meeting, he asked for people to contribute manpower for road repair."
The motor road is the only link between Bangladesh and western Burma, and was severely damaged a few days ago by mudslides and bridge collapses in the heavy rain. The road is unusable currently, and transportation in the region has been brought to a standstill.
"The commander instructed the authorities in Maungdaw to complete the road construction by the end of this month with the help of the local people. But he organized people to work on the road construction politely by using the phrase 'manpower donation'," the local said.
The authorities in Maungdaw Township have used people for forced labor on the road reconstruction every day since the road was damaged, and at least 50 people from each ward and towns near the road have had to work without pay.
He said, "All people understand what the new western commander meant about 'manpower donation'. It was used by the western commander instead of saying 'forced labor'. The authorities in Maungdaw Township have now gotten permission from the new western commander to use the people as forced labor."
It was also learned that people in Maungdaw Township are now anxious about the new commander's request for donated manpower for the reconstruction of the Buthidaung - Maungdaw motor road. #
He said, "Commader Major General Thaung Aye came to our town yesterday and met us in the Thiri Mingla hall. During the meeting, he asked for people to contribute manpower for road repair."
The motor road is the only link between Bangladesh and western Burma, and was severely damaged a few days ago by mudslides and bridge collapses in the heavy rain. The road is unusable currently, and transportation in the region has been brought to a standstill.
"The commander instructed the authorities in Maungdaw to complete the road construction by the end of this month with the help of the local people. But he organized people to work on the road construction politely by using the phrase 'manpower donation'," the local said.
The authorities in Maungdaw Township have used people for forced labor on the road reconstruction every day since the road was damaged, and at least 50 people from each ward and towns near the road have had to work without pay.
He said, "All people understand what the new western commander meant about 'manpower donation'. It was used by the western commander instead of saying 'forced labor'. The authorities in Maungdaw Township have now gotten permission from the new western commander to use the people as forced labor."
It was also learned that people in Maungdaw Township are now anxious about the new commander's request for donated manpower for the reconstruction of the Buthidaung - Maungdaw motor road. #
Additional £17.5 million by DFID to help Burmese cyclone survivors
Solomon
Mizzima News - 10 July 2008
New Delhi - United Kingdom's Department for International Development (DFID) on Wednesday announced that it will provide an additional £17.5 million to help cyclone victims, adding to a total of £ 45 million in aid since Cyclone Nargis lashed Burma two months ago.
David Leslie, spokesman of DFID said the donation will be handed over on Thursday during a United Nations' flash appeal in New York to aid groups working in Burma's Irrawaddy and Rangoon division.
United Nations aid agencies as well as several other international humanitarian groups have said emergency relief works and reconstruction programmes could come to halt unless more funds are provided.
The United Nations World Food Programme has said it requires US$ 28 million more to keep its six-month programme running.
The International Federation of Red Cross on Wednesday said it needed US$ 72.5 million to fund its three-year relief plans which will include emergency relief as well as long term reconstruction programmes.
Alistair Henley, head of the IFRC's Asia Pacific Zone said hundreds of thousands of Burmese people in the Irrawaddy and Rangoon division have been living precarious lives long before the cyclone hit them.
"Nargis has left them weaker and more vulnerable than ever. We must ensure not only that they regain what they lost but have improved and safer lives in the future," Henley said.
Leslie said, the DFID has decided to provide additional funds as a response to the flash appeal by the UN and international humanitarian groups.
Douglas Alexander, Secretary of DFID, in a statement on Wednesday said, "While access has improved and the rate of delivery of relief goods continues to increase, we believe that around 300,000 people are at quite serious risk if they do not get more help soon."
Leslie said, "We will wait and see what the flash appeal contains today, and then we will make an assessment where the money will go."
"We have assessment teams in Burma, they are looking at where the fund is needed for each organization," he added.
On May 2 and 3, Cyclone Nargis hit Burma's coastal divisions of Irrawaddy and Rangoon, leaving more than 138,000 dead and missing and devastated over 2.4 million people's lives.
Following the natural disaster in Burma, DFID immediately announced £5 million in aid and an additional £12 million on May 15. The DFID announced a further £10.5 million donation following the ASEAN/UN pledging conference in Rangoon on May 25, which Douglas Alexander attended.
Burma's military government, however, has appealed for US$ 11 billion in aid to fund emergency relief works and reconstruction in the cyclone affected region.
Mizzima News - 10 July 2008
New Delhi - United Kingdom's Department for International Development (DFID) on Wednesday announced that it will provide an additional £17.5 million to help cyclone victims, adding to a total of £ 45 million in aid since Cyclone Nargis lashed Burma two months ago.
David Leslie, spokesman of DFID said the donation will be handed over on Thursday during a United Nations' flash appeal in New York to aid groups working in Burma's Irrawaddy and Rangoon division.
United Nations aid agencies as well as several other international humanitarian groups have said emergency relief works and reconstruction programmes could come to halt unless more funds are provided.
The United Nations World Food Programme has said it requires US$ 28 million more to keep its six-month programme running.
The International Federation of Red Cross on Wednesday said it needed US$ 72.5 million to fund its three-year relief plans which will include emergency relief as well as long term reconstruction programmes.
Alistair Henley, head of the IFRC's Asia Pacific Zone said hundreds of thousands of Burmese people in the Irrawaddy and Rangoon division have been living precarious lives long before the cyclone hit them.
"Nargis has left them weaker and more vulnerable than ever. We must ensure not only that they regain what they lost but have improved and safer lives in the future," Henley said.
Leslie said, the DFID has decided to provide additional funds as a response to the flash appeal by the UN and international humanitarian groups.
Douglas Alexander, Secretary of DFID, in a statement on Wednesday said, "While access has improved and the rate of delivery of relief goods continues to increase, we believe that around 300,000 people are at quite serious risk if they do not get more help soon."
Leslie said, "We will wait and see what the flash appeal contains today, and then we will make an assessment where the money will go."
"We have assessment teams in Burma, they are looking at where the fund is needed for each organization," he added.
On May 2 and 3, Cyclone Nargis hit Burma's coastal divisions of Irrawaddy and Rangoon, leaving more than 138,000 dead and missing and devastated over 2.4 million people's lives.
Following the natural disaster in Burma, DFID immediately announced £5 million in aid and an additional £12 million on May 15. The DFID announced a further £10.5 million donation following the ASEAN/UN pledging conference in Rangoon on May 25, which Douglas Alexander attended.
Burma's military government, however, has appealed for US$ 11 billion in aid to fund emergency relief works and reconstruction in the cyclone affected region.
ILO calls for Release of Six Burmese Activists
By SAW YAN NAING
The Irrawaddy News
The International Labour Organization on Friday called for the release of six imprisoned Burmese labor activists who were arrested for participating in a May Day ceremony in 2007.
The activists identified by the ILO, who were sentenced in September 2007, are Thurein Aung, Kyaw Kyaw, Wai Lin, Nyi Nyi Zaw, Shwe Joe and Aung Naing Tun.
They were each sentenced to at least 20 years imprisonment, according to their Rangoon lawyer, Khin Maung Shein. The lawyer said, however, he believes Shwe Joe and one other activist have been released already.
They were arrested for taking part in a May Day ceremony which was an expression of workers’ rights and freedom of speech.
The ILO said international trade union rights call for workers and labor organizations to enjoy freedom of opinion, speech and the right to assemble.
According to the ILO, the Supreme Court of Burma reportedly has denied the six activists’ appeals, running counter to requests by the ILO and the International Labour Conference which have called for their release.
Kari Tapiola, the ILO executive director for the Standards and Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work office, said, “It was our hope that their appeals to the Supreme Court would result in the quashing of their sentences and their immediate release. This remains a priority for the ILO, and the government is strongly urged to review the situation in order to secure an early release of the persons concerned.”
“It would have been hoped that in view of the Burmese government’s publicly expressed intent to take the country into general elections in 2010, that fundamental freedom of association rights would be respected,” Tapiola said.
Bo Kyi, the joint secretary of the Thailand-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners-Burma, said prominent labor activist Su Su Nway, who received the John Humphrey Freedom Award in 2006, is among the political prisoners who suffer from lack of medical services.
Su Su Nway, a member of the National League for Democracy, is well-known for her work on behalf of victims of forced labor and for farmers whose land has been confiscated by government authorities.
Su Su Nway has been suffering from a serious heart disease. Reports said she was recently placed in solitary confinement after asking prison authorities for medical care.
The Irrawaddy News
The International Labour Organization on Friday called for the release of six imprisoned Burmese labor activists who were arrested for participating in a May Day ceremony in 2007.
The activists identified by the ILO, who were sentenced in September 2007, are Thurein Aung, Kyaw Kyaw, Wai Lin, Nyi Nyi Zaw, Shwe Joe and Aung Naing Tun.
They were each sentenced to at least 20 years imprisonment, according to their Rangoon lawyer, Khin Maung Shein. The lawyer said, however, he believes Shwe Joe and one other activist have been released already.
They were arrested for taking part in a May Day ceremony which was an expression of workers’ rights and freedom of speech.
The ILO said international trade union rights call for workers and labor organizations to enjoy freedom of opinion, speech and the right to assemble.
According to the ILO, the Supreme Court of Burma reportedly has denied the six activists’ appeals, running counter to requests by the ILO and the International Labour Conference which have called for their release.
Kari Tapiola, the ILO executive director for the Standards and Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work office, said, “It was our hope that their appeals to the Supreme Court would result in the quashing of their sentences and their immediate release. This remains a priority for the ILO, and the government is strongly urged to review the situation in order to secure an early release of the persons concerned.”
“It would have been hoped that in view of the Burmese government’s publicly expressed intent to take the country into general elections in 2010, that fundamental freedom of association rights would be respected,” Tapiola said.
Bo Kyi, the joint secretary of the Thailand-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners-Burma, said prominent labor activist Su Su Nway, who received the John Humphrey Freedom Award in 2006, is among the political prisoners who suffer from lack of medical services.
Su Su Nway, a member of the National League for Democracy, is well-known for her work on behalf of victims of forced labor and for farmers whose land has been confiscated by government authorities.
Su Su Nway has been suffering from a serious heart disease. Reports said she was recently placed in solitary confinement after asking prison authorities for medical care.
Revised Flash Appeal Seeks another $280 Million for Burma
By LALIT K JHA / UNITED NATIONS
The Irrawaddy News
The United Nations urged member nations on Thursday to donate a further US $280 million to humanitarian relief work in Burma’s Irrawaddy delta, which was hit by a devastating cyclone on May 2-3. This is in addition to an initial appeal of $201 made on May 9.
Giving details of the flash appeal at a special meeting on Thursday morning, UN Under- Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator John Holmes said that the total of $481 million was earmarked for 103 projects submitted by 13 United Nations agencies and 23 non-governmental organizations.
He added that the initial appeal for $201 million had received just under 90 percent funding, leaving a total unmet requirement of some $304 million.
Holmes was accompanied by Surin Pitsuwan, secretary-general of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), who flew from Singapore to attend the launch of the revised flash appeal. Daniel Baker, the UN’s humanitarian coordinator in Rangoon, was also present.
The revised appeal includes $112 million for food, $58 million for agriculture, $54 million for early recovery, $50 million for water and sanitation and $50 million for logistics, Holmes said. Other sectors requiring funding included health, shelter, education and protection of children and women, he added.
Responding to a question at a press conference held at the UN headquarters later in the day, Holmes said the greatest increases in the revised appeal were in the agricultural sector and the area of early recovery. Food needs have also grown and those in other sectors had increased proportionally, he observed.
“Increase in requirements for agriculture is not the result of a rise in seed prices, but there is also a need for fertilizers and tillers, as well as animals to draw plows,” Holmes said, adding that as the main economic activity for most people, agriculture inevitably took up the biggest portion of the appeal.
Reiterating satisfaction over the progress of humanitarian relief works in Burma and the cooperation of the military junta, which he said was positive, Holmes said despite initial fears, a second wave of deaths from disease had not come to pass.
They have been averted because of aid operations and the population’s resilience, he said. While the risks had not been overestimated, the help offered by monks and private groups had been underestimated, he observed.
The Asean secretary-general observed that aid pouring in from neighboring countries, especially from Thai monks, was another reason why a second wave of deaths had been avoided.
“It is now a matter of trying to rebuild and building better. Eighty percent of the damaged houses are being rebuilt, but they need sounder construction. Schools had been rebuilt in a makeshift fashion and extended early-recovery activities were needed to address that problem,” he said.
Both Pitsuwan and Holmes praised the Burmese military junta and said that communication channels were opened with the highest authorities and there was no longer any denial of access. According to Baker, so far as many as 739 visas had been issued to United Nations and nongovernmental staff.
The chairman of the Tripartite Core Group had been guaranteed full access to the highest authorities, and problems were being resolved one at a time, Pitsuwan said.
The Irrawaddy News
The United Nations urged member nations on Thursday to donate a further US $280 million to humanitarian relief work in Burma’s Irrawaddy delta, which was hit by a devastating cyclone on May 2-3. This is in addition to an initial appeal of $201 made on May 9.
Giving details of the flash appeal at a special meeting on Thursday morning, UN Under- Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator John Holmes said that the total of $481 million was earmarked for 103 projects submitted by 13 United Nations agencies and 23 non-governmental organizations.
He added that the initial appeal for $201 million had received just under 90 percent funding, leaving a total unmet requirement of some $304 million.
Holmes was accompanied by Surin Pitsuwan, secretary-general of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), who flew from Singapore to attend the launch of the revised flash appeal. Daniel Baker, the UN’s humanitarian coordinator in Rangoon, was also present.
The revised appeal includes $112 million for food, $58 million for agriculture, $54 million for early recovery, $50 million for water and sanitation and $50 million for logistics, Holmes said. Other sectors requiring funding included health, shelter, education and protection of children and women, he added.
Responding to a question at a press conference held at the UN headquarters later in the day, Holmes said the greatest increases in the revised appeal were in the agricultural sector and the area of early recovery. Food needs have also grown and those in other sectors had increased proportionally, he observed.
“Increase in requirements for agriculture is not the result of a rise in seed prices, but there is also a need for fertilizers and tillers, as well as animals to draw plows,” Holmes said, adding that as the main economic activity for most people, agriculture inevitably took up the biggest portion of the appeal.
Reiterating satisfaction over the progress of humanitarian relief works in Burma and the cooperation of the military junta, which he said was positive, Holmes said despite initial fears, a second wave of deaths from disease had not come to pass.
They have been averted because of aid operations and the population’s resilience, he said. While the risks had not been overestimated, the help offered by monks and private groups had been underestimated, he observed.
The Asean secretary-general observed that aid pouring in from neighboring countries, especially from Thai monks, was another reason why a second wave of deaths had been avoided.
“It is now a matter of trying to rebuild and building better. Eighty percent of the damaged houses are being rebuilt, but they need sounder construction. Schools had been rebuilt in a makeshift fashion and extended early-recovery activities were needed to address that problem,” he said.
Both Pitsuwan and Holmes praised the Burmese military junta and said that communication channels were opened with the highest authorities and there was no longer any denial of access. According to Baker, so far as many as 739 visas had been issued to United Nations and nongovernmental staff.
The chairman of the Tripartite Core Group had been guaranteed full access to the highest authorities, and problems were being resolved one at a time, Pitsuwan said.
Gambari Meets UN General Assembly President
By LALIT K JHA / UNITED NATIONS
The Irrawaddy News
UN Special Envoy on Burma Ibrahim Gambari met with the UN General Assembly president on Thursday to discuss the current political situation in Burma and the humanitarian response to Cyclone Nargis, which struck the country in early May.
Gambari, who is scheduled to visit Burma later this month, met with Srgjan Kerim of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, who was elected president of the assembly in 2007, to serve a one-year term.
Gambari’s mandate comes from the General Assembly, not from the UN Security Council or the UN secretary-general.
They discussed the Burmese government’s progress in moving toward democracy and the humanitarian cooperation between Burma, the UN and Asean countries, in response to the devastation caused by the cyclone, according to a spokesperson.
No date has been set for Gambari's visit to Burma.
“As you know, he has a standing invitation,” said a UN spokesperson. “However, he hasn't decided on a date yet, because it requires quite a bit of preparation before he goes there."
The General Assembly president said he strongly encourages the Burmese government to continue to work closely with Gambari to achieve tangible progress in implementing General Assembly resolutions on Burma.
The spokesperson said Kerim is encouraged by the role played by neighboring Asean countries and the Groups of Friends of the secretary-general on Burma.
The Irrawaddy News
UN Special Envoy on Burma Ibrahim Gambari met with the UN General Assembly president on Thursday to discuss the current political situation in Burma and the humanitarian response to Cyclone Nargis, which struck the country in early May.
Gambari, who is scheduled to visit Burma later this month, met with Srgjan Kerim of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, who was elected president of the assembly in 2007, to serve a one-year term.
Gambari’s mandate comes from the General Assembly, not from the UN Security Council or the UN secretary-general.
They discussed the Burmese government’s progress in moving toward democracy and the humanitarian cooperation between Burma, the UN and Asean countries, in response to the devastation caused by the cyclone, according to a spokesperson.
No date has been set for Gambari's visit to Burma.
“As you know, he has a standing invitation,” said a UN spokesperson. “However, he hasn't decided on a date yet, because it requires quite a bit of preparation before he goes there."
The General Assembly president said he strongly encourages the Burmese government to continue to work closely with Gambari to achieve tangible progress in implementing General Assembly resolutions on Burma.
The spokesperson said Kerim is encouraged by the role played by neighboring Asean countries and the Groups of Friends of the secretary-general on Burma.
Cyclone Nargis Offers Sobering Lessons, Says Environmentalist
By VIOLET CHO
The Irrawaddy News
A prominent Burmese environmental group has found a silver lining in the devastation wrought by Cyclone Nargis on May 2-3: a growing awareness among both government officials and ordinary citizens about the need to pay greater attention to the environment.
“It was a blessing from the sky,” said U Ohn, general secretary of the Forest Resource Environment Development and Conservation Association (FREDA). “It was terrible that many people died in the storm, but this cyclone also provided an effective warning to the stakeholders to open their eyes to the environment.”
The Rangoon-based FREDA, one of the few local nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) devoted to conserving Burma’s forests, has been active in establishing mangrove nurseries and installing mangrove plantations in abandoned paddy lands in the Irrawaddy delta, which bore the brunt of Nargis’ fury.
U Ohn said that both officials and ordinary Burmese had long taken the environment for granted, but after Cyclone Nargis, they now know that they ignore nature’s delicate balance at their own peril.
“This is the direct impact of the failure to protect the environment, so if we are not initiating efforts to preserve our forests now, we will definitely face this kind of catastrophe again,” he added.
Burma contains some 34 million hectares of natural forest—the second-largest area in Southeast Asia after Indonesia—but deforestation in the Irrawaddy delta region has been catastrophic, with more than 20 percent of mangrove forests having been lost between 1990 and 2000, according to research done by the Washington-based non-profit organization Conservation International.
Cyclone Nargis also destroyed many self-sustaining mangrove forests in the Irrawaddy delta, in addition to the thousands of trees—some of them nearly a century old—felled by the storm in the former capital, Rangoon.
According to an official from the Department of Garden and Playground Parks under the Rangoon City Development Committee, around 531 of the more than 10,000 trees destroyed by the cyclone were more than 50 years old.
The Rangoon-based weekly, 7-Day News, reported on Thursday that Burma’s military government was planning to use the roots and branches of cyclone-downed trees collected in the Rangoon municipal area to make sculptures to be auctioned to local and foreign entrepreneurs.
Meanwhile, the local journal Bi-Weekly Eleven reported government plans to plant more than 30,000 shade-providing trees in cyclone-affected areas.
The Irrawaddy News
A prominent Burmese environmental group has found a silver lining in the devastation wrought by Cyclone Nargis on May 2-3: a growing awareness among both government officials and ordinary citizens about the need to pay greater attention to the environment.
“It was a blessing from the sky,” said U Ohn, general secretary of the Forest Resource Environment Development and Conservation Association (FREDA). “It was terrible that many people died in the storm, but this cyclone also provided an effective warning to the stakeholders to open their eyes to the environment.”
The Rangoon-based FREDA, one of the few local nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) devoted to conserving Burma’s forests, has been active in establishing mangrove nurseries and installing mangrove plantations in abandoned paddy lands in the Irrawaddy delta, which bore the brunt of Nargis’ fury.
U Ohn said that both officials and ordinary Burmese had long taken the environment for granted, but after Cyclone Nargis, they now know that they ignore nature’s delicate balance at their own peril.
“This is the direct impact of the failure to protect the environment, so if we are not initiating efforts to preserve our forests now, we will definitely face this kind of catastrophe again,” he added.
Burma contains some 34 million hectares of natural forest—the second-largest area in Southeast Asia after Indonesia—but deforestation in the Irrawaddy delta region has been catastrophic, with more than 20 percent of mangrove forests having been lost between 1990 and 2000, according to research done by the Washington-based non-profit organization Conservation International.
Cyclone Nargis also destroyed many self-sustaining mangrove forests in the Irrawaddy delta, in addition to the thousands of trees—some of them nearly a century old—felled by the storm in the former capital, Rangoon.
According to an official from the Department of Garden and Playground Parks under the Rangoon City Development Committee, around 531 of the more than 10,000 trees destroyed by the cyclone were more than 50 years old.
The Rangoon-based weekly, 7-Day News, reported on Thursday that Burma’s military government was planning to use the roots and branches of cyclone-downed trees collected in the Rangoon municipal area to make sculptures to be auctioned to local and foreign entrepreneurs.
Meanwhile, the local journal Bi-Weekly Eleven reported government plans to plant more than 30,000 shade-providing trees in cyclone-affected areas.
Junta Media Accuses Western Politicians, Media of Cyclone Opportunism
By WAI MOE
The Irrawaddy News
Burma’s state-run The New Light of Myanmar on Friday accused unnamed western politicians of making political capital out of the Cyclone Nargis disaster.
In a commentary that also slammed the western press coverage of the catastrophe, the official daily said: “In truth, some politicians from the countries of the west bloc exploited the sufferings of storm victims for political gain.”
Two US newspapers, The New York Times and The Washington Post, and The Times of London were accused of irresponsible and untruthful reporting.
They and other western publications had concocted false stories and photos, “stolen news stories” and carried “mock interviews,” the newspaper charged. The reports weren’t believed by most Burmese but still impacted on the goodwill of aid donors, it complained.
The New York Times was singled out for allegedly “creating” stories about starving farmers in the cyclone-devastated areas. Western press reports had also claimed cyclone victims were despairing and without hope, although that wasn’t the case, The New Light of Myanmar said.
The newspaper’s commentator recalled the case of a Washington Post report in 1981 about a heroin victim. The report was disclosed as a fabrication after winning the writer, Janet Cooke, the Pulitzer Prize, the commentator said.
The New Light of Myanmar also questioned the amount of aid “powerful countries” were offering Burma in comparison with the “hundreds of billions of dollars” spent on military engagement in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The Irrawaddy News
Burma’s state-run The New Light of Myanmar on Friday accused unnamed western politicians of making political capital out of the Cyclone Nargis disaster.
In a commentary that also slammed the western press coverage of the catastrophe, the official daily said: “In truth, some politicians from the countries of the west bloc exploited the sufferings of storm victims for political gain.”
Two US newspapers, The New York Times and The Washington Post, and The Times of London were accused of irresponsible and untruthful reporting.
They and other western publications had concocted false stories and photos, “stolen news stories” and carried “mock interviews,” the newspaper charged. The reports weren’t believed by most Burmese but still impacted on the goodwill of aid donors, it complained.
The New York Times was singled out for allegedly “creating” stories about starving farmers in the cyclone-devastated areas. Western press reports had also claimed cyclone victims were despairing and without hope, although that wasn’t the case, The New Light of Myanmar said.
The newspaper’s commentator recalled the case of a Washington Post report in 1981 about a heroin victim. The report was disclosed as a fabrication after winning the writer, Janet Cooke, the Pulitzer Prize, the commentator said.
The New Light of Myanmar also questioned the amount of aid “powerful countries” were offering Burma in comparison with the “hundreds of billions of dollars” spent on military engagement in Iraq and Afghanistan.
ILO calls for Release of Six Burmese Activists
By SAW YAN NAING
The Irrawaddy News
The International Labour Organization on Friday called for the release of six imprisoned Burmese labor activists who were arrested for participating in a May Day ceremony in 2007.
The activists identified by the ILO, who were sentenced in September 2007, are Thurein Aung, Kyaw Kyaw, Wai Lin, Nyi Nyi Zaw, Shwe Joe and Aung Naing Tun.
They were each sentenced to at least 20 years imprisonment, according to their Rangoon lawyer, Khin Maung Shein. The lawyer said, however, he believes Shwe Joe and one other activist have been released already.
They were arrested for taking part in a May Day ceremony which was an expression of workers’ rights and freedom of speech.
The ILO said international trade union rights call for workers and labor organizations to enjoy freedom of opinion, speech and the right to assemble.
According to the ILO, the Supreme Court of Burma reportedly has denied the six activists’ appeals, running counter to requests by the ILO and the International Labour Conference which have called for their release.
Kari Tapiola, the ILO executive director for the Standards and Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work office, said, “It was our hope that their appeals to the Supreme Court would result in the quashing of their sentences and their immediate release. This remains a priority for the ILO, and the government is strongly urged to review the situation in order to secure an early release of the persons concerned.”
“It would have been hoped that in view of the Burmese government’s publicly expressed intent to take the country into general elections in 2010, that fundamental freedom of association rights would be respected,” Tapiola said.
Bo Kyi, the joint secretary of the Thailand-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners-Burma, said prominent labor activist Su Su Nway, who received the John Humphrey Freedom Award in 2006, is among the political prisoners who suffer from lack of medical services.
Su Su Nway, a member of the National League for Democracy, is well-known for her work on behalf of victims of forced labor and for farmers whose land has been confiscated by government authorities.
Su Su Nway has been suffering from a serious heart disease. Reports said she was recently placed in solitary confinement after asking prison authorities for medical care.
The Irrawaddy News
The International Labour Organization on Friday called for the release of six imprisoned Burmese labor activists who were arrested for participating in a May Day ceremony in 2007.
The activists identified by the ILO, who were sentenced in September 2007, are Thurein Aung, Kyaw Kyaw, Wai Lin, Nyi Nyi Zaw, Shwe Joe and Aung Naing Tun.
They were each sentenced to at least 20 years imprisonment, according to their Rangoon lawyer, Khin Maung Shein. The lawyer said, however, he believes Shwe Joe and one other activist have been released already.
They were arrested for taking part in a May Day ceremony which was an expression of workers’ rights and freedom of speech.
The ILO said international trade union rights call for workers and labor organizations to enjoy freedom of opinion, speech and the right to assemble.
According to the ILO, the Supreme Court of Burma reportedly has denied the six activists’ appeals, running counter to requests by the ILO and the International Labour Conference which have called for their release.
Kari Tapiola, the ILO executive director for the Standards and Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work office, said, “It was our hope that their appeals to the Supreme Court would result in the quashing of their sentences and their immediate release. This remains a priority for the ILO, and the government is strongly urged to review the situation in order to secure an early release of the persons concerned.”
“It would have been hoped that in view of the Burmese government’s publicly expressed intent to take the country into general elections in 2010, that fundamental freedom of association rights would be respected,” Tapiola said.
Bo Kyi, the joint secretary of the Thailand-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners-Burma, said prominent labor activist Su Su Nway, who received the John Humphrey Freedom Award in 2006, is among the political prisoners who suffer from lack of medical services.
Su Su Nway, a member of the National League for Democracy, is well-known for her work on behalf of victims of forced labor and for farmers whose land has been confiscated by government authorities.
Su Su Nway has been suffering from a serious heart disease. Reports said she was recently placed in solitary confinement after asking prison authorities for medical care.
Haven or Hell
A man squats to smoke an opium pipe in Maw Hai village while children look on. (Photo: Tor Norling)By TOR NORLING
The Irrawaddy News
PANGHSANG, Burma — “I had two choices. The first was to escape to Thailand, the other was to hide out here,” said 20-year-old Sandimar, one of two young Buddhist monks standing outside a temple in Panghsang, the unofficial capital of Wa State, an unmarked, lush, mountainous region shown on maps as eastern Shan State.
Backed up against China’s Yunnan State and within a day or two’s mule ride to the Golden Triangle, the undeveloped Wa State was once the world’s largest producer of opium and, by implication, the greatest source of heroin.
However, nowadays the region is undergoing a series of transformations that is causing friction between leaders of the Wa armed forces and the brutal clique that rules from Burma’s capital, Naypyidaw.
Sandimar and Sai Sai fled from Rangoon after last September’s monk-led demonstrations were violently suppressed by the military authorities. Sandimar says he was among the crowd of monks that took to the streets to ignite the uprising.
On the night of September 28 he faced the consequences for his bravery—his temple was surrounded and attacked by hundreds of heavily armed soldiers. “The soldiers came at 4 am. They pointed their guns at us and told us not to move,” he says. “Those who didn’t follow the instructions were beaten. More than 100 monks were arrested at my temple.”
Dressed in their saffron robes, the monks were marched at gunpoint onto a bus and, in the darkness, driven to a school in the suburbs of Insein, in the northwest of Rangoon.
‘When we got there it looked like they had arrested every monk in Rangoon—there were thousands of us,” Sai Sai says.
He and Sandimar were locked in a classroom along with about 800 other monks. “We received food once a day, but we were never allowed to leave the room, even to use the toilet. The smell in the room became unbearable,” he said.
According to Sandimar, many of the soldiers were obviously uncomfortable with their orders as they had been brought up to look up to the Buddhist sangha (monkhood) with great reverence. Beating and abusing monks was a great sacrilege.
“However, other soldiers were extremely brutal,” Sandimar said. “They didn't care if we were monks or not. The guards made the monks disrobe and dress in civilian clothes. They told us this made it easier for them to harass us,” he said.
“All we could do was pray,” said Sai Sai. “But if the guards heard our voices they threatened to kill us.”
Sai Sai witnessed more than 100 monks taken aside by the guards and beaten up. ‘‘It was strange—they only hit them on the heads and told them the treatment was a ‘special present,’” he said.
Their nightmare lasted a week. Then Sai Sai, Sandimar and about 70 other monks were released and told to leave the city. The journey to the Wa mountains took Sandimar and Sai Sai four days.
“We are safe in Wa State, the regime has no influence here,” said Sandimar.
That the rugged Wa hills would be a sanctuary for monks and activists was by no means guaranteed, however, because the Wa region is unpredictable—it is currently an area in flux.
Wa State is controlled by the 20,000-strong United Wa State Army (UWSA), once dubbed the most heavily armed narcotics traffickers in the world by the US State Department. Although Naypyidaw’s generals have little influence in the region, a long-held ceasefire, and the fact the UWSA and the Burmese military occasionally join forces to do battle with the insurgent Shan State Army has led to the perception that the UWSA has become a firm ally of the Burmese regime.
Jiao Wei, a 46-year-old colonel responsible for the organization’s publicity and head of the Wa television station, is quick to dispel that notion.
“We have not criticized the regime publicly, but in our hearts everybody here is angry about what has happened. We don't support what the Burmese government has done, but we are independent of them, so we have no influence. However, we hope they can do a better job for their population,” he says.
The Wa area has never been fully tamed. British colonizers failed to conquer the almost impenetrable mountains and Burma’s rulers were also similarly thwarted. Shortly after Burma won independence, a tribal leader was asked by prime minister U Nu whether the Wa wanted education, good food, clothes, good housing and hospitals. “We are very simple people.
We don't appreciate these things. We just live by ourselves,” was the response.
Mostly animists, living in isolation and numbering only half a million people (an estimated 400,000 more live in Yunnan on the Chinese side), the Wa remain one of Burma’s most mysterious and least-documented ethnic groups.
During the first British expeditions to the area in the late 1800s, the Wa were labelled simply as naked, dirty, dark-skinned, poor and barbaric. Their tradition of hunting for human heads—used as totems in the villages to secure good harvests and to protect against disease—persisted until the 1970s, added to their ferocious reputation. It was no small wonder that this ethnic group became widely known as the ”Wild Wa.”
In the 1970s and 80s, with backing from China, the Communist Party of Burma (CPB)—which was established in 1939 to spearhead the struggle against British colonialism—constituted the largest military threat to the regime in Rangoon.
The Wa provided the bulk of the CPB’s ground forces. Thousands were killed in spectacular attacks in which waves of CPB soldiers threw themselves against Burmese positions. According to some observers, more than 25 percent of Wa soldiers died in the fighting and the prospect of losing more made several Wa leaders rebel.
At the same time, Beijing’s support began to wane. A 1989 split in the CPB led to the creation of the United Wa State Army (UWSA), the armed wing of the United Wa State Party.
The UWSA then signed a ceasefire with the Burmese authorities, who, weakened by the 1988 democracy uprisings, readily accepted the UWSA’s terms. In addition to self-rule, the UWSA was allowed to keep its weapons and trade in whatever it wanted.
The only foreigners allowed to enter the region are a small group of aid workers and only Chinese are allowed to pass through the official border crossing with China. Even representatives of the Burmese regime need permission from the Wa authorities before they can visit what is known in Naypyidaw as “Special Region 2.” An illegal border crossing, about 400 metres upstream from the official point of entry and manned by remarkably casual soldiers, is the only option for foreign journalists or observers who wish to enter the area.
It did not take the UWSA long to remember that the most lucrative business in the Wa hills was the production and sale of illegal drugs, a trade that had long vexed the CPB.
“The Wa hills are a strange place. Opium grows very well, but rice doesn't grow at all,” says Jiao Wei.
In 2001, Burma was the world’s largest producer of opium. The UWSA dominated the industry and also produced large quantities of methamphetamine—known in the West as “speed” or “crystal meth”—a highly addictive drug that has spread like an epidemic in Thailand where it is called “ya ba,” meaning “crazy medicine.”
Under pressure from China, the United States and the United Nations, the UWSA’s supreme commander, Bao Youxiang, promised that the Wa State would be free of opium by 2005. And, according to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, that's what happened.
“The US always says we are terrorists. That's a mistake,” argues Jiao Wei. “We stopped producing and selling drugs in 2005. We hope the world can agree that the Wa hills have become a good place and that the situation is not like it was before.”
Jiao Wei is particularly infuriated by the indictment of eight UWSA leaders by a US federal court in 2005. In addition it is believed that more than 20 people with connections to the UWSA are sought by the US on drug charges. For the capture of the UWSA’s top leaders the bounty is said to be several million dollars.
Wei says he is disappointed the drug ban has not had more support from the international community. “We have asked our farmers to grow rice, tea and rubber, but it doesn’t offer enough revenue. They don’t have enough food and need help,” he says.
“Most farmers are against the ban. The poverty creates tensions. We feel a growing pressure from our people.”
Poverty in Wa villages is at a level that is difficult to compare to the relative comfort in nearby Yunnan or Thailand. One hour’s drive west of Panghsang is Maw Hai, a muddy hamlet of about 50 shacks made from corrugated metal, bamboo and wood, with cattle and pigs roaming freely. Malnourished children sit in the dirt.
“There used to be opium everywhere,” said village leader Ai Nap, pointing to the fields surrounding the village. He said that the village was always poor, but now the situation is worse.
“Before the ban we did at least have some income to buy food and medicines. Today, we don’t have enough to eat. The rice only lasts for five or six months of the year,” he says.
Of the 146 people living in the village, most are children. ‘‘Last year many children died, but this year has been a bit better,” says Ai Nap.
This is about as good as it gets in a Wa village. The farther they are from the road and Panghsang, the worse the conditions are. At least Maw Hai has electricity and the World Food Programme has established a water supply and sends in a few sacks of rice. Ai Nap confirmed that they are close enough to Panghsang to send the children to hospital when they get sick. ‘‘But often when they return from the hospital they die,” he says.
It is easy to criticize the Wa leadership, who live a life of luxury in Panghsang while their people starve and suffer, but the UWSA did warn the international community in good time that alternative sources of farming and income would be necessary if the ban were to be sustained. For the most part, this humanitarian disaster-in-the-making is devoid of international aid workers. The few in evidence are reluctant to speak to journalists, fearing critical reports could upset the Naypyidaw regime, which, in turn, could hinder their operations.
Burmese aid workers are more helpful. However, an employee of one of the UN’s two offices in Panghsang says aid workers are not always welcome in the villages. ‘‘There have been some incidents and misunderstandings. Many believe we are coming to monitor whether we are growing opium, so it’s difficult to be accepted,” he says.
The suspicion that several people in or connected to the UWSA are still active in the drug industry is also a deterrent to outside help. Despite Jiao Wei's assurances, there is little doubt that large quantities of opium and methamphetamine continue to be channelled through the Wa hills.
Although trading in illegal drugs is still possible, a source connected to the drugs industry said that the ban has made it harder. Increased controls in China have also constricted supply. The source said he remembers the days when truckloads of opium left Panghsang for Yunnan. A few days later the trucks returned with hard currency. “To make a deal today you need both power and money. Money alone makes you vulnerable, as you have no power to protect you. Power is not enough as you don't have money to be in the market,” he said.
When a deal does go down, it is usually big and the risks are high.
A 20-year-old woman who runs a hotel in the border town of Mong La says her mother was jailed after Chinese police searched her family’s property in Yunnan two years ago. The quantities of heroin discovered were so large that no attempts to bribe the police succeeded. She was executed. The young woman’s husband escaped the death penalty but is serving life in prison. She said that although she is still wealthy, she is alone looking after her two-year-old daughter.
“Most people I know come from families like that,” said the source. ‘‘Even if you are rich you will have lost a lot. Many here are extremely wealthy but because of their fear of getting killed or arrested, they never leave the Wa hills. Instead they bring here what they need from the outside world.”
Most of the food in Panghsang is imported from China. The cars, for the most part Land Rovers and Japanese pick-ups, have been smuggled in from Thailand. Sometimes the place of origin of goods is confusing. Pepsi is imported from China, while Coca-Cola comes from Thailand. The Wa apparently think Coca Cola produced in Thailand tastes better than its Chinese counterpart.
There is a throbbing nightlife centered around the town’s rundown casino. The women offering their services in a number of brothels in the surrounding streets are mainly Chinese. The nightclub “Babe” could be in New York or London. An advanced laser system illuminates the dance floor. Two DJs brought in from China are playing hip-hop.
Cheryl, 20, says the youth of Panghsang are looking to the United States when it comes to music and culture. ‘‘I love black hip-hop and the NBL [National Basketball League] is my life. I don't know why. Maybe we look to black American culture because we are so much darker than the Chinese,” she says.
Cheryl has a university degree from Kunming, Yunnan’s capital, and runs a fashion store in Panghsang. As the daughter of a high-ranking officer she has little to fear economically, but she grew up in poverty. She remembers her childhood in Ying Pan, a village three hours’ drive from Panghsang, when the mountains where covered with opium poppies. She used to go to the fields with her aunt during the harvest season to gather opium, which she sold at the local market for pocket money. In the mid-1990s her father suddenly became rich and today she lives in a huge wooden mansion in the centre of Panghsang.
“I have been very lucky and I do my best to help the people in my home village. When I go home to my village I always take clothes and presents for the children. They always come to visit because our house is the only one in the village that has a TV,” she says.
Cheryl claims the local authorities are doing a good job in helping the population but admits there is a huge gap in wealth. ‘‘In the Wa State, a few are extremely rich, everybody else is extremely poor.”
In Maw Hai, the noticeable difference is not so much rich and poor, but young and old—there appears to be no teenagers. The mystery is solved in Panghsang. At the entrance to the military academy a group of soldiers stand around. Many of them are girls and many are very young. Nika, 18, said he was forced to join the army.
“Every family with more than one child must give a child to the army—that’s the law here,” he says. A boy in a uniform that is far too big for him says he is 12. Another soldier explains that you can be recruited from the age of 10. The soldiers earn between 30 and 40 yuan ($4.40 to $5.85) a month.
The fear of an attack from Naypyidaw is, according to observers, the reason why the Wa leadership maintains its army. Even though the ceasefire has held for almost 20 years, the relationship between Burma’s generals and the UWSA is not without complications. ‘‘Nobody here trusts the Burmese,” says Jiao Wei.
A recent attempt by the regime to move Wa settlements away from the Thai-Burmese border has inflamed tensions, for instance, and there are worries about Chinese influence.
“The Burmese authorities don’t want more Chinese in Wa State; but most of the economy comes from China, so we welcome them,” says Jiao Wei. He says Naypyidaw has no business in telling them what to do. “If they attack, we will retaliate. But we will not fire the first bullet,” he says.
With that he declares the interview over and cracks open a bottle of whisky containing pulverized tiger bone. ‘‘This will keep you healthy,” he toasts.
Sandimar, meanwhile, hopes the Wa State will continue to offer him a safe haven. He says about 300 monks, most of whom are originally from the Wa hills, have come from Rangoon recently, along with a group of student activists, among them 23-year-old Aung. A long scar on his forehead bears witness to the treatment he received in prison.
“I had never seen this kind of brutality,” he said, and explains that he was arrested when soldiers attacked a demonstration he was taking part in. He tried to escape but was surrounded. Forced to lie on the ground, he was repeatedly beaten with sticks and rifle butts. “They hit me in the back and the head several times. Then they asked me to stand up, only to strike me down again. I was bleeding all over the place. Then they put the barrel of a gun in my mouth. I was sure they would kill me.”
Aung was released after a week and, like Sandimar and Sai Sai, traveled directly to Wa State. He is aware that he has swapped one military regime for another; the UWSA is by no means a democratic institution. “At least the Wa leaders care somewhat about their people. They don’t conspire to kill you,” he says.
“If you really want to confront the Wa leadership, you may get into trouble, but you can discuss and talk about whatever you like. They appreciate a well-informed critique,” he added.
Whether the Wa leaders remain so open-minded if the public pressure from the opium ban continues to grow or if Naypyidaw acts on its irritation about China’s involvement in the region remains to be seen.
For now the Wa have gone beyond their Conradian image as headhunters to become the unlikely protectors of Burma’s saffron revolutionaries and a key player in the global crackdown on drugs.
Tor Norling is a freelance journalist from Norway who covers South and Southeast Asian affairs.
Junta Media Accuses Western Politicians, Media of Cyclone Opportunism
By WAI MOE
The Irrawaddy News
Burma’s state-run The New Light of Myanmar on Friday accused unnamed western politicians of making political capital out of the Cyclone Nargis disaster.
In a commentary that also slammed the western press coverage of the catastrophe, the official daily said: “In truth, some politicians from the countries of the west bloc exploited the sufferings of storm victims for political gain.”
Two US newspapers, The New York Times and The Washington Post, and The Times of London were accused of irresponsible and untruthful reporting.
They and other western publications had concocted false stories and photos, “stolen news stories” and carried “mock interviews,” the newspaper charged. The reports weren’t believed by most Burmese but still impacted on the goodwill of aid donors, it complained.
The New York Times was singled out for allegedly “creating” stories about starving farmers in the cyclone-devastated areas. Western press reports had also claimed cyclone victims were despairing and without hope, although that wasn’t the case, The New Light of Myanmar said.
The newspaper’s commentator recalled the case of a Washington Post report in 1981 about a heroin victim. The report was disclosed as a fabrication after winning the writer, Janet Cooke, the Pulitzer Prize, the commentator said.
The New Light of Myanmar also questioned the amount of aid “powerful countries” were offering Burma in comparison with the “hundreds of billions of dollars” spent on military engagement in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The Irrawaddy News
Burma’s state-run The New Light of Myanmar on Friday accused unnamed western politicians of making political capital out of the Cyclone Nargis disaster.
In a commentary that also slammed the western press coverage of the catastrophe, the official daily said: “In truth, some politicians from the countries of the west bloc exploited the sufferings of storm victims for political gain.”
Two US newspapers, The New York Times and The Washington Post, and The Times of London were accused of irresponsible and untruthful reporting.
They and other western publications had concocted false stories and photos, “stolen news stories” and carried “mock interviews,” the newspaper charged. The reports weren’t believed by most Burmese but still impacted on the goodwill of aid donors, it complained.
The New York Times was singled out for allegedly “creating” stories about starving farmers in the cyclone-devastated areas. Western press reports had also claimed cyclone victims were despairing and without hope, although that wasn’t the case, The New Light of Myanmar said.
The newspaper’s commentator recalled the case of a Washington Post report in 1981 about a heroin victim. The report was disclosed as a fabrication after winning the writer, Janet Cooke, the Pulitzer Prize, the commentator said.
The New Light of Myanmar also questioned the amount of aid “powerful countries” were offering Burma in comparison with the “hundreds of billions of dollars” spent on military engagement in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Playing us for fools
By Joshua Kurlantzick
The New Republic
Burma's government is run by a group of ignorant xenophobes. So how come it keeps outsmarting us?
Burma's ruling junta, holed up in a bunker capital built in the remote centre of the country and led by the thuggish, unworldly and slow-speaking Than Shwe, gets little respect from the outside world. In private conversations, Western diplomats have snidely remarked to me about Than Shwe's lack of education -- he reputedly never made it out of primary school -- while officials from Burma's powerful neighbours talk about the Burmese leaders as if they were unsophisticated, wayward children. "What can you do about them?" one Southeast Asian diplomat asked me. "Who has any idea what they think?" He then launched into a diatribe about how ignorant and insane the generals are.
But while they may not be intellectual dynamos, the generals have clearly mastered a survival strategy with regard to the outside world. It's no coincidence that despite Western and Asian pressure on them to change, the Burmese regime has remained in power since 1962 -- and it has only strengthened its hold on power in the aftermath of Cyclone Nargis. Indeed, as much as the junta has lasted partly by crushing and co-opting its own people, its longevity must also be attributed to its playing the international community for fools, over and over again.
The lesson the junta clings to most tightly today was learned in 1990. That year, it allowed a free election, thinking it would win. It didn't. And when it refused to cede power, it lost nearly all international support -- but only for a time. Turns out that Burma's resources, including some of the largest untapped gas fields in Southeast Asia, were too important to ignore. The international community stopped protesting the junta, and the generals learned that they never had to make a major concession again; their resources would provide them with immunity.
They've since used this insight to great effect. In the mid-1990s, countries like Thailand and India started putting pressure on the junta to reform. India's then-defence minister George Fernandes even hosted Burmese opposition activists in his private compound. So, in response, the Burmese generals began aggressively courting China -- an historical enemy due to China's past support for communist rebel groups inside Burma. Yet Beijing, oil-hungry as ever, slowly built closer economic and trade links with Burma, and completely stopped its support for the communist insurgents. The junta then used its Chinese support as leverage against India, Thailand and other neighbours. And it worked. India has since reversed its hard-nosed stance on Burma entirely.
Another favoured tactic of the regime is to promise potentially bothersome outsiders -- whether they be human rights organizations or concerned governments -- just enough reform to placate them. Problem is, the reform rarely takes place. In the mid-1990s, for example, the Burmese leaders seemed willing to engage in a political dialogue with opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, whose party won that 1990 election. By demonstrating its apparent willingness to deal, the junta gained enough international respectability to win admission into the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the region's most important security and economic organization. When the Burmese generals put Suu Kyi back under house arrest several years later, it was already too late for ASEAN to throw the junta out of the organization, since doing so would prove that the group had made an enormous mistake.
At the same time as it misled ASEAN, by accommodating the United Nations' special rapporteur on human rights, as well as several special envoys (even providing them with visits to Suu Kyi), the generals sparked optimism among Burmese democracy advocates that the UN would be able to broker reform. This, too, of course, came to nothing.
Though India, China, the United States and the UN may have different views on the pace or scope of political reform in Asia -- the UN cares more about Burmese human rights than either China or India, and the U. S. takes the hardest line of all -- they all must realize that, as long as they keep haggling over details, no one entity will get what it really wants. For India's leadership, supporting the generals will never succeed, since, unlike the Chinese, the Indian government actually has to be responsive to voters and the media. For the United Nations, simply grasping at every straw from the Burmese regime, without assessing the reality of the offer, will only prove self-defeating. For the U. S. and other Western countries, trying to pressure the Burmese regime without taking into consideration Burma's relationship with China, which provides it much immunity from pressure, will also prove counterproductive. Even for China it's not a good play to back the regime: On many issues, from drug control to economic reform, the junta has refused to take China's advice, and, ultimately, the kind of instability the junta fosters, with its opaque, almost incomprehensive leadership, will not comfort Chinese firms seeking to make investments in Burma either.
The "unsophisticated" generals' diplomatic success has gone on for far too long -- and the Burmese people are in pain. The economy is in shambles, a political opposition movement hardly exists and the HIV/AIDS rate is among the worst in Southeast Asia. Until China, the United States, the UN, India -- everyone -- realize that collective action on Burma is necessary, the suffering will only continue. - Joshua Kurlantzick is a special correspondent for The New Republic and a visiting scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace's China Program.
The New Republic
Burma's government is run by a group of ignorant xenophobes. So how come it keeps outsmarting us?
Burma's ruling junta, holed up in a bunker capital built in the remote centre of the country and led by the thuggish, unworldly and slow-speaking Than Shwe, gets little respect from the outside world. In private conversations, Western diplomats have snidely remarked to me about Than Shwe's lack of education -- he reputedly never made it out of primary school -- while officials from Burma's powerful neighbours talk about the Burmese leaders as if they were unsophisticated, wayward children. "What can you do about them?" one Southeast Asian diplomat asked me. "Who has any idea what they think?" He then launched into a diatribe about how ignorant and insane the generals are.
But while they may not be intellectual dynamos, the generals have clearly mastered a survival strategy with regard to the outside world. It's no coincidence that despite Western and Asian pressure on them to change, the Burmese regime has remained in power since 1962 -- and it has only strengthened its hold on power in the aftermath of Cyclone Nargis. Indeed, as much as the junta has lasted partly by crushing and co-opting its own people, its longevity must also be attributed to its playing the international community for fools, over and over again.
The lesson the junta clings to most tightly today was learned in 1990. That year, it allowed a free election, thinking it would win. It didn't. And when it refused to cede power, it lost nearly all international support -- but only for a time. Turns out that Burma's resources, including some of the largest untapped gas fields in Southeast Asia, were too important to ignore. The international community stopped protesting the junta, and the generals learned that they never had to make a major concession again; their resources would provide them with immunity.
They've since used this insight to great effect. In the mid-1990s, countries like Thailand and India started putting pressure on the junta to reform. India's then-defence minister George Fernandes even hosted Burmese opposition activists in his private compound. So, in response, the Burmese generals began aggressively courting China -- an historical enemy due to China's past support for communist rebel groups inside Burma. Yet Beijing, oil-hungry as ever, slowly built closer economic and trade links with Burma, and completely stopped its support for the communist insurgents. The junta then used its Chinese support as leverage against India, Thailand and other neighbours. And it worked. India has since reversed its hard-nosed stance on Burma entirely.
Another favoured tactic of the regime is to promise potentially bothersome outsiders -- whether they be human rights organizations or concerned governments -- just enough reform to placate them. Problem is, the reform rarely takes place. In the mid-1990s, for example, the Burmese leaders seemed willing to engage in a political dialogue with opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, whose party won that 1990 election. By demonstrating its apparent willingness to deal, the junta gained enough international respectability to win admission into the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the region's most important security and economic organization. When the Burmese generals put Suu Kyi back under house arrest several years later, it was already too late for ASEAN to throw the junta out of the organization, since doing so would prove that the group had made an enormous mistake.
At the same time as it misled ASEAN, by accommodating the United Nations' special rapporteur on human rights, as well as several special envoys (even providing them with visits to Suu Kyi), the generals sparked optimism among Burmese democracy advocates that the UN would be able to broker reform. This, too, of course, came to nothing.
Though India, China, the United States and the UN may have different views on the pace or scope of political reform in Asia -- the UN cares more about Burmese human rights than either China or India, and the U. S. takes the hardest line of all -- they all must realize that, as long as they keep haggling over details, no one entity will get what it really wants. For India's leadership, supporting the generals will never succeed, since, unlike the Chinese, the Indian government actually has to be responsive to voters and the media. For the United Nations, simply grasping at every straw from the Burmese regime, without assessing the reality of the offer, will only prove self-defeating. For the U. S. and other Western countries, trying to pressure the Burmese regime without taking into consideration Burma's relationship with China, which provides it much immunity from pressure, will also prove counterproductive. Even for China it's not a good play to back the regime: On many issues, from drug control to economic reform, the junta has refused to take China's advice, and, ultimately, the kind of instability the junta fosters, with its opaque, almost incomprehensive leadership, will not comfort Chinese firms seeking to make investments in Burma either.
The "unsophisticated" generals' diplomatic success has gone on for far too long -- and the Burmese people are in pain. The economy is in shambles, a political opposition movement hardly exists and the HIV/AIDS rate is among the worst in Southeast Asia. Until China, the United States, the UN, India -- everyone -- realize that collective action on Burma is necessary, the suffering will only continue. - Joshua Kurlantzick is a special correspondent for The New Republic and a visiting scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace's China Program.
MNDF will not contest 2010 election
10 Jul 2008, IMNA
The Mon National Democratic Front (MNDF) will not form a new party and will not contest the 2010 general election because the party did not accept the approved constitution, said MNDF Vice Chairman.
The MNDF had decided not to contest the elections which will be stage managed by the Burmese military junta.
"We will not contest. Even Mon people should not because the constitution was drafted for the army to retain power in the country and it will not benefit people," Nai Ngwe Thein told IMNA.
"We believe if we continue to struggle, one day we will get real democracy," he added.
MNDF was founded in 1988 and it won five seats in the 1990 election. But the party was abolished by the Burmese military junta in 1992 with other ethnic pro-democracy parties.
MNDF was illegally moved with other ethnic pro-democracy parties and the National League for Democracy which fared well in the 1990 elections.
The military government runs the New Light of Myanmar recently reported that the result was no longer valid and NLD should contest the 2010 election.
"The 1990 election result is legal because after the election no one decided when parliament would expire," Nai Ngwe Thein said.
He also asked the Mon community to avoid getting involved in the election. But the New Mon State Party splinter group led by former party's army chief Maj.Gen Aung Naing stated that his group will contest the election and asked people for support.
However the main armed political party has not decided whether they would join the elections. Although the NMSP sent representatives to the national convention which was drafting the constitution and later just sent observers, the junta ignored its inputs along with 13 ethnic other cease-fire groups.
The Mon National Democratic Front (MNDF) will not form a new party and will not contest the 2010 general election because the party did not accept the approved constitution, said MNDF Vice Chairman.
The MNDF had decided not to contest the elections which will be stage managed by the Burmese military junta.
"We will not contest. Even Mon people should not because the constitution was drafted for the army to retain power in the country and it will not benefit people," Nai Ngwe Thein told IMNA.
"We believe if we continue to struggle, one day we will get real democracy," he added.
MNDF was founded in 1988 and it won five seats in the 1990 election. But the party was abolished by the Burmese military junta in 1992 with other ethnic pro-democracy parties.
MNDF was illegally moved with other ethnic pro-democracy parties and the National League for Democracy which fared well in the 1990 elections.
The military government runs the New Light of Myanmar recently reported that the result was no longer valid and NLD should contest the 2010 election.
"The 1990 election result is legal because after the election no one decided when parliament would expire," Nai Ngwe Thein said.
He also asked the Mon community to avoid getting involved in the election. But the New Mon State Party splinter group led by former party's army chief Maj.Gen Aung Naing stated that his group will contest the election and asked people for support.
However the main armed political party has not decided whether they would join the elections. Although the NMSP sent representatives to the national convention which was drafting the constitution and later just sent observers, the junta ignored its inputs along with 13 ethnic other cease-fire groups.
Junta confiscates Christian owned land in Sadung, Kachin State
Sadung (Sadon), it is also under the joint-development projects of
Burma's ruling junta and Kachin ceasefire groups --
Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) and New Democratic Army (NDA-K).
Burma's ruling junta and Kachin ceasefire groups --
Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) and New Democratic Army (NDA-K).
Kachin News
The Burmese military junta authorities in Kachin State in northern Burma has confiscated land owned by Christians in Sadung (Sadon) areas in eastern Kachin State bordering China's Yunnan province, a source said.
Led by Sadung Township Peace and Development Council (Ma-Ya-Ka) chairman U Kyaw Tu, an office of the Ma-Ya-Ka on Christian owned land without any agreement with the Christian leaders. By now half the construction has been completed, a resident in Sadung said.
There is already a Christian boarding house where U Kyaw Tu constructed the office. It was set up by the Kachin Baptist Convention (KBC) and it has been in operation for nearly 10 years. It houses 50 students a year, a resident added.
According to Christian leaders in Sadung, U Kyaw Tu made an agreement with Christian leaders after he nearly finished constructing the office on the land. The Christian leaders are upset but could do nothing because of the junta's order.
The land where the Burmese military regime constructed the office is a good place from where there is a good view of the Sadung area. The areas are also shared and administrated by the Burmese ruling junta, the KIO and New Democratic Army-Kachin (NDA-K).
Interview: Burma’s declining basic education
Jul 10, 2008 (DVB)–Former Rangoon University lecturer Daw Nyein Khet Khet has criticised the two-tier education system in Burma for denying children from poor families an adequate basic education.
Among the schools in Rangoon under the administration of the military regime’s Ministry of Education, many that are attended by the children of government officials or those from rich families demand sizeable fees and contributions from parents.
The schools in which the children of the elite study and those attended by the majority of ordinary students differ significantly in terms of teaching, collecting money, quality of teaching, exam results and the percentage of students who obtain distinctions in their exams.
DVB interviewed Daw Nyein Khet Khet, a former lecturer from Rangoon University’s Burmese Department, to find out about the declining state of Burma’s basic education.
DVB: Why are there differences between schools in terms of exam pass rates and so on?
NKK: Teachers in Dagon (1) and Latha (2) schools pay close attention to the students they are teaching. They also teach those students outside classrooms in return for high tuition fees. As a result, the percentage of children from those schools who pass their exams has grown.
Because of the high exam pass rate, those schools became popular and later, the number of students who wanted to study in those schools increased. Competition for school admission also came about. Paying more money and making donations became standard in order for children to attend those schools.
In Burma, particularly in schools at ward level in Rangoon, people have to at least make a donation to be able to send their children to schools. I would say such practice is a bad practice.
As you know our country faces economic hardship, there are parents who cannot even afford a small amount of money for their children’s education. As a consequence, children cannot attend schools and many have to drop out.
I don’t think investing a lot of money to be able to select ‘good’ schools for primary education is a good indication to basic education. If teachers in those schools have better teaching skills, it is only because of the mismanagement of the government.
Every school must have qualified teachers who have the same teaching skills. And the government has the responsibility to train them to be qualified.
DVB: What do you think is the root cause of these differences?
NKK: I think the main reason lies in the very low rate of pay for teachers. Because of that teachers have to take on teaching outside the classrooms – private tuition – to make ends meet.
To earn high tuition fees, teachers try to pay close attention to their students. And so rich parents who want better attention for their children send their kids to schools where those teachers are available by spending more money.
As for teachers who want to make more money, they prefer teaching in those schools and they seem to take effective care of the children’s education only when they are in those schools. These issues are all interrelated.
On 7 July 1962, university students called for national education. Basically, they called for teaching on democracy, asking the government to develop an international-standard curriculum that includes political knowledge students should be aware of. I would say they called for freedom of education.
If we had freedom of education in our country, we wouldn’t need to worry about the crisis we are currently facing in Burma’s basic education system. Teachers’ salaries and school expenses for our children would also no longer be a concern.
Despite changes in the basic education curriculum to bring it up to international standards, the military regime still doesn’t consider the rights of those who work in education and those of the students. It shows that there is no freedom of education in our country.
Reporting by Moe Aye
Among the schools in Rangoon under the administration of the military regime’s Ministry of Education, many that are attended by the children of government officials or those from rich families demand sizeable fees and contributions from parents.
The schools in which the children of the elite study and those attended by the majority of ordinary students differ significantly in terms of teaching, collecting money, quality of teaching, exam results and the percentage of students who obtain distinctions in their exams.
DVB interviewed Daw Nyein Khet Khet, a former lecturer from Rangoon University’s Burmese Department, to find out about the declining state of Burma’s basic education.
DVB: Why are there differences between schools in terms of exam pass rates and so on?
NKK: Teachers in Dagon (1) and Latha (2) schools pay close attention to the students they are teaching. They also teach those students outside classrooms in return for high tuition fees. As a result, the percentage of children from those schools who pass their exams has grown.
Because of the high exam pass rate, those schools became popular and later, the number of students who wanted to study in those schools increased. Competition for school admission also came about. Paying more money and making donations became standard in order for children to attend those schools.
In Burma, particularly in schools at ward level in Rangoon, people have to at least make a donation to be able to send their children to schools. I would say such practice is a bad practice.
As you know our country faces economic hardship, there are parents who cannot even afford a small amount of money for their children’s education. As a consequence, children cannot attend schools and many have to drop out.
I don’t think investing a lot of money to be able to select ‘good’ schools for primary education is a good indication to basic education. If teachers in those schools have better teaching skills, it is only because of the mismanagement of the government.
Every school must have qualified teachers who have the same teaching skills. And the government has the responsibility to train them to be qualified.
DVB: What do you think is the root cause of these differences?
NKK: I think the main reason lies in the very low rate of pay for teachers. Because of that teachers have to take on teaching outside the classrooms – private tuition – to make ends meet.
To earn high tuition fees, teachers try to pay close attention to their students. And so rich parents who want better attention for their children send their kids to schools where those teachers are available by spending more money.
As for teachers who want to make more money, they prefer teaching in those schools and they seem to take effective care of the children’s education only when they are in those schools. These issues are all interrelated.
On 7 July 1962, university students called for national education. Basically, they called for teaching on democracy, asking the government to develop an international-standard curriculum that includes political knowledge students should be aware of. I would say they called for freedom of education.
If we had freedom of education in our country, we wouldn’t need to worry about the crisis we are currently facing in Burma’s basic education system. Teachers’ salaries and school expenses for our children would also no longer be a concern.
Despite changes in the basic education curriculum to bring it up to international standards, the military regime still doesn’t consider the rights of those who work in education and those of the students. It shows that there is no freedom of education in our country.
Reporting by Moe Aye
CRPP rejects junta’s election challenge
Jul 10, 2008 (DVB)–U Aye Thar Aung of the Committee Representing the People’s Parliament has said CRPP members have no interest in participating in the 2010 election announced by the junta.
Aye Thar Aung is secretary of both the CRPP and the Arakan League for Democracy and an ethnic people’s representative.
He was speaking in response to a call in the state-run New Light of Myanmar for the National League for Democracy to “join hands with the people and then stand for the 2010 election in line with the laws instead of longing for the result of the 1990 election”.
The article dismissed the NLD’s victory in the 1990 election as “illegal” and said it was obsolete now that the military regime’s new constitution has been enacted.
Aye Thar Aung said the regime had not directly approached CRPP members about contesting the election.
"We still have not heard anything from the government about us participating in the elections,” he said.
“Besides, we are not interested and we are not in a position to participate in the elections."
The CRPP secretary said he did not believe the military regime was going the right way about bringing democracy to Burma.
"We are not interested in the elections because we do not see either the recent referendum or the upcoming elections as the necessary procedures for Burma,” Aye Thar Aung said.
“The real necessary step is to develop national reconciliation to bring a true democratic system to our country."
Aye Thar Aung called instead for trilateral talks to bring about national reconciliation.
"The SPDC rulers should sit around a table with the National League for Democracy and the ethnic parties and discuss how to lay out guidelines for the future," he said.
Reporting by Htet Aung Kyaw
Aye Thar Aung is secretary of both the CRPP and the Arakan League for Democracy and an ethnic people’s representative.
He was speaking in response to a call in the state-run New Light of Myanmar for the National League for Democracy to “join hands with the people and then stand for the 2010 election in line with the laws instead of longing for the result of the 1990 election”.
The article dismissed the NLD’s victory in the 1990 election as “illegal” and said it was obsolete now that the military regime’s new constitution has been enacted.
Aye Thar Aung said the regime had not directly approached CRPP members about contesting the election.
"We still have not heard anything from the government about us participating in the elections,” he said.
“Besides, we are not interested and we are not in a position to participate in the elections."
The CRPP secretary said he did not believe the military regime was going the right way about bringing democracy to Burma.
"We are not interested in the elections because we do not see either the recent referendum or the upcoming elections as the necessary procedures for Burma,” Aye Thar Aung said.
“The real necessary step is to develop national reconciliation to bring a true democratic system to our country."
Aye Thar Aung called instead for trilateral talks to bring about national reconciliation.
"The SPDC rulers should sit around a table with the National League for Democracy and the ethnic parties and discuss how to lay out guidelines for the future," he said.
Reporting by Htet Aung Kyaw
Reconstruction work of Maung Weik Co. falters
Mizzima News - 10 July 2008
Chiang Mai - The arrest of young business tycoon Maung Weik has thrown a spanner in the works in the reconstruction contract given to his company - Maung Weik and Family Co. Ltd - in Cyclone Nargis-hit Kyaiklat town.
Though officials of Maung Weik and Family Co. Ltd. at Lanmadaw Townhsip in Rangoon city are refusing to answer queries, local residents said reconstruction works in Kyaiklat has been affected by the arrest of the businessman.
Burma's military rulers have assigned Maung Weik and Family Co. Ltd a contract to conduct reconstruction works in Kyaiklat, as it does with other companies for different regions devastated by the cyclone.
But local residents in Kyaiklat and journalists said the company was rarely seen conducting any reconstruction works.
The junta assigned over 30 companies, most of which are their business cronies, to undertake reconstruction work in cyclone-hit regions in Rangoon and Irrawaddy Divisions.
The junta also appointed several of its Ministers and Mayors to oversee the work. Maung Weik and Family Co. Ltd was assigned to Kyaiklat Township along with Shwemarlar and Thawdarwin Companies.
Activities of Maung Weik Co Ltd. has been drastically reduced after their boss Maung Weik, age 35, was arrested in connection of trafficking and abusing ecstasy drug (popularly known as 'Gaungkharsay'), local residents and journalists said.
His company officials, however, refused to provide any information on the case.
Meanwhile, several companies assigned for the reconstruction jobs are reportedly reluctant to undertake the venture as there has been no indication of recovering their expense and no sign of any 'business opportunity' from the government.
Maung Weik, the billionaire tycoon, donated rice to the cyclone victims of Hleseik village in Kyaiklat Township on May 25, before his arrested on May 31.
Sources said in connection to his arrest, his close friends Aung Zaw Ye Myint, son of Lt. Gen. Ye Myint, and Burmese popular actress Nawaratt were interrogated.
However, after revealing all about the drug case to the investigators, Aung Zaw Ye Myint, was reportedly sent to the Wettikan drug rehabilitation centre in Upper Burma, while Nawaratt was released.
Sources said, several other Burmese celebrities including actors, actresses, and singers were also interrogated in connection to the drug trade and abuses.
Following the mess, Burma's Police Chief, Brig. Gen. Khin Yi, on June 26, during a rare press conference in Burma's new jungle capital, Naypyidaw, clarified reporters that no artistes and celebrities were currently under detention in connection with the drug case.
But the Myanmar Times journal, a privately owned Weekly, which has both English and Burmese version, on Thursday reported that a Malaysian national is among the six co-defendants in the case along with Maung Weik.
The Weekly said a case has been registered against a Malaysian national, Peter, Maung Weik, Aung Min, Nay Tun Lwin, Kyaw Phone Naing, Kyaw Hlaing, and Ohn Thee (alias) Kyaw Win at Lanmadaw police station in Rangoon for trafficking and abusing Ecstasy, Stimulants, Ketamine drugs.
Chiang Mai - The arrest of young business tycoon Maung Weik has thrown a spanner in the works in the reconstruction contract given to his company - Maung Weik and Family Co. Ltd - in Cyclone Nargis-hit Kyaiklat town.
Though officials of Maung Weik and Family Co. Ltd. at Lanmadaw Townhsip in Rangoon city are refusing to answer queries, local residents said reconstruction works in Kyaiklat has been affected by the arrest of the businessman.
Burma's military rulers have assigned Maung Weik and Family Co. Ltd a contract to conduct reconstruction works in Kyaiklat, as it does with other companies for different regions devastated by the cyclone.
But local residents in Kyaiklat and journalists said the company was rarely seen conducting any reconstruction works.
The junta assigned over 30 companies, most of which are their business cronies, to undertake reconstruction work in cyclone-hit regions in Rangoon and Irrawaddy Divisions.
The junta also appointed several of its Ministers and Mayors to oversee the work. Maung Weik and Family Co. Ltd was assigned to Kyaiklat Township along with Shwemarlar and Thawdarwin Companies.
Activities of Maung Weik Co Ltd. has been drastically reduced after their boss Maung Weik, age 35, was arrested in connection of trafficking and abusing ecstasy drug (popularly known as 'Gaungkharsay'), local residents and journalists said.
His company officials, however, refused to provide any information on the case.
Meanwhile, several companies assigned for the reconstruction jobs are reportedly reluctant to undertake the venture as there has been no indication of recovering their expense and no sign of any 'business opportunity' from the government.
Maung Weik, the billionaire tycoon, donated rice to the cyclone victims of Hleseik village in Kyaiklat Township on May 25, before his arrested on May 31.
Sources said in connection to his arrest, his close friends Aung Zaw Ye Myint, son of Lt. Gen. Ye Myint, and Burmese popular actress Nawaratt were interrogated.
However, after revealing all about the drug case to the investigators, Aung Zaw Ye Myint, was reportedly sent to the Wettikan drug rehabilitation centre in Upper Burma, while Nawaratt was released.
Sources said, several other Burmese celebrities including actors, actresses, and singers were also interrogated in connection to the drug trade and abuses.
Following the mess, Burma's Police Chief, Brig. Gen. Khin Yi, on June 26, during a rare press conference in Burma's new jungle capital, Naypyidaw, clarified reporters that no artistes and celebrities were currently under detention in connection with the drug case.
But the Myanmar Times journal, a privately owned Weekly, which has both English and Burmese version, on Thursday reported that a Malaysian national is among the six co-defendants in the case along with Maung Weik.
The Weekly said a case has been registered against a Malaysian national, Peter, Maung Weik, Aung Min, Nay Tun Lwin, Kyaw Phone Naing, Kyaw Hlaing, and Ohn Thee (alias) Kyaw Win at Lanmadaw police station in Rangoon for trafficking and abusing Ecstasy, Stimulants, Ketamine drugs.
Additional £17.5 million by DFID to help Burmese cyclone survivors
Solomon
Mizzima News
New Delhi - United Kingdom's Department for International Development (DFID) on Wednesday announced that it will provide an additional £17.5 million to help cyclone victims, adding to a total of £ 45 million in aid since Cyclone Nargis lashed Burma two months ago.
David Leslie, spokesman of DFID said the donation will be handed over on Thursday during a United Nations' flash appeal in New York to aid groups working in Burma's Irrawaddy and Rangoon division.
United Nations aid agencies as well as several other international humanitarian groups have said emergency relief works and reconstruction programmes could come to halt unless more funds are provided.
The United Nations World Food Programme has said it requires US$ 28 million more to keep its six-month programme running.
The International Federation of Red Cross on Wednesday said it needed US$ 72.5 million to fund its three-year relief plans which will include emergency relief as well as long term reconstruction programmes.
Alistair Henley, head of the IFRC's Asia Pacific Zone said hundreds of thousands of Burmese people in the Irrawaddy and Rangoon division have been living precarious lives long before the cyclone hit them.
"Nargis has left them weaker and more vulnerable than ever. We must ensure not only that they regain what they lost but have improved and safer lives in the future," Henley said.
Leslie said, the DFID has decided to provide additional funds as a response to the flash appeal by the UN and international humanitarian groups.
Douglas Alexander, Secretary of DFID, in a statement on Wednesday said, "While access has improved and the rate of delivery of relief goods continues to increase, we believe that around 300,000 people are at quite serious risk if they do not get more help soon."
Leslie said, "We will wait and see what the flash appeal contains today, and then we will make an assessment where the money will go."
"We have assessment teams in Burma, they are looking at where the fund is needed for each organization," he added.
On May 2 and 3, Cyclone Nargis hit Burma's coastal divisions of Irrawaddy and Rangoon, leaving more than 138,000 dead and missing and devastated over 2.4 million people's lives.
Following the natural disaster in Burma, DFID immediately announced £5 million in aid and an additional £12 million on May 15. The DFID announced a further £10.5 million donation following the ASEAN/UN pledging conference in Rangoon on May 25, which Douglas Alexander attended.
Burma's military government, however, has appealed for US$ 11 billion in aid to fund emergency relief works and reconstruction in the cyclone affected region.
Mizzima News
New Delhi - United Kingdom's Department for International Development (DFID) on Wednesday announced that it will provide an additional £17.5 million to help cyclone victims, adding to a total of £ 45 million in aid since Cyclone Nargis lashed Burma two months ago.
David Leslie, spokesman of DFID said the donation will be handed over on Thursday during a United Nations' flash appeal in New York to aid groups working in Burma's Irrawaddy and Rangoon division.
United Nations aid agencies as well as several other international humanitarian groups have said emergency relief works and reconstruction programmes could come to halt unless more funds are provided.
The United Nations World Food Programme has said it requires US$ 28 million more to keep its six-month programme running.
The International Federation of Red Cross on Wednesday said it needed US$ 72.5 million to fund its three-year relief plans which will include emergency relief as well as long term reconstruction programmes.
Alistair Henley, head of the IFRC's Asia Pacific Zone said hundreds of thousands of Burmese people in the Irrawaddy and Rangoon division have been living precarious lives long before the cyclone hit them.
"Nargis has left them weaker and more vulnerable than ever. We must ensure not only that they regain what they lost but have improved and safer lives in the future," Henley said.
Leslie said, the DFID has decided to provide additional funds as a response to the flash appeal by the UN and international humanitarian groups.
Douglas Alexander, Secretary of DFID, in a statement on Wednesday said, "While access has improved and the rate of delivery of relief goods continues to increase, we believe that around 300,000 people are at quite serious risk if they do not get more help soon."
Leslie said, "We will wait and see what the flash appeal contains today, and then we will make an assessment where the money will go."
"We have assessment teams in Burma, they are looking at where the fund is needed for each organization," he added.
On May 2 and 3, Cyclone Nargis hit Burma's coastal divisions of Irrawaddy and Rangoon, leaving more than 138,000 dead and missing and devastated over 2.4 million people's lives.
Following the natural disaster in Burma, DFID immediately announced £5 million in aid and an additional £12 million on May 15. The DFID announced a further £10.5 million donation following the ASEAN/UN pledging conference in Rangoon on May 25, which Douglas Alexander attended.
Burma's military government, however, has appealed for US$ 11 billion in aid to fund emergency relief works and reconstruction in the cyclone affected region.
Burmese Needs Divide the Aid Industry - Commentary
By AUNG ZAW
The Irrawaddy News
If the deadly Cylone Nargis helped create a greater humanitarian space inside Burma, it would be welcome news indeed. More aid and more relief workers should be able to enter Burma and assist the Burmese.
John Holmes, UN undersecretary-general for humanitarian affairs, has told a press conference: “The relief operation is proceeding. The access for international humanitarian relief workers has improved markedly over the last six weeks; though we are still working on that. But, I think, we have made distinct progress.”
Questioned about access to the Irrawaddy delta, Holmes said conditions had changed a lot and relief workers were being allowed to go there—“Not unlimited as we would like, but it is improving all the time. Access is improving and is being made easier.”
Cyclone Nargis and its aftermath are doubtless a mega challenge for every humanitarian group. UN agencies and international non-governmental organizations (INGOs), who have previously played only a limited role in helping the needy, can now sense that their post-cyclone efforts could be expanded beyond the delta.
If the generals are smart enough to relate to UN and international agencies and open more doors to them, more aid will flood into Burma.
Many INGOs are waiting for the opportunity to work inside the country and to have more access to the local population. INGOs engaged in a wide range of work have their own agenda in advancing their operations inside the country.
Perhaps the opportunity now arises for the international community to create a space inside Burma to open up local communities and work with them.
Despite a measure of optimism, shared by John Holmes, much skepticism remains about the regime’s policy toward the UN and INGOs.
Wider implications also come into play. Because of the attention claimed by Cyclone Nargis, it is feared that there will be less money available to help more than 100,000 Burmese refugees living in camps along the Thai-Burmese border. Some observers express concern that border-based projects and cross-border operations will be jeopardized.
In recent years there has been a shift in the attention given to the plight of the refugees and in the flow of aid.
Burma watchers say that after the Global Fund stopped funding the fight inside Burma against HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria in 2005, bitter competition over funding developed between INGOS working inside and outside the country.
The Global Fund, which had pledged US $100 million over five years, said it halted its Burma program because of increased travel restrictions inside the country made it difficult for aid workers to function properly, although political reasons were also reported to be behind the decision.
The Three Diseases (3-D) Fund took over the fight to control Burma’s three main killer diseases, but competition between the INGOs over territory and funding continues. Concern deepens that long-established humanitarian projects will be neglected and refugees and migrants will be left alone and unprotected.
There has never been much love lost between groups working inside Burma and those outside the country. Border-based INGOs accuse those working within the country of allowing themselves to be compromised by the regime and even kowtowing to the junta, mixing politics and humanitarian concerns.
There are even reports of rowdy INGO parties in Rangoon’s luxury hotels. “My downtown hotel was packed with INGO workers and the bar was doing great business,” one US philanthropist told The Irrawaddy. “There were young aid workers there who had never stayed in such a hotel and who seemed to forget why they were there at all.”
A similar scene has been reported by some visitors to the Thai-Burmese border town of Mae Sot, which also has a lively night-life.
The foreign aid workers and policy makers advocating Burma-based projects often accuse border-based NGOs of being narrow-minded, political, divisive and of exploiting local communities for religious and political purposes.
They claim that those with vested interests want to keep refugees in the camps—security officials, rebel and political groups are anxious to maintain the status quo and even rice traders with lucrative deals to supply the camps.
It is indeed ironic that while more than 2 million Burmese are living and working in Thailand, 100,000 refugees continue to live in the camps.
Relief missions working within Burma insist that more assistance is needed there given the degree of poverty and the large population. Refugees in the border camps, they claim, are better off than people in the rural areas of Burma. Cross-border aid is just throwing water into the sand, they maintain.
Although the division between the two groups doubtless has an impact on local communities who really are in need of assistance, there’s no sign of a reconciliation of views.
At the same time, cooperation and communication between Burmese living on the border and those inside the country have increased and intensified.
Burmese have been traveling in and out of Burma, establishing contacts and building networks and making friends. Exiled Burmese have organized fund-raising ceremonies and contributed donations to causes inside Burma.
Several influential Buddhist monks inside and outside Burma have cooperated in raising money to help people in the affected areas.
Cyclone Nargis swept away the old divisions. There is no more “inside” and “outside.”
After all, Burma is a poor and crisis-torn country and a perfect place for “emergency cowboys”, consultants, international foundations and the UN to work.
For the past 20 years, relief workers of all kinds have been coming and going, but at the end of the day it is the Burmese who have to work to rebuild the country.
The relief workers thrive on crisis. Cyclone Nargis and its aftermath will soon be no longer an emergency that warranted huge international aid. The aid machine will move on, propelled by many who are building careers on crisis management.
They will leave behind the true crisis managers—the Burmese themselves, on whose shoulders falls the greatest weight of reconstructing their shattered country.
The Irrawaddy News
If the deadly Cylone Nargis helped create a greater humanitarian space inside Burma, it would be welcome news indeed. More aid and more relief workers should be able to enter Burma and assist the Burmese.
John Holmes, UN undersecretary-general for humanitarian affairs, has told a press conference: “The relief operation is proceeding. The access for international humanitarian relief workers has improved markedly over the last six weeks; though we are still working on that. But, I think, we have made distinct progress.”
Questioned about access to the Irrawaddy delta, Holmes said conditions had changed a lot and relief workers were being allowed to go there—“Not unlimited as we would like, but it is improving all the time. Access is improving and is being made easier.”
Cyclone Nargis and its aftermath are doubtless a mega challenge for every humanitarian group. UN agencies and international non-governmental organizations (INGOs), who have previously played only a limited role in helping the needy, can now sense that their post-cyclone efforts could be expanded beyond the delta.
If the generals are smart enough to relate to UN and international agencies and open more doors to them, more aid will flood into Burma.
Many INGOs are waiting for the opportunity to work inside the country and to have more access to the local population. INGOs engaged in a wide range of work have their own agenda in advancing their operations inside the country.
Perhaps the opportunity now arises for the international community to create a space inside Burma to open up local communities and work with them.
Despite a measure of optimism, shared by John Holmes, much skepticism remains about the regime’s policy toward the UN and INGOs.
Wider implications also come into play. Because of the attention claimed by Cyclone Nargis, it is feared that there will be less money available to help more than 100,000 Burmese refugees living in camps along the Thai-Burmese border. Some observers express concern that border-based projects and cross-border operations will be jeopardized.
In recent years there has been a shift in the attention given to the plight of the refugees and in the flow of aid.
Burma watchers say that after the Global Fund stopped funding the fight inside Burma against HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria in 2005, bitter competition over funding developed between INGOS working inside and outside the country.
The Global Fund, which had pledged US $100 million over five years, said it halted its Burma program because of increased travel restrictions inside the country made it difficult for aid workers to function properly, although political reasons were also reported to be behind the decision.
The Three Diseases (3-D) Fund took over the fight to control Burma’s three main killer diseases, but competition between the INGOs over territory and funding continues. Concern deepens that long-established humanitarian projects will be neglected and refugees and migrants will be left alone and unprotected.
There has never been much love lost between groups working inside Burma and those outside the country. Border-based INGOs accuse those working within the country of allowing themselves to be compromised by the regime and even kowtowing to the junta, mixing politics and humanitarian concerns.
There are even reports of rowdy INGO parties in Rangoon’s luxury hotels. “My downtown hotel was packed with INGO workers and the bar was doing great business,” one US philanthropist told The Irrawaddy. “There were young aid workers there who had never stayed in such a hotel and who seemed to forget why they were there at all.”
A similar scene has been reported by some visitors to the Thai-Burmese border town of Mae Sot, which also has a lively night-life.
The foreign aid workers and policy makers advocating Burma-based projects often accuse border-based NGOs of being narrow-minded, political, divisive and of exploiting local communities for religious and political purposes.
They claim that those with vested interests want to keep refugees in the camps—security officials, rebel and political groups are anxious to maintain the status quo and even rice traders with lucrative deals to supply the camps.
It is indeed ironic that while more than 2 million Burmese are living and working in Thailand, 100,000 refugees continue to live in the camps.
Relief missions working within Burma insist that more assistance is needed there given the degree of poverty and the large population. Refugees in the border camps, they claim, are better off than people in the rural areas of Burma. Cross-border aid is just throwing water into the sand, they maintain.
Although the division between the two groups doubtless has an impact on local communities who really are in need of assistance, there’s no sign of a reconciliation of views.
At the same time, cooperation and communication between Burmese living on the border and those inside the country have increased and intensified.
Burmese have been traveling in and out of Burma, establishing contacts and building networks and making friends. Exiled Burmese have organized fund-raising ceremonies and contributed donations to causes inside Burma.
Several influential Buddhist monks inside and outside Burma have cooperated in raising money to help people in the affected areas.
Cyclone Nargis swept away the old divisions. There is no more “inside” and “outside.”
After all, Burma is a poor and crisis-torn country and a perfect place for “emergency cowboys”, consultants, international foundations and the UN to work.
For the past 20 years, relief workers of all kinds have been coming and going, but at the end of the day it is the Burmese who have to work to rebuild the country.
The relief workers thrive on crisis. Cyclone Nargis and its aftermath will soon be no longer an emergency that warranted huge international aid. The aid machine will move on, propelled by many who are building careers on crisis management.
They will leave behind the true crisis managers—the Burmese themselves, on whose shoulders falls the greatest weight of reconstructing their shattered country.
Thai Healthcare Proposal for Migrants, Stateless People
By SAI SILP
The Irrawaddy News
The Thai cabinet will consider extending healthcare coverage to migrant worker children born in Thailand and stateless people, according to the National Health Security Office (NHSC).
Dr Pratheep Thanakitcharoen, the deputy general-secretary of the NHSC, said on Wednesday the Ministry of Public Health will submit a budget for cabinet approval that will provide medical services for more than 700,000 stateless people and migrant children who were born in the kingdom.
Stateless people, often members of native ethnic groups, may have been born in the kingdom or lived here for decades, but have not received Thai citizenship.
“The office has proposed this plan several times but it has not been approved,” Pratheep said on a public health Web site. “This time, we will try to convince the government to extend care health to more groups because it will benefit disease control for our whole society.”
On Wednesday, Dr Prat Bunyawongwirote, the ministry’s permanent secretary, said the government spent about 155 million baht (US $4.8 million) in 2007 on medical treatment of unregistered migrant workers from neighboring countries.
The data was collected from 30 provinces where migrant workers are concentrated. The most prevalent diseases were diarrhea, tuberculosis, HIV/AIDs, dengue fever and malaria.
The health ministry is also pushing for illegal migrants to register as migrant workers.
“The registered workers number only 600, 000 people from a total estimated to be about 1.3 million migrant workers, as of March 2008. We should promote migrant registration to facilitate disease control and the medical budget.” Prat said, according to a ministry statement.
The health ministry has designated 166 medical coordinators in public hospitals to work with migrant workers from Burma, Laos and Cambodia. Coordinators are usually migrants who have received health services training.
Migrant worker advocates say that although the government now provides health care for legal migrant workers, and oftentimes illegal migrants, many hospitals fail to provide services to undocumented workers, fearing hospital officials could be legally charged with providing shelter to illegal migrants.
An NGO staffer who works with migrant issues said the registration process, which ended in June this year, is repeatedly changed and should be simplified and made more transparent. “Workers and employers are confused. The registration process should be improved,” she told The Irrawaddy.
The number of registered migrant workers may decrease this year due to a decline in the Thai economy, particularly in the fishery and garment industries.
The Irrawaddy News
The Thai cabinet will consider extending healthcare coverage to migrant worker children born in Thailand and stateless people, according to the National Health Security Office (NHSC).
Dr Pratheep Thanakitcharoen, the deputy general-secretary of the NHSC, said on Wednesday the Ministry of Public Health will submit a budget for cabinet approval that will provide medical services for more than 700,000 stateless people and migrant children who were born in the kingdom.
Stateless people, often members of native ethnic groups, may have been born in the kingdom or lived here for decades, but have not received Thai citizenship.
“The office has proposed this plan several times but it has not been approved,” Pratheep said on a public health Web site. “This time, we will try to convince the government to extend care health to more groups because it will benefit disease control for our whole society.”
On Wednesday, Dr Prat Bunyawongwirote, the ministry’s permanent secretary, said the government spent about 155 million baht (US $4.8 million) in 2007 on medical treatment of unregistered migrant workers from neighboring countries.
The data was collected from 30 provinces where migrant workers are concentrated. The most prevalent diseases were diarrhea, tuberculosis, HIV/AIDs, dengue fever and malaria.
The health ministry is also pushing for illegal migrants to register as migrant workers.
“The registered workers number only 600, 000 people from a total estimated to be about 1.3 million migrant workers, as of March 2008. We should promote migrant registration to facilitate disease control and the medical budget.” Prat said, according to a ministry statement.
The health ministry has designated 166 medical coordinators in public hospitals to work with migrant workers from Burma, Laos and Cambodia. Coordinators are usually migrants who have received health services training.
Migrant worker advocates say that although the government now provides health care for legal migrant workers, and oftentimes illegal migrants, many hospitals fail to provide services to undocumented workers, fearing hospital officials could be legally charged with providing shelter to illegal migrants.
An NGO staffer who works with migrant issues said the registration process, which ended in June this year, is repeatedly changed and should be simplified and made more transparent. “Workers and employers are confused. The registration process should be improved,” she told The Irrawaddy.
The number of registered migrant workers may decrease this year due to a decline in the Thai economy, particularly in the fishery and garment industries.
Prominent Dissident Hit with New Charges - Ko Ko Gyi
Min Ko Naing (L) and Ko Ko Gyi. (Photo : AFP)By WAI MOE
The Irrawaddy News
A prominent detained student activist and other political prisoners have been hit with new charges designed to prolong their detention, according to family members.
“We have learned, after a visit this week to Insein Prison, that Ko Ko Gyi, who was previously charged with Act 33 A, has been charged with 17/1 [the Illegal Organization Act],” said Aung Tun, his brother.
Ko Ko Gyi, a leader of the 88 Generation Students group, has been held in Insein Prison since 2007.
Act 33 A is related to illegally using communication equipment. Mobile telephones were reportedly seized by authorities from Ko Ko Gyi and his colleagues when they were arrested.
“He [Ko Ko Gyi] told me that he has been charged with 17/1 since July 3. The trail is in a special court, which is currently in what was previously known as the ‘Dog Cellblock’ in Insein Prison,” said Aung Tun.
Act 17/1 has been used for decades by prosecutors to charge Burmese insurgents and sympathizers.
“The situation seems to be that the junta wants to prolong the detention period of the former student leaders,” said Bo Kyi, a joint secretary of the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners—Burma.
Thirteen former student leaders, including Min Ko Naing and Ko Ko Gyi, were arrested on August 21, 2007, after more than 400 people marched against the government’s increase in fuel prices.
Since their arrest, they have frequently been charged under different laws. A frequent charge used by the regime is Publication Act 17/20.
Most former student leaders are serving long prison terms—some already have been in prison for more than 15 years.
Also this week, other political prisoners were charged. A well-known Burmese blogger, Nay Phone Latt, was charged under Public Offense Act 505 B for posting a cartoon on his blog depicting the junta’s leader, Snr-Gen Than Shwe.
Thin July Kyaw, a collegue of Nay Phone Latt, was charged under Video Act 32 B and Electronic Equipment Act 36.
For the third time since his arrest, Poet Saw Wai was placed on trial under Public Offense Act 505 B. He was arrested for placing a hidden message in a poem about Snr-Gen Than Shwe.
Meanwhile, prison authorities have seized all black colored clothing from political prisoners to prevent them from indicating they were in mourning, according to family members of prisoners.
“My brother said this week that all clothing with black colors was taken away by prison wardens,” said a sister of student activist Kyaw Ko Ko.
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