Democratic Voice of Burma

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• Protesting the protest law
• Burma blacklists two US-based reporters for covering Rohingya crisis
• UN’s Nambiar en route to Kachin rebel HQ
• Hundreds of families evacuated in eastern Burma as floods hit
• Japanese airline buys 49 percent share in Asian Wings

Protesting the protest law Posted: 28 Aug 2013 05:13 AM PDT Activists who protested in Rangoon yesterday calling for the abolishment of the controversial article-18 of the Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession Law have been charged under the article for protesting without approval from the authorities. Under article-18 of the law, demonstrators have to apply for permission before they stage a protest. On Tuesday, around 40 activists as well as those already slammed with charges under the article for participating in various protests in the past, marched from Myaynigone junction to the Sule Pagoda in downtown Rangoon. Sithu Win, one of the protestors said some organisers and participants in the protest have been charged by police forces from different townships. They were charged under the very article they were protesting against. Related Stories Women's group slams 'violent' arrest of Latpadaung activists Latpadaung protestor hit with charges for demonstrating without permission Protest organisers headed to court after demonstrating without permission He went on to say that if protestors are being charged for practicing their constitutional right, then it would call into question the constitution's validity. "Apparently practicing our constitutional right is liable for a charge under article-18, which means the article is overstepping the constitution," said Sithu Win. Article-18 of the Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession was enacted during President Thein Sein's rule and has been widely used to prosecute activists protesting against human rights violations, land grabs, and labour rights. There are currently over 130 activist across the country facing charges under the article.

Burma blacklists two US-based reporters for covering Rohingya crisis Posted: 28 Aug 2013 04:55 AM PDT Two US-based journalists have been blacklisted by the Burmese government after they visited conflict-struck western Arakan state to cover the ongoing persecution of the Rohingya Muslim minority, DVB has learned. The reporters, who work for an independent photography agency, say they were verbally told by officials at the Burmese embassy in Washington DC earlier this month that they were banned from returning to Burma. Officials reportedly told Matt Rains and Alia Mehboob from Lux Capio Photography Agency that they could not be issued visas because they had entered "restricted" Muslim areas on a previous visit to Arakan state and should "try again in a year". In April, on their most recent trip to the restive state, the reporters were besieged by a Buddhist mob while visiting a mosque on the outskirts of Sittwe's Muslim quarter, Aung Mingalar, before being detained by immigration authorities and sent back to Rangoon where they say they were followed by military intelligence. The pair, who held tourist visas, said they had received formal permission from the Ministry of Tourism in Rangoon to visit any area in the Arakan capital, but were refused entry by police guarding Aung Mingalar. They subsequently visited a nearby mosque that seemed to have been taken over by local Buddhists, when a mob approached them. "People started coming in from all over. One guy flashed his [penis] at Alia; they were trying to take potshots at us from behind. They tried to grab my camera equipment," explained Rains. In video footage taken by the reporters, police can be seen brandishing rifles at the pair, while locals attempt to grab their cameras. A man in civilian clothing, claiming to be "the chairman", bursts into the mosque, shouts at them to "get out" and demands that they hand over their passports. The pair immediately offered to go to the police station, where their passports were confiscated for several hours and the authorities booked them on the first flight back to Rangoon. After repeated requests for an explanation as to why they were being deported, the police said they had entered a "restricted" zone. "We were let go in Rangoon, but we had four to six men following us wherever we went, two cars that would just park outside Trader's Hotel and they would just sit in the lobby waiting for us," said Rains. "It got to the point where it was too dangerous for anyone to meet with us, so we just booked flights out." A spokesperson for the Arakan state government told DVB that although he was unfamiliar with the case, journalists are obligated to travel on media visas and obtain permits before entering some areas that were ravaged by Muslim-Buddhist clashes last year. The President's Office was not available for comment. Aung Win, a local Rohingya media fixer, confirmed that the authorities have clamped down on journalists who want to visit Aung Mingalar, where thousands of Muslims are trapped without access to international aid or livelihoods. "You must get a permit from the Rakhine [Arakan] state government," said Aung Win. "I can take [journalists] around to IDP camps, but they are not allowed to visit Aung Mingalar." He added that more recently journalists have also been able to obtain the necessary permits. But critics say this is an attempt by the former military regime, which has been implicated in mass atrocities against the stateless Rohingya community, to monitor journalists reporting on their persecution. It follows two bouts of deadly ethno-religious clashes in western Burma, which uprooted over 140,000 people, mostly Muslims. Rains and Mehboob say it is not the first time they have faced harassment attempting to document abuses against the Rohingya, who are considered illegal Bengali immigrants and denied basic rights by the Burmese government. In August 2012, the journalists were repeatedly "locked and loaded" by Arakan police, while locals threatened to "burn" Alia, who is Muslim and a Pakistani national. US national Rains recalls another incident in Mrauk-U, northeast of Sittwe, which he described as "straight-up Third Reich text book". The pair had sat in a local movie theatre to watch a film, when an "old-school patriotic national anthem" began playing and Arakanese words started flashing on the screen. When they asked a man sitting next to them what it was saying, he replied: "’It's talking about how the Rohingya are burning houses and murdering and killing people'," said Rains. The moment Rains took out his camera, the screen switched to a "cheesy 80s soap opera show" and the manager asked them to leave. "It's propaganda at its best and worst at the same time," he added. The Burmese government has received international praise for introducing a series of democratic reforms, including easing media restrictions and stripping names from the notorious junta-era blacklist, which barred many western journalists from entering the country. But analysts say that as many as 4,000 names could still be on the list, while military intelligence continues to monitor reporters covering a recent tide of anti-Muslim violence.

UN’s Nambiar en route to Kachin rebel HQ Posted: 28 Aug 2013 04:17 AM PDT The UN Secretary-General's Special Advisor on Burma Vijay Nambiar is visiting the Kachin rebel headquarters of Laiza at the Sino-Burmese border on Wednesday with the approval of the Burmese government. His delegation, accompanied by members of the Kachin State Peace Creation Group (PCG), set off at 7am and is expected back in state capital Myitkyina the same evening. According to Kachin State Social Affairs Minister Bauk Ja, the UN envoy's visit to the Kachin Independence Organisation (KIO) stronghold was approved by Naypyidaw despite the fact they had refused UN human rights envoy Tomás Ojea Quintana permission to visit the town just a week before. Related Stories Burma govt slams Quintana allegation as 'totally wrong' Quintana accuses Meikhtila police of failing to protect his convoy UN envoy faces protestors in Meikhtila "We arranged the trip, and Mr Nambiar travels through Kachin state as the regional government's guest," she said. Bauk Ja said the Myitkyina-based regional government briefed Nambiar on current developments with regard to the peace process and confirmed that the UN special advisor met on Tuesday with a KIO liaison team along with the PCG. She said that Nambiar will likely meet with KIO leaders in Laiza. In May, the UN special advisor attended a round of peace talks between the KIO and the government's Peace-making Work Committee in Myitkyina.

Hundreds of families evacuated in eastern Burma as floods hit Posted: 28 Aug 2013 03:48 AM PDT VIDEO FOOTAGE – NO SOUNDTRACK Houses and farmland in northern Shan state's Lashio and Kutkai townships have been inundated due to constant monsoon rains over the past few days which have forced at least 60 families to evacuate their homes. A local in Lashio said residential areas in the town were hit by flooding on Sunday and that waters did not recede until Tuesday. "The water level rose to about three feet at around 8pm on Sunday and we had to evacuate our house," he said, estimating that between 40 and 50 households in the vicinity were inundated. He said that paddy and corn fields were waterlogged in the nearby villages of Nakum, Nahwe, Taungnaut, Einai and Khekham. A major highway connecting Shan state border town Muse and central Burma's Mandalay was also a victim of the floods, some 300 vehicles forced to be abandoned along the roadside near Lashio. In Kutkai about 20 families were evacuated after the Namkhai creek burst its banks. Weather expert Tun Lwin had earlier warned of flash floods and landslides in Shan and Kachin states as a low-pressure cloud formed near the China-Laos border and headed westward at the weekend. Related Stories Karen state hit with flooding for second time in the last month Thousands hit by flooding in Arakan state Monsoon rains inundate eastern Karen state Further south in Pegu, more than 600 residents were evacuated to monasteries and other shelters after floods struck the city. Local NGOs were on hand to offer relief supplies such as instant noodles and fish paste. Local sources told DVB that in Hpa-an, flooding has affected the town since 21 August. Twelve relief shelters have been set up to accommodate displaced residents, according to local sources. Relief measures were reportedly under way across Karen and Mon states on Monday after days of torrential downpours. According to state-run The New Light of Myanmar, the Salween River and nearby Hlaingbwe Creek exceeded danger levels. The report said that Burmese Vice President Nyan Tun led a government delegation including several ministers to flood areas in Karen state where they distributed cash assistance to villagers to buy paddy and saplings and to cover the cost of basic needs, education and healthcare. The Ministry of Livestock, Fisheries and Rural Development has alerted those in the fishery industries to brace for further flooding. The ministry has recommended that fishery operators reinforce ponds with sandbags, install protective netting to prevent fish and prawns from escaping, and be ready for evacuation orders. Deputy-director Hnin Oo of the Myanmar Fisheries Federation said fishery operators in the Irrawaddy delta should be especially cautious. Additional reporting by DVB reporter Naw Noreen

Japanese airline buys 49 percent share in Asian Wings Posted: 27 Aug 2013 10:42 PM PDT Japan’s All Nippon Airways (ANA) said Tuesday it would acquire a 49 percent stake in a Burmese airline, the latest foray into the rapidly-opening and potentially lucrative Southeast Asian market. Foreign firms have piled into Burma since the installation of a nominally civilian government in 2011, eager to make the most of opportunities in a fast-changing country, but this is the first move on an airline. "ANA Group will invest $25 million (2.5 billion yen) for AWA (Asian Wings Airways) as part of its stated strategy of expanding into new international markets," ANA Holdings - the parent of one of Japan’s major airlines – said in a statement. “As part of the investment, ANA will also work with AWA to improve its operational and on-time performance and support its expansion into markets outside Burma,” the company said. The Japanese airline also said it will employ larger aircraft and make the currently three-flights-a-week service daily between Tokyo’s Narita and Rangoon from the end of September. “The acquisition of the stake in AWA represents the first investment in a Burma-based commercial carrier by a foreign airline,” the statement said. “ANA intends to capture an increasing share of the fast-growing Asian airline market and this investment in AWA will support that strategic goal,” it added. Shares in ANA Holdings fell 0.47 percent to 208 yen on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Tuesday after reports of the deal. The formal announcement came after the Tokyo bourse closed, with the benchmark Nikkei index having shed 0.69 percent. Asian Wings, based in the commercial hub of Rangoon, flies to 13 cities in Burma. It will begin an international service this October. The Burma carrier is considered a mid-tier player in a domestic market packed with nine airlines, including the government-run Myanmar Airways. With demand for travel in Japan expected to remain largely flat because of the greying, shrinking population, ANA is trying to capture rising demand in Southeast Asia. Related Stories Local claims to have discovered legendary Japanese treasure Burma begins exporting rice to Japan Reinventing Japan-Burma relations In October, ANA restarted direct flights from Narita to Rangoon after a 12-year hiatus, pointing to the rising number of business travellers and tourists headed to Burma. Unlike many industrialised countries, Japan maintained trade ties and generous aid for Burma while it was ruled by a military junta, warning that taking a hard line could push it closer to China. Tokyo has also gently pressed the country’s leaders to listen to the voices of those in opposition and the international community. Since the end of military rule in 2011, Burma has made visible efforts to open up to the rest of the world and has lured international. Japanese businesses in particular have been active in the country with strong backing from Tokyo, including the cancellation of billions of dollars of debt and numerous aid grants.

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