Friday, August 30, 2013

Democratic Voice of Burma

Democratic Voice of Burma

1988: Forgive and forget?

Posted: 30 Aug 2013 06:57 AM PDT

Twenty-five years ago, the streets of Rangoon were spattered with blood. The pro-democracy uprising, known as 8-8-88, continues to haunt Burma's history. Over 3,000 peaceful protestors were massacred by the military regime when commanders were ordered to shoot to kill. Thousands more were tortured and jailed.

But as Burma slowly moves towards democracy, activists have found themselves asking: Is it time to forgive and forget?

Earlier this month, thousands gathered at the Myanmar Convention Centre in Rangoon to pay tribute to the victims of the student-led uprisings. The staging of the event itself is a sign of Burma's dramatic democratic transition, which has seen political prisoners freed and censorship reduced.

"We must not forget the past; we must learn from history," opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who spent nearly two decades under house arrest, told the crowd.

Since a semi-civilian government took power in 2011, claiming an end to military rule, Burma has been moving towards democracy. But although the crimes of the past have been publicly recognised for the first time, nobody has been held to account.

International watchdog Human Rights Watch (HRW) has called for those responsible to finally be brought to justice.

"They have really been calling for it for 25 years, and even though the country is going through an important and complicated transition, I don't think it is possible for the country to really move forward unless those responsible for 1988 are brought to account," said David Mathieson, Senior Burma researcher for HRW.

Khin Ohmar was a student protestor at the time and was an eye witness to what happened.

"I was just up the road. I had a chance to see the security forces firing," said the activist, who was living in exile in neighbouring Thailand until finally being able to return to Burma last year.

Many of the former generals from the military government are still in power today. But the country has come far and some do not want to disrupt the positive changes. A belief in forgiveness resonated strongly at the commemoration ceremony, with some describing it as necessary for the country to move on.

But others say it is not for the leaders to forgive, but the victims.

"We can forgive what happened to us individually, but we don’t have the right or the mandate to speak for the others," said Khin Ohmar.

"They actually have to create a space for the victims or survivors of that injustice to be able to come forward and share what happened to them and also speak about what they want and how they want to see justice done."

The military still dominates Burma, and security forces are handed immunity from prosecution under the current constitution. They have tens of thousands of troops throughout the country and in some border areas human rights abuses continue.

"I think people should be looking at justice and accountability in a potentially positive way in Burma – that it can actually help the transition and put an end to continued violations on the part of the military," said Mathieson. "Not as something negative that is going to destroy the process."

Business Weekly

Posted: 30 Aug 2013 05:03 AM PDT

US war cry sends gold price soaring

Global gold prices have been soaring since the US and its allies threatened military intervention in Syria. On 22 August, gold was sitting at 706,500 kyat per tical, but subsequent fears that a war was imminent encouraged more buyers to invest in gold, traders said. The price soared over the weekend to 720,000 kyat and then leapt again to 726,000 by Thursday before settling back at 724,100 on the afternoon of Friday 30 August. Despite the rise in international oil prices, the instability in the Middle East has not forced up the price of petrol in Burma, and it remains at 814 kyat per litre.

More for your dollar

The kyat rose ever so slightly this week against international currencies. On 21 August its buying price was 967 to the US dollar and selling price 977. By 30 August, the kyat was valued at 965 kyat to the dollar while selling at 973.

Dhaka flights to resume

Bangladeshi and Burmese civil aviation authorities signed an agreement on Thursday in Dhaka to resume direct flights between the Bangladeshi capital and Rangoon after a six-year hiatus. Mahmud Hossain, the chairman of the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh, said, "Yangon [Rangoon] has become now commercially more viable for our carriers. It’s now a good transit on our way to Bangkok and Kuala Lumpur.” Officials expect that the direct air link can be resumed by November.

Japanese airline buys 49 percent share in Asian Wings

Japan's All Nippon Airways (ANA) announced on 27 August that it had acquired a 49 percent stake in Asian Wings Airways (AWA), the first investment in a Burma-based commercial carrier by a foreign airline. The Japanese airline 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. AWA currently flies to 13 cities in Burma.

World Bank loan to cover development projects

Burma's Union Parliament has approved a plan, recommended by President Thein Sein, to accept a US$261.5 million loan from the World Bank to support various development projects. The 40-year loan – at a fixed 0.75 percent interest rate – would be used to develop the communications sector and to improve schools, as well as pay for the construction of a compressed natural gas and biogas power plant in Mon state's Thaton township. In January, the World Bank announced that it would clear Burma's outstanding debt of some $900 million, allowing the country to reapply for grants and loans from international institutions.

Meanwhile, The Asian Development Bank announced on 26 August that it will administer a Japanese loan of $1.2 million to help Burma improve statistics collection.

Rice exports down, but optimism remains high

Burma exported some 200,000 tonnes of rice between April and July, but that's 100,000 tonnes short of last year's figures. According to Aung Than Oo, the chairman of the Myanmar Rice and Paddy Traders Association, the 50 percent decrease in shipments is due to an increase in the Burmese rice price, a decrease in Indian prices, and adverse weather conditions. Aung Than Oo, remained upbeat however, saying that while Burma exported some 1.4 million tonnes of rice in 2012, this year he expects the total to hit 2 million tonnes.

Vietnam rues missed opportunities in Burma

A delegation of Vietnamese business leaders were quoted in the national press complaining that the country's entrepreneurs have been slow to enter Burma while other Asian and western countries move in to the nascent markets. Pham Dung, Vietnam's ambassador to Burma, is quoted by Thanh Nien as saying that the embassy in Rangoon has been busy receiving and assisting Vietnamese businesses coming to explore the market, but few have returned or invested.

US to boost military ties with Burma, but warns of N Korea connection

Posted: 30 Aug 2013 04:52 AM PDT

The United States has vowed to strengthen its military relationship with Burma, shortly after issuing another warning to Naypyidaw that it must sever its defence ties with North Korea.

US Ambassador Derek Mitchell met with the head of Burma's armed forces Min Aung Hlaing in the Burmese capital this week to discuss legal practices in military combat. Burmese state media described the meeting as a "cordial" effort to strengthen defence relations between the two countries, emphasising the army's "important role" in Burma's democratisation process.

"This dialogue is consistent with continuing efforts to build mutual understanding in order to promote human rights awareness, and promote the values and activities of a modern, disciplined and respected military that acts according to international norms," said Derek Mitchell on Thursday.

But the meeting coincides with news that the US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel admonished the Burmese Foreign Minister Lt-Gen Wai Lwin on the sidelines of the ASEAN conference in Brunei for his country's ongoing military relationship with North Korea.

“The secretary discussed the importance of continued progress on reform and the importance of Myanmar [Burma] severing military ties to North Korea,” US Defense Department spokesman George Little said in a statement.

The US announced in August that it was planning to step up its military engagement with Burma less than a month after blacklisting a senior military general, Lt-Gen Thein Htay, for allegedly "purchasing military goods" from North Korea. But the superpower took great care to avoid sanctioning the Burmese government.

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The decision has drawn scorn from some critics, who view it as a "carrot and stick" approach intended to bring Burma into the US's geopolitical ambit. "The US knows that the Burmese military are still dealing with the North Koreans," veteran journalist and Burma expert, Bertil Lintner, told DVB on Friday.

Lintner has previously slammed the notion that Thein Htay, who heads Burma's Directorate of Defence Industries (DDI), could have purchased military equipment from North Korea without authorisation from President Thein Sein and Min Aung Hlaing as "absolutely impossible".

The DDI is a military agency which carries out missile research and development projects, and reportedly has a memorandum of understanding to build ballistic missiles in partnership with North Korea. The agency was already slapped with US sanctions in July 2012 for their continued engagement with the Pyongyang regime.

Lintner explained that the US is sending a "clear signal" to the government that they must move away from North Korea, while offering military training as a reward. "Forget US talk about 'human rights' and 'democracy', that’s just window dressing," he said. "The US main concern in Burma is strategic: to keep China at bay and the North Koreans out."

According to Lintner, North Korea is helping Burma develop a SCUD-type missile, an allegation which the government has denied. In a previous interview with DVB, the president's spokesperson, Ye Htut, claimed to have "no idea" why Thein Htay had been blacklisted, but insisted that it would not affect US-Burma relations.

Burma has received international praise for introducing a series of democratic reforms since March 2011, but continues to be plagued by civil strife, especially in its ethnic minority territories.

Parliament calls for land grab recommendations to be expedited

Posted: 30 Aug 2013 02:46 AM PDT

Burma's Union Parliament on Thursday urged the government to expedite procedures which will allow confiscated farmland to be returned to its original owners across the country.

In a message to President Thein Sein, parliamentary speaker Thura Shwe Mann urged the government to return land – specifically land left unused after being confiscated – to its rightful owners, as recommended previously in a report by the parliament-backed Land Investigation Commission.

"The parliament believes and expects the concerned parties to return land and farmland … out of goodwill and sympathy towards farmers and civilians living in poverty and without much awareness," said Shwe Mann at the parliamentary session on Thursday.

Ye Htun, a lower house representative, said that parliament was sending a reminder to the president as there had been no tangible progress in implementing the recommendations of the commission's report.

"Parliament has conducted surveys … indicating that many of the companies that confiscated lands are now beginning to put fences around the areas previously left unused. This is leading to even more disputes with farmers," said Ye Htun.

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The 1963 Land Acquisition Act nationalised land ownership in Burma, and the military and its business cronies spent decades confiscating land from farmers to build economic projects, industrial zones and army bases.

However, the issue of land seizures has come increasing under scrutiny since the new government took power in 2011 with farmers staging protests against the practice across the country and several MPs raising the issue in parliament.

Myanmar Economic Holdings in brewery contract dispute

Posted: 30 Aug 2013 12:43 AM PDT

Singaporean food and beverage conglomerate Fraser & Neave (F&N) has claimed that its Burmese partner is trying to oust it from a joint-venture agreement in Myanmar Brewery, according to various news sources.

F&N owns 55 percent of Myanmar Brewery, which corners a huge part of Burma's domestic beer market with manufacturing plants for Tiger Beer, Myanmar Beer, ABC Stout and Anchor Beer. The remaining 45 percent is held by state-owned Union of Myanmar Economic Holdings Ltd (UMEHL), a conglomerate run by Burma's Ministry of Defence.

The Singaporean firm said that UMEHL filed a claim on Thursday informing F&N that it plans to begin arbitration proceedings to claim F&N’s majority stake in the brewery, citing the Burmese company's reading of the joint venture agreement, according to a report in Singapore's Business Times.

The report said that F&N disputes the basis of the claim, adding that it has engaged lawyers and “intends to vigorously resist the claim”.

When contacted by DVB on Friday, UMEHL declined to comment on the matter.

Although the brewery represents only a small part of F&N's business, losing its stake "would mean being shut out of one of Asia's fastest growing beer markets," said Reuters on Thursday, noting that in a May earnings briefing, F&N said its Burma beer business had recorded double-digit growth from a year earlier.

While F&N is controlled by Thai billionaire Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi, UMEHL is one of two main conglomerates owned and run by the Burmese military via the Ministry of Defence. UMEHL is no stranger to controversy, being one of the majority partners in the Latpadaung copper mine in Sagaing which it operates on a joint venture basis with China's Wanbao Company.

According to the Wall Street Journal on Thursday, "The [Myanmar Brewery] spat highlights the risk of doing business with Myanmar’s state-owned enterprises and could damp confidence of investors seeking opportunities in a country still emerging from decades of secrecy and isolation under military rule".
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