Democratic Voice of Burma |
- Kachins flee to displacement camps following military clashes in Bhamo
- MSF slams ‘politicisation’ of aid in Arakan state
- Nationwide ceasefire, political dialogue appear on the horizon
- Burma’s lower house passes media bill
| Kachins flee to displacement camps following military clashes in Bhamo Posted: 05 Nov 2013 03:44 AM PST A fresh wave of hostilities between the Burmese army and the Kachin Independence army (KIA) in the northern region's Bhamo district has forced hundreds of residents to flee to displacement camps in recent weeks. Locals from the villages of Moetainpar, Konja, Mahkonyang and Namhpu – each around 20 miles west of Mansi town in Bhamo – fled their homes to the safety of the Namhlinpar and Monghkon displacement camps when the Burmese army's Military Operations Command 21 reinforced its troop strength in the region following clashes with the KIA in mid-October. A member of Karuna Myanmar civil society group, which has been providing aid for the internally displaced persons (IDPs), said that more than 1,000 residents from Moetainpar alone had fled to seek refuge at local churches in the town of Bhamo and the Namhlinpar camp in Mansi after Burmese government forces shelled the area on 21 October. Related Stories"Four villages were affected by the fighting. Most of the residents fled to Bhamo while a smaller number went to Namhlinpar," said Karuna Myanmar member Nordin. He said there were already around 1,500 IDPs in Namhlinpar camp following the hostilities at the end of 2011 while new arrivals were estimated to be around 400. State-run media reported 478 people, including 137 students from Moetainpar village, arrived in Bhamo on 30 October. They were picked up in trucks by local authorities and provided shelter at two local churches, said the report. Nordin said the IDPs at Namhlinpar were surviving on rice porridge and tubers, and by foraging in the forest. A statement released by Kachin Women's Association- Thailand on 31 October claimed residents from the four villages were forced to flee after Burmese soldiers detained and tortured 10 of their fellow residents, accusing them of being KIA members. They also allegedly raped a local woman who is married. State media said the army has been deployed in the area to crack down on cattle and timber traffickers. |
| MSF slams ‘politicisation’ of aid in Arakan state Posted: 05 Nov 2013 03:24 AM PST Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has slammed the "politicisation" of humanitarian aid in Burma's Arakan state, after an outburst of local protests reportedly forced the group to suspend some of its operations. It follows accusations that the NGO displayed "bias" by taking three injured Muslims to hospital during the latest eruption of communal clashes to grip the state, while three Buddhist women had to seek medical treatment on their own. The Burmese government subsequently gathered 18 leading international NGOs and UN agencies on Monday to remind them that all assistance must be distributed fairly. But a spokesperson for MSF on Tuesday denied allegations of bias, insisting all assistance is provided in coordination with the local authorities and based on patients' medical needs. “Since June last year, MSF and other humanitarian organisations have and continue to experience a great degree of hostility from elements within the local community," said Vickie Hawkins, MSF deputy-head for Burma. "MSF is outraged that healthcare in Rakhine [Arakan] is being politicised in this way." She explained that MSF had been contacted by leaders at the Sintatmaw Rohingya displacement camp in Pauktaw, two hours northeast of the state capital Sittwe, on Saturday after a confrontation between residents and local police left three people injured, one of whom later died in hospital. "With the approval of the state health authorities, MSF referred the patients," she said, adding that they later heard about another incident in which three Buddhist women, who had been among a group attacked by Muslims in Pauktaw, travelled to Sittwe hospital for treatment. "At no point was MSF contacted by leaders from the host community or local authorities to assist with the transfer of these patients," said Hawkins. "If we had been contacted, MSF would have been very ready to provide emergency medical care and referral services." The attack on the Buddhist women, which killed one, was reportedly carried out to avenge an earlier episode of violence, which claimed the life of at least one Rohingya man and sparked the confrontation at Sintatmaw camp. Arakan state has been gripped by several bouts of Muslim-Buddhist clashes since last year, uprooting over 140,000 people and claiming some 200 lives. Local Buddhists, many of whom regard the Muslim Rohingyas as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh, have repeatedly accused aid groups of unfairly favouring the minority, even though the Rohingya community has borne the overwhelming brunt of the violence. A spokesperson for the UN in Rangoon told DVB that all humanitarian groups are guided by universal principles of "neutrality, impartiality and independence". Related Stories"Humanitarian organisations provide assistance to vulnerable people in need wherever they are found regardless of social groupings such as ethnicity, nationality, religion, gender or class," said Aye Win. "In the current situation in Rakhine state, the unfortunate fact is that the people most in need tend to be from a certain ethnic group." Rohingya make up the majority of the displaced and have been confined to squalid camps, with limited access to food, healthcare and sanitation, which they are not allowed to leave, unlike Buddhists who can travel freely. "It would also be relevant to point out that in 2010, the same humanitarian organisations provided emergency assistance to Rakhine communities affected by Cyclone Giri," said Aye Win, referring to a natural disaster which devastated the region three years ago. Last month, the UN warned that vulnerable communities displaced by last year's violence would run out of food by the end of the year unless a US$13 million shortfall could be filled. But Buddhists have staged numerous protests against aid groups working with the Rohingya, sometimes forming physical blockades or threatening staff. According to a report in The Irrawaddy on Monday, MSF has been forced to suspend their medical operations in Sittwe following this week's incident. "MSF is ready to transfer any patient that needs hospital services and we call on community leaders and local authorities to seek our support for any emergency case that the government is not able to transfer themselves,” said Hawkins. |
| Nationwide ceasefire, political dialogue appear on the horizon Posted: 05 Nov 2013 01:13 AM PST More than a dozen of Burma's ethnic leaders reached an agreement with a government delegation on Tuesday that all sides would proceed with plans to establish political dialogue and work towards a nationwide ceasefire. The agreement was reached after two days of talks in Kachin state capital Myitkyina between the Burmese government's Union Peace-making Work Committee headed by President's Office Minister Aung Min and a loose coalition of ethnic armed groups including the Arakan Liberation Party, the Chin National Front, the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army, the Kachin Independence Organisation, the Karen National Union, the Karenni National Progressive Party, the New Mon State Party and the coalition United Nationalities Federal Council. Related StoriesA press release following the meeting on Tuesday afternoon stated that the ethnic groups' Nationwide Ceasefire Coordination Team (NCCT) presented its internal list of accords reached during last week's ethnic summit in Laiza where 18 groups discussed their intended steps towards a nationwide ceasefire. The Union Peace Making Work Committee in return handed over copies of the government's own version of ceasefire procedures, the joint statement said. Both the NCCT and the government delegation agreed that steps should proceed towards establishing: a nationwide ceasefire; a framework for political dialogue; and the facilitation of political dialogue. It was also agreed that a follow-up meeting would take place next month in Karen state capital Hpa-an. DVB reporter Aye Nai, who attended the two-day summit, said the negotiations proceeded in a friendly and cordial manner. He said the delegation from Naypyidaw was headed on Monday by the government's lead negotiator Minister Aung Min and Lt-Gen Myint Soe of the Ministry of Defence. Their ethnic counterparts included: Kachin Independence Organisation chief Sumlut Gam and vice chief of staff Gen Gun Maw Sumlat; the New Mon State Party's Nai Hongsa; Gen Mutu Say Poe representing the Karen National Union; and other leaders from Karenni, Shan, Chin and Pa-O armed groups. Observers included Chinese officials and UN special adviser Vijay Nambiar. Minister Aung Min told attendees at the conference on Monday that this meeting was one of the most historic events in Burma in the past 60 years. |
| Burma’s lower house passes media bill Posted: 05 Nov 2013 12:05 AM PST Burma's lower house of parliament on Monday passed a new media bill, drafted by the Interim Press Council, though with some amendments. Ye Htun, a lower house bill committee member, told DVB that a clause was excluded from the bill because it appeared to give special privileges to media employees that were "unequal with other citizens". The media bill, which is considered a blueprint for the rights and obligations of the country's media and the running of such enterprises, has now been passed by both Burma's lower and upper houses of parliament, and will now go before the bicameral assembly in Naypyidaw. Khaing Maung Ye, MP for Ahlon constituency in Rangoon, was quoted by state-run newspaper The New Light of Myanmar on Tuesday as saying: "There is a need for professional accountability in the online media and I hope that it will run in future in accordance with these rules and regulations. We discussed 'accountability and responsibility’ many times at the lower house today." Related StoriesThe Interim Press Council had previously offered Thingangyun township MP Thein Nyunt the opportunity to raise issues over the media bill on Monday; however Thein Nyunt told DVB he was denied the floor as the matter was taken directly to a vote. "There might be another reason for it, however today the lower house decided to vote on the bill amendments," he said. "I had prepared to speak and provide a detailed explanation on several issues, such as: what status does the Press Council have and what criteria did it pursue when drafting the Media Bill?" He said he still hopes to discuss the bill in the union parliament [bicameral assembly]. Even if it is approved, the media bill must finally be presented before President Thein Sein who may suggest changes before signing it into law. The Burmese government initiated a programme of press reform in June 2011, and some 18 months later lifted censorship on domestic publications, an issue that was symbolic of the country's draconian media culture under military rule. Following the dissolution of the censorship board, Burma announced in December 2012 that private daily newspapers could be published for the first time since the 1960s. Thirty-one private dailies have since been granted publishing permits. In a 2013 index of media freedom around the world, Reporters Without Borders rated Burma as 151st out of 179 nations, sandwiched between Iraq and Gambia. However the authors provided grounds for optimism, stating that Burma had previously "been in the bottom 15 every year since 2002; but now, thanks to the Burmese spring's unprecedented reforms, it has reached its best-ever position." For more background: http://www.dvb.no/news/press- http://www.dvb.no/news/media- |
| You are subscribed to email updates from DVB Multimedia Group | DVB Multimedia Group To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 | |
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.