Democratic Voice of Burma

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• Monk walks from Mandalay to Arakan in support of political prisoners
• USDP accused of forcibly recruiting members in Sagaing
• Rohingya topic off limits for ASEAN talks
• Hpa-an peace talks postponed until February
• Indonesia takes early lead at ASEAN Para Games

Monk walks from Mandalay to Arakan in support of political prisoners Posted: 16 Jan 2014 03:05 AM PST Buddhist monk Rakkha Wuntha was in jail for his political beliefs. Now he's marching all the way from Mandalay to Arakan state in support of the remaining political prisoners. "The president promised that there would be no more political activists remaining in prison after 2013, and we were waiting for this to happen", said Rakkha Wuntha. "Although some political inmates were released in the end of 2013, there are still 33 of them remaining and I would like to request the government to unconditionally release them." The monk's final destination is historical pagoda Maha Myat Muni in Arakan state's Kyauktaw town. When he was passing Magwe division's Yaynanchaung town, police threatened to arrest him for violation of the peaceful assembly law. "I was met by the commander of Yaynanchaung police station who suggested I should head back to where I came from as I was allegedly violating the article 18", Rakkha Wuntha said. "I told him that shouldn't be the case as I was not staging a protest, I was not giving any speech or reading out any statement, but on a pilgrimage – as president Thein Sein promised to have no political prisoners remaining in 2014 and since they are still in prison to date I am now on a pilgrimage to pray for their release." Related Stories 'Not finished yet'- political prisoner committee to continue Criminals walk free – activists remain behind bars I beg your pardon – amnesty for political prisoners? Rakkha Wuntha was not charged, however, and proceeded on his journey. On Monday, he reached Pegu division's Prome town and stayed the night in Zeeoak Monastery. Prome town's police told DVB, they had no plans to charge him. Rakkha Wuntha continues his walk towards Arakan State. Hopefully, his prayers will be heard.

USDP accused of forcibly recruiting members in Sagaing Posted: 16 Jan 2014 02:45 AM PST Many residents of Ayadaw Township in Sagaing Division claim they were forcibly recruited for the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) by local civil servants when they applied for citizen identification cards. Several Ayadaw locals told DVB they were "duped" by local authorities who issued them USDP membership cards when they only applied for citizenship IDs. "I applied for an ID card, but the officials presented me with a USDP membership – they insisted I keep the card even when I tried to give it back to them," said Thawka Aung, who said he unwittingly became a member of the USDP, along with about 30 other people in his village who had the same experience. On 11 January, the opposition National League for Democracy local supporters demanded action be taken against the local government staff who were involved and the USDP. The NLD's Township Information Coordinator Zaw Win said 167 villagers in the area had come forward with claims that they had been forcibly recruited to the USDP. "The villagers claimed they never applied for USDP membership and that the signatures on the cards were forged," said Zaw Win. "We would like to know why the local authorities did this – and whether they were ordered to do so." Khin Maung Thein, the township chairman of the NLD in Ayadaw, said residents in about half of all villages in the township have reported similar experiences with authorities coercing them to accept USDP membership cards or else forfeit the chance to apply for citizenship ID cards. Related Stories Thousands greet Suu Kyi in Kale, en route to Chin State Suu Kyi calls on govt, military to help amend constitution Women lead protest against 'discriminatory' articles in constitution

Rohingya topic off limits for ASEAN talks Posted: 16 Jan 2014 02:06 AM PST Burma on Thursday rejected the inclusion of talks on the country’s Rohingya minority at the first meeting of South-East Asian foreign ministers to be hosted by the once pariah state. The country will hold its first meeting of Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) foreign ministers in Bagan on Thursday, and its first ASEAN summit in Naypyidaw, the capital, in early May. “The Bengali issue is our internal affair and we will not discuss it in the ASEAN meetings, even if member countries ask for it,” said Ye Htut, a spokesman for Burma’s President Thein Sein. Burmese government officials refer to the Rohingya Muslim minority group as “Bengalis.” Sectarian violence in Arakan State in the west of the mainly Buddhist country in 2012 left at least 167 dead, mostly Rohingyas. The group is excluded from those eligible for Burmese citizenship by a 1982 law. Burma considers Rohingyas, some of whom have been in the country for generations, to be ethnic Bengalis from neighbouring Bangladesh. Many of their ancestors were brought to the Arakan area as labourers during the 1824-1948 British rule. Related Stories Indonesia takes early lead at ASEAN Para Games ASEAN Para Games 2014 opens in Naypyidaw Burma ready to sit in ASEAN chair While excluding the Rohingya issue from the ASEAN agenda, Ye Htut said the government was willing to take advice on the conflict from the separate governments. “They may have experience in solving such problems peacefully, so we will accept the advice that suits our country,” Ye Htut said. The South China Sea dispute, involving conflicting territorial claims between China, Japan and various ASEAN countries, is one of the main threats to regional security and is often raised at ASEAN forums. “We believe all parties accept that only negotiations can solve this problem and we will try our best to step up efforts to solve the South China Sea disputes,” Ye Htut said. Burma has been a member of ASEAN since 1997, but was previously prevented from playing host to the group’s meetings and summits because of its pariah status in the international community. Burma was ruled by a military junta between 1988 and 2010. But elected President Thein Sein has pushed through significant political reforms since coming to power in early 2011, prompting Western democracies to drop most of their sanctions against the country and normalize diplomatic ties.

Hpa-an peace talks postponed until February Posted: 16 Jan 2014 01:29 AM PST A conference between Burma's ethnic armed groups and government peace-making negotiators has been postponed until February, according to a member of the Nationwide Ceasefire Coordination Team (NCCT). The conference was set to take place in Karen State capital Hpa-an in January, but has twice been postponed. The meeting is part of an ongoing series of peace conferences geared towards securing a nationwide ceasefire between Burma's armed forces and ethnic militias. Leaders of ethnic armed groups are scheduled to convene – without government mediators — from 20 to 22 January at Lay Wah, the headquarters of the Karen National Union (KNU). Representatives of the NCCT told DVB that more time is needed to "discuss things amongst ourselves." "We requested that the government postpone the meeting," said Kwe Htoo Win, NCCT deputy-chairman and general-secretary of the KNU. "We needed a little bit of time for this, so that we can see positive outcomes in the Hpa-an talks." The Hpa-an talks will proceed after the Lay Wah conference draws to a close. Kwe Htoo Win also said that the NCCT is considering inviting opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi to attend the Hpa-an talks as an observer. Last week, over 20 leaders of various ethnic armed groups met in Chiang Mai, Thailand, to come up with a framework for political dialogue, the next step for peace building after reaching a nationwide ceasefire. Related Stories KNU meet for talks with Thein Sein, Min Aung Hlaing Karen rivals unite for New Year Framework for ceasefire talks '80 percent in place', says observer

Indonesia takes early lead at ASEAN Para Games Posted: 15 Jan 2014 09:37 PM PST Indonesia leads the medal chart with 11 golds, 10 silver and 13 bronze after the first full day's competition at the 7th ASEAN Para Games being hosted in Burma. Vietnam is currently second with 10 gold, 11 silver and 13 bronze, while Thailand and Burma are third with eight golds. Burma won six of its gold medals in the swimming events with two others in athletics. Thursday sees the opening of the 5-a-side football tournament and power lifting. The 7th ASEAN Para Games involves just 12 different sports, but each sport is competed at various categories based on the level of athletes' disabilities. In total some 1,100 para athletes from Southeast Asian nations are involved. Related Stories Rohingya topic off limits for ASEAN talks ASEAN Para Games 2014 opens in Naypyidaw Burma ready to sit in ASEAN chair

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