Thursday, March 20, 2014

Democratic Voice of Burma

Democratic Voice of Burma

General Election will be Nov- Dec 2015, says EC chairman

Posted: 20 Mar 2014 04:46 AM PDT

In an exclusive interview with DVB on Thursday, Tin Aye, the chairman of Burma's Election Commission, said that the next general election will be held in November or December 2015.

"The next election will be held in late 2015, either in November or December," he said. "In fact, I already told this to some civil society groups the other day."

Tin Aye went on to say that a round of by-elections will take place later this year, "when the weather is good, probably around November – December."

By-elections are currently scheduled for 30 vacant or vacated seats across both houses of parliament. The by-elections will be the last poll ahead of next year's general election.

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Thaung Hlaing, the director of the Election Commission, said he was quoting Tin Aye responding in parliament on Thursday, saying 13 seats would be contested across the country for the People’s Parliament or Lower House (Pyithu Htuttaw), six seats for the Upper House (Amyothar Htuttaw) and 11 seats in State and Divisional assemblies.

He said the Election Commission would announce the date of the 2014 by-elections at least 30 days ahead of time.

A list of the 30 vacant seats was released:

Lower House of Parliament: Hpakant (Kachin); Banmaw (Kachin); Mogaung (Kachin); Hakha (Chin); Kamma (Magwe); Yaynanchaung (Magwe); Minpya (Rakhine); South Dagon (Rangoon); Insein (Rangoon); Latha (Rangoon); Pabaetan (Rangoon); Nam Kham (northern Shan); Pantanaw (Irrawaddy).

Upper House: Sagaing Division constituency 2; Tenasserim 2; Rakhine State 4; Rangoon Division 4; Chin State 6; Mon State 11.

State/ Division assemblies: Wine Maw 2, Kachin State; Hlaingbwe 2, Karen State; Wetlet 1, Sagaing Division; Myeik 1, Tenasserim Division; Aung Myay Thar Zan 2, Mandalay Division; Mogok 1, Mandalay Division; Gwa 2, Rakhine State; Tachileik 2, Eastern Shan State; Mong Yawng 1, Eastern Shan State; Tanyang 2, Eastern Shan State; Yay Kyi 1, Irrawaddy Division.

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Landslide kills 6, injures 4 in Kachin jade mine

Posted: 20 Mar 2014 04:05 AM PDT

A landslide in a jade mine in Burma's northern Kachin State left six dead and four injured earlier this week.

Locals were digging in a small-scale mining operation in Nat Maw village tract, Hpakant Township, when the land began to move, Jah Naw, a Hpakant resident, told DVB.

“Six dead, about three days ago," he said, "while they were tapping the rocks.”

Landslides are not uncommon in small — often unlicensed — homegrown mining sites, say locals, because the workers are not careful and the sites are largely unregulated and under-equipped. Some say that the sites are more dangerous now because of capillary fracturing caused by explosives used in nearby corporate mines.

"There were cracks due to mining by companies with TNT. People dig along these cracks without care and it happens," said Tashila Seng, another Hpakant local. "Some killed, some hurt. These are found, like, everyday.”

He said that in areas near the Uru stream — such as Tawnkawt, Shan Su, Shakharaw and Myauk Phyu — accidents happen nearly once a week.

Kachin State is the one of the world's last remaining sources for the rare and expensive jade stones. Approximately 50 companies have been granted permission to explore the Kachin hills and extract the stones, which are mostly exported to and refined in neighbouring China.

Local people, however, are not permitted to independently scavenge the territory, which they continue to do illicitly in hopes of a big score. The potential payoff is often considered well worth the risk of the extremely dangerous work, as job opportunities are rare in the remote and undeveloped region.

 

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DVB Debate: Who will benefit from Burma’s tourism boom?

Posted: 20 Mar 2014 01:26 AM PDT

For decades, Burma's tourism sector suffered under military rule. The country's self-imposed isolation and poor human rights record meant few foreign visitors chose to visit. However, over the last two years, political reforms in Burma have seen the country open up and thousands of tourists are now making their way to the Golden Land. 

On the panel this week: Kyaw Swa Min, from the Myanmar Tourism Marketing Committee; tour operator Aye Kyaw; Khin Maung Pyone from the Myanmar Hoteliers Association; and reporter Aung Thura, who specialises in tourism.

Panellists discussed whether Burma is ready for the onslaught of tourists predicted this year, and raised concerns about high hotel prices and limited accommodation.

“Hotels owned by foreigners are more expensive than those owned by Burmese,” said Khin Maung Pyone, in response to claims that hotels in Burma are overpriced.

“Burmese hoteliers take only around US$100. This is a reasonable fee."

However, Aye Kyaw said that prices do not need to be that high. Allowing homestays and bed and breakfast facilities would help with the high demand for rooms, lower prices and allow local communities to benefit more from tourism in their areas.

“There are a lot of solutions to the problems that we have now. The solution of other countries is to allow local people to rent their extra rooms to tourists," he said.

According to the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism, 2013 saw over two million international visitors enter the country – a growth rate of 93 percent on the previous year.

Cartoon: DVB Debate

Cartoon: DVB Debate

And a "Tourism Master Plan" has set a target of over three million international visitors in 2015 and 7.5 million by 2020.

But the rapid increase in foreign visitors leaves the tourism sector struggling to keep up with demand. Meanwhile, tourists travelling on a low budget face difficulties in finding places to stay.

Tourism has also seen a spike in foreign investment and joint ventures. Burma currently allows 100 percent foreign ownership of hotels rated at three or more stars, and many Burmese-owned hotels have a foreign partner.

Panellists disagreed on whether steps should be taken to ensure more opportunities for local businessmen.

“Tourism businesses should be 100 percent Burmese-owned and not owned by foreigners,” said Aye Kyaw.

"In joint ventures, if foreigners own one percent and Burmese own 99 percent, then the Burmese partner is not a real owner but is just giving his name for the company which really belongs to the foreigner."

However, Kyaw Swa Min from the Myanmar Tourism Marketing Committee disagreed. He thinks that joint ventures could benefit Burmese citizens and businessmen in the wider region.

“We need a balanced situation that has benefits for the whole ASEAN economic community. We should create this balanced situation," he said.

The studio also raised concerns about sustainable tourism, preserving the culture and environment. Journalist, Aung Thura said certain hotel associations are trying to build hotels in areas of historical significance and are destroying Burmese heritage.

“A certain hotel association requested to build a hotel zone in the Tu Ywin Mountains in Bagan. I cannot understand why they are doing this? I wonder if they are really Myanmar citizens,” he said.

Devi Thant Cin, the chief editor of environmental magazine, Aung Pin Lae, said the same thing is happening in tourist spots of natural significance like Inle Lake. She said Burmese crony businessmen are not thinking of the future and just build without any care for the environment.

“Even if businessmen want to build hotels in these areas, the government should preserve natural sites with a view to sustainability," she said.

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In the past, tourism development has also been explicitly linked with human rights issues such as displacement and forced labour. Revenues from tourism appeared to go directly to generals with little benefit to local communities.

Now, NGOs are trying to ensure that these issues are monitored and there is more accountability from the government in future. Andrea Valentin from Tourism Transparency raised concerns about the current approach to development.

“There is no transparency about who benefits from the planned tourism development zones,” she said. “We want to know whether the communities are being consulted or whether this is a top-down development approach. We worry about the lack of meaningful stakeholder consultations and we particularly worry about land rights in tourism development."

Aye Kyaw asked why the policymakers are not in the studio to answer questions. The Ministry of Tourism was invited to attend the debate but declined to join.

However, Kyaw Swa Min insisted that the Tourism Ministry and the Tourism associations are all victims of the changing situation. Aye Kyaw disagreed, and said the system needed to be changed. He said that associations needed to push the government in order to drive positive change.

“All of the hotel & tourism associations should advise the Ministry of Hotels & Tourism about their needs without fear,” he said.

However, Khin Maung Pyone interjected, explaining that associations are reluctant to speak out because their ideas are not taken into account.

“It is not that we are afraid. We do propose our needs, but there is no implementation which is why we don't make any more proposals," he said.

The studio generally agreed that more needed to be done if Burma is going to be prepared for increasing tourist numbers, and in order to ensure local communities benefit from the change.

You can join the debate and watch the full programme in Burmese at dvbdebate.com

Or share your views with us by commenting on our website at dvb.no

 

New hotels banned in ancient Bagan

Posted: 19 Mar 2014 10:17 PM PDT

Hotel construction has been halted in Bagan, as the Burmese government renews its pursuit of World Heritage Status for the national landmark.

A representative from the President's Office, Soe Thein, said that while the government is committed to the preservation of the site, it could not dismiss construction agreements signed by the previous government.

Soe Thein blames the previous military regime for the construction of unsightly and potentially damaging hotels in the heart of the ancient complex, which, according to the Burmese government's application to UNESCO, boasts over 2,500 individual temples, built between the 10th to the 14th centuries AD.

Over 20 years ago, the then Burmese government sanctioned the building of high-rise hotels in the heart of the ancient site, such as the 61-meter high Palace Tower Hotel. A viewing tower of a similar height, a golf course and a highway, cutting through the middle of the complex, also blight the otherwise picturesque location.

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"Bagan Archeological Area and Monuments", UNESCO's official name for the site, has been on the "UN Heritage Site Tentative List" since 1996, when the military regime dropped their efforts for heritage listing after the UN's cultural agency, which funds conservation efforts on hundreds of the world's most prominent historical sites, asked for the government's commitment to transparent maintenance and administration plans.

The use of modern materials and a lack of adherence to the original architectural style in maintenance work over time has invited criticism from UNESCO and held up a World Heritage Listing.

Currently, there are four hotel zones in and around the ancient city, which incorporate 75 hotels, motels and guesthouses. Seventeen hotels are currently under construction, with plans for a fifth hotel zone in the drafting stage.

It is estimated that around 200,000 tourists visited Bagan in 2013, a figure that could be increased exponentially as Burma gears up for a tourism boom in the coming years.
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