Democratic Voice of Burma

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• Michaungkan activist sentenced to 8 months
• Call for Burmese peacekeepers to monitor ceasefire
• Bullet Points: 21 August 2014
• Court orders S Korean factory to pay dismissed workers
• New homes ready for displaced Meikhtila villagers
• Thai junta gives stalled Dawei SEZ the green light

Michaungkan activist sentenced to 8 months Posted: 21 Aug 2014 06:01 AM PDT Land rights activist Sein Than was sentenced to four months in prison on Wednesday, lengthening his term to eight months following another ruling issued on Tuesday. Sein Than was convicted of violating Burma's Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession Act in two separate townships for spearheading an unpermitted protest against an alleged land grab in Michaungkan, Rangoon Division. The activist's daughter, Nay Nwe, told DVB on Thursday that Rangoon's Bahan Township issued the second ruling for the same offence he had already been convicted of. Sein Than led a group of protestors to the home of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi to deliver documents and plead their case. "My father was charged under Article 18 [the Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession Act] for leading a rally in front of Daw Suu's house, where we went to hand her documents about our case and ask for her assistance," said Nay Nwe. He has faced the same charge in several other townships, including Pabedan and Latha, all pertaining to his activism surrounding the Michaungkan land-grab case. In March, Sein Than helped organise an encampment in front of Rangoon's Maha Bandoola Park, where hundreds of protestors participated in a sit-in that continued until they were forcibly removed by authorities. Periodic re-occupations have since resumed as the 24-year struggle to retrieve the disputed land continues. The protestors say they were evicted from their homes in the suburban Rangoon township in a land grab by the Burmese military in 1990. Related Stories Bullet Points: 21 August 2014 Court orders S Korean factory to pay dismissed workers Bullet Points: 20 August 2014 When Sein Than appeared in a Latha court on Tuesday, around 80 protestors showed up in matching t-shirts to support him. Lawyers and activists have criticised the government for allowing the trial to proceed in multiple townships for what is essentially the same charge. Robert San Aung, a well-known attorney in Burma who often defends activists, argued that the multiple trials contravene the country's penal code. "According to the Code of Criminal Procedure, Article 234, a person must undergo only one trial for three different counts of the same kind of offence if they are committed within one year," he said. "This is against the law." Aung Thein of the Myanmar Lawyers Network said that a defendant has the right to appeal to a higher court and upon doing so, can request to have the sentences combined. "The defendant faced charges by police in several townships, but he has the right to appeal to the district court to concurrently serve sentences for the same offence," said Aung Thein. Sein Than is still awaiting verdicts for similar charges in two other townships.

Call for Burmese peacekeepers to monitor ceasefire Posted: 21 Aug 2014 05:14 AM PDT Hopes for a genuine truce to end decades of civil war in Burma were boosted this week by an agreement to form a ceasefire maintaining task force. As the peace process progresses through five rounds of negotiations – frequently involving days-long talks, painstaking dotting i's and crossing t's – ongoing fighting in the northeast of the country has lent a disquieting note to discussions between the government and ethnic armed groups. Yet in the latest round of negotiations in Rangoon this week, stakeholders struck a breakthrough agreement on a ceasefire monitoring strategy. Leaders reportedly agreed that the creation of a peacekeeping task force should be written into the final ceasefire agreement, drawing on representatives from ethnic armed groups as well as the government. Salai Lian H Sakhong, a winner of Sweden's Martin Luther King Jr. peace prize, is a Chin representative on the Nationwide Ceasefire Coordination Team, an ethnic alliance of 16 armed groups. He says the need for a joint ceasefire monitoring team runs to the core of the peace process. "If, after signing the agreement, there is no one to monitor the ceasefire,then it would be meaningless," he said. "That is why we must form a committee to recruit a joint peacekeeping task force." He opined that the committee would consist of government and ethnic leaders, as well as civil society representatives. "We would like international representatives to take part as observers." The need for an outfit to monitor a future ceasefire has been made all the more stark by continuing skirmishes between several of the parties present at the ceasefire talks. One civilian was reportedly killed, and another wounded, during fighting between the Palaung National Liberation Army and the Burmese army on Monday, as ceasefire negotiators reported their progress to political parties in Rangoon. The Kachin Independence Organisation and Shan State Army- North are also pivotal members of the Nationwide Ceasefire Coordination Team, yet they remain in conflict with Burmese government forces. Related Stories Bullet Points: 21 August 2014 Bullet Points: 19 August 2014 Route home blocked for child soldiers Salai Lian H Sakhong spoke of the crucial role that peacekeepers may play in a future Burma. "Armed groups can encounter unexpected problems," he said. "This [peacekeeping] committee is therefore necessary in order to prevent clashes from breaking out again and to stop issues escalating." Many Burma watchers second the opinion that a joint ceasefire monitoring team would boost hopes for a constructive political dialogue, which hinges on the warring parties' ability to maintain a truce. Observers close to the process say that a final draft ceasefire document could come out of talks between the government and the NCCT scheduled for September.

Bullet Points: 21 August 2014 Posted: 21 Aug 2014 05:10 AM PDT On today's edition of Bullet Points: A labour tribunal in Rangoon decides South Korean-owned footwear factory Master Sports must provide severance pay to 750 former employees. Hopes for a true end to decades of civil war boosted this week by the agreement to form a ceasefire maintaining task force. The ruling Thai junta will push ahead with the stalled Dawei Special Economic Zone. You can watch Bullet Points every weeknight on DVB TV after the 7 o'clock news.

Court orders S Korean factory to pay dismissed workers Posted: 21 Aug 2014 02:17 AM PDT South Korean shoe manufacturer Master Sports has been ordered by a Rangoon court to compensate more than 750 factory workers who were suddenly laid off in June. A former employee of the company, Tun Tun Naing, told DVB on Wednesday that the Rangoon Division Labour Tribunal decided in favour of the dismissed workers, ordering  Master Sports to pay severance of three months salary plus full payment for the month of June. "The tribunal decided that the factory must provide severance equal to three months of pay plus the June salary for workers who were employed for more than one year. For those who have worked there for three to ten months, the company must pay the June salary and two months beyond that," Tun Tun Naing said. A deadline for the payment has not been set, but will be determined by the township-level labour department. Tun Tun Naing said that workers met with Burma's minister of labour on Saturday, who assured them that the ministry has summoned the factory owner to appear in a Burmese court. "The minister said the government has already sent two letters to the factory owner through the South Korean embassy ordering his presence in court. If he doesn’t appear, his assets will be seized and dispensed as compensation," Tun Tun Naing said. Related Stories Michaungkan activist sentenced to 8 months Bullet Points: 21 August 2014 Bullet Points: 20 August 2014 The whereabouts of the company's owner and his affiliates are currently unknown, as they left the country shortly after shutting down the factory on 26 June. The factory's employees, who claim they were not given advance notice of the closure, received assistance from the Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security to seek legal recourse. The ministry eventually brokered a deal through with the help of the South Korean embassy whereby the company agreed to offer one month's pay as severance; however only 56 of the 755 dismissed workers accepted the package. Workers protested at the South Korean embassy in July, demanding more compensation. They later claimed the company had coerced some employees into signing predatory agreements relinquishing severance. The case is thought to be the first ever instance of Burma's Ministry of Labour bringing a lawsuit against a company on behalf of workers.

New homes ready for displaced Meikhtila villagers Posted: 20 Aug 2014 10:24 PM PDT Around 1,500 people displaced by communal violence in central Burma's Meikhtila have been awarded homes in a newly built housing complex, according to a project official. Khin Nan, supervisor of the government-backed housing project, said that 350 new one-story homes in Chanayethar ward have already been allocated to displaced families, awarded by lottery on 19 August. "Of the 350 homes, 250 are complete and ready for move-in.  For the other 100 houses, residents will have the choice of moving in now or waiting until construction is complete," he said. Upon completion, each house will have two water tanks, solar panels, an electric meter box and electrical wire connections. Each household is granted a 30×40 ft plot of land. The project is part of an ongoing effort to resettle the thousands of mostly Muslim residents who have been living in one of five displacement camps since riots broke out in the city in March 2013. More than 10,000 people were initially displaced after Buddhist mobs ransacked a Muslim neighbourhood following a quarrel in a gold shop. Dozens were killed in the violence, and reports have suggested that authorities stood idly by as 20 Muslim students were massacred. Khin Nan said that about 2,000 people now remain in two displacement camps. Construction is underway for a 171-unit apartment complex to accommodate the remaining refugees, which is due for completion in December. The project implementation experienced some setbacks last year as many refugees, most of whom were farmers before the riots, opposed being relocated to an urban apartment complex. Recipients of the new houses, however, say they are satisfied with the arrangement.   Related Stories Arakan High Court rejects appeal in Taunggup lynching case Mandalay curfew to be lifted One dead in violence at Arakan refugee camp

Thai junta gives stalled Dawei SEZ the green light Posted: 20 Aug 2014 09:41 PM PDT Thailand's military regime has given Dawei development the go-ahead, saying the project will help to smooth investment between Thailand and Burma (officially known as Myanmar). The National Council for Peace and Order has agreed that development of the project should proceed as scheduled, said Perames Vudthitornetiraks, vice-president of the Neighbouring Countries Economic Development Cooperation Agency and director of Dawei SEZ Development (DSEZ). A 50:50 joint venture registered in Thailand, DSEZ is a special-purpose vehicle with a 75-year concession from the Burmese government to develop the special economic zone and a deep-sea port, replacing Italian-Thai Development Plc, which had received the concession from Burma in November 2010. “Myanmar wants to push the project forward swiftly, as it has been stalled for a long while,” Mr Perames said. “In comparison, the Thilawa Special Economic Zone, a joint venture between Myanmar and Japan, is moving ahead at a rapid pace.” Related Stories Bullet Points: 21 August 2014 Burma’s fish stock in severe decline Bamboo could be Burma’s next big export The terms of reference (ToR) for the first-phase bidding of the Dawei project are set to be drafted next month, with potential investors to become clearer in October. The first phase, located on one-fifth of the Dawei project’s total area, will include roads, a port and industrial estates. The Dawei project, located in eastern Burma, has been delayed since ousted Thai prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra dissolved parliament last December. A source recently said Thailand's National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB) would soon report on updated development to the junta and ask for guidelines on whether and how to proceed. Two consultancies have also been hired to revise the ToR to make the project more attractive to foreign investors. Under the original schedule, DSEZ had planned to open the bidding for three construction jobs this past February and announce the results this month. NESDB secretary-general Arkhom Termpittayapaisith warned that the project would prove difficult to develop if the Burmese and Thai governments failed to invest in infrastructure and utilities. Normally, investment in megaprojects or large industrial towns is handled by the government. The state invests in utilities and infrastructure while offering privileges to persuade the private sector to set up factories. Thailand and Burma last November officially agreed to push the ambitious scheme forward.   This article was first published in the Bangkok Post on 21 August 2014.

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