Democratic Voice of Burma |
- Charges dropped for 50 media activists
- Possible Ebola patient has malaria
- Drugs and development in the Wa region
| Charges dropped for 50 media activists Posted: 23 Aug 2014 04:33 AM PDT A case filed against more than 50 journalists in mid-July for a demonstration demanding greater media freedoms has been dropped, according to Rangoon's Kamayut Township police. The journalists had previously been identified, questioned and charged with violating Article 18 of Burma's controversial Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession Act, for participating in an unpermitted demonstration. The protestors assembled in front of the Myanmar Peace Centre (MPC) on 12 July during a visit by President Thein Sein, demanding amnesty for five employees of the Unity Weekly news journal who had just been sentenced to ten years in jail with hard labour for an investigative report alleging the existence of a chemical weapons facility in central Burma's Magwe. The group, donning shirts that read "stop killing press", taped their mouths shut and put down their recording devices as the president met with celebrities on the MPC premises, which was established as venue for the country's peace negotiations. Deputy Station Officer Maung Maung Oo, who levied the charges, told DVB that the case was dismissed on 21 August, but that future demonstrations will be treated similarly. Related Stories"We haven’t brought the case to court, and we have stopped the police investigation. But as we all have to live under the law, anyone who breaks the law again will be charged,” he said. Shwe Hmon was one of the 50 journalists who were charged. He said that the case shows abuse of power and that the authorities are not transparent enough about their processes. "Authorities always use their power… They didn’t send us official letters about the charges. Now they have dismissed the case without informing us. We, the media, can't understand the laws and systems of power in our country," he said. The case was dismissed after President Thein Sein met with members of the Ministry of Information and the Interim Press Council earlier this month, at which the president vowed to do his best to ensure protection for journalists. Recent jailing of journalists in Burma has prompted international outcry and warnings that the country could be backsliding on reforms. While major media reforms, such as the disbandment of Burma's notorious pre-publication censorship board in August 2012, caused a wave of early optimism, disputes over new regulations and an apparent targeting of media workers has cast doubt on the government's commitment to establishing a free press.
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| Possible Ebola patient has malaria Posted: 22 Aug 2014 11:17 PM PDT A Burmese man who is being tested for the Ebola virus has been diagnosed with two types of Malaria, the Ministry of Health has confirmed. The young man was identified as a possible Ebola carrier by a screening team in Rangoon's Mingalardon International Airport when he arrived with a high fever and fatigue on Wednesday. He and four other passengers have since been quarantined in Rangoon’s Waibagi Hospital. The man is currently being treated for malaria and has shown some improvement, officials told state media on Friday, but the diagnosis does not preclude Ebola and test results for the virus are still pending. “We cannot say it is not Ebola yet. Two types of malaria were found. We are treating him for malaria," said Dr Toe Thiri Aung, deputy director of disease control under the Ministry of Health, speaking to DVB by phone on Friday. After working in west Africa for several months, the man was travelling back to Rangoon along with four of his colleagues. All five are still in the hospital's isolation ward. The patient's medical samples are being tested in a World Health Organisation (WHO) facility in India, as Burma lacks the equipment necessary for diagnosis. Burma's Ministry of Health established screening checkpoints at international airports, seaports and border crossings after a recent outbreak escalated in west Africa. An epidemic that is believed to have begun in late 2013 was not detected until March 2014. The WHO has reported 2,473 suspected cases and 1,350 deaths resulting from the outbreak as of 18 August 2014, making it the worst Ebola outbreak since the disease was first discovered in 1976. Ebola hemorrhagic fever, or Ebola virus disease, can be transferred via contact with the blood or other body fluids of an infected animal. There is no known cure for the disease, which has an estimated fatality rate of up to 90 percent, according to the WHO. No confirmed cases of Ebola have been reported in Southeast Asia to date.
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| Drugs and development in the Wa region Posted: 22 Aug 2014 09:03 PM PDT United Wa State Army (UWSA) spokesman Aung Myint speaks to DVB about drugs, development and education in the Wa region. Q: What role do you think the UWSA will play in the drug eradication programme that Burma has agreed to implement with the United Nations? A: Needless to say, we realised once we made peace with the Burmese government in 1993 that growing opium as a business venture does not improve the lifestyle of our people; in fact, it is more likely to harm them, especially children. Drugs could lead to our extinction. From that point, we adopted a policy to propagate, persuade and lead our people in the right direction. In 1995, we adopted a ten-year programme for opium eradication. In 2005, we were completely opium free –we substituted opium plantations with rubber, tea and other cash crops such as sandalwood. Also, we use the best of our limited knowledge to mine minerals. But we have now completely eradicated the opium the English brought to us more than 100 years ago. As a result, we have seen much more development in our region than, say, 20 years ago. Back in those days, we had no roads. Over the past 25 years, we have upgraded dirt tracks into gravel roads. We are now working on a five-year plan to further upgrade them – stretching about 700-800km in total – into two-lane, tarmac roads. Once this is completed, transportation in the region should be a lot more efficient and convenient. If we can operate transportation correctly, local businesses will gradually grow. Now we have rubber plantation projects in many villages, which is creating income for many households. Nowadays many Wa people can afford to own motorbikes. This is a clear mark of improvement in the region's economy. Q: Can you tell us more about the two-lane road construction? When did it start? A: We are now in the second year of a five-year plan to build two-lane roads over a stretch of about 700 km. So far, we have paved tarmac on about 200 to 300 km. We have also levelled the terrain, which is a large-scale project. Q: So this may lead to the opening of schools, and further development in the region? A: We have opened schools in many villages and towns in the Wa region. In the past, we did not have high literacy. Many adults were uneducated and could not even speak Burmese. I think we now have about 300 schools in the Wa region. Our education policy is not restricted –if a teacher specialises in Burmese language, then he or she may open or run a Burmese language school, and the same applies for Shan, Wa and Chinese language lessons. We believe that education is worthwhile no matter which language is taught. We also encourage the study of mathematics and such. What we are trying to do is to develop middle and high schools that can accommodate students from different language backgrounds. So far we have about nine high schools like that.
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