Democratic Voice of Burma

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• Bullet Points: 2 September 2014
• Quarantined Burmese man cleared of Ebola
• 16-yr-old Miss Myanmar says she was coaxed to ‘escort’ Korean tycoons
• Sagaing students protest controversial Education Bill
• President Thein Sein embarks for Europe
• Burmese mountaineers scale Hkakabo Razi
• Mud volcano erupts in Arakan

Bullet Points: 2 September 2014 Posted: 02 Sep 2014 05:04 AM PDT On today’s edition of Bullet Points: Andy Hall trial begins in Bangkok. Miss Myanmar hits back at Pageant organisers. Thein Sein to hold talks with German Chancellor. Burmese man cleared of Ebola.   You can watch Bullet Points every weeknight on DVB TV after the 7 o'clock news.

Quarantined Burmese man cleared of Ebola Posted: 02 Sep 2014 01:53 AM PDT A 22-year-old Burmese man, who was detained at Rangoon airport on 20 August on suspicion of carrying the Ebola virus, has been cleared after a series of tests and will be free to go home within five days, Burma's Ministry of Health announced on Tuesday. In a statement, the ministry confirmed that no Ebola virus was found in the patient after a series of blood tests at Rangoon's Waibagi Hospital were sent to a World Health Organisation (WHO)-recognised laboratory in India. It said that the blood samples were also forwarded to a virology laboratory in Hamburg, Germany, where the absence of Ebola was confirmed. On 22 August, the Ministry of Health said the man in question was diagnosed with 2 types of malaria, while awaiting the results of the Ebola test. The Myanmar Center for Disease Control and Prevention later posted an update on their Facebook page, assuring the steady recovery of the patient. Related Stories Bullet Points: 2 September 2014 BUSINESS WEEKLY – 24 August 2014 Possible Ebola patient has malaria The 22 year-old Burmese man was returning to Burma from West Africa when he was identified with a high fever upon his arrival at Rangoon International Airport. Another suspected carrier was detained in Vietnam, but to date no known cases of Ebola have been identified in Southeast Asia. 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 but 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, 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.

16-yr-old Miss Myanmar says she was coaxed to ‘escort’ Korean tycoons Posted: 02 Sep 2014 12:12 AM PDT Burma's Mae Myat Noe, the dethroned winner of the 2014 Miss Asia Pacific World competition in South Korea, has hit back at the pageant organisers who stripped her of her crown, accusing them of coercion, manipulation and lies. At a packed press conference in Rangoon on Tuesday, Moe Myat Noe dropped several bombshells that are sure to rock the beauty pageant world. First and foremost, she admitted to being only 16 years of age. "My only regret would be not protesting firmly enough when the national directors changed my age from 16 to 18," she said. May Myat Noe was savaged in the press last week by David Kim, director of media for the Seoul-based pageant, who said that the Burmese beauty was a "disappointment from the start", and that she had been "rude and dishonest" with pageant officials. He also said that the organisers had picked up the tab for a US$10,000 operation to have her breasts enhanced, a claim that May Myat Noe denied on Tuesday. Related Stories Bullet Points: 2 September 2014 Burmese beauty stripped of crown, but absconds with tiara Miss Myanmar aims to learn from past contestants "I was put under duress to undergo a head-to-toe cosmetic surgery which I refused," she said in a statement posted on her Facebook page. Perhaps the most shocking allegation was the young woman's contention that she was coerced to act as an escort for rich businessmen in the wake of winning the beauty contest. "I was told that, in order to generate funds to produce my music album, I need to accept invitations to escort some business tycoons whenever they require my company," she said. According to a report last week by The Associated Press, the organisers in Seoul said they were arranging singing and video deals for her. Kim reportedly said they wanted to "change the teenager's looks" as well. With regard to allegations that she absconded with the Miss Asia Pacific tiara, May Myat Noe told reporters on Tuesday that she will not return the crown until she receives an official apology from the organisers. May Myat Noe became a household name in Burma when she won the Miss Asia Pacific World 2014 crown in June.

Sagaing students protest controversial Education Bill Posted: 01 Sep 2014 11:31 PM PDT Burmese university students stood their ground and protested on Monday against the controversial draft of the National Education Bill, which was approved by the Union Parliament on 30 July. More than 30 students from the Sagaing Art and Science University, Technical University and Cooperative University participated in the rally, which was allowed to proceed without intervention by local authorities. Protest over the bill is widespread, throughout universities in Rangoon and Mandalay among other cities. On 29 August, students from Monywa protested against the Bill. Since its approval by parliament more than one month ago, the National Education Bill has met with firm opposition and protests from students unions, the university teachers union and the National Network for Education Reform, all of whom have referred to the mandate as "centralized" and "ambiguous". Related Stories Over 1,000 in Mandalay protest mining activities The power of protest: Nay Myo Zin Mandalay students protest education bill "The National Educational Bill is incapable of producing modern, educated people – rather it indoctrinates a system of slavery," said student leader Min Htet Soe. Student leaders in different fields of education have stated that the National Education Bill severely curbs students' rights. Demonstrations have been staged across the country ever since the bill has been introduced to "dismiss its unjust rules." The bill which was introduced in the parliament, earlier in March 2014, has been criticised for allegedly subjecting the education system in Burma to strict government control.

President Thein Sein embarks for Europe Posted: 01 Sep 2014 11:26 PM PDT President Thein Sein flew out of Naypyidaw on Monday evening to begin a 10-day trip to Europe which will include official visits to Germany, Switzerland and the Netherlands for the first time. The president was accompanied by Foreign Minister Wunna Maung Lwin; Information Minister Ye Htut; President's Office Minister Soe Thane; Minister for Livestock, Fisheries and Rural Development Ohn Myint; Minister for Transport Nyan Tun Aung; and Minister for Electric Power Khin Maung Soe. No specific details were announced, though state media reported that the trip was "to promote friendship and cooperation" between Burma and the nations involved. Thein Sein is scheduled to meet German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Tuesday, September 2, before travelling to Switzerland and the Netherlands. Last year, the Burmese president made official trips to Britain, Norway, France, Italy and Belgium. Related Stories Bullet Points: 2 September 2014 Unity five launch last appeal against harsh sentence 12 Foreign companies await results on Kyaukphyu SEZ European nations, and the European Union in particular, have been offering financial support to Burma since it began undertaking democratic and economic reforms in 2011. In July, the EU funded a 4 million euro programme to tackle climate change in Burma, while in May, the Council of the European Union initiated a plan for regular human rights dialogue between the bloc and Burma. In February, German President Joachim Gauck agreed to halve Burma's debt to Germany. It now stands at US$740 million to be repaid at low interest over 15 years.

Burmese mountaineers scale Hkakabo Razi Posted: 01 Sep 2014 10:19 PM PDT Eight members of Rangoon University's Hiking and Climbing Association have become the first ever Burmese expedition to scale the 5,881m peak of Burma’s highest mountain, Hkakabo Razi. The eight reached the summit at 5pm on 31 August, exactly one month after setting off by foot from Putao in northern Kachin State. The team, known as Thabawa Khawthan, literally "nature's call", planted the Burmese national flag and placed Buddha statues at the summit, said Myo Thant, chairman of the Nature's Call Foundation. "They stayed at the peak for only about half an hour, because it was nearly dark," he said. "The weather conditions were very harsh. They planted the Burmese flag and left four Buddha statues at the summit before descending." The team, led by Aung Myint Myat, were all reported to be in good health and were expected to reach base camp on 8 September. The eight-man team practiced for about a year and a half on bare rock face in Kachin State and ice mountains in China before they attempted Hkakabo Razi. Although this marks the first ever ascent of Southeast Asia's highest peak by a squad of Burmese mountaineers, a Tibetan-born Burmese national named Nyima Gyaltsen (a.k.a. Aung Tse) accompanied the first successful expedition, led by Japanese climber Takashi Ozaki, to ascend the mountain in 1996. Ozaki died attempting to climb Mount Everest in 2011. The Himalayan peak of Hkakabo Razi marks the tri-border between Burma, India and China. In 1924, an Indian geological team first measured the mountain at 19,295 feet (5,881m). Related Stories Burma prepares for ASEAN foreign ministers' summit Bullet Points: 24 July 2014 Burmese Everest team postpones summit attempt

Mud volcano erupts in Arakan Posted: 01 Sep 2014 08:39 PM PDT A mud volcano in Kyaukphyu Township on the west coast of Burma has erupted, spilling tons of mud across three village tracts and destroying more than 100 acres of paddies fields. No one has been reported injured. The mud volcano erupted on Friday evening at around 5pm, according to Htun Htun Naing of the Rakhine Social Network Information Centre. "Warm mud lava flooded more than 30 acres of paddy fields in Shauk-Chaung village track," he told DVB on Monday. "It flowed quickly for about two hours before settling." He confirmed that there were no casualties; however the mud had been flowing towards the land reserved for the Kyaukphyu Special Economic Zone (SEZ), raising concerns, he said. Shauk-Chaung village is located less than half a mile from the demarcated boundary of the SEZ. On Tuesday morning, Shauk-Chaung resident Kyaw Win updated DVB, saying that a total of 90.4 acres, mostly rice fields and pasture, had now been confirmed inundated by mud in the village area, but no houses had been destroyed. He said two other village tracts have been affected, with the total devastation estimated to be between 100 and 200 acres. Related Stories 12 Foreign companies await results on Kyaukphyu SEZ 19 feared dead after fishing boat capsizes off Burma’s coast Maday islanders complain of broken promises on electricity Arakan State is home to a number of small mud volcanoes, which exude a warm mud-like substance caused by a build-up of abiogenic hydrocarbons. About 86 percent of the gas released from these structures is methane, with a small amount of carbon dioxide and nitrogen emitted. Local news agency Narinjara reported in June that a proposal had been made to shift the Kyaukphyu SEZ from the villages of Sit Taw and Si Maw to another location as a mud volcano had been discovered there. The report cited Aung Kyaw Than, a senior official at the SEZ, saying, "The advisory group of SEZ International, which was invited by the government, suggested shifting the SEZ, and the authorities are actively considering a safer and new location." The town of Kani, south of Kyaukphyu, had been suggested.

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