The Irrawaddy Magazine

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• Burma’s President Seeks Less EU Scrutiny Amid ‘Backsliding’ Concerns
• Army Detains Journalist Who Covered Fighting With Rebels, Wife Alleges
• Second Ethnic Newspaper Shuttered by Chin State Govt
• Thai Human Rights Commission Hears Concerns About Dawei SEZ
• Record Haul in Jade Sales to Burmese Traders
• Burma General Elections Scheduled in Late 2015: Election Official
• Sri Lanka Announces Early Presidential Poll in January
• Kerry Urges Stepped-Up Asian Effort Against Islamic State
• Despite Costly US Effort, Afghan Poppy Cultivation Hits New High
• Color and Culture at Rangoon Art Show

Burma’s President Seeks Less EU Scrutiny Amid ‘Backsliding’ Concerns Posted: 21 Oct 2014 06:26 AM PDT Burma's President Thein Sein, right, shakes hands with Italy's Prime Minister Matteo Renzi during the Asia-Europe Meeting in Milan on Oct. 16, 2014. (Photo: Reuters) RANGOON — President Thein Sein last week urged the European Union to stop submitting annual reports on human rights in Burma, even as a UN report was released noting with concern "possible signs of backsliding" on reforms implemented by his government. Burma's president on Friday told European leaders that while Burma's transition to democracy was at a "delicate" stage, "the government is committed to overcome the challenges and to continue the reform process without backtracking," according to a President's Office statement. The President's Office website said Thein Sein made the request at the 10th Asia-Europe Meeting in Milan, Italy. Citing the creation of a National Human Rights Commission and the establishment of a reporting mechanism for human rights violations, the President's Office went on to state that "considerable progress in human rights protection has been made in Myanmar but the international community has not recognized the progress enough." A UN report made public on Friday, however, presented a less rosy picture. In it, the UN special rapporteur on human rights in Burma, Yanghee Lee, called the arrest of journalists and protesting activists in Burma "troubling," and also noted allegations of ongoing rights abuses in areas of ethnic conflict and "systematic discrimination" against Rohingya Muslims in western Arakan State. The report, dated Sept. 23, will be presented to the UN General Assembly next week. "The important transition and far-reaching reforms in Myanmar must be commended," it states. "Yet, possible signs of backsliding should be addressed so as not to undermine the progress achieved." Asked by The Irrawaddy about the president's remarks in Milan, Aung Myo Min, a human rights activist and director of Equality Myanmar, said human rights abuses in Burma remained a concern. "Compared with the previous military government, there is a little reduction in human rights violations in some cases, and I don't want to deny this. But compared with international standards, it leaves a lot to be desired," he said. The activists added that Thein Sein might be seeking the economic benefits that could come with less scrutiny on Burma's human rights record. "If the international community recognizes an improvement on human rights, the government will get more investment; a reduction of the other remaining sanctions; financial support from foreign countries and international organizations," he told The Irrawaddy. Thein Sein's government launched a series of widely lauded reforms beginning in 2011, but the UN report is just the latest assessment contributing to a growing sense of uncertainty over the direction of the country. Yanghee visited Burma from July 17 to 26 and held meetings in Naypyidaw and Rangoon, as well as traveling to Mandalay, and Arakan and Kachin states. The special rapporteur also paid visits to political prisoners in prisons in four cities. Aung Myo Min said the most frequent and persistent human rights violation in Burma was the detention and prosecution of peaceful demonstrators, many of whom are charged under the controversial Peaceful Assembly Law, which requires prior approval from authorities to stage a demonstration. The UN report said "the exercise of the right to freedom of peaceful assembly should not be subject to authorization by the authorities and that a prior notification should be sufficient." In bolstering his case for the EU to drop its human rights scrutiny, Thein Sein pointed to the founding in 2011 of the National Human Rights Commission, but Aung Myo Min said the commission still "doesn't handle complaints effectively" and was "very weak in cooperating with civil society," with the activist adding that these were the main responsibilities of a human rights commission, according to international guidelines known as the Paris Standards. Burma has been subject to human rights assessments from a UN envoy since 1992, at the urging of the European Union, which began issuing its reports on the human rights situation the same year. The post Burma's President Seeks Less EU Scrutiny Amid 'Backsliding' Concerns appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

Army Detains Journalist Who Covered Fighting With Rebels, Wife Alleges Posted: 21 Oct 2014 06:06 AM PDT Than Dar, the wife of missing journalist Aung Kyaw Naing, speaks during a press conference in Rangoon on Tuesday. (Photo: Steve Tickner / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — The wife of a local journalist said that he has been detained by the Burma Army while reporting in Mon State on the  recent fighting between government forces and Karen rebels. She alleged that he has been custody of the army for several weeks and called for his immediate release. Than Dar, 46, said Aung Kyaw Naing, a 49-year-old freelance journalist from Rangoon and the father of her daughter, had last been seen several weeks ago in Mon State's Kyaikmayaw Township after returning from an area under the control of Democratic Karen Benevolent Army (DKBA). The Karen rebels were involved in heavy fighting with the Burma Army in the region in southeastern Burma at the time. Than Dar said local authorities, police and soldiers of Light Infantry Battalion 208, based in Kyaikmayaw, had apprehended the journalist in the town in late September or early October, and he had not been heard of since. "I am very worried about whether my husband is still alive or not," she said during a press conference held in Rangoon on Tuesday afternoon, where she was being supported by human rights activists. "They [the army] should show him in public." Mon State Border Affairs Minister Htay Myint Aung told The Irrawaddy that the police had apprehended Aung Kyaw Naing and then handed him over to local army commanders. "That's all I know about that story, he is being detained at the base of battalion 208," he said. Journalist Aung Kyaw Naing. (Photo: Yamoun Nar / Facebook) Than Dar said a police corporal at Kyaikmayaw Police Station had told her privately that he had seen Aung Kyaw Naing in custody of the army, and that he appeared to have been beaten. She said she visited the battalion 208 base with the help of the Mon National Party, where an army captain claimed his men had detained the journalist and then handed him over to the Border Affairs Ministry. A recent visit to the military's Southeastern Command in Moulmein had neither helped to clarify the situation. Aung Kyaw Naing was based in the Thai border town of Mae Sot and focused on ethnic issues in the Burma-Thailand border region; his work has reportedly appeared in different local media, including daily newspaper The Voice. Than Dar said she filed a report for a missing person and a complaint of possible kidnapping at the Kyaikmayaw Police Station on Sunday, adding that according to Burmese law no person can be held in custody for more than 24 days. The post Army Detains Journalist Who Covered Fighting With Rebels, Wife Alleges appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

Second Ethnic Newspaper Shuttered by Chin State Govt Posted: 21 Oct 2014 06:00 AM PDT A boy folds newspapers before selling them in Rangoon on Jan. 14, 2013. (Photo: Reuters) An unregistered minority-focused newspaper was ordered to shut down in northwestern Burma's Chin State last week, the second such forced closure within a month. The Falam Post, a Falam-language daily founded in June 2014, typically covers local news and government activity. With a circulation of about 1,000 copies, the paper is distributed in Falam, Chin State capital Hakha and Kalaymyoe in neighboring Sagaing Division. Falam Township authorities issued the order to cease operations under instruction of the Chin State government, according to the publisher, Bam Lian Hmung. Local authorities offered no further explanation, he said. "The notice letter we received said that the order is in accordance with a decision by the Chin State government, and the newspaper can only proceed after obtaining permission to publish under the new media law," Bam Lian Hmung told The Irrawaddy. An official at the Falam District Information and Public Relations Department confirmed that the order came directly from state-level administrators. In late September, the Hakha district administrator similarly ordered the sudden closure of the Hakha Post, published in the Lai language. The biweekly newspaper with a circulation of about 2,500 copies was shuttered under the order of the state's chief minister. President Thein Sein's administration has initiated sweeping media reforms; a pre-publication censorship board was dissolved in August 2012 and a new legislative package has since been approved to regulate the fourth estate. Two new laws make up the bulk of Burma's media reform: the government-drafted Printing and Publishing Enterprise Law and a Media Law written by the semi-independent Press Council. The former, which replaced the junta-era Printers and Publishers Registration Law, was criticized from the outset for preserving some of the old legislation's draconian provisions. The relaxation of strict censorship, however, has opened up the media landscape in various parts of the country and many new publications have started printing in ethnic minority languages, which was formerly restricted by government policies. The Chin Media Network, a non-governmental alliance of journalists, said that there are now more than 20 ethnic-language publications produced in the state, four of which are officially registered with the central government. Some papers issue periodic ethnic-language editions, like the officially registered Chinland Herald, which publishes bimonthly Falam-language journals in addition to their Burmese run. Minority focused news is invaluable to local consumers, according to Chin World Media editor Salai Hoang Htun Gay, who is also a member of the Chin Media Network. He said that such publications fill a major information gap by delivering news in native languages to places where mainstream Burmese media is often out of reach. Not only does this provide marginalized communities with much needed information that might not otherwise reach them, but it also fosters literacy and preserves a part of the culture, he said. "Community papers publish in accordance with their constitutional rights," explained Salai Hoang Htun Gay, "communities can freely develop their language, literature, culture and belief." Bam Lian Hmung said that he intends to register The Falam Post and resume publication, but that could be a lengthy process; registration services are not currently available in the remote and mountainous township, which is near the Indian border. He said that he has been advised to travel to Rangoon to complete the process, which he hopes to complete by next month. The publisher said that during their first four months of operation, they had not had any interference from the government and he believes that growing readership is behind the sudden enforcement. The post Second Ethnic Newspaper Shuttered by Chin State Govt appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

Thai Human Rights Commission Hears Concerns About Dawei SEZ Posted: 21 Oct 2014 05:29 AM PDT An ethnic Dawei woman walks past a fenced-off area of the Dawei SEZ that was confiscated in Mudu village, northern Maungmagan. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — Activists met with Thailand's National Human Rights Commission on Tuesday to submit research on negative impacts of the Dawei Special Economic Zone (SEZ), a currently stalled mega industrial and transport project jointly developed by the governments of Burma and Thailand. The Dawei Development Association (DDA), a community-based organization local to Dawei, presented the commission with a new report titled, "Voices from the Ground: Concerns over the Dawei Special Economic Zone and Related Projects." Based on research conducted in 20 villages that are or will be directly affected by the billion-dollar development in southeastern Burma's Tenasserim Division, the report concludes that there have been "critical flaws" in project-related land acquisitions as well as a "high possibility of corruption" that has left most of the area's villagers on the losing end of the deal. According to DDA, the SEZ and related infrastructure projects could impact as many as 43,000 people. The biggest concerns, the group said, are unfair land transfers and a lack of community consultation. "Two thirds of households surveyed did not receive any information from the government or company at all," read the report, which went on to explain that only about 15 percent of households received any form of compensation for lost land, and that many families were tricked or coerced into relocating. Only 27 percent of those surveyed had attended any sort of consultation meeting, and some of those who did described them as "one-way" discussions. DDA said that those who actually attended consultations typically did not participate, "mostly because they did not understand what was happening or there was no opportunity to ask questions." The group said that although the project is currently stalled due to a failure to secure private investors, much of the land for the SEZ has already been acquired and cleared. Hence, the effects are already being felt by communities that are not receiving any benefits of regional development. If the Burmese and Thai governments proceed with the project, which they have stated a mutual commitment to do, the group said that they should only do so after outstanding claims have been resolved. The DDA further warned potential investors that they "should refuse to engage with the Dawei SEZ project as long as the human rights of affected communities are not being protected or respected." The timely warning was issued just days after Japan announced plans to undertake three major feasibility studies on the stagnant development. The studies, which will examine regional trade potential, technical assistance requirements and how to secure private investors, are expected to cost about US$700,000, according to a Japanese official cited in Burma's state media. Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha met with Japan's Foreign Minister Minoro Kiuchi in early October, when they reportedly discussed an array of transport and other development plans including the Dawei SEZ. Prayuth visited Burma's President Thein Sein in Naypyidaw one week later, after which the president's office announced that the two governments had renewed their commitment to resume the project "as soon as possible." The Dawei SEZ was envisioned by the Burmese and Thai governments in 2008, and, if completed, will include a deep sea port, oil refinery, steel mill, petrochemical refinery and at least one power plant, as well as a range of new transport links. A 60-year concession to develop the SEZ was originally granted to one of Thailand's biggest firms, Italian-Thai Development Pcl. (ITD), in 2010. A joint venture, Dawei Development Company Ltd., was established by ITD and Burmese partner Max Myanmar, which then backed out of the project in 2012. The concession was transferred to a special purpose vehicle equally co-owned by the governments of Burma and Thailand, according to DDA. The post Thai Human Rights Commission Hears Concerns About Dawei SEZ appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

Record Haul in Jade Sales to Burmese Traders Posted: 21 Oct 2014 04:28 AM PDT An attendee at the 2014 Gems Emporium examines a piece of raw jade in Naypyidaw in July. (Photo: Sai Zaw / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — Jade sales at a major gems emporium for local traders in Burma hit a record high this week, a spokesperson for the Myanma Gems Enterprise sales committee told The Irrawaddy on Tuesday. Min Thu, the assistant director of the Myanma Gems Enterprise sales committee, said jade sales totaled 126 billion kyats (US$126 million), far surpassing a similar emporium held in January, when jade sales totaled 70 billion kyats—at that time also a record high. The Myanma Gems Enterprise and private enterprises offered 6,982 jade lots to local traders and sold 5,988 of them via auction at the Myanmar Gems and Jade Emporium, which was held in Naypyidaw from Oct. 14 to 20. More than 1,000 local traders participated in the week-long event. "This is the highest sales amount in kyats to local traders over the last three years," Min Thu said. The inaugural emporium was held in 2011. The highest valued jade lot at the emporium sold for 500 million kyats. Almost all of the jade lots were sourced from Hpakant in Kachin State. "We would like to hold at least two emporiums for local traders because if we're selling in kyats, the local currency will flow into the market. We earned only euro currency during the midterm emporium [in July]," he said. In 2013, there was no gems emporium for local traders, in part because the government banned jade mining activities in Kachin State as fighting intensified between the Burma Army and Kachin rebels. Burma produces the vast majority of the world's jade, most of which comes from Hpakant, 350 kilometers north of Mandalay, in the conflict-torn mountains of Kachin State. After fighting broke out in 2011, the government suspended large-scale mining operations in the area, but small-scale miners and hand-pickers moved in illegally. The government allowed mining in Kachin State to resume in early September, and has said it wants to reduce sales of raw jade to foreign traders in order to boost value-added exports of the stone. Aung Thein, owner of Mandalay-based gems trading company Myanmar Yadanar Aung Zabu, said the local jade market did not appear to be negatively impacted by the government's temporary suspension of mining activities in Kachin State. "The government has said that they will reduce raw jade sales to traders, but that's for foreign traders. For local traders, the market is still strong, but I heard that some local traders who won auction bids have not come back to claim their jade and pay, due to various reasons," he said. In July, the government and private enterprises sold about 2.6 billion euros (US$3.4 billion) in jade to foreign traders, up from about 2 billion euros last year, a Ministry of Mines official said. At this year's emporium for foreign traders, 7,160 lots were occupied by private miners and government-owned enterprises, including blocks of raw jade for sale. About 6,000 lots were sold. Most raw jade is exported to China, where it is highly prized by dealers and craftsmen who carve it into traditional Chinese sculptures and jewelry. Ministry of Commerce trade data provided to The Irrawaddy last year showed that jade was the country's second-biggest source of revenue after natural gas in 2011-12, valued at about $780 million. However, a July 2013 report by the US-based Ash Center at Harvard University put the value sales of Burmese jade as high as $8 billion in 2011 alone. The post Record Haul in Jade Sales to Burmese Traders appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

Burma General Elections Scheduled in Late 2015: Election Official Posted: 20 Oct 2014 10:50 PM PDT Tin Aye, chairman of the Union Election Commission, is seen giving a speech in this file photo. (Photo: The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — Burma's first democratic elections in 25 years are scheduled to be held in the last week of October or in the first week of November, the Union Election Commission has announced. Commission Chairman Tin Aye told the media about the dates for the general election at a press conference on Monday. In recent weeks, there had been some concern about a delay of the general elections, after President Thein Sein appeared to suggest that elections and a democratic transition could only be implemented successfully if the government reaches a nationwide ceasefire accord with ethnic rebel groups, something that has proved elusive so far. Tin Aye told journalists that the commission has no intention of postponing the elections, as the Constitution requires a new government to start five years after the current government took office in January 2011. "To do so, we have to hold a general election. According to the Constitution, we have to start Parliament within 90 days after the elections. To make this happen, we have to hold the elections either in the last week of October or in early November," he said. "So we can't postpone it." The commission chairman did not provide an exact date for the elections. "After we hold free and fair elections, I will resign," added Tin Aye, a former top general in the previous military regime and former member of the central committee of the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP). He made the remarks during a workshop on cooperation and coordination between the commission and civil society organizations during the elections. His comments on the scheduled election dates were also carried by state media on Tuesday, which reported that Tin Aye had called on the NGOs to be free from political bias when they observe the elections. The Burma Army gave up direct rule over the country in 2011, installing the nominally civilian government of President Thein Sein. Elections were announced for 2015 and are supposed to be a free and fair poll in the presence of local and international election observers. The last time Burma had democratic elections was in 1990 when Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy won a landslide victory, a result that was ignored by the army, which continued to hold on to power for decades. The post Burma General Elections Scheduled in Late 2015: Election Official appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

Sri Lanka Announces Early Presidential Poll in January Posted: 20 Oct 2014 11:00 PM PDT Mahinda Rajapaksa, President of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, addresses the 69th United Nations General Assembly at the UN headquarters in New York on Sept. 24, 2014. (Photo: Reuters) COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Sri Lanka will hold a presidential election in January, nearly two years ahead of schedule, the government's spokesman said on Monday, with Mahinda Rajapaksa expected to run for a third six-year term. The announcement came amid signs Rajapaksa's popularity is fading after accusations that his party is abusing power. "There will be presidential elections in January," spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella told a public gathering in the central city of Kandy. He declined to name an exact date. The move may affect Pope Francis's planned visit to Sri Lanka from Jan. 13-15, because the Vatican may not want it to go ahead so close to an election. According to the constitution, President Rajapaksa's second six-year term ends in November 2016. However, legal experts backing him say he can call for an early election after four years in office. Rajapaksa, 68, came to power in 2005 and retained the presidency in 2010 on a wave of popularity after the military defeat of Tamil Tiger separatists in 2009, ending a 26-year civil war. Rajapaksa has been accused of rights abuses and nepotism. He insists any relatives in parliament are there because people elected them and not because he chose them. Critics says he enjoys undue powers under a system known as "executive presidency" introduced by a 1978 constitution. Rajapaksa said during election campaigns in 2005 and 2010 he would abolish the executive presidency, but has not done so yet, saying it is still needed to curb any potential threat from the defeated Tamil Tigers. "I will be ready to abolish the executive presidency, if those who are seeking separatism abandon their demand," Rajapaksa told minority Tamils on Oct. 12 in the northern town of Kilinochchi, the former de-facto rebel capital. Unlimited Terms The 2009 victory over the separatists helped him to secure more than two thirds of parliamentary seats, enabling him to change the constitution that had limited leaders to two terms in office. The public euphoria has long faded, however. The ruling United People's Freedom Alliance party won a local election in the southeastern province of Uva last month, but with 21 percent less support than in 2009. There is controversy over whether Rajapaksa is legally entitled to run for a third term. Some experts say he cannot do so without winning a further parliamentary vote to make the constitutional amendment retrospective in his own case, along with a referendum. "If he wants to make the law retrospective he needs to do it through proper process. He needs a two-thirds majority in the parliament to pass it and needs a referendum," Upul Jayasuriya, the president of the Sri Lanka Bar Association, told Reuters. Lawyers backing Rajapaksa say the Supreme Court alone can interpret the constitution and determine whether he can run. Opposition parties as well as one of his own coalition partners have said a third term for Rajapaksa without abolishing the executive presidency would be illegal. Coalition partner Jathika Hela Urumaya, a Buddhist extremist party which helped him to win majority Sinhala-Buddhist votes in the last two elections, has called on him to abolish the executive presidency and restore democracy. No rival with a realistic chance of defeating Rajapaksa has so far emerged. Criticism from abroad of Sri Lanka's conduct during the final phase of the war has boosted Rajapaksa's popularity, as many ethnic majority Sinhalese consider such accusations unfair. The United Nations estimated in a 2011 report that about 40,000 Tamil civilians were killed in the final weeks of the conflict, mostly by the army. Sri Lanka has rejected the allegation. The post Sri Lanka Announces Early Presidential Poll in January appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

Kerry Urges Stepped-Up Asian Effort Against Islamic State Posted: 20 Oct 2014 10:46 PM PDT US Secretary of State John Kerry thanks the local police who helped with his security and motorcade in Jakarta on Oct. 21, 2014. (Photo: Reuters) JAKARTA — US Secretary of State John Kerry urged Asia-Pacific leaders on Monday to do more to stem the flow of foreign fighters to Islamic State in the Middle East and choke off finance to the militants. In Jakarta for the inauguration of Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Kerry also met the prime ministers of Malaysia and Singapore, the sultan of Brunei, Australia's prime minister and the foreign minister of the Philippines. Meeting Malaysian leader Najib Razak, Kerry praised his largely Muslim state's strong condemnation of Islamic State, but also said the international community should do more to crack down on foreign fighters, a US State Department official said. With his counterpart from the Philippines, Albert del Rosario, Kerry discussed such efforts under way there. The Islamic State issue was not raised with Widodo on his inauguration day as leader of the world's most populous Muslim state, the new president told reporters—in spite of US concerns about flows of militants from Indonesia. En route to Jakarta, senior US officials said Kerry's discussions would cover ways to stop Islamic State's recruitment, prevent the return of hardened fighters to the region, and block militant financing. One senior US official said the United States would like to see Indonesia do more to freeze militants' assets in line with UN Financial Action Task Force requirements. In his meeting with Australia's Tony Abbott, Kerry hailed Australia's active support for the campaign against Islamic State, which has included air strikes. "We couldn't have a stronger partner and we are very, very grateful for Australia's consistent willingness to step up and stand for values, as well as interests, that are important to us," Kerry said. Australia's experience with domestic militants joining Islamic State "brings home to everybody how important it is to be a global coalition and for all of us to understand the stakes," he said. US officials said Kerry's Jakarta talks would also touch on territorial disputes in the South China Sea, where China's increasing assertiveness is a worry to Washington and its Asian allies, the fight against Ebola, and the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact under negotiation. A senior US official said Kerry congratulated Widodo on his inauguration and emphasized Indonesia's important role in the 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean). Washington is keen for Jakarta to play an influential role in Asean, which the United States sees as an important ally in maintaining US influence in the region as China's grows. Kerry's visit came ahead of an East Asia Summit in Burma next month and of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in Beijing. Before heading to Indonesia, Kerry hosted two days of talks in his native Boston with China's top diplomat, State Councillor Yang Jiechi, to warm the mood for a meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Barack Obama after APEC. Both sides stressed the need to manage differences and cooperate against global threats including Islamic State. The post Kerry Urges Stepped-Up Asian Effort Against Islamic State appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

Despite Costly US Effort, Afghan Poppy Cultivation Hits New High Posted: 20 Oct 2014 10:15 PM PDT An Afghan man works on a poppy field in Jalalabad province April 17, 2014. Afghanistan is the world’s top cultivator of the poppy, from which opium and heroin are produced. (Photo: Reuters) WASHINGTON — Opium poppy cultivation in Afghanistan hit an all-time high in 2013 despite years of counter-narcotics efforts that have cost the United States $7.6 billion, the U.S. government watchdog for Afghanistan reconstruction spending said on Tuesday. The U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime reported that Afghan farmers grew an "unprecedented" 209,000 hectares (516,000 acres) of opium poppy in 2013, surpassing the previous high of 193,000 hectares (477,000 acres) in 2007, said John Sopko, the special inspector general for Afghanistan reconstruction. "In past years, surges in opium poppy cultivation have been met by a coordinated response from the U.S. government and coalition partners, which has led to a temporary decline in levels of opium production," Sopko said in a letter to Secretary of State John Kerry, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and other top U.S. officials. "The recent record-high level of poppy cultivation calls into question the long-term effectiveness and sustainability of those prior efforts," he said. Afghanistan produces more than 80 percent of the world’s illicit opium, and profits from the illegal trade help fund the Taliban insurgency. U.S. government officials blame poppy production for fueling corruption and instability, undermining good government and subverting the legal economy. The United States has spent $7.6 billion on counter-narcotics efforts in Afghanistan since launching the programs following the start of the 2001 war, it said. Sopko said the U.N. drug office estimated the value of poppy cultivation and opium products produced in Afghanistan in 2013 at about $3 billion, a 50 percent increase over the $2 billion estimated in 2012. "With deteriorating security in many parts of Afghanistan and low levels of eradication of poppy fields, further increases in cultivation are likely in 2014," Sopko said in the letter. He said affordable deep-well technology brought to Afghanistan over the past decade had enabled Afghans to turn 200,000 hectares (494,000 acres) of desert in southwestern Afghanistan into arable land, much of it devoted to poppy production. The U.S. Embassy in Kabul, in a letter responding to the findings, said the rise in poppy cultivation and decline in eradication efforts by provincial authorities was "disappointing news." It said U.S. officials were helping Afghans develop the ability to lead and manage a long-term counter-narcotics effort. The embassy said the fight against poppy cultivation had had an impact on growers, resulting in a change in where the crop is planted. "Essentially, poppy cultivation has shifted from areas where government presence is broadly supported and security has improved, toward more remote and isolated areas where governance is weak and security is inadequate," it said. Michael Lumpkin, the assistant secretary of defense for special operations and low-intensity conflict, said in a response letter that the Pentagon had supported counter-narcotics operations by other U.S. government agencies but was not responsible for managing poppy eradication programs. "In our opinion, the failure to reduce poppy cultivation and increase eradication is due to the lack of Afghan government support for the effort," Lumpkin said. The post Despite Costly US Effort, Afghan Poppy Cultivation Hits New High appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

Color and Culture at Rangoon Art Show Posted: 20 Oct 2014 05:00 PM PDT A painting on display at the Lokanat Galleries in Rangoon this week. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — Starting on Monday and running through Friday of this week, 41 works of art in watercolor, oil, acrylic and pastel paints are on public display at Rangoon's Lokanat Galleries. The paintings are from 16 Burmese artists, including famous painters like Kyee Myint Saw and Win Tint, in an exhibition titled "Color Palette." The subjects of the paintings range from an ordinary Burmese countryside scene and an urban market setting to still lifes and male nudes. The post Color and Culture at Rangoon Art Show appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

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