Democratic Voice of Burma |
- Bullet Points: 3 November 2014
- Magwe monks march in support of race protection laws
- Min Aung Hlaing visits Moscow
- Govt to confiscate idle industrial zone land
- Suu Kyi writes to Par Gyi’s widow
- Farmers Association to buy rainy season paddy
- Burmese journalists call for govt protection
| Bullet Points: 3 November 2014 Posted: 03 Nov 2014 04:34 AM PST On tonight's edition of Bullet Points:
You can watch Bullet Points every weeknight on DVB TV after the 7 o'clock news. |
| Magwe monks march in support of race protection laws Posted: 03 Nov 2014 04:27 AM PST Monks across Burma are pressuring the government to force through legislation controlling interfaith marriage. The rallying cry is being led by controversial preacher Ashin Wirathu. Buddhist nationalists in Magwe division are the latest to respond to calls for protests. |
| Posted: 03 Nov 2014 03:37 AM PST Commander-in-Chief of the Burmese army, Sen. Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, met Russian military officers at the Moscow airport yesterday, where they discussed technical cooperation, according to the Facebook page of Burma's Defence Ministry. The Facebook post said that Burma's military chief and his team were on their way to Belarus when they met with Russian military officials—including Alexandra Vasillievich Fomin, the joint chairman of Russia-Burma Military Technological Cooperation—at the Moscow airport. During the meeting they talked about increasing technical cooperation between the Burmese and Russian militaries. Related StoriesBurmese state-owned media mentioned that Min Aung Hlaing was visiting Belarus after receiving an invitation from the prime minister to discuss issues of shared interest and to learn about Belarusian culture. Belarus announced independence in 1991 after separating from the Soviet Union and initiated diplomatic relations with Burma in 1999. Burma and Belarus have been listed as amongst the most repressive countries in the world in annual reports compiled by human rights watchdogs such as Freedom House, which have criticized the two counties for their lack of basic freedoms—particularly freedom of the press. |
| Govt to confiscate idle industrial zone land Posted: 03 Nov 2014 02:52 AM PST Rangoon's industrial zone management committee announced last week that the divisional government will take back land from owners who have registered more than 4,000 acres in certain specified economic zones in the Rangoon area. However, a business owner in one Rangoon industrial zone said the government has already made similar announcements three times before without implementing the rules. "The government has said three times that they would take back non-functioning land, but nothing ever happened because people sent letters of appeal to the relevant parliamentary committees. Many of the letters said, 'This land is the only asset I own and it's the only thing I will have for financial support during retirement'," he said. The business owner continued, "Most of the idle land is owned by government officials, and that is why any rule that contemplates land seizures will never be enforced. Actually, these lands should have been confiscated around the year 2000." Instead of running business enterprises on the land, some individuals who purchased land in Rangoon industrial zones during the previous military regime have chosen to wait for prices to rise and then sell their land, he added. But the announcement said that landowners can only avoid confiscation if they submit business plans for their idle industrial zone lands and then actually start business operations by 1 February. Currently, land prices in Rangoon are between 300-500 million kyat (US$300,000 – $500,000) per acre. |
| Suu Kyi writes to Par Gyi’s widow Posted: 03 Nov 2014 01:28 AM PST Burma's opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi has sent a letter of condolence to the widow of Par Gyi, a journalist recently killed by the Burmese military while covering armed conflict in Mon State. Par Gyi's wife, Ma Thandar, released Suu's Kyi's letter to the media during an alms offering ceremony for the deceased journalist on November 2. In the letter, Suu Kyi recalled how Par Gyi cooperated with her and other democracy activists during the 1988 uprising. "My dear daughter Thandar, I am very sorry to hear about ‘my son’ Par Gyi. I remember that he worked with us during the democracy movement ever since he was a student. All of us who endured hardship during that period share our condolences for Par Gyi,” wrote Suu Kyi, adding: “I hope your family obtains justice”. Par Gyi was a political activist and a member of Aung San Suu Kyi's personal security team during the 1988 uprising. He was also one of the first National League for Democracy Youth members and acted as the group's Karen State coordinator. After his involvement in the uprising Par Gyi was forced into exile in Thailand and began working as a freelance journalist under the pseudonym "Aung Naing." His wife Ma Thandar spent several weeks looking for her lost husband after he went missing in late September until the military issued a report on 23 October which said the Burmese army killed him due, in part, to his involvement with the Klohtoobaw Karen Organization (KKO), the political wing of an armed group commonly known as the Democratic Karen Benevolent Association (DKBA). The government continues to describe Par Gyi as "Captain Aung Naing," a communications officer for the KKO. However, Par Gyi's family and friends dispute the Burmese army's claim that he was ever a member of the KKO. In an interview with DVB, Maj. Saw Lonlon from the DKBA denied that Aung Naing was a captain in the KKO, which does not even have ranks such as "captain" since, he said, it is merely a political group affiliated with the DKBA. Saw Lonlon admitted the DKBA knew Par Gyi, but only because he had previously contacted them to obtain information for his news reports. "We are often contacted by journalists and usually we show them around, but Aung Naing couldn't film much because there was fighting taking place," said Saw Lonlon. Ma Thandar and the rest of Par Gyi's family have been demanding justice and want to know why he was detained and murdered by the Burmese army while working as a journalist. The international community has expressed outrage at the incident, including the United States, which has called on Naypyidaw to conduct a transparent investigation into the journalist's death. Protests condemning the killing have already taken place in several Burmese cities, including Mandalay, Mandalay, Hinthada, Prome and Rangoon. However, the government been reluctant to grant permission for protests related to Par Gyi's death, and has already arrested several individuals for holding demonstrations without a permit. In Mandalay, an activist was informed by police on 29 October that he was being charged for violating the Peaceful Assembly Act, which prohibits individuals from holding demonstrations without prior approval from the authorities and carries a maximum sentence of six months' imprisonment. Despite the possibility of being arrested for violating the law, around 200 activists still showed up for the protest in Mandalay to call for an independent inquiry into Par Gyi's death. In Prome, 100 people gathered for a similar protest even though two of the protest organisers are likely to be charged under the Peaceful Assembly Act, according to a report in The Irrawaddy. This year a rising number of media workers have been arrested and imprisoned, a trend which UN Special Rapporteur Yanghee Lee denounced in her speech to the UN General Assembly which summarized a report she wrote about Burma's human rights situation. During her speech on 28 October, the special envoy expressed concern about reports that "outdated legislation" is still being used to "criminalize and impede the activities of civil society and the media". Most likely, Lee's concern about government suppression of civil society and the media was a response to Par Gyi's murder and the unusually long prison sentences handed down to media employees and peaceful protesters this year—including five individuals working for a weekly news publication called Unity Journal who were sentenced to tens years' imprisonment in July on grounds of "exposing state secrets." Related StoriesThe disturbing increase in the number of media workers being intimidated, arrested, jailed and killed worldwide prompted around 100 Burmese journalists to hold a candlelight prayer vigil in Rangoon yesterday to mark the first International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists. In recent weeks, the Burmese government has taken some steps to respond to growing public anger about Par Gyi's death and the jailing of other Burmese journalists. In particular, on 30 October—just a few days after a large protest was held in Rangoon demanding justice for Par Gyi's murder—the Burmese government issued a press release stating that President Thein Sein's office has ordered the Myanmar National Human Rights Commission to conduct an investigation into his death. However, the government's press release still referred to Par Gyi as "Captain Aung Naing" of the KKO and has still hasn't provided an explanation of why it took so long to release the report about Par Gyi’s death. On 21 October, the Myanmar Journalists Network met with Information Minister Ye Htut to discuss their concerns about the rising number of legal actions lodged by the Burmese government against media employees, but it was the first time a government minister met with the journalist association—despite the fact that numerous NGOs have been criticising the government this year for harassing the media and using the law as a tool to stifle the media. In June, Human Rights Watch said the government was using "intimidation" tactics against local media, and Reporters Without Borders released a statement in July condemning Burma's Special Branch—a police intelligence agency—for harassing the news media on the pretext of conducting financial audits. A Reporters Without Borders statement said that Special Branch officers went to the Myanmar Herald's office on 23 July and detained three of the news journal's editors without any explanation. For the moment, the Par Gyi case has become a rallying point for Burma's media workers, who have received support from numerous NGOs such as the 88 Generation Peace and Open Society (88GPOS), which released a statement on 24 October strongly condemning the army for summarily executing a civilian, labelling it "a lawless act". The 88GPOS' leader, Mya Aye, said the army is responsible for the murder of Aung Naing and the group will demand justice against the perpetrator(s). "As soon as we heard news that Ko Par Gyi was missing, we reached out to government officials and stressed that he is entitled to legal rights, and that they cannot just arbitrarily detain him and take him away to unknown places," said Mya Aye. The 88GPOS leader then added, "We learned from Aung Naing's family that when they first went to look for him [in Kyeikmayaw], the army told them they would be allowed to see him and that he could be released if his family bails him out. But later they backtracked on their promise and began avoiding the family. "According to the statement released [on 24 October], the army conjured up a far-fetched story about him, claiming that he was shot dead for trying to rob a gun while escaping from detention. But we do not accept that. From a legal point of view, the army has committed a crime and we demand to see effective legal action against the perpetrator(s). We will stage public protests if necessary," said Mya Aye. The Committee to Protect Journalists' has also weighed in on the Par Gyi case, with the group's Southeast Asia Representative, Shawn Crispin, releasing a statement on 24 October. "We are gravely concerned by reports that journalist Aung Kyaw Naing has been killed while being held in military custody in Burma. Government authorities must investigate these reports, reveal publicly the circumstances behind his death, and prosecute the perpetrators under the fullest extent of the law," said Crispin. In early October, Par Gyi was buried by the Burmese army in Karen State without informing his family, but after coming under pressure from Par Gyi's family and civil society the police informed Ma Thanda on Sunday that her husband's body would be exhumed so that Par Gyi's family can see the body and a more thorough forensic investigation can take place. |
| Farmers Association to buy rainy season paddy Posted: 03 Nov 2014 01:11 AM PST The Myanmar Farmers Association (MFA) has pledged to fix a set price for the new harvest, due in early December, at 350,000 kyat (US$350) per 100 baskets* of paddy. Nearly 16 million acres of rice fields are due to be harvested next month, a seasonal task that marks the end of the rainy season. However, with a glut or excess in the market, farmers worry that prices will drop. The MFA has therefore stepped in to guarantee a reasonable return on the farmers' produce, a representative of the Association told DVB. "The MFA plans to buy paddy from all farmers at a rate of 350,000 kyat per hundred baskets, and to preserve a percentage as spare rations for the nation," said MFA Chairman Dr Soe Htun. In addition, the Myanmar Rice Federation and Myanmar Agribusiness Public Corporation will send local representatives to rice farms to moderate and buy billions of kyats worth of paddy, he said. Soe Htun warned farmers to harvest the paddy systematically and keep it protected from damp, otherwise it would be exempt from purchase. |
| Burmese journalists call for govt protection Posted: 02 Nov 2014 11:39 PM PST Burmese journalists took to the streets in Rangoon on Sunday to mark the UN International Day to End Impunity For Crimes Against Journalists. The demonstration was staged to send a message to the Thein Sein government to take active measures to protect reporters within the country. About 100 demonstrators gathered in solidarity in front of Rangoon City Hall wearing black wrist bands to protest what they say is an ongoing repression of media freedom in Burma and the continuing arrest of reporters. Led by the Myanmar Network of Journalists (MNJ), the protestors lit candles and circumambulated Sule Pagoda, praying for the safety of journalists. Myint Kyaw, general secretary of the MNJ, said that journalists are constantly under threat and often criminalised in Burma. He also noted that despite the proclaimed reformist outlook of the Thein Sein government, it remained mum when two journalists were beaten up in Lashio and the perpetrators got away with it. Related StoriesMNJ's Shwe Hmong pointed to the cases of journalists from Unity Journal and Bi Mon Te Nay who had been jailed recently for crimes closely associated with news reporting. However, journalists in Burma are not just victims of the government but also the clusters of armed groups and insurgents within the country. "If they [insurgents] go unpunished for their crimes, violence will continue," said Myint Kyaw. The outcry against the murder of journalist Par Gyi by the Burmese army last month is still freshly etched in the minds of the media community at home and abroad. An investigation was called by President Thein Sein as the US embassy urged a transparent probe into the journalist's death. "In the Asia-Pacific last year, a journalist was killed at the rate of one every ten days," said the stated the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) in a statement to mark the day of action. "Already in 2014, 33 journalists and media workers have lost their lives including 13 killed in Pakistan alone." Through the social media campaign #whatareyoudoing, journalist communities across Asia aim to hold government leaders and policymakers accountable for crimes against reporters. To raise awareness about the hostile environment of reporting and the numerous lives lost while reporting true stories from the field, IFJ launched a 22-day "End impunity campaign" on Sunday. IFJ Asia-Pacific Acting Director, Jane Worthington, said: "This campaign is reminding the world that journalists do matter. They have families who love them, they are mums and dads, ordinary people; all carrying out the important and increasingly dangerous duty to keep society informed. But for every reporter threatened, for every life extinguished, democracy also suffers the ultimate price." |
| You are subscribed to email updates from DVB Multimedia Group | DVB Multimedia Group To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google Inc., 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, United States | |
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.