Thursday, April 3, 2014

Democratic Voice of Burma

Democratic Voice of Burma


Thugs attack reporters in Mandalay: police deny involvement

Posted: 03 Apr 2014 02:20 AM PDT

Police in Mandalay have denied any connection to men in civilian clothing, alleged to be informers, who attacked reporters covering a protest on Monday right in front of law enforcement officials who looked on without interfering.

Three news correspondents, including one from DVB, were covering an electricity price protest in Mandalay when they were physically assaulted by about 50 to 100 men who had arrived at the protest site alongside the police.

Zarni Mann, a reporter for Irrawaddy News Magazine, who was targeted along with DVB's Eain Khine Myae and Mandalay Era's Zaw Zaw, said the men immediately blended into the crowd of unsuspecting reporters before unleashing blows with their fists and elbows.

"When we arrived at the scene of the protest there were no police," she said. "They showed up later along with some plain-clothed men who mingled among the crowd of reporters. I was recording an audio when one of them barged in between me and the police – I thought at first he was a fellow reporter – but then he pushed my face back and elbowed me in the chest."

Several other journalists claimed they recognised the assailant, as an individual who was seen helping the police arrest four individuals at a similar protest the week before.

When he was spotted by the reporters, some of whom approached him and questioned his motives, the man dashed into a nearby monastery compound and escaped.

Later in the day, around 30 Mandalay-based reporters went to the Divisional Police Headquarters to inquire about the men in civilian attire, but were told by police deputy-commander Col Myint Oo that the police had no informers, according to newspaper editor San Yu who spoke for the journalists at a meeting with the official.

"We asked Col Myint Oo if the men were their informers," said San Yu. "He denied it, and said his police force did not subscribe to the use of informants. He said he had no knowledge of whether the men in question were from other branches under the Home Affairs Ministry such as the Special Intelligence Department."

He said the reporters are preparing to write a letter of complaint to the Mandalay Divisional Government with a request to investigate the assault.

Zaw Thet Htwe, an editor and member of the Interim Press Council, said that reporters need to be careful and protect themselves when chasing news during this period before laws are adopted to protect journalists.

"Burma's president recently signed the Media Law, but we still need to see how it will be applied," he said. "In the meantime, journalists need to be careful because the authorities can still harass us or arrest us. Police can press charges on us for: disturbing official duties; trespassing; defamation; or even under the Official Secrets Acts for simply entering their premises."

Zaw Thet Htwe added that he believes the government authorities still see journalists as their enemy.

In late January, several staffers from Unity News Journal were arrested by government authorities for publishing a report on an alleged chemical weapons factory being built by the Burmese army in Magwe division. Four of them, including the chief-editor , were subsequently sued by the government under the Official Secrets Acts, and are facing up to 14 years in prison if found guilty.

Win Tin given ‘50-50 chance’ despite regaining consciousness

Posted: 03 Apr 2014 01:21 AM PDT

The National League of Democracy (NLD) has been told that party elder Win Tin has a 50-50 chance of survival, despite the 84-year-old having regained consciousness in the intensive care unit at Rangoon General Hospital.

"Win Tin is in a critical but stable condition in the intensive care unit." NLD executive committee member Han Thar Myint told DVB on Thursday. "We are remaining hopeful that things will improve in the future, but we have been told by doctors he only has a 50-50 chance of survival."

According to Win Tin's doctor, Dr Myint Thein, the former journalist and 19-year political prisoner underwent an operation on his large intestine on Saturday for an infection stemming from his preexisting lung disease. Myint Thein said Win Tin was rushed to hospital with internal bleeding after doctors noticed an irregular heart rate.

However Win Tin's niece, Yin Tun, speaking from the stricken democracy leader's bedside, said that his condition has improved as of Thursday morning. "He still needs help breathing and the situation is still serious, although he indicated to me that he is feeling a little bit better," she told DVB by telephone.

Public concern for Win Tin's condition has prompted scores of supporters to maintain a vigil outside Rangoon General Hospital, praying for the veteran politician's health. NLD leader Aung San Suu Kyi, however, has not yet visited the man considered second in charge of Burma's political opposition, despite her being in Rangoon.

"She was due to visit him yesterday, however she did not come. I have not heard anything about a visit today," Yin Tun said on Thursday.

Win Tin joined the NLD in 1989 and acted as a close aid to Suu Kyi as the party established itself. The senior leader vigorously campaigned for constitutional change before he was taken ill, with a particular focus on the amendment of Article 59(f), which bars Suu Kyi from running for the presidency.

Han Thar Myint said that he was unsure of why the NLD leader had not checked in on her deputy.

"I hope she will come soon," Han Thar Myint said. "There are a lot of people waiting."

DVB Debate: Logging out

Posted: 03 Apr 2014 12:25 AM PDT

On 1 April a new directive came into force prohibiting the export of all raw timber. Firms will still be allowed to process timber in the country and export value-added products such as teak furniture and semi-processed wood that have been chopped or sliced. But how absolute is this ban and how will it be enforced?

On DVB Debate's panel this week: timber exporter Soe Maw; environmental expert Nyo Maung; Barber Cho, from Myanmar Timber Merchants Association; and Maung Maung Than, from the Regional Community Forestry Training Centre.

Panellists disagreed on how effective the ban will be in tackling deforestation and the ban's potential effect on the timber industry.

Barber Cho said the directive, issued by the Ministry of Environmental Conservation and Forestry, would have a negative effect on timber production companies.

"The log timber export ban, will bring benefits to the wood-based industry as it will increase the raw timber in the domestic market. But for timber production companies, it will be harmful because their businesses will have to be closed," he said.

Nyo Maung agreed that some domestic businesses will benefit, but claimed that the ban will have a negligible effect on deforestation.

"With value-added exports, we will gain more income while employment opportunities will improve. But deforestation will continue as long as the trees are cut for the purpose of exporting log timber or in any other way," he said.

However, timber exporter Soe Maw insisted the ban will have a positive impact on deforestation.

"Actually, deforestation is not caused by the local timber industry, the main cause is raw log timber exports," he said.

After military rule began in 1962, corruption in the extractive industries became endemic and deforestation accelerated. Government figures put Burma's current forested area at around 47 percent, though some officials have said this figure could be as low as 24 percent.

Military generals gave logging concessions to crony businessmen to export raw logs in exchange for the cash needed to support their rule after sanctions and economic mismanagement starved them of hard currency.

A recent report released by the Environmental Investigation Agency on 25 March revealed US$6 billion worth of unauthorised timber exports between the years 2000 and 2013.

Front row guest Tony Neil from EcoDev criticised panellists for avoiding the more controversial side of this issue.

"Today people have spoken about the technical side, the impact and loss of revenue, but we haven’t spoken about the rampant corruption that plagues the whole sector," he said. "We need to tackle the corruption and the political issue first."

Barber Cho admitted that there are some flaws in the system.

"Monitoring is not really effective because the forestry management institution is a government institution and the official timber cutter is MTE [Myanmar Timber Enterprise] which is also a government institution," he said. "So there are weaknesses in compliance."

Forestry expert U Ohn said more measures needed to be taken if Burma is going make an impact on deforestation. Tree felling, as well as exports, needs to be stopped or reduced in order to save Burma's forests, he said.

He went on to say that strict measures needed to be put in place to stop illegal cross-border trade.

"We must protect it in many different ways and as much as we can. To speak honestly, the border areas should be watched and controlled, even with armed personnel," he said.

However, others on the panel were more positive about the direction the country is taking on environmental issues. Maung Maung Than said the timber ban showed a change in attitude from the government and is evidence of improvement.

"The Forestry Department is the main institution. And the political changes in the country have given power to the media and civil society," he said. "Even though I don't want to say it is perfect, I think our first steps are going in the right direction."

The studio generally agreed that the ban is a positive step towards improving the sector, but it will not end deforestation. The law may only work if other reforms are implemented to tackle the endemic corruption in the industry.

 

You can join the debate and watch the full programme in Burmese at dvbdebate.com

Or share your views with us by commenting on our website at dvb.no

 

Protestors should behave with ‘discipline’: officials

Posted: 02 Apr 2014 08:54 PM PDT

Citizens of Burma that stage protests have a right to freedom of expression, but at the same time they must show courtesy and make an effort to avoid causing disturbances to the general public at their rally sites, security officials have warned.

On Tuesday, Col Tin Win of the Security and Border Affairs Ministry met with participants in a two-month-long sit-in in Rangoon's Tamwe Township, where he urged them to respect the public's right not to be disturbed by their activities.

"Protestors need to consider the public in the area of rally sites – having crowds of people chanting slogans every day in front of their houses; defecating and urinating in the street, activities which cause a great deal of disturbance," colonel Tin Win said to the protestors' representatives in the meeting.

"They must ensure that practicing their freedom of speech does not disturb the liberty of others."

Police Brig-Gen Thura Bo Ni said showing a sense of discipline at the rallies is the best way for the protestors to best practice their freedom of expression.

"Nowadays, we can enjoy our freedom of speech and debate, and protest with official permission, as our country is gaining momentum on its track to democracy and conformity with international standards," he said.

"If the citizens can adopt a custom of discipline when staging protests to highlight their problems, it would be in the best interests of our country's development."

The Tamwe protestors are demanding compensation for their forced eviction in 1994 to make way for the construction of navy barracks, which were never built. The land was subsequently acquired by Wah Wah Win, a private construction company, which is currently building a housing project on the now-vacant plot.

Following a pledge by the officials in the meeting to mediate negotiations with company for compensation, the protesters agreed to disband their camp and return to their homes in Dagon Seikkan township, a Rangoon satellite town that has absorbed thousands of evictees priced out of accommodation closer to the city centre.

 

The Irrawaddy Magazine

The Irrawaddy Magazine


Aid Group at Center of Sittwe Riots Cannot Return to Arakan: Official

Posted: 03 Apr 2014 05:57 AM PDT

Rohingya, Buddhist, Muslim, conflict, ethnic conflict, religious conflict, Myanmar, UN, Malteser International, Rakhine

A family stand at the entrance of their temporary shelter as the government embarks on a national census at a Rohingya refugee camp near Sittwe. (Photo: Reuters)

RANGOON — Arakan State authorities will not let Malteser International return to the region to resume aid operations, a state official said, after the rumored improper handling of a Buddhist flag by a Malteser employee sparked attacks on United Nations and international NGO offices last week.

The riots by Arakanese Buddhist mobs damaged offices, storage facilities and transport vehicles, and forced more than 170 aid workers, local and foreign, to flee the state capital Sittwe, bringing aid operations that provided vital support for more than 140,000 people, mostly Rohingya, to an end.

Arakan State spokesman Win Myaing told The Irrawaddy on Thursday that aid groups "could come back here to work if they still have a MOU agreement period."

He added, "But, for Malteser International, we will not let them come back or give them an extension of the MOU because the local people have protested against them for some time."

Win Myaing hung up on a reporter when asked to further clarify the reasons for the decision.

On Wednesday, he told BBC Burmese radio service that local Arakanese Buddhists had protested against Malteser International and Médicine Sans Frontièrs (MSF) Holland before, out of anger over the groups' aid support for the Rohingya Muslim minority in northern Arakan.

Burma's government suspended MSF operations in February in response to recurrent local protests and out of anger over statements MSF made over the alleged killings of scores of Rohingya by government forces.

"Local people have asked our government not to give further extension of their [Malteser] MOU during a previous protest in front of their office. We met them to solve tensions with the locals. This time they take down the flag, which is another problem. [So] we will not let them come back," he told the BBC.

An employee of Malteser International removed a Buddhist flag from a building that the organization was renting in Sittwe. Shortly afterwards, rumors spread that she had handled the flag disrespectfully—a claim Malteser has denied. The allegations proved an excuse for Buddhist mobs to attack aid offices.

Johannes Kaltenbach, a spokesperson for Malteser International in Rangoon, said the organization had not heard of the decision by Arakan authorities to end the group's aid operations in the troubled region.

Kaltenbach said Arakan State authorities had not informed the group of its decision. "We would first need to see an official letter signed by the Rakine State government," he said, adding that international NGOs were trying to discussing their cooperation with the Arakan government in order to return to the region.

"For the Rakine State government to make such press statement, probably will not help the situation," he said.
Kaltenbach added that Malteser and other international NGOs working in Arakan State would meet tomorrow with a government's commission that was set up to investigate the unrest.

The UN has kept about 50 staff in Sittwe but all international NGO staff have left.

A delegation of the heads of all UN offices in Burma met with local authorities in Sittwe on Tuesday and Wednesday to discuss a return of the NGO and resumption of aid operations.

"[N]ow health services for most of the 140,000 displaced people in Rakhine and over 700,000 vulnerable people outside camps are severely hampered, particularly in terms of life-saving emergency medical referrals," Dr Liviu Vedrasco, Health Cluster Coordinator for the World Health Organization said in a UN statement released Wednesday night.

"Our main priority now is to work with the government to put the necessary conditions in place to allow more than a thousand humanitarian staff to get back to work to assist vulnerable people from all communities," UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator Renata Dessallien said.

The UN said 1,300 metric tons of food will need to be distributed in Arakan State within the next two weeks in order to provide food security for tens of thousands of people.

On Thursday, the US State Department called on Naypyidaw to take steps to assure that aid operations can restart in Arakan State as soon as possible.

Deputy spokesperson Marie Harf said, "We call on the Burmese government to rescind travel restrictions and to facilitate the appropriate travel authorizations to the United Nations and other humanitarian organizations so they may resume services."

The State Department also said the government should implement the current nationwide census "in a manner consistent with international standards."

Last week's unrest in Sittwe was in part fueled by opposition among the Arakanese Buddhist population against the UN-backed census because it would allow Rohingya respondents to fill in their ethnicity as they wish.

Burma's government and local Arakanese insist the Muslims are "Bengali" immigrants from Bangladesh. When the census began on Sunday, Naypyidaw had changed its stance on the census and decided to ignore any respondent who self-identifies as Rohingya.

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Kachin Won’t Suffer From Missing Out on Census: KIO

Posted: 03 Apr 2014 05:15 AM PDT

Myanmar, census, Kachin, KIO, KIA, independence, Wa,

Residents of Rangoon's Thaketa Township complete Burma's first nationwide census for more than three decades. (Photo: Hein Htet / The Irrawaddy)

RANGOON — Census enumerators' inability to collect data in parts of Burma's far northeast under the control of the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) will not negatively impact the local people, a rebel leader said.

Salang Kaba Doi Pi Sa, a member of the central committee of the KIA's political wing, the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), was responding to a report in Burmese government-run newspaper that "threats and disrupt[ion]s" from the ethnic rebel group had prevented census-takers from reaching people in parts of northern Shan State and Kachin State.

The government and the KIA still clash intermittently, and fighting has been at times intense since a longstanding ceasefire broke down in 2011.

As well as villages within its area of control, the rebel group administers camps on the Burmese-Chinese border for more than half of the estimated 100,000 people displaced by fighting. The Kachin rebel organization said ahead of the census, which began nationwide March 30, that it would not participate.

Salang Kaba Doi Pi Sa, also the head of the KIO-aligned Kachin Relief and Development Committee, confirmed to The Irrawaddy that the KIA would not allow the census to be conducted in areas under its control.

He cited objections among ethnic Kachin to the list of 135 ethnicities used to record the country's ethnic makeup. The official list breaks up the Kachin into 12 "subgroups," some of which ethnic leaders say are erroneous categorizations.

"We decided at a KIO central committee meeting in March not to have the census here, and we have already reported about it to the relevant authorities," Salang Kaba Doi Pi Sa said.

The New Light of Myanmar said Thursday that enumerators had so far been unable to conduct the census in 40 village tracts in Kachin State and three in northern Shan State, blaming KIA troops.

The newspaper also said Thursday that the census had by March 31 already reached a total of 2,035,001 households nationwide.

Salang Kaba Doi Pi Sa declined to comment on the state-run newspaper report, dismissing it as the merely the government's opinion. He added that the KIO and KIA collect population data in their areas of control every three years.

"There is no harm to Kachin people from not participating in the government's census taking process now underway," he said.

Ye Htut, a spokesman for Burma President Thein Sein, told reporters on the weekend that the government had agreed with some rebels to collaborate on taking the census in conflict areas that would otherwise be off-limits to enumerators

"We don't have our staff in some Karen areas that the KNU's [Karen National Union] Brigade 5 and 6 controls. So we trained KNU members for census taking procedures and sent them back to their areas to collect data," Ye Htut said.

Similarly, the United Wa State Army has also told media that its members would volunteer to take the census themselves in their areas, rather than allowing government census teams into their territory in eastern Shan State.

The last time Burma held a census was 1983, when even larger parts of the country were under the control of ethnic armed groups. Ye Htut said that census missed out nearly 1.9 million people.

"Now we are trying to cover the whole country, except for some villages in conflict areas," he said.

Additional reporting by Kyaw Phyo Tha.

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Mandalay Journalists Decry ‘Dark Age’ Tactics Against Press

Posted: 03 Apr 2014 04:50 AM PDT

Myanmar, Burma, The Irrawaddy, Mandalay, press freedom, journalists, protest

Protestors march in Mandalay on Monday, voicing opposition to an electricity rate price hike that went into effect this week. (Photo: Teza Hlaing / The Irrawaddy)

MANDALAY — Journalists in Mandalay are planning to submit a complaint to the divisional government, urging authorities to take action against unidentified individuals whose recent heavy-handed intervention in a protest is believed to have been state-sponsored, or at least tacitly approved by local law enforcement.

On Monday, during a protest against an electricity rate hike in Burma's second city, journalists on the scene of a confrontation between police and demonstrators were violently pushed away from the gathered crowd by men wearing plainclothes.

Journalists targeted by the men, including a photojournalist from the local Mandalay Khit biweekly journal, were pulled away from the crowd while taking photos of the protesters or otherwise attempting to cover the stand-off.

One plainclothes officer ripped the motorcycle helmet off this Irrawaddy reporter and aggressively used his elbows to push her away from the scene, where protestors were engaged in an argument with police officers who were informing them that they would not be allowed to continue the protest.

As the three organizers of the candle-lit protest returned to their homes, in compliance with the orders of law enforcement, journalists attempting to interview a senior police officer about the authorities' action against the activists were again assaulted by the men in plainclothes, who tried to sweep them from the area. A uniformed police officer shouted out, calling for the arrest of the journalists for impeding the path of the senior officer, and some even ran at the journalists, holding riot shields and wielding rubber truncheons.

As the journalists complained about the plainclothes men's brutality, uniformed police officers moved to shield them, and one police officer threatened to take legal action against the journalists for disrupting law enforcers in the execution of their duties.

A group of journalists then went to the divisional police headquarters to file a complaint, where the deputy police superintendent denied that their unit had any plainclothes officers and claimed that the unidentified men had not received protection from uniformed personnel on Monday. The senior officer assured the journalists that the press had a right to cover the news unobstructed.

"These actions, however, totally go against the rights of the journalists, which are codified in the recently enacted Media Law. The police said we have the right to cover the news, but the reality is totally different," said Min Din, associate secretary of the Mandalay Divisional Journalists Association, the group planning to lodge the complaint against the events of Sunday.

The Media Law was enacted by the government on March 14. In Chapter 3 of the legislation, concerning the rights of the press, it states that journalists shall not be arrested and their equipment shall not be confiscated or destroyed by authorities while they are reporting. Another provision requires that authorities ensure protection from harm for journalists.

Min Din pointed out that journalists, particularly in Mandalay Division, were regularly threatened by plainclothes men who were carrying out their campaign against the press with impunity.

"Almost every time, those people have slapped down the cameras and pretended the crowd is pushing them. And sometimes they have tried to block coverage of the scene with their hands, head and bodies," he said.

"They have also carried cameras, pretending they are journalists. When there is a conflict, they have shouted, urging police to arrest the protesters and activists. In these cases, people might mistakenly think that the journalists are biased and are helping the police to arrest the activists," he added.

Mandalay-based journalists worry that authorities' attitude toward press freedom is reverting to the stance adopted by law enforcers under the former military regime.

"It is nothing different from the last three to five years, in which we have had to struggle for freedom of the press. The plainclothes men usually take pictures of us, try to interfere with us in covering the news, as it was back three years ago. We are just afraid the dark era for press freedom will return again," said Kyaw Zay Win, a Mandalay-based video journalist.

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Ethnic Leaders, Govt Peace Team to Meet on Merging Ceasefire Texts

Posted: 03 Apr 2014 04:33 AM PDT

Myanmar, Burma, The Irrawaddy, nationwide ceasefire, ethnic conflict, civil war, peace process

A meeting between the government's negotiators and ethnic armed group leaders in the Kachin State capital, Myitkyina, on Nov. 4, 2013. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)

Leaders of ethnic armed groups in Burma and the government will meet to discuss the drafting of a single text laying out the terms of a proposed nationwide ceasefire agreement this weekend in Rangoon.

The leadership of the Nationwide Ceasefire Coordinating Team (NCCT) and other ethnic groups who are not represented in the NCCT plan to meet with the government at the Myanmar Peace Center (MPC) in the former capital, according to a special advisor to the MPC.

Nai Hong Sar, the head of the NCCT, told The Irrawaddy that the ethnic coalition has its draft in hand and will present it to the government for further discussion.

"We will have to negotiate with the government's proposed draft to create a single text for the nationwide ceasefire" during the weekend meeting, he said en route to Rangoon via Tachileik Township in Shan State. "But it [the meeting] could take longer than two days."

The NCCT and the government-affiliated MPC agreed last month to invite other ethnic armed groups that are not NCCT members, including the Shan State Army South, and ethnic Wa, Kokang and Naga rebel groups, to join the meeting.

Hla Maung Shwe, an MPC advisor, wrote on his Facebook that five non-NCCT ethnic armed groups—the Restoration Council of Shan State (RCSS), United Wa State Army (UWSA), National Democratic Alliance Army (NDAA), Democratic Karen Buddhist
Army (DKBA) and the National Socialist Council of Nagaland-Khapland (NSCN-K)—would also attend the gathering.

These groups will act as observers to the meeting, RCSS spokesman Col. Sai La told The Irrawaddy on Thursday.

The ethnic leaders will meet with the government's chief peace negotiator, President's Office Minister Aung Min, as well as parliamentarian Thein Zaw and the top commanders of Burma's military, Hla Maung Shwe said.

Prior to the upcoming meeting, NCCT leaders gathered in the northern Thai city of Chiang Mai on Wednesday to discuss the principles of their draft ceasefire accord, Nai Hong Sar said.

The NCCT and the government last month agreed to form a joint committee to draft a single text for a nationwide ceasefire agreement, which President Thein Sein has pushed to have signed since mid-2013. The government has maintained that a ceasefire would have to precede political dialogue to address the ethnic groups' various concerns and demands.

The joint committee of the NCCT and the government's peace team is to be comprised of 18 members, with equal representation for both sides. The NCCT says it has already selected its representatives for the committee.

In a speech to Parliament marking the three year anniversary of his administration last week, Thein Sein warned that the longer it took to ink a nationwide ceasefire, the more a sense of hopelessness would set in among ethnic minority populations. Previously, the president has given assurances that the army, which plays a key role in Burma's politics, is backing the peace negotiations.

But some ethnic leaders are skeptical of a process that has already dragged on for longer than some government officials had predicted, and continuing clashes between the Burma Army and ethnic rebel fighters has fed into the distrust that has existed between the two sides for decades.

In the three years since Thein Sein's administration initiated peace talks with the various ethnic rebel groups, the government has signed separate ceasefire agreements with 14 of 16 ethnic armed groups in Burma. Only the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and the Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) have yet to ink an accord.

The NCCT was formed in November 2013 at a conference held by the ethnic armed groups in the KIA stronghold of Laiza. Its formation was followed a few days later by a meeting with government negotiators in Myitkyina, the Kachin State capital, which resulted in only a joint statement between the two sides expressing a mutual commitment to the eventual signing of a nationwide ceasefire agreement.

Both sides have agreed to meet again in Hpa-an, the capital of Karen State, to set up a date for the signing of a nationwide ceasefire in Naypyidaw, but the meeting has been repeatedly delayed  and the government has said any gathering will have to wait until after the Thingyan water festival in late April.

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Burma Bans Foreign Fishing Boats From Its Waters

Posted: 03 Apr 2014 01:33 AM PDT

Myanmar, Burma, fish, fisheries, stocks, environment, sustainable, foreign fishing,

Local Burmese fishermen check their catch at Ngwesaung beach in Irrawaddy Division. (Photo: Reuters)

RANGOON — Burma has banned foreign fishing vessels from its waters as of the beginning of April amid concerns about overfishing, an official from the Myanmar Fishery Federation (MFF) said.

"Fish and other marine resources in our waters were declining. So [Burma] banned foreign fishing boats from fishing in our waters to prevent that," said Han Tun, MFF vice chairman told The Irrawaddy.

He said that large Burmese fishing companies would also reduce their fishing operations at sea by 35 percent during April and May—the reproductive season for many marine species—to allow fish stocks to replenish.

Foreign fishing boats have been allowed to purchase permits to fish in Burmese waters since 1989. In the 2013-14 fiscal year—which came to an end earlier this week—around 40 foreign fishing boats were operating, according to MFF.

Maung Maung Soe, chairman of the Yangon branch of the Myanmar Marine Fisheries Association, said the government's ban on foreign boats was a long time coming, as the local fishing industry has been lobbying for a ban for a decade.

He estimated that the government earned about US$12 million during the last fiscal year from selling fishing permits to foreign boats, but said the true scale of fishing by foreign boats was unknown.

"No one knows how many foreign fishing boats are actually fishing in our waters, how much they have caught and also to what extent marine resources have been destroyed. Even the government doesn't know," he said.

Zaw Tin Moe, secretary of Fish Federation in Irrawaddy Division's Latputtar District, welcomed the ban.

"It's really a relief for local fishermen," he said, estimating that foreign boats catch as much as 100 times as much fish as local fishers, who usually operate on a much smaller scale.

"Local fishermen are just using traditional methods while foreign fishing boats are huge commercial operations," he said.

However, Kyi Ngwe, a fisherman also from Irrawaddy Division, said that as well as large foreign fishing boats, large Burmese companies' fishing operations are a threat to the livelihoods of small-scale fishers.

"The prohibition in our waters will not affect us because even though there will be no foreign fishing vessels, there are big fishing boats from local big companies," Kyi Ngwe said. "I also don't think it will be implemented fully."

He said that fish stocks in the seas off the coasts of Irrawaddy Division had been declining significantly year by year for the past five years due to increased large-scale, modern fishing operations, which catch huge quantities of fish at a time and cause damage to the seabed.

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Win Tin Still in Critical Condition, Supporters Pray for Recovery

Posted: 02 Apr 2014 11:30 PM PDT

politics, Myanmar, Burma, Rangoon General Hospital, Win Tin, National League for Democracy, democracy

NLD members and people from civil society organizations staged a candle-light vigil for Win Tin’s good health at the entrance of Rangoon General Hospital on April 2, 2014 afternoon. (Photo: Sai Zaw / The Irrawaddy)

RANGOON — Win Tin, the octogenarian co-founder of the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) party, remains in critical condition and under intensive care in Rangoon General Hospital for a fifth day. A group of supporters have started gathering to pray for the recovery of the veteran journalist and outspoken democracy activist.

"Doctors said he is not yet in safe condition as there's bleeding from the colon," said Kyaw Aung, the secretary of Win Tin Foundation, a group founded by Win Tin to take care of former political prisoners and their families.

Win Tin was admitted to a private hospital on March 12 seeking treatments for respiratory problems and hip pain. He was moved to Rangoon General on Saturday after his health failed to improve and as the public hospital has better medical equipment. He was reportedly put on oxygen therapy after losing consciousness.

A group of around 30 people from the NLD, Generation Wave and the Laiza Peace March group gathered at Shwedagon Pagoda on Wednesday morning to pray for the 85-year-old.

On Wednesday evening, some NLD members and people from civil society organizations staged a candle-light vigil for Win Tin at the entrance of Rangoon General Hospital.

After Aung San Suu Kyi, Win Tin is one of Burma's best-known opposition figures. Since his release from prison in 2008, he has continued to wear his blue prison-issued uniform as a sign of solidarity with other political prisoners. He refused to return the shirt in April last year when the police demanded it back.

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The Military Ties That Bind

Posted: 02 Apr 2014 09:22 PM PDT

Burma, military, Tatmadaw, army, Germany, arms,

Burmese soldiers who violently cracked down on the 1988 pro-democracy uprising were armed with the Fritz Werner GmbH Company’s G3 automatic rifles. (Photo: Alain Evrard / Impact Photos)

Last week, Burma's Tatmadaw celebrated the 69th Armed Forces Day with an elaborate parade in Naypyidaw, showing off troops and some of the military equipment it possesses. This story, originally published by The Irrawaddy in August 2011, charts the history of close relations between Burma's military rulers and Germany's Fritz Werner GmbH Company.

Geisenheim is a small town in the State of Hessen of the Federal Republic of Germany that hosts a plush old spa of sumptuous beauty, where since Roman times people have bathed amidst lush forests beneath the Taunus Mountains. To the surprise of all visitors, in the middle of a vineyard near the town is a grand, Burmese style house.

The Myitta Paungku Beikman (Love Connection Monument), was built by former Burmese dictator Gen Ne Win and donated to the Fritz Werner GmbH Company (FWG) on Jan. 1, 1971 as a sign of appreciation for the company's assistance in preserving him and his much-hated military regime in power.

FWG is a Berlin-based company which since 1896 has specialized in machinery for the production of small arms and ammunition. The company, which played a vital role in Germany's WW I efforts, has cultivated a unique relationship with the Burmese ruling elite over the years. There is a great deal of mutual trust between FWG and the Burmese regime, whose military-minded leaders look for characteristics such as reliability and discretion in a business partner.

After WW II, FWG was wholly-owned by the West German government, falling under the jurisdiction of the government's Ministry of Economy. The company was bought with money from the Marshall Fund which was meant to rebuild industries that were destroyed during WW II, a war which FWG helped fuel with its machinery for the production of weapons and ammunition.

In 1948, Burma gained independence from Great Britain, and FWG struck up its partnership with the new Burmese government in 1953. The German company's first project was the production of the BA52 submachine gun—aka the Ne Win sten.

88(1) - Copy

Burmese soldiers who violently cracked down on the 1988 pro-democracy uprising were armed with the Fritz Werner GmbH Company’s G3 automatic rifles. (Photo: Alain Evrard / Impact Photos)

Beginning at the time of this original contract, Ne Win cultivated friendly relations with FWG, both diplomatically and personally. Fritz Werner technical advisors posted in Rangoon had continuous access to the dictator, a rare privilege not extended to the representatives of other foreign firms. The fact that FWG was owed by the West German government itself created a close personal relationship between the two governments, causing some to say that Burma was the friendliest nation toward West Germany in Asia.

FWG's secretive Burmese operations, which have often been shrouded under a veil of mystery, got into full swing in 1960 when the West German Ministry of Defence gave the company permission to produce G3 rifles in Burma and it later established its first weapons factory on the outskirts of Rangoon with the assistance of the West Germany arms company Heckler & Koch.

The factory was supervised by German engineers from the German Technical Corporation Agency (GTZ). Until the production of that plant started, the Burmese regime used FWG as the middleman to purchase G3 rifles through Düsseldorf based arms producer Rheinmetall, which shared production with Heckler & Koch.

In 1961, West Germany's Foreign Office in Bonn granted permission to export 10,000 G3 rifles as well as four million rounds of ammunition manufactured by Metallwerk Elisenhütte Nassau (MEN), an FWG subsidiary, to Burma. The West German government had "no reservations" about authorizing further transfers, even when Ne Win toppled the democratic government of U Nu in 1962—Rheinmetall received permission from Bonn to sell 12,000 G3 rifles and 800 MG42 machine guns, and MEN received permission to export 18 million rounds of ammunition. Then in 1969, the West German Foreign Office permitted FWG to export machinery for the production of explosives, as well as a complete rolling mill for sheet brass.

With the assistance from West Germany, the self-sufficiency of the Burmese armed forces increased continuously, and the Burmese military often used German-produced weapons to oppress the Burmese people and various ethnic minority groups, especially after Ne Win and the military seized power in 1962.

For example, on July 7, 1962, just three days after the military's Burma Socialist Programme Party (BSPP) was formed, the students of Rangoon University organized a peaceful demonstration inside the Campus. The Burmese military— equipped with G3 automatic rifles—fired into the crowd of thousands of students, killing over 100 and injuring many more. The next morning, the military blew up the Rangoon University Student Union building, which was a treasured historical monument of the Burmese struggle to gain independence from Great Britain. The building was blasted to pieces by heavy explosives, and every trace of it removed.

During the 1988 democratic uprising, over 3,000 people were once again killed by Burmese troops using German-produced weapons. Despite this, the West German government welcomed Ne Win as a guest of FWG in March 1988. In addition, after the military coup by Burmese Gen Saw Maung in Sept. 1988, the West German Federal Ministry of Economics gave permission for FWG to export machinery for the production of ammunition.

Not only did FWG set up three plants in Rangoon and Prome to produce the vast majority of armaments required by the Burmese military, they also served as a conduit for all importation of raw materials, machine parts and chemicals used in explosives production.

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Burmese soldiers who violently cracked down on the 1988 pro-democracy uprising were armed with the Fritz Werner GmbH Company’s G3 automatic rifles. (Photo: Alain Evrard / Impact Photos)

The cozy relationship between the West Germans and the Burmese military was something of a closely kept secret until 1988, when the democracy uprising and surrounding political crisis blew the lid off the Burmese situation and drew the attention of the whole world. Due to international pressure brought upon the West German government by the horror of the Sept. 1988 coup, it suddenly became one of the outspoken critics of the Burmese regime, as if it didn't know before how many Burmese had died at the hands of Burmese troops firing West German weapons.

The German government did, however, suspend development co-operation activities with Burma, including negotiations regarding Burmese debt cancellation, and ceased authorization of arms shipments to Burma. But regardless of assertions made by the Germans that FWG was no longer participating in the production of weapons and explosives inside Burma, and that technical co-operation had been reduced to a minimum, the manufacture of explosives and weapons continues to date, and German employees of GTZ remain in the country, disguising their true field of expertise.

Despite Germany's hasty withdrawal of economic support from Burma after the 1988 crackdown, it didn't take long before FWG found an opportunity for renewed investment. In 1990, FWG formed a joint venture with the Burmese military, a partnership that was made possible thanks to an old US $500 million loan that the West German government had made to Burma in the 1960's.

FWG stands by itself in Burma, and the joint venture grew out of a very personal relationship between the company and the Burmese generals. This personal relationship has helped preserve the Burmese military regime in power, despite the various insurgencies and unrest in the country.

Following the uprising in 1988, the European Community and the US began imposing economic sanctions on Burma, identifying the high incidence of human rights abuses by the military regime as the primary reason for imposing sanctions. However, the annual reports of the German Federal Office for Export and Trade proves that licences for the export of dual-use-goods were authorized nearly every year, despite an EU arms embargo established in 1991.

In 1999, Germany even allowed the Burmese regime to renovate the notorious "Myitta Paungku Beitman" in Geisenheim.

On May 4, 2011, during a Burma Conference in Berlin, Dr. Markus Löning, Germany's Federal Government commissioner for human rights policy and humanitarian aid, pushed for more engagement with the Burmese military regime and for the modification of sanctions on Burma.

For many Burmese activists, Germany is just paying a lip service to the human rights situation in Burma. A cable revealed in a 2009 Wikileaks report indicated that Germany exported sophisticated equipment to Burma, which was followed by a visit of German diplomats to the factories where the machinery was installed.  In 2009-10, Germany was the biggest trade partner of Burma in the European Union.

The suffering of the Burmese people at the hands of their military rulers is undeniable. The irresponsible investments by foreign firms and others are not benefitting the people of Burma, but only contributing to the torture, persecution and killing of the many ethnic nationals, monks, students and activists who are struggling for democracy inside Burma.

For the Burmese people, FWG's cooperation and partnership with the Burmese regime has been extremely discouraging. It is time for Germany to start listening to the cry of the Burmese people for democracy, and start building a real, people to people, Myitta friendship that will live forever.

The author is a former student activist and chairman of Camp Thaybawboe run by the ABSDF. At present, he is a member of the KNU Foreign Affairs Relations efforts.

Related article: Intelligent Dialogue Partners or Useful Idiots?

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Malaysia PM Visits Search Base for Missing Jet; Sub Joins Hunt

Posted: 02 Apr 2014 10:15 PM PDT

Malaysia, MH370, flight, Australia, search, pinger, black box,

Malaysia's Prime Minister Najib Razak (L) and Australia's Prime Minister Tony Abbott arrive at a briefing on the search for Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 at RAAF Base Pearce near Perth April 3, 2014. (Photo: Reuters)

PERTH/KUALA LUMPUR — Malaysia's prime minister visited the Australian search base for missing Flight MH370 on Thursday as a nuclear-powered submarine joined the near-four week hunt that has so far failed to find any sign of the missing airliner and the 239 people on board.

Najib Razak joined his Australian counterpart Tony Abbott at RAAF Base Pearce, near Perth, where aircrews from seven countries have been flying dozens of missions deep into the southern Indian Ocean looking for debris from the Malaysia Airlines jet.

"The world expects us to do our level best, and I'm very confident we will indeed show what we can do together as a group of nations; that we want to find answers, that we want to provide comfort to the families and we will not rest until answers are indeed found," said Najib, as the two leaders spoke to search and recovery team at the air base.

The Boeing 777 lost communications and disappeared from civilian radar less than an hour into an overnight flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing on March 8.

It was briefly picked up on military radar on the other side of Malaysia and analysis of subsequent hourly electronic "pings" sent to a satellite led investigators to conclude the plane crashed far off the west Australian coast hours later.

Retired Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston, the head of the Australian agency coordinating the operation, said an international air crash investigation team with analysts from Malaysia, the United States, Britain, China and Australia was continuing to refine the search area.

"Based on that continuing flow of information, the search area is being continually adjusted and today it will be adjusted to move the search area a little bit further to the north," he told Najib and Abbott at the base.

Huge Search Area

On Thursday, up to eight planes and nine ships will join the search area of about 223,000 sq km (86,000 sq miles)—roughly the size of the US state of Minnesota—some 1,680 km (1,040 miles) west-north-west of Perth, he said.

Britain is also sending HMS Tireless, a Trafalgar-class nuclear submarine with sonar capabilities, to help with the search, Malaysia's transport ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.

Sonar may help find the plane's "black box" voice and data recorders, which only have an expected battery life of around 30 days and are key to unlocking what happened on the flight.

An Australian navy ship fitted with a US black box detector and unmanned submarine is also on its way to the search area.

But experts have warned the "Towed Pinger Locator" may be of little use unless investigators can get a much better idea of exactly where the plane went into water, because its limited range and the slow speed at which it must be pulled behind the ship mean it cannot cover large areas of ocean quickly.

On Monday it will be 30 days since the plane went missing.

Australia's Abbott warned that the task would not be easy.

"We cannot be certain of success, but we can be certain of the professionalism and the effort that will be brought to the task," he said.

Continued Criticism

Najib arrived in Perth with Malaysia coming under fresh fire for its handling of the incident, after authorities there changed their account of the plane's critical last communication.

Malaysia on Tuesday released the full transcript of communications between the cockpit and local air traffic control.

While indicating nothing abnormal, the transcript showed the final words from the cockpit were not the casual "All right, good night" that authorities first reported, but the more standard "Good night Malaysian three seven zero."

Malaysian authorities have faced heavy criticism, particularly from China, for mismanaging the search, now in its fourth fruitless week, and holding back information. Most of the 239 people on board the flight were Chinese.

Authorities have not ruled out mechanical problems as causing the disappearance, but say all the evidence suggests the plane was deliberately diverted from its scheduled route.

Malaysia's police chief said the investigation was focusing on the cabin crew and pilots, after clearing all 227 passengers of possible involvement in hijacking, sabotage or having personal or psychological problems that could have been connected to the disappearance.

The post Malaysia PM Visits Search Base for Missing Jet; Sub Joins Hunt appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

Pyongyang Opens Marathon to Tourist-Runners

Posted: 02 Apr 2014 10:10 PM PDT

North Korea, marathon, Pyongyang, runners, Mangyongdae Prize

Participants run in the International Association of Athletics Federations' 26th Mangyongdae Prize Marathon, held in conjunction with celebrations for the 101st birth anniversary of North Korean founder Kim Il-sung, in Pyongyang, in this photo distributed by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency on April 14, 2013.

TOKYO — Runners of the world, unite!

For the first time ever, North Korea is opening up the streets of its capital to runner-tourists for the annual Pyongyang marathon, undoubtedly one of the most exotic feathers in any runner's cap.

Tourism companies say they are getting inundated by requests to sign up for the April 13 event, which this year will include amateur runners from around the world. The race includes a full marathon—with a handful of world-class, invitation-only athletes—a half marathon and a 10-kilometer run.

The opening of the race to recreational runners is in keeping with the North's ongoing, but sometimes sporadic, effort to earn cash revenue by boosting tourism, usually with well-orchestrated group tours to major arts performances or attractions the North wants to show off.

Earlier this year, North Korea's government announced a plan to create special trade and tourism zones across the country and unveiled its first luxury ski resort, aimed largely at luring ski enthusiasts from abroad. Under the watch of young leader Kim Jong-un, the North has also been giving sports in general a higher profile. Simple recreational sports facilities, such as outdoor basketball courts and roller skating rinks, have been popping up lately in Pyongyang and some other cities.

Much of North Korea remains off-limits to foreigners, but Pyongyang, with its broad avenues and ubiquitous monuments, is a showcase city and more accessible than other places in the secretive and isolated country.

"I think a lot of the attraction is the 'Pyongyang' part rather than the 'marathon' part," said Simon Cockerell, a Beijing-based agent for the Koryo Tours travel agency. "A lot of the people going along to take part are interested in simply doing something a bit unusual, something that would cause a bit of cognitive dissonance in friends of theirs when they tell them they ran a marathon in North Korea."

Known officially as the Mangyongdae Prize International Marathon, the race is sanctioned as a bronze label event by the International Association of Athletics Federations and has been held annually for 27 years.

The generally flat, full-marathon course entails four loops around the center of the city of 2.5 million.

The race starts at the 70,000-seat Kim Il-sung Stadium and moves on past the Monument to Chinese Soldiers to the Kim Il-sung University area. After that, the runners cross a bridge over the Taedong River to the east side of the city and wind their way along the river bank to the stadium.

Spectators back in the stadium will be treated to football games, volleyball and martial arts exhibitions while they wait for the runners to return.

Cockerell said nearly 200 foreigners have signed up for the event, which coincides with commemorations of the April 15 birthday of North Korea's first leader, Kim Il-sung. That is an unusually large number, though the North's famous mass games are also often a big draw.

As a practical matter, aspiring runners had to apply through agencies familiar with the North Korean bureaucracy in order to get the proper visas. Cockerell said most are joining packaged group tours to see the sights while they are in Pyongyang.

In the past, the main race has been restricted to a select group of elite runners. Recreational jogging isn't a part of ordinary North Korean life, but past events have included races for local students and junior runners.

Though many national teams are reluctant to come to North Korea for political reasons, times in the elite part of the race have been up to international standards. Last year's marathon was won by Ethiopia's Ketema Nigusse in 2:13:04. North Korea's own Kim Mi-gyong won the women's title for the second straight year, with a personal best of 2:26:32.

What's new this year is the decision to open up the marathon, half-marathon and 10-kilometer courses to recreational runners of any nationality. The only requirement for marathon runners is that they finish in four hours; those who don't will be escorted back to the stadium. In 1995, South Korean runners were allowed to participate in a road race in the North, but that was a one-off, Koreans only event. Because of South Korea's travel restrictions to the North, participation from south of the border this time was unlikely.

"The marathon has traditionally been open only to professional runners with 2:27 male and 2:38 female cutoff times, making it impossible for even the best recreational runner to participate," said Andrea Lee, head of Uri Tours, an American company offering tours to North Korea. It is bringing 20 runners, most of them American.

"Generally, the country has become more friendly for tourism," she said. "This change in policy is in line with what we've seen to be the tourism administration's willingness to explore different tour programs and other avenues to attract tourism."

Cockerell warned against reading too much into the North's decision to ease its restrictions. It was unclear whether the same rules would apply next year.

"Maybe [it's] just because they wanted more people in the marathon," he said. "Maybe the powers that be didn't expect there to be so many runners entering."

The post Pyongyang Opens Marathon to Tourist-Runners appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

Sheer Size Is Just One Complexity in Indian Election

Posted: 02 Apr 2014 10:04 PM PDT

Asia, India, electon, democracy, caste, vote,

A police officer in plainclothes, casts her postal ballot at a polling station in Agartala, capital of India's northeastern state of Tripura, April 2, 2014. India, the world's largest democracy, will hold its general election in nine stages staggered between April 7 and May 12. (Photo: Reuters)

NEW DELHI — In a country where men have long told their wives whom to vote for, Sheila Kumar says she has no intention of letting her husband dictate her vote in next month's national election.

"Never again," Kumar said as she waited to collect a bucket of drinking water from the communal tap in a south Delhi slum.

She sounds every bit the modern Indian woman, a reflection of a country with many of the outward signs of modernity: the glitzy shopping malls, the tech-savvy billionaires and the burgeoning focus on women's rights.

But it's not so simple. Because even if she won't allow her husband to choose her candidate, there is someone else who gets that power.

"The caste elders will decide who we should vote for," said Kumar, 43, a member of the small, midlevel Kurmi caste. "We will vote for someone from our own caste. Why should we support anyone else?"

As the world's largest democracy heads to the polls starting Monday, India's often baffling contradictions are on full display, with age-old traditions of caste loyalty, patriarchy and nepotism often clashing with the values of a modern world.

But even though democracy is far from perfect here, it still lurches forward. Elections in India are generally considered free and fair, and even the powerful often fall to defeat at the hands of voters.

A strong Constitution, hammered out by political leaders who were veterans of India's struggle for independence from British colonial rule, laid the foundations for the democratic process. The politically independent Election Commission, empowered by the Constitution, has the last word on political wrangles.

"Politicians know that they are accountable to their electorate. If people have voted them into office, they can just as easily toss them out in the next election," said Ajoy Bose, a political commentator in New Delhi.

Still, the challenges are rife. Voting patterns are heavily influenced by caste, the complex social ladder that mobilizes entire communities. Although India's Constitution and laws forbid discrimination on the basis of caste, the social division continues to dominate electoral politics. The former "untouchables," or Dalits, are a powerful vote bank and political parties make all manner of promises to woo them.

Women's votes are often dictated by the men in the household, although that appears to be changing somewhat with growing literacy and as more women get jobs. But family and community elders still hold enormous sway. Corruption, a longtime scourge in India, is impossible to ignore. And many Indians say the lack of election primaries prevents voters from ushering out the old guard.

Apart from caste and social inequalities, the lack of development in much of India also poses challenges.

In a large swath cutting across the vast hinterland of the Indian subcontinent, rebels inspired by Chinese revolutionary leader Mao Zedong have called for a boycott of the polls. The armed guerrillas always threaten to disrupt national elections; this year is no different.

The rebels are active in 20 of India's 28 states, from Bihar in the east through central India, to the borders of the southernmost states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu. The rebels demand a greater share of wealth from the area's natural resources and more jobs for farmers and the poor.

Nearly 10,000 people have been killed in rebel ambushes and gunbattles between police and rebels since 1979. Security, already tight in rebel areas, will be reinforced with even more troops to protect voters and electoral staff.

Similar boycotts are also expected in the violence-wracked northern state of Kashmir, where separatist groups have called on people to shun the elections. In the last parliamentary election in 2009, 40 percent of Kashmir's eligible voters turned out despite rebels' calls for boycotts and strikes.

Separately, in India's remote but restive northeastern states bordering China, a host of separatist groups warring against the Indian state for decades pose yet another obstacle.

The massive size of the electorate is its own unique challenge.

The Election Commission has counted 815 million eligible voters. The increase in the number of eligible voters since 2009 elections is more than 100 million, or close to the population of the Philippines.

Many Indian states are so huge that elections have to be conducted in several phases to enable security forces to be moved around. In two states, elections will be held on six polling dates given their size and histories of violence.

One of these is Uttar Pradesh, India's largest state. Its population of 200 million almost matches that of Brazil. Had it been a separate nation, Uttar Pradesh would count as the world's sixth most populous country.

The other six-election-day state is neighboring Bihar, where polls have often been rocked by violence and "booth capturing," in which armed supporters of candidates have stormed polling booths and stuffed ballot boxes.

In all, around 3 million paramilitary troops and police will be deployed to maintain law and order during the polls, officials said.

"The unique thing about Indian elections is that huge numbers of people are voting," said Bose, the political commentator. "And it's the poorest who will make it a point to go out and vote. For this one time, people feel a sense of power. They feel they are relevant."

The post Sheer Size Is Just One Complexity in Indian Election appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

Shan Herald Agency for News

Shan Herald Agency for News


All roads lead to Rangoon

Posted: 03 Apr 2014 04:39 AM PDT

Representatives of the armed resistance movements' Nationwide Ceasefire Coordination Team (NCCT) as well as non-NCCT groups are heading for Rangoon where they are scheduled to hold the first meeting of the Joint Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement Drafting Committee (JNDC) at the Myanmar Peace Center the day after tomorrow, according to sources.
mpc-ncct-rg
Meeting between the NCCT and UPWC on 9-10 March 2014. (Photo: NCCT)

"The 8-men party led by Nai Hong Sar (NCCT leader and Deputy JNDC leader) is on the way (from Chiangmai) to Tachilek, where they will be met and escorted by U Nyo Ohn Myint (MPC official) to Rangoon," said Hkun Okker, JNDC member. "Myself and the rest will be flying in."

The 6th meeting between the NCCT and the government's Union Peacemaking Work Committee (UPWC) on 9-10 March had agreed to form the JNDC with 9 representatives from each side plus 5 non-NCCT organization that have signed initial ceasefire agreements, namely:
  • All Burma Students Democratic Front (ABSDF)
  • National Democratic Alliance Army (NDAA), better known as Mongla
  • National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN)
  • Restoration Council of Shan State / Shan State Army (RCSS/SSA)
  • United Wa State Party / United Wa State Army (UWSP/UWSA)
The NDAA has dispatched a 7-men delegation, while the UWSP/UWSA is on the way to Rangoon with 18 of its members, according to an MPC official.

Meanwhile, the 3 men RCSS/SSA team will be led by Col Sai La. It is also due to fly to Rangoon from Tachilek today.

The main topic of the meeting is expected to be to draft a single text document for the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA).

The planned signing is to be followed by negotiations for Framework (FW) for Political Dialogue and Political Dialogue (PD).

Shan rights groups call for Burmese government to halt dam projects

Posted: 03 Apr 2014 04:38 AM PDT

CHIANG MAI- April 2. Dozens of Shan civil society organizations are calling for the Burmese government to halt dam projects on the Salween and Nam Ma rivers in Shan State. The groups expressed  concern that the dam projects are likely to have negative impacts for local people.

According to the joint statement released by the Shan civil society organizations on April 1 of 2014, representatives of Burma's Ministry of Electricity, International Group of Entrepreneurs Co., Ltd. and Hydrochina Corporation held a public meeting with villagers in Tarngyan township on March 17, to promote plans to build the Nawng Pha dam on the Salween river and the Mann Toung dam on the Nam Ma river, a Salween tributary.
Sai Khur Hseng told reporters about the dam projects at the press conference. (Photo: SHAN)

The statement said:  "We are very concerned at the likely negative impacts on the environment and on the communities that live along the length of the river. We therefore strongly urge the Burmese government to immediately halt the dam projects on Salween and Nam Ma Rivers in Shan State."

The statement also said: "The Salween and Nam Ma rivers have sustained the livelihood of Shan State people for generations. They are a precious resource which should not be sold off to China by the Burmese government."

According to the statement Hydrochina Corporation has signed an agreement with the Ministry of Electricity for a 40-year concession for the hydropower projects. 90% of the electricity will be exported to China and 10% will be used in Burma.
The map showing location of Nawng Pha and Mann Toung dams 

Additionally, the statement said: "About 100 people from 10 villages situated about 30-40 miles from the dam projects were invited to attend the meeting, but villages which are very close to the projects and likely to suffer the most negative impacts from the dam projects were not invited to participate."

The statement said: "There has been no transparent impacts assessment for the dams, and no free, prior informed consent of local people, who remain in fear of the Burma Army."
Sai Khur Hseng said, "Every battle in Shan State is related to conflict of interest and dam projects."

The joint statement of concern was issued by Shan civil society organizations, including the grouping of Shan Community Based-organizations, Tai Youth Network,  Shan State Youth Network Committee, Shan Students Union-Thailand and thousands of individual signatories from 15 townships in Shan State and Mandalay.

Process of Myanmar Migrant worker who will complete 4 years stay permit visa and would like to extend their visa and work in Thailand

Posted: 03 Apr 2014 04:36 AM PDT

(Unofficial translation)
Process of Myanmar Migrant worker who will complete 4 years stay permit visa and would like to extend their visa and work in Thailand

In order for the Myanmar Migrant worker who will complete 4 years stay permit visa and would like to extend their visa and work in Thailand, their related company and employer must prepare the following documents and submit to the Myanmar Embassy through Thai employment office at least 6 months in advance.
  • Demand letter of Myanmar workers
  • Name list of the worker
  • Employment contract between the worker and the employer
  • Power of attorney
  • Job application form
  • Copy of the work permit (page include Thai employer's name)
  • Copy of the worker's temporary passport
  • Documents related to identification of the citizenship
  • Police Information Division form
  • Immigration and national registration form  
The Myanmar embassy will forward the filled-up Police Information Division form and Immigration and national registration forms to the Police Information Division and Immigration and National Registration Department in order to verify the nationality. Once the nationality is confirmed, the information will be send back to the embassy for issuing the ordinary passport. After the worker received the confirmation letter, they can proceed to Myanmar embassy, ordinary passport issue department together with their original ID and household registration document to collect the passport.

The confirmation list will also be sent to Thai employment department in order to inform the employer and their workers to go to the one –stop – service center at either Mae Sai, Mae Sot and Ranong. The worker must bring inform letter from employment office and demand letter together with them. Once they arrive at the center the employer and worker to sign the employment agreement contract and the worker will receive the Myanmar overseas worker ID card.  Then, proceed to apply and obtain stay visa permission from Thai immigration department and temporary work permit. After they received stay permit visa from the border center, they must apply for the work permit at their district employment office where they work.

For those temporary passports still valid for more than 2 years, the Myanmar worker must fill the form and send to ordinary passport issue department, Myanmar embassy for verification of their nationality. However, they can extend their stay permit visa at the OSCC without waiting for confirmation of the nationality. The worker must bring the letter from Thai employment department and demand letter to one of the OCSS at Mae Sai, Mae Sot and Ranong they has chosen.  Once they arrive at the center the employer and worker to sign the employment agreement contract and will receive the Myanmar overseas worker ID card.  Then, proceed to apply and obtain stay visa permission from Thai immigration department and temporary work permit. After they received stay permit visa from the border center, they must apply for the work permit at their district employment office where they work.

The expenses for the process from Myanmar side will be 1,600 baht (note – the replacement fee for lost or damaged of ordinary passport is 900 baht. The fine to be 3 time of the passport fee 2,700 baht. The service fee is 700 baht. Total 4,300 baht will be collected).

The fee for those temporary passport validity remain more than 2 years but do not change the passport to the ordinary passport is 700 baht.

Please be informed that by using brokers service could be cheated and fill up different or incorrect information will not be able to get the passport.

For more information, please contact Myanmar Labour Attach̩ (phone Р0066 8677 468 25) and migrant labour department in Myanmar (phone 067 Р430183 or 067 Р430185).
Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Welfare