The Irrawaddy Magazine |
- Shan IDPs Petition for Army to Vacate Occupied Village
- Burmese Facing Human Trafficking Charges in Malaysia
- Burmese Banks Fret Over Foreign Competition
- Burma Tests Man Returning From Africa for Ebola
- A Murky Story
- Regional Links Aiding Drug Syndicates in Burma: UNODC
- Thai Coup Leaders Trigger Oil Investment Rush Into Burma
- Reading the Future
- Remains of Malaysian MH17 Victims to Be Flown Home
- American Slain in Bali, Daughter Had Troubled Past
- Japan’s Polarizing PM Abe Learns the Long Game
| Shan IDPs Petition for Army to Vacate Occupied Village Posted: 20 Aug 2014 04:50 AM PDT  Displaced children eat a meal at the Wan Wat village monastery in Kyaythee Township, northern Shan State. (Photo: Hsenpai News Journal /Facebook) RANGOON— About 300 internally displaced persons (IDPs) in northern Shan State's Kyaythee Township plan to submit a petition asking the Burmese Army to withdraw from their village, which troops have occupied since clashes with Shan rebels broke out more than one month ago. Hla Shwe Thein, who is a committee member for the ethnic Shan IDPs in Tar Pha Saung village, told The Irrawaddy that all of those displaced wanted to go back to their homes, but were afraid to return because the military had set up a base there. The signature campaign is urging the Union and state governments to order the army to completely vacate the village. "We collected around 300 signatures from the refugees. … We will send it to the Shan State government and Union government, and President Thein Sein, and [military commander-in-chief] Min Aung Hlaing," Hla Shwe Thein told The Irrawaddy on Wednesday. He said the villagers did not dare return with the army presence, which now includes defensive bunkers dug since the villagers fled. Troops have taken up residence in the villagers' homes, he added. The 300 IDPs have been staying at a Buddhist monastery since shortly after the fighting between the Burmese Army and Shan State Army-North broke out in late June. Another clash between government troops and the SSA-North rebels took place on Aug. 8, according to local sources, forcing another 40 IDPs to seek refuge at the monastery. Since then conditions in the area have become more stable, leading the villagers to consider returning to their homes—but not while the military remains. "The Burmese Army told them [the displaced villagers] to come back, but they do not dare to stay together with the army, and therefore they have not returned to their houses," said Sai Hlaing Khan, who is chairman of the Shan National League for Democracy's Kyaythee Township branch. Exacerbating the anxieties of the homeless villagers are concerns that they may not have enough food to eat in the future because their displacement prevented them from planting crops during this year's rainy season. The villagers hope to return to their homes in time to plant, but the window of opportunity to do so is shrinking. The Burmese Army and SSA-North have occasionally clashed despite the two sides having signed a ceasefire agreement in January 2012. SSA-North leaders have claimed that the fighting has been due to Burmese Army encroachment in the rebel armed group's area of control. The post Shan IDPs Petition for Army to Vacate Occupied Village appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine. |
| Burmese Facing Human Trafficking Charges in Malaysia Posted: 20 Aug 2014 04:43 AM PDT  Returning Burmese migrant workers queue at the immigration checkpoint of Rangoon International Airport in 2013. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy) The trial of three Burmese agents from a migrant workers' employment agency who have been charged with trafficking 60 of their compatriots into Malaysia has been postponed, after the presiding judge told prosecutors that they had not gathered sufficient evidence against the accused. The defendants appeared before a Kuala Lumpur district court on Tuesday, but the judge decided to move the trial to Friday of this week. "They will have to appear for the trial on August 22," according to Lin Maung Maung, the assistant to the secretaries of the Burmese Embassy in Malaysia, "because the lawyer of one of them said there is still a lack of evidence to proceed against his client." A total of 72 Burmese were detained at Malaysia's Kuala Lumpur International Airport on July 8, after they were stopped by immigration authorities and accused of holding forged visa documents. Twelve of the 72 detained Burmese nationals did hold valid tourist visas. Among the three agents, one also holds an invalid visa, Lin Maung Maung said. "As far as I know, they [the alleged invalid visa holders] did not register at labor agencies [as foreign workers], but traveled on tourist visas." A Malaysian court sentenced 52 of the Burmese nationals to one year's imprisonment under the country's immigration law on Aug. 12. An elderly detainee and seven children who were among those stopped at the airport will not face charges due to their respective senior and juvenile statuses, but they are still being held at the Kuala Lumpur airport detention facility, together with the 12 Burmese holding valid tourist visas. The Burmese Embassy in Malaysia said in a statement on Monday that it is providing assistance in the cases through both legal and diplomatic channels. Lin Maung Maung said Burma's ambassador to Malaysia had been in contact with the Malaysian Foreign Affairs and Home ministries, and immigration officials, for the releases of the 20 detainees not due to face trial. "Those 12 will have to appear in court as witnesses. They can only return [to Burma] after the agents' trial is finished," he said. "We are advocating for their immediate release." He added that the embassy was also providing legal assistance in the appeals process by hiring lawyers for the 52 Burmese sentenced last week. The post Burmese Facing Human Trafficking Charges in Malaysia appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine. |
| Burmese Banks Fret Over Foreign Competition Posted: 20 Aug 2014 04:39 AM PDT  A stack of 1,000 kyat banknotes is seen, as employees count money at Yoma Bank in Rangoon. (Photo: Reuters) RANGOON — Private Burmese banks are calling on the country's Central Bank to be more transparent in plans to grant limited operating licenses to foreign banks next month. After decades of isolation under a military junta, Burma's banking sector is opening to foreign competition in a bid to attract foreign investment into the economy. Executives at local banks are worried that their own operations will be affected by the change, but say they have been unable to prepare because the government has been opaque with its plans. "We only know what's been reported in the media," said Than Lwin, vice chairman of Kanbawza (KBZ) Bank. Earlier this year, Reuters reported that an official document had been sent to more than 30 foreign banks with representative offices in Burma, showing that as many as 10 of them would be granted licenses by the end of September to set up one branch each to provide restricted services, including granting loans to foreign corporates. But the Central Bank has yet to make a public announcement or send a notice to local banks about the number of foreign banks that will receive licenses and the services they will be allowed to offer. Local bank executives are concerned foreign competition will create a human resources nightmare by pulling away the best staff. "The main trouble is we don't know what they are doing—whether they will allow only one branch or more for foreign banks. If they allow more, it will be a major concern for us," Than Lwin of KBZ said. "If [foreign banks] are allowed to open branches in other cities, they will definitely recruit our skilled employees, so we need to prepare for this." Zaw Lin Htut, a banking expert in Rangoon, said foreign banks would likely recruit wholesale banking experts from local banks. "The human resources problem is no matter for other countries, but for us it's a big issue," he said. "We have a very limited number of skilled workers here." Chit Khine, chairman of Myanmar Apex Bank, agreed that it would be best from a human resources perspective if foreign banks were limited to operating just one branch. "That would be no problem. They can bring their expertise from abroad, and Burmese bankers already working overseas can even come back to be employed here. But we still don't know what the Central Bank will allow—that's the major difficulty." "There will definitely be a salary problem," he added. "Even if they don't recruit our labor, their pay scale will be higher." The Central Bank could not be reached on Wednesday to confirm reports that it has sent a list to President Thein Sein with foreign banks that have been nominated to receive licenses. Based on recommendations from the World Bank, a minimum paid-in capital of US$75 million will be required by selected foreign banks, according to Reuters. The post Burmese Banks Fret Over Foreign Competition appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine. |
| Burma Tests Man Returning From Africa for Ebola Posted: 20 Aug 2014 01:07 AM PDT  A photo posted the official Facebook page of Burma's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows the response after a man arrived at Rangoon's airport with a fever amid Ebola fears. (Photo: Myanmar Centers for Disease Control and Prevention / Facebook) RANGOON — A 22-year-old Burmese man is being tested for the virus Ebola after he arrived at Rangoon from West Africa suffering from a fever and malaise, a Health Ministry official confirmed Wednesday. The Ministry of Health's rapid response team—which has been conducting thermal-imaging checks on passengers arriving at Rangoon International Airport—sent the man and four family members to the Waibagi Hospital in the city's North Okkalapa Township, which specializes in infectious diseases. A post on the official Facebook page of Burma's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday night said the man had just come back from Guinea, and "had history of traveling to Guinea and Liberia." Both West African countries have seen cases of the deadly Ebola virus during an unprecedented outbreak this year that has killed more than 1,200 people in total, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). "He has pain in his body and has a fever. He came back from Guinea, where he was a worker," Ministry of Health Deputy Directory Nu Nu Kyi told The Irrawaddy. The four family members, who met the man as he arrived via Bangkok, have no symptoms, but are currently under observation, she said. Burma does not have the equipment to check whether the man has Ebola, so a sample of his blood has been sent to India, said Nu Nu Kyi. "We sent the blood test to India, which has a WHO-recognized laboratory. It will take three days to get the result of the blood test back. Our country does not have a modern laboratory to test this blood," she said. The Ebola virus is contracted by direct contact with bodily fluids from an infected person, and it manifests early on with symptom similar to the common cold, including fever and malaise. As the disease progresses, an infected person can experience internal bleeding. The Ministry of Health installed a team equipped with thermal imaging scanners at the country's international airports earlier this month as governments worldwide battle to prevent the Ebola virus from spreading. The post Burma Tests Man Returning From Africa for Ebola appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine. |
| Posted: 20 Aug 2014 12:54 AM PDT  An artist's rendering of the storied Dhammazedi Bell. (Illustration: Totty Swe) YANGON — "Multi-beam Echo Sounding Survey." "3D Seismic Survey." "GPR–Ground Penetrating Radar." The language in an official method statement proposing the recovery of Myanmar's famed Dhammazedi Bell owes everything to technology and science. But this is a story in which star billing goes not to science but to superstition, and a supporting cast of dreamers, schemers and assorted would-be heroes. Superstitious government leaders are just some of those who believe that the discovery of a bell said to have sunk to the bottom of the Yangon River off Monkey Point more than 400 years ago could be the key to the country's rise from its current status as one of Asia's poorest nations. Believers' romantic desires to tie the Dhammazedi Bell with the national destiny has resulted in several failed missions over recent decades to reclaim the bell, believed to be one of the biggest in the world. Hollywood star Richard Gere's purported interest in the bell was never more than a rumor. But over the years a motley crew of individuals and companies from the United States, Australia, Japan and Singapore has expressed interest in joining a search that for Myanmar Buddhists would be the equivalent of a quest for the Holy Grail. Non-believers, including former political dissidents, once thundered that any attempt to salvage the bell (reckoned to lie in the mud under 40 feet of water in a strong current), would only serve to legitimize an illegal military regime. The former junta, for its part, decreed that only citizens of the country had the right to search for the bell because finding it was a "national issue." Why such a frenzy? For answers, we need to look at the bell's fabled history. A Bad Foreigner The bell was named after King Dhammazedi, who ruled the Mon-speaking Hanthawaddy Kingdom from 1471 to 1492. A devout Buddhist, Dhammazedi had the bell cast in 1490 as a donation to Shwedagon Pagoda, Myanmar's most sacred shrine. Made from more than 290 tons of copper, gold, silver and tin alloy, it is said to have been more than twice as heavy as the Bell of Good Luck, a Chinese temple bell that at 116 metric tons has held the world record since it was cast in 2000. The bell remained at its intended home until 1608, when the ruler of Thanlyin, on the opposite shore of the Yangon River from Yangon (then called Dagon), decided he had a better use for all that metal. At the time, Thanlyin (or Syriam) was under the control of Filipe de Brito e Nicote, a Portuguese mercenary who in 1599 had led a Rakhine force that had sacked Thanlyin and Bago, then the capital of Lower Myanmar. De Brito (better known in Myanmar as Nga Zinga) had already earned the ire of local people by melting down several bells to forge cannons. But it was his decision to steal the Dhammazedi Bell for this purpose that ensured his infamy in this country for centuries to come. Using elephants and forced labor, he had the bell moved to the Yangon River, where it was placed on a raft for transport to Thanlyin. However, much to the satisfaction of onlookers, de Brito's plan to turn a sacred object into weapons of war failed when the raft fell apart and deposited the bell far below the river's surface. Five years after this episode, King Anaukpetlun of the Taungoo dynasty recaptured Thanlyin and had de Brito impaled on a stake—a punishment reserved for defilers of Buddhist temples. But 400 years after the Portuguese governor of Thanlyin met his ignominious end, the story of how he tried, and failed, to steal the Dhammazedi Bell continues to resonate in the imaginations of Myanmar citizens and foreigners alike.  King Dhammazedi donated this much smaller bell to the Shwe Maw Daw Pagoda in Bago. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy) Gong-Ho Since then, there have been many attempts to retrieve the bell, but poor visibility, silting, nearby shipwrecks and four centuries of shifting currents have so far made the task impossible. But everybody "knows" that it is still there—as late as the 19th century, some claimed that it was visible at low tide—and so the search continues. Some who have tried and failed, including tycoons and powerful generals, now say the quest is cursed. Jim Blunt, an American diver from California, was told as much when he made his own attempt in 1995 with the cooperation of the Myanmar authorities. "Several divers had already died looking for the great bell, including two Myanmar Navy divers who became trapped inside a wreck and died horribly. Consequently, the search [began] for outside expertise," Mr. Blunt told the London-based newspaper The Independent. Mr. Blunt carried out 116 dives over a period of two years. In a documentary film about his experiences, he claimed that he banged his fist on the bell and was rewarded by a metallic sound. Historian U Chit San Win has made it his mission in life to relocate this lost artifact of Myanmar's past. Since 1987, he has led a number of searches, including one in 1996 that was supported by then Military Intelligence chief Gen. Khin Nyunt. During one attempt in the 1990s, U Chit San Win lost a son to rabies. However, when asked what he thought about the curse that many believe is on the bell, he declined to give a direct answer. Others have been less reticent about their concerns. At a recent meeting between U Chit San Win and a government minister that was observed by a senior member of The Irrawaddy's staff, the minister attentively listened to a detailed method statement and proposal to launch another search, but in the end declined to back the project because, he said, he feared for the safety of his family. Saving the Nation Despite such misgivings, some remain determined to find the bell that they believe will save the nation. In October, U Khin Shwe, a leading Myanmar businessman and politician, announced a plan to fund another hunt for the bell, saying that he would spend more than US$10 million if necessary to return it to the glittering Shwedagon Pagoda. "We've already hired big ships to salvage the bell. If we succeed, we will put it on display at Shwedagon," he told The Irrawaddy. "One foreign expert predicted that the whole operation would cost between $5 million and $10 million. Whatever the cost, I'm ready to spend it." Some suspect U Khin Shwe's agenda. As a powerful member of the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party sitting in the Amyotha Hluttaw, or Upper House of Parliament, he is regarded as a controversial figure. Both he and his Zaykabar Company, a conglomerate with interests in the construction and telecommunications industries, have been on the US sanctions list since 2007, and more recently he was involved in a highly publicized land rights dispute with farmers on the northern fringes of Yangon. U Khin Shwe first came to the attention of policy makers in the West in the 1990s, when he paid the Washington, D.C.-based public relations firm Bain and Associates more than $20,000 a month to help burnish the image of Myanmar's military junta. To return the favor, state media proudly proclaimed him to be a "doctor" with an honorary Ph.D. from "Washington University of the United States," which turned out to be an unaccredited degree-mill incorporated in Hawaii but operating from a post office box in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. Never one to miss a chance to improve his public image, U Khin Shwe (who is related to powerful Pyidaungsu Hluttaw, or Union Parliament, Speaker U Shwe Mann through his son's marriage to the daughter of the former top general) has more recently joined other junta cronies in attempting to cozy up to opposition leader and Nobel laureate Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. Many suspect, then, that his high-profile plans to find the Dhammazedi Bell are little more than just another PR exercise designed to enhance his personal status. Mystical Powers vs. High Tech In any case, if he is serious about finding the bell, he has no shortage of people willing to offer words of encouragement. One well-known monk from Mon State has suggested that his mystical powers could ensure the success of the mission. But as a veteran of the quest, U Chit San has more practical advice: Go high-tech. "I don't believe the bell can be recovered without the use of the latest technology, because according to my experience, using local technology won't work," he told The Irrawaddy last year. Nearly two years ago, it looked like U Chit San Win's dream might finally come true. At a seminar held in Yangon in June 2012, a Singapore-based trading company, SD Mark International LLP Co., said it was willing to spend up to $10 million to finance a non-profit project to find the bell and convey it back to Shwedagon. The search was expected to take 18 months to complete. But since it was first announced, nothing has come of it. According to a source familiar with the project, it was quietly shut down by the Ministry of Culture, which had planned to participate, because of concerns about a lack of funding. U Chit San Win said he has no intention of giving up. "It has to be out there somewhere," he said. Even as he said these words, however, he looked somber, as if he were reflecting on his past failures and on the loss of his son. Now in his late sixties, he seemed resigned to the possibility that he might not be around to witness the day the bell is restored to its former glory. One hurdle, he acknowledged, is that many in the country don't want the bell to be found by foreigners. That's why he supports U Khin Shwe's mission, he said. The bell, he says, is a beacon of hope. "Our country is so poor and plagued with conflict. Many people believe that if the bell is found, it will bring us peace and prosperity," he said. But will the spirits that many believe saved the Dhammazedi Bell from being turned into cannons now allow it to fall into the hands of shady businessmen? Many might argue that if that is to be its fate, perhaps it is better off where it is—submerged in mud, far from the grasp of mortal men and their schemes and dreams. Kyaw Hsu Mon contributed reporting. This article first appeared in The Irrawaddy's May 2014 print edition. The post A Murky Story appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine. |
| Regional Links Aiding Drug Syndicates in Burma: UNODC Posted: 19 Aug 2014 07:15 PM PDT  Bags of methamphetamine pills seized by Thai authorities are displayed in Ayutthaya province, nearly 80 km (50 miles) north of Bangkok, in June 2013. (Photo: Reuters) RANGOON — Regional integration offers greater opportunities to narcotics producers and traffickers in Burma, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said on Wednesday, at a time when Asia's demand for methamphetamines shows signs of accelerating. The warning represents a darker take on a regional push to better connect infrastructure and economies, and facilitate the trans-border movement of people. That integration is typified by efforts to create an Asean Economic Community by 2015 and extends to projects aimed at better linking Burma to its giant Asian neighbors China and India. "Organized crime groups are well positioned to take advantage of regional integration agreements to expand the trafficking of synthetic drugs and precursor chemicals" said Jeremy Douglas, the UNODC's regional representative for Southeast Asia and the Pacific, according to a statement. "Capacities to ensure the rule of law vary greatly across the region, and this evolving and growing threat diverts increasing amounts of scarce state resources away from efforts to develop and improve governance," he added, ahead of a regional anti-narcotics conference that began on Wednesday in Rangoon. Citing "significant volumes" of drug seizures made in neighboring nations and traced to Burma, the UNODC said the country remains a major source of methamphetamine pills, known locally as yaba, and crystal methamphetamine. The country is Southeast Asia's largest producer of synthetic drugs, with smugglers transporting precursor chemicals into Burma and shipping the finished products out, taking advantage of the country's porous borders. "While most of the methamphetamine produced in East and Southeast Asia is consumed within the region, large quantities are also being trafficked to nearby major markets like Japan, Australia and New Zealand, and more recently to neighboring South Asia," the UNODC said, adding that transnational criminal syndicates were diversifying their trafficking routes and methods of drug production. A top Burmese anti-narcotics official on Wednesday called for greater cooperation among regional governments to combat the problem. "No country can tackle these challenges alone, and there is no doubt we need improved training and support for frontline law enforcement and justice officers, especially along the Mekong corridor and in remote areas of the region," said Police Lt-Gen Kyaw Win of the Ministry of Home Affairs' Central Committee for Drug Abuse Control. Earlier this week, the UNODC warned that the narcotics trade endangered Burma's reform program and put fragile peace negotiations with ethnic armed rebel groups in border regions at risk. "Criminal activity in Myanmar is undermining development efforts, increasing human insecurity and threatening the peace process," the UNODC's Douglas said on Monday. That warning came as the UNODC signed a 2014-17 country program with Burma's government, focusing on five broad areas of concern: transnational organized crime; anti-corruption; criminal justice; drugs and health; and alternative development for opium poppy farmers. In addition to the methamphetamine woes highlighted by the UNODC on Wednesday, Burma is the world's second largest producer of opium, the precursor to heroin. Eastern Burma is part of the so-called "Golden Triangle," along with Thailand and Laos. The mountainous hinterlands—and in particular Shan State—have for decades been home to the region's most intensive opium cultivation. The post Regional Links Aiding Drug Syndicates in Burma: UNODC appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine. |
| Thai Coup Leaders Trigger Oil Investment Rush Into Burma Posted: 19 Aug 2014 05:30 PM PDT  Workers are seen awaiting customers behind a PTT logo at a fuel station in Bangkok. (Photo: Reuters) The military takeover in Thailand is prompting a new push by the country's oil companies to press for business in Burma, an industry analyst said. The state-owned Thai Oil Plc disclosed it is bidding for a contract to renovate and operate the Thanlyin refinery near Rangoon and make other investments, and PTT Global Chemical has announced plans to expand into neighboring countries. "You are seeing a spurt in activity by the Thai oil and gas industry, which is overwhelmingly in the hands of government agencies, with the takeover of Thailand by the military following the coup," Bangkok-based energy analyst-consultant Collin Reynolds told The Irrawaddy this week. "Senior Army personnel have been appointed to the board of PTT which is the parent company of the likes of Thai Oil. Thailand's economy has suffered from the political instability leading up to the coup [in May] and the military is clearly attempting to revive it through state-owned business influence." Burma has been forced to increase expensive imports of fuels such as petrol and diesel because the country's three small refineries are in urgent need of repair and modernization. The refineries have a theoretical production capacity of no more than 55,000 barrels per day (bpd) but are believed to be delivering only one-third of this because of old equipment. Demand in Burma for diesel and petrol has risen above 70,000 bpd, said industry sources. Thai Oil produces 275,000 bpd at its refinery near Bangkok. It has teamed up with PTT, which owns a 49 percent share, to bid for the Thanlyin contract from Myanmar Petrochemical Enterprise (MPE). "Through a partnership with MPE, a long-term plan is for developing refining and petrochemical capacity to serve Myanmar's growing domestic consumption," the Bangkok Post quoted Thai Oil chief executive Veerasak Kositpaisal saying. "[Burma] is our target country for expanding our investments abroad. The company has worked well with officials there, and they are waiting for us to submit future investment plans," Veerasak said without giving any details. A decision on refinery renovation contracts by MPE is expected by the end of this year. Meanwhile, another PTT subsidiary, PTT Global Chemical, has announced plans to expand as the start of the Asean 'single market' era draws near. PTT Global, which is 49 percent owned by PTT, is Thailand's biggest refiner as operator of a 280,000 bpd plant near Bangkok. It also produces olefins and polymers and other petrochemical products used in plastics. PTT Global announced last week it was seeking to raise US$3 billion to fund ventures in Southeast Asia, although initially this will be in Indonesia where it plans a refinery-petrochemical project. PTT's overseas oil and gas arm, PTT Exploration and Production (PTTEP), which earlier this month began pumping gas from its offshore Zawtika field in Burma's Gulf of Martaban, recently described Burma as its second home. "The growing interest by Thailand's energy and petrochemicals industries in expanding abroad, especially into a new market like Myanmar, is two pronged. First and foremost it's about energy security; Thailand needs to secure more supplies of natural gas for its domestic market. Second, it sees opportunities in a greenfield business market such as Myanmar. "Overseas expansion plans by PTT and its subsidiaries have been stifled for a year or more because of the political uncertainty at home which caused a lot of business dithering especially in state-controlled industries. The coup has changed that atmosphere completely." PTTEP was already operating in Burma long before the coup in Thailand but it has also recently taken on a more gung-ho business attitude to its neighbor. In addition to the Zawtika field— which is Thailand's biggest single gas production enterprise among operations in nine countries—PTTEP is the majority stakeholder in five other exploration and production projects in offshore and onshore locations in Burma. Its offshore M3 and M11 exploration blocks, also in the Gulf of Martaban, cover a sea area of 11,700 square kilometers and hold prospects for more gas and some oil. PTT, which is listed on the Bangkok stock exchange but is majority owned by Thailand's Ministry of Finance, is still eyeing the possibility of developing a roadside fuel oils retailing chain in Burma, said industry sources speaking on condition of anonymity. The post Thai Coup Leaders Trigger Oil Investment Rush Into Burma appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine. |
| Posted: 19 Aug 2014 05:00 PM PDT  U Thant Thaw Kaung on a recent visit to the USA. (Photo: Whitney Legge / The Asia Foundation) Publisher U Thant Thaw Kaung, head of the Myanmar Book Aid and Preservation Foundation and the mobile library project under the Daw Khin Kyi Foundation, recently visited the United States as part of a three-week study tour as the Asia Foundation's Chang-lin Tien Visiting Fellow. The Foundation's In Asia editor Alma Freeman sat down with Dr. Thant Thaw Kaung to discuss Myanmar's vibrant reading culture and how he helped keep books and literary life alive in Myanmar during decades of isolation. Question: At 95 percent, Myanmar's literacy rate is among the highest in the region, but access to quality books and reading remains a challenge. Why? Answer: The literacy rate is high as a result of a few big campaigns that the government started in 1975 where volunteers and college students went to rural areas across the country promoting the value of reading and books. The government received an award for this campaign from UNESCO, and it has continued until recently. People are able to read in Myanmar. But accessibility to quality books and affordability are our two biggest challenges now. When we began the mobile library we found out that people were eager to borrow a lot of books – they want to read. That's why the mobile library project under the Daw Khin Kyi Foundation, named after the late mother of noble laureate Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, is successful: it goes to people's homes; they don't have to go to the library. So far, the library has had 90,000 checkouts and we have 8,000 members. Q: Where does the enthusiasm for reading and education come from? A: In the villages and at every corner of the road you will find at least one book-lending shop. People really appreciate the value of education in Myanmar. In fact, in the 1930s and '40s, students from Southeast Asian countries wanted to attend Yangon University as a first choice, and still today they are proud to say they are alumni from there. The monasteries have also played an enormous role in teaching rural children how to read from a very early age. As such, Myanmar's education system was historically very strong, but from 1962-1988 and from 1988 to 2010, after the military coup, the country was ruled under a socialistic and military system until the recent political shift. These governments did not give attention to the quality of education. Moreover, teaching methods have followed a rote learning and memorization style of teaching and learning, rather than on approaches that encouraged critical thinking. The government is trying to introduce a more "student-centric" approach, but that will take some time to change. Q: Myanmar's budget for education remains extremely low. What challenges does this present? A: This shows that the government is emphasizing defense over health, which accounts for 3 percent, and education, which accounts for just 5.4 percent of the budget (compared to Vietnam which allocates almost 21 percent to education). Myanmar defense's budget is almost 23 percent of the total budget. There is a big discussion in Parliament about this now, and in January, the government announced that the budget for health and education would increase slightly. By the time the teachers' salary is paid, which is also very low at only about $100 a month, the education budget is used up. Myanmar is also poor: 26 percent of the population is still living under $1.25 a day. And there's a severe lack of electricity. Because of poverty, school dropout rate is high: there are 8 million students studying right now from K-12. But there are only 400,000 students in university which means there is an 85 percent dropout rate from kindergarten to high school and only 5 percent reach university-level. Q: While in New York, you received the prestigious Jeri Laber International Freedom to Publish Award for your leading role in keeping books and literary life alive in Myanmar. Can you talk about how the environment has changed since you began? A: In those days, the censorship board could confiscate books at any time if they felt that they were sensitive. According to the law, every single book had to get the approval from the censorship board. The board could require that a word, paragraph, or even a whole page be torn off if they declared it to be too sensitive. For example, even a tiny photograph of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi was not allowed. Sometimes, they asked us to use white ink to blot it off. Our books were carefully checked and sometimes we had to withdraw them from the shelves. Many times we even thought of closing down our business. We had doubts initially in 2010 whether the government would loosen censorship over publications and the media. But they did it step by step, initially lifting the censorship of weekly journals, on health, sports, and education. Two months later, they introduced more categories, including news journals. The government's recent decision to abolish the censorship board had an enormous impact on the entire publishing industry and we all welcome this. We have donated over 800,000 books to over 800 libraries. Q: 70 percent of Myanmar's population lives in rural areas, and as you say, paved roads and other basic infrastructure services are still largely missing in these areas, including electricity for libraries, making it difficult for rural communities to benefit from the rapid development experienced by the country's urban centers. A: We are starting to see these big gaps. Most of the 70 percent of rural residents are farmers. Most of the working age groups now work overseas – 2 million are working in Malaysia or Thailand – where they are more highly paid. There is a shortage of manpower even for farming. In order to narrow this gap, we need to create jobs for them so they work at home and don't migrate. That's why we are involved in rural libraries because they can play a major role in access to information in rural areas. At present, we are constructing rural libraries and equipping them with books and computers. Moreover, we are offering training opportunities for modern librarianship to public librarians. While English-language books are sought after in the urban centers, there is a great need for local-language books in rural libraries. To meet this need, we have arranged with our donor to be able to sell 30 percent of our donated English language books so we can buy local books. We hold what we call book buffets twice a year in urban centers where people can buy books at low rate. Q: While only 2 percent of Myanmar's population has access to the Internet, mobile penetration is rising sharply. How do you see technology playing a role in improving access to education? A: Mobile penetration is now at 10 percent, and could be nearly 50 percent in just one year. The younger generation is leapfrogging straight to smart phones, which are becoming very popular in urban centers. At present, we are negotiating with local and international partners such as Beyond Access and Ooredoo to provide internet and computers at public libraries in rural areas. People are can now access a far broader range of topics, such as health, education, and the economy. This article originally appeared in the In Asia section of The Asia Foundation's website, www.asiafoundation.org. The post Reading the Future appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine. |
| Remains of Malaysian MH17 Victims to Be Flown Home Posted: 19 Aug 2014 10:46 PM PDT  A woman takes a photograph of wreckage at the crash site of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 near the village of Hrabove (Grabovo), Donetsk region July 26, 2014. (Photo: Reuters) KUALA LUMPUR — The remains of at least 15 Malaysians killed when a jetliner was shot down over Ukraine will be returned to their home country this week, the first Malaysian victims of the disaster to be flown home, the country's defense minister said Tuesday. All 298 people on board died when Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was shot down on July 17. The plane was heading to Kuala Lumpur from Amsterdam and was shot out of the sky over an area of eastern Ukraine controlled by pro-Russia separatists. The victims included 43 Malaysians and 195 Dutch nationals. With fighting between the rebels and Ukrainian forces ongoing near the crash site, victims' remains were gathered and sent to the Netherlands for identification. Malaysian Defense Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said Tuesday that 28 Malaysian victims had been identified so far, including 15 passengers and 13 crew members. The remains of at least 15 Malaysians and a Dutch national who was married to a Malaysian will arrive in Kuala Lumpur on Friday, Hishammuddin said at a news conference, adding that the exact number to arrive would be known later in the week. The government has declared Friday a national day of mourning. Hishammuddin said Malaysia would not be competing with the Netherlands in terms of how the bodies are received. The Netherlands observed a minute's silence and solemn ceremonies were held when the remains of the victims arrived in the country last month. Dutch authorities said last week that they had identified 127 victims in all. The separatists have been widely blamed for firing a missile that brought the Boeing 777 down, but have publicly denied responsibility. The Netherlands and other countries have launched criminal investigations. Malaysia Airlines has been hit by two major disasters this year, adding to its longstanding financial woes. In March, Flight 370 from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing disappeared with 239 people on board after flying far of course. That jet still has not been found despite an exhaustive ongoing search in an area of the southern Indian Ocean where it is believed to have gone down. The post Remains of Malaysian MH17 Victims to Be Flown Home appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine. |
| American Slain in Bali, Daughter Had Troubled Past Posted: 19 Aug 2014 10:41 PM PDT  Heather Mack, the daughter of an American woman found dead inside a suitcase on the Indonesian island of Bali, gestures while in custody in a police station in Denpasar on Aug. 14, 2014. (Photo: Reuters / Putu Setia) CHICAGO — A Chicago woman whose beaten body was found stuffed in a suitcase on the Indonesian resort island of Bali was repeatedly and violently abused by the daughter who has been arrested in her killing, according to police reports. A Chicago-based lawyer for the 19-year-old daughter, Heather Mack, meanwhile, says he is concerned for her well-being after she told him she has been sexually assaulted in custody. Indonesian police deny any mistreatment. The body of Sheila von Wiese-Mack, 62, was found last week inside a suitcase in the trunk of a taxi in front of the upscale St. Regis Bali Resort in Bali's exclusive Nusa Dua district. Her body is expected back in the United States on Wednesday. An autopsy found she died of asphyxiation after her nose was broken by a blunt blow. Other bones were broken in her head and face, and wounds on her hands indicate she tried to defend herself, Indonesian authorities say. Mack and her boyfriend, Tommy Schaefer, 21, also of Chicago, have been arrested in the killing. Neither has been charged, but Indonesian police say they are investigating it as a possible case of premeditated murder, which carries a maximum sentence of death. Police in the Chicago suburb of Oak Park were called 86 times in 10 years to the house where the young woman and her mother once lived. The Chicago Sun-Times obtained the police reports through an open records request. The reports detail repeated episodes in which von Wiese-Mack said her daughter attacked her and stole her credit cards, money and jewelry. One report says the daughter was arrested in 2011 on suspicion of knocking her mother to the floor and breaking her arm. In another, the woman accuses her daughter of locking her in her room and preventing her from calling 911. In 2010, she reported that her daughter punched her already-broken ankle during an argument over household chores. Mack's US attorney, Michael Elkin, said she has told him by phone from Indonesia that she's been sexually assaulted at least three times in custody and was being drugged. "Heather stated in our last conversation that she found what appeared to be needle marks on various areas of her body," he said in a written statement, adding that she sounded dazed and incoherent at times. She's also told him that she's not getting enough water and that she is two months pregnant, he said. Elkin said in an interview Tuesday that he is concerned for Mack's safety. Col. Djoko Hari Utomo, the police chief in Bali's provincial capital, Denpasar, denied the sexual abuse claim. "We never treat her like that," Utomo said. "We even treat her better than treatment for other detainees here." Haposan Sihombing, an Indonesian lawyer assigned to accompany the couple, also denied the abuse allegations. Addressing her reported pregnancy, Utomo said she would be provided health care. Von Wiese-Mack's body was to be flown home early Wednesday on a Korean Air flight, said Ida Bagus Putu Alit, head of forensics at Sanglah Hospital in Denpasar. An FBI agent who arrived in Bali on Friday and investigated possible criminal activity by the couple in the United States saw the handover of von Wiese-Mack's body on Tuesday afternoon, Alit said. Associated Press writer Ali Kotarumalos contributed to this report from Jakarta, Indonesia. The post American Slain in Bali, Daughter Had Troubled Past appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine. |
| Japan’s Polarizing PM Abe Learns the Long Game Posted: 19 Aug 2014 10:30 PM PDT  Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe speaks to the media after visiting a shopping street in Shimonoseki, western Japan, in this photo taken by Kyodo on Aug. 13, 2014. (Photo: Reuters / Kyodo) TOKYO — Shinzo Abe is one of Japan's most polarizing prime ministers in decades. He may also have a good shot at becoming that rarity in Japanese politics—a long-serving leader. Whether that proves to be the case depends on whether Abe, who surged back to power 20 months ago for a second shot at Japan's top job, can temper his conservative ideology with pragmatism and keep his pledges to end two decades of economic stagnation. Abe's first term ended when, suffering ill health and facing political deadlock, he quit in 2007 after one troubled year. His focus then was on a controversial agenda that included turning the page on Japan's wartime past and easing the limits of the pacifist constitution. That agenda failed to resonate with voters worried about jobs and pensions. This time, aides are seeking to soften Abe's image as an ideologue and convince foreign investors and domestic voters his top priority remains reviving the economy. Abe's inner circle is well aware that success hinges on keeping that balance, interviews with dozens of aides, advisers and allies show. "Mr. Abe himself understands well what he must do as prime minister—and that is not simply to forge ahead with his own agenda," said a senior ruling coalition lawmaker. Abe's support rates have rebounded to just over 50 percent after slipping below that level last month, after the cabinet eased some of the pacifist constitution's limits on the military. Any fresh declines could erode his ability to tackle tough reforms many say are needed to engineer growth for Japan's ageing and shrinking population. Abe faces several hurdles in the coming months. He is expected to reshuffle the cabinet in early September, although core members of his team—including Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, a veteran of his first term—are set to stay on. He must also decide whether to go ahead with raising the sales tax to 10 percent next year, and faces a string of local elections. Navigating those political shoals with his popularity intact will be key to victory in a ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) leadership race a year from now, which Abe needs to win to gain a second three-year term until 2018. No one who knows Abe thinks he has abandoned his conservative agenda. But he and his aides stress his top focus is the economy, which has been jolted by last April's sales tax hike to 8 percent. Last quarter, the economy suffered its biggest contraction since the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami. "It is the economy that is the well-spring of energy for society," Abe wrote in an article published in the monthly Bungei Shunju magazine. But he added: "Security and the economy are not matters of a different order, and in reality, it could be said that they are two sides of the same coin." Less Is More Abe has sought to temper his image as a security hawk whom critics accuse of gutting Japan's pacifist constitution, as he pushes to ease the limits imposed on the military by the US-drafted charter's war-renouncing Article 9. On July 1, his cabinet adopted a resolution reinterpreting the constitution to drop a ban on collective self-defense, or aiding a friendly country under attack. The decision to drop the ban, which has kept the military from fighting abroad since 1945, marked a historic change in Japan's security policy. It also fulfilled a cherished goal for Abe, who inherited much of his conservative agenda from his grandfather, Nobusuke Kishi, a prewar cabinet minister who was jailed but never tried as a war-crimes suspect. Kishi became premier in 1957, but had to resign three years later after ramming a US-Japan Security Treaty through parliament despite mass public protests. In a classical Chinese-style poem written by hand with ink and brush and presented to Abe privately, Hisahiko Okazaki, a former diplomat and long-time Abe confidant summed up what the policy shift meant for those who shared Abe's world view. "Unprecedented defeat destroyed our spirit. To whom should we entrust the security of the people? Three generations of patriots. Finally, collective self-defense. Justice," he wrote. Although Abe was determined to achieve the goal that eluded him in 2006-07, he also demonstrated early on a willingness to compromise on the security issue to get a deal with the LDP's junior coalition partner, the more dovish New Komeito. Insiders said the stage for compromise was set months before the deal was clinched, when LDP Vice President Masahiko Komura floated the idea of allowing a "limited" exercise of collective self-defense. "Basically, the prime minister wanted to do everything, but once Mr. Komura came up with the concept of 'limited' [change], we realized that this was pretty close to the New Komeito's thinking and in that context the prime minister made the final decision," said a government official close to Abe. After receiving proposals from his security advisers, Abe at a May 15 news conference ruled out sending Japanese troops to fight with like-minded nations in far-flung military operations such as the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq. "He narrowed the scope, saying there would not be a 'full model change,'" the coalition lawmaker said. Washington welcomed the move, which US officials have long urged as necessary to allow Japan to take on more of the burden for the security alliance. Abe's liberal detractors, though, say the reinterpretation paves the way for further weakening of the constitution's pacifist Article 9 without attempting a politically tougher task of amending the constitution in parliament. The charter has not been amended since its adoption, although successive governments have stretched its limits. "If I were Abe's advisers, I'd reassure the international audience, especially American policy-makers, that he is a pragmatist pursuing a reformist agenda," said Sophia University professor Koichi Nakano. "He is doing this quietly, in a way that is not jarring to international observers." History Lessons Nowhere has the tug-of-war between Abe's conservative ideology and pragmatism been clearer than in the handling of the legacy of Japan's wartime past. Abe's Dec. 26 visit to Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine, where Japanese leaders convicted by an Allied tribunal as war criminals are honored along with war dead, stunned the United States and outraged China and South Korea, where memories of Japan's wartime aggression run deep. It was a rare defeat for the pragmatists in the Abe camp, such as Chief Cabinet Secretary Suga and his executive secretary Takaya Imai, a career trade and industry bureaucrat who by some accounts had vowed to physically prevent Abe from going. "For him, it is like visiting his parents' tomb. He felt he hadn't visited his parents' tomb for a long time, so he went," said Okazaki, the former diplomat. "It's a question of faith." Since the last visit, Abe has confined himself to making ritual offerings without visiting the shrine in person. "I think he will make a political decision whether to go every year or whether, having expressed his beliefs [by going once], he should exercise self-restraint with a pragmatic line for a while," said Koichi Hagiuda, a special aide to Abe in his Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). Abe, who has visited 47 countries since taking office, usually with business executives in tow, has been unable to hold summits with Chinese and South Korean leaders partly because of the shrine issue. He has recently renewed his calls for a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Abe also invokes Japan's ancient traditions as a rationale for his economic policies—using a fuzzy concept known as "Mizuho no Kuni Capitalism." The phrase, which translates as "Capitalism in a Land of Abundant Rice," harks back to Japan's traditional rice farming culture. It seeks to differentiate that cooperative approach from what is viewed as Western profit-grabbing greed. Those closely involved in formulating his economic policies, however, say those ideas play little direct role in crafting Abe's pro-business growth measures. "Achieving growth through competitiveness policies, deregulation, competition—these are things which must be done and they are just common sense," said economist Heizo Takenaka, a member of a government economic advisory panel. With local elections looming later this year and next, some advisers worry that political operatives may be tempted to opt for old-style tactics such as wooing rural voters with pork-barrel projects and shy away from tackling reforms that could hurt LDP support groups such as farmers. Pressure from LDP lawmakers persuaded Abe's economic team to include a reference to "Local Abenomics" in a policy package unveiled in June to persuade those outside Tokyo that they were not being ignored by a growth strategy that had mostly benefited big companies and cities. "What is important is not to go for 'safe driving' but to go on the attack," Takenaka said. "That is easy to say, but requires courage from those in charge." The post Japan's Polarizing PM Abe Learns the Long Game appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine. |
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