Wednesday, January 7, 2015

Democratic Voice of Burma

Democratic Voice of Burma


DVB Bulletin: 7 January 2014

Posted: 07 Jan 2015 04:05 AM PST

On tonight's bulletin:

  • Yanghee Lee arrives in Burma
  • 16 year old trafficking victim returned to family
  • Shan activist allege army murder
  • White House chef a sensation in Rangoon

You can watch DVB Bulletin every weeknight on DVB TV after the 7 o'clock news.

The post DVB Bulletin: 7 January 2014 appeared first on DVB Multimedia Group.

88 Gen delegates meet Myitsone villagers

Posted: 07 Jan 2015 12:15 AM PST

Representatives of the 88 Generation Peace and Open Society (88GPOS) civil society group and the Kachin Independence Organisation (KIO) met in state capital Myitkyina on Monday to discuss the ongoing peace process in Burma, though indications suggest that the suspended Myitsone mega-dam project featured prominently in their talks.

Mya Aye of the 88GPOS wrote on his Facebook page on Tuesday that his organisation was hopeful it would see progress at the upcoming round of ceasefire talks between the ethnic bloc's Nationwide Ceasefire Coordination Team and the government's Union Peace-making Work Committee.

He also said that the 88GPOS delegation was taken 30 kilometres north of the capital to meet the residents of Aungmyintha village who were forcibly relocated four years ago to make way for the controversial Chinese-backed dam project.

Though neither the 88GPOS nor the KIO chose to mention details of the Rangoon-based group's trip to the site, Ja Khon, a local Aungmyintha villager, said the 88 Generation delegation arrived on Tuesday morning and listened to their woes.

"They [88GPOS representatives] met with more than 20 villagers at the communal house and listened to us telling them how we were relocated and lost our livelihoods," he told DVB on Tuesday. "We also explained how we now have little access to healthcare and education.

"They promised to raise our issues with the government."

The villagers also stressed their concerns that the dam would be resumed when the current government's term ends.

Dau Hka, a member of the KIO's Technical Advisory Team (TAT), said that the Kachin army did not accompany the 88GPOS to Aungmyintha, but instead spoke with the activists about the current state of affairs with regard to the ceasefire talks and peace process.

"We spoke in general terms about each other's viewpoints and discussed means to strengthen the peace process," he told DVB.

The 88GPOS team met later on Tuesday with members of the Peace Creation Group (PCG), which has played a mediatory role in recent talks with the central government.

PCG spokesman San Aung said, "We discussed the possibilities with regard to a successful nationwide ceasefire, and we said we expect a positive outcome from the upcoming preliminary talks ahead of the seventh round of ceasefire negotiations.

"We believe that peace will be delayed unless there is progress," he added. "The president has suggested signing the nationwide ceasefire agreement next month on Union Day, and so we shall wait and see whether that will happen."

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DVB Debate: ‘Who benefits when the rivers are dammed?’

Posted: 06 Jan 2015 11:15 PM PST

On this week’s episode of DVB Debate, the panel questions just who stands to gain from the damming of Burma’s mighty rivers.

Hydropower is the single largest source of energy for Burma’s people, accounting for around forty percent of energy used.

But many households remain in the dark, with only one third having access to regular electricity.

More dams will mean more electricity, but just where will it go?

Watch the debate clip in English, then find the full debate in Burmese at dvbdebate.net

The post DVB Debate: ‘Who benefits when the rivers are dammed?’ appeared first on DVB Multimedia Group.

Irrawaddy salt production continues to slide

Posted: 06 Jan 2015 10:00 PM PST

Refined salt production in the Irrawaddy delta has been in decline since the area was devastated by Cyclone Nargis in 2008, said an official at Myanmar Salt Enterprise.

Statistics compiled by the government body show that there were 803 farmers working over 121,406 square metres (30,000 acres) of salt fields in the region in the first production season after the disaster. In the 2014-15 fiscal year, however, only 233 farmers sought permits for salt production and worked just over 10,000 acres.

A local salt farmer who spoke to DVB said the main factors contributing to the industry's decline include unstable market prices and high investment fees that drive many to switch careers.

The Irrawaddy delta is home to Burma's largest salt fields, which used to sprawl over the townships of Laputta, Ngapudaw, Dedaye and Bogale until Cyclone Nargis destroyed massive swaths of land.

The Post-Nargis Joint Assessment (PONJA) conducted in the wake of the disaster reported that more than 97.12 square kilometres (23,999 acres) – 80 percent of delta salt fields – were affected. The area comprised roughly 35,000 farms, threatening the livelihoods of tens of thousands of people.

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The Irrawaddy Magazine

The Irrawaddy Magazine


USDP, NLD Deny Skirting Campaign Rules

Posted: 07 Jan 2015 05:44 AM PST

Tin Aye, chairman of the Union Election Commission, was formerly a general and member of the central committee of the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party. (Photo: The Irrawaddy)

Tin Aye, chairman of the Union Election Commission, was formerly a general and member of the central committee of the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party. (Photo: The Irrawaddy)

RANGOON — Burma's two biggest political parties have denied recent accusations that they sidestepped election rules by holding premature campaign events.

The ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) and the main opposition party, National League for Democracy (NLD), maintained on Wednesday that public rallies focused on party platform centerpieces are within their right provided they seek permission from local authorities.

Smaller parties, however, have denounced the events as manipulative and "tricky," claiming that larger parties are using their status and financial resource to bend the rules in the lead-up to general elections to be held in late 2015.

"They are just avoiding the law," Saw Than Myint, deputy-chairman of the Federal Union Party (FUP), told The Irrawaddy, shortly after other minority politicians voiced concern about a recent USDP tour branded as an awareness campaign about agricultural policy.

"We [the FUP] don't campaign under the name of another issue. We don't trick the public. What we are seeing is that one big party gives a reason for an event but it is actually for another cause," he said, adding that the dominant parties are evading the law "by a hair."

Burma's new election guidelines limit campaign periods to 60 days before polls, though Union Election Commission Chairman Tin Aye recently announced that pre-campaigning to gain general party support is not prohibited, according to attendees of a Dec. 15 meeting between the chairman and party representatives.

Director of the Elections Department Taung Hlaing told The Irrawaddy that Tin Aye informed party chairs that they are free to engage in both "short-term" and "long-term" campaign activities.

"They can campaign on behalf of their party and promote their political agenda," said Taung Hlaing, "but in an actual election, people have to vote for candidates."

While the meeting seemed to legitimize party rallies as long they do not promote candidates, members of the NLD said they are not yet campaigning and await official permission to do so. Recent rallies hosted by the NLD to honor the late Gen. Aung San—a national hero and father of the party's chairwoman, Aung San Suu Kyi—and to gain support for constitutional reform have no ulterior motive, a party official said.

A USDP lawmaker offered a similar explanation for rallies held in Irrawaddy, Rangoon and Pegu divisions drumming up support for the party's accomplishments and vision for agricultural policy.

Forthcoming general elections, set to be held in either late October or early November 2015, will be the first since Burma emerged from decades of military dictatorship in 2011. Elections held in 2010 were broadly dismissed as fraudulent and were boycotted by the NLD.

The post USDP, NLD Deny Skirting Campaign Rules appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Rangoon Activists Send President Petition Against Property Project in Former Park

Posted: 07 Jan 2015 05:23 AM PST

The ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) is promoting the construction of a condominium on land in Rangoon that activists say was seized illegally. (Photo: The Irrawaddy)

The ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) is promoting the construction of a condominium on land in Rangoon that activists say was seized illegally. (Photo: The Irrawaddy)

RANGOON — Activists from Rangoon's South Okkalar Township said they have sent a signed petition to President Thein Sein urging him to restore a public park area that was seized by the ruling party and is being developed into a condominium complex.

Saw Naing, who is a member of the Public Park Restoration Committee, said some 200 signatures from community leaders and elders had been collected in support of a letter that asked to halt the construction of a condominium in South Okkalar Township's Ward 9.

The letter was sent on Monday to Thein Sein, Union Parliament Speaker Shwe Mann, Rangoon Division Chief Minister Myint Swe and Rangoon Mayor Hla Myint, Saw Naing said, adding that the activists also planned to lodge a formal complaint with the Yangon City Development Committee (YCDC).

The real estate project had been suspended in 2013 after the committee campaigned for restoration of the park, but resumed last November. "So we sent the petition again and hope to stop it again," he said.

In the 1960s, the area in Ward 9 on the corner of Waizayanthar Road and Thit Sar Street was turned into a public park and playground. In the early 2000s, the then-military government forcibly seized the public property and gave it to the Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA), the political mass movement of the junta and predecessor of the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP).

The party built a township office and a number of shop houses in the area, but recently planned a joint development project with Yan Naing Construction Company to construct a condominium complex on the site. Workers have begun putting down the foundation for the building.

Aung Thein Lin, the USDP chairman for Rangoon and a Lower House lawmaker, could not be reached for comment about the party's property development.

The activists, joined by prominent 88 Generation Peace and Open Society activist Ko Ko Gyi, held an unauthorized protest march through Ward 9 against the project in December, even though police had only allowed for protests at Kyaikkasan, an old horse-racing track in Tamwe Township.

Saw Naing and three other activists were subsequently charged under Article 19 of the Peace Assembly Law, which stipulates punishment of three months' imprisonment for violating a provision requiring protestors to remain within the area police have designated.

Ko Ko Gyi said he expected to be charged as well but added, "The police still haven't informed me directly. I heard the other people who cooperated with me have officially been charged under Article 19."

Ko Ko Gyi said the residents of Ward 9 were determined to stop the USDP from developing valuable, high-rise real estate on the former public area as they want it restored to its original function so that local families could have a recreational area.

"The older people remember how there used to be playgrounds where children could play on seesaws and slides, and people played badminton. They want to have this park back for the young generation," he said.

The post Rangoon Activists Send President Petition Against Property Project in Former Park appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Mayangone Wins Rangoon’s ‘Cleanest Township Award’

Posted: 07 Jan 2015 05:17 AM PST

A municipal worker loads garbage onto a truck in Rangoon. (Photo: Steve Tickner / The Irrawaddy)

A municipal worker loads garbage onto a truck in Rangoon. (Photo: Steve Tickner / The Irrawaddy)

RANGOON — The Yangon City Development Committee (YCDC) has bestowed its first-ever award for the city's most sanitary township to Mayangone Township, in an effort to clean up the commercial capital and incentivize municipal staff performance.

YCDC, the municipal body that oversees management of Burma's biggest city, on Wednesday gave the "Cleanest Township Award," which comes with a cash prize of 2.5 million kyats (US$2,500), to Mayangone in Rangoon's Northern District. Mayangone was among 33 townships in the municipal jurisdiction that were vying for the award.

"It is a good competition," Khin Maung Tint, the Northern District's newly elected YCDC representative, told The Irrawaddy. "If each township competes effectively, it will result in the city cleaning up and will also be better for health."

YCDC evaluated Rangoon's townships based on 30 criteria, including performance in waste management, water sanitation, drainage, handling of rubbish bins and staff members' obedience, in crowning the winner.

One township from each of Rangoon's other three districts—Yankin from Southern District, Dagon Seikkan in Eastern District and Dagon from Western District—also received runners-up awards for cleanliness, which came with a cash prize of 500,000 kyats, during an award ceremony at City Hall on Wednesday.

"We gave these awards to improve the waste collection process, encourage staff to be more active in carrying out their duties and increase public cooperation in making the city clean up by competing with each other," Rangoon Mayor Hla Myint, who heads YCDC, said at the awards ceremony.

He said the prize would be awarded every three months.

"I represent all staff members in our township. We have received this award because all of us together made great efforts," said Tin Myo Htwe, officer-in-charge from the Mayangone Township office responsible for sanitation matters, adding that the monetary prize would be distributed among township staffers.

Raining on the winning township's parade, however, was local Mayangone resident Thein Zaw, who said he saw no significant improvement in his jurisdiction's cleanliness, despite the YCDC award bestowed upon it.

"I think our township won because the other townships are worse than us," he said.

Thein Zaw said other circumstances in the township had likely helped Mayangone to win the award, citing relatively low-rise architecture that resulted in less crowding and attendant garbage in alleyways; local residents' greater sense of hygiene—prompted by YCDC's own sanitation management failings, he claimed; and the fact that senior government officials' motorcades frequently passed through the area on the way to and from Rangoon International Airport.

Issues like the city's water supply and garbage pick-up featured prominently in last month's YCDC municipal elections, with candidates promising to focus on deficiencies in services' provision if elected. The former capital's 5 million residents have long lived in an urban environment far removed from the likes of neighboring sanitary stalwarts such as Singapore or Kuala Lumpur.

In a report by The Irrawaddy in 2013, residents cited everything from a lack of readily available rubbish bins to the prevailing attitude of city-dwellers, with one resident joking: "If you don't dare to urinate on the roadside, people here know that you are not a Rangoon resident."

The post Mayangone Wins Rangoon's 'Cleanest Township Award' appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

AirAsia Jet Tail Found Underwater, Black Box May Be Close

Posted: 07 Jan 2015 04:12 AM PST

An Indonesian Air Force soldier looks through the window of a helicopter during a search operation for passengers onboard AirAsia Flight QZ8501, off the Java sea in Indonesia on January 7, 2015. (Photo: Reuters)

An Indonesian Air Force soldier looks through the window of a helicopter during a search operation for passengers onboard AirAsia Flight QZ8501, off the Java sea in Indonesia on January 7, 2015. (Photo: Reuters)

JAKARTA/PANGKALAN BUN, Indonesia — The tail of a crashed AirAsia jet has been found upturned on the sea bed about 30 km (20 miles) from the plane's last known location, Indonesia's search and rescue agency said on Wednesday, indicating the crucial black box recorders may be nearby.

Flight QZ8501 vanished from radar screens over the northern Java Sea on Dec. 28, less than half-way into a two-hour flight from Indonesia's second-biggest city of Surabaya to Singapore. There were no survivors among the 162 people on board.

"We've found the tail that has been our main target," Fransiskus Bambang Soelistyo, head of the search and rescue agency, told a news conference in Jakarta.

The tail was identified by divers after it was spotted by an underwater machine using a sonar scan, Soelistyo said. He displayed underwater photographs showing partial lettering on the sunken object compared with a picture of an intact Airbus A320-200 in AirAsia livery.

"I can confirm that what we found was the tail part from the pictures," he said, adding that the team "now is still desperately trying to locate the black box."

Indonesia's Minister for Maritime Affairs, Indroyono Soesilo, told another news conference: "With the finding of the tail, six SAR (search and rescue) ships are already at the location to search within a radius of two nautical miles."

Forty bodies and debris from the plane have been plucked from the surface of the waters off Borneo, but strong winds and high waves have been hampering divers' efforts to reach larger pieces of suspected wreckage detected by sonar on the sea floor.

Locating the tail has been a priority because the cockpit voice and flight data recorders that can provide vital clues on why the plane crashed are located in the rear section of the Airbus.

"I am led to believe the tail section has been found," AirAsia boss Tony Fernandes tweeted minutes after the announcement.

"If [it is the] right part of tail section, then the black box should be there… We need to find all parts soon so we can find all our guests to ease the pain of our families. That still is our priority."

'Pinger Locators'

In Pangkalan Bun, the southern Borneo town closest to the crash site, search and rescue agency coordinator Supriyadi told reporters the bad weather that has dogged the operation for 10 days had abated and divers were in the water.

But, as ships with acoustic "pinger locators" designed to pick up signals from the black box converged on the scene of the find, he cautioned the tail section of the aircraft might not be fully intact.

"The location of the tail is relatively far from the point of last contact, about 30 km," he said.

"The black box is located behind the door, to the right of the tail. There is a possibility that the tail and the back of the plane are broken up."

Until investigators can examine the black box recorders the cause of the crash remains a mystery, but the area where the plane was lost is known for intense seasonal storms. BMKG, Indonesia's meteorological agency, has said bad weather may have caused ice to form on the aircraft's engines.

Indonesia AirAsia, 49 percent owned by Fernandes's Malaysia-based AirAsia budget group, has come under pressure from the authorities in Jakarta since the crash.

The transport ministry has suspended the carrier's Surabaya-Singapore license, saying it only had permission to fly the route on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Flight QZ8501 took off on a Sunday, though the ministry said this had no bearing on the accident.

Fernandes however maintained that AirAsia had the required permission. "What happened was purely an administrative error," he said in an e-mail. "The process has become clear now."

AirAsia has said it is cooperating fully with the ministry's investigations. That investigation would be completed by Friday evening, the transport ministry said on Wednesday.

Indonesia has also reassigned some airport and air traffic control officials who allowed the flight to take off and tightened rules on pre-flight briefing procedures.

Indonesia is one of the world's fastest growing aviation markets and its carriers, such as Lion Air and Garuda Indonesia, are among the top customers for plane makers Airbus and Boeing.

But its safety record is patchy. The European Commission banned all Indonesia-based airlines from flying to the European Union in 2007 following a series of accidents. Exemptions to that ban have since been granted to some carriers, including Garuda and AirAsia.

The post AirAsia Jet Tail Found Underwater, Black Box May Be Close appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Shan State Officials Join China-Led Regional Law Enforcement Meeting

Posted: 07 Jan 2015 03:47 AM PST

A joint police force from China, Laos, Burma and Thailand patrols along the Mekong River at Guanlei in Yunnan Province in December. (Photo: Sina.com)

A joint police force from China, Laos, Burma and Thailand patrols along the Mekong River at Guanlei in Yunnan Province in December. (Photo: Sina.com)

CHIANG MAI, Thailand — Burmese officials of the Shan State border township of Tachilek said they attended a regional meeting with officials from China, Laos and Thailand on Wednesday in order to discuss ways to foster economic development and fight the rampant cross-border crime that plagues the Mekong region.

The one-day meeting was the fifth of its kind and was led by China and hosted by the Lao government in Bokeo Province, northern Laos. Officials from China's Yunnan Province attended the meeting, as did officials from northern regions of Thailand and Laos.

Tin Win Shwe, administrator at Tachilek Township, told The Irrawaddy, "We focused on border trade, hotels and tourism affairs. We talked about how to cooperate and act in accordance with the laws in our respective countries.

"We talked about how to inspect illegal [goods] transport on the Mekong River in our respective territories. It is just to push for more inspection on criminal activities on the Mekong River," he said.

The Mekong runs along the borders Laos, Thailand, Burma and southern China and forms a rugged region called the Golden Triangle that has long been an epicenter of opium, heroin and methamphetamine production and smuggling in Southeast Asia.

Burmese militias and drug gangs from the neighboring countries often use the Mekong to transport contraband out of the Golden Triangle. Patrolling the river in order to crackdown on illicit activities has become a priority for China after an attack on two Chinese cargo boats left 13 Chinese sailors dead in October 2011.

China weighed upon the Lao government, which arrested Shan State drug lord Nam Kham in 2012 and extradited him to China, where he was executed. Since the incident China has taken unilateral steps to patrol the Mekong, sending patrols far south into parts of the river bordering the other countries, while also stepping up initiatives to boost regional security cooperation.

Bertil Lintner, a veteran Swedish journalist who has written extensively on Burma and drug trade in the Golden Triangle, said China's commitment to cracking down on crime in the region was a new development, but he added that successful regional law enforcement cooperation is still a long way off.

"Those meetings are pretty meaningless and never result in any concrete action. They can sit together in meetings and sign agreements, but when it comes to actual action then it gets much more difficult," Lintner said.

"China finally decided to take unilateral action and send their own patrol boats down the river because there was never any joint action with other countries. To the best of my knowledge, there has been little or no coordination with other countries," he added.

The post Shan State Officials Join China-Led Regional Law Enforcement Meeting appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

In Taunggyi, 20 Accused Await Verdict on Terrorism Charges

Posted: 06 Jan 2015 11:23 PM PST

An aerial view of Mandalay prison, where 20 Burmese Muslims are awaiting a Jan. 12 verdict on terrorism charges. (Photo: Steve Tickner / The Irrawaddy)

An aerial view of Mandalay prison, where 20 Burmese Muslims are awaiting a Jan. 12 verdict on terrorism charges. (Photo: Steve Tickner / The Irrawaddy)

CHIANG MAI, Thailand — The district court of the Shan State capital of Taunggyi will next week pass down a verdict 20 Muslims accused of links to terrorism, according to a lawyer representing the defendants.

Khin Moe Moe, a lawyer for 12 of the detained, told The Irrawaddy on Wednesday that the defendants face sentences of 14-20 years imprisonment under sections of the Emergency Provisions Act related to the possession of weapons and undermining the security of the country.

"The court will have a verdict for them on Jan. 12," she said. "I tried my best to prove these people are innocent, but I do not know the viewpoint of the court. But then, we do not know how much independence the judge has to decide the case."

Prosecutors in the case accused the four women and 16 men defending the charges had links to armed insurgent groups. Khin Moe Moe said that evidence of the allegations has not been forthcoming, and neither the name of the insurgent group nor specific times and dates of alleged meetings between the defendants and insurgent groups was presented to the court.

"They agreed with us that when we asked them they could not furnish evidence or prove the charges. If these people had links to armed insurgents they should be able to show documents or weapons to prove this. Therefore, we proposed that these people are innocent at the court," she said.

The detained men and women, hailing from Taunggyi, Kyaukse and Naypyidaw, were arrested in August at Konhein Township, Shan State, which they had traveled to for a wedding.

The 20 Muslims are all Burmese nationals, and some are even members of the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), according to their lawyer.

The accused have been held since their arrest in a Mandalay prison more than 250 kilometers (155 miles) from the courtroom, with their lawyer objecting to their continued detention while the trial is ongoing.

"We have already prepared to go to the High Court to appeal, because conditions are not good for them," said Khin Moe Moe. "They are innocent."

The post In Taunggyi, 20 Accused Await Verdict on Terrorism Charges appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Weather Improves But Progress Slow in AirAsia Search

Posted: 06 Jan 2015 09:17 PM PST

A Malaysian Navy ship is seen from an Indonesian Air Force Super Puma helicopter during a search mission for for AirAsia flight QZ8501 off the coast of Central Kalimantan on Jan. 6, 2015. (Photo: Reuters)

A Malaysian Navy ship is seen from an Indonesian Air Force Super Puma helicopter during a search mission for for AirAsia flight QZ8501 off the coast of Central Kalimantan on Jan. 6, 2015. (Photo: Reuters)

PANGKALAN BUN, Indonesia — Indonesian search and rescue officials reported better weather on Wednesday over the presumed crash site of an AirAsia passenger jet, but appeared no closer to finding the black box flight recorders that may explain what brought the plane down.

Flight QZ8501 vanished from radar screens over the northern Java Sea on Dec. 28, less than half-way into a two-hour flight from Indonesia's second-biggest city of Surabaya to Singapore. There were no survivors among the 162 people on board.

Thirty-nine bodies and debris from the plane have since been plucked from the surface of the waters off Borneo, but strong winds and high waves have prevented divers from reaching larger pieces of suspected wreckage detected by sonar on the sea floor.

"It's clear, it's much better than the past few days," air force First Lieutenant Alpha Yudi Baskoro told reporters in Pangkalan Bun, the southern Borneo town where the operation is based. "Waves are around one to two meters—that's good. The wind speed is also relatively low."

Indonesian officials believe seven metal objects pinpointed in water about 30 meters deep may include the tail and parts of the fuselage of the Airbus A320-200.

But even on the few occasions the weather has allowed divers to enter the water, strong currents and poor visibility in the muddy sea have made progress painstakingly slow.

"We couldn't dive for long, only five or 10 minutes and then go up," navy diving supervisor Sgt-Maj Rudi Hartanto told Reuters late on Tuesday. "The seabed is mostly mud and sand, and the current is strong—four to five knots—so the mud comes up and the visibility reduces to zero."

For relatives of those aboard the flight, the slow pace has been agonizing. "I'm still looking for my younger sibling," said a woman, who did not give her name, at the crisis center set up for relatives in Surabaya.

Indonesia AirAsia, 49 percent owned by the Malaysia-based AirAsia budget group, has faced criticism from authorities in Jakarta in the 10 days since the crash.

The transport ministry has suspended the carrier's Surabaya-Singapore license, saying it only had permission to fly the route on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Flight QZ8501 took off on a Sunday, though the ministry said this had no bearing on the accident.

AirAsia has said it is cooperating fully with the ministry's investigations.

Indonesia has also reassigned some airport and air traffic control officials who allowed the flight to take off and tightened rules on pre-flight procedures in a country with a patchy reputation for air safety.

The post Weather Improves But Progress Slow in AirAsia Search appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Thai PM Urges Action on Human Trafficking as US Deadline Looms

Posted: 06 Jan 2015 09:12 PM PST

Detained trafficking victims sleep on the floor of a detention center in Thailand's Phang Nga province. (Photo: Htoo Chit)

Detained trafficking victims sleep on the floor of a detention center in Thailand's Phang Nga province. (Photo: Htoo Chit)

BANGKOK — Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha said on Tuesday his government would step up measures against human trafficking as the country scrambles to improve its record in fighting the illegal trade before a U.S. deadline to show improvement.

Thailand is ranked one of the world’s worst centers of human trafficking. It was downgraded to the lowest "Tier 3" status last June on the U.S. State Department’s annual Trafficking in Persons Report for not fully complying with minimum standards for its elimination.

Prayuth, who as army chief seized power from an elected government in a coup in May, said Thailand would work on areas flagged by the United States before submitting its record for 2014 to the U.S. State Department by a March deadline.

"We have set up a committee to look after 23 areas which the U.S. analyses and has warned us about for years," Prayuth, told reporters in Bangkok.

"We have to take this plan and put it in to action. Police, officials … everyone."

Any progress made in 2014 could help lift Thailand from the lowest tier and boost investment in industries accused of using trafficked labor, including fisheries.

Shortly after the military seized power in May, it vowed to "prevent and suppress human trafficking".

But an October Reuters Special Report suggests trafficking routes in Thailand were thriving, with jungle camps still holding thousands of people in remote hills near the border with Malaysia and trafficking rings able to operate largely with impunity.

Prayuth acknowledged the complicity of some Thai authorities in smuggling people and forcing them to work in the fishing industry.

"There is not only the human trafficking problem but also slaves and beggars and state officials taking people to work on fishing boats," he said.

Thailand is the world’s third-largest exporter of seafood.

Senior ministers will meet on Wednesday to assess progress made over the past year.

The post Thai PM Urges Action on Human Trafficking as US Deadline Looms appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Sri Lanka Monitor Accuses Ruling Party of Violating Election Rules

Posted: 06 Jan 2015 09:07 PM PST

Supporters of Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa at an election rally in Piliyandala on Monday. (Photo: Dinuka Liyanawatte / Reuters)

Supporters of Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa at an election rally in Piliyandala on Monday. (Photo: Dinuka Liyanawatte / Reuters)

COLOMBO — Supporters of Sri Lanka’s ruling party have repeatedly violated election laws in the run-up to Thursday’s presidential vote and has largely got away with it because police have turned a blind eye, a local polling monitor said on Tuesday.

The Centre for Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV) said there had been "unparalleled misuse of state resources and media" by the party of President Mahinda Rajapaksa, whose bid for a third term could be upset by an unexpected challenger from within his own ranks, Mithripala Sirisena.

"There was impunity. No action was taken against the perpetrators or actions were mild," Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu, a convener of the CMEV, told reporters.

He said police inaction had allowed election-related violence to mount, adding that most of those responsible were local councillors from Rajapaksa’s party.

CMEV, one of three main local monitor groups, said it had documented 420 incidents of violence and intimidation since the poll was announced in November. In one case this week, decapitated dogs' heads were delivered to the houses of two human rights activists who are known critics of the government.

Police spokesman Ajith Rohana said the level of violence had been much lower than during previous elections and actions had been taken against perpetrators, including two deputy ministers.

Government spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella said he could not comment on the allegations of misuse of state resources unless they were specific. He rejected claims that ruling party supporters were behind the violence.

State media have run mud-slinging campaigns against Sirisena, while Rajapaksa’s party used state vehicles and government employees for his campaign, CMEV said.

It also raised concern over the deployment of troops in the former war zone in the north of the island nation, where a 26-year insurgency by Tamil separatists was put down in 2009, which could reduce voter turnout there.

The main parties representing Sri Lanka’s ethnic Tamil and Muslim minorities, who account for a quarter of the 21 million population, have pledged support for Sirisena.

There have been no credible opinion polls, but many political analysts believe Sirisena is within striking distance of unseating Rajapaksa.

"While Rajapaksa is likely to use security forces to suppress turnout in opposition and minority areas … the effort is unlikely to prove large enough to swing the election," said Eurasia Group’s Sasha Riser-Kositsky in a research note.

Rights group Amnesty International said reports of a potential organised plan to obstruct voters on election day using the military was a "matter of grave concern."

The post Sri Lanka Monitor Accuses Ruling Party of Violating Election Rules appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

As Burma Opens Up, Miners Weigh Potential Versus Risk

Posted: 06 Jan 2015 08:39 PM PST

A man picks up rubies at a ruby mine in Mogok February 27, 2014. Mogok, also known as the Ruby Land, is home to the world-famous Burmese ruby. (Photo: Reuters)

A man picks up rubies at a ruby mine in Mogok February 27, 2014. Mogok, also known as the Ruby Land, is home to the world-famous Burmese ruby. (Photo: Reuters)

RANGOON — With abundant mineral wealth from jade and rubies to copper and coal, Burma ought to be looking forward to a mining boom as it opens up its economy. But long-running insurgencies and a murky regulatory framework are holding back all but the intrepid.

Foreign investment in the Southeast Asian country as well as home-grown development were held back by 49 years of military rule that ended when a quasi-civilian, reformist government took office in 2011 and started courting investors.

The security and regulatory risks remain daunting, however, and although 69 foreign firms have registered to work in Burma’s mining sector, only 11 are operating.

One of them, Asia Pacific Mining Ltd (APML), has been granted an exploration license covering 650 square km (250 square miles) in restive Shan State, where it hopes to find deposits of lead, zinc and silver.

On Jan. 5, APML announced that its first month of exploration had yielded "significant discoveries of massive sulfide silver-lead-zinc mineralization" and said it expected to start exploratory drilling by April.

APML’s concession surrounds the Bawdwin mine, which CEO Andrew Mooney said was the world’s largest source of lead and zinc in the 1930s.

Despite its prospects, Burma’s risks will probably deter big firms from investing any time soon, Mooney told Reuters.

"[Myanmar's] been off the radar since the 1960s," he said.

"In Southeast Asia, Indonesia is the major mining powerhouse. I think Myanmar has the potential to overtake it."

A tumble in commodity prices may also deter some. Silver has lost two-thirds of its value since 2011 and zinc has shed almost 20 percent since then.

Wildcats

Burma’s government cannot put a precise figure on its potential mineral wealth and is unable to provide data on the sector’s worth before 1989.

Isolation under military rule plus international sanctions hampered exploration work.

With US$2.86 billion in foreign investment since 1989—an annual average of just $114 million—its mining sector is tiny compared to that of Indonesia, where coal exports alone generate revenue of over $25 billion a year, even at current low prices.

The limited surveying work done suggests large resources. "Judging by the size of its mineral deposits, you would expect a bonanza," the Oxford Business Group, an investment and economic consultancy, said in its 2014 report on Burma.

Yet for now, Burma is the domain of small, wildcat companies specializing in high-risk frontier investment.

Conflicts between the military and numerous ethnic minority armies have flared since the 1950s and much of the mineral wealth is in areas controlled by insurgents keen to get a share of the spoils under any peace deals.

Underlining the risks, fighting was reported near APML’s concession area three days after it announced its license in October.

And earlier this month, a woman was killed and about a dozen other people were wounded when police and villagers clashed in central Burma during a protest over the expansion of a copper mine owned by a Chinese firm and a Burma company controlled by the military.

Legal hurdles are a problem, too: a new mining law has been held up in Parliament for more than a year. The bill in its initial form did not inspire confidence among investors.

It lacks guarantees for firms to develop and exploit minerals found through exploration, said Vicky Bowman, a former Rio Tinto executive who is now director of the Myanmar Centre for Responsible Business.

"The law has got stuck in Parliament. It’s been through various committees," she said. "But I think now people are realizing that the current draft, if adopted, would mean an opportunity to bring the sector up to international standards had been wasted."

The post As Burma Opens Up, Miners Weigh Potential Versus Risk appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

National News

National News


Human rights envoy to face Rakhine protests

Posted: 06 Jan 2015 10:01 PM PST

United Nations special rapporteur for human rights in Myanmar Yanghee Lee begins her second tour of the country today.

President pushes Union Day ceasefire deal

Posted: 06 Jan 2015 09:15 PM PST

Seizing the opportunity presented by Independence Day, President U Thein Sein discussed with the leaders of 12 ethnic armed groups the key questions of participation in the elections later this year and the signing of a nationwide ceasefire agreement.

Lisu to rock Mogok for their New Year

Posted: 06 Jan 2015 07:58 PM PST

The Lisu ethnic group will hold a blow-out New Year event at the end of February, organisers say, in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the annual festival.

Measles, rubella campaign to target more than 17 million children

Posted: 06 Jan 2015 07:56 PM PST

A US$24 million campaign to boost immunisation against measles and rubella will get underway later this month, the Ministry of Health says.

Visa on arrival expands to more than 100 nationalities

Posted: 06 Jan 2015 07:52 PM PST

The Ministry of Immigration and Population has expanded an electronic visa system to another 32 nationalities – meaning people from more than 100 countries can now use the faster, more convenient service.

Electrical fault blamed for Inle Princess fire

Posted: 06 Jan 2015 07:50 PM PST

The December 30 blaze at the Inle Princess Resort hotel that destroyed half the bungalow accommodation could have been caused by an electrical fault, investigators believe.

Cardinal preaches peace and tolerance

Posted: 06 Jan 2015 06:19 PM PST

Myanmar's newly appointed cardinal says he will push for an end to sectarian violence in his country, two days after he was elevated to the heights of the Roman Catholic Church.

Shan Herald Agency for News

Shan Herald Agency for News


BURMA: 2014 Ends, But Old Problematic Issues Linger On

Posted: 07 Jan 2015 12:55 AM PST

As 2014 comes to an end, all the woes and burdens that have been there from the previous year continue to exist and haunt us, with no appropriate way to tackle them, which could lead us out of the quagmire, resolve differences and start an earnest reconciliation-democratization process.
Let us look at list the hangover problems and speculate on what actually awaits us for the coming year.


US Campaign for Burma, in 2013, listed top 10 human rights violations, which include ethnic cleansing, extra-judicial killings, rape and sexual violence, needlessly creating IDPs and refugees, human trafficking, torture, child soldiers, forced labour, arbitrary arrests and land confiscation. The mentioned rights violations continue unabated during the whole year of 2014, as President Thein Sein - during his EU visit - made an appeal not to file human rights violations report at the UNGA. Not surprisingly, the European Union has refused to back away from plans to submit a resolution to the United Nations General Assembly on Burma's human rights record, despite President U Thein Sein's insistence that they are no longer needed.


Since the 1990s, multiple United Nations organs have also documented and condemned serious human rights abuses committed under the military regime. These include the UN General Assembly, the Commission on Human Rights, the Human Rights Council, numerous Special Rapporteurs on the Situation of Human Rights in Myanmar [Burma], the International Labour Organization (ILO), and the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) (Source: Burma Link & HRW)


Accordingly, UN Special Rapporteur Yanghee Lee, during her speech to the UN General Assembly about Burma's human rights situation, on 28 October 2014, warned that "there are signs of possible backtracking which, if not addressed, could undermine Myanmar's efforts to take its rightful place as a responsible member of the international community that respects and protects human rights".


The possible signs of backtracking report, titled "Situation of human rights in Myanmar", under four major headings, were distributed or transmitted to the UN members, by the Secretary General, at UNGA sixty-nineth secession, on 23 September.


The gist or basic points of the UN Special Rapporteur's observation and recommendation of the said four headings are as follows:


A. Electoral process, political participation and democratic space
In accordance with international standards, elections should be transparent, inclusive, participatory, free and fair.


B. National reconciliation and the rights of minorities
As Myanmar is one of the most diverse countries in the world, with more than 130 ethnic groups, the Special Rapporteur believes that ensuring full respect for the rights of minorities will be essential for national reconciliation and democratic transition


C. Development, economic, social and cultural rights
Land rights issues, in particular land-grabbing and land confiscation, as well as forced eviction, remain a major challenge. Cases of land-grabbing, environmental destruction and extortion have been reported throughout the country


D. Rule of law and the administration of justice
The current Constitution of Myanmar was adopted following a referendum in 2008. Its adoption was widely criticized for being fundamentally flawed, in terms of both substance and process. Current attempts at constitutional reform present opportunities to address some of these criticisms. It is notable that one of the key priorities reportedly identified from various consultation exercises on this issue was a change to the currently onerous procedure for amending the Constitution


Article 436 provides for the manner in which proposed amendments to the Constitution are to be approved. One study has pointed out that no other constitution in the world has an amendment procedure that requires the approval of more than 75 per cent of the members of both parliamentary chambers or allows for the military to have veto power over constitutional amendments


The report concluding note also writes:
Myanmar is undergoing an important transition, and the far-reaching reforms have dramatically transformed the political, economic, social and human rights landscape in the three years since the establishment of the new Government. This must be recognized and commended. Yet, there are signs of possible backtracking, which, if not addressed, could undermine Myanmar's efforts to take its rightful place as a member of the international community that respects and protects human rights. Thus, human rights should be fully mainstreamed into Myanmar's institutional, legal and policy framework, and a culture of respect of human rights must be engendered among all State institutions and the public at large.


Since the problems facing Burma are numerous, let us take stock only on major issues and how far has the Thein Sein, USDP-Military regime has resolved the corresponding issues.


The most five crucial issues that have been troubling the reform process are the ongoing ethnic conflict, constitutional amendment, land confiscation and Monywa copper mine, sectarian violence and the related 969 movement.


Ethnic Conflict
Even though almost all Ethnic Armed Organizations (EAOs) have signed state-level or union-level ceasefire agreements, with the exception of Kachin Independence Organization/Army (KIO/KIA), Taang National Liberation Army (TNLA) and Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), the armed clashes continue to occur at an alarming rate, which in normal circumstances would have tagged the ongoing peace process as a totally shattered undertaking.
During the ten-month period, between November 2013 and August 2014, Tatmadaw troops clashed at least 122 times with ethnic armed groups in Kachin and Shan States, including the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), the Shan State Army-North (SSAN), the Shan State Army-South (SSA-S), the Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA), and the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA). (Source: Altsean - BURMA: SLIDING BACKWARDS FROM REFORM - September 18, 2014 )


Armed clashes documented by Myanmar Peace Monitor in September is said to be 18, in October 31, and in November 20, totaling 69 times armed clashes for the said three months period.


Thus the whole year armed clash count, if one added the available figures, would amount to 191 times in total.


On top of this, according to Altsean documentation, in November 2014, the Tatmadaw followed through with their October threat to resume attacks in Kachin State. On 19 November, Tatmadaw troops from LIBs 389 and 390 launched an artillery attack on a Kachin military academy adjacent to an IDP camp in Laiza, the Kachin Independence Army's (KIA) headquarters in Momauk Township, Kachin State. The attack killed at least one civilian and 23 cadets from various ethnic armed groups, and injured 20 cadets.


On 20 November, Kachin State Border Security Minister Col Than Aung explained that the attack was "unintentional" but also meant to "send a warning" to the KIA. The United Nationalities Federal Council (UNFC) said the attack posed a "serious obstacle" to the peace process, while the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) said it was "deliberate" and proved that the peace process was "dead." ( Source: Altsean - November 2014)


Apart from the patchy and fragile peace talks between the regime and the ethnic armed groups, the Burma Army insists that the ethnic groups accept and abide by the 2008 constitution, which directly write off the ethnic groups' demand for a federal union and a federal army.


The backtracking of Union Peacemaking Working Committee (UPWC), in September 2014 peace talks, on federal union and federal army issues discussion at a later phase of political dialogue, agreed in August 2014, combined with the Laiza Cadet School attack in November 2014, have been the last straw, completely halting the peace process to a stand still.


Constitutional Amendment
According to Altsean documentation of 18 September 2014, efforts to reform the constitution have yielded no results to date. On 31 January, following five months of deliberation, a 109-member parliamentary constitutional review committee submitted its report on constitutional reform. Despite receiving 28,247 suggestions, the committee's report failed to propose any substantial changes to contested articles, including Articles 109 and 141, which reserve 25% of seats for military MPs; and Article 436, which requires an approval of more than 75% of the Parliament for constitutional amendments. The committee also retained the clause granting immunity to military personnel who commit crimes while carrying out their duties.


On 3 February, the National Parliament approved the formation of a new 31-member parliamentary committee tasked with reviewing the compilation of suggested amendments of the previous 109-member committee. On 10 June, the committee voted to retain, by a vote of 26-5, Article 59(f), which bars Daw Aung San Suu Kyi from running for president. The 31-member committee is expected to deliver its recommendations to Parliament during the current legislative session, which began on 11 September.


The 14 August 2014 report of DVB wrote that the National League for Democracy (NLD) and 88 Generation Peace and Open Society (88GPOS), on 12 August 2014, handed over a petition to parliament with nearly five million signatures calling for an amendment to Article 436 of the Burmese Constitution.


NLD and 88GPOS members conducted a campaign launched at the end of May and concluded on 19 July 2014, in more than 300 townships across the country, had collected 4,953,093 signatures. NLD said the petition represented not only its supporters but people from all sectors.


However, the House speaker and as well, the commander-in-chief rejected the outcome as not important in influencing the constitutional amendment procedure.


The speaker said at a press conference on 18 November 2014 that a national referendum would be held in May 2015 to approve possible changes, but they would not be put to a vote in parliament until after the general election, which is expected in November or December 2015. (Source: Myanmar Times - 19 November 2014)


By the look of it, it is now becoming quite clear that the constitutional amendment is hardly possible within the parliament for the Commander-in-Chief has time and again rejected to amend it and openly stated that federal union and federal union army formation are not on his agenda. And with the military veto votes, there is no way that this could be pulled through within the parliament.
Land confiscation and Monywa copper mine
According to Altsean documentation, since President Thein Sein took office in 2011, the regime has allowed unbridled land confiscation for infrastructure, commercial and military development projects. The 2008 constitution identifies the state as being the ultimate owner of all land in Burma. Antiquated laws such as the 1894 Land Acquisition Act give the regime the right to take over any land, making local people extremely vulnerable to forced displacement without any recourse to remedy.


Given that an estimated 70% of the population depend on small- and medium-scale agriculture for their livelihoods, land confiscation has had a devastating impact.


President Thein Sein has continued down the path set by the military regime's January 2011 Special Economic Zone (SEZ) Law, designed to attract foreign investment. SEZ developments in Burma have been directly linked to land confiscation. Currently, there are three major multi-billion dollar SEZ development projects underway: Tavoy in Tenasserim Division, which has been temporarily suspended, Kyaukpyu in Arakan State, and Thilawa in Rangoon Division's Thanlyin Township.


Other large scale projects including the Kyaukpyu-Kunming oil and gas dual pipeline, the Myitsone dam project, and the Monywa copper mine have been at the forefront of land confiscation controversies mainly due to the scale and intensity of violence and human rights abuses against residents and activists. (Source: LAND CONFISCATION IN BURMA: A THREAT TO LOCAL COMMUNITIES & RESPONSIBLE INVESTMENT - Altsean- updated 5 May 2014)


Of all the land confiscation debacles, Monywa or better known as Letpadaung copper mine issue stands out as the most problematic one, due to the stark resistance from the inhabitants of the area and merciless crack down of the government police forces, resulting in death and wounded.


The Irrawaddy reported of 29 December 2014 that on 22 December 2014,, Wanbao began fencing in disputed land, leading to clashes between police and locals that resulted in the death of 56-year-old Khin Win. Several others involved in the protest were also injured.


According to the same report, the mining project in Sagaing Division—a joint venture between China's Wanbao and the Burmese military-owned Union of Myanmar Economic Holding Ltd (UMEHL)—was suspended in November 2012 after a brutal police crackdown on protesters that saw scores, including monks, injured.


Following the incident, operations at the mine were suspended and a commission was formed to investigate the project. Suu Kyi was assigned to chair the commission, which filed a report in early 2013 with a list of conditions that it recommended be met before resuming the project. The controversial venture resumed operations in October 2013.


In 2013 and 2014, police continued to violently repress protests and charge, detain, and jail activists protesting against the Monywa copper mine. Villagers have been sentenced to hard labor for resisting eviction. On 25 April 2013, police in Sete Village, Salingyi Township, Sagaing Division, fired shots and used batons to disperse farmers who were plowing land to protest against the Monywa copper mine. At least seven villagers were injured in the crackdown. (Source: LAND CONFISCATION IN BURMA: A THREAT TO LOCAL COMMUNITIES & RESPONSIBLE INVESTMENT – updated May 5, 2014)


However, the controversial project move ahead, without transparency and the approval for the EIA [environmental impact assessment] and the HIA [health impact assessment], as required by the commission; with failure of the mining company and the authorities to think about providing long-term assurances for the livelihoods of farmers who lost the land which they have worked on for generation; and despite the refusal of some farmers to accept compensation. (Source: Irrawaddy - October 14, 2013)


Sectarian Violence
The 2012 sectarian violence between the Arakanese and the Rohingya Muslims, as they liked to be addressed, is a product of differing historical concept from different perspective of the two groups. While the Arakanese and as well, successive Burmese regimes, are convinced that the Muslims are mere illegal immigrants from neighboring Bangladesh, the Rohingyas consider themselves as one of the Burma's minorities, which have been inhabiting Arakan State for hundreds of years.


In June 2012, deadly sectarian violence erupted in western Burma's Arakan State between ethnic Arakan Buddhists and Rohingya Muslims (as well as non-Rohingya Muslims). The violence broke out after reports circulated that on May 28 an Arakan woman was raped and killed in the town of Ramri allegedly by three Muslim men. Details of the crime were circulated locally in an incendiary pamphlet, and on June 3, a large group of Arakan villagers in Toungop stopped a bus and brutally killed 10 Muslims on board. (Source: HRW – The Government Could Have Stopped This – 2012)


According to The Inquiry Commission on the Sectarian Violence in Rakhine State: Executive Summary, Final Report of 23 April 2013, the 2012 sectarian conflicts led to the 192 deaths, 265 injured, and the destruction of 8,614 houses, turning an estimated 100,000 into internally displaced people (IDPs).


Since then sectarian violence has spread to other parts of Burma like, Meiktila, Okkan, Lashio, Kanbalu and Thandwe, coinciding with the rise of the Buddhist 969 Movement led by nationalist monk U Wirathu. Many believe the 969 Movement has been responsible for inciting violence against Muslims in Burma, according to Wikipedia.


These anti-Muslim riots, outside the Arakan State, have produced a death count of more than 44, while making hundreds homeless, due to the torching of homes, mainly owned by Muslims, according to various media reports.


According to Altsean documentation, (S)ince inter-communal violence erupted in Arakan State in June 2012, outbreaks of anti-Muslim violence have continued across Burma, including attacks on Rohingya. Two major instances were:


9-13 January: Buddhist Rakhine and local police killed at least 48 Muslim Rohingya men, women, and children in Du Chee Yar Tan Village, Maungdaw Township, Arakan State. Then-UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Burma Tomás Ojea Quintana said that the regime's subsequent probe failed to adequately investigate the killings.


1-4 July: Extremist Buddhist mobs attacked Muslim shops, homes, and other buildings in Mandalay Division, killing two and injuring 14, after extremist Buddhist monk U Wirathu shared a post on Facebook that falsely accused two Muslim teashop owners in Mandalay of raping a Buddhist woman. Riot police on the scene failed to stop the targeting of Muslims.


Regime authorities have failed to adequately respond to instances of hate speech and inter-communal violence, or take effective measures to protect Rohingya and other Muslims, thereby perpetuating an environment that fosters such behavior. In July, Minority Rights Group International ranked Burma 8th on a list of the world's most dangerous nations for minorities, noting that hate speech was on the rise and that hate crimes against Rohingya had reached the scale of "mass atrocities." It linked U Wirathu and the '969' movement to violence and a "coordinated anti-Muslim campaign." (Source: Altsean - BURMA: SLIDING BACKWARDS FROM REFORM - September 18, 2014 )


The said report emphasized that anti-Muslim and anti-Rohingya violence and hate speech has intensified, with security forces involved in many instances. Furthermore, the census – taken between 30 March and 10 April 2014 - excluded those identified as Rohingya. Those who gave in and identified as 'Bengali' are now being subjected to an oppressive 'citizenship assessment' process that may lead to deportation or lifelong internment in camps.


Meanwhile, AFP in its report on 30 December 2014 wrote that the UN General Assembly, on 29 December 2014, adopted a resolution urging Myanmar to grant citizenship to its Rohingya Muslim minority and grant them equal access to services.


The non-binding measure was adopted by consensus in the 193-nation assembly, a month after it was approved by the assembly's rights committee.


The resolution expresses "serious concern" over the plight of the Rohingya in Rakhine state, where 140,000 people live in squalid camps after violence erupted between Buddhists and Muslims in 2012. Under a controversial government-backed plan, the Rohingya would be forced to identify themselves as Bengali — a term seen as disparaging — in order to apply for citizenship. Those who refuse would be forced to live in camps.


969 Movement
According to Nathan G. Thompson, the 969 Movement portrays itself as a peaceful, grassroots movement dedicated to "promoting and protecting religion." The underlying theme of their rhetoric is the view that Islam is threatening to "overrun" Burma, and that Buddhists must stand up and "save" their way of life.


While the origins of the 969 Movement aren't terribly clear, Wirathu's release from prison in January 2012 and subsequent activism clearly escalated the group's presence and efforts. Beginning in April 2012, boycotts of Muslim owned businesses have spread across the nation, and sympathetic lawmakers started introducing legislation sponsored by the movement. More recently, Buddhist shop owners have begun displaying 969 logos in their windows, and some also use their businesses as a place to publically air the speeches of Wirathu and others in the movement. And along the way, Buddhists have committed numerous acts of violence and murder against Muslims, actions that Wirathu and other movement leaders deny supporting, but clearly are an outgrowth of the anti-Muslim atmosphere they have inspired. (Source: The 969 Movement and Burmese Anti-Muslim Nationalism in Context, Posted by: Nathan G. Thompson Posted date: July 16, 2013)


In an interview with The Irrawaddy, on 29 March 2013, Wirathu explained the 969 symbol as follows:


The first 9 stands for the 9 attributes of the Lord Buddha, second number 6 for the 6 attributes of the Buddhist teachings, and the third 9 stands for the 9 attributes of Sanghas (Monks). So they stand for the attributes of three Treasures of Buddhism – The Lord Buddha, his teachings and the monk. Like the other symbols of Buddhism such as "Buddhan Saranan", "Arahan" or "Dhamma Sekya", this "969" is also just a Buddhist symbol.


According to 27 June 2013, Reuters report, examination traces 969's origins to an official in the dictatorship that once ran Burma, and which is the direct predecessor of today's reformist government. The report said that 969 movement now enjoys support from senior government officials, establishment monks and even some members of the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD), the political party of Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi. Burma's minister of religious affairs, U San Sint, a former lieutenant general in the Burma army is also an admirer.


The report further pointed out that President Thein Sein's benign view of 969, declining to comment on the controversial issue. But in response to growing controversy over the movement, it issued a statement, saying 969 "is just a symbol of peace" and Wirathu is "a son of Lord Buddha."


The sectarian violence reached prominence in June 2012 when more than 200 people were killed and around 100,000 were displaced. According to the Human Rights Watch report, the Burmese government and local authorities played a key role in the forcible displacement of more than 125,000 Rohingya and other Muslims in the region. The report further specifies the coordinated attacks of October 2012 that were carried out in different cities by Burmese officials, community leaders and Buddhist monks to terrorize and forcibly relocate the population. The violence of Meiktila, Lashio (2013) and Mandalay (2014) are the latest Buddhist violence in Burma. (Source:Wikipedia - Buddhism and violence)


Regarding the bills of 'National Race and Religion Protection', the government makes it quite clear on where it stands on the issue. Altsean documentation writes:


In 2014, the regime has continued to pursue an antiMuslim agenda. In February, President Thein Sein expedited a package of four discriminatory bills to Parliament aimed at restricting the rights of Muslims. The bills, which make up the 'National Race and Religion Protection' package, are: the Religious Conversion Bill; the Interfaith Marriage Bill; the Population Control Bill; and the Monogamy Bill.


In May, the regime published a draft of the Religious Conversion Bill. Drafts of the other three bills are yet to be published. In July, UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Burma Yanghee Lee said the bills were "incompatible with international human rights standards."


In addition, in March, the National Assembly approved a bill amending the Political Parties Registration Law, removing the right of temporary ID holders (which include many Rohingya) to form political parties.


Religious Conversion Bill The Religious Conversion Bill will require anyone wishing to convert to another religion to submit a detailed application giving reasons for conversion, then submit to an interview by four members of a township registration board, who will make a decision in 90 days.66 Anyone found guilty of violating the law will be subject to a maximum of two years' imprisonment and a fine of 200,000 kyat (US$200).
I
nterfaith Marriage Bill Although not officially published, the Interfaith Marriage Bill would require women to seek permission from the state before marrying outside their faith. The initial draft proposed by the extremist Buddhist Organization for the Protection of National Race and Religion (OPNRR) stipulated that Muslim men who married Buddhist women would be required to convert to Buddhism, and that violators could face up to 10 years in prison.


Population Control Bill The Population Control Bill is anticipated to apply on a national level for all Muslims and other religious minorities, effectively extending the existing Rohingya two-child policy currently being implemented in Arakan State. The bills target the Muslim population, but will consequently affect other religious minorities. (Source: Altsean - BURMA: SLIDING BACKWARDS FROM REFORM - September 18, 2014 )


According to RFA report on 3 December 2014, President Thein Sein approved a controversial religion and family planning draft law on Wednesday and submitted it to parliament amid renewed criticism from rights advocates who say it discriminates against Muslims and women in the conservative, predominantly Buddhist country.


Lawmakers will debate the legislation, which imposes restrictions on interfaith marriages, religious conversions, and birth rates, in the next parliamentary session, according to reports.


The proposed bill was promoted by the newly-formed extremist Buddhist Organization for the Protection of National Race and Religion (OPNRR), headed by monk U Tilawaka Biwuntha, a supporter of extremist Buddhist monk U Wirathu's '969' movement.


2014 Wrap Up And Reminder
As outlined by the UN Special Rapporteur Yanghee Lee, Burma would have to tackle first and foremost, on how to go about with the upcoming election to be free, fair, transparent and all-inclusive; achieving national reconciliation; managing development, economic, social and cultural rights; and accommodating constitutional amendment to uphold the rule of law and the administration of justice.


As mentioned from the outset, while ethnic conflict, constitutional amendment, land confiscation, and sectarian violence issues are linked and equally important to resolve all the numerous woes surrounding the country, the controversial 969 movement could derail and even become a deciding factor, on how the country's future would be moulded or look like.


There is no denying that the love for one's race, ethnic or nationality and religion has to be cherished, but it doesn't mean that one has to destroy or get rid of the others faith or commit gross human rights violations.


In an article titled "Buddhism in Myanmar: Extremism Galore", dated 17 August 2014, it writes:


Fundamentalism can be found in any religion: Christianity, Hinduism, Judaism, Islam… you name it! But in every religion, the majority of the followers are always against fundamentalism.


More importantly, on the practical front, the radical monks serve as handy allies for the pseudo-civilian government of Myanmar. Therefore, even Aung San Suu Kyi, so well-known for her pro-liberty credentials, has chosen to be a mute spectator.


The actions of the fundamentalists is causing great tension and turmoil in Myanmar (not to mention the fact that it is putting the lives and property of the Rohingya people at stake). If Myanmar actually intends to progress towards true democracy and prosperity, it will have to eliminate the terror groups like the Mabatha and the 969 Movement, and attempt to safeguard the interests of its religious minorities. True development seems impossible as long as terrorists are dominating the Burmese politics and society.


The greatest angst that Burma's movers, shakers and stakeholders should have or keep in mind is the possible, viral, growth of Buddhist fundamentalism or religious intolerance, which would be able to dictate the outcome of 2015 election, by threatening not to vote for the parties that don't toe their line of Buddhist extremism. With its extensive monastic education network and grass roots support, the 969 movement could be in a position to influence the electoral outcome. And if the fundamentalist political point of view would prevail and could dominate the parliament, we could all say good-bye to the peace process, all-inclusiveness, democracy and a genuine federal form of government.


Hopefully, all those concerned with the well-being of Burma, including the silent majority, would do everything in 2015, to limit the damage already done and fend off extremism of all aspects, so that harmonious co-habitation and reconciliation could return to this devastated and deeply divided society.



NOTE: This compilation and assessment won't be possible without the use of materials from Altsean various documentation, UN Special Rapporteur Yanghee Lee's statement/report, Human Rights Watch, The Irrawaddy and many other news outlet.