The Irrawaddy Magazine |
- Military Cadet Killed During Punishment by Senior
- Burma Studies Conference Highlights Limits to Democratic Change
- Four Burma Army Soldiers Dead in Maungdaw Clash
- Ten Things to Do in Rangoon This Week
- Military Offensives Threaten to Interrupt Peace Process, Says KIO
- UK Parliament Speaker Calls for Blocks on Humanitarian Aid to be Lifted
- UWSA Say Drug Label ‘Not Fair’
- Burma’s Misguided Peace Process Needs a Fresh Start
| Military Cadet Killed During Punishment by Senior Posted: 11 Oct 2016 09:12 AM PDT  Burma military chief Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing visits the Defence Services Academy in Mandalay Division. (Photo: Myawaddy) A second year student at Burma's renowned Defence Services Academy (DSA) in Mandalay Division's Pyin Oo Lwin Township died on the evening of Oct. 7 after being punched and kicked by a final year student as punishment for failing to clean his dormitory, according to a post-mortem report. Ko Zwe Marn Aung punched 18-year-old Ko Aung Nyi Nyi Zaw in the chest causing his heart to stop, said the older brother of the victim, quoting the post-mortem report. "We were allowed to see Ko Aung Nyi Nyi Zaw's body at the mortuary," the brother, Ko Myat Thu Zaw, told The Irrawaddy. "We found scars left by the postmortem operation on his head, but we were not allowed to see the rest of his body. Authorities said he died because his heart stopped beating." Burma's DSA is governed by a "senior-junior" system to establish a regimented hierarchy. Physical assaults by older students to maintain control and instill juniors with unquestioning obedience are widespread. Aside from physical beatings, cadets are often forced to do pushups, frog jumps, handstands or other exercises as a form of punishment if they fail to follow orders to the satisfaction of seniors. According to U Kyaw Swe, uncle of the dead cadet, Ko Zwe Marn Aung asked another boy to tell Ko Aung Nyi Nyi Zaw to clean his dormitory on the evening of Oct. 7, but that person forgot to tell him. When the senior found that Ko Aung Nyi Nyi Zaw had not followed his orders, he punched and kicked him. The cadet lost consciousness and died on the spot, according to his uncle. "His friends told me that Ko Zwe Marn Aung punched him asking him if he was guilty or not," U Kyaw Swe told The Irrawaddy. "Ko Zwe Marn Aung said he was guilty, and the senior continued to punch him and force him do pushups. As the punching continued, Ko Aung Nyi Nyi Zaw was hit in the chest and killed accidentally." The pair, who were both members of the Bayintnaung Battalion, had no personal problems prior to the fatal beating, according to friends of Ko Aung Nyi Nyi Zaw. His family held his funeral in Pyin Oo Lwin on Oct. 9. Ko Zwe Marn Aung is in detention at the academy and authorities said they will punish him in line with the law. U Myat Thu Zaw said: "We were allowed to see Ko Zwe Marn Aung for a few minutes. He said he felt sorry for what happened, but did not say anything else. The authorities were beside us, so could not speak freely." Ko Aung Nyi Nyi Zaw's family said they don't want to see another incident like this in the future. After a video of DSA students bullying juniors went viral on social media earlier this year, authorities imposed a ban on physical assaults and ordered cadets not to ask juniors to run errands or administer physical punishments after 10 p.m., but abuse continues to be part of the culture of DSA. The DSA is just one of three military academies in Burma, and is generally regarded as the toughest. The other two—the Defence Services Medical Academy and the Defence Services Technological Academy—are also governed by the "senior-junior" system, but rely less on violence. DSA cadets are divided into three battalions, each with 14 companies. The three battalions are named after Burma’s kings: Anawrahta, Bayintnaung and Aung Zeya. Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko
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| Burma Studies Conference Highlights Limits to Democratic Change Posted: 11 Oct 2016 09:06 AM PDT  From left, Seinenu Thein-Lemelson, Lisa Brooten, Ma Thida, Kyaw Zwa Moe and Nay Phone Latt speak on a panel about the role of media in Burma's pro-democracy movement at Northern Illinois University on Oct. 8, 2016. (Photo: Sally Kantar / The Irrawaddy) Burma's challenges lie beyond the attainment of a civilian-led government, said researchers at the 12th International Burma Studies Conference at Northern Illinois University (NIU) over the weekend. The event, held in coordination with NIU's Center for Burma Studies in DeKalb, Illinois from Oct. 7-9, brought together academics, activists and students of Burmese art, history, politics and religion. Thirty-five panels over three days explored topics ranging from political participation to heritage preservation to religious identity. Presenting information based on recent field work in the northern Shan State townships of Hsipaw, Kyaukme, Kutkai, Muse and Lashio, David Mathieson, a senior researcher on Burma with Human Rights Watch's Asia Division, spoke in a session dedicated to an assessment of Burma's armed conflicts. Organizers said they formed the panel to further engage the scholarship of Burma Studies with the realities of the country's civil war. "Ongoing displacement in Burma is not getting the attention that it should [from the international community]," said Mathieson, highlighting evidence of abuses recently collected by community-based organizations working in conflict zones in Burma's north, where military offensives continue against a number of ethnic armed groups. Mathieson also described what he perceives as a "dearth" of "real empirical research on the ongoing conflict."  Human Rights Watch's David Mathieson speaks on rights violations in Burma's civil war at Northern Illinois University on Oct. 8, 2016. (Photo: Sally Kantar / The Irrawaddy) Dr. Jane Ferguson, a lecturer at Australian National University and one of the conference organizers, said that Burma Studies scholars from across the social sciences produce work incorporating different approaches that are "useful to understanding armed conflict." "This is the kind of conference that can bring these perspectives into conversation with each other," she told The Irrawaddy on Monday. John Buchanan—a PhD candidate in political science at the University of Washington who spoke on the panel on armed conflict—recommended further analysis of the country's long-running civil war, grounded in political theory. "Many ethnic resistance movements began in a period that could be considered democratic," he pointed out, a reference to the 1950s, when Burma was newly independent and led by Prime Minister U Nu. Buchanan added that during this same period, Shan State was subjected to increased militarization, martial law, the suspension of civil liberties and forced conscription of soldiers. The implications of this are great, he argued, and they require an acknowledgment of different political struggles and aspirations throughout the country. "The challenges for Burma may be more than just having a democratic government," he said. Juan Luo, an anthropologist and University of Washington PhD candidate, suggested in her presentation on healthcare on the Kachin-China border that recognition of local non-state infrastructures has become more difficult in northern Kachin State since the political transition took place. "[Aid groups] used to get in touch with Kachin authorities, but now they have to go through the central government," she said. In order for the evolving political system to be considered democratic, she pointed out, it "has to enhance the status of the ethnic groups throughout the whole country." While acknowledging gains made—like the ability of organizations like Human Rights watch to carry out "careful" research within conflict zones—speakers also emphasized the limits to the political transition. "You can criticize the government in a constructive way, but you can't criticize the behavior of the Burmese army on the front line," said Mathieson, citing recent restrictions placed on ethnic women's organizations for documenting torture and extrajudicial killings by the Tatmadaw in Shan State. An acknowledgement of continued challenges was also made by a panel speaking on the role of media in Burma's democracy movement, which included three former political prisoners—writer and doctor Ma Thida, editor of The Irrawaddy's English edition Kyaw Zwa Moe, and Rangoon regional parliamentarian Nay Phone Latt. The country, they said, "still has problems," in a discussion that highlighted restrictions on press freedom alongside the continued presence of state-run news outlets as indicators of the limits to the country's political shift. "We don't just want a civilian government out of a military government. We need real change," said Ma Thida, emphasizing the need for stronger protection of collective rights and greater political participation from the grassroots. Regarding post-conference outreach and future work within the Burma Studies discipline, attendees also made recommendations regarding inclusivity. Nang Mao Hseng, a sophomore at Dickinson College originally from Lashio and Rangoon, told The Irrawaddy that after hearing researchers describe challenges ranging from outdated resources to a need for translators, she hoped that the Burma Studies international network would increase partnerships with local students in Burma when carrying out research, so as to maximize the value of the work to people in the country. Jane Ferguson added that intellectual exchange within the region and with international scholars is an integral part of the discipline. Aged 19, Nang Mao Hseng was "delighted" to see the handful of presentations by other youth from Burma, and to see a wide range of nationalities represented; there were over 260 people in attendance, representing 17 countries. "We do our best with resources available and with outside support. […] It is our earnest desire to make the conference as inclusive as we can," added Ferguson, pointing to a policy of discounted registration fees for students, in particular. The International Burma Studies Conference takes place biannually, with NIU serving as the host every four years. The previous event was held in Singapore in 2014; the location for the 2018 conference is, as of yet, unconfirmed. The post Burma Studies Conference Highlights Limits to Democratic Change appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| Four Burma Army Soldiers Dead in Maungdaw Clash Posted: 11 Oct 2016 07:45 AM PDT  A funeral is held at the Maungdaw cemetery on Tuesday afternoon for the nine policemen killed in an ambush on their headquarters and two outposts. (Photo: Maungdaw Thar / Facebook) RANGOON — A high-ranking government official confirmed to The Irrawaddy that four Burma Army soldiers were killed in clashes that erupted with local forces in Arakan State's Maungdaw Township on Tuesday. The government source said—on the condition of anonymity— that fighting occurred near Kyet Yoe Pyin and Ngakhuya villages and that it was believed to involve suspects in Sunday's ambush of police headquarters in Kyikanpin and outposts in Kotankauk and Ngakhuya, killing nine policemen and looting firearms. Maungdaw resident and Rohingya Muslim U Than Naing Soe said that conflict broke out from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., with the army launching artillery into the forest. "We had never heard that kind of loud explosion before. Villagers were horrified and fled to avoid inspection by government troops. Some villagers are being arrested and taken in for questioning," he said. Reporters on the ground have speculated that the armed locals had ties to the Rohingya Solidarity Organization (RSO), a small militant group active along the Bangladeshi border in the 1980s and 1990s, but which has been seemingly defunct ever since. U Than Naing Soe said he was unsure which group could have been engaging in the clash with government troops, but rejected the allegation that the RSO was involved. "How is it possible that we have ties with RSO? We are staying under police surveillance and it is very difficult to even travel to nearby villages," he said. On Monday morning, a disputed number of local Muslims were also killed in Maungdaw Township after shots were fired by members of the Burma Army in Myothugyi village. A report in state-run media declared that four men were killed and that in the incident, Burma Army troops had confiscated makeshift guns, as well as bullets and a knife. The Irrawaddy phoned Maungdaw District Administrator U Ye Htut to verify the total number of casualties on both sides; he repeated the claim of four deaths made in the government report. Not stated in the update was whether those killed belonged were believed to belong to the same group of men who reportedly attacked three police stations one day earlier. A joint statement released on Monday by 14 Rohingya organizations in exile accused government soldiers of killing not four, but seven Myothugyi villagers who were unarmed. Maungdaw resident Than Naing Soe corroborated this account. The groups called on international organizations and governments to pressure the ruling National League for Democracy government to halt such actions, and end persecution against Muslims in the region. U Hla Soe, a Rohingya from Maungdaw Township, also told The Irrawaddy over the phone on Tuesday that the official figures were wrong. "All of us know what the authorities said was not true. They just shot and killed people while they attempted to run," he said. He said locals fled when the Burma Army came to search their villages in "full force." According to the Arakan Gazette, a state government-run online publication, the commander of the army's Western Command is heading up a team of 350 soldiers who will "hunt" on foot, by chopper and with several navy ships to arrest the remaining 240 suspects—out of an estimated 250—in the attack on the police stations. Officials confirmed that if security forces are met with violence, they are prepared to shoot in order to obtain suspects: eight have reportedly been killed by police and two have been apprehended and brought into custody. According to Arakan State government secretary U Tin Maung Swe, the two have reportedly confessed to having planned the attack on the border guard posts over three months, with the help of local Muslims in Maungdaw, where the majority self-identify as Rohingya, but are labeled "Bengali" by the government. Rohingya activists concerned for their safety spoke anonymously to The Irrawaddy, saying that they remain worried that as the conflict grows, innocent people will be caught in the crossfire. Maungdaw administrator U Ye Htut told The Irrawaddy that an existing curfew in the district—which includes Maungdaw, Buthidaung and Rathaedaung townships—had been extended from 7 p.m. until 6 a.m. and that residents were banned from gathering in groups of five or more. Burma's information minister Pe Myint reached Sittwe, Arakan State on Tuesday to receive updates on the situation and to meet with the state's chief minister Nyi Pu and relevant departments. The Arakan State education department has instructed 400 government schools to shut down in Maungdaw District as of Monday. The post Four Burma Army Soldiers Dead in Maungdaw Clash appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| Ten Things to Do in Rangoon This Week Posted: 11 Oct 2016 05:28 AM PDT
Rangoon's National Theater will be packed with fans of celebrated local singer Poe Ei San as she marks 20 years in the profession with an anniversary concert this Saturday. Poe Ei Shan will be joined on stage by her famous father Than Htun Lay and singer Yan Aung. Tickets from 10,000 to 30,000 kyats are available at Mann Thiri Studio. Where: National Theater, Myoma Kyaung Street, Dagon Tsp. When: Saturday, October 15, 6pm.
Celebrate Thadingyut, the Buddhist festival of lights, with a street party in downtown Botahtaung Township's vibrant Yekyaw ward. Live bands will be performing each evening. Bring your own lantern. Where: 50th Street, Yekyaw Ward. When: Thursday, October 13 to Monday, October 17.
Rangoon foodies rejoice! A celebration of all things edible, organized by Care Teen, is taking place this weekend with a funfair, frolics, and of course, food. Where: People's Park and People's Square When: Saturday, October 15 and Sunday, October 16, 9am to 6pm.
Burmese painter, performance artist, and activist U Htein Lin has a solo show at River Gallery this week. The exhibition will include paintings, sculptures, and installations that comment on Burma's dizzying transformation. Head to the gallery on Saturday evening for a chance to meet the artist. Where: River Gallery, 37th Street Lower Block, Kyuaktada Tsp. When: Until Sunday, October 16.
Celebrate the festival of Thadingyut with a full moon hip hop show on an island in Kandawgyi Park. Performers include: Sai Sai Kham Leng, Snare, Hlwan Paing, Ye Yint Aung, Ar-T, Shwe Htoo, X box, Htet yan, G Fatt, Bobby Soxer, and Amera Hpone. Tickets are 7,500 kyat from Bo Bo Entertainment. (01-8619029). Where: Kandawgyi Myaw Sin Island, Nat Mauk Street, Mingalar Taung Nyunt Tsp When: Sunday, October 16.
From the exploits of a Naga hunter, his simple home adorned with the skulls of his prey, to the adventures of a headstrong young Kayan woman who organized a football tournament to kick-start her women's rights organization, the Kite Tales is a film that tells the stories of Burmse people in their own words. The two journalists behind the project share some of the fascinating stories they've collected so far during their travels across Burma. Where: British Embassy Club, between Alan Pya Pagoda Road and Gyo Phyu Road, Dagon Tsp. When: Wednesday, October 12, 7pm to 10pm.
Sound artist Fukte will be performing his "noise music" live on Friday at the downtown art space Myanm/art. He returns on Saturday to give an introduction to the field and teach us how to build an antenna and create music by catching electro-magnetic fields. Myanm/art, Third Floor, 98 Bogalay Zay Street, Botahtaung Tsp. When: Friday, October 14 and Saturday, October 15, 6pm.
Renowned Dutch DJ R3hab will headline this all-day EDM festival. Tickets 40,000 to 80,000 kyats. Where: Shwe Htut Tin Compound, beside Sky Star Hotel, East Horse Racing Course Road, Tamwe Tsp. When: Saturday, October 15, 3:30pm to 11:45pm
Lokanat Galleries' 13th illustrators' art exhibition will showcase over 100 works by 75 different illustrators. Where: Lokanat Galleries, First Floor, 62 Pansodan St, First Floor, Kyauktada Tsp. When: Saturday, October 15 to Wednesday, October 19, 9am to 5pm.
It may be one exhibition, but four different artists will be showcasing over 50 paintings and 15 installation pieces this week. Where: Think Art Gallery, 23 Nawaday Street, Dagon Tsp. When: Friday, October 14 to Monday, October 17. 10am to 6pm. Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko The post Ten Things to Do in Rangoon This Week appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| Military Offensives Threaten to Interrupt Peace Process, Says KIO Posted: 11 Oct 2016 04:11 AM PDT  A bomb dropped by a Burma Army jet fighter on Oct. 7 is seen at the KIA's Gidon post in Kachin State. (Photo: Free Burma Rangers) RANGOON — The Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) has warned that ongoing clashes threaten to derail the country's peace process unless the government halts its military offensives in the KIO's territory. "If the current offensive continues, it will interrupt the peace process that we are dealing with. Civil war could also grow and spread into different parts of Kachin State and will have an unnecessary negative impact. The Tatmadaw is responsible for it," Lt-Col Naw Bu, an official with the Kachin Independence Army's (KIA) information department, told The Irrawaddy. He also said that the offensive has made the KIO seriously reconsider the peace process; if it continues, it will be difficult for the organization to proceed with future political dialogue. Fighting has continued this week, as local sources in Kachin State report the Burma Army's use of jet fighters and heavy artillery on both Monday and Tuesday against KIA outposts. Thousands of Kachin people took to the streets on Monday in the Kachin State jade mining town of Hpakant, calling on the Burma Army to stop the offensives, criticizing the Tatmadaw for the attacks during a time when the government is engaging in peace talks with ethnic armed organizations. Speaking with The Irrawaddy from Myitkyina, the capital of Kachin State, Khin Maung Myint, an ethnic Kachin MP from the National League for Democracy, said that it is "inappropriate" for the Burma Army to launch offensives against the KIO. "War is good for no one. It doesn't matter whether it is soldiers of the Tatmadaw or the KIO who die—it is very sad to see," said Khin Maung Myint. "We are totally against the current offensives by the Tatmadaw, which were launched while ethnic leaders and the State Counselor are attempting to rebuild the country," he added. The current offensive against the KIA is seen by both the organization and the Kachin public as a way to pressure the armed group to sign the nationwide ceasefire agreement (NCA). The KIO along with the majority of the country's armed groups opted out of becoming signatories in October 2015, citing a lack of inclusivity. On Oct. 1, a two-year-old Kachin child was killed after an artillery shell—believed to have been fired by the Burma Army—exploded near her family home in Shan State's Muse Township. Another two children were seriously injured in the blast. The Irrawaddy’s reporter Nang Lwin Hnin Pwint also contributed into this story. The post Military Offensives Threaten to Interrupt Peace Process, Says KIO appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| UK Parliament Speaker Calls for Blocks on Humanitarian Aid to be Lifted Posted: 11 Oct 2016 03:01 AM PDT  Rt Hon John Bercow addresses an audience of 500 in Rangoon on Friday. (Photo: Lawi Weng / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — At a speech in Rangoon, Speaker of the British House of Commons Rt Hon John Bercow stressed that restrictions on humanitarian aid to conflict-affected communities in Kachin, northern Shan and Arakan state should be urgently lifted. At the Park Royal Hotel on Friday evening, in an event co-hosted by the Yangon School of Political Science, the UK parliamentary speaker congratulated the people of Burma for the successful staging of the 2015 election and the democratic gains so far, and acknowledged the positive efforts of the previous government, but stressed that much still needed to be done. Before an audience of 500, he outlined priorities for Burma, including strengthening Parliament and other democratic institutions, delivering equitable growth, ending "all discrimination based on race and religion," and resolving Burma's half-century of civil war through "political dialogue" and a settlement that includes a substantial devolution of power to the local level. He mentioned the UK's "tragic decades of conflict in Northern Ireland," resolved through political dialogue in a long-running peace process, and the devolution of power to Scotland and Wales, as positive examples for Burma in justly settling its own conflicts. John Bercow also dwelt on his friendly relationship with State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi, whom he has met both in London and in Naypyidaw over the past month, and described his experience visiting Karen refugee camps 12 years ago, where he heard stories of intense suffering from people caught up in Burma's decades-long civil war. He highlighted the "desperate situation" in active conflict areas, such as Kachin and northern Shan state, "where aid is not always reaching those who need it." John Bercow claimed that, alongside broader discussions of political reform, he had discussed rights abuses in these conflict zones with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi in Naypyidaw, including displacement, rape and arbitrary killing. As many as 100,000 people have been displaced by fighting between the Burma Army and the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) in Kachin and northern Shan states since 2011, when a ceasefire broke down. Last week in the Kachin State capital Myitkyina, several thousand people staged a protest demanding that the Burma Army halt its offensives in the state, which have included air and artillery strikes over the last month, alongside ground offences. In recent months, humanitarian aid to displaced people's camps in areas controlled by the KIA—including in remote areas along the China border—has faced blocks imposed by the Burma Army, according to sources close to United Nations agencies and a local civil society network based in Myitkyina. UN agencies, including the World Food Program, raised these restrictions in meetings with the Kachin State government, where Burma Army representatives were present. While permission to deliver aid to KIA-controlled areas was reportedly obtained from the Union government, the humanitarian agencies also had to seek the approval of the Kachin State government. Although this came through, the Burma Army's Northern Command, based in Myitkyina, ultimately refused access. The post UK Parliament Speaker Calls for Blocks on Humanitarian Aid to be Lifted appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| UWSA Say Drug Label ‘Not Fair’ Posted: 11 Oct 2016 12:15 AM PDT  Workers pick tea leaves in a Mong Mao tea plantation in a Wa-controlled area of Shan State on Oct. 1 (Photo: Soe Zeya Tun/ Reuters) PANGSHANG, Shan State — Burma's most powerful ethnic armed group, accused by the United States of running a narco-empire that has flooded Asia with illegal drugs, has rejected the allegation, saying Washington has blacklisted its leaders for political reasons. The United Wa State Army (UWSA) boasts some 30,000 soldiers who control a secretive, China-dominated statelet the size of Belgium in the remote hills on Burma's eastern border. After decades of isolation, leaders of the self-proclaimed Wa State invited a small group of foreign journalists to visit its territory—a first step in a tentative opening up to the outside world prompted by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's dramatic victory in a historic general election in Burma last year. Reaching an accord with the Wa and other armed groups is one of the biggest challenges faced by Burma's first democratically-elected government in decades, as it grapples with the interlocking issues of ending years of ethnic wars and tackling drug production in its lawless border areas. "After the civilian government took office, we come down to the capital more often and we try to demonstrate what we have achieved," said the Wa territory foreign affairs minister, Zhao Guo An, in a rare interview in the region's capital Pangshang. "The Wa State wants overseas investment. Bosses get rich first, and then the Wa State can develop." At present, much of the money underpinning the Wa's state-within-a-state is widely believed to be derived from the trade in methamphetamine, known locally as "ya ba" or "crazy medicine." Soaring use of "ya ba," much of it said by experts to come from the so-called "Golden Triangle" that includes the Wa territory, has fuelled hardline anti-narcotics policies in Southeast Asia, such as the bloody "war on drugs" waged by the Philippines' President Rodrigo Duterte. The United States indicted several UWSA leaders on heroin and methamphetamine trafficking charges in 2005. "They are making those decisions based on their own political interests," said Zhao, when asked about why the UWSA and some of its leaders were listed in US Treasury Department sanctions lists for alleged involvement in the drugs trade. "The problem of ya ba can't be solved by one region. Many of the drugs are brought in from abroad … people continue to defame the Wa State. This is not fair." OPIUM AND RUBBER Reuters journalists travelled across the rugged Wa territory, possibly the least-known part of Southeast Asia where Westerners have had less access than to North Korea. The region used to be one of Burma's largest poppy-growing areas, but, under international pressure, Wa leaders say they replaced poppy fields with plantations, mostly rubber, but also coffee and tea, more than a decade ago. Many plantations are backed by investors from China or Taiwan, alongside businessmen connected to the Wa State leadership. Rubber trees line the region's freshly-paved roads, which snake for hundreds of kilometers through emerald mountains. The region cultivates some 220,000 acres of rubber and has been hit by falling rubber prices due to waning demand from China. Wa leaders say that as part of its push to get rid of poppy, they relocated some 100,000 citizens—a sixth of the population—between 1999 to 2002 to the southern part of the state on the Thai border, where they say the land is more fertile. Government officials described the relocation as "miserable" and said that "dozens" died along the way because of disease and road accidents. But local people told Reuters that drug use was a problem in the Wa region, which suffers from a chronic lack of basic government services. "Every six months, police look for drug users on the streets—this is called a special project," said a migrant worker from another part of Burma, picking tea leaves at a plantation that has replaced a poppy field. "At that time, I am too afraid to go outside—I am worried that I could be wrongly arrested." Other Wa residents said they worried for their children due to the ease of access to drugs. "The drugs are very easy to buy everywhere," said a Burmese migrant working as a cook in Pangshang, who has a five-year-old son. "Ya ba tablets—that's the biggest problem." The Wa government's justice secretary, Li San Lu, said it was working hard to tackle the drug issue, and had arrested about 1,000 people this year for drug use, production or trafficking. He said Wa authorities had seized two tons of meth entering the region from China, India and Burma, including both the finished product and precursor drugs used to produce it. "Ya ba comes from overseas. Wa State is a victim … we have banned the plantation, trade and use of drugs," said Li. "Ya ba is coming from China, India, Burma and Thailand. We are clueless." The post UWSA Say Drug Label 'Not Fair' appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| Burma’s Misguided Peace Process Needs a Fresh Start Posted: 10 Oct 2016 07:01 PM PDT  On Saturday in Rangoon, activists from 27 civil society organizations staged a protest against continued fighting between the Burma Army and ethnic armed groups. (Photo: Myo Min Soe / The Irrawaddy) The Burmese government's peace parley, dubbed "the 21st Century Panglong", in Naypyidaw at the end of August was hardly over before the Tatmadaw went on the offensive again. Fierce fighting has been reported from Kachin State and northern Shan State. In Karen State, clashes have erupted between different local armed groups and in eastern Shan State, the powerful United Wa State Army (UWSA) has moved against what was considered a close ally, the National Democratic Alliance Army (Eastern Shan State) (NDAA[ESS]), also known as the "Mongla Group," and took over several of its positions. "It is not a peace process," one observer said. "It's a conflict process". The ultimate irony is that Burma has seen its heaviest fighting in decades, since the Thein Sein government came to power in March 2011 and launched its so-called "peace process." Most of the fighting has occurred in Kachin and northern Shan states, with sporadic clashes in Arakan and Karen states. Burma's civil war has not been this intense since the Tatmadaw launched offensives against ethnic Karen and communist forces in the late 1980s. The conflict never seems to end despite, or perhaps because of, the activities of foreign "peacemakers." A popular practice has been to invite representatives of the Tatmadaw and of ethnic armed groups on study tours to other conflict areas across the world, including Northern Ireland, Colombia and South Africa. The main player behind those trips is a UK-based outfit called Intermediate, founded and led by Jonathan Powell, who served as then Prime Minister Tony Blair's chief of staff from 1997-2007.  State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi delivers a closing address at the 21st Century Panglong peace conference on Sept 3 this year. (Photo: Pyay Kyaw / The Irrawaddy) But the value of such trips is being questioned. A foreign analyst based in Burma described "an endless parade of international peace junkets that preoccupy ethnic leaders while the actual negotiations are bogged down." Meanwhile, "addressing ongoing conflict is cast as spoiling progress." The government of Switzerland has also been active, inviting some ethnic leaders from Burma to study how their model of federalism works, although it is hard to imagine how the Swiss canton system could possibly be a model for Burma. Invited were representatives of the Restoration Council of Shan State (RCSS), one of eight groups that signed the so-called Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) with the government on Oct. 15 last year (only three of which actually have any armed forces, the other five being token "armies" with only a dozen or so men each). IHS Jane's analyst Anthony Davis wrote in the Bangkok Post on Feb. 7 this year: "History does not relate how this all-expenses-paid flight of fancy cost the Swiss taxpayer, though it was doubtless small change in the wider picture of the tens of millions of dollars being thrown at the 'peace process' by Western governments eager to declare Myanmar (Burma) finally and officially open for business." At the same time as RCSS representatives were being entertained in Switzerland, truckloads of its troops were sent to northern Shan State to fight the Ta'ang National Liberation Army, an ethnic Palaung force that did not sign the NCA. Peace with the government enabled the RCSS to move its soldiers across Shan State to engage in what Davis termed a proxy war. The UWSA's military action against NDAA(ESS) is another divisive consequence of the "peace process." The UWSA reportedly suspected that the NDSS(ESS) leadership was about to close ranks with the groups that signed the NCA. One of its representatives at the talks in Naypyidaw in August even urged all parties to recognize the 2008 Constitution, which is widely seen as undemocratic because it gives the military ultimate power over the state—and is certainly not federal in character, which is what the ethnic armed groups are fighting for. It is clear that the foreign players in the process need to seriously rethink their strategies, if they need to be involved at all. According to the Burma-based analyst: "It's like a growing conga-line of craven opportunists, who think their analysis and workshops should be privileged over listening to the people who have suffered for six decades. It's not a peace process, it's a parallel reality peopled by shady foreign actors whose pedigree is largely a litany of failed efforts in other countries." A Burmese human-rights worker cynically referred to recent developments as a "peace opera." One might add that it is an opera where too many divas aspire to be the lead performer, and no one wants to sing in the choir.  Demonstrators gathered in the Kachin State capital Myitkyina last week to demand an end to conflict in the state. (Photo: Nang Lwin Hnin Pwint / The Irrawaddy) Instead of "studying" processes in other countries which bear little or no resemblance to Burma's decades-long ethnic and political conflicts, it would be much more useful to examine Burma's own past experience of peace efforts—and why all those, without exception, have failed to end the war. In 1958, when Gen. Ne Win took over from the elected government led by U Nu and formed a military-controlled "caretaker government," some communist and ethnic rebels laid down their arms under an unofficial amnesty. No political concessions were offered. Some became bands of local armed men engaged in trade. When the military stepped in again on March 2, 1962 and seized absolute power after a short interregnum with a new civilian government led by U Nu, the new junta promised serious peace talks. These commenced in 1963 and attracted a wide range of ethnic and political rebels. But, again, the ruling military demanded surrender, offering nothing more than "rehabilitation." Unsurprisingly, the talks broke down. Some old and new armed bands were converted into home guard units called ka kwe ye (KKY), but there was not enough money in the central coffers to pay them, so they were allowed to trade in opium to finance themselves. Both Lo Hsing-han and Zhang Qifu (alias Khun Sa) began their careers as government-allied home guard commanders and, as a result, became prominent drug traffickers. They were arrested only after they had established links with armed rebels in Shan State, which they had to do in order to convey their opium convoys down to the Thai border. The KKY project was abandoned in Jan. 1973. New local forces called pyi thu sit, or "people's militias," were formed in their stead. They were smaller than the old KKY units and therefore easier for the government to control. In 1980, the government announced a general amnesty for rebels and political prisoners. Officially, 1,431 rebels surrendered. This figure was, most likely, a gross exaggeration, but the amnesty led to the demise of the rightwing Burman insurgency led by U Nu from the Thai border. At the same time, separate peace talks were held with the Communist Party of Burma (CPB) and the Kachin Independence Army (KIA). The talks lasted for months, but the government's offer was again rehabilitation in exchange for surrender. Needless to say, those talks broke down as well. After the 1988 pro-democracy uprising and the seizure of power by the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC), thousands of urban dissidents linked up with the Karen National Union (KNU), the KIA and other ethnic armies. But those groups had only a few guns to spare for the Burman activists—unlike the CPB, which had warehouses full of weaponry, supplied by China between 1968-78. However, few pro-democracy activists went to the CPB's area. The situation changed when, in March-April 1989, the hilltribe rank and file of the CPB rose in mutiny against the party's ageing, predominantly Burman leadership. The CPB subsequently broke up into four ethnic armies: the UWSA, the NDAA(ESS), the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army based in the Kokang region of northern Shan State, and the New Democratic Army-Kachin in Kachin State. Now, the SLORC faced the real danger of a united front. But the Burmese military acted faster and with more determination than the loose alliances that then existed between ethnic rebels and urban dissidents. The ex-CPB mutineers were offered ceasefire deals and promised unlimited business opportunities. As a result, all four former CPB forces made peace with the government. The threat from the border had been neutralized—but the consequences for the country were disastrous. "Business" in the northeastern border regions means the production of opium and its derivative heroin. As a result, the area under opium cultivation rose from 103,200 hectares in 1988 to 161,012 hectares in 1991. According to official US figures, annual heroin production skyrocketed during the same period from 68 tons to 185 tons, of which 181.5 tons were meant for export. With the collapse of the CPB and the failure to form new alliances, about two-dozen ethnic armed groups, both large and small, entered into ceasefire agreements with the government in the late 1980s and early 90s. Several of those groups became involved in logging. Vast areas of northern Burma were denuded and the timber sold to China. So, agreeing ceasefires with ethnic armed groups is nothing new—it's a continuation of the policy of the long-defunct SLORC. But not all the ceasefire agreements agreed upon at that time have been honored. The KIA, which actually signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994 (all the previous agreements being verbal), came under fierce attack in 2011 and the fighting still continues. The Shan State Army, which made peace with the government in 1989, came under attack shortly afterwards. The common denominator in all these talks and maneuvers, including those of today, is that the government and the military have either demanded surrender followed by "rehabilitation," or, failing that, attempted to corrupt them by allowing them to engage in business of any kind. Following the Oct. 15, 2015 ceasefire deal, leaders of the RCSS and the KNU have benefited from new, lucrative commercial opportunities, including in logging and palm oil plantations. Sadly, the present government, which came to power with a resounding popular mandate after the Nov. 2015 general election, has only continued the policies of the previous government. This has included the insistence that everybody sign the so-called Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement, which is not nationwide and has resulted neither in peace nor in meaningful talks about which governing system the country should adopt: a federal union or a centralized state structure. Military spokesmen, meanwhile, have made it clear that all parties to the conflict must accept the 2008 Constitution and lay down their arms, with the option of becoming pyi thu sit forces and benefitting economically. It is hardly a secret that well-known pyi thu sit commanders, who traffic drugs, were elected to national and regional assemblies in the 2010 election, usually on Union Solidarity and Development Party tickets. The drug trade today is controlled by those individuals and groups, not by the UWSA, the MNDAA or the NDAA(ESS), which built their fortunes on drugs but have since moved into other enterprises such as casinos, cross-border trade in consumer goods, and the export of tin and rare earth metals to China. The difference this time from previous failed peace efforts is the number of foreign groups and individuals involved, bitterly competing with each other for funds and attention. But, as a Rangoon-based foreign analyst said, "The international interlocutors are actually facilitating the Tatmadaw's hardline approach by refusing to understand the grievances of Burma's minority communities, saying it's all about business and economic interests—an oft-repeated cliché of Rangoon-based Western diplomats." Receiving foreign advice and learning from other countries' experiences are not entirely wasted exercises, but the shape and form that foreign input has taken in Burma's so-called "peace process" has not led us anywhere close to lasting peace. On the contrary, it has made the situation worse by granting the Tatmadaw an international respectability and legitimacy that it previously lacked—at the expense of armed and non-armed ethnic groups and communities. It should be evident to anyone that an entirely new approach is needed, if the vicious circle of talks with demands of unconditional surrender and rehabilitation coupled with business concessions is ever going to be broken. Such an approach would have to include a genuine political dialogue, not just meetings with dozens of ethnic representatives sitting in their colorful costumes in a huge hall listening to speeches, as was the case in Naypyidaw in August. The fighting also has to stop on all fronts. Only then can a meaningful peace process begin—not merely a repeat of what happened in the 1950s, 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s. Burma's ethnic conflict is a political problem demanding a political solution. The present peace opera is only a recipe for further disaster. The post Burma's Misguided Peace Process Needs a Fresh Start appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
The Irrawaddy picks 10 interesting events happening in Rangoon this week.
Poe Ei San's 20th anniversary 
Yekyaw's Thadingyut Street Festival 
Care Teen – Food Festival
Signs of the Times 
Full Moon Thadingyut Hip Hop Show
The Kite Tales Talk and Screening
Fukte: Experimental Music Concert
INVASIV
Illustrators' Exhibition
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