Tuesday, December 6, 2016

The Irrawaddy Magazine

The Irrawaddy Magazine

Kofi Annan: Charge of ‘Genocide’ Should Not Be Used ‘Loosely’ in Arakan State

Posted: 06 Dec 2016 07:42 AM PST

Genocide, advisory commission chairman Mr. Annan says, 'is a very serious charge that requires legal review and judicial determination.'

The post Kofi Annan: Charge of 'Genocide' Should Not Be Used 'Loosely' in Arakan State appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Palaung Community Tries New Method to Fight Drug Addiction

Posted: 06 Dec 2016 06:34 AM PST

'We needed to have this rehabilitation camp. Without it, our drug problem would spread like fire again,' says religious leader Ashin Dama Linkara.

The post Palaung Community Tries New Method to Fight Drug Addiction appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Thai King Appoints New Members to Royal Council

Posted: 06 Dec 2016 05:06 AM PST

'This is a very calculated move from King Rama X, which signals compromise while also asserting a new order under his reign,' says analyst.

The post Thai King Appoints New Members to Royal Council appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

UNFC’s Nai Hong Sar: Major Difficulty Lies in Negotiating with Burma Army

Posted: 06 Dec 2016 05:02 AM PST

The Irrawaddy speaks to the UNFC vice chairman about the impact of clashes between the Northern Alliance and the Burma Army on the peace process.

The post UNFC's Nai Hong Sar: Major Difficulty Lies in Negotiating with Burma Army appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Muslim Coalition Objects to Malaysia’s Rally to Support Rohingya

Posted: 06 Dec 2016 04:56 AM PST

A coalition of Muslim civil society groups in Burma objects to a rally led by the Malaysian prime minister in support of the Rohingya minority.

The post Muslim Coalition Objects to Malaysia's Rally to Support Rohingya appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Mun Awng Releases New Album

Posted: 06 Dec 2016 04:15 AM PST

After nearly three decades in exile, popular musician Mun Awng is making a comeback with  brand new album Raindrops of Peace released this weekend.

The post Mun Awng Releases New Album appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Eden Group Buys Sedona Hotel Mandalay

Posted: 06 Dec 2016 02:57 AM PST

Local conglomerate buys hotel from Singapore's Keppel Land for US$41 million and says it will be managed by Hilton.

The post Eden Group Buys Sedona Hotel Mandalay appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

By Accident or Design, Trump Signals Tougher China Policy

Posted: 05 Dec 2016 09:30 PM PST

Whether by accident or design, President-elect Donald Trump is signaling a tougher American policy toward China, sparking warnings from Beijing.

The post By Accident or Design, Trump Signals Tougher China Policy appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Ten Things to do in Rangoon This Week

Posted: 05 Dec 2016 06:31 PM PST

Concerts, exhibitions and the circus – all in Rangoon this week, as picked by The Irrawaddy.

The post Ten Things to do in Rangoon This Week appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Malaysia, Don’t Use Burma to Distract from Disquiet at Home

Posted: 05 Dec 2016 05:14 AM PST

RANGOON — Malaysia's Prime Minister Najib Razak had strong words for Daw Aung San Suu Kyi as he led a rally in Kuala Lumpur to show solidarity with the Muslim Rohingya in Arakan State. His comment to the baying crowds of "enough is enough" aimed at the State Counselor has risked a diplomatic fissure with […]

The post Malaysia, Don't Use Burma to Distract from Disquiet at Home appeared first on The Irrawaddy.
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National News

National News

President, military chiefs meet to smooth Myanmar-Malaysia ties

Posted: 05 Dec 2016 11:14 PM PST

The chief of Malaysia's armed forces yesterday met with Myanmar's president and commander-in-chief in an effort to repair fraught relations between the two ASEAN members following recent diplomatic sparring over violence in Rakhine State.

Mong Koe back in Tatmadaw control after air strikes

Posted: 05 Dec 2016 11:07 PM PST

The Tatmadaw has wrested control of a key strategic post in northern Shan State's Mong Koe town after launching mortar and air strikes that activists say claimed the lives of four civilians and destroyed several buildings.

Annan flags cooperation gap between Buddhists, Muslims in Rakhine work

Posted: 05 Dec 2016 11:01 PM PST

Kofi Annan, the former UN secretary general and chair of the Rakhine State Advisory Commission, reportedly told lawmakers yesterday that the ethnic Rakhine population in the state could do more to cooperate with his commission as it works to fulfil its mandate.

Kunming ceasefire foray quickly falls apart

Posted: 05 Dec 2016 10:56 PM PST

Attempts over the past weekend to mediate a ceasefire between factions fighting in northern Shan State quickly derailed due to competing aims and arguments over who could participate.

Dozens missing after boat sinks in Naf River

Posted: 05 Dec 2016 10:53 PM PST

Dozens are missing and feared drowned after a boat packed with Rohingya trying to reach Bangladesh sank in a border river yesterday, reports and a Bangladeshi fisherman said.

Kachin youth need more information on HIV, STD transmission: report

Posted: 05 Dec 2016 10:43 PM PST

HIV/AIDS is ravaging rural Kachin State as most residents feel they have little or no access to confidential counselling, condoms, or information about sexually transmitted diseases. Many do not even realise condoms can protect them, say local youth organisations.

Police release CCTV after robbery

Posted: 05 Dec 2016 10:42 PM PST

Police have published CCTV pictures of two suspects and made a public appeal for information in the wake of a daylight armed robbery at a money changer in Yangon's Sanchaung township.

Paung Laung literary magazine returns after a long hiatus

Posted: 05 Dec 2016 10:41 PM PST

The formerly prominent Paung Laung Magazine is set to be published once again following a seven year hiatus, the Pyinmana Writers' Association has announced.

Barriers to park entry spark public land debate

Posted: 05 Dec 2016 10:40 PM PST

The managers of Pyin Oo Lwin township's Kandawgyi Botanical Gardens have attempted to begin issuing ID cards for regular visitors, as the site managers look to cater to the increasing demand for places to exercise.

Myeik’s mangroves in danger: FFI

Posted: 05 Dec 2016 10:35 PM PST

Mangroves in Myeik Archipelago face destruction unless urgent action is taken, conservationists have warned. The current mangrove growth could disappear within five years unless steps are taken now, said Fauna & Flora International (FFI).
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Shan Herald Agency for News

Shan Herald Agency for News

Shan State govt calls emergency meeting

Posted: 06 Dec 2016 12:15 AM PST

The Shan State government has convened an emergency meeting in state capital Taunggyi following two weeks of intense fighting in northern Shan State between Burmese government forces and a coalition of four ethnic armed groups known as the Northern Alliance.


According to Shan State Chief Minister Dr. Linn Htut, MPs will discuss the circumstances and effects of the ongoing conflict, as well as the budget for the 2017-18 fiscal year and development issues.

Speaking at a parliamentary session of the lower house in Naypyidaw on December 2, Home Affairs Minister Lt-Gen Kyaw Swe said that the so-called Northern Alliance – comprising the Arakan Army (AA); Kachin Independence Army (KIA); Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA); and Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) – should be classified as a terrorist organization in accordance with the law.
The Shan State assembly has begun the discussions on that issue on Monday. Although parliamentary details are yet to be announced, the debate is scheduled to last four days.
The recent conflict was ignited after the ethnic alliance launched coordinated offensives against Burmese army and police outposts on November 20. Thereafter, clashes have broken out in the Muse Township villages of 105-Mile, Mong Koe and Parng Zai, as well as in Namkham and Kutkai townships.
Hostilities have intensified, particularly in Mong Koe, a town on the Shan-China border. According to a statement published on December 5 by the Northern Alliance, the Burmese military launched offensives using heavy weapons including airstrikes by fighter jets in residential areas. The ethnic militias claim that schools, religious buildings and homes were destroyed in the raids.
"Four people were killed and two others injured," read the statement.
On December 1, Shan Herald reported that a group of 70 people from Mong Koe had reportedly been arrested by Burmese troops while en route to a wedding.
According to the Office of the Commander-in-Chief of Defence Services on Sunday, the Burmese army has now retaken control of Mong Koe town from the ethnic rebels.

Since November 23, about 10,000 people have fled their homes to escape the spreading hostilities. Many sought refuge in makeshift shelters in Muse, while others crossed the border into China. Last week, several hundred villagers returned home, though another 700 remain camped inside religious buildings across Muse Township.
By Shan Herald Agency for News (SHAN)

Is Burma ready for civic nationalism?

Posted: 05 Dec 2016 11:56 PM PST

Patriotism is when love of your own people comes first;
Nationalism, when hate for people other than your own comes first.
Charles de Gaulle (1890-1970), French general and statesman

I never knew the world has different terms for different nationalisms until the 19-25 November issue of The Economist recently reached my hands.

Of course, having been in and out of Thailand for more than 45 years, I know my cousins have their own separate terms: kinship by blood (ñati-thang-sailued) and kinship by principles and laws (ñati-thang-dhamma) accepted within a diverse and broad community. What the Thais call "Chart" (Nation) comprises both kinships.

According to Michael Ignatieff, Canadian politician and academic, "Ethnic Nationalism" and "Civic Nationalism" can be compared in the following way:



In addition, says The Economist, civic nationalism unites the country around common values, such as freedom and equality, to accomplish things that people could never manage alone. "It contrasts with ethnic nationalism, which is zero-sum, aggressive and nostalgic and which draws on race or history to set the nation apart. In its darkest hour in the first half of the 20thcentury, ethnic nationalisms led to war."

Our present leaders, as well as their predecessors, perhaps with the exception of Aung San, who started out during British rule with "ethnic nationalism" seem to think they have developed to "civic nationalism", by dumping "Burma" which the pre-Independence legislature had adopted, and restyling the country "Myanmar" without bothering to ask the nation. They should find out the truth about themselves by allowing the non-Bamars (or, non-Burmans, or non-Burmese) to rule for a while, and re-examine their feelings about being civic nationalists under non-Burman's dominance.

The truth that is going to emerge is not what our leaders may anticipate:
·         Whatever they've been saying about "Myanmar" being an all embracing label for the diverse ethnicities of the country, at heart they themselves are still "Bamar"
·         That as long as they are not giving up their own "ethnic nationalism," it will not be fair for them to urge the non-Burmans to get rid of their "narrow minded racism," like they tried to do at the 21st Century Panglong.  Perhaps our leaders still need somebody to remind them a leader only leads by example, not words

Fortunately, our Burmese rulers are not alone. Once again, the world has returned to ethnic nationalisms with leaders like Donald Trump, Narendra Modi, Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and the likes.


But unfortunately, this resurgence of ethnic nationalism will not guarantee world peace, let alone peace in Burma, but will only push the whole planet toward war and destruction. 
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