Wednesday, December 14, 2016

The Irrawaddy Magazine

The Irrawaddy Magazine

Govt Investigation Committee Concludes Maungdaw Trip

Posted: 14 Dec 2016 07:58 AM PST

Conflicting statements from local and government sources follow the Vice President U Myint Swe-led delegation's visit to northern Arakan State.

The post Govt Investigation Committee Concludes Maungdaw Trip appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

UNFC Criticizes Government for Bashing Ethnic Groups, Not Pushing for Peace

Posted: 14 Dec 2016 05:50 AM PST

'It is not only petty-minded, but also responding to the problem one-sidedly, and it lacks an understanding of the plight of the people,' says UNFC.

The post UNFC Criticizes Government for Bashing Ethnic Groups, Not Pushing for Peace appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

FDA Releases List of Tainted Chili Powder, Several Well-Known Brands

Posted: 14 Dec 2016 04:18 AM PST

A number of chili powder brands popular among consumers are found contaminated with a potent carcinogen, according to the Rangoon branch of the FDA.

The post FDA Releases List of Tainted Chili Powder, Several Well-Known Brands appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Environmental Advocates Push for More Renewable Energy in Burma

Posted: 14 Dec 2016 04:12 AM PST

Civil society organizations demand cleaner alternatives to planned coal and hydropower plants, which have been objected to by locals.

The post Environmental Advocates Push for More Renewable Energy in Burma appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Government Sets Spending Priorities for Foreign Aid Money

Posted: 14 Dec 2016 03:53 AM PST

'It should be spent in the least developed areas, especially border areas where people are suffering from internal conflicts,' says former lawmaker.

The post Government Sets Spending Priorities for Foreign Aid Money appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

KNU Criticized for Lack of Transparency in Development Projects

Posted: 14 Dec 2016 03:06 AM PST

'Investment in large-scale infrastructure projects must not come before sustainable peace and political dialogue,' say civil society organizations.

The post KNU Criticized for Lack of Transparency in Development Projects appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Defense Ministry Gets Lion’s Share of Supplementary Budget

Posted: 14 Dec 2016 02:58 AM PST

The Union Parliament approves an increased budget proposed by the Ministry of Defense for the 2016-17 fiscal year.

The post Defense Ministry Gets Lion's Share of Supplementary Budget appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Women Migrant Numbers High in Thai Construction 

Posted: 13 Dec 2016 11:22 PM PST

'Employers think of hiring women migrant workers as a package with their husbands,' says International Labor Organization.

The post Women Migrant Numbers High in Thai Construction  appeared first on The Irrawaddy.
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National News

National News

Parliamentary commission calls for new water law

Posted: 13 Dec 2016 11:45 PM PST

Already feeling the combined stresses of climate change and an increasing population, Myanmar's clean water needs to be protected by a national water policy, parliament was told yesterday.

Nearly half of Mong Koe residents return: Defence Ministry

Posted: 13 Dec 2016 11:44 PM PST

The Office of the Defence Ministry announced yesterday that more than 3900 residents from 1043 households in Mong Koe have returned in the days since the military wrested control of the town from the Northern Alliance-Burma. Tatmadaw and police personnel have been joined by township authorities in scrutinising the returnees before they are allowed back to their homes.

Monywa-based Eleven Media reporter found beaten to death

Posted: 13 Dec 2016 11:40 PM PST

The body of a reporter for Eleven Media was discovered on the side of the road yesterday morning, with police believing he was beaten to death. The 35-year-old journalist was working on a story about illegal logging at the time of his murder, according to an editor for Eleven.

YCDC checks uncover formalin at street food stalls in Yangon

Posted: 13 Dec 2016 11:39 PM PST

Formalin has been found in bean curd and rice noodles sold at a number of Yangon's ubiquitous street food stalls as Yangon City Development Committee (YCDC) looks to crack down on use of the toxic preservative.

Yangon Region to get second special economic zone

Posted: 13 Dec 2016 11:27 PM PST

Plans are afoot for a second special economic zone (SEZ) in Yangon Region, which include a new international airport and access to a deep-sea port, according to regional government officials.

Ethnic armed groups lash out at government, Tatmadaw after ‘terrorist’ designation levelled at Northern Alliance

Posted: 13 Dec 2016 11:24 PM PST

Ethnic armed groups fired off two strongly worded statements aimed at the government and the Tatmadaw yesterday, with the first accusing Daw Aung San Suu Kyi of breaking promises and rushing the peace process, and the second accusing the military of fanning the flames of animosity.

During training, prison wardens focus on practicalities of improving the system

Posted: 13 Dec 2016 11:21 PM PST

What comes first when trying to reform Myanmar's notorious and long-languishing prison system? How can the correctional facilities be brought into line with international human rights standards? These and other practicalities were among the subjects of a two-day human rights workshop that trained 50 senior prison officials.

Myanmar calls on Thailand to stop harassment of migrants

Posted: 13 Dec 2016 11:14 PM PST

Myanmar police have presented six demands to their Thai counterparts, calling for a crackdown on corrupt and abusive Thai officials who prey on Myanmar workers in Thailand.

Illegal stone mining puts riverbank at risk of collapse: residents

Posted: 13 Dec 2016 10:59 PM PST

Illegal gem diggers mining the riverbed for precious stones could cause riverbank collapse, or put river traffic at risk, local residents warn. They say many miners in the stretch of the Ayeyarwady River between Myingyan and Nyaung-U districts, Mandalay Region, are operating without a licence.

Labour Exchange Offices opened

Posted: 13 Dec 2016 10:43 PM PST

Would-be migrant workers can now access information about overseas opportunities and the kinds of jobs available from labour centres newly opened throughout the country, Upper House MPs have heard. Deputy foreign minister U Kyaw Tint told Amyotha Hluttaw on December 12 that 78 labour exchange offices have opened.
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Shan Herald Agency for News

Shan Herald Agency for News

SNLD members still held by TNLA, says spokesman

Posted: 14 Dec 2016 03:16 AM PST

Five members of the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD), who were allegedly arrested by the Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) on Saturday, have still not been released, according to an SNLD executive member and spokesperson.
Sai Lek, the spokesman for the SNLD, told Shan Herald that his party had no information about the five members who were detained by the Ta'ang rebels in the village of Pang Kwan in Kyaukme Township.
"Our five party members have not yet been released," he said. "Some detainees from the villages of Mong Tat and Mong Mauk in Namtu Township were freed, but not the Pang Kwan people. However, I believe this is not a big issue, and that we can resolve the matter. After all, we are brothers who live together in Shan State."
He added: "Right now, we should all be working for Shan State unity. If Shan State is destroyed, the union will also be destroyed."
Two days after the alleged arrest, the SNLD released a statement demanding the TNLA release all its members and other detained civilians.
The statement said that the TNLA had arrested a total of 36 people, including 24 villagers from Pang Kwan who were detained on December 10. Another 12 villagers – eleven from Mong Tat and one from Wan Nar – were allegedly arrested in Namtu Township last month.
On December 13, the TNLA News and Information Department published on its website a report saying that 11 men had already been released in Namtu Township. However, it said that these men were all from Mong Kark village, and had b                                            een arrested amid fighting between TNLA troops and the Restoration Council of Shan State/Shan State Army (RCSS/SSA). 
According to a statement by Burma's State Counselor Information Committee on Monday, the TNLA had recruited 21 villagers from Pang Kwan.
"We have a new military recruitment policy for our party," Col. Tar Phong Kyaw, a TNLA spokesperson, told The Irrawaddynews agency this week. "However, we only recruit soldiers from amongst our Ta'ang [Palaung] people. We do not recruit from the ethnic Shan villages. We are checking at the ground level to ascertain the status of those arrested in Kyaukme. If they are Shan, we will release them."
TNLA is a member of the newly formed Northern Alliance, alongside the Arakan Army (AA), Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and Myanmar Nationalities Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA). The coalition has conducted synchronized offensives against the Burmese armed forces in northern Shan State since November 20.
On December 7, the Shan State regional assembly voted narrowly to classify the four militias as "terrorist organizations".  
However, according to Khuensai, the managing director of the Pyidaungsu Institute for Peace and Dialogue (PI), this issue will have no impact as the state or region assembly has no power to create law on terrorism matter.

"The state government has no power to make laws regarding terrorism," he told Shan Herald on December 8, a day of the approval. "Just as it has no authority over home affairs, foreign affairs and legislature. Therefore, even though the Shan State government approved a motion describing the four armed groups as terrorists, it will not be mandated by law."
By Shan Herald Agency for News (SNLD)
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