Thursday, March 29, 2018

The Irrawaddy Magazine

The Irrawaddy Magazine

Lawmakers Press Information Ministry to Open Up, Help Private News Outlets

Posted: 29 Mar 2018 04:17 AM PDT

YANGON — Lawmakers asked the Ministry of Information (MOI) if it had plans to help support the country’s struggling private news outlets and improve the public’s access to even the most basic government information during a session of the Lower House on Thursday in Naypyitaw.

National League for Democracy (NLD) lawmaker U Myint Lwin, representing Yangon Region’s Twante Township, complained that private news outlets were at an unfair disadvantage to publicly funded government outlets, raising concerns about the quality of news readers will have access to if private outlets die out. He said private outlets felt like lightweight boxers being forced to step into the ring with heavyweights.

"There have been complaints in other countries about state-run media using government funding to operate. But our country is reforming, so I do not want to complain yet about government money being used to run media outlets," he said.

U Myint Lwin said 44 private media outlets have applied for operating licenses since the beginning of democratic reforms in 2011, but many were scaling back because of financial difficulties.

"They all feel like state-run media do not play fair because state-run media have many sections and branch offices, and they [sell] lots of advertising because they sell at a low price. So they feel like when they have to compete…they are boxing with heavyweights," he said.

Deputy Information Minister U Aung Hla Htun said the government was trying to help private outlets.

The ministry, he said, “is trying to ask the government not to collect taxes from private media. But other people also need to work with the MOI in order to ask the government for tax breaks for private media."

He said state-run news outlets were a bridge between the government and the people and charged low prices for advertising because the ministry did not want to earn a profit off the public or make its news unaffordable.

Switching topics, lawmaker Daw Aye Mya Mya Moe, representing Yangon’s Kyauktan Township, said the MOI was falling short of its responsibility to help the public access basic government information and recounted her own attempt to do so.

She said she had gone to the Yangon City Development Committee (YCDC) to find out what laws governed development projects in her constituency, but an official told her he could only share that information with approval from a superior.

Daw Aye Mya Mya Moe said the official’s superior promised to gather the information she was looking for and share it. She said that was several months ago and that she was still waiting. The lawmaker said she tried to get the information from township authorities, but they knew nothing about it.

"So I have a question: How can we develop our area if the YCDC cannot tell us the laws? I found that civil servants are very poor at providing information to the public. So when will the MOI provide basic rights like the right to information to the public?” Daw Aye Mya Mya Moe said. “Maybe you can teach the civil servants how to provide information to the public. The MOI should take action against [civil servants] who do not follow instructions from [superiors]."

U Aung Hla Htun, the deputy minister, said the government has posted contact information for spokespeople online. He said his ministry also opened a call center to provide the public with free information, held workshops across the country, and was working on a law addressing access to information.

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Italy to Fund €300,000 Effort by UNESCO to Restore Mrauk-U

Posted: 29 Mar 2018 02:05 AM PDT

YANGON — The Italian Embassy in Yangon and UNESCO's Myanmar office signed a €300,000 agreement on Wednesday to boost conservation efforts in Mrauk-U, the ancient capital of the Arakan kingdom. The centuries-old site in northern Rakhine State is known for its stone pagodas and stupas.

According to an Italian Embassy statement, the contribution to the archeological project is being made in direct response to recommendations in the August 2017 final report of the Advisory Commission on Rakhine State led by Kofi Annan, which called for greater support for development in the state.

The embassy said the Myanmar government had acknowledged the role that promotion of Mrauk-U could play in the sustainable development of the state, and had therefore decided to boost efforts to have the site nominated for listing as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The statement said the embassy would support Mrauk-U's candidacy and cooperate on the protection of monuments in line with World Heritage standards. UNESCO will implement the initiative under the supervision of the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation in partnership with the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Culture's Department of Archaeology (DOA).

Italian Ambassador Pier Giorgio Aliberti and the head of UNESCO in Myanmar, Min Heong Kim, signed the agreement, "Supporting the safeguarding, management and valorization of Mrauk", at the embassy on Wednesday.

To draw more tourists, local authorities announced in 2015 a plan to build an airport in Mrauk-U, but it is still not finished due to delays by authorities in funding the 26 billion kyat ($18.9 million US) project, which was not begun until last year.

Until early 1783, the Arakan kingdom was a sovereign nation and ruled by Maha Thamada Razar. It was conquered by the Burmese Konbaung Dynasty in 1784.

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Army Brings Case Against Relative of 2 Kachin Villagers Allegedly Killed by Soldiers

Posted: 29 Mar 2018 01:54 AM PDT

YANGON  —The Myanmar Army has opened a case against a female relative of two Kachin men allegedly killed by the army in January in Kachin State's Mansi Township, under Article 17 (1) of the Unlawful Association Act.

The Myanmar Army has filed a complaint against Kaw Awng, the daughter-in-law of Hpaugan Yaw, one of two men allegedly detained and shot dead by the army in January.

According to Fortify Rights, a non-profit human rights organization based in Southeast Asia, Hpaugan Yaw, 65, and Nhkum Naw San, 35, two villagers from Maing Hkawng, were last seen in the custody of Myanmar Army soldiers on Jan. 31.

The two were reportedly farming in a field near Hkat Pra village when soldiers arrested them.

"Many people in that village are connected with the KIA [Kachin Independence Army]. So, the army opened the case. We are still investigating," chief of Mansi Township Police Force police major Myo Thant told The Irrawaddy.

A captain from Light Infantry Battalion 602 based in Mansi Township opened the case against Kaw Awng under the Unlawful Association Act, while accusing Hpaugan Yaw and Nhkum Naw San of being KIA members.

According to Fortify Rights, eyewitness saw the two victims being dressed in KIA uniforms on Jan. 31. Families of the two then filed a missing persons report with Mansi Township police station and requested help from the Kachin state chief minister, Northern Command, and the Lower House lawmaker of Mansi Township.

After the disappearance of the two, the army restricted travel on the road linking Hkat Pra and Maing Hkawng villages after 8 p.m.

The bodies of the two victims were found on March 8, and recovered by the Mansi Township administrator, law officer, and medic from the Mansi Township Hospital the following day.

On March 10, Mansi Township police station collected accounts of eyewitnesses and family members of the two victims.

"The Tatmadaw said they had to kill the two because they were at the scene of fighting with guns. And they opened the case under Article 17 (1) to accuse their family members of having connections with the KIA," said David, who is helping internally displaced persons in the area.

"We will make sure justice is done for the two," he added.

According to fractures found on their bodies, the two victims appeared to have been severely beaten and had their hands tied, he said. However, the forensic report has not yet been given to family members.

Police Major Myo Thant said that police would be able to proceed with the case of the two victims only after receiving the forensic report.

In January, a military tribunal reportedly sentenced six Myanmar soldiers to 10 years in prison for the murder of three people from the Maing Hkawng camp in May 2017.

The tribunal convicted the soldiers from Myanmar Army Light Infantry Battalion 319 of killing Nhkum Gam Awng, 31, Maran Brang Seng, 22, and Labya Naw Hkum, 27, while the three were gathering firewood in a nearby forest.

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko.

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Northern Alliance Seeks Continued Support From China in Peace Process Negotiations

Posted: 29 Mar 2018 01:14 AM PDT

CHIANG MAI, Thailand — The northeastern-based ethnic alliance the Federal Political Negotiation and Consultative Committee (FPNCC) seeks further support from China in Myanmar's peace process, according to a statement it released on Wednesday.

The FPNCC stated that China's positive involvement in Myanmar's peace process has become more important and cannot be averted.

The alliance will join the upcoming third session of the 21st Panglong peace conference in Naypyitaw – tentatively slated for May – only when it is formally invited, the FPNCC said. It is unclear whether non-signatories to the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) will be invited to participate in the Union peace conference and in what capacity.

"If the FPNCC receives a formal invitation, all member groups will attend together," read the statement, released after a three-day FPNCC standing committee meeting in Panghsang, the capital of the Wa self-administrated region, held from March 26 to 28.

This is the same stance it has held since the alliance's first standing committee meeting in August.

The bloc members, led by the United Wa State Army (UWSA), joined the second session of the peace conference in May last year, after China intervened.

In the statement, the alliance asked for China's help to ensure its security, citing safety concerns for ethnic armed groups that are in ongoing clashes with the Myanmar Army,

"If we cannot be assured security, how can we move forward with discussions," Nyi Rang, a liaison officer for the United Wa State Party, told The Irrawaddy via message. He added that the groups would not attend if invited individually, as they stood firmly in their stance to attend as a bloc.

The bloc called for the halt of the Myanmar military's offensives against its allies, including the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) in Kachin State; the Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) and the Kokang’s Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) in Shan State, and the Arakan Army (AA). It welcomed the newly-elected President U Win Myint and said it "hoped that peace in Myanmar would be promptly implemented under the leadership of the new president."

Seeking official Chinese intervention in negotiations, the FPNCC showed interest in further collaboration for peace.

Observers of that the peace process expect that it could proceed smoothly with continuous Chinese mediation between the Myanmar government and ethnic armed groups, as well an easing on restrictions that exclude the TNLA, AA and MNDAA.

China's efforts to bring all the groups based along its borders into the peace process could boost its international image, said Maung Maung Soe, a political and ethnic affairs analyst.

Observers said the FPNCC's stance seemed more flexible this time around as it omitted mention of the NCA or an alternative to the NCA.

U Maung Maung Soe said this could be attributed to development in including the TNLA, AA, and MNDAA (who are all NCA non-signatories) in the process.

However, government peace negotiators led by State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi did not reveal any information in regards to ongoing negotiations with the bloc.

As China moves forward with its One Belt One Road initiative, Myanmar's neighbor “seeks stability on its border, thus encourages the northern alliance to take part in the peace process, and also pressures both the Tatmadaw and the alliance to reduce military tensions," U Maung Maung Soe added.

Chit Min Tun contributed to this report. 

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Lawyers for Reuters Reporters Ask Myanmar Court to Dismiss Case

Posted: 28 Mar 2018 10:17 PM PDT

YANGON — Lawyers for two Reuters reporters jailed in Myanmar asked a court on Wednesday to throw out the case, saying there was insufficient evidence to support charges against the pair, who are accused of possessing secret government papers.

A court in Yangon has been holding preliminary hearings since January to decide whether Wa Lone, 31, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, will be charged under the colonial-era Officials Secrets Act, which carries a maximum penalty of 14 years in prison.

On Wednesday, defense lawyer Khin Maung Zaw filed a motion to dismiss the case. The district court in northern Yangon agreed to hear arguments from prosecutors and defense lawyers on the motion on April 4.

“Of all the prosecution witnesses that have testified and been cross-examined, no proof” of legally sufficient evidence could be made against the defendants, Khin Maung Zaw told reporters after the hearing.

“It’s suitable for the defense lawyers to ask for the release at this stage,” he said, adding that there had been discrepancies in the testimony of some witnesses. He declined to elaborate.

Lead prosecutor Kyaw Min Aung left the court building before Reuters was able to put questions to him after the hearing. At previous hearings he has declined to speak to reporters.

Government and police spokespeople have declined to comment on the case, citing the ongoing court proceedings.

Appeal to New President

Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo have been in custody since their arrest on Dec. 12.

The journalists had been working on a Reuters investigation into the killing of 10 Rohingya Muslim men in a village in western Myanmar’s Rakhine State during a military crackdown in August, which has sent nearly 700,000 people fleeing to Bangladesh.

They have told relatives they were arrested almost immediately after being handed some rolled up papers at a restaurant in northern Yangon by two policemen they had not met before, having been invited to meet the officers for dinner.

Previous police witnesses, however, have said the reporters were stopped and searched at a traffic checkpoint by officers who were unaware they were journalists, and found to be holding in their hands documents relating to security force deployments in Rakhine.

During a break in proceedings, Wa Lone made an appeal to Myanmar’s new president, U Win Myint, a close ally of the leader of the civilian government, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, who was elected by Parliament on Wednesday.

“Journalists who are in the Insein prison at the moment would like to say to the newly elected president that we are now in Insein prison because we covered news. We are facing court because we found out the unjust things,” he told reporters. “I would like to ask the new president to bring about media freedom for the press.”

Calls to the spokesman for Myanmar’s civilian government seeking comment went unanswered.

Myanmar’s ambassador to the United Nations, Hau Do Suan, said last month that the journalists were not arrested for reporting a story, but were accused of “illegally possessing confidential government documents.”

Senior UN officials, Western nations and press freedom advocates have called for the release of the journalists.

Diplomats from Australia, the European Union, Denmark and the Netherlands were among those who attended Wednesday’s hearing.

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Fishermen Long for Justice as Thailand Comes Under UN Scrutiny

Posted: 28 Mar 2018 10:07 PM PDT

SAMUT SAKHON, Thailand — Sold to a boat operator in Thailand for 6,000 baht ($192) two years ago, Win from Myanmar worked as a fisherman until he lost his forearm in an accident on the vessel this year.

Toiling for 19 hours a day, Win said the crew of 30 sometimes would not get any rest during peak season, with a United Nations team in Thailand this week to investigate such reports of abusive working conditions.

“Life is difficult as a fisherman in Myanmar so I thought it would make my life better if I come and work in Thailand,” the father of four, 39, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

“The ‘agent’ did not tell me what work I was going to do or how much I would be paid. I just ended up working on the boat.”

The world’s third largest seafood exporter, Thailand’s fishing industry employs more than 300,000 people, many of them migrant workers from neighboring countries, and the sector has long been dogged by allegations of abuses.

The industry is under further international scrutiny this week as a team of United Nations experts undertake their first visit to examine human rights in a wide range of businesses in Thailand, including the fishing and seafood sectors.

Speaking from Samut Sakhon, a major fishing hub one hour drive from the capital Bangkok, Win said he lost his left arm after it was caught in a wheel as he hoisted the net one day.

Unhappy with the offer of 10,000 baht compensation from his employer, Win is now appealing to the Thai authorities for a higher amount.

Hit on the Head with a Machete

But even before the incident Win said he felt underpaid.

Starting at about 10,000 baht in the first month, the fisherman said his wages had gradually gone down to 4,000 baht. Thailand’s legal monthly minimum wage is about 9,000 baht.

“Any slight mistakes we made, we would be scolded or beaten up. I was hit twice – one time with a machete to my head,” said Win, who asked that his full name not be published as he fears it will affect his case with the Thai authorities.

Thailand’s multi billion-dollar seafood sector has come under scrutiny in recent years after investigations by the media and human rights groups showed slavery, trafficking and violence on fishing boats and at onshore processing facilities.

The military, which took power in a 2014 coup, has rolled out reforms since the European Union threatened in 2015 to ban fish imports from the Southeast Asian nation unless it cleaned up the industry.

Employers now often complied with new rules, such as paying fishermen a minimum wage and issuing contracts, research by the International Labor Organization (ILO) this month showed.

But the ILO also found signs of continuing forced labor despite pressure from retailers to clean up the industry, including abusive working conditions and excessive overtime, especially among migrants from Cambodia and Myanmar.

More than a third of migrant fishermen in Thailand were victims of trafficking, according to a study of 260 fishermen by anti-trafficking group the International Justice Mission last year.

A spokesman from the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights said the group would meet officials, activists and migrant workers during its 10-day mission to Thailand to ascertain whether the government measures have been effective.

“Business and human rights issues are becoming more and more prominent, including in Asia,” Surya Deva from the working group, a law professor at the City University of Hong Kong, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

“Human rights abuses in supply chains, for example, are a very critical issue. Another area of global concern is the rights of migrant workers.”

The group is expected to urge Thai authorities to adopt a national action plan on dealing with modern slavery and human trafficking in industries from seafood, to manufacturing and tourism at the end of their visit.

An estimated 425,500 people live in conditions of modern slavery in Thailand, according to the Global Slavery Index 2016 by campaign group Walk Free Foundation.

‘I Am Not Happy Here'

But activists urged the UN team to do more than just make recommendations.

“If the UN just come do research and collect data that doesn’t really help,” asked Patima Tungpuchayakul from Thai advocacy group, the Labor Rights Promotion Network Foundation, involved in rescuing migrant fishermen from labor abuses.

Back in Samut Sakhon, boats were pulling into a port on a sunny morning and fishermen busy unloading their catch.

Local women and migrant workers from Myanmar quietly sorted sardines and mackerel according to their size before they were loaded onto trucks and sent to nearby processing plants.

But this is a scene that Win would like to forget. All he wants now is to get compensation for losing his arm and go home.

“I am not happy here. At least if I go home, I can be with my wife and children,” he said.

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Can A New President Pull Myanmar Out of the Quagmire of Conflict?

Posted: 28 Mar 2018 09:59 PM PDT

U Win Myint — a former Speaker of the House of Representatives — will become Myanmar's 10th president, succeeding U Htin Kyaw, who resigned from his position after less than two years in office.

On Wednesday, Parliament voted unanimously to make U Win Myint president. A series of lingering challenges including a stagnant economy, the civil war, the Rohingya crisis and amending the Constitution are waiting to be addressed by the new president.

Yet the question "How can we end the civil war and build peace in Myanmar?" might be the main challenge facing incoming President U Win Myint.

His two immediate predecessors, U Htin Kyaw and U Thein Sein, managed to get 10 ethnic armed groups to sign the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) — eight groups in 2015 under U Thein Sein and two groups during U Htin Kyaw's tenure. The 10 groups are: the Karen National Union (KNU), the Pa-O National Liberation Army, the Chin National Front (CNF), the Arakan Liberation Party (ALP), the All Burma Students' Democratic Front (ABSDF), the Restoration Council of Shan State (RCSS), the Karen National Union/Karen National Liberation Army (Peace Council) (KNU/KNLA PC), the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA), the New Mon State Party and the Lahu Democratic Union.

However, the most powerful groups have refrained from signing the NCA. These comprise the seven groups that make up the Federal Political Negotiation Council Consultative Commission (FPNCC), namely the United Wa State Army, Kachin Indepedence Organization, National Democratic Alliance Army, Shan State Progress Party, Ta'ang National Liberation Army and the Arakan Army, and two groups from the United Nationalities Federal Council, namely the Karenni National Progressive Party and the Arakan National Council.

While the government and ethnic armed groups negotiate over signing the NCA, the lingering conflicts have become a major obstacle for all parties. These conflicts include both signatories and non-signatories of the NCA.

NCA Signatories

The Mon National Liberation Army (MNLA), the armed wing of the New Mon State Party, has clashed with the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA), the armed wing of the KNU, twice recently. On Feb. 14, I wrote an article, "The UNFC: Reasons Behind Signing and Not Signing the NCA," warning of a potential clash between these two groups. I clearly stated in the article that the expansion of the KNU's territory toward Yay Phyu, Kawkareik and Kyainseikgyi along the Karen and Mon state borders threatened to cause a major conflict.

More than a week later on Feb. 24, a clash between these two NCA signatories broke out in Yay Phyu, with both sides reporting injuries. Even as the two sides were discussing how to solve the dispute, clashes erupted again on March 4. The lack of a clear demarcation of territory between these two groups makes it hard to prevent clashes. The Joint Monitoring Committee (JMC) has been unable to prevent hostilities despite both sides being signatories of the NCA.

NCA Signatory and Non-signatory

The Restoration Council of Shan State/Shan State Army (RCSS/SSA) — an NCA signatory — and the TNLA— a non-signatory — have consistently clashed in northern Shan State. The RCSS signed the NCA on Oct. 15, 2015. Fighting between the two groups erupted on Nov. 27, 2015, due to the RCSS's territorial expansion toward the TNLA-controlled areas such as Kyaukme, Nansang, Mongton and Namkhan.

The TNLA believes the RCSS has been allowed to gain a dominant position by the Tatmadaw due to its having signed the NCA — a charge the Tatmadaw denies. Clashes have erupted several times, resulting in both combatant and civilian casualties. The clashes have also displaced many people, fostering resentment between the ethnic Shan and Ta'ang (Palaung) people.

Tatmadaw and NCA Signatories

Surprisingly, clashes between the Tatmadaw and NCA signatories have erupted several times. The recent fighting between the Tatmadaw and the KNU highlights the weakness of the NCA.

Fighting broke out between the Tatmadaw and the KNLA's 5th Brigade due to the Tatmadaw's alleged deployment of security patrols to facilitate the rebuilding of an old road in Lel Mu Palaw on March 5. The clash not only displaced about 2,000 people, but also negatively affected the ongoing peace process.

On March 19, hundreds of Karen people staged a protest to demand the Tatmadaw withdraw its forces, alleging they had been deployed to expand territorial control. The KNU met with the Tatmadaw to try to solve the recent tension on March 30, but it seems further talks will be required to stabilize the region.

The Tatmadaw has fought not only with the KNU, but also with the RCSS. The Tatmadaw and the RCSS clashed in July 2017. General Yawd Serk, a leader of the RCSS/SSA, accused the Tatmadaw of not abiding by the terms of the NCA after the Myanmar military attaché in Bangkok blocked a July meeting of the Committee for Shan State Unity in Chiang Mai, Thailand last year.

Furthermore, tensions between the Tatmadaw and the Karen State Border Guard Force (BGF) recently flared after Tatmadaw forces and police seized hundreds of cars without licenses owned by the BGF. Clashes between the Tatmadaw and NCA signatories seem mostly to stem from the ignoring of terms of the agreement, such as the requirement to inform the other side prior to crossing an area under its control.

The clashes between the Tatmdaw and NCA signatories highlight the flawed nature of the NCA and only make non-NCA signatories more wary about signing the deal.

Tatmadaw and Non-NCA Signatories

The clashes between the Tatmadaw and non-NCA signatories have become intractable, particularly with the KIO.

Fighting resumed in 2011 between the Tatmadaw and the KIO, and continues despite the two sides having met in Dali, in China's Yunnan province, in February in an attempt to cease the escalation. The KIO's 14th Battalion recently abandoned a base in its amber-rich area due to a Tatmadaw clearance operation. The KIO has lost several outposts, including those of its 6th Battalion and 8th Brigade, as well as its Hkaya Bum, Gidon and Hpun-pyen Bum posts.

The fighting has also produced tens of thousands of displaced people who are now sheltering on the Sino-Myanmar border in Myitkyina, Bhamo, Tanai Township and elsewhere.

The Tatmadaw has also fought against other armed groups such as the TNLA, AA, MNDAA, SSPP and KNPP. The Tatmadaw's clashes with the TNLA and MNDAA have produced thousands more displaced people and constantly disrupted the major trade route between Muse and Mandalay.

The recent territorial dispute between the Tatmadaw and the UWSA has made potential talks between the government and the FPNCC more difficult.

The clock is ticking for the third session of the 21st-Century Panglong Peace Conference, which has been canceled several times and is due to be held in May. Yet it is unclear whether the government will invite the non-NCA signatories to the conference. They were excluded from the second session.

All ethnic groups, both NCA signatories and non-signatories, share a common vision to build a federal Union. However, according to KIO chair General N'Ban La, Lieutenant-General Tun Tun Naung, commander of the Bureau of Special Operations-1, insisted that the Tatmadaw would not accept "a federal union." The message from the Tatmadaw to all ethnic minorities is that building a genuine federal Union is a forlorn hope.

No one knows how long the federalism path will take, but many people, particularly ethnic minorities, have put concerted efforts into speeding up the process. Yet, stopping the fighting between the Tatmadaw and ethnic armed groups ought to be prioritized before further causalities among combatants and civilians occur, as all are Myanmar citizens.

Thus, ethnic people are hoping the new president will order the military to stop fighting against the ethnic armed groups, as former President Thein Sein did in December 2011, though the Tatmadaw failed to comply. If President U Win Myint can pull Myanmar out of this quagmire of conflict, his efforts will be seen as historic and will shape Myanmar's future for the better.

Joe Kumbun is the pseudonym of a Kachin State-based analyst.

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Malaysia to Redraw Electoral Map in Contentious Move Just Before Polls

Posted: 28 Mar 2018 09:44 PM PDT

KUALA LUMPUR — Malaysia approved on Wednesday plans to redraw boundaries for more than a third of its parliamentary seats, changes that critics say will help Prime Minister Najib Razak cruise to a victory in a general election likely to be called within days.

Hundreds of protesters marched to parliament ahead of the tabling of the redelineation motion and opposition lawmakers raised their objections in the House of Representatives – with one member calling Najib a “thief."

But the motion, which will change the voter demographic in nearly 40 percent of Parliament’s 222 seats, was approved by a simple majority within five hours of the tabling by Najib.

Opposition lawmakers chanted “cheat, cheat” as the motion was passed.

Critics say the new boundaries will benefit Najib’s Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition, which is facing arguably its toughest polls since independence more than 60 years ago, by assigning larger number of opposition-leaning voters to fewer seats and dividing constituencies along ethnic lines.

“Today, Parliament was asked to pass a motion to save Najib and the ruling government,” said Lim Kit Siang, veteran leader of the opposition Democratic Action Party.

Lim had earlier denounced Najib as a “thief” and was asked to leave the house by the speaker for disrupting proceedings.

Najib is under pressure to deliver an emphatic victory, as he grapples with a scandal at state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), and public anxiety over rising living costs.

His coalition lost the popular vote in the last general election, in 2013, but managed to stay in power.

An election must be held by August, but Najib is widely expected to call it in days.

The recommendation to modify electoral boundaries was made in a report by the Election Commision (EC), which has for years been accused by the opposition of taking instructions from the prime minister.

The EC and the government have both said the recommendation for change in electoral borders was free from political interference.

“The government did not disturb or influence the EC in their work, and respects decisions made by EC in the interest of the people and the country,” Najib told parliament.

‘Manipulating the Rolls'

Maria Chin Abdullah, former chairwoman of pro-democracy group Bersih, and one of about 200 protesters who had marched earlier in the day, said the commission’s report was being used to unfairly force through the boundary changes.

“They want to bulldoze the report that contradicts the constitution, ignores the rule of law and manipulates the electoral rolls,” she said.

Former premier Mahathir Mohamad, who at 92 is the opposition candidate for prime minister, should Najib, his former protégé, be defeated, briefly joined the protesters.

Electoral boundaries were last changed in 2003, under the leadership of then-premier Mahathir. He, too, was accused of manipulating the process in favor of the ruling coalition, which has held power since independence from Britain in 1957.

The latest changes will not alter the number of seats in the parliament or state assemblies, but will modify the size of several constituencies.

Selangor – the country’s richest state and one of the few controlled by the opposition – will see voter demographics change in 18 of its 22 parliamentary seats.

Johor state, where the ruling coalition is expected to face a tough battle, will see changes to 19 of its 26 parliamentary seats.

The redrawing of boundaries will mean some pro-opposition constituencies with grow to include more than 100,000 voters, while pro-government ones are much smaller.

For instance, in Selangor outside Kuala Lumpur, the biggest parliamentary constituency would be Damansara – held by the opposition – with 150,439 voters, while the smallest would be Sabak Bernam – held by BN – with 37,126 voters.

Earlier in the week, the government tabled a bill seeking to outlaw “fake news," with fines and up to 10 years in jail, raising more concern about media freedom in the wake of the 1MDB scandal.

The bill is expected to be passed on Thursday.

The post Malaysia to Redraw Electoral Map in Contentious Move Just Before Polls appeared first on The Irrawaddy.
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