Thursday, June 21, 2018

The Irrawaddy Magazine

The Irrawaddy Magazine

Upper House Backs Steps to Protect Moken People’s Way of Life

Posted: 21 Jun 2018 08:15 AM PDT

YANGON — The Upper House on Wednesday endorsed a proposal calling on the government to establish a protected cultural area for the ethnic Moken (or Salone) people in Tanintharyi Region's Myeik (Mergui) Archipelago.

An Upper House committee tasked with scrutinizing the work of the government's Guarantees, Pledges and Undertakings Vetting Committee on Monday submitted to the chamber a report in response to lawmakers' questions and motions on the issue. The panel's recommendations include providing urgent protection for the Moken, a semi-nomadic group who mostly live off the sea and are now considered a "vanishing minority" among Myanmar's 135 officially recognized ethnicities.

The parliamentary committee made field visits to Tanintharyi Region on May 8-17 and compiled its findings and recommendations for the government.

The report urges the government to designate specific islands as being exclusively for use by the Moken (Salone) and to control migration into their communities, warning that an influx of outsiders threatens the survival of the indigenous Moken people's way of life.

U Thein Swe, the chairman of the Scrutiny Committee, said on Wednesday, "Urgent steps are needed to protect the culture as well as the civil rights of the Salone people, who are in danger of disappearing."

He said the committee members listened to the Moken's concerns during the field visits, and at workshops with Moken people from Ma Gyone Galet village on Bo Cho Island. The 1,800-acre island is located opposite Lampi Island in the Lampi Marine National Park.

Some 2,000 Moken continue to live on some 800 islands in the southern Myanmar archipelago of Mergui. Along with protecting the Moken people, the lawmakers urged the government to consider steps to protect the islands' natural environment and reconsider some projects under way there.

"These islands are small and some of them are still pristine; thus we urged measures to preserve these natural environments," U Thein Swe said.

He told Parliament that, "The Moken residents of Ma Gyone Galet village were previously from the Pearl Islands, as the Moken practice a nomadic way of life, moving from one island to another. They don't have official land-ownership documents. Now, more people are settling in their villages and taking ownership of their land in the names of companies, organizations and individuals. We witnessed that the local indigenous Moken communities' lands are shrinking. Therefore, they need [the government's] protection in special zones to preserve their culture."

U Khin Win, an Upper House lawmaker for Magwe Region's Constituency No. 2, urged the government to take immediate action to halt the unchecked granting of land ownership to companies in the area as cited in the report.

Due to the loss of their way of life, according to the report, Moken have been migrating to Thailand, where they can find housing, education and healthcare support.

"The Salone or Moken are one of the nine sub-tribes of the Bamar, and if our country can help the Salone, it would not only protect them, but also have great benefits for our tourism sector," said military-appointed lawmaker Major Kyaw Soe Oo.

While lawmakers of all parties generally agree that the Moken's culture and population need protection, Maj. Kyaw Soe Oo said it was unnecessary to set aside special areas or bar outsiders from entering Moken communities. He said actions based on the committee's report must not violate Article 355 of the Constitution, which states that "every citizen can stay in any part of the country in accordance with the law."

However, Upper House Speaker Man Win Khiang Than decided the report's findings do not violate the 2008 Constitution and the report was eventually approved.

The post Upper House Backs Steps to Protect Moken People's Way of Life appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Trailblazing Stylist Dedicates His Life to Making Others Look Great

Posted: 21 Jun 2018 05:44 AM PDT

YANGON — Getting paid to dress models and celebrities in the latest styles sounds like fun, right? But just exactly how does one go about getting into this line of work?

The fashion industry in Myanmar is still a small community, and there aren't that many really top-quality, hardworking fashion stylists. I caught up with Yoko San, who has established a reputation as a top local fashion stylist over the past decade, and asked him what stylists do and whether he had any tips on how to get into this line of work.

Yoko San (also known as Aung Sithu) is hard to miss. The tall, pale 29-year-old is always decked out in the latest fashions.

Since making a start in the fashion industry at age 19, he has worked with some of the biggest celebrities and models in Myanmar and done many fashion shoots, commercials, TV series and movies, along with countless fashion shows.

"When I was 18, 19 years old, I was still a student and Yangon only had a few local fashion magazines, but I'd wait for them to appear at the end of each month and read them all. Then, one of my cousins started working for a local magazine called People and that allowed me to establish some work connections," Yoko San said.

Yoko San gives supermodel Nang Kae Mar a new look. / Supplied

He joined the magazine but initially he was unhappy, as he was assigned to work in the sport section's marketing department.

"I was a rookie, so I couldn't choose my position, and I wasn't happy with my first job. I'm good at communicating with people but I don't know anything about sports and it wasn't interesting to me."

He added, "I was always visiting People's editorial office and was more friendly with the editorial staff."

He never lost interest in his hobby, fashion, and would set up his own photo shoots in his free time. His big break came when he got an offer to do a photo shoot for Mandalay Icon magazine. The publisher noticed his talent and offered him a job.

"I was shocked, happy and excited all at the same time when I heard the news. It was a risk for both sides: The idea of a 'fashion stylist' was still an unfamiliar concept to the local magazine industry at the time," Yoko San said.

A glimpse behind the scenes of an editorial shoot: Yoko San styles a local singer. / Htet Wai

But in the end the move worked out for both. Yoko San ended up working for the magazine as a stylist for two years.

"Those times were unforgettable and I learned many things. At first, my coworkers had many questions. They wanted to know what I was doing there, and what a stylist does, and so on. I put up with the gossip and the challenges because I loved my job. I did my best and I and the magazine built our reputations together," Yoko San said.

Yoko San said that when styling famous models and celebrities, he is faced with many different characters and patience is required.

"They are private people but they also have to spend most of their time doing shoots. So they want people around them whom they feel comfortable with. Stylists need to be flexible enough to deal with all kinds of people."

His was given his professional name by his mom, and most people only know him as Yoko San.

"My mom's favorite singer is John Lennon from The Beatles. His wife's name is Yoko Ono. When [my mom] was pregnant with me, she decided to give me the name 'Yoko San', even if her baby turned out to be a son. And she really did it!" Yoko San said.

Yoko San styles supermodel Nang Kae Mar. / Supplied

However, his grandfather insisted he have a Burmese name as well, so he was also named Aung Sithu.

After working for two years as a fashion stylist, Yoko San needed a new challenge and wanted to do something more creative, so he joined a new fashion magazine, MODA.

"As you know, MODA is now a famous local fashion magazine, but at that time it was still new. I like new challenges and I wanted people to see the new things I was doing," he said.

Two years later, the stylist had to make another difficult decision. It wasn't easy but looking back on it he believes it made him the person he is today. "Readers noticed me and the magazine; I was achieving my goals but the situation was changing at the company and I was getting bored with the magazine job. So I decided to work as a freelancer," Yoko San said.

"It was not that easy to make that decision and all my friends were worried about me. I asked myself so many questions, like 'Will it be okay?' and 'Will this work?' Finally, I chose to be a freelance fashion stylist, and I am still sitting in front of you today as a stylist."

The first three months were really hard and full of stress because prior to this he has been working with the support of a team, he said.

One of Yoko San's stylings created for supermodel M Seng Lu. / Supplied

"The difference is that I need to do everything by myself. There's no one who can help me. When customers offered me jobs I had to come up with an idea, and create a fashion style that suited that particular celebrity or model. So, freelancing brought more responsibilities, but I grew to love my job more and more."

While struggling to make a living, he still needed to catch up with all the latest fashions, and keep up with the latest trends in the business, and he tried never to miss a fashion show.

"I had to learn on my own by studying famous people and their individual looks, to see what fashion worked for M Seng Lu [a local supermodel], or what won't work with [Myanmar Academy Award-winning actress] Eaindra Kyaw Zin," Yoko San said.

"That kind of knowledge and study is important for a stylist."

Though he has faced many struggles and hard times, Yoko San has never thought of giving up his job—though he would like to get a few more hours of rest in.

"I love my job and I love what I do. So I won't give up and I will keep learning and trying as best I can. Sometimes, when I've got a full schedule, I wish I could have a normal office staff because they have public holidays off, annual leave and normal working hours, but those thoughts only last a minute or two," he said.

The fashion industry in Myanmar is still developing and there are few resources for aspiring stylists. Furthermore, there is a lack of educational opportunities for them. Stylists need to study and update their knowledge on their own. Yoko San hopes to see more opportunities develop for people in the fashion industry through fashion workshops and such things.

The concept of a "stylist" is becoming more familiar in Myanmar, and that's a positive development for the industry, Yoko San said.

"I always welcome newcomers. It's positive for the industry, but one problem is that many people confuse the words 'stylist' and 'stylish' in their working profiles. Please study the difference between these two words, and don't chase success only for the sake of being popular," Yoko San said.

Offering a final observation, Yoko San cautioned that "Stylists don't own their time; they need to run from place to place and must do all the little things, like ironing the clothes. Being a stylist is not easy but I love the clothes and love to change people's looks, so I will be a stylist for as long as I am able to do it."

The post Trailblazing Stylist Dedicates His Life to Making Others Look Great appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Karenni Youth Groups Oppose Planned Statue of Gen Aung San in Downtown Loikaw

Posted: 21 Jun 2018 05:17 AM PDT

The chief minister of Karenni State said his government would push ahead with its plan to erect a large statue of Gen Aung San in the state capital of Loikaw despite opposition from some local ethnic people. Gen Aung San, who led the fight for national independence, was also the father of State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, whose National League for Democracy leads the current Union government.

Seven local youth groups sent an open letter to the state government on June 18, asking for the statue-building project to be reviewed and for current construction of a statue in front of the city hall in Loikaw to be halted.

L Phaung Sho, the chief minister of Karenni State, told The Irrawaddy that other ethnic-majority states had built statues of Gen Aung San and his government would install similar monuments.

"Gen Aung San was the father of independence in our country.  We want ethnic people to pay respect to him and to cooperate with the government in the building of the statues," he said.

His office had not yet set a date yet for an official unveiling of the statue, for which the state has allotted a budget of 80 million kyats (US$58,000).

While Burmese people recognize Gen Aung San as a hero, ethnic people have their own historical figures who fought for their ethnic rights. As such, some ethnic groups do not want the current NLD government to build statues of Gen Aung San in their areas.

The NLD government has a policy to erect status of Gen Aung San in all states and divisions. Since the NLD came to power over two years ago, many statues have been built in ethnic states despite local opposition.

In their letter to the Karenni State government, the seven youth groups said they did not agree with the building of statues of Gen Aung San in their region.

Karenni State has a long history as an independent state and maintained a level of autonomy that was recognized by Britain during the colonial era. Gen Aung San visited Karenni State only once, in 1946, as part of a trip to encourage Karenni leaders to join an independent union.

It is not appropriate to erect statues of Gen Aung San in our state because he came here only one time," said Khu Tu Reh, chairman of the Farmers Union in Karenni State.

He complained that the state government did not listen to the voices of the local people. "They just listen to their top leaders," he said.

In their letter, the youth groups stated that if the government continued to wield its power in this fashion, opposition against the statue project would build.

The youth groups have also started a campaign to collect signatures against the project. Later, they plan to hold a protest, although they will wait first for a response from the state government to their open letter.

Meanwhile, construction of the foundation of the statues continues. When the base is finished, the government will install the statue, which is 15-feet high, according to the chief minister.

"There are well-known historical leaders in our Karenni State. But the government does not build statues of those leaders. Instead it is building statues of Gen Aung San," said a statement from the Union of Karenni State Youth (UKYS).

"Our state has its own identity and our own respected leaders. We want to build statues of our (historical) leaders, but that requires ongoing negotiations with the authorities," said Khun Bar N, a UKYS leader.

Locals feel they have lost political ground with the NLD government as a result of the statue-building project.

"We are worried that the statues will fuel tension among the local people. When we talk about a federal system, it implies equal rights. First, we need to build statues of our respected ethnic leaders, then statues of Gen Aung San can come second," Khun Bar N said.

The post Karenni Youth Groups Oppose Planned Statue of Gen Aung San in Downtown Loikaw appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Suspected Chinese Sex Workers Face Additional Charges for Violating Visa Regulations

Posted: 21 Jun 2018 04:12 AM PDT

YANGON — Nineteen Chinese citizens arrested at a beauty parlor allegedly operating as a brothel in Yangon's South Okkalapa Township will face additional charges for violating visa regulations.

"They were on business visas. The Immigration Department has brought charges for violation of visa regulations. We have sought the remarks [of upper-level authorities] to establish the case. Then, we will charge them officially," said police captain Shwe Htay, head of the South Okkalapa Township police force.

Acting on a tip, police raided the Oriental Spa on Waizayandar Street on the morning of May 22.

A total of 28 people including 17 Chinese women and two Chinese men were arrested, and police have filed charges against the Chinese women under Article 3 (a) and (b) of the 1949 Suppression of Prostitution Law.

Eleven others including the Chinese managers of the beauty parlor were charged under Article 5 (1) for pimping. The charges carry jail terms of between one and three years in jail with hard labor.

Under Article 4 (2) of Myanmar's Immigration Emergency Provisions Act of 1947, they may be expelled from the country and under Article 13 (1), they may be punished by six to five years in prison and/or a fine.

The second trial took place on Wednesday and plaintiff police lieutenant Tint Lwin Oo appeared at the court.

"I recounted what I saw during the arrest," he said.

The owner of Oriental Spa is still at large, police captain Shwe Htay confirmed. "We've issued an arrest warrant for him. We've informed concerned police stations and airports," he said.

U Myint Than, a lawyer for four Myanmar women also on trial, said his clients were from Shan State and that they had seen Oriental Spa's job advertisement on social media and been working there for only a couple of days when they were arrested and accused of pimping under Article 5 (1).

He said they had come from Lashio and Kutkai and rented a house in South Okkalapa Township.

"They hadn't even received any money yet," he said.

Three men also arrested on May 22 were employees of a cleaning service and were cleaning the beauty parlor when police showed up.

The next trial is set for July 4.

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko.

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Speculation of U Shwe Mann Party Grows

Posted: 21 Jun 2018 01:50 AM PDT

NAYPYITAW — Political circles are speculating that U Shwe Mann will establish a political party to contest the 2020 elections. The ex-general, who has close ties to State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, has neither confirmed nor denied the idea.

When asked by a reporter in mid-May during the launching of his book “She, I and Myanmar's Politics,” about his political career, U Shwe Mann did not reject the suggestion that he would establish a party.

"What is the objective of establishing a party? We have to consider the objective. I will work as long as I am healthy if it is needed for the interests of the country and citizens. But what role I will play depends on the future situation," he replied.

U Shwe Mann, who was once considered the third most powerful man in the military regime, is a 1965 graduate of the No. 11 intake of the Defense Services Academy. He rose through the ranks to general in 2010 and was appointed chief of general staff for the army, navy and air force.

He contested the 2010 elections with the Union Solidarity Development Party (USDP) and was elected Lower House speaker by fellow lawmakers.

U Shwe Mann was purged as head of the USDP in August 2015 in a power struggle with then-President U Thein Sein.

He contested the 2015 general elections as a regular USDP member but lost to the National League for Democracy (NLD) candidate.

However, he was appointed by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi to head the Legal Affairs and Special Cases Assessment Commission of the Union Parliament in 2016.

In spite of widespread criticism of his political maneuverings to forge ties with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi ahead of the 2015 elections, U Shwe Mann has insisted that he was not a turncoat and said the alliance was necessary for the sake of the country and its citizens.

Despite being one of the key players in the military regime that kept Daw Aung San Suu Kyi under years of house arrest, the ex-general now calls her "big sister."

Sources close to the pair told The Irrawaddy that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi relies more on U Shwe Mann and his aides than on Religious Affairs and Culture Minister U Aung Ko and Lower House Speaker U T Khun Myat, both of whom held top positions in the USDP.

Former Major General U Ko Ko Naing, who has close ties with U Shwe Mann and serves on his parliamentary commission, said his political future was very much up in the air.

"So far, he has not said exactly what he will do and what he won't," he said.

Former Hsipaw Township lawmaker U Ye Htun said he thought U Shwe Mann would establish a political party because he has the financial resources to do so and enjoys some popularity with the people.

"As he knows the defects and shortcomings of the USDP, he can promise that his party would not have such defects. And if he is as good as his words, there may be a certain level of support for his political party," said U Ye Htun.

Yangon-based journalist U Thiha Thwe said some USDP members would join U Shwe Mann if he were to in fact establish a party, but added that his relationship with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi would suffer.

"The support of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is important for him. If he establishes a party, the relationship between him and Daw Aung San Suu Kyi will become a party-to-party relationship. Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has no policy for party-to-party relationships," he said.

Supporters of U Shwe Mann said they were ready to help him and any party he formed.

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko.

The post Speculation of U Shwe Mann Party Grows appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Naga Peace Process Hits Rough Patch: Indian Soldiers Killed in Ambush by NSCN-K Rebels

Posted: 21 Jun 2018 12:46 AM PDT

Even as the people of Nagaland await, believing that a solution to the decades-old conflict in the Naga hills is around the corner, the Indian government maybe be forced to do a rethink. This comes especially after the June 17 ambush on Indian security forces near Abhoi town in the Mon District of Nagaland bordering Myanmar, which left two soldiers of the 40th battalion of the Assam Rifles paramilitary force dead and four others critically injured.

The attack was carried out by the Khaplang faction of National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN-K). It comes close on the heels of another attack in April this year by the NSCN-K, in which two Indian army soldiers were killed near lower Dibang valley district in the Arunachal Pradesh state of India, bordering Myanmar.

The outfit, which predominantly operates out of Lahe, Lay Shi and Nanyun in the Sagaing Region of Myanmar and shares borders with Nagaland and Manipur State of India, abrogated the bilateral truce with India (the truce was signed in 2001) in 2015 and has since been involved in offensives with Indian security forces. It attended the 21st Century Panglong peace process in Myanmar but has not signed the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA).

While the ambush has been questioned by a number of Naga groups, it has also once again brought to fore a concern that has been repeatedly aired by a number of Naga organizations – that of involving the NSCN-K in the ongoing peace process which may prove to be disruptive.

Most of the organizations that spoke out after the ambush on June 17 reiterated the need for including the NSCN-K, as they fear the current peace process between the Indian government and six Naga groups could be derailed if incidents like the one at Abhoi continue to recur. Even senior Indian government officials who did not want to be named feel that New Delhi needs to be introspective and weigh its options if it is to renew a peace dialogue with the NSCN-K.

The Indian government and the leading Naga insurgent group the NSCN (Isak-Muivah faction) or NSCN-IM entered into peace negotiations on July 25, 1997, with the signing of a ceasefire agreement. The peace negotiations have over the years had their share of ups and downs and since then, there have been more than 80 rounds of talks paving the way for a "framework agreement" that was signed in August last year. The framework agreement was signed between the Indian government and the NSCN-IM on August 3, 2015.

Six other groups – the Naga Nationalist Council, Federal Government of Nagaland, NSCN (Kitovi Zhimomi), NSCN (Reformation), National People's Government of Nagaland (Non-Accord) and Government Democratic Republic of Nagaland (Non-Accord) have joined the peace process.

The framework agreement, which pledges to restore the "pride and prestige" of the Nagas, is based on the concept of "shared sovereignty" between the Nagas and the Indian government. While the contents of the framework agreement have been kept closely guarded and have not been revealed to the media, what is clear is that the NSCN–IM, which is at the forefront of the peace talks with the Indian government, is keen on finding a "final settlement" to the vexed Naga insurgency that has witnessed extreme forms of violence and human rights abuses by both the Indian armed forces and also cadres belonging to different Naga armed groups.

The aggression of the NSCN-K – which is supported by the anti-talk faction of the United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA) – has raised serious concern. The anti-talk faction of the ULFA, which is also known as ULFA-Independent or ULFA (I), is headed by Paresh Barua and operates out of parts of Sagaing and Kachin State in Myanmar. The ULFA, which was formed as a separatist outfit in Assam in 1979, split into two factions following a decision by its chairperson Arabinda Rajkhowa to give up arms and become part of the pro-talk process in 2011. The Indian government outlawed the organization in 1990 citing it as a terrorist organisation, while the US State Department lists it under “other groups of concern."

President of the apex Naga tribal body – Nga Ho Ho – P Chuba Ozukum was of the opinion that talks between New Delhi and the NSCN-K were the only option to ensure that the current peace process is not disrupted. The Naga Ho Ho leader believes that New Delhi may be reluctant to enter into a dialogue with the NSCN-K because currently it is seen as a Myanmar based group. "But to continue the peace process the Indian government must bring out a certain mechanism where Khaplang faction can also join," he said, adding, "Let us not forget that earlier too, a ceasefire was signed with them."

Ozukum is also of the opinion that unless New Delhi "removes the bounty" it has announced on some of the NCSN-K leaders, asking the outfit to come for talks would be futile. The Indian government banned the NSCN-K in 2015 and declared it a terrorist organization following an ambush by the outfit near the India-Myanmar border in Manipur that left 18 soldiers of the Indian army dead.

The Naga Ho Ho leader is surprised that "instead of bringing them NSCN-K back to the ceasefire the government has announced a bounty on some of its leaders."

"Even if you want to renew the ceasefire they cannot come forward unless the bounty is removed. Why doesn't India give another chance by removing the bounty against the NSCN-K leaders and talking to them," he said, adding that all Naga organizations including the state government of Nagaland were ready to facilitate the process. "All of the Naga organizations are appealing to the NSCN-K to come and renew the ceasefire once again."

On the Naga Ho Ho's position on the recent killings of Indian security forces, the Naga leader had this to say: "Who likes killings? Nobody likes it. When people are fully focused on the peace process, I think this should not happen. That is what we feel." However, he was quick to also explain that in the absence of a ceasefire between the NCSN-K and the Indian government, the tribal body could not "blindly condemn, or say anything against them (the NSCN-K)," adding, "I don't mean I am supporting the killings or supporting the NSCN-K, all I am saying is that even when there was no ceasefire between the Indian government and the NSCN-IM there were so many killings. So the best option is how to convince the NSCN-K leaders and bring them under the fold of ceasefire once again."

Recent interviews with a cross-section of Naga local groups, civil society and those that are part of the peace negotiations seem to reflect the same concern—the involvement or the absence of the NSCN-K in the peace process. Surely any talks in which the NSCK-K are not involved are incomplete.

Indian media The Times of India in a report published on March 23 this year quoted the NTC secretary Theja Therieh as saying, "We have also sent feelers to the NSCN-K and it has been conveyed to us that they are not averse to peace talks. Last November, the government of India had told us that if they (the NSCN-K) are willing, it too is willing to invite them for talks. The government said that if there were no takers for its peace talk invitations, it would be an uncomfortable situation." The NTC has been successful in bringing the other six other Naga outfits to be part of the peace talks besides the NSCN-IM.

The NSCN-K on its part has not responded or issued any statement on the peace feelers that have been supposedly sent out to them. If what is being played out is that only after the "terror tag" or the "bounty" is removed from the outfit and its leaders will it show some interest, then perhaps it would be sensible for New Delhi to ponder this and prevent an Abhoi-like incident.

As of now, all that has been heard from the NSCN-K is what its 'deputy kilonser' (deputy minister) Isak Sumi has said (as was quoted by the New Indian Express in an article published on June 17), that the attack was part of the outfits "summer offensives to sanitize the land against illegal deployment of occupational Indian forces and reign in their illegal activities, provocative movements, perpetration of terror and disturbances of peace and tranquility in the Naga country."  On his Facebook page he wrote, "Wat a successful week…lesson teached to the illegal presence pf army in our homeland." [sic]

The author is a former senior journalist who has worked for national and international news media in India and elsewhere. Currently he is a contributing editor for The Irrawaddy.

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China Warns Washington’s Trade Actions Will Hurt US Workers, Farmers

Posted: 20 Jun 2018 10:19 PM PDT

BEIJING — China’s commerce ministry on Thursday accused the United States of being temperamental over bilateral trade issues, and warned that the interests of US workers and farmers ultimately will be hurt.

China believes its previous trade negotiations with the United States were constructive, but because the US government is being unpredictable and challenging, Beijing has had to respond in a strong manner, commerce ministry spokesman Gao Feng said.

President Donald Trump threatened on Monday to hit $200 billion of Chinese imports with 10 percent tariffs if Beijing retaliates against his previous announcement to target $50 billion in imports. The United States has alleged that China is stealing US intellectual property, a charge denied by Beijing.

Washington’s accusations of forced tech transfers are a distortion of reality, and China is fully prepared to respond with “quantitative” and “qualitative” tools if the US releases a new list of tariffs, Gao said.

Financial markets are worried of an open trade conflict between the world’s two biggest economies after three rounds of high-level talks since early May failed to reach a compromise on US complaints over Chinese practices and a $375 billion trade deficit with China.

A Sino-US trade war could disrupt global supply chains for the tech and auto industries, sectors heavily reliant on outsourced components, and derail world growth.

China said it will impose additional tariffs on 659 US goods, with duties on 545 of them to kick in on July 6, after Trump said Washington will impose tariffs on $50 billion of Chinese products.

The US goods affected on July 6 include soybeans, fruit, meat products such as pork, autos, as well as marine products.

Beijing has yet to announce an activation date for its tariffs on the remaining 114 US products, which include crude oil, coal and a range of refined fuel products.

China will take action to defend its interests, and US unilateralism will ultimately damage the interests of its own workers and farmers, Gao told reporters.

Beijing could hit back at US firms listed on the Dow Jones Industrial Average if Trump keeps exacerbating tensions with China over trade, state-controlled Chinese tabloid The Global Times said on Thursday.

The Dow, which counts Boeing Co, Apple Inc and Nike Inc among its constituents, ended down 0.17 percent on Wednesday. The 30-stock share index has declined 0.25 percent year-to-date.

White House trade adviser Peter Navarro, who views China as a hostile economic and military power, said on Tuesday that Beijing had more to lose from a trade war.

China imported $129.89 billion of US goods last year, while the United States purchased $505.47 billion of Chinese products, according to US data

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Chasing Shadows: Can Technology Save the Slaves it Snared?

Posted: 20 Jun 2018 10:02 PM PDT

LONDON — For Filipina teenager Ruby, a Facebook message offering a job in a cyber cafe across the country seemed too good to be true.

It was.

Days later, the 16-year-old orphan was dragged in front of a webcam by her new employers and forced to perform sex acts for clients – becoming another captive in the growing global slave trade to be lured, trapped and abused through technology.

“It was like a bomb exploded … I had been totally fooled,” Ruby, now 21, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation at the back of an empty church in Tagaytay city in the Philippines.

“I felt degraded and disgusted – I blamed myself,” she said. “I was forced to do things you could not imagine a 16-year-old having to endure.”

Modern technology – be it mundane messaging apps or complex cryptocurrencies – is fueling the modern-day slave trade by enabling traffickers to ensnare more victims, expand their illicit empires, and outfox law enforcement, insiders say.

With a click, tap or a swipe – it’s all at their fingertips.

Now experts wonder if the same high-tech toolkit can be used against the traffickers to rescue victims and stop slavery.

“Traffickers can obscure what they do, alter their tactics and change their codes,” said Wade Shen, program manager at the US Department of Defense’s research agency (DARPA).

“But we are good at keeping up with them despite these tricks,” he added. “This is a cat-and-mouse kind-of-game.”

Enticing people with jobs on Facebook, selling victims for sex on marketplace websites, tracking slaves via webcam and their phones: tech underpins an industry estimated to control 40 million people and generate annual profits of $150 billion.

From factories and fisheries to nail bars and migrant camps, more people are believed to be in slavery now than ever before.

The average modern slave is bought for just $90 – against a price tag of $40,000 about 200 years ago – researchers say.

“Technology has lowered the bar of entry to the criminal world, which has had an expansive effect on modern slavery,” said Rob Wainwright, a British ex-diplomat, who ran Europe’s policing agency Europol for nine years until this year.

Rising internet use – 4 billion people were online last year up from 2.5 billion in 2012 – means many more potential victims, as well as a widening worldwide pool of customers to be tapped.

The global spread of cheap, fast internet and surging smartphone ownership has taken slavery into a new age.

This high-tech leap leaves police and prosecutors chasing shadows in a virtual world as they strive to meet a United Nations goal to end forced labor and modern slavery by 2030.

“Technology is taking slavery into a darker corner of the world where law enforcement techniques and capabilities are not as strong as they are offline,” added Wainwright, now a senior partner at accountancy firm Deloitte’s cyber security practice.

With modern slavery now regarded as a major global threat, experts are asking if digital tools – from blockchain to satellites – can help turn the tide as law enforcement, civil society, banks, businesses, and techies take on the traffickers.

Www.wildwest

The world’s top police agencies, Europol and Interpol, are ramping up operations as slavery emerges in cities everywhere.

The former – which polices Europe – saw a 14 percent increase in cross-border slavery and trafficking cases in 2017, with more than 50 top priority operations against the crimes.

Interpol has rescued about 850 suspected victims of slavery and arrested at least 60 potential traffickers in major crackdowns in West Africa and Central America in the last year.

However, human traffickers are often at least one step ahead of police, who often lack computing expertise and experience, are unfamiliar with modern tech, and are hindered by limited international cooperation to crack cases, according to insiders.

“We have this online Wild West where people are exploiting others with impunity in plain sight,” said Nazir Afzal, a lawyer and former British chief prosecutor, who fought some of the biggest cases involving sex slavery and child abuse in Britain.

Yet technology may be a double-edged sword for slavemasters as law enforcement agencies get up to speed on the latest tools.

For human traffickers leave behind digital fingerprints that can be traced, while modern tech – from satellites and eye-scanners to blockchain and artificial intelligence (AI) – could boost global efforts to eradicate forced labor and sex slavery.

Blockchain’s digital ledger technology is being trialed to protect children in Moldova, and workers in Coca-Cola’s sugar supply chains, while Thailand has turned to satellites to tackle forced labor among fishermen in its lucrative seafood industry.

But it’s not all high-tech in the fight against traffickers.

Video conferencing is enabling trafficking victims to give evidence remotely in cross-border cases in India, Bangladesh and Nepal, while employment websites in southeast Asia are helping maids seeking work abroad avoid enslavement by abusive bosses.

Abused, hit and treated like an animal by her first employer in Hong Kong, discovering one such site afforded Filipino maid Genelie Millan options for the first time in her working life.

“When I first arrived (at the new employer), I felt at home straightaway – the kids kept hugging me and were very excited,” said the 39-year-old, who left the Philippines in 2010 for work.

“They treat me like their family, they trust me a lot.”

Modern technology has the potential to break the dominance of traffickers and slavemasters over their victims, said Luis deBaca, a US lawyer and former ambassador who led the government’s anti-trafficking efforts under President Obama.

“Early-stage technologies really helped traffickers to thrive in their business,” deBaca said. “Now, it’s our turn.”

Chain of Control

Technology has helped modern slave drivers reach out farther and faster to advance their lucrative trade in human beings.

Social media aids recruitment, stolen credit cards finance travel, victims can be monitored virtually and sold online before proceeds are laundered – electronically, of course.

Fresh victims can be recruited, transported worldwide and trapped in slavery in just days – compared to months in the past – with police often barely able to react, criminal analysts say.

About 600 trafficking routes globally have been identified – in every region of the world – an increase of almost a quarter between 2007 and 2014, according to the latest U.N. statistics.

Instead of lurking in malls, train stations, homeless shelters and brothels to find vulnerable people, traffickers have a plethora of digital tools to target potential victims.

“Take Moldova, for example, in the past you could visit any village or town, identify the middlemen and find out what was happening,” said Radu Cucos, an official at the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), a security watchdog.

“Now, you cannot do that … everything is hidden online.”

Every day, hundreds of billions of messages are sent, posts written and calls made over apps and websites such as Facebook, Whatsapp, and Skype – the perfect hiding place for traffickers.

“Facebook is really a primary social media medium for traffickers to engage susceptible and vulnerable victims into the trade,” said Kevin Campbell, vice president of global operations at US-based anti-trafficking group The Exodus Road.

Traffickers tend to advertise victims over listings and sexual services websites rather than the dark web – part of the internet beyond the reach of search engines – as this offers them a far bigger pool of potential buyers, according to police.

The vast reams of content online, and the encrypted nature of modern tech – police in many nations can intercept phone but not WhatsApp calls – provides cover and a cloak for traffickers.

“Traffickers can hide among the sheer volume online,” said Dan Parkinson, an officer at Britain’s anti-slavery police unit.

Tech is also helping criminals to evade detection in the offline world as they can plot and perform abuse from home – such as cybersex child trafficking where sexual exploitation is broadcast around the world to paying customers, charities say.

In the Philippines – a major source nation – local abusers and global clients from Australia to Canada are outsmarting police by mixing up payment methods, using cryptocurrencies, and streaming over encrypted livestreams that are tough to trace.

“Exploitation begins online … but often leads into offline physical sex exploitation, (and) trafficking,” said Lotta Sylwander, country head for the UN children’s agency (UNICEF) based in the Philippines. “And the victims are getting younger.”

“The Dark Side"

Facebook – which owns WhatsApp – said its security experts pull content relating to trafficking, and work with law enforcement, civil society and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) to share findings and report crime.

Microsoft – the parent of Skype – said it funds research to learn how criminals misuse tech, develops software to spot child sex exploitation, and collaborates with other tech firms and police to refer crimes for follow-up and prosecutions.

“While these efforts are not a perfect solution, we continuously invest in new ways to address the problem … child sexual exploitation is a horrific crime,” a spokesman said.

Teams from tech giants including Facebook, Twitter, Google, Microsoft, and Uber united last month for an annual hackathon to develop and test tools to combat online child sex trafficking.

Police and cyber security analysts say cooperation from web companies in tackling human trafficking is inconsistent – but that new U.S. legislation could change the landscape.

The law penalizes website operators that facilitate online sex trafficking, and makes it easier for prosecutors and victims to sue sites that keep exploitative material on their platforms – if they can be shown to have knowingly done so.

Yet this could simply spur traffickers to advertise their victims on sites run by overseas companies in countries which are out of the reach of US authorities, legal experts say.

“That is really scary,” said Maureen Guirguis Kenny, co-director of the Human Trafficking Law Clinic at Case Western Reserve University in Ohio. “That’s the dark side of this.”

Banks in the Battle

Internet giants aside, law enforcement agencies are also teaming up with banks, charities, and tech and data analysts to utilize diverse networks to identify and track the traffickers.

Financial institutions in the United States and Europe – which are required to report suspected illegal activity – are working together to share data and develop software to spot and disrupt human trafficking, and help police prosecute the crime.

“Traffickers use various accounts across several nations and transfer small amounts to move money through banks undetected,” said James Heinzman, an executive vice president at Israeli-based cybersecurity and big data analytics company ThetaRay.

“We are seeing unprecedented sophistication from traffickers in terms of laundering money,” the financial crime expert added.

A fearful customer, a flurry of late-night transactions or suspicious documents; banks look out for patterns among regular purchases, from cosmetics and rent to food and fuel, as traffickers often use victims’ accounts to run their businesses.

“So you don’t see normal activity for a woman – buying normal things like buying groceries and cosmetics … but advertising online, fast-food, travel, hotels, frequent taxis,” said Peter Warrack, formerly of Canadian-based Bank of Montreal.

“It’s not what you see, as much as what you don’t see,” added the former director of anti-money laundering at the bank.

Banks are using machine learning algorithms to look beyond transactions and examine how suspects access their accounts, the digital footprint of their device, and other less obvious signs.

But the odds of finding red flags are slim.

Less than 1 percent of the estimated $1.5 trillion plus laundered by criminals worldwide each year through the financial system is frozen or confiscated, according to UNODC statistics.

“This is not a case of looking for a needle in a haystack – it’s more like a needle in a stack of needles,” Heinzman added.

Innovation – at What Cost?

Data analysts are also testing software they hope will sift online sex adverts to find those posted by human traffickers.

The same contact number, username and blurb on multiple ads are possible signs, while descriptions such as ‘new’, ‘young’ and ‘fresh’ may mean a woman is underage or a slave.

Algorithms decode language, make links between seemingly unrelated posts and tie data underpinning bitcoin payments – the primary currency for buying sex online – to the adverts.

“Money doesn’t lie,” said Rebecca Portnoff, a research and data scientist at US-based tech anti-trafficking group Thorn, which was co-founded by actors Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher.

“(An algorithm) can reduce the set of possible bitcoin transactions that paid for an online sex ad from millions to half a dozen, or even just one,” added Portnoff, who based her findings on the recently-seized sex marketplace site Backpage.

In April, US law enforcement agencies shut Backpage.com, a classified advertising site that some analysts believe accounted for 80 percent of online sex trafficking in the United States.

While the closure was hailed as a breakthrough, digital analysts say it may just drive slavemasters to other websites.

There are also fears that as the high-tech net closes in on traffickers, they will simply up their game and grow smarter.

“We want to innovate as quickly as the traffickers – with deep learning, algorithms and facial recognition to predict and foresee their tactics,” said Emily Kennedy, chief executive of Marinus Analytics, a US-based anti-trafficking tech startup.

“But we don’t want to spur change and innovation in their criminal practices … it is a fine line that we have to walk.”

Hacker collectives are also playing a role by helping police to gather digital evidence, or acting alone to trawl through data including sex ads, visa blacklists, and other databases.

These virtual vigilantes aim to stop traffickers before they exploit people, yet legal experts say they may obstruct justice if their self-gathered evidence proves inadmissible in court.

“We’re not here to save the world,” said Sergio Caltagirone, of the Global Emancipation Network (GEN), a tech anti-trafficking collective, which said one investigation resulted in the group identifying about 1,000 traffickers online last year.

“But we are here to make people who are saving the world even better at doing it,” the GEN’s technical director added.

Supply Chains to Blockchain

Businesses are also using tech amid rising regulatory and consumer pressure to ensure their supply chains are slave-free.

From cosmetics and clothes to shrimp and smartphones, supply chains are complex, often with multiple layers spanning several countries, making it tough to pinpoint and tackle exploitation.

But blockchain, the system tracking cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin, could prove a new frontier in the anti-slavery drive.

“Leading companies are beginning to recognize that blockchain provides a way to increase trust in their products,” said Dan Viederman, a managing director at US-based foundation Humanity United, set up by Ebay founder Pierre Omidyar in 2005.

It is being tested to trace cobalt’s journey from Democratic Republic of Congo to ensure metal in lithium-ion batteries for products from iPhones to Teslas has not been mined by children.

Coca-Cola and the US State Department are teaming up – in the government’s first major project on forced labor using blockchain – to protect workers in global sugar supply chains.

But abuse will only end if technology is backed with bold action by businesses, according to Danielle McMullan of Britain’s Business and Human Rights Resource Centre (BHRRC).

“Resolving workplace grievances or rights violations cannot lie with technology,” said Cindy Berman, head of modern slavery strategy at the Ethical Trading Initiative, a network of trade unions, companies and charities. “It is not a silver bullet.”

Beyond businesses, blockchain is being piloted by the United Nations in a world-first scheme in Moldova to give children a digital identity, based on eye scans and fingerprints, to guard against human traffickers who exploit lax border controls.

The scheme has critics, who say children are mainly exploited in Moldova or trafficked out with valid documents.

Yet the government says it has no choice but to innovate.

“Many times authorities are late in using latest technologies and innovations,” said Mihail Beregoi, state secretary for the Moldovan Ministry of Internal Affairs.

“We need to be alive and think about the future … any effort to secure at least one child is already worth trying.”

For Laura, a 36-year-old mother-of-one from Moldova who has twice been trafficked to work and sell sex in Russia, blockchain could save girls like her young daughter from a similar fate.

“I had a lot of suffering,” she said at a rehabilitation center for victims of violence in a village in northern Moldova. “I am very afraid of being sold again, afraid about my child.”

Tech Toolkit

But it’s not just bitcoin and blockchain on the front line. Everyday tools – be it Skype or job sites – can set slaves free.

From car wash to construction site, nail bar to refugee camp, modern slaves are hidden in plain sight the world over.

Different search and rescue tools fit different jobs.

In Thailand, satellites, optical scanning and e-payment services have been rolled out to prevent forced labor in its multibillion-dollar seafood industry, where many migrants work.

The raft of digital measures is intended to help labor inspectors identify victims, pinpoint slave vessels and ensure workers do not have their wages withheld. Yet such technology is impotent in isolation, said UN trafficking expert Ben Smith.

“You need good information, intelligence … (to know) where to look,” said Smith, a UNODC project coordinator in Southeast Asia. “(Tech) has to be a small part of a much bigger effort.”

At the other end of the spectrum, job matchmaking websites cut out middlemen and help domestic staff avoid abusive bosses in countries such as Hong Kong – often a trouble spot for maids.

“Recruitment is so mired in these unethical things is because there are too many players and no accountability,” said Victoria Ahn of the Fair Employment Agency (FEA), which offers a platform for employers and domestic helpers to connect directly.

“Technology will play a huge role in clearing that up and reducing the number of players,” said Ahn of the FEA, which has made 2,000 connections since 2015 and saved workers about $3 million – money that would otherwise have gone to recruiters.

Elsewhere in Asia, video calls could revolutionize the pursuit of justice in trafficking cases spanning India, Bangladesh and Nepal, allowing survivors to go home after being freed or rescued and to testify via software such as Skype.

Human trafficking convictions in India are rare as most victims drop cases if forced to testify in court, face their abusers, and stay in a shelter throughout often lengthy trials.

“When I was questioned by Indian authorities after I was rescued from near Mumbai, I lied because I was scared,” said Neha Maldar, who was trafficked from Bangladesh to sell sex.

“But during the trial, I was in my own country and there was no fear,” Maldar added. “I saw the people who had trafficked me on the screen and I wasn’t scared to identify them.”

“I was determined to see them behind bars.”

Disconnect

Modern slavery is increasingly dominating global headlines – from a landmark collective estimate on the number of slaves worldwide, to countries from Australia to India looking to follow Britain’s lead by adopting tough anti-slavery laws.

About 40 million people are living as slaves – in forced labor and forced marriages – and seven in 10 victims are female, according to research by the U.N. International Labor Organization (ILO) and human rights group Walk Free Foundation.

But despite growing international collaboration on anti-slavery laws, data and funding, law enforcement cooperation is often lacking, said UNODC’s Kristiina Kangaspunta.

“I’ve worked on human trafficking for 18 years and seen very few, if any, good practices on international cooperation,” said the chief of its crime research section, explaining how requests from poorer nations to major countries often get overlooked.

“Countries lack the capacity and training to tackle crimes online … so they aren’t capturing newer forms of trafficking.”

With more people falling into slavery each day – pushed by war and disaster, greed and inequality – experts fear technology has given human traffickers the edge over those giving chase.

“It’s like a game of cat and mouse,” said Afzal, the former chief prosecutor. “But the cat has two legs tied together.”

The post Chasing Shadows: Can Technology Save the Slaves it Snared? appeared first on The Irrawaddy.
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