Democratic Voice of Burma

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• Landmine victims turn their hand to making legs
• Buddhists take to the streets of Sittwe to protest OIC visit
• Nearly 70 political prisoners freed in Burma
• Seven villagers shot with rubber bullets in Latpadaung clash
• Clinton praises ‘remarkable transition’ in Burma
• EU pledges Burma up to €90 million a year in development assistance
• Burmese MP dies in parliament

Landmine victims turn their hand to making legs Posted: 15 Nov 2013 04:50 AM PST Decades of armed conflict in Burma make it one of the worst hit countries for landmines. People living close to the border are the most severely affected. But five years ago, the Karenni National People's Liberation Front established a prosthetics factory in Loikaw, Karenni state, to help people who are disabled through landmines. And all of the people working at the factory are landmine victims themselves. Kyaw Win lost his leg 13 years ago. "We had training in Mae Sot for about three years and then the factory opened in 2007. We can produce about 100 prosthetic legs every year. Most of them are for soldiers, but in border areas, many villagers also get injured." The factory has since produced around 600 prosthetic legs. Demand is high from clients all over the country. The majority of legs are for people injured by landmines, but about 10% are for people with gunshot wounds or diabetes. "The materials are ordered from Thailand and arranged by Mae Tao clinic in Mae Sot. There are no facilities for this in Burma." The advantage of employing people who were injured by landmines is that they know how it feels to walk with artificial legs. Related Stories Karenni army signs seven-point agreement with Burmese govt Karenni ceasefire fuels mining exploitation: NGOs Muslim hospital offers relief in Rangoon "The prosthetics that the army made in the past were different". Said customer and former soldier in the Burmese army, Maung Myint. "Now, the ones that are made by disabled people like us are much more convenient to use." Even if armed conflict ends in Karenni, mines left behind in the ground compose a danger for local people. According to the Swiss NGO 'Geneva Call', over 5 million Burmese people live in areas contaminated with landmines. Most of them are located along the Thai border. Maw Kae is in charge of the leg making at the clinic in Mae Sot. "It would be impossible to tell either side to stop using landmines during armed conflict. Landmine related injuries will continue to exist. Both sides are using landmines consequently to harm people. Even if we get genuine peace it would take many years to clear those landmines.” Burma's government still hasn't signed the international Mine Ban Treaty from 1997. But earlier this year it signed an MoU with the NGO Norwegian People's Aid (NPA) to begin the clearing of landmines in the eastern part of Burma, including Karenni State. However, the NPA will not begin work until it has a formal agreement from all the affected ethnic groups. It appears that it will still take some time before the ground is safe to walk on in Karenni state.

Buddhists take to the streets of Sittwe to protest OIC visit Posted: 15 Nov 2013 04:38 AM PST Buddhist monks led more than 5,000 residents on a demonstration through the streets of Arakan state capital Sittwe on Friday morning to protest the arrival of a delegation from the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). Monk Pyinya Tharmi from Sittwe said the demonstration, carried out with official approval by local authorities, was joined by over 5,000 people even though it was only approved for 500 participants. "About 100 Buddhist monks are supervising the protest to ensure discipline. The rest are laymen," said Pyin Tharmi, adding that the demonstrators were chanting slogans. Protest leader Aung Naing said, "When we sought permission for this protest, we told them we would not chant slogans or march – we undertook to stage a silent protest holding placards. But then the chanting against OIC started!" He said the protesters also tried to hand over an open letter containing demands by community leaders in Sittwe to the OIC delegation. Related Stories Clinton praises 'remarkable transition' in Burma Burma embassy plot mastermind wanted to avenge Rohingyas, say Indonesian prosecutors Burmese Buddhists protest OIC visit Arakan state government spokesperson Win Myaing said, "The OIC delegation arrived at the airport around 11am and was received by the state's chief minister who explained the measures being taken here [in Sittwe]. "They then flew to Maungdaw in a helicopter and were expected to meet with representatives of both [Arakanese Buddhist and Rohingya Muslim] communities before heading to Pauktaw and Myebon." Led by OIC Secretary-General Prof. Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, and including foreign ministers from seven countries, the delegation arrived on Wednesday in Rangoon where just the day before protestors against their visit had turned out in the former capital and other towns. On Thursday, hundreds of locals including Buddhist monks staged an anti-OIC protest in the northern Shan state town of Lashio. Tin Maung Win, an organiser of the Lashio protest, said, "In New York in September, the OIC told UN Secretary-General Ban-Ki Moon that it would try to amend laws in Burma in favour of the Rohingya. We believe their agenda is to get the Rohingya recognised as an official ethnic group in Burma, and we object to that and also to a plan by the OIC to open an office in Rangoon." All three protests were staged with official permission from local authorities. The OIC is yet to make a statement during this visit to Burma.

Nearly 70 political prisoners freed in Burma Posted: 15 Nov 2013 03:45 AM PST The Burmese government on Friday released another 69 political prisoners, including prominent anti-mine activist Naw Ohn Hla, marking the country's latest efforts to appease western governments. Many of the detainees are ethnic minorities, including Shan, Kachin and Lahu, and have links to Burma's armed rebel factions, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners-Burma (AAPP-B). Another 25 of the prisoners were released from prisons across Arakan state, including 10 activists arrested for staging protests against the China-backed Shwe Gas Project in Kyaukphyu. Eight Arakan residents, sentenced for protesting against the resettlement of displaced Rohingya in the western state, were also released. All of them had been jailed under Article 18 of Burma's peaceful assembly law, which requires residents to obtain authorisation before staging a demonstration. However, neither Kyaw Hla Aung nor Dr Tun Aung, who have spent months in jail for their work promoting the rights of Muslim Rohingyas in Arakan state, were on the list. The most high-profile detainee was Naw Ohn Hla, a veteran campaigner jailed in August for leading protests against the controversial Latpadaung copper mine in central Burma. She has previously spent two years in jail under the former junta regime for her pro-democracy activities. "This is the second time I have been granted an amnesty. The first time was in 2011 following my arrest in 2009, and now this is the second time," she told DVB on Friday. "I believe that I was arrested under accusations blown out of proportion – I didn't commit any major crime or incite any riots but I was charged with Article 505(b) [of the penal code]," she said, referring to a section dealing with sedition or incitement to unrest. Related Stories Seven villagers shot with rubber bullets in Latpadaung clash Release of political prisoners discussed in Rangoon Locals protest Latpadaung mine resumption "The police are incapable of taking any action upon those people who are involved in [large-scale riots]. So I see no reason to be feeling happy or grateful about being released.” Her arrest prompted outrage from human rights groups, who say it represents a return to junta-era policing. Burma has received international praise for a series of democratic reforms that has seen thousands of political prisoners released since the nominal end of military rule in 2011. But activists warn that inmates have been released "conditionally", which means they could be re-arrested at any time if they are deemed to have violated the terms of their bail. "Naw Ohn Hla should never have been locked up in the first place, and the fact that she has been given a conditional release and is still facing other charges is not good enough. She and others like her should be released unconditionally," said Isabelle Arradon, Amnesty International's Asia-Pacific Deputy Director. Speaking to DVB on Friday, AAPP-B's joint-secretary Bo Kyi, who sits on the state-backed political prisoner review board, said the release list had been compiled in partnership with the government. But he also decried the conditions attached to the amnesty, adding that another 265 people are currently awaiting trial for political offenses. AAPP-B estimates that 60 to 70 political prisoners remain behind bars. "After this, we will discuss [the matter further] and we will have another meeting [with the government] to discuss for the release of the remaining 60-70 people," he said. President Thein Sein has pledged to release all political prisoners in Burma by the end of the year, but activists remain sceptical. The amnesty falls on the same day that anti-land grabbing activist Htin Kyaw was sentenced to six months in prison under Article 18 in a Rangoon court. Bo Kyi says they will continue to lobby the government for the release of all current and future political prisoners. 'We want to [resolve] the 265 cases awaiting trial and for the government not to arrest [anyone else]. That is what we want from the government and we hope that they will agree." -Additional reporting by Naw Noreen

Seven villagers shot with rubber bullets in Latpadaung clash Posted: 15 Nov 2013 02:30 AM PST Seven villagers were injured with rubber bullets when police clashed with protestors in Mogyopyin near the Latpadaung copper mine in Sagaing division on Thursday evening. Local sources told DVB that another three protestors were detained by police during the confrontation. Local resident La Pyae said that the seven villagers were injured when police opened fire at them. "Seven locals from Mogyopyin – Aye San, Soe Pyae Aung, Pho Si, Maung Myo, Htun Aye, U Hmine and Bo Ni – were shot by the police, but they refused to go to hospital because they feared for their security. They chose to return home for treatment," said La Pyae. He added that the Free Funeral Service Society sent ambulances to escort the wounded to hospital but they refused to go. He said the villagers clashed with police who had blocked them from travelling from their village to join a protest camp at nearby Ingyin Hill. But according to Burma's Ministry of Information, nine police officers were injured during the incident when the protesting villagers targeted the police with rocks thrown from slingshots. The ministry said that the windshields of two police vehicles were smashed in the melee. "The police unit, under supervision of commander Zaw Win Aung, assigned for security at the milestone 440/4 along the Pathein-Monywa highway road between the Ingyin Hill protest camp and Mogyopyin village, around 7pm came under attack by over 150 locals from the village, targeting them with slingshots and hurling rocks. The villagers only retreated after the security forces began firing warning shots," the Ministry of Information said in a statement on Friday. Police in Salingyi township, where the village is located, said they were still unclear about the details of the incident when speaking to DVB reporters. Sandar Thiri, a Buddhist monk at the Ingyin Hill rally camp, said that police had been deployed since Tuesday to prevent the Mogyopyin villagers from getting to the protest camp where hundreds of other villagers, activists and monks have congregated to voice their concerns about damage to a local Buddhist site and the resumption of work at the controversial Chinese-backed copper mine project. Related Stories Nearly 70 political prisoners freed in Burma Locals, monks resume sit-in protest at Latpadaung Fresh protests erupt near Latpadaung copper mine The Latpadaung copper mine project, which is a joint Burmese military and Chinese venture, has provoked outrage from locals who say it will cause irreversible environmental damage and has forced hundreds from their homes. A previous sit-in protest was broken up brutally by riot police on 29 November last year. Some 80 protestors were injured, many with horrific burns that several experts have attributed to white phosphorous bombs. A subsequent investigation headed by opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi failed to pronounce anyone guilty for the violent crackdown, and to many villagers' dismay, recommended to the government that the project be resumed. Meanwhile, on Friday morning, Naw Ohn Hla, a well-known activist who was imprisoned in August after leading protests at Latpadaung, was released in a presidential amnesty along with 68 other political prisoners.

Clinton praises ‘remarkable transition’ in Burma Posted: 15 Nov 2013 01:13 AM PST Former US President Bill Clinton on Thursday praised Burma's "remarkable" political transition but called for an end to sectarian violence in the country, speaking at the Myanmar Peace Center in Rangoon. Travelling to Burma with his philanthropic organisation, the Clinton Global Initiative, the former US leader met with President Thein Sein and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi before publicly lauding the country's reforms. But he warned against a rise in communal clashes, which have spread throughout the country since last year, pitting Buddhists against the country's Muslim minority. “The whole world has been pulling for Myanmar [Burma], ever since you opened up," Clinton told a room packed with spectators. "The whole world cheers every piece of good news and is sick every time they read about sectarian violence. Because everywhere on Earth, people are tired of people killing each other and fighting each other over their differences.” A tide of religious violence has overshadowed Burma's reform programme, ripping over 140,000 people – mostly Muslims – from their homes and claiming some 200 lives. Human rights activists say the government has failed to protect Muslims, with allegations of ethnic cleansing against the stateless Rohingya minority in western Burma. Thein Sein and Suu Kyi have both denied the allegations, insisting that violence has been perpetrated on both sides. But Clinton insisted that although each country's experiences are unique – Burma can learn lessons from other nations affected by sectarian conflict, including Rwanda, Bosnia and Northern Ireland. Related Stories Buddhists take to the streets of Sittwe to protest OIC visit Diplomatic delegation tours conflict-torn Arakan state Burmese Buddhists protest OIC visit "Some lessons are applicable to everyone," he said. His visit coincides with a wave of protests against the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), which sent a delegation to the conflict-torn Arakan state this week in a bid to resolve communal tensions between Buddhists and Rohingya Muslims. But the visit has provoked anger among many Buddhists who say the OIC is meddling in Burma's internal affairs. "We are calling for action to be taken against corrupt government officials and the animals who are trying to become citizens of our country by deceitful means," a protest organiser told DVB on Tuesday, referring to the stateless and heavily persecuted Rohingya. Thein Sein has received international praise for introducing sweeping reforms in the former pariah state, including freeing scores of political prisoners and lifting media censorship. “I think you’ve made a remarkable transition away from the old military government," said Clinton. "But I think you have to keep working until every citizen feels that he or she can run for any office, participate in any debate and that you know how the government is spending the money.” Clinton is the latest among several high-profile political leaders to lend their support to the Southeast Asian nation. Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair is currently visiting Rangoon, where he is due to address another event hosted by the Myanmar Peace Center on Friday.

EU pledges Burma up to €90 million a year in development assistance Posted: 15 Nov 2013 12:51 AM PST The European Union has pledged assistance of up to €90 million per year for rural development, education, governance and peace-building in Burma from 2014 to 2020. A press release by the EU on Thursday cited the European Commissioner for Development, Andris Piebalgs, as saying: "The development taking place in Myanmar [Burma] is unprecedented and to needs to be acknowledged. But we must not forget about the challenges ahead, for which the EU, as one of the main donors, will stand by with further support to continue the necessary reforms in the country. This will be done in coordination with EU Member States and other donors, and in harmony with the [Burmese] government’s own plans." The announcement came during a meeting of the EU-Myanmar Taskforce in Rangoon from 13-15 November, a conference that was joined by more than 400 participants including EU and Burmese government officials, as well as businesspeople. Related Stories Amending constitution is imperative, Suu Kyi tells EU delegation Business Weekly EU may be breaching Burma arms embargo, say activists President's Office Minister Soe Thane said at the event that the Burmese government has been working on introducing a new democratic system while at the same time implementing public-focused development programmes. He urged EU member countries to continue their assistance to the country. Aung Tun Thet, a presidential economic advisor, said discussions from the meeting will promote political and economic relations between Burma and the EU. "The more international contact we have, the better it is for our country – especially with someone like the EU who we didn't have relations with previously," he said. "The EU can provide us with technology and financial support, both of which are beneficial for the reforms necessary in our country. "We cannot just focus on either political or economic relation, we need to focus on both," he said. "Previously, we had no political engagement with the EU and because we do now, the economic channel has been opened." Maung Maung Lay, vice-president of the Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry, said the meeting was the result of the reforms implemented in Burma. "Burma had been long isolated by the international community and now we are being rewarded for the satisfactory changes implemented by civil society groups under the president's supervision as they re-establish communications with us," he said. "This event signifies the EU's intention to keep Burma on track with its democratic reforms."

Burmese MP dies in parliament Posted: 15 Nov 2013 12:03 AM PST Burma parliament's lower house was said to be shocked by the demise of a Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) representative who collapsed suddenly and died during the legislative session of parliament on Thursday. Aung Hsan, 66, was a member of the ruling USDP party and elected as a lower house MP for Rangoon's Pabedan township constituency in the 2010 election. He had submitted a question in the lower house on Thursday regarding security measures and preparations for the upcoming SEA Games in Burma. Deputy Sports Minister Thaung Htike had just replied to the question when Aung Hsan collapsed in his seat, according to a fellow lower house member Min Thu. The cause of his death has not yet been announced. Related Stories Burma parliament warns government over unpaid debts Lower house approves amendments to Electronics Act Parliament approves farmers' bill A two-minute silence was held for the MP when it was announced that he had died. Later, a proposal was submitted by MP Myint Thu of Dagon Myothit East constituency suggesting that an ambulance and medics be constantly on call at the parliament building in Naypyidaw.

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