| CPI Falls Short on Environmental Impact Assessment of Myitsone: Experts Posted: 01 Oct 2013 04:52 AM PDT  From left, Aung Soe Naing of International Rivers, Win Myo Thu of the Advancing Life and Regenerating Motherland (Alarm) Group, and Dr. Kyaw Nyein Aye of Alarm speak out against the Myitsone dam project in Kachin State at a press conference in Rangoon on Monday. (Photo: Steve Tickner / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — A Chinese corporation's environmental impact assessment of the controversial Myitsone dam project in north Burma is not complete, international experts say. The assessment by China Power Investment Corp. (CPI) fails to clarify the social and environmental consequences of the Kachin State dam project, as well as its potential effects on fresh water species, according to experts from several countries around the world. "CPI should do more sufficient and wider environmental impact assessment research by taking many years," International Rivers, a US-based NGO that works with groups in Burma and elsewhere in the region to stop destructive dam projects, said in a statement on Monday. International Rivers made the statement after soliciting opinions on the CPI report from a number of international experts, including from the University of Oxford, the University of California, the University of Hong Kong, the University of Yangon, Ubon Ratchathani University in Thailand, Aalto University in Finland, Tribhuvan University in Nepal, Fernando Leao's Institute of Environment and Development in Brazil, the California Institute of Technology, an NGO coalition known as Rivers Without Boundaries, the Climate Change Science Institute in the United States, and the Myanmar Environment Institute. These experts studied the CPI report, which was issued in 2011. Two researchers from the University of Yangon and the Myanmar Environment Institute also assessed the situation on the ground at the dam site, as part of independent research initiatives. China's state-owned CPI plans to build the Myitsone hydropower dam in collaboration with Burma's Ministry of Electric Power as well as Asia World Co., owned by a Burmese business tycoon. The project is expected to supply up to 4,600 megawatts of electricity when it is completed, but most of that power would be exported to China. "The report should state the advantages and disadvantages, for both the presence of the dam and the absence of the dam," Win Myo Thu, managing director of the Burma-based Advancing Life and Regenerating Motherland (Alarm) Group, told reporters on Monday at a joint press conference in Rangoon with International Rivers. He said the report lacked data on the dam's possible effects on public health and climate change. Aung Soe Naing, program officer of International Rivers, said CPI took just one week to conduct research for a report, leading to an insufficient compilation of data. "If CPI wants to restart the dam, they first need to take about 10 years for more observation on environmental and other impacts, and they need to collect public recommendations. After that, they should act according to the will of the people," Win Myo Thu said. The Myitsone hydropower dam is located on the Irrawaddy River, the most important commercial waterway in Burma, as it supports the livelihoods of millions of people. Burma's President Thein Sein suspended the dam project in in 2011, in the face of mounting public anger over widespread flooding and deforestation that would result from the project, as well as the forcible resettlement of 10,000 ethnic Kachin villagers. China has pushed for a resumption of construction on the dam, which may be possible in the future, depending on the leadership elected in Burma's 2015 election. The post CPI Falls Short on Environmental Impact Assessment of Myitsone: Experts appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine. |
| ‘I Feel We Are Still Attached to Strings’ Posted: 01 Oct 2013 04:33 AM PDT  One of Aung Khaing's paintings of disfigured puppet dancers in Burmese traditional attire is on display at Lokanat Gallery in Rangoon. RANGOON — Of the 60 paintings hung on the walls of Lokanat Gallery in downtown Rangoon, the most eye catching ones depict pairs or trios of colorful, disfigured puppet dancers wearing Burmese traditional attire. Welcome to "Modern Art Exhibition" the first ever solo show of 68-year old artist Aung Khaing, who has been painting for 45 years. "This is my second attempt to have a solo show in my life," he told The Irrawaddy. In fact, he tried to put on a show nearly 30 years ago, but his work at the time drew sharp criticism from literary censorship officials who then oversaw art exhibitions, as well as applying strict scrutiny to the printed word in Burma. Censors banned all 120 of Aung Khaing's modern paintings, saying they were unfit for public display. "They scolded me—'Don't do that kind of stuff'—after they saw my painting of a mother and child," recounted the painter. One of the officials barked at Aung Khaing: "The picture symbolizes love. Do you mean we have no love?" When they saw paintings of socialist icons Che Guevara and Fidel Castro, another official said: "Tell me why you don't try our Burmese leaders." "I asked them whether they would allow me to paint our national leader Aung San. They gave me no clear answer and my attempt to have first solo show was gone," Aung Khaing recalled. A self-taught artist and Rangoon native, the painter admitted that despite of his interest in Van Gogh, Pablo Picasso and Jackson Pollock, he wants to create more works with traditional Burmese themes, in his own in modernism flavor—the puppet dancers. "The puppet is one of our Burmese trademarks," he said. "Though I painted them in a modern style, I can't hide the Burmese sense in them, and there is movement for they are dancing," the 68-year old artist explained. Of the disfigured dancers, he said they are the results of his feeling of being deformed by Burma's past. "My mind, too, thanks to the era we have been through under the oppression of the former military dictatorship. It's no wonder I can't paint realism," he said. Asked why most of his subjects are puppets, Aung Khaing said they are a sort of representation of his unconscious. "Puppets are always attached to strings," he explained. "Though we have reform today, there are still some human rights violations happening. Unconsciously, I feel we are still attached to strings." The post 'I Feel We Are Still Attached to Strings' appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine. |
| Most Burmese Refugees in Thailand Don’t Want Return: Survey Posted: 01 Oct 2013 04:15 AM PDT  A young girl living at Mae La refugee camp near Mae Sot, Thailand. (Photo: Steve Tickner / The Irrawaddy) Nine out of 10 refugees on the Thai-Burma border would prefer to resettle in third countries or stay in Thailand instead of being repatriated to Burma, according to a recent survey by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. More than 120,000 refugees have been living outside Burma in camps on the Thai side of the border for almost 30 years after fleeing their homes. When asked about a return to Burma, the main concern of refugees was security, according to the survey, which was administered jointly by the UNHCR and Thailand's Mae Fah Luang Foundation. "When we asked them about their main concerns over returning to Myanmar, they cited a continuing lack of trust in the current cessation of hostilities, a perceived lack of status or citizenship, as well as concerns over economic livelihoods, access to land, insufficient infrastructure in places of intended return, and security," Vivian Tan, the spokeswoman for the UNHCR in Bangkok, told The Irrawaddy. "There is no permanent ceasefire in many potential areas of return, and there are still problems like landmines, land disputes, and a general lack of services and infrastructure. We feel that at the moment, not all the conditions are in place for organized returns to take place in a safe and
sustainable way," Tan added. The Border Consortium (TBC), a humanitarian aid organization that has provided food supplies and other aid to the refugees for about 30 years, is also focusing on preparations for the return of refugees to Burma amid reductions in funding of humanitarian work on the border. However, there is no set return date as the various ceasefires between the government and ethnic armed groups are not enough to ensure refugees' safety, said Sally Thompson, the executive director of TBC. Speaking with The Irrawaddy on Tuesday, Thompson said, "The mechanism of implementation for the ceasefires is still to be worked out. Although individual ethnic groups have reached ceasefire agreements, they still have not decided on important issues like demarcation of troops, code of conduct, monitoring mechanism. At this moment, the ceasefire is just an agreement. And those mechanisms have not yet been put into place. It is a very early stage." According to the survey, many of refugees said they believed that if they were to return to Burma, they would be involved in agriculture and raising livestock, highlighting the need for such occupational training while still in Thailand. Among the reintegration assistance potentially needed, the refugees requested help with access to land, as well as cash assistance to rebuild their homes, and for crop seeds and tools. Tan confirmed that there was no fixed timeline for an organized return. The UNHCR is monitoring developments in Burma and noting how refugees' feelings and plans for voluntarily returning evolve over time. The UNHCR will continue to insist that any return must be voluntary, conducted with dignity, and to a safe environment, she added. The UNHCR survey, however, found that more than half of the refugees who said they preferred to resettle in third-party countries or remain in Thailand were unregistered and therefore not eligible for third-party resettlement. According to a Thai government policy, only registered refugees who hold UN ID cards qualify for resettlement in third-party nations. Most of the border refugees are ethnic Karen who have fled their homes in eastern Burma since the 1980s. Those who fled from war in the 1980s began registering in 2005. However, many of the political dissidents and economic refugees who fled Burma after 2005 fail to qualify for registration with the UNHCR. The survey took place from June to July this year in Mae La refugee camp, the biggest border camp with an estimated population of more than 40,000 refugees. There are nine refugee camps on the Thai-Burma border. The survey questions were aimed at understanding refugee sentiment and hopes for the future, but there is no guarantee that those surveyed will see their preferred option realized. More than 6,500 households participated in the voluntary exercise, representing 36,900 individual refugees and over 80 percent of the camp population. The post Most Burmese Refugees in Thailand Don't Want Return: Survey appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine. |
| Thein Sein Urges Burma’s Media to Refrain From ‘Personal Attacks’ Posted: 01 Oct 2013 03:14 AM PDT  A woman sells newspapers in Rangoon on April 1, 2013. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — Burma President Thein Sein used a regular address to the nation Tuesday to warn the country's nascent private media against making "groundless" personal attacks. In his monthly speech broadcast repeatedly on state radio, Thein Sein lauded efforts to develop and unite Burma since his quasi-civilian government took power in 2011. But he also appeared to hit out at the media, which has enjoyed increasing freedom as the country opens up. "I would like to urge the media industry to keep a strict adherence to media ethics and discipline of the media, and refrain from producing groundless news and making personal attacks through the media, [at a time] when we are promoting freedom of media, which is a necessary thing for the democratic transition period," he said. "In this reforming period, we should all unite to work together without making personal attacks and using media freedom as a tool." A senior official close to Thein Sein, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said the president was suggesting that personal or political rivalries were being played out through the media. "Behind the scenes are some people who are facing difficulties because of reform process and open business environment," the source said. "Some of them are hardliners trying to attack leading reformists because of interests including politics, religious, business and the 2015 election." The official said the president accepts that there will be some resistance to change, but wants the media to be "responsible" during the transition. The message to be cautious will cause concern among some journalists in an industry only briefly out of censorship. Only in March were the first private daily newspapers in decades granted licenses to publish in Burma. Thiha Saw, editor of the only English-language daily publishing at present, the Myanma Freedom Daily, said some local newspapers have been taking advantage of the new freer publishing environment to write poorly sourced stories about the affairs of former leaders. "Some journals are publishing what seem to be personal attacks on people. They are all looking to increase their circulations by publishing some unethical stories," he said. "But I don't think the President is trying to influence the media industry through his message." Zay Yar Myat Khine, deputy chief editor of the Monitor journal, said it is the media's job to expose the mistakes of leaders. "I want to ask the president that what is the meaning of 'groundless' sources, and what is the standard of media freedom that he believes we have?" he said. Although Thein Sein was not specific about which media outlets he was addressing, last month, local media reported that the Burma government has stashed US$11 billion in five foreign bank accounts, citing as a source Jelson Garcia of the Bank Information Center. Some local reports misidentified Garcia as a World Bank employee, and the government soon held a press conference to address the story, insisting that only $7 billion was kept in overseas bank accounts. "He should not criticize all media, he should mention which ones are doing this," said Zay Yar Myat Khine. "Whatever he means—the government's $11 billion bank accounts case, or whatever—we will have to cover the news." The post Thein Sein Urges Burma's Media to Refrain From 'Personal Attacks' appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine. |
| Update: 1 Muslim Killed, 35 Houses Torched After Violence Erupts in Southern Arakan State Posted: 01 Oct 2013 02:34 AM PDT  An attack on Muslim-owned homes in Thandwe in early July left several homes destroyed. (Photo: Steve Tickner / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — Inter-communal violence broke out between Buddhist and Muslim residents of at least three villages of Thandwe Township, southern Arakan State, on Tuesday morning. According to initial reports, more than 35 houses were burned down and a mosque was destroyed, and one elderly Muslim woman was stabbed to death. The violence comes as President Thein Sein makes his first official visit to the strife-torn region in western Burma. The groups clashed in Thapyu Kyain village, a Muslim fishing village located about 15 miles (25 km) from Thandwe town, local National League for Democracy representative Win Naing said. "I heard that 35 houses were burned down in Thapyu Kyain village," he told The Irrawaddy on Tuesday afternoon. "The violence has now spread to another Muslim village named Pauktaw. These villages are 2 miles apart." "Pauktaw has been burned down already," Win Naing said, adding that he did not know how many homes were destroyed in the village. The Associated Press reported on Tuesday evening that a total of 70 homes were destroyed by mobs in Thandwe Township. A local policeman in Thandwe said a group of attackers had set fire to 28 houses in Thapyu Kyain village at around 10:15 am on Tuesday morning. "Our police stopped the fire at 11:50 am," he added. The officer estimated that "between 800 and 1,000 people" were involved in an attack on the Muslim village, adding that security forces had arrived there late Tuesday morning to end the unrest. "We fired [warning] shots into the air and the crowd ran away," said the officer, who declined to be named as he was unauthorized to speak to the media. He said an old woman who was unable to flee had been killed by the attackers after they suddenly entered the village on Tuesday morning. "She was stabbed in four places, on the left and right side of her body," the officer said, adding that the victim was Aye Kyi, a 94-year-old Muslim woman. "Now, we open a murder case at the court. She was Kaman Muslim," he added. The officer said that in another village called Kyauk Gyi, located about 25 miles (40 km) from Thandwe town, mobs had destroyed a mosque on Monday night. The officer said a curfew had been announced in Thandwe Township barring residents from leaving their homes between 6 pm to 6 am. "This is because of the tense situation in the town," he added. There were no initial reports about deaths or injuries during the violence. A Muslim resident of Thandwe named Lu Lay said Thapyu Kyain village had first been attacked at around 3 am Tuesday morning by an unidentified group of rioters, who tried to torch some of the homes. When Muslim residents approached the group fighting broke out, he said, adding that the attackers returned to the village on Tuesday morning and more clashes ensued. A Muslim shop owner Bay Dar in Thandwe's main market said the unrest had spread fear among the town's inhabitants, who had closed their shops and markets on Tuesday. "All Buddhists and Muslim-owned shops have been shut down. The town is very quiet, not many people are walking on the streets," he told The Irrawaddy. Bay Dar said he was planning to move the electrical equipment that he sells out of his shop as he feared it could be destroyed if unrest escalates. "I saw some people driving around on motorbikes near my shop and they were looking very aggressive. That's why I'm moving my goods from my shop," he said. On Sunday night, two Muslim-owned houses had already been burned down in Thandwe town's Quarter No. 3. The violence began after local residents threw stones at a Muslim man's house as he had become embroiled in a dispute with a Buddhist taxi driver. Win Naing said he believed that "local residents and some outsiders were involved in these attacks" on Sunday night. In late June, inter-communal unrest also broke out in Thandwe and four Muslim-owned homes were destroyed and several cars damaged. More than 100,000 people live in Thandwe, a coastal town in southern Arakan State, and in the town and surrounding villages half of the population is estimated to be Muslim. The town has an airport that is used by tourists visiting the popular beach resort Ngapali, located nearby. The unrest comes during the first visit of President Thein Sein to Burma's troubled western region since inter-communal broke out in June 2012. The president arrived in the Arakan State capital Sittwe on Tuesday and was due to visit Mrauk-U town, the Associated Press reports. NLD representative Win Naing said Thein Sein had also been expected to visit Thandwe on Wednesday. "The township authorities had been preparing for the visit. They put up decorations along the streets," he said, adding that residents hoped that the visit would continue and that it would help end the violence. The Muslim population of Thandwe comprises mostly Kaman and other recognized Muslim minorities, unlike in northern Arakan State, which has a large Muslim population who identify themselves as Rohingyas. The latter group is not recognized by the government as Burmese citizens. Thandwe Township was largely spared from the bloody inter-communal violence that broke out in Sittwe, Maungdaw and other townships further north one year ago, where Arakanese Buddhists clashed with Rohingya Muslims. During last year's outbreak of violence, 192 people were killed and about 140,000 people were displaced, most of them Muslims. About half of the displaced were Muslim residents who were chased out of the Arakan State capital Sittwe by local Buddhist Arakanese groups. Most of the displaced continue to reside in squalid, crowded camps. This story was updated at around 6 pm, October 1, 2013. The post Update: 1 Muslim Killed, 35 Houses Torched After Violence Erupts in Southern Arakan State appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine. |
| Burma Says Won’t Allow Political Opening to Spur Sectarian Violence Posted: 30 Sep 2013 11:00 PM PDT  Burma's Minister of Foreign Affairs Wunna Maung Lwin addresses the 68th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Sept. 30, 2013. (Photo: Reuters / Adrees Latif) UNITED NATIONS — Burma will not allow those eager to incite ethnic and religious violence to exploit the Southeast Asian country's newfound openness as it struggles along the path to democracy, Foreign Minister Wunna Maung Lwin said on Monday. The comments came as terrified Muslims hid in their homes in the northwest after armed police dispersed a Buddhist mob that torched houses and surrounded a mosque—the latest outbreak of sectarian tension. "There are always people who wish to rock the boat," Lwin told the annual meeting of the UN General Assembly in New York. "We will not let anyone take advantage of political openness to instigate violence among different ethnic or religious communities." Clashes between majority Buddhists and Muslims in Burma have killed at least 237 people and left more than 150,000 homeless since June 2012. The violence threatens to undermine political and economic reforms launched in the two years since a quasi-civilian government replaced a military junta. "Our reform process is still at a nascent and sensitive stage where there is little room for error," Lwin said. "With this in mind the President [Thein Sein] has publicly emphasized the need for everyone to refrain from doing anything that could jeopardize Myanmar's peaceful transition." In April, the government said 192 people were killed in June and October 2012 clashes between ethnic Arakan Buddhists and Rohingya Muslims, most of whom Burma regards as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh, despite roots going back generations. The United Nations has described the Rohingya as "virtually friendless." Clashes between Rohingya and Arakans in June 2012 led to unrest elsewhere in the country, where other groups of Muslims have been targeted, including Kamans, who are of different ethnicity from Rohingyas. An estimated 5 percent of Burma's population of about 60 million is Muslim. Lwin also said that the government has made "tangible progress in our efforts toward national reconciliation." "The government's peace overtures have led to reaching ceasefire agreements with all armed groups for the first time in 60 years," he told 193-nation General Assembly. "We are hopeful that we will be able to celebrate the signing of a nationwide ceasefire agreement in Naypyidaw very soon." Contrary to Lwin's assertion, the government has not yet signed a ceasefire agreement with the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), one of Burma's largest ethnic armed rebel groups, though peace negotiations are ongoing. Lwin said a new round of political dialogue should commence soon to reach a "comprehensive and lasting peace agreement." "We have no illusion that the next step will be an easy one," Lwin said. "But we are determined to pursue this path for the sake of our people as they deserve it for so long." He reiterated the government's goal of releasing more prisoners from jail. "We are speedily working through a screening mechanism to ensure that no prisoner of conscience remains behind bars by the end of the year," Lwin said. With additional reporting from The Irrawaddy in Rangoon. The post Burma Says Won't Allow Political Opening to Spur Sectarian Violence appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine. |
| Indonesia’s 1965-66 Massacres Remain a Divisive Issue Posted: 30 Sep 2013 10:55 PM PDT  An alleged communist sympathizer is arrested by soldiers in Indonesia in the late 1960s. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons) JAKARTA — As Indonesia's 1965 communist purge is under the spotlight with the screening of "The Act of Killing" across the United States and other parts of the world, the country commemorates its state ideology Pancasila, as a unifying force, but many Indonesians still struggle to come to terms with its darkest history. While human rights activists and historians have boldly asked for the government to immediately form a fact finding team to unveil the perpetrators responsible for the massacre in the aftermath of the so-called G30S/PKI coup attempt as part of the efforts to come to terms with the past, many people are still opposed to such an attempt, saying the nation needs to look forward rather than get stuck in the past. "The government must have the courage to form a fact finding team to unveil the truth behind this tragedy and announce the results to the public," J.J. Rizal, a historian from University of Indonesia told the Jakarta Globe on Monday. Up to the middle of 1965, the Indonesian Communist Party, known as PKI, was one of the major forces in Indonesian politics beside Sukarno, Indonesia's first president, the Army and Islamic groups such as Masyumi and Nahdlatul Ulama. G30S/PKI refers to the killing of six Army generals during an alleged coup attempt on Sept. 30, 1965 blamed on PKI. On Oct. 1, the Army announced Pancasila had prevailed over a coup attempt by communists, hence giving way to today as Pancasila Sanctity Day. The two events then marked the beginning of a communist purge, which Indonesia's National Human Rights Commission (Komnas Ham) recently declared as crimes against humanity. More than a million people accused of being PKI members or sympathizers were killed from 1965 to 1966, while millions other suffered extra-judicial detention and discrimination. On the pretext of his claimed success in getting rid of the communist threat, Gen Suharto then took power from Sukarno to begin what became known as the New Order. Rizal said Indonesia would not be able to move forward as long as the country did not disclose what really happened during the years. "We will stay in the dark, attacking each other, slandering people's name because no one is brave enough to dig what really happened even though there have been so many studies discussing this so-called coup," he said. Director Joshua Oppenheimer's documentary "The Act of Killing" describes the slaying of communist party members in North Sumatra in gory detail, and the chilling documentary has made waves at film festivals worldwide. Haris Azhar, the coordinator of the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) said Indonesia must immediately investigate the truth behind the tragedy to be able to make amends to the victims and to stop social discrimination against anyone allegedly involved in the movement. "We must know what happened and the state must admit to what happened and to make a proportional and proper apology to the victims. Only then can we start the rehabilitation process for those whose lives have been discredited forever because of the incident," Haris said. However, he said, it was unlikely the Indonesian government would be willing to reveal the truth about what happened. "Some of those people who were responsible for the tragedy are still here, they are still enjoying their existence, and the 1965 tragedy is a dark secret they don't want anyone to touch because it could jeopardize their comfortable positions," he said. "At the same time, because the tragedy was unbelievably brutal and sadistic, the government would not want to admit what really happened. I don't think they could bear the shame," he added. Haris said unraveling the facts behind G30S/PKI would not be difficult with more open communication and access to documents. "We just cannot keep repeating a one-dimensional, approved interpretation of the story, when we can get information from alleged perpetrators, victims and witnesses and make our own conclusions. We owe this to the victims," he said. Who's Responsible? "There's no point asking who's the most responsible for this horrific tragedy. There has been no definite effort to prove that," Asvi Warman Adam, a historian from the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) told the Globe. "The most important thing is that we know who benefited from the tragedy and who suffered the biggest loss. It is obvious Sukarno suffered the biggest loss because he had to give up his position as president, while Suharto gained the most because most of his competition in the army were eliminated," he said. "The perpetrators are not individuals, they are a combination of influences from inside and outside the country,' he added. "As long as we refuse to acknowledge the truth we will always blame Suharto, Sukarno or anyone else without knowing who was really behind it. We need to put all these questions to an end," he said. The government, however, is reluctant to investigate the tragedy. When the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM), the author of a report on the mass killings, urged early this year the Attorney General's Office to investigate what it called evidence of gross human rights violations, the law enforcement agency declined, saying the testimonies of 349 eyewitnesses were not substantial enough to warrant legal action. The nation's coordinating minister for political and security affairs Djoko Suyanto showed little interest in meeting calls for an official government apology, stating "We can't just apologize without taking a good, long look at what really happened during the 1965 incident.'' Meanwhile, Priyo Budi Santoso of Golkar Party, a party used by Suharto to stay in power, totally rejects any investigation into the tragedy, advising Indonesians to "just forget it, and move on." "There is no use in pursuing it. We have many other issues to deal with," he said. Propaganda Other than reconciliation and rehabilitation for the victims, Haris said, Indonesia must build a social system that does not discredit people's association with the coup or PKI. Propaganda was used by the New Order regime to portray those associated with the PKI as criminals, explained the Kontras coordinator. Rizal agreed it was time to stop the use of terminology associated with the tragedy as terms of abuse. "We should stop using the words like 'treason' or 'Gerwani' [Gerakan Wanita Indonesia, or PKI's women's wing] to insult people," he said. "To be able to re-write the false history we need to start using the victims' perspective in telling the stories instead of the perpetrators' point of view." Asvi said the government effort to reverse the propaganda had been inconsistent, especially at the education level. The post Indonesia's 1965-66 Massacres Remain a Divisive Issue appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine. |
| India Seeks to Regulate Its Booming ‘Rent-a-Womb’ Industry Posted: 30 Sep 2013 10:49 PM PDT  Gabriella, the week-old daughter of Rekha Patel, 42, and Daniele Fabbricatore, 39, sleeps in a hotel room in Anand town, about 70 km (44 miles) south of the western Indian city of Ahmedabad August 26, 2013. (Photo: Reuters) ANAND, India — Dressed in a green surgical gown and cap, British restaurateur Rekha Patel cradled her newborn daughter at the Akanksha clinic in northwestern India as her husband Daniel smiled warmly, peering in through a glass door. "I can't believe we have our own child at last," said Patel, 42, gazing in wonderment at five-day-old Gabrielle. "We are really grateful to our surrogate mother who managed to get pregnant and kept our little daughter healthy. She gave nine months of her life to give us a child." It is the perfect promotion for India's booming surrogacy industry that sees thousands of infertile couples, many from overseas, hiring the wombs of local women to carry their embryos through to birth. But a debate over whether the unregulated industry exploits poor women prompted authorities to draft a law that could make it tougher for foreigners seeking babies made in India. "There is a need to regulate the sector," said Dr. Sudhir Ajja of Surrogacy India, a Mumbai-based fertility bank that has produced 295 surrogate babies—90 percent for overseas clients and 40 percent for same-sex couples—since it opened in 2007. "But if the new law tightens rules as suggested by the ministry of home affairs, which disallows surrogacy for same-sex couples and single parents, then it will clearly impact the industry and put off clients coming from overseas." Birth of a Market India opened up to commercial surrogacy in 2002. It is among just a handful of countries—including Georgia, Russia, Thailand and Ukraine—and a few U.S. states where women can be paid to carry another's genetic child through a process of in-vitro fertilization (IVF) and embryo transfer. The low-cost technology, skilled doctors, scant bureaucracy and a plentiful supply of surrogates have made India a preferred destination for fertility tourism, attracting nationals from Britain, the United States, Australia and Japan, to name a few. There are no official figures on how large the fertility industry is in India. A U.N.-backed study in July 2012 estimated the surrogacy business at more than $400 million a year, with over 3,000 fertility clinics across India. The Akanksha clinic in Anand is the best-known at home and abroad, giving the small town in Gujarat state the reputation as India's "surrogacy capital." "The surrogates in Anand have become empowered through giving this beautiful gift to others," says Akanksha's owner, IVF specialist Nayana Patel, who shot to fame in 2004 after she helped a patient have a baby by using the woman's mother—the child's grandmother—as a surrogate. "With the money, they are able to buy a house, educate their children and even start a small business. These are things they could only dream of before. It's a win-win situation." Patel, who appeared on U.S. celebrity Oprah Winfrey's talk show in 2007, has produced more than 500 surrogate babies—two-thirds of them for foreigners and people of Indian origin living in over 30 countries. Charging couples like Rekha and Daniel an average of $25,000 to $30,000, a fraction of the cost in the United States, Patel pays her surrogates around 400,000 rupees ($6,500). For 33-year-old Naina Patel, who gave birth to Gabrielle, the compensation outweighs the downside. The wife of an auto-rickshaw driver with three daughters of her own, she had to live in a hostel for nine months with 60 other surrogates so the clinic could monitor her health. Like most surrogates, she kept her pregnancy a secret due to the social stigma in India's conservative society. "I was happy to do it but it was not really out of choice because we needed the money," she said in a hospital bed as she recovered from the Caesarean operation for Gabrielle's birth. 'Baby Factories' India's surrogacy industry is vilified by women's rights groups who say fertility clinics are nothing more than "baby factories" for the rich. In the absence of regulation, they say many poor and uneducated women are lured by agents, hired by clinics, into signing contracts they do not fully understand. In May last year, surrogate mother Premila Vaghela, 30, died days after delivering a child for an American couple at a clinic in Gujarat. It was recorded as an "accidental death" by police. A recent government-funded study of 100 surrogate mothers in Delhi and Mumbai found there was "no fixed rule" related to compensation and no insurance for post-delivery healthcare. It cited cases where surrogates were implanted with embryos multiple times to raise the chances of success. "In most of these cases, the surrogate mothers are being exploited," said Ranjana Kumari, director of the Centre for Social Research that conducted the study. Moves to introduce a law—the Assisted Reproductive Technologies Bill (ART)—to protect surrogates, the children and the commissioning parents is long overdue, Kumari said. Revised visa requirements introduced in July have already resulted in foreign same-sex couples and individuals being prohibited from surrogacy in India. The ART bill, expected to come before Parliament next year, will tighten things further. Under the current draft, all fertility clinics must be registered and monitored by a regulatory authority. Surrogates must be between 21 and 35 years old, they will be provided with insurance and notarized contracts must be signed between the women and the commissioning parents. "Legislation should be there so that this wonderful procedure can be supervised and it is being done by the right people for the right people," said Akanksha's Patel. "But more bureaucracy will make it difficult for everyone. It will not only mean less commissioning parents from overseas but it will also impact surrogates, who will lose out on the only chance they have to change their lives for the better." The post India Seeks to Regulate Its Booming 'Rent-a-Womb' Industry appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine. |
| Australian PM Skirts Refugee Issue in Indonesia Talks Posted: 30 Sep 2013 10:45 PM PDT  Australia's Prime Minister Tony Abbott listens as Indonesia's President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono speaks during a joint news conference in Jakarta on Sept. 30, 2013. (Photo: Reuters / Beawiharta) JAKARTA — Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott skirted the question of asylum seekers in talks on Monday in Indonesia, an issue which has threatened to overshadow his first visit overseas since taking office. Just days before his visit, at least 31 would-be asylum seekers died when their boat sank off the southern coast of Indonesia, a common transit point for refugees trying to make their way to Australia and against whom Abbott's government has promised to take a tougher line. Over 20 people were missing. Rather, Abbott stressed trade ties between the two neighbors which stood at US$10 billion in 2012, dominated by mining and agriculture. "The fact that there is a very strong and high-level delegation of business leaders traveling with me to Indonesia as part of this visit testifies to the desire of the Australian people to build a much stronger … economic relationship based on greater trade and investment," he said in a joint statement after talks with Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. In his first overseas state visit since taking over as prime minister on Sept. 7, Abbott played down diplomatic tensions over refugees. Ties with Yudhoyono's administration have been largely cordial for nearly a decade. But Abbott's conservative administration got off to a rocky start over asylum seekers who make their way via Indonesia. Yudhoyono too put aside any suggestion of rancor over the issue, which has become an emotional political debate in Australia. "Australia and Indonesia are both victims with regard to the issue of people smuggling and boat people. For instance, there are many people from the Middle East and other nations who come here and become a social and economic burden for Indonesia … The solution to overcome this problem is effective cooperation between Indonesia and Australia," Yudhoyono said. Abbott's party raised hackles in Jakarta with new policies that Indonesians took to suggest violating their country's sovereignty. One was a proposal to pay Indonesian villagers for information on people smugglers and to buy boats used for smuggling. "People smuggling is an issue of sovereignty, especially for Australia," Abbott said. "… But I do want to stress Australia's total respect for Indonesia's sovereignty." Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa said in New York last week that any unilateral steps taken by Australia over the issue would put relations at risk. His comments, which were made during a private meeting with Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, were circulated among journalists. The Indonesian Foreign Ministry later said the comments were distributed in error. About 400 boats carrying asylum seekers have arrived in Australia over the past 12 months and about 45,000 asylum seekers have arrived since late 2007, when the former Australian Labor government relaxed border policies, eventually tightening them again in the face of a voter backlash. Australian media reported members of the business community there were concerned about the impact of diplomatic tension on business ties between the neighbors. The post Australian PM Skirts Refugee Issue in Indonesia Talks appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine. |
