Monday, January 27, 2014

Democratic Voice of Burma

Democratic Voice of Burma

Gold shops demand security measures following recent robberies

Posted: 27 Jan 2014 03:38 AM PST

After recent reports of armed robberies of gold and jewellery shops in Burma, the Myanmar Gold Entrepreneurs Association is planning to negotiate with the Ministry of Home Affairs to employ safety measures in the shops.

Kyaw Win, secretary of MGEA, said they want to discuss the use of CCTV cameras and weapons such as electric shock batons to defend themselves in case they need to.

“We are looking to equip gold shops with non-lethal weapons to defend themselves, as it is not very ideal to apprehend someone carrying a gun via a melee, and we like to avoid these inconveniences”, he said. “Moreover, having security equipment installed at the establishments will scare away potential robbers. And so the problem will be solved if they give up their criminal life and find a decent way of living because of that.”

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The police in Rangoon have already started patrolling gold shops every day from 6am to 6pm to lessen the risk of robberies.

“We are on patrol until closing time for all shops and are assigning teams on night patrols as well”, said deputy police superintendent Tin Tun Aung from Pabedan Township Police. “I'm now on my day shift, and we also have officials assigned to do night patrols as usual to prevent undesirables – criminals – from running amok and to immediately catch them if they do.”

In addition to non-lethal weapons for staff, MGEA want them to train with police to be prepared for all circumstances.

Arakan security forces search for missing Maungdaw menfolk

Posted: 27 Jan 2014 02:45 AM PST

Maungdaw security forces have launched a search for the Rohingya men of Duchira Dan [also written Du Char Yar Tan] village who have apparently gone into hiding since the disappearance of a local police sergeant in the village on 13 January when his patrol reportedly came under attack by a mob.

Kyi San, administrator of Maungdaw Township, said the authorities are now looking to question the menfolk of Duchira Dan, who have presumably taken refuge in nearby villages.

"I assume the men are hiding because they were involved in this incident," he said.

A spokesperson for the Arakan State Chief Minister said authorities are working to expose the culprits. "Security measures are currently in place in the region – the police are searching for Duchira Dan villagers following the slaying of the police sergeant. However, neither the body nor the weapon [firearm] has yet to be recovered."

He noted that all the men from the village have run away while the women and children are currently sheltering with relatives in a nearby village.

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The United Nations has stated that it believes at least 48 Muslims appear to have been killed when Buddhist mobs attacked the village, apparently in retaliation for the disappearance of the police sergeant. However, Burma's government vehemently denies such a massacre took place.

A delegation of Burmese government officials, as well as international representatives Barbara Babista, coordinator of the UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), and Roka Kodo, resident representative of the Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), were taken on a tour of Duchira Dan by Arakan State's Chief Minister Hla Maung Tin on Friday to inspect the site and meet with locals in Maungdaw, state media reported.

Babista was unavailable for comment when contacted by DVB on Monday; however, the UN's Human Rights Commissioner Navi Pillay has released a statement calling for an immediate inquiry into the loss of human lives in Duchira Dan and demanded justice for the alleged victims.

Meanwhile, Burma's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) released a statement on Friday condemning "foreign media and some international agencies [for] issuing press releases based on unjustified conclusions drawing from unverified information in relation to the incidents which took place … on 13 January in Duchira Dan."

MoFA reiterated the government line that a five-member police patrol was first set upon by 100 Bengalis [Rohingyas] wielding sticks and knives; during the withdrawal, the leader of the police patrol team was "lost in the mob", it said.

"Remobilized police and security forces revisited the same vicinity in search of the lost police sergeant," the statement read, but were this time threatened by more than 500 Rohingyas armed with sticks and knives.

"In order to deter from being physically attacked [sic], eight warning shots were fired. However, there were no civilian injuries or causalities," said the ministry statement.

It was reported by newswire service DPA on Friday that Presidential Spokesman Ye Htut had indicated that international observers would be allowed into Maungdaw to investigate.

But when contacted by DVB, Ye Htut said he was misquoted and that the government "will consider and plan for [such a] visit." The spokesman stressed that he had not mentioned an "investigation".

Ceasefire plan awaits SSA-S, UWSA consent

Posted: 27 Jan 2014 01:52 AM PST

The draft framework for a nationwide ceasefire –  the result of a summit between ethnic leaders in Karen State last week – has been approved by the representatives of 16 ethnic armed organisations, but awaits endorsement from the Shan State Army–South (SSA-S) and the United Wa State Army (UWSA).

Representatives from 17 of the 18 ethnic groups comprising the Nationwide Ceasefire Coordination Team (NCCT) convened last Tuesday in Lawkheela [also known as Lay Wah], headquarters of the Karen National Union (KNU) in eastern Burma. The SSA-S is the only group in attendance that has yet to sign onto the plan, claiming that their leadership needs a bit more time.

"We have yet to sign the agreement, as we only saw the draft on our arrival," said Sai La, SSA-S spokesman. "Our leadership have yet to give word.

"We view the peace process in two parts – a nationwide ceasefire and political dialogue," he said. "We don't have a problem with the nationwide ceasefire. In fact, the framework is exactly the same as our policy, but regarding political dialogue, we need to ask opinions from political parties and organisations."

The UWSA, also yet to sign onto the draft treaty, was the only other invitee that did not attend the summit – when and if they intend to sign the agreement is still unclear.

The Lawkheela conference was the latest in an ongoing series of peace talks geared towards ending the sporadic civil conflict that has plagued Burma for nearly six decades. While most of the country's ethnic militias have signed bilateral peace pacts with the central government, the current peace process aims to secure ceasefires across the nation and establish a working plan for political reconciliation.

Last week's conference was held in advance of the upcoming peace talks scheduled for February in Hpa-an, the Karen State capital, between the NCCT and a delegation of Burmese government negotiators.

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Suu Kyi rally in Taunggyi moved to vacant lot

Posted: 27 Jan 2014 12:21 AM PST

Burma's opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi was on Sunday denied access to festival grounds in Shan State capital Taunggyi, causing a scheduled party rally to be moved to a vacant roadside lot.

Chairperson of the National League for Democracy (NLD), Suu Kyi and her entourage arrived in Shan State on Friday, the latest stop on a nationwide tour to explain the party's stance on Constitutional reform.

Rally organisers were notified by the Shan regional government on Thursday that their request to hold a rally at the Awaiyar hot-air balloon field, owned by the Burmese armed forces, had been rejected.

Tun Naing, chairman of the Yawnghwe [Nyaung Shwe] chapter of the NLD, said the assembly was instead held on a vacant lot, where she spoke to her supporters from a makeshift stage erected alongside a 10-wheel truck.

"Authorities turned down our request to hold the rally at the hot-air balloon field," he said. "But nevertheless, a lot of people came to our rally."

He noted that other campaign events in the Shan towns of Nansang, Mongnai and Langkho were similarly attended by hundreds of supporters and residents.

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Suu Kyi's Taunggyi speech stressed the role of ethnic nationalities in the effort to amend the controversial 2008 Constitution, which contains provisions that enshrine military presence in Parliament, hamper the amendment process, and prohibit the opposition leader from seeking the Presidency.

"She [Suu Kyi] said that completely rewriting the constitution may take a long time, so it must only be amended. She stressed that the restriction on presidential qualifications should be abolished," said Tun Naing.

Suu Kyi's tour of Shan State got off to a rocky start on 24 January, when she had to reroute her flight from military-owned Nansang Airport to Heho because authorities did not grant her landing permission.

Burmese census will offer ethnicity of choice

Posted: 26 Jan 2014 08:58 PM PST

Dr Nyi Nyi, director general of Burma's Department of Population, said on Friday that each person in the country shall be given the opportunity to refer to themselves by whatever ethnicity they choose in the upcoming national census.

Speaking at a press conference in Naypyidaw, Nyi Nyi said that the decision to expand the parameters of "ethnicity" was in response to concerns raised by various ethnic leaders over the harm to national unity which may arise from forcing people to identify themselves as an ethnicity that they say does not represent their group or sub-group.

He said the aim of the census was to identity the correct population of Burma, with demographics based on age and education, which would assist in the development of the country. He noted that Burmese nationals living abroad will not be counted in the 2014 census.

The Population Department head said the information requested on the census questionnaire was designed to meet international human rights standards and  allow the government to gauge what type of investments were feasible in different ethnic regions.

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Asked whether the ability to choose one's own ethnicity in the upcoming census would extend to the Rohingya Muslim community – referred to by many Burmese as "Bengalis" and widely regarded as illegal immigrants – Nyi Nyi said, "The Rohingya issue is a recent case. We have conducted censuses in 1973 and 1983, and each person was permitted to refer to themselves by the ethnicity of their choice. We intend to do the same at the upcoming census – we will register anyone under any ethnic entity that they refer to themselves."

Werner Haug of UN Population Fund said it is difficult to estimate the population in Burma as no census has been conducted in the country for 30 years.

When asked by a reporter the same question about the status of the ethnic Rohingya Muslims, Haug said that he could only underline what Dr Nyi Nyi had said – that "the census is essentially a statistical operation" and for those persons who referred to themselves "be it as Rohingya or be it as Bengali or whatever", the census "could not solve other related problems such as registration cards or citizenship" which, he said, would need to be discussed in a different context.

In October, DVB reported that the Burmese authorities intended making arrangements with their Thai counterparts to allow refugees sheltering in Thailand the opportunity to be included in the census.

World Bank pledges $2bn development aid to Burma

Posted: 26 Jan 2014 07:03 PM PST

The World Bank has pledged $2 billion in development aid to Burma for projects such as healthcare and energy supply.

Bank president Jim Yong Kim announced the package during his first visit to the country, saying the aim of the aid was to tackle poverty.

"We are increasing our support for the huge reform effort under way in Myanmar because we want to help the government bring benefits to poor people even more quickly,” he said.

“Expanding access to electricity in a country like Myanmar can help transform a society. Children will be able to study at night, shops will stay open, and health clinics will have lights and energy to power life-saving technology. Electricity helps brings an end to poverty.”

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Almost 70 percent of Burma's population are not connected to the national grid. Kim said that improving power supplies is key to the country’s development.

The World Bank shut its offices in Rangoon almost three decades ago when the ruling military junta defaulted on repayments.

However, since President Thein Sein was elected in 2011, a policy of economic and political reform has taken root, and the Burmese government was able to clear its arrears to the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank with the help of a Japanese bridge loan last year.

The World Bank said in November that Burma's economy is projected to grow at 6.8 percent in 2013/14, rising to 6.9 percent in the medium term. However, it raised concerns about the country's inflation which hit 7.3 percent in August.

 
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