Democratic Voice of Burma

---

• DVB talks to Vicky Bowman, MCRB
• Awaiting eviction, Dagon Seikkan’s denizens have nowhere to go
• Development needed to ensure peace: KPC
• Govt urged to settle land grab claims by September
• Timber ban, effective in April, leads to wood export rush
• UN envoy remains ‘convinced’ of Maungdaw killings
• EU assists training of Burma’s Police Force
• Tenasserim villagers protest military land grab

DVB talks to Vicky Bowman, MCRB Posted: 21 Feb 2014 05:13 AM PST DVB Interview International spoke to Vicky Bowman, the Director of the Myanmar Centre for Responsible Business (MCRB) about the centre's work, ways in which companies can adopt responsible business practices and how to tackle issues such as corruption and human rights. The centre is currently conducting sector-wide impact assessments in the oil and gas and tourism industries. Next year the MCRB aims to complete impact assessments for telecoms and the agriculture sector. Bowman said these impact assessments identify positive and negative impacts in a sector and that the centre will make recommendations to the government, to businesses and to civil society, on how to reduce negatives in the future. Bowman said the MCRB is working with local and international companies, civil society groups and the government to encourage responsible business activities. "One of the big challenges for businesses here is that laws that exist in other countries, which prevent businesses from behaving irresponsibly don't yet exist here," said Bowman. "So we're encouraging the government to adopt those laws and adopt them in a transparent process." One of the ways the MCRB is promoting responsible business is by making connections between international and local companies. Bowman said they were seeking to provide knowledge, build capacity and promote dialogue for businesses already in the country, and those interested in investing. "When international companies come to us it's the first thing they want to know – who are the local businesses who will understand the anti-corruption regulations that we have to follow? Who are the local businesses that will not be a reputational risk for us?" she said. Related Stories Karen NGO slams Japanese SEZ plan Burma preps for tourist boom Burma Business Weekly – 15 Feb 2014 The MCRB is a joint initiative of the Institute for Human Rights and Business (IHRB) and the Danish Institute for Human Rights (DIHR).  The centre is funded by six European governments: UK, Denmark, Norway, Switzerland, Netherlands and Ireland. "The advice we provide is a public good and some of the research and advice we are doing is going to be put on our website and will be made available to anyone who is interested in investing here or holding companies to account," said Bowman. One of the main issues the centre is working on is transparency. Bowman said companies benefitted from being transparent through choice and not just because the law requires them to. "[The companies] are going to get much more trust from both civil society and international partners if they make public information about who their ownership is, what sectors they are in, what their group structure is, how much tax they pay and also issues like what their human rights policy is, what their core human rights risks are, what they are doing, for example, around the land they are acquiring," said Bowman. Bowman said companies owned or joint-owned by the military are the centre's biggest challenge and she felt they should be held to the same standards as other companies. "Overall what I think the country needs to move towards is a world in which if they continue to exist they should be held to the same account as any other company and should be required to compete on a level playing field," she said. The government adopted an anti-corruption law in August and parliament is currently discussing how to make it more effective. Bowman said to help fight corruption in companies the culture of giving tea-money and gifts needs to stop. "When a large company, whether it be an oil and gas company or Coca-Cola, says this is what we need from our companies that we work with about not paying gifts. It would be really important if the government departments concerned say "absolutely, this it the change we want to see,'" she said. She went on to say that in some cases it was not necessarily about laws but about cultural change. Rights groups have slammed big investment projects for continue human rights abuses, including land confiscation and environmental damage. Bowman said these big investment companies need to carry effective impact assessments that look at human rights and social issues and conduct proper consultations with villagers. "The company needs to get a better understanding of what the community feels about the project," she said. "The farmers and villagers need to have some sort of decision making input into these projects, it can't be all done to them."

Awaiting eviction, Dagon Seikkan’s denizens have nowhere to go Posted: 21 Feb 2014 04:56 AM PST Tens of thousands of people living in informal settlements in wards 61, 67 and 93 of Rangoon's Dagon Seikkan township are on-edge, after a deadline to leave their homes or face forced eviction came and went without incident last Sunday. If the forced removal is carried out, it will be the largest such event in Burmese history. Residents told DVB they believe local authorities will grant them reprieve until the school year ends in March. Thousands of homes are set to be demolished to make way for the Aye Yar Wun and Yadanar housing complexes, part of the government's plan to construct hundreds of thousands of low-cost housing units around the city. The housing estates are a venture between the Ministry of Construction and a consortium of 24 construction companies, many with close ties to the former military regime. Work on the first phase of the project is already underway. Officials project the city's population to balloon to 10 million by 2040. At a proposed price of 20 million kyats (US$20,000) each, the new apartments will be out of reach for the site's current inhabitants, who rank among the city's most vulnerable and impoverished. Most of the area's current residents have not been offered any sort of compensation, and with nowhere else to go, few have followed the directive to leave. Daw Win Yi and her husband, U Than Lwin, moved to the area from Dedaye Township in the Irrawaddy Delta last May, following in the footsteps of friends and family. Today, hundreds of former Dedaye residents call the site home. "After Nargis, there were very few job opportunities to survive on," said U Than Lwin, who now sells vegetables at a market in neighbouring Thaketa township. "Our son lived in Rangoon for a long time already, so we moved here and rented this house." Related Stories Govt urged to settle land grab claims by September Tourists flock to Burma’s only synagogue Deadline looms for Dagon squatters A large proportion of the area's inhabitants are survivors of Cyclone Nargis, which devasted a large swath of Irrawaddy Region and surrounding areas in 2008. "Before Nargis, there were only around 100 houses scattered around this area. Afterwards, there were a few more, but it was only after the 2010 elections that most people arrived," Daw Myint Than, who has lived in the area for 14 years, told DVB. "People built houses here because it was the only place they could afford to live. We have nowhere else to go." Another set of residents came to the area due to a more recent spike in land prices that has driven thousands to Rangoon's satellite towns. Few have regular employment, and most eke out an existence through temporary odd jobs. Although the settlement has been deemed illegal, the houses are well-ordered and numbered, and residents are registered with the local immigration authorities. Residents buy, sell, and rent property following an informal ownership code, which the authorities do not recognise. Daw Win Yi and U Than Lwin rent their home for 20,000 kyats (US$20.25) per month, but their landlord – who lives in Thaketa – does not hold formal title to the property. Local authorities "sold" thousands of plots to Nargis survivors and other arrivals at up to hundreds of dollars apiece, and residents are incensed that those same authorities are now refusing to offer them compensation. Rumours have spread that 10-foot-by-60-foot plots will be made available to purchase for 200,000 kyats (US$203) further away from the city, but local residents have not been served with any official notice announcing such a program, or provided details of where these plots will be located. Some long-term residents in parts of Ward 61 were offered 200,000 kyats' compensation and 600-square-foot plots of land in remote Ward 138, but this offer has not been extended to the majority of those affected by the construction. Although most residents offered compensation have moved, 67 families have refused compensation and chosen to stay behind in hopes they will be allowed to move into the new complex. "We received notice that we would have to move in April 2013. We protested five times to be allowed to buy cheap apartments by paying instalments," said U Than Myint, who has lived on the site for seven years. "Finally, on January 14, the department of housing verbally promised that we would be allowed to buy apartments." "People built houses here because it was the only place they could afford to live. We have nowhere else to go." - Daw Myint Than, resident of Dagon Seikkan. But this is no guarantee U Than Myint and his family will be allowed to move into a new, improved home. He is too old to work, and is supported by his two sons, who lack steady jobs.  "The authorities have said that when the projects are finished, they will select families that can afford to buy [apartments]," he explained. Residents have filed repeated complaints about the eviction with U Myo Aung, their representative in Parliament. A member of Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy, he won his seat in the 2012 by-elections that also saw Suu Kyi become a parliamentarian. Speaking to DVB by phone on Friday, he claimed he is still waiting for an official response to his constituents' appeals. "If we look at the projects the government is undertaking, they're for the benefit of the cronies – not for ordinary poor people," said Ko Tommy, an advocate on behalf of those threatened with eviction. While he does not live in the shantytown himself, he lives in the area and owns a shipping-container repair workshop along Dagon Seikkan's waterfront. He will be leading a protest this Saturday in front of Rangoon's city hall, appealing the authorities to not proceed with the eviction. The pending eviction in Dagon Seikkan is part of a pattern of forced displacement which has become increasingly frequent in recent months. Last week, over 400 families were kicked out of Thameelay village near the proposed Hanthawaddy International Airport in Bago division; many of the displaced have taken up temporary residence in a nearby monastery. In mid-January, some 4,000 homes were demolished by authorities near the Shwe Lin Ban industrial zone in Rangoon's Hlaing Tharyar township. With nowhere else to go, many residents have subsequently rebuilt their homes, with no assurance they won't be destroyed again. With the clock ticking, those expecting eviction in Dagon Seikkan are worried about what is coming next. "If we are removed from this place, we cannot be sure about the future," said Daw Myint Than. "We feel hopeless."

Development needed to ensure peace: KPC Posted: 21 Feb 2014 04:39 AM PST Brig-Gen Timothy Laklem of the Karen National Union Peace Council (KPC), an offshoot of the Karen National Union (KNU), has said that peace with Naypyidaw will only be possible once poverty has been reduced in Karen State. "Ethnic leaders are much more likely to sign the [nationwide ceasefire] agreement if there is a guarantee for people's development," Timothy Laklem said at a press conference in Rangoon on Thursday. "In Karen State, we have seen a civil war for over 60 years, and peace and development has been what the Karen people have longed for most, but we consider the nationwide ceasefire and political dialogue to be long term issues, and not in line with our current aims and objectives." The statement comes despite a proposed meeting between a KPC delegation led by chairman Saw Htay Maung and the government's chief peace negotiator Aung Min. Related Stories Karen NGO slams Japanese SEZ plan Arakanese monk makes pilgrimage to Mrauk U for peace, development Ethnic groups resist census, object to question of ethnicity Also at the press conference, Brig-Gen Laklem pledged to work with the government to expose and crackdown on various groups misusing the name of the KPC for profit in the Thailand-Burma border region. "We are currently conducting an investigation to verify who is who. There are imposters out there who never fought a battle during the armed struggle but mysteriously became officials within the ranks overnight. These kind of issues will be reported to other organisations as well as the government." The KPC, formerly the 7th Brigade of the Karen National Union's armed wing, the Karen National Liberation Army, broke away from the group in 2007. The KPC reached a statewide ceasefire agreement with the government in February 2012.

Govt urged to settle land grab claims by September Posted: 21 Feb 2014 03:50 AM PST The Burmese Parliament on Thursday called on relevant government bodies to implement settlement claims over land confiscation cases by September at the latest, though the number of cases remains disputed. A copy of the report obtained by DVB shows 8,478 cases of land confiscation filed to the government, only 423 of which have been settled thus far. Cases include land seized by the military, government ministries and private companies. Contrary to the commission's findings, state newspaper The New Light of Myanmar reported on Friday that the government has identified just 745 incidents of land confiscation over the last five decades. The publication said that of those 745 cases, 358 claims were disregarded because "the handover of land was carried out in accordance with the law", this despite the government admission that of those 358 cases, compensation was only paid to five claimants. Related Stories Awaiting eviction, Dagon Seikkan's denizens have nowhere to go Tenasserim villagers protest military land grab Pegu farmers injured in police crackdown Lower house MP Min Thu, a member of the investigation commission, said that in many cases, the government had "resold confiscated land to private companies but still carries the responsibility for compensation". In addition to discrepancies over the number and legitimacy of claims, Min Thu also expressed scepticism over the government's capacity to adequately address land issues. "It would be impractical to assume all issues would be solved, but I would hope the farmers can enjoy at least better settlement – from previously about 10 percent of what they deserved to about 50 to 60 percent now", Min Thu added. The New Light of Myanmar claims that the government has closed 688 of the 745 cases, and that compensation for seized lands will be included in the 2014-2015 Union budget. The Burmese military recently pledged the return over 150,000 acres of farmland confiscated across the country, though concessions will only be granted for lands that are currently not being used by the military.

Timber ban, effective in April, leads to wood export rush Posted: 21 Feb 2014 01:36 AM PST Raw timber export is estimated to rise by 33 percent this year, in the lead-up to a nationwide ban on the commodity. Burma's Ministry of Environmental Conservation and Forestry announced mid-last year that the banning of raw timber export sales will go into effect on 1 April 2014. Bar Bar Cho, secretary of the Myanmar Timber Merchants Association (MTMA) said the steep rise in exports could be a result of the announcement. "On average, the annual value of timber export was between US$600 to 800 million, but we are likely to see a rise in the number – estimated between US$1 to 1.1 billion this year — due to high a record of exports in the past six months," said Bar Bar Cho. A report by the International Tropical Timber Organisation (ITTO) confirmed a surge in log export shipments from Burma, attributing the rise to buyers' concerns over the impending ban, as opposed to an increase in demand. The ITTO reported last month that over one million cubic metres of logs were awaiting cross-border shipment and that it would take over six months to dispatch them for purchase at the current export rate. Related Stories Latpadaung locals air grievances to UN Rights Rapporteur Not enough info about Salween dam, say Shans in eastern Burma Burma Business Weekly – 15 Feb 2014 Burma and Malaysia are the only Southeast Asian countries that currently allow export of raw timber to overseas. Proponents of the ban say that raw timber exports lead to rapid deforestation with little domestic benefit, as more profitable processing industries are developed in the buyer country. Many investors are reluctant to develop such industries – which would greatly increase the timber's sales value –  within Burma at the present time, due to poor infrastructure and security concerns, analysts told DVB in January. Estimates vary, but most environmentalists agree that during British colonial times some 80 percent of the country was covered by forest, diving to 60 percent in the 1960s. Once military rule prevailed and corruption became endemic, deforestation accelerated leaving just 24 percent of the country forested as of 2008. It has been estimated that in recent years 300,000 tons of teak and two million tons of hardwood are cut per annum in Burma. Starting from 2015, Burma is hoping to produce 60,000 tons of teak and 1.2 million tons of hardwood each year for the domestic market alone.

UN envoy remains ‘convinced’ of Maungdaw killings Posted: 21 Feb 2014 12:55 AM PST The United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Burma, Tomás Ojea Quintana, says he remains convinced that serious violent incidents took place last month in the village of Duchira Dan, including lootings, rapes and the loss of Rohingya lives, as well as the disappearance of a local police officer. The UN's Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights had previously issued a statement saying it had "credible evidence" that an Arakanese mob had attacked the Muslim Rohingya community in the village, causing an estimated 48 deaths. Speaking exclusively to DVB on Friday, Quintana said that he has received "extremely serious allegations" about the incidents in Maungdaw Township between 9- 13 January from "reliable sources" built up over his six years as envoy to Burma. With regard to the presidential appointment of an inquiry commission to investigate the incidents last month in Duchira Dan [also written Du Char Yar Tan], the UN special rapporteur said he did not believe the commission was independent, but that he was "looking forward to seeing the progress of the investigation" and would await its findings. Related Stories Quintana slams Maungdaw investigation Latpadaung locals air grievances to UN Rights Rapporteur UN envoy meets Kachin leaders, refugees In discussions with Burmese Home Minister Lt-Gen Ko Ko in Naypyidaw, Quintana said the Home Minister had told him the government had already carried out an investigation into the events in Maungdaw and that it concluded that nothing serious happened. The UN rapporteur said he brought up what he termed the commission's "lack of capacity and independence", to which Lt-Gen Ko Ko responded along the lines of, "OK, Mr Quintana, what do you propose?" "I was very clear," Quintana said in reply. "[I told him] 'You need to engage with the international community. You will need international experts, including forensics." He said he also advised the inclusion of the UN Human Rights Council and the introduction of a witness protection mechanism. However, the UN envoy could not comment about accusations of police involvement in the alleged killings or the circumstances that led to about 20 Rohingya houses being burnt down in Duchira Dan on 28 January. With regard to the more than 100,000 persons displaced by the communal violence in Arakan State, Quintana called on the Burmese government to develop a "master plan" which would include the resettlement of the IDPs to other parts of Arakan State if they are unable or unwilling to return to their homes, and the provision of land for those people. With regard to his meeting with Arakanese Buddhists, including members of the Rakhine Nationalities Development Party, Quintana said, "We [the UN] are ready to listen to the Rakhines [Arakanese] about their grievances too." After a tumultuous six-year tenure as special rapporteur, the Argentine diplomat said he was "quite happy" with the progress of President Thein Sein's government but remained "concerned" about the situation in Arakan State. Quintana is due to present his final report to the UN in Geneva on 17 March. Quintana said he was unsure what involvement he would have with Burma in the future, and that three candidates were being considered to replace him as Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Myanmar – diplomats from South Korea, Finland and the United States.

EU assists training of Burma’s Police Force Posted: 20 Feb 2014 10:18 PM PST Around 200 Burmese police officers were trained by European Union (EU) police officers in effective crowd control in Rangoon on Thursday. The project was part of an EU initiative to help improve the standards of the Burmese Police Force and focused on human rights. The training included an introduction to human rights in policing, an understanding of crowd dynamics and techniques to prevent the escalation of violence. European ambassador to Burma, Roland Kobia said that human rights should be the focus of police. Related Stories Literary repression violates basic rights: PEN Latpadaung locals air grievances to UN Rights Rapporteur UN envoy meets Kachin leaders, refugees “We have tried to work in very good collaboration to give the overall rational of their work which should be the protection of human rights, the protection of fundamental freedoms of the citizens of this country,” said Mr Kobia. The programme is aimed to train at least 4,000 police officers nationwide and is scheduled to continue until March 2015. “If we continue this course, we could soon create a modern and more reliable Burmese police force," said Police Brig-Gen. Thura Bo No. With continued outbreaks of violence across the country and allegations police have failed to intervene in, and potentially exacerbated several incidents, many consider a well-mentored Burmese police force to be urgently needed.

Tenasserim villagers protest military land grab Posted: 20 Feb 2014 07:39 PM PST Residents of Thayetchaung, in Tenasserim [Taninthayi] Region, have protested the seizure of farmland by the military and government to build a railroad, and demanded fair compensation. The protestors marched in front of the Mawshaegone Buddhist Monastery in Mawshaegone village from early [Wednesday] morning and walked along the Myeik-Dawei Highway. "The reason for this demonstration is the seizure of 500 acres of farmland in 1990 to build a military base for regiments 403, 404 and 405. The military also seized about 400 acres of pasture for a training ground. They only built military buildings on 30 acres of land. The pasture seized for military training ground has been rented to a businessman to do a rubber plantation business. That's the reason of our demonstration," said Nyi Nyi Naing from Kazi village. Local farmers signed a petition to send to Quartermaster-General Min Naing and General Wai Lwin, Aung San Suu Kyi, the Myanmar Human Rights Commission and other political organisations that are dealing with land grabbing cases. The protestors marched holding placards demanding compensation and the return of their farmland seized by military. Although the organisers of the protest initially intend 100 people to protest, only 50 people participated. Related Stories Govt urged to settle land grab claims by September Karen NGO slams Japanese SEZ plan Pegu farmers injured in police crackdown

You are subscribed to email updates from DVB Multimedia Group | DVB Multimedia Group To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610