Democratic Voice of Burma

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• Shan Chief Minister assures farmers on land issues
• Race Protection Bill drafting commission to be formed
• ABSDF 10th Conference begins in Mae Sot
• Telenor promises mobile coverage to 90% of Burmese

Shan Chief Minister assures farmers on land issues Posted: 07 Mar 2014 11:08 PM PST Shan State Chief Minister Sao Aung Myat said he believes all seized lands will be returned to farmers in his region before the end of the year. Speaking to DVB in an exclusive interview at his office on 5 March, Sao Aung Myat said, "There remain 74 cases for us to resolve in Shan State. We have already laid out plans for 60 of these cases whereby lands will be given back to farmers. In general, each township has five or six cases and the different township authorities are working with State-level and then Union-level counterparts. "I think that around September [2014], the farmers who are physically working on their fields and need to begin sowing crops will get back their lands. Then we will continue to work on the other cases." The Shan chief minister's timeline for the return of confiscated lands – many of which were seized by the military during the era of the previous junta – comes after Parliament had motioned that all seized lands are returned before September. He also acknowledged that many people are dissatisfied with the delays in administrative work at all levels since the Land Usage Administrative Committee was formed. Related Stories Pegu farmers injured in police crackdown Hunger strikers released from prison Families denied access to Myint Myint Aye, other hunger strikers Sai Win Myint, a member of the Central Executive Committee for Burma's main opposition party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), said he does not believe that the issues will be resolved before September as the Land Usage Administration Committee has still not been established in Shan State capital Kengtung. "I don’t think it is likely," he said. "The Land Usage Administrative Committee is just a term of speech in Parliament. In reality, it is invisible." He added that the Land Usage office is demanding that proof of land ownership is provided, but even though many villagers have worked on these lands for generations, they don’t have land deeds. "It is the companies that seized the lands who acquired land deeds and rights," he said. "The farmers have nothing." The NLD member cited a case of 500 acres seized in Kengtung in 1995-96, to which he said there has still been no response from the investigation commission. Nang Kwam Lake, a spokesperson for the exiled Shan Human Rights Foundation, said the land seizure problems cannot simply be resolved through compensation, but that issues such as environmental destruction, a lack of jobs, and security issues also need to be addressed.

Race Protection Bill drafting commission to be formed Posted: 07 Mar 2014 10:17 PM PST Burma's President Thein Sein announced on Friday that a commission is to be formed which will assume responsibility for drafting “Race Protection Bills”. Pe Than, an MP representing Arakan State's Myaypon Township, said, "I have been told that there will be new laws for population control and a monogamous marriage system. The President mentioned in his letter [to Parliament] that these laws will be drafted by the Supreme Court. For two other laws, there will be an appointed commission." As per a request by the Organisation for the Protection of Religion and Nationality, an influential group led by nationalist Buddhist monks, the new bills may include laws on changing faith; interfaith marriage; monogamy; and population control. However, Phoe Than Chaung, a spokesperson for the Burmese Communist Party, said the move to urgently approve these Race Protection Bills was nothing more than a "political stunt". Related Stories Burmese react to Fortify 'persecution' report Religious leaders sign ‘peace agreement’ Burmese Muslims at 'great risk' of genocide, warn activists "The current government, whenever they are facing difficulties, use religion," he said. "Lately, we see this more and more on racial and religious issues. They are cunning. Approving these laws is a political stunt aimed at gaining popularity and reputation among the Buddhist community. This is not being undertaken in a spirit of unity and mutual co-existence between different religions and races. Thein Sein said in Parliament last month that the move to draft such legislation was taken after a petition raised more than 1 million signatures. Many observers see the Race Protection bills as attempts to subjugate and control the Rohingya Muslim community in Arakan State where a series of bloody confrontations between Muslims and Buddhists has led to a rise in nationalism among Burmese Buddhists across the country.

ABSDF 10th Conference begins in Mae Sot Posted: 07 Mar 2014 09:23 PM PST The All Burma Students Democratic Front (ABSDF), which last year signed a ceasefire agreement with the Burmese government, began its 10th Conference on Friday at Dawn Taman camp in Karen State. Speaking to DVB on the sidelines of the meeting, ABSDF Chairman Comrade Than Khe said, "We will review the political situation as a whole, the situation of the people as a whole, and the international situation. Another matter is to formulate our future plans so that our political, military and diplomatic struggles are relevant to the current situations.” Forty-one representatives of the students' army are in attendance, and several overseas observers were also invited to the conference which will last until 13 March, during which time the ABSDF will also select its leadership team for the year ahead, said Comrade Than Khe. "I believe we need to continue our revolution to fulfill the will of the people in line with the evolving situation and renewed spirits," said the group's chairman. "I would like to urge the public and our allies to continue supporting our struggle.” The ABSDF was formed on 1 November 1988 by students and youths who escaped to Burma's border areas to avoid arrest and persecution following the military crackdown on a student-led uprising that summer. At its peak, the organisation had around 10,000 members. Related Stories ABSDF honours dead, reaffirms commitment to struggle The rebel voice of 88 returns Former rebel leader returns to Burma to mark 8888 anniversary

Telenor promises mobile coverage to 90% of Burmese Posted: 07 Mar 2014 07:56 PM PST Telenor Group, the major shareholder in Thailand’s Total Access Communication Plc (DTAC), is embarking on a US$1-billion investment to roll out its commercial second- and third-generation mobile service in Burma [Myanmar] this year. The Norwegian firm is strengthening its strong presence in Asia, its largest revenue source. Sigve Brekke, the head of Telenor Asia, said his company is spending $1 billion for the mobile licence and network expansion under a four-year plan. Related Stories BURMA BUSINESS WEEKLY: 1- 7 FEB Telecom investments threaten privacy rights in Burma DVB talks to CEO of Ooredoo Myanmar, Ross Cormack The company expects to launch commercial 2G and 3G service in Burma in the second half of this year, with a roll-out of cellular network coverage to 90 percent of the population within five years. “We expect to break even within four years,” Mr Brekke said. Burma has only 4-5 million mobile users out of a population of 61 million. Telenor and Qatari firm Ooredoo were the winners of 15-year mobile licences in a highly competitive tender. Mr Brekke said Burma presents a huge opportunity as an untapped market, but Thailand remains the most important market for Telenor, as DTAC contributes the largest revenue in Asia to the group. DTAC has outperformed the market with healthy growth in recent years, capturing 30 percent of the market last year, up from 29 percent in 2012. The mobile market was worth 250 billion baht (US$8 billion) last year. The company reported a 13 percent increase in full-year revenue to 89.5 billion baht last year thanks to the take-up of mobile data services, which led to a 49.2 percent increase in revenue from value-added services to 15.2 billion baht. But net profit declined by 4.5 percent to 11.3 billion baht due mainly to an increase in DTAC’s percentage of revenue-sharing payments from 25 percent to 30 percent under a build-transfer-operate concession agreement, plus weaker margins in DTAC’s handset business. DTAC had 27.9 million subscribers last year. Mr Brekke said Telenor is committed long-term investment in Thailand. “We are not holding back investment from Thailand even though the political situation remains uncertain,” he said. Telenor already provides mobile services in 13 countries including six in Asia, serving 150 million subscribers worldwide. To strengthen its presence in Thailand, Telenor yesterday launched the DTAC Accelerate venture capital fund worth 100 million baht. The fund aims to push Thai start-ups to go global as well as create new jobs and income locally, promote mobile internet and applications and develop the country’s growing mobile internet ecosystem. The fund is to invest in technology start-up firms worth from 500,000 to 1.5 million baht each. Mr Brekke said Telenor chose to set up the fund in Thailand because the country’s smartphone penetration is more than 50 percent and mobile internet use has extraordinary growth.   This article first appeared in the Bangkok Post on 8 March 2014.

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