Democratic Voice of Burma

---

• Four more arrested in relation to Mandalay mob killings
• Govt attempts to restart railway project through Mrauk-U
• Supreme Court lawyer criticises Mandalay govt handling of riots
• Burma Business Weekly
• State-run news agency plans to start charging for news
• Muscles and beauty not mutually exclusive, says bodybuilder

Four more arrested in relation to Mandalay mob killings Posted: 05 Jul 2014 04:41 AM PDT Four more people alleged to have participated in this week’s Mandalay riots, which left two dead, were arrested on Friday night, while authorities extended curfew to include a seventh township in Mandalay Division. The clampdown in security came after riots broke out on Tuesday night in Chan Aye Tharzan Township, a neighbourhood with a large Muslim population, after rumours circulated on social media websites that the Muslim owners of a teashop had raped a Buddhist maid. Over the course of two days, hundreds of police were deployed to the area, but by Wednesday night news emerged that two men were killed in separate mob attacks – one Buddhist and one Muslim. Four men were arrested on 3 and 4 July for their alleged connection to the mob killings. Col Aung Kyaw Soe, minister of divisional security and border affairs, told DVB on Saturday that the authorities detained four more after receiving news that they were hiding in a mosque. "Last night we arrested four more people," Aung Kyaw Soe said. "A total of eight people have been detained. There are others related to them concerning the violence and we are trying to find out the culprits." "We cannot tell you their names because we are still investigating it." Aung Kyaw Soe added that the local police force has received reinforcements from military battalions, and that stability will be restored to the area. "Don't worry, there will be peace," he said. Tensions have remained high since Tuesday's riots, and district authorities reacted by announcing that Article 144 of the Penal Code will be instated throughout the seven townships under a dusk-to-dawn curfew. Any gathering or procession of more than five people will be broken up by the authorities, and its participants will be arrested and charged, the district announcement said. Meanwhile, town elders, civil society organisations and interfaith associations formed a so-called peace committee on Saturday to dispel rumours and misinformation that have caused the riots and communal conflicts between the Muslims and Buddhist communities, said Thein Than Oo, a lawyer and member of the committee. Related Stories Supreme Court lawyer criticises Mandalay govt handling of riots Curfew in place after deadly riots in Mandalay Monks helped defuse riot, not enflame it: ABMU According to a public statement released by this new committee, the group will restore peace in Mandalay by dismissing rumours and releasing accurate information, work through the public's misunderstandings and suspicions, and "solve crimes according to the laws". Soe Hein, another committee member, said the situation has calmed down considerably, but there is still mistrust beneath the surface. "There is still suspicion, worries and mistrust between the two communities. We formed the committee to reduce these," Soe Hein said. Burma has been plagued with frequent and deadly bouts of communal violence since June 2012, when riots broke out between Arakanese Buddhists and Rohingya Muslims in western Burma. Since then, anti-Muslim sentiment has grown to the point where even rumour containing anti-Muslim sentiment can spark deadly episodes.

Govt attempts to restart railway project through Mrauk-U Posted: 05 Jul 2014 02:54 AM PDT The government plans to restart a stalled railway project that will pass through Mrauk-U, an ancient city in northern Arakan State, although authorities and locals are unable to agree on where exactly the railway will traverse. The project, which started in 2009, will travel 154 kilometres between Sittwe and Mrauk-U, but has stalled because of protests led by locals who object to the railway passing through endangered sites in the ancient city. Maung Tha Aung, a member of Mrauk-U's Ancient Cultural Conservation Committee, told DVB that district and township authorities, as well as project representatives, met with the locals on 26 to 29 June to discuss where the railway route will go. "The map they showed us was not clear so nobody could agree to it. It's good if it is right; if it is wrong, we will become the culprits of history," Maung Tha Aung said. “If we allow them to develop wherever they like, more damage will be done.” The city's elders then went onsite to see where the government's proposed new planned routes would go through, and they found that it would still be severely damaging to the city's ancient sites. According to Maung Tha Aung, Waithali stone steps, certain pagodas and some ancient dias and stages were in danger. Even areas surrounding the planned rail site, which houses a number of pagodas, could be badly affected by construction due to the impact of drilling machines, he said. The authorities rejected the locals' suggestion that the railway pass through the western side of Mrauk-U, he said. Related Stories Kyaukphyu SEZ construction undergoing bidding process Burma emerging as a major travel destination in Asia Mogok environmentalists wade in to clean up lake

Supreme Court lawyer criticises Mandalay govt handling of riots Posted: 05 Jul 2014 01:58 AM PDT A Supreme Court lawyer in Mandalay has criticised the divisional government's press statements relating to communal mob violence in the city this week, saying such a failure could stoke the simmering tensions in the region. Thein Than Oo warned the government not to "manipulate" information. On Thursday, a press release by the local assembly stated that "Muslim nationals" had beaten up "Burmans", while noting that mob riots were conducted by both Muslims and Burmans. Burman, or bamar, is the majority ethnicity in the country, and Burmans are invariably Buddhist. Supreme Court lawyer Thein Than Oo said it was unwise of the divisional government to single out Muslims, pointing out that it could "stoke simmering tensions" between the two communities. "There is no Muslim nationality – it is simply the word used for people who practice Islam," he said. "Right now, the situation is extremely fragile, so the government should be careful with the usage of such words," the lawyer said. "It will incite hatred between different ethnicities and different faiths." He added that Speaker of the Union Parliament Shwe Mann has warned those in authority not to manipulate the situation during these incidents. Related Stories Four more arrested in relation to Mandalay mob killings Curfew in place after deadly riots in Mandalay Bullet Points Riots broke out on Tuesday night in Mandalay's Chan Aye Tharzan Township, a neighbourhood with a vibrant Muslim community, after rumours circulated that the Muslim owners of a local teashop had raped a Buddhist maid. Hundreds of riot police officers were deployed to quell the riot, but two men were killed in separate mobs attacks – one Buddhist, one Muslim. On Wednesday, the divisional government imposed a dusk-to-dawn dawn curfew in six townships amid threats of further violence. Meanwhile, London-based Burmese Muslim Association released a statement on Friday strongly condemning the violence, but putting the blame squarely on the shoulders of the government and local police. "The violence that has occurred is not simply a result of sectarian conflicts. It is without doubt a well-planned operation, carried out by a group of well-trained thugs," it said. "Since 1 July 2014, a van and a group of about 30 motorbikes, carrying mobs armed with machetes and lethal weapons, were roaming around the city of Mandalay and targeting various Muslims, shops and businesses owned by Muslims, and a number of Islamic religious institutions and premises. Shockingly, the police stood by and watched the mobs attack the Muslims and their properties, without intervening," the statement said. Communal conflict has swept the country since June 2012, when violence broke out between Arakanese Buddhists and Rohingya Muslims in western Burma, leaving more than 250 dead and 140,000 displaced. The majority of the displaced are Muslims. Supreme Court lawyer Thein Than Oo added that officials in Arakan State were similarly  irresponsible as their counterparts in Mandalay when dispersing press releases about the inter-religious violence in that region by using the pejorative term kalar when referring to the Rohingya Muslim community.

Burma Business Weekly Posted: 05 Jul 2014 01:15 AM PDT   Ups and Downs The Burmese currency remained stable, with the buying rate finishing on Friday at 971 kyat, down 2 kyats from last week, while the selling rate increased slightly to 979 kyat from 978 kyat the week before. Meanwhile, the price of gold increased to 678,300 kyat per tical, a small increase 678,000 kyat the week before. Fuel prices remained the same, with petrol selling at 820 kyat per litre, diesel at 950 kyat per litre, and octane at 920 kyat per litre. The price of rice also did not change, with high-quality Pawhsanmwe rice going for 1,300 to 1,700 kyat per basket and low-quality Manawthukha rice going for 900 kyat per basket.   Govt to up country's electricity reserves by 30 percent Burma’s government plans to increase the country's electricity reserves by 30 percent to prevent nationwide power outages, Deputy Union Minister for Electric Power Maw Tar Htwe said to the Myanmar Business Today last week. The country's annual electricity consumption rate increases by 13 percent every year, while the electricity sector is still underdeveloped, with only 30 percent of the population getting electricity. The government plans to produce about 23,000 megawatts of electricity by the fiscal year of 2030-31.   Burma a 'candidate country' for EITI-compliant status Burma's application to join the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), a set of voluntary reporting standards pertaining to revenue transparency and resource governance, has been accepted. Burma will have 18 months to produce its first report, and a decision on whether or not its efforts have been sufficient to grant the country "compliant" status will occur within three years. EITI standards aim to promote revenue transparency by ensuring that payments from companies operating in extractive industries – namely mining and oil and gas – match revenues received by governments. Read more: http://www.dvb.no/news/burma-a-candidate-country-for-eiti-compliant-status-myanmar/42017   France's largest bank hit with $9B fine for violating US sanctions France's largest bank, BNP Paribas (BNPP), will plead guilty to violating US trade sanctions by processing billions of dollars for Burmese entities – as well as institutions from Iran, Sudan and Cuba – via US financial institutions, and will face a record penalty of nearly US$9 billion. According to a 30 June statement by the US Department of Justice (DOJ), BNPP's admission of guilt is "the first time a financial institution has agreed to plead guilty based on large-scale, systematic violations of US economic sanctions." Read more: https://www.dvb.no/news/frances-largest-bank-hit-with-9b-fine-for-violating-us-sanctions-burma-myanmar/42051   Burma cannot meet fuel demands, deputy energy minister says Burma's domestic fuel production can only meet 10 percent of the country's demand for diesel and 40 percent of demand for petroleum, said Deputy Energy Minister Myint Zaw on Tuesday at a parliamentary session, He said the majority of demand for fuel is met with foreign oil imports while the government is currently preparing a five-point energy security policy to increase domestic production. He added that Burma imported nearly 100 million gallons of diesel and 33 gallons of petrol last year to meet domestic demand.   38 times more Burmese internet users in two years The number of internet users in Burma has jumped from 66,000 in 2011-12 to 2.5 million in 2013-14, a 38-fold increase. State-owned provider Myanmar Posts and Telecommunications says it plans to increase bandwidth by 700 percent to meet the ever-growing demand.   Trade deficit widens Burma's trade deficit has increased over the first two months of the fiscal year and now stands at over US$947 million, according to state-owned Myanmar News Agency, citing a report by the Central Statistical Organisation (CSO). Exports are listed at almost $1.54 billion while imports stand at a total of $2.5 billion. Exports include metal, gems, livestock, fishery and farm products, and timber.   Taiwanese shoe manufacturer to invest $100M in Burma A Taiwan-based manufacturer will invest more than $100 million to construct a shoe factory that will produce 300,000 pairs a year. Pou Chen Group, one of the largest footwear manufacturers in the world, announced that they hope to start production in Burma at the end of 2015 and will likely increase its capacity to product 800,000 pairs a year by 2018. Currently, Pou Chen has shoe factories in China, Vietnam and Indonesia.

State-run news agency plans to start charging for news Posted: 05 Jul 2014 12:42 AM PDT Myanmar News Agency (MNA), a state-run news agency that is part of the Ministry of Information, is planning to sell news about the government, governmental departments and ministers to private news outlets. Myo Nyunt, chief reporter of MNA, told DVB that MNA's content is currently free, but once the organisation transitions into a public service news outlet, they would have to find their own income, he claimed. "Even the state-owned newspapers will need to buy news from us, and other private media organization should also buy the news they want when we become a public service," Myo Nyunt said. "It is normal. We will provide all the news to those who subscribe to us." He did not clarify the exact date that the MNA will start charging for its content. Phoe Thaykkya, president of the Myanmar Journalists Association, said that the governmental departments used to charge news organisations for using their content, but has ceased this practice since state-run newspapers started. "The problem is whether we can use their news if we don't subscribe to them. We haven't spoken clearly about this with MNA yet," Phoe Thaukkya said. "Now, the government has their own newspapers and they still want to sell the news to private newspapers for profit. That is not good." Private media organisations currently face massive hurdles when trying to obtain information from the government, with requests for public information ignored by state administration or ministerial spokespeople denying any responses. Related Stories Bullet Points DVB journalist Zaw Pe freed Press Council to probe parliament on investigation into media firms' finances

Muscles and beauty not mutually exclusive, says bodybuilder Posted: 04 Jul 2014 09:09 PM PDT In June, 24-year-old Aye Aye Soe won gold in the Women's Athletic Physique contest in Singapore, beating her rival from the host country. Though she has competed in four international contests, it was the first time she has won a medal. DVB caught up with Aye Aye Soe during a training session in Rangoon and spoke to her about her win, and what the sport of bodybuilding offers women. Aye Aye Soe said during June's competition, the Singaporean competitor stood out as the one to beat. "Not only was she from the host country but also her muscle build was greatly improved from last year. So she became my main competitor," she said. "Though her muscle was good, my advantage was my thigh. So I practiced hard in the beginning show and I got the advantage." Although Aye Aye Soe has a chemical engineering degree, her passion is bodybuilding, which she started when she was 20 years old. The training is gruelling and she must follow a strict high-protein diet. When competing, Aye Aye Soe explains that female bodybuilders wear a two-piece swimsuit to show off their muscles. At first, she said she was shy competing in a swimsuit. "At the beginning, I felt a little shy. But you only have to be on stage for one minute and remember that you are representing your country. Now, I don’t feel shy anymore," she said with a smile. Women in Burma have only been allowed to compete in bodybuilding since 2012, and few have taken up the sport. Aye Aye Soe wishes that more Burmese women would get into bodybuilding. Related Stories Thai firm makes hospital appointment in Burma Disabled rights council to be formed in Burma Can Burma reclaim its status as a major rice player? "Having muscles and being feminine don’t have to be separate. Some people think having muscle is masculine but we show on the stage that we are feminine too," she said. But Aye Aye Soe advised all women to exercise and stay healthy. "If you exercise with weights, whether you are thin or fat, your body will become fit and healthy. You will be nice and beautiful! You will also be mentally strong. And it will help protect against diseases. There are so many benefits," she said. Spurred by her big win in Singapore, Aye Aye Soe now has her eye set on the Asia Level contest in August.

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