Democratic Voice of Burma

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• Student massacre remembered at Rangoon University
• Bullet Points
• Suu Kyi advises NLD youth members to be true to the party
• Suu Kyi condemns fake NLD statement, calls for violence in Mandalay to be contained
• DVB Debate: Child soldiers are victims of war crimes

Student massacre remembered at Rangoon University Posted: 07 Jul 2014 05:31 AM PDT On 7 July 1962, students at Rangoon University staged a peaceful demonstration to protest the institution's lackluster education standards and unfair university regulations imposed by President Ne Win. The protest was violently suppressed by the newly installed military junta, resulting in the deaths of more than 100 students. The next day the army blew up the Students Union building, where students were taking refugee. The day would go down in history as the 7 July Students Massacre. On Monday, the All Burma Federation of Students Unions (ABSFU) organised a march of around 100 people through the university campus to commemorate the tragedy. The group carried flags, banners and laid wreaths of flowers, remembering those who had lost their lives 52 years ago. Former political prisoner Khin Win remembers trying to commemorate the massacre from behind bars. "In prison, when they knew we were planning to mark 7th July, the prison officers would nab us and throw us in dog cages ahead of time so that we couldn't do anything the next day," he said. "Now all of us, including the old students, are gathering here together." Related Stories Bullet Points Myitsone marchers on the home straight NUP elects Than Tin, 88, as chairman Speaking to DVB last year, veteran journalist and eye-witness Khin Maung Lay recounted what he saw. "The army came roaring in with tanks and soldiers in trucks," he said. "The students had lookouts deployed and we heard them shouting: 'The army is here! The army is here!' I couldn't believe what was happening and headed to the girls' dorms to see what was going on there. The gate was shut and it was totally dark. "The female students let me in the dorm. One sharp and smart activist, Ma Kyi Aye, told me: 'Let the soldiers come in with their guns. We have done nothing. We will remain here until they drag us out'. But when the soldiers came, we all ran." The following day, after the massacre, Khin Maung Lay said he went to Kamayut police station. "I saw them dragging students – females first – into trucks," he said. "My friend Ma Kyi Aye was among them. And then she was gone."

Bullet Points Posted: 07 Jul 2014 05:18 AM PDT Today on Bullet Points: As many as 350 people have been arrested in Mandalay after last Tuesday’s violence. The Dalai Lama has called on Burma's Buddhists to rise above communal tension. The All Burma Federation of Students’ Unions lead march of around 100 people through Rangoon University campus to commemorate the 7 July Students’ Massacre. The Burmese government is stepping up efforts to ten the flow of illegal goods from entering the country, mobile teams are now inspecting cargo at several ports in Rangoon.   Watch Bullet Points on DVB TV after the 7 o’clock news.

Suu Kyi advises NLD youth members to be true to the party Posted: 07 Jul 2014 05:04 AM PDT Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi launched her party's first Youth Congress over the weekend in Rangoon by appealing to prospective youth members to be true to the party's values, but advised them to leave the National League for Democracy (NLD) if they had joined up for opportunistic reasons. Held over the weekend in Rangoon's Royal Rose Hall, the NLD Youth Congress was convened with more than 150 youth representatives from across the country – the first time in 20 years that the NLD has held such an event. During the conference, the NLD appointed members aged between 16 to 35 into youth leadership positions throughout the country, with about 4,500 youth leaders at a township level, some 700 at a district level, and more than 200 at an administrative or regional level. Despite these large numbers of youth support, Suu Kyi urged the party's youth members to be true and examine their intentions for joining the party. "Some are not very clear about why they joined the NLD — whether if it is because they are interested in politics and believe in our policies, or if it is just for fun, or if they were persuaded by their friends. Perhaps it's because they think they can use the NLD as a stepping stone for their political career," the opposition leader said during a speech. "Some of you may have joined the NLD with the best of intentions and some of you, maybe not. But if you know yourself that you have jointed the party out of personal interests, I would like to frankly suggest to you that it would be best if you quit early," she said. Related Stories Suu Kyi condemns fake NLD statement, calls for violence in Mandalay to be contained Bullet Points DVB English Headlines 30/06/14 Maung Maung Ohn, a chairperson of the NLD Youth Congress organising committee, said that the youth members will be key in spreading the party's message and policies. "We convened the NLD Youth Congress with the objective of creating future leaders to work for the implementation of NLD's policies, for future work and regional development to proceed with more momentum," he said. While the NLD enjoys broad popular support – having won the 1990 elections with an overwhelming majority – the party is often plagued with problems of infighting. Former members who have been expelled from the party have alleged that the party falls victim to the same problems of nepotism as the ruling junta does with its relationships with cronies.

Suu Kyi condemns fake NLD statement, calls for violence in Mandalay to be contained Posted: 07 Jul 2014 03:18 AM PDT Aung San Suu Kyi, leader of the opposition National League for Democracy party (NLD), condemned the recent circulation of a fake NLD statement about last week's riots in Mandalay as a political attack on her party. A day after communal violence kicked off on 1 July in Mandalay's Chan Aye Tharzan Township, the NLD released a statement warning people to be wary of allowing rumours to "trigger the instability of the public" and urged authorities to investigate whether the rumours of a Buddhist maid being raped by Muslim teashop owners are true. Another statement, falsely attributed to the NLD, was also circulated on social media websites. It used derogatory language – such as calling Muslims "Kalars" – and also called for the arrest of Buddhist monks thatit said had instigated the riots. Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a parliament session in Naypyidaw on Friday, Suu Kyi reiterated the importance of containing the violence to prevent it from spreading further. However, she hypothesised that the unrest could have been staged to cause problems for her party. "The NLD usually does not comment on such incidents but we tried to be impartial on both sides to prevent further problems," Suu Kyi said. "We released a statement this time with concern for all parties, and immediately after, someone released the fake version." "We don't know who did this but we assume it is a political attack," she said. "Using religious issues for political gain is against the Constitution and also unethical." Suu Kyi, a Nobel laureate and a former icon for democracy, has remained silent on issues regarding anti-Muslim sentiment and violence, which has displaced more than 140,000 Muslims since June 2012. Her party's statement on 2 July urged authorities to keep the public informed. It also called for the protection of people and their properties. "It is undesirable to have unconfirmed rumours not only make people fearful, but also have unidentified mobs committing terrorising acts," the statement said. "The authorities also should take immediate action on such kind of rumours. They should investigate on the rumours and if true, transparent action should be taken," it said. "If the news is wrong, authorities should let people know what is right." Related Stories Suu Kyi advises NLD youth members to be true to the party Supreme Court lawyer criticises Mandalay govt handling of riots Bullet Points However, in stark contrast, the fake statement called for the jailing of the police force and Buddhist monks who failed to maintain public order, and insulted those who took part in the mob killings. Referring to Muslims as "Kalar", the statement also questioned whether the alleged rape of the Buddhist woman was consensual. "Unemployed and uneducated people in Mandalay who are not capable of logical thinking and who call themselves the 'patriots' are the ones instigating the unrest," the fake statement said, adding that the public should not "oppress" the Muslims. "There would be no grounds for such an incident taking place if Daw Aung San Suu Kyi was the president of Burma." 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. The Mandalay riots were sparked by an unsubstantiated rumour that Muslim teashop owners raped a Buddhist woman. At least two people were killed during the ensuing mob violence.

DVB Debate: Child soldiers are victims of war crimes Posted: 06 Jul 2014 11:05 PM PDT Burma has been engaged in civil war for more than 60 years. Continued reports of widespread and systematic human rights abuses against civilians by the military have emerged throughout this period. Underage recruitment is outlawed under both domestic and international law, and yet for decades, the practice has been commonplace in Burma. In part one of a special double episode from DVB Debate, panellists discuss why children are recruited into the army and how this reflects on the country. "If they want a larger military and only a few people want to serve, then they recruit those who are easy to take or easy to trick. That's how child soldiers are made," said Sui Khar from the Chin National Front. Cartoon: DVB Debate Audience member, Benjamin White, technical officer for the International Labour Organisation (ILO), said using child soldiers reflects a culture of impunity in the country. "The use of child soldiers speaks of a general lack of human dignity, a lack of respect for rule of law; and when you have a lack of respect for rule of law, you have a generalised culture of impunity," he said. In June 2012, the Burmese government signed a joint action plan with the UN to rid its forces of children. Since then, a total of 272 soldiers recruited as minors have been officially released and discharged. But Burma still ranks eighth worst in the world in the 2014 Child Soldiers Index, and some groups estimate there could be tens of thousands of soldiers who were recruited underage that are still in the military. "If the child is now over 18 but he was recruited when he was underage, then we ask that child whether he wants to quit or continue.  We give them the freedom of choice," said Myat Min Thu, child protection officer for UNICEF. The panellists discussed how effective the action plan could be while the military still has the power to intimidate. "These children live under the command of the army. They have already been brainwashed to obey," said Aung Myo Min, executive director for Equality Myanmar. "They may express their true feeling to their parents, as they cannot take anymore. But if they are asked in the army, they will say that they joined with their consent, that they don't want to quit and even that they enjoy it. There are so many cases like that." Panellists argued that as long as the military continues to be able to act with impunity, this problem would not be solved. "Just taking the children out of the army won't stop this problem. That's why I think we need to find the root cause," said Sui Khar. "As far as you know, is there any case in which the recruiters have been punished under the court martial law? I think in these kinds of cases, the punishment would be less than the punishment for desertion," said Myat Min Zaw, a law professor from Malaysia Multimedia University. Cartoon: DVB Debate Others said that punishment is not the only way to improve the situation. Many children who have grown up in poverty are lured into the army with promises of an endless food supply and financial security. Audience and panellists discussed who is responsible for protecting and supporting these communities. "Such protection is what the government should be doing. But as the government is not doing it, we must. Even though the government says we can inform them of these issues, actually they only work around Naypyidaw," said Aung Myo Min. There are now hotlines available for child recruits to call if they want to leave, and the UN taskforce is working to resettle and rehabilitate those who leave. Guests in the studio argued that for some soldiers, it's too late for rehabilitation. "What can be done for those who died in the battlefield? And what can be done for the children in the army units, battlefields and the border guard forces now?" asked Htet Aung Linn, from Rangoon-Laiza Peace March Group. "On our walking trip, we saw child soldiers throughout Nang Sar Yan line. What can be done for them?" Former child soldier Soe Thiha Tun said his life was put on hold when he was recruited. "As I was taken away in the middle of my high school education, my life has been delayed and I couldn't become as educated a person as my parents hoped." Related Stories DVB Debate: Why are drug abuse and production flourishing in Burma? DVB Debate: Is it too late to save Burma's crumbling heritage? DVB Debate: Will foreign aid help or hinder Burma? "These children are like nails stuck in wood.  Even if the nails are dug out, there will be scars left on the wall," said Aung Myo Min. During times of conflict, it is often the most vulnerable that become the victims, and women and children are routinely targeted. The studio generally agreed that there is still a lot of work to be done to help young soldiers recruited as children to leave the army without fear.   Coming up: Part two of the war crimes double bill, which will focus on sexual violence in conflict. Watch the Burmese version at http://www.youtube.com/user/DVBDebate Or join the debate by leaving your comment on our website.

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