Democratic Voice of Burma

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• Making a living on Rangoon’s roads
• PR, FPTP or five other electoral systems: Shwe Mann
• Michaungkan protestors stand fast as deadline passes
• Burma, US pledge to fight hate speech
• Rangoon police force short on manpower

Making a living on Rangoon’s roads Posted: 04 Oct 2014 12:33 AM PDT Migrants from across Burma have long converged on Rangoon in search of work. Now, one local philanthropist is helping new arrivals to saddle up onto the trishaw, as a simple and popular job.

PR, FPTP or five other electoral systems: Shwe Mann Posted: 04 Oct 2014 12:28 AM PDT Lower House Speaker Shwe Mann has instructed his parliamentary commission to submit at least seven options for electoral systems that could be suitable to Burma. His instructions to the 24-member commission came this week after the upper house of Burma's parliament passed a proposal in June recommending that a system of proportional representation (PR) be adopted for future elections. Debate was held in July in the House of Representatives, or lower house of parliament, over whether Burma should change from the present first-past-the-post (FPTP) electoral system to PR. On 31 July, Shwe Mann formed a 24-member parliamentary commission to study the proposed change ahead of landmark elections in 2015. The ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party is known to support the move to a PR system, while the opposition National League for Democracy is vehemently against any change. Related Stories PR protestors denounce Rangoon MP Images of the week Opposition party 'did not say' it would support Shwe Mann Speaking to DVB on Friday, Commission Chairman Tin Maung Oo said, "There are more than 100 different election systems in the world. PR is just one of them. Older people generally support FTPT, while the young prefer a PR system. So, we the Commission have submitted a third option, which is half FPTP and half-PR." Tin Maung Oo called on Burma's media to help explain the different election systems to the public. "Our first priority is to inform the public about the various electoral systems," he said. "Answer people's questions: What is FTPT? What does it mean? Which countries use this system and why? What is proportional representation? What is its benefit?" MP Khine Maung Yee said that everyone needs to make an informed choice on this matter. "People don’t know much about this issue," he said. "We need to conduct an educational campaign, supported by the government, NGOs and the international community."

Michaungkan protestors stand fast as deadline passes Posted: 03 Oct 2014 11:15 PM PDT As Saturday dawned, dozens of protestors from the Rangoon suburb of Michaungkan, who have been conducting a vigil outside Maha Bandula Park in the city centre to protest land grabs, were still occupying the public street despite a 3 October deadline ordered by local police to dismantle their camp and leave. As Friday's deadline struck, police did not appear at the protest site where many feared that force might once again be used to disperse the villagers. Many of the protestors were in a defiant mood as they spoke to DVB reporters from their protest camp on Maha Bandula Road, just 400m west of Sule Pagoda and Rangoon City Hall. "We are staying until our demands are met!" shouted one Michaungkan resident, pumping her fist to the sky. Another protestor, Saw Sandar, said that the municipal authorities had earlier approached and asked them to take down their shelters because they were blocking a footpath. "We told them we could not do that as we have several elderly people here who need protection from the weather," she said. Asked what the protestors would do if police were called in to remove them, she replied, "We don’t have any weapons and we will not fight back." Nay Nwe, a villager who said she has been involved in the protest from the beginning, said the authorities have handled the situation all wrong. "We are peaceful demonstrators waiting for a response [from the local government], and a resolution to the matter," she said. "I think they will come and use force to remove us in one or two days. But this is not the way it should be handled. We will not accept this as a solution." Related Stories Michaungkan activists ordered to leave park by 3 Oct 'Colonial style' red tape blamed for delay in returning seized land Thegon MP low-balled amount of confiscated land, say farmers More than 100 residents of Thingyangun's Mighaungkan village have participated in a series of sit-ins and other demonstrations demanding the return of land they say was confiscated by the Burmese military in 1990. A group of about 200 had initially set up camp at Thingyangun's Myasaryan Pagoda in late November 2013. About one week after the demonstrations began, on 2 December, approximately 400 villagers showed up at the site to receive funeral rites from local monks, proclaiming that they were "ready to die" for their land. Shortly after, demonstrators reported that they were attacked by a group of thugs who claimed to be military cleaning personnel. Within days of the incident, which reportedly left at least eight people injured, police issued an eviction order demanding that the site be cleared by 9 December. Protest leaders and the Land Investigation Commission negotiated a three-month hiatus of the occupation after the commission promised to deliver results within that time. Parliamentarian and Commission member Aung Thein Linn told DVB in December that the government was committed to solving the dispute. "Otherwise," he said, "it will be damaging to our country's image, especially while the SEA Games are being held." The country was at that time hurrying to prepare for a major regional sporting event, the Southeast Asian Games, which drew international attention and visitors. Three months later and still unsatisfied, about 100 protestors resumed the sit-in, this time bringing their grievances to Maha Bandula Park in downtown Rangoon, across the street from City Hall. One week later, on 30 March, they were forcibly dispersed in an early morning raid by city officials and dozens of plain-clothed men. The demonstrators vowed to keep fighting and have maintained a presence at the park ever since. In August, a 72-year-old protestor died at the encampment after 138 days of her sit-in. At that time, her fellow activists reiterated that nothing would make them accept the loss of their land, even death. During the military regime, land was routinely confiscated by the government for state use. Since the reforms began in 2011, protests have been increasingly common all across Burma as villagers have attempted to reclaim lost assets. New land legislation introduced in early 2012 has met major criticism, with some claiming that the new laws legitimise government and corporate acquisition while offering little protection for individuals. A government commission established in 2012 has begun fielding Burma's thousands of land-grab claims but has yet to provide satisfactory recourse.

Burma, US pledge to fight hate speech Posted: 03 Oct 2014 10:23 PM PDT The Burmese government will cooperate with the United States to fight against hate speech. Burma's Information Minister Ye Htut said he had made an agreement to fight against the use of hate speech on the internet at a meeting on Friday morning with US Ambassador Derek Mitchell. Ye Htut told DVB he and the US ambassador had discussed matters relating to media management at the upcoming ASEAN summit in Naypyidaw, media development, and the prevention of hate speech on the internet. Ye Htut said the Ministry of Information had previously worked with the US's Rangoon embassy in hosting a workshop aimed at deterring young people in Burma from posting provocative or racially abusive comments on the internet. "Last year, we organised a workshop with the US embassy, and we have also supported civil society groups such as the Panzagar Campaign," he said. Launched in April this year, the Panzagar (meaning "flower speech") Campaign was the creation of well-known blogger and former political prisoner Nay Phone Latt. Ye Htut said the government was now planning similar workshops for later this year to educate young internet users on "how to follow and understand information on the internet and in the media". Related Stories Irrawaddy news site hacked following Wirathu article Wirathu attends conference of nationalist Sri Lankan monks Karen State parliament closes with passage of two laws The opening of the internet in Burma has seen rampant abuse by extremist groups spreading misinformation, inciting violence and circulating false reports and pictures. In Mandalay in July, a false claim of rape levelled at two Muslims that was circulated on Facebook by nationalist monk Wirathu and his followers led to mob violence and riots in which two people were killed and 20 injured. The government shut down the Facebook social media site for several hours to quell the spread of the false report after thousands of comments circulated online urging revenge against the two brothers, who were named and their address and telephone numbers published. 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 (MPT) says it plans to increase bandwidth by 700 percent to meet the ever-growing demand. According to MPT, there are currently around two million internet users in Burma, a number that is expected to increase to three million in the next year. In addition, the roll-out of services by international telecommunications firms Ooredoo and Telenor could see that figure multiplied exponentially as the two foreign telecoms compete to offer telephone and internet services to even the most remote parts of Burma. Information Minister Ye Htut also told DVB that during his talks with Ambassador Mitchell, they also "discussed possibilities of cooperating on media management during the upcoming ASEAN summit." US President Barack Obama is scheduled to attend the East Asia Summit, which will be hosted in Naypyidaw on 11-12 November, while Bagan hosts an ASEAN Defence Ministers Meeting on 12-13 November.

Rangoon police force short on manpower Posted: 03 Oct 2014 08:16 PM PDT Rangoon's police force has just over 5,000 officers, enforcing the law and dealing with the crime in a city of more than seven million people. The ratio of population to police indicates that for every one police officer there are 1,365 persons, much higher than international standards Rangoon Division Deputy Police Chief Myint Htwe pointed out the shortage of police officers during the 50th anniversary celebration of the Myanmar Police Force. "Currently there are 5,538 police officers in Rangoon, each of whom is responsible for 1,365 people," said the deputy police chief. He further highlighted the shortage of manpower in Rangoon police force by comparing the ratio to an international standard, which is ideally 400-to-one. Related Stories Census-takers fail to count Rohingyas Burma’s first census in 30 years begins Building consensus on the census However, despite Rangoon's shortcomings, it still fairs better than other cities and regions in Burma. In fact, Rangoon has 62 percent of the entire Burmese police force, leaving the remainder of the country with less than 3,400 officers to patrol more than 40 million people in an area – at 676,578 km2, a little larger than France – a country not densely populated compared to its neighbours. Myint Htwe pointed out that he believes there has been an increase in public cooperation and acceptance of the police force, ever since the EU imparted training to the police force in Burma earlier in February. The deputy chief said that, "We have found more acceptance from the people." He added that, "More often than not, when people need help, they are now calling 199 or their local police station." In stating how the Burmese police force has incorporated the training into their system, the deputy chief noted that the number of patrols has increased across the city. Furthermore, he said, police are implementing preventive measures and undertaking more thorough investigations before a case is presented in court. As of September 2014, police logs recorded 340 serious criminal cases along with 1,468 other cases of crime in Rangoon Division. It also listed 1,800 preventive cases of arrest. Earlier in September, the Asia Human Rights Commission notified the United Nations about the widespread use of torture by the Burmese police. The police force has, in the past, received flak for arresting and torturing innocent civilians and framing them with crimes. The Burmese Police Force was formed 50 years ago on 1 October 1964. On Wednesday, "Golden Jubilee" events were held in Naypyidaw and Rangoon to mark the occasion.

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