Thursday, December 25, 2014

Democratic Voice of Burma

Democratic Voice of Burma

Shan State citizens rally for peace and ethnic rights

Posted: 25 Dec 2014 02:17 AM PST

Hundreds of people in the Pa-O and Danu self-administrated zones in Shan State held demonstrations on Wednesday calling for peace in Burma.

Around 400 Danu people marched through the town of Pindaya in western Shan State, carrying placards with demands for peace and for the recognition of all ethnic groups, said Chit Sein, chairman of the Danu Literature and Culture Association.

"The demands included calls for the government to take charge of the peace process; the country's development; ethnic affairs in Shan State; to include ethnic representatives in amending the Constitution; and objections to the proposed sexpartite dialogue," he said.

The march was also joined by the Pa-O Women's Organisation and several other civil society groups.

Chit Sein added that the demonstration was organised by the Danu people, without influence from the government or any political party.

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He maintains that although Danu Pindaya and Ywarngan are within the Danu Self-Administrated Zone, its locals not do not enjoy full autonomy due to the administrative system being dominated by Burmese government officers.

On the same day, around 2,000 Pa-O people from Hsihseng and Hopong towns of the Pa-O Self-Administrated Zone marched in the Shan State capital Taunggyi with a similar list of demands.

"We have five demands: the government must accomplish implementation of the internal peace process; undertake swift development and reforms; include the demands and rights of ethnic nationalities in the law; to facilitate ethnic nationalities to extensively take part in the effort to amend the Constitution; and to immediately implement these points," said Khun Maung Baw, deputy-public relations coordinator of the Pa-O National Organisation, which organised the event.

The post Shan State citizens rally for peace and ethnic rights appeared first on DVB Multimedia Group.

Burma govt pledges support to Koh Tao murder suspects

Posted: 25 Dec 2014 01:34 AM PST

Burma's government and upper house of parliament have pledged to provide financial and moral support to Burmese migrants Zaw Lin and Win Zaw Htun, who are due in court on Friday to face charges of murdering two British tourists on the Thai island of Koh Tao.

Htoo Chit, one of the members of a delegation organised by the Burmese embassy in Bangkok, said, "On 19 December, we met with representatives of the upper house and they pledged to provide all necessary assistance, including financial support. Afterwards, we met with representatives of the President's Office in Naypyidaw, led by deputy-minister U Aung Thein, and they offered to help us find witnesses by writing to local governments where they might live."

He said most of the potential witnesses reside in southern Burma's Tenasserim Division.

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The trial begins on Koh Samui in southern Thailand on 26 December. Families of the suspects are expected to attend.

Zaw Lin and Win Zaw Htun stand accused of seven charges, including the murders of Hannah Witheridge and David Miller, and the rape of Witheridge.

The Burmese pair have pleaded not guilty.

The post Burma govt pledges support to Koh Tao murder suspects appeared first on DVB Multimedia Group.

Former NLD official sued for ‘insulting religion’

Posted: 25 Dec 2014 12:28 AM PST

A former National League for Democracy (NLD) official appeared in court in Sagaing division on 24 December, after being sued for criticising the fundamentalist Buddhist monk-led group Ma-Ba-Tha .

Former NLD information officer and writer, Htin Lin Oo, is being sued by the local immigration chief Tun Khine under instructions from the regional Sangha Mahanayaka [head monk] Committee after he criticised the Ma-Ba-Tha in a public speech in Chaung-U Township on 23 October.

He was subsequently sacked by the NLD when his speech went viral on social media, drawing ire from Buddhist fundamentalists. He is being sued under articles 295(a) and 298 of the Penal Code for religious defamation and hurting religious feelings.

"The plaintiff [Tun Khine] told the court that remarks made by Htin Lin Oo in his speech were deemed defamatory towards the religion," Htin Lin Oo's attorney, Thein Than Oo, said after the hearing.

Tun Khine, responding to the defence lawyers' questioning, insisted the lawsuit against Htin Lin Oo was not politically motivated and had nothing to do with his status as an NLD member.

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Htin Lin Oo was denied a request for bail and has been detained in Monywa prison since he was indicted on 17 December. He had pledged to personally apologise to Buddhist monks for his remarks if he was granted bail.

Defence lawyer Thein Than Oo said there was no Ma-Ba-Tha mob in front of the courthouse on Wednesday, unlike the previous hearing on 17 December when the fundamentalists showed up and demanded harsh punishment on Htin Lin Oo. However, a group of Htin Lin Oo's supporters, including an influential monk from Mandalay, attended the hearing.

"After learning that the Ma-Ba-Tha came to pressure the court in the first hearing, many supporters of U Htin Lin Oo including the Myawaddy [monastery] Sayaadaw Ariawunsa from Mandalay showed up on Wednesday and the Ma-Ba-Tha monks were nowhere to be seen," Thein Than Oo said.

The post Former NLD official sued for ‘insulting religion’ appeared first on DVB Multimedia Group.

Latpadaung protestor was killed by gunshot, says coroner

Posted: 24 Dec 2014 09:04 PM PST

The coroner at Salingyi Township Hospital confirmed a woman killed at a protest in Latpadaung on Monday died from a gunshot wound to the head.

After performing autopsy on Khin Win's body in Wednesday, the hospital's coroner, Dr Tin Nwe, and head of hospital Nyunt Than told reporters at a press conference she died from a single gunshot wound.

"By the look of the injury, we conclude that it is a bullet wound – we checked elsewhere on the body and did not find any other injury," said Tin Nwe.

"This wound was not inflicted by a blunt object. We conclude that a bullet hit her in the forehead."

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He said there was no anomaly found in the autopsy, and that he could not answer questions from reporters as to what type of firearm was used or the distance the bullet traveled as he is not a firearms expert.

A government report on Tuesday claimed security forces fired 15 shots from crowd-control guns amid confrontations with the villagers at the Latpadaung copper mining project site on Monday.

This confirms the suspicions of many already involved in the case. Earlier in the week a firearms specialist who saw photos of Khin Win's body and activists who were on the scene when she was killed told DVB they believed she died from a gunshot wound.

Nyan Linn, a member of the activist group 88 Generation Peace and Open Society, who was at the morgue in Monywa, said based on the look of the wound, it was not possible that Khin Win was shot with a rubber bullet.

"Khin Win was not shot with a rubber bullet. It has has the characteristics of a gunshot – a small entry wound and large exit wound."

He said three villagers were shot with live ammunition during the clash on Monday, and others sustained injuries from rubber bullets.

After the autopsy, Khin Win's body was carried back to her home in Mogyopyin village by fellow villagers. Her funeral is scheduled for Thursday afternoon.

The post Latpadaung protestor was killed by gunshot, says coroner appeared first on DVB Multimedia Group.
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