The Irrawaddy Magazine

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• Opposition Accuses USDP of Using Civil Servants for Political Gain
• Rangoon Police Charge Ko Ko Gyi, 4 Other Activists for Unauthorized Protest
• Police Kill Villager in Copper Mine Standoff
• Thein Sein Pushes Referendum Suffrage for White Card Holders
• Foreigners Charged over ATM Scams in Rangoon
• Urban Experts Urge Restrained Development of Rangoon
• Top Ethnic Leaders, Burma Army Reps Absent From Ceasefire Talks
• DKBA Unveils Overture to United Karen Armed Forces
• Illicit Trade in Wild Cats Down in Tachilek, Up in Mong La: Report
• Burmese Firm Picks Puma Energy as Jet Fuel Distribution Partner
• Obama Says Sony Hack Not an Act of War
• India Hindu Group to Press Ahead on Conversions in Challenge to PM Modi
• 10 Years On, Tsunami Warning Stumbles at ‘Last Mile’

Opposition Accuses USDP of Using Civil Servants for Political Gain Posted: 22 Dec 2014 04:52 AM PST Civil servants showcase departmental works at a USDP-sponsored meeting with farmers in Pathein, Irrawaddy Division on Dec. 15, 2014. (Photo: Salai Thant Zin/Irrawaddy)v PATHEIN, Irrawaddy Division — Two political parties plan to file a complaint against the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) for violating terms of civil service during a recent rally in Irrawaddy Division. The Farmer's Party and the National League for Democracy (NLD) claimed that the USDP violated rules of civil service by enlisting department employees to operate informative booths at a farming and agricultural development conference hosted by the party on Dec. 15, 2014. Burma's civil service personnel are not allowed to participate in party politics, as stated in Article 26(a) of the 2008 Constitution. "The ruling party," said Myo Nyunt, chairperson of the NLD's Irrawaddy Division chapter, "should not use [government] departments in rallying support for itself, misusing their administrative power." San Lay, representing the Farmers' Party in Irrawaddy Division, said that the USDP "blatantly violated the law when they asked departmental personnel to run booths in their meeting," adding that the meeting "looked more like one organized by the government rather than by a party." Several reports estimated more than 5,000 agricultural workers in Irrawaddy Division gathered at sporting grounds in Pathein where Parliamentary Speaker Shwe Mann joined the division's Chief Minister Thein Aung for the two-and-a-half hour event. Some civil servants told The Irrawaddy that Thein Aung had asked them to operate the booths, which showcased the work of government departments including agriculture, rural development and fisheries. Aung Tin Myint, secretary of the divisional chapter of the USDP, said that the party only assisted department personnel, but did not request their participation. Opposition party members argued that the conference, which was organized by the USDP and attended by some of its most prominent members, was held to shore up support in advance of elections. They further claimed that the presence of civil servants had the effect of making what was ostensibly a political campaign appear to be a nonpartisan government program. New election rules limit campaign periods to 60 days leading up to a vote. The conference primarily focused on the USDP's agricultural policies, during which the Speaker—who is widely considered a fron-trunner for the presidency if the USDP wins a majority of Parliament in elections slated for late 2015—urged farmers to have patience and "cooperate" in order to see future benefits. President Thein Sein signed the Farmers' Interests Promotion Law in late 2014, legislation that was proposed by the USDP in 2013 amid criticism by farmers' rights activists and economists. Shwe Mann spoke at length about the legislation, emphasizing that "the law is not enough," and that both "party-member farmers" and non-USDP "partner farmers" need to work together to implement it. The law contains measures to increase agricultural loans, extend grace periods and compensate farmers for damaged yields, the Speaker explained, adding that changes should be noticeable before the next harvest. Chief Minister Thein Aung told the crowd that the party's policies have laid foundations for a stronger agricultural sector and that progress will be in "full swing" after 2015. "The past few years have been a transitional period during which the government built up the country," the minister said. "We'll work hard during our remaining term to make sure you receive fruitful results. This work will be in full swing after 2015, 2016, therefore farmers need to give due consideration." Several USDP lawmakers and high-profile party members attended the permitted assembly, including the party's vice chairmen Htay Oo and Aye Myint. Similar events have been planned for other parts of the country, including one slated for Bago Division in the near future. The NLD and the Farmers' Party contended that due to the apparent partisan nature of the event, the presence of government employees was inappropriate. Both parties reported the case their respective central committees and, pending their approval, will file an official complaint with the Union Elections Commission, their representatives said. The post Opposition Accuses USDP of Using Civil Servants for Political Gain appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

Rangoon Police Charge Ko Ko Gyi, 4 Other Activists for Unauthorized Protest Posted: 22 Dec 2014 04:46 AM PST 88 Student Generation leader Ko Ko Gyi speaks with the media at a march in Rangoon's South Okkalar Township on Sunday. (Photo: Ko Ko Gyi / Facebook) RANGOON — Rangoon police said they have brought criminal charges against five activists, including prominent 88 Student Generation leader Ko Ko Gyi, who are accused of holding an unauthorized protest calling for the restoration of a public park in South Okkalar Township that was seized by the ruling party about a decade ago. Ko Ko Gyi and local activists Saw Naing, Mone Khat, Naing Ko Lin and Sit Maung were among the organizers and speakers at a small march through South Okkalar's Ward 9 on Sunday, where they announced plans to campaign against a planned construction project at the former park. South Okkalar Township Police Station chief Myo Aung said the organizers had violated Article 19 of the Peaceful Assembly Law, as authorities had only granted them permission to demonstrate within the walled premises of Kyaikkasan, an old horse-racing track in Tamwe Township. "They were only allowed [to demonstrate] in the western part of Kyaikkasan Stadium, but they demonstrated at the South Okkalar Township," Myo Aung said, adding that police had completed an investigation against the five activists and would "soon" file a case with the township court. Article 19, a sister clause to the better-known and controversial Article 18 of the Peace Assembly Law, stipulates punishment of three months' imprisonment for violating a separate provision in the legislation requiring protestors to remain within the area police have designated for a protest. Rangoon police in recent months have regularly chosen to only authorize protests in Kyaikkasan Stadium, an unattractive proposition for demonstration organizers who seek public attention for their causes. More than 40 activists have subsequently been hit with charges under Article 19 for not following police instructions. Saw Naing said the South Okkalar activists had been informed by police that they were being charged under Article 19 and were asked to sign a statement promising that they would appear in court if a trial begins. He said holding a protest in the old horse-racing grounds, as police had authorized them to do, was pointless and therefore organizers ignored the order. "We are demanding to stop a construction project that is located at South Okkalar Township. Kyaikkasan [Stadium] is so far from that place and there are no people at that stadium," he said. Regardless of the charges, Saw Yaing said, a campaign would continue to resists plans to give the former public park controlled by the ruling party to Yan Naing Construction Company, which intends to build a block of condominiums at the site. In the 1960s, the area in Ward 9 on the corner of Waizayanthar Road and Thit Sar Street was turned into a public park and playground, but in the early 2000s the then-military government gave the public property to the Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA), the political mass movement of the junta and predecessor of the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP). The party built a township office and a number of shop houses in the area, but recently planned a joint development project with Yan Naing Construction Company. Saw Yaing said the activists planned to petition residents of Ward 9 and surrounding neighborhoods and collect at least 200 signatures in support of a letter to President Thein Sein calling on him to cancel the construction project and restore the old park. Phone Myint Aung, an independent Upper House lawmaker, said a USDP sign board at the site in Ward 9 indicated that the area was property of the party, a situation he said that violates the Political Party Registration Law. "I will collect information and complain to the Union Election Commission," he added. Activist Faces Article 19 Charge for Unauthorized Aung San March Police in Rangoon's Kyimyindaing Township charged an activist under Article 19 of the Peaceful Assembly Law on Friday after he organized an unauthorized march to mark the 100th anniversary of the birth of Burmese independence hero Gen. Aung San. Organizer Win Htike Hein said township police had granted him permission to hold a rally within the premises of Kyaikkasan, the old horse-racing track, an order he had ignored because it was not a public space. He said he had walked with about 200 people on Dec. 8 from Kyimyindaing Township to Rangoon Town Hall in Kyauktada Township, adding that on Friday he had been informed by police that he was facing criminal charges under Article 19. Authorities in all six townships the march passed through were seeking to charge him, Win Htike Hein said. Kyimyindaing Township Police Station Toe Shwe said, "We have charged with Article 19. We took action according to the law as he went beyond the permitted area." Additional reporting by Bhone Myat. The post Rangoon Police Charge Ko Ko Gyi, 4 Other Activists for Unauthorized Protest appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

Police Kill Villager in Copper Mine Standoff Posted: 22 Dec 2014 04:41 AM PST Protesters stop trucks during a previous protest at the site of the Letpadaung copper mining project in Sagaing Division. (Photo: Han Win Aung) MANDALAY — A woman was fatally shot by police on Monday as villagers attempted to prevent a land seizure near the Letpadaung copper mining project, Sagaing police confirmed. Khin Win, 50, joined a crowd of roughly 60 villagers trying to obstruct contractors attempting to build a fence around disputed farmlands. She died on the scene when police opened fire at the crowd after villagers threw stones and fired slingshots at the authorities. Locals said that at least 10 other villagers were injured. "The fight began this morning, and later the police fired into the crowd. Daw Khin Win was shot in the head and died on the spot," said farmer Ko Htwe of Hse Tae village, where the incident occurred. Sagaing police confirmed that one woman died after being shot by an officer and at least two policemen were injured by the villagers. The crowd gathered around 10am as contractors hired by the mine's operator, Chinese mining firm Wanbao, attempted to fence off an area the company had not yet legally acquired, villagers said. Some positioned themselves in front of company vehicles to physically block them. After a tense standoff between villagers, contractors, and officers deployed to carry out project security, some villagers began throwing stones at police, who had ordered them to vacate the area. At around 3pm, police fired back. Villagers told The Irrawaddy that police presence has increased over the past week as Wanbao accelerated land demarcation for the project. "There are more than 300 police guarding the area near Hse Tae and Laikkum Mountain, together with the workers from Wanbao," one farmer said, explaining that fights sometimes take place between company workers and locals. Just yesterday, he said, a minor altercation ended with a group of villagers and project employees punching and slapping each other in the face. "Many more locals gathered near the area after they heard the news," said the farmer, who wished to remain anonymous. "We were worried about what would happen next." The Letpadaung copper mining project, a joint venture between Wanbao and the Union of Myanmar Economic Holdings (UMEH), became one of Burma's most notorious developments in November 2012, when police fired incendiary devices against demonstrators during a brutal crackdown at a protest camp. Scores were injured in the early morning raid, including Buddhist monks, many with burns that have been attributed to white phosphorous. Operations were temporarily suspended, but opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi later told affected communities that the project should be allowed to resume under certain conditions. Resistance to the development continued nonetheless, and in May this year villagers in Hse Tae kidnapped and held two Wanbao employees hostage, later releasing them without injury. Protests continue over the project due to land loss, environmental destruction and defilement of sacred religious structures. The post Police Kill Villager in Copper Mine Standoff appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

Thein Sein Pushes Referendum Suffrage for White Card Holders Posted: 22 Dec 2014 04:35 AM PST President Thein Sein takes notes at a meeting with 63 political parties in Rangoon on March 29, 2014. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy) President Thein Sein has recommended that Burma's temporary identity card holders, also known as "white card holders," be allowed to vote in a proposed referendum on amendments to the 2008 military-drafted Constitution. According to members of Parliament's Joint Bill Committee, Thein Sein sent the constitutional referendum bill back to Parliament, including a written remark that white card holders should be granted the right to vote due to the fact that they were allowed to do so during the referendum to approve the Constitution in May 2008. The president's input, sent to the Union Parliament's Joint Bill Committee last week, highlighted Article 11(a) under Chapter Five of the referendum bill, a draft of which was published in state newspapers on Nov. 26. Article 11(a) of the bill reads: "All citizens, naturalized citizens, associate citizens and the temporary card-holders, who are 18 years old, has the right to vote on the referendum day and these people must be included in the voter lists." Ba Shein, a Joint Bill Committee member and Lower House lawmaker from the Arakan National Party, told The Irrawaddy that the committee would submit its recommendations to the Union Parliament, which will reconvene in the third week of January. "I cannot say the decision of the committee on the president's remark until it is shared in the upcoming parliamentary session," said Ba Shein, who hinted at his personal position on the issue. "Personally, I think political affairs are entirely the concern of citizens and not non-citizens," said the Arakanese lawmaker. Parliament has the power to vote down the president's suggestion in its final approval. Thein Sein's comment marks a different approach to white card holders than he took on separate elections-related legislation in October, when the president shared the view of Parliament on a change to the Political Parties Registration Law, signing off on an amendment barring white card holders from forming political parties. The vast majority of white cards holders—estimated to number some 850,000 in total—are Rohingya Muslims in Arakan State who the government classifies as "Bengalis" and largely denies citizenship. The cards were first issued in 1993, under the previous military junta. A majority of white card holders voted in favor of the 2008 Constitution and supported candidates from the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) in 2010. Critics of the decision to allow white card holders to vote have accused the USDP of essentially buying votes through the cards' issuance, in a region where there is strong support for Arakanese parties among the majority ethnic Arakanese constituencies. Abu Tahay, a Rohingya leader who has been trying for two years to register his political party, the National Union Development Party, said Thein Sein's recommendation reflected the president's conception of an "all inclusive" national reform process. "If the temporary card holders, whose existence in the country has been recognized, are not allowed to vote, it would be against to the voters' rights enshrined in the 2008 Constitution," he said. Apart from the Political Parties Registration Law and the referendum bill put forward by Parliament, white cards holders currently retain the right to vote, as laid out in electoral laws at the Union and regional levels. Several lawmakers said the president appeared to be backing the Union Election Commission. UEC member Myint Naing told Parliament last month that the right to vote should extend to the same populations that were given suffrage in the 2010 national election, given that there have been no changes to electoral laws in the interim. Hla Maung Cho, the commission's deputy director, told The Irrawaddy on Monday that the process of compiling voter lists, which began last month, was being carried out in accordance with all relevant electoral laws. The post Thein Sein Pushes Referendum Suffrage for White Card Holders appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

Foreigners Charged over ATM Scams in Rangoon Posted: 22 Dec 2014 03:56 AM PST A Cooperative Bank ATM in downtown Rangoon. (Photo: Steve Tickner / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — Five foreigners have been detained for their involvement in two separate ATM scams operating across Rangoon, with senior industry figures saying the incidents highlight security risks in the country's banking sector. British citizen Niranjan Rasalingam and three Indian nationals were detained and charged while withdrawing money using cloned ATM cards in Rangoon on Nov. 22. Police estimate that the group stole 25.2 million kyats (US$24,400) in 58 separate transactions across six local banks. A fifth member of the syndicate, also an Indian national, is currently still at large. In a separate incident, police detained a Bulgarian citizen in the same circumstances on Dec. 13. His accomplice, another Bulgarian national, is being sought by police. Pe Myint, managing director of the Cooperative Bank, said that his bank branches had been targeted by ATM scammers more than 20 times, with three successful withdrawals. "We lost only about one million kyats—it's a small amount, but other local banks have faced similar problems," he said. "They used fake Visa cards with real card numbers, and the money that they stole came from accounts in other countries." Pe Myint added that Cooperative Bank was still waiting to see whether it would be liable to compensate account holders in the event that Visa did not take responsibility for reimbursing fraud victims. Chit Khine, chairman of Myanmar Apex Bank, said that while his bank was not used for any fraudulent withdrawals, the incidents highlighted the need for local banks to increase security and update their systems, with a special emphasis on the role of the country's sole card payment system, the Myanmar Payment Union (MPU). "The Myanmar Payment Union should evaluate the security of the card system and local banks should recheck the quality of their machines too," he said. "If we don't pay attention to our systems and security, our customers may also eventually face these problems." The MPU was founded three years ago and established the first ATM payment system in Burma as the banking sector caught up from decades of neglect. Its members include 18 local banks, including three state-run enterprises, and its systems offer support for Visa, MasterCard and China Union Pay cards, amongst others. The first ATM in Burma began operating in 2012, and there are now more than more than 2,000 machines in Rangoon, Mandalay and Naypyidaw servicing 200,000 bankcard users nationwide. The Myanmar Police Force said they are still investigating the incidents, according to the New Light of Myanmar. The post Foreigners Charged over ATM Scams in Rangoon appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

Urban Experts Urge Restrained Development of Rangoon Posted: 22 Dec 2014 03:29 AM PST The Shwe Phone Pwint Pagoda is pictured among the low-rise buildings of Rangoon. (Photo: Steve Tickner / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — A group of Burmese urban experts and their organizations have sent an open letter to Burma's president, requesting "urgent action" to rein in unruly urbanization projects that have had negative consequences due to a lack of "systematic urban planning controls" for the city. The letter also warns that "if the current situation is not controlled in time, [problems] will not be able to be solved in the next four or five decades, and Rangoon will face more difficult challenges." In the three-point appeal to President Thein Sein on Friday, the Association of Myanmar Architects, Myanmar Engineer Society and Yangon Heritage Trust called on the government to suspend construction projects planned or already underway at Rangoon's heritage sites, such as the area surrounding Shwedagon Pagoda and the historic downtown core. The appeal said such projects could threaten both city dwellers and urban landscapes. The letter also suggests the formation of a committee made up of experts on sustainable urban management, in order to urgently review and manage development projects in the city. Additionally, the signatories urge the government to enact the Myanmar National Building Code and Zoning Plan, both of which have existed in draft form for more than one year. The letter was made available to media on Saturday at a Save Yangon Forum, where urban experts and other interested parties discussed Rangoon's problems and potential solutions. Sun Oo, the forum's moderator and vice president of the Association of Myanmar Architects, said the experts were aware that a status quo approach to urbanization in Rangoon would be a threat to future generations. "If we don't speak out now based on what we know, we will feel guilty. That's why we sent the letter to the president. But we are worried the letter will be ignored," he said at the forum. Kyaw Lat, an advisor to the Yangon City Development Committee's Urban Development Affairs department, said laws and regulations to control building density were of paramount importance. "The Zoning Plan still hasn't been recognized by the government. We have that kind of problem," he said. The request to the president comes at a time when Rangoon is, as experts at the forum unanimously agreed, under threat due to a lack of urban planning and controls. The weak regulatory framework has led to a boom in construction projects and widely varying population densities across town, causing social, commercial and infrastructural problems for residents. For all of its former grandeur—the old capital was once considered one of the most beautiful cities in Southeast Asia—Rangoon today is a city of dysfunction and neglect. Monsoon rains regularly leave parts of the city inundated; commute times have dramatically increased as roads have become congested by growing numbers of taxis and private vehicles; sidewalks are disappearing to make way for parking spaces; and public spaces like parks are being converted into shopping malls, all in the name of urban development. "Given the condition Rangoon is in today, it could easily win the Dirtiest and Messiest City in Southeast Asia Award, if there were such a competition," said Maw Lin, a Rangoon-based architect, during his forum talk, titled "Suffocating Yangon." Hlaing Maw Oo, an urban planning expert from the Department of Housing and Resettlement, said at the forum that some overpopulated townships in Rangoon have more than 1,000 people living in one hectare. The number is far beyond that of one of the most densely populated cities in the world, Dhaka, where an average of 555 people live per hector, she added. "That number [more than 1,000] signals there would be [attendant] negative social, commercial, urban infrastructure and health impacts. It should be not more than 200-250 people per hectare. It shows Yangon needs to control its urban development properly," she said. According to the 2014 national census, the former capital is home to more than 5.2 million people, about 35 percent of Burma's urban population. Since the country's opening to the outside world in 2012, the city has been undergoing rapid changes. New investment has brought urban development projects and high-rise construction, even as migrants from across the country are arriving to Rangoon in search of better opportunities. Amid the changing urban tide, the city lacks proper construction guidelines and zoning ordinances. According to the letter to the president, rules and regulations used to govern the construction of high-rises and apartment buildings are out of date. As an example, one expert cited the fact that the regulations currently in place were written at a time when buildings were not constructed higher than three to four stories, an inadequate template for a modern Rangoon in which buildings of six to 20 stories are increasingly common. As a result, present day Rangoon has seen the construction of many poorly regulated apartment buildings where residents' safety and health are at risk. "The main problem is we haven't got proper town planning controls," said Hla Su Myat, an architect for the government's Urban Development Proposal Scrutinizing Committee. "My suggestion is we should control the building density in the city before it's too late." The open letter is not the first effort to raise public awareness about the pressures facing Rangoon. Last year, the World Monuments Fund put the city on its list of places "at risk from the forces of nature and the impact of social, political, and economic change." The post Urban Experts Urge Restrained Development of Rangoon appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

Top Ethnic Leaders, Burma Army Reps Absent From Ceasefire Talks Posted: 22 Dec 2014 02:51 AM PST Minister Aung Min (center) listens during high-level nationwide ceasefire talks at the Myanmar Peace Center in Rangoon on Monday morning. He is flanked by Lt-Gen. Thet Niang Win (left) and Union Minister Thein Zaw. (Photo: Steve Tickner / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — Burma Army representatives and top leaders of ethnic armed groups are not attending the two-day nationwide ceasefire talks in Rangoon this week, a situation that indicates just how much the negotiations have suffered following the army's surprise attack on a rebel training school last month. The government's chief negotiator, Minister Aung Min, led a delegation that included Border Affairs Minister Lt-Gen. Htet Naing Win and Immigration Minister Khin Ye, but Burma Army representatives were conspicuously absent as the sides convened at the Myanmar Peace Center (MPC) in Rangoon on Monday morning. The National Ceasefire Coordination Team (NCCT), an alliance representing 16 ethnic groups, sent NCCT representatives Khun Okkar and Kwe Htoo Win to the meeting, but NCCT Chairman Nai Hong Sar and Gen. Gun Maw, the influential deputy commander-in-chief of the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), did not attend. Neither did leaders from the Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA). It was the first high-level meeting since September when NCCT leaders, Aung Min and the military met in Rangoon. At the time, hopes for a quick breakthrough to reaching a nationwide ceasefire began to fade as the sides were unable to bridge differences over key issues, such as political autonomy and federalism for ethnic states. Trust between the sides was shattered when on Nov. 19 the Burma Army fired a number of artillery rounds into the grounds of a KIA training camp where dozens of young cadets were exercising. The surprise attack injured more than a dozen cadets and killed 23, most of them from rebel groups allied to the KIA, such as the TNLA and the Arakan Army. In recent months, deadly armed clashes between the Burma Army and the KIA, TNLA and Kokang ethnic militia have become more frequent in northern Shan State. The three rebel groups all lack bilateral ceasefires with the government. The NCCT representatives had stressed prior to this week's meeting that the issue of the attack should be properly explained by the government and army before discussions could move on to nationwide ceasefire talks. On Monday, they repeated their demands. "We wanted to ask for the formation of a commission [to investigate the shelling] and hold a meeting to negotiate this agreement, which could involve every leader who was involved in the [shelling] case in Laiza," said Kwe Htoo Win, who is also the Karen National Union general secretary. "By negotiating this issue, it will help the peace talks … It would open the door for future discussions for having a nationwide ceasefire accord," he said. "Our NCCT will not skip discussions on this issue and we will confront it to find a solution." Aung Min said in his opening remarks at the meeting that the shelling incident in Laiza shows that much work remains to be done to strengthen existing bilateral ceasefires between ethnic groups and the government, and that a nationwide ceasefire is needed to achieve peace and stability. "We cannot solve conflicts if we could not reach a nationwide peace agreement," said Aung Min, adding that there is a need to resume nationwide ceasefire negotiations so that they can be completed ahead of the general elections in late 2015. Hla Maung Shwe, a senior government advisor at the MPC, told The Irrawaddy that the Burma Army was absent because of the NCCT's demands that the shelling incident is addressed before the nationwide ceasefire issue. "The army wanted to join the meeting, but from the ethnics' side they said they just wanted to have a framework meeting first. This is why U Aung Min informed [the military] not to come," he said. Nyo Ohn Myint, another MPC advisor, said the army did not join because the NCCT did not send its top leaders. "From their side, they did not let their top leaders come. So, we could not arrange to have our top leaders from the army join. This is protocol." KIA commander Gun Maw told The Irrawaddy last week that resolving the Nov. 19 incident was a critical step towards re-building trust and resuming ceasefire talks. "We are trying to have negotiations to solve this issue," he said. Additional reporting from Chiang Mai by Nyein Nyein.  The post Top Ethnic Leaders, Burma Army Reps Absent From Ceasefire Talks appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

DKBA Unveils Overture to United Karen Armed Forces Posted: 22 Dec 2014 02:34 AM PST A Democratic Karen Benevolent Army soldier wearing the Kawthoolei Armed Forces logo. (Photo: DKBA) CHIANG MAI, Thailand — The Democratic Karen Benevolent Army (DKBA) has made a symbolic step towards its reunification with rival ethnic rebel groups by using the Karen New Year festivities on Sunday to officially incorporate the logo of the Kawthoolei Armed Forces (KAF) into its uniforms. Kawthoolei is the local name for the independent state that Karen armed insurgents have been fighting for since the 1940s, the longest continuous ethnic rebellion in the country. Maj-Gen Saw Moses, the second in command of the DKBA, says that by adopting the KAF logo, his organization hopes to build momentum towards an eventual union with all Karen rebel groups. "We fully accept and support the idea of the KAF," he said. "We want to be reunited as one army. Our hope is to stay under one political leadership in the future." The DKBA split from the Karen National Union (KNU) in 1994 after relations soured between the Buddhist Karen community and the predominantly Christian KNU leadership. The DKBA spent the next 15 years fighting alongside the Burma Army against the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA), the KNU's military wing. In 2010, the DKBA was split by an attempt to integrate its soldiers into the Burmese Army's Border Guard Forces, leading to a rapprochement with the KNLA. Saw Moses said a reunification of the two groups—along with smaller factions such as the Karen National Defense Organization (KNDO) and the KNU/KNLA Peace Council—is an important step in extracting future concessions from the government. "If we are united, we will be more powerful in dealing with the government," he said. "If we are divided into pieces, they don't really care about our words. So, now it is time that we have to unite. Unity is strength." The KNLA and the KNDO have signed an in-principle agreement to the idea of a military merger, but the KNLA will debate the extent of its commitment during its 16th Congress, to be held sometime in the coming year. So far only Gen. Baw Kyaw Heh, known for his hardline anti-government stance, and the two brigades he commands have committed to military cooperation under the KAF banner. The DKBA has an estimated 2000-3000 soldiers, while the two KNLA brigades can field an estimated 3000. The KNDO and KNU/KNLA Peace Council have several hundred soldiers each. Approximately 2000 people attended the Karen New Year celebrations at the DKBA's headquarters in Kaw Thoo Mwee Khee over the weekend, which coincided with the 20th anniversary of the formation of the DKBA. The post DKBA Unveils Overture to United Karen Armed Forces appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

Illicit Trade in Wild Cats Down in Tachilek, Up in Mong La: Report Posted: 21 Dec 2014 10:36 PM PST   Tiger and Leopard skins, among other wildlife parts, for sale at a shop in Mong La in 2014. (Photo: Nijman/Traffic) RANGOON — The illegal trade in Tigers and other wild cat parts from Burma into China has grown in the border town of Mong La in the past decade, while the same trade into Thailand through the border town of Tachilek has diminished, a new survey has found. The report, issued by wildlife trade monitoring group Traffic on Monday, analyzed data from 19 separate surveys of wild cat trade in Tachilek between 1991 and 2013, and seven surveys between 2001 and 2014 in Mong La. "In Tachilek on the Myanmar-Thailand border, shops selling wild cat parts including Tiger and Leopard skins and skulls, fell from 35 in 2000, to just six in 2013," Traffic said in a press release. "However, in Mong La, at the China border, such shops more than trebled from six in 2006, to 21 in 2014. Mong La caters almost entirely to customers from China." "Most of the cat parts on sale were claws, skulls, canine teeth and skins. In total, over two thousand wild cat parts, the majority of them skins, were recorded during the surveys," the group said. Parts of the Clouded Leopard were found most frequently, representing some 482 individuals, while other cat species included Tiger, Leopard, Leopard Cat and the Asiatic Golden Cat, according to Traffic, which said that traders claimed most animals were sourced from Burma and India. All wild cat species are protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and by national laws. "[T]he decrease in Tachilek could be due to greater enforcement action in Thailand while the increase in Mong La may be linked to the rising buying power of China's consumers, and the apparent ease in smuggling illegal wildlife parts into China from Mong La," the report said. "It's time for the relevant enforcement authorities to live up to their international commitments to address wildlife crime," said Vincent Nijman, a professor of anthropology at Oxford Brookes University and one of the report's authors. Tachilek is located in eastern Shan State and forms Burma's main border crossing with northern Thailand. Mong La is located on the Burma-China border and administered by the National Democracy Alliance Army, a 2,000-men-strong armed group that is a remnant of the now-defunct Communist Party of Burma. It signed a ceasefire with the central government in 1989 and gained a range of concessions to run the area. All manner of illegal trade, from prostitution and gambling to narcotics, arms and wildlife trafficking, have long flourished in the rebel-run town, which is part of a wider swathe of territory known as Special Region 4.   The post Illicit Trade in Wild Cats Down in Tachilek, Up in Mong La: Report appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

Burmese Firm Picks Puma Energy as Jet Fuel Distribution Partner Posted: 21 Dec 2014 09:48 PM PST   Workers work near airplanes at Rangoon International Airport in Rangoon on Oct. 18, 2013. (Photo: Reuters / Soe Zeya Tun) RANGOON — Burma's state-owned Myanma Petroleum Products Enterprise (MPPE) has chosen Puma Energy Group from a shortlist of four firms as its partner to distribute jet fuel, as demand rises from new airports and a boom in tourist arrivals. MPPE is the sole distributor of jet fuel in the Southeast Asian country, providing 28 million gallons of fuel at 11 airports. "MPPE will soonest sign an agreement with the tender winner while arrangements will be made to jointly carry out import and distribution of aviation fuel at the remaining airports in the country under the joint-venture agreement," MPPE said in a statement issued late on Friday. Puma Energy Group Pte Ltd operates in more than 40 countries and posted turnover of US$12 billion in 2013, according to its website. Its jet fuel distribution business services 41 airports in Central and South America and in Africa. Demand at Burma's three international airports in Rangoon, Mandalay and the capital, Naypyidaw, is expected to climb as tourism and business grows amid liberal reforms underway after nearly a half century of isolation under army rule. Myanmar expects to receive five million tourists in 2015, up from three million targeted in 2014, compared with two million in 2013 and one million in 2012. Thai energy giant PTT, which along with its subsidiaries accounts for 12 percent of Thai stock market capitalization, was the reserve winner for the Burma jet fuel tender, MPPE said. The post Burmese Firm Picks Puma Energy as Jet Fuel Distribution Partner appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

Obama Says Sony Hack Not an Act of War Posted: 21 Dec 2014 09:44 PM PST A group of people bow at the base of the giant bronze statue of the state founder and late "Great Leader" Kim-Il Sung in the North Korean capital of Pyongyang on February 26, 2008. (Photo: Reuters) WASHINGTON — US President Barack Obama moved to prevent US anger at North Korea from spiraling out of control on Sunday by saying the massive hacking of Sony Pictures was not an act of war but instead was cyber-vandalism. Washington's longstanding dispute with North Korea, which for years has centered on its nuclear weapons program, has entered new territory with the accusation that Pyongyang carried out an assault on a major Hollywood entertainment company. Obama and his advisers are weighing how to punish North Korea after the FBI concluded on Friday that Pyongyang was responsible. North Korea has denied it was to blame. The US president put the hack in the context of a crime. "No, I don't think it was an act of war," he told CNN's "State of the Union" show that aired on Sunday. "I think it was an act of cyber vandalism that was very costly, very expensive. We take it very seriously. We will respond proportionately." Obama said one option was to return North Korea to the US list of state sponsors of terrorism, from which Pyongyang was removed six years ago. North Korea vowed on Sunday to hit back against any US retaliation. "Our toughest counteraction will be boldly taken against the White House, the Pentagon and the whole US mainland, the cesspool of terrorism, by far surpassing the 'symmetric counteraction' declared by Obama," according to North Korea state news agency KCNA. The hack attack and subsequent threats of violence against theaters showing the film prompted Sony to withdraw a comedy, "The Interview," prepared for release to movie theaters during the holiday season. The movie depicts the fictional assassination of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Obama and free speech advocates criticized the studio's decision, but Sony Pictures Entertainment CEO Michael Lynton defended it, saying US theaters did not want to show it. Sony lawyer David Boies said the Hollywood studio planned to release the movie at some point. "Sony only delayed this," Boies said on NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday. "It will be distributed. How it's going to be distributed, I don't think anybody knows quite yet." In the CNN interview, which was taped on Friday, Obama acknowledged that in a digitized world "both state and non-state actors are going to have the capacity to disrupt our lives in all sorts of ways." "We have to do a much better job of guarding against that. We have to treat it like we would treat, you know, the incidence of crime, you know, in our countries." Republican Senator John McCain disagreed with Obama, telling CNN the attack was the manifestation of a new kind of warfare. Republican Representative Mike Rogers, chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, would not call the hacking an act of war. But he did criticize Obama for embarking on a two-week vacation in Hawaii on Friday without responding to the attack. Rogers said on "Fox News Sunday" the United States had the capability to make it very hard for North Korea to launch another similar attack, but that Obama waited too long to act. "You've just limited your ability to do something," Rogers said. "I would argue you're going to have to ramp up sanctions. It needs to be very serious. Remember—a nation-state was threatening violence." North Korea has been subject to US sanctions for more than 50 years, but they have had little effect on its human rights policies or its development of nuclear weapons. Experts say the nation has become expert in hiding its often criminal money-raising activities, largely avoiding traditional banks. North Korea Denies Attacks It was the first time the United States had directly accused another country of a cyberattack of such magnitude on American soil and set up the possibility of a new confrontation between Washington and Pyongyang. North Korea said on Saturday it was not involved in the Sony attack and could prove it. Pyongyang said it wanted a joint investigation into the incident with the United States. Obama says North Korea appeared to have acted alone. Washington began consultations with Japan, China, South Korea, Russia, Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom, seeking their assistance in reining in North Korea. US experts say Obama's options in punishing North Korea could include cyber-retaliation, financial sanctions, criminal indictments against individuals implicated in the attack or even a boost in US military support to South Korea, which is still technically at war with the North. But the effect of any response would be limited, given North Korea's isolation and the heavy sanctions already in place for its nuclear program. The post Obama Says Sony Hack Not an Act of War appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

India Hindu Group to Press Ahead on Conversions in Challenge to PM Modi Posted: 21 Dec 2014 09:33 PM PST Mohan Bhagwat, chief of India’s Hindu nationalist organization Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), addresses a rally in Kolkata December 20, 2014. (Photo: The Irrawaddy) NEW DELHI — The head of India’s most powerful Hindu group vowed to press ahead with a campaign to convert Muslims and Christians to Hinduism, stoking a sensitive debate that has stalled parliament and threatened the prime minister’s economic reform agenda. Mohan Bhagwat of the right-wing Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh, which is also the ideological wing of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party, said India was a "Hindu nation" where many Hindus had been forcibly converted to other religions. "We will bring back those who have lost their way. They did not go on their own," Bhagwat said in a speech late on Saturday. "They were lured into leaving." Bhagwat’s comments came after Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party said it did not support forced religious conversions and called for an anti-conversion law. India’s 1.2 billion people are predominantly Hindus but there are also about 160 million Muslims and a small proportion of Christians. Modi is under fire for being slow to rein in hardline affiliate groups that have been accused of promoting a Hindu-dominant agenda that includes luring Muslims and Christians to convert to Hinduism. This month, a group of Muslims complained that they had been tricked into attending a conversion ceremony by Hindu groups, while a Hindu priest-turned-lawmaker of the ruling party planned a conversion ceremony on Christmas Day, although it was cancelled after the prime minister intervened. Supporters define such events as a "homecoming", saying that families signing up for the ceremonies were originally Hindus. "We don’t want to convert anybody … but then Hindus should also not be converted," Bhagwat said, adding that those who do not support religious conversions should bring in a law against it. Bhagwat’s comments are likely to further irk opposition parties that have disrupted parliament over the conversion issue, demanding that the prime minister himself make a statement on the issue in the upper house. Although Modi has privately warned lawmakers in his party to back off from controversial issues such as the conversion campaign, he has so far not made any official statement on the subject, leaving it to colleagues to fend off criticism. The post India Hindu Group to Press Ahead on Conversions in Challenge to PM Modi appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

10 Years On, Tsunami Warning Stumbles at ‘Last Mile’ Posted: 21 Dec 2014 09:08 PM PST   Tourists walk behind a faded sign warning of tsunami hazard in Khao Lak, Phang Nga province, on Dec. 15, 2014. (Photo: Reuters) BANGKOK — In April 2012, Indonesia's Banda Aceh, the city worst hit by the tsunami that killed at least 226,000 people on Boxing Day 10 years ago, received a terrifying reminder of how unprepared it was for the next disaster. As an 8.6-magnitude quake struck at sea, thousands of residents shunned purpose-built shelters and fled by car and motorcycle, clogging streets with traffic. A network of powerful warning sirens stayed silent. No wave came. But if it had, the damage would have been "worse than 2004, if it was the same magnitude of tsunami," said Harkunti Rahayu, from Indonesia's Bandung Institute of Technology. As the 10th anniversary of the disaster approaches, experts and officials say weaknesses remain across the region in a system designed to warn people and get them to safety. For millions in coastal areas, warnings don't always get through, thanks to bureaucratic confusion and geography. In the most vulnerable areas, infrastructure is wanting, and many lack the basic knowledge to keep themselves safe from the deadly waves. Since the disaster, a sophisticated early warning system has sprouted from next to nothing, costing over US$400 million across 28 countries. With 101 sea-level gauges, 148 seismometers and nine buoys, the Indian Ocean Tsunami Warning System can send alerts to countries' tsunami warning centers within 10 minutes of a quake, Tony Elliott, the head of the Unesco secretariat that oversees the system, told Reuters. But there has also been mismanagement and waste. In Indonesia, a German-funded detection initiative built an expensive network of buoys—and then scrapped them—after reports of cost overruns and signs they were ineffective. All but one of nine Indonesian-operated buoys had been lost or damaged by fishermen, said Velly Asvaliantina, an official at Indonesia's Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology. The remaining buoy is not operational, she said. Elliott said technological advances mean the lack of buoys is not a significant impediment in tsunami detection. A far bigger concern is getting warnings to at-risk coastal communities, and making sure people get to safety in time. In some of the countries worst affected in 2004—Thailand, Indonesia and India—much progress has been made, officials said. But concerns remain about this final, crucial stage. The 2012 failure in Aceh prompted a reassessment in Thailand, where 5,395 people died in 2004, said Somsak Khaosuwan, head of Thailand's National Disaster Warning Center. "We put our systems to the test each day. Our warning system is one of the best in the world, but I must admit we lack maintenance," he said. Samit Thammasarot, a former head of the agency who was ousted from his position following a 2006 coup against then Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, was more damning. "If a tsunami happened today, would we be prepared? No, we would not," Samit told Reuters. "On an official level there has been, in the past, corruption and cut-price equipment bought that does not meet international standards." In India, the new system struggles to communicate alerts by fax, text message and email to remote locations, said Ajay Kumar, an official at the Indian National Center for Ocean Information Services. "Some of the people, officials, are not getting the alert," he said. "Secondly, one thing that has come out from the drills is that the last mile connectivity is still missing. If [a] tsunami is coming, even now people don't know what is to be done, where to move." In Indonesia, where at least 168,000 people died in Aceh province in 2004, the warning and evacuation system is beset by bureaucratic infighting. "Of course I'm worried. I'm hoping there is no tsunami again," said Mochammad Riyadi, the head of the Earthquake and Tsunami Center at Indonesia's Meteorology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG). Aceh provincial authorities have resisted calls to conduct monthly sound checks of the six sirens in operation, despite their failure in 2012, Riyadi said. The BMKG has also tried for the past seven years to hand control of the warning system to the local government, but has been rebuffed, he said. Local authorities dispute this account. The head of Aceh's disaster agency, Said Rasul, said the BMKG should be doing the tests. "If the BMKG wants to hand over management of the tsunami sirens, then they have to give us the human resources," he said. Building standards in Indonesia, including Aceh, are also still dangerously below par, said Jonatan Lassa, a research fellow at Singapore's S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies. The 2012 alarm showed people did not trust the warning system, he added. "People were saved by chance, by the tsunami not happening, and not by the warning system," he said. Some communities have also been rebuilt in particularly vulnerable coastal areas. "Should there be a tsunami, I think the impact will be the same [as 2004]," Lassa said.   The post 10 Years On, Tsunami Warning Stumbles at 'Last Mile' appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

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