Democratic Voice of Burma |
- Obama champions US role in Burma reform
- Lawyers take to streets to save historic courthouse
- Peace without constitutional reform is like ‘hopping on one leg’, says Min Ko Naing
- Burmese media groups call for Thai junta to release journalists
| Obama champions US role in Burma reform Posted: 29 May 2014 04:36 AM PDT In a robust speech to graduates of West Point military academy in New York on Wednesday, US President Barack Obama pointed to "American leadership" as a driver of democratic reform in Burma. In his annual Commencement Speech, the US president ran through a recent history of US military accomplishments, including wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. However, he singled out Burma as a country which has progressed towards democracy, and boasted that such reform owes gratitude to the effectiveness of US diplomacy. "Thanks to the enormous courage of the people in that country [Burma], and because we took the diplomatic initiative … we have seen political reforms opening a once- closed society," Obama said. "Progress there could be reversed," the US commander-in-chief warned, "but if Burma succeeds [in establishing democracy] we will have gained a new partner without having fired a shot — American leadership." Dr Thaung Tun is former UN representative for the National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma, an organisation that existed for 22 years as a US-based alternative Burmese government. He believes the US is not entitled to take too much credit for Burma's economic turnaround. "The reform process in Burma can be credited to domestic actors in their negotiations with the regime," Thaung Tun told DVB on Thursday. "However the 'carrot and stick' approach employed by the US government in its relationship with Burma has been successful," Thaung Tun conceded. In a speech that characterised the US military as the "strongest advocate for diplomacy and development" in Iraq and Afghanistan, Obama hailed the different track taken by the US in Burma. The US president insisted that "We're now supporting reform and badly needed national reconciliation through assistance and investment, through coaxing and, at times, public criticism." The American "stick" was revisited earlier this month. Citing ongoing human rights violations in ethnic minority areas, the US extended the "National Emergency" situation in Burma for another year. The status imposes a block on US businesses or individuals investing with Burmese nationals associated with the repression of the democracy movement. However since the majority of US sanctions against Burma were dropped mid-2012, the government has been generous when it comes to "carrots". Related StoriesThe World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) are so far responsible for hundreds of millions of dollars of investment in Burma since 2012, when reforms ushered in a slew international investors. The two major international financial institutions have been at the forefront of US financial engagement with the former pariah state, having supported a diverse range of development projects, agricultural grants to luxury hotels and education projects. Obama highlighted the work of the World Bank and the IMF in his West Point speech as "force multipliers" for the United States in the international arena, in the absence of exercised military might. However, those institutions are "not perfect" Obama conceded. Washington-based rights group US Campaign for Burma (USCB) shares that view. The rights group's policy director, Rachel Wagley, noted in an article for DVB earlier this month that: "The Bank's financial commitment to Burma has so far outpaced its commitment to caution and poverty alleviation," and that "Bank staff on the ground have displayed negligible interest in Burma's political, legal and economic situation." Noting that the US remains at the forefront of the thaw in relations between Burma and the international community, Mya Aye of the 88 Generation Peace and Open Society civil network warned that the reform process is far from over. "The undemocratic 2008 Constitution indicates that the military is still in control in Burma," Mya Aye said. "Reforms are a long way from absolute." Mark Farmaner, director of Burma Campaign UK seconds this assertion. "America has led the world in endorsing a sham process, a transition from direct military rule to authoritarian regime rather than democracy." As human rights violations continue to be alleged in Burma, Farmaner believes that the US is, in fact, impeding that road to democracy. "If anything, President Obama has undermined reform in Burma by lifting pressure too quickly and so reducing a key incentive for reform," Farmaner said on Thursday. "The US might not have fired a shot, but the Burmese army certainly has."
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| Lawyers take to streets to save historic courthouse Posted: 29 May 2014 01:57 AM PDT Dozens of lawyers marched through downtown Rangoon on Wednesday to protest the privatisation of two colonial-era buildings. The demonstrators, members of the Myanmar Lawyers Network (MLN), oppose developments slated for the former Supreme Courthouse and Police Commissioner's Office, both built more than 100 years ago. Both structures are named on the city's heritage list, designated by the municipal government. The march began at the courthouse on Maha Bandoola Garden Street, and continued to the site of the old commissioner's office on Strand Road. About 60 people took part, holding placards and shouting slogans. Participants said that the buildings were being leased by the Myanmar Investment Commission to private companies, who plan to develop them into luxury hotels. The demonstrators also called for a more open dialogue with city leaders about preserving the former capital's historic architecture and cultural relics. "We, lawyers, are protesting here today to protect our dignified courthouses from being turned into unseemly hotels," said high court lawyer Zaw Min Hlaing, who was present at Wednesday's march. The MLN held a similar demonstration in October 2012. Ko Ni, a Supreme Court lawyer, said that because the MIC has repeatedly ignored the lawyers' objections, the MLN are preparing to take legal action against the commission for breaching the Protection and Preservation of Cultural Heritage Regions Law. "We are running out of options," he said, "so the MLN has considered suing the MIC for a breach of law. We informed them of the plan, but they responded only by saying that they have the authority to manage these buildings. "This left us with no choice but to go ahead and sue them. But we thought we'd give it one last try with a protest, which is why we are here today." Another Supreme Court lawyer, Kyi Myint, said the lawsuit will proceed if the MIC does not make an appropriate response within 30 days. "We hope that [the MIC] will choose to negotiate,” said Kyi Myint, "but we have to make our point on legal grounds." |
| Peace without constitutional reform is like ‘hopping on one leg’, says Min Ko Naing Posted: 29 May 2014 12:11 AM PDT Representatives of Burma's main opposition party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), together with leading members of the 88 Generation Peace and Open Society (88GPOS), on Wednesday took their constitutional reform campaign to Karen State capital Hpa-an where they addressed a crowd of several hundred. 88GPOS leader Min Ko Naing and prominent NLD lawyer Aung Thein spoke at a public meeting in Hpa-an's Kanthar-Oo Hall where they urged the mostly ethnic Karen audience to sign a petition calling for the amendment of constitutional Article 436, the clause that effectively blocks any attempt to change the 2008-drafted charter without support from military representatives in parliament. Nan Khin Htwe Myint, an NLD central committee member who was at the event, told DVB that Min Ko Naing stressed that efforts to amend the Constitution should be implemented concurrently with agreements towards a peace process in Burma. Related Stories"Min Ko Naing said that amending the Constitution's Article 436 without a peace agreement or vice versa was akin to hopping on one leg," she said. "Only when we achieve both goals will we be able to walk properly." Nan Khin Htwe Myint said the organisers initially planned to include speeches by Karen community leaders, but those invited could not make it due to a shortage of time. However, she said, they should be able to participate at other Karen locations on the tour, such as Hlaing Bwe, Hpa-pon and Thandaung. The petition campaign to amend Article 436 was launched nationwide by the NLD and 88GPOS earlier this week but has already been signed by a number of well-known leaders and celebrities, including Hkun Htun Oo from the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy and the Rakhine National Party's Aye Thar Aung, as well as well-known singers, actors and actresses. NLD chairperson Aung San Suu Kyi has also urged government workers and servicemen within the Burmese army to sign the petition and support constitutional reform. |
| Burmese media groups call for Thai junta to release journalists Posted: 28 May 2014 10:57 PM PDT Burma's two major media organisations have expressed concerns over media restrictions and the detention of Thai journalists by the [Thai] junta. They sent their statements via the Bangkok-based Southeast Asian Press Alliance (SEAPA), a non-profit organisation campaigning for press freedom in Southeast Asia. They demanded the junta quickly restore press freedom to their fellow Thai journalists. The National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) has "requested cooperation" from all types of local media outlets to refrain from reporting content that might be provocative, incite public disorder or opposition to the efforts following the military coup d’état last Thursday. It urged the media to consider the interests of the country and people as a priority. Thanapol Eiwsakul, editor of the magazine Fah Diew Gan (Same Sky) was arrested following an anti-coup protest on Friday. On Sunday, a senior reporter from The Nation, Pravit Rojanaphruk, was taken into custody after the junta summoned him. Both are being held in custody. Some reporters have also been called in by the military, including Bangkok Post security reporter Wassana Nanuam. Related StoriesThe Myanmar Journalist Network (MJN) on Tuesday said it was "saddened" and "seriously concerned" over the fact that some Thai journalists had been detained by the Thai army. “We condemn the actions by the military," it said. It said Burmese journalists had a long experience of suffering under a military regime and understood the plight of their Thai counterparts. The organisation urged the Burmese government, in its capacity as the current chairman of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), to help secure the release of the detained Thai journalists. “MJN will stand together with the Thai journalists for press freedom in Thailand," it said. "Those who have been detained must be released unconditionally.” The Myanmar Journalists Association (MJA) also spoke out on the same day, saying Burmese journalists had great sympathy with their Thai colleagues because they experienced "similar restrictions and persecutions under former governments". The MJA has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Thai Journalists Association. “We would like to appeal earnestly to the Thai military junta to restore the freedom of the press after lifting the restrictions on Thai journalists and ceasing arbitrary arrests if they really desire to bring about genuine national reconciliation and safeguard democracy," it said.
This article was originally published in the Bangkok Post on 29 May 2014. |
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