Thursday, January 15, 2015

The Irrawaddy Magazine

The Irrawaddy Magazine

Human Rights Commission Faults Police Over Copper Mine Shooting

Posted: 15 Jan 2015 05:46 AM PST

Up to 1,000 people attended the funeral of Khin Win, who police shot dead during a protest against the controversial Letpadaung copper mine on Monday. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)

Up to 1,000 people attended the funeral of Khin Win, who police shot dead during a protest against the controversial Letpadaung copper mine on Monday. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)

RANGOON — Burma's National Human Rights Commission has said that the recent killing of a farmer at the Letpadaung copper mine in Sagaing Division was the result of mistakes made by the police when they tried to suppress a protest against the project.

In a statement published in the Burmese state-owned media on Thursday, the commission said police had failed to follow security procedures for quelling a protest on Dec. 22, when officers were deployed to protect workers from China's Wanbao Company as they seized and fenced off farmland for the expansion of the mine in Salingyi Township.

Dozens of angry farmers, who have vehemently opposed land seizures for the mining project in recent years, gathered to stop the confiscation of land on which their crops were growing. Tensions flared and clashes erupted between police and villagers. Officers opened fire on the protestors and a 56-year-old woman named Khin Win was hit in the head and killed. During the unrest, 10 police officers and 11 villagers were injured.

The commission organized an investigation into the death from Dec. 30 to Jan. 2. Its members visited villages in the area and met with Sagaing Division officials, police officers, medical staff and representatives of Union of Myanmar Economic Holdings (UMEHL), the military-owned joint venture partner of Wanbao.

The commission released a 33-point statement on Wednesday that quoted police as saying that they first fired warning shots because "villagers were holding sticks, swords, slingshots and sickles and shot at them with slingshots."

The commission said police should subsequently not have fired directly into the crowd with live rounds, but should have first taken other steps to disperse the crowd, such as using water cannon. It said other anti-riot equipment that should have been used, such as tear gas, had not been provided for.

"To disperse the crowd by giving an order to shoot is the final step in dispersing the crowd. The commission found that shootings were carried out, skipping some steps," the statement said. "Because of the poor management of the command, water cannon and tear gas bombs could not be used according to the security plan."

The commission concluded that Khin Win's killing "indicates that her right to life was harmed under Article 3 of Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which says that everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person." It recommended opening a legal case over the killing to test the "validity of the testimony of the witnesses of two sides … in line with the law."

Thaung Htay, the younger brother of Khin Win, said in a reaction that the commission had been wrong to blame low-level police officers for the unrest, as the decision to crackdown on the protest was taken at a higher level of government.

"They… should not only blame the police. They will know who in the upper positions are involved in the case. If they only blame police the same cases will happen again," he said, before adding that he thought that the companies involved with the project could also be partially responsible.

Repeated calls by The Irrawaddy to Salingyi Township and Monywa District police stations went unanswered on Thursday.

Family members of the victim filed a filed a first information report to the Salingyi Police Station on Jan. 3 in order to push authorities to open an investigation into killing. So far, it is unclear if police will do so.

The violence and death of the villager caused an outcry among Burmese rights activists and the wider public, which have longed opposed the huge copper mine as it is seen as benefiting only the Chinese investor and UMEHL.

Burma's human rights commission was set up by President Thein Sein in 2011 and has been criticized for lacking parliamentary endorsement and independence from the President's Office. It has limited powers to take legal actions in case of abuses and a report issued by local NGOs in September slammed the commission's performance, saying it failed to successfully investigate a single case since its inception.

In a separate development, Salingyi Township authorities on Wednesday announced that they would offer farmers compensation for the loss of the crops that were growing on the land that was fenced off in December.

In a letter seen by The Irrawaddy, the township authorities offered a minimum of about US$310 per acre of destroyed corn, beans and other seasonal crops.

"The announced compensation amount is too low compared to the prices they should have got," said Yee Yee Win, a farmer from the Hse Te village, which was affected by the recent land seizures. He said some farmers had been offered about $420 for an acre of pigeon peas, although they supposedly could have earned more than twice that amount if they had been allowed to harvest their crops.

Additional reporting from Chiang Mai, Thailand, by Nyein Nyein.

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Muse Development Consortium Pushes for Easing of China-Burma Border Restrictions

Posted: 15 Jan 2015 03:33 AM PST

Buildings constructed for the new border crossing in Muse, Shan State. (Photo: / The Irrawaddy)

Buildings constructed for the new border crossing in Muse, Shan State. (Photo: / The Irrawaddy)

RANGOON — Construction is ramping up for a new China-Burma border station in northern Shan State intended to funnel tourists towards a massive private development, although building works have begun unilaterally on the Burmese side of the border, and both the Chinese and Burmese governments have yet to negotiate when the crossing will be open to foreign nationals.

The crossing, connecting the town of Muse to the city of Ruili in China's Yunnan Province via the Shweli River, will service what has long been a thriving trade route between the two countries, with nearly US$4.5 billion combined imports and exports passing through the area in the 2013-14 financial year. The Mandalay-based New Star Light Company is financing a new crossing on the Burmese side of the river in order to service the company's broader investments in Muse's commercial infrastructure.

"We're awaiting approval from both governments to open this gate, but we're now building immigration gates on our side," said Ngwe Soe, New Star Light's project director. "Both governments will decide together when it will be opened, but China has made overtures to Burma regarding the opening of this crossing, which is why we're building these gates now."

The crossing, about 1500 meters (4900 feet) from the existing bridge over the river, will connect directly to the Muse Central Economic Zone project, a 295-acre space allocated for hotels, residential development, shopping areas and commercial tenancies, in a US$94 million collaboration between New Star Light and the Shan State government.

New Star Light is building two immigration gates and an entrance with the intention of donating them to the Union government upon their completion. A connecting road and immigration facilities on the Chinese side of the border have yet to begin construction, though Ngwe Soe told The Irrawaddy that both the Chinese and Burmese governments intend to use the new crossing as a port of travel for foreign tourists.

"There are already three border crossings on the Myanmar-China border, but there is no exclusive entry for third country visitors, which is what both governments are aiming for with this gate," he said. Ngwe Soe said, adding that Dr Sai Mauk Kham, an ethnic Shan politician serving as Burma's Second Vice President, had been highly encouraging of the project.

Travelers from countries other than Burma or China who want to cross at the Ruili-Muse border are currently subject to onerous restrictions. Passage is granted to travelers who book on approved tour packages that include a mandatory guide and chartered transportation, and any easing of these restrictions would undoubtedly benefit both New Star Light's investments and the broader Muse economy.

Dr Aung Myat Kyaw, chairman of the Union of Myanmar Travel Association, said that he welcomed a new border entry for foreign nationals if the Chinese and Burmese governments agreed to the proposition.

"Though our side allows third country visitors to pass through checkpoints on the Thai-Burma border, on the China side they are still not allowed to come across," he said. "The more border entries we have, the more visitors come and the more tourism development we can have."

The Irrawaddy sought comment on the proposed border station from Maung Maung Than, director-general of the Immigration and Population Ministry, who said he had no authorization to reply to questions.

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Shan State Poppy Farmers Say Raw Opium Prices in Slow Decline

Posted: 15 Jan 2015 03:25 AM PST

oppies grow well in December 2014 in the rugged hills of Pekon Township, southern Shan State, which has poor soils and cool climes suited to the hardy herb. (Photo: Steve Tickner / The Irrawaddy)

oppies grow well in December 2014 in the rugged hills of Pekon Township, southern Shan State, which has poor soils and cool climes suited to the hardy herb. (Photo: Steve Tickner / The Irrawaddy)

TAUNGGYI, Shan State — Poppy growers in southern Shan State said prices for raw opium have fallen during the current harvest season, continuing a trend of slowly declining prices for the illicit crop in recent years.

A poppy farmer in Shan State's Pekon Township, a well-known opium-growing region bordering Karenni State, told The Irrawaddy that farm gate prices offered by traders this season stood at around 250,000 to 280,000 kyats (US$250-280) per kilo of wet opium, the lowest prices have been in recent years.

A Pa-O poppy grower in Hsi Hseng Township said last year raw opium was sold at the farm for about 350,000 kyats ($350) per kilogram.

They said the low prices were a problem for subsistence farmers, while large poppy growers were waiting to sell their harvest when prices pick up.

The Pekon Township farmer, who declined to be identified, said prices were coming down because fewer and smaller traders were finding their way to growers. "It seems that the big dealers are banned [by authorities]. Previously, these buyers used to buy large amounts, 100 viss [about 160 kilogram]. [But] the price has not declined very sharply because there are still buyers who buy small volumes," he said.

A report on opium cultivation in Burma and Laos, released by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime in December, said inflation-adjusted prices for raw and dry opium in Burma had remained largely stable from 2005 to 2014, although prices dipped in recent years. The UNODC recorded a drop in raw prices of around 500,000 kyats ($500) per kilo in 2011 to 400,000 in 2014.

Overall opium production has risen year-on-year since 2006 and plateaued in 2014, indicating high levels of opium production that could perhaps explain falling prices. Last year, 670 metric tons with a wholesale value of around $340 million was produced in northern Burma, mostly in Shan State, with 57,600 acres of land under poppy cultivation.

Tens of thousands of poor ethnic farmers in remote areas of Burma grow poppy, which serves as an essential cash crop that is hardy and more profitable than other crops, while it also provides seasonal jobs for many landless families. The crop is grown in the dry season and is harvested between November and December, while farmers that are able to irrigate their plots reap the opium resin from mid-December to February.

Ongoing ethnic conflict, criminal gangs, corruption among authorities and poverty in rural areas are contributing to the thriving trade, which makes Burma the second largest opium producer after Afghanistan and East and Southeast Asia's biggest drug-production hub.

Police in southern Shan State were, nonetheless, claiming credit for the falling prices, saying that a crackdown on the illicit trade had been brought down demand and farm gate prices.

"There have been increased arrests and dealers therefore dare not come to the sites to buy the product. There have also been increased crackdowns on poppy fields, pushing the dealers into a tight corner," said Col. Myint Thein, head of Panlong police force in Loilem Township.

Police officer Aung Soe Kyaing from anti-drug squad No. 25, based in Shan State capital Taunggyi, said, "We've raided opium-production sites and have been arresting dealers. Demand has therefore declined and the price will of course drop when demand has waned."

Tom Kramer, an expert on the Burmese drug trade, said in a recent interview that, "In the past we used to see more big dealers, but as a result of law enforcement this has changed," adding that now there are "a lot of small dealers, some Chinese dealers, and they sell to the big dealers."

Kramer, who is with the Netherlands-based Transnational Institute, has said, however, that there were no indications that the overall drug trade was declining. His organization advocates supporting socio-economic development projects for impoverished farmers, rather than cracking down, in order to reduce the trade.

This position is shared by Col. Saw Lwin, joint general secretary-1 of the New Karen State Party, an armed Karenni ethnic group that has a bilateral ceasefire agreement with the Burmese government. "Rather than destroying the poppy fields, the government should help provide better livelihood for locals," he said.

"They won't grow poppy if the government supplies them with water and arranges for them to grow other crops to earn enough for their living. Most of them are growing poppy to survive, not to make profits."

Additional reporting from Rangoon by Paul Vrieze.

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Mandalay Readies for Aung San Centennial Celebrations

Posted: 15 Jan 2015 02:33 AM PST

A Nyeint, or traditional Burmese opera, is performed to promote Gen. Aung San's centennial celebrations in Mandalay, 2015. (Photo: Teza Hlaing / The Irrawaddy)

A Nyeint, or traditional Burmese opera, is performed to promote Gen. Aung San's centennial celebrations in Mandalay, 2015. (Photo: Teza Hlaing / The Irrawaddy)

MANDALAY — Preparations are underway for the pre-celebration of the late General Aung San's centennial birthday, as organizers get ready for a planned year-long remembrance of Burma's independence hero.

Events will be hosted by the National League for Democracy (NLD) and party Chairwoman Aung San Suu Kyi, Gen. Aung San's daughter. The main event will be held in his hometown of Natmauk, Magwe Division, on the date of his birth, Feb. 13.

In the lead-up to the event—which is expected to draw enormous crowds of supporters—artists and musicians are roaming the streets of Burma's second largest city to get the excitement going. Myo Ma, a much-loved band that performs traditional music, is traveling throughout the city belting out songs dedicated to the late Aung San, often referred to simply as Bogyoke, or General.

"We are holding these pre-celebrations to draw attention among the public, mainly the youth, who now have little knowledge about General Aung San," said Win Myint, president of the Mandalay Division Committee for Gen. Aung San's Centennial Celebrations.

"Some things about General Aung San have been long forgotten in our country; some children don't even know who he is," he added.

Also on the agenda will be literary talks by well-known Mandalay authors, concerts and academic contests for young students. Similar events are being held in Monywa and Kalaymyo in Sagaing Division and Pakokku in Magwe Division. The committee is also organizing fundraisers including Bogyoke T-shirt and book sales.

Gen. Aung San is regarded as the leader of Burma's independence movement, spearheading the struggle against British colonial rule. He and seven of his cabinet members were assassinated on July 19, 1947, shortly after negotiating independence but less than one year before it was formally granted.

When Burma became independent on Jan. 4, 1948, the new government instilled his image on the county's currency and stamps in honor of his contribution to modern Burma. When military rule took hold after a 1962 coup, however, the regime erased much of his legacy. For decades, those wishing to pay tribute to Aung San's mausoleum on what is now known as "Martyrs' Day," marking the date of his assassination, were heavily restricted.

Since 2010, however, the new quasi-civilian government has eased up and the mausoleum was reopened to the public. New movements to revive the memory of the beloved Bogyoke have faced little interference from authorities, though there have been some reports that a monk attempted to deter organizers in Natmauk, where the biggest celebrations are to be held.

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Civilians Flee Fresh Fighting Between KIA, Govt Troops

Posted: 15 Jan 2015 02:11 AM PST

Fighting between the Kachin Independence Army, pictured, and the Burma Army peaked in late 2012 and early 2013 around Laiza in Kachin State. (Photos: Steve Tickner / The Irrawaddy)

Fighting between the Kachin Independence Army, pictured, and the Burma Army peaked in late 2012 and early 2013 around Laiza in Kachin State. (Photos: Steve Tickner / The Irrawaddy)

Fighting has again flared between government troops and the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), forcing about 1,000 people to flee their homes as students and teachers were caught in the crossfire in northern Burma's Hpakant Township.

The fighting took place on Thursday near Aung Bar Lay and Tagaungs village in Hpakant, a jade-rich region in Kachin State about 50 miles northwest of Myitkyina, the state capital. Gunfire began at 6 a.m., forcing local villagers including about 200 students and some 20 schoolteachers to flee, with many currently in hiding at local churches.

Casualties were not immediately reported.

The KIA's Battalion 6 and Burma Army troops from Light Infantry Division 22 were the units involved in the fighting, according to Kachin rebel sources.

Local residents said the fighting was intense and up to 1,000 Burmese troops have reportedly been dispatched to the conflict zone to provide support.

"Fighting broke out early this morning and it is ongoing," Du Hka, a spokesperson of the Technical Advisory Team for the KIAs political wing, the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), told The Irrawaddy by telephone on Thursday. "Heavy weapons and artillery shells were fired nonstop. Fighting is escalating as Burmese troops are entering our territories."

A local resident told The Irrawaddy: "We are very afraid and villagers in Aung Bar Lay are fleeing to escape. We tried to flee to Hpakant [town], but we were stranded in the middle of the road as the fighting escalated. Now, we are hiding in churches in the village."

According to local sources, about 1,000 residents of more than 400 households were affected by the fighting and have sought refuge at local churches.

"We keep hearing gunfire and bomb blasts through 1 p.m. Villagers from Tagaung village are caught in crossfire. Religious and relief groups are trying to rescue them, but we can't travel as the fighting is continuing," said another local resident in the town of Hpakant.

The Burma Army has set up checkpoints along the road that links Hpakant to Myitkyina and is not allowing through traffic, saying artillery shells landing on and around the road could hit travelers.

The fighting between the Burma Army and the KIA broke out amid reports of the KIA's detention of Kaman Du Naw, a Kachin State transportation minister, along with three Burmese police officers. They were reportedly arrested on Wednesday while observing construction of a road that links Mong Kaung, Kaming and Hpakant. The minister was later released but the three police officers are still believed to be in KIA custody.

The renewed hostilities also come just days after the US assistant secretary of state for democracy, human rights and labor, Tom Malinowski, visited Myitkyina, where he met with civil society groups, political leaders and international aid organizations.

Ethnic leaders and government peace negotiators are scrambling to sign a nationwide ceasefire agreement on Feb. 12, a plan that has been viewed with varying degrees of enthusiasm and credulity by Burma's ethnic armed groups.

The KIA is one of two major ethnic armed groups that have not signed a bilateral ceasefire with the government. The two sides last came to blows on Nov. 19, when the Burma Army shelled a rebel training academy outside of Myitkyina, killing 22 cadets.

"We have to wait and see how much it [the latest fighting] will affect trust-building [with the KIA]. But we hope the peace process will keep moving," said Hla Maung Shwe, a senior advisor at the Myanmar Peace Center, a government-affiliated organization that helps to coordinate Burma's peace negotiations.

The Irrawaddy reporter San Yamin Aung contributed to this article.

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Ethnic Affairs Ministers Defend Seat at Negotiating Table After Suu Kyi Remarks

Posted: 15 Jan 2015 01:16 AM PST

Ethnic affairs ministers, foreground, and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi were among 48 participants in a dialogue convened on Monday in Naypyidaw. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)

Ethnic affairs ministers, foreground, and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi were among 48 participants in a dialogue convened on Monday in Naypyidaw. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)

RANGOON — Burma's ethnic affairs ministers have asserted their place as elected representatives of the country's diverse ethnic populations, in a statement published by the state-run Global New Light of Myanmar on Wednesday.

The statement said that as directly elected ministers of Burma's states and regions, the ethnic representatives had attended a 48-party meeting convened earlier this week by President Thein Sein in the interests of the country and its people.

The statement, printed in the state mouthpiece, appears to be in response to remarks made by opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi on Monday.

"Is it a meeting between government and political parties? I am not clear on what the principle behind that meeting was," she said at a press conference at her Naypyidaw residence following the meeting.

"It is a little difficult to understand. They are neither party leaders nor chairs of parliamentary committees. I told the president, the meeting shouldn't be an excuse to avoid the six-party talks. He didn't respond to anything I said," she added, referring to smaller-scale dialogue that she has endorsed.

Tun Aung Myint, the Karen ethnic affairs minister from Rangoon Division, told The Irrawaddy that Suu Kyi's remarks were part of the reason for issuing the statement.

"There were some comments [asking] why the government invited the ethnic affairs ministers, and we wanted to show our intentions. That's why we issued the statement."

The statement was signed by 27 ethnic affairs ministers representing a host of different ethnic groups in states and divisions throughout Burma.

Under the 2008 Constitution, ethnic affairs ministers are elected to a given state or division if that division is comprised of an ethnic minority population of 0.1 percent or greater of the total populace. If one of the country's ethnic minorities counts a state as its namesake, however, it is not granted an ethnic affairs minister (e.g., there is no Mon ethnic affairs minister in Mon State). Only voters who share an ethnic identity with a given ethnic affairs minister post are allowed to vote for candidates to the position.

There are currently 29 ethnic affairs ministers in Burma.

"The meeting was good because it included the minority ethnic representatives and also many parties were able to report what they wanted," Tun Aung Myint said.

"The most important thing is to hold these meetings frequently—whether many parties are involved or not—to build trust, because it is only eight months until the next election and they have to hold frequent meetings and quickly decide on whether to change the 2008 Constitution and establish a nationwide ceasefire."

Suu Kyi did not appear to take kindly to Monday's 48-party meeting, a significantly larger forum than the four- or six-party talks that the National League for Democracy (NLD) chairwoman has indicated she would like to see take place.

Under a six-party proposal endorsed by Parliament, Suu Kyi, Thein Sein, Lower House parliamentary Speaker Shwe Mann and his Upper House counterpart Khin Aung Myint, Burma Army commander in chief Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing and one representative of the country's ethnic minorities would meet to discuss constitutional reform.

The president has thus far demurred on four-party talks, as proposed by Suu Kyi, and the six-party talks put forward by Parliament, both of which would put reform of Burma's controversial Constitution atop the agenda, as a centerpiece of peace negotiations with the country's ethnic armed groups and broader democratic reform efforts.

Yan Myo Thein, a political commentator, told The Irrawaddy that it was inappropriate to include ethnic affairs ministers in this week's 48-party dialogue.

"They are elected delegates, but on the other hand, they are delegates of divisions and states," he said. "There are ethnic delegates at the Union level and they are key political leaders on decision-making.

"If they want to really solve the ethnic issues, ethnic leaders and the leaders of ethnic political parties are more important than ethnic affairs ministers. So it is not natural and inappropriate, in the 48-party meeting, to involve 28 ethnic affairs ministers," he continued, adding that the government had done a poor job of communicating any developments related to the talks.

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Asia Maritime Piracy Attacks Now 75% of Global Total

Posted: 14 Jan 2015 09:06 PM PST

The Japanese oil tanker which was raided by armed pirates sails at Port Klang

A Japanese oil tanker which was raided by armed pirates off the coast of Malaysia last year. (Photo: Samsul Said / Reuters)

SINGAPORE — Asia accounted for three-quarters of global maritime piracy last year after a surge in tanker hijackings helped to fuel a 22 percent jump in armed robbery and pirate attacks on ships in the region.

There were 183 actual and attempted incidents of piracy and robbery of ships in Asian waters last year, compared to 150 in 2013, a intergovernmental anti-piracy group told shipping industry and law enforcement personnel on Wednesday.

This put Asia’s share of the total at 75 percent, after the International Maritime Bureau released its global report for 2014 showing there were 245 actual and attempted acts of piracy worldwide last year.

In 2013, piracy in Asia accounted for less than 60 percent of the total. However, attacks in Asia are mainly low-level theft compared with kidnappings and more violent hijackings off West Africa and Somalia.

The number of attacks in Asia last year is the highest since 2006, when the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP), a co-ordinating body with 20 government members, started compiling incident reports.

The rise in Asian piracy last year was due to the surge in tanker hijackings and better reporting by ship owners, ReCAAP deputy director Nicholas Teo told Reuters on Wednesday.

"There is no hiding the fact the 22 percent increase is significant and worrying," said Tim Wilkins, Asia regional manager for international tanker owners group, Intertanko.

While 114 attacks reported by ReCAAP were thefts from ships, mainly at ports and anchorages, the danger to crews should not be ignored, he said.

"The threat of violence is still reasonably significant," Wilkins told Reuters.

An engineer died after being shot by pirates who seized a tanker near Singapore in December, one of 15 tanker hijacking in Asia last year.

In addition, 12 tankers in Asian waters had their gas or oil cargoes siphoned and stolen last year.

Putting armed guards onboard ships passing through the Malacca Strait and nearby waters—where many of the attacks occur—was not a solution and could increase the danger to sailors, a maritime security expert said.

"Using armed guards against hijackings, cargo thefts and shipboard robbery incidents around Singapore could result in an escalation in the level of violence used by the perpetrators," said Mark Thomas, Asia Pacific business development manager at maritime security consultancy Dryad Maritime in Singapore.

ReCAAP is proposing an extension of naval and coast guard patrols from the Malacca Strait into the South China Sea to help combat tanker hijackings and piracy incidents, Teo said.

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In Catholic Philippines, Father-Priests Seek Papal Blessing

Posted: 14 Jan 2015 08:57 PM PST

Catholic priest Father Jess Siva poses with his wife Bemma at the entrance of their house in Iloilo city on Panay island in central Philippines on Jan. 10, 2015. (Photo: Reuters)

Catholic priest Father Jess Siva poses with his wife Bemma at the entrance of their house in Iloilo city on Panay island in central Philippines on Jan. 10, 2015. (Photo: Reuters)

LAMBUNAO, Philippines — Every Sunday morning, dozens of Roman Catholics gather at a small chapel on an island in the central Philippines to listen to Father Jess Siva share his personal experiences as a priest, and as a parent.

Siva, 54, has been celebrating Mass in the town of Lambunao for the past 15 years, giving communion, performing last rites for the dying, hearing confessions and officiating at marriages.

But while his small flock admire him, Church leaders in the Philippines consider him persona non grata for failing to adhere to one of the most important tenets of the priesthood—abstaining from sex.

"This is a very serious problem within the Church," Siva, who is the father of two boys from a relationship with a member of his congregation's choir, told Reuters. "I hope Pope Francis will recognize us."

Although celibacy is not expected to be directly raised during the Pope's visit to the Philippines this week, some in the Church hope that the pontiff will in time listen to their pleas for change.

In the Philippines, which accounts for about half of Asia's Roman Catholics, Siva is not alone. A handful of priests have been asked to leave the priesthood for fathering children.

On Jan. 11, Siva baptized the five-month-old son, and fourth child, of fellow Catholic priest Hector Canto. Siva officiated at Canto's marriage in 1997.

There are already high hopes the Argentine Pope will change the Church's traditional approach to issues such as sexual morality by becoming more welcoming to gays and easing restrictions on divorced and remarried Catholics.

Last year, Francis said he believes priests should be celibate but that the rule, which dates back over a thousand years, could be changed someday.

"Celibacy is not a dogma," he said when asked by a reporter whether the Church might consider allowing priests to marry as they can in the Anglican, Protestant and Orthodox Churches.

"It is a rule of life that I appreciate very much and I think it is a gift for the Church but since it is not a dogma, the door is always open," he said.

The Church teaches that a priest should dedicate himself totally to his vocation, essentially taking it as his spouse, in order to help fulfill its mission.

Some have cited celibacy as one reason for the decline in men entering the priesthood.

In Africa, Catholic priests have openly questioned the celibacy rule, saying it is incompatible with their culture. African Archbishop Emmanuel Milingo was famously excommunicated in 2006 for ordaining four married men as priests as part of his group "Married Priests Now." Milingo himself married a Korean woman.

Africa and Asia have the fastest growing Catholic populations, and today they are home just over a quarter of the world's more than 1.2 billion Catholics.

The rule of celibacy has also been questioned in the Pope's own backyard. Last year, 26 women in love with priests in Italy wrote a letter urging him to make celibacy optional, describing the "devastating suffering" caused by celibacy.

Siva, who was ordained a priest in 1986 and started living with his partner 12 years later, is making little headway in persuading the Church's local leadership that it is time to change.

The archdiocese of Jaro, which includes the town of Lambunao, frowns upon his actions, saying the priestly activities of Siva, Canto and another priest, Elmer Cajilig, are "illicit."

"They are on their own," Jaro Archbishop Angel Lagdameo told Reuters. "They have violated our rules on celibacy. We do not recognize them."

But Filipino Catholic bishops have done nothing to stop the ministry of the three priests who have openly violated the Church discipline.

Monsignor Victorino Rivas of the neighboring Archdiocese of Bacolod said cases of priests with families are confidential and that there are no statistics on their numbers.

Siva told Reuters there were two more priests in Iloilo City who may join his self-styled ministry called "Compania de los Padres de Familia" (The Company of Priests with Families).

There are more than 3,000 priests in the Philippines, where about 80 percent of the 100 million population is Catholic.

Celibacy surfaced last year during a bitter battle over a contraceptive law, as supporters of the bill exposed priests who fathered children.

Priests who break the celibacy rule are usually put on sabbatical leave, suspended, transferred, made to undergo "formation," and advised to leave the priesthood to marry and start a family.

On Sunday, before the Pope's visit to Asia, Siva and the two other unchaste priests celebrated a mass to dramatize an appeal to him to show "mercy and compassion," the theme of his pastoral visit to the country.

In many remote communities, residents accept priests who fathered children because of the shortage of clerics. "What's more important is there is a priest in our village," said Jeremy David, a member of the Lambunao chapel choir.

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New Sri Lanka Government Calls for Rajapaksa ‘Conspiracy’ Probe

Posted: 14 Jan 2015 08:43 PM PST

Former Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapaksa during his final rally ahead of a presidential election in Piliyandala on January 5, 2015. (Photo: Reuters)

Former Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapaksa during his final rally ahead of a presidential election in Piliyandala on January 5, 2015. (Photo: Reuters)

COLOMBO — Sri Lanka's new government on Wednesday asked the police to investigate what it called a "diabolical conspiracy" by former president Mahinda Rajapaksa to hold on to power even after he was defeated in an election last week.

New President Maithripala Sirisena is trying to shore up his government and prevent a comeback by the former rulers in parliamentary elections that may have to be held this year.

Rajapaksa has denied the allegations against him. His allies say they have been subjected to threats since the election and they have asked for government protection.

The former president and those around him are coming under a level of scrutiny unthinkable until he was voted out of office last Thursday, ending a decade in power notable for its concentration of control among a coterie of relatives and allies.

On Tuesday, opposition politicians filed a series of detailed corruption complaints against Rajapaksa and his brothers and son, who also held government posts. Another filing asks for Rajapaksa to appear in court on Jan. 26.

Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera, who filed the latest police complaint, said the government had reliable information that Rajapaksa along with his brother and former defense secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa, the incumbent chief justice and two other politicians discussed declaring a state of emergency while the counting was going on.

Chief Justice Mohan Peiris was appointed by Rajapaksa after the contested impeachment of his predecessor. The new government believes Peiris has weakened the independence of the judiciary and during the election campaign vowed to have him removed. On Monday, lawyers protested against him in the street.

"They also discussed the possibility of the army taking over the election commission, arresting the election commissioner and even obstructing the counting in the different part of the country by using the armed forces."

Samaraweera said the police chief, army commander, and attorney general had prevented a "diabolical conspiracy" by refusing to take such action.

Rajapaksa, who congratulated the president and stepped down even before official results were announced last Friday, rejected the allegations.

"I deny in all possible terms reports of attempts to use the military to influence election results," Rajapaksa said on his Twitter feed.

"During decades in politics, I have always bowed down to the people's verdict. Wins & losses are a natural part of political life."

Alan Keenan, senior analyst with the International Crisis Group, which documents abuses in Sri Lanka, said he welcomed signs the Rajapaksas will be investigated.

"The fact it is politically helpful to the new government—in that it weakens the chances of the Rajapaksas coming back—is also fortuitous but it shouldn't be the primary motivation," he said.

The government does not have a parliamentary majority and unless it can win over defectors it may have to call an election later this year, experts say.

The post New Sri Lanka Government Calls for Rajapaksa 'Conspiracy' Probe appeared first on The Irrawaddy.
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