The Irrawaddy Magazine

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• Local Lenders Wait on Central Bank for Credit Card Approvals
• KNU Leader Rapped for ‘No Transparency’ in Peace Process
• NCCT Leader: Federalism Proposals Should Include Ethnic Army Guarantees
• Rangoon Power Supplier Blames Rise in Blackouts on High Demand
• Woman’s Party Won’t Budge on Name Change, Risking UEC Approval
• Ethnic Leaders Cite Wa Prosperity in Calls for Federalism
• Rangoon’s Auto Aficionados Rev up at Classic Car Show
• Political Tensions Mount for Indonesia’s Widodo as Economy Skids
• Thai King Leaves Hospital After Seven Months, Returns to Seaside Palace
• Widow of Slain US-Bangladeshi Blogger Lashes out at Dhaka
• Boats with 600 Rohingya and Bangladeshis Land in Indonesia
• Fish Hung Out to Dry at a Village in Mon State

Local Lenders Wait on Central Bank for Credit Card Approvals Posted: 11 May 2015 05:41 AM PDT Cashiers behind piles of kyat banknotes in a private bank in Rangoon. (Photo: Reuters) RANGOON — After some local banks unofficially received word last week that they would be permitted to issue credit cards, lenders expect logistical hurdles, inexperience and red tape to stall their introduction in the immediate future. Zaw Lin Htut, chief executive of the Myanmar Payment Union (MPU), told The Irrawaddy that the Central Bank had last week informed a number of local banks they would be permitted to offer their customers credit cards from May 8. Bankers have yet to receive an official letter to that effect, and Zaw Lin Htut said he expected teething problems in the months to come. "Once the Central Bank allows local banks to issue credit cards, I think it will be at least two or three months before customers can actually use them here," he said. Local banks are required to submit detailed business plans to the Central Bank before they will be permitted to issue credit cards. The Myanmar Payments Union, launched by the Central Bank in 2012 and comprising more than 20 private and state-owned banks, will be given responsibility for managing their use. Pe Myint, managing director of the Cooperative Bank, said that his company had been waiting for the Central Bank's approval since submitting a proposal three months ago which would secure credit card accounts against customer deposits. "I heard the Central Bank approved credit cards, but we're still waiting this official approval now," he said. The former military regime stopped the local issuing of credit cards in response to a surge in bad debts after the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis. Burma's banking system still lacks a credit bureau to gauge the suitability of loan applicants, which has led bank managers to devise cautious business plans similar to those of the Cooperative Bank. "We had the experience of 1997 and 1998, when credit cards were issued without a credit bureau," said Than Lwin, senior consultant of KBZ Bank. "This time, we should consider this lesson. No one should dare to issue credit cards without knowing their history here." Proposals to introduce a national credit bureau were floated in 2012 but have languished in the years since. The MPU's Zaw Lin Htut said that lenders would ultimately need to bear responsibility for assessing the creditworthiness of their customers. "There are good and bad aspects to using credit cards here," he said. "As the country is developing, we need these sorts of financial developments, but banks will have to treat the financial background of customers cautiously before issuing cards." The Central Bank could not be reached for comment on Monday. The post Local Lenders Wait on Central Bank for Credit Card Approvals appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

KNU Leader Rapped for ‘No Transparency’ in Peace Process Posted: 11 May 2015 05:37 AM PDT   Gen. Mutu Say Poe from the Karen National Union (KNU) holds a newspaper during a break at Hotel Zwekabin in Hpa-an, Karen State, on Jan. 12, 2012. (Photo: Reuters) RANGOON — A Karen activist has accused the chairman of the Karen National Union (KNU) of failing to act transparently in overseeing the ethnic armed group's handling of Burma's peace process. "There is no transparency regarding their doings in the peace process and there is not even collaboration among the leadership. We want them to have transparency and sincerity in working for peace," said Susanna Hla Hla Soe, director of the Karen Women's Action Group (KWAG). Twenty-five Karen civil society groups gathered for a three-day conference last week at an area controlled by KNU Brigade 7 in Hpa-an district, bringing together 240 Karen civil society leaders including prominent religious and political figures. Gen. Mutu Say Poe, the chairman of the KNU, was among the attendees on the first day, Wednesday, but the rebel general did not inform conference participants before leaving early, according to Susanna Hla Hla Soe. "They skipped [the rest of] our meeting and they did not tell us anything about the reason for skipping the meeting," she said, adding that the unexplained departure had undermined the conference's aim, which was to encourage a variety of Karen voices to brainstorm how best to move the peace process forward in Karen State. "We asked their CEC [Central Executive Committee] about where they had gone, but they did not even inform the CEC about it. It seems to us that only the chairman and his close aides are working for peace. This is not only one time, he has done it other times," she said, referring to past instances in which Mutu Say Poe had failed to effectively communicate with other CEC members. She said she accepted that civil society groups would not be privy to some information amid ongoing negotiations for a nationwide ceasefire accord, but the KWAG leader added that a more inclusive approach was needed. "We would all love to have peace and we support our leaders in pursuit of it, but we want all CEC members to participate in it. We want to suggest this," said Susanna Hla Hla Soe. The KNU signed a bilateral ceasefire with the government in 2012, and is part of the 16-member Nationwide Ceasefire Coordinating Team (NCCT), which is negotiating with Naypyidaw over the terms of a proposed nationwide ceasefire agreement that has proven elusive. The KWAG director also questioned the KNU leader's decision to join a separate Rangoon workshop on Saturday, which was attended by a pair of Karen ethnic armed groups that splintered from the KNU, a Shan rebel group and some 20 political parties. In participating, the KNU chairman was creating "too many roads" to peace, she said. "We civil society groups, we want our KNU to go along with the NCCT. … Our KNU should not create more roads for the peace process, because the NCCT is already there for our ethnic groups. We even worry that people will get confused about what they are doing," she said. The KNU leadership further ran the risk of appearing out of touch with the Karen people, Susanna Hla Hla Soe warned. "There could be a problem if they do not listen to our civil society voices in the future … If they are acting like the military dictatorship, they will not be elected when there is the next [KNU] congress and election because power comes from the hands of the people. This is a very real possibility," she said. The post KNU Leader Rapped for 'No Transparency' in Peace Process appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

NCCT Leader: Federalism Proposals Should Include Ethnic Army Guarantees Posted: 11 May 2015 05:10 AM PDT Nai Hong Sar (right) in Panghsang earlier this month. (Photo: Lawi Weng / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — The joint chairman of the New Mon State Party (NMSP) has used a celebration on the Thai-Burmese border to make the case for a federal system of governance and the retention of ethnic armies, after ethnic leaders repeated their desire for constitutional amendments which would devolve power from Naypyidaw. Nai Hong Sar had returned from the Panghsang summit, held from May 1-6 to discuss the draft text of a proposed nationwide ceasefire agreement negotiated between the government and the Nationwide Ceasefire Coordination Team (NCCT). The summit unanimously agreed to call for constitutional change in support of a "federal union which guarantees equality and self-determination", while committing its signatories to renounce secession if a federal union was introduced. Nai Hong Sar, who is also head of the NCCT, discussed the federal proposal while speaking in the Thai town of Sangkhlaburi, across the border from Mon State's Ye Township, to mark the 258th anniversary of the end of the Mon Hongsawatoi Kingdom. "We will ask to have a federal system when there is political dialogue in the country," he told the predominantly ethnic Mon audience. "This is a common goal from all ethnic groups which was agreed to in Panghsang." In what is likely to prove a sticking point for future ceasefire negotiations, Nai Hong Sar added that any federal system should also include provisions for the maintenance of ethnic armies. "We want to have an American style [of governance], where we can run our own state, and we can have our own army," he said. "We agree to have one army in the country, but our state will have our own army because we need it in order to protect our ethnicity. They are trying to eliminate our ethnicity in order to fully control the whole country, this is why we ethnic groups need our own armies to protect our people." The Panghsang summit statement did not explicitly refer to the retention of ethnic armies, but did include a denunciation of human rights abuses by the Burma Army and called for an immediate end to assaults on Kachin, Ta'ang, Kokang and Arakan armed groups. Nai Hong Sar said that the NCCT was continuing to push for the inclusion of ethnic armed groups that the government did not recognize as parties to the peace process. "We wanted all ethnic groups to participate at political talks, but they do not want groups the Kokang, Palaung, and Arakan Army. This was a problem at our recent talks," he said. The Arakan Army and the ethnic Kokang Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) are members of the NCCT but are not recognized by the government. The Palaung State Liberation Front, the political wing of the Ta'ang National Liberation Army, is a recognized member of the NCCT engaged in ongoing conflicts with the Burma Army. The post NCCT Leader: Federalism Proposals Should Include Ethnic Army Guarantees appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Rangoon Power Supplier Blames Rise in Blackouts on High Demand Posted: 11 May 2015 05:03 AM PDT   A tangle of power lines hangs over a street in Rangoon. (Photo: Steve Tickner / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — Rangoon residents have in recent weeks complained of frequent blackouts, a familiar problem that has nonetheless defied a pledge by the city's electricity authority to provide 24-hour power to residents during the summer, when pre-monsoon season water levels dwindle and sap the nation's hydroelectric dams of their generating capacity. Ahead of the hot season, the municipal government power supplier said in January that it would be able to provide 24-hour electricity to residential areas since new natural gas turbines in four Rangoon townships and two additional turbines donated by Thailand would bolster the city's electricity generating capacity. The Yangon Electricity Supply Corporation (YESC) told The Irrawaddy last week that it had failed to fulfill its promise due to an unanticipated increase in demand. "We are providing power from hydropower stations and natural gas turbines 24 hours a day, but the power cuts are because of high consumption," said Yan Lin, chief engineer of YESC, formerly the Yangon Electricity Supply Board until it was renamed on April 1 ahead of a planned privatization later this year. He said that normally, Rangoon uses about 890 megawatts of power daily, but consumption has increased to 1,095 megawatts during the summer months. "Starting from March, the weather became hot and so people consumed more [electricity]," said Yan Lin, who is also a member of YESC's interim board of directors. "They turn on air-cons [air conditioning units] and fans, pump water so they can take baths more frequently to lower their temperature. "The loads from using air-cons are very high. Many people turn on air-cons the whole night and also, it was not easy to install air-cons in the past but now it is easy and almost every house has a refrigerator and air-con now," Yan Lin added. With demand compounded by dozens of ongoing constructions projects, the country's biggest city currently accounts for more than half of the average daily power consumption nationwide, which is over 2,000 megawatts. "We can't say not to use more.," Yan Lin said. "In general, the transformers can handle it but since consumption is up, the transformers can't manage it and the fuses are blown, sometimes two or three times a day and we have keep swapping in new ones." Burma typically faces power shortfalls from March through May, when the country's main source of electricity, hydropower, is reduced because less water flows to the dams. The commercial capital, which is home to the country's major industries and around 5.7 million people, has suffered from chronic energy shortages further aggravated by growing demand. A local resident from North Dagon Township said that beginning in mid-April, daily power cuts of at least an hour had become the norm, and even when electricity was available, appliances like her TV, air conditioner and refrigerator were functioning poorly in the evening because the voltage level was insufficient. "Although the power outages are common, it is worse in the hot season. They have said that they would provide enough electricity but we still face the worst power shortages in the hot season," she said. Yan Lin, the YESC chief engineer, said the rise in electricity consumption and attendant increase in power cuts began before the Thingyan water festival. The city supplier was better able to meet demand over the mid-April holiday, when many offices were closed and factories shuttered. Post-Thingyan, the problem was exacerbated when inclement weather felled trees that temporarily disrupted transmission lines. Aung Khaing, who is also a member of the YESC interim board, told state daily The Mirror on Monday that certain inevitabilities beyond the electricity supplier's control were to blame for the frequent blackouts. He cited the aforementioned bad weather, the repair and maintenance of natural gas turbines and other disruptions like vehicles knocking down power lines. The post Rangoon Power Supplier Blames Rise in Blackouts on High Demand appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Woman’s Party Won’t Budge on Name Change, Risking UEC Approval Posted: 11 May 2015 04:55 AM PDT   Members of the newly formed Women's Party provide educational assistance for children in Mon State capital Moulmein. (Photo: Shin Sawbu Organization / Facebook) RANGOON — Members of a proposed Woman's Party said they will not bow to the government's request that they change their name to something "more specific," arguing that doing so this close to elections would confuse their supporters and damage their support base. Party Chairwoman Mi Than Shin, also known as Mi Layaung Mon, told The Irrawaddy that the Union Elections Commission (UEC) requested that the party choose a new name, preferably with something "in front of or behind" the word woman. Deputy Director of the UEC Hla Maung Cho confirmed that the party's application for registration eligibility, which was submitted in April, has been deferred pending an identity adjustment, a request premised on Article 8 (b) of Burma's Political Party registration Law. The law, which he read to The Irrawaddy over the phone on Monday, states that "if the name, flag or logo of a party applying for registration is too similar to that of another registered party or parties that have already submitted an application… the commission can direct it to choose a different name within a fixed time." Hla Maung Cho did not elaborate on which party's name was in conflict the Women's Party, though another new applicant, the National Party, could be the root of the problem. The Burmese word for "woman" —amyothamee—is spelled and pronounced similarly to the Burmese word for "national" —amyotha—which, rather ironically, also means "man." The UEC's letter to the Woman's Party, a copy of which was obtained by The Irrawaddy, did not cite Article 8 (a), explaining instead that the term "woman" represented a wide variety of voters throughout the country, hence it was "too general" to join the ranks of other registered parties such as the United Democratic Party and the Union Democratic Party. "We don't wish to change our name," said Mi Than Shin. "It has been six months now [since we formed the party]. We can't back down now, because we have already started to organize and collect members. "We cannot accept the name change. If we cannot register under our name, at worst we will not be able to contest," she said, adding that the party had already conceded to the UEC's demand that it drop one of its 15 core members and find a replacement. The Women's Party was founded in October of last year with the aim of increasing female representation in politics by creating an inclusive and welcoming space for women of all ethnicities to participate in governance. The chairwoman said that the party has received support in several parts of the country, and hopes to establish chapters in each ethnic state to empower more minority women. Burma has the lowest percentage of women in its national Parliament of any country in the entire region, about five percent. The global average is around 22 percent. At the local level, Burma's performance is even worse: Less than four percent of elected state and divisional lawmakers are women. While some political parties have adopted voluntary measures to increase the number of women seeking candidacy, Burma does not have any existing legislative or constitutional tools to address the issue. Representatives of the Woman's Party are travelling to Naypyidaw to negotiate the name change with the UEC, Mi Than Shin said. A review of 15 new political parties is currently underway by the UEC, which will ultimately approve or deny their eligibility for party registration. Two new parties have already been approved. The post Woman's Party Won't Budge on Name Change, Risking UEC Approval appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Ethnic Leaders Cite Wa Prosperity in Calls for Federalism Posted: 11 May 2015 02:16 AM PDT   The skyline of Panghsang, headquarters of the United Wa State Army. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — The Panghsang summit, held last week to discuss the terms of the draft nationwide ceasefire agreement, appears to have hardened the resolve of the nation's ethnic leaders to pursue a federal political settlement with the government. Conversations in Mongla on Friday revealed that ethnic leaders were impressed with the infrastructure and utilities in Panghsang, the headquarters of the United Wa State Army (UWSA). On the way back back to their respective homes after the summit concluded on May 6, those that traveled to Wa territory told The Irrawaddy that the town's development showed the need for greater local autonomy. "We should not let this government run our region anymore," said Nai Hong Sar Bong Khaing, a central committee member of the New Mon State Party (NMSP), told The Irrawaddy. "They are not working to develop our region, they are destroying our region. If we look at the Wa, this is an indication of what we could achieve if we were able to run our region." The UWSA, arising from the remnants of the Communist Party of Burma, negotiated a ceasefire with the central government in 1989. A notoriously well-armed and secretive organization, many of the ethnic leaders who traveled to Panghsang at the beginning of May were visiting the area for the first time. Ethnic leaders said that one goal of holding the ceasefire agreement summit in Panghsang was to encourage the UWSA and the nearby Mongla rebels to participate in the ethnic politics. The Mongla army, another beneficiary of a longstanding peace with the central government, controls territory that has also benefited from infrastructure development, while other ethnic regions in the country have languished in the wake of recurrent conflicts with the Burma Army. The UWSA claims that it completely eradicated opium production in Wa territory back in June 2005. Its senior leaders are believed to still be involved in the production and trafficking of methamphetamines, and the UWSA remains subject to a 2003 decision by the US Drug Enforcement Agency to list it as a trafficking organization. Whatever the provenance of the UWSA's wealth, it is clear that the region has rapidly modernized since the 1989 accord. "If you traveled along the street from Panghsang to Mong Mao in the past, you only heard the bells around the necks of oxen pulling carts, and the only homes you saw were small bamboo huts," Aung Myint, a UWSA spokesman, told The Irrawaddy in Panghsang. "But nowadays we all have cars for traveling. The things you can buy in Rangoon, you also can buy here. There is no difference. Today, our region is developed." Around Panghsang itself, fields that once cultivated a vast opium crop these days host rubber, tea and fruit plantations—a total of 250,000 acres of farmland in use, according to the UWSA Agriculture Minister Tax Kat, and a stark contrast to the largely small-scale, subsistence farming operations of central and southern Burma. The UWSA is now preparing to fully pave all roads in the 39,000 square kilometers (15,000 square miles) of territory under its administration, a milestone it hopes to reach in time for the 30-year anniversary of its ceasefire agreement in 2019. According to UWSA leadership, the region hosts 400 schools, three cement factories, and eight hydropower dams which provide 24-hour electricity to the local population—almost unheard of in the rest of the country. Ethnic leaders believe that the relative prosperity of the Wa territory is primarily the result of the UWSA's control, rather than a product of 26 years of peace or the armed group's earlier reliance on trafficking. Maj-Gen Tar Jode Ja, the vice-chairman of the Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA), said that ethnic Palaung people in Burma's north, by contrast, had suffered continuously from the Union government's attempts at political control. The answer, in his eyes and in those of other ethnic leaders, lies in charter reform to devolve political power to ethnic minority areas. "They are a greedy government," he told The Irrawaddy. "They want to control everything, including the area under our control. They used their armed forces to attack us. Many people have paid with their lives because of their greed." The post Ethnic Leaders Cite Wa Prosperity in Calls for Federalism appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Rangoon’s Auto Aficionados Rev up at Classic Car Show Posted: 11 May 2015 12:14 AM PDT   Click to view slideshow. RANGOON — Rangoon's car lovers were offered a glimpse of classic beauty over the weekend at Burma's first ever vintage auto expo, showcasing refurbished vehicles that zipped across the city's streets from the pre-World War II days to the 1970s. The Myanmar Classic Cars Club rounded up more than two dozen vehicles for display, including such splendors as a 1928 DeSoto, a 1947 Austin and a 1960 Valiant. "Our aim is to show the younger generations that our country has that kind of old, rare car, and that they have to be preserved as they are in other countries," said Zaw Phyo Lin, the club's secretary. "They are part of our history—they reflect Burma's automobile status." The event also coincided with a motorcycle show featuring a range of new high-end bikes along with a few vintage models, such as a pre-war BSA. The Myanmar Classic Cars Club was founded in 2010 by a group of amateur collectors in Burma. The post Rangoon's Auto Aficionados Rev up at Classic Car Show appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Political Tensions Mount for Indonesia’s Widodo as Economy Skids Posted: 10 May 2015 10:46 PM PDT Indonesia's new President Joko Widodo speaks to the media after a meeting with Australia's Prime Minister Tony Abbot on Oct. 20, 2014. (Photo: Reuters) JAKARTA — When Indonesian President Joko Widodo summoned his economy ministers to the palace last week to discuss growth slumping to its lowest level since 2009, they weren't the only ones to show up. Dozens of senior figures from Widodo's political party arrived to make their views heard after data showed Southeast Asia's largest economy is smaller, in real terms, than when he took office in October. "We're here to convey to the government that budget disbursement has been slow because ministers have not done their jobs," said party official Olly Dondokambey, after he and colleagues swept through the palace gates in a showy motorcade. Widodo has vowed to lift economic growth to 7 percent on average over his five-year term, but critics and even some of his own advisers say the economy has actually gone into reverse because of incompetent ministers and bungling bureaucrats. Slow progress boosting growth and sniping from within Widodo's party have left the former furniture salesman, who many people hoped would be able to spur a quick economic recovery, increasingly isolated. "There is too much bad, bad policymaking that's happening right now," said one senior executive at a multinational company in Jakarta. "It's a combination of people trying to learn on the job and not getting stuff done." A slump in commodity prices has added to the economic headwinds for the resource-rich economy. Widodo did move quickly when global oil prices plunged by scrapping petrol subsidies and freeing up some US$20 billion to spend on ports, roads and railways. But the country's slow-moving bureaucracy has struggled to spend the cash, and many infrastructure projects, pivotal to boosting investment, are tied up in red tape. As of April 25, the government had spent only 7 trillion rupiah ($537.8 million), or 2 percent, of its 290 trillion rupiah budget for infrastructure spending. Slow government spending was partly behind the slide in gross domestic product growth to 4.7 percent in the first quarter of this year. Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa, the president's deputy chief of staff, says palace officials know the economy is slowing but feel they are being let down by a cabinet heavy on politicians and short on experienced technocrats. "The president has led the way, he has cleared up here and there himself, rather than the government. So I hope that the ministers will follow. If I were the president, I'd command them to," he said. Widodo's Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) is taking advantage of his troubles to push for greater representation in the government. That could come, they hope, with a cabinet reshuffle. One senior palace adviser, who asked not to be named, said Chief Economics Minister Sofyan Djalil and Finance Minister Bambang Brodjonegoro would probably survive a cabinet reshuffle because they are seen by investors as safe pairs of hands. However mid-ranking ministers, such as those responsible for trade, industry, planning and public works, may be dropped. Vice President Jusuf Kalla has repeatedly said a reshuffle could take place within weeks. Widodo has not commented on the matter, but with opinion polls showing public dismay as inflation nudges higher, a near-term reshuffle is widely expected. In their defense, ministers say they have been hindered by a re-write of Widodo's budget. "The new government had to start again with the revision of the state budget in February," Djalil told reporters. He said problems with bureaucracy are being fixed and tenders have been made for all projects under the public-works ministry, which oversees the bulk of infrastructure spending. Ministers say they are confident the economy is over the worst, though concede growth could be as low as 5.2 percent this year, below the official target of 5.7 percent. Djalil insisted Widodo is not disappointed with the economics team, though "everybody needs to move faster." If the economy doesn't recover soon then Widodo, the first Indonesian president from outside the political or military establishment, may find it hard to resist pressure to include more PDI-P in a new cabinet. A reshuffle less than a year into his presidency could be seen as a failure to appoint competent officials in the first place, Jakarta-based Concord Consulting group wrote in a research note. "There is also no guarantee that the replacements will fare any better, especially if the process of selecting new ministers is marred with political interests," it said. The post Political Tensions Mount for Indonesia's Widodo as Economy Skids appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Thai King Leaves Hospital After Seven Months, Returns to Seaside Palace Posted: 10 May 2015 10:39 PM PDT Well-wishers hold up pictures of King Bhumibol Adulyadej at Bangkok's Siriraj Hospital on Sunday. (Photo: Chaiwat Subprasom / Reuters) BANGKOK — Thailand’s King Bhumibol Adulyadej, the world’s longest-reigning monarch, left hospital on Sunday after seven months spent convalescing following surgery last year, to the joy of many in Thailand where Bhumibol is widely revered. Tearful crowds shouted “Long live the king!” as King Bhumibol, wearing a red shirt, and Queen Sirikit passed by in a convoy en route to their Klai Kangwon palace in the seaside town of Hua Hin, televised coverage of the departure showed. The monarch made a rare public appearance last week when he attended a ceremony marking his official coronation in 1950 at the glittering Grand Palace in the heart of Bangkok’s historic quarter. Bhumibol is revered by many as the arbiter of Thailand’s decades-long, sometimes violent, political divisions. Most Thais have only known King Bhumibol on the throne, and many are nervous about what a royal succession might bring. His son and presumed heir, Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn, has yet to command his father’s level of popular support. Bhumibol, 87, was admitted to Bangkok’s Siriraj Hospital in October where he underwent surgery to remove his gallbladder. The king has in the past intervened during Thailand’s often messy political showdowns. In 2006, he called on judges to resolve a pending constitutional crisis. Months later, populist Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra was ousted in a September coup by the army. Thailand has been broadly split along north-south political lines since Thaksin’s ouster. A bastion of the conservative, pro-establishment Democrat Party, southern Thailand historically hosts much of the country’s wealth and tourism. The poorer, agrarian north and northeast, where Thaksin’s populist policies won him legions of supporters, remain Shinawatra strongholds. Thaksin is loathed by the royalist elite who accuse him of undermining the monarchy and of graft, accusations he denies. Thaksin’s younger sister, former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, was removed from office last May, days before the army staged the coup aimed at restoring order after months of street protests. The post Thai King Leaves Hospital After Seven Months, Returns to Seaside Palace appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Widow of Slain US-Bangladeshi Blogger Lashes out at Dhaka Posted: 10 May 2015 10:34 PM PDT Rafida Ahmed, who is recovering from injuries including the loss of her thumb suffered during a hacking attack, near Washington on Apr. 23. (Photo: Reuters) On a recent evening in a Midwestern US city, a middle-aged woman with bandaged arms and a missing thumb entered a crowded restaurant. Nearby, children colored with crayons. Waiters rushed by. The maimed woman, Rafida Ahmed, scanned the room nervously. The Atlanta financial executive has been hiding since Islamic militants wielding machetes attacked her on Feb. 26 in her native Bangladesh. During the assault, her husband—the Bangladeshi-American secular activist and blogger Avijit Roy—was hacked to death. Ahmed sustained four head wounds, and her left thumb was sliced off. On May 3, the Indian-born head of al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent claimed responsibility for a string attacks in Bangladesh and Pakistan, including Roy’s. The murder of Roy, an atheist who published a popular and provocative blog, marks an escalation by Islamist militants for control of Bangladesh. Religious fundamentalists are competing daily with secular government officials for power in the majority-Muslim country, one of the world’s largest and poorest democracies. In her first extensive interview since the attack, Ahmed criticized the Bangladeshi government for not responding more aggressively to her husband’s slaying. “This was well planned, choreographed—a global act of terrorism,” she said. “But what almost bothers me more is that no one from the Bangladesh government has reached out to me. It’s as if I don’t exist, and they are afraid of the extremists. Is Bangladesh going to be the next Pakistan or Afghanistan?” "Walking a Fine Line" In an interview, Sajeeb Wazed, the son of Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, said his mother offered private condolences to Roy’s father. But the political situation in Bangladesh is too volatile for her to comment publicly, he said. Roy was an avowed atheist; the book he was promoting when he was killed is titled “The Virus of Faith.” “We are walking a fine line here,” said Wazed, an informal consultant for the ruling party, the Awami League. “We don’t want to be seen as atheists. It doesn’t change our core beliefs. We believe in secularism,” he said. “But given that our opposition party plays that religion card against us relentlessly, we can’t come out strongly for him. It’s about perception, not about reality.” A spokesman at the Bangladesh Embassy in Washington said he did not know why no one from his government had yet to contact Ahmed, who, like her late husband, is a dual Bangladeshi-US citizen. “We are shocked at the killing of Avijit Roy and have taken all measures to find the culprits responsible for this heinous act,” said spokesman Shamim Ahmad. “Bangladesh is committed to fighting and ending extremism in all its forms.” The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation deployed agents to Dhaka and is working with Bangladesh authorities, an FBI spokeswoman said. Agents met most recently with Ahmed in the United States on Friday, Ahmed said. Wazed said Roy’s death came during a three-month period when 160 people died in bus bombings in Dhaka, and shortly before explosions near the prime minister’s motorcade. Wazed blamed political opponents who, he said, seek to destabilize his mother’s government. “To us, Avijit Roy is no different than the 160 others that have been killed,” he said. “We want to bring all the killers to justice. I understand why (his wife) is upset. My mother has been targeted by these same fundamentalists.” Free Thinker Well known in his native Bangladesh, Roy was largely anonymous in his suburban Atlanta neighborhood, where the couple lived since 2006. By day, he worked as a Verizon software engineer. At night, he was a prolific writer, emerging as a leading critic of religious extremism in Bangladesh. Roy, 43, wrote eight books and moderated a blog called Mukto-Mona (Free Thinker). To some, he was a provocative atheist, but his blog also reflected a strong belief in the value of civil debate, said his stepdaughter, Trisha Ahmed, 18. “My dad was building a community of secularists who thought rationally,” she said. “He wanted to start a conversation and see where it would go.” Roy was a young child during the formative years that followed Bangladesh’s 1971 war of independence from Pakistan. The war had roots in colonialism and religion. Although Pakistan and Bangladesh shared neither a border nor common language, they had been joined as one in 1947, as the British departed the subcontinent. The demarcation was largely based on one factor: most who lived in Pakistan and Bangladesh were Muslim. Bangladesh was founded as a secular country, but US and Bangladesh officials said the Islamic fundamentalist influence began to increase in the 1990s as wealthy Arabs began building hundreds of religious schools. The same officials say militant influence also increased as waves of Bangladeshis who had moved to the Persian Gulf as laborers returned home with stricter Muslim views. Roy’s activism began around 2000, after he moved to Singapore for graduate school. He moderated a Yahoo email group and the blog followed, said Bangladeshi-British activist Rayan Rashid. “It was a pioneering group, quite popular, long before Facebook and Twitter,” said Rashid. “He was patient, witty, elegant and mature in dealing with dissidents. His goal was to win them over.” A Threat In 2002, while in Singapore, Roy noticed a blog post from a US woman who wrote of religion, “I don’t understand how people can believe in fairy tales.” It was Rafida Ahmed, who would become his wife. “A lot of people attacked me online for that post,” she recalled. “I was a tech manager in Atlanta at the time, a single mom. I was intimidated and didn’t respond. The next day, someone named Avijit Roy is defending me.” They dated long distance for years, and he reluctantly moved from Singapore to Atlanta in 2006: Ahmed would not leave the United States until her daughter completed high school. Roy held a doctorate in biomedical research, but found it easier to get a lucrative job and a US visa as a software architect, his wife said. After Trisha Ahmed was in college, the couple, by then married and US citizens, decided to visit Dhaka. The two departed in mid-February. “We knew that anything can happen in a country like that, and we took precautions,” Ahmed said. “There was only one threat against him but we didn’t take it seriously. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have gone.” Final Days Roy was a star attraction at the book fair. On a tranquil morning before his murder, he outlined a book he planned to write with Ahmed, and took her on a rickshaw tour of his childhood neighborhood. He exchanged Facebook messages with his stepdaughter, sharing in her excitement at attending a US college lecture by the feminist Gloria Steinem. “We were really, really happy,” said Ahmed, who had edited her husband’s books in Atlanta, but had not seen his influence first-hand in Bangladesh. “He had finally gotten to show me—in Bangladesh—how and why his work was so important.” Violence against secularists continues. On Mar. 30, a Roy supporter, Washiqur Rahman, was hacked to death hacked in Dhaka by religious extremists. After Roy’s murder, a Dhaka man who had posted online threats was detained but not charged. Dhaka police have said they believe the Roy and Rahman murders were committed by the militant group Ansarullah Bangla Team. “This looks much scarier than we originally thought,” Ahmed said. The post Widow of Slain US-Bangladeshi Blogger Lashes out at Dhaka appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Boats with 600 Rohingya and Bangladeshis Land in Indonesia Posted: 10 May 2015 10:27 PM PDT Migrants believed to be Rohingya rest inside a shelter after being rescued from boats at Lhoksukon in Indonesia’s Aceh Province May 11, 2015. (Photo: Reuters) JAKARTA — Boats carrying nearly 600 Bangladeshis and long-persecuted Rohingya Muslims from Burma landed in western Indonesia on Sunday, with some migrants needing medical care, officials and a nonprofit organization said. Thousands more are believed to be stranded at sea. Steve Hamilton, of the International Organization for Migration in Jakarta, Indonesia's capital, said his teams were racing to the Aceh province sub-district of Seunuddon, where the boats offloaded. Of the four vessels that arrived, three had apparently been abandoned by the smugglers and the other ran out of fuel, he said. Most of the migrants were men, but there also were 98 women and 51 children, officials said, adding that many were sick and weak. "We had nothing to eat," said Rashid Ahmed, a 43-year-old Rohingya man who was on one of the boats. He said he left Burma's troubled state of Arakan with his eldest son three months ago. "All we could do was pray," he said, crying as he spoke to The Associated Press by phone. The Rohingya have for decades suffered from state-sanctioned discrimination in Burma and are denied citizenship. Attacks on the religious minority by Buddhist mobs in the last three years have sparked one of the biggest exoduses of boat people since the Vietnam War, sending 100,000 people fleeing, according to Chris Lewa, director of the Arakan Project, which has monitored the movements of Rohingya for more than a decade. An estimated 7,000 to 8,000 people are now being held in large and small ships in the Malacca Strait and nearby international waters, she said, adding that crackdowns on trafficking syndicates in Thailand and Malaysia have prevented brokers from bringing them to shore. Some are held even after family members pay for them to be released from the boats. "I am very concerned about smugglers abandoning boatloads at sea," Lewa said, noting that some people have been stranded for more than two months. Tightly confined, and with limited access to food and clean water, their health is inevitably deteriorating, Lewa said, adding that dozens of deaths have been reported so far. Thailand has long been considered a regional hub for human traffickers. The tactics of brokers and agents started changing in November as authorities began to tighten security on land—a move apparently aimed at appeasing the US government as it prepares to release its annual Trafficking in Persons report next month. Last year, Thailand was downgraded to the lowest level, putting it on par with North Korea and Syria. Rohingya packing into ships in the Bay of Bengal have been joined in growing numbers by Bangladeshis who are fleeing poverty and are hoping to find a better life elsewhere. Up until recently, their first stop was Thailand, where they were held in open pens in jungle camps as brokers collected "ransoms" of $2,000 or more from family and friends. Those who could pay continued onward, usually to Malaysia or other countries. Those who couldn't were sometimes beaten, killed or left to die. Since May 1, police have unearthed two dozen bodies from shallow graves in the mountains of southern Thailand, the apparent victims, they say, of smuggling rings. Thai authorities have since arrested dozens of people, including a powerful mayor. More than 50 police officers are also under investigation. Similar crackdowns have occurred in Malaysia and Bangladesh. Officials are bracing for the possibility that more boats will land in Indonesia in the coming days and weeks. Lt. Col. Achmadi, chief of the Lhoksukon police, said at least 573 Rohingya and Bangladeshis arrived in Aceh early Sunday. That number could climb as authorities comb the area for migrants dropped off in various locations, he said. They were being taken to a police station and a sports stadium, where they were getting care. A few were taken to a local clinic for medical attention. One Rohingya man who arrived Sunday, Muhammad Juned, told the AP that he left Burma two months ago, like most of the others hoping to reach predominantly Muslim Malaysia. "We just wanted to leave because the situation in Myanmar is no longer conducive for us to stay," he said. The post Boats with 600 Rohingya and Bangladeshis Land in Indonesia appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Fish Hung Out to Dry at a Village in Mon State Posted: 10 May 2015 05:00 PM PDT Click to view slideshow. YE TOWNSHIP, Mon State — At this seaside village south of Ye Township in Mon State, the pungent smell of fish is a daily reality for the approximately 300 households that make up "New Andin." The fishing community lives about an hour's drive by motorbike from the town of Ye, but many of New Andin's inhabitants are from farther afield, such as the Irrawaddy Delta region or other towns in Mon State. They've come to catch and dry fish that they will later sell, mostly to markets in Moulmein. Cho Wai Than, 33, came to the village in October and will return to her hometown of Kyaikkami in mid-May. While she is here, her husband catches the fish while she sorts and dries it. The family manages about 30 to 40 viss (108 to 144 pounds) of dried fish every two weeks. Fishermen take to sea four to six times per day, depending on the success of their outings. Their wives and children sort the catch, selling some to the village but putting most of the fish and prawn out to dry under the sweltering tropical sun. Most fishermen will take a two-and-a-half-month break in the coming months, when the monsoon rains whip in from the Andaman Sea. The post Fish Hung Out to Dry at a Village in Mon State appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

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