The Irrawaddy Magazine |
- Real Estate Pro: ‘Overall, the Market Has Cooled Down’
- Fugitive Student Detained in Rangoon, Second Activist Arrest in One Week
- Bhutanese Getting More Sleep, Lifting Happiness Index
- China’s Vice President Pledges Support in Rare Afghanistan Visit
- Taiwan, Chinese Presidents to Meet for First Time Since ’49
- Spurred by Burma Radicals, Thai Buddhists Push for State Religion Status
| Real Estate Pro: ‘Overall, the Market Has Cooled Down’ Posted: 04 Nov 2015 04:14 AM PST  Than Oo, managing director of the Mandine Real Estate Agency. (Photo: Steve Tickner / The Irrawaddy) Since earlier this year, Rangoon's formerly dynamic real estate market has seen a striking cool-down in key locations in the city. While many factors have contributed to this economic malaise, Burma's Nov. 8 general election, which is hoped to be the country's freest and fairest in decades, has surely played a part. Because of the uncertainty surrounding the current political climate, many investors, both local and international, are approaching Burma's real estate market with a wait-and-see attitude. Than Oo, managing director of the Mandine Real Estate Agency and vice chairman of the Myanmar Real Estate Services Association, spoke with The Irrawaddy this week about the future of Burma's real estate market. Many people have said that Rangoon's real estate market has cooled down because of the country's historic election, scheduled for Nov. 8. Is this true? Yes, this is true in some places [in Rangoon]. Overall, the market has cooled down. For instance, the market for luxury houses as well as land in project areas is rather sluggish. But there are still small-amount dealings—dealings worth less than 100 million kyats—in other places. And as we are now in the Thadingyut period [the seventh month of Burma's calendar, and when many people are moving after the three-month rainy reason], rental agreements are also being renewed. Do you mean that Rangoon's lucrative real estate market has crashed? There are still high-value dealings, but now they are few and far between, unlike between 2011 and 2013. A number of factors have contributed to the decline, as we are currently seeing. But now the decline is also largely because of the election. Everyone is approaching it with a wait-and-see attitude. Do you think that the real estate market will bounce back after the election, and if so, why? We're waiting for that to happen. The real estate market depends on Burma's economy, and Burma's economy depends on politics. The country's politics need to pave the way for economic development. Both local and international communities are waiting to see what happens. A comparison of foreign investments between May and now makes the issue plain. In May, foreign investments totaled just over US$56 billion, but there has been little change in this figure since then. Western countries in particular are coming at the situation with a wait-and-see attitude. And if these big economies are taking this approach, then other countries will surely follow suit. They'll keep an eye not only on the real estate sector but also on other economic sectors. In fact, all of Burma's economic sectors, not just the real estate market, are sluggish and are cooling down. What places in Rangoon that were once lively are now seeing a cool-down in the real estate market? This cool-down is happening in many townships, but it's particularly been in Bahan, Mayangon, Kamayut, and Sanchaung townships where the market for high-price property has declined. There was formerly a vibrant property market—including the market for condominiums— in South Okkalapa, North Dagon, and in industrial zone areas such as Dagon Seikkan, Dagon South, and Dagon East. But now the market has started to stagger in these places, too. There are two sectors of the property market—sales and rental. Though the sales market is slowing down, the rental market is doing well, but it's still not as extraordinarily lively as it was between 2007 and 2014. Do you think that we'll see positive changes in the real estate market if the new government is able to adopt clear policies regarding the property market? Because Burma's property market is linked to its economy, the new government must adopt good economic policies in tandem with good political policies. At the same time, the economic and foreign policies of Burma's neighbors will affect the markets here. Some have withdrawn investments, while for others investment has been low. There are also various other factors [that have affected the property market] aside from the election, such as the heavy flooding in June and July that caused serious damage in 12 divisions and states. Added to this are the problems of corruption and bribery that have benefitted cronies and rich people who have laundered money by investing in the property market. Everyone says that the property market is the best place to launder money. Will this change under the new government? This is why we have to wait and see how the election goes. I don't want to talk about hopes before we have seen any results. But seeing as how the main opposition leader [Aung San Suu Kyi of the National League for Democracy] has recently said that she would not hold any grudges but rather cooperate [with those currently in power, if the NLD wins a majority in the election], I don't think that she will retaliate against those who did very bad things in the past. What will happen if the Condominium Law is enacted next year? There may be changes if the Condominium Law is enacted. The law was drafted in 2013. It is taking a long time for it to be enacted because [the government] does not want to allow foreigners to own land [in Burma]. But I don't know if the leaders of our country know or not that foreigners already illegally own land in Burma. The post Real Estate Pro: 'Overall, the Market Has Cooled Down' appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| Fugitive Student Detained in Rangoon, Second Activist Arrest in One Week Posted: 04 Nov 2015 12:47 AM PST  Lin Htet Naing and his wife, jailed student activist Phyo Phyo Aung. (Photo: ABFSU) RANGOON — Student activist Lin Htet Naing, also known simply as "James," was arrested late Tuesday for his role the education reform protest movement, after spending more than seven months in hiding. Lin Htet Naing, who is married to jailed activist Phyo Phyo Aung, was the second student demonstrator to be apprehended in less than a week, after fellow fugitive Kyaw Ko Ko was arrested last Thursday. Speaking to The Irrawaddy by phone on Wednesday, a spokesperson for the All Burma Federation of Student Unions (ABFSU) confirmed that Lin Htet Naing had been found, arrested and transported to an unknown location in police custody. "We can only confirm that he is detained by police, but we don't know where he is and I am very worried about it," said Aung Nay Paing of ABFSU, adding that the 27-year-old had been detained while on a bus heading to Shwepyithar Township. Following his arrest, Special Branch officers searched Lin Htet Naing's home around 10am on Wednesday morning, interrogating one of his family members and confiscating some of his financial assets. "The police confirmed that they arrested James but they didn't want to tell me where he is," his aunt, Myint Myint Sein, told The Irrawaddy after officers left their family home. Lin Htet Naing's relatives are now waiting at the Kamayut Township Court where they believe he will be taken for arraignment. An arrest warrant was issued for Lin Htet Naing in earlier this year, just after a brutal March 10 crackdown on student demonstrators in Letpadan, Pegu Division, that initially landed more than 100 students and supporters in jail. Lin Htet Naing faces charges of unlawful assembly, rioting and incitement for his role in a solidarity protest that took place on the same day in Rangoon's Hledan Township. More than 60 people are in Thayawady Prison on charges relating to the March 10 protest, the violent conclusion of six weeks of nationwide protests against Burma's National Education Law. Most have been in detention for nearly eight months, facing prison terms of up to nine and a half years and sitting through a trial subject to numerous adjournments and walkouts by the presiding judge. International and domestic rights bodies—including the Myanmar National Human Rights Commission—have called for the release of all prisoners of conscience and student activists in detention before a general election to be held on Nov. 8. Aung Nay Paing of ABFSU said the recent "crackdown" on remaining activists indicates the government's reluctance to allow free participation in the polls. "The government is afraid of an all-inclusive election," he said, "so they detain the students and the politicians beforehand." The post Fugitive Student Detained in Rangoon, Second Activist Arrest in One Week appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| Bhutanese Getting More Sleep, Lifting Happiness Index Posted: 03 Nov 2015 11:19 PM PST  Prime Minister of Bhutan Tshering Tobgay addresses a plenary meeting of the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit 2015 at the United Nations headquarters in Manhattan, New York, September 25, 2015. (Photo: Andrew Kelly / Reuters) NEW DELHI — People in Bhutan are happier now than they were five years ago, according to a survey of social wellbeing released by the tiny Himalayan kingdom that, among other things, measures whether they are getting enough sleep. Mostly Buddhist Bhutan, wedged between China and India, launched the Gross National Happiness (GNH) index in 2010 to include indicators ignored by conventional GDP—the monetary value of all goods and services produced in a country. These range from quality-of-life indicators like leisure time and forest cover to whether people experience negative emotions like anger and envy. Addressing a conference on GNH in the capital Thimphu on Tuesday, Prime Minister Lyonchoen Tshering Tobgay said the index inched up to 0.756 this year from 0.743 in 2010, but that he did not know yet what was a good growth rate. The constitutional monarchy's goal is for every citizen to be "extensively or deeply happy," compared with the current figure of 43.4 percent. "We saw some modest gains in areas such as living standards, health and time use," Tobgay said, according to a copy of his speech, adding that 7 percent more Bhutanese got enough sleep in 2015 than in 2010. "But in other areas such as community vitality and psychological wellbeing indicators, we actually seem to lose ground." The gross national income of Bhutan—which until the 1960s was an isolated rural society with no currency, telephones, schools, hospitals or public services—has been consistently higher than that of South Asia as a whole, according to World Bank data from 2006 to 2014. But Rajesh Kharat, who teaches South Asian studies at New Delhi's Jawaharlal Nehru University and advises the government of Bhutan, says GNH's benefits have been confined to towns where communication is better. "GNH has become internationally popular but yet to reach a single person in the villages," Kharat said. "The main thing is education. Most of the people in rural areas have not really understood whether Bhutan is a monarchy or a democracy." Tobgay too said he was troubled that the improvement in the GNH was strongest in towns instead of "our fields and valleys and hamlets high up in the mist," a worrying sign for the landlocked country. More than half its 349,000 labor force still works in agriculture. "We must find ways of energizing GNH in rural areas, so young people build their careers and families in our beautiful villages as mature modern men and women, and don't only yearn for the city lights," he said. The post Bhutanese Getting More Sleep, Lifting Happiness Index appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| China’s Vice President Pledges Support in Rare Afghanistan Visit Posted: 03 Nov 2015 09:28 PM PST  Chinese Vice President Li Yuanchao, left, and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani attend a signing ceremony of mutual agreements in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Nov. 3, 2015. (Photo: Ahmad Masood / Reuters) KABUL, Afghanistan — China's vice president pledged infrastructure and security support for Afghanistan on Tuesday, signing several deals during a rare high-level Chinese visit to Kabul. China says it does not seek to fill a void left by a drawdown of most foreign troops in Afghanistan at the end of last year, but has promised to play a "huge" commercial role in helping rebuild the country, where the Taliban seek to re-establish their Islamist regime. Some experts, however, argue that the benefits of Chinese aid and investment in Afghanistan have yet to fully materialize amid the deteriorating security situation there. Chinese Vice President Li Yuanchao told Afghan President Ashraf Ghani that Beijing would provide 500 million yuan (US$79 million) this year to help build housing in the capital Kabul. "China is willing to help Afghanistan formulate infrastructure plans to strengthen interconnectedness and intercommunication with surrounding countries," Li said in a speech that was broadcast on Afghan state television. Ghani said the funds will help build 10,000 residential apartments in Kabul, and that China also pledged to provide "special security devices" to scan vehicles entering the capital. "Unfortunately two countries which are committed to peace and stability are in danger from regional and international terrorism," Ghani said in comments that were also carried on television. "Our discussions were based on how to bring under control and eliminate those ominous phenomena which are obstacles to stability, prosperity and cooperation in the region," Ghani said, calling China "a factor to bring peace in Afghanistan." Trouble at Home It was unclear if the deals went beyond the billions of yuan in commitments China announced last fall when Ghani made his first trip abroad as president to Beijing. Li's trip had not been publicly announced in advance, though it is not unusual for senior foreign officials not to give prior notice of their visits to Afghanistan for security reasons. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited Kabul in 2014. Former Chinese domestic security chief Zhou Yongkang, who was felled in a domestic political scandal, visited in 2012 and signed deals to help train and equip Afghan police. China has become increasingly concerned about what it calls extremists and separatists in its western region of Xinjiang, where violence has killed hundreds in recent years, and sees security in Afghanistan as key to stability at home. Rights groups, however, blame the unrest in Xinjiang on frustration of the largely Muslim Uighur people from the region over China's controls on their culture and religion, charges Beijing denies. The post China's Vice President Pledges Support in Rare Afghanistan Visit appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| Taiwan, Chinese Presidents to Meet for First Time Since ’49 Posted: 03 Nov 2015 09:18 PM PST  Activists shout slogans to protest against the meeting between Taiwan's President Ma Ying-jeou and Chinese President Xi Jinping while police officers stand guard in front of the Presidential Office in Taipei, Taiwan, on Nov. 4, 2015. (Photo: Pichi Chuang / Reuters) BEIJING — The presidents of China and Taiwan will meet this weekend for the first time since civil war divided their lands 66 years ago, their governments said Wednesday, a highly symbolic move that reflects quickly improving relations between the formerly bitter Cold War foes. The meeting Saturday in Singapore between Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Taiwanese counterpart Ma Ying-jeou could be China's last to press its case for closer economic and, ultimately political ties, before Taiwan elects a new president and legislature in January that could put the brakes on Ma's pro-China initiatives. For Ma's ruling Nationalists, who have been lagging at the polls, it could boost their credentials for driving progress in relations with China, but also carries the risk of appearing too close to Beijing, further damaging their chances with skeptical voters. Presidents of the two sides have not met since Chiang Kai-shek's Nationalists lost the Chinese civil war to Mao Zedong's Communists and the Nationalists rebased in Taiwan 160 kilometers (100 miles) away in 1949. The two sides have been separately ruled since then, with Taiwan evolving into a freewheeling democracy. China insists that the two sides eventually reunite, by force if necessary. Confirmation of the meeting from the Chinese cabinet's Taiwan Affairs Office came hours after the Taiwanese side announced the meeting earlier Wednesday. The two would be meeting in their capacity as "leaders of the two sides" of the Taiwan Strait, office director Zhang Zhijun was quoted as saying in a news release posted on the office's website. That appeared to afford them equal status, possibly an effort to blunt criticism from the pro-independence opposition in Taiwan who accuse Ma's Nationalist Party of pandering to China's ruling Communists. "This is a pragmatic arrangement under the situation of the irresolution of cross-strait political differences on the basis of the one-China principle," Zhang said, a reference to Beijing's insistence that Taiwan and the mainland are part of a single Chinese nation. The two sides never talked formally until Ma, president since 2008, set aside old hostilities to allow lower-level official meetings. China and Taiwan have signed 23 deals covering mainly trade, transit and investment, binding Taiwan closer to its top trading partner and the world's second-largest economy. Taiwanese presidential spokesman Charles Chen said in a statement Wednesday that the two would exchange ideas about relations but not sign any deals. The choice of Singapore as venue was significant because the Southeast Asian city-state with an ethnic Chinese majority population has strong relations with both Taiwan and China and serves as neutral ground. Singapore hosted breakthrough talks between unofficial Taiwanese and Chinese negotiators in 1992 that established a formula whereby they acknowledge that there is only one China, of which Taiwan is a part, but differ on the exact interpretation. Although Beijing insists on the so-called "1992 consensus" as the basis for talks, Taiwan's main opposition Democratic Progressive Party has refused to embrace it, calling it meaningless and unrepresentative of popular sentiment on the island. Ma is stepping down as president next year after his maximum two terms, and the DPP's candidate Tsai Ing-wen is considered the front-runner to replace him. A DPP victory could prompt a sweeping reassessment of its Taiwan polices by Beijing, which has hoped that economic inducements would lead to greater acceptance of eventual political unification. Ma's government has come under increasing criticism at home for cozying up to China, amid fears Beijing will eventually leverage economic relations to exert more power over the island. Such sentiments helped the DPP to a landslide victory a year ago in local elections, raising the possibility it might win not only the presidency but also a majority in legislative elections also being held Jan. 16. Given the chances of a Nationalist defeat, China is likely to proceed cautiously to avoid further alienating Taiwanese voters. Xi warned Taiwan in 2013 against putting off political differences from generation to generation. China has long advocated a Hong Kong-style one-country, two-system form of joint rule, in which Beijing controls Taiwan but the island of 23 million retains control of its political, legal and economic affairs. That approach has little currency in Taiwan, where most favor the current state of de-facto independence. The statement from Ma's spokesman said the two presidents will meet to "solidify Taiwan-mainland relations and keep the status quo across the Taiwan Strait." "To hold a meeting across the Taiwan Strait is the consistent goal of leaders on both sides," Ma's spokesman said in the statement. "President Ma recently has repeated many times that 'at the right time and on the right occasion and in the right capacity,' he would not rule out a meeting." Taiwanese officials planned to hold a news conference about the Singapore meeting later Wednesday, and Ma planned to hold one on Thursday. In Washington, White House spokesman Josh Earnest said the United States would welcome steps taken on both sides of the Taiwan Strait to try to reduce tensions and improve relations, but added, "we'll have to see what actually comes out of the meeting." Ma is likely hoping for some reassurance from Xi over the use of force and closer economic ties that could help Nationalist Presidential candidate Eric Chu in the polls, said Hong Kong Chinese politics expert Willy Lam. Xi, for his part, likewise hopes a friendly, non-threatening meeting could give the Nationalists a boost, while showing a Chinese domestic audience that he could be the best bet in decades for achieving unification. "This could be good for his reputation and a feather in his cap," said Lam. While the meeting is meant to showcase the Nationalist's adeptness at dealing with China, it carries significant risks for the party, said Sean King, senior vice president with the consultancy Park Strategies in New York and a frequent commentator on Asian affairs. "This meeting will only hurt the Nationalists at home, as it will cause them to even more be seen as Beijing's preferred Taiwan party," King said. "This could be the mainland's last chance to liaise with the Nationalist Party, while it's in power, for years to come." The post Taiwan, Chinese Presidents to Meet for First Time Since '49 appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| Spurred by Burma Radicals, Thai Buddhists Push for State Religion Status Posted: 03 Nov 2015 09:07 PM PST  Buddhist monks sit during a news conference by the radical Buddhist group Ma Ba Tha at their head office in Rangoon, October 2, 2015. (Photo: Soe Zeya Tun / Reuters) BANGKOK — A campaign to enshrine Buddhism as Thailand's state religion has been galvanized by a radical Buddhist movement in neighboring Burma that is accused of stoking religious tension, the leader of the Thai bid said. Experts say the campaign could appeal to Thailand's military junta, which is struggling for popularity 18 months after staging a coup, and tap into growing anti-Muslim sentiment in a country that prides itself on religious tolerance. While Buddhists form an overwhelming majority in both countries, Thailand has avoided the nationwide religious violence that has killed hundreds of people in Burma, most of them Muslims. Now, Thai campaigners want Buddhism to be made the country's official religion in a new constitution. They draw inspiration from Ma Ba Tha, a powerful monk-led group that pushed Burma's government to pass a raft of pro-Buddhist legislation. "What happened in Burma confirms our suspicions that Buddhism is threatened by various subtle means," said Thai campaigner Banjob Bannaruji, who chairs the Committee to Promote Buddhism as the State Religion. Banjob said Thai Buddhists have pushed for the state religion law for many decades, but Burma's example had spurred them to speed up "concrete efforts to make it happen". Thailand's constitution was scrapped after the military seized power in May 2014 and handpicked a committee to write a new one. It must pass a referendum before a general election, possibly in 2017, can restore a semblance of democracy. A previous attempt to include Buddhism as the state religion in the 2007 constitution, written after an earlier military coup, went nowhere. But campaigners stand a better chance this time round, said Ekachai Chainuvati, a constitutional law expert at Siam University in Bangkok. Adopting Buddhism as a state religion could give the constitution more popular appeal and improve its chances of passing a referendum, he said. Amorn Wanichwiwatana, spokesman for the Constitution Drafting Committee, said he could not comment on the likelihood of the idea being adopted. "But we have to listen to every suggestion," he said. 'Neglected Religion' Burma's military-backed government this year passed four so-called "race and religion protection" laws at Ma Ba Tha's behest. Human rights groups say the laws discriminate against Muslims and women. While Ma Ba Tha's influence has grown, Thai Buddhism has been shaken by scandal. Monks have been accused of stealing, hoarding narcotics or having sex, prompting many to call for an overhaul of the religion. The state religion law would allow future governments to better oversee monks and reform a "neglected religion," said campaigner Banjob. His group plans to collect a million signatures at religious functions and via the internet to petition the Constitution Drafting Committee. Government statistics do not suggest a religion in decline. In the past decade, the number of Buddhist temples rose by 15 percent to about 39,000. Thailand has about 350,000 monks. Even so, said Somchai Surachatri, spokesman for the National Office of Buddhism, a government agency tasked with nurturing the religion, Buddhism could one day be "devoured." He spoke of receiving text messages warning that Muslims were buying up land to build mosques in every Thai province. "That's why Buddhists have been uneasy and feel the need to protect their religion," he said. Such remarks carry echoes of Ma Ba Tha, which claims Islam is eclipsing Buddhism in Burma. Sunai Phasuk, a Thailand researcher for Human Rights Watch, said there was "an increasing sense of suspicion" towards Muslims. Recent protests by monks and laypeople have halted the construction of mosques and a halal food factory in northern Thailand. Also driving anti-Muslim sentiment, said Sunai, was a conflict in southern Thailand between government forces and ethnic Malay Muslim insurgents that has killed about 6,500 people since 2004. The murder of monks by insurgents deserves an equally pitiless response, believes Aphichat Promjan, a monk who teaches at Wat Benjamabophit, a famous Bangkok temple. For every monk killed "a mosque should be burned, starting from the northern part of Thailand southwards," Aphichat wrote on Facebook on Oct. 29. The post, accompanied by gruesome images, has been shared or liked almost 2,000 times, but it also sparked disdain. "I don't agree with this violent idea, which is like pouring fuel onto fire," one person commented in Thai. The post Spurred by Burma Radicals, Thai Buddhists Push for State Religion Status appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
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