The Irrawaddy Magazine

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• Despite Industry Woes, Jade ‘Still Flowing’ at Annual Emporium
• Company Slams Tender Process For New Rangoon Business District
• Human Rights Day Events Blocked by Authorities in Naypyidaw, Rangoon
• Ethnic Alliance Upholds Suspension of Two Members
• Work on Latest Rangoon Flyovers Finished Soon, Say Builders
• Environmental Campaigner Calls for ‘Proactive’ Government Effort to Address Climate Change
• Thai Hotels Accused of Ill-Treatment of Burmese Migrant Staff
• Report Shows Japan Loopholes Aid Illicit Trade in Ivory
• Singapore Sees Islamist Militancy ‘Clear, Present Danger’ for Asia
• Thai Police Probe US Envoy over Comments about Monarchy Law

Despite Industry Woes, Jade ‘Still Flowing’ at Annual Emporium Posted: 10 Dec 2015 04:01 AM PST A trader checks the quality of jade at Burma's 2011 Mid-Year Emporium for jade, gems and pearls in the capital Naypyidaw on Dec. 24, 2011. (Photo: Reuters) RANGOON — The number of jade lots on display at this year's gems emporium for local traders dipped slightly compared with 2014's showcase, with supply showing some decline but overall resilience in a year that saw the industry subjected to a spate of criticism over the ethnics and safety of the trade. The jade sale in Naypyidaw, exclusively for Burmese nationals, is being held from Dec. 7-13, with more than 200 traders bidding to buy jade and gems lots over the course of the week. In the jade sale, 6,826 lots are on display and the first 1,000 were put up for auction on Thursday, according to Min Thu, assistant director of the Myanmar Gems Enterprise, under the Ministry of Mines. At the last emporium exclusively for local traders, in October 2014, the Myanmar Gems Enterprise and private enterprises offered 6,982 jade lots and sold 5,988. Tun Hla Aung, joint secretary of the Myanmar Gems and Jewelry Entrepreneurs Association, acknowledged that the jade market in 2015 was not as hot as previous years, but he insisted that the trade remained fundamentally strong. "The market is just cooling, that's why traders are fewer and also this is only for local traders, but I don't think jade supply is getting low, many jade lots are still flowing in the market," he said. Jade supplies at emporiums in Burma are subject, to an extent, to unconventional market forces, such as conflict in or near Kachin State's jade-rich Hpakant Township, and illicit flows of the prized green gems to China. Both of these factors have spent time in the spotlight this year. The industry made headlines for all the wrong reasons in October, with a report from the natural resources watchdog Global Witness finding that up to US$31 billion in jade left the country last year alone, the majority of it illegally. The organization's investigation traced many of the profits from the illicit trade back to government officials, military elites and the country's so-called crony class, with some in the weeks since the allegations disputing the report's findings. About one month after the Global Witness report's release, a massive landslide at a mining dump site in Hpakant Township, where most of Burma's jade deposits are located, killed at least 113 people and cast further negative light on the trade. The Burmese government holds separate emporiums for local and international traders, with foreigners typically invited to bid on jade and jadeite at an annual jade emporium held mid-year. This year's emporium, from June 24 to July 6 in Naypyidaw, saw a total of 8,934 jade lots and about 320 lots of various other gems, including highly coveted Mogok rubies, on offer. Two international emporiums were held last year, the latter raking in a record $3.4 billion, up from about $2.6 billion the previous year. In addition to the jade lots, there are about 150 gems lots on display at the Naypyidaw emporium this month. The government in recent years has sought to stem the flow of raw jade out of the country, in favor of encouraging local entrepreneurs to purchase the stones with value-added intentions. The post Despite Industry Woes, Jade 'Still Flowing' at Annual Emporium appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Company Slams Tender Process For New Rangoon Business District Posted: 10 Dec 2015 03:26 AM PST City Hall, which hosts the offices of the Yangon City Development Committee, pictured in downtown Rangoon. (Photo: Steve Tickner / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — With construction of a new business district in Rangoon's north slated to begin next year, an unsuccessful bidder has slammed the tender process for the project that has been in the works since 2013. PATTKO Global Development Company claimed that the tender selection committee, assembled by the commercial capital's municipal body, lacked experts and called for the process to be reviewed. Tin Hlaing, managing director of PATTKO, told media at a press conference in Rangoon on Wednesday that the tender selection committee did not include any engineering or architectural experts and had therefore failed to competently assess competing bids. "For such a project which is very important for the country, they selected a developer company without any experts from related fields," Tin Hlaing said. PATTKO was among five companies shortlisted to operate the project, known as the Mindhama Secondary Central Business District (CBD). The over 36 acre project, located in Rangoon's Mayangone Township, is slated to include hotels, convention centers, galleries, theatres, cinema halls, shopping malls and high-rise buildings, including office space. According to the Yangon City Development Committee (YCDC) which oversaw the tender, the new CBD would relieve congestion in the city's bustling downtown area. The project's location formerly hosted the Mindhama plant nursery that has been forced to relocate. YCDC announced the tender in state-owned newspapers in September 2013, stipulating that foreign companies and joint ventures could apply. First Myanmar Construction, a subsidiary of Myanmar V-Pile Group of Companies, was announced as the successful developer in August 2014. According to Tin Hlaing, the locally-owned winning firm does not fulfill the tender's criteria and the committee's reasoning for the selection was deficient. PATTKO said it had delayed raising the issue as it did not want to create tension before last month's general election. The company had attempted to convince lawmakers in the Rangoon Division parliament to reconsider the process shortly after the winning bid was announced, Tin Hlaing said, but had not heard back. Speaking to The Irrawaddy on Thursday, Nay Win, deputy head of the YCDC's Engineering Department (Buildings), said the tender selection committee had not included experts from either the Association of Myanmar Architects (AMA) or the Myanmar Engineering Council as it was tendered by the YCDC, not the Rangoon Divisional government. However, Sun Oo, president of the AMA, told The Irrawaddy that the municipal body had previously involved the AMA in selection processes but it was not consulted for the new CBD. "If experts could participate in selection and advisory processes for such projects they could suggest the best option for the country and the public, in line with international standards," he said. "If not, it's the public who is going to suffer at the end of the day if there are any weak points in the project." Tin Hlaing called on the YCDC to review the process. "As it's an international tender, we want the YCDC to reconsider the tender process according to international standards, which means to reorganize the selection committee together with experts who want real benefits for the country and the public," he said. According to a report in the Myanmar Times last month, First Myanmar Construction is awaiting final approval from the Myanmar Investment Commission before work can begin in 2016. Last year, local authorities faced a tide of criticism after the Rangoon Division government announced it had awarded a massive city expansion project to little known company Myanmar Say Ta Nar Myothit. The company, which has since had its contract revoked, had close ties with Rangoon Division chief minister Myint Swe. The post Company Slams Tender Process For New Rangoon Business District appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Human Rights Day Events Blocked by Authorities in Naypyidaw, Rangoon Posted: 10 Dec 2015 03:05 AM PST A participant in a ceremony to mark the 66th International Human Rights Day, held in Rangoon in 2014. (Photo: Tin Htet Paing / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — Activists commemorating International Human Rights Day on Thursday say that authorities have blocked plans to stage events in Rangoon and Naypyidaw. Aung Zaw Oo of Human Rights Defenders and Promoters (HRDP), who was the co-organizer of a planned Human Rights Day event in Rangoon, said that he received a letter signed by Rangoon Chief Minister Myint Swe on Tuesday night, rejecting an application to hold an event at St. Michael's Anglican Church in Kyimindaing Township. "We were banned and they also told the priest from the church not to accept any gatherers for a celebration there," Aung Zaw Oo told The Irrawaddy. "So we will change the venue and hold the event at our headquarters in Kyimindaing." He said that organizers requested permission to stage the event on Nov. 24, with the divisional government waiting two weeks before refusing permission, despite the government's own regulations stipulating that any request for a public gathering must be answered within 48 hours. "It seems as if they would like our celebration to be canceled. I think the words 'human rights' still frighten them and they don't want the crowds gather and celebrate human rights," Aung Zaw Oo added. A similar celebration planned in Naypyidaw was also blocked on Thursday morning, reversing the permission granted by township authorities the day before. Organizers say they were also warned by authorities not to stage any events. "They said that we needed to make a request at least 10 days before the event and these kind of activities are banned in the Union Territory," said organizer Zin May Lin. "They said if we continue, they will take action against us. They are violating our human rights." She added that organizers had planned to distribute reading material and run cleanup activities around public buildings in Naypyidaw, but were told to stop by authorities when they began picking up litter outside a hospital. Aung Myo Min, the executive director of Equality Myanmar, said that the refusal to allow either event to go ahead was yet another demonstration of the lack of respect for human rights by authorities in both cities. The post Human Rights Day Events Blocked by Authorities in Naypyidaw, Rangoon appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Ethnic Alliance Upholds Suspension of Two Members Posted: 10 Dec 2015 01:29 AM PST Members of the United Nationalities Federal Council (UNFC) pay their respects to former ethnic leaders who sacrificed their lives during the group's summit in Chiang Mai, Thailand, this week. (Photo: Khin Oo Tha / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — The United Nationalities Federal Council (UNFC), an 11-member ethnic alliance, has voted to uphold the suspension of two of its member groups that were among eight signatories to a "nationwide" ceasefire agreement signed in mid-October. On Tuesday, the second day of a four-day summit of UNFC member groups in Chiang Mai, northern Thailand, attendees voted to uphold a decision to suspend the Chin National Front (CNF) and the Pa-O National Liberation Organization (PNLO) that was provisionally agreed upon at an emergency meeting convened last month. "We continue to keep them as suspended members," Nai Hong Sar, UNFC vice-chairman, told The Irrawaddy. "There were vacancies for two joint general secretary seats of the UNFC. We elected two new members by voting this morning [Nov. 8]." Salai Lian Hmong Sakhong, a CNF leader, told The Irrawaddy last month that the move was not in accordance with the UNFC charter. "They [the UNFC] did a thing that they should not do. They said they are angry that we signed the NCA—the text we all agreed in drafting," he said. Many UNFC members are also members of the Nationwide Ceasefire Coordination Team (NCCT), a body tasked with leading negotiations with the government on a nationwide ceasefire agreement. The Oct. 15 signing of the so-called nationwide pact included eight non-state armed organizations, including the CNF and PNLO, but several of the country's biggest ethnic armed groups opted not to sign, citing the government's unwillingness to countenance a more inclusive accord. The Karen National Union (KNU), a ceasefire signatory, suspended its membership with the UNFC in September last year and no representative attended this week's summit in Chiang Mai. Addressing alliance members on Monday, UNFC chairman N'Ban Hla, who is also vice-chair of the Kachin Independence Organization, said the looming change of government in 2016 offered ethnic armed groups an ideal chance to fight for their political rights at the negotiating table. "The new incoming government has a better relationship with us… This is a great chance for us," he said, while also sounding a note of caution on the role of Burma's military in negotiations. The four-day dialogue focused on how to take the peace process forward in 2016, with the UNFC chairman declaring the alliance was "ready to talk" about all issues and hoped the government would reciprocate, particularly on sensitive topics such as the establishment of a federal army. UNFC members also pledged to abide by their stance of pushing for an all-inclusive ceasefire agreement with Naypyidaw. Additional reporting by Khin Oo Tha in Chiang Mai, Thailand. The post Ethnic Alliance Upholds Suspension of Two Members appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Work on Latest Rangoon Flyovers Finished Soon, Say Builders Posted: 10 Dec 2015 12:10 AM PST Vehicles amble through a market in downtown Rangoon. (Photo: The Irrawaddy) RANGOON —  Two of the three traffic flyovers will soon be finished, according to builders, after questions were once again raised over efforts to reduce the city's worsening congestion problem. Work is currently underway on three new flyovers at Tamwe, Kokkine and 8 Mile junctions, with lane closures and detours exacerbating already severe traffic problems south of Kandawgyi Lake and along Kabar Aye Pagoda Road. Similar congestion problems were seen during the construction of flyovers at Sanchaung, Hledan, Bahan and Mayangone townships. On Monday, outspoken divisional lawmaker Dr Nyo Nyo Thin asked the divisional government what measures the government was taking to address traffic issues in the city in light of the fact that the construction of flyovers had not alleviated congestion. At a press conference on Wednesday called to discuss the government's traffic strategy, Kyaw Soe, the divisional Minister of Forestry and Energy, said that the government had spent $129.8 billion on the flyovers over the course of the last five years. He added that the government was preparing to implement new rapid transit bus routes and had ordered 60 new buses from overseas in order to make public transport a more viable option for a greater segment of the population. Work will soon be finished on two of the three flyovers currently under construction, according to the firms responsible. Thein Swe, a project director for Crown Advanced Construction Co., which began building the 8 Mile flyover in early 2015, said that work had been delayed by subterranean obstructions such as water pipelines and telecommunications cables, but construction would be finished by the last day of 2015. Capital Development Ltd., which built the Shwegondaing Rd and Myaynigone flyovers, expects the Kokkine flyover to be finished by Union Day on Feb. 12. Ye Myint, a spokesman for the Shwe Taung Group, would not be drawn on the exact finish date of the Tamwe project, saying that the 4,800-foot length of the flyover and its winding shape posed a greater logistical challenge than the other two projects. Lt-Col Aung Ko Oo of the Rangoon Division Traffic Police told Wednesday's press conference that a contingent of officers had been deployed around the flyovers in an effort to reduce car accidents and to stop vehicles worsening the congestion problem by crossing into oncoming lanes. Hla Aung, chairman of the Rangoon Division Supervisory Committee for Motor Vehicles, also known by its Burmese acronym Ma Hta Tha, said that his agency's plans to build a citywide traffic control center was still at the tender stage. Proposed last year and expected to cost in the order of US$20 billion, more than 20 foreign companies have submitted bids for the project. The post Work on Latest Rangoon Flyovers Finished Soon, Say Builders appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Environmental Campaigner Calls for ‘Proactive’ Government Effort to Address Climate Change Posted: 09 Dec 2015 10:25 PM PST Win Myo Thu, co-founder and director of Burmese NGO EcoDev, who is attending the UN climate change conference in Paris. (Photo: Yen Snaing / The Irrawaddy) PARIS, France — Win Myo Thu, co-founder and director of Burmese NGO EcoDev—the Economically Progressive Ecosystem Development group—is currently in Paris for the climate change conference, lobbying Burma's official delegation to adequately address the issue. The environmental campaigner is also a member of Burma's Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative civil society steering committee and a prominent figure in the country's anti-coal movement. On the sidelines of the conference, The Irrawaddy speaks with Win Myo Thu on the government's current climate change mitigation strategies and the outlook for environmental policy under the National League for Democracy. What do you think of the National League for Democracy (NLD)'s professed policies on environmental issues? There is no clear policy set out as we only just concluded the election… Looking at their environmental policy [generally], they talk about favoring the public and that they will do what the public wants. They say they will address deforestation and water pollution. In any government, there are groups that favor economic development and those that favor protecting the environment… Will the party consider both equally? No government says they will destroy the environment, even if they do. Such things will have to be discussed within the party. The current government planned to increase Burma's reliance on coal to one-third of the country's total generating capacity. Will Aung San Suu Kyi's government follow these plans?  If we have the chance to advise [the new government], we would urge them to revise the whole electricity power plan. The plan is meaningless. When the whole world is moving toward [renewable energy sources], we are going to have 33 percent [of energy derived from coal]. Burma is not a member of the Climate Vulnerable Forum currently chaired by the Philippines. Do you think Burma's government should do more to address climate change? The government needs to be proactive. This is my main message. We are the second most vulnerable country to the effects of climate change. [*Editor's note: A recent risk index issued by Germanwatch ranked Burma as second on a list of countries most affected by extreme weather events for the period 1995 to 2014]. Our net emissions are not much but we rank third in emissions produced by deforestation. We need to take responsibility to a certain extent. If we continue to produce energy, according to the Durban platform [devised at a climate conference in 2011 in South Africa], we need money from the Green Climate Fund and most importantly we need technology transfer. The argument on energy in Burma today is whether to go for coal or use solar or wind power. We can have energy solutions only if these technologies are cheap. That's why we need to stay in leading roles in events [such as Paris]. The good thing about this event is the whole world will have a new treaty which means everyone will start the same race. We called it the new world order. If we can run, it doesn't matter if we are left behind one hundred years, in my opinion. Our development is behind Thailand by about 30-40 years and by about 100 years compared to Europe. It doesn't matter. If we have a smart strategy in the new world order, we can run the same race… We need to lead politically. The state should have good climate policy so we will obtain the necessary technical transfer. What do you think of Burma's Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change? The current INDCs talks about what they may do but there are no targets or commitments in it. They said they will look to renewables. But it did not specify a percentage of greenhouse gas emissions they would reduce. It is difficult to accept for me… We are still referring to carbon emissions data from 2000. What would be your proposed energy mix instead of using 30 percent coal? What about renewable energy sources? If we agree that coal is not good, we need a substitution. We need to start with the question of how much energy we need. Current calculations suggest Burma will need 1,000 MW every year. The problem is that Thailand in the last 30 years needed only 800 MW. It seems like the calculations [don't indicate] a reason to use coal. We need detailed calculations. Rangoon's energy needs and rural areas might not be the same. The on-grid project to reach 50 percent of the population is costly. We have to decentralize [energy distribution] for off-grid areas. We need policies for it. We need to focus on energy needs for different areas. There are some immediate needs like industrial zones or Rangoon. What do you expect from Burma's official delegation at the Paris climate conference? We want them to be proactive in addressing climate change, to talk more and to reconsider the energy mix. That's why I am here. What do you expect from the next government? The next government will be able to act more freely. There will be more media and organizational freedom. There will be improvements in lower level administration. But I want to wait and see Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's policies. We don't know her position. Analyzing from how she did with the Letpadaung [copper mine], she is balancing for all. She will think of relations with China and economic concerns. Sometimes, there may be circumstances that do not fit with our environmental concerns. The post Environmental Campaigner Calls for 'Proactive' Government Effort to Address Climate Change appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Thai Hotels Accused of Ill-Treatment of Burmese Migrant Staff Posted: 09 Dec 2015 09:47 PM PST Migrant workers from Burma look through the window of a building where they live in the port town of Mahachai, near Bangkok, on Sept. 24, 2011. (Photo: Reuters) LONDON — Many migrants working as waiters, gardeners and cleaners in Thailand's booming tourism sector face below minimum wage pay, discrimination and no paid leave, according to an investigation of labor abuses in the country. More than 30 million tourists are expected to visit Thailand's palm-fringed islands, white beaches, temples and vibrant nightlife this year, and the thriving sector accounts for some 10 percent of national gross domestic product. However, a report on Wednesday by Swedish groups Schyst Resande and Fair Action found evidence that many migrant workers from Thailand's poorer neighbor Burma are being exploited in the southern resorts of Khao Lak and Phuket, at hotels used by three of Sweden's top tour operators. In all, 29 migrants were interviewed for the report, 18 of them working mainly as cleaners, gardeners and waiters in seven hotels used by REWE Group's Apollo, TUI Group's Fritidsresor and Thomas Cook Group's Ving. The others were employed by companies supplying the hotels with services and goods including a bakery and laundry company. "Among those we interviewed, it seems worse for those that work at the suppliers. They have longer working days, they have less vacation and they also face a lot of discrimination," said Fair Action project manager Amanda Söderlund. In a joint statement, Ving, Fritidsresor and Apollo said violations of national and international laws could mean the termination of a contract with a hotel. "There are few companies and organizations that can control all supply chains in all countries of the world," the statement said. "Ving, Fritidsresor and Apollo are together working with thousands of hotels worldwide, it is difficult for us to follow up on all these individual hotels." The operators said that was why they were working with Travelife, a certification scheme for hotels focused on environmental standards and fair working conditions. Thailand Under Scrutiny Almost two-thirds of the migrants in Fair Action's report said they were paid less than the Southeast Asian country's daily minimum wage of 300 baht (US$8.35), with a far higher proportion among migrants employed by hotel suppliers. Three laundry staff said they worked up to 19 hours a day during the peak tourism season with only two days off a month. Another reported working 16-hour shifts with no time off. Several workers described not being paid for taking time off to treat burns and other injuries sustained in the work place. Thai workers, by contrast, received higher salaries and better benefits, including better accommodation, longer holidays and maternity and sick leave, the report said. Söderlund said concerns about "illegally low wages" paid to migrant workers were raised with the same tour operators in a 2012 Fair Action investigation, but little action had been taken. "We think that the tour operators should step up and take responsibility. They have known there are issues for several years. They can make an impact if they take their responsibility seriously," Söderlund told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. The operators said only one-fifth of the Swedes visiting Thailand traveled with them. "It takes more than three tour operators to make sustainable change occur," they said. Thailand has come under increasing scrutiny over its treatment of migrants following allegations of human trafficking, abuse and exploitation in the fishing industry and more recently, the processing of chicken for export. It is one of the region's biggest importers of migrant labor, yet regulations are enforced loosely and many workers face exploitation and ill-treatment. Employers frequently confiscate identification documents to keep unregistered workers from running off and to maintain pay rates below the national minimum wage. Last year, the US State Department downgraded Thailand to its Tier 3 list of worst offenders in an annual ranking of nations by their efforts to combat human trafficking. The post Thai Hotels Accused of Ill-Treatment of Burmese Migrant Staff appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Report Shows Japan Loopholes Aid Illicit Trade in Ivory Posted: 09 Dec 2015 09:35 PM PST Products from elephant ivory are displayed on a shelf inside a carving and jewellery factory in Hong Kong, China, October 23, 2015. (Photo: Bobby Yip / Reuters) TOKYO — An undercover investigation by an environmental group has found loopholes and weaknesses that it says make Japan a weak link in efforts to curb a resurgence in the illicit trade in ivory. The report released Thursday by the Washington, D.C.-based Environmental Investigation Agency, based on surveys during 2015 of ivory traders based in Japan, found that most were open about their ability to evade controls. It said much of the ivory sold through online retailers based in Japan is going to China. "What has happened is that the system has actually enabled and facilitated illegal ivory to get registered and come into the legal marketplace in Japan," said Allan Thornton, the EIA president. "The government of Japan has not met the legal obligations they agreed to in the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species." The Ministry of the Environment did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Ivory is often used for ornate traditional seals and decorative items. Poachers have annually killed tens of thousands of elephants in recent years to meet rising demand for ivory, particularly in China. In September, the United States and China agreed to work toward nearly complete bans on the ivory trade. The widespread slaughter of elephants has been spreading to areas in Africa that earlier were spared, as poaching syndicates expand their reach. The EIA found that more than 12 tons of ivory products including whole elephant tusks were sold on the Yahoo! Japan Auctions site in 2012-2014. That site and others feature thousands of ads for ivory and ivory products. The international trade in raw ivory was banned under a treaty in 1989 and Japan enacted its own law requiring proof that raw ivory tusks have been acquired legally in order for them to be registered and sold. But the EIA contends that widespread use of fake documents has enabled traders to "legalize" more than 1,000 tusks a year since 2011. "Japan is awash with ivory of dubious origin and not a shred of real evidence is required by law to ensure that ivory is of legal origin and acquisition," the report says. Apart from ivory purchased in two special auctions by African countries in 1999 and 2008, all legal ivory in Japan had to be from domestic stockpiles or imported before the 1989 CITES treaty. But individually owned tusks face no registration requirement, and the tusks are not marketed in any way to ensure that the documents are valid for the items being registered. Newly affluent Chinese keen to build their personal collections are avidly buying up items such as ivory netsuke, or miniature sculptures, and seals being sold off by wealthy Japanese. Undercover researchers found that 19 out of the 37 ivory dealers they approached offered to buy unregistered ivory or to help obtain fraudulent registrations, the EIA said. The post Report Shows Japan Loopholes Aid Illicit Trade in Ivory appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Singapore Sees Islamist Militancy ‘Clear, Present Danger’ for Asia Posted: 09 Dec 2015 09:17 PM PST Singapore's Defense Minister Ng Eng Hen waits to speak at a plenary session of the 11th International Institute of Strategic Studies (IISS) Asia Security Summit in Singapore on June 3, 2012. (Photo: Reuters) WASHINGTON — Singapore sees a "clear and present danger" to Asia from Islamist militancy, especially from the threat of groups linking up after pledging allegiance to Islamic State, its Defense Minister Ng Eng Hen said on Wednesday. A day after signing a defense cooperation agreement with the United States that covers trans-national militancy, Ng said intelligence sharing was key to dealing with the issue. "We see the threat of extremist terrorism as a clear and present danger in our region," he told a Washington seminar. Ng said that in the past three years the numbers of Islamic State sympathizers had exceeded the number of supporters al Qaeda had in the 10 years in which it was influential. He said Singapore's neighbor Indonesia had reported that more than 500 of its citizens had gone as foreign fighters to Syria and Iraq and as many as 150 had gone from Malaysia, including some from the armed forces. A handful had also gone from Singapore, he said. "And the returned fighters have come back and pledged allegiance to ISIS and the mission to form an Islamic caliphate in our part of the world," Ng said. "They have sympathizers; they have foreign fighters who have been trained, have the motivation and the means, and who have a common vision. And so we look at this threat very carefully." Ng said members of Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), an al Qaeda offshoot that planned bomb attacks in Singapore in the early 2000s, had pledged allegiance to ISIS, as well as the Abu Sayyaf group in the Philippines. "Many of those who we were arrested who are JI, who were operatives in JI, are still around and they are going to be released from detention and they have already linked up JI cells," he said. "So the danger is a link up formalizing of these loose groups into a force that will threaten our security and well-being." Australian Justice Minister Michael Keenan said in Singapore earlier on Wednesday that Australia and Southeast Asia must re-double efforts to share intelligence and make sure Paris-style attacks cannot be replicated in the region. Islamic State last year captured parts of Syria and Iraq, and declared the creation of a caliphate, or state, governed by its hardline interpretation of Islam. The group has since made claims to violence outside its domain, including last month's deadly Paris attacks that killed 130 people. The post Singapore Sees Islamist Militancy 'Clear, Present Danger' for Asia appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Thai Police Probe US Envoy over Comments about Monarchy Law Posted: 09 Dec 2015 08:58 PM PST US ambassador to Thailand Glyn Davies gestures in a traditional Thai greeting as he arrives before a news conference in Bangkok, Thailand, November 30, 2015. (Photo: Athit Perawongmetha / Reuters) BANGKOK — Thai police said Wednesday they are investigating comments made by the US ambassador about a law that bans criticism of the monarchy, but don't expect to bring charges because he has diplomatic immunity. Police spokesman Maj-Gen Piyaphan Pingmuang said they are investigating a Nov. 25 speech by Ambassador Glyn Davies because they had received a complaint that it violated the same law by defaming the monarchy, known as lese majeste. The diplomatic contretemps is the latest dust-up between Washington and one of its most durable allies in Asia. US criticisms of military takeovers in 2006 and last year have been mild, with only the softest sanctions applied, such as the cancellation of high-level meetings. But because the military actions were framed in part as a defense of Thailand's much revered monarchy, royalists treat American concerns as interference and culturally insensitive. Davies, who took up his posting in September, said in the course of a wide-ranging speech at the Foreign Correspondents' Club praising US-Thai relations that America is concerned about long prison sentences given by military courts to civilians under the law. Since the military seized power in a coup last year, a number of people have received sentences of more than 25 years for comments on the Internet found to have violated the law. The ambassador also spoke out for freedom of expression. Royalists have protested at the US Embassy over the ambassador's speech, as well as in the press and on social media. "Somebody reported it, so they have to check," police spokesman Piyaphan said of the complaint, adding that it was clear that after the investigation is finished, police know nothing further can be done because of diplomatic immunity. Police Maj. Kamthorn Niyom of the Crime Suppression Division, who sent a request to the Foreign Correspondents' Club for a tape of Davies' speech, said they were acting in order to ascertain what was actually said. "We have to do our job because someone filed a complaint," he explained. In Washington, US State Department spokesman John Kirby told reporters: "The US government has the utmost respect for the Thai monarchy. Ambassador Davies reiterated long-standing US policy on the issue of freedom of expression." Kirby referred further questions to Thai authorities. Supporters of last year's military takeover have been critical of even the mildest official US expressions of support for a democratic process. Those who took part in the protest at the embassy included prominent figures involved in militant street demonstrations against the last elected government that eventually led to the coup. Because the issue of the monarchy is so sensitive, police have rarely if ever refused to look into a case for fear of coming under criticism themselves. In what reformists cite as a weakness in the lese majeste law—which calls for imprisonment for up to 15 years for each offending action—any person can lodge a complaint. Politicians sometimes use the law to attack their rivals. The complaint against Davies was filed by Sonthiya Sawasdee, a representative of a fringe group that calls itself the Federation to Monitor the Thai State. In a statement Wednesday, the human rights group Amnesty International said, "The fact that allegations of lese majeste can be made for raising legitimate concerns highlight the current absurd extremes of Thailand's restrictions on freedom of expression." Until about a decade ago, relatively few lese majeste cases were prosecuted. But the 2006 coup that ousted popular Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra dragged the monarchy into politics when his alleged disrespect for the institution was cited as one of the reasons for ousting him. A long-running struggle for power between Thaksin's supporters and opponents has seen the latter frequently invoke the protection of the throne as one of their goals. As a result, the monarchy's reputation as a unifying institution suffered as the country became polarized along political lines. The monarchy has become an even more sensitive issue as the ailing health of 88-year-old King Bhumibol Adulyadej has triggered worries about the royal succession. The post Thai Police Probe US Envoy over Comments about Monarchy Law appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

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