The Irrawaddy Magazine |
- Police Seize Another 3.8m Pills Tied to Mingaladon Probe
- After Delays, Domestic Telecoms Partners to be Announced in October
- Villagers Forced to Flee as Kachin State Clashes Continue
- A Hint of China in Northern Thailand
- Amid Criticism, China’s Xi Touts Women’s Rights at UN
- India’s Modi Prises Gandhi Family Legacy from Heirs
- Hong Kong Police on Alert for Anniversary of Occupy Protests
| Police Seize Another 3.8m Pills Tied to Mingaladon Probe Posted: 28 Sep 2015 04:11 AM PDT  Drugs reportedly seized during a raid on a home in Rangoon Division's East Dagon Township on Sept. 26. (Photo: The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — Police have seized another large quantity of stimulant tablets as part of a months-long investigation following a major drug bust in Rangoon's Mingaladon Township in late July. A combined team comprised of members of the drug squad, special branch and local police raided a house allegedly owned by Min Oo Khaing in East Dagon Township on Saturday, where they found over 3.8 million stimulant tablets worth an estimated 19.1 billion kyat (approximately US$15.8 million). "Our follow-up investigation has led to this seizure," a police officer who took part in the raid told The Irrawaddy. Two men, Thein Tun Aye and Aung Tin Win, who originally hail from Moe Hti Pyin Village in Ponnagyun Township, Arakan State, were detained at the house. The tenants said they were renting the home from a man living in Tamwe Township. Saturday's seizure was the third made in relation to a mammoth haul of narcotics worth over US$100 million that were found abandoned in the back of a truck in Rangoon's Mingaladon Township on July 26. The primary suspect in the ongoing investigation, Min Oo Khaing, surrendered to a Burmese anti-narcotics unit on Sept. 15, according to police. He was apprehended in the Thai border town of Mae Sot and extradited to Rangoon. Last week, police discovered nearly 2 million stimulant tablets and 500 bottles of phensedyl cough syrup—an addictive substance known to be used recreationally—at another home in east Dagon Township reportedly owned by Min Oo Khaing, a director of the Kaladan Delta Development Company. The post Police Seize Another 3.8m Pills Tied to Mingaladon Probe appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| After Delays, Domestic Telecoms Partners to be Announced in October Posted: 28 Sep 2015 03:06 AM PDT  Vehicles drive past an advertising board of Singapore Telecommunications Ltd (SingTel) in Rangoon on June 20, 2013. (Photo: Reuters) RANGOON — Burma's communications ministry has further delayed awarding a fourth and final telecom license until mid-October, according to a ministry official, following a fiercely contested bid for the coveted permit. The government initially planned to announce the winners by the end of September, after opening the tender in July to domestic firms. The Ministry of Communications and Information Technology received letters of interest from 17 companies, a number of which will be selected to be part of a new public company that will partner with a foreign service provider chosen by the government. Chit Wai, deputy permanent secretary of communications, told The Irrawaddy on Monday that the selection process was "not yet complete," but that the winners will be chosen in the next few weeks. "We're trying to select them as soon as possible, but it won't be done this month," the secretary said, predicting that the ministry will be able to announce the tender winners by the second week of October. Applicant criteria requires that interested firms demonstrate possession of at least 3 billion kyats, roughly US$2.3 million—or enough capital reserves to form a new public telecommunications company. Eligible bidders, such as Lwin Naing Oo of Shwepyi Takon Telecom, have accepted delays in the process because of the scope of the project at stake. "We need to be patient, as this public company will benefit the people," Lwin Naing Oo said. "I expect that after [the winning bidders] form a public company, they will be competing with foreign firms in the market, so it is important to take the time to create a long-term plan." Two foreign providers—Norway's Telenor and Qatari Ooredoo—were each recently awarded operating licenses to compete with state-owned Myanmar Posts and Telecommunications (MPT), which previously had a monopoly on the country's direly underdeveloped communications market. The total number of winning bidders has not yet been determined, Chit Wai said, offering only that the ministry "will select companies which follow the rules." Successful bidders will be expected to accept the selection committee's decision regarding a foreign partner. Domestic stakeholders will be responsible for providing technical services, developing market strategies and contributing to both licensing and consultancy fees for an international firm that will aid in the selection of a foreign partner. The post After Delays, Domestic Telecoms Partners to be Announced in October appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| Villagers Forced to Flee as Kachin State Clashes Continue Posted: 28 Sep 2015 02:52 AM PDT  Children displaced by recent fighting between government troops and the Kachin Independence Army sit outside a Baptist church in Mansi Township, Kachin State. (Photo: Nan Lwin Hnin Pwint / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — Over 100 villagers in Kachin State's Mansi Township were forced to flee their homes on Sunday after clashes continued between government troops and the Kachin Independence Army in the state's southernmost township. Khar Aung of the Kachin Baptist Convention (KBC) said 132 people from Yaw Tit Kong and Pyin Oo Lwin in Mansi Township were sheltering at a religious hall after fleeing fighting which broke out in Mai Hkawng on Sunday. "They are still shooting their artillery. All the IDPs are still at the hall and it is not safe for them. It is only one mile away from the fighting. More KBC members are preparing to go there to offer help," Khar Aung said. Renewed fighting in the township between the Burma Army and KIA troops broke out on Sept. 18, forcing around 200 locals from their homes. According to the KBC, the conflict has also claimed several civilian lives. Three civilians were killed and two injured during fighting on Sept. 23 at Mai Hkawng, according to the local aid group. The conflict is ongoing, the group said, as the government deploys more heavy weaponry and troops to the area. Zimi Zong, a school teacher in Mai Hkawng, described hearing the fighting from her classroom. "Students were afraid of course when they heard gun shots. We only stopped our class when we heard the gun shots. We sat in class and listened to the shooting," she said. "Fighting only broke out here when the Burmese Army advanced into KIA-controlled areas. If they did not go there, there would be no fighting." Government troops have established positions in at least three main locations in Mansi Township, including the site of a pagoda, Khon Ja of the Kachin Peace Network wrote in a Facebook post. Some from among the local Buddhist community have objected to the Burma Army's use of the pagoda compound as a staging ground for attacks on the KIA, Khon Ja wrote. Despite the ongoing conflict, which has displaced over 100,000 people since a ceasefire between the government and the KIA collapsed in June 2011, Kachin negotiators have actively participated in efforts to reach a nationwide ceasefire agreement. Leaders of ethnic armed groups have convened in Chiang Mai, Thailand, for three days beginning Monday to discuss the agreement that the government hopes to ink before the country's Nov. 8 election. The post Villagers Forced to Flee as Kachin State Clashes Continue appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| A Hint of China in Northern Thailand Posted: 28 Sep 2015 02:04 AM PDT Click to view slideshow. CHIANG RAI, Thailand — Amid the hilltops in northern Thailand, the steep green slopes of Doi Mae Salong are covered with tea, paddy and sprawling corn plantations. Breathtaking landscapes appear at every turn when winding through the area on a motorbike—sometimes at a slant of up to 70 degrees. In the town, it's all about China: the architecture, resorts, clothing, script on signboards, it's a world away from the distinct Thai-ness just an hour or so down the road. Women and children don a mixture of traditional Chinese and minority hill tribe clothing, selling tea, fruits and textiles at the bustling local markets. Bordering eastern Burma's Shan State, Mae Salong feels neither Thai, Burmese nor Shan. That's because most of the people who live there are ethnically Chinese, descendants of and former members of the Kuomintang Army. They settled in the region in 1949 after fleeing from China and its restive border with eastern Burma. The area later became infamous as a stop on the drug smuggling route, as opium grown in Burma was transferred through the golden triangle and beyond. Today, however, is all about the fresh air, astounding views and fleeting glimpses of mountain life. The post A Hint of China in Northern Thailand appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| Amid Criticism, China’s Xi Touts Women’s Rights at UN Posted: 27 Sep 2015 10:25 PM PDT  Portraits of five activists detained in China at a Hong Kong protest calling for their release in April. (Photo: Tyrone Siu / Reuters) UNITED NATIONS — China’s President Xi Jinping told the United Nations on Sunday that all Chinese women have the opportunity to excel, touting his government’s record on women’s rights as the United States slammed Beijing and others for jailing women for their views. China and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon co-hosted a UN meeting of world leaders on gender equality and women’s empowerment, raising eyebrows among some western diplomats and human rights defenders in China and abroad. “As the Chinese people pursue a happy life, all Chinese women have the opportunity to excel in life and make their dreams come true,” Xi told the meeting on the sidelines of the annual gathering of world leaders at the UN General Assembly. China was criticized internationally for detaining five women who were taken into custody on the weekend of March 8, International Women’s Day, after they planned to demonstrate against sexual harassment on public transport. While the women were released a month later, they say their status as criminal suspects has stopped them from returning to activism and had a chilling effect on women’s rights groups. “If you want to empower women, don’t imprison them on the basis of their views or beliefs,” US Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power—a member of President Barack Obama’s cabinet—said in a statement. Over the past couple of weeks, Power has highlighted 20 cases of women unjustly detained around the world for their beliefs or defence of the rights of others, including Chinese journalist Gao Yu, 71, who was jailed in April for seven years for providing state secrets to foreign contacts. Xi’s administration has detained hundreds of rights activists in the past two years in what some rights groups say is the worst clampdown on dissent in the Communist-led country for two decades. “In too many places—from China to Egypt, from Russia to Venezuela—women have been swept up in repressive crackdowns on civil society, and deprived of their universal rights and fundamental freedoms,” Obama said in a statement. Obama’s former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, a Democratic presidential candidate, also weighed in on Twitter: “Xi hosting a meeting on women’s rights at the UN while persecuting feminists? Shameless.” Xi said China will do more to enhance gender equality as its “basic state policy” and called on developed countries to “scale up financial and technical assistance to developing countries.” He said China would donate $10 million to the UN gender equality body, UN Women, to “support women’s development worldwide.” Chinese officials have said the country’s achievements on women’s issues are clear and that authorities handled the recent case of the five activists according to law. Li Junhua, the director general of the department of international organizations and conferences at China’s Foreign Ministry said some of the criticisms were “groundless” and other people were just misinformed. “I believe the people in the best position to judge the state of women’s issues in China are Chinese people, particularly Chinese women,” Li told reporters at a briefing. Ahead of Sunday’s UN meeting the five women said in a letter: “We sincerely hope…President Xi can lead by example.” China has also faced international criticism for effectively placing Liu Xia, the wife of jailed Chinese Nobel Peace Prize laureate Liu Xiaobo, under house arrest since 2010. The post Amid Criticism, China’s Xi Touts Women’s Rights at UN appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| India’s Modi Prises Gandhi Family Legacy from Heirs Posted: 27 Sep 2015 10:19 PM PDT  A visitor stands next to a portrait of India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru inside the Nehru memorial museum and library in New Delhi, India. (Photo: Anindito Mukherjee / Reuters) NEW DELHI — A stately New Delhi mansion, once home to India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and now a museum to his life, has emerged as a flashpoint in the growing ideological war between his heirs and the Hindu nationalist government. Since trouncing the Congress party of the Nehru-Gandhi family in a general election last year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has chipped away at the dynasty’s grip on India’s post-colonial history. For long-term dominance in the world’s second-most populous nation, Modi has to ensure his pro-business, conservative ideology prevails over the secular, socialist legacy bequeathed by Nehru. Culture Minister Mahesh Sharma, who is in charge of overseeing the teak-panelled museum that preserves Nehru’s portraits, writing and the rooms he lived in, wants the institution to reflect a wider range of India’s past and present leaders. Earlier this month, the government of Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) forced out the head of the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library, a historian seen as close to the Gandhi family. The historian, Mahesh Rangarajan, did not respond to requests for comment. A replacement has not yet been named. “It is not in the interest of any country or society to focus itself on one individual or a family,” Sharma said in an interview. “So many people have contributed to this country and our institutions should reflect that.” He described Rangarajan’s appointment as “illegal” and said he had planned to investigate his appointment. Rangarajan resigned a few days later. Starting with Nehru, an independence hero before becoming prime minister, the Gandhi-Nehru dynasty has been intertwined with India’s transformation from struggling developing nation to emerging superpower. Nehru and his descendants ruled India for more than half of the seven decades since independence in 1947, and hundreds of public projects, airports, parks, universities and stadiums are named after Nehru, his assassinated daughter Indira Gandhi and her son Rajiv Gandhi, also murdered. They all served as prime ministers. Rajiv Gandhi’s wife Sonia is the current president of Congress, and her son Rahul is seen as a budding prime minister. Before Modi, the BJP had only sporadically run India. “We have elevated this family to royalty and built a personality cult around them,” said Mohan Guruswamy, president of the Centre for Policy Alternatives, a think tank. “What the BJP is doing is pure politics. But, at the same time, the need to give space to other people is justified.” Since Modi won power in May 2014, the names of Nehru and his descendants have been erased from about thirty government schemes or places and been replaced mostly with the names of ideologues who view India as a Hindu nation. Earlier this month, the government discontinued publishing two postage stamps that featured Indira and Rajiv Gandhi from the ‘Builders of Modern India’ series, a decision that led to opposition protests. The government instead plans to feature stamps of the ideological founders of the BJP, who blame Nehru’s economic policies for many of India’s ills, including poverty and corruption. At the end of last week, the Nehru museum for the first time hosted celebrations for the birth of Deen Dayal Upadhyaya, a Hindu nationalist critical of Nehru’s economics and the co-founder of a Hindu nationalist party that was the predecessor of the BJP. The opposition Congress party has accused the government of diminishing the legacy of one of India’s greatest statesmen. “The government is manipulating historical facts and distorting truth only to serve their political agenda,” said Kapil Sibal, a lawyer for the Gandhis and a former government minister. “You cannot belittle Nehru’s contributions.” Modi has already moved far from Nehru’s economic moorings. Earlier this year, the government named right-leaning economist Arvind Panagariya to run a new policy bureau, after Modi scrapped a Nehru-era Soviet-style socialist planning commission. In his first full budget in April, Modi saved money on federal social and subsidy expenditure, the hallmark of Congress governments, and pumped funds into an infrastructure stimulus he hopes will trigger a spurt in economic growth. Under Modi, organizations that support the idea of a Hindu state have gained prominence. His followers believe Nehru and his successors pandered to India’s Muslim and Christian minorities and crimped the aspirations of the Hindu majority. “The BJP realise that this family enjoys a lot of political goodwill and they will need to destroy that if they want a free run,” said Satish Misra, a political analyst at the Observer Research Foundation. “Historical and cultural institutions are being used as proxies in the battle for the idea of India.” The post India’s Modi Prises Gandhi Family Legacy from Heirs appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| Hong Kong Police on Alert for Anniversary of Occupy Protests Posted: 27 Sep 2015 10:10 PM PDT  Pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong raise their yellow umbrellas, the symbol of the Occupy Central movement, as they march to the government headquarters two days before the first anniversary of the Occupy Central civil disobedience movement on Saturday. (Photo: Tyrone Siu / Reuters) HONG KONG — Hong Kong police patrolled the area around government buildings ahead of rallies planned later on Monday to mark the first anniversary of pro-democracy protests that crippled parts of the Chinese-controlled city. Police will be on alert to avoid a repeat of last year when protesters streamed on to major highways in a push for full democracy, demonstrations that became the biggest political challenge to Beijing’s Communist Party leaders for decades. Metal barriers were stockpiled in key locations, including government headquarters and near the office of Hong Kong leader Leung Chun-ying, although activists said they had no plan to re-occupy streets in the financial centre and crowds are expected to be relatively small. Last year’s 79-day protests failed to persuade China to allow a fully democratic vote for the city’s next leader in 2017, instead of from a list of pre-screened, pro-Beijing candidates, but many say the demonstrations triggered a political awakening. Leaders of the Occupy protests are expected to appear at various rallies, including a moment of silence just before 6pm to mark the time when police fired volleys of tear gas to disperse demonstrators. Dubbed the Umbrella Movement for the umbrellas protesters used to defend against tear gas, the unrest was the worst since China took back control of Hong Kong from Britain in 1997. On Saturday, a poster of Jesus Christ in a flowing robe carrying a yellow umbrella was hung on a wall in a covered walkway outside government headquarters, christened the “Lennon” wall during the protests as a tribute to John Lennon. There was also a painting of a student being crucified on a yellow umbrella. Amnesty International called on Monday for the release of eight mainland Chinese activists who face long prison sentences for posting messages and pictures supporting the pro-democracy protests. The anniversary comes as recent comments from Beijing’s top representative in Hong Kong have reignited fears about the Chinese central government’s expanding influence in the city. The mainland official, Zhang Xiaoming, said this month Hong Kong’s chief executive had a “special legal position” above the executive, legislative and judicial institutions, suggesting Leung was above the law. The former British colony returned to Chinese rule under a “one country, two systems” framework that gave it separate laws and an independent judiciary but reserved ultimate authority for Beijing. Hong Kong has enjoyed a reputation as a bastion of legal independence compared with the mainland, though there has been concern in recent years about a politicization of the judiciary. The post Hong Kong Police on Alert for Anniversary of Occupy Protests appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
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