The Irrawaddy Magazine

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• El Niño Also Scorches Areas of Shan State
• Sagaing Workers March to Naypyidaw to Protest for Labor Rights
• Interfaith Leaders Call For ‘Legal Action’ Against Hate Speech
• In Rangoon Building’s Restoration, Heritage and Homes Coexist
• Muslim IDPs in Arakan State Seek Safer Boating Option
• Leaders Respond to Suu Kyi’s Call for Second Panglong Conference
• Rangoon’s Strand Hotel to Close for Major Facelift
• Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Steps Down
• Anti-Rohingya Demonstrators to Be Charged With Unlawful Protest
• The Irrawaddy is Moving On (line)
• China Passes Law Tightening Controls on Foreign Nonprofits
• Tuna Giant Thai Union Scraps Worker Fees to Tackle Labor Abuses
• Burma Bans Lucrative Logging in Bid to Preserve Forests

El Niño Also Scorches Areas of Shan State Posted: 29 Apr 2016 08:34 AM PDT AUNG BAN, Shan State — Shan State's upland areas are typically cooler than the arid regions of central and lower Burma, although this year, it, much like the rest of Burma, has suffered from an unusually powerful El Niño weather pattern. In southern Shan State, springs and lakes used by local communities to store rain water for domestic as well as farming purposes have been dry since February, leaving many villagers facing water shortages that are even more dire than those in previous years. "The lake near our village dried up two months ago. Last year, we were able to use water from there until March," said Tun Kyi, the head of Kalaw Township's Le Gaung Village. To tackle water scarcity, some local charities, such as the Brighter Future Myanmar Foundation, have started to distribute drinking water to villages. The foundation, the only in Shan State digging wells in hard-hit areas, has been collaborating with Burma's government since 2014, receiving machines to drill into the mainly limestone Shan plateau. The foundation says that it has recently spent US$1.5 million to buy their own new drilling equipment and that they have dug over 100 wells in Shan State to date. The post El Niño Also Scorches Areas of Shan State appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Sagaing Workers March to Naypyidaw to Protest for Labor Rights Posted: 29 Apr 2016 06:17 AM PDT Labor rights protestors march from Sagaing to Naypyidaw on Friday. (Photo: Zaw Zaw / The Irrawaddy) MANDALAY — Dozens of workers from a plywood factory in Sagaing Industrial Zone began marching to Naypyidaw on Friday to demand labor rights. The workers said their rights had been abused and the authorities had neglected their complaints, so they decided to march to Naypyidaw to meet with President Htin Kyaw. "We've asked factory owners, local authorities, and even our leader Aung San Suu Kyi, to solve the problem; but, we were neglected," said Khaing Min, who is leading the march. According to the protestors, eight workers from Myanmar Veneer & Plywood Private Ltd.'s factory in Sagaing Industrial Zone were fired in July 2015 after a dispute over working hours. An Indian national owns the factory, and tensions between Indian administrators and Burmese workers have been reported in the past. The workers said the factory told them to work 12 hours a day. They negotiated an eight-hour workday, but the factory did not accept that. "Since the eight workers, including me, worked eight hours a day instead of 12, the factory fired us," said Khaing Min. "Moreover, they didn't give us the salary or overtime payments specified in our contracts." According to the workers, they have staged protests in front of the factory since July, and began a sit-in in March. "It has been 60 days and the factory authorities never showed up to talk to us," Khaing Min explained. "During the first protest in 2015, they said they would negotiate with us but it never happened. Instead, they fired eight workers." "What we want is respect for our rights, and for factory authorities to talk and negotiate with us," he added. On the way to Naypyidaw, local police in Sagaing and Mandalay attempted to halt the protestors on Sagaing Bridge, but they continued on. According to Sagaing divisional police, a case against the protestors has been opened under the 2011 Peaceful Assembly Law, because the workers did not seek permission to protest in advance. The post Sagaing Workers March to Naypyidaw to Protest for Labor Rights appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Interfaith Leaders Call For ‘Legal Action’ Against Hate Speech Posted: 29 Apr 2016 06:11 AM PDT A panel at an interfaith forum in Rangoon. (Photo: Shine Win / Facebook) RANGOON — Over 100 community leaders from different religions nationwide participated in a three-day forum on "Interfaith Understanding and Peace Advocacy" in Rangoon this week to reduce interreligious tension in Burma. One of the forum's organizers, Aung Naing Win of the Metta Setwaing Organization, told The Irrawaddy today that in the meeting, held from April 26-28, community and religious leaders discussed how to better fight hate speech. "We intend to work together with civil society groups in our own communities," Aung Naing Win said. "We want to work with law enforcement to take action against those who use hate speech, and we want to empower our community through education to positively engage for peace." Burma has a new democratically elected government led by Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD). Religious and community leaders at the forum expressed a readiness to work with this government in order to address interreligious conflict in the country. "Our idea is that our religious leaders, civil society leaders, lawyers and the government will work together to create a law [on the issue]," Aung Naing Win added. According to leaders who attended the forum, the cause of this type of conflict in Burma is the political manipulation of religion. To combat this, trust must be built so that peace at the community level cannot be easily destroyed, they said. Burma has a sizeable Buddhist majority, and Animist, Christian, Hindu and Muslim minorities. In 2012, ethnoreligious conflict broke out in Arakan State and spread throughout the country as Buddhist nationalists targeted Muslims with violence. Myint Thein, a Christian community leader who gave an opening speech at the interfaith forum, said that he believes interreligious conflict will continue as long as no legal action is taken against those who ignite tensions. "It was easy to create problems around this issue. It was a sensitive issue," he said, but also reminded participants that they had "stayed together for a long time, and we did not have problems in the past." The post Interfaith Leaders Call For 'Legal Action' Against Hate Speech appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

In Rangoon Building’s Restoration, Heritage and Homes Coexist Posted: 29 Apr 2016 06:05 AM PDT RANGOON — A 100-year-old building in downtown Rangoon is undergoing a complete renovation, inside and out, due to the efforts of two heritage preservation groups and the cooperation of its residents, representatives from the NGOs said at a press conference on Friday. The building, which is now 90 percent finished, will be open for public viewing for three months starting on Saturday. The innovative project was spearheaded by the Afghanistan-based NGO Turquoise Mountain and the local Yangon Heritage Trust (YHT), in partnership with the Prince of Wales Foundation and Global Affairs Canada. The building, located at 491-501 Merchant Street, houses 12 families—80 people in total—who represent the diverse mix of ethnicities and religions that lends Rangoon its distinct character. It was also home to famous Burmese journalist Ludu Sein Win when he died in 2012. Renovation began in July 2015, but a year before that, residents had already begun petitioning YHT for help in improving the building. Turquoise Mountain oversaw all of the construction work, while YHT helped liaise among the foreign NGO, the local residents and the Yangon City Development Committee. Unlike many restoration ventures in cities around the world, which result in the gentrification of their project zones, the YHT and Turquoise Mountain initiative seeks to retain the families who live in the building and the community around it to allow for a sustainable future, according to a joint statement issued by Turquoise Mountain and YHT on Friday. "The project aims to raise awareness and appreciation of the value of Yangon's heritage among local people, authorities and the government, and to link with and help inform wider urban planning initiatives," the statement said. The approach also encourages community participation in the planning of the restoration projects. Shoshana Stewart, the chief executive officer of Turquoise Mountain, told The Irrawaddy that she felt excited to see people appreciating the building's renovation. "When we walk people through the building and we tell them about it, they smile and they nod their heads … they like it," she said. "That's the most important thing." "If people don't want this, it's totally irrelevant. It's not going to happen. The most important thing is that people are excited about heritage buildings. People live in them. People walk by and see them," Stewart added. She also said that her organization is interested in doing similar conservation projects for bigger buildings in Rangoon's downtown area and would be initiating an example of economically sustainable building projects with commercial partners so that the buildings could benefit the economy. YHT founder Thant Myint-U said he saw the project as an important step toward the proper restoration of downtown Rangoon. "We need a moratorium on any further destruction of old buildings," he said in a joint statement. "[We need] new policies, regulations and schemes that will integrate economic development and conservation with public outreach and consultation." Khin Win Maw, 60, was born in the building in the 1950s and said that it was full of intimate childhood memories. She moved to a newer building in Rangoon's Mayangone Township in 2007, however, because the old building was in such a state of disrepair it was difficult to live in. "I grew up in this building, and inherited my apartment from my parents," she said. "I feel so proud that my home has now been preserved as part of the city's historical heritage." Since YHT was founded in 2012, much progress has been made in preserving Rangoon's architectural heritage, but with the recent surge in economic growth, real estate developers have demolished many old buildings to make way for higher-capacity apartment buildings and even more have been put on the chopping block. The post In Rangoon Building's Restoration, Heritage and Homes Coexist appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Muslim IDPs in Arakan State Seek Safer Boating Option Posted: 29 Apr 2016 05:25 AM PDT A Rohingya fisherman passes the time among boats at Thae Chaung IDP camp outside Sittwe on Nov. 13, 2014. (Photo: Minzayar / Reuters) RANGOON — Muslims sheltering at the Sin Tet Maw camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Arakan State are asking the state's chief minister to allow them to use a suitable jetty in the capital Sittwe instead of the more hazardous route currently taken by boats, one of which sank earlier this month, killing more than 20 people. Kyaw Hla Chay, who is head of the Sin Tet Maw camp in Pauktaw Township, sent a request letter to Chief Minister Nyi Pu on Wednesday, via authorities responsible for the Thae Chaung IDP camp outside of Sittwe. The camp leader wants permission to use a jetty so that IDPs can more safely make short trips to the state capital to purchase commodities, or alternatively receive emergency medical treatment at hospital if need be. Explaining the reason for the appeal, he said the current point of disembarkation for the Sin Tet Maw to Sittwe journey by boat was a shoreline near the Thae Chaung IDP, and that the route was dangerous for boats. Vessels would be especially imperilled during the coming rainy season, when choppy seas increase the risk of boats capsizing. On April 19, 23 people died when their boat sunk near the Thae Chaung camp. Its passengers had boarded the vessel from the Sin Tet Maw IDP camp, about 20 miles to the northeast. "As you know, weeks ago a boat capsized and many people died," Kyaw Hla Chay told The Irrawaddy. "If we use that fishing port in the rainy season, there are going to be troubles." Kyaw Hla Chay is an ethnic Kaman Muslim, one of 135 ethnicities officially recognized as eligible for Burmese citizenship. The large majority in the camp he heads are Rohingya Muslims, however, a stateless minority that bore the brunt of violence between Buddhists and Muslims that tore through Arakan State in 2012 and drove more than 100,000 people into IDP camps like Sin Tet Maw. All camp residents' movements are restricted, but the Rohingya's stateless status could weigh on prospects for their request for jetty access being approved, given the history of discrimination that the group has faced since the 2012 unrest. While that discrimination took place under the previous military-backed government, the new National League for Democracy (NLD) administration has given little indication of how it intends to handle the issue of Rohingya IDPs, and security authorities that have a say in their movement remain under military control. Kyan Chay, also an ethnic Kaman who lives in the Thae Chaung IDP camp, said they had not yet received a response from local authorities. Both Kyaw Hla Chay and Kyan Chay said they were originally from Kyaukphyu Township, where they were forced to flee in 2012. Kyaw Hla Chay acknowledged that not many ethnic Kaman people remained in the camp, with some having moved to Rangoon and others leaving the country for Malaysia. He put the total Kaman population still residing in the camp at around 100, and estimated its total population to be 2,000, with Rohingya presumably making up the remainder. The Kaman National Progressive Party's (KNPP) vice chairman, Hla Toe, said he did not know how many Kaman were left in the IDP camp, but estimated that the total did not exceed 100. The post Muslim IDPs in Arakan State Seek Safer Boating Option appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Leaders Respond to Suu Kyi’s Call for Second Panglong Conference Posted: 29 Apr 2016 03:58 AM PDT Members of the Joint Ceasefire Monitoring Committee (JCM) meet with State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi in Naypyidaw on Wednesday. (Photo: Hein Htet / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — Aung San Suu Kyi, Burma's state counselor and de facto leader of the new National League for Democracy (NLD) government, met with the Joint Ceasefire Monitoring Committee on Wednesday, calling for the convening of a "Panglong-style" peace conference within two months and encouraging all stakeholders to help make the suggestion a reality. Of ethnic armed organizations that opted out of signing the so-called nationwide ceasefire [NCA] in 2015, Suu Kyi said that "even though they are not yet included, we will try to include them." "There is no reason that we can't make it work if there is sincere empathy," she added.   The Panglong Conference was convened in southern Shan State in 1947 by Suu Kyi's father, Gen Aung San, and leaders from some of the country's ethnic nationalities, in preparation for independence from Britain. It led to the signing of the famed agreement by the same name, which has been widely praised for the spirit of inclusiveness and cooperation that it fostered between the dominant Burman majority and ethnic minorities at the time. The Irrawaddy's Nang Seng Nom spoke to a diverse selection of leaders about Suu Kyi's call for a second Panglong Conference, the likelihood of these talks occurring, and their expectations for them; their responses are below. Khun Htun Oo, Chairman of the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD) "Will all the stakeholders will be included if [a second Panglong Conference] is held? It will take time. To hold a second Panglong Conference, [the NLD government] has to negotiate with the military. Who will take part and when it will be held is also important. There must be harmony between the military and Daw Aung Suu Kyi [for the conference to happen]. If not, it is just wasting time and effort. [Suu Kyi] must make concessions with the military—it is a must. What shall we do if the military does not agree [to our demands], even if Daw Aung San Suu Kyi agrees? This is just the beginning. It may or may not work out." Brig-Gen Tarr Jode Jar, Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) "I don't know if [a Panglong-style Conference] will truly happen. It depends on the extent of cooperation between the military [and the NLD]. We are ready to participate. For it to happen, a ceasefire must be done first before anything else. Clashes are going on even now—we need to stop the fighting first. We have lots of things to consider. The Panglong Conference may run into difficulties regarding military affairs, or it may work. No one knows." Mya Aye, 88 Generation Student and Current Political Monitor "I think [they would] attend a peace and political dialogue, which is also the part of the peace process initiated by the previous government. If the new government is capable of convincing the non-signatories to sign the NCA, the peace and political dialogue is certain to happen. And maybe, that could be called 'Panglong' if they wanted. The ongoing clashes between ethnic armed groups and the military are the big obstacle to peace negotiations. How can a ceasefire accord be signed while clashes are going on? Clashes are big hurdles in Myanmar's peace process." Khaing Thu, Spokesperson for the Arakan Army (AA) "We have yet to wait and see if a Panglong-style conference could be held within one or two months. We welcome the peace process being led by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. Inequality between ethnicities, especially between the Bamar and other ethnic groups, is the cause of civil war in Myanmar. So, we want a true federal Union, defined by the ethnic groups themselves. If negotiations are held based on that, with goodwill toward the country, peace can be achieved. Daw Aung San Suu Kyi must negotiate with Myanmar military. It depends on how much control President U Htin Kyaw has over the Myanmar military." Col Wunna Aung, Spokesperson for the Burma Army, member of the Joint Ceasefire Monitoring Committee (JMC) "We will cooperate. We'll form committees and continue engaging in the peace process. It is too early to say when [a second Panglong conference can be held]. We still can't say, as we have not yet prepared. We are no longer fighting with the eight groups with which we have signed the ceasefire. As we are an organization dedicated to peace, we will give a hand to the peace process." Translated by Thet Ko Ko. The post Leaders Respond to Suu Kyi's Call for Second Panglong Conference appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Rangoon’s Strand Hotel to Close for Major Facelift Posted: 29 Apr 2016 02:33 AM PDT The Strand Hotel in Rangoon. (Photo: Pyay Kyaw / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — The Strand Hotel, one of the more iconic architectural vestiges of Rangoon's colonial era, will soon be shuttered for six months to undergo major renovations. The hotel will close May 1 and will reopen in early November, according to Olivier Trinquand, vice president of the Strand. "We will not build new structures. We will just make interior renovations, to keep the soul of the hotel. We'll make it feel like the hotel has been reborn," Trinquand told the press on Thursday. The renovation will be the first in more than 20 years, since its last renovation in 1993. "When we renovate, we will mainly stick to Burmese architectural style," said the hotel operations manager. The hotel has informed customers and business associates about its closure, he added. Currently, the hotel has 31 suites and employs 141 staff members. The renovation plan will not include the addition of any new suites. The Strand Hotel opened in 1901 and is the longest-running historical hotel in Rangoon. The five-star institution also boasts that it is one of the few grand colonial hotels still operating in Southeast Asia. Located on the eponymous river road in downtown Rangoon, the Strand has hosted a number of high-profile guests over the decades, including the writer Rudyard Kipling and Mick Jagger of Rolling Stones fame. The post Rangoon's Strand Hotel to Close for Major Facelift appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Steps Down Posted: 29 Apr 2016 02:04 AM PDT Maung Maung Thein, the outgoing chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, speaks to reporters at the launch of the Yangon Stock Exchange on March 25 in Rangoon. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — In a surprise move, the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission submitted a letter of resignation on Thursday to step down from his current post. Also Burma's former deputy Finance minister, Maung Maung Thein has played an integral part in the Ministry of Finance for the past three years amid a series of initiatives aimed at modernizing the country's economy. Maung Maung Thein, who had also previously been the general manager of Myanmar Insurance, is known for having introduced private insurance businesses across Burma and for helping create the country's first stock market. Some 10 private insurance companies now play a key role in the industry since their launch in 2013. "I submitted the resignation letter myself to the Ministry of Finance on Thursday. It will take effect May 1," Maung Maung Thein told The Irrawaddy. "I want to give other people a chance [to participate in the work of the commission]. That's why I resigned." "I don't know who will take over my role. That decision will be made by the National Finance and Planning minister," he added. Maung Maung Thein was referring to Kyaw Win, who garnered criticism for listing a doctorate from a fake university on his résumé, a fact brought to light after it was announced that he would take up the finance and planning portfolio. "Whatever they say, I won't be back," Maung Maung Thein said. The post Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Steps Down appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Anti-Rohingya Demonstrators to Be Charged With Unlawful Protest Posted: 29 Apr 2016 12:57 AM PDT Anti-Rohingya protestors shout slogans outside the US Embassy in Rangoon on Thursday. (Photo: Myo Min Soe / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON 一 A group of Burmese nationalists, including some monks from the ultra-conservative Buddhist association Ma Ba Tha, will be charged with protesting without permission after they picketed outside the US Embassy in Rangoon on Thursday against the American mission's use of the word "Rohingya." Hundreds of protesters assembled to condemn the US Embassy's use of the word in an April 20 statement offering condolences and expressing concern after 18 internally displaced Rohingya Muslims died when their boat capsized near Sittwe, the capital of Arakan State. One of the protesters' rallying cries was, "There are no Rohingya in Burma." Zaw Win, deputy police chief for Kamayut Township, told The Irrawaddy that the protesters had violated the law governing the right to assembly by not getting permission first. The police denied the group permission to protest in front of the US Embassy, and offered a football field in Bahan Township as an alternative protest site. The group instead gathered first in front of Rangoon University, before marching to the nearby US Embassy anyway. "They protested in areas where they did not have permission to do so," said Zaw Win. "We will take action on this." "They will use the law to deal with us," protester Noung Daw Lay said. "But we will use the law to fight back too." The term Rohingya, while widely accepted internationally, is highly contentious within Burma, where the Muslims minority is not accepted as one of 135 official ethnic groups recognized by a 1982 Citizenship Law. The previous government, and Thursday's protestors, referred to the group as "Bengali," implying that they are illegal immigrants from Bangladesh, which borders western Arakan State. Many identifying as Rohingya trace familial roots to a life in Burma for generations. The recently installed National League for Democracy (NLD) government's position on the term remains unclear. The post Anti-Rohingya Demonstrators to Be Charged With Unlawful Protest appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

The Irrawaddy is Moving On (line) Posted: 29 Apr 2016 12:41 AM PDT The Irrawaddy's news team. (Photo: The Irrawaddy) Dear Readers, You may have noticed a bit of an upswing in the national mood over the last few months. We've been enjoying it too, as you may have seen in our coverage of what has been, by any measure, an extraordinary time. We've also been thinking about our role as new realities and new possibilities unfold around us. Politics, hard news, and critical analysis have always been the lifeblood of The Irrawaddy's journalism. Our long commitment to covering political issues is set to deepen and increase in this era of historic national change. In coming months and years, the decisions and actions taken by our country's new leaders and others will have profound effects on the lives we lead, and on the kind of nation we will live in. We at The Irrawaddy plan to report closely on the unfolding political and policy environment. We will, as always, uphold and champion the vital role of independent media in building a healthy, democratic system of government in which the wellbeing, rights and freedoms of all may be protected and flourish. A Wider Lens We also know that life involves not only politics. Profound changes are already taking place, or are in store, in many sectors of our society, and we plan to reflect all of them. We have had a great response from readers on our Burmese-language platforms as we've gradually introduced more stories on culture, business, life, the arts, travel, education, and health topics. English-language readers will also benefit from a wider range of coverage in coming months. Our online audience has more than doubled as we engage more young audiences and satisfy those whose curiosity about all aspects of the world around them matches our own. As The Irrawaddy embraces new times and new technology to go wholly digital, we are delighted that our soaring online growth means that we have become one of the most popular online sources of news and information in the country. We have 8 million total monthly page views across our English and Burmese language news websites. Three million of these originate inside the country; the remainder reflect our popularity among the Burmese diaspora and our international audience. We count more than two million "unique visitors" to our websites each month. We have more than 115,000 followers on Twitter and more than 7.4 million Facebook likes. Our stories are now available on Facebook's Instant Articles. We have a new service on Viber, which has 18 million users in Burma/Myanmar, and we have a variety of other services in the works to cater to this country's skyrocketing interest in consuming information on digital devices. From now on, through various digital platforms, our writers, photographers, videographers and editors will continue to tell the story of our changing country more compellingly than ever through an expanding range of multimedia products. A message to readers from The Irrawaddy team. The medium may be shifting, but our core mission to deliver quality news, analysis and information about our country's pressing political questions stays the same. The Irrawaddy's goal to bring independent and reliable news from Burma/Myanmar to our readers at home and across the globe began more than two decades ago in challenging circumstances, with little more than faith, hope and a fax machine. Over the next decades, we were able to grow to become one of the best-known and trusted sources of quality news about this country here and across the globe. Now, as we embark on an all-digital future, we look forward to continuing to serve our readers with the best storytelling we can produce, in new and different formats. We heartily thank our longtime readers for their loyalty and welcome our growing new online audiences. Burma/Myanmar is moving on, and so are we. Thank you, and stay tuned! The post The Irrawaddy is Moving On (line) appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

China Passes Law Tightening Controls on Foreign Nonprofits Posted: 29 Apr 2016 12:30 AM PDT People walk across Tiananmen Square in front of the Great Hall of the People, the venue of the National People's Congress, in Beijing on March 1, 2011. (Photo: Reuters) BEIJING — China passed a law Thursday tightening controls over foreign non-governmental organizations by subjecting them to close police supervision, a move officials say will help the groups but critics charge is the latest attempt by authorities to clamp down on perceived threats to the ruling Communist Party's control. The law, adopted by the national legislature, states that foreign NGOs must not endanger China's national security and ethnic unity. It grants police the power to question NGO administrators, search residences and facilities and seize files and equipment. The move to pass such a law has drawn criticism from US and European officials and business and academic organizations. They are concerned it will severely restrict the operations of a wide range of groups, further limiting the growth of civil society in China and hindering exchanges between China and the rest of the world. The law includes a clause that allows police to blacklist "unwelcome" groups and prevent them from operating in the country. Groups can be blacklisted if they commit violations ranging from illegally obtaining unspecified state secrets to "spreading rumors, slandering or otherwise expressing or disseminating harmful information that endangers state security." The Network of Chinese Human Rights Defenders denounced the law as "draconian," saying it allows police to exercise "daily supervision and monitoring" of foreign NGOs. The law will have "a profoundly detrimental impact on civil society in China," it said. The group said the most alarming aspects include the ability of police to end foreign NGO-organized activities that they deem to "endanger national security," a term that is not clearly defined. Police will also be able to more closely monitor foreign organizations' funding sources and expenses, "which has the chilling effect of intimidation," the group said. The law appears to be an effort to utilize of the resources and expertise of foreign NGOs as China struggles with problems including environmental pollution and mental health, while preventing them from competing with the Communist Party for hearts and minds. Still, the final version of the law eased many of the restrictions included in an earlier draft, including exempting foreign schools, medical facilities, and academic and research groups in natural sciences and engineering technology. It also allows foreign NGOs to set up multiple representative offices in China, removes restrictions on hiring volunteers and staff, and eliminates a requirement that they reapply for permission to operate in China every five years. However, in an apparent attempt to limit their influence, the law bans foreign groups from setting up regional chapters, recruiting members from among the public at large or raising funds within China. It also subjects them to closer financial scrutiny, requiring that they submit annual reports detailing their sources of financing, spending activities and changes in personnel. "You are here to do deeds, not to build up your troops," Guo Linmao, a legal inspector for the legislature, said at a news conference following the law's passage. Guo sought to offer words of assurance, saying the law aims primarily to welcome foreign non-governmental groups, help promote their activities and protect their lawful interests while filtering out those few organizations that may hurt China's national security and interests in the name of NGO work. And, despite a relentless crackdown on domestic legal aid and civic society groups, Guo said international organizations working on human rights issues are welcome in China, as long as they comply with Chinese laws. He said the law shifted the authority to register and supervise foreign groups from civil affairs bureaus to the police under the Ministry of Public Security in part because Chinese police already have responsibility for managing and overseeing foreign nationals. US Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken told a congressional hearing Thursday that sent a "terrible signal" to NGOs that are acting for the benefit of China and its people. Secretary of State John Kerry said in a statement he was deeply concerned that the law would hurt people-to-people ties between the United States and China by creating a "highly uncertain and potentially hostile environment" for such groups. Many overseas organizations have partnered with Chinese academic and social groups, but still operate in a legal gray area that leaves them vulnerable to crackdowns by security forces. In one recent example, China in January deported a Swedish man it accused of training and funding unlicensed lawyers in the country. The post China Passes Law Tightening Controls on Foreign Nonprofits appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Tuna Giant Thai Union Scraps Worker Fees to Tackle Labor Abuses Posted: 28 Apr 2016 11:13 PM PDT Lab technicians work inside the R&D lab of the Thai Union Group in Bangkok, Thailand, March 31, 2016.  (Photo: Athit Perawongmetha / Reuters) SINGAPORE — The world's largest canned tuna company, Thai Union Group PCL ,announced on Thursday it would eliminate recruitment fees for its workers—a move that will prevent workers from racking up debts to job brokers and from being exploited and abused. The vast majority of migrant laborers in Asia have to pay sizeable fees to brokers and agencies to land jobs abroad, often borrowing money and starting their new jobs deep in debt. When they start work, they are often not paid for six months to a year as their salaries go towards paying those debts, leaving them vulnerable to trafficking and broker exploitation. The "zero recruitment fees" policy of Thai Union—with brands such as Chicken of the Sea, John West and Petit Navire—takes effect immediately for future recruitment of all workers in its factories and processing plants—most of them from Thailand, Myanmar and Cambodia, the company said in a statement. "That's something that Thai Union sees as essential to make sure that workers aren't in debt bondage before they start work," Darian McBain, Thai Union's global director of sustainable development, said at Trust Forum Asia, a slavery and trafficking forum in Singapore hosted by the Thomson Reuters Foundation. "We'll cover the costs of all the agency fees, so that people aren't burdened with the debt that they can sometimes build up on the way to coming to employment in Thailand," she said in a panel discussion on tackling slavery in supply chains. Activists commended the policy and said they hoped other companies would follow suit. "100 percent of the costs of recruitment is falling on workers. This is completely unacceptable. Companies should be paying to recruit workers, or at least they should be taking a very fair share of the burden," said rights activist Andy Hall, an advisor to the non-profit Migrant Worker Rights Network (MWRN). "It's the main issue leading to human trafficking, debt bondage and slavery these days," he said, adding that Thai Union "has realized that it's their responsibility to ensure that their recruitment supply chain—to get the workers into the factory—is clean." Thailand's multibillion-dollar seafood industry has come under fire in recent years after numerous investigations by journalists and rights groups showed widespread slavery, trafficking and violence on fishing boats and in onshore food processing factories. Thai Union, with annual sales exceeding US$3.5 billion and more than 46,000 employees worldwide, has been working with MWRN and Hall to strengthen relationships with recruitment agents in Cambodia and Burma, and map out recruitment processes in order to reduce costs and complexities, the company said. McBain, an expert on sustainable supply chains who joined Thai Union last July, said the company once viewed NGOs as outsiders that raised issues and caused alarm, but now sees local organizations in particular as "a vital part of our work". Thai Union is also working closely with the non-profit Issara Institute, which started a multilingual hotline for the company's workers to raise concerns and give them a voice. Issara Institute is now developing a helpline app for mobile phones, McBain said. "We found out 93 percent of workers in our factories have a smartphone, so that is enormous potential for how they can access these remedy situations," she said. The company can provide the app to workers on shore, as well as at sea on vessels equipped with satellite or Wi-Fi connectivity "so workers can have access to a voice at sea as well." The post Tuna Giant Thai Union Scraps Worker Fees to Tackle Labor Abuses appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Burma Bans Lucrative Logging in Bid to Preserve Forests Posted: 28 Apr 2016 09:49 PM PDT A woman walks with children near logs at a timber yard in Rangoon on Jan. 31, 2014. (Photo: Soe Zeya Tun / Reuters) RANGOON — Burma has banned lucrative logging operations as the newly elected government of democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi steps up a battle on deforestation, an environment official said on Thursday. Burma's rich forests are among its most valuable natural resources, but they have been plundered by logging that helped fund the former military regime that ran the country for 49 years, before reforms began in 2011. In April 2014, Burma banned export of raw timber logs to slow deforestation and boost its own production. By 2010, forest cover had shrunk to 47 percent of land area from 58 percent in 1990, Forestry Ministry data show. Despite the ban, illegal logging has thrived in northeast Burma, where valuable teak and rosewood are smuggled over the border to neighboring China, forest watchdog the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) has said. "We have been reducing timber extraction, and now we have decided to stop logging completely," said John Swe Ba, a managing director at Burma's Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation. "This measure will cover teak and other hardwoods all across the country," he added. Legal logging has also played a major role in ravaging the environment. State-owned Myanma Timber Enterprise (MTE), overseen by Swe Ba's ministry, has a monopoly on the formal timber sector, but subcontracts work to numerous companies. That body was targeted by United States sanctions until 2014, when the Treasury Department gave it an initial one-year waiver to work with the US-based International Wood Products Association, extended in July 2015 for two more years. "Methods of over-harvesting include felling a greater number of logs of a particular tree species and extracting logs smaller in diameter than recommended," said the EIA, which is based in Britain. "As such, the legal forest sector practices in Myanmar are a significant contributor to deforestation and forest degradation," the watchdog added in its 2015 report. Measures are needed to save the jobs of more than 17,000 employees in government departments working on timber production, Swe Ba added, without saying what they might be. "We can't afford to let them be out of jobs overnight," he said. The post Burma Bans Lucrative Logging in Bid to Preserve Forests appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

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