The Irrawaddy Magazine

---

• Logging Ban Requires a Strong Government Hand, Say Environmentalists
• NLD Works Toward ‘Open Door’ Peace Process
• Upper House Passes Bill Repealing Overnight Guest Registration
• Former Spokesman Slams Critics for Trivial Coffee Shop Controversy
• USDP to Sue Newspapers Over Gems Corruption Story
• As Kyat Soars, Foreign Bulls and Burmese Bears Spar on Growth
• Information Minister Pe Myint to Speak at Myanmar Summit 2016     
• Tiger Amulet
• From Aung San’s Driver to Centenarian, a Long and Winding Road Reaches Its End
• Philippine Rebels to Discuss Peace Talks with New Government
• Police Stop Truck Carrying Two Tiger Skins from Thai Temple
• New Ma Ba Tha School Teaches Children to ‘Protect Race and Religion’

Logging Ban Requires a Strong Government Hand, Say Environmentalists Posted: 03 Jun 2016 07:45 AM PDT A woman walks with her children near logs at a timber yard in Rangoon on January 31, 2014. (Photo: Soe Zeya Tun / Reuters) The Burmese government's proposed logging ban must be matched with robust implementation, stressed environmentalists, following the announcement from the Minister of Resources and Environmental Conservation Ohn Win that a nationwide ban would be in full effect before the end of Burma's fiscal year, in April 2017. Ohn Win said during Thursday's session of the Upper House of Parliament that the government is planning to completely suspend logging, in order to stem Burma's rapid rate of deforestation. The ministry would also impose a ban on teak industry in areas without young teak growth. Environmentalist Win Myo Thu, director of EcoDev, deemed the ministry's plan "agreeable," saying it was merely expected for the government to take action in a context where over 1.5 million hectares have been lost over a decade. However, Win Myo Thu said an additional plan to "monitor teak regeneration" would be needed. In the absence of strong enforcement policies, the logging ban would be "political dressing up," he said. Since 2014, Burma has restricted logging according to an annual quota. Log exports were suspended from April the same year. Burma currently has 29 million hectares of forest, amounting to 43 percent of the landmass, according to ministry figures in 2015. Win Myo Thu added that the natural regeneration of Burma's teak forests "would not be so easy" in the midst of so much human interference, which extends beyond logging to local livelihood pursuits, such as firewood collection, bamboo shoot harvesting and gold panning. In Thursday's Upper House parliamentary session, lawmaker Khin Swe Lwin–representing Chin State Constituency 9—asked  if logging would be halted in Chin State's Kanpetlet Township. Khin Swe Lwin stressed the devastation wrought by the torrential rains brought by Cyclone Komen in late July and early August last year: villages on the banks of Mone River tributaries were underwater, with substantial loss of farmland. In response, the minister Ohn Win described a plan to plant 50 acres of teak this rainy season [which commonly runs between late May and early October] in Kanpetlet Township. The locals would also be permitted to grow and administer 273 acres of forest. According to the plan, the ministry would then document the forest resources of the area before any logging activities could resume. The Burma Timber Enterprise would be charged with preserving the remaining forest. In the torrential rains of July and August last year, severe flooding occurred across 12 of Burma's 14 states and divisions, affecting thousands of people, many of whom—including those in Chin State—have to yet to recover from the losses to their livelihood. Widespread deforestation in Burma in recent years was blamed for much of the flooding. The post Logging Ban Requires a Strong Government Hand, Say Environmentalists appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

NLD Works Toward ‘Open Door’ Peace Process Posted: 03 Jun 2016 07:29 AM PDT The government peace delegation, led by chief negotiator Dr. Tin Myo Win, and the Delegation for Political Negotiation met on Friday in Chiang Mai, Thailand. (Photo: Nyein Nyein / The Irrawaddy) CHIANG MAI, Thailand — The ruling National League for Democracy (NLD) government will open the door to all stakeholders in the peace dialogue process, taking a different approach from the former administration. The new administration will first seek collaboration on the political dialogue framework with ethnic armed organizations that were non-signatories to 2015's so-called nationwide ceasefire agreement (NCA). Under former President Thein Sein, non-signatories were invited as observers to Burma's Union Peace Conference, but were barred from participating in the talks. Later, it is understood that the NLD will aim for these groups to join a nationwide ceasefire as signatories. Dr. Tin Myo Win, longstanding personal physician of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and newly appointed government peace negotiator, on Friday officially invited ethnic armed organization leaders from non-signatory groups to join the political dialogue framework meeting, which is scheduled for next week. During the first meeting with the United Nationalities Federal Council's (UNFC) Delegation for Political Negotiation (DPN), which comprises 13 members drawn from various non-state ethnic armed groups who opted out of signing the NCA, Tin Myo Win said he believed mutual understanding was the key to building peace, and he hoped to achieve this aim. General Gun Maw, the vice chairperson of the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) and head of Friday's delegation of ethnic leaders, said he interpreted the NLD's approach of trying to bring them into the process as well-intentioned and "a positive sign." He told The Irrawaddy that he hopes for opportunities to collaborate and to give input on amendments to the existing framework for political dialogue, adding that it was still not official whether all of the invited groups would attend the meeting. Tin Myo Win said that a solution to the country's longstanding conflict could be reached by engaging key stakeholders including State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi, Commander-in-Chief Min Aung Hlaing and the ethnic armed group leaders. The ethnic leaders, the government, and the Burma Army have the common goal of genuine peace, development of the state, and the prosperity and security of the people, he added. Regarding the three armed organizations engaged in active conflict with the army, Tin Myo Win said, "We must try to include every group including the Ta'ang Nationalities Liberation Army (TNLA), Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) and Arakan Army (AA). All must participate in the negotiation whether they sign the NCA or not." These groups have been shunned by Burma Army leaders, and were excluded from peace discussions under the former government. Rumors have recently circulated that the three groups would form a military alliance along with the United Wa State Army (UWSA), another NCA non-signatory group that now seeks representation in the political dialogue. Tin Myo Win and his committee members will soon travel north to meet with the Wa and Mongla, who were allocated self-administered regions in Shan State in the military-drafted 2008 Constitution. Since the NCA was signed by eight armed groups and the government last October, alliances have split, the peace process has deadlocked and fighting has resumed. In the last four months, ethnic leaders formed the DPN and said that they trusted the NLD government and were prepared to talk. There was a brief hiccup before Friday's meeting, when the NLD's peace team failed to approach the UNFC through proper channels, but the error was resolved in time. Suu Kyi's envisioned "Panglong-style" peace conference—modeled after a 1947 summit convened in Panglong, Shan State by her father, independence leader Aung San—is scheduled for July or August, said Tin Myo Win. Suu Kyi has ordered that the Union government allocate the peace budget, after the previous Myanmar Peace Center was criticized for misuse of its funds and rumored exorbitant employee salaries. The post NLD Works Toward 'Open Door' Peace Process appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Upper House Passes Bill Repealing Overnight Guest Registration Posted: 03 Jun 2016 07:21 AM PDT Riot police detain a man in Hlegu, outside Rangoon, in 2014 under the auspices of the overnight registration law. (Photo: Soe Zeya Tun / Reuters) RANGOON — A bill amending and repealing provisions of Burma's colonial-era Ward or Village Tract Administration Law—which required citizens to register overnight guests—was approved in the Upper House of Parliament on Friday. A bill submitted to the Upper House of Parliament by the Bill Committee in early May revoking all sections of the original law referring to overnight guest registration was tabled by elected parliamentarians and military-appointees in the chamber. Originating in 1907, modified by the military-controlled Ministry of Home Affairs in 2012 and most recently updated in January 2016, the law requires citizens to inform local government officials when guests spend the night in their homes, regardless of how long the stay is. The new bill has removed articles 13(g) and 17 from the original law, which demand that citizens report overnight guests or get penalized for disobeying. Military lawmakers had claimed in previous sessions that revoking these provisions would jeopardize the country's national security, while National League for Democracy (NLD) lawmakers argued the new bill was drafted in line with democratic norms. Some civil society organizations, however, recommended maintaining the guest-reporting requirement in some remote areas of the country due to weak law enforcement. Nonetheless, at Friday's parliamentary session, Speaker Mahn Win Khaing Than oversaw a secret ballot from all lawmakers passed as per recommendations from the bill committee. Dr. Myat Nyarna Soe, secretary of the Upper House Bill Committee, said that the revocation of some provisions from the original law was the decision of the Upper House of Parliament and will still need to pass the lower chamber. "The Upper House decided to approve the bill based on consensus in the chamber," he said. "Now, the bill still needs to pass the lower chamber." Tin Myint, permanent secretary of the Home Affairs Ministry, told The Irrawaddy on Friday the ministry will respect any decision of the Union Parliament, saying the it has the right to decide how laws are written since it is the legislative branch of the government. "Our ministry drafted the law for the sake of the country," he said. "But we have to accept the decision of the parliamentarians who think certain sections [of the law] are no longer appropriate." The post Upper House Passes Bill Repealing Overnight Guest Registration appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Former Spokesman Slams Critics for Trivial Coffee Shop Controversy Posted: 03 Jun 2016 05:45 AM PDT Golden Farm Coffee Shop in Nyapyidaw. (Photo: Thiha / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — Ex-President Thein Sein's former spokesperson slammed his old boss's critics for focusing too much on what, to him, is a trivial coffee shop controversy. While he is no longer an official mouthpiece for the government, Ye Htut, who was formerly information minister, on Thursday voluntarily defended the heated ownership of a new coffee shop in Naypyidaw, Golden Farm, rumored to be owned by Burma's former head of state. Ye Htut said that even if the coffee shop belongs to Thein Sein, it is a matter that has not warranted the vitriol it has received, given that other people in the country, particularly some senior military officials, have for decades made their riches by conducting business under their children's names, securing government tenders and engaging in land grabs. "Criticizing U Thein Sein's ownership of a coffee shop is like chasing rabbits instead of hunting elephants," Ye Htut said during a sideline interview at a press conference in Naypyidaw held to discuss the recent implication that Thein Sein has misused funds. The former spokesman's comments came after pictures of the coffee shop were widely circulated among Burmese Facebook users, many of who claimed that it was owned by Thein Sein because of its location in a compound where Burma's ex-president owns a private farm. Ye Htut believes that Thein Sein has faced more personal attacks since he stepped down from the presidency in March and once again assumed chairmanship of the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), citing the coffee shop controversy as an example. "Throughout [Thein Sein's] career—from regional commander [in the military] to secretary of the former military regime to prime minister to president—his three children have never carried out business by using their father's power. Despite his clean record, news like this is spreading about him. I think this is political assassination against him," Ye Htut said. A source close to Thein Sein said the coffee shop is run by a local confectionary chain located on the former President's land. The post Former Spokesman Slams Critics for Trivial Coffee Shop Controversy appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

USDP to Sue Newspapers Over Gems Corruption Story Posted: 03 Jun 2016 05:40 AM PDT USDP Chairman and Burma's former president Thein Sein meets with party members in Rangoon Division in late May to discuss the party's policies and to encourage members to promote the interests of the people to broaden the USDP's popular appeal. (Photo: USDP / Facebook) RANGOON — The Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), has said it will sue two Burmese weekly newspapers—the Myanmar Herald and the Messenger—along with other individuals, for defaming former President Thein Sein and the USDP in their coverage of the alleged embezzlement of 93 million euros (US$103.9 million) from an account linked to the Myanmar Gems Traders Association. The military-backed USDP controlled the previous government under President Thein Sein, who still chairs the party, and was delivered a crushing defeat by the National League for Democracy in the November election. As reported previously by The Irrawaddy, on Thursday 81 members of the gem-trading association held a press conference in Rangoon, calling on the Ministry of Resources and Environmental Conservation and the managing director of the state-run Myanmar Gems Enterprise to address the so-far unexplained loss of €93 million. It has been alleged that €1 million (over US$1.1 million) was given to Thein Sein—although former Minister of Mines Myint Aung has claimed that this sum was donated to the Myanmar Art Center, a nonprofit in Rangoon, and put toward construction costs. The Union Daily, a newspaper which also serves as the mouthpiece of the USDP, on Friday cited a May 28 report from the Myanmar Herald, which contained the following language [translated here]: "[members of] the Myanmar Gems Traders Association demanded a probe into former president Thein Sein and his associates' misappropriation of over '$80 million' from the association's funds." The Union Daily claimed that the Myanmar Herald had "wrongly reported" that Thein Sein and his former cabinet members worked hand in glove with officials from the gems-trading association to embezzle the money, with a reported US$7 million given to the Myanmar Art Center, an institution which is entirely unconnected to the gems-trading association. "The story is designed to blacken the reputation of ex-president Thein Sein and mislead the people," the Union Daily report said. "This not only defames Thein Sein, who is the chairman of the USDP, but also tarnishes the image of the USDP, which is undergoing a reform process to achieve future [electoral] victory." The Union Daily report said that the USDP would take legal action against the Myanmar Herald Journal, which featured the "misleading reporting," the Messenger Journal, which published its own story based on the Myanmar Herald's reporting, and Kyaw Kyaw Oo, an executive committee member of the gems-trading association, for filing an "incorrect complaint without strong evidence," and others [not specified] who were behind the allegations. An investigation team under the state-owned Myanmar Gems Enterprise began looking into the apparent discrepancy in late May. The complainants from the association, including Kyaw Kyaw Oo, have also requested the Legal Issues and Special Cases Committee, led by former acting USDP chairman Shwe Mann, to investigate. The Irrawaddy attempted to contact each of the USDP's three spokespersons, but none could be reached for comment. The post USDP to Sue Newspapers Over Gems Corruption Story appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

As Kyat Soars, Foreign Bulls and Burmese Bears Spar on Growth Posted: 03 Jun 2016 05:04 AM PDT Stacks of Burmese kyat notes are prepared for shipment at a bank in Rangoon. (Photo: Minzayar / Reuters) RANGOON — The Burmese kyat has been the best-performing Asian currency against the US dollar so far this year, rising over 10 percent versus the greenback since January. While this trend has excited foreign investors, Burmese analysts remain skeptical about how well the currency's buoyancy reflects the growth prospects of the real economy. Bloomberg News reported Thursday that the kyat has outstripped the Japanese yen to claim the title of fastest-appreciating currency in Asia for the first five months of 2016. "Some foreign observers said the kyat's appreciation is a sign the economy is growing quickly," Chit Khine, chairman of Eden Group of Companies, told the Irrawaddy. "But I disagree with that. The economy has been muddling along recently because the government's economic policies are still unclear." "[Foreign investors], however, believe that the economy will grow quickly now that the government has changed," he said. The Burmese kyat, which was floated in 2011 under the previous quasi-civilian government, has been in flux over the past year, peaking at 1,310 kyats per dollar in December and bottoming out at 1,030 in January 2015. On Friday the kyat-dollar rate closed at 1190:1, according to the Central Bank of Myanmar. "Though the kyat has been strong over the last six months, [in Burma] business is slowing down, and we don't know how the government will deal with that," Chit Khine said. Myat Thin Aung, chairman of Hlaing Tharyar Industrial Zone, said that kyat was undergoing seasonal and import-related fluctuations. "During the rainy season, the currency exchange rate stabilizes," he said, citing the seasonal slowdown in exports as a major factor influencing the rate. But while he said optimism in the economy is not widespread, there is a new-found confidence in the kyat. "People are not hoarding their dollars as much as in the past, meaning there are more people selling dollars," Myat Thin Aung said, adding that this increased supply of the dollars has strengthened the value of the kyat. Many businesses, however, have been waiting to see what new government policies will be unveiled and which foreign investment projects will be approved now that the Myanmar Investment Commission is undergoing reforms. "We have to consider all the factors [that could affect economic growth], like a high inflation rate, a rising trade deficit and slowed business activity," he said. Maung Aung, senior economist for the Ministry of Commerce, said he does not believe the country's economy will grow quickly in the near-term, and that the value of the kyat is not an indicator of overall strength in the economy. "International observers are very optimistic, but for me, I don't see high growth rates—the economy is stagnating now," he said. "The Myanmar Investment Commission has also stopped approving new projects, putting foreign investment in limbo." International institutions, however, have released optimistic projections for Burma's economic growth, with the Asian Development Bank predicting an expansion of more than 8 percent in 2016, a rate that, if achieved, would make the country one of the fastest-growing economies in the world. But the government's opacity regarding economic policy remains concerning, even for those on the inside. "To promote economic growth, we need the right policies and more mutual understanding between the government and private sector," the Ministry of Commerce's Maung Aung said. The post As Kyat Soars, Foreign Bulls and Burmese Bears Spar on Growth appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Information Minister Pe Myint to Speak at Myanmar Summit 2016      Posted: 03 Jun 2016 04:42 AM PDT Information Minister Pe Myint at the parliamentary complex in Naypyidaw, March 2016. (Photo: Myo Min Soe / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — Information Minister Pe Myint will give an opening keynote interview on Burma's developing policy priorities at The Economist's second-annual Myanmar Summit. The event, which will take place at Sedona Hotel Yangon on June 16, will assemble Burma's decision-makers, advocates, entrepreneurs and investors to discuss how the country's newly minted leaders intend to generate and sustain economic growth, wealth and prosperity for a nation that has only recently overcome half a century of isolation. According to the summit agenda, questions to be fielded by Pe Myint and other speakers will explore "profitable and sustainable" economic policy and development, as well as capacity-building strategies for Burma's new government, particularly regarding policymaking and administrative practices. Soe Tun, chairman of the Myanmar Automobile Manufacturers and Distributors Association, said that Burma has yet to create concrete economic policy priorities, adding that the country will need to cooperate broadly with people from international organizations, non-profit groups, civil society organizations and businesses, in order to spur long-lasting change in the country. "We're all keeping a watch on this economic policy," Soe Tun told The Irrawaddy. The Economist launched its inaugural Myanmar Summit, a part of its country summit series, in 2015, to better address the outcomes and implications of Burma's historic November election. The post Information Minister Pe Myint to Speak at Myanmar Summit 2016      appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Tiger Amulet Posted: 03 Jun 2016 12:55 AM PDT The post Tiger Amulet appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

From Aung San’s Driver to Centenarian, a Long and Winding Road Reaches Its End Posted: 03 Jun 2016 12:43 AM PDT U Khan sits outside his home in Taunggyi, Shan State. (Photo: Kyaw Zwa Moe / The Irrawaddy) In 1947, Gen. Aung San, State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi's father, arrived in Panglong, Shan State on a bold mission to bring together Burma's major ethnic groups in the face of colonial Britain. There, he won the ethnic peoples' trust by promising autonomy and even the right to secede. In the decades of civil war that followed the military coup in 1962, the Panglong Agreement would be remembered as a rare moment of unity, one which Suu Kyi aims to replicate this summer with the 21st Century Panglong Conference. On Friday, U Khan, the man who drove Gen. Aung San during the first conference, died at the age of 101, giving The Irrawaddy an opportunity to republish this wide-ranging profile of him from last year. TAUNGGYI, Shan State — Sitting at his home in Taunggyi, 100-year-old U Khan is still proud of what he did for Gen. Aung San, the father of Burma's independence, in February 1947. Nearly 70 years ago, U Khan drove Bogyoke (General) Aung San along a narrow, steep and snaking road that stretched 100 km from Taunggyi to Panglong, where the national hero and ethnic leaders from Shan, Kachin and Chin states signed the historic Panglong Agreement as part of efforts to speed up Burma's return to independence from British colonial rule. Unsurprisingly, none of the leaders who signed that agreement is alive today. Aung San was the first of them to die, assassinated as he was on July 19, 1947, just six months before the country gained its independence. Born in 1915, the same year as Aung San, U Khan remains in good enough health that he can still be seen driving occasionally in his hometown of Taunggyi, where he was born to a migrant Muslim father and a Shan mother. U Khan still considers himself a devout Muslim. U Khan is pictured in 1947 sitting behind the steering wheel while Aung San, left, receives a bouquet from a young woman in Taunggyi before heading to Panglong. He remembers the past clearly, including the small part that he played in history, and is happy to show guests old photos hung on the walls of his house. "I drove him [Aung San] to Panglong," he told me, pointing to a photo of Aung San receiving a bouquet from a young local woman in Taunggyi, U Khan himself pictured sitting behind the steering wheel of a Jeep just before setting off for Panglong. When they arrived at Panglong but before signing the agreement on Feb. 12, U Khan recalled Aung San telling the gathered ethnic leaders, "You can separate your states from Burma after 10 years if you are not satisfied with [this agreement]." U Khan said: "Ethnic leaders, including the Saopha of Yawngwhe [who would become Burma's first president after independence in 1948], responded to Bogyoke Aung San by saying, 'Let's not talk of secession at the moment; we are just about to sign for a union.'" Feb. 12 has since been recognized annually as Union Day and the historic Panglong Agreement remains a rallying point for Burma's ethnic minorities, with its guarantee of full autonomy for ethnic regions never realized and still sought to this day. Common Interests U Khan and Aung San had become acquainted thanks to their common interests in politics and their country's struggle for independence. "Bogyoke Aung San was involved in the nationwide independence struggle, while we were involved in political activities here in our Shan State," U Khan said. "I worked with U Tin E for the Shan State People's Freedom League." Mayor U Khan, left, with Chinese President Liu Shaoqi, who was visiting Taunggyi. The late Tin E, who was one year U Khan's junior, was one of a handful of prominent Shan leaders who managed to convince many Shan to support Aung San's Panglong plan to expedite independence from Britain, which was seeking a show of unity before agreeing to relinquish the whole of Burma. In 1952, four years after the country had ridded itself of the yoke of colonialism, U Khan was elected as the first mayor of Taunggyi, the capital of southern Shan State. Four years later, he was re-elected to a second term and was also appointed chairman of the Taunggyi Municipal Committee. As mayor in the 1950s, U Khan received domestic and foreign dignitaries during his time in office. Other photos on the walls of his home capture the centenarian with Burma's President U Ba Oo and visiting Chinese President Liu Shaoqi, both of whom paid visits to Taunggyi. The premiers Kyaw Nyein and Ba Swe were also among his acquaintances at the time. While serving as mayor, he was also a successful businessman, running movie theaters and a construction company that operated in Taunggyi and other towns in southern Shan State. However, doomsday came for him on March 2, 1962, when the late dictator Gen. Ne Win staged a coup, ousting from power the civilian government led by Prime Minister U Nu. Indeed, that fateful Friday was a dark turning point not just for U Khan, but also for the entire country. In the wee hours of March 2, Ne Win's troops began surrounding the homes of cabinet members as well as ethnic leaders, most of whom were Shan princes, known as saophas, in Rangoon and across Shan State. The soldiers arrested the entire cabinet, including the then incumbent President Mahn Win Maung (an ethnic Karen), U Nu and the rest of the government ministers. In Shan State, almost all of the 25 Shan saophas who were members of the regional Nationalities Parliament and another 25 members of the People's Parliament were arrested along with other politicians. Mayor U Khan sits at the head of the table next to Burma's President U Ba Oo. Burma's former first president and the incumbent chairman of the chamber of nationalities, the saopha of Yaunghwe Sao Shwe Thaike, was among the purged Shan princes, having also been apprehended at his residence in Rangoon. During the arrest, one of his teenage sons was killed. Ne Win's regime said he died as guards at the saopha's residence exchanged fire with the soldiers attempting to arrest Sao Shwe Thaike. It was reportedly the only casualty of an otherwise bloodless coup. Ne Win's takeover destroyed the union spirit that had been forged by Aung San and the ethnic leaders at Panglong, with the Burman-dominated military junta entrenching distrust between the country's ethnic majority and its many ethnic minorities. Without question, it dealt a devastating blow to hopes of ending Burma's civil war, which by that time had entered into its second decade. 'Come With Us for a While' U Khan was also among those arrested. "I was sent to Insein's annex jail," U Khan told me, referring to a compound within Insein Prison, a penitentiary in Rangoon that has housed thousands of political prisoners since the 1962 coup. Sao Shwe Thaike and other politicians were also kept at Insein, where U Khan told me he still can't forget one morning in November 1962. "Around 7 am, Sao Shwe Thaike shouted to us, 'How are you guys?', while he was taking a walk to work out in the prison compound," U Khan recalled. "At around 11:00 am, he died. We had no idea why." Mayor U Khan, middle, with his team of civil servants in Taunggyi. "He was poisoned," one of my friends, seated next to us, interrupted. U Khan responded: "I know, I know. Not good to talk about it." The former president was believed to have been killed while in detention. After having spent six years in the country's biggest prison, U Khan was finally released without facing any charges. Though he was no longer behind bars, he wasn't truly free. Authorities did not allow U Khan to return to Taunggyi, instead forcing him to remain in Rangoon where they could better keep an eye on him and his activities. He was placed under this "city arrest" for four more years. "They [authorities] just told me to come with them for a while," U Khan recalled of the moment in 1962 when he was rousted from his home. "That 'for a while' meant 10 years in detention." Some businesses belonging to U Khan were confiscated by Ne Win's Revolutionary Council, including two cinemas, as the government nationalized commerce across the country in the name of the "Burmese Way to Socialism." "At one of those locations, you can see Innwa Bank today," he said, perhaps adding insult to injury for the man, given that Innwa Bank was founded by the Myanmar Economic Corporation, a conglomerate owned by the military. U Khan has never received any form of compensation for the businesses he lost. After his release, he went back into the construction business in Taunggyi, but chose to remain outside the civic arena. "I didn't return to politics," he said. And though his past woes are attributable to a dictatorship that has ostensibly ceded power, Ne Win and his military successors still cast a shadow. "I shouldn't have talked a lot to you," he told me as our conversation neared its end. "If I talk a lot, I am afraid that I might be 'invited' to prison again." A Union Monument at Panglong commemorates the signing of the historic agreement on Feb. 12, 1947. (Photo: Kyaw Zwa Moe / The Irrawaddy) Then, when asked whether he thought the current reformist government was as bad as the previous regime, he answered immediately: "I didn't say it's bad. It's good." He continued: "Don't write anything bad of the government. I don't say bad things about the government. The government is really good." I asked a general question about Taunggyi and he replied in a similar vein. "Everything is good. Yes, it's good. Don't write anything against the government. Just say everything is good. This government is also very good." At this point U Khan's son jumped into our conversation: "He no longer dares to say anything critical." One of the reasons, his son explained, is that U Khan was again detained for a few days when a nationwide pro-democracy uprising rocked the country in 1988, despite his having steered clear of politics for decades. More than a half century after his arrest, I can feel that the 100-year-old still lives in fear. Though he is no longer willing to engage in politics, it hasn't dampened his interest in the subject, nor caused him to shy away from visible affiliations with the country's opposition. One photo hanging on the chimney in his living room shows U Khan with Tin Oo, a former commander-in-chief and founding member of the National League for Democracy (NLD), Burma's largest opposition party led by Aung San Suu Kyi. "He [Tin Oo] visited my house in recent months. Daw Suu [Aung San Suu Kyi] is very good and smart. I am not a politician but am interested in politics," U Khan said. "I want to see Burma as a good country." Tin Oo, a founding member of the National League Democracy, visits U Khan at his home in Taunggyi. Whatever the past, U Khan said life at his ripe old age is peaceful and filled with contentment. He still goes to the office most days after morning prayers, though he no longer handles the business responsibilities and simply enjoys meeting up with his friends to shoot the breeze. "Sometimes I am still driving, but I don't have a driver's license anymore," U Khan said. The licensing department, his son said, stopped issuing him a driver's license after deeming him too old to get behind the wheel. "But he is quite impatient if I drive," said his son with a laugh, leading one to wonder what kind of harrowing road trip the apparent lead-foot may have embarked on with Bogyoke so many years ago. The post From Aung San's Driver to Centenarian, a Long and Winding Road Reaches Its End appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Philippine Rebels to Discuss Peace Talks with New Government Posted: 02 Jun 2016 10:44 PM PDT A resident talks on her mobile phone beside a huge election campaign poster of President-elect Rodrigo Duterte in Davao city, southern Philippines, May 11, 2016. (Photo: Erik De Castro / Reuters) MANILA — Philippine communist rebels said Thursday that long-stalled peace talks could be resumed with the government of incoming President Rodrigo Duterte as early as July, and that they will demand an end to the US military presence in the country. Rebel negotiator Fidel Agcaoili told a rare news conference in Manila that the demand "is non-negotiable." He said government and rebel negotiators are preparing to meet in Europe this month to discuss the resumption of talks, which have been stalled for years. Duterte, who takes office June 30, has offered two Cabinet posts to allies of the rebels, who in turn have freed kidnapped policemen to encourage the resumption of talks. "We have always stood on the basis of principled self-respect and national sovereignty," Agcaoili said. "We cannot allow the presence of US military bases here." The rebels, he said, would also negotiate an end to two Philippine security pacts with the United States, including the 1999 Visiting Forces Agreement, which allowed American forces to return to the Philippines for large-scale combat exercises nearly a decade after the closure of sprawling US military bases in the country. Another pact, the 2014 Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement, grants American forces, warships and fighter jets access to five Philippine military camps. The accords have helped the US reassert its presence in Asia, which dovetails with Philippine hopes for American help in countering China's increasingly assertive claims to areas of the South China Sea also claimed by the Philippines. Agcaoili said the rebels' demands also include a land reform program that would free farmers from decades of poverty and a national industrialization effort that is not dependent on Western governments or multinational corporations. Duterte said earlier this week that he will chart an independent foreign policy for the Philippines "and will not be dependent on the United States," the country's longtime treaty ally. In another sign of rapport between Duterte and the rebels, Communist Party of the Philippines founder Jose Maria Sison said in a video conference with Manila-based journalists on Thursday that he will return to the Philippines soon to meet Duterte, his former political science student at a local university. Sison, 77, was detained during the dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos but was freed by then President Corazon Aquino after Marcos' 1986 ouster. Sison later went into self-exile with other rebel leaders in the Netherlands. Duterte, who has described himself as left-leaning, "is still unfolding," Agcaoili said. "The fact is, there is ground for guarded optimism," Agcaoili said. The rebels have been fighting for a Marxist state since 1969 in one of Asia's longest-running insurgencies. They have accused successive Philippine administrations of subservience to US interests and failing to ease poverty. Their numbers have dwindled to a few thousand amid battle setbacks, surrenders and factionalism, although they remain the country's foremost security concern. Norwegian-brokered peace talks stalled early in outgoing President Benigno Aquino III's six-year term because of a dispute over the release of several rebels. The post Philippine Rebels to Discuss Peace Talks with New Government appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Police Stop Truck Carrying Two Tiger Skins from Thai Temple Posted: 02 Jun 2016 10:39 PM PDT A tourist poses next to a tiger before officials start moving tigers from Thailand's controversial Tiger Temple in Kanchanaburi province, west of Bangkok, Thailand, May 30, 2016. (Photo: Chaiwat Subprasom / Reuters) BANGKOK — Thai police stopped a truck Thursday carrying two tiger skins and other animal parts as it was leaving a Buddhist temple where monks have been accused of being involved in illegal wildlife trafficking, a police officer said. Soon afterward, authorities found 20 jars containing preserved young tigers at the temple, a national parks official said—a day after 40 dead tiger cubs were found in a freezer at the temple. The discoveries have come as authorities have been transferring 137 live tigers, mostly adults, from the temple to animal shelters after obtaining a court order. The temple in Kanchanaburi province, in western Thailand, is a popular tourist attraction that charged admission for visitors to take photos with tigers. It has been criticized by animal rights activists because of allegations it is not properly set up to care for the animals and flouted regulations restricting the trade of tigers. Two men in the truck carrying the tiger skins were arrested and charged with possession of illegal wildlife, said police Col. Bandith Meungsukhum. He said a monk traveling with them will be arrested once he is defrocked. An adult tiger skin can fetch anywhere from US$6,000 to $10,000, according to Steve Galster, the director of Freeland, an organization that fights wildlife trafficking. Galster said he believes the temple was breeding tigers to sell them, either alive or in parts, into the lucrative illegal wildlife trade. The truck was also carrying more than 700 vials containing tiger skin as well as many tiger teeth hidden in a suitcase, said Teunchai Noochdumrong, director of the government's wildlife conservation office. Such vials are typically used as good luck charms. "I am quite shocked," Teunchai said. "We all have heard concerns and allegations about this temple. I would never have thought they would be so blatant." The young tigers preserved in the jars were found in the vet's office at the temple, said Anusorn Noochdumrong, an official from the Department of National Parks who has been overseeing the transfer of the temple's tigers to shelters. The animals' bodies were preserved in an unidentified liquid, he said. The temple's English-language Facebook page, which has criticized government efforts to take away the tigers, claimed surprise at what was found. "The recent discovery of the tiger skins and necklaces comes as a shock to us as well as the rest of the world," it said. "We are disgusted at this discovery and we don't condone this. We are looking forward to the authorities bringing the culprits to justice." The temple recently made arrangements to operate as a zoo, but the plan fell through when the government determined that the operators failed to secure sufficient resources. The monks resisted previous efforts to take away the tigers, but relented this week after police obtained a court order. The post Police Stop Truck Carrying Two Tiger Skins from Thai Temple appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

New Ma Ba Tha School Teaches Children to ‘Protect Race and Religion’ Posted: 02 Jun 2016 07:43 PM PDT Students at the Ma Ba Tha-founded Rangoon school begin their class on Wednesday by singing Burma's national anthem. (Photo: Myanmar Now) RANGOON — Buddhist monks of the ultra-nationalist Association for the Protection of Race and Religion (Ma Ba Tha) opened a private high school on the outskirts of Rangoon this week, where they said they would provide free education for children and teach them to "protect race and religion." Mahaw Thadar High School in Rangoon's Hlegu Township has enrolled around 150 children for Grade 9 and will accept more students for Grades 10 and 11 next year, said Ashin Panya Vara, the monk who founded the school. "I expect these school children will become decent citizens of our country and will protect and safeguard our race and religion," he told Myanmar Now in an interview at the new facility. Ashin Panya Vara said the teaching would follow the standard high school curriculum, but also include religious and literary programs taught by monks that would build children's morals and Buddhist devotion. At the school's opening on Wednesday, the monk gave a one-hour speech to children and staff on "morality and code of conduct as citizens." The influential Ma Ba Tha movement and several associated nationalist organizations have been accused of spreading hate speech and fanning communal violence against Burma's Muslim minority in recent years, with claims that Islam is threatening Buddhism. The group recently held protests to demand that the new National League for Democracy (NLD) government implement harsh government policies towards the stateless Rohingya Muslim minority in Arakan State and that foreign embassies refrain from using the term Rohingya. Asked whether these views would be impressed upon the young minds of the students, Ashin Panya Vara, one of the Ma Ba Tha leaders, said, "We will not make any comment on other religions, but will talk about the knowledge of our own religion." Headmaster Hla Tun, who oversees eight teachers, was also evasive when asked about the teaching of Ma Ba Tha's divisive message. "I just consider the development of talented children, rather than political or nationalist inspirations," he said. "Although the monks from Ma Ba Tha set up the school, we are responsible for both teaching and administrative roles. The school is not intended only for religious motivation," the headmaster said. Cho Thar Khaing, a 25-year-old primary school teacher from Thanbyuzayat Township in Mon State, added, "The monks are better at fostering nationalist inspiration. Children need this mindset from childhood." The new school bears the name of the young Buddha-to-be, Mahaw Thadar, and was built on 5 acres of land. It features a brand new, five-floor building and two extensions where students receive free meals and lodging. It is registered as a private high school without enrollment fees and outstanding students will be supported as they continue to higher education. "We had a dream to contribute to the education sector of the country long before, but we could only establish it this school year," said Ashin Panya Vara. An agricultural resources company named Maha Myaing donated the land, and the buildings were paid for by the gold mining company Amyotha Kyipwa Toetat Yay, or National Prosperity Company, which has financed many of Ma Ba Tha's activities. Khin Htay Kyi, 46, a mother from Mandalay Division's Yamethin Township, said she had enrolled her son because the monks could give him a good foundation for his future. "I want my child to have a successful life through religious practices and nationalist inspiration," she said. Her son Thu Htet Oo, 13, said he was happy to be at the school and rolled off its mantra: "I want to become a citizen who can protect and safeguard his race and religion." Ma Ba Tha has risen to prominence in recent years, amid an opening of the Burmese public sphere brought about by political reforms, and received support from the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) for a controversial package of four "Race and Religion" laws last year, which are seen as discriminatory against Muslims. In turn, the monks called on voters to support the USDP in the November elections, which failed to resonate with the public. This story originally appeared on Myanmar Now. The post New Ma Ba Tha School Teaches Children to 'Protect Race and Religion' appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

You are subscribed to email updates from The Irrawaddy. To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, United States