AllSBNews: 05/11/16

Wednesday, May 11, 2016

The Irrawaddy Magazine

Rangoon Police Take the ‘Night’ out of ‘Nightlife’
‘Dignity’ at Stake, Speaker Tells Parliament in Rebuke of MP’s Facebook Lament
Military Accused of Enlisting Locals as Guides in Blast-Wracked Hpakant
Kachin Farmers Urge Govt to Address Yuzana Land Confiscation
Parliament Votes to Deepen Military Ties with Russia
Arakanese Ceasefire Signatory Threatens Fighting
Burma’s President Calls on Thailand to Protect Migrant Workers
Obama to Visit Hiroshima, Will Not Apologize for WWII Bombing
Ahead of Inauguration, China Says Taiwan to Blame for Any Crisis
After 30 Years in Thailand, Glimmers of Hope for Burmese Refugees
NLD Faces Daunting Task in Reforming Ruined Universities
Aung Kyaw Oo: ‘Without a Power Station in Yangon, We Can Never Have a Stable Power Supply.’

Rangoon Police Take the ‘Night’ out of ‘Nightlife’

Posted: 11 May 2016 07:02 AM PDT

Laser lights pulse at Pioneer Club in Rangoon's Dagon Township. (Photo: Pioneer Club / Facebook)

RANGOON — Nightclubs, karaoke lounges, massage parlors, beer stations and bars are being forced to shut their doors by 11 pm in Rangoon, according to Kyaw Naing, manager of Pioneer Club, a nightclub located in the Yangon International Hotel complex in Dagon Township.

An employee at Family KTV, a karaoke parlor in Bahan Township, said that the restrictions—officially on the books for years but routinely ignored by many drinking establishments with little consequence—were enforced for the first time Tuesday night.

Internet users have criticized the closing time crackdown and are pressing for a later hour.

Kyaw Naing agrees, arguing that his line of business sees customers from 7 pm to 2 am.

"This will hurt our profits," Kyaw Naing said. "We will not decrease our staff or salaries, but we will have to adjust their hours."

Local authorities arrived at Kyaw Naing's nightclub on Tuesday night and ordered it closed as soon as possible, citing unspecified safety concerns, according to the manager. Bars and other nightlife venues operate under the jurisdiction of the Yangon City Development Committee (YCDC).

Pioneer has been in business for more than 10 years, and pays the YCDC 2.4 million kyats (US$2,061) annually for its alcohol license and 20,000 kyats for its restaurant operating license.

Some businessmen have speculated that the policy change was handed down by Rangoon's new Chief Minister Phyo Min Thein, a National League for Democracy (NLD) appointee. On Tuesday, he held a meeting with the Rangoon police task force and promised to clear the streets of criminal gangs.

Police Col. Win Bo, deputy head of the Rangoon Division Police Force, denied the rumor that police were acting on the orders of the chief minister.

"That was one of our normal activities," the police colonel said, declining to provide more detailed information about the crackdown.

The post Rangoon Police Take the 'Night' out of 'Nightlife' appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

‘Dignity’ at Stake, Speaker Tells Parliament in Rebuke of MP’s Facebook Lament

Posted: 11 May 2016 04:51 AM PDT

Lower House Speaker Win Myint, left, enters Parliament in Naypyidaw in February 2016. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)

Burma's Lower House Speaker Win Myint warned parliamentarians on Wednesday not to post comments on social media that "would undermine the dignity and integrity of Parliament," after a lawmaker took to Facebook to express disappointment that a proposal she had put forward was rejected.

Win Myint also took the lawmaker, Khin Saw Wai of the Arakan National Party's (ANP), to task for talking to the media about her proposal before it had been formally submitted, a violation of parliamentary protocol.

"[Talking to the media] could lead to a misunderstanding of what's going on in the Parliament," he told the Lower House on Wednesday.

To ANP lawmakers, the speaker's reprimand missed the point: Namely, the plight of a growing number of Arakanese civilians displaced by fighting between the Burma Army and the Arakan Army over the last several weeks.

On Monday in the Lower House, Win Myint shot down Khin Saw Wai's proposal to provide government aid to the Arakanese displaced. In addition to his displeasure over the ANP lawmaker discussing it with the press before he had approved it, Win Myint in rejecting the proposal pointed to what he said was an inappropriate rider attached to the humanitarian aid request that called for inclusion of all ethnic armed organizations, "regardless of size," in peace talks.

"The motion was meant to bring the Arakan Army into peace talks with the government under the guise of providing aid to the internally displaced people," he said.

A similar motion was also proposed in the Upper House last week, but military lawmakers spoke in opposition to it and Win Myint's counterpart in the upper chamber decided to merely put the proposal on record.

Khin Saw Wai, who represents Rathedaung, one of the townships affected by the fighting, said her Facebook post was intended to inform her constituents that she had attempted to raise the issue of Arakan State's recently displaced in the Naypyidaw legislature.

"The speaker exercised his power as he thinks it is a repeat motion of the Upper House, despite me telling him that I could cut the part about AA [Arakan Army] and urging for their inclusion in the peace process," she told The Irrawaddy, adding that despite her concession—still ultimately denied by Win Myint—she stood by the relevance of the rider.

"When we talk about people displaced by fighting, we must explain about the fighting. We should not ignore these facts."

In a third justification for his rejection, the speaker, sounding strikingly similar to his ruling predecessors in the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), cited the proposal's failure to accord with the "three main national causes" of the government. Those causes—non-disintegration of the Union, non-disintegration of national solidarity and perpetuation of sovereignty—were a regular refrain under the former USDP government and military junta that preceded it.

Outside Parliament, meanwhile, public protests calling for a cessation of the fighting have gathered steam throughout Arakan State in recent weeks.

Pe Than, an Arakanese lawmaker, said Khin Saw Wai's emergency proposal highlighted the need to the stop the fighting between the Arakan Army and the Burma Army, which has caused approximately 2,000 people to flee their homes.

"We as lawmakers have a responsibility to reflect our constituents' voices," he said. "The speaker's explanation for rejecting the proposal is a poor excuse for inaction."

"Peacebuilding and national reconciliation have been talked about a lot recently, so it's not surprising that the Arakan Army was mentioned in the proposal," the Arakanese lawmaker said. "The government should have initiated [peace talks with the Arakan Army]."

Despite the rejection by Win Myint, the Arakan State legislature began debating a proposal of its own Tuesday and is expected to formulate its response to the crisis sometime this week.

The post 'Dignity' at Stake, Speaker Tells Parliament in Rebuke of MP's Facebook Lament appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Military Accused of Enlisting Locals as Guides in Blast-Wracked Hpakant

Posted: 11 May 2016 03:47 AM PDT

A motorbike travels down a road in the Kachin State town of Hpakant in 2014. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)

MANDALAY — Residents of the jade-mining town of Hpakant in northern Kachin State say they are living in fear after soldiers from nearby military posts seized several local men, reportedly conscripting them as guides in ongoing hostilities with the Kachin Independence Army (KIA).

Tight security, including a 9pm curfew, has been introduced in the Hpakant area following a series of unexplained explosions this week.

Locals Taraw Kon, Laban Htu, Ban Htwee and another unnamed man from the Hpakant and Lone Kin vicinities are said to have been detained since Saturday by local army battalion Nos. 423 and 425.

The Burma Army and the KIA have clashed in Hpakant Township in recent days. The area has seen recurrent conflict after a 17-year bilateral ceasefire with the government broke down in 2011. It is fiercely contested because of its hugely lucrative jade mines, in which the Burma Army, the KIA and several other armed groups hold stakes.

"They took my son, saying they needed him as a guide to approach the Kachin Independence Army's Battalion No. 6. They said it would be just for a little while. But he has not returned since," said the mother of Ban Htwee.

The family said they went to the local Burma Army base to inquire about Ban Htwee but received only a minimal response.

"They just said my son would be home soon. But I'm so worried that my son is going into a battle-torn area," the mother of Ban Htwee said.

Family members of the other missing men said they had also been conscripted by the Burma Army to work as guides in skirmishes with the KIA.

According to local authorities, there have been 20 explosions across Hpakant Township since Monday. The Irrawaddy previously reported that at least six explosions had occurred in the township on Sunday.

On Monday night, hand grenades were reportedly thrown from motorcycles at a police station and Uru Yadana Kyauk Sein Bridge in Hpakant's Sai Taung quarter. A police officers' barracks on the compound burned down in the attack.

On Tuesday morning, police patrolling the Maw Wun area of Hpakant were attacked by hand grenades thrown by motorcyclists. The police fired back, causing local residents to flee in panic.

On Tuesday evening, hand grenades were thrown again near the Sai Taung police station. No causalities were reported.

In response, tight security measures have been introduced in Hpakant, including a strict 9pm curfew.

"We have deployed heavy security at each entrance into town and motorcyclists are stopped at checkpoints. We are also patrolling the whole area to ensure the safety of local people," said a police officer from Sai Taung police station.

"After 9pm, it is like a ghost town," said Nau Lat, a local jade miner. "No one dares go out. We can hear gun and artillery fire in the distance. We are now living in fear that the fighting could enter the town, because of the explosions, and are worried about how our livelihoods will be affected."

"We are also worried that the army could take us as porters or guides into the battle zone," Nau Lat said. "We feel we have no security, and we receive no protection from the authorities."

The post Military Accused of Enlisting Locals as Guides in Blast-Wracked Hpakant appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Kachin Farmers Urge Govt to Address Yuzana Land Confiscation

Posted: 11 May 2016 03:25 AM PDT

A backhoe from Yuzana Company Limited clears confiscated land in Hukawng Valley region in Hpakant Township, Kachin State. (Photo: MRJ)

RANGOON — More than 8,000 villagers in Kachin State have sent an open letter to Burma's new government calling on it to address a land confiscation dispute with Yuzana Company Limited, a Burmese conglomerate blacklisted by the United States.

More than 270,000 acres of farmland in the Hukawng region of Hpakant Township were seized by the company in 2007 for agricultural projects like cassava and sugarcane plantations, the complainants say.

At a press conference in Rangoon on Tuesday, Tang Gun, a farmer from the region who claims to have lost seven acres of land to Yuzana, said: "We believe the government will solve the problem for us. That's why we voted for them. We will keep protesting until we get our land back."

Yuzana is owned by Burmese tycoon Htay Myint, who is on the US sanctions list, barring American companies from doing business with him. The conglomerate is involved in construction, agriculture, hospitality, real estate and fishery industries.

Tang Gun explained that employees of Yuzana showed up with police and soldiers when they seized his land in 2007 and began clearing the area, cutting down trees and readying the land for large-scale agricultural production.

He said that almost a decade ago locals had no other option but to receive a compensatory sum from the company deemed insufficient, adding that about 330 villagers were paid 80,000 kyats (US$70) per acre, but more than 100 had received no compensation whatsoever.

"Villagers have been waiting for years and they can't keep suffering. They took the money because they needed it to live, but they were not satisfied with the compensation," he said.

The open letter was copied and sent to concerned parliamentarians, the chief minister of Kachin State, Yuzana Company and the New York-based Wildlife Conservation Society, which helped set up the nearby Hukawng Valley Tiger Reserve more than a decade ago.

It stated that four villages had been wiped off the map and nine others had been relocated due to the company's 2007 actions. About 300 households from the four demolished villages were moved to a "model village" elsewhere in Hpakant Township.

Aung Latt, another farmer, said tension between Yuzana and the local villagers grows daily.

"We don't want to be excluded from the decision-making process. We believe the new government will side with civilians like us. That's why we sent the letter," he said.

Local villagers filed a lawsuit against the company in 2013 and held several protests in 2014, with no results. Yuzana continued operations through 2015 and into this year.

Locals also claim that the company seized an additional 300,000 acres in neighboring Tanai Township to the north.

According to a report by US-based research center Forest Trends, Yuzana was one of numerous companies that received massive land grants from the former military regime for agricultural development projects.

Villagers are calling on President Htin Kyaw to resettle displaced people back to their abandoned villages, and to return confiscated lands.

In a separate statement, Mungchying Rawt Jat (MRJ), a rights group established by landless Kachin farmers, called on the government to cancel the controversial Myitsone dam project, also sited in Kachin State.

Former President Thein Sein suspended the dam contract between China and Burma, and the new government has not yet addressed the controversy.

The post Kachin Farmers Urge Govt to Address Yuzana Land Confiscation appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Parliament Votes to Deepen Military Ties with Russia

Posted: 11 May 2016 01:47 AM PDT

Burma's commander-in-chief, Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing, receives Russian Ambassador to Burma Vasily Borisovich Pospelov in Naypyidaw on May 9. (Photo: Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing / Facebook)

NAYPYIDAW — Burma's Parliament on Tuesday approved President Htin Kyaw's proposal to deepen and formalize the country's longtime military cooperation with Russia.

"This cooperation would contribute to turning the Tatmadaw [Burma Army] into a standard army for national defense," said military representative Brig-Gen Than Lwin.

"The two countries have already maintained military cooperation for a long time. Burmese students [cadets] frequently study for master's and doctorate degrees at Russian [military] academies."

Tun Wai, a Lower House lawmaker from the ruling National League for Democracy (NLD), said he supported the strengthening of military ties in light of potential long-term gains, but he expressed concern over to what extent signing a formal agreement with Russia might affect Burma's ability to exercise an active and independent foreign policy.

The agreement includes exchanging information on political and military issues, such as international security and counter-terrorism measures, laws regarding the functioning of armed forces in both countries, knowledge of medical treatment, constructing military maps and experience with UN-led peacekeeping processes.

Lwin Ko Lat, an NLD Lower House lawmaker from Rangoon's Thanlyin Township, told The Irrawaddy that he did not think Burma's military ties with Russia would affect its relations with other countries.

"As for military cooperation between countries, there is bilateral cooperation between two countries as well as cooperation among larger groups. Burma now has military relations with Israel, and I personally welcome its military relations with Russia," Lwin Ko Lat said.

Htin Kyaw's proposal was seconded by military parliamentarian Than Lwin, NLD lawmaker Tun Wai and Saw Tun Myaw Aung, a lawmaker from the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP).

Burma and Russia have long had military cooperation and the proposal would largely only formalize this cooperation, military representatives say.

The post Parliament Votes to Deepen Military Ties with Russia appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Arakanese Ceasefire Signatory Threatens Fighting

Posted: 10 May 2016 11:26 PM PDT

Arakan Liberation Army soldiers training in Karen State. (Photo: ALP/ALA Rammawaddy Squadron / Facebook)

RANGOON — Last year's "nationwide ceasefire agreement" may already be unraveling, as one of its signatories, the Arakan Liberation Army (ALA), has threatened to pull out of it, according to ALA communications officer Khine Myo Htun, who added that fighting with the Burma Army could break out at any time.

Tensions between the ALA and the Burma Army have been rising since last month amid skirmishes in Arakan State between the Burma Army and another Arakanese ethnic armed group, the Arakan Army, with the ALA accusing government troops of committing war crimes, forcing villagers to porter and using civilians as human shields, as well as of violations of the Geneva Convention.

The military demanded evidence following the allegations. But after the ALA provided 15 audio and video files that they claim corroborate their accusations, the military responded by pursuing criminal charges against ALA spokesman Khine Myo Htun.

Saw Mra Razar Lin, an ALA peace envoy, said that Khine Myo Htun was charged on Thursday under Article 505 of the Burmese criminal code, covering broad incitement provisions that carry a maximum sentence of two years in prison.

Aye Khin Maung, a police officer in the Arakan State capital Sittwe, told The Irrawaddy Tuesday that Khine Myo Htun's case was going to be taken up by the courts, which would decide whether to issue an arrest warrant.

"I was told by an informant to flee Sittwe for a while, but I won't go anywhere," said Khine Myo Htun. "They can arrest me at my home. I am not guilty so why would I run away?"

On Tuesday, Saw Mra Razar Lin said ALP representatives had met with Arakan State Border Affairs Minister Htein Lin, a colonel in the Burma Army, to discuss Khine Myo Htun's case and other issues. During the meeting, Burma Army representatives said they were upset by the ALP allegations.

Under the terms of the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) that the ALA signed last year, ethnic armed groups and the Burma Army are expected to negotiate and discuss disagreements to prevent them from spiraling out of control.

But unlike the other NCA signatories, the ALA was not invited to be a part of the Joint Monitoring Committee, which serves as a ceasefire watchdog, due to the government's contention that there was no fighting in Arakan State to be monitored.

"We [the ALA] felt discriminated against," said Khine Myo Htun.

Saw Kwe Htoo Win, a peace negotiator for the Karen National Union, another NCA signatory, agreed that the previous government had ignored the ALA, despite the admonishments of the other ethnic groups.

But with the new National League for Democracy (NLD) government in power, a different paradigm for peace may be emerging.

Last week, the eight NCA signatories—including the ALA—met with Dr. Tin Myo Win, State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi's personal physician, who is likely to play a leading role in making peace with Burma's ethnic armed groups.

The meeting was meant to lay the groundwork for a so-called "21st century Panglong Conference," a series of peace talks expected to be hosted by Suu Kyi within the coming months.

"The new government should call a peace meeting as soon as possible to implement the NCA," said Saw Kwe Htoo Win of the KNU.

The ALA, which signed a bilateral ceasefire agreement in 2012 before signing on to the so-called nationwide accord on Oct. 15, is one of Burma's smaller non-state rebel groups. About a dozen ethnic armed groups, including some of the largest, opted not to sign the national accord or were denied the opportunity by Burma's previous government.

The post Arakanese Ceasefire Signatory Threatens Fighting appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Burma’s President Calls on Thailand to Protect Migrant Workers

Posted: 10 May 2016 10:54 PM PDT

Burma's President Htin Kyaw meets Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai on Monday. (Photo: President's Office)

Burma's President Htin Kyaw called on Thai Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai to strengthen labor rights protections for millions of Burmese migrant workers in Thailand, during a meeting with a Thai delegation led by Don at the Presidential Palace on Monday.

Burmese labor rights organizations in Thailand welcomed the move, urging the two governments to work together to ensure Burmese migrant workers in Thailand are treated with dignity and equality.

Though Thai laws on labor and migrant workers ostensibly grant equal rights for workers regardless of race or religion, hundreds of thousands of Burmese migrant workers do not enjoy those rights, according to Aung Kyaw, vice chairman of the Thailand-based Migrant Workers Rights Network (MWRN).

"Burmese migrant workers started working in Thailand some 30 years ago. While some enjoy equal labor rights, some still don't. So, we welcome the Myanmar president's demand to the Thai government," Aung Kyaw told The Irrawaddy.

MWRN has held talks with the new National League for Democracy (NLD) government in Naypyidaw on migrant workers' issues and also sent open letters with recommendations for improving their situations to relevant authorities.

Kyaw Thaung, a director with the Myanmar Association in Thailand (MAT), another group dealing with migrant workers issues, said Htin Kyaw's words this week would only be as good as the actions the Thai government takes, if any, in response.

"The Thai government needs to prove that [they take Htin Kyaw seriously] by taking care of Burmese migrant workers who are arrested daily in Mae Sot, Bangkok and so on, despite having valid documents [allowing them] to stay and travel freely. Only then will we believe and accept that the Thai government respects rights," Kyaw Thaung told The Irrawaddy.

There are an estimated 3 million Burmese migrant workers in Thailand, many of whom are not in the country legally and are at particular risk for exploitation by Thai employers and human trafficking syndicates.

Htin Kyaw and Don on Monday also discussed trilateral cooperation, in a deal that includes Japan, on the Dawei Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Burma's southeast, as well as promotion of responsible investment and cooperation in the development of human resources and capacity-building.

The foreign minister, on behalf of Thai junta leader and Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, invited Htin Kyaw for a future visit to Thailand.

The post Burma's President Calls on Thailand to Protect Migrant Workers appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Obama to Visit Hiroshima, Will Not Apologize for WWII Bombing

Posted: 10 May 2016 10:45 PM PDT

Children hold flags from G7 countries as the nations' foreign ministers visit Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park and Museum in Hiroshima, Japan, on April 11, 2016. (Photo: Reuters)

WASHINGTON / TOKYO — Barack Obama will become the first US president to visit Hiroshima in Japan later this month, but he will not apologize for the United States' dropping of an atomic bomb on the city at the end of World War II, the White House said on Tuesday.

Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize early in his presidency in 2009 in part for making nuclear nonproliferation a centerpiece of his agenda, Obama on May 27 will tour the site of the world's first nuclear bombing with Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

With the end of his last term in office approaching in January, Obama will "highlight his continued commitment to pursuing the peace and security of a world without nuclear weapons," the White House said in a statement.

"He will not revisit the decision to use the atomic bomb at the end of World War II. Instead, he will offer a forward-looking vision focused on our shared future," Ben Rhodes, Obama's deputy national security adviser, wrote in a separate blog.

The visit comes as part of a May 21-28 swing through Asia, which will include a Group of Seven summit in Japan and his first trip to Vietnam. The Asia trip seeks to reinforce his geopolitical "pivot" toward the region, though friends and allies there have sometimes questioned Washington's commitment.

The Hiroshima tour will symbolize a new level of reconciliation between former wartime enemies who are now close allies. It will also underscore Obama's efforts to improve US-Japan ties, marked by an Asia-Pacific trade pact as well as cooperation against China's pursuit of maritime claims and the nuclear threat from North Korea.

On the final day of the summit in Japan, Obama and Abe will visit the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park near the spot where a US warplane dropped an atomic bomb 71 years ago.

White House Debate

The decision to go to Hiroshima was hotly debated within the White House. There were concerns a US presidential visit would be heavily criticized in the United States if it were seen as an apology.

The bomb dropped on Aug. 6, 1945, killed thousands of people instantly and about 140,000 by the end of that year. Another was dropped on Nagasaki on Aug. 9, and Japan surrendered six days later.

The majority of Americans view the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki as justified to end the war and save US lives. Most Japanese see it as unjustified.

Obama's press secretary Josh Earnest said it was "an entirely legitimate line of inquiry for historians" when asked why the White House had decided not to use his Hiroshima visit to issue an apology.

He told reporters that while Obama understands the United States "bears a special responsibility" as the only country to use nuclear weapons in wartime, the president will emphasize Washington's responsibility "to lead the world in an effort to eliminate them."

Abe, speaking to reporters in Tokyo, said he hoped "to turn this into an opportunity for the United States and Japan to together pay tribute to the memories of the victims" of the nuclear bombing.

"President Obama visiting Hiroshima and expressing toward the world the reality of the impact of nuclear radiation will contribute greatly to establishing a world without nuclear arms," Abe added.

Obama's visit will be a symbolic capstone for the nuclear disarmament agenda he laid out in a landmark speech in Prague in 2009. His aides tout last year's Iran nuclear deal as a major piece of his foreign policy legacy.

But Obama has made only modest progress toward securing the world's loose nuclear materials, and there is no guarantee his White House successor will keep the issue a high priority.

Lisbeth Gronlund, co-director of the Union of Concerned Scientists' Global Security Program, said Obama must "do more than give another beautiful speech" and should announce concrete action on nuclear disarmament when he visits Hiroshima.

After US Secretary of State John Kerry visited Hiroshima last month, survivors of the bombing and other residents said that if Obama visits, they hope for progress in ridding the world of nuclear weapons, rather than an apology.

The post Obama to Visit Hiroshima, Will Not Apologize for WWII Bombing appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Ahead of Inauguration, China Says Taiwan to Blame for Any Crisis

Posted: 10 May 2016 10:38 PM PDT

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) chairperson and then presidential candidate Tsai Ing-wen smiles as she is surrounded by journalists after casting her ballot at a polling station in Taipei on Jan. 14, 2012. (Photo: Reuters)

BEIJING — Taiwan's new government will be to blame for any crisis with China that erupts once it assumes office, Beijing said on Wednesday, heaping on the pressure ahead of the inauguration of a new president from a pro-independence party.

China and self-ruled Taiwan underwent a rapprochement under the outgoing government, which was run by China-friendly Nationalists, but ties have begun to strain with their successors, the independence-leaning Tsai Ing-wen and her Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).

Tsai and the DPP won presidential and parliamentary elections by a landslide in January, in part on rising anti-China sentiment.

Beijing has never renounced the use of force to take the island, which it considers a breakaway province, particularly if it makes moves toward independence.

Tsai, who assumes office on May 20, has said she will maintain the status quo, but has never conceded to a key bilateral agreement referencing the "one China" principle, which has angered Beijing.

Under the "1992 consensus" with the Nationalists, Taiwan and China agreed there is only one China, with each having their own interpretation of what that means. Defeated Nationalist forces fled to Taiwan at the end of the civil war with the Communists in 1949.

Ma Xiaoguang, spokesman for China's Taiwan Affairs Office, said it was clear who was "destroying bridges" and trying to change the status quo.

"If there are those who are unclear on this point, or are offering encouragement from the wings, this is really not a sensible act," Ma told a briefing live on state television.

"We must repeat, if there is deadlock across the Taiwan Strait, or if there is a crisis, the responsibility will be on the heads of those who change the status quo."

China has been pressuring Taiwan since the January election, forcibly repatriating Taiwanese fraud suspects from Kenya and Malaysia and establishing diplomatic ties with a former Taiwanese ally in Africa, Gambia.

On Sunday, the incoming Taiwanese government accused China of "political interference" after Beijing cast doubt over the island keeping its observer status at the World Health Organization.

Ma said Taiwan's previous participation had been predicated on acceptance of the "one China" principle, something recognized by the United Nations, of which the WHO is a part.

"With a challenge to the one China principle, which has the recognition of the international community, the relevant arrangements will be hard to continue," he said.

Taiwan has attended the annual gathering of the World Health Assembly, the decision-making body of the WHO, since 2009 as an observer.

The post Ahead of Inauguration, China Says Taiwan to Blame for Any Crisis appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

After 30 Years in Thailand, Glimmers of Hope for Burmese Refugees

Posted: 10 May 2016 10:12 PM PDT

Tin Saung, his wife Myint Myint Yee and their son Kyao Pauk, refugees from Burma, pose for photo under a 'hope' sign at their home at the Mae La refugee camp near Mae Sot on June 3, 2012. (Photo: Reuters)

MAE SOT, Thailand — Ta Mla Saw was about 7 when she and her family fled from Burmese troops attacking her village in the country's ethnic Karen region, and crossed the river into Thailand to the safety of refugee camps dotted along the border.

Confined for decades in the camps and supported by aid agencies, the refugees nourished themselves with education and anything they could do to better their community, said Ta Mla Saw, who is now 34 and joint secretary for the Karen Women's Organization (KWO), a community social welfare group.

"I feel like the refugee camp was a learning place for us. We didn't have to be afraid of anything life-threatening, we didn't need to worry about the fighting, dying," she said at KWO's small office outside Mae Sot, a border town that serves as a base camp for aid agencies working with refugees from Burma.

"All you had to do was run for your life, then survive," she said, her green polished nails flashing as she described the role of education in a future back in Burma. "It's like preparing ourselves so we are ready when the time comes."

Many of the mostly ethnic Karen refugees in the nine border camps have spent more than 25 years away from home, more than the average duration of the world's longest refugee crises.

The World Humanitarian Summit is being convened in Istanbul later this month as the number of people who have been forced from their homes globally hits record levels.

At the first summit of its kind, governments will be asked to commit to tackling forced displacement in a new way—that both meets the immediate needs of the world's 60 million displaced, and builds their resilience and self-reliance.

The Thai camps offer useful pointers for a longer-term approach. Barred from leaving or seeking employment, refugees here have spent decades working with the aid groups providing services, learning everything from health care and food distribution to the nuts and bolts of democracy.

They elect leaders of the committees that run their camps, as well as KWO members such as Ta Mla Saw, whose organization focuses on health, education, social welfare and women's rights.

Working with foreign donors and organizations has required them to learn about transparency and accountability.

These lessons have put them ahead of most people in Burma, whose first civilian government took office in March after half a century of military rule.

"In Burma, everything was cloak and dagger," said Sally Thompson, executive director of The Border Consortium (TBC), which provides food, shelter and other support to refugees in the camps. "You didn't leave a paper trail, for your own protection. You didn't talk about things openly, you didn't share information because you couldn't trust anybody."

By contrast, refugees in the camps who receive assistance from the international community have to report it. "They have to be financially accountable," she said.

'Not the Right Time Yet'

Burma has fought ethnic groups in its borderlands on and off for decades, causing huge displacement inside the country and forcing hundreds of thousands to seek refuge in Thailand.

More than 100,000 refugees have been resettled to third countries, with the United States taking in 80,000. The most educated—the camps' teachers and medics—often moved first.

About 100,000 remain in the Thai camps, but with democratic changes afoot in Burma and a ceasefire inked last October, the possibility of going home is now on the horizon.

Nonetheless, the refugees worry about their safety back home and are reluctant to let go of their official refugee status for fear they will be unprotected if fighting erupts again.

Seven of the 15 armed ethnic groups invited to sign the ceasefire agreement declined, in part because of distrust of Burma's government and its still-powerful military. Sporadic fighting continues in Kachin and Shan states.

George, the 65-year-old vice chairman of the Karen Refugee Committee who goes by one name, said donors are interested in supporting refugees once they return to Burma.

But the respected elder, who fled Myanmar in 1975, tells them "it's not the right time yet," and says that refugees in Thailand still rely on their help.

"We have no income, no livelihoods here … We are not greedy, but we need to survive," he said.

'A Good Sell' for Donors

On the last day of March, dozens of refugee leaders met aid workers on the outskirts of Mae Sot to discuss their return.

Refugee representatives sat around a U-shaped table and heard updates about preparations for them to go home. They raised their hands to voice concerns and share findings from their own visits to suss out the situation in their villages.

"In the camps, every house has a toilet, but at home, in some villages, there are 30 houses but only two toilets," said Zaw Gaw, general secretary of the committee for Nu Po camp south of Mae Sot, who visited Burma with 20 people in late March.

"Last year we heard about a diarrhea outbreak because there were no latrines," he said, speaking through a translator.

About 12,000 refugees have left the camps over the last four years, but it is unclear whether all of them have gone back to Burma, said Iain Hall, Mae Sot-based senior coordinator for the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) in Thailand.

Hall said it would be "grossly irresponsible" not to prepare for the refugees' voluntary return to Burma, but there would be no pressure for them to leave.

"People do get anxious. … This is normal, particularly for those that have been in the camps for so many years," he said on the sidelines of the meeting.

No one would be sent back, he said. "If they don't want to go home, they don't go. We are here to protect them."

With the war in Syria and the refugee crisis in Europe, it has become increasingly difficult to secure humanitarian funding for long-lasting refugee situations, said Hall, a 24-year veteran with UNHCR who has worked in Africa, Europe and Asia.

"We need to be smart," Hall said, putting forward a case for why donors should support the Karen refugees.

"After 30 long years, when all we have in the world is displacement, here we have a glimmer of hope. Here we have a chance of success. That is a good sell."

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NLD Faces Daunting Task in Reforming Ruined Universities

Posted: 10 May 2016 07:00 PM PDT

A student leader at Mandalay's Yadanabon University gives a speech during a protest against the National Education Law in January 2015. (Photo: Zaw Zaw / Myanmar Now)

RANGOON — On a recent April morning, Aung Kyaw Soe got off the bus near the University of West-Rangoon after spending some two hours in traffic to reach the campus located on the city's outskirts.

"When we take the public bus to the university we break out in a sweat and are not fresh to begin teaching," complained the Botany Department lecturer.

Like many universities and colleges built under Burma's former military regime, the University of West-Rangoon was constructed in a remote part of town and lacks on-campus student housing—part of a deliberate effort by the junta to curtail potential student mobilization.

Not only is the complex on the border of Shwepyithar and Hlaing Tharyar townships hard to reach, it's neither an inviting place to study. Situated next to paddy fields, it can only be entered through a large gate controlled by security guards. Inside, university buildings are rundown and spaces are empty and treeless.

"I feel the university is like a prison. Transportation here is very difficult and the campus environment does not feel free or pleasant. You can see many students during the time of exams, but other times few students are here," said Ye Myat Hein, 26, a first year History major.

Decades of brutal military rule destroyed Burma's higher education system. Funding was kept to a minimum, rote memorization and not critical thinking became the most important teaching method, and distance learning—whereby students took books home and only showed up for exams—was promoted to avoid students from associating. Student unions were banned and authorities ended the universities' independence.

From 1988 to 2010, authorities ordered 10 universities built on the fringes of Rangoon, creating desolate, remote campuses. Programs at the large, once-prestigious University of Rangoon—long a hotbed of resistance against the army—were drastically cut down.

Two-thirds of Burma's 169 higher education institutions were brought directly under the ministries that correspond to their fields of study, with health studies coming under the Ministry of Health, for example.

The National League for Democracy (NLD) has long said that education reform is a top priority. The new government of President Htin Kyaw and his Minister of Education Myo Thein Gyi (the former rector of West-Rangoon University) are now faced with the daunting task of rebuilding a higher education system that until the 1962 army coup was considered among the best in Asia.

"The NLD wants to ensure our bachelor degrees are on the same (quality) level as the rest of ASEAN," said NLD MP Tin Aung, chairman of Lower House's Education Promotion Committee.

Broad Reforms Needed

Under President Thein Sein's quasi-civilian government there were limited education reforms and spending was slowly increased to 11 percent of the state budget in the 2015/2016 fiscal year.

The government tolerated on-campus activities of students, such as the unofficial formation of students' and teachers' associations. Rangoon University was to allowed to restore its programs in 2013 and started collaborative arrangements for research, faculty training and curriculum development with a number of foreign universities, including Oxford University in the United Kingdom.

Tin Aung said some of the first reform measures under the new NLD government would include trying to hire better-qualified teachers and improving study and teaching resources, such as libraries and laboratories. "But these steps require more budget," he said.

Myanmar Now repeatedly contacted the Ministry of Education to inquire about its reform plans, but officials said they were too busy to speak to the media.

Min Thein, from the National Network for Education Reform (NNER), a coalition of NGOs and education experts, said the quality of teaching fell during army rule because "Promotion was decided based on the loyalty of staff. As a result, the teaching staff became persons of total obedience."

Saw Myo Min Thu, executive director of the Thabyay Foundation, which assists students with scholarship applications, said there are currently some 600,000 students in the country, two-thirds of whom follow the distance-learning method.

He said the latter teaching method should be ceased, adding that the current system of allowing students entry to certain university studies based on their overall matriculation exam scores should be also be reformed.

Controversial Education Law

In recent years, students unions have reasserted themselves and demanded a jump in education spending and a host of other higher education reforms, including restoring universities' independence. NNER has also advocated comprehensive reforms for basic and higher education.

When the previous government and Parliament, with support of NLD MPs, adopted the Education Law in September 2014 without considering these demands, students revolted. They organized protest marches across the country, which ended with a violent police crackdown in Letpadan, Bago Region in March, 2015. Dozens of students were jailed for months, but all were released by the NLD government in a recent amnesty.

Min Thwe Thit, a formerly imprisoned leader of the All Burma Federation of Student Unions (ABFSU), said the group sent a letter to the new government to request a meeting to discuss the students' demands for significant amendments to the Education Law and the drafting of new by-laws.

He said student organizations were waiting for the government to announce its plans for education reform before deciding their next step. An increase in spending would be key, he said, adding, "There are no adequate resources in the universities. The government needs to fix that."

Asked if the NLD would take on students' reform demands or consider over-hauling the controversial Education Law, Tin Aung said, "this committee does not intend to repeal of the Education Law because we want to use it for now, in the future this law must be reformed, that would take time."

He went on to state that the NLD planned to introduce by-laws for the Education Law that would allow the formation of student and teachers unions and grant universities independence from the Ministry of Education.

On the problem of the poor location of many higher education institutions, he said, "In Mandalay, the regional government is helping to create affordable transport for students and staff to go to universities there. We hope more regional governments will take such measures to help students."

Until higher education reforms take effect and funding increases, however, the quality of education will remain poor, said Aung Kyaw Soe, who has taught Botany at West-Rangoon University for 14 years.

"Now, a single microscope in the laboratory is used by 20 students at the same time. Many graduates could not even learn how to adjust a microscope. And if the apparatus is damaged, we have to compensate for it ourselves," he said.

This story originally appeared on Myanmar Now.

The post NLD Faces Daunting Task in Reforming Ruined Universities appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Aung Kyaw Oo: ‘Without a Power Station in Yangon, We Can Never Have a Stable Power Supply.’

Posted: 10 May 2016 05:00 PM PDT

Aung Kyaw Oo, director of Yangon Electricity Supply Corporation. (Photo: May Soe San / The Irrawaddy)

The Irrawaddy reporter May Soe San talks to Aung Kyaw Oo, director of Yangon Electricity Supply Cooperation, about the recent power outages in Yangon, which now gets about 50 percent of its electricity from the national grid.

Can you explain the reason for the frequent outages in Yangon?

We are supplying power with old generators. Currently, only two of them are in service and they can each only produce 30 to 50 megawatts.

Two generators in Ahlone Township broke down a few days ago. Those generators, operated by an independent power producer [IPP], could supply 120 megawatts in total. That power station mainly supplies the west Yangon district, so we could not provide sufficient electricity in that area.

We have used IPP for five years. We provide them with gas and use their generators to generate electricity. We are currently operating with all available gas, but the quality of gas-fired power plants and production has declined. A new gas turbine will arrive by the end of May.

What measures has the new government taken to improve the power supply?

We've planned to install 150 small transformers as part of our 100-day plan.

Can you explain the causes of the system breakdown?

Electricity can be produced with hydropower, gas or coal. There is only one coal-fired power plant in Shan State and water resources are only in the northern part of the country. Electricity consumption is highest in Yangon, the commercial hub.

Yangon consumes half of the electricity produced in the country. When we deliver the electricity from the northern part of the country to the south, we have to deliver it through power lines. But there are no back-up power lines in some places and that leads to system breakdowns.

Normally, power lines carry 250 to 300 megawatts of electricity. If a line is down, the electricity from that line will flow into another line. Then, it gets overloaded and also breaks down.

Without a power station in Yangon, we can never have a stable power supply. If something happens in northern Myanmar, Yangon will be impacted. System breakdowns seriously impact the economy because they disturb business operations.

Gas power should be used in Yangon. It is cost effective and has less impact on the environment. But, our country does not have enough gas, so the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has suggested using coal.

We have to consider future energy demand and available resources before establishing a power system. Energy policy will determine the industrial and social development of the country.

Can you tell me about the assistance from Japan, Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the World Bank to the electricity supply in Myanmar?

As far as ADB assistance, equipment has started arriving from them. JICA has agreed to provide loans to us, but they will hire their own consultant. The World Bank has provided US$400 million, of which the Electric Power Ministry will be allocated $310million and the other $90 million will go to the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation.

ADB has pointed out faults with the power lines. What measures are you taking to address this?

We are trying to fix the power lines, but it will take time. Underground cables have been in use since 1957. There were not many people or high-rise buildings then and those cables worked well. When high-rise buildings emerged, they were overstretched.

Currently, generators in Yangon can produce around 450 to 500 megawatts. This year, electricity consumption in Yangon is estimated to be around 1,200 megawatts. Last year, the highest amount of consumption was just 1,097 megawatts.

How will electricity demands be fulfilled if the new government continues to develop the industrial zones?

I don't know about a policy to make sure electricity is available around the clock. If people were willing to pay $US.15 cents per unit, foreign businesses could afford to provide electricity by bringing in their own equipment. Thousands of megawatts of electricity could be produced in our country. It is not difficult. It just depends on how much people are willing to pay in order to have access to 24-hr electricity.

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