Friday, September 1, 2017

The Irrawaddy Magazine

The Irrawaddy Magazine

Thailand Sticks to Non-Interference Policy in Myanmar

Posted: 01 Sep 2017 09:12 AM PDT

Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-ocha assured the visiting Myanmar Army commander in chief that his government would not interfere in its neighbor's domestic affairs, when discussing ongoing violence in Rakhine State on Wednesday.

The Nation newspaper reported that Prayut said Myanmar needed more time to fix the complex problems in the western state, adding: "We don't intervene in their domestic affairs. [I understand that] Myanmar authorities do support and develop Rakhine State."

Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing was in Thailand for the fifth meeting of the Thailand-Myanmar High Level Committee, which was held in the northeastern province of Khon Kaen. Under former President Thein Sein's government, the countries' armed forces developed stronger relations and increased cooperation.

According to The Nation newspaper, Myanmar's senior general told the Thai prime minister that a solution for Rakhine State's problems needed to be rooted in trust.

On Aug. 25, Muslim militants staged attacks on more than 30 police outposts in the region, which was followed by military clearance operations. The UN estimates that 38,000 Muslim Rohingya have since fled to Bangladesh, and the army has reported that more than 11,000 people—mostly ethnic Arakanese Buddhists—have sought refuge in the state capital of Sittwe.

Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing also held a separate meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan, who was noted as using the term "Bengali" to refer to the Rohingya, a practice used by the Myanmar government to infer that the group are originally from Bangladesh. Prawit said the ongoing security operations had placed the region under control, noting that the population "might not be able to take boat trips" to Thailand anymore.

At the meeting in Khon Kaen, both sides reportedly discussed bilateral affairs and exchanged security updates, as well as information on migration and human trafficking issues.

Meanwhile, Voice of America reported that Muslims living in Mae Sot, a Thai border town opposite Myanmar's Myawaddy, are under surveillance. Thousands of Myanmar migrants live in the area, which was once home to ethnic rebels active in the region.

Security and defense analyst Anthony Davis wrote in Asia Times earlier this month that Myanmar army and intelligence officials had asked Thailand to assist in checking the movement of money and militants along its western border.
The two sides also agreed to ramp up intelligence exchanges on the issue of "Islamist terrorism."

Davis wrote, "Specific concerns have focused on the Thai border town of Mae Sot, which has predictably emerged as the main conduit for couriers and militants traveling overland north from Malaysia and into Myanmar."

The author reported that from 2013-14, Rohingya militants briefly attempted to set up training courses on the Thai border, but that it remained unclear whether these involved arms training.

The post Thailand Sticks to Non-Interference Policy in Myanmar appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi meets NMSP delegation

Posted: 01 Sep 2017 08:00 AM PDT

MAWLAMYINE, Mon State — Myanmar's State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and a New Mon State Party (NMSP) delegation led by vice chairman Nai Hong Sar met at the National Reconciliation and Peace Center (NRPC) in Naypyitaw on Friday.

NMSP previously asked to meet Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and Myanmar Army chief Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing to discuss troop deployment in Mon State and the party's involvement in the country's efforts for peace and in developing its system of government.

Also present at the meeting were vice chairman of NRPC and Union Minister for the State Counselor's Office U Kyaw Tint Swe and National Security Advisor U Thaung Tun.

According to the State Counselor's Office, the two sides discussed NMSP's involvement in the country's peace process, but NMSP did not release a statement about the meeting.

The NMSP formed a high-level delegation to meet the State Counselor and the commander-in-chief led by Nai Hong Sar, and including the group's secretary Nai Aung Min, the chief of NMSP's armed wing the Mon National Liberation Army Maj-Gen Layi Gakao, as well as Nai Win Hla, and Nai Aung Mange.

The Myanmar Army chief replied that he was unavailable for a meeting and sent a delegation on his behalf, which NMSP met in Mon State's Ye Township on August 16.

"I think their meeting is mainly about negotiating for signing the nationwide ceasefire agreement [NCA]," said Ko Min Zayar Oo, secretarial of Union Peace Dialogue Joint Committee (UPDJC).

"Perhaps [the NMSP] did not release a statement about the meeting because they have yet to negotiate with other ethnic armed groups," said Ko Min Zayar Oo.

NMSP has said it will consider signing the NCA before the third session of the Union Peace Conference—expected some time between October and December.

"It is a good sign that they met for peace. As they met Daw Aung San Suu Kyi directly, I think they will reach some agreement. There will be a good answer, and it is heading in a positive direction," said joint secretary Nai San Tin of All Mon Region Democracy Party.

NMSP declared in May that it was trying to sign the NCA together with its fellow UNFC members including the Arakan National Council (ANC), Lahu Democratic Union (LDU), and Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP).

"It is good that the two met, even though it is still difficult to break the political deadlock. Maybe, they discussed the recent military tensions between the NMSP and the military," joint secretary of the Mon National Party Nai Soe Myint told The Irrawaddy.

NMSP carried out gun salutes on the 70th anniversary of Mon Revolution Day on Aug. 7 outside its party headquarters in defiance of orders of the Myanmar Army.

In response, the Myanmar Army deployed about 200 troops in several villages near NMSP's Mawlamyine base, contributing to tension between the two groups.

After the Aug. 16 talks, however, military troops withdrew from the area.

The post Daw Aung San Suu Kyi meets NMSP delegation appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

No Rescue Yet for Stranded Villagers in Rakhine

Posted: 01 Sep 2017 07:59 AM PDT

SITTWE, Rakhine State — Nurses, teachers and government employees stranded along with villagers in Maungdaw Township repeated calls to be evacuated from the area, amid ongoing violence in the region.

On Friday, people seeking refuge in northern Maungdaw's Taunggyo Let Wei police security post told The Irrawaddy that more than 2,000 are currently sheltering inside the station, and that they fear of being assaulted by Muslim militants active in the area.

A woman from Taung Pyo Let Wei, who requested not to be named, told The Irrawaddy that all she wants is "to be able to go back to my town, Kyauk Taw." She has a young child with her, while her eight-year-old son remains with her parents in Kyauk Taw.

Before arriving in Taung Pyo Let Wei on Aug. 27, she said she and other villagers had to follow Myanmar Army troop columns, as they cleared improvised mines along the road from Thar Yar Kone village to Thinbaw Hla.

On Thursday, the education and health workers, along with the locals in Kyein Chaung and Ta Man Thar villages, were told that they would be airlifted out of the area by government rescue teams. They wore their uniforms for easy identification, they said. By evening, there was no sign of a rescue.

Around 1,200 Maungdaw residents arrive in Sittwe on Friday. (Photo: Nyein Nyein / The Irrawaddy)

Col Phone Tint, the Rakhine State border affairs and security minister told The Irrawaddy that they "were doing [their] best," and that the area would be protected for "our ethnic people," he said, a reference to the Buddhist Arakanese and Arakanese sub-groups in the region.

"We will keep staying in our place and there are both military and police forces for security."

Reuters reported on Friday that military sources have evacuated more than 11,000 "ethnic residents" from the conflict area since an Aug. 25 dawn attack by the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army on police security forces in Maungadaw and Buthidaung townships.

Myanmar Army clearance operations followed, and more than 38,000 Muslim Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh, according to the latest figures from the United Nations.

The total number of stranded villagers and government employees is not known, but The Irrawaddy has spoken to sources in three locations with a total of 3,500 awaiting evacuation. As of Friday, displaced people were still arriving in the state capital of Sittwe.

U Khine Pyay Soe, of the Arakan National Party, is now in Maungdaw providing assistance through the Rakhine emergency relief committee. He told The Irrawaddy that the government needs to find a way to clear mines from the area. If not, he warned, communications will be cut and people who are stranded will not be able to escape.

The post No Rescue Yet for Stranded Villagers in Rakhine appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Nearly 400 Die in Rakhine State As Myanmar Army Steps Up Crackdown on Militants

Posted: 01 Sep 2017 07:52 AM PDT

COX'S BAZAR, Bangladesh — Nearly 400 people have died in fighting that has rocked Myanmar's northwest for a week, new official data show, making it probably the deadliest bout of violence to engulf the country's Rohingya Muslim minority in decades.

Around 38,000 Rohingya have crossed into Bangladesh from Myanmar, UN sources said, a week after Rohingya militants attacked police posts and an army base in Rakhine state, prompting clashes and a military counteroffensive.

"As of Aug. 31, 38,000 people are estimated to have crossed the border into Bangladesh," the officials said on Friday, in their latest estimate.

The army says it is conducting clearance operations against "extremist terrorists" and security forces have been told to protect civilians. But Rohingya fleeing to Bangladesh say a campaign of arson and killings aims to force them out.

The treatment of Myanmar's roughly 1.1 million Rohingya is the biggest challenge facing national leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, accused by some Western critics of not speaking out for a minority that has long complained of persecution.

The clashes and ensuing army crackdown have killed about 370 Rohingya insurgents, but also 13 security forces, two government officials and 14 civilians, the Myanmar military said on Thursday.

By comparison, communal violence in 2012 in Sittwe, the capital of Rakhine, led to the killing of nearly 200 people and the displacement of about 140,000, most of them Rohingya.

The fighting is a dramatic escalation of a conflict that has simmered since October, when similar but much smaller Rohingya attacks on security posts prompted a brutal military response dogged by allegations of rights abuses.

Myanmar evacuated more than 11,700 "ethnic residents" from the area affected by fighting, the army said, referring to the non-Muslim population of northern Rakhine.

More than 150 Rohingya insurgents staged fresh attacks on security forces on Thursday near villages occupied by Hindus, the state-run Global New Light of Myanmar said, adding that about 700 members of such families had been evacuated.

"Four of the terrorists were arrested, including one 13-year-old boy," it said, adding that security forces had arrested two more men near a Maungdaw police outpost on suspicion of involvement in the attacks.

About 20,000 more Rohingya trying to flee are stuck in no man's land at the border, the U.N. sources said, as aid workers in Bangladesh struggle to alleviate the sufferings of a sudden influx of thousands of hungry and traumatized people.

While some Rohingya try to cross by land, others attempt a perilous boat journey across the Naf River separating the two countries.

Bangladesh border guards found the bodies of 15 Rohingya Muslims, 11 children among them, floating in the river on Friday, area commander Lt. Col. Ariful Islam told Reuters.

That takes to about 40 the total of Rohingya known to have died by drowning.

The post Nearly 400 Die in Rakhine State As Myanmar Army Steps Up Crackdown on Militants appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Analysis: China Backs Myanmar at UN Security Council

Posted: 01 Sep 2017 05:38 AM PDT

As the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army—dubbed a terrorist organization by the Myanmar government—attacked security forces and civilians in northern Rakhine, the 15-member UN Security Council (UNSC) met in New York.

Myanmar leaders do not need to sweat. They have a powerful friend: China.

As in the past, China maintained its unwavering support for its southern neighbor, regardless of whether the country is ruled by men in uniform or an elected civilian government.

UNSC members condemned the Rakhine violence, but, according to British Ambassador to the UN Matthew Rycroft, the council still supports State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.

 The UK requested the meeting on Myanmar days after the violence broke out: "A lot of us are hugely supportive allies of hers who have followed her progress with admiration from afar," the ambassador told reporters.

But news emerged that China resisted stronger involvement by the UN council in addressing Myanmar's crisis.

In March, China, together with Russia, blocked a brief UNSC statement when the 15-member body met to discuss the situation in Rakhine state.

In February, the UN's human rights office accused the military of mass killings and rape of Muslims in Rakhine and burning villages following attacks on police outposts in the region in October last year.

The UN went as far as to accuse the military of crimes against humanity and possibly ethnic cleansing.

Both the government and military denied these charges and refused to cooperate with a UN fact-finding mission. China made sure to back up the Myanmar government.

Nikki Haley, the US ambassador to the UN, later issued a statement chastising Myanmar’s security forces on Thursday.

"As Burmese security forces act to prevent further violence, they have a responsibility to adhere to international humanitarian law, which includes refraining from attacking innocent civilians and humanitarian workers and ensuring assistance reaches those in need," Haley said.

Senior military officials denied attacking villagers and said troops were deployed to protect police securing the area. According to them, the deployment of troops was thin.

A Key Ally

China continues to provide diplomatic protection to Myanmar as some Western nations press the government and military on the Rakhine issue.

More than ever, China has remained a key ally to the government and Daw Aung San Suu Kyi—who's support in the West is now lukewarm at best.

China's motives in backing Myanmar are said to include a desire to expand its foothold in Myanmar and acting to limit Western influence spreading among its neighbors.

As a major investor in Myanmar, China is looking for a seaport in Kyaukphyu, Rakhine State, on the Bay of Bengal—the country clearly has strategic interest in the Indian Ocean.

 In May, Reuters reported China was looking to take a stake of up to 85 percent in the strategically important seaport in Myanmar as part of its "One Belt, One Road" initiative.

Beijing has been pushing for preferential access to the deep seaport of Kyaukphyu part of its ambitious infrastructure investment plan to deepen its links with economies throughout Asia and beyond, Reuters reported.

In April, during his official visit to Beijing, Myanmar President U Htin Kyaw signed an agreement with Chinese President Xi Jinping on a partially completed crude oil pipeline between western Myanmar's Kyaukphyu and southern China's Kunming.

The pipeline is part of the US$10 billion Kyaukphyu Special Economic Zone and there are also plans for a railway linking Yunnan Province and Myanmar, though it is thought to be suspended or under review.

As China expands its geo-political influence and opens up an economic corridor to its southern neighbors it needs stability in Rakhine State.

Beijing officials also recently invited ethnic Arakanese politicians to China. One of them was Dr. Aye Maung, chairman of the Arakan National Party and often referred to as a firebrand ethno-nationalist.

Dr. Aye Maung was elected as a lawmaker in May's by-election. His party recently requested that army leaders send troops to northern Rakhine State and asked the government to declare a state of emergency in the region.

In April, Chinese special envoy for Asian affairs Sun Guoxiang visited Bangladesh and offered to tackle a diplomatic row between Bangladesh and Myanmar over the flight of the persecuted Rohingya.

As another major trade partner, Bangladesh also received assistance from China to improve infrastructure as part of the One Belt, One Road mega project.

Bangladesh and China signed deals on nearly 30 projects worth US$25 billion during President Xi Jinping's visit to Dhaka.

It is important to note that until recently, China refrained from direct involvement in issues involving the Rohingya, as such actions could have been interpreted by Myanmar leaders and Arakanese politicians as "interference."

But the rise in violence in an area of strategic importance to China will no doubt set alarm bells ringing in Beijing.

The post Analysis: China Backs Myanmar at UN Security Council appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

A Fighter in Heels

Posted: 01 Sep 2017 05:09 AM PDT

YANGON — In a small gymnasium at a mall in downtown Yangon, a dozen women and girls dressed in workout attire sparred in pairs and practiced escaping while being pinned to the ground. A woman dressed in jeans and a fancy top supervised. It is not unusual for the girls to see their trainer Michelle dressed up and sporting makeup while observing the class.

Michelle aka May Shell in Burmese, 24, is a co-founder of the Myanmar Women's Self-defense Center—one of the few of its kind in Yangon—where women learn legal practices, verbal assertiveness, and self-defense to protect themselves from physical and sexual assaults. She is also an accomplished model. She came to the club on the final day of a course to present certificates to the trainees.

Michelle trains during a boxing class. / Tin Htet Paing

"I like dressing up but at the same time, I like fighting," Michelle said. "It's difficult to balance the two."

At 17, she became interested in kickboxing and joined a fight club – and for good reason.

Her first experience with sexual harassment was on a public bus in Yangon as a teenager. A male passenger wedged himself into the space next to her and rubbed his erect penis on her back. She did not know what harassment was at the time and she stayed silent.

While in college, she experienced men groping her on public buses and catcalling her on the street, which made her lose confidence. She grew afraid of going outside.

Her brothers suggested that it was her attire that drew the unwanted attention. She knew that it was not her fault but did not know how to respond. Her friends were equally ill equipped to advise her, she said.

"I knew I shouldn't have stayed quiet," Michelle told The Irrawaddy. "But what would I do if the perpetrator were in a large group, or if there was no one else around?" she would ask herself.

Trainees in Michelle's self-defense class. / Tin Htet Paing

"Through kickboxing, I gained confidence and learned how to look after myself," she said.

Thoughts of "I can do it" or "I can protect myself" are crucial for women and girls, Michelle said, referring to an increase in the number of rapes and sexual assaults reported to the police in Yangon, making women more wary to go out alone.

"It's better for women to know how to defend themselves when they face harassment; caging them in their houses in the name of protection is not an option," she said.

"Many women have experienced the same harassment as I have. I want to empower them to speak out," she added.

While lack of security in cities and ineffective legal procedures deter women from reporting harassment, Michelle says she co-founded her center with two other women to create a safe space for them to share any issues and give them the tools to respond.

"Most women don't know what their rights are, what legal protections are available, or how to report harassment," she said. "That's what we share with them at the center."

Michelle trains during a boxing class. / Tin Htet Paing

Wearing More than One Hat

At age 19, Michelle started entering beauty pageants, in which she performed self-defense as her talent. Competing for a crown is physically and mentally challenging, she said, having competed in three pageants.

"If I become a beauty queen, I will have a platform to raise awareness about sexual harassment and people will pay more attention," she said, stating that she hopes to be a strong advocate for women.

Michelle walks the runway. / Nyi Min San / Supplied

Having grown up with four brothers and two sisters, Michelle believes that gender parity starts with families. She is thankful that her father treated his sons and daughters equally, regardless of gender.

However, one's rights are not afforded by others, she added.

"We need to understand that women have their own rights, and not because they are given by men," she said.

The post A Fighter in Heels appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Beauty in Colors

Posted: 01 Sep 2017 03:47 AM PDT

After more than 10 years, modernist Ko Sid has finally found the beauty in colors. His first solo art exhibition will explore how colors create beauty, at OK Art Gallery in the north wing of Yangon's Aung San Stadium from September 2 to 4.

"My paintings are mainly about color, about the beauty I find in colors when I feel a passionate enthusiasm for painting. This is the art of searching for beauty between consciousness and unconsciousness," he said.

Ko Sid displays his paintings at Yangon's OK Art Gallery from Sept. 2 to 4.

"I apply paint as I feel, and draw the lines," said Ko Sid, one of a handful of young art collectors-cum-dealers in Myanmar.

The modernist, 34, said his idol is Kin Maung Yin, one of the leaders in the second generation of Myanmar's modern art movement.

The self-taught artist has participated in more than a dozen group art exhibitions at home and abroad since 2011.

His exhibition "Beyond the Subconscious" will feature more than 30 oil paintings all priced at US$250.

Ko Sid, who is also the owner of Myanmar Ink Art Gallery, has discarded many of his paintings because he thought they were "not art enough."

"Now, I feel like I can create the way that I feel. I'm satisfied with my work now," he said.

 

The post Beauty in Colors appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

History Behind Rakhine State Conflict

Posted: 01 Sep 2017 03:26 AM PDT

On August 25, the Arakan Rohginya Salvation Army attacked some 30 police outposts and an army base in Rakhine State, causing the Myanmar Army to respond with security clearance operations. The renewed violence has sent thousands of Rohingya Muslims and Arakanese Buddhists fleeing their homes to temporary camps in the region or across the border to Bangladesh.

In light of the renewed conflict, The Irrawaddy revisits this interview from July 2012 with Rakhine history expert Dr. Jacques P. Leider, who has been conducting research as well as contributing articles to academic journals on Rakhine State for more than two decades.

Question: What is the meaning of "Rohingya?"

Answer: [The term Rohingya] appeared for the first time at the end of the 18th century in the report of an Englishman who went to the Chittagong area, the Rakhine area. His name was Francis Buchanan-Hamilton. He was a medical doctor [and this term appeared] in one of the papers that was published by him. Now when we talk about scientific explanations and etymology of the word, it does not say anything about politics. You use this term for yourself as a political label to give yourself identity in the 20th century. Now how is this term used since the 1950s? It is clear that people who use it want to give this identity to the community that live there.

What about the history of the Muslim community in Rakhine State?

Everywhere in Southeast Asia—such as Thailand, Indonesia and everywhere—you find Muslim communities. Islam has been growing in other areas where it did not exist before the 15th century in Indonesia, Malaysia and so on. You also have, it is not surprising, a Muslim community in Myanmar. [We know that] in the 15th century you have an emerging Muslim community there. The second part of the Muslim community there belongs to the colonial period, when many people from Bengal and that area came to settle in Rakhine.

What is the situation on the ground between Arakanese Buddhists and Rohingya Muslims?

This is a very difficult question to answer for a foreigner who can only go to places in Rakhine where it is acceptable. I will not call the Rakhine Buddhist racist towards Muslims. There seem to be expression; the emotional reaction is extremely strong. Let me put it diplomatically like this—a very strong emotional reaction.

What are the roots of this reaction?

Well, I think from historical point of view, when you look at the situation of Muslims in Rakhine, in Burma, one big difference is that the Muslims in Rakhine have settled on the ground, they were farmers. They have been farmers since the pre-colonial period because Rakhine kings were deporting people from Bengal and bringing them to Rakhine and settling them. We know from a source in the 17th century that there were villages where there were only Muslims. They have been settled there by the Rakhine kings. The English stopped Indian immigration during the colonial period. Because there was no border there, so you figure out the people come and go from Bengal to Rakhine. Their demographic growth was tremendous. The Rakhine back in the 1920s, the Buddhist Rakhine, were feeling very awkward about this.

Do you agree with observers who say there is a third force behind the conflict?

There is no reason to look for a third force to explain [the conflict], to describe it and to talk about solutions. It is absolutely clear that in the context where Arakan is, you have a very particular situation which you do not have in other so-called minority areas. In Karen, Kachin or Chin, we're normally talking about the majority Myanmar who confront the local minority group, which is actually a majority of that area. But here you have three involved—you have Rakhine Buddhist, you have Muslim on the other hand and then you have the government. When you have three, it is always easy to have two against one. Now Muslims would argue they are Rakhine Buddhist and Myanmar Buddhist who play against us. It's always easy to argue that.

So what is the underlying reason behind the conflict?

I think that on the land that exists there, there are increasing numbers of people. Rakhine Buddhists have been seeing that there are Muslims there. The Muslims who are living in Rakhine, the population has been growing. The question is how much have they been growing. Apparently, it seems that they are growing faster. There is a feeling that they are growing; that they are there and there is this kind of resentment that these people are there and nobody is tackling the Muslims present there. All these resentments, all these feelings, have been there for a long time. Sheer violence is used to say that we have situation that we cannot bear anymore.

Would you say it is not a racial issue?

No, Rohingya use "racist Buddhists" and the other side will use that. There has been violence, there are a number of other words and we should be sensitive about the use of these words. Now when somebody comes to use the word "genocide" against Muslims, that is also way beyond anything that matches with reality.  I think "hate" is okay as the term you can use as kind of a common word. But to use "racism" always supposes a kind of ideology. I don't see among Buddhists this kind of ideology. It's kind of dislike. You have xenophobia, you have ranges of other words you can use to describe more correctly and more justly what we see.

Is the international media mistaken when they use phrases like "genocide of the Rohingya?"

Yes, a lot. Journalists have to focus more on diversifying their sources of documentation. I agree it may not be easy. I think there is enormous responsibility on media in Myanmar now that is opening up. Myanmar writers, Myanmar ethnicities take a responsible stand on this. It will not help if they take sides. But you need to be critical and self-critical.

What is the best way forward to resolve the conflict?

I would probably say people should sit down and say what they want where there are problems. They want to have peaceful life, they want to have a happy life and see a future for their children. You see other people have what you don't have. In the other community, in the best of their mind, they realize that the other people will not disappear—like it or not, they are not going to disappear. They need to find one way or another to live together. There are many issues that people who are living there, whatever religion, could share. They will confront their own interest and future for the development of Rakhine State, for the people who live there. If they could work together, they could be more efficient instead of fighting together.

Are the Rohingya an ethnic group of Myanmar?

My answer is that Rohingya is not an ethnic concept. Okay, they can stand up and say we are an ethnic group inside Myanmar. But I think that is not the best way. When you argue we are Muslims and we have been living in Rakhine for several generations, nobody can deny it. For me, Rohingya is the term, which is an old word that has been claimed as above all as a political label after the independence of Myanmar. For the moment, I do not see that all the people there readily submit to one and a single label. When I was in Bangladesh, people pointed out Muslims to me who originally lived in Rakhine. They have now moved to Bangladesh and when you ask them, "are you Rohingya coming from Rakhine?" they say, "no, we are Muslims who live in Rakhine, we do not take for us the label Rohingya."

The post History Behind Rakhine State Conflict appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

After Charges Withdrawn, Detained Journalists Released on Bail

Posted: 01 Sep 2017 02:25 AM PDT

HSIPAW, Shan State — Three journalists from The Irrawaddy and Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB) were released on bail on Friday afternoon following the military's decision to withdraw its case against them.

The judge from Hsipaw Township Court said the plaintiff's lawyer must file a request to the court in order to drop the charges, and the court would then drop the charges on Monday.

Military plaintiff adjutant Thet Naing Oo withdrew the charges under Article 17(1) of the Unlawful Associations Act filed against the reporters after the commander-in-chief's office withdrew cases against six journalists and two activists.

The journalists were arrested along with three other men by the Myanmar Army on June 26 as they returned from covering a drug-burning ceremony hosted by the Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA).

A few days later they were moved to Hsipaw Prison and have been escorted from the prison for weekly hearings, some of which have been moved or delayed.

As the defendants' lawyers submitted bail appeals in last week's trial, the judge granted bail for the three reporters in the wake of the military withdrawing the case.

Three men who were detained along with the journalists also had charges of unlawful association withdrawn, but two of the men who had additional charges will remain in detention.

The post After Charges Withdrawn, Detained Journalists Released on Bail appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Military Withdraws Cases Against Detained Journalists

Posted: 31 Aug 2017 11:53 PM PDT

YANGON & HSIPAW, Shan State — Seasoned reporter Lawi Weng "cannot wait" to return to his work covering conflict in Myanmar after the military withdrew cases against six journalists and two activists on Friday.

The Irrawaddy's Lawi Weng, also known as U Thein Zaw, and U Aye Naing and Ko Pyae Phone Aung from the Democratic Voice of Burma have been detained in Hsipaw Prison for more than two months under the Unlawful Associations Act.

 In a move the Tatmadaw described to the Myanmar Press Council as "wiping the slate clean," it announced the withdrawal of charges against the three reporters, as well as defamation charges against The Voice Daily's chief editor U Kyaw Min Swe and satirist Ko Ko Maung, who were sued for publishing a satirical article on the peace process.

Eleven Media's chief editor Ko Wai Phyo, who was charged under Article 502 of Myanmar's Penal Code for defamation, will also have his charges withdrawn.

Also included were activist U Htin Kyaw and student activist Ko Wai Yan Thein, also known as Victor, who were facing charges under Article 505(b) of the Penal Code for reportedly criticizing the Tatmadaw.

The move coincides with a court hearing of the three detained journalists at Hsipaw Court. They were arrested on June 26 after reporting on a Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) drug-burning ceremony in northern Shan State.

Lawyers representing the detained journalists told The Irrawaddy on Friday morning that the three would be released following the military's decision but that they were currently waiting for the military plaintiff to formally appear at the court to drop the case.

The journalists were in high spirits as they waited in Hsipaw Court. Lawi Weng called it "amazing news," and said he was looking forward to getting back to his work covering ethnic conflict in Myanmar.

Ko Kyaw Zwa Moe, editor of The Irrawaddy's English edition, welcomed the military's decision, adding, "Make no mistake, the military as well as the government should understand the role and responsibility of the media and treat them as professionals who are practicing one of the highest callings. I hope they will keep doing this. If they do so, it'll be very helpful for the country's democratization and there will be no ugly incidents like this one."

The Myanmar Press Council issued a statement on Friday saying it had received a letter from the commander-in-chief's office, which stated that the military "recognized journalists were serving the interests of the country and people together with the Tatmadaw."

The Tatmadaw had withdrawn the cases "to serve the interests of the country and people together," stated the letter.

The office also urged the council to ensure accuracy, impartiality and fairness in reporting in line with media ethics.

"We are very grateful to the Tatmadaw for showing magnanimity," stated the council.

Council member U Myint Kyaw said, "This is how it should have been from the start. We welcome it." He added that journalists should only be charged under the Media Law if someone feels aggrieved by their reporting.

The post Military Withdraws Cases Against Detained Journalists appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Myanmar’s Public Health System and Policy: Improving but Inequality Still Looms Large

Posted: 31 Aug 2017 07:33 PM PDT

In late July, panic swept Yangon and parts of Myanmar as news of an "outbreak" of H1N1 erupted on social media. This followed a press conference where Myanmar's Ministry of Health announced that two people had died from H1N1, commonly known as swine flu. A further 13 had been diagnosed with the illness in Yangon. Five hospitals were preparing to receive new patients. Other cases were detected in remote areas of Myanmar, including 10 cases in Matupi in Chin State, and others reported in Bago region, Irrawaddy Region and Naypyitaw. Hitherto far from being an outbreak by the World Health Organization's definition of such, what the H1N1 cases really highlighted was how far Myanmar has come in health communication and cooperation.

Indeed, Myanmar's entire health system has come a long way since the country's democratic transition began in 2011. Yet much more still needs to be done. A core area of focus needs to be on addressing inequalities in access to health services across the country. In particular, bridging gaps in service delivery between urban and rural communities and for minority ethnic groups. For the government, the pay-off for improving these services will be significant. Broadly speaking, increased confidence in government will have positive impacts on continuing ceasefire negotiations and political dialogue with ethnic armed groups. Indeed, addressing these issues will need to be both cooperative and to a certain degree centrally-directed, thereby demanding that ethnic minorities and the NLD government work together. For international donors, supporting the improvement of the health system in one of the world's most disaster-prone countries, lying between the world's two most populous countries, is investing in a more resilient region. This post aims to be a primer addressing some of the most pressing problems in the overall structure of Myanmar's health system today.

Myanmar's Health System

As the world moves to adopt strategies to establish universal health coverage by 2030, as part of the Sustainable Development Goals, Myanmar remains languishing behind in all components of the World Health Organization's (WHO) health system building blocks. In order to achieve Universal Health Care (UHC) goals, as well as other outcomes set out by the WHO's health system framework, Myanmar must significantly improve across all components, and in particular on three core building blocks – health services, health workforce and health information. This is assuming that other building blocks of leadership and governance, and health care financing will be achieved as capacity continues to be built within the system.

Table 1. HEALTH STATISTICS MYANMAR; SOURCE: WHO

Total population (2015) 53,897,000
Life expectancy at birth m/f (years; 2015) 65/68
Probability of dying between 15 and 60 years m/f (per 1 000 population; 2013) 240/183
Total expenditure on health per capita (USD$; 2014) 103
Total expenditure on health as % of GDP (2014) 2.3

The previous quasi-military government raised public spending on health from a dismal 0.2 percent of GDP in 2009 to more than 1 percent in 2014. Recognition of the importance of population health and investment in health continue to improve. Since coming to power in 2016, the National League for Democracy (NLD) has established Universal Health Care and access to a Basic Essential Package of Health Services (EPHS) as central policy objectives of the government, prioritizing health policy in its first 12 months of government.

Myanmar's health policy has since 1991 been instituted in four-year plans released by the Ministry of Health and Sport (MoHS). The Myanmar National Health Plan 2017-2021 was released in December 2016 and states as its main goal to "extend access to a Basic Essential Package of Health Services to the entire population by 2020 while increasing financial protection."

The latter part of this objective, increasing financial protection, is important. Indeed, significant improvements in health care financing must be achieved. There is no reliable health insurance system and a poor overall national health system. In 2014, 81 percent of Myanmar's total health expenditure came from out-of-pocket financing. This figure decreased to 65 percent in 2015, demonstrating government attention to the issue. Out-of-pocket payments in Myanmar far exceed the global average of 32 percent of a country's total health expenditure. Recent NLD health policy has set an aim of reducing out-of-pocket expenses to 25 percent of overall health expenditure.

As capacity remains low within the MoHS and the wider health sector in Myanmar, there are numerous NGO's supporting capacity building programs. One significant project is the World Bank's Essential Health Services Access Project, a US$100 million project running between 2014 and 2019, which aims to increase coverage of essential health services with a focus on maternal, newborn and child health.

As in most developing and many developed countries, discrepancies in delivery of health services between urban and rural populations also exist. Approximately 70 percent of the population in Myanmar live in rural environments, and are largely engaged in subsistence farming. Many of Myanmar's ethnic groups still adhere to cultural practices and traditional remedies.  Seeking out astrologers, witches and healers to administer health care is common. Such health-seeking behavior can cause complications in modern health care provision where less effective treatments or mysticism supplants modern medicine.

While eight ethnic armed groups signed a ceasefire with the Tatmadaw, the Myanmar military, in October 2015, a dozen other groups remain in varying degrees of conflict. The deep and decades long grievances between ethnic minorities and the Tatmadaw have created sub-national governance structures, including sub-national health services. Without the emergence of a federal system that can incorporate these structures, there is widespread inequality in the delivery of services across the country.

Reflecting the problems within Myanmar's health system, the country's success at achieving health related Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) were mixed. Indeed, one of the core problems cited was a weak health system. One area of relative success was the improvement in immunization rates. For example, measles immunization coverage increased from 68 percent to 88 percent between 1990 and 2010. However, as evidenced in 2016 by a deadly outbreak in remote northwestern Myanmar in Naga areas, disparities remain in ethnic areas. In that instance, more than 80 people, mainly children, died from a preventable disease.

As indicated by the failures in the MDGs, the single biggest problem for Naypyitaw continues to be the implementation of a health system in ethnic minority areas where decades-long conflict with the central government has created deep mistrust. In dozens of townships around Myanmar, the government has little access and fighting between ethnic armed groups and the Tatmadaw continues. In these areas, working with local ethnic health organizations (EHOs) and local NGOs will be crucial if MoHS wants to fulfil its SDG pledge to provide universal access to healthcare to all people in Myanmar.

Among other social determinants of health impacting Myanmar's health services are poverty, ongoing conflict, endemic and institutional inequality, weak institutions and poor governance, poor infrastructure, seasonal natural disaster and poor access to adequate health care. As detailed in the following critical analysis, three components of Myanmar's health system will be important in addressing these challenges: Health Services, Health Workforce and Health Information System. Others, such as medical products and technology, will remain crucial but should improve following progress in the stated three components.

Table 2. TRENDS IN HEALTH-RELATED MDG INDICATORS IN MYANMAR, 1990-2010 

SOURCE: Saw, Y. M., Win, K. L., Shiao, L. W., Thandar, M. M., Amiya, R. M., Shibanuma, A., Tun, S., Jimba, M. (2013). Taking stock of Myanmar's progress toward the health-related millennium development goals: Current roadblocks, paths ahead. International Journal for Equity in Health, 12(1), 78. doi: http://dx.doi.org.ezproxy1.library.usyd.edu.au/10.1186/1475-9276-12-78

Key Challenges in Reforming Myanmar's Health System

Health Workforce

"A well-performing health workforce is one which works in ways that are responsive, fair and efficient to achieve the best health outcomes possible, given available resources and circumstances. I.e. There are sufficient numbers and mix of staff, fairly distributed; they are competent, responsive and productive." WHO Health Systems Framework

In 2014, according to the MoHS, it operated 988 hospitals and 1,684 rural health centers. This included 348 maternal and child health centers. The Ministry cited 13,000 doctors, 30,000 nurses, 22,000 midwives and 11,000 health workers across the country. The number of health professionals was far less than the recommended WHO target per 1,000 people. Auxiliary or volunteer health care workers continue to play core roles in service delivery, particularly in ethnic minority and rural areas and they are often required to perform above and beyond their basic training.

According to World Bank data, some indicators of health service capability indicate that services worsened over the course of military rule in the country. For example, in the 1970s and 1980s it was reported that there were 0.85 hospital beds per 1,000 people, this declined to 0.6 in 2006. Similarly, during the military government, half of health workers worked in urban areas, despite the vast majority of the population living in rural areas. Under the previous junta government, those living in rural and ethnic minority areas relied largely on traditional healthcare practices, rudimentary local health care or the services of international health professionals working with NGOs. There has long been a desire to improve the health workforce. This was explicitly stated in 2000 by the military government in a policy paper entitled Myanmar Health Vision 2030. The document also highlighted a desire for universal health care. Since the 2011 democratic transition began, efforts to improve the health system, including improvements to the health workforce, have been renewed.

The NLD government has outlined a desire to decentralize health services, previously highly centralized. Today, Myanmar's 330 townships are overseen by a township medical officer. At every main township hospital, there is a chief doctor, 1-2 station hospitals, 4-7 rural health centers (RHCs), as well as varying numbers of rural sub-RHCs. RHCs are run by a health assistant and have a catchment population of 20,000. Sub-RHCs often are run by a midwife or health assistants, staffed by volunteers, and have a catchment population of 5,000. This latter, most basic component of the formal health infrastructure, conducts immunizations and other health programs. While this structure works in theory, on the ground, with various health providers and ongoing ethnic tensions and violence, the reality in many of these townships is far different.

In one example of this, Aung et al (2016) looking at rural and urban disparities in health-seeking for fever, found that "rural populations need improved access to trained providers" and increased knowledge of malaria prevention and treatment. That study recommended more trained health workers and health centers were needed in rural areas, and that they should be easily accessible and affordable to the population.  However, poor education standards in rural areas in recent decades has resulted in fewer people of rural background having sufficient education for entry into tertiary education. As such, fewer rural people train to become health professionals, also leading to lower numbers of ethnic minority people becoming qualified health professionals in the country.

Overall, at a national level, Myanmar has an insufficient number of health professionals that are representative of the diversity in the population, in ethnicity, gender and language capability. Those that exist are unfairly distributed with varying degrees of competence. These shortfalls significantly disadvantage ethnic minorities.

Health Services

"Good health services are those which deliver effective, safe, quality personal and non-personal health interventions to those who need them, when and where needed, with minimum waste of resources."  WHO Health Systems Framework

Between 2011 and 2015, government expenditure for health increased 8.7 times. The NLD government has continued this trend and set out their own plan: A Roadmap Towards Universal Health Coverage in Myanmar. A broad and ambitious document in scope, it aims to address social determinants of health and looks to reinforce the previous military government's ambitions toward universal health coverage. There are similarly greater ambitions to reach rural communities and ethnic minorities than previously outlined. The core component of the Myanmar National Health Plan drafted by the NLD government sets out access to a Basic Essential Package of Health Services for all by 2020 as its core goal. Furthermore, it looks to improve financial protections and "alignment" of health services – (also known as "convergence") – in rural and ethnic minority areas. In general, and disproportionately in urban areas, health services will increasingly have to tackle both communicable and non- communicable diseases. One study found that currently 59 percent of deaths in Myanmar are caused by non-communicable diseases, a figure that will rise as wealth increases. In the immediate term, the core problem is equal access to services, particularly between ethnic groups. That is not to say that service delivery in ethnic minority areas is necessarily worse, on the contrary, in many ethnic areas, service delivery is highly effective, often supported by the long-term commitment of faith-based NGOs. In some cases, such as in Wa State,which is supported by strong Chinese ties, ethnic minority health care is superior to Myanmar government health services.

In general, resource allocation needs to more closely align with reducing disparities in health services. The centralization of the health system increases these disparities. However, decentralization of the health sector is limited by the 2008 military drafted Constitution which enshrines central or national level control, not state or subnational control, over health expenditure.

Such are the disparities between ethnic groups that a gap of 11 years separates the highest and lowest averages of life expectancy in Myanmar. Even so, the average life expectancy of the general population at birth in 2015 remained low – 65 for men and 68 for women, the lowest in Asean, as demonstrated by the region in the health output scoring index (HOSI) in figure 1. Health services are well below acceptable levels across all regions.

Discussions in the first-year both at national and subnational levels revolved around suggestions that health care systems in sub-national areas could "converge" under one central government-directed and administered health system. However, while many challenges towards any convergence of subnational and national health systems remain, many more remain for the improvement of the national health system itself.

Internal migration in Vietnam and South Korea has shown that such movement helps to reduce overall poverty and bolster long-term development. However, in the short term, migration can create more vulnerable individuals and families as incomes and assets are more at risk. As a result, and lacking support networks, recent migrants – many of which are from ethnic minority backgrounds – may be more at risk from health problems. In particular, rural-urban migrants are at risk for sexually transmitted diseases, drug and alcohol consumption as well as mental health problems among the largely young, single, and rural men migrating to urban environments. They are also likely to be among the most impacted by high out-of-pocket health cost. One study found that from two (non-ethnic) regions in Myanmar, men were twice as likely to migrate than women. Internal migration will continue to put pressure on the access to health services, and other areas, and must be addressed by the government.

Health Information System

"A well-functioning health information system is one that ensures the production, analysis, dissemination and use of reliable and timely information on health determinants, health systems performance and health status."  WHO Health Systems Framework

Much of the current and most of the past research and data collected by the government in Myanmar has been in majority ethnic Burman areas. As such, policy has focused on the majority ethnic group. Increasingly, since the 2011 democratic transition began, this is improving, albeit slowly. The sensitivities around the collection of data were realized by the government when it commissioned a nationwide census in 2014. Sections of this data that pertain to ethnicity and religion, and was deemed too sensitive, was not immediately or fully released. This demonstrates the difficulties that data collection and thus data-derived policy continues to have in the country. Moreover, political interference in data collection and continued high levels of fear among the general population in expressing negative views of government, hamper accurate data collection. One example is an analysis of the 2014 census data that revealed that maternal and child mortality rates were in fact twice as bad as previously reported.

As noted by Khan et al (2016), disparities are exacerbated by the unequal allocation of scarce resources. They note that studies by researchers in certain regions are restricted or discouraged by authorities, including the monitoring of the collection of data at health facilities Indeed, others note that much of collected data and allocated funding only reaches Burman and Buddhist areas and not other ethnic groups, or is unequally collected in these areas. Often international NGOs support ethnic minority groups almost exclusively, at times straining relations with the Burman-majority authorities and local communities. Such has been the case in troubled RakhineSstate, which has witnessed riots against international NGOs or UN agencies seen as supporting the Muslim population and not the ethnic Rakhine population.

Myanmar's health information system is highly centralized, discriminating against poorly represented ethnic minorities. Since the transition, there has been more leniency allowed in letting townships devise and institute their health plans along a framework of goals established by the MoHS. Numerous INGOs support the development and implementation of comprehensive township health plans.

The lack of infrastructure in Myanmar, including insufficient electricity and until very recently the lack of internet meant that many remote townships, particularly those in ethnic minority areas, worked to some degree almost independently along government-decreed overarching goals.

Lastly, a key remaining problem is that health information is not shared between health providers in ethnic minority areas, in particular, due to a lack of trust, between ethnic health organizations and the government. Responding to these concerns is a $100 million, four-year pilot program in Myanmar and other low resource countries led by Bloomberg and Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to improve the quality of health information collection.

Looking Ahead

A 2014 study based on interviews of representatives from international agencies working in Myanmar explored views of how to strengthen the health care system. Among the problems cited were impediments to service delivery as a result of health system weaknesses and bureaucracy, including human resource problems, data and logistical problems and not surprisingly insufficient or inadequate medical equipment, infrastructure and resources.

As Davis and Joliffe (2016) note, given the reality of continued conflict, "convergence activities should be viewed primarily in terms of the need to increase coordination and cooperation between multiple providers to improve health equity through complementarity."

Looking ahead, Hernandez and Myint (2017) suggest that "older people should be targeted as an approach to tackle the high burden of NCDs and create a strong health system." They note that 85 percent of aged people live with family, more than half in this circumstance contribute to household income but also provide free childcare to grandchildren, allowing parents greater freedom to work and move. The economic benefits of this are obvious; this should similarly benefit growth in ethnic minority areas, many still ravaged by conflict-related illnesses. Similar attention should be extended to all vulnerable people but ultimately all of Myanmar's people are best served by an overall improvement of the health system and universal access to healthcare. A special focus on the three building blocks highlighted in this post would help give a much needed shot in the arm to healthcare in Myanmar.

Myanmar has a long way to go to improve its health system and ensure accessibility for all, needing improvements for ethnic minority access in particular. If it is to reach SDG 3 goal "to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages" this will take continued effort by all in government and require the support of the international community, donors and all ethnic groups in Myanmar.

Elliot Brennan is an independent researcher. He previously worked with the Joint Ceasefire Monitoring Committee and the Myanmar Peace Centre in Yangon. He has held positions as a research fellow with think tanks in Europe and the USA as well as working with the Lowy Institute's Interpreter and IHS Jane's.

This article originally appeared in Tea Circle, a forum hosted at Oxford University for emerging research and perspectives on Burma/Myanmar.

The post Myanmar's Public Health System and Policy: Improving but Inequality Still Looms Large appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

1,000 Villagers ‘Stranded’ in Maungdaw Awaiting Govt Rescue

Posted: 31 Aug 2017 04:30 PM PDT

SITTWE, Rakhine State — More than 1,000 people—including government nurses, teachers and employees from an agriculture department—have been left waiting for government rescue in two villages in northern Rakhine State's Maungdaw Township amid an ongoing Muslim militancy in the area.

More than 300 people are reportedly stranded in Kyein Chaung village in southeastern Maungdaw, while another 889 in Ta Man Thar village are in a similar situation in northern Maungdaw. Representatives of the communities told The Irrawaddy they have been waiting for government rescue for nearly a week since the attacks broke out last Friday. Those left in the villages include ethnic Arakanese, Thet and Daingnet.

"We don't dare to venture out as the road [to Maungdaw town] is riddled with improvised landmines," one of the government employees from Kyein Chaung village said over the phone on Thursday evening, referring to explosive devices she said were placed by Muslim militants. Those who spoke to The Irrawaddy did so on the condition of anonymity, saying they feared government retribution for voicing their complaints.

"They said we would be airlifted out and told us to wait in our uniforms but, they haven't showed up," another government employee from Ta Man Thar village told The Irrawaddy.

The employee from Kyein Chaung gave a similar account. "When we called them today to ask about their absence, they just said 'we will come and get you,'" she said.

The Myanmar Army has alleged that since attacks on 30 police outposts in northern Rakhine State on Friday, the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) has reportedly targeted civilians. The Myanmar government announced it would treat the ARSA as an official "terrorist organization" on the same day. The attacks, and the military operations which have followed, have triggered a mass exodus from northern Rakhine, by Rohingya Muslims, Arakanese Buddhists, and Burmese Hindus living in the area.

The civil servant from Kyein Chaung said that those awaiting rescue in the village have been seeking refuge in the police station.

"We don't dare go out even in daytime," she said. "The village is surrounded by Muslim villages. We heard gunfire and fire in their villages."

The woman from Ta Man Thar village said they are now staying in the village monastery with police.

"We can't go out of the village. The bridge linked to the village has been destroyed. There are also mines on the road," she said.

The post 1,000 Villagers 'Stranded' in Maungdaw Awaiting Govt Rescue appeared first on The Irrawaddy.
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