Tuesday, October 31, 2017

The Irrawaddy Magazine

The Irrawaddy Magazine

Rakhine Documentary Banned in Myanmar Shown in US

Posted: 31 Oct 2017 08:13 AM PDT

YANGON — A short documentary film about young people affected by conflict in troubled Rakhine State which was banned at a recent Yangon film festival has been screened in the United States amid the latest crisis to affect the region.

"Sittwe" is a 20-minute documentary about two teenagers—a Rohingya girl and a Buddhist boy—segregated by conflict in Rakhine.

"The youth share their ideas about mutual fear between their communities and the hope of reconciliation," according to a synopsis of the film by its makers, adding it was produced to facilitate discussions about peace building in Burma.

Sittwe was banned from being shown at Yangon's Human Rights Human Dignity Film Festival in June this year by the Films and Video Censorship Board, citing cultural and religious sensitivities.

It premiered at the Freedom Film Festival in Malaysia in Sep this year and was awarded the Best Southeast Asia Short Documentary.

The film was also presented at the US Mission to the United Nations in New York when UN Special Rapporteur for Human Rights in Myanmar Yanghee Lee presented her report to the UN.

The film screenings at universities, theaters and centers in New York, Washington DC and San Francisco are followed by discussions with filmmaker Jeanne Hallacy and producer U Myo Win—the director of Smile Education and Development Foundation, an interfaith organization in Myanmar—with the aim to improve understanding of the situation in Rakhine State and to promote youth education.

The post Rakhine Documentary Banned in Myanmar Shown in US appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Analysis: Are Sanctions the Answer in the Rakhine Crisis?

Posted: 31 Oct 2017 05:17 AM PDT

YANGON — In its strongest response so far to the Myanmar Army's handling of the Rakhine crisis, the United States last week joined the chorus of international condemnation by taking action against the country's military leadership and considering targeted sanctions.

It was the second reaction by the international community this month to the Southeast Asian nation, following the European Union and its member states suspending invitations to the Myanmar Army chief and other senior military officers and reviewing all practical defense cooperation because of the disproportionate use of force against Rohingya Muslims in northern Rakhine State.

In its statement, the US State Department said: "We are exploring accountability mechanisms available under US law, including Global Magnitsky targeted sanctions."

The US actions starting from Wednesday include the cessation of travel waivers for current and former members of the Myanmar military and a ban on US assistance for units and officers in northern Rakhine State. The US stated it was also mulling economic measures against those responsible for atrocities against the Rohingya.

The international community has been condemned for inflicting on Rohingya Muslims arbitrary killings, arson and rape in northern Rakhine amid clearance operations intensified in late August.

The operations were sparked by Muslim militant group the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army attacks on 30 police outposts in the region on Aug 25. The government denounced the group as "terrorists" and, in the aftermath of the attacks, more than 600,000 Muslims have fled to Bangladesh as of late October.

Myanmar armed forces chief Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing has repeatedly denied claims of atrocities, saying that his troops followed the rules of engagement.

But the US State Department's announcement along with the EU's action against the military leadership has raised concerns inside the country. US restrictions on its engagement with and military sales to the Myanmar Army were already in place.

Given the scope of the sanctions, however, some political observers have said the US actions will have little tangible impact on the military, but are instead designed to shame the armed forces, which has been trying to reengage with its international counterparts to develop a universally respected army after decades of Western sanctions.

Ko Ye of the Tagaung Institute of Political Studies said the US actions pursue the army's accountability for human rights abuses in Rakhine State.

"Despite the army's current engagement with the West, we haven't seen anything about Myanmar Army's dependence on them. Seemingly, the actions are intended to have a negative impact on the image of the institution rather than any substantial impacts," he said.

The Myanmar government seems to have taken the US announcement seriously though, perhaps because it is more precise than the EU statement, which would "suspend invitations," "review all practical defense cooperation" and consider additional measures."

On Thursday, an editorial in state-run newspaper The Mirror slammed the US actions against the military leadership, saying "those actions by no means help solve problems in Rakhine State."

"What the international community should do is assess the military stand [on the Rakhine issue]—right or wrong—through dialogue," said the editorial in the Myanmar-language paper.

The State Counselor Office's director-general U Zaw Htay told The Irrawaddy that the US actions could hinder the government's ongoing peace process, development and democratization as a whole.

"Their actions are not compatible with where we are heading now. Ordinary people are the most vulnerable when it comes to sanctions," he said.

Analysts have also voiced concerns that targeted sanctions against the military leadership could increase tension between the Daw Aung San Suu Kyi-led civilian government and the country's powerful Tatmadaw—one of the biggest in Southeast Asia.

"As the government has been struggling for national reconciliation, especially with the military, I am concerned that targeted sanctions would derail the effort," said U Maung Maung Soe, a Yangon-based political observer.

Sanctions Never Work

Myanmar and its some 400,000-strong military is no stranger to sanctions imposed by the West.

The EU has imposed sanctions on Myanmar since 1991, in the form of an arms embargo and visa ban on senior members of the then military regime State Law and Order Restoration Council, senior members of the security forces and their families.

Except for an arms embargo, all sanctions were suspended in 2013 in order to welcome and encourage reform.

US economic and financial sanctions were imposed in 1997 and were meant to isolate the then military junta. The US Treasury's blacklist included former dictator Snr-Gen Than Shwe, his military associates, military-owned businesses and cronies linked to military officials, but were lifted last year.

But the West's decade-long sanctions have never been credited for the democratic transition in Myanmar that started in 2011.

Observers like Thant Myint-U writes "the impetus for change came not from western sanctions, which only reinforced isolation."

For some, the EU and US have not got far enough on punitive measures against the military.

Mark Farmaner, director of Burma Campaign UK, said via email it was "very disappointing that the EU decided not to impose any sanctions on the military, "only suspending invitations to senior military officers."

"The failure of the USA to impose any significant sanctions combined with European Union is basically giving a green light for the military to continue ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya," he said.

U Maung Maung Soe said western sanctions have never worked for Myanmar.

"History has proved that it was the people who suffered most while the military leadership and China profited most out of the sanctions," he said, referring to the fact that western restrictions pushed the generals closer to China during the days of sanctions.

On Friday, International Crisis Group warned policy makers in Europe that re-imposing sanctions may not be helpful to address Myanmar's Rohingya crisis as it could risk constraining future policy options as well as sending unintended signals to investors, impacting the economy to the detriment the country's people.

Meanwhile, the impact of the re-imposition of sanctions remains hazy. In the wake of the US announcement, the military withdrew parts of its troops from northern Rakhine State and allowed the World Food Program to resume its aid work in the area. No one knows exactly if these decisions are the results of the sanctions. The military still has not yet made any official comment—both on the troops withdrawal and the re-imposition of sanctions.

On the other hand, it's interesting to know how the restrictions on the military will affect the implementation of recommendations made by the Kofi Annan-led Advisory Commission on Rakhine State.

In conflict-torn northern Rakhine, the army would play a crucial role in the implementation, as they are at the forefront of operations on the ground and a considerable source of information.

Being aware of the army's position, the final report of the Advisory Commission on Rakhine State notes that a high degree of autonomy for the military part of the government muddies the search for and implementation of a coherent and harmonized policy to the complex problems of Rakhine.

When asked if the sanctions would have any impact on the army's cooperation, U Aye Lwin, a Muslim member of the Kofi Annan-led Advisory Commission on Rakhine State, said he wanted only to see "more positive approaches" rather than saying "yes or no" to re-imposing sanctions against the military.

"For the international community, it would be better to negotiate through dialogue," he said.

The post Analysis: Are Sanctions the Answer in the Rakhine Crisis? appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Amid Opposition, Myanmar Amends Fiscal Year

Posted: 31 Oct 2017 04:41 AM PDT

YANGON — Amid calls for reconsideration from military representatives and opposition lawmakers, Myanmar's national fiscal year will be changed to the period from October to September starting from the 2018-19 financial year as the Union Parliament endorsed and documented the presidential proposal to amend the current period on Thursday in Naypyitaw.

The Myanmar government's current fiscal year is the 12-month period beginning on April 1 and ending on March 31. President U Htin Kyaw submitted a letter to Parliament late last month urging lawmakers to change it to Oct. 1 through to Sept. 30.

Deputy minister U Maung Maung Win for the planning and finance ministry said at Parliament on Tuesday that the main purpose for the change is to secure maximum consecutive dry months as monsoon season in Myanmar starts in June and ends in October.

Securing consecutive dry months is beneficial to the operational flow of many sectors including tourism, agriculture, mining and forestry, he said.

"Running construction and infrastructural operations continuously during dry months would result in good financial flow and job opportunities, which would help the country's development," U Maung Maung Win said at Parliament.

Fiscal years vary in different countries—156 countries follow the calendar year while 12 countries including the United States, Laos and Thailand use the October-September period. Myanmar has been practicing the April-March fiscal year since 1974.

Military representatives to Parliament and lawmakers of the opposition Union Solidarity and Development party (USDP) called for reconsideration last week at Parliament saying that the current fiscal year has been practiced for the past 40 years and changing it would lead to inconvenience.

Parliament started to discuss the president's proposal on Oct. 17 and the deputy minister of planning and finance stated that the beginning of the budget year is immediately followed by Thingyan public holidays under the current practice while military representatives and opposition lawmakers argued that the holidays had been reduced to five days this year and that this been no significant impact on functions of the fiscal year.

Explaining the strength of the new fiscal year at the Tuesday session of the Parliament, the minister also acknowledged a weakness in that it would affect the tendering process. However, he said that this could be overcome with good institutional management.

The issue was brought into parliamentary discussion late last year by a lawmaker and was later discussed during the meeting of the union financial commission held in July.

Based on consultation with union ministries and regional level institutions, they have commented that they could adapt to the new fiscal year smoothly and the decision to change the fiscal year was made by cabinet members in September, according to the deputy minister.

The post Amid Opposition, Myanmar Amends Fiscal Year appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

At Least 12 Injured at Taunggyi Balloon Festival

Posted: 31 Oct 2017 04:12 AM PDT

MANDALAY – At least 12 people were injured when a fireworks-laden hot air balloon fell onto spectators and vendors at the annual Tazaungdaing festival in Taunggyi, southern Shan state, on Monday.

The festival committee said a balloon from the Twun Tee team launched in to the air as planned but fell unexpectedly, injuring six people severely—including an elderly lady and a 7-year-old boy—and causing minor injuries to another six.

According to a Ministry of Home Affair's statement, three women and two men were seriously injured.

"We assume that the wick attached under the balloon became too hot and the balloon ruptured before it launched into the air safely," said U Than Win, secretary of the festival committee.

The balloon—carrying liters of burning oil, paraffin and dozens of kilos of fireworks hanging in a frame below it—fell down suddenly onto street hawkers occupying an area meant to be exclusively for spectators.

"An elderly lady and a 7-year-old boy were injured seriously and remain in a serious condition. About six other spectators suffered serious injuries. They all are now at Sao San Tun general hospital," said the secretary.

According to the festival committee, 12 people were treated at the clinic on the festival grounds with minor burns and bruises.

On Sunday afternoon, six homes were destroyed when fireworks stored by Ko Aung Ngae, the team leader of Lu Pae hot air balloon team, for the festival ignited. He was seriously injured as he tried to extinguish the fire from spreading.

"The incident occurred due to the hot temperature and chemical reaction. He [Ko Aung Ngae] is also at Sao San Tun hospital with serious injuries," added the secretary U Than Win.

A fire engine driver in his 40s who attended the blaze on Sunday died, but due to an existing heart condition, according to the secretary.

Accidents are common at the Taunggyi balloon festival with at least or two people injured each year either in preparations for the festival or at the festival it self.

"The festival traditions are deeply rooted," explained secretary U Than Win. "Most teams would not give up even if their lives were in danger."

"To avoid accidents, however, spectators and vendors should be careful and listen to instructions and announcements from organizers."

The festival continues until Friday—the Full Moon Day of Tazaungmone—and hundreds of teams from Taunggyi and surrounding villages will compete to set off the most grand and beautiful hot air balloon.

This year there were a total of 88 teams for firework hot air balloons, 39 teams for lantern decorated hot air balloons and 266 teams for animal figures hot air balloons.

The post At Least 12 Injured at Taunggyi Balloon Festival appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Police Detain Two Municipal Officials in Naypyitaw for Alleged Bribes

Posted: 31 Oct 2017 03:13 AM PDT

NAYPYITAW — Police detained two municipal officers in Naypyitaw on Sunday evening after the Anti-Corruption Commission found that the pair had solicited money from some shop owners.

According to the suggestion of the Attorney General's Office, the commission has filed a lawsuit against the two under Article 56 of Anti-Corruption Law 2013, said U Thin Maung, a member of the anti-corruption commission.

U Min Lwin Soe, deputy director-general of the market department and Dr. Khaing Soe Hla, deputy director-general of the veterinary and butcher department under the Naypyitaw City Development Committee allegedly took 3.5 million kyats from butchers in order to help them avoid their licenses being suspended.

The municipality temporarily suspends the license of butchers who fail to sell meat regularly in markets.

In the said case, some butchers failed to sell meat at markets for a while because of a decline in meat consumption following an avian flu scare in August.  Then, they allegedly paid the two municipal officials to avoid the suspension of their licenses, and filed a complaint that their licenses were suspended even after the alleged bribe.

"The Anti-Corruption Commission has filed a complaint with us. We didn't arrest them. In corruption cases, the commission makes arrests on its own and files complaints with the police station," said police lieutenant Myint Aung of Zabuthiri Township Police Station.

Shop owners filed a complaint on Aug. 21 with the Anti-Corruption Commission, which then investigated the two officials.

One of the accused, U Min Lwin Soe, has denied taking bribes, and said that he would countersue the plaintiffs for defamation.

Though the two municipal officers are based in Naypyitaw, the trial will be held at the regional court of Mandalay Region, and the pair will be detained at Mandalay Region No. 3 Police Station, an official of Naypyitaw municipality told the The Irrawaddy.

Article 56 of the Anti-Corruption Law states that except the political post holder, any other authorized person convicted of committing bribery shall be punished with less than 10 years' imprisonment and fine.

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko.

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USDP to ‘Monitor’ Rohingya Refugee Verification Process

Posted: 31 Oct 2017 01:24 AM PDT

YANGON — Myanmar's opposition party the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) said it would monitor the government's plan to change some of the criteria in the verification process of Rohingya refugees laid down in a 1993 agreement between the Bangladesh and Myanmar governments.

"We are monitoring which points in the existing agreement the two governments would discuss, which points would be added and which points would be scrapped," said USDP central executive committee member U Wunna Maung Lwin at the party's press conference on Monday.

Last week, Myanmar's home affairs minister Lt-Gen Kyaw Swe and his Bangladeshi counterpart Asaduzzaman Khan met in the administrative capital Naypyitaw to discuss the repatriation of refugees to Myanmar.

Following the meeting, Union minister for Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement, U Thein Swe, said the two governments would amend some of the provisions in the 1993 agreement.

The USDP has called on the government to listen to the voices of Arakanese locals and local organizations in amending the agreement, saying that it would make legal responses to any amendment unacceptable to citizens.

More than 600,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled Myanmar since Aug. 25, when militant attacks on police outposts in Rakhine's Maungdaw Township prompted clearance operations by the Myanmar Army. Many of the refugees bring testimonies of indiscriminate killings, rape and arson by security forces and local Arakanese.

The UN has called the campaign ethnic cleansing and there has been mounting international pressure on Myanmar to take back refugees.

The home affairs ministers during their meeting in Naypyitaw agreed on 10 points concerning border security and cooperation between the two countries. They also settled to finalize an agreement on the repatriation of refugees.

However, Bangladesh-based Dhaka Tribune quoted the Bangladeshi foreign minister as saying that Bangladesh did not get the expected response from the Myanmar government regarding repatriation at the meeting.

U Wunna Maung Lwin said the Myanmar government should be "particularly careful of facts that can be harmful to the sovereignty and national interests" of Myanmar during bilateral talks on the verification process.

"In addition, the government should openly inform the public about discussions," he said.

Though the home affairs ministers agreed to halt the mass exodus of refugees last week, many Rohingya are still gathering at the border. On Oct. 29, 426 people left for Bangladesh in 14 vessels, according to a home affairs ministry statement.

At the meeting, Myanmar also handed over a list of suspects reportedly involved in the Aug. 25 attacks who fled to Bangladesh and requested the authorities there to investigate and return them to Myanmar.

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko.

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Japan Pledges to Help Philippines Rebuild Marawi

Posted: 30 Oct 2017 10:13 PM PDT

TOKYO — Japan said on Monday it will help the Philippines rebuild conflict-torn southern Marawi city as well as other infrastructure in a deepening of ties to counter China's regional influence.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe made the pledges in a joint statement with Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte following talks in Tokyo.

Duterte on Oct. 23 announced the end of five months of military operations in Marawi held by Islamic State rebels in a conflict that destroyed much of the city's center and displaced some 300,000 people.

"The Government of Japan recognizes that rehabilitation and reconstruction of the City of Marawi and is extremely important," the statement said.

Japan also offered to help with other projects ranging from rail infrastructure to river defenses including a possible 600 billion yen loan to help fund development of a subway in Manila.

The meeting was an opportunity for Abe to discuss security in Asia ahead of key regional meetings beginning with the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) gathering in Vietnam in November.

"I confirmed with President Duterte that we are both maritime nations sharing basic values and strategic interests," Abe said during his joint announcement with Duterte. The two countries, he added, would address common issues including North Korea and "a free and open Indo-Pacific."

Japan is concerned about China's growing power in the South China Sea and sees cooperation with the Philippines, which lies on the waterway's eastern side, as key ally in helping prevent Beijing's influence spreading into the western Pacific.

Duterte, unlike his predecessor, Benigno Aquino, has been less critical of Beijing's island building in the South China Sea. The Philippine leader will return home on Tuesday after an audience with the Japanese Emperor.

Abe and Duterte will travel to Vietnam for the two-day APEC meeting from Nov. 11, which US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping will attend.

Leaders from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and other countries in the region will meet again in the Philippines after the APEC gathering for the East Asia Summit and a gathering of ASEAN that will be chaired by Philippine’s president.

Duterte in his statement in Tokyo did not mention China, instead calling North Korea to halt its ballistic missile and nuclear test and return to talks with the US, Japan and other countries.

The post Japan Pledges to Help Philippines Rebuild Marawi appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Ten Things to Do in Yangon This Week

Posted: 30 Oct 2017 07:49 PM PDT

MMA Cage Fight | Nov. 3

Hometown hero Aung La Nseng, the MMA One Championship middleweight world champion, will fight heavyweight fighter Alain Ngalani.

Nov. 3, 6:30 pm. Thuwunna Stadium. Tickets at 09-51549297, and www.myasiatiket .com

Memory: International Film Heritage Festival | Nov. 3-12

More than 60 films including banned films around the world will be screened at this film festival.

Nov. 3-12, Waziya Cinema & Maha Bandula Park. Free Admission.  

Trio Stage Show | Nov. 2

Myanmar's celebrated male singers Zaw Win Htut, R Zarni and Wai La will perform on the eve of the Full Moon Day of Tazaungmone.

Nov. 2, 7 pm. People's Park. Tickets between 10,000 and 50,000 kyats at 09-782097436.

Eint Chit Solo Concert | Nov. 3

Famous singer Eint Chit will sing on the Full Moon Day of Tazaungmone.

Nov. 3, 7 pm. Kandawgyi's Hmaw Sin Kyun. Tickets 5,000 to 50,000 kyats at 09-259699669, 09-252598989.

Tazaungdaing Festival | Nov. 4

This event will feature Myanmar traditional marionette and orchestral performances, a cane ball demonstration and traditional snack stalls.

Nov. 4, 5 pm to 9 pm. Sein Lann So Pyay Garden. Free Admission.

U Ba Gyan Tazaungdaing Cartoon Festival | Nov. 2-4

Cartoons of U Ba Gyan and other award-winning cartoonists will be displayed at this annual festival of lights.

Nov. 2-4. 13th Street, Lanmadaw Township.

Book Sale | Nov. 3-5

At this event, books are offered at discount prices and old books can be exchanged.

Nov. 3-5. Yangon Book Plaza, Thanzay Market.

Aung Khaing's Solo Show | Nov. 1-5

The fifth solo exhibition of artist Aung Khaing will feature Myanmar-style modern paintings.

Nov. 1-5. OK Art Gallery, Aung San Stadium (North Wing).

Win Pe Myint: Dialogue with Nature | Nov. 2-11

This exhibition will showcase Myanmar's spectacular landscapes.

Nov. 2-11. Lokanat Galleries, 62 Pansodan St, 1st Floor, Kyauktada Tsp.

Paung Laung Art Exhibition | Nov. 1-5

The fifth group art exhibition of Pyinmana-based artists will showcase more than 30 paintings.

Nov. 1-5. Myanmar Traditional Artists and Artisans Organization, Bogyoke Market.

The post Ten Things to Do in Yangon This Week appeared first on The Irrawaddy.
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Monday, October 30, 2017

The Irrawaddy Magazine

The Irrawaddy Magazine

Govt Suggests Possible Daily Repatriation of 300 Rohingya Refugees 

Posted: 30 Oct 2017 07:34 AM PDT

YANGON — The government has estimated it can take back about 300 Rohingya refugees from Bangladesh per day and said there is a need to scrutinize the refugees under the four main principles of a 1993 agreement between the two countries.

"We can only process about 150 [refugees] in a checkpoint per day as we have to scrutinize and check their information," said U Myint Kyaing, permanent secretary of the Ministry of Labour, Immigration and Population.

The government has said it would accept the refugees at two checkpoints points in Taungpyo Letwe and Nga Khu Ya villages before resettling them in Dar Gyi Zar village in Maungdaw Township.

There have been suggestions from the Bangladesh government to amend parts of the 1993 agreement that allows the return of Rohingya who can prove residence in Myanmar but the four main principles of the agreement won't change, said the permanent secretary.

The four main principles state returnees need evidence of their residence in Myanmar, repatriation must be voluntary, the parents of children born in camps must have lived in Myanmar, and refugees separated from their families need confirmation of this from a Bangladeshi court.

But under the agreement, additional measures in the repatriation process may be needed, said the permanent secretary, adding that these measurements would include taking legal action against any "terrorists" among the returnees on the spot.

He added that the governments of the two countries are still negotiating to sign an MOU for the repatriation of the refugees.

A delegation led by Simon Henshaw, Acting Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, will also meet with government officials and humanitarian agencies to discuss efforts to improve conditions for the significant influx of refugees into Bangladesh, according to the State Department.

Some 600,000 Rohingya Muslims have now fled across the border to Bangladesh from Myanmar Army clearance operations in a campaign the UN calls ethnic cleansing. The refugees say security forces were killing civilians, burning homes, and raping Rohingya women.

The army launched its operations in the wake of deadly attacks on police outposts by the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) on Aug. 25, which was declared a terrorist group by the government.

There is a huge gap regarding the numbers of people who fled to Bangladesh between the ground survey of Rakhine State government and UN statistics, according to the President's Office.

"We have nothing to argue on the number [of refugees]. Whatever the number they are saying, we won't accept if they don't have evidence of their residence here," U Myint Kyaing said.

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Political Outfit Appeals for Unified Shan State Party

Posted: 30 Oct 2017 05:52 AM PDT

The Shan Nationalities Democratic Party (SNDP) has proposed to merge with its rival the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD) in order to secure more votes in the 2020 general elections.

On Saturday the SNDP sought advice on the best way to approach the elections from the Committee for Shan State Unity (CSSU)—a coalition of the SNDP, SNLD, Shan ethnic armed organizations (EAOs), civil society groups and women and youth organizations.

The CSSU is currently chaired by Gen. Yawd Serk of the Restoration Council of Shan State, an EAO signatory to the nationwide ceasefire agreement (NCA).

"We have presented our consensus to the CSSU as it is a uniquely respectable coalition," said SNDP vice-chairman Sai Hla Kyaw, referring to a letter sent from the SNDP to the CSUU on Saturday.

Sai Hla Kyaw told The Irrawaddy his party would wait for a response and consider ways of moving forward. The SNDP wants to either become a newly merged party or split constituencies to contest in 2020 in order to compete with national parties.

SNLD spokesperson Sai Nyunt Lwin said they have not discussed merging because they have not received any formal letter on the subject.

"The immediate merger might cause some difficulties, but we all share similar principles of upholding the interests of our nationalities, so that should not be problem. The year 2020 is not very far from now, and if we could work together, both sides would have mutually benefited," added Sai Hla Kyaw.

The SNDP has made offers of a merger with the SNLD since 2012, with both parties meeting to discuss a union for the first time in May 2014, in Shan State capital Taunggyi.

The parties are yet to hold more meetings on a merger. In March 2016, following the SNDP's fifth congress, the SNDP released a statement saying it would not dissolve the party or merge with any other party.

The SNLD is the more prominent of the parties and enjoys more public support. Before the 2015 elections, 17 SNDP members switched to the SNLD to contest the elections.

The SNLD holds 46 seats in all three parliaments – state, Lower House, and Union – winning 40 in the 2015 elections and six in the 2017 by-election. The SNDP has one state parliament seat overall, won in 2015.

Sai Hla Kyaw said the idea of a merger was driven by the desires of the Shan public, who have long urged for the two parties to be unified.

The SNDP was formed in late 2010 by former SNLD members and contested in the 2010 and 2015 elections. The SNLD was formed in October 1988 and became the second biggest winner countrywide in the 1990 elections, the results of which were ignored by the junta.

The party then shunned the 2010 elections and re-registered in 2012 after its leaders, including chairman Hkun Tun Oo and Sai Nyunt Lwin, were released from long-term imprisonments.

There are about 18 political parties in Shan State and about two thirds of them are trying to collaborate under the League for Shan State Ethnic Political Parties (LSSEP) for the 2020 elections, Sai Hla Kyaw explained.

In order to beat the majority Burman-dominated national political parties such as the ruling National League for Democracy (NLD) and the opposition Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), many ethnicities have urged the leaders of their own ethnic political parties leaders to merge.

But not all attempts across the country have proved fruitful, with conflicting policies preventing mergers.

In Rakhine State, the Arakan National Party in 2013 from the Rakhine Nationalities Development Party and the Arakan League for Democracy (ALD) in order to compete in the 2015 elections. The party split earlier this year, however, and the ALD re-registered with the Union Election Commission in July.

In each of the Mon, Chin and Kachin states, the respective ethnic political parties are attempting a unified party, but efforts have so far been unsuccessful.

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Family Members Are Denied Visit With Detained Journalist in Naypyitaw

Posted: 30 Oct 2017 05:35 AM PDT

NAYPYITAW — Police refused to let family members meet with local reporter Ko Aung Naing Soe, who was among those detained for flying a drone near Myanmar's Parliament in Naypyitaw on Oct. 26.

Police on patrol detained two foreign reporters, Lau Hon Meng from Singapore and Mok Choy Lin from Malaysia—who were working for Turkish state broadcast TRT World, their interpreter and fixer Ko Aung Naing Soe and driver U Hla Tin, after they found them preparing to take aerial photos of Parliament with a drone.

Police charged them under the 2012 Export and Import Law for illegally bringing the drone into the country and said the two foreign journalists and two Myanmar nationals were being detained separately at No. 1 Police Station in Naypyitaw and at Pyinmana Prison respectively, according to Ko Ye Htoo, who is a close friend of Ko Aung Naing Soe and speaking on behalf of his family.

"[Aung Naing Soe's] parents tried to meet him at Pyinmana Prison, but they were told that the interrogation was ongoing and they wouldn't, therefore, be allowed to see him. But [the police] said we would be allowed to see him a couple of days later," Ko Ye Htoo told The Irrawaddy.

Family members of Ko Aung Naing Soe were not informed about his detention immediately and only found out on Oct. 27 when police searched his house in Yangon. The accused were remanded in custody on Oct. 28 for 14 days, Ko Ye Htoo told The Irrawaddy.

"This case has caused considerable controversy both on social media and off. It is strange that authorities have said nothing about it," said Ko Ye Htoo.

The Export and Import Law states that "no person shall export or import restricted, prohibited and banned goods" and that "without obtaining license, no person shall export or import the specified goods which is to obtain permission."

It states that anyone who violates the regulation "shall be punished with imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years or with fine or with both."

U Nay Tuu, a Pyinmana resident and lawyer who is representing Ko Aung Naing Soe, said detainees can get bail for charges under the Export and Import Law.

Training director U Sein Win of the Myanmar Journalism Institute who went to see Ko Aung Naing Soe told The Irrawaddy that he was not able to meet the detainees at the Naypyitaw police station or Pyinmana prison.

"Police said that detainees were held in custody separately," U Sein Win said.

Drones are also used by ordinary people, not only journalists and photographers, in Myanmar and it is not clear if there is an official ban on shooting photos of parliamentary buildings with drones, U Sein Win stressed.

"If such a ban is not in force, it is difficult to say that those reporters violated the law," he said.

In June, three local reporters— The Irrawaddy's Lawi Weng, also known as U Thein Zaw, and U Aye Naing and Ko Pyae Phone Aung from the DVB were arrested and charged under the Article 17(1) of the Unlawful Associations Act for going into a region controlled by the Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) to cover a drug-burning ceremony. They were released in September after the plaintiff – the military – dropped charges against the accused.

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko.

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ICG Warns on Myanmar Sanctions

Posted: 30 Oct 2017 05:30 AM PDT

YANGON — The International Crisis Group warned policy makers in Europe that re-imposing sanctions may not be helpful to address Myanmar's Rohingya crisis as it could risk constraining future policy options as well as sending unintended signals to investors, impacting the economy to the detriment the country's people.

"A return to previous forms of bilateral and EU sanctions on Myanmar in the form of travel bans and asset freezes may not be helpful in achieving concrete progress," warned the ICG on Friday.

The warning by the Brussels-based NGO—that monitors democratic transition worldwide—came nearly two weeks after the European Union and its member states' announcement that they will suspend invitations to the Commander-in-Chief of the Myanmar armed forces and other senior military officers and review all practical defense cooperation due to the disproportionate use of force against Rohingya Muslims in northern Rakhine State.

The statement highlighted current restrictive measures from the EU including an embargo on arms and equipment that can be used for internal repression in Myanmar. It continued that the EU may consider additional measures if the situation does not improve but didn't mention what those measures may be.

The international community has condemned Myanmar's armed forces for arbitrarily killing, raping, and destroying the property of minority Rohingya Muslims in northern Rakhine State amid clearance operations in the area since late August.

The operations were sparked by Muslim militant group the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army attacks on 30 outposts in the area on Aug 25. The government denounced the group as
"terrorist" and operations have seen more than 600,000 Muslims fleeing to Bangladesh as of late October.

The EU has imposed sanctions on Myanmar since 1991, in the form of an arms embargo and visa ban on senior members of the then military regime State Law and Order Restoration Council and senior members of the military and the security forces and their families.

It froze the assets of nearly 1,000 companies and institutions in Myanmar and banned almost 500 people from entering the EU. It also prohibited military-related technical help and banned investment in the mining, timber and precious metals sectors.

All sanctions, except for an arms embargo, were suspended in 2013 to welcome and encourage the reform process. The EU renewed its arms embargo against Myanmar until Apr. 30, 2018.

In tackling the Rohingya issue, the ICG recommends the EU and its member states to continue to support strong Security Council action and push for multilateral and bilateral engagement with Myanmar's civilian and military leaders.

The four-point recommendation also encourages Myanmar's leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi to speak to the nation and make full use of her position to shift the national narrative in a more constructive direction.

The State Counselor's undisputed position as the greatest moral and political authority "gives her the power to sway public opinion, and considerable ability to influence the security forces," the ICG said.

Apart from the EU, the United States also took action against the Myanmar military leadership last week by ending travel waivers and barring units and officers in northern Rakhine State from US assistance, adding that the US was considering imposing economic measures against those responsible for atrocities against the Rohingya.

After the actions, the army withdrew dozens of soldiers from conflict-torn northern Rakhine State's Maungdaw district on Wednesday and the government allowed the UN's World Food Program to resume humanitarian assistance in the area.

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Rakhine State Govt to Close Hindu, Ethnic Arakanese Displaced Person Camps

Posted: 30 Oct 2017 12:20 AM PDT

SITTWE, Rakhine State — The Rakhine State government will close camps for displaced persons who have fled violence in northern Rakhine State by Nov. 2, said the Rakhine State minister for electricity, industry and transportation U Aung Kyaw Zan.

According to the minister, camps in Sittwe, Ponnagyun, Kyauktaw, Mrauk-U, and Minbya townships will be closed as the situation has returned to normal in those areas and many have already left the camps and returned home.

"We are not forcibly evicting them. We are closing [the camps] because there are only a few people left in camps," the minister told The Irrawaddy.

While some 600,000 Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh since Aug. 25 militant attacks prompted a brutal Myanmar Army response in Maungdaw district, thousands of local ethnic people including Arakanese, Mro, and Daingnet as well as Hindus also fled to Sittwe and other townships, though many have now returned home.

According to the government, more than 6,000 people were taking shelter at camps in Sittwe directly after the militant attacks. Currently only five camps—two ethnic Arakanese camps, one Maramagyi camp and two Hindu camps—are operating in Sittwe as many have returned.

More than 600 people are still taking shelter at a Hindu camp in Danyawaddy sports ground and more than 300 at Maramagyi camp. Some 400 Hindus are sheltering at Kyaung Tet Lan ward.

About 1,400 Hindu people who were taking shelter at Danyawaddy sports ground and two Hindu temples in Kyaung Tet Lan and Kyaung Gyi Lan wards of Sittwe who have recently returned to their villages are having trouble with accommodation and food, said vice-chairman U Maung Hla of the Rakhine State Hindu Religion Foundation (Sittwe Branch).

"Those who have gone back phoned me and said that camps in their home areas will not accept them. They said they have no place to live and are also having trouble finding sufficient food," he said.

They have to stay at their relatives' houses and monasteries, he said, adding that Hindu spiritual leaders in Sittwe have provided some rice for them.

"We still want to stay [in the camp] though we're concerned that the government might not like it if we stay. We are concerned about our safety if we go back. Unless the government has a resettlement plan, we'd like to stay here," said U Ni Mal, a Hindu community leader taking shelter at Danyawaddy sportsground.

U Ni Mal hopes that the government would resettle Hindus together at a place close to the main road and the Buddhist community.

Minister U Aung Kyaw Zan said that Hindu and Maramagyi people may continue to stay at the camp if they wish.

"We won't force them to leave. We will let them stay here if they want," said the minister.

The state government informed camp organizers about planned closure of the camps on Oct. 27, saying that camps are to be closed by Nov. 2 and the government would stop food and cash supplies for the camps on that day.

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Technicolour Thailand is Back After a Black-clad Mourning Year for Late King

Posted: 29 Oct 2017 11:36 PM PDT

BANGKOK — Thailand officially ended a year of mourning for its late King Bhumibol Adulyadej on Monday, marking a return to colors for some after a monotone year during which many wore black from head-to-toe out of respect for their revered monarch.

Hundreds of thousands of people thronged Bangkok’s historic quarter to bid farewell last week to King Bhumibol, who died in October 2016. His US$90 million-dollar funeral, full of pomp and ancient ritual, took place over five days.

His remains were brought to their final resting place within Bangkok’s Grand Palace on Sunday. Portraits of the bespectacled late king, who became a father figure for many during a seven-decade reign, were hung across Thailand.

The black-and-white funeral bunting that had hung on the gates of Bangkok’s Government House for a year was taken down on Monday and Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha made a televised announcement to mark the official end of the mourning period.

“The government would like to thank officials, both soldiers and civilians … and the more than 10 million Thais who came to pay respects to the royal body over the past year,” Prayuth said.

May Kanokwattana, 29, an office worker, wore bright yellow as she waited at the Siam BTS, a major Bangkok transport interchange.

"I wore black for one year. I needed to show my sorrow. Today is the first day I am wearing a different color," May told Reuters.

She also wore a pin with the Thai number nine out of respect for King Bhumibol, who was also known as the ninth king of the Chakri Dynasty.

Colors have a profound meaning for Thais. Astrological rules followed by many in the Southeast Asian nation assign a color to each day of the week.

King Bhumibol was born on a Monday, a day associated with the color yellow.

His only son, new King Maha Vajiralongkorn, was also born on a Monday.

Some people shared charts on social media showing which colors would be considered luckiest to wear.

"For confidence, health and power wear orange. For good support wear pale green," said one chart.

Pattinya Mankongwongcharoen, 49, an accountant wearing a peach-colored dress, said: "I won't continue wearing black because the mourning period is officially over and to do so would be disrespectful."

Others said they would continue to wear muted colors.

"I'm still grieving. I’ll wear black or grey for a few more weeks," said Pimsuda Chatree, 37, a shop owner.

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Philippines’ Duterte Says to Deal with Trump in ‘Most Righteous Way’

Posted: 29 Oct 2017 09:33 PM PDT

MANILA — Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said on Sunday he would deal with US President Donald Trump "in the most righteous way" when they meet next month to discuss regional security and Manila's war on drugs.

Trump will travel to Asia on Nov. 3-14 amid rising tensions over North Korea's nuclear and missile programs.

He will be in Manila on the last leg of his trip, which includes visits to Japan, South Korea, China, and Vietnam, to attend the Asean leaders' summit.

Trump will meet with Duterte but will skip the larger meeting in Manila with heads of states and governments from China, South Korea, Japan, India, Australia and New Zealand.

"It would be terrorism, cooperation between the two countries, the fight against drugs. I expect to be dealing with him around these topics," Duterte said in a media briefing before leaving for Japan to meet Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

"I would deal with President Trump in the most righteous way, welcome him as an important leader," he said. "I would have to also listen to him, what he has to say."

Duterte is known for his often profanity-laden tirades against the United States, chiding Washington for treating the Philippines "like a dog," despite the two nations' longstanding relationship.

The Philippines' leader announced his "separation" from the United States during a visit to Beijing a year ago, declaring he had realigned with China as the two agreed to resolve their South China Sea dispute through talks.

Duterte was infuriated by expressions of concern by members of former President Barack Obama’s administration about extrajudicial killings in the Philippines.

But Trump, in a phone call to Duterte in May, praised the Philippine leader for doing an "unbelievable job on the drug problem" despite human rights groups' condemnation of Duterte's drug crackdown, in which thousands of people have been killed.

Human rights, rule of law and due process are among "important developments" the two leaders would likely discuss during their bilateral talks, Sung Kim, US ambassador to Manila, told foreign correspondents last week.

Duterte is accused by international human rights groups of supporting a campaign of extrajudicial killings of drug suspects in the Philippines, which his government denies.

He defended his 16-month-old campaign last week, telling Southeast Asian lawyers at a gathering in Manila that he had been "demonized" and denying allegations of state-sponsored killings of drug dealers and users.

Duterte, speaking in Davao City on Sunday night, said the situation in the Korean Peninsula would be the main agenda item in his talks with Trump.

"We are worried. If anything can go wrong, it will go wrong," he said. "A nuclear war is totally unacceptable to everybody."

Duterte said it would be good if the United States, Japan and South Korea would sit down and talk to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and “tell him that nobody’s threatening him, that there would be no war, and that if you can just tone down or stand down, stop the threats, and that would be the same for America.”

Duterte previously described Kim as a "fool" and "son of a bitch" for "playing with dangerous toys."

Duterte said the North Korea threats would also be discussed during his meeting with Abe, along with Tokyo’s assistance to rebuild the conflict-torn Marawi City in southern Philippines and for Manila’s infrastructure projects.

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Sunday, October 29, 2017

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Myanmar to Charge Journalists on Assignment for Turkish State TV—Officials

Posted: 28 Oct 2017 09:35 PM PDT

NAYPYITAW and YANGON — Myanmar police said on Saturday they were preparing to charge journalists working for Turkey’s state broadcaster TRT, their local interpreter and driver for bringing a drone into the country without permission.

The police were also expecting to obtain court permission to remand the four for up to 15 days as they prepare to charge them under Section 8 of the Export and Import Law. Violators of it can be jailed for up to three years.

The journalists—Lau Hon Meng from Singapore and Mok Choy Lin from Malaysia—plus their interpreter Aung Naing Soe and driver Hla Tin have been detained since Friday for flying a drone near the parliament in Myanmar’s capital Naypyitaw.

The development comes amid tension between Turkey and Myanmar over the Rohingya crisis. In early September, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said the death of the Rohingya constituted a “genocide” aimed at Muslim communities in the region, a charge Myanmar denies.

More than 600,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled the majority-Buddhist Myanmar for neighbouring Bangladesh since security forces responded to Rohingya militants’ attacks on Aug. 25 by launching a crackdown.

Turkish broadcaster TRT said on its website that the network “is in discussions with Myanmar authorities to secure their release. Both journalists had valid visas”.

Arraignment Planned

Myanmar police spokesman Police Colonel Myo Thu Soe told Reuters the journalists “illegally imported the drone” and all four will be charged under the Export and Import Law.

The law does not specifically refer to drones, but it says that “no person shall export or import restricted, prohibited and banned goods,” and that, “without obtaining license, no person shall export or import the specified goods which is to obtain permission.”

“We are going to the court now to obtain the arraignment, we will get it today,” said Police Lieutenant Tun Tun Win. He said that the remand will be for up to 15 days but police expect to file charges within 10 days.

Several journalists in Myanmar have been arrested this year, leading rights groups to warn that the gains made in press freedom since the end of military rule risk being reversed under the administration of national leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

The two foreign journalists are detained at police station no. 1 in Naypyitaw, while the two Myanmar nationals have been transferred to a prison in the nearby town of Pyinmana.

On Friday night, about 25 police staged an evening raid on the Yangon house of the Myanmar interpreter, well-known domestic reporter Aung Naing Soe, seizing his computer memory sticks and searching documents.

Myanmar state broadcaster MRTV said the ministry of foreign affairs had informed the Singaporean and Malaysian embassies about the matter.

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ARSA’s So-called Freedom Movement Smashes Hopes of Co-existence in Rakhine

Posted: 28 Oct 2017 09:24 PM PDT

The bitter truth of the Rakhine conflict today is that there is zero tolerance between the two communities—Rakhine and Rohingya—and little chance to regain a certain amount of harmonious co-existence after orchestrated attacks by a Muslim militant group on Aug 25.

The current situation is the result of a vicious cycle of violence in the area.

The Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army [ARSA] attacked 30 security outposts killing a dozen officers and seizing weapons. The military aggressively retaliated against the militancy. Hundreds or even thousands were indiscriminately killed by both ARSA militants and the government military.

Over half a million Rohingya refugees are now languishing in camps across the border in Bangladesh with tales of killings, arson, and rape by the Myanmar Army.

Behind this latest round of violence is the brutal attacks of ARSA—a group which claims to fight for the rights of the Rohingya people.

Analysts have observed ARSA's attackers were a calculated move to provoke exactly the cruel military "clearance operations" that have occurred—creating a mass exodus of Rohingya and attracting serious international attention to the issue.

ARSA created the crisis now facing Myanmar, Rohingya refugees, and the international community.

But ARSA's actions have not also worsened the already horrific plight of the Rohingya, they have broken any harmony between the two communities—Rohingya Muslims and ethnic Arakanese Buddhists—and created a climate in which it is unlikely they will co-exist as in the past.

Many Rohingya—but certainly not all—seem  to have supported ARSA's moves.

The US-based NPR (National Public Radio) published a story called Rohingya Refugees Pour Into Bangladesh, And Many Questions A Militant Group's Actions in early October. The story reported a narrative different from the majority of coverage from Western mainstream media.

Referring to Rohingya refugees in the camp, the story described how "ARSA overstepped, catastrophically. And innocent civilians are paying the price."

The story quoted a 20-year-old woman with her nine-month-old baby whose father was recruited by ARSA and killed by the military during the attacks on Aug 25: "I am angry at the military for killing my husband," she was quoted. "But I am also angry at those who told my husband to go fight for them."

Another refugee who worked for an international nonprofit organization in Maungdaw Township before fleeing told NPR: "It was a big mistake. If ARSA hadn't launched its attacks, the military wouldn't have reacted as it did. And there wouldn't be nearly half a million refugees here."

Now the number has ushered the UN to call the situation a "textbook example of ethnic cleansing." There is no doubt over the extent that Rohingya people are suffering.

Western countries rushed to heavily condemn both de facto leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi for her silence and the military for its aggressive clearance operations after ARSA's attacks.

But, after realizing that the de facto leader has zero control over the military, they switched their condemnation towards the military.

Many in Myanmar, however, feel the west failed to fully condemn ARSA, who they believe were responsibly for setting off this latest round of violence.

Western media downplayed militant group ARSA led by Ataullah Abu Amar Jununi, known as Ata Ullah, who was born among the Rohingya diaspora in Pakistan and moved as a child to Saudi Arabia.

Western media views are often different from analysts based in Asia.

Conversing with diplomats here in Myanmar, I've heeded that they all condemned ARSA and its terrorist attacks but failed to recognize the points of some refugees as recorded by NPR.

Some of the diplomats might have seen ARSA as "freedom fighters" for Rohingya people. A different from the perception of majority people of Myanmar.

Veteran Myanmar journalist and knowledgeable expert Bertil Lintner, however, wrote: "It would be naïve to think that US security planners are oblivious to reports of ties between ARSA and extremist groups and elements in Pakistan, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia and Arab countries."

"ARSA has strenuously denied any such links, claiming that it's only 'protecting the Rohingya' from Myanmar military abuses and that it is an ethno-nationalist group rather than jihadist organization."

"But its original name, Harakah al-Yaqin, or 'Faith Movement', indicates otherwise, as do intelligence reports linking the group to radical elements in the Muslim World," the writer continued to explain. "The group's mentor, Abdus Qadoos Burmi, a Pakistani of Rohingya descent, is close to Pakistan's Lashkar-e-Taiba, or the Army of the Righteous. The Pakistani-based group was set up in 1987 in Afghanistan with funding from now deceased al Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden and is now one of South Asia's largest terrorist outfits."

Myanmar government denounced ARSA as a terrorist group right after it launched its violent attacks on Aug 25.

Many ethnic Arakanese people do not see any difference between ARSA and Rohingya as they believe many of them support what has been labelled a terrorist organization.

It's believed that a certain number of Rohingya are still committed to ARSA's militant methods. In one of its stories in early October, Reuters quoted a dozen of Rohingya fighters who said they were ready to fight again.

It should be noted that despite their co-existence in the past, the communal strife between ethnic Arakanese and Rohingya is a simmering issue.

Trust between both communities has nearly collapsed as they have long faced three crises—development, human rights and security—as Kofi Annan-led Advisory Commission on Rakhine State described it.

With the latest organized attacks by ARSA in August, the trust has been totally destroyed.

As a result, many Rakhine feel that they are no longer safe to live side by side with Rohingya like in the past again.

Daw Khin Saw Wai, a Rakhine member of Parliament from Rathedaung Township, recently told The New York Times that  "It will be impossible to live together in the future" as she believes, like other Rakhine people, "all the Bengalis learn in their religious schools is to brutally kill and attack."

Ethnic Arakanese may take the latest ARSA's attack as proof of this speculation.

Meanwhile, it's understandable that many Rohingya refugees will not feel to come back after experiencing the military's aggression.

In the mean time, hundreds of thousands of Rohingya civilian refugees are stuck—hungry, diseased, and distressed—in squalid camps in the Bangladesh. Although a repatriation programme ihas been discussed, the future is still incredible bleak for them.

That's the real situation in Rakhine. At the moment, it seems that nothing can heal this antagonism between the two communities.

Repatriation of refugees and granting them citizenship by the Myanmar government as it has promised to do so looks like mission impossible at the moment.

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Saturday, October 28, 2017

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Myanmar Army Partially Withdraws from Maungdaw, Allows Aid Access

Posted: 28 Oct 2017 12:40 AM PDT

YANGON — The Myanmar Army withdrew dozens of soldiers from conflict-torn northern Rakhine State's Maungdaw district on Wednesday, the Office of the Commander in Chief announced on its official Facebook page.

According to the statement, The Myanmar Army dispatched columns to fight the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA), formally known as Harakah Al-Yakin (faith movement) and who attacked 30 border outposts and one military barracks, and conduct "clearance operations."

The army decreased its operations after Sept. 5, the statement said, as Maungdaw district recovered from conflicts in August and the Myanmar Army pulled back troops from the region to be formed as an auxiliary force in state capital Sittwe.

The statement did not mention, however, the number of soldiers as well as the relevant infantry unit.

The military provided four pictures under the statement which captured the arrival of army soldiers in a navy ship as well as several military trucks in capital Sittwe.

An intelligence source based in Rakhine told The Irrawaddy that around 200 soldiers returned and at least one hundred soldiers may now remain in Maungdaw district.

The announcement of withdrawal by the military came two days after the U.S. State Department announced it would suspend travel waivers on Myanmar's senior army generals as well as other responsible officials.

During a press briefing of US State Department's deputy secretary Patrick Murphy on Oct. 24, he said: "We also want accountability for atrocities. As we announced last night, we have identified new and ongoing action to hold responsible those who have committed violence, including following measures, suspending travel weavers for military leaders, accessing existing authorities to consider options to target individual responsible for atrocities."

The Irrawaddy contacted military spokesperson Maj-Gen Aung Ye Win in tas well as Rakhine State's border affairs minister Col. Phone Tint in order to verify whether withdrawing troops in Maungtaw region was related to the US state department's actions or not, but failed to reach them.

Myanmar President Office's spokesman U Zaw Htay told The Irrawaddy's Naypyitaw correspondent that imposing sanctions will hit development for the public of Myanmar and the World Bank's withholding of US$200 million also potentially negatively affected the economic development of Myanmar.

"Sanctions could not be helpful for current situation in Myanmar as we are conducting with coordination and the country is still in a democratic transition process and just half way towards democratic federal union," said U Zaw Htay.

Regarding military troops pulling back from Maungdaw district as a response to the US, ethnic affairs expert U Maung Maung Soe concluded that the actions of army is an attempt to prove to the international community that they are not applying excessive force, rather than a direct response to the US state department's new approach.

"The announcement of US is just blaming the army and even imposing sanction would not greatly impact military leaders," said U Maung Maung Soe.

In terms of the wording "excessive force" in military action, he argued that western countries could define the terminology based on considering heavy civilian casualties.

He pointed out even that the US applauded Philippine military forces for retaking Marawi from Isis. The situation between The Philippines and Myanmar, however, is completely different as ARSA militants used rudimentary weapons against security forces instead of fighting with firearms.

U Maung Maung Soe agreed with allegations of the international community that many Muslim villagers were fleeing to neighboring countries from the military's brutal operations. He said, however, that western countries always blame one-sided to government and purportedly ignored to mention the name ARSA in their statements.

On Thursday, Commander-in-Chief Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing and UN Resident Coordinator to Myanmar Ms. Renata Dessallien discussed their point of views in Napyiyaw. On Friday, World Food Program (WFP)'s spokeswoman Bettiana Luescher told journalists in Geneva that Myanmar has given the green light to resume humanitarian assistance in northern Rakhine State.

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Myanmar’s Gramophone Record Collector

Posted: 27 Oct 2017 09:26 PM PDT

In the early 1960s, when Maung Maung was attending the 7th grade, his grandmother gave him a His Master's Voice (HMV) gramophone, locally called as dog brand gramophone, a present that obsessed him for the rest of his life.

"This was one of the main factors that inspired me to collect gramophone records," said Maung Maung, who is commonly known as researcher Maung Maung.

When it comes to the history of the gramophone in Myanmar, no one knows as much as Maung Maung who has collected almost a century's worth of gramophone records—from the records of a play by Saya Pu—a court artist in the reign of Myanmar's last monarch King Thibaw in late 19th Century—to the last gramophone record produced in Myanmar in 1976 by classical musician Kyaukpadaung Kyaw Lwin in 1976.

He started collecting gramophone records while he was a student after his grandmother gave him a gramophone and kept on collecting through various stages of his life as a university student, a police officer, and then a lawyer.

Gramophone records have recorded Myanmar's classical music, traditional culture and historical events that were previously passed down from generation to generation by word of mouth as well as from books and literature, he said.

Gramophone records of the colonial period. (Myo Min Soe/The Irrawaddy.)

"Around 1972 I was attending university [in Yangon] and gramophones started to lose popularity," he recalled, "Because of the invention of cassette players and the decline in quality of gramophone records."

He related the quality decline to the socialist system being practiced by Burma Socialist Programme Party (BSPP) at the time.

As cassette players became popular, people were selling their old gramophones to dealers. "At that time, people started to exchange their gramophones for cassette players. Later, gramophones were [discarded and] stacked in piles like bricks."

"Nobody would stop you if you take them because people thought they were garbage and you've just cleared it. If I had been the director-general of [State Broadcaster] Myanma Radio and Television [MRTV], I would have taken them by car," he said about the demise of gramophones.

He scavenged through piles of gramophones and records in Yangon and took his favorites back to his native Daik-U Township in Bago Region.

"My father also helped me collect newspaper adverts for gramophone records," he said.

After he graduated, he worked as a school teacher back in Daik-U and taught his students Myanmar literature and nationalism which was taken from Anyeint and marionette songs, and plays in gramophone records, which he had collected.

Maung Maung’s research book on gramophone records. (Myo Min Soe/The Irrawaddy.)

Then he joined the police force and served as a police chief in a number of townships in Bago Region.

"While I was serving as a police chief, I told second-hand goods dealers like this. I don't care anything else but gramophones and records. I would buy any, and any consequence is yours if you don't sell me," he explained how he collected gramophone records.

When he heard somebody had some rare gramophone records, he went there along with his gramophone. He bought gramophone records if owners sold, but when owners didn't, requested owners to let him play it on his gramophone.

He continued collecting gramophone records while he was working as a lawyer after retiring from the police force. He continued to get gramophones and records from his clients and friends.

Former information minister U Kyi Aung, who is also a gramophone fanatic, once solicited him to donate his gramophone records to his ministry, but he refused.

However, with the approval of the minister, he got an opportunity to group the gramophone records of MRTV according to their genres.

Maung Maung’s in-house gramophone records collections. (Myo Min Soe/The Irrawaddy.)

"MRTV has plenty of gramophone records, but not as many as my archive in terms of records with real historical values, for example, only I have the original record of the song Doh Bamar which was the origin of today's Myanmar national anthem and sung by Thakhins in colonial period."

"However, that was very beneficial to my research on gramophones. I am grateful to authorities for this," he said.

Based on his collection of records, newspaper clippings and adverts and references, he published a 1000-page research book on the country's gramophone disc history, for which he won the national literature award in 2015.

Maung Maung shows a gramophone. (Myo Min Soe/The Irrawaddy.)

Regarding the book, historian Dr Toe Hla said: "This is a book which has never existed before, and which every artist should keep."

"From this book, scholars and researchers can find the history of artists and songs of eras, and socio-economy and faith reflected by songs," he remarked.

"I collected them because I'm crazy about it. I'll figure out the arts, history, literature, tradition and culture reflected in those records. I will share the quality of old classical Myanmar songs and standards of Myanmar literature to younger generations and international gramophone disc researchers," he said.

A gramophone record disc of British Burma Film Co. (Myo Min Soe/The Irrawaddy.)

About the future of over 100,000 records which he collected for nearly six decades, he said: "Frankly speaking, I don't expect to receive help from the [information] ministry."

"If I say something, they [information ministry officials] would reply they would submit a letter to the minister or come back again at this or that time. I don't care. In fact, they should come to us. If they don't, I will do it on my own. But if there are people who know the value and can afford to keep my records in a museum or alike, I will transfer them," he said.

"I'll keep on collecting those records. That's my life," he said.

Gramophones and accessories. (Myo Min Soe/The Irrawaddy.)

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Dateline Irrawaddy: Will International Sanctions Over Rakhine Impede Myanmar’s Democratic Transition

Posted: 27 Oct 2017 08:35 PM PDT

Kyaw Zwa Moe: Welcome to Dateline Irrawaddy! Ongoing conflicts in Rakhine State have had a considerable impact on Myanmar's democratic transition. It is likely that western countries will impose targeted sanctions on the Myanmar Army. Under such circumstances, how will Tatmadaw leaders respond? How will Myanmar's relations with the international community change? What are the policies and weaknesses of the government in handling the issue? And will the Rakhine issue put the country's democratic transition in a negative direction? Ethnic affairs and Rakhine issue analyst U Maung Maung Soe joins me to discuss these issues. I'm Irrawaddy English editor Kyaw Zwa Moe.

ရခိုင္အေရးေၾကာင့္ ျမန္မာႏိုင္ငံ က်ရႈံးေနၿပီလား (႐ုပ္/သံ)

Posted by The Irrawaddy – Burmese Edition on Wednesday, October 25, 2017

The Rakhine issue broke out months ago on Aug. 25, and is not yet over. First of all, I think it has had a profound impact on the democratic transition of the country. Myanmar was a charmer on the international stage before the most recent and serious outbreaks of violence in Rakhine over the past three years and even since 2011 when the country started to open up. Everyone was interested in the country and wanted to come and invest. But the problem we are facing is quite serious as around 500,000 to 600,000 have left the country. It is a black stain on Myanmar's democratic transition. Recently, the US State Department said that targeted sanctions would be imposed on Myanmar. They assessed that the security forces led by the military, rather than the government, used excessive force in conducting clearance operations. It is likely that targeted sanctions will be imposed on military leaders by the US or the EU. What will be the response if that happens, and how will our country's relations with the international community change?

Maung Maung Soe: As you've said, it is true that Rakhine issue has become a setback in Myanmar's democratic transition. But I don't think the international community will impose the same punishments as the past. There were strict sanctions while the country was under the military regime.

KZM: Including economic sanctions.

MMS: Yes. But this time, they would assume that the military is mainly responsible, and put limited sanctions. If they impose sanctions on the military, they would target some military leaders. Such sanction would have an impact on the functions of the military. But for the country as a whole, it is unlikely to create impact. But then, it may have some impact on the national reconciliation efforts of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. As President U Htin Kyaw has said in his message to the UN [at 72nd Anniversary], I'd like to urge the UN to pay attention to the interests of each individual UN member. I mean, the UN needs to understand the democratic transition and complexity of our country. I don't mean they should ignore the Bengali issue. Call it a human rights problem or citizenship problem of Bengalis, it is important that the truth is adhered to. The problem today has not just erupted recently, but had been simmering for years—since 2012 or even before. So, it is not reasonable to punish the current government for this. It would be best for the international community to support the reforms of the government, I think. If it imposes sanctions, it would hinder the reforms of the government.

KZM: In the early days of the conflict, the international community blamed both the government and the military. Now, they blame separately, saying that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi doesn't have complete authority over security forces. They now target the military. Anyway, the military leadership plays a major role in the democratic transition of Myanmar. So, the US, UK and EU have invited and held talks with the Commander-in-Chief of Defense Services. Regarding relations with other countries and the military, for example, UK has cancelled engagement with the Myanmar military and stopped a scholarship program immediately. And Myanmar military responded that it would not send [staff to the UK]. So, I think it is difficult to restore such relations between international countries and the military leadership?

MMS: Yes, it would be difficult. I think it will have an impact on the democratic transition of Myanmar. The problem erupted all of a sudden, but because of long-running causes. It erupted while the government of National League of Democracy (NLD) was starting to make changes to it. The international community said that the report of Kofi Annan commission is acceptable to them. And Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has said that she would implement what she can start with the recommendations in the report. Shouldn't the international community wait and see? If they are forcibly putting pressure on the government rather than encouraging it [to implement those recommendations], the outcome would not be good. Again, we can't leave out the military in national reconciliation process. This is the problem of our country.

KZM: Concerning the Rakhine issue, most of the Myanmar people and commentators better understand the situation, but the international community—maybe they have got in a corner because of alleged human rights violations and the UN's strong criticism—according to the UN figures, 500,000 to 600,000 refugees have left Myanmar. Therefore the United States of America as well as other countries are compelled to do something. But then, thinking our local politics simply about national reconciliation, the cooperation of Tatmadaw is extremely important for Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's government in democratic transition. If sanctions are targeted at the Tatmadaw, will it affect the relations between the two?

MMS: Yes, it will. If this happens, there will be increased tensions in our country. The increased tensions will make democratic transition more difficult. Then, our country is likely to be faced with another serious crisis.

KZM: The current situation suggests that we are back in a crisis.

MMS: Yes, we are back in a big crisis. Talking of the military, it has not got a positive reputation both at home and abroad. At such a time, there arose criticisms [concerning its response in Rakhine]. Excessive force might have been used in operations in Buthidaung and Maungdaw. And the Tatmadaw said that it was investigating [into alleged abuses]. But then, Bengalis fled not only because of security forces using excessive force. Because they keep on fleeing in the past two months. We need to find out the reason why they are fleeing. It is no longer because the security forces use force. Security forces might have used force in the early days [of the conflict]. But we didn't witness on the ground. Yes, there might have been the use of excessive force. But then, as far as I'm concerned, organizations related to Bengalis and ARSA [Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army] are gathering those refugees in Bangladesh. They are doing so to demand their political rights like in the case of Kosovo, I assume. We need to foresee such a possibility. You can't approach to this problem one-sidedly.

KZM: The Rakhine issue has put Myanmar's politics back into tight corners. Anyway, the government has to address this issue. And it is addressing. The international aid may not directly come into Myanmar like it did in the past. It seems that the aid may go to those 600,000 refugees who have fled from Myanmar. Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has recently accepted donations from local businessmen for rehabilitation works in Rakhine State. She received nearly 18 billion kyats. So, according to this and her previous messages, it seems that her policy is kind of self-reliance for rehabilitation. But, international assistance is also necessary for us. What will the government require to solve the Rakhine issue, and to get out of this tight corner?

MMS: As you've said, the international assistance to Myanmar will decline. It is estimated that a sum of over US$ 400 million will be required to help refugees in Bangladesh. But then, only over US$ 300 million was earmarked at the meeting [of UN agencies in Geneva]. So, it seems that the large proportion of the sum will go to refugees in Bangladesh. So, we have to do our own for rehabilitation. Though the government has got 18 billion kyats now, it won't be sufficient. But then what we need mainly is political strength. As the report of Kofi Annan Commission has pointed out, representatives of two communities must involve in solving this issue. For the time being, there are many difficulties and restrictions for Bengali representatives to participate. We still can't reach them. But for Arakanese community, we can involve representatives elected by Arakanese people. They may have different and radical views. But those differences must be addressed through negotiation. We must involve in Arakanese community and their representatives in solving this problem. It is the only way forward on self-reliant basis. Now, there are committees for Rakhine State such as Rakhine State development committee, committee to implement the recommendations of advisory commission, and the last one committee for humanitarian assistance, rehabilitation and development committees formed by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. But then, those committees do not include people of concerned societies. If we are to go on a self-reliant basis, representatives of the Arakanese community must be included. The problem must be solved together with them. Some of them may have extreme views and may oppose against illegal Bengali immigrants. In a recent interview [about the violence in Rakhine], a teacher from Indaing said his father was murdered in violence, and they could do nothing. So they are emotional to accept them back or co-exist with them. On Oct. 21 evening, two Diangnet villagers from Aung Thabyay village were killed while they were hunting a boar. Two escaped but with injuries. So, such attacks have not yet been over. So, they are deeply emotional, and we can't stop them from feeling emotional. However, we must solve the problem together with them. Because they live in there.

KZM: After the Aug. 25 attacks, refugees fled, many Hindus as well as other local ethnic people were killed. And there were a lot of arson attacks. Taking a look at the big picture, the bitter truth is that it is now very difficult to restore harmony between two communities—the Rakhine community and the other community. I think it is hard to restore the situation even before August 25. The problem in Rakhine, the western gate of Myanmar has affected the entire country. The peace process is not yet over, and the NCA [Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement] is not yet signed by all groups though it has been two years [since the first signing of NCA]. The fire is burning in Rakhine State and touch wood, if clashes recur? What do you assess?

MMS: It is a real cause for concern. In national reconciliation of our country, federalism is the key.

KZM: It is the most basic part.

MMS: Seven ethnic groups of FPNCC [Federal Political Negotiation Consultative Committee] which accounts for around 80 percent of armed ethnic groups have not yet signed NCA. While we are facing a problem at the western gate of the country, and the international pressure is mounting, we do hope that tensions [with armed ethnic armed groups] could be defused. However, according to what I heard from the speeches on 2nd year anniversary of NCA on Oct. 15, [the government and the military] stick to NCA, and there was criticism against those who don't sign NCA. The government didn't talk much, but the military voiced criticism. It is still difficult to bring those to table to hold political talks on national reconciliation. At such time, there are some tensions. There were tensions after SSPP [Shan State Progressive Party] troops in Wan Hai [SSPP Headquarters] area were asked to move from there in order to build a road on the bank of Thanlwin River. Then, tensions eased and recently rose again when [SSPP] troops stationed between Thanlwin River and the south of Mongshu, Mongtung were asked to move. If they refuse to move, there may be clashes. Likewise other armed ethnic groups based in northern Myanmar such as TNLA [Ta'ang National Liberation Army], AA [Arakan Army], Kokang and KIA [Kachin Independence Army]—if they can't participate in political dialogue for not signing NCA, will they just do nothing to achieve their ambitions? Or if the military will carry out assault? What will happen in western gate if large-scale wars break out in northern Myanmar? Though ARSA is not making serious attacks at the moment, it is not impossible that they may take advantage of clashes in northern area, should it happen, and launch attacks in western gate. If then, our country is likely to become a failed state. As I've said, the government should make relaxations at the same time so that armed ethnic groups can join the peace talks. Only then, it will be able to pull our country out of crisis. Otherwise, our country will get into worse crisis, I'm worried.

KZM: Scholars assess that Myanmar has become nearly a failed state. They say Myanmar is on the verge of becoming a failed state, and just one more step away from it. I think our country is in a corner. Both the government and the military are in a corner. And it is fair to say that the international community is in a corner in handling Myanmar. If they don't take these things into consideration, what they did once to support and assist to democratize Myanmar will come to nothing. Thank you for your discussion.

The post Dateline Irrawaddy: Will International Sanctions Over Rakhine Impede Myanmar's Democratic Transition appeared first on The Irrawaddy.
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