The Irrawaddy Magazine |
- Ex-Ministers, Armed Groups Operate Farms in Kachin’s Conflict Areas
- Two ANP Members Submit Party Resignation Letters
- Illicit Drugs Seized from Myanmar Army Privates in Maungdaw
- Bangladesh and Myanmar Agree To Treat ARSA As Common Enemy: State Counselor’s Office
- Hindu Organizations Condemn ARSA Attacks
- Top Myanmar Official Says ‘Young Democracy’ Facing Challenges
- Ten Things to Do in Yangon This Week
| Ex-Ministers, Armed Groups Operate Farms in Kachin’s Conflict Areas Posted: 03 Oct 2017 05:20 AM PDT YANGON – Fifty-six-year-old father-of-two Bran Li is a former village administrator of Gang Dau Yang village in Waingmaw Township of resource-rich Kachin State. He has been sheltering, for the last six years, in Mu Yin camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs). He is one of 100,000 people in Kachin State displaced after a 17-year ceasefire agreement between the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and the Myanmar Army broke down in 2011. When clashes erupted along the Waingmaw-Laiza highway in 2011 and 2012, villagers fled their homes and farms and have still not returned as the two armies fight over territory. Unbelievably, however, people are profiting from cultivating large-scale plantations on land deserted due to conflict, while those that once worked the land survive in deprivation inside IDP camps. The Irrawaddy found huge plantations around the villages of Shwe Nyaung Pin, Ga Ra Yang, Hsa Mar, Gang Dau Yang, Nansem Yang—inside the conflict zone. IDPs are unaware of the fate of their land—which many IDPs have cultivated for generations but do not always have official ownership documents—and hope to return at some stage. Farming in the 'Grey Area' This Irrawaddy reporter took Bran Li and other locals to Gang Dau Yang village, near a Myanmar Army base, in early August. On the road to Laiza we passed hundreds of abandoned houses, some already reclaimed by the jungle. Other concrete structures had been put to use as army fortifications and checkpoints. Journalists are not usually permitted to visit the area, a government soldier told The Irrawaddy that, at night, they see flashes of light, but there have not been any clashes for months. On the road from Waingmaw town to Gang Dau Yang, The Irrawaddy saw thousands of acres of banana plantations, produced through cutting and planting tissue culture, with warning signs saying: "Military-Owned Land." Businesspeople are clearly making millions of kyats from agriculture in these conflict areas: Who are they and how were they permitted to farm the land?  Vacant Land Law Over the past six months, The Irrawaddy received classified documents from Waingmaw Township's Department of Agricultural Land Management and Statistics which shows the previous government issued ownership documents of 170,000 acres of land in Waingmaw Township to companies and individuals between 2013 and 2014 under the Management of Vacant, Fallow, or Virgin Land Law of 2012. The list of owners includes: Former Kachin State chief minister Lajon Ngan Sai, senior KIA official Dr. La Ja, relatives of KIA generals, and Shan Yin Hku company which is owned by Zahkun Tin Ying of the Border Guard Force (BGF) that was previously the New Democratic Army-Kachin (NDA-K). The land permits were issued by the Union government. The list also features a person named U Aung Min. Local community groups told The Irrawaddy this could refer to a former Union minister who founded the Myanmar Peace Center (MPC) but The Irrawaddy was unable to independently verify this. The document shows Dr. La Ja applied for 5,900 acres and Lajon Ngan Sai was granted 2,700 acres. KIA official Dr. La Ja has cultivated at least 670 acres of land and the former chief minister has begun working 530 acres of land, though the document does not specific which crop. Shan Yin Hku applied for 10,000 acres of land and has begun working 3,500 acres of it in Man Dwang and Man Waing villages of Waingmaw Township. The Irrawaddy spoke to Dr. La Ja in Chiang Mai last month and he confessed to operating 500 acres of plantations growing cassava—used to make tapioca—in Gang Dau Yang but that he later abandoned the land before the government revoked the license a few months ago. His name may still appear on official documents, he said, even though he is no longer operating a plantation. The Irrawaddy was unable to observe the land itself to verify. On Aug. 11, The Irrawaddy contacted the land records department of Waingmaw Township in order to confirm the details and implementations of the land, but was refused permission. "It is too dangerous for us [to provide the document], you know the situation here," said a junior clerk, adding that he was once threatened with dismissal by a cabinet member.  Opium Poppy Substitutes Last month, The Irrawaddy spoke to Kachin State Chief Minister Hket Awng who officially confirmed the list above. According to him, Dr. La Ja received 5,000 acres and former chief minister Lajon Ngan Sai received 2,700 acres of land as approved by the previous government. He said the U Aung Min listed "probably" referred to the former Union minister. Hket Awng explained that individuals and companies can apply to use vacant land but must implement their proposals within four years in line with the 2012 Land Law—failure to do so can result in the land being repealed. He said the Central Committee for Vacant, Fallow, and Virgin Land Management and Kachin State authorities handed over 1.2 million acres of land to companies, armed organizations, and politicians over the past few years with the purpose of decreasing the amount of opium produced in the state. Only 100,000 acres are currently being cultivated, he said. Local authorities allocated land to 525 individuals and businesses while the central committee granted 301 permits. It's unclear how much of the 1.2 million acres was deemed vacant due to displacement of villagers into camps. The land grows rice, sugarcane, rubber, and bananas, according to local parliamentarian Naw Li who said more than 30,000 acres of banana plantations had been established in Waingmaw Township alone—mostly with Chinese owners producing fruit for the Chinese market. Both the member of Kachin State parliament and the chief minister claimed all such projects were approved under the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP)-led government.  Advantages and Disadvantages The government acknowledges that planting banana through tissue culture damages the soil quality but ignores the activity encourage more jobs in the area and to avoid formers reverting to poppy cultivation. According to the Kachin State chief minister, 10,000 acres of banana plantations were handed to BGFs and their relatives to halt opium poppy cultivation. The chief minister claimed the National League for Democracy (NLD)-led government had reduced 10,000 acres of poppy cultivation in the border regions to just 3,000 acres, though he had no official data to support this claim. Workers in remote regions such as Che Phwe and Sar Law switched from working on poppy plantations to bananas since 2015, he said. Parliamentarian Naw Li provided a different perspective, pointing out banana plantations did not provide decent revenue and the soil would soon lose its nutrients unless a lot of fertilizer was used. The Irrawaddy met with a banana expert from China overseeing a 2,000-acre banana plantation in Nanwa forest of Waingmaw Township—an area protected by the Forestry Department and close to KIA outposts. After nine years, the soil became so damaged he is now seeking a new location to farm. The project is operated by local businessman U Nyunt Aung but two Chinese workers supervise the plantation and hired 22 migrant workers from Rakhine State. One of the Chinese nationals Xiao Li told The Irrawaddy his boss exports at least 300 truckloads of bananas to China annually, each carrying 20 tons. He sells one banana stalk for 36 Chinese Yuan (US$5.4) across the border in China. Naw Li said the move to cultivate bananas rather than opium poppy did not bring benefits to locals who are not taught new agricultural techniques and said he estimated the state government received just 60,000 kyats for each lorry load of bananas in taxes. Although he agreed with the project's intention, he said opium fields had not been significantly reduced as bananas are usually grown on flat land with more water, rather than the hills which support poppy crops. "Poppy growers are not interested to work in banana gardens," said parliamentarian Naw Li. A militia leader in Sudung, Waingmaw Township told the Irrawaddy that opium production has not been dramatically reduced in border areas as locals could not get as much money from other harvests such as bananas, rice, rubber, rambutan, dragon fruit, and cassava.  Further burdens After one-and-a-half years in office, the NLD still do not have proper statistics on the implementation of projects under the vacant, fallow, and virgin land policy. Regional lawmaker Naw Li said even regional ministers are not allowed to enter restricted areas without permission from regional border affair ministers due to safety concerns. "Even cabinet members keen to interact with local people, they can't reach out to the people on the ground," said Naw Li. Kachin State Chief Minister Dr. Hket Aung told The Irrawaddy they have received land dispute complaints claiming land belongs to IDPs. He ordered the state office's secretary to establish a land scrutiny commission in order to establish the amount of redistributed land and how much of it belongs to IDPs. He declined to give a time frame for the scrutiny process and the resettlement of IDPs but acknowledged it could be a growing problem in the area. "Our government is working for peace. The IDPs must return to their origins when we have peace. We will not let official land confiscation happen in future," he said.  The post Ex-Ministers, Armed Groups Operate Farms in Kachin's Conflict Areas appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| Two ANP Members Submit Party Resignation Letters Posted: 03 Oct 2017 05:05 AM PDT Two members of Rakhine State Parliament who represent the Arakan National Party (ANP) requested resignation from the party this week. U Than Maung Oo, a state lawmaker representing Ramree Township Constituency No. 2, submitted his resignation letter on Oct. 3. A day earlier, U Khin Maung Htay, a lawmaker representing Ann Township Constituency No. 2, submitted his resignation. Three lawmakers have requested to leave the ANP this year, within a three month period. Upper house lawmaker Daw Htoot May sent her resignation letter to the ANP in late July to rejoin the newly re-registered Arakan League for Democracy (ALD) party. The ANP was formed in June 2013 with the merger of two Rakhine political parties, the Rakhine Nationalities Development Party (RNDP) and the Arakan League for Democracy (ALD), to consolidate votes in the 2015 general election. The latter formed for the 1990 election and the former was established in 2010 and has contested in the elections since then. Due to the friction within the ANP, the ALD decided to re-establish its party early this year. In their resignation letters, U Than Maung Oo, 57, and U Khin Maung Htay, 33, said they resigned as members and central committee leaders of the ANP. Regarding his decision, U Than Maung Oo told The Irrawaddy on Tuesday that even though they had merged the parties, the two party's political aims were opposing and they "could no longer work together." He was one of the people who had initiated the party merger in 2013. U Khin Maung Htay did not comment on his resignation. ANP vice chairman U Khine Pyay Soe said the decision on the resignation letters would have to wait until the central committee leaders meeting, which will be held next week, either on Oct. 13 or Oct. 14. "As the central committee leaders are selected through the ANP's congress, the decision to approve the resignation letters will have to come from the central committee meeting," explained U Khine Pyay Soe. The ANP is the third largest party in the country and it won 45 out of 1150 seats in November 2015, following the ruling National League for Democracy (NLD) party and the opposition Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP). It contested 63 seats in Rakhine and Chin states, and Irrawaddy and Yangon regions; and won 10 seats in the Upper House, 12 in the Lower House, 22 in Rakhine State Parliament and one seat for the Rakhine ethnic affairs minister post in Yangon. Despite its majority win in the state Parliament, the party did not get to lead the state government, as the heads [chief ministers] of the state and regional governments were appointed by the president, according to the military-drafted 2008 Constitution. The ANP strictly imposed that its members abide by its regulations and those who did not follow party rules were expelled. There have been about seven ANP members, (who were strong ALD members) expelled from the party for "violations of party regulations" since 2016, according to U Tun Aung Kyaw, a general secretary of the ANP. U Kyaw Lwin, the Rakhine State minister for agriculture, livestock, mining and forestry, and U Mya Than, the deputy state speaker, were among those expelled for collaborating with the National League for Democracy in the formation of the state cabinet and Parliament – as the ANP had a policy that it would not collaborate with the NLD. U Aung Mya Kyaw, a secretary of the ANP, told The Irrawaddy, "These latest two resignation letters will be the last to resign from the party, as those who wanted to leave the ANP were all strong ALD members." But none of the three have officially left the ANP yet, he said, as they will have to deal with any issues related to them with the party before their resignations are accepted. "For instance, Ma Htoot May sent her resignation months ago, but she is still on the party list and she can leave only when she has dealt with the issues she needs to," said U Aung Mya Kyaw. Chit Min Tun contributed to this report. The post Two ANP Members Submit Party Resignation Letters appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| Illicit Drugs Seized from Myanmar Army Privates in Maungdaw Posted: 03 Oct 2017 04:31 AM PDT YANGON — Police seized more than three billion kyats (US$2.2 million) worth of yaba pills from two Myanmar Army soldiers in Rakhine State's Maungdaw, according to the state government. Combined forces of the Maungdaw Township police and drug enforcement squad seized more than 1.8 million yaba pills from two soldiers on Monday as they checked a suspicious Toyota Hilux which broke down near the entrance gate to Maungdaw. The two soldiers belong to No. 828 Supply and Transport Unit of Myanmar Army, according to the state government. "The two soldiers said they were from No. 828 Supply and Transport Unit based in Buthidaung. The drug squad has opened case against them. But according to law, they will be brought to military tribunal since they are soldiers," said U Min Aung, the municipal minister of Rakhine State. The two are privates Lu Shae and Kyaw Sein Tun and charged with drug possession, according to U Min Aung. "The market price of the seizure is estimated to be around 3.7 billion kyats. The pink and yellow pills have WY logos and were carried in jute bags," he said. Drug seizures have been frequent since last year in Maungdaw, Buthidaung and Rathedaung townships near the Myanmar-Bangladesh border. Last year, more than 50 million yaba pills were seized in two separate drug busts in Maungdaw. Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko. The post Illicit Drugs Seized from Myanmar Army Privates in Maungdaw appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| Bangladesh and Myanmar Agree To Treat ARSA As Common Enemy: State Counselor’s Office Posted: 03 Oct 2017 02:43 AM PDT YANGON — Bangladesh expressed its position during a visit of Myanmar delegations to regard the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) as a common enemy of Myanmar and Bangladesh, Myanmar's State Counselor's Office said on Tuesday. Myanmar declared the ARSA an extremist terrorist group in accordance with the country's Counter-Terrorism Law after violent attacks on security outposts on Aug. 25. Myanmar State Counselor's Office Minister U Kyaw Tint Swe visited Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, from Sunday through Tuesday and met with the Bangladeshi Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdul Hassan Mahmood Ali to draft plans for the repatriation of Muslim residents who had fled to Bangladesh escaping military clearance operation after the attack by the ARSA in northern Rakhine. The United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the exodus of more than 500,000 Rohingya since late August has become the "world's fastest developing refugee emergency, a humanitarian and human rights nightmare" at the UN Security Council meeting last week. The Myanmar government claimed more than 500 people have been killed since Aug. 25, most of them insurgents, whom it has accused of attacking civilians in northern Rakhine State. Minister U Kyaw Tint Swe was accompanied by permanent secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, U Kyaw Zeya. Bangladesh also stressed its policy of zero tolerance against terrorism, according to a Tuesday statement issued by the Myanmar State Counselor's Office on its official Facebook page. Myanmar State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi said in an address to the nation and international communities last month that "refugees from this country will be accepted without any problem" under the 1993 agreement with Bangladesh. According to Reuters' report, the two countries had agreed on Monday to form a "working group" to commence plans for repatriation. "We are looking forward to a peaceful solution to the crisis," the Bangladeshi foreign affairs minister was quoted in the report. Minister U Kyaw Tint Swe said during the meeting with Bangladeshi officials that Myanmar was "ready to begin the verification and repatriation of refugees," according to the statement. Myanmar's State Counselor's Office said a total of 236,495 people from 46,993 households had been repatriated from Bangladesh to Myanmar between September 1992 and July 2005 in accordance with the agreed criteria set out between the two countries on April 28, 1992. The post Bangladesh and Myanmar Agree To Treat ARSA As Common Enemy: State Counselor's Office appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| Hindu Organizations Condemn ARSA Attacks Posted: 02 Oct 2017 10:48 PM PDT YANGON — Two of the largest Hindu organizations in Myanmar condemned Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) attacks that claimed the lives of residents in Rakhine State including Hindu people, and urged the community to maintain amity and avoid hatred of followers of other faiths. The All Myanmar Hindu Central Council, an umbrella association of Hindu groups across the country, and Sanatan Dharma Swayamsevak Sangh, one of country's prominent Hindu organizations, released a joint statement at a prayer ceremony for Hindu victims in Rakhine State held in Yangon on Sunday. "In the worst circumstance, many Hindu villagers, including children, were brutally murdered and mutilated. Some Hindu women were kidnapped to a neighboring country with the alleged purpose of deceiving the international community and forceful religious conversion. For such actions, we strongly condemned the ARSA," the statement read. Hundreds from the Hindu community prayed for the victims and expressed condolence for the family members. "We view this incidence as an organized terrorist attack [by the ARSA] on innocent civilians, not as a religious conflict between the two religions and so we urge our followers to maintain amity and avoid hatred with followers of all the other faiths," the statement read. The groups also objected to the term "Rohingya Hindu" used by some international media and asked for it not to be used. "The term never existed in the history of Hindus in Myanmar," U Hla Htun, a Hindu religious leader and the coordinator of Sanatan Dharma Swayamsevak Sangh, told The Irrawaddy. Qatar-based Al Jazeera reported "Rohingya Hindus now face uncertainty in Myanmar" on September 21 and Bangladesh-based Dhaka Tribune reported "Who really attacked the Rohingya Hindus in Rakhine?" on October 1. U Ragu Nay Myint of the central council said at the ceremony, "We noticed the usage of the term in international media. We would let them know that there is no such in Myanmar Hindu community." U Hla Htun told The Irrawaddy that the groups announced that they condemn the international organizations and international media who are making unbalanced reporting of the events and turning a blind eye to violent acts on local people by terrorists. "They are talking like only the Rohingya were attacked when actually, our Hindu people were also murdered and attacked," he said. The All Myanmar Hindu Central Council and Sanatan Dharma Swayamsevak Sangh also called the government to restore law and order in the region urgently, saying they would collaborate with the government on any immediate or long-term rehabilitation works for the Hindus in Rakhine State. The post Hindu Organizations Condemn ARSA Attacks appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| Top Myanmar Official Says ‘Young Democracy’ Facing Challenges Posted: 02 Oct 2017 10:34 PM PDT UNITED NATIONS – A top Myanmar official appealed on Monday for democracy in the country to be given "a chance to survive" amid international anger over a military campaign against self-identifying Rohingya Muslims that the United Nations has described as ethnic cleansing. Some 507,000 self-identifying Rohingya Muslim have fled to Bangladesh since insurgents attacked security posts near the border on Aug. 25, triggering fierce Myanmar military retaliation. Myanmar says more than 500 people have been killed, most of them insurgents. National Security Adviser Thaung Tun told Reuters that he has spoken with his US counterpart, H.R. McMaster, on the phone and visited members of the US Congress in Washington last week. He said sanctions were not specifically discussed. The United States called last week on countries to suspend providing weapons to Myanmar’s military, but it stopped short of threatening to reimpose US sanctions, which were suspended under the Obama administration. "We need to ensure that democracy has a chance to survive in Myanmar. This is a young democracy," Thaung Tun told Reuters in an interview at the United Nations, noting that government leader and Nobel peace laureate Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has only been in office for 18 months. Daw Aung San Suu Kyi assumed power following a landslide election win after former military leaders initiated a political transition. For years, the United States and others imposed sanctions on Myanmar in support of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s campaign for democracy. "We have a lot of challenges and these challenges cannot be overcome in a day. Rome wasn’t built in a day. So we can’t undo 50 years of challenges," said Thaung Tun, adding that he hoped to meet in person with McMaster, President Donald Trump's national security adviser, to brief him on the current situation. “Nobody Above the Law" A Trump administration official said last month the violence made it harder for the United States and Myanmar to build warmer ties, and there would likely be some "easing" in the short term, but he did not expect a return to sanctions. Thaung Tun said he had not met privately with US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley but had spoken to her briefly on the sidelines of other meetings in New York. The UN Security Council met publicly last week on Myanmar for the first time since 2009. Haley said the Myanmar authorities appeared to be carrying out "a brutal, sustained campaign to cleanse the country of an ethnic minority." She said countries should stop supplying weapons to Myanmar until the military has sufficient accountability measures. Thaung Tun said "action has been taken against a number of policemen who exceeded their bounds in dealing with detainees." "We have very strict instructions for the security forces to carry out their duties within the bounds of the code of conduct," he said. "Nobody is above the law." He said that ethnic cleansing or genocide was not happening in Myanmar. The Myanmar government has said that there have no military operations since Sept. 5. But Thaung Tun said that since then security forces have responded when attacked. "Under the cover of night there have been some sporadic attacks and the police and the security people have been required to respond in self-defense," he said. The Rohingya are denied citizenship and classified as illegal immigrants, despite claiming roots in Myanmar that go back centuries, with communities marginalized and subjected to bouts of communal violence over the years. Bangladesh and Myanmar agreed on Monday to set up a "working group" to plan the repatriation of those who had fled. The post Top Myanmar Official Says 'Young Democracy' Facing Challenges appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| Ten Things to Do in Yangon This Week Posted: 02 Oct 2017 06:55 PM PDT
Iron Cross Myanmar rock band Iron Cross plays on the Full Moon Day of Thadingyut. Oct. 5, 7.30 pm. Kandawgyi Hmaw Sin Kyun, Tickets are 10,000 kyats at City Mart outlets.
Youk Shi: Mob Scene Big Bag and J Me perform at the National Theater. Oct. 7, 7 pm. National Theater, Myoma Kyaung Street. Tickets between 15,000 and 30,000 kyats at 09-977009157.
Tin Zar Maw: Seven Concert Accomplished singer Tin Zar Maw will perform a solo show. Oct. 7, 7 pm. Thuwunnabhumi Event Park. Tickets are priced between 10,000 and 70,000 kyats at 09-5077244.
Yangon Connection Hip-Hop Show Sai Sai Kham Leng, Snare, Hlwan Paing, Bunny Phyo, Ye Yint Aung, Shwe Htoo, X-Box, and G Fatt perform at this event. Oct. 4, 6 pm. Thuwunnabhumi Event Park. Tickets 9,000 to 20,000 kyats at 09-425557668, 01-8619029, 1876
Chinese Film Festival The Chinese Embassy in Myanmar hosts a Chinese Film Festival featuring two films Xuan Zang and Kung Fu Yoga alternately. Oct. 3-8. 6:30 pm. Nay Pyi Taw Cinema. Free tickets on a first-come-first-served basis.
Orchestra for Myanmar: An Evening of American Music This performance is organized by the UK-based charity Live4Music in partnership with the US Embassy in Myanmar. Oct. 4, 7 to 9 pm. National Theater, Myoma Kyaung Street. Free Admission
Concert: Music from Taiwan This performance features Taiwan folk classics and popular songs with wind instrument accompaniment. Oct. 7, 4:30 pm to 6 pm. Cheng-Yu Language & Business Center, 41st Street, Middle Block.
Golden Art: Shwe Yoe Yar Artist Shwe Yoe Yar's solo exhibition will showcase works depicting Myanmar's culture and traditions. Oct. 5-7. Myanmar Art Center, Chin Chaung Nan Daw, Kabar Aye Pagoda Road.
Farmer Live Solo Show: Dawei Lay This art exhibition features paintings depicting the lives of farmers. Oct.1-28, Eternal Art Gallery, Yuzana Garden Housing.
Eleven Watercolor This group art exhibition will showcase watercolor paintings on various subjects. Oct. 7-11. Hninzi Myaing Art Gallery, Hninzigon Home for the Aged. The post Ten Things to Do in Yangon This Week appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
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