Friday, December 22, 2017

The Irrawaddy Magazine

The Irrawaddy Magazine

Lawyer Says Suspect’s Wealth Could Prove Key in Ko Ni Murder Trial

Posted: 22 Dec 2017 05:05 AM PST

YANGON — An attorney representing the family of slain lawyer U Ko Ni suggested on Friday that the wealth of one of the murder suspects could prove a vital clue in finding the source of the money that financed the assassination.

It has been nearly a year since the prominent Muslim lawyer and NLD legal adviser was shot dead by gunman Kyi Lin outside Yangon International Airport on the afternoon of Jan. 29. Police have detained four suspects — Kyi Lin and alleged co-conspirators Zeya Phyo, Aung Win Zaw and Aung Win Tun. They have been on trial for approximately nine months.

Police allege that suspect and former Lieutenant Colonel Aung Win Khaing, who is still at large, was the mastermind of the assassination. They told the Yangon court in June that they had no new leads on his whereabouts.

During Friday's hearing at the Yangon North District Court, businessman Tin Tun Aung testified about his relationship with the suspect Zeya Phyo. He said the two have known each other since before he formed his company in 2005.

According to the website of Tin Tun Aung's Shogun Co., Ltd., the company is partnered with the Zeya Phyo Group, owned by Zeya Phyo. He told the court that he had borrowed 120 million kyats ($88,000) from Zeya Phyo and returned it in 2016. He also testified that Zeya Phyo used to help his friends whenever they were in financial difficulty.

Citing the financial relationship between the two, one of the lawyers representing U Ko Ni's family, U Nay La, said the testimony suggested that Zeya Phyo was wealthy, a possibly vital clue in finding out how U Ko Ni's assassination was paid for.

"This trial is all about investigating why Kyi Lin was hired, why there was money involved, and what source all that money came from," U Nay La said.

Also at Friday's hearing an IT expert with the national police force's Criminal Investigation Department testified about text messages that had been sent between the suspects. The court has now finished examining 69 of the 80 scheduled witnesses.

Three of the suspects in custody are charged with murder under Article 302 of the Penal Code. Aung Win Tun is charged with harboring a criminal under Article 212.

Zeya Phyo, a former military intelligence officer, is also charged under Article 67 of the Telecommunications Law with possession of restricted telecommunications equipment and under Article 468 of the Penal Code for forgery of national identity cards.

In addition, two of the suspects, Kyi Lin and Aung Win Zaw, are charged under Article 19 (d) and (f) of the Arms Act for possession and transportation of illegal arms.

The post Lawyer Says Suspect's Wealth Could Prove Key in Ko Ni Murder Trial appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

KNPP Says 4 of Its Troops ‘Executed’ While in Army Detention

Posted: 22 Dec 2017 04:44 AM PST

Four soldiers belonging to the armed wing of the Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP) were allegedly executed at a Myanmar Army base in Loikaw Township on Dec. 20 after being detained during an army raid on their camp, according to a leader of the ethnic party.

"They were detained first, then executed," said Khu Daniel, a central committee member of the KNPP, adding that a civilian who was seized along with the soldiers was also missing.

A local newspaper reported that the army had confirmed the deaths, although the Tatmadaw claimed the fatalities occurred during a gunfight.

Khu Daniel said the four soldiers had been manning a checkpoint in the Shadaw area on Dec. 19, when at about 5 p.m. they stopped a convoy of 10 Myanmar Army vehicles on its way back from transporting rations to their battalion. The Karenni Army soldiers found illegal timber hidden in the vehicles, but they did not make an issue of the illicit cargo and let the convoy pass.

At 9 p.m. that evening, Myanmar Army troops from the Regional Operations Command based in Loikaw raided the KNPP base, Khu Daniel said.

"When they raided our base, our troops did not fire at them. They did not do anything," he said.

The Kantarawaddy Times, a Loikaw-based newspaper, reported on its website that a KNPP delegation had visited the army base were the executions were alleged to have taken place, but did not see any signs of fighting.

Residents in the neighborhood told the newspaper that they also did not hear any gunfire on the night of Dec. 19, before the soldiers were reportedly killed at 8 a.m. on the following day.

However, according to the newspaper, the Regional Operation Command told the KNPP delegation that the four soldiers were killed during a gunfight at the Loikaw base, and that the army had cremated their remains. It said the commander handed over four small bottles containing the ashes of the dead solders.

"The Tatmadaw, the chief minister, and the KNPP are still holding negotiations over the case," Col Myint Wai from the Myanmar Army and Border Affairs Ministry in Karenni State was quoted as saying by the Kantarawaddy Times. He added that troop movements on the ground in the state were normal.

When asked how the KNPP would respond to the alleged killings, Khu Daniel said the incident would become a political issue, adding that his party's leaders needed to discuss what to do next.

The KNPP signed a ceasefire agreement with the Myanmar government and the military in March 2012, but they have not yet inked the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA). The KNPP is a member of the United Nationalities Federal Council (UNFC) and is involved in negotiations to sign the NCA.

"Everyone feels sad about this. It should not happen like this. If they were killed while fighting on the battlefield, let's say that is okay. But it was not fair to arrest them and then kill them," Khu Daniel said.

Maj-Gen Aye Lwin, deputy director of the Psychological Warfare and Public Relations Department at the Ministry of Defense, told The Irrawaddy he had not received any information from senior army officers about the alleged killings and had no comment to make about them.

The post KNPP Says 4 of Its Troops 'Executed' While in Army Detention appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Nationalist Monk Again Denied Bail for 2016 US Embassy Protest

Posted: 22 Dec 2017 02:21 AM PST

YANGON — Yangon's Kamayut Township court again denied bail for nationalist monk U Parmaukkha for the charge of Section 505 (b) of Myanmar's Penal Code on Friday.

U Parmaukkha served a one-month prison term on Nov. 21 for violating the Peaceful Assembly Act for staging an unauthorized protest in front of the US embassy last year.

The judge rejected the request for the bail, although the defendant's lawyer requested bail given that the monk was an elder and he had completed his prison term this week.

Violations of Section 505 (b), which covers offenses that are "likely to cause fear or alarm to the public, or to any section of the public, whereby any person may be induced to commit an offense against the State or against the public tranquility" are punishable by a maximum of two years in prison, a fine, or both.

The township court will hear the testimonies of three of six witnesses from the plaintiff's side in regards to the 505 (b) charge next Thursday, Dec. 28.

U Parmaukkha told the public before and after the court hearing "there was nothing in my words that could be charged under 505 [b]."

He said the court continued the trial based on the signature of plaintiff U Than Tun Aung, which he alleges was forged. The judge rejected a request to dismiss the case on Friday.

Daw Khin Mar Oo, the sister of the abbot, told The Irrawaddy that her brother should be released, as he is a good man. "They [the authorities] still will not release him although he is innocent."

In August last year, Yangon authorities granted permission to a nationalist group to hold a protest at the Bo Sein Hman grounds, but they rallied in front of the US Embassy instead and staged a protest over the embassy's use of the term 'Rohingya.'

U Parmaukkha was one of three Buddhist monks who were charged alongside four nationalists in August last year under Section 505 (b) of the Penal Code and Section 19 of the Peaceful Assembly and Procession Law.

Four nationalists – Win Ko Ko Latt, Naung Taw Lay, Thet Myo Oo and Nay Win Aung – were arrested a few weeks after the protest and sentenced to seven-month prison terms for both charges by the same court on September 28 this year.

U Parmaukkha was detained on Nov. 12 when he went to North Dagon police station to seek permission to stage a protest over the alleged confiscation and sale of a land plot by the Yangon municipality to a third party.

The monk came to prominence as a supporter of pro-democracy activists under the military regime. Since 2013, however, he has increasingly been identified with nationalist groups, including the former Ma Ba Tha.

The post Nationalist Monk Again Denied Bail for 2016 US Embassy Protest appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Government Should Allow UN Special Rapporteur to Enter Country

Posted: 21 Dec 2017 11:57 PM PST

Many Myanmar journalists are saying privately that the political situation in the country is sliding back to the way things were under military rule. Some believe the government should open the door to Yanghee Lee, the UN special rapporteur on the human rights situation in Myanmar, and even allow the establishment of an international inquiry into rights abuses as a first step to solving the conflict in Rakhine.

On the other hand, social media, news outlets based in Rakhine State, the Arakan National Party and other Arakanese groups have welcomed the government's decision to ban Lee, in particular its insistence that it could not accept her entering the country without the consent of the Arakanese people.

There are those who say the UN should replace Lee with a new special rapporteur, one who is less biased, in order to help solve the problems in the country. Lee, they say, views the issue from the Rohingya point of view, and is more interested in bringing criminal proceedings at the UN than in trying to solve the country's problems.

On Thursday, the state-run media did not even report on Lee's being denied entry to Myanmar.

When human rights abuses occurred in Rakhine, Kachin, and northern Shan, Lee discussed them at the UN without causing controversy. She traveled to these areas whenever she visited Myanmar in the past. Who will monitor the rights situation if she is barred from entering the country? This will be an important question if Myanmar shuts the door on her.

"Speaking generally, it is not a good idea to bar the special envoy on human rights from coming into the country, because they can protect people from rights abuses," said U Pe Than, an ethnic Arakanese ANP lawmaker in the Lower House of Parliament from the constituency of Myabon.

"But if we look at the yearly reports she has made to the UN after visiting our country, she has presented only one side. Arakanese people and the government have many problems when it comes to the Bengali [a term used by many in the country to refer to the Rohingya as interlopers from Bangladesh], but she did not listen to them," he said.

U Pe Than believed the decision to block Lee's entry into the country was made to protect the country's sovereignty and image.

In interviews with the BBC, Lee has acknowledged that the government and the Myanmar Army are unhappy with her reports, which they say have been biased and unfair since July.

According to Yu Lwin Aung, a spokesperson for the Myanmar Human Rights Commission, the UN should consider finding a replacement for Lee who would be more appropriate to report on the situation in the country.

"We welcome anyone who acts in a positive way. It is difficult to accept someone who tries to make problems for our country," he said. "I do not see our human rights condition suffering if she is not in our country."

Lee Has Her Supporters Here

U Zay Yar Hlaing, editor of Maw Kun (Archive) magazine, said: "I do not support the idea of blocking her from trying to get information inside the country. It is not right to block someone just because we don't like what she said. The government should give her some level of access to information. If she provides faulty information at the UN, the government should be able to produce the evidence to point it out."

He said the government needs to have a better relationship with the international community, and to be more adept at public relations. The government needs a better mechanism for pointing out anything she says that is wrong, he said.

If the government slams the door in the face of the UN Human Rights Council and its mandate to dispatch special rapporteurs, it is essentially saying it doesn't care about political prisoners including journalists, or about workers' rights, the rights of farmers or the right to health care and education; it is not just an issue of the rights of religious minorities.

David Mathieson, an independent analyst working on conflict and peace issues, said Professor Lee is a respected academic who cares deeply for the people of Myanmar, and had tried hard to address a range of complex human rights issues, especially the ongoing conflicts and abuses in Kachin and northern Shan, when the rest of the world seem fixated on the Rohingya. She is not an official of the UN, she is an independent expert and the government should value her work as an independent auditor of the human rights issues facing the transition, Mathieson said. Instead they have treated her in a shabby, dismissive and insulting fashion, he said.

The post Government Should Allow UN Special Rapporteur to Enter Country appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Lawmaker to File Complaint Against Myanmar Army for Obstructing Public Consultations

Posted: 21 Dec 2017 11:24 PM PST

YANGON — Nan Kham Aye, a lawmaker representing the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD) in the Lower House, said she would file a complaint with Parliament about the Myanmar Army's obstruction of public consultations organized by the Committee for Shan State Unity (CSSU) prior to the Union Peace Conference.

"I've decided to raise the issue at Parliament when it resumes," she told The Irrawaddy.

The national-level political dialogue is a mandatory step of the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) in which regional stakeholders express their suggestions and recommendations at large-scale public consultations, which are then shared by representatives at the Union Peace Conference, also called the 21st Century Panglong.

According to the NCA, signatories can hold national-level dialogues (NDs) based on three themes: region, theme and ethnicity.

So far, NDs have been held in areas of six of the eight NCA signatories, but not yet in Shan and Rakhine states.

A meeting of the Joint Implementation Coordination Meeting on the NCA in November between the government, Tatmadaw and armed ethnic groups agreed that the Restoration Council of Shan State (RCSS) would take charge in holding the dialogue in Shan State.

Prior to the ND, the CSSU has been holding pre-public consultations so that the RCSS could bring the voices and concerns of locals forward to the third session of 21st Century Panglong, which is slated to be held in January.

Formed in 2013, the CSSU is a coalition of Shan political parties, civil society organizations and two armed groups—the RCSS and the Shan State Progressive Party.

The CSSU formed five separate teams last week in Taunggyi to conduct consultations across 20 townships in southern, northern and eastern Shan State and in the Shan communities outside of Shan State in Mandalay, Kachin and Karenni states. Each group started discussions on Dec. 17.

According to organizers, the Myanmar Army stopped gatherings in Panglong, Tachilek, and Lashio townships.

Lt-Co Sai Oo, who is in charge of the RCSS Taunggyi Liaison Office, expressed disappointment, saying that those discussions were held with the permission of the Shan State government.

"We talked with the state government and it offered to provide any help necessary," said Lt-Co Sai Oo, lamenting the lack of cooperation between the government and the military.

"We've instructed general administration departments [GADs] in the state to help in order to hold public consultations without disturbing stability and security," Shan State minister for planning and economy U Soe Nynt Lwin told The Irrawaddy.

"The military said that it hadn't received the letter [from the Shan State government]. But the district GAD said that it had informed the commander," said lawmaker Nan Kham Aye.

President's Office spokesman U Zaw Htay told The Irrawaddy in November that NDs still could not be held in Rakhine State because of "security concerns."

The post Lawmaker to File Complaint Against Myanmar Army for Obstructing Public Consultations appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Army to Take Charge of Reopening Mandalay Park

Posted: 21 Dec 2017 11:00 PM PST

MANDALAY — Army authorities in Mandalay are planning to reopen Mann Thida Park by the northern wall of Mandalay Palace some time next year, according to the city mayor.

Mayor Ye Lwin's plans to reestablish the park had been stalled for about a year while waiting for approval and a budget from the Union government.

On Wednesday the mayor wrote on his Facebook page that the local army unit would carry out the project on its own early next year. But details of the project, including cost and how long the work will take, have not been shared.

Local army officials could not be reached for comment.

The army built Mann Thida Park, which ran approximately 200 feet along Mandalay Palace's north wall, in 1959. It featured an open field and children's playground. Visitors could take to the moat around the palace on small boats and take in the water fountains. But the army closed it down in 1996 claiming security concerns.

Locals had mixed feelings about the park's pending return. While some welcomed the news, others said the money could be better spent elsewhere.

"Since the park is being planned by the palace wall, they need to think about the impact on the heritage and about the pollution of the water in the moat," said Aung Naing, a local trader.

"There are many other things that need to be done in Mandalay instead of wasting money on building a park there, such as maintaining the city's sewers and drains," he added.

Others welcomed the prospect of having a new green space in the city to enjoy, but were wary of placing it by the palace.

"Many green spaces of the past have been wiped out because of development, so Mandalay really needs a green space like Mann Thida Park," said historian Hsu Nget.

"However, whoever runs the project needs to pay special attention to its impact on the environment, heritage and pollution. The responsible authorities also need to keep in mind that visitors should be able to visit the place for free," he added.

In its past iteration the park was free of charge. It had a small administration office and only a few vendors were allowed to set up stalls.

The post Army to Take Charge of Reopening Mandalay Park appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

KIA Objects to Use of Vacant IDP Lands

Posted: 21 Dec 2017 10:39 PM PST

YANGON — The Kachin Independence Army's Brigade No. 3 based in Mai Ja Yang stated its objection to individuals and company's applying to use some 9,000 acres of vacant land in Kachin State's Mansi Township for agriculture on Thursday.

These lands belong to internally displaced persons who fled their homes after renewed fighting broke out between the KIA, the armed wing of the Kachin Independence Organization, and the Tatmadaw (Myanmar Army) in June 2011.

Clashes are still ongoing near Mansi, and IDPs from the area are sheltering at churches and other buildings in Mai Hkawng village and at a Baptist church in Mansi town.

In a response to the Mansi Township agricultural land management and statistics department's call for any objection to the applications, the KIA's Mai Ja Yang branch released its response letter. It warned that individuals and companies should cease these plans or face the consequences. The KIO also warned last month that lands belonging to IDPs should not be confiscated or misused.

KIO spokesman Col Naw Bu said the KIO headquarters issued its warning last month in response to reports that the government and the Tatmadaw had been leasing IDP lands to private companies.

"We could not accept that," he said.

Despite a lack of specifics about the types of crops people hoped to grow on these lands, some people have already planted rubbers trees and bananas, according to a development worker and lawmaker from Kachin State.

U Min Min, a state lawmaker representing Mansi constituency, told The Irrawaddy that continuous fighting in and near Mansi makes it impossible for IDPs to return home and for lawmakers to return to the villages to assess the situation.

"We have not been able to go to those villages yet, although it has been my plan to go and listen to local people's concerns. NLD members in the villages told me to hold off my travel plans," he said.

Lawmaker U Min Min added, "Only after we hear the villagers' concerns can we discuss this with the local agricultural land management and statistics department. The officers told me that they have to give permission if there are any applications, as the lands are not in the forest reserve and are vacant land."

He said that the villagers would not want companies or the government to use their lands.

In Mansi alone there are some 20,000 acres that people are trying to obtain licenses to use, and far more in the whole of Kachin State.

IDPs' lands are being taken by others in Myitkyina's Tah Law Gyi village, Waingmaw and Momauk towns, either by Tatmadaw soldiers or border guard forces, said the secretary of the Kachin Development Network Group.

The Kachin State government can decide whether to allow the lands requests for applicants who seek use of 50 acres or less. Permission is needed from the Union government for those who want to use more than 50 acres.

"As the state members of parliament and state government are more aware of regional affairs, the Union government should allow the state to reflect on the real situation on the ground and decide, instead of giving permission simply by looking at maps," said U Min Min.

The post KIA Objects to Use of Vacant IDP Lands appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

US Sanctions Myanmar General, Others for Abuses, Corruption

Posted: 21 Dec 2017 10:29 PM PST

WASHINGTON — The United States on Thursday imposed sanctions on 13 "serious human rights abusers and corrupt actors" including Myanmar General Maung Maung Soe, who oversaw this year's brutal crackdown against the Rohingya Muslim minority.

The US government, applying penalties for the first time under a law passed last year, also targeted 39 other individuals and entities with sanctions that block their assets under US jurisdiction, bar most Americans from dealing with them and largely cut them off from the global financial system.

The Treasury Department said those sanctioned included Benjamin Bol Mel, who has served as an adviser to South Sudan President Salva Kiir and is suspected of getting preferential treatment in government contracts. The list also included former Gambian leader Yahya Jammeh, accused of human rights abuses and corruption, and Israeli billionaire Dan Gertler, accused of using his friendship with Democratic Republic of Congo President Joseph Kabila to secure sweetheart mining deals.

Myanmar's government spokesman was not immediately available for comment on the US sanctions.

Reuters has been unable to reach Jammeh for comment since he went to exile. He has previously denied ordering the torture or death of political opponents. His lawyer until exile, Edward Gomez, said earlier this year that he was unaware of any misspending of public or charity funds by Jammeh.

Gertler has denied all allegations of impropriety and has said his investments in Congo have created thousands of jobs. A spokesman for his Amsterdam-based company the Fleurette Group was not immediately available for comment.

Myanmar's military cracked down on Muslim Rohingya from Rakhine State following Aug. 25 Rohingya militant attacks on an army base and police posts. Gen Maung Maung Soe was in charge of the operation that drove more than 650,000 Rohingya to flee mostly Buddhist Myanmar to Bangladesh.

The United States on Nov. 22 called the Myanmar military operation against the Rohingya population "ethnic cleansing" and threatened targeted sanctions against those responsible.

The United States "examined credible evidence of Maung Maung Soe's activities, including allegations against Burmese security forces of extrajudicial killings, sexual violence and arbitrary arrest as well as the widespread burning of villages," the Treasury Department said on Thursday.

Myanmar's army last month released a report denying all allegations of rape and killings by security forces, having days earlier replaced Gen Maung Maung Soe. No reason was given for his transfer from the post.

'Significant Consequences'

"We must lead by example, and today's announcement of sanctions demonstrates the United States will continue to pursue tangible and significant consequences for those who commit serious human rights abuse and engage in corruption," US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said in a statement.

The sanctions against the 13 people described by the Treasury Department as "serious human rights abusers and corrupt actors" and the 39 "affiliated individuals and entities" were the first imposed under a US law called the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act.

Jammeh, who ruled Gambia for 22 years before being forced into exile after refusing to accept an election defeat, created a terror and assassination squad reporting to him called the Junglers that threatened, terrorized, interrogated and killed people he saw as a threat to his rule, the Treasury Department said.

The sanctions targeted Gertler, considered by diplomats to be a member of Kabila's innermost circle, 19 of his businesses and his Congo-based associate Pieter Deboutte.

The United States imposed sanctions this year and last against top Democratic Republic of Congo security officials over alleged human rights abuses and the failure to organize an election on time to choose Kabila's successor.

For details on the US action, see the Treasury Department statement (here) and for a full list see the department’s website (here).

The post US Sanctions Myanmar General, Others for Abuses, Corruption appeared first on The Irrawaddy.
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