The Irrawaddy Magazine |
- Exhibition Looks Back on 120 Years of Photography in Myanmar
- Karen Group Doubles Up on Young Leader Award for 10th Anniversary
- Still No Date for Release of Census Findings on Ethnic Populations
- Nationalist Monk Gets 3-Month Jail Term for Incitement
- Computer Shops Embrace Lucrative Business: Outfitting Cryptocurrency Miners
- Trial of Mrauk-U Riot Suspects Opens in Special Jailhouse “Court”
- Indonesia Seizes Record 1.6 Tons of Crystal Methamphetamine
| Exhibition Looks Back on 120 Years of Photography in Myanmar Posted: 21 Feb 2018 06:12 AM PST An ongoing exhibition in Yangon tells the history of photography in Myanmar through a display of images taken over the past 120 years. The "Burmese Photographers" exhibition, curated by Austrian artist Lucas Birk, is being shown as part of the Yangon Photo Festival 2018, which opened last Sunday in the former Yangon Secretariat building. The exhibition displays the history and development of Burmese photography, showcasing the way it has changed through different eras and offering a more personal record of movements and events that are already familiar to us from history. "I got the idea for this exhibition while I was doing the Myanmar Photo Archive project, that is collecting Myanmar photographs and researching Myanmar photographic history," Birk said. He started the project in 2013 with the goal of archiving the work of Burmese photographers both during and after the colonial period. The photographs collected by Birk include studio portraits, amateur shots from personal collections, as well as press and advertising materials. So far he has gathered more than 100,000 photos by meeting antique traders, going to flea markets, and searching through the collections of photographers.  "It wasn't easy to collect the photos, but it's worth it," Birk said, adding, "Some I needed to buy from traders, because that's their job." The "Burmese Photographers" exhibition includes around 300 photos from Birk's archive. For some of the photographs, the identity of the photographers is unknown. "We can't know all of the photographers and it's not easy to give them credit. Some photos include a photo studio name or [other] remarks," he said. The exhibition offers a photographic tour through Myanmar's history, from the first room, which features images from the colonial era, to the last, which displays shots from the 1970s that capture the culture and fashions of that time. In the first room, we see the Ahuja family's photo postcards and other photos taken between 1910 and 1940. Director Thet Oo Mg's documentary "The Old Phot  D.A. Ahuja and his family operated a photography business in Myanmar for over 120 years (1885-2007), and their photo postcards form an important part of the aesthetic legacy of the colonial period in Myanmar. The family probably has its origins in what is now Pakistan, according to Birk's research. Photography was first brought to Myanmar by British Army physician John McCosh in 1852. From then into the 20th century, albumen paper was the most important material used to make photographic prints. At that time, it wasn't easy to obtain albumen paper. The very time-consuming and labor intensive process of making it was taken over by McCosh's Burmese assistants. In 1915, U Ohn Maung, an assistant to the photographer D. A. Ahuja, opened his own photo studio, the London Art Studio, which according to Birk was probably the first Burmese-owned photo studio. Soon after, U Pu opened the first Burmese-owned studio in Mawlamyine, named National U Pu. After that, many photo studios including Ko Lay Photo Studio, Sandah Art, Them Jin Studio and Oriental Studio were established in and around Yangon, Mandalay, Pyay and Mawlamyine. "The main point of this exhibition is to show the development of Burmese photographers' skill, standards and technology [by displaying their photographs] in the one place. So all of these photos were taken by Burmese photographers," Birk said.  The next stage of the exhibition focuses on the period of World War II, which ended in 1945, and the struggle for Burmese independence. The photos are shown in the form of still images and through short films. In another room, filmed photo essays, mostly by young local photographers, are shown. The exhibition includes a replica of a colonial-era photo studio. This installation is a popular place for visitors to the exhibition to use as a backdrop for their own photographs. The last room houses a series of photos taken since independence, including images documenting the country's economic development and the photo IDs people needed to obtain work.  During this era, photo technology changed and many people opened photo studios or began to take fashion photography seriously. This marked the beginning of an image-conscious culture that remains with us.  This last room also houses examples of the work of contemporary photojournalists, which serve as evidence of how much the standards of photography in Myanmar have improved. "This is a really great exhibition for me. I'm also interested in photography — that's why I came here. I learned a lot about the history of Myanmar photography that I didn't know before," said Ko Khant, one of the visitors. Photographer Zicky Le, 21, echoed those comments, saying, "As a young photographer, this event has left me inspired and given me the chance to acknowledge the history of the photography of my country. It was a remarkable experience." He saw the event advertised on Facebook and immediately told himself: "I’m so going there!” — and he did. "I feel overwhelmed, inspired and motivated by the history and all the works displayed," he said. A companion book to the "Burmese Photographers" exhibition is on sale at the show along with a selection of postcards. The book contains many more historic photographs and further information on the history of photography in this country, making it of interest to history researchers, or anyone else who is looking for more information on this topic. "I hope many people come and see this Burmese cultural archive, which we didn't have until recently. I hope through this exhibition people will get inspired to collect old photos in their private archives, or I will be happy [to oblige] if they want to save their photos in my Myanmar Photo Archive project," Birk said. The exhibition is open and runs until March 11 at the former Yangon Secretariat building. Admission is free. The post Exhibition Looks Back on 120 Years of Photography in Myanmar appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| Karen Group Doubles Up on Young Leader Award for 10th Anniversary Posted: 21 Feb 2018 05:38 AM PST YANGON — Two Karen have won the Padoh Mahn Sha Young Leader Award for 2017 for their contributions to their community by the Phan Foundation, established in memory of slain Karen leader Padoh Mahn Sha Lah Phan. "Normally only one person is given the Padoh Mahn Sha Young Leader Award each year, but an exception has been made to mark the 10th anniversary of the assassination of Padoh Mahn Sha Lah Phan," the foundation announced in a statement on Wednesday. The award comes with a $2,000 grant — paid for with public donations — to support the winner’s work. Recipients must report back to the foundation on how they have used the money, which must be spent in line with UK charity laws. Both recipients — Saw Than Kyaw Soe, also known as Saw Eh Tho, and Naw Hser Hser — told The Irrawaddy that the award was recognition of their commitment, passion and contributions to the advancement of both their peers and the next generation. Naw Hser Hser, 28, said the award has inspired her to "take more responsibility" for her community. She is the Standing Committee member of Karen Women Organization (KWO) and has worked with the group for the past decade. In 2017 she also became joint general secretary 1 of the Women’s League of Burma. "I am really proud to be recognized with this award because Padoh was a great leader," said Naw Hser Hser, who spent her childhood displaced by the fighting between the Karen National Union (KNU) and the Myanmar military, or Tatmadaw. "He was very committed to the youth. He supported and encouraged the young generation and he put great expectations on the youth. He knew that the Karen revolutionary struggle would not end in the short term, even under his leadership, so he focused on empowering youth," she said. "He believed that only when the youth understood could they take the leading role in the Karen's fight [for autonomy and equality]. Therefore, his contributions still reach many dedicated youth even though he is not with us in person any longer," she added. Padoh Mahn Sha Lah Phan was gunned down by Tatmadaw agents in his home in 2008. He was the KNU’s general secretary at the time. Naw Hser Hser provides capacity-building trainings to her peers and advocates for the Karen abroad. More recently she has provided technical assistance to the KNU in its peace negotiations with the government, helping conduct public consultations with the Karen community since the KNU signed the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement in 2015. Saw Eh Tho, 34, said there were still many more outstanding Karen youth who deserve the award for their own contributions to the community. He said the award has made his "dream become reality," having been inspired by the dedication of past winners to the Karen national cause. Saw Eh Tho is the second secretary of the Overseas Karen Refugee Social Organization (OKRSO) and has been working with the group since 2007. Based in Bangkok, it was formed in 1992 to provide relief, education and healthcare to the Karen community and to promote Karen culture. "The Padoh Mahn Sha Award is influential,” he said. “This is not just a recognition of my 10 years of social work, but also the work of my mother organization, the OKRSO, and the work of many others in the social development sector who have been working so hard for our people. This Young Leader Award is indeed prestigious for Karen youth." He urged Karen youth "to show great perseverance" in the Karen national cause, wherever they were and whatever field they were in, and "to use our time wisely." The awards will be presented to the winners on April 5 in Htantapin Township, Pegu Region. The post Karen Group Doubles Up on Young Leader Award for 10th Anniversary appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| Still No Date for Release of Census Findings on Ethnic Populations Posted: 21 Feb 2018 04:43 AM PST YANGON— There is still no timeframe for the release of long-withheld ethnic population data from the 2014 census, Minister of Labor, Immigration and Population U Thein Swe told lawmakers on Wednesday. Replying to a question from Upper House lawmaker Siang Awi about when the government would reveal the figures, U Thein Swe said further negotiations and consultations with ethnic community leaders and representatives, historians, anthropologists and cultural experts were needed to finalize the terminology and classifications of the ethnic groups. The country's first nationwide census in more than 30 years allowed the respondents to choose from among 135 officially recognized ethnicities that were grouped under eight major "ethnic races" — Kachin, Kayah, Karen, Chin, Mon, Burman, Rakhine and Shan. It is doubtful there really are 135 ethnic groups, Siang Awi, an ethnic Chin, said, noting that while there were 53 tribes listed under the Chin group, there were actually only six. "The public is eager to know the figures for the ethnic populations as this was the first census since 1983," he told the parliament. Due to the sensitivity of the data, publication of the findings on the country's religious and ethnic populations was initially delayed while most of the other census results were released in May 2015, revealing Myanmar's total population to be more than 51 million. The data on religion was released in late July 2016 but the ethnic population figurers continued to be withheld. Even before the census was conducted in March and April of 2014, the question about ethnicity was one of the most controversial elements in the survey. U Thein Swe said the ministry had received complaints about the terminology, classifications and spelling of the names of the ethnic groups, before and after the census was conducted. He said for example, there were those who claimed there aren't 12 tribes in Kachin State, but only six, while in Karen State there were also claims that no 12 tribes existed. He also added that in Chin State, some claimed there are not 53 tribes. "Only after we have settled the controversies, will we release the findings," the minister said. The post Still No Date for Release of Census Findings on Ethnic Populations appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| Nationalist Monk Gets 3-Month Jail Term for Incitement Posted: 21 Feb 2018 02:10 AM PST YANGON — Yangon's Kamayut Township Court sentenced nationalist monk U Parmaukkha to three months in jail on Wednesday for incitement over his comments about the Rohingya during a protest outside the US Embassy in April 2016. U Parmaukkha served a one-month prison sentence late last year for helping stage the protest without permission from authorities but was kept in detention once the term expired to be tried for incitement. With time served, his new jail term will expire next month. The sexagenarian’s lawyer, U Aung Thu Rein Tun, said his client, who could have been sentenced to two years, received the minimum jail term allowed “as the judge took into consideration that he was an elder and a monk." He insisted that the monk was innocent, citing provisions of the Penal Code’s Section 505 (b) that exempt comments that are true and made without the intent to incite. U Parmaukkha 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. His lawyer said the lawsuit was illegitimate because the plaintiff did not sign the complaint and that the monk was countersuing those who endorsed it: two judges, two police lieutenants, a prosecutor and a township administrator. He said the court has already accepted lawsuits against the two police lieutenants and U Than Tun Aung, the deputy administrator of Kamayut Township, and that he was preparing suits against the other three. "The abbot did not use any obscene language. Actually, he tried to calm the public. He said there is no such term as ‘Rohingya,’ which has been widely used," U Tin Htut Zaw, one of the monk’s supporters, said on Wednesday of U Parmaukkha’s comments at the 2016 protest. U Parmaukkha was among seven hardline nationalists, including three monks, sued soon after the protest, which followed the US mission’s use of the term ‘Rohingya,’ though four of them have since been released. Many in Myanmar deny that the Rohingya are a distinct ethnic group and claim they are illegal Bengali immigrants from Bangladesh. The post Nationalist Monk Gets 3-Month Jail Term for Incitement appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| Computer Shops Embrace Lucrative Business: Outfitting Cryptocurrency Miners Posted: 20 Feb 2018 10:36 PM PST HONG KONG/SINGAPORE — Some of the biggest electronics bazaars in Asia are being flooded with customers looking for the latest piece of technology: cryptocurrency mining rigs. Scores of miners from around the world are travelling to places like Hong Kong’s Sham Shui Po and Singapore’s Sim Lim Square to buy the rigs, which the shops’ hardware geeks expertly build behind counters in their cramped boutiques. Some miners only buy components: a motherboard, graphic processing units, fans, power adapters, a display card and a memory card. But even if the vendors assemble them on the spot for a small fee, the finished product is usually still a relative bargain. “It’s 30-50 percent cheaper to buy equipment related to cryptomining in Hong Kong than in Europe,” Russian bitcoin miner Dima Popov said. Hong Kong, for instance, has no sales tax and is closer to component suppliers. Popov buys display cards, motherboards and power supplies in Hong Kong and mines cryptocurrencies in Russia, where electricity is cheaper and the climate is more suitable. The demand for the rigs has added a new dimension to Asia’s tech shopping hubs whose once bustling business fizzled out in recent years hit by waning demand for personal computers. Storefronts that once catered mostly to locals, selling phones and other consumer gear, are now greeting foreign visitors searching for hardware that might make them rich. Digital Mining The rigs are often stacked in warehouses as large as airplane hangars and are monitored constantly. Each unit contains energy-intensive processors that solve complex mathematical computations. When they do so, they are awarded the right to validate a blockchain transaction, earning them a “mining” fee. One cryptocurrency expert said anecdotal evidence suggests on average miners would get their money back in about three months. But those with small, home-based operations might have to wait much longer for a payoff. In Hong Kong, shopkeepers say most buyers come from Russia, but they have had clients from western Europe, Africa and South Korea. Singapore sees visitors from neighboring countries with cheaper operation costs. Their mining machines’ parts are mostly manufactured in China using chips from Advanced Micro Devices and Nvidia, which are looking for export customers amid fears that Beijing will crack down on cryptocurrency miners. “We’ve been selling more these few months and we often run out of stock” as miners move elsewhere and components flood out of China, said Grant Mak of C. Base Computer. Jerry Wu, shop manager of Wisetek Digital Technology Co Ltd, says selling cryptocurrency mining equipment is 50 percent more profitable than selling computer parts and brings him HK$50,000 to HK$60,000 ($6,400 to $7,673) a month in profits. “The revenue is large,” Wu said. Chipmakers Capitalize As miners hunt for deals on gear, chipmakers see opportunity. Rigs can cost anywhere from a few thousand dollars to tens of thousands or more — and processing chips are the priciest component. Samsung Electronics, the world’s biggest microchip producer, said “explosive” demand for the graphics processors used in mining cryptocurrencies is driving fresh growth. “A share of clients from the virtual currency industry is expected to grow dramatically this year in our foundry customer base,” Lee Sang-hyun, vice president of Samsung’s foundry business, said during a conference call. Taiwan’s Advanced Semiconductor Engineering predicted an upswing in demand this year for chips used for mining rigs. And Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd (TSMC), the world’s No.1 foundry by revenue and volume, has embraced cryptocurrency mining as a business venture. But they know how fast that could change. “The urge to mine cryptocurrency is very strong. The incentive, of course, depends on the price of cryptocurrency. And the price of cryptocurrency is very volatile. But the demand right now or for the last year has been very strong, and we expect it to continue to be strong,” TSMC’s chairman, Morris Chang, said on an earnings call last month. ‘They Trust Singapore’ Singapore’s smaller version of Sham Shui Po, the electronics shopping center at Sim Lim Square, is also seeing increased demand for mining equipment. Anuj Agarwal, a 39-year-old consultant for his brother’s shop, Bizgram, said he has dealt with buyers from Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia and Russia. “Foreigners come to Singapore as there is immediate supply of mining rigs here, and they trust Singapore as a country,” he said, adding that some were as young as 16 and came with their parents. Nearby at Video-Pro, Liu Xiao Yu said he could not keep up with the demand. “There was a customer who asked for a rig with 500 GPU cards, which amounted to over S$350,000 ($262,700),” Liu said. “There was another who came by last week asking for 1,000 GPU cards, but I am afraid to accept the offer as supplies are low now.” One rig with GPUs usually has six to 12 such cards. Vendors say the 60 percent drop from an all-time high of close to $20,000 did not deter their regular customers, who tend to own large mining operations. “Individual players may be freaked out, but the big players do not really mind. Big players are our major customers,” said Roy Chan, shop manager of BNW Technology in Hong Kong. In Singapore, some sellers saw a 40 percent drop in revenue as Bitcoin prices tanked. But the shops are unfazed. “Once the value of Bitcoin increases again, we will receive multiple calls and emails from customers all over the world,” Agarwal from Bizgram said. The post Computer Shops Embrace Lucrative Business: Outfitting Cryptocurrency Miners appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| Trial of Mrauk-U Riot Suspects Opens in Special Jailhouse “Court” Posted: 20 Feb 2018 10:21 PM PST SITTWE, RAKHINE – Local authorities conducted a makeshift hearing of eight detainees in Sittwe prison instead of the local courthouse amid concern about security and the health of the suspects, who all suffered gunshot wounds during a riot in Mrauk-U in northern Rakhine State last month. On Jan. 16, thousands of Mrauk-U residents staged a protest after officials banned a memorial event to mark the 233rd anniversary of the end of the Arakan dynasty. Local police opened fire on the crowd, killing seven and severely wounding 12. Authorities quickly transferred eight of the wounded protestors to Sittwe General Hospital from Mrauk-U, while the other four received medical treatment at Mrauk-U Hospital. A few days later, authorities shackled the eight patients in the prison ward of Sittwe hospital, before moving them to Sittwe prison in early February. The lawyers of the accused explained that although authorities had initially planned to bring the eight suspects to Mrauk-U township court, four of the suspects' bullet wounds had not healed sufficiently as of Feb. 20 so it was decided to hold the court session in the Sittwe prison. U Tun Aung Kyaw, an Arakan National Party (ANP) lawyer for the defendants, said that he went to Mrauk-U Township to attend the court hearing but the session was abruptly canceled and so he came back to Sittwe prison. As for the arrest of the eight Mrauk-U residents, former ANP chairman U Aye Maung and author Wai Han Aung, he said the ANP has established a six-member group to provide them with legal assistance. In mid-January, U Aye Maung and Wai Han Aung were detained by Sittwe police on charges of delivering racially motivated hate speech during a Rathedaung literary talk, which authorities said could cause disunity among the majority Bamar and Rakhine communities. Family members of the accused told The Irrawaddy that they were not allowed to treat the wounds of the detainees. "My son was severely wounded by the unexpected opening of fire by police and also arrested," said U Aye Maung Thein, the father of a suspect. "I have no idea about court procedure or law. At the same time, we have to take care of our daily lives as well. I feel overcome with grief whenever I think about the charges against my son." Eight Arakanese were charged under article 6 (1) of destroying government property and public assets. The next court hearing for the eight suspects is scheduled for March 6. The post Trial of Mrauk-U Riot Suspects Opens in Special Jailhouse "Court" appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| Indonesia Seizes Record 1.6 Tons of Crystal Methamphetamine Posted: 20 Feb 2018 09:40 PM PST JAKARTA — Indonesia seized a record 1.6 tons of crystal methamphetamine from a ship off the northern island of Batam on Tuesday, a narcotics official said, the second major drug bust this month. President Joko Widodo’s government has cracked down on trafficking in an effort to contain soaring consumption of crystal meth and other narcotics. But there has been no bloody war on drugs as in the neighboring Philippines, where thousands of people have been killed in anti-drugs operations. Indonesia has among the world’s strictest anti-narcotics laws and drug trafficking is punishable by death. “It’s an estimated 1.6 tons and yes, this is a record seizure for us,” said Sulistiandriatmoko, adding that details of its origin and destination were still under investigation. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime estimates that Southeast Asia's trade in methamphetamines and heroin was worth $31 billion in 2013. Earlier this month, Indonesian authorities confiscated just over 1 ton of crystal meth, known locally as ‘shabu-shabu,’ also in Batam, a small industrial hub a short ferry ride from Singapore. Budi Waseso, head of the anti-narcotics agency, said authorities had acted on a tip from Chinese and Thai authorities and that the shipment had come from Myanmar in a vessel disguised as a fishing boat. “It had been to Australia…and in and out of Indonesian waters several times. This means this ship had repeatedly entered Indonesia carrying large quantities of narcotics,” Waseso said. Myanmar is part of the so-called Golden Triangle where it meets Thailand and Laos and where drug production and trafficking is booming. The post Indonesia Seizes Record 1.6 Tons of Crystal Methamphetamine appeared first on The Irrawaddy. |
| You are subscribed to email updates from The Irrawaddy. To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, United States | |
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.