Monday, September 24, 2018

The Irrawaddy Magazine

The Irrawaddy Magazine

New Yangon City CEO Urges Gov’t to Act Quickly to Secure Chinese Investment

Posted: 24 Sep 2018 07:01 AM PDT

YANGON—The CEO of the New Yangon City project said he believed the controversial project on the western bank of the Yangon River will be "a success" if Myanmar is able to take advantage of trade tensions between the U.S. and China and lure more foreign investors.

"I believe we will succeed; now is the right time [to attract investors]. I'm only worried that it may be getting too late," Serge Pun said.

The New Yangon City project is currently in the initial stage of development. During a roundtable discussion on the project with local engineers on Sunday, Serge Pun said nine out of every 10 factories in China were thinking about leaving to avoid the impact of U.S tariffs, which impose a 25-percent tax on goods made in the country.

The property mogul described the situation as "an opportunity" that the government needed to take advantage of before other countries like Vietnam, Cambodia and Bangladesh did. "We have to do the same," he said.

New Yangon Development Company (NYDC) has already received the blessing of the Yangon government to proceed with the project, which the company says will generate 2 million jobs. NYDC is currently looking for international investors for the project. The recent socio-economic master plan for the development states that it will include factories producing goods including garments, processed foods and automotive parts.

"There will be zero tax on goods made in Myanmar. It will be beneficial for them [the Chinese] if they move in here," said Serge Pun, who also serves as NYDC's vice chairman.

NYDC plans to develop 20,000 acres of land in the first phase of the project. This will include five village townships, two bridges, power plants, water and wastewater treatment plants and a 10-square-kilometer industrial estate. The company says the cost of initial infrastructure work in the first phase is expected to exceed USD1.5 billion.

But the project has been under criticism due to the low-lying topography of the area, which is prone to flooding as it has a maximum elevation of just 5 meters above sea level. The company said it had kick-started a flood-risk assessment (FRA) for the New Yangon City project with Royal HaskoningDHV, a Dutch FRA consultant.

NYDC signed a framework agreement in May with Hong Kong-listed China Communications Construction Co. Ltd (CCCC) to provide infrastructure for the first phase of the development. NYDC said the agreement marked the first stage of the NYDC Challenge Model, an adaptation of the global model of the Swiss Challenge for fair competition and transparency.

Serge Pun said at the time that the framework agreement itself doesn't give CCCC the right to carry out infrastructure work. Rather, the firm agreed to submit a set of Pre-Project Documents (PPDs) including technical specifications, a financial proposal and a business model for NYDC to review, as part of the first stage of a fair competition.

As part of the NYDC Challenge, should a second party challenge with a lower bid, CCCC will be allowed to match the offer or forgo. If CCCC chooses to forgo, the second party will be awarded the contract and will have the obligation to reimburse all costs incurred in connection with the preparation and submission of the PPD. Those costs will be agreed between NYDC and CCCC prior to the initiation of the tender process.

"The commercial dealings with CCCC are ongoing," Serge Pun said on Sunday.

But he said the PPD would likely be approved in October, with the NYDC Challenge expected in November while the winner will be decided in December. After the tenders for infrastructure, those for transportation, connectivity and other features of the project will follow.

"If so, we hope to have a solution for the bridges, village towns and artery roads in Phase One by the end of 2020 or in early 2021," he said.

U Saw Htwe Zaw, the joint secretary of the Myanmar Engineer Society as well as a member of the Myanmar Earthquake Committee, urged NYDC to consider the project holistically and in a long-term context. He told The Irrawaddy that he was concerned about the cost, as the area's low-lying topography and soft soil—both of which will leave the project vulnerable to flooding and quakes—will demand a huge amount of investment to make the site fit for development.

"Even though there are solutions for those issues, it could be extremely costly. I am afraid the project will go nowhere due to the expenditure. I just want to see it turn out as a good project, free of criticism," he said.

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Villagers Fall Ill after Thousands of Dead Mussels Wash Ashore in Kyaukphyu

Posted: 24 Sep 2018 06:54 AM PDT

YANGON – Nearly 170 villagers contracted a skin disease after collecting some of the thousands of dead marine mussels that have mysteriously washed up in inlets of the Thanzit River in southern Rakhine State's Kyaukphyu Township in recent days.

Five villagers were treated at Kyaukphyu General Hospital on Sunday.

A hospital employee confirmed that five patients from Kyauk Ngu Village arrived at the hospital at 4:20 p.m. on Sunday and were tested by a doctor. Staff were unable to name the specific disease the villagers had or the medication they were given. The employee believed the patients had complained of skin irritation.

"We saw bumps on their hands and bodies. Doctors assumed it was a normal skin allergy," the employee said.

The Irrawaddy attempted to contact Kyaukphyu General Hospital superintendent Dr. Nay Lin and other doctors at the hospital on Monday but the phone calls were rejected.

One person on the medical staff said five patients came to the hospital seeking medical treatment.

Nearly 170 mussel hunters have been infected by an unknown skin disease after collecting the shellfish in an inlet of the Thanzit River in Rakhine State. /  U Tun lwin / Facebook

Ko Myo Lwin, founder of Ann Regional China Pipeline Watch (ARCPW), said the group has documented a total of 167 locals in Kyauk Ngu village who have been infected with a mysterious skin disease after returning from mussel catching sites. The group stumbled upon the first cases in July while making assessments for a separate project in five townships, including Kyaukphyu.

Kyauk Ngu villager Ko Maung Gyi told The Irrawaddy over the phone that five women were going to see a doctor at Kyaukphyu Hospital. According to him, all five patients were women. They hadn't returned to the village as of Monday evening.

"Dozens of villagers have the same type of red spots on their skin and some said it was very itchy… and we have never experienced this before. This is the very first time," Ko Maung Gyi said.

ARCPW reported the skin disease problem of Kyauk Ngu villagers to Chief Minister U Nyi Pu in the Rakhine capital, Sittwe, on Sept. 17. The group suggested examining the five infected villagers as an initial step. Ko Myo Lwin said state cabinet members told him the state authorities would try their best to get to the bottom of the peculiar outbreak. However, a hospital employee said he had received no such complaint from either local authorities or villagers.

In fact, ARCPW has been observing mussel harvesting sites since July and found a huge site with many dead mussels near Laung Chaung village, more than 25 kilometers from Maday Island, where a pipeline project owned by the Chinese state-run China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC) is situated. The company owns a jetty for international oil tankers and normally pumps oil from the vessels to oil tanks on the island. It annually transmits up to 22 million tons of crude oil from Maday Island to China's Yunan Province.

Kyaukphyu residents and some activists posted photos of the dead mussels on Facebook over the weekend. The photos quickly drew a lot of public attention. Some netizens speculated the problem was caused by the contamination of seawater as Chinese oil tanker crews dumped oil into the river while cleaning the ship. The state-owned Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise (MOGE) previously rebutted the accusation without elaborating on laboratory examination results.

Later, the Yangon-based environmental group Ecology and Economic Development Company Limited (ECODEV) announced it had discovered that lead concentration in the Thanzit River was potentially high and urged the government to investigate the root cause.

On Monday, Ko Myo Lwin and some environmentalists traveled by boat to the incident sites in order to identify the cause of the mussel deaths, leaving in the morning and arriving at around 2 p.m. Local authorities could not be reached for comment Monday. It was unclear whether the shellfish were killed by deadly chemicals or because of contaminated seawater, or if it was a sign that their life cycle in the river was ending.

"The dead mussels covered nearly 1 acre of low tide river area," Ko Myo Lwin said from the spot on Monday.

Another participant, schoolteacher U Tun Lwin from Kyaukphyu, told The Irrawaddy they took empty mussel shells and water samples from the site to send to a Yangon laboratory for scientific examination.

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Mismanagement of Land Deals Has Cost Yangon Billions, Audit Finds

Posted: 24 Sep 2018 06:50 AM PDT

YANGON — The Yangon Region Auditor General’s Office has found that the government’s mismanagement of land leases cost it billions of kyats during the 2016-17 fiscal year, according to the local legislature’s Bill and Public Accounts Committee.

At today’s session of the Yangon Region Parliament, committee chairman U Tint Lwin said many of the companies that leased land did not pay their rents on time and were not fined for late payments, and that their contracts did not even stipulate that they should be fined.

The committee suggested that future contracts make it clear that laggards must pay a fine.

As an example, U Tint Lwin said a company leasing the old courthouse in downtown Yangon was to pay the regional government 400 million kyats ($250,000) a year but has not paid since October.

He said regional officials also broke rules and regulations in awarding a contract for the development of an industrial zone in East Dagon Township.

The government gave two companies permission to develop the zone in 2016. According to the contract, the companies were to receive land grant certificates to the site after they fulfilled their obligations. However, the committee found that one of the companies received its certificate before the contract was even signed and that the other received it only a week after.

"We lost a chance to push them to follow the rules and regulations during the implementation process. The first company paid its rent seven months after the deadline and the second company paid three months late. The government has also not receive late fines because they did not put that in the contract." U Tint Lwin said.

He said the government was also missing out on revenue from a 547-hectare rubber plantation on the outskirts of Yangon because it has yet to be put out to bid.

According to the committee, the audit further revealed that the company that successfully bid for the Yangon Traffic Control Center failed to pay a penalty for not finishing the project. The regional government awarded the 18.9 billion kyats ($11.8 million) contract to build the center to the Myanmar Shwe Ying International Co. Ltd & China Railway 21st Bureau Group Co. Ltd (China) in February 2016. The company was supposed to complete work in six months but has still not finished because of disagreements with authorities on the installation of cables.

U Tint Lwin said the company agreed to pay 100,000 kyats for every day it was late but paid only 21 million kyats for the 2015-16 fiscal year and later stopped paying altogether.

The committee suggested that the government find another company to finish the project.

In Dagon Seikkan Township, the committee added, a residential development company failed to pay its annual lease of more than 3 billion kyats ($1.87 million).

Last week, a Yangon Region Auditor General’s Office report revealed that two bus companies majority owned by the government lost 3.5 billion kyats ($2.19 million) during the 2017-18 fiscal year.

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Gov’t Opens Office in Thailand to Assist Myanmar Fishing Boat Workers

Posted: 24 Sep 2018 05:43 AM PDT

Myanmar yesterday opened a "one-stop" office in southern Thailand's Ranong province to facilitate the recruitment of Myanmar migrant workers by Thai fishing companies and to provide any assistance the workers may need, according to migrant labor advocacy groups in Thailand.

The office will handle Thai visa renewals for workers so they don't need to return to Myanmar. Myanmar officials at the office will also cooperate with the Thai Labor Ministry to assess the Myanmar workers' skills and monitor the working conditions on board fishing boats.

The office will help to implement a memorandum of understanding (MoU) the Myanmar government signed with Thailand in 2016, in which it agreed to send 42,000 workers to crew fishing boats in Thailand. Some 9,000 workers will be sent in the initial batch.

U Myo Aung, permanent secretary for the Myanmar Ministry of Labor, Immigration and Population, told The Irrawaddy that the one-stop service was partly intended to help illegal migrants currently working in Thailand.

It will assist not only fishing-sector workers, but also other Myanmar migrants working in Thailand.

Myanmar signed the MoU with Thailand in 2016 after the National League for Democracy-led government took power. Fishermen already working in Thailand will soon be covered by all of the provisions and protections guaranteed under the MoU, according to U Myo Aung.

"We have not had an agreement with Thailand officially providing fisheries workers before. This is the first time," he said.

Ko Min Oo, who heads the Foundation for Education and Development (FED), an organization that helps migrant workers based in southern Thailand, said that before opening the one-stop office, the Myanmar government held a meeting with migrant organizations in Bangkok on Sept. 22 and asked for suggestions on what steps needed to be taken to ensure the migrant workers' safety on board Thai fishing boats.

The MoU establishes a monthly wage of 12,000 Thai baht (about USD370) for fishing boat workers and entitles them to a two-year working visa. The work visas for the estimated 11,000 Myanmar fishery workers currently in Thailand will expire at the end of this month. Myanmar migrant workers who experience maltreatment will be able to complain to Myanmar authorities at any time via the Ranong office.

The MoU will protect fishermen's rights, Ko Min Oo said. Among its provisions is guaranteed life insurance for all Myanmar fisheries workers in Thailand. The workers are not currently provided with such coverage.

Thailand currently needs 9,000 laborers from Myanmar to work on boats based in three southern provinces—Phang Nga, Phuket and Ranong. Thai fishing companies will work with Myanmar labor-recruitment agencies to source migrant workers in the future.

Myanmar does not have many such agencies, according to FED, making it difficult to find skilled fishermen who have experience working on trawlers.

Some 22 Thai provinces have a fishing industry. Thailand has acquired a reputation as a human-trafficking hub, and work conditions for migrant laborers on Thai fishing boats are notoriously harsh. Bangkok hopes the signing of the MoU with the Myanmar government will boost the perception that it is meeting international standards for recruiting fishermen.

Ko Min Oo cautioned, however, that while Myanmar has a large pool of laborers, the country may find it difficult to provide 40,000 experienced fishing boat workers. Working on a fishing boat without acquiring the proper training ahead of time can be very dangerous, he said.

"New workers need basic training. If not, they will face many risks working on the boats," Ko Min Oo said.

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Business Community Counters Gov’t Reasons for Kyat Depreciation

Posted: 24 Sep 2018 05:35 AM PDT

YANGON—While Myanmar's government has blamed currency manipulation and the trade war between the United States and China for the record depreciation of the kyat against US dollar, business circles are pointing out the Myanmar government's mismanagement and the Central Bank of Myanmar's poor performance.

The kyat-dollar exchange rate has increased steeply from 1,344 kyats per US dollar on June 1 this year to over 1,600 kyats per US dollar in the third week of September.

"There are only a few big players in the market who trade US dollars. In the past, the exchange rates would be stable once the government controlled them. But [the current government] won't do that. It doesn't want to do that. So we are tracking money transactions now," the President's Office spokesperson U Zaw Htay told reporters in Naypyitaw on Friday.

The government is doing an investigation and will then take appropriate action, said U Zaw Htay.

Last month, the government suspended issuing re-export licenses in order to help bring down the dollar value. However, the plan was reportedly leaked and big market players were able to secure re-export licenses just before the suspension. A license now fetches up to 100 million kyats in the market.

The Ministry of Commerce is investigating if the news really was leaked. U Zaw Htay also said that hollow transactions of the dollar have also contributed to the weakening exchange rate. The 'hollow transactions' he refers to are similar to the concept of no-interest credit—buying only verbally without paying the cash.

"Previously, there was only hollow transactions in gold, but there are now hollow transactions of the greenback. This is one of the factors," he said.

It is not yet clear who is reaping benefits from the slump in the kyat, but those at grass-roots level are already suffering.

Fuel prices have increased by more than 16 percent over the past three months with the price of Ron 92, Ron 95 and premium diesel reaching more than 1,000 kyats per liter. People have to pay more for food due to higher transportation costs, and long-distance bus operators have also increased their bus fares.

While other currencies have also slumped against the US dollar, the Myanmar kyat has fallen by the largest degree among its neighboring countries. The price of pharmaceutical products, which Myanmar imports from Thailand, India and a few other countries, have also gone up.

"The Central Bank of Myanmar can only control the formal market. The problem is that the informal market is quite big. The demand for dollars has also increased because of the [re-export] market," said a deputy minister who didn't want to be named.

The deputy minister said that he personally has no idea if private banks are involved in manipulation of US dollars.

One currency dealer, speaking under the condition of anonymity, said that there are fewer than ten big currency dealers in the commercial capital and some of them also trade with Mandalay. The total value of hollow transactions of the US dollar in the market totals millions per day, he said.

"They have huge capital. One of them can save up to 30 million US dollars in his warehouse. The price of gold and the US dollar have increased this much because of manipulation. That's why the price of fuel and medicines have increased. It is not good for the country," he said.

Yangon-based businessman U Soe Tun said that many businesses have switched to dollar trade because of the country's economic downturn and that hundreds of dealers are playing in the market—not just ten.

"It is easy to make hollow transactions. Suppose you buy one million US dollars verbally [without paying the cash] at the rate of 1,600 kyats per dollar. If the price goes up to 1,610 kyats in the evening, you earn 10 million kyats in profit. You don't need to invest any money," explained U Soe Tun.

"Can you tell me any business from which you can earn 10 million kyats in a day without any capital? You can't question whether it's ethical or not. Everyone needs money. It is driven by the situation," he added.

Those in business circles have also criticized the government for suspending the granting of re-export permits without notice, saying that the government announced the suspension just one month in advance last year.

Businesspeople have denied reports that the price of re-export licenses went up because of the leaking of the government's plan to suspend the licenses. They said it was because big exporters offered competitive prices to buy re-export licenses from smaller-scale exporters, they said.

The president or state counselor should speak about the situation to restore the public's confidence, suggested a businessperson who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

"Last time, after the state counselor said that she would hold a meeting with businessmen [on Aug. 27], the exchange rate strengthened by 70 kyats but she spoke nothing [about the weakening exchange rate] and it weakened again."

"People who have money will buy [and save] dollars. It is not that it is only bought by four or five manipulators. Everyone is buying dollars. They are afraid that their money [kyats] will devalue."

"The Central Bank of Myanmar should at least summon and [hold discussions] with currency dealers. The situation will only get worse if the government does nothing," he added.

Businesspeople have suggested that the government should increase tariffs or ban the import of luxury goods and seek ways to curb the illegal transfer of remittance.

"We are doing extensive investigations into what big market players, including money changers, are doing. I can't say the details now, but we are acting accordingly," said U Zaw Htay.

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Colonel Seeks Defamation Suit Against Monk For Posts About Commander-in-Chief

Posted: 24 Sep 2018 05:13 AM PDT

MANDALAY — A military officer in Mandalay is asking police to sue a local Buddhist monk for defaming Senior General Min Aung Hlaing online.

Lieutenant Colonel Myo Khaing Win of the military’s Central Command, Mandalay Division, filed the complaint at the Amarapura Township police station on Sunday requesting that legal action be taken against U Thawbita, who heads a local charity called Bawa Alin.

“The monk is using social media to accuse and defame the senior general and the military by writing nonsense,” the complaint, show to The Irrawaddy by police, says. It asks that U Thawbita be sued under Article 66 (d) of the Telecommunications Act, and references posts on the monk’s Facebook page.

One of the posts says Snr. Gen. Min Aung Hlaing may have orchestrated a prison break in Karen State on Sept. 16. Other posts over the past week liken the commander-in-chief to a cow and say the military is more destructive than a natural disaster.

The head of the township police station, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to peak with the media, said the police have accepted the complaint but added that the lawsuit could only proceed once U Thawbita is at hand.

The police officer said the monk could not be found at the local monastery where he lives and that he has not answered his phone.

U Thawbita has repeatedly posted messages on Facebook supporting of State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy party and criticizing the military.

The Irrawaddy could not reach the monk by phone on Monday.

"U Thawbita's posts may be harsh to some people, but we think he should be judged only by the law of the State Sangha authority because he is a Buddhist monk," said a monk who knows U Thawbita and asked to remain anonymous for his protection.

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Key Witnesses, CCTV Footage to be Presented in Resumed Comedian Murder Trial

Posted: 24 Sep 2018 04:20 AM PDT

YANGON — The Yangon Region High Court on Monday decided to press ahead with the murder case against the alleged killers of Facebook comedian Aung Yell Htwe.

On Monday, the High Court annulled a lower court's ruling to drop the case and release of three suspects in the fatal beating. It also ordered for the murder trial to be resumed.

The three suspects—Than Htut Aung (aka Thar Gyi), Pyae Phyo Aung (aka Aung Lay) and Kyaw Zaw Han (aka Kyaw Zaw)—were released on July 25 after the Yangon Eastern District Court accepted an appeal from the victim's family asking to settle the case.

Daw Nwe Nwe Oo, media and communications officer and deputy director of the High Court, said the trial will resume at Yangon Eastern District Court and the remaining witnesses in the case will testify.

"We will refer the case back to the [Eastern District] Court as soon as possible this week," she said.

Right after the case arrives at the district court this week, the suspects will be re-arrested.

The High Court's decision has come following the intervention of state leaders which was prompted by mounting public criticism over the withdrawal of the case.

"The lower court's decision has been annulled as the withdrawal of the case disrupts law and order and could encourage similar cases," Daw Nwe Nwe Oo said.

Yangon Region's attorney general and five other officials including a judge, law officers and a police officer have been arrested for taking bribes in exchange for their roles in dropping the case. The Anti-Corruption Commission has opened cases against the officials under two different articles of the Anti-Corruption Law.

Yangon Region Attorney General U Han Htoo was expelled from his post soon after his arrest on Sept. 13.

Before the case was dropped July 25, the Eastern District Court heard from 14 of 22 witnesses for the plaintiff. Lawyers pointed out that the court had yet to call key witnesses in the case including a forensic pathologist and police investigators, while CCTV records were also not produced.

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Rohingya’s Return Won’t Affect Security, Union Minister Vows

Posted: 24 Sep 2018 04:12 AM PDT

SITTWE, Rakhine State—Union Minister for Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement Dr. Win Myat Aye has told Arakanese lawmakers not to be concerned about security risks associated with the planned resettlement of Rohingya refugees in Rakhine State's southern Maungdaw.

The security situation was under control, he said on Friday at a meeting to discuss the government's handling of the Rakhine issue with local lawmakers.

"We know you are worried about security in southern [Maungdaw]. But we have taken every step [in the resettlement process] in cooperation with those responsible for security," the Union minister said in response to a question from Myebon Township lawmaker U Aung Win.

"So don't worry about the south [of Maungdaw]. We will [resettle the Rohingya] only when security can be guaranteed," the Union minister told the state Parliament.

Lawmaker U Aung Win said, "The Rakhine State Parliament has raised objections over their resettlement in southern Maungdaw, and locals aren't happy with it either."

According to the Union minister, the government has earmarked 42 places in southern and northern Maungdaw in which to resettle Rohingya.

Some 700,000 Rohingya fled Rakhine for Bangladesh after militant attacks on security outposts in the north of the state in August last year triggered a massive military and police crackdown in the area's Muslim communities.

In November 2017, Myanmar and Bangladesh agreed to start repatriating the refugees in January of this year, but the process has been postponed.

Resettlement will begin in northern Maungdaw, and gradually expand to the southern part of the state, the Union minister said.

U Aung Win also criticized the government for pardoning and resettling a group of Rohingya who returned to Myanmar illegally, after having previously arrested and taken action against illegal immigrants.

"I'd like to ask the government whether it would grant pardons and resettle them if they entered illegally again," U Aung Win asked.

Lawmakers also asked the Union minister about the killing of Mro ethnic people in Maungdaw, the alleged issuance of national identity cards (or "pink cards") to Rohingya, and land grabbing by the military in Rakhine.

Dr. Win Myat Aye said he did not have sufficient information to answer all of the lawmakers' questions, but would reply to any unanswered questions later after consulting with the concerned ministers.

Bangladesh will start repatriating some 3,000 refugees, Myanmar President's Office spokesman U Zaw Htay said at a press conference earlier this month.

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Two NLD Lawmakers Resign from Party

Posted: 24 Sep 2018 02:52 AM PDT

NAYPYITAW — The National League for Democracy (NLD) has accepted the resignation of two NLD lawmakers, confirmed spokesperson of the ruling party Dr. Myo Nyunt on Sunday.

The party has accepted the resignation of two Upper House lawmakers, U Pe Chit of Yangon Constituency (9) and U Tin Aung Tun of Magwe Constituency (5), Dr. Myo Nyunt told reporters in Naypyitaw after a party central executive committee meeting.

"They said that party rules were too strict and they also were not happy that they had to make cash contributions to the party," said Dr. Myo Nyunt, adding that the two lawmakers had not previously broken any party regulations.

NLD lawmakers have to contribute 25 percent of their monthly salaries—250,000 kyats (US$150)—to the party.

U Tin Aung Tun said that he submitted his resignation in June. "I didn't give any reason in my resignation letter. I just said that I did not want to be a party member anymore," he told The Irrawaddy.

He said that he would explain to the public why he tendered the resignation sometime in the future.

The Irrawaddy was unable to reach U Pe Chit but NLD sources told The Irrawaddy in April that the retired colonel-turned-lawmaker was warned by the party several times.

U Pe Chit stopped cooperating with other NLD lawmakers of his constituency after he submitted his resignation in April, Lower House lawmaker U Aung Win of Hmawbi Township told The Irrawaddy.

Earlier this month, two NLD executive committee members—Yangon regional lawmaker U Kyaw Zeya representing Dagon Township (2) and Upper House lawmaker Daw Thet Thet Khine representing Dagon Township— were suspended from the party after the two made comments critical of the NLD-led government.

Political analyst Dr. Yan Myo Thein criticized that democracy within the NLD party seemed to be lower than that of political parties in one-party states.

"It is time party leaders considered decentralizing the party and reducing control of lawmakers," said Dr. Yan Myo Thein.

The NLD has no plan to review its rules though some lawmakers have criticized it as being too rigid, said Dr. Myo Nyunt.

"We have no plan to relax the rules," he said. So far, four lawmakers have resigned from the NLD and the party's disciplinary committee has taken action against more than 40 lawmakers, he said.

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko.

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Korean Reconciliation: Three Lessons for Myanmar’s Leaders

Posted: 24 Sep 2018 02:28 AM PDT

South Korean president Moon Jae-in landed on North Korean soil on Sept. 18 for a historical meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Moon is the third president to visit North Korea following Kim Dae Jung in 2000 and Roh Moo Hyun in 2007.

September's Moon-Kim summit marked the third of its kind and was the fifth inter-Korean summit ever held. Previous meetings between the two current presidents took place earlier this year on April 27 and May 26 at the inter-Korean border.

The concerted efforts of the two leaders are praiseworthy, having met three times in such a short space of time since Moon took office in May 2017.

The most recent meeting, held in Pyongyang, was devoted to discussing denuclearization and the stability of the Korean Peninsula through creating a system of perpetual peace. The summit reached an unprecedented agreement for denuclearization: the permanent dismantling of a missile engine test site at Tongchang-ri.

There are three significant lessons Myanmar's leaders should learn from the two Korean leaders.

The first lesson is drawn from their willingness and commitment to denuclearization and peace. Both Moon and Kim appear to have realized that no one is responsible for denuclearization and peace in the Korean Peninsula except themselves, thus they endeavored for these meetings to be held.

The second lesson is drawn from their sending of special envoys from each state to the other in an effort to break the ice. Prior to Moon-Kim summit in Pyongyang, both leaders sent special envoys respectively to establish a rapport and smooth relations for their summit.

"The special envoy delegation's visit turned out really well. The results were much better than I'd expected," said Moon after sending a special delegation to the North in early September.

The third lesson comes from the face-to-face meeting, which took place on North Korean soil. Moon paid a historic visit to his counterpart's land as a sign of his commitment to peace. After three rounds of meetings, Kim also spoke about the possibility of a visit to Seoul in the very near future.

Due to concerted efforts on both sides, the North Korean leader, Kim, appears to have intentions for a complete denuclearization within three years—before Trump’s four-year presidency ends in January 2021. As well as denuclearization, the two Korean leaders even agreed to seek the rights to co-host the 2032 Olympics.

Myanmar's civil war—an internal conflict and having more marginal effects than nuclear weapons—should have been tamed earlier and solved more quickly through efforts by leaders from all parties. Instead, Myanmar's peace process has become a prolonged affair and has achieved only deadlock rather than peace.

The recent government's Union Peace Commission (UPC) meeting with members of the Northern Alliance—including the Arakan Army (AA), the Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA), and the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA)—on Sept. 5 in Kunming, China, was a positive step for furthering efforts in ending the ongoing clashes.

Regrettably, a planned meeting on the same day between the UPC and the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) was canceled due to weaknesses in preparations for the event. This followed meetings in February and August between a delegation of the Tatmadaw (Myanmar Army) led by Lt-Gen Tun Tun Naung and KIO representatives led by Gen. N'Ban La, at which no results were achieved due to the Tatmadaw's coercion and preconditions for further talks.

In order to expedite the peace process in Myanmar, it is essential for leaders from both sides—both the Tatmadaw and ethnic armed groups—to pursue peace by putting forth a strong commitment to peace, by sending special delegations, by visiting each other's areas and by meeting each other without preconditions.

As they can either be instrumental in advancing the peace process or detrimental in sabotaging the entire peace effort, Myanmar leaders, especially leaders from the Tatmadaw and ethnic armed groups, should thus learn lessons from the leaders of North and South Korea.

As Kim said during a press conference proceeding the recent Moon-Kim meeting in Pyongyang: "We agreed to make active efforts to turn the Korean peninsula into the land of peace without nuclear weapons or nuclear threats," Myanmar's citizens believe that if both the Tatmadaw generals and ethnic leaders have strong commitments to peace, they can surely turn this war zone to a land of peace without any fighting.

Joe Kumbun is the pseudonym of a Kachin State-based analyst.

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Bangladesh Hopes to Start Moving Rohingya to Island in November

Posted: 23 Sep 2018 11:51 PM PDT

DHAKA — The relocation of Rohingya refugees from Cox’s Bazar to Bhasanchar Island could start in November if a team of Bangladeshi and UN officials agrees that camps being built on the flood-prone island are habitable, a Bangladeshi official said.

The team visited the island, located in the estuary of the Meghna River where it meets the Bay of Bengal, on Sunday to inspect progress.

"We have seen the location physically along with the representatives from the UN agencies and other experts. We are very happy with the progress. The UN officials were also happy," Muhammad Habibul Kabir Chowdhury, head of refugee affairs at the Disaster Management and Relief Ministry, said afterward.

"We thought it [Bhasanchar] was located in the sea, but it is not…. Huge work is going on there to build the cyclone shelter. Nearly 1,500 workers are working there at the moment," he said. “I was in a dilemma, but now it’s over.”

Although the site was protected from cyclones by mangrove forests, he said, a 21-food embankment was also being built.

“We do not want to push anyone towards any death trap,” Chowdhury said.

According to the Disaster Management and Relief Ministry, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was scheduled to inaugurate the facilities on Oct. 3.

"We are not taking Rohingya there on Oct. 3,” Chowdhury said. “First we will take some of the Majhi [Rohingya community leaders] to the island to show them what has been built for them, and then we will create awareness among them to ensure the relocation process is voluntary."

Mohammed Abul Kalam Azad, Bangladesh’s Rohingya relief and repatriation commissioner in Cox's Bazar, said a list of volunteers would be compiled only after the inspection team submits its report and the government issues instructions.

The UN declined to comment on the relocation plan on Sunday.

In August, Mia Seppo, the UN resident coordinator in Bangladesh, told the Irrawaddy that discussions with the government on its “concerns of safety, voluntariness and sustainability” were ongoing.

Bangladesh formed a 10-member inspection team headed by Muhammad Mohsin, an additional secretary at the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief, to decide whether Bhasanchar was suitable for relocation earlier this year. The body comprises five members each from the government and the UN.

CR Abrar, a migration and refugee expert in Bangladesh, said authorities must ensure that all relocations are voluntary and complained that the Rohingya themselves were being left out of the discussion.

"Where is the voice of the Rohingya?" he said.

In June, a report by the Special Branch of the Bangladesh police force said that only 13 percent of surveyed Rohingya refugees wanted to move from Cox’s Bazar to the Bhasanchar. Among their main concerns was the island’s isolation, which they worry will limit their access to medicine and other relief supplies, and being separated from relatives.

Muhamed Rafique, a refugee, said he would prefer to return to Myanmar if the government were to grant Rohingya citizenship, something it has been loath to do.

"I will not go there [to Bhasanchar], where cyclones can hit us,” said Muhammad Ali, a community leader in one of the Cox’s Bazar camps. “Rohingya who have been living here for some years may be interested in going, but we are not. We are fine here, and we want to return to our land with dignity and rights."

Authorities first proposed resettling Rohingya refugees in Cox’s Bazar to the island in 2015 to cope with a recent influx from Myanmar.

Bangladesh asked the UN to help fund the plan after the sudden arrival of another 700,000 refugees in late 2017 pushed the population of the Cox’s Bazar camps past 1 million.

The post Bangladesh Hopes to Start Moving Rohingya to Island in November appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

The Power Behind the Robe

Posted: 23 Sep 2018 11:30 PM PDT

On the 11th anniversary of the Saffron Revolution, we revisit this cover story that first appeared in the October 2007 print issue of The Irrawaddy magazine, in which the editor explained why Burma's generals fear the influence of the Sangha.

The Lord Buddha shunned worldly affairs, but in his teachings he stressed the need for good governance and good rulers in the practice of politics.

The Buddha said: "When the ruler of a country is just and good, the ministers become just and good; when the ministers are just and good, the higher officials become just and good; when the higher officials are just and good, the rank and file become just and good; when the rank and file become just and good, the people become just and good."

If these admonitions are followed by the large community of monks—the Sangha—in predominantly Buddhist Burma, the lingering "love lost" relationship between the country's military rulers and its monks should be no surprise.

Over the last two decades, Burma's Sangha community, officially estimated to number around 400,000, has had an uneasy relationship with the ruling generals, who have imprisoned several prominent, politically active monks or pongyis. It is estimated that since the present military regime came to power in 1988, about 300 monks have been defrocked and sentenced to long terms of imprisonment.

Monks, considered "sons of Buddha," are the biggest institution in Burma after the armed forces, which number more than 400,000 soldiers and police.

In their close contacts with the common people and during their morning alms rounds of local households, the monks witness firsthand the suffering and poverty of ordinary Burmese citizens. They have a very clear picture of the deteriorating situation in Burma.

More importantly, they probably have a better network, connections and influence than politically active students, who are constantly watched, imprisoned or forced into exile.

Who could imagine that these monks, living quietly in monasteries and studying Dhamma, would ever plan to rebel against the repressive regime? Yet history has shown that monks have long played a pivotal role in politics and that they would indeed dare such a bold and dangerous undertaking.

The role of political pongyis is controversial and potentially threatening to the ruling elite, although there has been a continuing debate on whether monks really should involve themselves in politics.

The Early Rebellion

Monks were involved in early outbreaks of resistance against British colonization, joining lay people in taking up arms against the British after seeing King Thibaw sent into exile.

Monks have their resistance martyrs—U Ottama, for instance, who led 3,000 rebels in the Salin area a year after the invasion of Mandalay. The rebel monk, also known as Bo Ottama, was captured and hanged by the British in 1889.

Interestingly, historians noted that monks who took up arms voluntarily defrocked themselves first, following the precept forbidding monks to take lives.

Another martyr, Saya San, who was an ex-monk, led a peasant uprising in Tharrawaddy opposing the tax system imposed by the British. Burma's colonial masters sent 10,000 troops to quell the rebellion, capturing Saya San and sending him, too, to the gallows.

One of the top Burmese lawyers who defended Saya San at his trial was Dr Ba Maw, who later became head of state in Burma's Japanese-backed government.

Not all monks advocated armed struggle. Two who preached nonviolent resistance, U Wisara and another monk named U Ottama, spent many years in prison for their opposition to colonialism and their names have joined the list of independence heroes.

U Ottama, a globe-trotting, well-respected monk from Arakan State, was a powerful speaker whose calls for independence were featured in the national newspaper Thuriya. He once famously told the British Governor Sir Reginald Craddock to go home to Britain, in a speech that landed him in prison.

Like U Ottama, U Wisara was imprisoned several times for his public speeches and died in jail in 1929 after 166 days of a hunger strike. His prison sentences included terms of hard labor, and he was also defrocked.

Both monks became an inspiration to activists and students involved in the independence movement.

Scholar Michael Mendelson wrote in his "Sangha and State in Burma," that all politically active monks tended to be labeled by the colonial authorities as "political agitators in the yellow robes." Interestingly, a similar term is used by Burma's current leaders to describe protesting monks.

Historians wrote that the British authorities were surprised to learn the influential role of the Sangha community, and soon after the invasion of 1885 they abolished the position of "Supreme Patriarch," or Thathana-baing.

In former times, Burmese kings appointed Thathana-baing to govern the Sangha community and made them responsible for doctrinal instruction and discipline of all monks. But the position wasn't accepted by the entire Sangha. The progressive Shwegin sect was one group that rejected it. Sectarianism created controversy and bitter rivalry among monks.

During the Kon-Baung period in the 18th century, conflicts arose within the Sangha over how the monastic robes were supposed to be worn, and two conflicting sects arose—the so-called Ton Gaing and Yon Gaing.

The Burmese scholar Tin Maung Maung Than records that the Toun-goo and early Kon-Baung dynasties were drawn into the rivalry by their royal patronage of one party or the other. In 1782, King Bodawphaya intervened in the controversy by siding with Ton Gaing.

One experienced colonial political officer, Col Edward Sladen, conversant with the power of the Sangha, advised British authorities to maintain the Thathana-baingsystem in order to head off conflicts in governing the predominately Buddhist country.

The role of Thathana-baing was undoubtedly a complicated one, involving a direct link between the monarchy and the Sangha. The Thathana-baing wielded influence and could even intervene in state affairs. One respected abbot even persuaded King Mindon to abandon corvée labor for his irrigation projects. It's ironic that the current regime argues that forced labor is a feature of Burmese tradition and a means of making merit.

After independence, however, the influence of Buddhism and the Sangha went into decline, except for a period under the late prime minister U Nu, a devout Buddhist.

U Nu himself was ordained as a monk several times and rarely exploited Buddhism for his own political ends. Under his government, the Sixth Great Buddhist World Council was held in 1954, and he also created the Buddha Sasana Council.

Tin Maung Maung Than noted in his book, "Sangha Reforms and Renewal of Sasana in Myanmar: Historical trends and Contemporary Practice": "Because of various Gaing and sectarianism U Nu failed to take effective reforms in spite of institutionalization of Buddhism within the state superstructure and notwithstanding the holding of the Sixth Buddhist Synod in 1954."

U Nu also attempted to legalize Buddhism as the state religion in 1961. The attempt was considered to be a misguided policy, and it anyway failed to materialize as U Nu was ousted by Gen Ne Win one year later.

Ne Win regarded monks as a potential opposition and he developed a different strategy to control them. In the mid-1960s, his regime called a Sangha conference to issue monks with identification cards. Young monks and abbots stayed away from the gathering.

It wasn't until 1980 that Ne Win succeeded in containing the monks by establishing a "State Sangha Nayaka Committee," after a carefully orchestrated campaign to discredit the Sangha. Part of the campaign was to discredit a famous monk, Thein Phyu Sayadaw, who was accused of romantic involvement with a woman. He was defrocked.

Before the campaign, intelligence officers and informants of the government infiltrated the temples as monks and gathered information about monks and abbots.

Some well-known abbots, including Mahasi Sayadaw, an internationally respected monk who was invited by U Nu in 1947 to teach Vipassana meditation, were also targeted in the campaign.

Anthropologist Gustaaf Houtmann wrote in his paper "Mental Culture in Burmese Crisis Politics" that the regime had "distributed leaflets accusing Mahasi of talking with the nat spirits, and it was claimed that the Tipitaka Mingun Sayadaw, Burma's top Buddhist scholar, had been involved in some unsavory incident two years after entering the monkhood." Both monks were victims of their refusal to cooperate with the regime.

A number of scholars and historians noted, however, that some abbots accused and charged by the government were indeed involved in scandals and had romantic relationship with women or nuns.

The regime's campaign sometimes took bizarre forms. Rumors were circulated, for instance, suggesting that one Rangoon monk, U Laba, was a cannibal. Several famous abbots were implicated in scandals and were either defrocked or fled to neighboring Thailand. Ne Win successfully launched a "Sangha reform"—also known as "Cleaning Up the Sangha."

The government managed to get some recognition from elderly Buddhists by forming the Sangha Committee. But Ne Win did not pretend to be a devout Buddhist. He rarely participated in Sangha meetings and held few religious ceremonies during the 26 years of his rule. Unlike current leaders, he was rarely seen with monks.

During the 1988 uprising, however, his government asked the Sangha Committee to help restore order, and senior monks appeared in live television broadcasts appealing to the public for calm.

In August, 1988, days after the massacre in Rangoon, monks expressed sorrow for the loss of life, but—to the surprise of many—they also appealed to the regime to govern in accordance with the 10 duties prescribed for rulers of the people. The appeal failed to calm the public mood, but the message did remind many Burmese of the "10 duties of rulers"—the monks were telling Ne Win to be a good ruler.

On August 30, the Working People's Daily reported: "1,500 members of the Sangha marched in procession through the Rangoon streets and gathered in front of the Rangoon General Hospital emergency ward, where they recited "Metta Sutta" in memory of rahans (monks), workers and students who fell in the struggle for democracy." Many young monks were among the demonstrators.

For many Burmese, the struggle for democracy is not yet over and the discord between the Sangha and the ruling generals remains strong.

Unlike Ne Win and U Nu, the generals who came to power in 1988 openly and audaciously schemed to buy off the Sangha community. They have also claimed to be protectors of the Sangha, although their motive is to gain political legitimacy.

Aside from holding numerous merit-making ceremonies, offering hsoon and valuable gifts to monks, the military leaders are launching well-publicized pagoda restoration projects throughout Burma. Nevertheless, confrontations between rebellious monks and the authorities continue.

In Mandalay in 1990, troops fired on the crowds, killing several people, including monks. Angered by the military's brutality, Mandalay monks began a patta ni kozana kan, refusing to accept alms from members of the armed forces and their families.

The same action has now been taken by monks in several provinces after authorities beat protesting monks in Pakokka, central Burma.

"Patta ni kozana kan" can be called in response to any one of eight offences, including vilifying or making insidious comparisons between monks, inciting dissension among monks or defaming Buddha, the Dhamma or the Sangha.

A "patta ni kozana kan" campaign can be called off if the offended monks receive what they accept as a proper apology from the individuals or authorities involved. This procedure involves a ceremony held by at least four monks inside the Buddhist ordination hall, at which the boycott would be canceled.

Some monks in Burma may believe that the "patta ni kozana kan" of 1990 is still in effect, since they haven't yet received any proper apology—only a harsh crackdown. At that time, monks refused to attend religious ceremonies held by military officials and family members.

In one incident, the Mandalay Division commander at the time, Maj-Gen Tun Kyi, who later became trade minister, invited senior monks and abbots to attend a religious ceremony but no one showed up. Military leaders realized the seriousness of the boycott and decided to launch a crackdown.

In Mandalay alone, more than 130 monasteries were raided and monks were defrocked and imprisoned. As many as 300 monks nationwide were defrocked and arrested.

Former political prisoners recalled that monks who shared prison quarters with them continued to practice their faith despite being forced to wear prison uniforms and being officially stripped of their membership of the Sangha.

Several monks, including the highly respected Thu Mingala, a Buddhist literature laureate, and at least eight other respected senior abbots, were arrested. Thu Mingala was sentenced to eight years imprisonment.

Apart from being stripped of their robes, imprisoned monks in Mandalay were forced to wear white prison uniforms and were taunted with nicknames instead of being addressed with their true titles, according to former political prisoners.

One year later, in 1991, the then head of the military junta, Snr-Gen Saw Maung, suffered a nervous breakdown and retired for health reasons. Buddhist Burmese still say this was punishment for his maltreatment of the monks.

The 1990 crackdown divided the Sangha community.  The late Mingun Sayadaw, who was secretary of the State Sangha Maha Nayaka Committee, was ridiculed by young monks for not supporting the boycott campaign. He was at one time called "senior general Mingun Sayadaw," and when he visited one temple in Mandalay young monks reportedly saluted him.

Today, while rebellious monks are prepared to go to prison, many senior monks and abbots are allowing themselves to become government tools by accepting gifts and large donations from the generals. By cuddling up to the ruling generals, these elderly abbots can no longer speak for the Sangha community at large, let alone comment on the suffering of the Burmese people. The divisions between abbots and young monks have inevitably widened.

The generals, on the other hand, won't give up easily. In one spectacular bid to win the hearts and minds of the people, they borrowed a Buddha tooth relic from China and toured the country with it and also held a World Buddhist Summit.

In 1999, military leaders renovated Shwedagon Pagoda, after the Htidaw, the sacred umbrella, had been removed amid reports of minor local earthquakes. Local people said the spirits of Shwedagon had been upset with the removal of the Htidaw. Restoration of the pagoda complex did nothing to help the generals' image, though.

The generals have also applied "divide and rule" strategies in dealing with the Sangha community and the opposition.

In 1996, the regime accused the National League for Democracy of infiltrating the Sangha with the aim of committing subversive acts against the authorities. The generals obviously did not want to see opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi developing too close a relationship with the monks.

In an attempt to neutralize the political role of Suu Kyi, the government sent a famous,  London-based monk, Dr Rewatta Dhamma, to visit the detained opposition leader in 1995. Claiming to be a peace-broker between Suu Kyi and the generals, the monk shuttled between her and top leaders. But his mission failed and he returned to London. Skeptics believe the generals had merely used U Rewatta in a bid to persuade Suu Kyi to relinquish politics.

Ironically, the regime leaders publicly accused Suu Kyi of being a communist and of sacrilege because she had said in a campaign speech that "any human being can become a Buddha in this life."

Soon after her release from her first term of house arrest in 1995, Suu Kyi immediately traveled to Karen State, followed by infuriated intelligence officers. She went there to make an offering to "Thamanya Sayadaw."

Traditionally, temples have provided hiding places for activists, and in 1988 monks offered shelter to fugitives from the intelligence authorities.

At one time, the regime even placed restrictions on opposition members, preventing them from ordaining as monks. Like universities and schools, politically active monasteries are under heavy surveillance.

The widely respected abbot Bhaddanta Vinaya, known as Thamanya  Sayadaw because he lived on Thamanya Hill, was involved in projects to help villagers in the area, work that was shunned by the generals.

He was revered not only for the mystical powers he was said to possess, but also because of his refusal to kowtow to the regime leaders. He once famously refused to accept the gift of a luxury vehicle from the then powerful intelligence chief Gen Khin Nyunt.

Khin Nyunt could not buy Thamanya.

It may indeed be wrong to assume that Burma's regime leaders are devout Buddhists. The generals and their families seem to place more trust in astrology and numerology than in Buddhist ritual. They treasure white elephants and lucky charms and are constantly seeking advice from astrologers.

Birds of a feather, such as the generals and their chief astrologers, not only flock together but fall together, too. Ne Win's family astrologer, Aung Pwint Khaung, was arrested in 2002 when the former dictator and his family were charged with high treason.

Khin Nyunt's chief astrologer, Bodaw Than Hla, was imprisoned after the former Prime Minister and Military Intelligence chief was toppled in 2004.

Many Burmese may find it hard to believe that their military leaders are actually preserving Buddhism. Even when they are building pagodas and erecting Buddha images, the projects are based on astrological predictions and readings.

Who, for instance, advised Ne Win to ride a wooden horse on his aircraft and to ask the pilot to circle his birthplace nine times? Who advised him to issue banknotes in denominations of 45 and 90 kyat?

Who advised Khin Nyunt to dress up in women's clothing, complete with the signature flower that Suu Kyi wears, in order to steal power from "the Lady"? Who told Than Shwe to move his capital to central Burma?

It certainly wasn't a belief in Buddhist tenets. Nor does Buddhism permit the military to beat, defrock, imprison and kill monks.

The decline of Buddhism and the rise of militarism in Burma are a source of concern for the people of Burma. Thus, it is no surprise to hear social critics and political pongyismaintain that the generals who kneel down before images of Buddha are the real threat to Buddhism and Dhamma.

The post The Power Behind the Robe appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Nepal Restores $2.5B Hydropower Plant Contract to Chinese Firm

Posted: 23 Sep 2018 09:56 PM PDT

KATHMANDU—Nepal's new government has reversed its predecessor’s decision and has asked China Gezhouba Group Corporation to build the nation's biggest hydropower plant, an official said on Sunday, as it seeks to woo Chinese investment in its ailing infrastructure.

The $2.5 billion deal with the Gezhouba Group to build the Budhi Gandaki hydroelectric project was scrapped last year by the previous government, citing lapses in the award process. State-run Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) was to have built it.

But Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli, seen as China-friendly, pledged to revert the project to the Chinese company if he was elected to power in last year's elections. Oli became prime minister in February after his Nepal Communist Party scored a landslide poll victory.

"Yes, the Budhi Gandaki has been given back to the Gezhouba Group," said Roshan Khadka, an aide to Energy Minister Barsa Man Pun. "It is … restoring the project to the Chinese company," Khadka told Reuters. He did not give further details of the decision taken by the cabinet on Friday night.

China and India are both jostling for influence in Nepal by providing aid and investment in infrastructure projects.

Officials said a formal construction deal will be signed on the hydropower project after the government had negotiated the project modalities with the Chinese company. No date for this was given.

Nepal's rivers, cascading from the snow-capped Himalayas, have vast, untapped potential for hydropower generation, but lack of funds has made Nepal lean on neighbor India to meet an annual power demand of 1,400 megawatts (MW).

The 1,200 MW plant on Budhi Gandaki river, about 50 kilometers (32 miles) west of Kathmandu, is meant to address acute power shortages that have marred economic growth in one of the poorest countries in the world.

Critics say the project should have been open for international bidding instead of being entrusted to the Chinese company.

Officials of the Chinese company were not immediately available for comment.

Nepal wants the Budhi Gandaki project to be part of the Belt and Road initiative (BRI), President Xi Jinping's landmark scheme to connect China to the rest of Asia and beyond, to which it signed up last year.

The post Nepal Restores $2.5B Hydropower Plant Contract to Chinese Firm appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Asian Firms Shuffle Production Around the Region as China Tariffs Hit

Posted: 23 Sep 2018 09:46 PM PDT

SEOUL/TOKYO — A growing number of Asian manufacturers of products ranging from memory chips to machines tools are moving to shift production from China to other factories in the region in the wake of US President Donald Trump’s tariffs on Chinese imports.

Companies including SK Hynix of South Korea and Mitsubishi Electric, Toshiba Machine Co. and Komatsu of Japan began plotting production moves since July, when the first tariffs hit, and the shifts are now under way, company representatives and others with knowledge of the plans told Reuters. Others, such as Taiwanese computer-maker Compal Electronics and South Korea’s LG Electronics, are making contingency plans in case the trade war continues or deepens.

The company representatives and other sources spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue.

The quick reactions to the US tariffs are possible because many large manufacturers have facilities in multiple countries and can move at least small amounts of production without building new factories. Some governments, notably in Taiwan and Thailand, are actively encouraging companies to move work from China.

The United States imposed 25 percent duties covering $50 billion of Chinese-made goods in July, and a second round of 10 percent tariffs covering another $200 billion of Chinese exports will come into effect next week. The latter rate will jump to 25 percent at the end of the year, and Trump has threatened a third round of tariffs on $267 billion of goods, which would bring all of China’s exports to the United States into the tariff regime.

The tariffs threaten China’s status as a low-cost production base that, along with the appeal of the fast-growing China market, drew many companies to build factories and supply chains in the country over the past several decades.

At SK Hynix, which makes computer memory chips, work is under way to move production of certain chip modules back to South Korea from China. Like its US rival Micron Technology, which is also moving some memory-chip work from China to other Asian locations, SK Hynix does some of its packaging and testing of chips in China, with the chips themselves mostly made elsewhere.

“There are a few DRAM module products made in China that are exported to the United States,” said a source with direct knowledge of the situation, referring to widely used dynamic random-access memory chips. “SK Hynix is planning on bringing those DRAM module products to South Korea to avoid the tariff hit.”

Most of SK Hynix’s production won’t be affected, the source added, since China’s dominance in computer and smartphone manufacturing makes it by far the largest market for DRAM chips.

Toshiba Machine Co says it plans to shift production of US-bound plastic molding machines from China to Japan or Thailand in October.

The machines are used for making plastic components such as automotive bumpers. “We’ve decided to shift part of our production from China because the impact of the tariffs is significant,” a spokesman said.

Mitsubishi Electric, meanwhile, says it is in the process of shifting production of US-bound machine tools used for metal processing from its manufacturing base in Dalian, in northeastern China, to a Japanese plant in Nagoya.

In Taiwan, an executive at notebook PC maker Compal, who declined to be named, said the trade war’s impact had been limited so far, but the company was studying its options.

“We can also use facilities in Vietnam, Mexico and Brazil as alternatives,” the person said. “It won’t be easy because our majority production is in China; no other country can replace that at this moment.”

Smaller companies are exploring their options too. South Korean medical equipment manufacturer IM Healthcare, which makes products including air purifiers, is studying a move to Vietnam or South Korea if the trade conflict intensifies, a source with direct knowledge of the matter said.

Some Asian governments hope for an economic and strategic boost from the US-China conflict. In Taiwan, the government is actively encouraging companies to move production out of China, pledging last month to speed up its existing “Southbound Policy” to reduce economic reliance on China by encouraging companies to move supply chains to Southeast Asia.

Taiwan economics ministry official William Liu told Reuters that the trade war was “a challenge and an opportunity” for the self-ruled island. Taiwan depends on China as an export market, he noted, but at the same time could see a boost in jobs from companies moving operations back home.

Thailand also hopes to benefit from the “flow of technology and investment leaving China during the trade war," said Kanit Sangsubhan, Secretary-General of the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) Office of Thailand, which is coordinating a $45 billion project to attract investment into the country. The EEC last month took some 800 representatives of Chinese companies on a tour around the eastern industrial heartland, and the country’s Board of Investment has done seven roadshows in China this year to woo investors.

The post Asian Firms Shuffle Production Around the Region as China Tariffs Hit appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

China’s Catholic Church Pledges Loyalty to Party After Vatican Deal

Posted: 23 Sep 2018 09:27 PM PDT

SHANGHAI — China’s Catholic Church reaffirmed its loyalty to the country’s ruling Communist Party on Sunday, while welcoming a landmark deal struck with the Vatican on appointing new bishops.

The Vatican on Saturday signed an agreement giving it a long-desired and decisive say in the appointment of bishops in China, though critics labeled it a sellout to the government.

China’s around 12 million Catholics have been split between an underground Church swearing loyalty to the Vatican and the state-supervised Catholic Patriotic Association.

The Catholic Church in China said it would “persevere to walk a path suited to a socialist society, under the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party.”

It “deeply loved the motherland” and “sincerely endorsed” the agreement, hoping relations between China and the Vatican would improve further, it added in comments on its website.

The Vatican has said the accord, a breakthrough after years of negotiations, was “not political but pastoral,” and hoped it would lead to “the full communion of all Chinese Catholics.”

But prospects of such an agreement had divided communities of Catholics across China, some of whom fear greater suppression should the Vatican cede more control to Beijing. Others want to see rapprochement and avoid a potential schism.

The post China’s Catholic Church Pledges Loyalty to Party After Vatican Deal appeared first on The Irrawaddy.
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