Shan Herald Agency for News

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Peace committee meeting in Yangon, renewed military offensives and IDP abuse in Shan State Posted: 24 Nov 2015 04:10 AM PST While Shan State Progress Party/Shan State Army-North (SSPP/SSA-N) representatives continued meeting with government officials in Yangon yesterday regarding ongoing armed conflict, the Burma Army renewed attacks near the group's headquarters and abused a returned IDP. The fighting occurred on two fronts within five miles of Wan Hai, the SSPP/SSA-N base in Kesi Township. For four hours yesterday morning, ground troops engaged in an offensive near the neighboring Mong Hsu Township villages of Mong Ark and Wan Lwe, while artillery was fired from Pang Wo, Loi Yu and Kiu Mawk Khao. The villages are located in between Mong Hsu and Kesi's Mong Nong sub-township, territory which the Burma Army allegedly ordered the SSPP/SSA-N to abandon on November 19. The area was once home to 6,000 civilians, many of whom have fled, contributing to the current displacement of more than 10,000 people in Shan State. Some speculate that the attack was aimed at clearing the area, rather than destroying specific targets. "The Burma Army shelled indiscriminately," said one SSPP/SSA-N soldier who witnessed yesterday's siege. Sai Mong, an SSPP/SSA-N officer based in the conflict area, admitted that he could not identify which group the Burma Army soldiers represented. He suspected they were a combination of those from battalions within the military's Eastern Command and from within Za-Ka-Ka, the Military Operation Command, a government armed wing which SHAN reportedhad fired on a known IDP site in Kesi Township on November 10. "They attacked us in large numbers, but we didn't see any airplanes," Sai Mong added; eight Burma Army air attacks have been documented in the area in less than two months, as well as over 40 ground offensives. At the same time as the attacks occurred, SSPP/SSA-N representatives were engaging in a second round of talks with members of the government's Union Peacemaking Working Committee (UPWC) in Yangon. The first discussion was held on Friday, when an informal ceasefire was also negotiated and then broken three days later. Although official statistics on injuries or casualties is not known, at least one IDP returned to Mong Ark yesterday afternoon, following the three-day lull in fighting. Lung Bee, 32, had fled to an IDP camp in Kesi Township and came back to his farm alone to harvest his rice. He told SHAN that he was approached and questioned by Burma Army soldiers, who allegedly bound his hands with rope, beat him with sticks, and interrogated him about possible connections to the SSPP/SSA-N, an allegation which he denied. Lung Bee, an IDP beaten by Burma Army soldiers, reveals wounds he sustained to his head. (Photo: Citizen Reporter) "I told [the Burmese soldiers] I escaped like the others did. I thought the war was over, so I came to do my harvesting," Lung Bee said. He escaped later that night and returned to an IDP camp, where he is recovering from his injuries. Since fighting in central Shan State began on October 6, the area has only experienced four days without clashes: November 8—the day of Burma's general election—and November 19-21, when an informal ceasefire was agreed between the SSPP/SSA-N and the Burma Army. During this time, the Burma Army allegedly reinforced its troops in Mong Hsu, and on the evening of November 22, the offensive started again.  By SIMMA FRANCIS and ZAAI ZAAI LAO MURNG (Shan Herald Agency for News / S.H.A.N) Reporting by NANG HOM and SAI YIPHONG (Shan Herald Agency for News / S.H.A.N)

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The Irrawaddy Magazine

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• Kyat Continues Slide as Central Bank Mulls Options
• Tourism Chief: ‘Interest in Our Country Has Grown’
• Ongoing Cases of Abuse Put Child Rights in the Spotlight
• Explosion Kills 6 in Chin State Capital
• Death Toll Rises to 104 at Jade Mine Collapse in Hpakant
• Govt Spokesman Rejects Calls for Rohingya Citizenship
• Hong Kong Democracy Movement Sees Mixed Results in Polls
• Bangladesh Executes Two Opposition Leaders for 1971 War Crimes
• Nepal Police Fire on Ethnic Protesters Blocking Road; Two dead

Kyat Continues Slide as Central Bank Mulls Options Posted: 23 Nov 2015 03:44 AM PST A girl holds an umbrella decorated with Burmese kyat banknotes in Bagan, 2013. (Photo: Damir Sagolj / Reuters) RANGOON — Two weeks since Burma's general election on Nov. 8, the country's reference foreign exchange rate has slid further against the US dollar, sitting at just under 1,300 kyat against the dollar as of Monday. While the exchange rate hovered at around 1,270 kyat during the election period, as of Monday it was 1,299 kyat against the dollar, while the black market rate was believed to have tipped over 1,300 kyat for the first time since late October. "The black market rate is over 1,300 kyat today because of the [higher] Central Bank rate," said one speculator in Rangoon Division's Pabedan Township. At a meeting with tourism operators on Saturday, Central Bank of Myanmar (CBM) deputy governor Sett Aung told reporters the bank was seeking to reverse the local currency's months-long depreciation in several ways, including by selling US dollars to local private banks in an attempt to drive down the value of the greenback. The kyat has seen a 30 percent slide against the US dollar since January, partly as a result of the country's widening current account deficit. On Oct. 13, the CBM announced the revocation of foreign exchange licenses that had permitted holders to accept transactions in US dollars to encourage use of the ailing local currency. Some observers however voiced concern that the move would only drive demand for dollars on the black market. "Export earnings are less than in the past and dollar demand is higher in the market," said Than Lwin, a senior consultant with Kanbawza (KBZ) Bank. "The Central Bank has to be flexible with the rate, so the black market rate will be higher than the central bank's rate. This will happen until the country has an open market, but I think this exchange rate will be the highest. It won't reach higher than 1,300." Burma was expected to see a massive drop in agricultural export revenues after torrential floods inundated more than one million acres of farmland from July. In early October, the World Bank forecast a slowdown in economic growth for the 2015-16 fiscal year, due in part to flooding and a lack of new investment. Than Lwin said the country's economic outlook would brighten when the new government is formed in 2016, with the expectation of more international loans for local private banks and new investment. Sett Aung also struck a positive note on Saturday, predicting a period of sustained growth ahead. To tackle inflation, he said the finance ministry should increase taxes, reduce government expenditure and offload government bonds. However he admitted the process would not be easy, as a tax increase would not be broadly welcomed and the government would struggle to reduce expenditure as reforms continue. "Here, the economy is growing by leaps and bounds. That's why inflation is high," he said. The post Kyat Continues Slide as Central Bank Mulls Options appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Tourism Chief: ‘Interest in Our Country Has Grown’ Posted: 23 Nov 2015 02:58 AM PST Phyo Wai Yarzar, chairman of the Myanmar Tourism Marketing Committee. (Photo: May Soe San / The Irrawaddy) On the back of the Nov. 8 elections, tour operators say there has been a surge the number of foreign tourists considering a trip to Burma. Phyo Wai Yarzar, the chairman of the Myanmar Tourism Marketing Committee, recently sat down with The Irrawaddy to talk about the current state of the tourism industry in the aftermath of the poll. What potential do you see in the tourism market now the election is over? Before the election, potential tourists were concerned that their visit might coincide with the election and that they might encounter an uprising. But there was not even an uprising during the 2010 election. And there was no problem this time, either. There was no confrontation between the ruling party and the opposition, even in the run-up to the election. This has set the best example. We learned that some foreign ministries issued warnings to their citizens not to visit our country in the two weeks before and after the election. But the fact that there was no violence or rioting has made international headlines. The news about the election and the decisive victory of the opposition has spread to countries around the world. This is good news for us. Because this is the news that Western democratic countries want to hear. Their interest in our country has grown. This bodes well for the potential of tourism, and I think the tourism industry will see progress soon. The hotels and tourism industry expects to draw about five million foreign visitors this year, but there are also predictions that it might fall short of this target. What do you think? The hotels and tourism minister [Htay Aung] said at a ceremony a couple of days ago that Myanmar had received 3.9 million foreign visitors by the end of October, including arrivals through airports and border gates. So I think the target is achievable. Which countries do you think will drive a rise in Burma's tourism arrivals? It is difficult to say. It does not depend on our country alone, but also on the visitor countries. They will travel only when they have extra cash. Previously, the UK market did not usually sell trips to Myanmar during its tourism fair, usually held in November, but this year they have been keenly selling trips to Myanmar. So I think we can expect a good increase in UK visitors to Myanmar. But we need to do more to attract EU countries. We need to get information about what might arouse their interest in Myanmar. The tourism market has opened up here and the government has started to provide assistance. It is important that the next government continues to give assistance. Being new, the next government will need to do some public relations work. I would suggest that rather than spending large sums on public relations, the new government promote tourism instead. If more tourists come and they subsequently recount their experiences, foreign countries will have greater trust [in the new government]. How much revenue has the tourism industry generated in Burma this year? We do not know exactly. The private sector does not know. It is difficult to get those figures. The World Trade Organization (WTO) carried out tourism satellite accounting in Myanmar, but it might take time for the government and the private sector to carry this out. We can't accurately calculate the revenue generated from the tourism industry using GDP. I am afraid that the current financial system in Myanmar can't precisely calculate the revenue of tourism-related businesses such as tour companies, tour guides, and souvenir shops. However, the president said that the tourism industry generated US$3 billion last year. I think it might increase this year. Where do you plan to develop new tourism sites in Burma? I don't think we need to develop new sites in the country. But there is a three-year tourism development project being carried out in Karenni State. The post Tourism Chief: 'Interest in Our Country Has Grown' appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Ongoing Cases of Abuse Put Child Rights in the Spotlight Posted: 23 Nov 2015 01:21 AM PST Children play in a creek in Naypyidaw, November 14, 2015. (Photo: Soe Zeya Tun / Reuters) Whether at home, school or in the workplace, it is not uncommon for children in Burma to be hit or slapped for an indiscretion. This type of physical admonition—in other words, corporal punishment—is not currently prohibited under Burmese law. According to the Global Initiative to End All Corporal Punishment of Children, 47 countries have explicitly prohibited all corporal punishment of children and at least 51 states have committed to a full ban. The Global Initiative calls for the repeal of provisions in Burma's 1993 Child Law and of the Penal Code that may be interpreted as sanctioning corporal punishment and for a clear prohibition to be enacted. Many adults in Burma, including parents and guardians, seem to believe they have the right to physically admonish a child for his or her benefit, particularly inside the family home. Adults slapping or beating their children is regarded as normal among most conservative members of Burmese society. Children from poor backgrounds suffer most egregiously. Many are forced to drop out of school and enter the workforce at an alarmingly young age, working in tea shops, restaurants or as domestic helpers where they are vulnerable to physical punishment or other abuse by unscrupulous employers. Unfortunately, only a handful of cases of child abuse gain media attention. A recent case involved an eight-year-old girl living in the home of a military lawmaker in Rangoon Division's Bahan Township who was repeatedly beaten while naked by a household maid. Pictures of the abused young girl went viral on Facebook on Thursday and the Bahan Township police have since pressed charges against the housemaid under Article 66 of the Child Law for maltreatment. Nyo Nyo Tin, a Rangoon Division lawmaker, said further charges were likely after prosecutors gathered more evidence. However, she said the maximum punishment of two years imprisonment under Article 66 was too lenient. "It shows the legislative sector still needs to focus on enacting laws that are effective," she said. Increased use of social media and mobile phone technology has enabled citizens to more easily highlight alleged evidence of injustice, share information and implore the authorities to take action. Nang Phyu Phyu Lin, an independent consultant with the Gender Equality Network, said the public was more actively speaking out against incidents of child abuse and behavior was gradually changing. However she noted the prevailing view that adults' slapping or beating a child "to correct them for misbehaving" was generally deemed acceptable. Burma's military government signed the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1991 and enacted the Child Law in 1993. Article 19 of the former mandates states to protect the child "from all forms of physical or mental violence, injury or abuse, neglect or negligent treatment, maltreatment or exploitation, including sexual abuse, while in the care of parent(s), legal guardian(s) or any other person who has the care of the child." However, Article 66(d) of Burma's Child Law outlaws willful mistreatment of the child, "with the exception of the type of admonition by a parent, teacher or a person having the right to control the child, which is for the benefit of the child." Rights groups have cited clear and robust legal protection as vital to protecting children's rights. Outspoken lawmaker Thein Nyunt has initiated several unsuccessful attempts to amend the Penal Code and the Child Law to provide better protections for children from sexual abuse—including proposals to apply capital punishment to rape offenders. "If such cases of abuse are increasing, we have to reconsider amending the Child Law in order to protect children," said Thein Nyunt, who leads the New National Democracy Party, adding that legal complaints regarding the abuse of young domestic workers were rarely filed. "We will have to wait and see how the new legislators take up the issue [of child rights] in the parliament." Thein Nyunt did not win reelection in Burma's Nov. 8 general election but pledged that he and his party would continue to work for better child protection measures. Despite the hurdles to legal reform, with Burmese citizens beginning to pay more attention to child rights issues, Nang Phyu Phyu Lin hopes behavioral and attitudinal change will follow. "As we were hit in our childhood, we tend to treat our kids the same way as we suffered," Nang Phyu Phyu Lin said. "Only with more awareness for children's rights can we stop ourselves from treating them that way." The post Ongoing Cases of Abuse Put Child Rights in the Spotlight appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Explosion Kills 6 in Chin State Capital Posted: 23 Nov 2015 01:07 AM PST A car overturned in Sunday night's blast. (Photo: The Hakha Post) RANGOON — Six people have died and another five are wounded after what appears to be an accidental explosion sparked Sunday night at a home in Hakha, the capital of Chin State. Five of the deceased were members of the same family, who lived as tenants in the home where the explosion occurred in Hakha's Zae Thit quarter. Investigators believe that the gunpowder stockpile belonged to one of the deceased. The explosion leveled the home with such force that it knocked a truck parked nearby onto its side. "We are still investigating what happened on the ground," Hong Ngai, the chief minister of Chin State, told The Irrawaddy "I think a witness can say exactly what happened there, he is now at the hospital." Hakha police confirmed that six had died in the inferno but declined to give further details, saying that an investigation was ongoing. Local authorities had earlier suggested the household lit a small bonfire for heat on the cool evening, which then accidentally spread to the gunpowder cache. Speaking to The Irrawaddy on Monday, Zabiak Thawn, the deputy editor of the local Hakha Post newspaper, said the deceased family had recently moved into the home after their previous home collapsed during the August landslides. The post Explosion Kills 6 in Chin State Capital appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Death Toll Rises to 104 at Jade Mine Collapse in Hpakant Posted: 23 Nov 2015 12:48 AM PST Small-scale miners in Hpakant scour a mountainside stripped bare by heavy machinery in search of jade. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy) Recovery of bodies at the site of a massive jade mine landslide in Kachin State's Hpakant Township continued on Monday, with the death toll rising to 104 by the evening prior. The landslide happened early Saturday morning when the piled tailings from a large-scale mining operation collapsed, burying an estimated 80 huts in an area where hand-pickers had settled to sift through the debris in search of the precious stone. Dah Shi La Seng, a Kachin State legislature MP-elect for Hpakant constituency, said the search for bodies was continuing and progress would be known later Monday, with many still missing. "As of Sunday evening at 6 pm, the total number [of deaths] reached to 104, as 26 more bodies were found on Sunday and 78 bodies were found on Saturday," the incoming National League for Democracy (NLD) lawmaker said, adding that most of the bodies recovered were men, with about three being women. Among the dead, most are internal immigrants who had traveled to Hpakant to try their luck at small-scale, illegal mining in the jade-rich region. The disaster, near Hpakant's Seik Mu village, is the fourth such incident to claim lives this year, according to local resident Shwe Thein, though Saturday's catastrophe far eclipsed previous landslides. "About two-thirds of the bodies of the hand-pickers are not yet identified, but the bodies are of those hand-pickers and local vendors around the mines," he said. The bodies are being taken to the Hpakant hospital first to record the deaths before being sent to two villages and Hpakant town for burial, Shwe Thein said. An uptick in deadly collapses of mining debris has been linked to the government's decision to allow companies to resume large-scale mining operations in the area in 2014, after suspending the practice in 2012 amid fighting between the government and the Kachin Independence Army (KIA). About a dozen people died due to landslides in the same area between January and March of this year. "This is the biggest, deadliest accident affecting those hand-pickers," Shwe Thein said. "Not only in terms of people's deaths, our environment too has been destroyed a lot by the waste pilings," Shwe Thein added, highlighting rising pollution affecting the Uru River. Locals and environmentalists say the once pristine Uru River, which flows into the nearby Chindwin River, has become contaminated with wastewater runoff from mining sites and has also seen its water level drop. The post Death Toll Rises to 104 at Jade Mine Collapse in Hpakant appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Govt Spokesman Rejects Calls for Rohingya Citizenship Posted: 22 Nov 2015 10:18 PM PST Minister of Information and spresident's spokesperson Ye Htut. (Photo: The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — A spokesperson for President Thein Sein took to social media on Saturday to reject recommendations that Rohingya Muslims be granted a path to citizenship. "Our government's stance is that we wholly reject use of the term 'Rohingya'. We will grant citizenship rights to Bengali people who have stayed within the boundary of Rakhine [Arakan] State based on the 1982 Citizenship Law," read a Facebook post shared by Minister of Information Ye Htut, using the government's preferred term to refer to the stateless minority. "We will not grant the right of citizenship if it is not suitable to the 1982 law, even when there is pressure on us. This is our own sovereign power. There are laws in America and Britain and other Western countries about the right to grant citizenship. If it is not suitable to the rule of law in their countries, they do not grant citizenship." The minister's comments were made in the wake of the United Nations' Universal Periodic Review, a comprehensive human rights examination comprising recommendations from foreign governments, rights groups and civil society. The Burmese government rejected more than half of the review's 281 recommendations, including all those related to restoring civil and political rights to the country's stateless Rohingya Muslim minority, estimated to be 1.1 million people overwhelmingly concentrated in northern Arakan State. The post Govt Spokesman Rejects Calls for Rohingya Citizenship appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Hong Kong Democracy Movement Sees Mixed Results in Polls Posted: 22 Nov 2015 10:04 PM PST A supporter of pro-democracy group Civic Passion stands in front of supporters of other candidates during a district council election campaign rally on Sunday. (Photo: Bobby Yip / Reuters) HONG KONG — Two democracy veterans lost their seats but at least six candidates who took part in crippling protests last year won office at district elections in Hong Kong on Sunday, the first real test of the city's pro-democracy movement since the demonstrations. The mixed results from the elections, in which a record number of people voted, will not significantly change the numerical make-up of pro-democracy and pro-government groups, but the election of six so-called Umbrella Soldiers reflects continued support for the pro-democracy movement. Poll results were being announced on Monday. District councilors wield little power, acting more in an advisory role in which they can push forward policies for the government in the Chinese-controlled city to consider. But the poll results may provide insight into how elections for the city's powerful Legislative Council, due next year, and a controversial leadership poll in 2017 could pan out. Democratic Party lawmaker Albert Ho, who faced stiff competition in the gritty new town of Tuen Mun in the western New Territories, lost his seat. So, too, did Frederick Fung, another pan-democratic candidate who ran in the working-class district of Sham Shui Po. The government said about 1.468 million registered electors, representing a cumulative turnout rate of about 47 percent, had cast their votes. "We believe that we got the highest number of voters ever turned out in a district board election," Chief executive Leung Chun-ying said late on Sunday. "This suggested that people are paying more attention to their voting right." About 900 candidates competed for 431 seats in 18 district councils, where pro-Beijing parties hold a majority, at a time when people are divided over the pace of political reform. Hong Kong returned to Chinese rule in 1997 under a "one country, two systems" formula that gives it substantial autonomy and freedoms, with universal suffrage promised as an "ultimate goal". The 79-day protests last year, when activists streamed on to highways to demand full democracy for the former British colony, became the biggest political challenge to Beijing's Communist Party leaders in years. The protests failed to persuade China to allow a fully democratic vote in 2017. Beijing says city voters have to choose from a list of candidates it has approved. The post Hong Kong Democracy Movement Sees Mixed Results in Polls appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Bangladesh Executes Two Opposition Leaders for 1971 War Crimes Posted: 22 Nov 2015 09:55 PM PST Protesters, some of whom participated in the 1971 war of independence, rally outside the Supreme Court in Dhaka during the court's verdict on appeals by two opposition leaders, November 18, 2015. (Photo: Reuters) DHAKA, Bangladesh — Bangladesh executed two opposition leaders on Sunday for war crimes committed during the 1971 war to break away from Pakistan, a senior police official said, in a move likely to draw an angry reaction from supporters. Islamist opposition leaders Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mujahid and Salauddin Quader Chowdhury, a former legislator from former premier Khaleda Zia's Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), were hanged shortly after President Abdul Hamid rejected their appeals late on Saturday for clemency. "Both of them were hanged simultaneously on two separate platforms," the police official said. Mujahid, 67, of the Jamaat-e-Islami party, and Chowdhury, 66, were hanged at Dhaka Central Jail. The Supreme Court had previously rejected their appeals against a death sentence imposed by a special tribunal for genocide and torture of civilians during the conflict. The Border Guard Bangladesh paramilitary force has been deployed across the country to tighten security. Muslim-majority Bangladesh, until 1971 East Pakistan, has seen a rise in Islamist violence in recent months, with two foreigners and four secular writers and a publisher killed this year. Mujahid was found guilty on five charges including torture and the murders of intellectuals and minority Hindus while he commanded Al Badr, an auxiliary force of the Pakistani army, during the war to break away from Pakistan. Chowdhury, former legislator from former premier Khaleda Zia's Bangladesh Nationalist Party, was convicted in Oct. 2013 on charges of genocide, religious persecution, abduction and torture during the war. "While we are saddened that we have lost our father by way of a motivated and predetermined trial and where the country is gagged from speaking out, we find hope in the fact that the international community recognizes the injustice and that fairness and truth shall be restored in Bangladesh," Humam Quader Chowdhury, a son of Chowdhury, told Reuters. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina opened an inquiry into crimes committed during the war in 2010, paving the way for prosecutions by a war crimes tribunal that Islamists have denounced as part of a politically motivated campaign aimed at weakening Jamaat-e-Islami's leadership. Two Jamaat leaders have been executed, one in Dec. 2013 and another in Apr. They declined to seek clemency from the president. BNP spokesman Asaduzzaman Ripon said: "Salauddin has fallen victim to persecution because of his political identity, and he has been denied justice." Osman Farruk, a senior leader of the BNP, said that until there was political dialogue, the violence would continue. Badiul Alam Majumder, secretary of rights group Citizens for Good Governance, agreed. "Otherwise the ongoing killings and attacks will not be stopped," he told Reuters. Moqbul Ahmed, acting Amir of Jamaat, said in a statement that Mujahid was a victim of government conspiracy. He called a day-long general strike on Monday across the country. The government denies accusations of interference in the judiciary. East Pakistan broke away to become independent Bangladesh after a war between India and Pakistan. About three million people were killed. The post Bangladesh Executes Two Opposition Leaders for 1971 War Crimes appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Nepal Police Fire on Ethnic Protesters Blocking Road; Two dead Posted: 22 Nov 2015 09:43 PM PST Nepalese police personnel stand guard to stop the protesters near the Indian embassy in Kathmandu, Nepal September 30, 2015. (Photo: Navesh Chitrakar / Reuters) KATHMANDU, Nepal — Police in southern Nepal opened fire on ethnic protesters blocking the nation's main highway, killing two in fresh violence that threatened to escalate political tensions, officials said Sunday. Police were trying to stop the protesters from blocking the main East-West highway when they were attacked with petrol bombs, spears and bricks around midnight, police official Bhim Dhakal said. He said that 25 policemen and several protesters were injured in two separate attacks. The two protesters were killed in the Bhardaha and Rupani areas, about 160 kilometers (100 miles) southeast of the capital, Kathmandu, Dhakal said. A curfew was imposed to stop further violence. The clashes are expected to escalate the tensions, just as months- long protests by the Madeshi ethnic group over Nepal's new constitution had eased over the past few weeks during a series of festivals in the Himalayan nation. The Madeshi say the new constitution unfairly divides Nepal into seven states with borders that cut through their ancestral homeland. The Madhesis and other small ethnic groups also want the states to be larger and to be given more autonomy over local matters. The protesters have imposed a general strike in southern Nepal since September and blocked the main border crossings with India, resulting in severe fuel shortages across Nepal. At least 48 people have been killed in the protests since August. There is no official count of the injured. India, which has close cultural ties with the Madhesi community, has expressed concern over the new violence. Indian External Affairs Ministry spokesman Vikas Swarup tweeted that his government was "distressed at [a] loss of lives in police firing," and that a political solution was required. Nepalese authorities have been rationing gasoline for taxis and public buses, but there's been no fuel for private cars. Police have been escorting trucks through south Nepal at night to bring both passengers and cargo to cities in the north, including Kathmandu. Talks between the protesting groups and government have made little progress, but both sides have said they would continue. Prime Minister Khadga Prasad Oli called a meeting of the main political parties later Sunday to discuss the Madhesi demands. The post Nepal Police Fire on Ethnic Protesters Blocking Road; Two dead appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

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National News

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• Rescuers lose hope of finding survivors from jade mine landslide
• Five killed in Hakha house explosion
• US president notes election success at ASEAN Summit
• Jade mine landslide death toll exceeds 100
• Myitkyina protesters demand justice after murders of Shan party members
• Cholera outbreak erupts in IDP camps in central Shan State
• Parties wrangle over dialogue representatives
• Squatters’ rights plan to benefit few
• Myanmar and UN again at odds over human rights, constitution

Rescuers lose hope of finding survivors from jade mine landslide Posted: 23 Nov 2015 08:39 AM PST Rescuers are losing hope of finding survivors buried under a giant landslide at a jade mine in the northern township of Hpakant as only one more body was retrieved this afternoon, taking the confirmed death toll to 105 after three days of searching.

Five killed in Hakha house explosion Posted: 23 Nov 2015 08:06 AM PST Five people were killed and seven injured in an explosion that totally destroyed a house in the Chin State capital of Hakha. Police said today the blast may have been caused by explosives used in road construction.

US president notes election success at ASEAN Summit Posted: 23 Nov 2015 12:13 AM PST The weekend's ASEAN summit in Kuala Lumpur put US President Barack Obama and President U Thein Sein together for the first time since the election.

Jade mine landslide death toll exceeds 100 Posted: 23 Nov 2015 12:11 AM PST Rescue workers today are still trying to recover people missing under a landslide at a jade mine in Hpakant in Kachin State as the confirmed death toll rose above 100.

Myitkyina protesters demand justice after murders of Shan party members Posted: 23 Nov 2015 12:10 AM PST Over 1000 people demonstrated this weekend against a stagnating murder investigation into what many suspect were politically motivated killings of two ethnic politicians last month.

Cholera outbreak erupts in IDP camps in central Shan State Posted: 23 Nov 2015 12:09 AM PST Cholera is reported to have broken out among civilians fleeing intense fighting in Shan State, with the total number of IDPs rising above 10,000, according to a local politician and activists.

Parties wrangle over dialogue representatives Posted: 23 Nov 2015 12:08 AM PST Despite a walkout by disgruntled members of smaller parties who complained of discrimination, the selection of 16 political party representatives for preparing the nationwide ceasefire agreement dialogue was completed on November 21.

Squatters’ rights plan to benefit few Posted: 23 Nov 2015 12:07 AM PST Plans to grant land ownership to squatters in four Yangon townships – Thaketa, Dawbon, and South and North Okkalapa – will not be extended to other townships, city authorities say.

Myanmar and UN again at odds over human rights, constitution Posted: 23 Nov 2015 12:07 AM PST Myanmar has strongly rejected criticism of its human rights record by the United Nations, slamming the world body for its interference and "intrusive language".

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Shan Herald Agency for News

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IDPs “dare not go home” as Burma Army reinforces troops during informal ceasefire Posted: 23 Nov 2015 05:53 AM PST The Burma Army allegedly reinforced troops and military equipment to central Shan State on Friday night after agreeing to an informal ceasefire with the Shan State Progress Party/Shan State Army-North (SSPP/SSA-N) on the same day. A meeting was held in Yangon on Friday between government representative U Khin Maung Soe—who is the current Minister of Electric Power and a member of the Union Peacemaking Working Committee (UPWC)—and an SSPP/SSA-N delegation. It was decided that they would form a working committee for peace in the region, where Burma Army offensives have been ongoing since October 6, displacing more than 10,000 civilians.  A government delegation including U Khin Maung Soe meets with SSPP/SSA-N in 2013 (Photo: Sai Hak) Sai Nor Lek, an SSPP/SSA-N representative who attended the meeting, said that they were able to negotiate an informal ceasefire with the Burma Army through U Khin Maung Soe. But later that evening, an SSPP/SSA-N information officer based in the armed group's headquarters in Wan Hai, Kesi Township, said that he witnessed more than 30 Burma Army trucks heading from Taunggyi, Shan State's capital, to Namzang Township and Mong Nong sub-township; meanwhile, military tanks were transported from Mandalay into Lashio, in northern Shan State. On Saturday, government officials informed SSPP/SSA-N representatives that the Burma Army had changed their stance and was calling for the retreat of the SSPP/SSA-N from central Shan State's Mong Hsu Township and Mong Nong sub-township; some interpreted it as an order for the ethnic armed group to isolate themselves in Wan Hai. "U Khin Maung Soe replied that he can do nothing," said Sai Nor Lek. According to those assisting the region's internally displaced population, the news came as a disappointment to IDPs who have been anxious to return to their farms to complete the annual rice harvest and secure their food supply for the next year. "The civilians were happy to hear the news that they would have a chance to go back home again. But today it has changed," said Sai Nor Lek. Sai Harn, a volunteer working with IDPs in Mong Hsu Township, said that a pause in fighting on Thursday, November 19 had made many people hopeful that the conflict was coming to an end. "The IDPs saw that the conditions were good, so they prepared to go back home to harvest their rice," he said on Saturday. "But yesterday they heard about the government military increasing troops, and now they dare not go back home." A second meeting between UPWC members and SSPP/SSA-N representatives was scheduled to take place today in Yangon. The outcome of the meeting was not available at the time of reporting. By SIMMA FRANCIS AND ZAAI ZAAI LAO MURNG (Shan Herald Agency for News / S.H.A.N) Reporting by SAI YIPHONG (Shan Herald Agency for News / S.H.A.N)

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The Irrawaddy Magazine

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Nearly 80 Bodies Pulled From Landslide at Hpakant Jade Mine Posted: 21 Nov 2015 10:48 PM PST Local jade miners pick for jade on unstable mountain faces, despite periodic crackdowns by authorities. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — Nearly 80 bodies have been pulled from a landslide near a jade mine in Burma's northern Kachin State and an estimated 100 people are still missing, a rescue official said on Sunday. The landslide happened in the early hours of Saturday in Hpakant, an area that produces some of the world's highest quality jade, but the mines and dump sites for debris are rife with hazards. Workers, many of them migrants from other parts of the country, toil long hours for little pay. "So far we have found nearly 80 bodies from the collapsed dump as we continue searching for the missing," an official from the Hpakant Township Fire Brigade told Reuters by telephone. The official, who asked not to be named because he was not authorized to speak to the media, said that the accident occurred near a mining site controlled by Triple One Jade Mining at around 3 a.m. A local lawmaker and another rescue worker also confirmed the figures. The state-run Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper said on Sunday that many of the miners were sleeping in huts when the landslide occurred. Burma's jade industry is extremely opaque and much of the jade that is mined in Hpakant is believed to be smuggled to neighboring China where the stone is highly valued. According to researchers from environmental advocacy group Global Witness, which published a comprehensive report on the sector earlier this year, the value of jade production in Burma is estimated to have been as much as US$31 billion in 2014. Many of the jade mines are connected to government officials, members of armed ethnic groups and cronies with close ties to the former military government, the group found. The post Nearly 80 Bodies Pulled From Landslide at Hpakant Jade Mine appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

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National News

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Final results confirm scale of NLD election victory Posted: 22 Nov 2015 07:18 AM PST Thanks to unnamed election heroes who reportedly trekked through mountains carrying ballot papers from remote areas in Kachin State, the Union Election Commission has released its full results of the November 8 polls that confirm the scale of the NLD victory.

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The Irrawaddy Magazine

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The Irrawaddy Business Roundup (Nov. 21, 2015) Posted: 20 Nov 2015 07:17 PM PST Workers unload goods at the Thilawa Port in 2013. (Photo: Soe Zeya Tun / Reuters) Major Reform Bills to Be Passed Before New Parliament, Say Analysts Halfway through its first session after the election, the Union Parliament appears poised to clear most or all of the outstanding economic reform bills before new lawmakers take their seats at the end of January. With discussions of a supplementary budget underway, the next order of business is expected to be some of the marquee economic bills that have been stalled in parliamentary committees for a year or more, including revisions to the 100-year-old Companies Act, the 1994 Mining Law and the 1993 Banks and Financial Institutions Law (BFIL), along with the update and merger of the Foreign Investment and Myanmar Citizens Investment laws. In an analysis released before the election, the Eurasia Group global political risk management consultancy said it expected the outgoing Union Solidarity and Development Party to push through as many of the outstanding reform bills as possible rather than risk having the legislation delayed until after a new government was formed at the end of March. "The fact that the session has been called so early suggests that both USDP party members and government officials want to take full advantage of the period before the new parliament is formed," said Eurasia Group's Christian Lewis. The firm believes that while updates to company and investment laws are possible before the new parliament convenes in January, the "badly needed" banking law would likely be delayed until April at the earliest. "The bill's complexity, and opposition from vested interests keen to avoid deeper scrutiny of their lending practices, make it unlikely to pass," said Lewis. Burma's retail banking sector is dominated by businessmen close to the former military junta. Another lending institution, the Myawaddy Bank, is a subsidiary of the military-controlled Union of Myanmar Economic Holdings Ltd conglomerate. The Eurasia Group's analysis concluded that despite the pre-election fears of opposition politicians and activists, the USDP was unlikely to risk upsetting the investment climate by passing laws favorable to its own interests during post-election parliamentary sessions. "We think it would require an unrealistically large change of opinion among numerous parliamentarians to accomplish these changes, especially given domestic and internal demands for a peaceful and fair election process and handoff of power," Lewis said. Korean Loan Finalized for Dala Bridge Project, Burma Rail Funding Six months after it was approved by Union Parliament, a signing ceremony has been held for the construction of the Burma-Korea Friendship Bridge across the Rangoon River, linking impoverished Dala Township to the commercial capital's downtown grid. The Global New Light of Myanmar reported this week that the agreement, which also incorporates a low interest loan for 60 new rail coaches, was inked between South Korea's state-owned Exim Bank and Burma's Construction and Rail Transport ministries the previous day at Naypyidaw's lavish Kempinski Hotel. The Irrawaddy reported in May that the 1.9-kilometer (1.16-mile), $138 million bridge would be underwritten by a 40-year, 0.01 percent interest loan from South Korea's Economic Development Cooperation Fund. Tens of thousands of people are estimated to travel daily to Rangoon by ferry from Dala, a township with a dearth of employment opportunities and a lack of water and electricity infrastructure. Under Rangoon's urban expansion plan, passed by the divisional parliament in June, Dala will be the fourth urban satellite area to receive major funding for new commercial and residential development after an area northeast of East Dagon, a southwestern tract across the Hlaing River comprising parts of Kyimyindaing, Seikgyikanaungto and Twante, and Thanlyin in the city's southeast. The southwestern expansion project was infamously suspended last year when it was revealed that the heads of the Myanmar Saytanar Myothit company, who were awarded the project without a public tender, had close ties to outgoing Chief Minister Myint Swe. There are currently no plans to build a bridge across the Hlaing River to link the southwestern project with Rangoon proper. The Construction Ministry expects the Dala bridge, which will link Lanmadaw's Phone Gyi Street to Dala's Bo Min Yaung Rd, to be completed in 2020. Trafigura Subsidiary in Thilawa Port Deal Singapore-based oil and gas firm Puma Energy is setting up shop at Thilawa, with Bloomberg reporting the company is in the process of building a $100 million storage facility for bitumen and petroleum products at the deep-sea port. The project will service the adjacent Japanese-backed Thilawa Special Economic Zone, which became the first of three planned SEZs to commence operations earlier this year. Investment is still trickling in to Thilawa as companies adopted a wait-and-see attitude to the 2015 elections, the results of which are predicted to drive a massive rise in foreign direct investment pledges over the coming fiscal year. Since the end of 2014, Puma's presence in Burma has expanded rapidly. The company is already in exclusive partnership with the state-run Myanma Petroleum Products Enterprise (MPPE) to distribute jet fuel at 11 airports across the country, as Burma's burgeoning tourism market fuels strong growth in the aviation industry. "Puma Energy is interested in all segments of the market in Myanmar," Puma Chief Financial Officer Denis Charazin told Bloomberg. The firm is one of 11 foreign companies currently duking it out to form a joint-venture with MPPE for a liquefied petroleum gas distribution company. LPG is a major fuel source for private automobiles in the country's south. Puma Energy's largest shareholder is Trafigura, the Dutch commodity trading giant, which owns a 49 percent stake in the firm. Trafigura is no stranger to controversy, most infamously its dumping of toxic waste chemicals in some of the poorest neighborhoods of the city of Abidjan in Côte d’Ivoire. Over 100,000 people subsequently sought medical attention as a result of exposure to the waste. The company was forced to settle a class action lawsuit brought against it when The Guardian published internal company correspondence showing that members of the firm were aware of the potential health consequences of the dumping. APR Extends Kyaukse Power Plant Management Agreement US energy firm APR has announced the extension of an operating agreement for the 102MW Kyaukse gas power plant in Mandalay Division through to the end of 2016. Built by APR in the middle of last year, the Kyaukse plant was given a 20MW capacity upgrade in the first three months of 2015 to accommodate extra demand during the dry season. "As the first US power company to do business in Myanmar in recent years, we have been fortunate to have exceptional business partners in Myanma Electric Power Enterprise and the national government," Laurence Anderson, the firm's chief executive, said in a Tuesday press release. The Kyaukse project, agreed to in February 2014, was installed and operational after 90 days and produces enough power to meet the electricity demands of six million people in the country, according to the statement. The plant is powered by natural gas from the Shwe pipeline, which connects the deep-sea port at Kyaukphyu in Arakan State to China's Yunnan province. APR has operations in more than 25 countries for a combined total capacity of 2.5GW, including power plants in Indonesia, Bangladesh, Japan and Sri Lanka. The company told The Irrawaddy in May 2014 that the company is hoping to invest further in Burma with future natural gas projects. Burma Keeps China Smelters Waiting on Ferronickel Export Ban A two-month old export ban on ferronickel is having effects further down the supply chain, with Chinese smelters having trouble meeting client orders as a result, according to a metal industry trade publication. Metal Bulletin reported on Nov. 9 that at a recent industry conference, a Chinese buyer said the Burmese government had in September suspended exports to the Dagongshan smelter in Guandong while it renegotiated the distribution of sales proceeds, stopping the smelter from providing refined metals to two Chinese manufacturers further afield. A renegotiation of export prices may conclude next month, according to the source. Ferronickel is primarily used to manufacture stainless steel products. Spot prices for nickel have been in a downward trend since an all-time high of US$25 per pound in 2008, shortly before a sudden collapse in commodity prices during the 2008 economic crisis. The metal currently trades at around $5 per pound. According to Metal Bulletin, Burma accounted for around one eighth of total ferronickel imports into China before the export ban commenced, citing Chinese customs data. The post The Irrawaddy Business Roundup (Nov. 21, 2015) appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

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