Wednesday, September 5, 2018

The Irrawaddy Magazine

The Irrawaddy Magazine

Peace Commission Holds Talks With Northern Alliance Members in China

Posted: 05 Sep 2018 08:11 AM PDT

CHIANG MAI, Thailand—The government’s Peace Commission (PC) met with three members of the Northern Alliance group of armed organizations in China on Wednesday. The meeting was agreed to in mid-July, when Northern Alliance leaders were in Naypyitaw for a peace conference.

The Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA)’s Brigadier-General Tar Phone Kyaw said Wednesday’s talks between the government delegation and leaders of the TNLA, Arakan Army and Kokang-based Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army were held to build mutual trust, which he said had "been broken" for a long time.

The government negotiators were PC vice chairman U Thein Zaw and secretary U Khin Zaw Oo, both former military generals.

"Both sides agreed to hold further peace negotiations and will meet again next month," Brig-Gen Tar Phone Kyaw, who is also the TNLA’s general-secretary and who was present at the meeting, told The Irrawaddy.

Representatives of the Kachin Independence Organization/Army and the United Wa State Party/Army were also presented at the meeting, he said.

While he declined to discuss details, the brigadier-general said they discussed ways for peace negotiations "to move forward and to reduce the fighting." Details of the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) and recent armed clashes were not discussed, he said.

"We had lost mutual trust in each other. As we have only just resumed talks, we were not able to discuss issues in detail," he said. "But we have been able to rebuild trust, which will allow further negotiations to lessen [military] engagement. This is a good step," Brig-Gen. Tar Phone Kyaw said.

The Irrawaddy tried to contact the government negotiators and representatives of the other groups, but they were not available for comment at press time.

The TNLA has been actively fighting the Myanmar Military in northern Shan State's Kut Kai, Nam San, Man Tong and Namtu townships, and has also clashed with the Restoration Council of Shan State, an NCA signatory, in Namtu, causing nearly 2,000 residents of at least a dozen villages to flee their homes.

The post Peace Commission Holds Talks With Northern Alliance Members in China appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Jailed Reporters’ Wives Hope Against Hope for Presidential Pardon

Posted: 05 Sep 2018 07:47 AM PDT

YANGON – The Myanmar National Human Rights Commission (MNHRC) has urged the National League for Democracy (NLD)-led government to "seriously consider all aspects of the larger interest of the country" amid mounting local and international criticism of the jailing of two Reuters reporters.

Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo were imprisoned for seven years on Monday for breaching the Official Secrets Act over their coverage of the conflict in Rakhine State.

The MNHRC statement followed a press conference given by the jailed reporters' wives, Pan Ei Mon and Chit Su Win, on Tuesday. The commission said it had been closely observing the case of the two reporters since it received a complaint letter from the wives in December. It adds that officials of the MNHRC attended a series of trial hearings to observe whether the accused's basic rights were being upheld. The commission urged the government to protect the basic rights of Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, including their right to appeal and hold legal consultations with their lawyers.

Two days ago, Yangon's Northern District Court analyzed the claims and counterclaims of the prosecutor and defense lawyers, respectively, regarding a number of accusations against the reporters. The reporters were accused of possessing "top-secret" documents at the time of their arrest last December in Yangon, including the travel itinerary for Vice President U Myint Swe's trip to strife-torn northern Rakhine; the phone number of Arakan Army (AA) Brigadier-General Nyo Tun Aung (the AA is a non-signatory of the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement); a map related to Pope Francis' visit to Myanmar; and northern Rakhine security clearance operations reports. Taking into consideration all of the above matters, the judge concluded that the reporters had violated the Official Secrets Act's Section 3 (1) (c) and sentenced them to seven years' imprisonment.

In fact, the pair was investigating the massacre of 10 Rohingya men in Rakhine State's Inn Din village by a group of local villagers, police and Army troops last December. When the reporters returned to Yangon from northern Rakhine, they contacted Police Captain Moe Yan Naing, who had recently been transferred from Maungdaw Township, to clarify some facts about the Inn Din killings. At that time, the Myanmar authorities were bluntly denying that security forces had committed any mass killings during the operations.

The following month, the Army announced that seven soldiers had been sentenced to 10 years in prison with hard labor in a remote area of Myanmar for participating in the mass killing. The United Nations says the military crackdown has sent nearly 700,000 people fleeing to Bangladesh.

Police were aware that two reporters were investigating indiscriminate killings by security forces, so Police Brigadier General Tin Ko Ko instructed a police constable to set the reporters up by handing them some of the "top-secret" documents and immediately arresting them. Pol. Lance Corporal Naing Lin and a colleague contacted Wa Lone and arranged to meet the reporters at a restaurant in Mingalardon's Htauk Kyant area. Unexpectedly, the two reporters were given two newspaper-wrapped packages, but as the lighting was dim at the restaurant, the police suggested the reporters read the documents at a later time.

After handing over the packages, the police abruptly left. The reporters had taken just a few steps outside the restaurant when they were immediately handcuffed by a different group of Yangon police officers. They were taken directly to the Yae Kyi Aing interrogation camp, and a couple of days later police announced that the two had been arrested for possessing top-secret documents linked to northern Rakhine State and charged under the colonial-era Official Secrets Act. The two detainees attended a number of trial hearings over a period  of nine months. While the two reporters were charged over the possession of the documents, the prosecutor made several late submissions to the court, adding information found by investigators on the two reporters' mobile phones, including the phone number of a senior AA leader.

In terms of the MNHRC statement, commission member U Yu Lwin Aung told The Irrawaddy over the phone on Wednesday that the statement was issued with the aim of finding a better solution—for both the government and the jailed reporters—based on a more rigorous approach that does not violate the existing laws of Myanmar and is arrived at using the legitimate powers of the ruling party. To make it happen, legal experts and relevant departments of the government should initiate a consultation meeting to find an appropriate solution, he said.

"Strictly maintaining its stance will not bring about a positive impact," U Yu Lwin Aung said.

Defense lawyer U Khin Maung Zaw, who joined the reporters' wives at yesterday's press conference, told the journalists they were extremely disappointed with the judge's decision because the plaintiff witnesses' testimony, including that given by police, appeared to contain discrepancies and falsehoods. A key plaintiff witness, Police Capt. Moe Yan Naing, even told the judge that the reporters had been set up. Another lawyer, U Than Zaw Aung, told the journalists that the defense team would exhaust all options in trying to obtain the immediate release of his clients, including appealing to the higher court.

"This will remain as a black spot on our country's history," U Khin Maung Zaw said.

Wa Lone's wife Pan Ei Mon, who recently had the couple's first child, said, "I went to see my husband in prison yesterday and he told me that he had not expected this kind of result. He was very upset about having been trapped and having to serve a long prison sentence."

She repeatedly said, "He has done nothing wrong and I want him to come home quickly."

Chit Su Win, the wife of Kyaw Soe Oo, recalled that one day before his conviction, she visited her husband in Inn Sein Prison and her husband had returned all his clothing to her as he ultimately trusted in the judicial system. She said a seven-year sentence was totally "unjust".

She said, "My husband is a good man and I'm proud of him. My overwhelming concern is for the possible trauma my daughter will suffer. She even asks me sometimes why her father has been away from us for so long. Is he no longer in love with mommy?"

In discussions with foreign diplomats or exclusive media interviews, senior NLD leaders including State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi have frequently said that the outcome of the Reuters reporters' trials would be "up to the judiciary". They have refrained from saying anything supportive of the journalists, saying that could be regarded as contempt of court.

As of this week, the judiciary has done its part. To return the jailed reporters to their families and newsrooms, there is a potentially "life-saving" provision in the Constitution—Section 204. It stipulates that the president has the ultimate power to grant a pardon and that he can also grant an amnesty with the recommendation of the National Defense and Security Council (NDSC). Lawyer Than Zaw Aung told reporters he had heard some top NLD leaders, during foreign trips and at forums, discuss possible presidential pardons for the pair.

However, family members and defense lawyers were not confident of an immediate release, based on comments by the country's de facto leader, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, during an exclusive interview with Japan's NHK on June 8, that the two reporters "were not arrested for covering the Rakhine issue" and even that "they were arrested because they broke the Official Secrets Act."

The post Jailed Reporters' Wives Hope Against Hope for Presidential Pardon appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Lawmakers Question 1.2bn Kyat Losses by State-Run Newspapers

Posted: 05 Sep 2018 07:43 AM PDT

YANGON—A Myanmar parliamentarian questioned losses of 1.2 billion kyats ($770,000) made by state-run newspapers which are dominating the market in circulation as well as gaining plenty of advertisements.

During debates on the 2018-19 Union Budget Bill on Tuesday, a Lower House lawmaker Daw Aye Mya Mya Myo of Yangon's Kyauktan constituency pointed out the estimated losses expected to be made by the News and Periodicals Enterprise (NPE) under the Information Ministry in the upcoming fiscal year [from Oct. 1, 2018 to Sept. 30, 2019].

The Union Budget Bill—submitted to the parliament in July— stated that the News and Periodicals Enterprise under the Information Ministry will lose 1.158 billion kyats with estimated of 21.537 billion kyats and the estimated income of 20.375 billion kyats.

The NPE runs three state-owned daily newspapers: The Mirror and Myanma Alinn Daily in Burmese language and the English-language Global New Light of Myanmar which is running as a joint venture with a private company.

"The enterprise is using state buildings and land for the operations and money from the state budget to pay staff. It also dominates in the market. There are plenty of advertisements but why is it making a loss?" the lawmaker Daw Aye Mya Mya Myo asked at the Union Parliament on Tuesday.

She said government newspapers making losses on state funding needs to be questioned as well as the management of the outlets.

The MP said that the newspapers also failed in countering international reports on Rakhine State during a time when the country has been under strong international censure.

Private daily newspapers have only been published in Myanmar since 2013 after a decades-long ban was lifted. The then-government approved 39 publications, but only seven nationally distributed privately-run papers are left.

Many of those in the market are also struggling to make their publications survive due to a drop in circulation, shrinking ad revenue and high production costs. An uneven playing field has been created in competing against government newspapers which have more advertisements than private media because state media enjoys a bigger circulation, low sale prices and advertisement rates.

The Upper House lawmaker U Ye Htut of Sagaing Region, also mention at the parliament on Tuesday that the state-owned newspapers should be privatized as a way to reduce the state budget deficit.

"There is no state-run newspapers or media in democratic countries and thus they should all be privatized."

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Lawmakers Complain of Loopholes in Conditions of Korean Loan

Posted: 05 Sep 2018 05:52 AM PDT

YANGON—Myanmar lawmakers have criticized loopholes in the president's message regarding infrastructure loans from the EXIM Bank of Korea which would be a major element to the implementation of the Korean-backed industrial complex project in Hlegu Township, Yangon Region.

On Tuesday, nine lawmakers discussed the president's message given in the Union Parliament regarding the decision to take $61.8 million in loans from the EXIM Bank of Korea for the Korea-Myanmar Industrial Complex (KMIC) infrastructure project.

According to lawmakers, the loans will be used for three infrastructure projects which would support the KMIC project: the upgrading of highway roads; building a new power plant for electricity; and constructing a new channel for a water supply. The infrastructure projects will start this year and are expected to be finished in 2021.

One lawmaker pointed out that despite the president's message revealing broad project plans and expectations, it did not include standard procedures or details on the implementation of the projects. It is difficult to make a decision about whether to take the loans, the lawmakers said.

"It missed all the crucial information. I don't see complete information for the road upgrade project or the electricity project. It is a huge amount of money. The outcome should benefit our people," said Daw Yin Min Hlaing, a lawmaker in the Lower House.

"As the lawmakers pointed out in the previous discussion, we can see clearly…there are many weaknesses [in the message]," she said.

The president's message also mentioned that the industrial complex will create between 50,000 and 100,000 job opportunities, but Daw Yin Min Hlaing wants assurances from the developer on the actual number.

She pointed out that lawmakers need to know how many years Korea, the main investor in the project, will operate the industrial complex for.

In 2017, the Korea Land & Housing Corporation (LH) and Myanmar's Ministry of Construction signed a memorandum of agreement for the project located approximately one hour away from Yangon.

A map showing the location of the proposed Korea-Myanmar Industrial Complex. / KIC website

The project will be built over 558 acres and is to be an export production-based complex. The project which will cost a total $110 million, is expected to include small and medium enterprises, heavy industry and a vocational school. Around 200 Korean companies are expected to invest in the production companies which are projected to generate $10 million in taxes annually.

The first feasibility test for the project was done in 2015 and the Myanmar government approved LH's letter of intent of business for the project in 2016. The project ideas came about after the Joint Committee on Economic Cooperation of Myanmar and South Korea agreed to extend trade between the two countries in June 2013.

The industrial complex is to be established near the village of Nyaung Hna Pin—including the venue where the military regime held the National Convention at which they drafted the 2008 Constitution.

Lawmakers wanted to know whether the KMIC project would involve demolishing existing buildings in the compound of Nyaung Hna Pin's National Convention venue which have been deserted for many years.

A Lower House lawmaker U Nay Kyaw said, "There are 54 buildings including the main hall in the compound. We want to know clearly whether the existing buildings in Nyaung Hna Pin will be destroyed or not."

U Aung Min, also a lawmaker at the Lower House, said KMIC failed to provide information on the capacity of water storage, detailed costs of upgrading the road or consideration for logistics and transport operations.

He pointed out, "The big thing is the taxes. KMIC said we will get $10 million annually but according to the Myanmar Investment Law, the project is to be exempt from paying taxes for five years. If we also calculate the construction period, we will need to wait at least eight years to get taxes from that project."

"There is still a need to confirm: when will we get the taxes? It also didn't explain how we will share the profits between the Korean and Myanmar governments," U Aung Min said.

"The loans cannot be approved based on the president's message. We need more details. If we get the details…we will have clarity. We can then make the right decision on whether to take the loans," he added.

According to lawmakers, Korea and Myanmar will invest 60 percent and 40 percent respectively for the overall project which is slated for completion in 2023.

Lawmaker U Khin Cho said his fellow lawmakers found a lot of vague information in the message.

The interest rate is 0.1 percent and the repayment period 40 years, including a suspension period for the infrastructure loan, according to the lawmakers.

"The related ministries need to explain the consequences of the loans, including financial calculations. The [relative ministries] have to have accountability with transparency," U Aung Min said.

The related ministries will answer lawmakers' questions regarding the infrastructure loans in the Union Parliament on Sept. 6.

The post Lawmakers Complain of Loopholes in Conditions of Korean Loan appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

RCSS Chief Says TNLA Aggression Against Shan Civilians Hurts Ta’ang Aims

Posted: 05 Sep 2018 05:08 AM PDT

MON STATE — Amid an escalation in fighting between rival ethnic armed groups in northern Shan State, the chairman of the Restoration Council of Shan State (RCSS) accused the Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) of detaining, harassing and murdering ethnic Shan, and said the strategy would only harm efforts by the Ta'ang to establish their own state.

RCSS Chairman General Yawd Serk told the organization's media outlet, Tai Freedom, that the TNLA needed to consider which was the best route to establishing a Ta'ang state—attacking ethnic Shan or entering peace negotiations.

"By attacking the Shan, the ethnic Ta'ang are sowing the seeds of their own destruction," Gen Yawd Serk said.

There is no benefit for the Ta'ang in attacking ethnic Shan, he said, adding that he felt sorry for innocent Ta'ang who are suffering due to the fighting between the TNLA and RCSS.

Responding to Gen Yawd Serk's comments, Brigadier-General Tar Phone Kyaw of the TNLA said ethnic Ta'ang (Palaung) did not need to arrest or murder Shan people to establish an ethnic state. To achieve the creation of a liberated state, the Ta'ang people will fight for it, he said.

"The RCSS occupies our areas. Therefore, the TNLA has to attack them," Brig-Gen Tar Phone Kyaw said.

"If Yawd Serk wants to rebuild Shan State, he needs to avoid actions aimed at occupying our areas. His troops should not engage in human rights abuses against the Ta'ang people," he said.

If they did not, he said, the Shan and Ta'ang communities will only grow more divided and Gen. Yawd Serk's efforts to rebuild Shan State would fail, Brig-Gen Tar Phone Kyaw said.

The RCSS and TNLA have a history of armed clashes, and accuse each other of human rights violations against their populations. Armed conflict broke out between the RCSS and TNLA after the former signed the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) with the Myanmar government in 2015.

The RCSS is based in southern Shan State. According to Ta'ang military leaders, the group tried to take control of areas in northern Shan after signing the NCA, leading to clashes with the TNLA.

The RCSS has even tried to seize control of some areas from another Shan organization, the Shan State Progressive Party (SSPP), in northern Shan, despite being from the same ethnic group.

With increasing numbers of RCSS troops moving into northern Shan, the SSPP joined forces with the TNLA in attacks against the RCSS this year.

The TNLA and SSPP launched a military offensive last month with the aim of kicking the RCSS out of northern Shan. Fighting has escalated in Namtu Township this week, forcing about 1,000 local ethnic Shan and Palaung to flee their villages.

Ethnic Shan and Ta'ang co-existed peacefully in Shan State for decades, but the recent clashes have seen trust between the two communities break down.

The post RCSS Chief Says TNLA Aggression Against Shan Civilians Hurts Ta'ang Aims appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Accidents Decline on Myanmar’s ‘Death Highway’

Posted: 05 Sep 2018 04:47 AM PDT

NAYPYITAW — Sixty people were killed and more than 570 others were injured in traffic accidents in eight months on the Yangon-Mandalay Expressway, according to the expressway traffic police force.

There were a total of 297 road accidents from January through August and as in previous years, most involved private cars, traffic police said.

Last year, the highway saw a total of 555 road accidents in which 116 people were killed and 863 were injured, a decline from 2016, which saw 774 road accidents in which 170 died and 1,304 were injured.

"We use speed radar guns to measure the speed of vehicles. Speeding is the main cause of road accidents," police officer Soe Win of the highway traffic police told The Irrawaddy.

As of June 1, 2017, drivers and passengers traveling the highway in either private vehicles or express buses are required by law to wear seat belts.

Since then, the highway traffic police force spotted that 1,055 cars did not wear seatbelts. "Many have started to wear seat belts because of the fine. We impose a fine of 50,000 kyats for speeding and 30,000 kyats for failing to wear seat belts," said police officer Tin Maung Shwe of the highway traffic police force.

More than 20,000 vehicles ply the roughly 644-km highway daily and there are about seven road accidents a day, according to highway traffic police.

"The number of road accidents and casualties has declined thanks to traffic law enforcement," said lawmaker U Than Soe Aung, a member on Lower House Transportation, Communications and Construction Committee.

The highway connects the country’s commercial hub, Yangon, with its administrative capital, Naypyitaw, and second-largest city, Mandalay. It came into service in 2009 and has been dubbed the “death highway” due to the high number of accidents.

The government is still considering the offer of the Asian Development Bank to provide a loan of more than $100 million to upgrade the route, according to deputy construction minister U Kyaw Lin.

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko.

The post Accidents Decline on Myanmar's 'Death Highway' appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Jailed Whistleblower Concerned Truth Will Continue to be Covered Up

Posted: 05 Sep 2018 03:05 AM PDT

After more than four months behind bars, U Moe Yan Naing looks haggard, said Ma Tu Tu, the wife of the former police captain.

U Moe Yan Naing, 47, was dismissed from the police force and sentenced to one year in prison after he testified in court that two Reuters reporters Ko Wa Lone and Ko Kyaw Soe Oo were framed by the police.

"How could Police Brigadier-General Tin Ko Ko do this to me?" he asked rhetorically when she visited him in prison.

"I want to ask the same question," said the 42-year-old wife. According to U Moe Yan Naing's testimony, Police Brig-Gen Tin Ko Ko masterminded the setup which led to the arrest of the reporters.

U Moe Yan Naing, one of the police involved in handing the so-called classified documents to the reporters on Dec. 12 last year, testified in court on April 20 that the police had planned to entrap the reporters. He was detained immediately after the court session and was later convicted and sentenced in absence to a year in jail for breaching police discipline.

The court refused to deduct his detention period from the jail sentence, so he will have to serve the full one-year term. U Moe Yan Naing has already made an appeal to the Home Affairs Ministry, but to little avail.

"I was deeply hurt. Our life is ruined," said Ma Tu Tu who was evicted along with their three children from the police housing where they had lived in the capital, Naypyitaw, the day after her husband testified.

The family has since moved in with U Moe Yan Naing's father in his native town of Khin-U, in Sagaing Region.

"I had to transfer my youngest daughter from a school in Naypyitaw to one in Khin-U," she said.   "Siblings of my husband have been supporting us since," she said, explaining that her husband's salary had been the main source of income for the whole family.

U Moe Yan Naing had worked as a private tuition teacher before he joined the police force. "He said we could do it again and live a worry-free life after his release," said Ma Tu Tu.

Though he didn't speak about the case of the Reuters reporters after his jail sentence, he was interested to know the verdict of the court, she said.

The two were sentenced to seven years in prison on Monday. The Irrawaddy was not able to reach U Moe Yan Naing for his response after the verdict.

None of his family members blame him for giving his testimony, said Ma Tu Tu.

"I am revealing the truth because police of any rank have their own integrity. It is true that they were set up," U Moe Yan Naing told reporters after his first testimony.

"He was jailed because he told the truth. It is the truth, which is crystal clear. I trust him," said Ma Tu Tu.

U Moe Yan Naing has said he feels regret for his decision to join the police force. Ma Tu Tu blames fate for the things that have happened to them but went on to say she has decided not to allow her children to join the police force.

Despite having gone through all those experiences, both U Moe Yan Naing and Ma Tu Tu are still only concerned about one thing:

"He is concerned that no one will dare to tell the truth for fear of meeting the same fate as him."

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko.

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The Need to Improve Prison Reform

Posted: 05 Sep 2018 01:03 AM PDT

The recent launch of new standard operating procedures (SOPs) regulating prison health care by the Health and Sports Ministry is a step in the right direction toward improving dire prison conditions.

However, strangely, I have been unable to find a copy of these new SOPs. They have not been shared with civil society or organizations working on prison issues. I am curious to know what is included and whether counseling provisions are touched on at all. Such provisions are important to include. I say this from my own experience.

Even though I see this as a positive step, I doubt this by itself will implement reform. Much change is needed and these SOPs are not nearly enough.

There are 46 prisons and more than 40 labor camps in Burma. In addition, there are many more detention centers that are under the remit of police, military and non-ceasefire groups.

Failings of the judicial system, corruption, and underinvestment in prison infrastructure, coupled with the rampant level of overcrowding in Burma, makes a perfect storm for torture, health problems and a lack of justice.

Reform is badly needed. Conditions in detention centers and treatment in prisons are shocking. Human dignity is routinely violated by police or prison authorities. This is done through the practice of torture, alongside overcrowding and substandard prison conditions.

Electric shocks, genital mutilation, waterboarding, stress positions and other methods of physical torture are all routinely used in detention centers, as are psychological forms of torture such as threats, hooding and blindfolding, sleep deprivation and solitary confinement.

Regarding prison conditions, healthcare, food and sanitation are sorely lacking, as is the presence of counselors and healthcare professionals. Overcrowding is rife. Insein Prison, which has a capacity of 5,000 prisoners, currently has some 12,000 inside.

Furthermore, when giving out sentences, hard labor is prescribed far too often. Conditions are even worse in labor camps, with prisoners shackled and forced to work outside in all conditions in remote camps with little to no healthcare access. Sentences are often designed to punish, not rehabilitate.

After release, prisoners carry around the effects of their incarceration. Their suffering continues long after their sentences have finished. Counselors need to be provided for prisoners so they can deal with the long-term effects and trauma from torture and treat cases of depression and mental health. Treatment and counseling must be available and must make up a substantive part of the SOPs.

Another important issue is that the Health and Sports Ministry did not consult with civil society. The SOPs were developed alongside the UN and INGOs, yet their conception did not involve civil society in Burma. A question must be asked – did they think former prisoners had no thoughts on prison reform?

Former political prisoners are victims of prisons and the penal system. They must be listened to. Due to their experiences at the hands of their jailers and judges, who knows more about the failings of prisons and the need to implement SOPs than Burma's political prisoners themselves? Years of incarceration and abuse have made them experts on these matters.

The SOPs are ineffective and incomplete as a result of this lack of consultation. There is a need to understand that the effects of substandard prison conditions and torture continue long after release.

Prison reform has to be large, systematic and take in all aspects of the penal system. It is not just within a jail that prisoners are abused. It is from their first step inside Burma's judiciary system. It is futile to attempt to reform the prison cell without also reforming the prison system.

Any reform must be based on a holistic approach. Isolated reform will simply not work. In order to have better results, we must all work together. Only by working together can we succeed.

Bo Kyi is the joint secretary of the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP).

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US Vice President Pence Calls for Release of Jailed Reuters Journalists

Posted: 04 Sep 2018 11:06 PM PDT

WASHINGTON — US Vice President Mike Pence on Tuesday called on Myanmar’s government to reverse a court ruling that imprisoned two Reuters journalists for seven years and to release them immediately.

The journalists were found guilty on Monday on official secrets charges in a landmark case seen as a test of progress toward democracy in Myanmar, which was ruled by a military junta until 2011.

Ko Wa Lone, 32, and Ko Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, were investigating the killing by security forces of Rohingya villagers at the time of their arrest last December, and had pleaded not guilty.

“Wa Lone & Kyaw Soe Oo shd be commended—not imprisoned—for their work exposing human rights violations & mass killings. Freedom of religion & freedom of the press are essential to a strong democracy,” Pence wrote on Twitter.

Pence is the most senior US official to add his voice to an international outcry against the verdict by a Myanmar judge, who said the two had breached the colonial-era Official Secrets Act when they collected and obtained confidential documents.

In Yangon on Tuesday, the wives of two journalists insisted that the men were innocent and called for them to be reunited with their families.

“Deeply troubled by the Burmese court ruling sentencing 2 @Reuters journalists to 7 years in jail for doing their job reporting on the atrocities being committed on the Rohingya people,” Pence wrote in another tweet.

US ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said on Tuesday that the United States would become more vocal about the two journalists’ situation.

Speaking at a news conference in New York marking the US assumption of the rotating chairmanship of the Security Council for September, Haley said the reporters were “in prison for telling the truth.”

Mark Green, administrator for the US Agency for International Development, said “these convictions are an enormous setback for democracy and the rule of law in Burma.”

Mounting Pressure

The verdict came amid mounting pressure on the government of Nobel laureate Daw Aung San Suu Kyi over a security crackdown sparked by attacks by Rohingya Muslim insurgents on security forces in Rakhine State in west Myanmar in August 2017.

More than 700,000 stateless Rohingya Muslims have fled into Bangladesh since then, according to UN agencies. The Rohingya, who regard themselves as native to Rakhine, are widely considered as interlopers by the country’s Buddhist majority and are denied citizenship.

Neither Suu Kyi nor her government have commented publicly on the case since the reporters were convicted.

The journalists were arrested on Dec. 12 while investigating the killing of 10 Rohingya men and boys and other abuses involving soldiers and police in the village of Inn Din.

Myanmar has denied allegations of atrocities against Rohingya by its security forces, saying it conducted a legitimate counterinsurgency operation against Muslim militants.

The military acknowledged the killing of the 10 Rohingya at Inn Din after arresting the Reuters reporters.

A UN-mandated fact-finding mission said last week that Myanmar’s military carried out mass killings and gang rapes of Muslim Rohingya with “genocidal intent” and called for top generals to be prosecuted. Myanmar rejected the findings.

The International Criminal Court is considering whether it has jurisdiction over events in Rakhine, while the United States, the European Union and Canada have sanctioned Myanmar military and police officers over the crackdown.

The post US Vice President Pence Calls for Release of Jailed Reuters Journalists appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

China Lures Chip Talent from Taiwan with Fat Salaries, Perks

Posted: 04 Sep 2018 10:29 PM PDT

TAIPEI — A huge pay rise, eight free trips home a year and a heavily subsidized apartment. It was a dream job offer that a Taiwanese engineer simply could not refuse.

A veteran of Taiwan’s top-tier chipmakers, including United Microelectronics Corp (UMC), the engineer took up the offer from a Chinese state-backed chipmaker last year and now oversees a small team at a wafer foundry in eastern China.

The engineer joined a growing band of senior Taiwan professionals working in China’s booming and fast-developing semiconductor industry.

Attracting such talent from Taiwan has become a key part of an effort by China to put the industry into overdrive and reduce the country’s dependence on overseas firms for the prized chips that power everything from smartphones to military satellites.

That drive, which started in 2014, intensified this year as US-China trade tensions escalated, according to recruiters and industry insiders, exposing what China feels is an overreliance on foreign-made chips.

China imported $260 billion worth of semiconductors in 2017, more than its imports of crude oil. Homemade chips made up less than 20 percent of domestic demand in the same year, according to China Semiconductor Industry Association.

More than 300 senior engineers from Taiwan have moved to Chinese chipmakers so far this year, joining nearly 1,000 others who have relocated since Beijing set up a $22 billion fund to develop the chip industry in 2014, according to estimates from H&L Management Consultants, a Taipei-based recruitment firm.

The battle for skilled engineers has raised concerns in Taiwan that the island could lose a key economic engine to its political foe, China. Analysts say China is still years behind Taiwan in terms of chip design and manufacturing, however, even as it moves ahead in terms of the production of lower-end chips.

China’s semiconductor plans accelerated this year after the United States banned sales of chips to the Chinese phone vendor ZTE, senior Chinese officials familiar with the matter told Reuters in April.

Tariffs imposed by Washington on $16 billion worth of China’s imports have hit Chinese semiconductors, which are now subject to tariff rates of 25 percent.

That will make Chinese chips less competitive compared to those from Taiwan and South Korea, and could disrupt China’s semiconductor ambitions. Beijing’s aim is to have local chips comprise at least 40 percent of China’s semiconductor needs by 2025.

Underscoring the talent crunch, two state-run institutions said in August that about 400,000 professionals were working in China’s integrated circuit sector at the end of 2017, far short of the estimated 720,000 workers needed by 2020.

While China has also targeted engineers from South Korea and Japan to address that shortage, it has had the most success in Taiwan thanks to a common language and culture, recruiters say.

Lin Yu-Hsuan, a manager at the recruitment firm H&L, said engineers from Taiwan were lured by high pay, perks and more senior positions at Chinese chipmakers like Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC) that are flush with cash from China’s multi-billion chip fund.

“Many of them said: ‘the money I will earn in China in three years is equivalent to what I could get in Taiwan in 10 years. I could retire earlier’,” Lin said.

Steve Wang, the vice chairman and president of Novatek Microelectronics, a Taiwanese integrated chip designer, said a small percentage of its employees had left for China over the past two years, and acknowledged that it would be difficult to match offers from Chinese rivals.

The engineer at the wafer foundry, who declined to be named as the details of his contract were not public, said his Chinese employer offered him a new three-bedroom apartment with a 40 percent discount on the condition that he worked for the company for more than five years, in addition to a 50 percent pay rise. He declined to give the exact figure.

“China dares to burn money, whereas Taiwan companies have limited resources,” he said.

Counter Offer

A senior executive at a newly-established chipmaker in northeastern China, SiEn (QingDao) Integrated Circuits Company Ltd, said about one-third of its recently recruited 120 engineers were from Taiwan.

“There is not a lack of money. What we need is talent,” said the person, who declined to be named as he was not authorized to speak to the media.

He said the company, led by Richard Chang, the founder of SMIC, China’s leading chipmaker, offers new hires discounted property and attractive subsidies for bilingual schools in the port city of Qingdao.

“Taiwanese engineers are most experienced and could help us cultivate local talents,” the executive said. “The movement will continue to escalate.”

Industry watchers said Taiwan’s widely respected chip design houses and foundries have been among the hardest hit by the outflow of engineers, and have been forced to ramp up spending to lure workers.

The island’s leading integrated circuit designers and chipmakers have seen a 35 percent jump in labor costs, including salary and benefits from two years ago, compared with a 21 percent hike in revenue, according to Reuters calculations based on corporate filings from Taiwan’s 10 largest listed companies by market value.

Trade Secret

Taiwan has been watching the Chinese recruitment efforts with growing anxiety.

It has long barred chipmakers like Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd, a key supplier to Apple Inc, from moving their most advanced technology to manufacturing operations in China to keep it from falling into the hands of Chinese rivals.

Many in Taiwan are also concerned that the rapid development of China’s chip industry could lead to the sort of oversupply and plunging prices that came with Chinese efforts to develop other key industries like solar panels and liquid crystal displays.

China’s integrated circuit design firms have already surpassed their Taiwan rivals in terms of revenue, with $31 billion in 2017, compared with Taiwan’s $22 billion, according to Mark Li, an analyst at Bernstein.

The fears are that the battle for talent will widen that gap further.

In a move to retain top talent, Taiwan’s cabinet in July pledged to relax tax regulations on employee stock ownership.

“The Chinese Communist Party has been poaching our talent,” said Chen Mei-ling, minister of Taiwan’s policy-planning National Development Council. “The government has amended regulations to help companies keep talent.”

Ho Chan-cheng, legal affairs director at Taiwan’s Intellectual Property Office, said “inappropriate poaching” could lead to the leaking of trade secrets and that the government was working to protect the island’s core technology – namely the capacity to increase chip yield per wafer.

Taiwan companies are also trying to offer their own incentives.

Antonio Yu, spokesman for the Taiwan-based chip design house Phison Electronics Corp, said that while the company “does not have the capital to play such a money game,” it has tried to create a “reassuring environment” for its employees.

He cited long-standing cash bonuses and programs such as free legal counseling, as well as a monthly town hall meeting with Phison’s chairman, Khein-Seng Pua.

“We treat our employees like family,” he said.

Despite such efforts, Taiwanese engineers are finding incentives from China hard to resist.

Tommy Huang, a 37-year-old Taiwanese chip engineer who in 2016 joined United Semiconductor in southern China – a joint venture between Taiwan’s UMC and Chinese state-backed partners – said Taiwanese efforts to retain talent did not work for him.

“You don’t have any chance if you stay in Taiwan,” said Huang, whose Chinese employer offered him an annual school subsidy of up to 60,000 yuan ($8,689) for his five-year-old child and a salary more than double what he earned in Taiwan.

“We are buying hope by coming to China.”

The post China Lures Chip Talent from Taiwan with Fat Salaries, Perks appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Typhoon Kills 10 in Japan, Boats Move Stranded Passengers from Airport

Posted: 04 Sep 2018 09:57 PM PDT

TOKYO — A powerful typhoon killed 10 people in western Japan and an airport company started to transfer some 3,000 stranded passengers by boats from a flooded airport, the government said on Wednesday, as more than a million homes were without power.

Jebi, or “swallow” in Korean, was briefly a super typhoon and is the most powerful storm to hit Japan in 25 years. It follows heavy rains, landslides, floods and record-breaking heat that killed hundreds of people this summer.

About 3,000 tourists stayed overnight at Kansai Airport in western Japan, an important hub for Japanese companies to export semiconductors. Television footage showed people lining up to buy food and drinks at a convenience store in the airport.

Airport officials began transferring the stranded passengers to nearby Kobe airport by high-speed boats and buses on Wednesday morning, the government said.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said about 300 people were injured. It was uncertain when the airport would reopen and some roads and train lines in the affected areas were still closed, he said. About 1.2 million homes were without power.

“The government will continue to do everything possible to tackle these issues with utmost urgency,” Suga told a news conference.

Japan’s JXTG Nippon Oil & Energy Corp shut at least one of the refining units at its 135,000 barrels-per-day Sakai refinery in Osaka in western Japan due to typhoon damage to part of the cooling tower, the trade ministry said.

Many chip plants operate in the Kansai region. Toshiba Memory, the world’s second-largest maker of flash memory chips, was monitoring developments closely and may need to ship products from other airports if Kansai remains closed, a spokeswoman said.

She said the company was not expecting a major impact because its plant in Yokkaichi in central Japan had not been affected by the typhoon.

It could take several days to a week to reopen Kansai airport depending on the damage, the Yomiuri newspaper quoted an unidentified person in the airline industry as saying.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, criticized for an initially slow response to devastating floods in July, posted repeated updates on the rescue efforts at Kansai.

Jebi’s course brought it close to parts of western Japan hit by rains and flooding that killed more than 200 people in July but most of the damage this time appeared to be from the wind.

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Tuesday, September 4, 2018

The Irrawaddy Magazine

The Irrawaddy Magazine

TNLA Puts Abducted Shan Woman ‘on Trial’

Posted: 04 Sep 2018 06:07 AM PDT

CHIANG MAI, Thailand — The Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) said on Monday it had put on trial a Shan woman whom it took from her home at gunpoint last month in Namhkam Township, northern Shan State.

Nang Mo Hom is being tried in the TNLA's central court for allegedly obstructing its troops as they performed their duties, the group said.

Five TNLA troops arrested Nang Mo Hom at gunpoint on Aug. 17. Since then she has not been able to meet her family, despite demands for her release by local civil society groups.  A Shan political party, the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD), on Aug. 27 sent a letter to State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi requesting that she intervene, in her capacity as the head of the National Reconciliation and Peace Center (NRPC), to assist Nang Mo Hom.

The TNLA said in a Sept. 3 statement that Nang Mo Hom had been charged under its own authority with obstructing its troops as they attempted to collect customs duties, and that her actions had resulted in the death of one of the officers.

TNLA spokesman Mai Aik Kyaw told The Irrawaddy on Tuesday that the Palaung State Liberation Front (PSLF)/TNLA court would hear the case against the woman, who was charged by the group under Article 333 of Myanmar's Criminal Code. When it came time to hand down a verdict, the spokesman said, the TNLA court "would try to make it a public hearing held before members of the public, including the family of the woman." He did not say when the verdict was expected.

Mai Aik Kyaw said Nang Mo Hom had committed a crime under the law as enforced by the TNLA. He was referring to an incident in July 2017 when two TNLA soldiers were attacked by the Myanmar Army for allegedly extorting money from local businesses in Namhkam Township.

Relatives of Nang Mo Hom said the TNLA had been extorting money from them for two years until July 2017, when one TNLA soldier was shot dead and another arrested and imprisoned in Lashio Prison after demanding 1 million kyats from the family.

The TNLA's announcement on Monday raised eyebrows, with observers asking how an organization that itself operates outside the country's laws could justify putting a woman on trial for breaking "its laws".

Addressing this point, Mai Aik Kyaw said, "As we are an armed group and not a ceasefire group, we cannot seek justice at the official township court." Therefore, they arranged their own justice, he said.

"The hearing is ongoing. On the day of the verdict we will invite her [Nang Mo Hom's] family and relatives to attend," he told The Irrawaddy.

SNLD spokesman Sai Leik raised doubts about the legitimacy of the move. "The question is whether they have the legal and judicial authority," Sai Leik said, adding that, as the TNLA's administration lacks legitimacy, "how can we acknowledge their judgment?"

"We do not recognize their judiciary, which is illegal and run by an illegal organization," Sai Leik said, adding that the SNLD, as a registered political party, cannot directly communicate with TNLA and had therefore sought the NRPC's intervention.

However, the NRPC is unlikely to be able to intervene in the case. As with most affairs in conflict-torn Shan State, such issues usually require the involvement of the armed forces, on both the government and the ethnic groups' sides.

Sai Leik told The Irrawaddy the NRPC had not responded to their request yet, though it was submitted over a week ago.

The Irrawaddy was unable to contact NRPC vice chairman Dr. Tin Myo Win, who is also chairman of the Peace Commission and the government's chief negotiator with the ethnic armed organizations. Other members of the commission contacted by The Irrawaddy declined to comment.

Sai Leik called for an end to the fighting in Shan State, especially in the north, saying the TNLA and its allies had deliberately turned the area into a "war zone" in order to protect their interests.

"If things are allowed to develop in that direction, the chances of peace will get more remote, and this only harms the public, and social tensions between the ethnic groups will only escalate," the SNLD spokesman said.

Since the TNLA's abduction of the Shan woman, a war of words has erupted among Facebook users supporting either the Shan or Ta'ang, who accuse each other's armed forces of human rights violations. It is hard to verify whether individual social media users are actually Ta'ang or Shan, however.

Ta'ang National Liberation Army, Shan State, abductions, extortion, communal conflict

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Lawmaker Demands Accounting of Dam Maintenance Funds after Bago Flood

Posted: 04 Sep 2018 05:22 AM PDT

NAYPYITAW—Lawmaker U Tin Tun Naing grilled the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation about last week's fatal dam burst in Bago Region, during Monday's session of the Union Parliament.

The lawmaker expressed doubts that the ministry had conducted the proper annual maintenance work on the dam.

At least seven people were killed after the dam on Swar Creek in Bago's Taungoo District was breached on Aug. 29.

"This shows that annual maintenance work was not carried out," U Tin Tun Naing told reporters on Monday during a break in the parliamentary session. Parliament was meeting to discuss the national planning bill for fiscal 2018-19.

The lawmaker claimed that an average of around 70 billion kyats was allotted annually from the government budget to maintain dams and reservoirs across the country.

For fiscal 2018-19, 69 billion kyats had been allocated for the purpose, he said.

"So after the Swar Dam incident, there is a question. Is that money being used properly — is it really being used for maintenance work?" he asked.

When asked to comment on the issue by The Irrawaddy, Agriculture Ministry deputy permanent secretary U Myo Tint Tun said the ministry conducts regular maintenance on the dam, but the spillway had been unable to withstand "unusual" rainfall.

"Unlike previous years, it was submerged under nearly 2 feet of water this year. The spillway could not bear the weight and burst," he said.

According to statistics issued by the Ministry of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement on Aug. 31, seven people were killed, three are still missing and more than 5,000 residents of Yedashe, Taunggu, Oktwin and Kyauk Gyi townships in Taungoo District were affected by flooding of the Sittaung River after the bursting of the dam.

Yedashe Township was hardest hit, with 185 houses completely destroyed. More than 300 houses and 10 monasteries were damaged.

The flooding also damaged parts of the Swar Creek Bridge on the Yangon-Mandalay Expressway, as well as the old Yangon-Mandalay road and the railroad between the cities.

Lawmaker U Tin Tun Naing asked the ministry to disclose its maintenance expenses for the Swar Creek Dam over the past five fiscal years.

Concerned ministers will be required to answer lawmakers' questions after they finish discussing the national planning bill for fiscal 2018-19.

The post Lawmaker Demands Accounting of Dam Maintenance Funds after Bago Flood appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Hidden History: Century-Old Monasteries in Mandalay 

Posted: 04 Sep 2018 05:12 AM PDT

YANGON — Mandalay is one of Myanmar's most culturally rich cities and home to a number of listed historic monasteries, some of which are over 100 years old and remain in good condition as an example of ancient architecture.

There are some well-known monasteries that are already popular with tourists in Mandalay and can become quite busy. To avoid the well-visited monasteries and take in the designs in peace and quiet, you can visit these monasteries which are less well-known but still beautiful.

Second Shwe In Pin Monastery

There are a total of three monasteries in the Shwe In Pin collection in Mandalay and this one is technically called 'Second Shwe In Pin Monastery' but people know it as simply 'Shwe In Pin'. It is located on 89th Street between 37th and 38th streets in Maha Aung Myay Township.

One of the gate entrances to Shwe In Pin Monastery.(Photo: Zaw Zaw/ The Irrawaddy)

 

The monastery is 123 years old and it was built by two wealthy Chinese merchants. While the compound of the monastery is really big, the entrance is a bit small so look carefully as it is easy to miss.

Once you enter the monastery compound, you have to take off your shoes. Even in the morning, the compound is peaceful and quiet. After walking a few steps, you'll see the big, beautiful Shwe In Pin Monastery standing impressively before you.

The whole monastery is made entirely of teak wood. The roof of the monastery was built in tiers and the entrances of the building, walls, windows, doors are decorated with engravings. These engravings feature beautiful figures of people, dragons, birds, nats (spirits), flying horses and some flying humans too. All of the lines were created with a lot of detail giving it a unique elegance. It is really impressive ancient architecture.

The monastery was made using a total of 156 marble columns and the structure was originally four large separate rooms connected by a walkway.

It has a total of eight gates (the entrances are designed like gates) but some of them are really worn and not open. Visitors can go into the main monastery hall through a number of open gates. Be careful with your step because the teak floors are really old and might be weak.

In the hall, there is a big Buddha statue and some monks still worship here. The whole building is beginning to deteriorate and needs restoration works as soon as possible.

As a whole, the details of the design were just mind-blowing and I couldn't say anything except "It's so beautiful." I recommended you see it with your own eyes while you are in Mandalay.

Mahar Min Htin Monastery

Mahar Min Htin Monastery was donated by Mahar Minla Minkyaw U Min Htin in 1852. It is 165 years old and located near the famous Maha Muni Pagoda in Maha Aung Myay Township.

Entrance of the 165-year-old Maha Min Htin Monastery.(Photo: Zaw Zaw/ The Irrawaddy)

This monastery was originally built at Ava (now called Inwa) in 1852 and was moved to Mandalay in 1876. In the beginning, the monastery was built with a total of 426 teak columns but only 143 of them are left since its relocation. This means the original structure in Ava was probably three times bigger than what we see today. New wood columns have replaced the empty spots.

The monastery is famous for its huge size, ancient architectural design and a few engravings.  It is uniquely set surrounded by three small moats.

It has two main entrances but can only be entered through one as the other is badly damaged. Many parts of this monastery are damaged and have to be restored as soon as possible by architects specializing in historic design.

Kyay Myin Monastery

Kyay Myin Monastery is another wooden one and has been standing for 140 years. It is located on 62nd Street and the entrance is at the end of a narrow lane off the street.

The wooden 140-year-old Kyay Myin Monastery featuring a three-tiered roof.(Photo: Zaw Zaw/ The Irrawaddy)

The original owner was the Yanarpo Ywar Sar but it was restored by King Mindon's queen named Queen Kyay Myin so people have been calling it Kyay Myin Monastery.

The monastery's roof is three-tiered and the kinnara and kinnari (mystical half-human half-bird couple), belu (ogre) engraving works on the entrance stairs are really impressive and surely the highlight of the monastery.

Kinnari and Kinnara engraving works on the entrance stairs at Kyay Myin Monastery.(Photo: Zaw Zaw/ The Irrawaddy)

It is still in use and monks are living in the building. Visitors can go inside and see some old furniture styles of the previous century as well as some sculptures. This one is also a worthy place to visit when in town.

Kin Wun Min Gyi Monastery

This large wooden monastery was built in 1879 by Kin Wun Min Gyi U Kaung. It is located in East Daywun Quarter in Maha Aung Myay Township.

Kin Wun Min Gyi Monastery, which was influenced by western architectural design.(Photo: Zaw Zaw/ The Irrawaddy)

U Kaung was a chief minister during the reigns of King Mindon and Thibaw. During King Mindon's reign, he visited Europe and went to cities across England, France and Italy as an ambassador. This European trip inspired the design he used for Kin Wun Min Gyi Monastery and has made the building famous to the present day. It is one of the only monasteries in a Western style of the 18th and 19th centuries and doesn't have the usual tiered roof.

The building is now closed and no longer in usable condition but you can ask for the key from the monks who stay in the building compound and observe the interior structure and artwork.

Kin Wun Min Gyi Monastery.(Photo: Zaw Zaw/ The Irrawaddy)

The interesting parts of this building are its huge dimensions and the use of tall wooden pillars. Some parts of the building have been damaged over time but some ancient engraving work still remains. The inside of the monastery is really dusty but the spiral stairs and big doors are beautiful.

Pyi Min Thar Monastery

Pyi Min Thar Monastery is similar to the monastery mentioned above, with a few ancient engravings at the stair entrance. It still used by the monks.

The engraving artwork of Pyi Min Thar Monastery.(Photo: Zaw Zaw/ The Irrawaddy)

The special things about this monastery are the many ancient Buddha statues and historical artifacts kept here. There are ornamental thrones and their backdrops, book cabinets, lacquer boxes, teak boxes with Jataka inscriptions, packs of palm-leaf inscriptions, gilded glass mosaics, ancient brass bells and traditional art depicting lotus buds.

Mostly, the door is kept closed by the monks but you can ask them to study the things inside. This is a great place to observe some of Myanmar's historic Buddha statues and other ancient artifacts.

Ancient Buddha Statues and historical artifacts that are kept at Pyi Min Thar Monastery.(Photo: Zaw Zaw/ The Irrawaddy)

It was built in 1839 by the Prince of Pyi, and the 179-year-old monastery can be found near 78th Street.

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Myanmar Slides on Global Rule of Law Index

Posted: 04 Sep 2018 04:58 AM PDT

YANGON — Myanmar dropped two places in a global rule of law index from last year, leaving the country second lowest in the East Asia and Pacific region.

According to the Washington-based World Justice Project's 2017-2018 report, Myanmar ranked 100th among 113 countries globally and 14th among the 15 countries in the East Asia and Pacific region included in the index. Serious corruption in the legislature, executive branch, police, military and judiciary contributed to the low ranking, according to the report.

The WJP Rule of Law Index 2017-18 presents a snapshot of the rule of law in 113 countries by providing scores and rankings based on eight factors: constraints on government powers; absence of corruption; open government; fundamental rights; order and security; regulatory enforcement; civil justice; and criminal justice.

Myanmar fared badly in all eight categories; out of the 113 countries, it ranked 107th in open government, 110th in fundamental rights, 109th in civil justice, and 107th in criminal justice.

Among the 15 countries in the region, Myanmar's fundamental rights ranking was 15th, while it ranked 14th in terms of civil justice, criminal justice and open government.

The report cited limits on the legislature and judicial system as the main areas in which government powers are constrained in Myanmar. Corruption, a lack of effective investigations and slow and ineffective adjudication are main reasons for the weakness of the criminal justice system, it said. Crime, civil conflict and violent redress are the major causes for the lack of order and security in the country, the report found.

The country scores and rankings used to compile the rule of law index are derived from more than 110,000 household surveys and 3,000 expert surveys conducted globally, according to the World Justice Project.

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Local Condemnation for Reuters Journalists’ Verdict

Posted: 04 Sep 2018 04:46 AM PDT

MANDALAY — Nine Myanmar journalist networks issued a joint statement on Tuesday condemning the verdict of the two Reuters reporters and urging the government to do everything possible to achieve justice.

The statement said that since the reporters were framed and unjustly sentenced to seven years in prison, the government must act in accordance with the law and serve justice, as the verdict is a threat to press freedom.

"The government must do everything they can according to the law for the justice of the jailed Reuters reporters and promote freedom of press which is dramatically declining," said the statement.

The statement also said that press freedom is declining under the governance of the ruling party, the National League for Democracy, as since they took up office in April 2016, there have been a series of lawsuits against news agencies and journalists causing fear in journalists who are doing their job.

"In the face of the international community, Myanmar has become a country where the standard of press freedom is declining and the government should see this as a threat which affects the country's transition towards democracy," said the statement, highlighting the verdict of the two Reuters reporters under the Official Secrets Act on Monday.

The statement was signed by the Myanmar Journalist Network, Myae Latt Journalist Network, Magway Journalist Network, Taunggyi Journalist Association, Chin Media Network, Southern Myanmar Journalist Network, MJN (Ayeyarwaddy), Myanmar Women Journalists Society and Monywa Journalist Network.

The Myanmar Press Council (MPC) also issued a statement on Tuesday, saying the sentencing of the two journalists neglects the Constitution and existing media laws.

"Sentencing the Reuters reporters with a 1923 colonial-era law, which cruelly oppresses journalists, is neglecting the Constitution and the existing media laws," said the statement from MPC.

"This incident not only affects the right to information but also the flow of information to the people, which could seriously affect the image of the country," the statement added.

News of the verdict has become headline news for many local media outlets and sparked disappointment and sadness among journalists across the country.

On Tuesday, nearly every privately-run newspaper in Myanmar made the Reuters case front page news.  The 7Day Daily newspaper also showed its solidarity with the jailed reporters by putting a black column at the center of the front page of the Tuesday issue.

However, this was not the case for state-owned papers: the story was tucked inside the three newspapers published by the Ministry of Information.

Many local journalists showed their solidarity and disappointment by changing their Facebook cover photos and profile pictures to those of the two reporters, Ko Wa Lone and Ko Kyaw Soe Oo, featuring the text 'Journalism is not a Crime' or 'Free Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo.'

Journalists in Mandalay and Pyay took to the streets to show their solidarity with the reporters.

In Mandalay, about 30 local journalists wearing black got together and went to Maha Muni Pagoda to pray for the release of the jailed reporters on Monday.

In Pyay, on Tuesday, demonstrators held a campaign expressing their condemnation of the sentencing of the two journalists and urging the government to free them immediately. It was led by local journalists with the participation of political activists and university students.

Meanwhile, journalists across the country are collecting signatures for a petition that will be sent to President U Win Myint calling for the immediate release of the reporters. They expect to gather 20,000 signatures from across the country from journalists, political activists and other people who want justice and freedom of the press.

The post Local Condemnation for Reuters Journalists' Verdict appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Karenni Govt Orders CSOs to Provide 2 Weeks’ Notice of Meetings

Posted: 04 Sep 2018 03:54 AM PDT

The Karenni State government ordered non-governmental organizations, international non-governmental organizations and community-based organizations to provide two weeks' notice of any meetings or workshops they planned to hold in the region.

A statement issued by the regional government on Aug. 30 read that NGOs, INGOs and CBOs must inform township authorities two weeks prior to holding any meetings or workshops. It stated that following meetings, the groups must write a brief summary of the outcomes to send to concerned government ministers.

The Irrawaddy reporter tried to get a comment from the Karenni State chief minister, who replied that he would respond in person but not comment over the phone.

Many right activists including NGO and INGO workers criticized the statement, adding that it was not a democratic standard.

"The government wants to know all of the activities held by these groups. Their order does not uphold democratic standards," said Kyaw Htin Aung, the director of the LAIN Technical Support Group, which assists rights groups holding meetings in Loikaw.

Many civil society organizations (CSOs) in Karenni State use religious buildings or schools to hold meetings, as they do not have the budget to rent space elsewhere.

These CSOs will face difficulties if they are forced to seek permission two weeks in advance of any meetings.

Rights activists say the state government began restricting their efforts in May of last year, when they were told they needed to seek permission 10 days before any events. The government did not take serious action if this was not adhered to in the past.

After Karenni youth held a protest against the state government's project to construct a General Aung San statue in Loikaw, the government appeared to tighten its restrictions, said Khun Bernard, the general secretary of the Kayan New Generation Youth.

He said that if the government found the group's meetings threatening, it could take action.

"But our meetings are to work toward peace," he added.

Khun Bee Du, chairman of the Kayan National Party, said the state government also told people they were not allowed to protest in front of the regional parliamentary building or the Myanmar Army regional operations command base in Loikaw.

"I feel that they acted above the law," he said. "It is time for the government and CSOs to cooperate."

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Veteran Artists Team Up with Younger Generation at ‘Wild Eye’ Exhibition

Posted: 04 Sep 2018 03:22 AM PDT

YANGON — Veteran modernists and younger generations have teamed up to exhibit their works together in Yangon.

Twenty-seven modernists are displaying more than 50 works at "Wild Eye" contemporary art exhibition at OK Art Gallery in Aung San Stadium.

Their works are either of purely artistic creation or they reflect the contemporary history of their time.

Viewers find a painting of a woman boxer with three boxing gloves, one on her head, captivating.

"Those three boxing gloves represent luck, brain and industry, and the boxing ring is life. I mean to say that people should make use of luck, brains and hard work to win in life," said veteran surrealist San Min.

"Angry Love" depicts the angry eyes of a woman who is about to stab her lover in the back. "This painting is about the dark side of technological advancement," San Min said.

Advanced technologies have provided people with easier access to communicate with each other, but also made it easier for people to cheat on their spouses, leading to social problems, he added.

In his "Unknown Rope, Marriage Knot," young surrealist Ye Min put chains in the place of the heads of a bridegroom and bride.

Artist Than Htay used only black and green colors in his abstract painting. "In this painting, I've reduced colors and focused on speed."

"Wild Eye" is a regular art exhibition held since the 1970s by modernists. The exhibition will be held through Sunday and paintings are available for prices between US$500 and $5,000.

The works of Kin Maung Yin, Win Pe, Aung Myint, San Min, Ye Min, Ohn Khaing Zin, K2K are more are on display at the exhibition.

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China Complicit in Blocking Aid to Kachin Refugees: Report

Posted: 04 Sep 2018 02:52 AM PDT

YANGON — A rights group's report has claimed Chinese involvement in the Myanmar government's blocking of humanitarian assistance to war refugees on the Myanmar-China border where government troops and Kachin armed groups have been fighting.

"China made their position particularly explicit that humanitarian aid organizations should not be provided access to displaced populations on the Myanmar-China border, equating these organizations with 'western' powers—namely the United States government," a recent Fortify Rights report said.

The report said that since the previous government organized peace-talks between Myanmar's military and ethnic armed groups, Chinese representatives in the meetings reportedly insisted that aid organizations not operate on the border areas in Kachin State.

A new report "They Block Everything" based on 195 interviews in Kachin state over the last five years [2013-2018], revealed how Myanmar authorities—particularly the military—have weaponized the denial of humanitarian aid in Kachin State for years. It claims China plays a role in helping Myanmar authorities to put aid restrictions on Kachin refugees.

Since 2011, when armed conflict between the Myanmar military and the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) resumed, the Myanmar government and military restricted access for humanitarian organizations to refugees in Kachin State especially access to internally displaced persons (IDP) camps in KIA-controlled areas. An estimated 120,000 people have been displaced from their homes since 2011 due to the armed conflict in Kachin State.

There are 140 IDP camps in Kachin State and 40 percent of displaced people are living in areas controlled by the KIA and related groups.

According to the report, from June 2017 to June 2018, the government of Myanmar approved approximately five percent of 562 applications for travel authorization to government-controlled areas by international humanitarian organizations.

Since 2015, some aid workers have reported government-imposed restrictions on particular types of aid, including medical supplies. As a result of the restrictions, local humanitarian aid workers rely on suppliers in China to obtain aid for the estimated 40,000 IDPs residing on the Myanmar-China border, the report said.

The report also says all activities in China relating to the IDPs are unofficial, while transporting aid over the China border presents a high risk of being arrested by the Chinese authorities. Mostly, aid workers have to avoid checkpoints, as China has increased patrols and checks for transporting humanitarian aid to the Kachin refugees. Chinese suppliers also face risk, particularly when authorities perform surprise checks of their offices.

Mary Tawn, a director of local relief agency Wunpawng Ninghtoi (WPN) based at the China-Myanmar border told Irrawaddy, "China has seriously cautioned Kachin refugees against crossing their border. They put more restrictions on us; now we can't even legally carry soap to the IDP camps."

As patrols increase near the border, we have to make meeting points where we can receive IDP supplies. We can't carry any aid supplies legally. They don't understand that we are aid workers for refugees, she said.

"We try not to take risks in some conditions. Sometimes we have to negotiate with Chinese suppliers to send supplies [like medical aid and hygiene supplies] on their own to us," she added.

According to the report, Chinese soldiers have also forcibly returned Kachin refugees back to Myanmar since the war in Kachin State resumed in June 2011. In 2013 Chinese soldiers burned down a Kachin refugee camp called Layin in Yunnan Province.

The report said China has failed to provide protection to Kachin refugees who seek protection, food, medicine and healthcare in Yunnan Province, and Chinese border guards have committed human rights violations against Kachin refugees by forcing them back into conflict zones in Kachin State.

In 2012, China only gave three days for some 30,000 Kachin refugees to move back across the border into Kachin and Shan states, Mary Tawn said.

In December 2017, China blocked Kachin refugees who suddenly fled from intense fighting near their IDP camps from crossing the border, she said.

"Stray ammunition frequently dropped in the camps. It was an urgent need to move all the people during the fighting. After the fighting ended, they intended definitely to go back to the camps. But China didn't allow the IDPs to stay on their side even for a short time. IDPs did not dare to go back to the camps and so old people, women and children had to sit near the river [at the border] that night," she added.

The relief agency said, according to the Chinese government's policy, they are not allowed to accept Kachin refugees who flee from random fighting.

"They said when fighting happens in the [border] cities, and all the people no longer can stay… they will accept us all together," Mary Tawn said.

U Hka Li, a spokesperson for Kachin Baptist Convention, one of the largest humanitarian aid providers in Kachin State, also confirmed to The Irrawaddy that IDPs in KIA-controlled locations suffer food shortages frequently as aid supplies are not allowed to pass through China territory.

U Hka Li said, "We have to find some other ways to buy rice for the IDPs since we can't transport it legally through China."

Kachin refugees in China face exploitative treatment by employers, difficult working conditions and also forced labor by Chinese soldiers while fleeing from armed conflicts, the report said.

According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) in February, Myanmar authorities restricted humanitarian access to Tanai Township where an estimated 900 people were living in four churches. The authorities also restricted humanitarian access to the Ndup Yang IDP camp in Sumprabum Township in Kachin State.

U Hka Li said that Sumprabum and Tanai camps are under restricted access since two months ago. Aid workers are still not allowed to transport supplies there, especially food.

In April and May 2018, a consortium of 19 humanitarian aid organizations called on the Myanmar authorities and military to guarantee civilians safe passage out of conflict areas, and lift restrictions on humanitarian assistance in Kachin state.

The Irrawaddy requested an interview and sent questions to the Chinese embassy in Myanmar for a response regarding China's involvement in blocking humanitarian assistance for Kachin refugees but the communication officer did not respond.

The post China Complicit in Blocking Aid to Kachin Refugees: Report appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Yangon Animal Shelters Required to Apply for Licenses

Posted: 04 Sep 2018 02:42 AM PDT

YANGON — Animal shelters including those that shelter stray dogs are required by the new Yangon municipal law to apply for a license, according to the Yangon City Development Committee (YCDC).

"According to the municipal law enacted in 2018, shelters have to apply for licenses to operate," Dr. Hla May Oo, assistant section head of the veterinary and abattoir section of the YCDC, told The Irrawaddy.

Operating an animal shelter without permission is punishable by a fine of 100,000 to 500,000 kyats under the new municipal law. A second-time violation carries a prison sentence of up to six months.

The city municipality did not issue licenses for animal shelters before the enactment of the new municipal law, so all existing shelters and pounds will have to apply for licenses, said Dr. Hla May Oo.

Daw Shu, the founder of a pound that currently is taking care of some 400 stray dogs in Yangon's Shwe Paukkan, said she is ready to apply for a license for her shelter.

"I will pay the tax if I'm asked to do so. I don't have the heart to leave behind all these dogs," said Daw Shu, who established the pound in 2013.

Ma Zin Mar, a dog lover who makes regular donations to animal shelters, suggested that authorities make regular inspection of animal shelters to ensure they comply with rules and regulations.

"They are closely connected with the health of humans. Humans can contract diseases from them. So, [authorities] must make sure rules and regulations are obeyed at animal shelters," she said.

There have been reports on social media that some people run sham pounds and cheat money from donors.

"Though it is charity work, we must make sure the way they operate meets charity procedures," said Mingalar Taungnyunt Township lawmaker U Hla Htay of the Yangon regional Parliament, who also took part in drafting and reviewing the new municipal law.

Concerned rules and regulations are in the process of being drafted, he added.

There is only one pound for stray dogs managed by the YCDC in Yangon, which is located in Hlaingtharyar Township.

Yangon has a stray dog population of more than 120,000, said YCDC, which either sterilizes or immunizes them against rabies in four downtown townships—Lanmadaw, Pabedan, Kyauktada and Latha.

The new municipal law signed by the Yangon Region chief minister on June 28 will take effect as of October 1. Meanwhile, the YCDC is educating the public.

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko.

The post Yangon Animal Shelters Required to Apply for Licenses appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Myanmar Army Apologizes for Mistaken Photos in Book on Rohingya Crisis

Posted: 03 Sep 2018 10:57 PM PDT

YANGON — The Myanmar military issued a rare apology on Monday, acknowledging that two photographs it published in a book on the crisis over the Rohingya Muslim minority were “published incorrectly."

Reuters published an exclusive report on Friday revealing that two of the pictures in the book that aimed at illustrating the army’s account of last year’s events in the western Myanmar state of Rakhine, were in fact archive pictures of different conflicts, and one was posted with an incorrect caption.

The erroneous publication of the photographs comes amid a series of government steps against what it has seen as media abuses, including a report on army activity in an ethnic minority guerrilla zone and the flying of a drone in the capital, Naypyitaw.

On Monday, a court jailed for seven years two reporters from Reuters on a charge of violating a secrets law.

Reuters found that two of the photographs in the military book on the Rohingya crisis were actually taken in Bangladesh and Tanzania and a third was falsely labeled as showing Rohingya entering Myanmar from Bangladesh, when in reality the picture was of refugees leaving Myanmar.

The military’s official newspaper, the Myawady Daily, issued a statement on Monday from its publishing arm, which produced the book ‘Myanmar Politics and Tatmadaw: Part I’, apologizing for two of the photographs.

“It was found that two photos were incorrectly published,” the publishing arm said in a statement carried by the newspaper, referring to the photograph from Tanzania and another showing victims of Bangladesh’s 1971 war of independence.

“We sincerely apologize to the readers and the owners of the photographs for the mistake,” it said.

It did not mention the photograph incorrectly captioned as showing Rohingya entering Myanmar when the picture was of them leaving.

Myanmar government spokesman U Zaw Htay and military spokesman Maj-Gen Tun Tun Nyi could not be reached for comment.

The army’s department of public relations and psychological warfare published the book in English and Burmese in July.

‘Heinous’

Of the 80 images in the book, most were recent pictures of army chief Min Aung Hlaing meeting foreign dignitaries or other officials visiting Rakhine.

Of eight photos presented as historical images, Reuters found the provenance of three to be faked and was unable to determine the provenance of the five others.

One faded black-and-white image shows a crowd of men who appear to be on a long march with their backs bent over. “Bengalis intruded into the country after the British Colonialism occupied the lower part of Myanmar,” the caption reads.

The photo is apparently intended to depict Rohingya arriving in Myanmar during the colonial era, which ended in 1948. Reuters determined the picture is in fact a distorted version of a color image taken in 1996 of refugees who had fled the genocide in Rwanda.

Another picture, also printed in black-and-white, shows men aboard a rickety boat. “Bengalis entered Myanmar via the watercourse,” the caption reads.

Actually, the original photo depicts Rohingya and Bangladeshi migrants leaving Myanmar in 2015, when tens of thousands fled for Thailand and Malaysia. The original has been rotated and blurred so the photo looks granular. It was sourced from Myanmar’s own Ministry of Information.

The Myawady’s publishing arm, in its statement, made no mention of any alterations of images.

The prime minister of neighboring Bangladesh, where about 700,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled from a Myanmar military crackdown launched after Rohingya insurgent attacks in August last year, denounced the use of the photographs when she was asked in a news conference about them.

“What Myanmar has done is simply heinous. They have lowered their reputation,” Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina told a news conference in Dhaka on Sunday.

“They are diminishing their position in the international arena.”

The 117-page book gives the army’s account of the crackdown last year which led to reports of mass killings, rape, and arson.

Much of the content is sourced to the military’s “True News” information unit, which since the start of the crisis has distributed news giving the army’s position, mostly via Facebook.

The book is on sale at bookstores across the commercial capital of Yangon.

The post Myanmar Army Apologizes for Mistaken Photos in Book on Rohingya Crisis appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Ten Things to Do in Yangon This Week

Posted: 03 Sep 2018 10:16 PM PDT

 

Big Bag

Big Bag will perform.

Sept. 8, 7:30 p.m. 369 Dine & Bar, No. 369 Laydaungkan Road. Tickets 20,000 kyats at 01-578 101.

Reggae Night

Saw Phoe Kwar will perform with One Love band.

Sept. 8, 7:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. Vintage Luxury Yacht Hotel. Tel: 09-258819933. Free admission.

Business, Marketing and Digital Transformation

Leading businesspeople and economists will provide insight into the modern business world.

Sept. 8, 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. UMFCCI, Min Ye Kyaw Swa Road. Free Admission. Registration at 09-420033366.

Wathann Film Festival

Short films will be screened starting from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Sept. 5-10, Waziya Cinema. Free Admission.

Full Stop: Rap Music Contest

Sixteen of the best freestyle rappers from around the country will perform.

Sept. 8, 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. Urban Asia Center, corner of Mahabandoola Road and 48th Street. Free Admission.

Melody World Grand Finale

The grand finale of a signing contest along with performances by celebrity singers.

Sept. 7, 6:30 pm. National Theater. Free Admission.

Duo Alterno

Italian concert piano and soprano performances.

Sept. 7, 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Melia Yangon Hotel. Free Admission.

Property Expo

Luxury apartments will be up for grabs.

Sept. 8-9, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., YSH Aung San Sales Gallery, Registration here.

Transparent Life

Watercolor artists exhibit their works.

Sept 2-6, Lokanat Gallery, corner of Merchant Street and Pansodan Street.

To The Sea

This group art exhibition will depict rural life and customs of Myanmar.

Sept. 8-12, Hninzi Myaing Art Gallery, Hninzi Myaing Home for the Aged, Kabar Aye Pagoda Road.

The post Ten Things to Do in Yangon This Week appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Thai King’s Yellow and Blue Volunteers Boost His Support, Visibility

Posted: 03 Sep 2018 10:04 PM PDT

BANGKOK — From a distance, the volunteers cleaning up a clogged Bangkok waterway could be mistaken for Scouts, but the group, wearing yellow foulards and blue hats, are part of a volunteer program started by Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn, 66.

The “Volunteer Spirit” scheme, which officially began in 2017, has created a new army of civilians who have pledged allegiance to the king and are boosting the image of Vajiralongkorn ahead of his formal coronation at year-end.

Vajiralongkorn’s father, King Bhumibol Adulyadej, was revered by Thais during his seven decades on the throne and the deep relationship between the monarchy and the military helped facilitate a smooth royal transition following his death in October 2016.

Since then, the new king has brought about a major shake-up of royal affairs, and some observers have said he may be seeking to distance himself from the military, which has been in power in Thailand since a 2014 coup.

Last year, Vajiralongkorn demanded unprecedented changes to a constitutional draft endorsed by the military government. He has also taken back control of royal assets formally managed by the government.

David Streckfuss, a Thailand-based independent scholar said he saw the volunteer program as an attempt by the king to create a separate power base.

“If the monarchy is … to distinguish itself from the military and attempt to bring Thailand into a democratic constitutional monarchy, then we might look at this effort by the new monarch as creating an alternative power base,” Streckfuss told Reuters.

The palace declined comment.

Vajiralongkorn however is thought to have a good working relationship with Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, who came to power following the 2014 coup.

Thamontip Puangkitja, a 50-year-old retiree turned volunteer, said the volunteer program benefits the royal household.

“It is good for society and the revered royal institution,” Thamontip said as she picked up rubbish in Bangkok.

“I joined the program because I wanted to do good for the king,” said another volunteer, Patcharaporn Husain, 61, a housewife.

More than 4 million volunteers from all walks of life have joined the scheme, according to officials in charge. They carry out a range of tasks from cleaning public spaces to helping police to direct traffic.

Their most high-profile moment came when the volunteers joined an international rescue effort to rescue 12 boys and their soccer coach from a flooded cave last month.

“We fed about four thousand people every day at the cave,” a palace official who was involved with the rescue told Reuters.

He declined to be named.

New Tradition

Volunteers have to register with the palace and go through an initiation process that involves lining up and bowing in front of the king’s portrait before being given their yellow and blue uniforms – colors associated with former King Bhumibol and Queen Mother Sirikit, Vajiralongkorn’s mother.

Once they put on their new uniforms, the volunteers do a military-style salute to the king’s portrait and, in a completely new tradition, they must line up and salute the king’s portrait every time before starting a community activity.

Some say the program reflects the mindset of King Vajiralongkorn who sees the Victorian-era court of King Vajiravudh, also known as Rama VI, as the ideal model of kingship.

“The king wants the volunteers to be a kind of ‘Sue Pa’,” Sulak Sivaraksa, a renowned scholar who has sometimes been a critic of the monarchy, told Reuters, referring to the Wild Tiger Corps – a paramilitary force founded in 1911 by Vajiravudh that was inspired by the British Volunteer Force.

He “wants the monarchy to serve the people, to protect the people, to do well for the people,” said Sulak, 86.

The volunteer force raised by Vajiralongkorn is not armed.

Bhumibol was patron to hundreds of foundations spread across Thailand, but no such volunteer program existed during his reign.

The volunteers are able to do things that the government might otherwise not be able to, because of their royal backing, said Sulak.

“If the government asked them they wouldn’t do it,” said Sulak.

“The volunteer program is one of the great successes of the new king.”

The post Thai King's Yellow and Blue Volunteers Boost His Support, Visibility appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Asia’s Rising Appetite for Meat, Seafood Will ‘Strain Environment’

Posted: 03 Sep 2018 09:58 PM PDT

KUALA LUMPUR — Asia’s growing appetite for meat and seafood over the next three decades will cause huge increases in greenhouse gas emissions and antibiotics used in foods, researchers said on Tuesday.

Rising population, incomes and urbanization will drive a 78 percent increase in meat and seafood demand from 2017 to 2050, according to a report by Asia Research and Engagement Pte Ltd, a Singapore-based consultancy firm.

“We wanted to highlight that, because of the large population and how fast the population is growing, it is going to put a strain on the environment,” said co-author Serena Tan.

“By recognizing this and where it comes from, we can tackle the solutions,” she told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

With supply chains ramping up to meet demand, greenhouse gas emissions will jump from 2.9 billion tons of CO2 per year to 5.4 billion tons – the equivalent of the lifetime emissions of 95 million cars – the researchers said.

A land area the size of India will be needed for additional food production, according to the report, while water use will climb from 577 billion cubic meters per year to 1,054 billion cubic meters per year.

The use of antimicrobials – which kill or stop the growth of microorganisms, and include antibiotics – will increase 44 percent to 39,000 tons per year, said the report, which was commissioned by the Hong Kong-based ADM Capital Foundation.

Overuse and misuse of antibiotics in food is rife in Southeast Asia, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said this year, warning of serious risks for people and animals as bacterial infections become more resistant to treatment.

Growing urban areas contribute to the rising demand for meat and seafood, because people there usually have better access to electricity and refrigeration, said David Dawe, a senior economist at the FAO in Bangkok.

“But income growth is the big driver,” he added.

Indonesia, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Pakistan are among nations likely to contribute most to the rise in meat and seafood consumption, while countries with ageing populations, like China, will likely limit growth, Tan said.

Food producers can increase efficiency by implementing rainwater harvesting, using sustainable animal feed and capturing biogas from cattle, Tan said.

Regulators, consumers and investors can also pressure restaurant chains and producers to limit the use of antibiotics in meat supplies, she added.

At meal times, consumers can also choose plant-based foods made to look like meats as an alternative, Tan said.

“You have a lot of people in Asia who don’t get that great a diet so animal-sourced food intake will increase,” said the FAO’s Dawe.

“In many ways it’s a good thing for nutrition, but it does raise environmental issues.”

The post Asia's Rising Appetite for Meat, Seafood Will 'Strain Environment' appeared first on The Irrawaddy.
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