Monday, March 16, 2015

National News

National News

Currents hamper search for ferry victims

Posted: 15 Mar 2015 09:57 PM PDT

Strong currents yesterday hampered efforts to retrieve the bodies of victims of a ferry accident which killed at least 34 people off Rakhine State, as hopes dimmed for the missing.

KIO meet ‘good omen’ for Yangon talks: government

Posted: 15 Mar 2015 09:44 PM PDT

In a surprise step forward toward a national ceasefire agreement, the government and the Kachin Independence Organisation (KIO) yesterday agreed to conclude a draft accord at talks starting tomorrow.

Detained labour activists threaten hunger strike

Posted: 15 Mar 2015 09:42 PM PDT

Activists and their family members upset at a request from the government to shift trial to a different court.

Ethnic parties ready for six-way talks

Posted: 15 Mar 2015 09:42 PM PDT

The Rakhine politician appointed to take part in long-awaited six-way talks on constitutional reform said yesterday he had informed parliamentary authorities of the issues he wants discussed.

White armbands hit streets of Yangon

Posted: 15 Mar 2015 09:38 PM PDT

Opposition to the violent police crackdown on students at Letpadan on March 10 continues to grow, as supporters of the student movement circulate white armbands as a sign of solidarity.

Student leaders, NNER to resume talks with parliament

Posted: 15 Mar 2015 09:36 PM PDT

With many of the hardline student leaders now in jail, University Students' Union heads back to negotiating table.

Border tensions run high as China warns over bombing

Posted: 15 Mar 2015 09:31 PM PDT

A local conflict with ethnic Kokang rebels in northern Shan State escalated into a tense stand-off with China at the weekend after Beijing sent warplanes to patrol the region and threatened to take "decisive measures" if Myanmar failed to prevent the fighting from spilling over the border.

Government seeks approval for $400m WB loan

Posted: 15 Mar 2015 09:30 PM PDT

The government will seek a US$400 million loan from the World Bank for a project to bring electricity to 98 percent of the country by 2030, parliament heard on March 12.

UN chief urges world leaders to up disaster reduction investment

Posted: 15 Mar 2015 09:27 PM PDT

The United Nations secretary general has urged countries to invest more in disaster risk reduction.

ABSDF report confronts bloody past

Posted: 15 Mar 2015 09:26 PM PDT

The All Burma Students Democratic Front has released the results of an investigation into one of its darkest chapters – the killing of dozens of members accused of being government spies.
Posted by at No comments:

Saturday, March 14, 2015

Shan Herald Agency for News

Shan Herald Agency for News

Wa still "undecided" about NCA meeting

Posted: 13 Mar 2015 08:15 AM PDT

The United Wa State Party/Army( UWSP/ UWSA) still has yet to decide whether or not it would attend the upcoming 7th round of meeting between the Armed resistance movements' Nationwide Ceasefire Coordination Team(NCCT) and the government's Union Peacemaking Work Committee(UPWC) to discuss the 5th draft of the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement(NCA) as an observer, according to its spokesman.



Speaking to SHAN this morning, U Aung Myint aka Li Julieh, said the party has been holding its annual meeting which is expected to last until 17 March, which coincides with the first day of the NCCT-UPWC meeting. Altogether 605 top members are gathered in Panghsang, the Wa capital on the Sino-Burmese border. " We are yet to decide whether or not we should go," he said.

The group's closest ally, the National Democratic Alliance Army(NDAA), whose headquarters is located southeast, meanwhile, told SHAN it had already chosen two representatives for the NCA meeting. "We are only waiting for Panghsang's decision," an NDAA official was quoted as saying." If they go,we go."

The two groups have been undergoing a tense relationship with Naypyitaw since the latter's accusation that they had been aiding and abetting the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army(MNDAA) Kokang group that has been at war with the Burma Army since 9 February.

Meanwhile many of the NCCT members are on their way to the former capital. The two sides,apart from the NCA, are scheduled to discuss reduction of conflicts, military Code of Conduct and joint monitoring mechanisms. " Now we're really getting down to business," said a member on condition of anonymity.
Posted by at No comments:

Friday, March 13, 2015

National News

National News

Questioning the direction of democracy

Posted: 12 Mar 2015 09:31 PM PDT

Recent events in Letpadan and in front of the Yangon's City Hall will have prompted many to question the path that Myanmar's quasi-civilian government has chosen.

The Insider: Felicitations to Lithuania on the anniversary of its independence

Posted: 12 Mar 2015 09:16 PM PDT

Pots, kettles … and batons - Well, tensions have flared once again in Ferguson, Missouri, following the resignation of the police chief and the shooting of the umpteenth black person and two police officers, bringing simmering racial tensions to the surface.

Govt frees first batch of students

Posted: 12 Mar 2015 09:14 PM PDT

Just under half of the student demonstrators arrested on March 10 at Letpadan have been green-lighted for release, the government said, as calls grew yesterday for the release of all of those detained.

Activists and celebrities gather to denounce police crackdown

Posted: 12 Mar 2015 09:13 PM PDT

Activists and celebrities packed a Yangon hall of the Free Funeral Service Society yesterday to denounce police violence against students and other protesters in Letpadan and to demand their release from prison.

Six-way talks likely next week

Posted: 12 Mar 2015 09:12 PM PDT

Meeting between political leaders will precede debate on a constitution amendment bill, according to MPs.

Livelihoods fund gets its first private sector donor

Posted: 12 Mar 2015 09:10 PM PDT

Japanese firm Mitsubishi Corporation has become the first private sector donor to a major multi-donor trust fund aimed at improving food security and livelihoods in rural areas.

Swan Ar Shin accused of beating journalist

Posted: 12 Mar 2015 09:09 PM PDT

A reporter from Popular News Daily sought an interview but instead wound up with a beating this week when he contacted a member of the paramilitary organisation Swan Ar Shin, according to an editor.

Electrical fault blamed for fire in downtown

Posted: 12 Mar 2015 08:58 PM PDT

A fire at an electronics retail outlet in downtown Yangon was caused by an electrical problem in the roof of the shop, according to police.

Charges upgraded against Chinese arrested for logging

Posted: 12 Mar 2015 08:57 PM PDT

Tatmadaw to continue operation against illegal logging, which it says is funding arms purchases by ethnic groups.

Ministry clears four people of bird flu virus

Posted: 12 Mar 2015 08:30 PM PDT

Four people with flu symptoms have tested negative for the bird flu virus H5N1, the health ministry confirmed yesterday.
Posted by at No comments:

Shan Herald Agency for News

Shan Herald Agency for News

When who came last becomes first

Posted: 12 Mar 2015 09:34 PM PDT

There are several things I had been wondering throughout my struggle through life. And one of them was why Malaysia, or Malaya as it was known before, wasn't granted Independence at the same time  like India and Burma, if the British really were in such a hurry to get rid of their colonies after World War Ⅱ.



Of course, I could have found out the answer if I had just persisted. However I was so busy doing several things at the same time that I felt lazy to launch a full inquiry. The outcome: I didn't find out any answers.

The only thing Shans know about Malaya/Malaysia is that their Federated Shan States (1922-1947), their first taste of federalism, came into being after a study trip to Federated Malay States (1895-1946).

"Please don't waste your breath on us by trying to preach us about federalism," U Tun Pay, the late prominent Shan politician, was reported as saying, in response to a statement made by a Burman leader who was apparently trying to convince Shan counterparts that there were better ways than secession to resolve differences between the Burmans and the non-Burmans. "We know by our own experience how acceptable it is to us. What you should do instead is to go and teach the generals who seem to be having a cock-eyed idea about federalism."

In 1945, the British emerged from the World War, a victor but an economically spent one. The new Labor government led by Clement Atlee, despite protests by the Conservatives like Winston Churchill, who won the war but lost the elections nevertheless, decided to grant independence to her colonies, whether or not they were ready to become their own masters.

In the case of Burma, many, including old hands of Burma, have blamed London for the slapdashery that, according to them, have resulted in chaos and war for more than 60 years.

However, with Malaya/Malaysia, even the Labor government had taken its time. What happened?

Dr Paul Lim


According to Dr Paul Lim, who visited Chiangmai, 10-12 March, and who knew the country well, having lived there, the answer was simple. "It was Malaya's rubber and tin industries that had kept the British economy afloat," he told his listeners from Burma. "That's why even Labor refused to let it go, at least not right away."

I then looked up in D.G.E. Hall's History of Southeast Asia (1955) and found his answer, though short, made sense.

Tin and rubber together had accounted for 86% of the country's exports. Earnings were $519 million in 1948 and $1.195 billion two years later. And the British owned tin mines alone accounted for two-thirds of the production.

The outcome: Independence to Malaysia came only in 1957, 9 years after Burma. And compared to Burma, its problems are, according to one commentator, pint-sized.

With Burma, the peace process initiated by President Thein Sein, seems to be the last hope. Let us therefore support and encourage the peacemakers on both sides to do better and faster, instead of blaming one side against the other(s), so the vicious circle, on rather the cycle, ends soon and we can catch up with the likes of Malaysia.
Posted by at No comments:

Thursday, March 12, 2015

National News

National News

Supreme Court judge urges MPs to approve monogamy bill

Posted: 11 Mar 2015 10:23 PM PDT

A bill to promote happy and monogamous marriages has been submitted to parliament. The bill was put forward by Supreme Court Judge U Soe Nyunt yesterday for debate in the Pyithu Hluttaw.

Civil society calls for foreign pressure

Posted: 11 Mar 2015 10:23 PM PDT

Civil society leaders have condemned a police crackdown on student protesters in Letpadan on March 10 as "inhumane" and called on the international community to closely monitor the government and security forces to ensure there is no repeat of the violence.

Government promises to free ‘real’ students

Posted: 11 Mar 2015 10:18 PM PDT

The government announced last night it will release demonstrators detained at Letpadan on March 10 if they can prove they are "real" students, as more than 100 people appeared in court yesterday under heavy police guard.

Campaigns launched for protesters

Posted: 11 Mar 2015 10:16 PM PDT

Yangon students and activists have announced plans for a series of armband campaigns in response to the violence at Letpadan.

Students to return to talks in capital

Posted: 11 Mar 2015 10:14 PM PDT

Following a week of violent clashes between student protesters and police, the Action Committee for Democratic Education announced yesterday that it will renew talks with parliament over contested changes to the National Education Law.

YCDC looks to private sector to solve trash problem

Posted: 11 Mar 2015 10:04 PM PDT

Yangon is handing over its massive trash problem to the highest bidder.

Pandal permits to be revealed on March 17

Posted: 11 Mar 2015 09:56 PM PDT

Yangon authorities will announce next week how many pandals will be set up for this year's water festivities.

Mandalay authorities seek to ease Thingyan congestion

Posted: 11 Mar 2015 09:30 PM PDT

To relieve congestion in one of Mandalay's most crowded areas during the water festival, local authorities have decided to reduce the number of permits for pandals.

Election body formed for municipal vote

Posted: 11 Mar 2015 09:27 PM PDT

Who runs Mandalay? Amid hopes that more democracy will improve the city's development, residents will soon have the chance to elect members of the city's development committee – effectively, the city council.

Climate change adaptation for dry zone to launch in April

Posted: 11 Mar 2015 08:50 PM PDT

A four-year project to bring water to dry-zone villages will start next month, the environment ministry has announced.
Posted by at No comments:

Shan Herald Agency for News

Shan Herald Agency for News

IS THE PEACE PROCESS IN MYANMAR DEAD?

Posted: 12 Mar 2015 01:14 AM PDT

Fighting in Kokang and Kachin State Citing the recent heavy fighting in Kokang, northern Shan State, and continued clashes in Kachin State, some analysts/observers have concluded that the peace process in Myanmar is dead. How valid is this conclusion and what are the prospects for peace in Myanmar?  
Posted by at No comments:

Wednesday, March 11, 2015

National News

National News

How Student-led Education Protests Took a Violent Turn

Posted: 11 Mar 2015 10:40 AM PDT

Since November 2014, students have been on the march against the new National Education Law.

‘Blood on your hands’: EU defends training for police force

Posted: 10 Mar 2015 10:18 PM PDT

The European Union last night defended itself against allegations of complicity in police brutality following a violent crackdown on students in Bago Region, saying it was not responsible for "decisions on the ground".

UN meets government over Kokang aid request

Posted: 10 Mar 2015 10:16 PM PDT

United Nations representatives met government officials in Lashio yesterday to discuss the authorities' request for international humanitarian support for people displaced by the deadly conflict in the Kokang region of Shan State.

Detained businessman ‘leaped to death from window’: police

Posted: 10 Mar 2015 10:14 PM PDT

An ethnic Chinese businessman with family ties to the commander of Kokang rebels died after leaping from a window of Yangon's military hospital where he was in custody, according to an official police account released yesterday following reports that he had been tortured.

Protest ends in brutal crackdown

Posted: 10 Mar 2015 10:07 PM PDT

Baton-wielding police yesterday attacked students and monks in Letpadan and arrested almost 130 people in a violent end to an eight-day stand-off over the national education law.

Rohingya clash with Bangladesh forces near Cox’s Bazar

Posted: 10 Mar 2015 10:06 PM PDT

More than 100 Rohingya migrants have been released from jail in Bangladesh after a high-speed chase and gunfight on March 6 left one Bangladeshi border guard wounded, sources told The Myanmar Times.

Dam public consultation ends in protest, criticism

Posted: 10 Mar 2015 09:55 PM PDT

Participants question whether consulting firm broke Unlawful Associations Act in contacting armed groups.

Mon language classes to launch at state schools

Posted: 10 Mar 2015 09:54 PM PDT

Students in Mon State will be able to study the Mon language at local schools starting this academic year, according to U Min Aung Zay, leader of the Mon language curriculum working committee.

Protests blamed for youth centre delays

Posted: 10 Mar 2015 09:28 PM PDT

A national youth centre whose establishment was proposed by President U Thein Sein is yet to open after nearly a year – and some are accusing the authorities of preventing it from opening because they fear it could become a focus of student activism.
Posted by at No comments:

Tuesday, March 10, 2015

National News

National News

Police beat activist, then apologise at Yangon demo

Posted: 10 Mar 2015 10:07 PM PDT

Police beat and detained an activist before apologising and releasing him during a demonstration in Yangon yesterday.

Police launch brutal crackdown on student protests

Posted: 10 Mar 2015 04:50 AM PDT

Police have launched a brutal crackdown on student protestors in Letpadan, who attempted to push through the barricades in order to continue their march on Yangon for education reform.

Government reveals $928m plan to develop agriculture industry

Posted: 09 Mar 2015 09:29 PM PDT

Nearly a billion US dollars is being invested in projects to support agricultural development, parliament heard yesterday.

Gold rush at Shwedagon as donations soar

Posted: 09 Mar 2015 09:25 PM PDT

Generous donors are showering Shwedagon Pagoda with gold. The nation's premier religious site, and its most popular tourist destination, is to receive 16,000 new gold plates this year instead of the 4000 its trustees had expected.

US defends ‘equitable’ election support

Posted: 09 Mar 2015 09:23 PM PDT

Sixty-seven parties, including the Union Solidarity and Development Party, have benefited from US$18 million election assistance program.

KIO, government leaders expected to meet this week

Posted: 09 Mar 2015 09:22 PM PDT

Secrecy surrounds a meeting that a leading peace facilitator says will be held later this week between President U Thein Sein, Commander-in-Chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing and leaders of the Kachin Independence Organisation.

Fresh delays for registration of migrant workers in Thailand

Posted: 09 Mar 2015 09:18 PM PDT

More than half a million Myanmar migrant workers are stuck in limbo after Thailand announced over the weekend yet another series of deadlines and registration processes for foreign workers.

Team leaves to study road safety in Australia

Posted: 09 Mar 2015 09:14 PM PDT

As the death toll from road accidents continues to rise, the government is sending a high-level team to Australia to learn how to improve road safety – and save lives.

Local aid group urges government to help displaced in China

Posted: 09 Mar 2015 09:09 PM PDT

End War in Myanmar writes to government asking it to push China to allow humanitarian aid across the border.

Kokang refugees return from China: report

Posted: 09 Mar 2015 09:07 PM PDT

Civilians who fled across the border to China to escape fighting in the Kokang region are starting to return to Myanmar, according to an official delegation visiting the area, while the government is said to have asked the United Nations for humanitarian assistance.
Posted by at No comments:

Shan Herald Agency for News

Shan Herald Agency for News

2015 elections: How tigers can make room for each other

Posted: 09 Mar 2015 11:25 PM PDT

Yes, many Shans are worried about the two tiger parties contesting the November general elections.


Officially, the 26 year old Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD), known as the Tiger Head for its logo, is waiting for the amendments of the 2008 constitution before any decision to enter or not enter the polls could be made. But some leading members are already pushing for Yes, as the number of MPs defecting from the 5 year old Shan Nationalities Democratic Party (SNDP), better known as the White Tiger for its logo, swells up.

SNDP vs SNLD
During the October meeting between the two sides, both had rejected the overwhelming calls for a merger, saying there was little time for preparations before the elections. They could only consider it after, not before, them.


That was a big disappointment for the people everywhere. "At first, they said they would unite if it's the wish of the people," one reader complained to SHAN. "Then after more than 3,600 monks and people from 52 townships presented a signed petition, they are giving us this excuse. I've started to wonder whether each is working for his/her own party or for the people".


However, a further disappointment seems to be in order, because a number of hotheads from both sides are pressing for a no-holds-barred competition. "It's democracy," one fumed. "Why should we be restricted from doing things we want to?"


The answer is straight and simple: Neither is going to win when each ends up being a spoiler for the other. And more.

"I voted in 1990," said a frustrated middle-aged lady. "I voted in 2010 too. But I think I'll vote No to both this time, and clap my hands for the Peacock (National League for Democracy of Aung San Suu Kyi) or the Lion (the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party), because it'll be one of them that's going to win."



She was just short of adding, "It'll serve them right," but, with all her vehemence, she didn't need to.



The 2012 by-election results in northern is chosen here as a prime example, because, unlike the 2010 elections, it was known as one with less irregularities.



There were 5 parties contesting for the Amyotha Hluttaw (National Assembly) seat vacated by Sai Mawk Kham, USDP, who became Vice President. And the results are as follows:


PartyCandidatesVotesPercentageDifference
SNDPSai Sam Min47,22629.1%1,526 votes
NLDSai Myint Maung45,70028.1%480 votes
USDPNang Keng Phawng Tip45,22027.8%
KDUPLuo Xingguang17,89411.0%
UNDPYaw Thup6,3603.9%
Total162,400

It was a close call for Sai Sam Min. He was the least well known among the top three. Sai Myint Maung, also a Shan, was a lawyer who had helped several people in their legal cases. He was also the winner during the 1990 elections. Nang Keng Phawng Tip, another Shan, meanwhile, was a practicing physician and was also active in women's affairs.


The two had lost to the SNDP candidate for no reason other than that both were seen as working for Burman-dominated parties, but Sai Sam Min wasn't, according to local sources.


But suppose the same thing were to take place in November, the only difference being there'll be two Shan parties, instead of one, scrambling over each other for the one seat, the result would be obvious. As the former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra said to the rival Democratic Party, after votes were split between its two competing leaders, "Want to become a government? Wait for the next life, when the sun is high up in the sky."


But there are ways to remedy this, only if both parties are willing to listen to cooler heads and place the interests of the state above one's own party:



One is already been a somewhat worn-out suggestion: For the two parties to avoid contesting the same constituencies. It still deserves consideration nevertheless.



The other is more strategic:
  • The Tiger Head wants to change the constitution. So why not contest the Lower House and Upper House seats (Lower House: 55 seats, Upper House: 12 seats)?
  • As for the White Tiger, it has already announced it is aiming for the state government house. So why not contest the State Assembly seats (110 seats in all) and leave the Upper and Lower House to the Tiger Head?

That way, both will win. What's more, the people of Shan State will win. What is more important than that: beating others together or beating each other?

 
Posted by at No comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)