The Irrawaddy Magazine |
- Silver Jubilee Marking 1988 Uprising Opens With Somber Reflection
- Why the Past Can’t Be Put to Rest
- ‘We Can Bring about Both–Justice and Reconciliation’
- Burmese Garment Workers Protest Over Wages
- 4 Arrested in Crackdown on Monastery Near Letpadaung Mine
- Activists Urge Harsher Penalty for Child Rape Case in Burma
- Burma Allows FX Trade Between Local Banks
- Police ID Suspects in Jakarta Buddhist Temple Bombing
- Indian Lawmakers Offer Familiar Rejoinder to PM’s Well-Worn Plea
- Japan Marks 68th Anniversary of Hiroshima Bombing
| Silver Jubilee Marking 1988 Uprising Opens With Somber Reflection Posted: 06 Aug 2013 05:18 AM PDT  Former student leader Min Ko Naing, at lectern on right, speaks during the keynote address of a ceremony marking the 25-year anniversary of the 1988 popular uprising, in Rangoon on Tuesday. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — Nearly 2,000 people came together on Tuesday to commemorate the storied 1988 popular uprising that nearly toppled Burma's military dictatorship and ultimately cost thousands their lives. Attended by political activists in Burma as well as some living in exile abroad, the three-day "Silver Jubilee for Four Eights Democracy Movement" kicked off on Tuesday in grand fashion, marking the first time in 25 years—since the modern pro-democracy movement was born—that the cause has been openly feted on such a scale in the country. Widely known as the 88 Uprising, the nationwide pro-democracy movement that traces its origins back to Aug. 8, 1988, drew hundreds of thousands of Burmese from all walks of life to join a protest in the former capital Rangoon. The movement sought an end to dictator Ne Win's oppressive 26-year single-party rule, but the government would ultimately crush the protests with a heavy hand, killing at least 3,000 peaceful demonstrators. During his opening speech for Tuesday's ceremony at the Myanmar Convention Center in Rangoon, Min Ko Naing, the most prominent then-student leader of the historic movement, said the event was dedicated to the uprising's unsung fallen heroes. The commemoration was also to serve as a bridge, he said, spanning three eras for the country—Burma 25 years ago, Burma today and Burma in future. "I believe the ceremony may help young people today to learn how their previous generation sacrificed, so that they will value the future of their country." In his keynote address, the former student leader urged people not to stray from the spirit of '88, which he said at its core was against oppression and a privileged ruling elite. He said the three days' worth of events would include discussion sessions focused on peace and national reconciliation, which he urged people to join as a collective brainstorming for the future of the country. Pyone Cho, a leader from the 88 Generation Students group and member of the 88 Silver Jubilee Convention Committee, said the committee had also invited members of Parliament as well as senior government officials. "Whether they attend or not is up to them," he told The Irrawaddy. Tuesday's ceremony began with the public viewing of a documentary on Burma's pro-democracy movement, from 1988 to the monk-led Saffron Revolution of 2007. Scenes of people marching in the streets and the military's violent response to the peaceful demonstrators were supported musically by a Burmese-language remake of "Dust in the Wind," a 1977 hit from the US rock band Kansas. The archival footage was lent a tragic poignancy as lyrics like "Oh… fallen heroes of the democracy movement…. History written with our blood… corpses lying on the roads… this is the country where martyrs live" thundered through the hall. "I got excited when I heard that song. I felt like crying," said Win Zaw, an attendee, as he blinked back tears. A medical student at the time, Win Zaw was involved in the '88 protests and witnessed the bloody crackdowns. On the grounds in front of the ceremony venue, people packed into a booth showcasing historical memorabilia related to the uprising that ranged from photographs and cartoons to newspapers and statements from student organizations of the time. "We tried our best to reveal what really happened in our country 25 years ago," said Thaw Zin Tun of the of 88 Silver Jubilee Convention Committee's exhibition sub-committee. In one corner of the exhibition, sketches and bios of political activists who died during their detention covered a wall. "They all died from 1988 to 2009," Thaw Zin Tun said. Asked about the message of the exhibition, Thaw Zin Tun said hoped visitors would take lessons from the history on display. "We just simply want to show them there should be no absolute power holder or oppressed people in future." |
| Why the Past Can’t Be Put to Rest Posted: 06 Aug 2013 01:57 AM PDT  A photograph of Ma Win Maw Oo hangs on the wall of her parents' home. (Photo: Sean Havey / The Irrawaddy) YANGON—Though it happened more than two decades ago, U Win Kyu is still haunted by old memories. Daw Khin Htay Win, his wife, is torn between her wish and her husband's promise to their daughter. His mind drifts back to a September evening 25 years ago. He was running from ward to ward in Yangon General Hospital looking for his daughter after learning that she was in critical condition after being shot by the army. Around him, the hospital was teeming with patients badly injured by trigger-happy soldiers. He recalls that there were pools of blood on the floors. "Every year at this time, it all comes back to me," said the 61-year-old father, recounting the last hours of his daughter Ma Win Maw Oo, who moaned in pain on the hospital bed suffering from a fatal wound caused by a bullet that shred a lung. The 16-year-old schoolgirl was gunned down in downtown Yangon with other pro-democracy demonstrators on Sept. 19, 1988—the day after a new junta seized power after months of protests. Her fatal shooting was captured in a photograph that shows her blood-soaked body being carried away by two young doctors. That image, which appeared in the Oct. 3, 1988, issue of Newsweek's Asian edition, soon became an icon of the brutality of the crackdown. Every year in September when the anniversary of their eldest daughter's death is approaching, the couple in their sixties faces a great dilemma: should they perform Buddhist rites to release Ma Win Maw Oo's soul into the afterlife, or fulfill the wish she expressed to her father from her deathbed? Her dying words were, "Don't call my name to bestow merit upon my soul until Myanmar enjoys democracy." The eighth-standard girl's final wish is a shocking one in Myanmar society, where a deeply rooted traditional belief has it that a person's soul can't rest in peace until his or her name is called out by the family to share their merit with the deceased. "As a mother, I don't want her soul to wander," Daw Khin Htay Win said with a deep sigh. "But I have to respect her wish and my husband's promise to her," she added, explaining why the family hasn't shared their merit with their daughter for the last 24 years. Despite Myanmar's recent democratic reforms, the family said they still don't feel that they can call for merit to be bestowed upon their daughter's soul this year. "You cannot say democracy is now flourishing in our country," U Win Kyu told The Irrawaddy recently, sitting in front of an enlarged picture of his daughter in the family's one-room shack on the outskirts of Yangon. "As long as we don't have a president heartily elected by the people, we cannot call her name to bestow merit upon her soul," he said. His wife nodded in agreement. Both parents remember Ma Win Maw Oo as a "good" daughter who supplemented the family income by selling sugar-cane and traditional snacks in the streets. She wanted to be a singer inspired by the Myanmar pop star Hay Mar Ne Win (not related to then dictator Gen Ne Win). She hated injustice, so when the country's people rose up against military rule in 1988, she knew she had to join. "It was her burning sense of [the government's] injustice that took her life," said Daw Khin Htay Win. Min Ko Naing, the most prominent student leader of the 1988 uprising, said that Ma Win Maw Oo and others who gave their lives for the cause of democracy did not do so in vain. "If possible, I wish I could tell her we are still marching to the goal she wants by crossing the bridge she and other people built by sacrificing their lives," he said. Since Ma Win Maw Oo's death, her family has had an extreme dislike of the army. But, as time goes by, their hatred toward Myanmar's military men diminishes. U Win Kyu said he prefers to let bygones be bygones, and is not interested in seeking justice for his daughter. "My daughter was brutally killed and I myself also used to have bitter feelings toward the army," he said. "But now I've come to realize that it was her destiny to face that kind of death. We no longer hold a grudge." But they still want something. "We want the president to make some sort of memorial to honor those who fell during the '88 uprising," said Daw Khin Htay Win, adding that that would be the best way to assuage the grief of families who lost loved ones in the struggle to restore democracy. "If it really happened, it would fill us with pride and joy," she said. This story first appeared in the August 2013 print issue of The Irrawaddy magazine. |
| ‘We Can Bring about Both–Justice and Reconciliation’ Posted: 06 Aug 2013 01:51 AM PDT  Min Ko Naing was one of the most prominent leaders of the 1988 uprising against military rule. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy) This month marks the 25th anniversary of the nationwide protests in 1988 that launched Myanmar's pro-democracy movement. As one of the most prominent leaders of that uprising against military rule, Min Ko Naing was forced to spend most of the next two and a half decades in prison. Released in early 2012 along with many other fellow political prisoners, he has since returned to public life as a founding member of the 88 Generation Peace & Open Society, a group dedicated to restoring democracy and human rights in Myanmar. Min Ko Naing is a nom de guerre meaning "Conqueror of Kings," and it has become synonymous with the determination of the people of Myanmar to end unjust and autocratic rule. But these days Min Ko Naing is also actively seeking national reconciliation, even as he continues to push for accountability for human rights abuses committed in the country. However, as he says in this interview with The Irrawaddy's Kyaw Zwa Moe, his quest to uncover the truth about the past is not about seeking revenge. Min Ko Naing has won numerous international awards for his activism. These include the 2009 Gwangju Prize for Human Rights; the 2005 Civil Courage Prize; the 2001 Student Peace Prize; the 2000 Homo Homini Award of People In Need; and the 1999 John Humphrey Freedom Award. His most recent honor was an award from the US National Endowment for Democracy, which he received in 2012. Question: Twenty-five years after the 1988 pro-democracy uprising, what do you think the movement has achieved so far? Answer: Certainly, they [the authorities] now have to shout louder than we do about democracy. Whether they are really practicing it or not is another matter. The situation today is that they now have to admit that the banner of democracy that we raised is righteous and noble. Here, I think we need to examine what kind of political reform is taking place in this country—is it for all of the people, or just for a group of people? The important question is: who is this current change for? Q: Back in 1988, many democracy activists, including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, called the pro-democracy movement the country's second struggle for independence. Is it still the same struggle today? A: Unlike the past, the other side is no longer denying democracy. But things are not moving smoothly, so we still have to struggle. Sometimes, we have to compete with them and sometimes we have to negotiate with them. After all, it is still a struggle. Q: It will be very difficult to achieve reconciliation in Myanmar without compromising on the issue of justice. How will the 88 Generation Peace & Open Society seek justice for those who have suffered for their role in the struggle? A: I think we can bring about both—justice and reconciliation. Of course, it is essential to reveal the truth. We can learn lessons from the past only if we uncover the truth. But this doesn't mean seeking revenge. So first we have to disclose the truth, and then we have to take responsibility together to ensure that injustices don't happen again. These days, we can see many media reports about human rights violations in the past. So far, I haven't seen any actions taken by the authorities against those publications. I think it's all part of disclosing the truth, although we still can't pursue it as a nationwide mission. Q: Your group has decided to make peace and reconciliation the theme of its commemoration of the 1988 uprising. Why did you choose that topic? A: Peace and reconciliation are essential if we want to move forward. At the same time, however, we will also organize exhibitions about what happened in the past, to continue to disclose the truth. Q: Myanmar's opposition groups always had trouble dealing with the political games of the former regime, and they are still lagging behind the current government in terms of strategy. Why are the opposition groups so weak at formulating and following strategies? A: I don't see politics as a game. Eventually, politics [in Myanmar] will become a game in which there are players. But right now we are freedom fighters, not players in a political game. I don't know the rules of that game. Dhamma [justice] will prevail over Adhamma [injustice] in the end. But it also depends on our might and unity. Unity is not a problem in a dictatorship because it is always a top-down system. But in a democracy, everybody is allowed to be different. That is the nature of democracy. Q: The people of Myanmar are looking to the 88 Generation for leadership at this critical time. What is the political agenda of the group? A: I don't want people to depend on an individual person or group. I think we need collaborative leadership. We are now trying to empower civil society, which is different from forming political parties. I think the civil society groups are getting stronger and stronger. What we are doing today is building a network. You can't see a single tree standing out in a field. Our work is horizontal, not vertical. Q: Will you form a political party to contest the 2015 national election? A: Personally, I have no plan to form a political party. But in our group, there are some who are keen to do so and capable of making it work, so they might form a party at some point. I understand why they want to do it, but as for me, I don't have any enthusiasm or aptitude for it. Let me say a few words about party politics and people's politics. Those two ideologies always divide us into two groups. Look at Bogyoke Aung San: He formed a party, but he wasn't really doing party politics. Instead, he engaged in people's politics for the good of the whole nation. I won't form a political party, but I will keep working at the grassroots level. Look at people like Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. We don't criticize them for not taking part in party politics. Their work was hugely influential. So I don't think that that forming a political party and running in an election is the only way to achieve things in politics. Q: How do you propose to change the current political situation in Myanmar, in which former military leaders still dominate in both the government and the Parliament? A: It would be best if power was in hands of the people. To reach our goal, I am more interested in influence than power. After 50 years of being ruled with an iron fist, our people tend to think of power as something used to oppress them. It was power that intimidated and enslaved them. The way governments took or seized power wasn't right, either. That's why I want to apply influence rather than power. By building influence, we will be able to put power into hands of the people. Q: What is the difference between the struggle you started in 1988 and the challenges you face today? A: In the past, our struggle faced total denial and a closed door. So we had to put all our energy into opening that door. Now the door is open and we've received promises [from the authorities] that they will walk together with us on this road [to political reform]. We have to admit that we now enjoy more freedom. The media, for example, is much freer than before. We couldn't even dream of such freedom in the past. These are changes we can't deny, but that doesn't mean that those changes are complete. What I am concerned about now is whether these initial changes will be able to continue to grow. We now have basic rights to form and run associations, organize activities, and so on. But if these rights can't grow and develop, they will be like bonsai trees in a living room—just for show. There are traps and obstacles that we have to overcome. There are still restrictive laws in force, such as the draconian Electronics Act, under which we were given 60-year prison sentences for sending out four emails—that's 15 years for each email. Those laws are still instruments that they can use to throw you into jail anytime they choose. Q: You said earlier that you are not satisfied with the current political reforms. What kind of political transition would satisfy you? A: Let's talk about what should be done in this situation. One of the most critical issues in our country is the ethnic problem. Unless that issue is tackled seriously and immediately, any political reform will be a sham, and we won't be able to build up a new nation. If we really want to continue this political reform, we need to solve the ethnic issue right away. This interview first appeared in the August 2013 print issue of The Irrawaddy magazine. |
| Burmese Garment Workers Protest Over Wages Posted: 06 Aug 2013 04:47 AM PDT  Workers sit in front of a factory during a strike in protest over low wages at Hlaing Tharyar Industrial Zone in May last year. At another factory in Irrawaddy Division, dozens of garment workers fear they could lose their jobs after calling on their employer to pay their promised monthly wages. (Photo: Reuters) Dozens of Burmese garment workers have been barred from returning to work after calling on their employer to pay them 70,000 kyats (US$70) monthly, as promised. The 35 garment workers at Delta Industrial Group (DIG) in Irrawaddy Division stopped showing up for work last Friday, as an act of protest against their employer's decision to pay them only 60,000 kyats monthly. When they attempted to return to their factory in the town of Panthein on Tuesday, the company said they could not yet resume their jobs because a decision had not been made over the wages. "They didn't pay us according to the agreement," said Myat Thida, one of the employees. Protesting workers said they had been trying to meet with their employers since Monday without success and worried they could lose their jobs. A manager at the factory, Ohmar, told The Irrawaddy on Tuesday that the company's board committee had not yet responded to or made a decision over the workers' demands. She said the board members were currently busy hosting foreign guests and did not have time at the moment to meet with the protesting employees. According to the contract, the workers were supposed to receive 60,000 kyats monthly plus an additional bonus of 10,000 kyats for good attendance. The protesting workers, who say they did not miss any work prior to last Friday, were not given the bonus. The workers are also calling on DIG to pay for overtime work and to stop cutting their wages if they miss a day due to illness. Ohmar, the manager, said the workers were demanding 70,000 kyats in total per month. DIG in Pathein town was established in July this year. It currently has about 170 employees. The Irrawaddy correspondent in Pathein, Salai Thant Sin, also contributed to this report. |
| 4 Arrested in Crackdown on Monastery Near Letpadaung Mine Posted: 06 Aug 2013 04:00 AM PDT  Opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is seen during her visit to the Letpadaung copper mine in March 2013. (Photo: The Irrawaddy) A monastery near the controversial Letpadaung copper mine in Sagaing Division was raided at around 2am on Tuesday by military police in search of activists fighting for local residents' land rights. According to villagers, four people were arrested and at least 15 others were injured as police smashed glass windows and destroyed property at the local monastery in the village of Zee Taw. "Two truckloads of military police and 10 motorcycles entered the village around 1:45 in the morning," said Ko Htet of the People's Network, a Rangoon-based activist network helping the villagers defend their land rights around the Chinese-backed mine. "They ransacked my monastery for nearly two hours," said U Arloka, abbot of the San Myawaddy monastery in Zee Taw. The Buddhist monk added that the glass panes in his sleeping quarters were smashed and the room was forced open. U Arloka was away during the raid and only learned of the incident upon his return to the monastery later that day. "The cause of the raid is that they asked my students the whereabouts of the activists. When they didn't get what they wanted, they slapped my boys in their faces and kicked them with boots," the 34-year-old abbot said. The monk said two of the four people arrested on Tuesday morning had since been released, but the location of the pair still in detention, named Maung Tu and Tin Lin, remained unknown. Representatives from the Salingyi police station and the Salingyi Township administration, which has jurisdiction over the mining project and Zee Taw, could not be reached for comment. Hla Tun, president of the implementation committee for the findings of a government report on Letpadaung, recently said activist agitators were behind the defiance of some villagers who have refused to accept compensation for lands that were confiscated for the copper mine project. Three locals were previously detained and are still being held for protesting against the project, and warrants have been issued for some members of the People's Network who are active in the region. A curfew remains in effect in the area, which has seen recurring protests since last year. "The police need not treat the villagers in a brutal way. I think the crackdown is to arrest the people who help the farmers, like us," said Han Win Aung from a social aid network based in Rangoon. Activists have been accused of inciting unrest in the area by encouraging the locals and farmers to participate in protests against the copper mine. "To protest in order to showcase the suffering is the right of the farmers and so too is it the right of every citizen. Arresting or threatening is abusing human rights. The duty of the police is to protect us, not threaten us," said Han Win Aung. On Saturday, anti-copper mine activists, farmers and other local residents held a press conference urging parliamentarian Aung San Suu Kyi to take responsibility for ensuring that recommendations from the government's report on Letpadaung be implemented. The opposition leader Suu Kyi chaired the commission in charge of issuing the report, in which a set of recommendations was proposed to be carried out, including ensuring greater environmental protections and adequate compensation to affected communities. Wanbao, the Chinese firm that is spearheading the project, agreed last month to renegotiate its revenue sharing contract, which was originally signed under the former military regime. The new contract gives the Burmese government a majority 51 percent stake in the mine, with Wanbao and its local business partner, the military-backed Union of Myanmar Economic Holdings Ltd (UMEHL), retaining 49 percent ownership. Previously, Wanbao and UMEHL held complete control. The amendments also include a legal requirement that 2 percent of net profits from the mine be allocated for corporate social responsibility projects, with a focus on local communities affected by the mine. Wanbao is also required to pay $2 million per year through the commercial production period of the project to ensure that international standards in environmental protection are met. |
| Activists Urge Harsher Penalty for Child Rape Case in Burma Posted: 06 Aug 2013 03:30 AM PDT  The 15-year-old girl who was raped by her employer, a restaurant owner in Rangoon's North Okkalapa Township. (Photo: Nang Sai Nom / The Irrawaddy) A restaurant owner in Rangoon's North Okkalapa Township has been sentenced to eight years in prison for raping a 15-year-old girl multiple times, the victim's lawyer says. Social workers and the victim's family members say the sentence by the township court on Monday was too lenient for the crime of sexual abuse against a minor. Myint Aung, the owner of Cherry Restaurant, was detained in February at the township police station and a trial began in the following weeks. The 15-year-old girl told The Irrawaddy in February that she had been raped six times by her former employer at Cherry Restaurant. She started working at the restaurant in 2010 when she was 13 years old, and her parents were paid 15,000 kyats (US$16) monthly for her labor. "Every time after he raped me, he gave me a white pill and told me he would kill me if I told anyone what he did," said the girl. The case was reported only after she managed to contact her family, with whom she had lost contact for six months. She was detained at a juvenile detention center for two weeks in February and March after the defendant's wife, Cho Mar, accused her of theft. Lay Lay, an activist who works at a child care center in the township that was established by the country's main opposition party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), has been following the case closely and offering support to the family. "An underage girl was raped and then forced to take medicine," she told The Irrawaddy. "But the accused only got an eight-year sentence. It shouldn't be like that. As far as I know, a rapist can be sentenced to between 15 years and 20 years," the equivalent of a life sentence in Burma. Aung Thein, the prosecutor, said a provincial court had the authority to sentence someone to between 10 years and life in prison for rape. "The decision was only eight years' imprisonment," he said of ruling in North Okkalapa Township. He said the case highlighted the issues of sexual abuse and labor exploitation of young girls across the country. "There are many cases of child abuse that are never even reported," he said. The victim was in poor condition during the trial, according to family members. "My niece has been suffering with an ache in her stomach. She had to go to court in poor health," her uncle told The Irrawaddy. "The sentence this man received is very small compared to the effects on her dignity, future and mental state." Last week, a township court in Mandalay Division handed a life prison sentence to a man found guilty of raping a 34-year-old woman in March. Burma signed the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1999, 10 years after the human rights treaty was introduced, but the Southeast Asian country only defines children as below the age of 16. |
| Burma Allows FX Trade Between Local Banks Posted: 05 Aug 2013 10:51 PM PDT  Piles of Burmese kyat currency in Rangoon. (Photo: Jpaing / The Irrawaddy) RANGOON — Burma introduced interbank currency trading on Monday, a senior central bank official said, the latest reform to the financial sector, which follows the managed float of the kyat currency from April 2012. Foreign banks are not allowed to operate in Burma and the local banking system is rudimentary, so the interbank market is likely to be tiny initially. "We have allowed local private banks to trade in foreign currency among themselves effective today, taking a major step forward in financial reforms," the central bank official told Reuters. "They now can compete on equal terms with each other with compete transparency," he added, asking for anonymity since he was speaking to the media without authorization. Than Lwin, vice-chairman of KBZ Bank, the biggest private lender in the country, and a retired vice-governor of the central bank, said: "We do welcome their allowing interbank marketing. It's a big step toward the emergence of a foreign exchange market." President Thein Sein took office in March 2011 and, at the head of a quasi-civilian government, has opened up Burma with a series of political and economic reforms, after half a century of military rule. Under International Monetary Fund supervision, the authorities started unifying the various exchange rates at the time of the introduction of the managed float in 2012, and the central bank started selling foreign currency to private banks through auctions. In an annual report on Burma's economy published late on Friday, the IMF said that as of May the currency had fallen about 13.5 percent since the float, which had taken it closer to its long-run fundamental value. Last year it said the kyat was as much as 40 percent overvalued. The central bank sets a benchmark rate against the dollar each day. On Monday, it was 975 kyat per dollar, down from 945 on May 31, central bank data showed. The president enacted a law in July that gave the central bank greater independence. Previously, it was part of the Ministry of Finance. Kyaw Kyaw Maung, a retired central bank governor, has been brought back to head the new monetary authority. |
| Police ID Suspects in Jakarta Buddhist Temple Bombing Posted: 05 Aug 2013 10:27 PM PDT  Muslim activists protest outside the Burma Embassy in Jakarta in this Aug. 9, 2012 file photo. (Photo: Reuters / Supri) Politicians have called for calm and police say they have identified suspects after a low-intensity bomb exploded outside a Buddhist temple in West Jakarta on Sunday night, injuring three people. In what appears to be the first terrorist attack in Jakarta in four years, a letter titled "We heard Rohingya's screams" was found inside one of the two bomb packages, suggesting it was intended as a response to violence against the Muslim Rohingya people in Buddhist-majority Burma. Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Rikwanto said police had identified all the perpetrators in the attack, saying that they could be connected to other bombings in Depok, south of Jakarta, and Bangka-Belitung province last year. "We have examined the CCTV and are now trying to match which group the perpetrators belong to. However, we can confirm that they are linked with previous bombings," he said. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono ordered National Police chief Gen. Timur Pradopo to arrest the group responsible for the attack on the Ekayana Buddhist Center. "The president has ordered the justice and security minister and the chief of police to calm the public and explain what happened to avoid misinformation and misunderstanding that could worsen the situation," presidential spokesman Julian Aldrin Pasha said on Monday. Coordinating Minister for Political, Justice and Security Affairs Djoko Suyanto urged the police to act swiftly. "Find and arrest whoever was responsible for the explosion at the Ekayana temple soon," Djoko said. "The government has condemned the act, which has ruined the peaceful spirit of the holy month of Ramadan." Calling the attack an attempt to provoke tensions between Muslims and Buddhists, Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali said the letter referring to the Rohingya did not mean the terror group was defending the Muslim minority in Burma. "Obviously this is not an act of solidarity; this is an act we should all condemn," Suryadharma said. "Clearly Muslims and Buddhists have been living in harmony since long ago. Last night's terrorist act was disorganized, the objective was unclear." There has been growing anger in Indonesia at the plight of the Rohingya minority in Burma. In May police foiled a plot by Islamic hard-liners to bomb the Burma Embassy in Jakarta, while reports of violence in Burma routinely trigger protests in the capital. But police said they had yet to connect the latest incident to the situation in Burma. The temple, one of the biggest in Jakarta, issued a statement expressing the hope that the attack would "not cause any unrest among religious communities." National Police chief detective Comr. Gen. Sutarman said the attack showed that terrorist organizations would continue to target locations in the capital. "This is concrete proof that terrorists are still active and that they will keep spreading terror at different targets," Sutarman said. In the attack, two bombs were placed in a green plastic bag and left near the front door of the Ekayana Buddhist Center in Duri Kepa on Sunday, according to an anonymous source in National Police anti-terrorism unit Densus 88. The bombs were triggered by a cell phone while some 300 people were gathered inside the temple for a sermon. A third bomb failed to detonate, the source said. "There was another bomb [found smoking] … in a plastic bucket." One woman suffered minor injuries to her arms, while two others were treated for damaged eardrums. Neither police nor the temple said who they suspect were behind the blasts. The source in Densus 88 told the Jakarta Globe that the attack was likely revenge for anti-Muslim violence in Burma. "We suspect this is related to the Rohingya Muslims who are oppressed in Buddhist-majority Myanmar," the source said. Security cameras at the temple captured footage of an unidentified man dropping off two packages moments before the explosions, said Bhikku Arya Maitri Mahatera, a senior monk at the temple. The unidentified suspect entered the temple during a crowded sermon on Sunday night, placing one bomb near a shoe rack and another behind a statue of the Maitreya Buddha before leaving, the monk said after looking at closed-circuit security camera footage. "The young man entered the temple, acting like any other member of the congregation," Arya said. Moments later the bombs exploded near the center's doors. "People were praying when the blast occurred and they remained calm because they thought it was only a firecracker," Arya said. The police questioned witnesses on Monday morning, while investigators were searching for those involved in the bombing, National Police chief Gen. Timur Pradopo said. "So far we have questioned eight witnesses," Timur explained. "They were at the scene when the bomb went off." A surge in anti-Muslim violence in Burma has inflamed tempers in Indonesia, where Islamic organizations hold protests criticizing the recently reformed country for the series of violent attacks on Rohingya Muslims. — Additional reporting from AFP |
| Indian Lawmakers Offer Familiar Rejoinder to PM’s Well-Worn Plea Posted: 05 Aug 2013 10:42 PM PDT  India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, center, speaks to the media upon arrival on the opening day of the monsoon session of the Indian Parliament in New Delhi on Aug. 5, 2013. (Reuters / Adnan Abidi) NEW DELHI — Standing outside India's parliament, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh appealed to opposition parties to allow the legislature to function without disruption so that it could pass key bills. His appeal, delivered in his usual quiet monotone, fell on deaf ears. Opposition lawmakers disrupted proceedings with demands for Singh to quit over corruption allegations. With parliament effectively stalled, the government gave up and adjourned the session, two days earlier than scheduled. Just two out of 38 bills had been passed. That was in May. On Monday, Singh again stood outside parliament to appeal to political parties in the world's biggest democracy to cooperate with the government to ensure the monsoon session of parliament that started this week is "truly productive." With dozens of important bills piling up and a national election possibly just months away, the session may be Singh's last chance to drive through some long-pending economic reforms and get parliament's seal of approval on its flagship program to give cheap grain to 67 percent of the population. In New Delhi, there is much speculation that the government, now ruling as a minority after the withdrawal of key allies, could call early elections in November or December, although it insists that it plans to serve out its full term until next May. "We have wasted lot of time in the previous two or three sessions and I hope that will not be repeated in this session," Singh said, speaking so softly that he was barely audible at times. "I appeal to the opposition to cooperate with the government in smooth running of the session." But when the trouble came within minutes of his plea, it was from Singh's own Congress party. Congress lawmakers forced the lower house of parliament to adjourn many times on Monday as they protested against their party's decision last week to break up Andhra Pradesh into two states. Andhra is a major IT hub for multi-nationals such as Google and attracts much of India's foreign direct investment. "The whole nation is watching. Please sit down," said an exasperated Satpal Maharaj, a lawmaker who was presiding over proceedings in the lower house amid shouting from protesting lawmakers. Singh does not have time to waste. The monsoon session is short—there are just 16 working days, even fewer if you don't include the four days devoted to private members' bills. The government has proposed a formidable legislative agenda—43 bills and ordinances including one measure to allow up to 49 percent foreign investment in the pension sector and another aimed at simplifying the process of buying land for business purposes. The most important measure is the food security ordinance, which will lapse if not passed this session. The $22 billion cheap food plan is a central plank of the Congress party's election platform as it seeks a third straight term in government. The plan aims to give 5 kg of cheap rice and wheat every month to 800 million people, more than doubling the reach of the existing subsidized food system. The plan is due to be discussed in parliament on Wednesday, after a planned vote on Tuesday on the Companies Bill, which aims to strengthen corporate governance and ease the process of mergers and acquisitions. "The intention of the UPA [United Progressive Alliance coalition] is to use the monsoon session to push as many bills as possible in an attempt to wipe out four years of misrule and lack of governance," Arun Jaitley, a leader of the main opposition party, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), told the India Today weekly. Frequently paralyzed by verbal brawls between lawmakers, India's parliament is doing less and less work. The 2009-12 parliamentary session was the least productive in nearly three decades, according to the think tank PRS legislative research. In 2012 alone, the parliament passed just 22 of the 94 bills listed for consideration and passing. Additional reporting by Devidutta Tripathy and Nigam Prusty in New Delhi, and Sharat Pradhan in Mumbai. |
| Japan Marks 68th Anniversary of Hiroshima Bombing Posted: 05 Aug 2013 10:04 PM PDT  Doves fly over the Peace Memorial Park with a view of the gutted atomic-bomb dome at a ceremony in Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 2013, on the 68th anniversary of the world's first atomic bombing on the city. (Photo: Reuters / Kyodo) HIROSHIMA, Japan — Japan marked the 68th anniversary Tuesday of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima with a somber ceremony to honor the dead and pledges to seek to eliminate nuclear weapons. Some 50,000 people stood for a minute of silence in Hiroshima's peace park near the epicenter of the early morning blast on Aug. 6, 1945, that killed up to 140,000 people. The bombing of Nagasaki three days later killed tens of thousands more, prompting Japan's surrender to the World War II Allies. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, among many dignitaries attending the event, said that as the sole country to face nuclear attack, Japan has the duty to seek to wipe out nuclear weapons. The anniversary comes as Japan is torn over restarting nuclear power plants shut down since the massive earthquake and tsunami in 2011 damaged reactors at a plant in Fukushima, causing meltdowns. More than 100,000 people remain displaced because of radioactivity near the plant. Abe favors restarting plants under new safety guidelines, while many Japanese oppose such restarts. There are over 200,000 "hibakusha," victims from the atomic bombings, with an average age of nearly 79. Many gathered in Hiroshima to burn incense, bowing in prayer. In a "peace declaration" speech, Hiroshima's mayor, Kazumi Matsui, described the pain of those who survived, only to be shunned as contaminated by the radiation. "The atomic bomb is the ultimate inhumane weapon and an absolute evil. The hibakusha, who know the hell of an atomic bombing, have continuously fought that evil," he said. Matsui chided the government for its efforts to restart the nuclear plants and to export nuclear technology to other countries. "This summer, eastern Japan is still suffering the aftermath of the great earthquake and the nuclear accident. The desperate struggle to recover hometowns continues. The people of Hiroshima know well the ordeal of recovery," Matsui said. "We urge the national government to rapidly develop and implement a responsible energy policy that places top priority on safety and the livelihoods of the people," he said. A recent agreement on discussing nuclear energy cooperation with India, he said, would likely hinder efforts to abolish nuclear weapons. The Hiroshima victims offered their support to those suffering from the accident in Fukushima, where the situation remains precarious following meltdowns of three reactors after the plant's power systems were crippled by the tsunami. The plant's operator, Tokyo Electric Power Co., admits it is struggling to contain radiation-contaminated water as its storage facilities overflow. Associated Press writer Elaine Kurtenbach contributed to this story from Tokyo. |
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