AllSBNews

Monday, September 29, 2014

Shan Herald Agency for News

Posted: 29 Sep 2014 03:40 AM PDT

Some sayings and quotations are easier said than done. Like the one quoted from the late Nelson Mandela by the Burma News International (BNI) in its Deciphering Burma's

peace process 2014:

If you want to make peace with your enemy, you have to work with your enemy.

Then (your enemy) becomes your partner.

It goes admirably together with other quotations oft-cited by negotiators:

§ Get to know your opposite numbers at all levels socially. Friends take longer to fall out.

§ Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer.

Even the Buddha who taught his pupils: Hatred is not appeased by hatred in this world. It is appeased by love.

This is the eternal law, would have agreed with them.

All of them, as several negotiators on both sides in the current peace process have found out, are very practical and valuable.

However, as worldly sayings go, they are not without negative results as well.

When Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948), the father of India, made peace with Muslims, he was assassinated by a fellow Hindu. So was Egypt's President Anwar Sadat (1918-1981) by his fellow Muslims after he signed a peace treaty with Israeli.

Even the highly successful British-American alliance that had won the war against Germany during World WarII was not without its sad consequences, as reported by David Irving in his bestseller The War between the Generals. One former British general was punished by the British army after the war for his close collaboration with the Americans.

When we look into the ongoing peace process that began in Burma in 2011, we are seeing signs of history repeating itself on both sides. Negotiators who are adhering to the dictum: Successful negotiations require "relationship orientation" rather than "deal orientation" are being viewed and snubbed as turncoats by their own colleagues. There's no denying that some of them may defect to the other side, but sweeping generalization based on a few facts will turn out to be self-defeating.

At the same time, implementing the "relationship-orientation" to the other extreme, too many secret meetings and too many informal gatherings, especially by top leaders will be counter-productive. Because successful negotiations not only rest on trust by the other side but trust by one's own side.

Once again, it is high time SHAN's earlier counsel: There is a great need for a proper balance between confidentiality (of the negotiations) and transparency (for one's own people at all levels) is taken into serious consideration if peace in our long-suffered land is to be achieved.

BURMA PEACE PROCESS: Third party mediation would help move the process forward

Posted: 29 Sep 2014 03:31 AM PDT

The latest round of ceasefire talks, known as Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA), held from 22 to 26 September for five days came to an end without any significant agreement being reached. The irony is that the Nationwide Ceasefire Coordinating Team (NCCT) and as well, the Union Peace-making Work Committee (UPWC) were both reluctant to admit that the talks have produced no progress, whatsoever, and that they are a long way from from signing the said agreement. Although in a closing statement, the two sides have agreed, in general, to a fourth draft of the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA), it did not provide any details on how they arrived at the new draft during the talks.

According to the report from Eleven Media Group, on 26 September, U Aung Min, chief of the UPWC, said: " The discussion, which has been held, by allotting more time, understanding, trust and respect, is itself an achievement. We all have decided to go hand-in-hand to strive for peace and are convinced that all our efforts will be successful. Only the two negotiating parties understand most of the difficulties surrounding the discussion, challenges and nature. Basing on the trust achieved, the two negotiation parties would have to work for the solid backing -endorsement- of their concerned organization."

Nai Hong Sar, head of the NCCT also said: " We could understand the fear and worry of the public caused by the recent problems adjourned to our area and we could understand this. On the other hand, our discussion, if compared to the previous one is faced with some difficulties. But if we compare the 60 years of hardship in the front line, it is not that difficult. We will be able to overcome these problems."

The report also mentioned that since the UPWC and NCCT were having problems, where the interpretation of principles on both sides is concerned, and have agreed behind closed door discussion agreeing not to abandon the peace process altogether.

While it is somewhat convoluted on what issues are at stake, the problematic or themes needed to discuss, according to various media, they are said to be - the inclusion of the word "revolution" in the text; formation of a federal union; military code of conduct for both parties; deployment of troops; transitional period arrangement for the ethnic armies; who should be involved in the signing of NCA; political framework; and whether the political dialogue should be tripartite, as demanded by the NCCT, or eight parties, as foreseen by the UPWC, among others.

The latest Irrawaddy report, on 27 September, said that the UPWC has agreed to come down to five parties involvement in forthcoming political dialogue, instead of eight, which means the army, government and the parliament will form as a group and not three separate ones as previously demanded.

At the end of the latest round of ceasefire talks, on 26 September, a video interview of DVB, with Dr Lian Sakhong was said to have indicated that the main obstacle was on agreeing to the political roadmap tabled by the UPWC.

The real hindrance to the agreement is the acceptance of federal union and federal army formation, although it has been agreed in the previous round of peace talks in August. The change of heart and going back on its promises and reconfirming the adherence of the Commander-in-Chief's six guiding principles and the demand to adhere to the military-drawn, 2008 Constitution, which the military previously have agreed to drop, added more uncertainty to the peace process. And thus, the situation seems to be pushed back to the start or square one again.

The peace talks has been ongoing,since the last three years. And at this rate, it is hard to imagine, if the contending parties could be able to sign the NCA anytime soon. It is quite evident that this "self-help" peace-making initiative is not producing the wanted result and that it is now time to look for third party mediator to break the ice.

The main problem is the interpretation of the concept of power-sharing or federal form of government, the main demand and aspiration of the non-Burman ethnic nationalities The Burma Army top brass sees it in the light of win-lose aspect, although the government faction, headed by President Thein Sein and his top trouble-shooter, seems quite acceptable to the concept. It was evident during the second last round of peace talks, when the NCCT hailed as a breakthrough success for securing the agreement to include the discussion of the federal union set up and formation of a federal army, at the phase of political dialogue, after signing the NCA. At that time, the participating Burma Army representative didn't utter a word and left after the end of the meeting, without giving interview or any comment.

Nai Hong Sar, when asked if the Burma Army also was in agreement to the said issue for later deliberation, said that it would only become clearer in the next round of meeting. And as he had said, it turned out that the Burma Army refused to even talk about the issues and terminated the second day meeting, when the NCCT brought up the issue of federal army formation. The situation now is that the army faction is undoing the agreement that the government faction has agreed upon. In short, there is a real problem on the part of the UPWC or government, which the army is also a part, to accept federalism in words and deeds for it sees this in the light of win-lose or zero-sum game and not win-win outcome.

From the NCCT side, the concept of federalism could create a win-win situation, ending the ethnic conflict, where all will benefit from the power-sharing and resources-sharing in equitable manner.

Another point is although it is said to be negotiating using the single text method, it is mostly not adhering to its theoretical principle and implementation. The ongoing peace process differ from One-Text Process in the following points.

There is no neutral third party facilitator or mediator.
The two contending parties are the drafters and not the facilitator or third party.
The two parties keep the draft, although they should give it back to the facilitator after the end of the session.
The two parties revise, delete or add to the draft at free will.
As there is no facilitator or mediator, the two sides could only aired their opinion or interpretation in a debate manner, rather than criticism to a draft drawn by the neutral party, which is only interest-based formulation for all stakeholders.

The ongoing single text approach used by NCCT and UPWC differs in a lot of approaches from the real theoretical underpinnings. The procedure and implementation are outlined by The Negotiator Magazine as follows.

The one-text procedure is a systematic process for shifting negotiators away from thinking about concessions, by using a neutral, third party facilitator to elicit underlying interests and to simplify the process of jointly inventing many options and deciding on one. After eliciting the issues and interests of all the parties, the facilitator drafts a proposal and presents it to the parties as a draft for their criticism. The parties may not accept or reject any part of the draft at this stage of the process; they may only criticize.

The process is called the "one-text" procedure because quite literally there is only one text. All the parties get a copy of the facilitator's draft, but they are not allowed to keep it, revise it, or add to it. They must return the draft at the end of the session. The only people who can revise, delete, or add to the draft are the facilitators. This process helps prevent people from taking positions or getting a vested interest in particular language or proposed terms. It allows them to criticize freely without damaging their working relationships. It also allows them to learn that they often share the same interests, and only disagree about the means used to achieve them. The facilitators continue to revise and resubmit drafts to the parties until the facilitators feel the draft they have reflects the best they can do to meet all parties' interests. Then and only then, they offer the parties an opportunity to say "yes" or "no." At that point, the parties have a clear choice; either I say yes to this or I start over. This procedure was used at Camp David in the negotiations between Israeli Prime Minister Begin and Egyptian President Sadat. President Carter and Secretary of State Vance created 23 drafts in 13 days before they had a proposal to which both sides could say yes.

Such being the case, the two negotiating parties need to rethink the single text approach seriously and adhere to the basic rule prescribed, by employing a third party mediation team to help move the stalled peace process further forward.

The contributor is ex-General Secretary of the dormant Shan Democratic Union (SDU) — Editor

Sunday, September 28, 2014

Democratic Voice of Burma

Ethnic groups don’t want to leave Burma, says Nai Hongsa

Posted: 28 Sep 2014 12:03 AM PDT

Burma's ethnic minorities will never cede from the country, providing their rights are respected and a genuine federal union established, said Nai Hongsa, one of the leading negotiators for the Nationwide Ceasefire Coordination Team (NCCT) on Saturday.

Speaking at a briefing for Burmese political parties in the wake of a five-day round of ceasefire talks between the NCCT ethnic alliance and a government delegation, Mon leader Nai Hongsa said, "If ethnic nationalities' fundamental rights and birth rights are fully assured, we will never separate from this country.

"If we can build a genuine federal union based on equality and self-determination, then no one need worry about us breaking away."

Delegations from the NCCT and the government's Union Peace-making Work Committee, headed by Minister Aung Min, met with representatives from more than 60 political parties at the weekend to report on the outcome of this week's talks at the Myanmar Peace Centre in Rangoon.

Saw Than Myint, deputy-chairman of the Federal Union Party, said the informal meeting was facilitated as per a request from the political parties.

"The talks [between UPWC and NCCT] took a few days longer this time. But we requested a briefing because this is a rare opportunity for us to get together," he said. "But this is an informal meeting, so no major decisions were made."

In his opening speech, the UPWC's Aung Min said the one-day conference is an opportunity to help promote trust among the government, the ethnic armed groups and political forces in the lead-up to political dialogue.

"We believe facilitating such tripartite meetings will help build the necessary trust in the lead-up to political dialogue," he told delegates. "We wish to include the political parties as participants in the political dialogue process– which is the next step in the peace process."

Among several parties absent from the event were Burma's two major political parties, the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party and the opposition National League for Democracy.

The next round of talks aimed at signing a nationwide ceasefire are scheduled for October.

National News

Lack of satellite phone hindered search

Posted: 26 Sep 2014 04:00 AM PDT

Six surviving members of the Hkakabo Razi expedition said they were unable to search for two missing colleagues above 4938 metres (16,200 feet) because of a lack of mountaineering equipment.

Triple taxi taxes set to continue, insists YCDC

Posted: 26 Sep 2014 01:38 AM PDT

Yangon City Development Committee has denied reports that it plans to scrap the city taxi registration scheme, saying responsibility for registration will instead be transferred to another association.

Saturday, September 27, 2014

The Irrawaddy Magazine

Rohingya Could Face Detention Under Burma Govt Draft Plan
Heavy Fighting Erupts Near Myawaddy, Residents Flee Homes
Beauty Pageants Expose Dreams and Dangers in Modern Burma
Death of a Journalist
French Family Food in a Garden Setting
The Irrawaddy Business Roundup (Sept. 27, 2014)

Rohingya Could Face Detention Under Burma Govt Draft Plan

Posted: 27 Sep 2014 03:49 AM PDT

A Rohingya family have a meager meal in a camp for displaced Muslim families in May 2013. (Photo: Jpaing / The Irrawaddy)

RANGOON/BANGKOK — Burma’s national government has drafted a plan that will give around a million members of the persecuted Rohingya Muslim ethnic minority a bleak choice: accept ethnic reclassification and the prospect of citizenship, or be detained.

Most of Burma’s 1.1 million Rohingya already live in apartheid-like conditions in western Arakan State, where deadly clashes with ethnic Arakanese Buddhists in 2012 displaced 140,000 people, mostly Rohingya.

The plan, shared with Reuters by sources who have received copies of the draft, proposes Arakan authorities "construct temporary camps in required numbers for those who refuse to be registered and those without adequate documents".

Many Rohingya lost documents in the widespread violence, or have previously refused to register as "Bengalis", as required by the government under the new plan, because they say the term implies they are illegal immigrants from neighboring Bangladesh.

Despite winning praise for political and economic reforms introduced since military rule ended in March 2011, Burma has come under international pressure over its treatment of the Rohingya.

The plan says one of its aims is to promote peaceful co-existence and prevent sectarian tension and conflict.

It includes sections on resolving statelessness through a citizenship verification program, as well as promoting economic development.

But rights advocates say it could potentially put thousands of Rohingya, including those living in long-settled villages, at risk of indefinite detention.

Citizenship Offer

The government will offer citizenship for those that accept the classification and have required documentation. That may encourage some to consent to identification as Bengali.

Citizenship would offer some legal protection and rights to those Rohingya who attain it. But an official from Arakan State who is part of the committee overseeing citizenship verification said even that would not resolve the simmering tensions between Buddhists and Muslims in the state, or prevent a recurrence of the inter-community violence that plagued the country in 2012.

"Practically, even after being given citizenship and resettlement and all that, a Bengali with a citizenship card still won’t be able to walk into a Rakhine [Arakanese] village," said Tha Pwint, who also serves on the committee that oversees humanitarian affairs in Arakan.

The plan was drafted at the request of the national government, said Tha Pwint and three other sources contacted by Reuters about the plan.

Burma government spokesman Ye Htut could not be reached for comment on the plan, despite repeated efforts by Reuters to contact him by telephone and email.

Stateless Minority

Many Rohingya families have lived in Arakan for generations and are part of a small minority in the predominately Buddhist Burma.

They are stateless because the government does not recognize the existence of the Rohingya ethnicity, and has to date refused to grant the majority of them citizenship.

Accepting the term Bengali could leave the Rohingya vulnerable should authorities in future attempt to send them to Bangladesh as illegal immigrants, said Phil Robertson, deputy director for Asia at Human Rights Watch.

"One of human rights’ core principles is the right to determine one’s ethnic and social identity and this is precisely what the Burma government is doggedly denying the Rohingya," he said.

"So it’s no wonder that the Rohingya completely reject the national government’s efforts to classify them as ‘Bengalis’ because they know that is the starting point for an effort to confirm their statelessness and eject them from Myanmar."

The draft plan states that the authorities would request the UN’s refugee agency, the UNHCR, to "resettle illegal aliens elsewhere". That might leave them facing indefinite detention, Robinson said, as the UNHCR would be unable to assist.

Complying with the government request would be impossible, because the UNHCR only resettles "recognized refugees who have fled persecution and conflict across international borders", said Medea Savary, a UNHCR spokeswoman in Burma.

"The group in question does not fall into this category."

Burma is preparing to carry out a state-wide citizenship verification process for the Rohingya as part of the plan, a process it recently piloted.

The document says the plan "is a work in progress, with time frames to be adjusted according to the situation on the ground".

Almost all Rohingya were excluded from a United Nations-backed census earlier this year after refusing to list their identities as Bengali.

The Action Plan for Peace, Stability and Development in Arakan State also says the government will ask international agencies for help in having the "humanitarian needs met in terms of food, shelter, water and sanitation" for Rohingya living inside the new temporary camps.

Burma’s treatment of the Rohingya is proving a stumbling block to the country’s opening to the world since a semi-civilian, reformist government led by former general President Thein Sein took over after 49 years of military rule.

In May, U.S. President Barack Obama, who is due to visit Burma in November, cited abuses in Arakan State as one reason for maintaining some economic sanctions.

The post Rohingya Could Face Detention Under Burma Govt Draft Plan appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

Heavy Fighting Erupts Near Myawaddy, Residents Flee Homes

Posted: 27 Sep 2014 03:29 AM PDT

A photo taken by a Myawaddy resident shows Burma army forces moving through the town while some civilians attempt to flee the area on Saturday. (Photo: Nined Blood / Facebook)

CHIANG MAI, Thailand — Heavy fighting erupted between the Burma Army and a Karen rebel group, the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army (DKBA), around noon on Saturday on the outskirts of Myawaddy and dozens of residents are fleeing their homes to escape the violence, local residents and rebel sources said.

Fighting began near the town on the Burma-Thai border at around 11 am and lasted until about 1:30 pm. Heavy weapons such as rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs) were fired, according to witnesses.

An official from the Border Guard Force (BGF), a government-commanded Karen militia in Myawaddy, told The Irrawaddy, "DKBA troops fired RPGs at a Burmese army military vehicle when it came into the town. Then they started to exchange gunfire. It is still going on [at 1 pm] at the Asia highway."

The nearly completed super highway, locally known as the Asia Highway, connects Myawaddy with Rangoon.

Maj. Saw Zorro, a liaison officer of the Karen National Union (KNU), the largest ethnic Karen armed group with a base in Myawaddy, confirmed that gunfire was exchanged around noon and that some residents who live nearby the fighting areas fled.

"Some local residents fled their homes to hide as the fighting broke out. We heard the government troops are now blocking the road that leads to the fighting area," he said.

According to the KNU official, government forces blocked the road around 1 pm and residents shut their shops and left their homes. An area of the road between Myawaddy and Thingya Nyi Naung village has been closed off by the Burma Army.

One resident who runs a small restaurant on the Asia Highway near Myawaddy said on Saturday, "They fired heavy weapons. It's frightening. It happened just outside my shop. We shut down my shop and are now going to Myawaddy town [for safety]."

Thailand's Channel 7 showed video footage on Saturday afternoon of dozens of Myawaddy residents fleeing the fighting and crossing the bridge over the Moei River that separates Burma and Thailand.

When The Irrawaddy contacted police in Myawaddy town for comments an officer confirmed that clashes had occurred but refused to elaborate the detail, saying that the police are trying to observe the incident.

On Friday, in central Mon State's Kyaikmayaw Township, DKBA forces had also fought with government forces. The rebels detained eight soldiers and police officers at their base, and injured two soldiers in an exchange of fire. On Saturday, reports from the area suggested that fighting had continued at Kyaikmayaw Township.

In recent weeks, tensions have been rising between government forces and Karen rebel groups operating in the border town of Myawaddy, Karen State, despite the fact that the groups have bilateral ceasefire agreements with the government.

The situation worsened after a number of small explosive devices were found in Myawaddy and the Burma Army ordered the rebels not to enter the town when armed. On Sept 19, the military shot and killed a DKBA soldier after he supposedly was drunk driving on a road outside of Myawaddy.

The Karen National Union (KNU), the largest Karen rebel group, has managed to stay out of the rising tensions.

Additional reporting by Kyaw Kha.

The post Heavy Fighting Erupts Near Myawaddy, Residents Flee Homes appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

Beauty Pageants Expose Dreams and Dangers in Modern Burma

Posted: 26 Sep 2014 06:05 PM PDT

May Myat Noe holds a press conference about the Miss Asia Pacific World 2014 controversy at the House of Memories restaurant in Rangoon on Sept 2. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)

RANGOON — Sparkling in a red, sequined dress, Htet Htet Htun spins around the stage rehearsing a traditional Burmese dance that she hopes will make her stand out from 18 other young hopefuls competing in the first Miss Myanmar World pageant this month.

Beauty pageants are thriving in Burma after being banned during nearly half a century of military dictatorship that ended in 2011 when a semi-civilian government took power.

Hoping for a better life and dreaming of fame and fortune, young Burmese women are racing at every opportunity to enter the growing list of beauty contests that opened up to them in 2012.

But the rapid rise of an industry that splits opinion in many countries – with opponents accusing pageants of objectifying women – is exposing both the opportunities and pitfalls faced by modern Burma with stories of scandal and exploitation.

By the end of this year Burma will have competed in at least 10 international pageants, including Miss Universe Myanmar and Miss Asia Pacific World. About 130 applicants signed up in four days for the inaugural Miss Myanmar World contest that will be held on Sept. 27.

"If I win, I want to do charity work that would befit a beauty queen. I’d also like to become an actress and continue working in the entertainment industry," Htet Htet Htun, 22, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation outside a dimly-lit studio in the Burma’s biggest city, Rangoon, after her rehearsal.

The popularity of beauty contests underscores how Burma is racing to catch up with the rest of the world after decades of near-isolation – and many contestants are finding themselves on a crash course in how to cope in such a competitive field.

May Myat Noe became the country’s first international beauty queen in May this year when she won the Miss Asia Pacific World title in Seoul, South Korea – only to be dethroned three months later in a vicious, public spat with contest organizers.

Beauty Queen Row

The South Korean organizers called her "rude and dishonest" and accused her of running off with the pageant crown when she left Seoul where she was to record songs with a K-pop girl band.

At a packed press conference in September, May Myat Noe accused the pageant’s organizers in Burma of falsifying her age from 16 to 18 and the Korean organizers of putting pressure on her to have plastic surgery to enlarge her breasts to boost her stardom.

"[The Korean organizers] also told me there is only one way to find money for my album and to continue in the entertainment business … to escort some business tycoons whenever they require my company," she told the press conference.

The cut-throat nature of the pageant business may be new, but Chit Win, who is researching Burma’s political and societal transitions at the Australian National University, said beauty contests have existed in Burma for centuries.

The concept of beautiful young women dubbed "kun taung kain" (holders of traditional betel nut containers) predates British colonization in the 19th century, he said.

But beauty pageants were banned from 1962 after General Ne Win staged a coup and launched a social crackdown.

Re-entering the world stage of beauty pageants has women across Burma seeking to emulate Western ideals.

Sharr Htut Eaindra, the reigning Miss Universe Myanmar, who spent a year polishing her skills for the contest, admitted the first thing she did to prepare was to lose weight.

The contests have also put the spotlight on continuing demographic divisions in Burma, a country of about 51 million people with over 100 ethnic groups still plagued by nationalism and ethnic conflicts.

They have also attracted a large social media following among Burma's fast-growing Internet users.

Moe Set Wine, of mixed Burmese-Chinese heritage, became the first woman in 50 years to represent Burma at the Miss Universe contest in 2013 – and found herself the victim of a campaign on social media calling for her removal.

Burmese social media users questioned her ethnicity and used old photos of her at a Burmese Chinese pageant held in former capital Yangon.

Fast Route to Fame

Despite growing awareness that the beauty business can be cut-throat, the queue of women seeking a short cut to fame through the industry grows daily.

A title can bring massive publicity, public adoration and offers to star in movies and commercials. Pictures of current and former beauty queens adorn billboards, magazines and movie posters in Yangon.

"After I was crowned, my followers on Facebook jumped to tens of thousands," said model and TV presenter Gonyi Aye Kyaw, a bubbly, articulate 25-year-old who competed in about half a dozen pageants before becoming Miss Myanmar International 2013.

Her account was hacked three days later – a confirmation of her new-found fame for her fans.

Tin Moe Lwin, a pioneer of Burma's fast-growing modelling industry, credits the country’s changing attitudes and openness for the rising popularity of pageants.

Tin Moe Lwin, now in her 40s, is judging and training aspiring air hostesses for a pageant-style television talent contest that is currently in filming.

"Compared to when I started, there’s more interest in fashion, the girls are more confident and the society is more open," she said while sipping tea at the lobby of the five-star Sedona Hotel in Rangoon.

Still, there are risks in an industry that is as-of-yet unregulated with frequent stories of disputes and exploitation fuelled by chatter on social media.

Industry observers say the public spats often stem from contractual disputes between the pageants’ Burma's organizers and the winners. Most contracts stipulate that beauty queens must make commission payment to the organizers, usually between 20 to 30 percent of all earnings for up to three years.

John Lwin, a former model and founder of Star & Models International, calls the disputes "a fight over the rice bowl".

"Both sides need to understand that business transactions have to be mutually beneficial," said Lwin, whose Yangon-based agency trained many of Myanmar’s current top models.

Despite the horror stories, many are undeterred, such as 19-year-old K Zin Po who is preparing for next year’s Miss Myanmar World, starting with learning how to walk and pose at Star & Models International.

"I backed out of competing this year because I wasn’t confident in myself," said K Zin Po, who won Kaya Ahla Mae – a contest for model physique – in high school.

"The main thing is to get my body in shape and improve my talent [singing, dancing or acting]."

Ei Phyu Aung, editor of Burma’s weekly entertainment journal Sunday, sees the opportunities and pitfalls from beauty pageants as part of the country’s growing pains.

"It’s a consequence of Myanmar opening up," she said. "It’s like dust coming in when you open the window. We can’t keep the window closed forever so we have to find a way to minimize the dust and maximize the sunlight."

The post Beauty Pageants Expose Dreams and Dangers in Modern Burma appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

Death of a Journalist

Posted: 26 Sep 2014 06:00 PM PDT

Japanese video journalist Kenji Nagai, 50, of APF lies fatally injured on the street of Rangoon after Burmese soldiers fired upon and then charged at protesters on Sept. 27, 2007. (Photo: Reuters)

Known as the Saffron Revolution, the monk-led antigovernment protests of August and September 2007 were, for many people outside the country, their first exposure to the brutality of Burma's former military regime. The domestic upheaval became an increasingly international affair seven years ago, when a Burmese Army soldier shot dead the Japanese journalist Kenji Nagai, a killing that was captured on video and broadcast worldwide. This story, originally published in December 2007, offers another Japanese photojournalist's take on the death of a colleague and countryman.

JAPAN — It was painful to witness the images broadcast worldwide on Sept. 27, 2007. Japanese cameraman Kenji Nagai was lying on his back on a street in Rangoon. Then there was the piercing sound of a bullet fired from the rifle of a soldier.

Kenji Nagai, a man I considered a colleague, was dead. Immediately, I thought: It could have been me. As a photojournalist, I also report on conflicts. I have covered many Asian countries, including Burma, and I imagined myself in Kenji Nagai's place, lying dead on a street in Rangoon.

But, I was in Japan, and he was in Rangoon. However, I knew the streets where the pro-democracy demonstrations occurred—the scene was very familiar to me.

For me, the shooting confirmed the true mentality of the Burmese junta, which has been killing and imprisoning the Burmese people with impunity for decades: 3,000 or more people dead in 1988 alone, the year I started covering events in Burma.

On the day Kenji Nagai was murdered, I was taking photographs of Burmese exiled activists who were demonstrating in front of the Burmese Embassy in Tokyo, demanding the Japanese government stop supporting the State Peace and Development Council financially.

Later that day, my mobile phone started ringing, one call after another without a break. News agencies and newspapers were calling me to check if the unidentified Japanese journalist killed in Rangoon was me or not. One call was from Australia, from my Burmese friend who had worked as my interpreter when I made trips to Burma. He explained that he was worried about me when he heard the news.

Before long, the Japanese media confirmed the dead journalist was Kenji Nagai. His name was new to me, and we had never met.

The TV news showed video of the shooting of Kenji Nagai over and over again for several days. The Japanese public was horrified and angry. The Japanese government seemed shocked. Perhaps for the first time, the government realized the SPDC is truly an evil government.

When the funeral service was held on Oct. 8 in Tokyo, hundreds of Burmese exiles attended the service to honor Kenji Nagai. They apologized for his death on behalf of the SPDC government, which they hate. It was a natural feeling for the Burmese people who live in Japan to express their sorrow for Kenji Nagai, who was now a martyr in the Burmese struggle for democracy.

Media coverage on Kenji Nagai focused on his personality, his professional work in Iraq and elsewhere, but neglected any factual background on what had been happening in Burma under the military regime for the past 20 years. There were almost no critical questions about Japan's foreign policy toward the military junta—whether it was trying to help the country move toward democracy or helping the SPDC.

As a photojournalist, I have been critical of Japan's foreign policy, which has favored the SPDC generals rather than the democratic forces and the ethnic minorities. You can get a sense of Japan's policy toward the SPDC through various comments made by top Japanese diplomats.

For instance, the then Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi made an ignorant comment in May 2003, when she was asked about the murderous attack on Aung San Suu Kyi's motorcade at Depayin. She said, "There is no deterioration of environment for dialogue between the SPDC and Aung San Suu Kyi." She retracted her comment the next day.

In May 2006, Japanese ambassador to the United Nations, Kenzo Oshima, said, "Burma does not constitute a regional threat yet," and along with China and Russia, Japan opposed efforts by the United States and European Union to put Burma on the Security Council agenda.

The latest and most shameless comment was made by Yoichi Yamaguchi, the former Japanese ambassador to Burma (1995-97).

After the killing of Nagai, he was quoted in the Japanese media as saying several offensive comments:

"Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy gave money to the demonstrators."

"There is not a single so-called political prisoner there [in Burma] in the true sense."

"The regime has succeeded in maintaining economic growth of over 5 percent annually, earning it the widespread trust of the people."

After Kenji Nagai's death, the Japanese government took a seemingly strong stance. In New York, Foreign Minister Komura demanded an apology from the SPDC. But as time passed and the crackdown by security forces continued, the Japanese government remained quiet, simply waiting for the UN Security Council to act.

"The government will coordinate efforts with the United Nations and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to make progress in the democratization of Myanmar [Burma]," Komura said after the UNSC's presidential statement was announced.

Later, Japan cancelled a grant of up to 552 million yen (US $4.7 million). The grant had been intended to finance the construction of a human resources center.

On Oct. 28, the People's Forum on Burma, an NGO formed in Tokyo in 1996 to support the Burmese people's struggle for democracy, made a plea for the Japanese government to fundamentally change its foreign policy toward the SPDC by giving full-scale humanitarian support to the 160,000 displaced people in refugee camps in Thailand.

The group also asked for a halt in grants to the Union Solidarity and Development Association, which was accused of taking part in the suppression of the demonstrators. In 2006, the USDA received a Japanese grant of nearly 24 million yen ($209,000) for construction of three grade school buildings. It also demanded that Japan stop humanitarian aid to subsidize Burma's health care and education budgets while the military regime allocates more than 50 percent of its national budget on the military.

The group wants to pressure the Japanese government to support the Burmese people and the pro-democracy groups, instead of helping to keep the generals in power.

A Burmese citizen in Tokyo, a former political prisoner, said Burmese exiles remember two Japanese citizens: one with hate, and one with great respect.

One is former ambassador Yoichi Yamaguchi; the other is journalist Kenji Nagai.

Yamamoto Munesuke's books include "Burma's Children" and "Burma's Great Illusions." He was deported from Burma in 1998 "for gathering news," following his exclusive interview with Aung San Suu Kyi.

The post Death of a Journalist appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

French Family Food in a Garden Setting

Posted: 26 Sep 2014 05:30 PM PDT

Inside the French cultural institute 'Institute Français de Birmanie' in Rangoon, a new restaurant, Rendez-vous, has just opened. (Photo: Steve Tickner / The Irrawaddy)

Tucked away in the leafy grounds of the French cultural institute 'Institute Français de Birmanie' in Rangoon, a new restaurant, Rendez-vous, has just opened.

As befits the Gallic setting, the fare is mostly French, with some Italian and Asian inspired dishes. Only open two weeks, the place comes with sparkling credentials—Rendez-Vous is owned by the people behind popular French bakery La Tartine, and run by the French and Italian cooks previously at restaurant Les Tontons.

Cooks Sebastien Rabeux and Alfio Marletta closed Les Tontons to move their establishment to the Institute Français, offering similar food but in a more relaxed and accessible setting.

The menu is simple selection of snacks, salads and larger meat courses, alongside desserts and the French crêpe. At 6,000 kyat for a filet steak with potatoes, 4,000 kyat for chicken skewers and 1,000 kyat for a generous helping of yoghurt and fresh fruit, it is far more reasonably priced than many of the other French competitors in town.

"It's family food," said Rabeux, talking about the inspiration behind his menu. "Nothing complex. Something nice, with good ingredients: simple, fresh."

For lunch The Irrawaddy sampled a hearty parmigiana—a type of vegetarian lasagne, stuffed with layers of aubergine, tomatoes and egg, and a melted cheese crust. Stodgy and moreish, it is a good choice for those after something filling, though it could have done with some salad to freshen the dish.

The smoked herring was a pleasant surprise, as smoked fish is something of a rarity in Burma (Rendez-Vous import their herring from France)—and was served well, with crisp garnish of carrots and potatoes with parsley. The sweet crêpes were tasty, and exactly as one would expect in France.

The dinner menu features a similar array of dishes, including Rabeux and Marletta's homemade sausages, lasagne and filet mignon with mustard sauce.

However, rather than stick to a few staple dishes, Rendez-Vous are electing to change starters and mains regularly, and will host a variety of different themed events throughout the week.

Carried over from Les Tontons, the popular Thursday evening all-you-can-eat barbeque is a repeat fixture, serving a wide selection of grilled meats and vegetables as well as a free flow of wine and beer.

There are also ad hoc music evenings—next Wednesday Rendez-Vous will host a live jazz band, accompanied by the traditional French dish 'Moules Frites' (steamed mussels with French fries). Cook Rabeux is enthusiastic about the quality of fish in Burma, and is hoping to serve a new fish dish every Friday.

Up Pyay Road, a few minutes from the Myaynigone intersection, Rendez-Vous is set a little back from the bustle of the main road, and the tranquil setting makes it an ideal place to bring families, or while away a lazy afternoon. Though The Irrawaddy visited for lunch, Rendez-Vous is open Monday – Saturday, 10am – 11pm, and it is easy to imagine as an enjoyable dinner choice, with its cosy outdoors dining area. A promising start!

The post French Family Food in a Garden Setting appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

The Irrawaddy Business Roundup (Sept. 27, 2014)

Posted: 26 Sep 2014 05:00 PM PDT

Size Matters in Debate on Dams to Solve Burma's Electricity Shortage

Large-scale hydroelectric river dams pose environmental dangers for Burma, energy companies at an investment conference in Naypyidaw have warned.

The representatives of two foreign and Burmese firms said it would be safer to build smaller hydro dams on Burma's rivers to help solve the country's acute electricity shortages.

The warnings against mammoth dams came from APR Energy, a US power plant provider, and Parami Energy Group of Burma, Eleven Media reported.

But the conference also heard Vikram Kumar, Burma resident representative of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), voice his support for all forms of hydro dams, saying that major financial institutions "don't want to provide technical and financial assistance when power generation methods are not based on clean energy."

The IFC is part of the World Bank.

The Naypyidaw government is still negotiating with Chinese and Thai companies for the development of large hydroelectric dams on some of Burma's major rivers, notably the Salween, which borders Thailand.

APR Energy in June installed and began operating a gas-fueled 100-megawatt power plant at Kyaukse in the Mandalay region.

APR is contracted to operate the mobile plant for two years, after which it could be shut down, dismantled and moved elsewhere.

Myawaddy Trade Route With Thailand Soars Despite Thai Coup

Imports from Thailand via the Mae Sot-Myawaddy border crossing totaled US$130 million in just five months from April 1, Burma's Ministry of Commerce said.

Most of the imports were vehicles, including cars and farm equipment, motorcycles and mobile phones.

The trade was largely one way, with Burmese exports through the border crossing a mere $8.15 million, said Eleven Media, quoting the ministry.

Myawaddy is the biggest of seven land border trading points between Burma and Thailand, and the strong value of imports in this fiscal year comes despite a forced slowdown in May immediately after the military coup in Thailand.

Trade has grown so much that Thailand is financing a new $94 million bridge over the River Moei linking Mae Sot with Myawaddy.

Construction is scheduled to begin in early 2015 and be completed within a year, according to World Highways magazine.

Bangladesh's 'Chronic Instability' May Aid Burma Garment Industry

Two of Burma's neighbors have received black marks in a report by an international business risk assessor.

The black marks went to Bangladesh and, more surprisingly, Malaysia.

"Chronic regime instability, high levels of political violence and a poorly developed judicial framework pose significant governance-related risks to investors in Bangladesh," said Maplecroft of Britain.

Bangladesh is a rival to Burma in attracting foreign investment in garment and textile manufacturing, but Maplecroft said the Bangladeshi sector is still "facing intense international scrutiny" over safety standards and labor rights following a disastrous factory collapse in 2013 that killed more than 1,100 workers.

On Malaysia, Maplecroft said that although it still offered "substantial opportunities" to investors, particularly in the energy and retail sectors, "challenges to rule of law such as political interference over the judiciary and corruption as well as affirmative action 'bumiputera' policies present significant impediments for investors."

Bumiputera refers to the state policy of giving preferential opportunities to Malaysia's ethnic Malay population ahead of ethnic Chinese and Indian communities.

Visa Muddle Allows Two-Tier Entry System in Burma, Says Trade Paper

More than 70,000 people who arrived in Burma via Rangoon Airport between January-August were granted on-the-spot entry visas, a travel trade magazine said, quoting immigration officials.

A total of 74,500 people—most of them Chinese and Japanese—obtained visas at the airport despite supposed restrictions, said TTR Weekly, quoting Burma's Ministry of Immigration.

"Most airlines will not allow passengers to fly to [Rangoon] without a visa, or documents entitling them to apply for a business visa on arrival. They are not technically visas-on-arrival, but more akin to a pre-arranged visa that has undergone security clearance ahead of the trip and then endorsed at the airport," reported TTR Weekly.

It's not clear how so many people were admitted into Burma in this way unless they were mostly business visitors, the trade magazine said.

With the total number of visitors climbing over 2 million per year and likely to be 3 million by the end of 2014, Burma is attempting to ease long queues at some of its embassies abroad by introducing an electronic visa available on the Internet from Sept. 1. But there are restrictions with this system, including only being valid on flights arriving to Rangoon.

Travelers planning to arrive in Burma via a land border or an airport other than Rangoon must still obtain a visa from a Burmese embassy or consulate, said TTR Weekly.

Thein Sein Urges Fight to End Hunger as Burma Exports More Rice

Southeast Asian countries need to "work hand in hand" to achieve UN targets of reducing hunger and malnutrition in the region, Burma's President Thein Sein was quoted by the Chinese state news agency Xinhua as saying.

He called on Asean, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, to ensure food security through sustainable agricultural development. Thein Sein made the call at a meeting of Asean agriculture ministers in Naypyidaw.

"Asean member states must work hand in hand to meet the objectives of the UN Millennium Development Goals with the aim of zero hunger by 2025," Thein Sein said.

Burma holds the chairmanship of Asean this year.

But another conference, held by the Regional Civil Society Dialogue to Improve Food Security, was told that Burma is promoting exports of its food produce, especially rice, while segments of the population suffer from malnutrition.

"[Burma] is among the list of countries with food security issues along with Cambodia, Laos and the Philippines," Eleven Media quoted Ohnmar Khine of the Food Security Working Group as saying. "[Burma] is the worst for food security and malnutrition in the Asean region."

The country exported 1.27 million tons of rice in 2013, according to a World Bank report, and the Myanmar Rice Federation is making efforts to increase exports to 2 million this year, the Myanmar Times has reported.

The post The Irrawaddy Business Roundup (Sept. 27, 2014) appeared first on The Irrawaddy Magazine.

Democratic Voice of Burma

Wirathu attends conference of nationalist Sri Lankan monks
Seven years on, reforms have not yet healed the wounds of the Saffron Revolution
DKBA in shoot-out with Burmese army after arresting officers in Mon State

Wirathu attends conference of nationalist Sri Lankan monks

Posted: 27 Sep 2014 09:37 AM PDT

U Wirathu, a leading Burmese monk notorious for his anti-Muslim rhetoric, arrived in Sri Lanka on Friday night to take part in a conference organised by a politically powerful monk-led Sinhalese nationalist organisation, the Bodu Bala Sena (BBS).

On Sunday, Wirathu will deliver the conference's keynote address to a conclave of BBS-affiliated monks in Colombo. His appearance in Sri Lanka follows a meeting in March with Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara Thero, a prominent monk who co-founded the BBS in 2012.

That meeting coincided with an official trip to Burma by Sri Lanka's president, Mahinda Rajapaksa.

Over the past two years, BBS sympathisers have been responsible for a string of attacks on mosques and churches around the country. In June, BBS-backed attacks on Muslim businesses, homes and mosques in southwestern Sri Lanka left nine people dead and some 10,000 displaced.

The BBS has launched a number of campaigns against Muslims and Christians, including a push to ban halal dietary certification and outlaw Muslim headscarves. It regularly holds rallies calling for an end to the recognition of minority rights, highlighting the alleged threat to Sri Lanka's Sinhalese Buddhist majority posed by Islam.

According to a statement by Dilanthe Withanage, the group's highest-ranking layman, the conference is intended to foster a political framework that will be "based on Buddhist principles, creating an environment within which minorities can live peacefully with Sinhalese," as opposed to a "so-called devolution of power" that would enshrine minority rights – particularly for the Tamil-majority north and east of the island.

News of Wirathu's planned visit drew the ire of Sri Lanka's Muslim and Christian leaders, who wrote a letter to the country's immigration department, the president, and his brother, defence minister Gotabaya Rajapaksa, urging the government to deny him entry to the country. "His presence and speech at the meeting may incite further violence against the Muslims," the letter read. "Granting entry clearance will be seen as an active support given by the government to the anti-Muslim hate campaign that organisations like the Bodu Bala Sena have carried on in Sri Lanka."

Withanage’s statement claimed that criticism of the BBS' convention was the work of "racists, extremists, opportunists and fundamentalists who are scared of the growing Buddhist movement," adding that "[Wirathu] gave life to Burma’s Buddhist revivalist movement, and the Sri Lanka Muslim council’s outcry over his presence is an example of such opportunism."

In contrast to Burma, where monks are constitutionally barred from running for public office, a group of Sri Lankan monks formed the Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU), or National Heritage Party, to contest parliamentary elections in 2004. The JHU was a vocal supporter of Rajapaksa's no-holds-barred assault against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in 2009, which ended the country's 26-year civil war amid international condemnation and allegations of war crimes.

In 2012, Gnanasera and another JHU monk, Kirama Wimalajothi Thero, severed ties with the party on the grounds that it was not taking a hard enough stance against religious minorities. Although the BBS is not strictly a political party, it influences policy and enjoys the support of elements within the government, including, prominently, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who inaugurated the group's headquarters in 2013.

Despite taboos in Burma that preclude the participation of monks in formal political life, Wirathu and a coalition of like-minded monks banded together last year under the acronym Ma Ba Tha (Committee for the Protection of Race and Religion), proposing legislation that would place restrictions on interfaith marriage and religious conversion.

Wirathu is also often cited as the leader of the "969 movement," whose philosophy, closely aligned with that of the BBS, asserts that Islam poses an existential threat to Burmese Buddhism. In 2003, he was sentenced to 25 years in prison for his role in inciting anti-Muslim violence in Mandalay, Burma's second-largest city, but was released in 2012 as part of a prisoner amnesty.

Seven years on, reforms have not yet healed the wounds of the Saffron Revolution

Posted: 27 Sep 2014 07:33 AM PDT

Seven years on from the Saffron revolution, monks speak of the wounds that haven’t healed.

Burma has undergone a series of striking reforms since the then-ruling junta brutally cracked down on monks and their supporters.

But with the many of the responsible generals still in positions of power, how much is really forgiven?

DKBA in shoot-out with Burmese army after arresting officers in Mon State

Posted: 27 Sep 2014 02:32 AM PDT

A fire-fight broke out in Kyaikmayaw, Mon State, on Friday between the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army (DKBA) and Burmese government forces, leaving one soldier reportedly injured.

According to Saw Soe Myint, an officer at the DKBA's Myawaddy liaison office, the clash occurred between DKBA troops and the Burmese army's Military Operation Command 19 at around 2pm on 26 September after the Karen faction under Maj. Win Zaw Linn detained eight Burmese officers, including military intelligence and police personnel who had arrived to inspect conditions in the region.

"A couple of days ago, government forces came into our territory without going through diplomatic channels," said Saw Soe Myint. "They came without authorisation so Maj. Win Zaw Oo detained them. On Friday, the Tatmadaw [Burmese army] sent in troops in to secure their release. The shoot-out took place after negotiations fell through."

He said a government soldier was injured in the gunfight, and added that the eight detainees will be released when "a certain level of trust is established".

"We already have instructions to release the eight detainees," he said, "and they will be released just as soon as we are confident that they will not come back to attack us afterwards."

The Burmese military was unavailable for comment.

On 19 September, DKBA's captain Linn Naing was gunned down by security forces in Myawaddy, raising tensions in the area.

The DKBA signed a ceasefire agreement with the government in 2011 and are currently involved in nationwide ceasefire talks.

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