Friday, April 28, 2017

The Irrawaddy Magazine

The Irrawaddy Magazine

Breaking: Nationalist Mob Closes Two Islamic Schools in Rangoon

Posted: 28 Apr 2017 08:45 AM PDT

RANGOON — Two madrasas near downtown Rangoon were sealed off by an alleged Buddhist nationalist group on Friday evening, making the accusation that the Islamic schools were operating as mosques, without official permission.

Residents in the area, which includes Anawmar 11 and 12 streets in Thaketa Township, said the religious buildings were shut down without any official decree. They claimed that police and city officials were also present on-site when the madrasas were locked down by a mob of nearly 50 nationalists.

Crowds gathered in the area on late Friday afternoon, leading to a public brawl as the buildings were locked. A videographer working for the Associated Press—Ko Min Kyi Thein—was reportedly attacked by the nationalists while filming the incident.

At the time of reporting, the police did not allow representatives of the media within the vicinity of the buildings as they were being sealed off, stating that they intended to prevent further conflict. However, others appeared to be let in. Streets leading to the madrasas were blocked with barricades manned by security forces—more than 100 police were deployed to the scene.

Dr. Wai Phyo Aung, the National League for Democracy lawmaker who represents the township, was present at the site of the incident. He appeared reluctant to comment on the situation, only stating that an official announcement would be made soon, but not clarifying when this might occur.

The area is home to one large mosque and three madrasas, including the two sealed off on Friday. Muslims in the neighborhood said they were worried that the remaining madrasa and the mosque would also soon be locked down by nationalists.

The Irrawaddy reporter on the ground was threatened when he tried to get comments from the nationalists, and was forced to leave the area.

Maung Hla Win, a local Muslim, said, "there are Buddhists who stayed on our street. We accepted them, and they accepted us. We did not have a problem."

"But the men who came here [today] just did as they liked," he added.

Another Muslim, Ko Ye Kyaw, said that the group of nationalists arrived at around 2 p.m.

"We did not act violent toward them, because we knew if we did, we would face violence," he explained.

The Irrawaddy was told that Muslims in the area were informed beforehand to close the religious schools right after the Thingyan water festival in mid-April, but the claim could not be independently verified.

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Rangoon Regional Minister Reveals Ambassador’s Role in Bus Purchases from China

Posted: 28 Apr 2017 08:12 AM PDT

RANGOON – In Friday's divisional parliament session, Rangoon's regional minister of planning and finance U Myint Thaung told the legislature that the Yangon Public Bus Company had purchased 1,000 new buses from China at a total cost of US$56 million.

The purchase was made with the help of the Chinese ambassador, from Chinese automotive companies Yutong and Ankai, he said, providing the information in response to a question posed by lawmaker Daw Sandar Min about the new vehicles.

The divisional government has requested 70 billion kyats in the 2016-2017 fiscal year's re-budgeting process, mentioning to the regional parliament a large sum to be spent on public transportation services in the commercial capital.

Lawmakers have complained that they lack details of the divisional government's plans to invest the money. Some of the confusion among lawmakers stems from the practice of importing second-hand buses from border areas, and then installing GPS devices on them so that they can be used for city routes.

Daw Sandar Min asked minister U Myint Thaung whether the government would replace the old model vehicles that have been operating for decades with new buses.

While not mentioning a removal of older buses, U Myint Thaung highlighted how, with the assistance of the Chinese ambassador, the regional government signed off on MOUs with Anhui Province-based Ankai and Yutong automotive companies last month.

"The ambassador guarantees the quality of products and the price of vehicles are reasonable," he said.

Yangon Region Transport Authority secretary Dr. Maung Aung told The Irrawaddy that they would do away with outdated city buses and reinforce the Yangon Bus System YBS with brand new vehicles, scheduled to arrive in Rangoon from China at the end of May.

About 3,700 city buses—most of them outdated—are tasked with carrying 2.5 million commuters in Rangoon daily. Dr. Maung Aung estimates that that city needs at least 4,500 city buses to meet its transportation needs.

Some businesspeople criticized the large purchase of buses from China, saying that the amount would have been better spent on vehicles from Japan.

Myanmar Motor Vehicle Producers and Distributor Association's chairman Dr. Soe Tun said that is difficult to judge whether the prices quoted to the government were reasonable without knowing the specifications of the buses.

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Preparing Southeast Asian Snakehead

Posted: 28 Apr 2017 07:08 AM PDT

As in other parts of Southeast Asia, snakehead (Nga Yant in Burmese) is a popular freshwater fish known for its sweet and tender meat. It can be eaten in various ways, from curried with seed pods to stir-fried. The dried snakehead slow-roasted in a charcoal stove over a small fire and then pounded and soaked in peanut oil is a traditional food consumed with white rice across the nation. It can be enjoyed with simply a pot of green tea as well.

On the beach of Satkalay Village in Kyimyindaing Township across the river from Rangon, the whole process of preparing these snakeheads unfolds. Women slice the fish that come from fish farms and rivers in neighboring Bago and Irrawaddy divisions. They remove the offal (the intestines of Nga Yant is another popular delicacy) and spines before the meat is dried in the sun. Afterwards, slices of meat are roasted, pounded, packed and delivered to supermarkets.

 

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Lawyer in U Ko Ni Murder Calls for Naypyidaw Arrest Warrant in Search for Fugitive

Posted: 28 Apr 2017 06:57 AM PDT

RANGOON — The lawyer representing the family of the National League for Democracy's (NLD) assassinated legal adviser U Ko Ni presented a criminal revision petition to the Rangoon Division High Court on Friday, requesting that the judge issue an arrest warrant in Naypyidaw for fugitive Aung Win Khaing.

The man is suspected of involvement in the case but remains at large: Naypyidaw is where he was last seen.

Prominent lawyer U Ko Ni was shot by gunman Kyi Lin outside Rangoon International Airport on the afternoon of Jan. 29. Police have put forward four suspects: Kyi Lin, and alleged co-conspirators Zeya Phyo, Aung Win Zaw and Aung Win Tun.

Lawyer U Nay La initially requested that the northern district court issue the warrant in Naypyidaw in March, but it ruled against the move. He also claimed that the district court has been handling the case "carelessly" and is "weak" in examining the case surrounding the fugitive in accordance with designated procedures.

On Friday's plea at the High Court, U Nay La explained the purpose of his filing: the police order dated Feb. 15 calling for the arrest of Aung Win Khaing was sent to only six of the force's stations—in Dawbon, Tharketa, Bahan, Mingalardon, Gyobinkaut and Meikhtila townships. The first warrant issued by the district court on Mar. 3—before the trial—only covered Aung Win Khaing's home address in Rangoon's Dawbon Township.

An arrest warrant that only allows for a fugitive to be apprehended at his permanent address is unfitting for the situation, U Nay La said at the High Court.

According to police reports, there is no record that Aung Win Khaing has passed through the country's border gates since the assassination, U Nay La said, and therefore it is assumed that he is still in the country. The lawyer then emphasized the need to issue an arrest warrant in Naypyidaw.

In early April, police chief Maj-Gen Zaw Win told reporters at a press conference in Naypyidaw that the police had combed through all eight townships and villages in the administrative capital for the fugitive, promising that they "would go to the ends of the earth to find him."

U Nay La told The Irrawaddy on Friday that police announcements describing their search efforts are separate from the court proceedings and "will not be considered" until the police make statements on the matter in court.

"The court has to do its job, no matter what the police are doing," he said.

He also said he would withdraw his plea for a criminal revision of the case if there is a law restricting the issuance of a second warrant with a new address. U Nay La said it was possible that issuing another warrant could delay the trial, but noted that a delay leading to a thorough examination would be better than rushing the case and glossing over important details.

"Examining the case without trying to bring all suspects to the court is not beneficial for anyone," he said, highlighting how U Ko Ni's murder is a high-profile case being closely monitored by the local and international community.

The Rangoon Division High Court did not provide a date by which a decision would be made regarding U Nay La's proposal.

Shooter Kyi Lin and three alleged co-perpetrators—Aung Win Zaw, Aung Win Khaing and Zeya Phyo—are being charged under Article 302 of Burma's Penal Code for murder. Zeya Phyo, a former military intelligence officer, is also charged under Article 67 of the Telecommunications Law for the possession of restricted telecommunications equipment and Article 468 of the Penal Code for the forgery of national identity cards.

Two of the suspects—gunman Kyi Lin and alleged co-conspirator Aung Win Zaw—are being charged under Article 19(d) and (f) of the country's 1878 Arms Act for illegal arms possession and transportation, in addition to the murder charge.

The post Lawyer in U Ko Ni Murder Calls for Naypyidaw Arrest Warrant in Search for Fugitive appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Burma Turns Down Chinese Assistance in Addressing Refugee Crisis in Bangladesh

Posted: 28 Apr 2017 04:52 AM PDT

NAYPYIDAW – The Burmese government will not accept China's offer to help mediate affairs in restive Arakan State, but "will collaborate" with Bangladesh, according to the President's Office spokesperson U Zaw Htay.

According to Bangladeshi foreign ministry officials, China has offered to help tackle a diplomatic row between the two countries over the plight of tens of thousands of Muslim minority Rohingya who fled violence in Arakan State and sought refuge in Bangladesh since late 2016.

U Zaw Htay told reporters during a press conference on the National League for Democracy government's first-year performance on Friday that the NLD administration "understands China's concerns." He noted China's development project in Kyaukphyu, a special economic zone in Arakan State, but said that the government would opt to take a more standard path in obtaining assistance in dealing with conflict in the region.

Chinese Special Envoy of Asian Affairs Sun Guoxiang was quoted as saying during his four-day trip to Bangladesh this week that they "were ready to help if necessary."

China has also been offering its assistance in conflicts in northeastern Burma, where fighting has been ongoing between government troops and ethnic armed groups.

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Free Clinic for Political Prisoners Closes Temporarily

Posted: 28 Apr 2017 03:46 AM PDT

RANGOON — The Hanthawaddy U Win Tin Foundation clinic, which provides free medical services to former political prisoners, has closed temporarily due to financial constraints, said foundation chairman U Kyaw Aung.

The Hanthawaddy U Win Tin Foundation is a non-profit organization founded by the late prominent journalist U Win Tin in early 2012 with the aim of supporting current and former political prisoners and their family members with access to healthcare, education and rehabilitation.

"We plan to reopen next month but we're short on medicine. This is the only free clinic for political prisoners, and I don't want to see it permanently shutdown," U Kyaw Aung told The Irrawaddy.

In its early days, the foundation funded political prisoners and their families to receive healthcare at Green Cross Hospital in Rangoon. But after the death of U Win Tin in April 2014, the number of donors declined and the financial situation forced the foundation to open its own free clinic in October of the same year.

Since its establishment, the free clinic has provided care to thousands of political prisoners and their families. It receives some 300 patients monthly, and is open six days a week.

"We plan to stay open until September. It will be difficult for us to provide free medicine if there are no donors," said U Kyaw Aung.

U Win Tin was imprisoned by the military regime for 19 years from 1989 to 2008 for his writings, which were critical of the junta, and his role in the NLD, which he co-founded after the 1988 pro-democracy uprising.

On his release, he wore his blue prison shirt and pledged to wear blue shirts everyday until all political prisoners were released. He continued to do so until his death.

In 2001, U Win Tin was awarded the UNESCO Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize for his efforts to defend and promote the right to freedom of expression.

This article was translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko.

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Ethnic Party Accuses KIA of Killing Lisu People

Posted: 28 Apr 2017 01:32 AM PDT

RANGOON — The Lisu National Development Party (LNDP) has released a statement dated April 21 accusing the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) of killing Lisu people living in Kachin State and demanding the return of their bodies.

LNDP chairman U Shwe Min accused the KIA, the armed wing of the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), of abducting and killing six Lisu people in the townships of Waingmaw and Myitkyina, capital of Kachin State, and burying their bodies in 2016 and 2017.

U Shwe Min stated that KIA troops were responsible because they were at the crime scenes and some even confessed, according to him.

"The KIA killed local Lisu farmers for no reason and buried them," U Shwe Min told The Irrawaddy. "Six were killed in a year. We want to know why they did that, and we want to get the bodies back."

The statement said 36-year-old Zaw Lay of Khaxi village in Waingmaw Township was kidnapped and killed by the KIA on April 12 this year. The LNDP asked the KIA for the body, but KIA soldiers had already buried it, according to the statement, which also accused the KIA of planting landmines to kill Lisu people.

Over the past two years, five other Lisu people have been killed and buried by the KIA, said U Shwe Min: one in Kapiketi sub-township last January, three in Sadone sub-township last March, and one in March this year.

The Irrawaddy was unable to contact the KIA/KIO for comment.

The KIA accidentally shot the Lisu people while trying to prevent them from burning the bush to make space for farming and is not targeting the ethnic groups, surmised Lamai Guang Jia of the Kachin Peace-talk Creation Group (PCG).

"We questioned them about the deaths in 2016 and they said they tried to stop them from bush burning," he said. "But they didn't listen, so they made warning shots and accidentally hit them. [The KIA troops] said they were not aware if the victims were Lisu, Kachin or Bamar.

"They didn't do it out of racial hatred. In fact, the commander of the outpost [near where the Lisu victims were killed] is also a Lisu man."

Lamai Guang Jia was "saddened" that the LNDP statement focused on racial antagonism, and said the allegation that the KIA was planting landmines to kill Lisu people was wrong, adding that they triggered the mines when bush burning.

The PCG has urged civil society organizations (CSOs) to intervene and for the LNDP to hold direct talks with the KIA/KIO, he said.

"We have asked CSOs to mediate, but the statement that was issued recently includes harsh words," he added.

There are about 400,000 Lisu people, the majority of whom live in Kachin State as well as Shan and Karenni states and Mandalay and Sagaing divisions, said U Shwe Min.

The post Ethnic Party Accuses KIA of Killing Lisu People appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Malaysia PM Warns Uneven Growth Could Fuel Extremism, Instability in SE Asia

Posted: 27 Apr 2017 10:29 PM PDT

MANILA, Philippines — Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak on Friday warned that Southeast Asian countries needed to ensure their economic growth was inclusive, or risk marginalized populations turning to violent extremism or even overturning political systems.

Speaking at an event for entrepreneurs during the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in Manila, Najib said the region was posting strong growth that could see ASEAN become the world's fourth-largest economy, but that growth needed to be equitable.

"We do not want our citizens to be marginalized in the age of extremism and radicalization," he said.

"We know that those who see no hope in their own societies are more prone to the siren calls of terrorists who can and exploit their vulnerability and fill them with their lies."

Islamist extremism is expected to be high on the agenda during this week's meetings, with fears for Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines about piracy and the rising threat of Islamic State.

Of particular concern is the ease in which militants can acquire weapons, seek refuge with existing rebel groups and move between the many islands between the three countries.

Najib lauded the success of ASEAN, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, in expanding its collective GDP to about US$2.7 trillion now, from $87 billion four decades ago.

ASEAN has 10 members: Thailand, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Singapore, Brunei, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines.

He warned that economic disparity was dangerous at a political level too, fueling anger and populism that was causing problems in Western Europe.

"The neglected underclass of those who felt left behind by economic growth, prosperity and globalization can overturn elections and political systems," he said.

Economists frequently point out huge income gaps among the 620 million people of Southeast Asia, a region that has one of the world's largest concentrations of billionaires, according to Forbes Magazine.

Najib said awareness of ASEAN needed to be better promoted among its citizens to "make it feel real, relevant and tangible." Trade integration was lagging, he said, with too many trade tariffs still in existence.

Their removal, and harmonized customs standards, needed to be "vigorously pursued," he said.

Philippines Vice President Leni Robredo echoed Najib's call for leaders to pay more attention to their poor.

"For many years, many thought income inequality was alright. But the voiceless and the powerless are now raring to be heard, and with technology and social media, their frustrations are being felt on a global scale," she said in a speech.

"They are rejecting globalization, democracy, traditional media."

The post Malaysia PM Warns Uneven Growth Could Fuel Extremism, Instability in SE Asia appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

UN Criticizes Plan to Resettle Arakan State Displaced Persons in ‘Camp-like’ Villages

Posted: 27 Apr 2017 10:15 PM PDT

RANGOON — The United Nations' refugee agency has criticized a Burma government plan to resettle Rohingya Muslims displaced by recent violence in "camp-like" villages, saying it risks stoking tensions, according to a document seen by Reuters.

The plan—confirmed by a senior state-level official—has sparked fear among residents that they would end up penned into de facto refugee camps, the document produced by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Burma said.

Attacks on border guard posts in northwestern Burma in October last year by a Rohingya insurgent group ignited the biggest crisis of national leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's year in power. Security forces stand accused of mass killings and gang rapes during the counterinsurgency operation that followed.

About 75,000 Rohingya fled across the border to Bangladesh to escape the violence, during which at least 1,500 houses across several villages were burned, while thousands more hid in forests and fields.

Some of those who fled have now returned and built temporary shelters, but the authorities have barred them from rebuilding their homes permanently citing "security restrictions", according to residents who spoke to Reuters and the UN document.

Instead, authorities have devised a plan to relocate some 1,152 households from 13 scattered hamlets into larger, more manageable "model villages."

In a three-page "advocacy note" dated April 25 and circulated among humanitarian agencies on Wednesday, the UNHCR warned the plan could "create further tensions" in villages recently scarred by the violence.

"Based on the information available on the model villages and concerns brought to our attention by affected villagers, UNHCR stressed the importance to allow displaced communities to return to their place of origin and have access to their previous source of livelihoods," UNHCR Burma spokesman Andrew Dusek said by email when reached for comment on the document.

More than 1 million Rohingya live in apartheid-like conditions in Burma's Arakan State, where many in the Buddhist majority consider them interlopers from Bangladesh.

While Dusek said the UNHCR understood the plan was still at draft stage and may not have been finalised, Arakan State government secretary Tin Maung Swe said the local administration had already started implementing it.

Tin Maung Swe said relocation was in the residents' interests as the "model villages" would be closer to government services. Rohingya villages in rural northern Arakan were arranged "randomly" at present, he said.

"If these villages are not systematic, they will not develop and it will be hard to build hospitals, schools and police stations," said Tin Maung Swe. "Also we will have difficulties to take care of security in the region."

"Model Villages"

According to the UNHCR document and residents, the government has begun clearing land for the "model villages", in which households would each get a 220-square-metre (2,400 sq ft) plot and about $150 to build a home.

Residents told UN staff they feared losing access to their farmland and fishing grounds, and becoming stuck in what would become "like IDP camps," the UNHCR document said.

"A forced relocation to the 'model villages' would not progress stabilization in these areas," the UNHCR document said.

About 120,000 Rohingya have lived in "internally displaced persons" camps in Arakan State, dependent of international aid, since communal violence in 2012. Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has pledged to begin closing the camps, following recommendations from a commission led by former UN chief Kofi Annan.

Five people whose homes were destroyed in November told Reuters by telephone about the living conditions since the violence subsided, expressing their worries about the government's plans.

"The village here has completely changed because all of the houses were burned down," said a 32-year-old in Yae Khat Chaung Gwa Son village, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Reuters has previously interviewed dozens of refugees, residents and Burma security officials about the military operation in Arakan State. Witnesses said troops raped Rohingya women, killed civilians, and burned homes in a sweep through several villages in November.

Satellite imagery analyzed by New York-based Human Rights Watch showed massive fires that destroyed hundreds of homes.

Officials have denied most of the allegations and blamed insurgents and villagers themselves for the fires.

Burma has blocked independent media and observers from the area.

Residents said that, while the area is now relatively peaceful, checkpoints and a 9 p.m.-5 a.m. curfew remain in place and soldiers regularly patrol near villages, making it hard for them to reach their fields and shrimp farms or the area's basic health clinics.

Villagers also told Reuters they feared the plots in the new settlements would be too small for many households, which often comprise extended family groups of 30 people or more.

"The government told us their plan is for all of the villagers to huddle in one place, in one village near the main road," said a school teacher in Dar Gyi Zar village, who also spoke anonymously. "We want to live in our original place as before."

The post UN Criticizes Plan to Resettle Arakan State Displaced Persons in 'Camp-like' Villages appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Left Behind: Karen Refugees at Mae La Camp

Posted: 27 Apr 2017 07:51 PM PDT

MAE LA, Thailand — Eighty-year-old Karen refugee Naw Pe lies near the cooking area in her bamboo hut, surrounded by pans, pots, baskets, and rotting foods.

She has a fever, coupled with the stifling midday heat, and her hands shake as she moves out of her mosquito net.

"I'm supposed to feed the pigs," she whispers, pausing for breath. "But I can't stand up. I'm too sick."

Naw Pe lives alone in Mae La, the largest refugee camp on the Thai-Burma border, home to more than 30,000 people, according to estimates. Her family have stopped visiting her and she refuses to seek help at the camp's clinic.

"I don't want to go," she says. "They only give me Paracetamol."

Humanitarian assistance including food and health is dwindling at the camp, as international governments and donors cut their funding to reflect gradual movement in Burma's peace process.

For Mae Le's refugees, it means a tougher existence. Some have moved to other countries with a UN resettlement program, others find their own way to safer nations.

But returning to Burma seems pointless—perhaps dangerous—for many as they no longer have property or relatives in their homeland, and fear for their safety despite ongoing peace talks between the Burma Army and ethnic Karen armed organizations.

"I won't go back there, no matter what," says Naw Pe, shaking her head. "I have no reason to return. I left nothing."

Military offensives in eastern Burma's Karen State from the 1970s to the 1990s forced Karen civilians and other ethnicities from their home. Many fled into neighboring Thailand and have been living there for decades.

Since the launch of Burma's peace programs in 2011, many international donors and NGOs supporting nine refugee camps along the Thai-Burma border have shifted their focus from humanitarian assistance to repatriating the refugees with the help of the Thai and Burmese governments.

Ethnic armed organizations (EAOs) such as the Karen National Union (KNU) and the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) have signed ceasefires and the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) with the Burmese government.

"Most of the refugees are moving to third countries," says Saw Honesty, the chairman of Mae La camp. "Some went to visit their hometowns but we do not know how many because they don't all inform us."

Some refugees only want to check the situation in Burma, and so don't contact the camps' "volunteer repatriation centers," which help those who want to return home.

"I don't know if other people trust the ceasefire and peace process, but I don't," says Pleh Gaw, 30, a slight man sitting in his hut.

Refugee Pleh Gaw, his mother and his son in their hut at Mae La. (Photo: Saw Yan Naing / The Irrawaddy)

Several armed groups have split from the KNU since 1994, including the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army (DKBA), the Border Guard Force (BGF) and a smaller group called the KNU/KNLA Peace Council.

With support from the Burma Army, the DKBA launched an offensive against the KNU that displaced thousands of civilians. Even after the ceasefire, sporadic battles between the Karen armed groups have been reported.

"I don't know which group I should trust," frets Pleh Gaw, cradling his son.

"We even heard there was fighting recently," added his mother, Mu Kyu Lar, 59, in reference to a clash in KNU-controlled territory between the KNU and Burma Army troops in Tenasserim Division on April 22.

"When we fled, Pleh Gaw was seven years old, too young to know anything. I had to carry him all the way," says the mother-of-four, drawing on her hand-rolled cheroot.

"It was a very hard time. We had to hide in the jungle and some nights we couldn't sleep."

Mu Kyu Lar and her family, who come from KNU's Brigade 7 territory, have been living in Mae La for more than 20 years.

"I have no plans to go home," says Pleh Gaw, who is waiting for his resettlement in the United States. "I have no land, house, or relatives there."

NGOs estimate that more than 80,000 refugees—mostly ethnic Karen—fled the civil war. The population of the nine refugee camps has been steadily declining—reduced from more than 140,000 in 2011 to about 98,000 now, according to The Border Consortium (TBC), a group comprising nine NGOs that supports refugees who have fled conflict in Burma.

TBC is reducing its staff and lowering their salaries because of funding shortages. Its annual staff budget is about US$1.7 million but funding for the coming years has not been secured, says TBC executive director Sally Thompson.

"Inevitably there will be difficulties, but this is the reality we have to face as funding support for camps continues to decline," she said.

Refugees receive food at the community store in Mae La. (Photo: Saw Yan Naing / The Irrawaddy)

About 10,000 community workers in the nine refugee camps on Thai-Burma border will be affected by the cuts.

"We are also feeling the pressure," said Saw Tu Tu, a head of the Karen Refugee Committee (KRC).

Refugees in Mae La say local authorities, such as the Thai security guards and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), restrict their movements. Community leaders are asked not to speak to media due to pressure from the authorities.

"The population in Mae La has been decreasing yearly—sometimes by several hundred," says Saw Tu Tu.

"We have had over 40,000 in the past. Now, there are 38,000 people in our camp," he adds.

Home is not the United States or even Burma for some long-term refugees like Naw Pe, the sick, elderly woman.

"Mae La is my home," she says. "I will be here until I die."

The post Left Behind: Karen Refugees at Mae La Camp appeared first on The Irrawaddy.
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National News

National News

Nansibon Jade Mine – a battlefield for scavengers and companies

Posted: 28 Apr 2017 12:33 AM PDT

Mountains of earth and a long queue of jade scavengers waiting in the dusty hills are a common sight in the areas surrounding Nansibon jade mine.

First national law students conference to be held

Posted: 28 Apr 2017 12:30 AM PDT

The first national law students conference of Myanmar will be hosted for law students from all universities in Myanmar on April 28, according to organiser Ko Kaung Myat Arkar from the Dagon university law students association.

State-owned digital paper to be published

Posted: 28 Apr 2017 12:27 AM PDT

The Ministry of Information will publish a digital newspaper soon, according to Union Minister Dr Pe Myint on Wednesday.

Environment-friendly development projects

Posted: 28 Apr 2017 12:21 AM PDT

With Myanmar being one of the most disaster-prone countries in the world, all development projects must take climate change into account, the union government said.

No special reporters in media: MoI

Posted: 28 Apr 2017 12:19 AM PDT

There are no special reporters assigned in Myanmar's news media, said U Kyaw Soe, managing director of News and Periodicals Enterprise, Ministry of Information (MoI) on April 26.

Rent hike proposed for National Kandawgyi Gardens

Posted: 28 Apr 2017 12:13 AM PDT

A proposal had been submitted to the government to set the annual rent at the famous National Kandawgyi Gardens in Pyin Oo Lwin township, Mandalay at the market value of K700,000 per acre.

Police to crackdown on illegal gaming shops

Posted: 28 Apr 2017 12:08 AM PDT

Action will be taken against illegal gaming shops in Yangon, said Yangon Mayor U Maung Maung Soe at the Yangon Region Hluttaw Session held on Monday.

Replanting trees axed during road expansion

Posted: 28 Apr 2017 12:07 AM PDT

More than 12,000 shady trees will be planted to replace the trees that were felled for the Mandalay-Pyin Oo Lwin road expansion, said Sein Lan Pyin Oo Lwin environmental group.

Garbage collection services losing money

Posted: 28 Apr 2017 12:04 AM PDT

The Mandalay City Development Committee (MCDC) garbage collection system, which serves municipal groups in 22 townships, lost more than K570 million during the 2016-17 fiscal year, according to MCDC.

Bogyoke Aung San Bridge opens amidst controversy over name

Posted: 27 Apr 2017 11:59 PM PDT

After much ado over its name, the Bogyoke Aung San Bridge in Mon State opened to the public yesterday morning.
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Shan Herald Agency for News

Shan Herald Agency for News

Hsipaw residents demand their land back

Posted: 28 Apr 2017 07:14 AM PDT

Some 30 local residents of Hsipaw Township in northern Shan State marched through the streets on Thursday, demanding the return of lands which were seized by the previous military government.

About 30 villagers from Kha Laing in Hsipaw Township marched on the street on April 27, demanding their lands back.
According to a locally based Shan Herald reporter: "There were about 30 villagers from Kha Laing protesting in the street. They were calling for the Shan State chief minister to review the case, saying that their lands were confiscated by the army more than 30 years ago."

The villagers claim their land collectively covered about 11 acres, and that the military used it to house a sawmill.

"The sawmill ceased operating about seven years ago, and now about 15 villagers are claiming their lands back," the reporter said. "In 2014, they also lodged a complaint, urging the authorities to allow them to grow crops on the land."
During the era of the military junta, arbitrary seizures of farmers' lands were common across the country, particularly in Shan State. By the 2000s, much of the seized land had been rented out to agri-business firms, and a massive government campaign was initiated to encourage investment in the harvesting of jatropha oil. Ultimately, the scheme failed; investors lost great sums of money, while farmers lost land and livelihoods.
Many aggrieved farmers have taken steps to reclaim their lands since the National League for Democracy came to power a little over a year ago. However, almost all report that they have been unsuccessful in their quest and that little has changed under Aung San Suu Kyi.
On December 15, Shan Herald reported that a 74-year-old villager in southern Shan State's Mongpan Township collapsed and died after a construction company refused to pay compensation for land it had seized from him.

Nang Kaysi of the Ethnic Peace and Resources Project (EPRP), an organization that works to support the peace process in Burma, told Shan Herald that, according to their survey, a total of about 11,000 acres of farmland have been seized from within 18 townships across Shan State.
By Shan Herald Agency for News (SHAN)
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Thursday, April 27, 2017

The Irrawaddy Magazine

The Irrawaddy Magazine

YBS Review Proposal Approved, Following Heated Parliamentary Debate

Posted: 27 Apr 2017 09:27 AM PDT

RANGOON – In Thursday's parliamentary session, 117 regional lawmakers approved the review proposal of Rangoon's new public transit system, the Yangon Bus Service (YBS), after a heated debate by 26 legislators two days earlier.

Public frustration with a lack of legal action against bus drivers for reports of aggressive driving, assault of passengers, and general unreliability led to MPs receiving large numbers of letters from angry citizens, said U Kyaw Kyaw Tun of Hlaing Township, noting that there was no other avenue set up by the government through which such complaints could be addressed.

Lawmakers said they brought the proposal forward to ask government on how they would address YBS bus drivers' misconduct, which has been described as a continuation of the problems with the old bus system, known as Ma Hta Tha.

Despite the debate session on the issue ending on Tuesday, the approval of the proposal was delayed, as several cabinet members, including Rangoon Division Chief Minister Phyo Min Thein, were conspicuously absent from the session.

Members of parliament mocked the chief minister's original slogan—"YBS for the public"—and began saying "YBS for public disappointment."

On behalf of the Rangoon cabinet, the divisional minister for electricity, industry and transportation Daw Nilar Kyaw—who is also the chairwoman of the Yangon Region Transport Authority (YRTA)—explained the government's plan for YBS.

"I don't accept the terminology of MP U Kyaw Zeya," she said, noting the slogan about public disappointment. "[It] has negative implications and determinations will be made by the public in time."

MP from Insein Township U Wai Phyo Han stated a reminder that the legislature "has the right to guide government in the right direction if it is heading the wrong way," and that arguments should not be regarded as "fighting against one's own government."

Daw Nilar Kyaw explained that the YRTA has handled over 6,500 cases of reported legal violations by drivers since the YBS system was installed in Rangoon. She said that the cases involved overcharging of passengers, physical assaults, aggressive driving, making undesignated stops, and incompletion of routes.

The YRTA has formed 10 mobile teams that regularly patrol the YBS bus gates to check whether the bus lines follow the rules and regulations of the YRTA. The government has already ordered that YBS buses be equipped with a GPS tracking system, and that CCTV be installed at more than 150 traffic lights.

Daw Ni Lar Kyaw said these operations are expected to begin in May. Officials will then monitor the buses from a traffic control center located in People's Park.

The YRTA has prohibited drivers and bus attendants and conductors found guilty of violations of working in the public transportation system. There has also been talk of working with the Union government to revoke licenses when necessary, and cabinet members are drafting an all-inclusive transport law for the commercial capital.

The divisional government plans to give vocational training to both bus drivers as well as conductors. The YRTA is also looking to hire more female drivers within the YBS, but did not elaborate on the number of employees or the timeframe in which this might occur.

Minister Daw Nilar Kyaw did not say whether there would be a changeup among the YRTA's 16 members, most of whom are government officials.

"It will be really hard to succeed [with the YBS project] unless the regional government replaces YRTA committee members with suitable experts," said U Wai Phyo Han.

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Locals Insist Three Men Killed in Shan State Clash Were Civilians

Posted: 27 Apr 2017 08:13 AM PDT

Sources in northern Shan State's Kyaukme Township have said that three men killed by the Burma Army were not members of the Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA), as they had been accused, and were in fact local villagers.

The casualties included Win Kyaing, 39 years old, San Win, 37 years old, and Aike Lon, 33 years old. Locals said they often worked as drivers in the township.

Win Kyaing was ethnic Bamar, from Shwebo Township in Sagaing Division. Both San Win and Aike Lon were ethnic Shan from Kyaukme Township.

Locals have accused the Burma Army Light Infantry Battalion 502, under the control of Military Operation Command 1 and based in Kyaukme's Mann San village, of killing the three men on April 9, following fighting in the area between the Burma Army and the TNLA.

Kyaukme is located within a conflict area, where clashes are known to break out between the TNLA and the Burma Army, or with the Restoration Council of Shan State/Shan State Army-South. Locals told The Irrawaddy that when armed groups ask for help, civilians "cannot refuse."

The TNLA's Brig-Gen Tar Phone Kyaw told The Irrawaddy that the three victims were in fact civilians, but that TNLA troops had asked them to drive trucks to transport their soldiers. Fighting then began while they were en route to their destination, he explained, during which members of the Burma Army killed the drivers.

Burial of the Victims

Sai Htun Nyan, a Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD) lawmaker in Kyaukme town, told The Irrawaddy that once the fighting had ceased, Burma Army soldiers asked locals to bury three members of the TNLA killed in the clash.

"When we went to bury the three bodies, we found that those victims were villagers, not members of the TNLA," he said. "We asked the Burmese army to let us bring back those three bodies to our town, but they did not let us. They just told us to bury them. We did not know what to do, and buried the bodies there," adding that, "many people here are afraid to talk about it."

However, Sai Htun Nyan said he did not know why the three deceased men were wearing uniforms from the TNLA when they were brought for burial.

The Irrawaddy witnessed video footage reportedly taken just before the burial, showing the three victims' bodies—all of whom had head wounds and wore camouflage shirts bearing the TNLA logo, but longyis typically worn by civilians. However, despite the head wounds, there appeared to be no blood visible on the clothes.

Family members and friends of the victims came to the burial. U Thein Tun, who owns the tea factory where Win Kyaing worked, helped make merit on behalf of his deceased worker, said Sai Htun Nyan.

The Irrawaddy attempted to talk to U Thein Tun, who he said that the police were investigating Win Kyaing's death, but did not want to comment further, fearing his own security and safety.

Police Response

SNLD lawmaker Sai Htun Nyan said that he informed the police about the three men's deaths, but that he was not able to initiate a new case looking into the incident, because he could not transport the bodies to the hospital in Kyaukme town so that autopsies could be performed.

The Irrawaddy asked police Col U Win Khaing, stationed in Kyaukme town, about a potential investigation, but he said that the deaths had occurred in a warzone where even the police are not safe.

"Their death was in a conflict area. It was in the jungle. There is no security for our police there—no one dares to go there," Col U Win Khaing admitted. "No one even came to file charges at our police station."

"It is hard to know whether they were civilians or not, as their death was in a fighting zone. It is hard to even investigate it. But, we heard that they were Palaung," he said, using another term for the ethnic Ta'ang—a reference to the TNLA armed group.

U Hla Kyaw, a Kyaukme resident who was a neighbor of the late San Win, said that the 37-year-old had often stayed at his agricultural plot outside of the town, but that he would return to his house in Kyaukme to visit his wife.

San Win had a child, he said, adding that as an ethnic Shan man, he could not have been a member of the TNLA.

 

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Lending Firm To Return More Than One Billion Kyats to Magwe Govt

Posted: 27 Apr 2017 08:04 AM PDT

RANGOON — The chairman of a lending firm said the business would return 1.57 billion kyats transferred to it from regional development funds under the previous government.

Chairman of Shwe Thukha Microcredit Association, U Kyi Tun, who also chairs Magwe Division Development Foundation, said the association would return the money "raised as capital" for the company.

"We have given loans to people with that money, and we have to ask them to pay them back," he said. "I have verbally told this to the secretary of Magwe divisional government."

He added that the money would be repaid as soon as the association gets it back from borrowers, but that it was "difficult to set a time frame" for the repayment.

Lower House lawmaker U Tun Tun of Magwe's Pwintbyu Township asked Parliament in May 2016 about the alleged embezzlement of regional development funds collected as taxation from small-scale oil producers in Magwe Division by the previous divisional government.

The Bureau of Special Investigations under the Ministry of Home Affairs launched an investigation and found that missing funds amounted to 7.5 billion kyats, and more than 3 billion kyats were spent on then-ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP).

The Union government sent letters dated April 18 to former Magwe Division chief minister U Phone Maw Shwe and chairman of the Magwe Division Development Foundation and Shwe Thukha Microcredit Association U Nyi Tun asking them to answer for the missing funds.

The letter instructed the two to return 1.7 billion kyats, four cars, a digger, and two boats donated to the USDP through the Magwe Division Development Foundation, as well as more than 1.57 billion kyats of funds transferred to the microcredit association.

USDP spokesperson Dr. Nandar Hla Myint denied allegations that U Phone Maw Shwe misappropriated more than 1.7 billion kyats from the divisional development funds.

"In fact, U Phone Maw Shwe donated nothing to the USDP," he told The Irrawaddy. "We have already said officially that he gave nothing to us and we had accepted nothing. But, time and again we were targeted, and this tarnishes the dignity of our party. We will release a statement soon to respond."

He also urged the NLD government to question the former Magwe Division chief minister and handle the situation according to the law as soon as possible.

Dr. Nandar Hla Myint highlighted that U Phone Maw Shwe was also chairman of the USDP's Magwe Division chapter while he was chief minister.

"I think he spent those funds on regional development works in line with his authority as a chief minister over financial affairs," he said.

"It is only U Phone Maw Shwe and the previous divisional government who can answer this. If the current government is not happy with this case, it can summon U Phone Maw Shwe. Then, this can be settled."

Magwe Division chief minister Dr Aung Moe Nyo told The Irrawaddy that legal action would be taken against the former government if missing funds were not returned.

"Yes, they have denied it," he said. "But it is not a rumor, and it is not the speculation of journalists. It was found by the Bureau of Special Investigations under the Ministry of Home Affairs, so it is undeniable," said the chief minister.

While the USDP has denied the allegation, former chief minister U Phone Maw Shwe has not made any public comment on the matter.

The post Lending Firm To Return More Than One Billion Kyats to Magwe Govt appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Controversial Bridge Opened to Public Under the Name of Gen Aung San

Posted: 27 Apr 2017 05:18 AM PDT

RANGOON — The controversial bridge across the Salween River linking Moulmein and Chaungzon townships in Mon State was put into service on Thursday, under the contested name "Gen Aung San Bridge (Belu Island)."

Mon State Chief Minister Dr. Aye Zan confirmed the opening of the bridge to the public.

"A total of 129 vehicles from Chaungzon crossed the bridge and 50 from Moulmein so far," Dr. Aye Zan told reporters on Thursday afternoon at a municipal guesthouse in Naypyidaw.

"I was not at the bridge as I had a meeting [in Naypyidaw] this morning, but I will attend the official opening ceremony of the bridge. The Union government will set a date for it," the minister added.

Mon locals have opposed naming the bridge after Burma's independence hero Gen Aung San, preferring names like "Chaungzon Bridge" or "Yarmanya," which means "Mon State" in the ethnic Mon language spoken in the region.

"We heard that they [the government] put the signboard up at around 4:30 a.m. I saw them still fixing the signboard after 6 a.m. But, I didn't see an inauguration ceremony," U Naing Aung Mon, spokesperson for the committee demanding a name change, told The Irrawaddy.

The committee was formed with local community elders, women leaders, monks, youth leaders and human rights and political activists who oppose the name approved by the Lower House in March.

The committee is preparing to submit a petition to the President, State Counselor, the Parliament and ethnic affairs ministry and has so far garnered over 120,000 signatures.

"As they have put up the signboard, we can do nothing now. We view this as a violation of ethnic rights. We will continue fighting against this," said U Nai Aung Mon.

He added that by putting up the signboard in spite of opposition from thousands of locals, lawmakers from the National League for Democracy (NLD) have breached the provisions of a law adopted in February 2015 to protect ethnic rights.

Provision 3(c) in Chapter 2 of the law states that languages, literature, arts, culture, customs, national identity, and historical heritage of ethnicities shall be preserved and promoted.

On April 24, the committee also issued an open letter, saying that the naming of the bridge would disrupt unity, friendship and support between ethnicities. The letter also demands that the bridge be named according to the wishes of the locals.

Amid the controversy over the naming of the bridge, former chief minister of Mon State U Min Min Oo resigned from his post in late February, and Dr. Aye Zan has replaced him.

The chief minister defended the name choice for the bridge, saying it was intended to remind people of democracy and federalism, which Gen Aung San promised in Panglong Agreement.

"This [promise] could not be materialized after the general was assassinated. Therefore, we still see instability in our country, even today. So, we named the bridge after Gen Aung San to remember this pledge," said Dr. Aye Zan.

"We ethnicities could not celebrate our national identity in our townships and regions under successive governments [in the past]. And we can't accept that the democratic government has done this, despite our objections," Mi Sandi, an engineer from Moulmein, told The Irrawaddy.

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko

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Rangoon Lawmakers Demand Action from Officials over Lost Billions in Business Dealings

Posted: 27 Apr 2017 04:44 AM PDT

RANGOON — Rangoon Parliament's bill and public accounts committees on Wednesday urged the regional government to take action against officials responsible for billion kyat losses in state-private joint ventures under the previous government.

Parliamentarians discussed joint venture projects that favored certain companies by offering reduced leases on government land and other mismanagement following the committees' reviews of the 2015-16 fiscal year report submitted to Parliament by Daw Khin Hla Than of the Auditor General's Office for Rangoon Division.

According to the auditor general's 2015-16 fiscal year report, the divisional government lost 13 billion kyats in leasing commercial space to construction companies and suffered a whopping 58 billion kyats loss from long-term reduced rent leasing of public lands and parks.

Leader of the bill committee U Tint Lwin pointed out that the construction ministry had mismanaged 40 million kyats of loans and neglected to provide a detailed report of projects with the military-owned Myanmar Economic Corporation.

The government should investigate the mismanagement as it dented the treasury, he said.

He also suggested the regional government review the long-term profit sharing projects that were established by ex-Rangoon chief minister U Myint Swe, which gave private companies very favorable leases.

Some projects were allocated by the Yangon City Committee Development (YCDC) without approval from the regional cabinet, he said.

Lawmaker for Kyauktada Township Daw Kyi Pyar said: "We understand that the new government cannot terminate contracts which were signed by the previous government, but to fill gaps in the country, the government can negotiate new terms and conditions of joint venture projects with private companies."

Lawmakers criticized the fact that the majority of public land leasing and profit-sharing projects were given to Burma's notorious tycoons and cronies, calling instead for transparent processes.

Lawmaker U Kyaw Zeya of Dagon constituency suggested that the government consult experts and introduce new rules and regulations for the concerned companies.

Hlaing Township lawmaker Daw Khaing Mar Htay said: "I am shocked that joint venture partners were leased land very cheaply."

The post Rangoon Lawmakers Demand Action from Officials over Lost Billions in Business Dealings appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Burma’s Police Chief Retires

Posted: 27 Apr 2017 04:32 AM PDT

RANGOON — After more than a decade serving the force, Burma's police chief Maj-Gen Zaw Win announced his retirement on Wednesday.

He made the announcement that he would step down next month at the police force headquarters in the capital Naypyidaw. It came three years and nine months after he was promoted to chief by then President U Thein Sein.

Maj-Gen Zaw Win said he was transferred from the army to become deputy chief in the force in 2004. His successor has not yet been revealed.

He tried to reform the force to become "a dignified institution with professional and skilled members," he said in the announcement, adding that the reform process would "never end and never be enough."

"The reform mainly depends on a genuine desire for change at an individual level," he said.

Despite efforts to improve the force, including training from the European Union that began in 2014, it still struggles to secure public trust.

The institution, which comes under home affairs, one of three military-controlled ministries, has been criticized because of its brutal crackdowns on protests.

It has also attracted criticism for failing to uncover or arrest perpetrators of several high-profile murder cases including a 2016 quadruple murder in Rangoon's Mingalardon Township, while Aung Win Khaing, one of the suspects in the assassination of the prominent lawyer U Ko Ni, remains at large.

In October last year, a series of attacks on the force's border guard outposts near Bangladesh in northern Arakan State led to a resumed crisis affecting Muslim Rohingya in the region.

In the same month, the police started to draft the first National Crime Prevention Strategy to reduce crimes and violence across the country with the assistance of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).

During a workshop for the crime prevention strategy in late March, Maj-Gen Zaw Win recognized that crime prevention efforts "had fallen behind" in Burma due to the country's political history and "what [the police force] has been doing so far is not enough."

Local media has reported that Maj-Gen Zaw Win will continue as an adviser to the Home Affairs Ministry for one year after his retirement. The Irrawaddy was unable to confirm this at time reporting.

The post Burma's Police Chief Retires appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi Rejects National-level Political Dialogue in Arakan State

Posted: 27 Apr 2017 03:11 AM PDT

RANGOON — State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has again rejected the Arakan Liberation Party's (ALP) request to hold an ethnic-based national-level political dialogue in Arakan State, saying it is a sensitive region.

Daw Saw Mra Razar Lin, member of the ALP central executive committee, told The Irrawaddy that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is disregarding their request.

"When we say we are ready [for political dialogue], it falls on deaf ears. What Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has said is not acceptable to Arakanese people," said Daw Saw Mra Razar Lin.

The national-level political dialogue is a mandatory step of the nationwide ceasefire agreement (NCA), where regional stakeholders discuss suggestions at large-scale public consultations, the results of which are shared by representatives at the Union Peace Conference or 21st Century Panglong.

In February, the ALP—which is one of eight NCA signatories—proposed holding ethnic-based national-level political dialogue in Arakan State, but Burma's de facto leader turned down the request, saying the ALP was not yet ready.

The ALP has made necessary preparations and has submitted letters three times to request approval to hold the dialogue. But the government has not replied, and at the Joint Implementation Coordination Meeting (JICM) on Monday in Naypyidaw, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi again declined the request, citing sensitive issues involving the Rohingya Muslims in Arakan State.

"We think we can hold political dialogue in any of the 17 townships that are not sensitive areas. We wonder what she is talking about. There are many places where we could hold political dialogue," said Daw Saw Mra Razar Lin.

Leaders of other NCA signatory groups backed the ALP's request at the JICM meeting, but Daw Aung San Suu Kyi focused the meeting on the second 21st Century Panglong Conference, which is slated for May 24.

"We ethnic groups are honest and unwilling to offend people. We have suffered throughout the course of history. If we continue to be unwilling to offend, and if we do as the government says, I doubt we will ever see a federal Union," said Daw Saw Mra Razar Lin.

Vice Chairman U Khaing Pyi Soe of the Arakan National Party (ANP) said his party would summon a central executive committee meeting during the first week of May to determine whether or not to attend the second Panglong.

As national-level political dialogue has not been held in Arakan State, local ethnic parties have nothing to discuss at the Panglong Conference, he said.

The national-level political dialogue in Arakan State is to be supervised by the Arakan State government, ALP and ANP, and although the two parties have selected members to organize the dialogues and informed the state government, it has not replied, said U Khaing Pyay Soe.

"The Arakan State government has not replied. The ANP and ALP are ready. I think it is the government that is not yet ready," he said.

Of eight ethnic armed groups that have signed the NCA with the previous government, six have already held national-level political dialogues in their respective regions.

Besides the ALP, the Restoration Council of Shan State/Shan State Army-South (RCSS/SSA-South) has not held ethnic-based national-level political dialogue, as the government has not allowed them to hold it in their proposed towns of Taunggyi or Panglong.

However, the Shan State government organized helter-skelter region-based political dialogue in Shan State on April 23 in Taunggyi. Attendees were only informed on April 21 and have criticized the government for giving limited time for preparation.

 

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International Community Calls on Govt to Cooperate with UN Fact-finding Mission

Posted: 27 Apr 2017 01:11 AM PDT

RANGOON — International organizations called on overseas governments to engage Burma in allowing unfettered access to a UN fact-finding mission into human rights abuses by authorities in Arakan, Kachin, and Shan states in an open letter released Thursday.

The letter, signed by 23 organizations including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and Fortify Rights among others, argued that "sustained international engagement" would be needed to ensure the team of UN experts was granted full access by the Burmese government.

Matthew Smith, chief executive officer at Fortify Rights, told The Irrawaddy that accepting the mission was the "responsible" thing for the government to do and that it was "good for Myanmar, for victims and survivors, and for the authorities."

The UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) resolution—adopted at its 34th session in Geneva, Switzerland in March—provides a mandate "to establish the facts and circumstances of the alleged recent human rights violations by military and security forces," but has been consistently rejected by the Burmese government.

"The fact-finding mission is in the interests of the government of Myanmar [Burma]," the letter read, arguing it would "demonstrate the government's willingness to uphold the rule of law, work collaboratively with the international community to help establish the facts, identify perpetrators, and deter future crimes by all parties to the conflict."

UN Special Rapporteur to Burma Yanghee Lee reported numerous allegations of human rights abuses committed by Burmese authorities to the UNHRC in March and recommended a UN Commission of Inquiry—a more thorough UN-mandated investigation into human rights abuses than the adopted fact-finding mission.

Yanghee Lee drew particular attention to allegations of arson, torture, extrajudicial killings, and widespread sexual violence against the minority Muslim Rohingya population in northern Arakan State during Burma Army "clearance operations" begun in response to insurgent attacks on police border guard posts on Oct. 9 of last year.

"I encourage the Myanmar government to cooperate with the fact-finding mission as far as possible and for the fact-finding mission to seek such cooperation in the spirit of constructive engagement and open dialogue," the UN expert told the Irrawaddy earlier this month.

Both Burma's de facto leader State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and Burma's military commander-in-chief Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing have rejected the team of experts, who are expected to be appointed by UNHRC president Mr. Joaquín Alexander Maza Martelli soon.

In her State of the Union address last month Daw Aung Suu Kyi said she did not accept a fact-finding mission into Arakan State. "It does not mean we disrespect the UN," she added, "it is just that it does not correspond with our country's [situation]."

On the occasion of the 72nd Anniversary of Armed Forces Day last month, Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing reiterated that the Rohingya population did not belong to Burma, but were interlopers from Bangladesh—and that any international political intervention on the pretext of assisting refugees from this community would threaten Burma's sovereignty.

Matthew Smith called government claims that the UN mission would inflame tension between ethnic groups in northern Arakan State "a shameless political ploy to avoid scrutiny."

Among international players, the EU has a special role to play, having drafted the resolution that mandated the mission, but Asean states and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation need to step up in advocating investigations of Burma's human rights violation, Smith said.

He noted that ground-level push back and obstructions from the military were likely but that "if the government denies the experts access to the country, it will raise international alarm bells and only intensify the pressure."

"This is a critical moment for Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's government and military leadership," the human rights expert said. "Any failure to cooperate with this mission could signal more atrocities and impunity."

Independent analyst on Burma David Mathieson welcomed the fact-finding mission, particularly its broad scope that would also cover the north of Burma, but noted that it was unlikely to unearth anything new in northern Arakan State.

"After two UN reports [by the UNOHCHR and Yanghee Lee] and so much media coverage, what will the fact-finding mission find out that we don’t already know?" he asked.

The post International Community Calls on Govt to Cooperate with UN Fact-finding Mission appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Women and War: A Karen Leader’s Account

Posted: 26 Apr 2017 07:52 PM PDT

MAE SARIANG, Thailand — Longstanding Karen National Union (KNU) leader Naw Zipporah Sein, 62, begins to cry, as she recalls the fate of her old classmate at the hands of the Burma Army in Mon Township, Nyaung Lin Bin District, in May 1975.

"They stripped her and kept her in the heat for days," she says. "She was pregnant. They raped her and took out her eyes one by one. Then they finally killed her."

Burmese military troops had shot the woman's husband, a KNU soldier, in a gunfight before dragging the 20-year-old schoolteacher into the middle of Mee Ya Tar Village in the KNU's Brigade 3 territory, witnesses told Naw Zipporah Sein.

"My eldest and youngest sisters' boyfriends died in battle. My boyfriend also fell in battle when I was 19," she says.

Naw Zipporah Sein was born in Karen State, where a 60-year-long conflict between the Burma Army and ethnic groups fighting for independence has left hundreds of thousands dead or displaced, with many Karen fleeing to neighboring Thailand.

Memories of war are painfully fresh for the former KNU vice chairperson.

"If men die in battle, it is over. If they don't die, they win. For them, it sounds simple, but for women, the suffering remains like a wound. It is traumatic.

"Their fear of war is like a clear picture that doesn't fade away easily," she tremors, reclining on her wooden chair.

Struggling to hold the strength of the memories, she stops and takes a sip of water.

"Women worry whether their children will die or their husbands will be killed. They always live in fear. It takes time to heal those traumas," she says.

Naw Zipporah Sein served the KNU as a schoolteacher, women's rights activist, general secretary, and vice chairperson. She failed in her bid for the group's leadership in its recent election due to an internal power struggle.

Naw Zipporah Sein speaks during a meeting with former President Thein Sein. (Photo: Supplied)

She takes a cautious approach to Burma's peace process, an attempt at national reconciliation between ethnic armed groups and the Burmese government begun in 2011 during President Thein Sein's government.

Because of this approach, Burmese peace negotiators and some observers brand her as a "hardliner," which she finds surprising, as her experience has molded her into an advocate for peace.

Lamenting on what war means for women, she says, "We are the ones who suffered. When I was only two years old, our family began moving from place to place for our safety.

"My mother gave birth while fleeing the war—that's how long I have experienced the suffering of war, since I was a child."

While husbands fight, she reflects, mothers take care of the children, and worry.

"They have a hard time," she says. "I have been dreaming of peace since my childhood, searching for the peace we lost."

In her experience, men approach the path to peace differently from women; her own approach is careful and exhaustive, she says, ensuring the safety of civilians—especially women.

"Men think superficially because they don't suffer like women do," she says. "Women think with more detail. When they fight, men kill each other, but the fighting stops when they strike a deal. When they reach a deal at the top level they think war is over."

Remembering the sexual abuse women have endured during conflicts, and incidents when they are forced to porter—and while doing so, sometimes killed and rape—she concludes that war is worse for women.

The prevalence of sexual abuse against women in Burma has been fueled by decades-long civil wars. In 2002, a report titled "License to Rape," released by Shan Women's Action Network (SWAN) and Shan Human Rights Foundation (SHRF) attracted international attention to the issue.

It highlighted 173 incidents of rape and other forms of sexual violence involving more than 600 girls and women committed by the Burma Army in Shan State between 1996 and 2001.

"Men only know how to wage war," she says. "They fight and stop fighting depending on their wants, but they don't understand how women suffer."

But women are not necessarily passive: the leader has witnessed incidents where women serve as village heads, as men feared being tortured by Burma Army troops. Men or not, the troops would often still intimidate, torture, and kill the village heads, she adds.

Tatmadaw representatives for the peace process see her as a "hardliner" because her past strongly influences her negotiations, she judges.

Hosts welcome Naw Zipporah Sein with flowers during an overseas trip. (Photo: Supplied)

"The ceasefire does not only mean stopping the fighting. There should be safety for civilians, including women, which is why we pointed out that Burma Army troops should move away from villages," she says.

"Civilians have witnessed their houses burned down by the troops, and their belongingness looted."

While serving as general secretary and vice chairperson in the KNU, Naw Zipporah Sein met with Burmese government peace negotiators several times in Naypyidaw, Rangoon, and Chiang Mai in northern Thailand.

Before joining the KNU's top leadership, she was the chairperson of the Karen Women's Organisation (KWO).

People in Karen State have been displaced by war for more than two decades. There are more than 120,000 refugees living on Thai-Burma border, the majority ethnic Karen.

The KNU signed a bilateral ceasefire with the former Burmese government in 2012 and the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) in 2015. However, the Burma Army did not withdraw their troops from the KNU's controlled territories.

As Burma's longest running ethnic armed organization (EAO), the KNU has been fighting for autonomy and self-determination against the Burmese government since 1949—a year after Burma declared independence from the United Kingdom.

It is one of the bigger EAOs, and one of the eight that signed the NCA. In the peace process, the Burma Army's withdrawal and repositioning should be prioritized, says Naw Zipporah Sein, also emphasizing a need for the military to earn trust from civilians.

Most displaced people dare not return to their villages after experiencing brutal treatment from Tatmadaw troops. Women are particularly vulnerable, despite the Burma Army ensuring their safety.

"Bad memories still linger," says Naw Zipporah Sein. "The Burma Army and our leaders should think about the safety of women."

It is inadequate, she says, that the wagers of war—the Burma Army and the KNU leadership—now say they understand each other.

"They might say they love each other now," she says. "They militaries might reconcile, but it is important that they show evidence they care for the safety of civilians."

 

The post Women and War: A Karen Leader's Account appeared first on The Irrawaddy.
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