In the Lower House, lawmaker U Maung Myint of the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) raised an objection to the government's plan to resettle 55 Kaman Muslim households from refugee camps in Kyaukphyu, Pauktaw and Ramree townships in Rakhine State to Yangon. U Maung Myint argued that the Kofi Annan-led Advisory Commission on Rakhine State only recommended that refugees be sent back to their original homes in Rakhine State, and not to Yangon. The Lower House approved debate of his proposal.
The Union Parliament approved the president's proposal to sign the UNIDROIT Convention on Stolen or Illegally Exported Cultural Objects. Union Minister for Religious Affairs and Culture Thura U Aung Ko said signing the convention would help Myanmar recover its cultural artifacts that have been smuggled into neighboring countries over the border.
Wednesday (March 7)
The Lower House approved the proposal of lawmaker Dr. A Zin Latt of Shwebo Township, which urged concerned ministries including the Ministry of Health and Sports to adopt a long-term plan to promote health standards at schools in order to turn out healthy and strong youth.
The Upper House voted to approve a set of controversial amendments to the Peaceful Assembly and Procession Law despite strong opposition from activists and rights groups that claim the changes would further restrict freedom of expression. The bill passed with 113 lawmakers voting in favor and 78 voting against.
Thursday (March 8)
In the Union Parliament, lawmakers discussed the 2018 Union Taxation Bill. U Soe Thane of Karenni State (9) called for a review of the proposed reduction of tax on tobacco, arguing that tax on alcohol and tobacco are levied not for financial benefit, but for health and social benefits of citizens.
Friday (March 9)
In the Upper House, lawmaker Zaw Lin Htut of Mon State (9) asked the Ministry of Health and Sports if it would train students in cane ball, the heritage sport of Myanmar, at schools, to turn out younger generations of cane ball players, and a training camp for selected Myanmar national cane ball players.
Union Minister for Health and Sports U Myint Htwe replied that his ministry and the Myanmar Chinlone Federation are working together to train students in cane ball at schools soon, and that there are camps for selected Myanmar national cane ball players at Aung San Stadium, Thuwunna Stadium and in Naypyitaw.
Ye Ni: Welcome to Dateline Irrawaddy! This week, we'll discuss the talk of the town on social media—R2P (Responsibility to Protect) and ICC (International Criminal Court). U Aung Moe Zaw, chairman of the Democratic Party for a New Society, and U Bo Kyi, joint secretary of the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners join me for the discussion. I'm Irrawaddy Burmese editor Ye Ni.
As everyone knows, R2P is a global political commitment that was endorsed by member states of the United Nations at the 2005 World Summit to prevent genocide, war crimes, and ethnic cleansing. France proposed, at the UN Security Council, applying R2P to intervene in Myanmar in the aftermath of Nargis in 2008. Now, R2P has become popular again as Myanmar came under the spotlight because of the Rohingya crisis. Ko Aung Moe Zaw, do you think R2P can pave the way for the UN Security Council to intervene in Myanmar's issue?
Aung Moe Zaw: In my opinion, it depends greatly on the political will of big countries, for example, if the United States wants to take the decisive step to handle Myanmar. According to my study, I think those countries don't have the will to conduct a military intervention. Though many countries apparently want to see improvements in human rights issues and [punishment for] war crimes in our country, I don't think they will intervene to that extent.
YN: People speculate on social media that UN peacekeeping troops will come into the country. Why are they speculating this? Is there any hidden agenda?
AMZ: Leaders of the country, important politicians and military leaders know the magnitude of the issue. But at the same time, there is nationalist instigation that is taking advantage of this [the Rohingya issue]. We've seen provocative posts on social media that could create problems in the country. Some prominent personalities argue that we may lose Rakhine because of R2P. I believe that UN peacekeeping troops will not come into Myanmar. So, it is an unrealistic assumption that we may lose Rakhine or other parts of the country.
The most important thing is we must try to restore communication and peace between different communities in the country. The major concern of the international community is…hundreds of thousands of people have left Rakhine State, and if they are forcibly brought back into Myanmar, they may continue to face human rights violations. The international community is greatly concerned about this. But, I want to reiterate that military intervention is absolutely unlikely.
YN: Ko Bo Kyi, there have been concerns about the human rights situation in Myanmar. How do you assess the diplomacy of the Myanmar government and the international community's criticism about the human rights situation in Myanmar at present?
Bo Kyi: The international community still maintains the view that there are grave human rights violations in our country. We have to fix this within our country. When we think about protecting the sovereignty of the country, we must also try to protect the security of individuals living in the country. If there is no security for individuals living in the country, there will be no sovereignty. In other words, it is important that people are free from fear, that they should not be afraid when someone unfairly treats them. Also, individuals need personal development. The government has to take responsibility for that and give support, especially by creating jobs.
Law enforcement organizations like the Tatmadaw and police and ethnic armed organizations must take responsibility for the rule of law. As they fail to bear this responsibility, Myanmar has become the lowest-ranking country on the human rights index. And expected foreign investment inflow has stalled. Every year, countries made recommendations and resolutions at the UN to address human rights issues. We need to listen to them. In some cases, they provide technical support if necessary. If we cooperate that way, the human rights situation may improve gradually in our country. Then, we don't need to be afraid of R2P and ICC.
People tend to grow up with irrational fear in our country. We tend to fear the unknown from childhood, which is proven by childhood stories about Dae Waw [the rain deity]. Now, the stability of the country is threatened with R2P and there are reasons for us to worry about hearing again "saving the country from the brink of the abyss" [an excuse given by the military regime to take over control of the country amid armed revolution by ethnic groups]. We feel that circumstances are now being created for that to happen. It is a cause for concern for the future of both the country and the people.
I feel that certain people are doing certain things although they know clearly the consequences of their actions. If even people like us know that, most of those who have assumed top positions of the country know clearly what to do, and what not to do. So, there is a need to fundamentally reform diplomatic relations. We can't play a zero-sum game, and it is not a black and white issue. We need to open the door. Even if we can't open the door 100 percent, we should open the door a certain percent, and if we solve the problem through cooperation, things will gradually go in a positive direction.
YN: Talking of [the prosecution of Myanmar Army Chief Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing] at the ICC in the Hague in the Netherlands, most of those brought there are dictators, from Sudan, Libya and Congo. But recently, news reports said that Philippine President Duterte would be brought to ICC as tens of thousands of people were killed in his anti-drug campaign. Talking of Myanmar military leaders, international news reports said that thousands of people including children were killed [in counter-insurgency military operations]. Suppose R2P won't happen. But what is the likelihood of prosecution at ICC, Ko Aung Moe Zaw?
AMZ: I think this also concerns neighboring countries. It will depend largely on the stance of Bangladesh. But international human rights activists, politicians and some countries might try for prosecution. It will depend mainly on neighboring countries, for example, it is directly concerned with Bangladesh. If Bangladesh wants to initiate prosecution, there are reasons for us to worry. Anyway, I think military intervention and prosecution at the ICC are fairly unlikely. It is quite unlikely to arrive at a broad consensus over prosecution. Again, taking a look at geopolitics, both Bangladesh and Myanmar are under the influence of China. Under such circumstances, it will be difficult for Bangladesh to take an active part in initiating prosecution.
Anyway, the fact that such news spread around the world has a serious impact on our country. It negatively affects the economy, politics and image of the country. Even if R2P and ICC are not applied, at least renewed sanctions will be imposed for sure. It may further weaken the already fragile country. So, as Ko Bo Kyi has suggested, the government and authorities should change their tactics in international relations.
YN: Both R2P and ICC have to go through the UN Security Council. As China has veto power in the council, R2P and ICC are unlikely to be passed. I think the UN will not pass sanctions either, as China has veto power. Certain people may even think that they could endure a sanction period by relying on China, and that they will therefore be able to cope with targeted sanctions from the US and EU. Ko Bo Kyi, what do you think?
BK: The wealthy class that controls the country's economy may think like that. But for [ordinary] people, there are many things to lose when a country imposes economic sanctions. We have to use the banking system for trade. If financial transactions are frozen, money has to be transferred through the black market. This will deter potential foreign investors, and also cause market problems. Then, some investors will leave the country. Unemployment will increase in that case; there will be financial instability and market instability. These will directly affect the people.
The ultimate responsibility lies with the rulers of the country and those who say they will protect the country to prevent this. The Tatmadaw leaders have experienced the consequences of sanctions. I would suggest that there are things they can do to prevent other countries from imposing similar sanctions. I don't want to see one trouble after another. Civil society and every citizen in the country have citizenship duties. We should think about how we can cooperate to pull our country out of trouble. We have the responsibility as citizens, and we'll think and make suggestions.
AMZ: There is a problem with the government's diplomacy. I think the government is too rigid even to cooperate with the UN in Rakhine and on consequential issues. It needs to cooperate at least with the UN. We need to show clearly that we have transparency, and responsibility and accountability for things that happened on the ground. The [authorities] know that only then cooperation will be smoother, and the calls for ICC and R2P will become faint. It is not that the country's leaders do not know this fact. They know it clearly. Taking an uncompromising attitude will invite more problems and it will be the people who bear the brunt. There will be a negative impact on the economy. Our country is quite poor now. The majority of people are in grinding poverty and sanctions will be a crushing blow to the people.
YN: Ko Aung Moe Zaw, Ko Bo Kyi, thank you for your contributions!
The country's newest luxury boutique resort, the 5-star Sofitel Inle Lake Myat Min, opened its doors on March 5.
Located near Thale Oo village in Nyaung Shwe, Shan State, and operated by Accor Hotels Group, the resort sits on the shore of picturesque Inle Lake amid 20 acres of rice fields and floating gardens with gorgeous views of the Shan Mountains.
The hotel is on the central eastern shore of Inle Lake, 45 minutes drive from Nyaung Shwe and 70 minutes from Heho Airport.
The resort's design mixes local and Western styles, and its suites are furnished with authentic local art and craft works.
Swimming pool and exterior of the all-day dining room(Photo: Supplied)
There are a total of 101 suites and villas in five different room types: 36 Luxury rooms, 25 Junior suites, 12 Prestige suites, 27 Opera suites and one Imperial Suite. I spent one night in a bungalow-style Luxury room. All the rooms of this type are located on land, and have more of a garden view.
The room was really spacious and clean, with a luxurious feel and facilities. The furniture was top-class and the room was equipped with the latest technology including high-speed Internet, Bluetooth speakers and IPTV (Internet Protocol Television).
The room came with a comfortable twin bed and the bathroom was equipped with both an oversized soaking bathtub and a rain shower, creating a serene feeling of wellbeing.
From the balcony I got a stunning panoramic view of the Shan Mountains; it feels like you're waking up in the middle of the mountains. The room was positioned to receive warm sunlight — I loved it.
All the other suites face onto the hotel's floating organic tomato garden, the mountains or Inle Lake. The rooms are all spacious, varying in size from 70sqm to 250sqm.
The pool at Sofitel Inle Lake Myat Min (Photo: Supplied)
At Sofitel Inle Lake Myat Min, guests are immersed in the Shan way of life thanks to the resort's sustainability initiatives, which offer opportunities to experience the local culture, said David Daguise, cluster general manager at Sofitel and Novotel Inle Lake Myat Min.
"At every turn, they will experience the richness of the surroundings, from the vibrant sunset to the reflections of the mountains on the water at dusk and the fragrant scent of the vegetation," he said.
After placing my bags in my room, I checked out the hotel compound, which was clean, green and pretty. The compound is spacious and if you love to take walks in the evenings and mornings, Sofitel is perfect for you.
The hotel has its own organic garden, and I'd been told they used the vegetables as ingredients in the dishes served in the hotel's restaurants. So I was eager to taste them.
I ate dinner in the signature dining room beside the lake. If you sit down to eat at sunset, you'll be treated to the perfect romantic setting.
Infinity Pool and Sunset Bar facing Inle Lake (Photo: Supplied)
I had a really tasty dinner. The restaurant staff were friendly and helpful, listing the ingredients in each dish and explaining how it would be prepared.
The hotel has two restaurants offering a selection of international and local cuisines. Buffet and à la carte options are available for lunch and dinner.
The resort has two bars and two swimming pools. One is near the all-day dining room and the other Infinity Pool is right on Inle Lake; at sunset, the view from the pool is breathtaking.
The breakfast menu is extensive and delicious. The wait staff are never far away and always ready to offer friendly service.
A spa service, and fitness and wellness center, are also available. The hotel also provides private and enclosed outdoor parking.
Fast Wi-Fi connections were available in both the lobby areas and in the rooms.
Hotel room interior(Photo: Supplied)
The hotel area is quiet and there's only one grocery. Staffs will arrange both road and water transport upon request.
Sofitel Inle Lake Myat Min is opening with special rate starting at $130 per night. The offer includes accommodation in a Luxury Room inclusive of breakfast for two and a 10-percent discount on spa treatments. Normal rates for a Luxury Room start at $198. This offer is available for bookings until June 30.
Overall, the service at the Sofitel was perfect and the staff were wonderful. So, if you want to relax in a quiet place with stunning views of world famous Inle Lake, I thoroughly recommended this hotel.
YANGON—The defense lawyers for the four suspects in the killing of prominent lawyer U Ko Ni will present a criminal revision petition to the Yangon Division High Court next week, requesting that the judge reconsider the indictment order issued by the Northern District Court.
U Kyaw Kyaw Htike, the defense lawyer for accused gunman Kyi Lin, told The Irrawaddy after the 48th court hearing for U Ko Ni's murder trial on Friday that he will present the criminal revision to the divisional court on March 16 on behalf of all of the defendants.
U Ko Ni, a constitutional lawyer and legal adviser to the ruling National League for Democracy party, was gunned down outside Yangon International Airport on Jan. 29 last year. Police detained four suspects in connection with the crime: accused gunman Kyi Lin and three alleged co-conspirators Zeya Phyo, Aung Win Zaw and Aung Win Tun.
After nearly a year of preliminary hearings, the court charged Aung Win Tun under the Penal Code's Article 212, which prohibits harboring an offender but allowed him to stand trial on bail last month after he deposited 50 million kyats (about US$37,300) for his release from custody. The other three suspects were indicted for premeditated murder, which carries life sentences.
The man accused of masterminding the murder, former Lieutenant-Colonel Aung Win Khaing, remains at large. The court also ordered the confiscation of the fugitive Aung Win Khaing's movable and immovable property under the Criminal Procedure's Article 88.
Until this week's hearings on Thursday and Friday, the court had finished examining 28 out of 40 witnesses who were called to re-testify. Daw Pa Pa Win, the defense lawyer for Zeya Phyo, tried to cross-examine the witnesses to prove that there is not enough evidence showing that her client financed the murder or was involved in planning the murder.
U Khin Maung Htay, one of the lawyers who represents U Ko Ni's family, in court raised questions over controversial video footage that had been presented by the prosecutor's side. The footage—similar to a viral video of U Ko Ni's murder outside the airport but shot from a different place—was never revealed on social media. Reporters were unable to see the video on Friday.
Yangon International Airport's CCTV control room officers testified that it was not footage obtained by their security cameras when the defense asked about the video. The police had presented the footage to the court since the beginning but the defense had never questioned it before, U Khin Maung Htay said.
"An individual or an organization might have already known about the crime even before Kyi Lin shot U Ko Ni," he said.
The video was shot from a place where the general public did not have access, according to U Khin Maung Htay. He added that the real question was who had access to such a place, who knew about the killing even before Kyi Lin fired, and why the defense asked about the video just now.
The next hearing will be on March 15.
Tin Htet Paing is a freelance journalist and photographer based in Yangon. She previously worked at The Irrawaddy as a reporter for three years.
In recent years, downtown Yangon has become a cool place to hang out, its history written on the walls of its picturesque old buildings, its streets filled with hipster cafes and trendy boutiques. Photographers often turn this area into their sets, posing models on trishaws against the backdrop of the Yangon River at sunset. Some people take budget cruises, floating along the river to see the sights or take in some fresh air. Few, however, venture across to the other shore.
A five-minute boat ride away, the river's south side is far less sophisticated, teeming with motorcycles, teashops blaring music from loudspeakers, and small huts offering betel nut and snacks. Known as Dala Township, this area offers a reminder of a less developed era, despite being just minutes from the heart of the country's commercial capital.
Since the country embarked on its transition to democracy, former and current government leaders have vowed that a bridge will be built to allow the city to expand and to improve the lives of the people in south Yangon. In February 2017, Yangon Chief Minister U Phyo Min Thein announced a master plan including a Special Economic Zone (SZE) in Dala and a 590-meter, four-lane bridge. According to state media, construction of the Yangon-Dala Bridge will begin in April 2018 and is expected to be complete in 2021. In January, the Ministry of Construction released a video explaining that the bridge will start from the clock tower at Bo Min Yaung Road in Dala and end at the junction of Phone Gyi and Bogyoke Aung San roads.
Passengers board a ferry at a terminal on the Dala side. ( Photo: Theingi Lynn)
For the time being, such headlines don't particularly bother U Manchu, who has been helming ferries to-and-from from Hmaw Sat jetty, one of the 10 jetties in Dala and located across from Lanmaddaw Township.
"We'll be fine as long as the villages on the riverbank remain," U Manchu said.
He is one of approximately 400 ferry operators working at the 10 jetties located from Thamada Beach to the Kyaung Su area in Dala Township. Although three commuter ferries provided by JICA ply the waterway, smaller boats like U Manchu's are still an important means of transport for the large number of commuters who cross the river on a daily basis.
He serves an average of 200 passengers daily; most are blue-collar or office workers, but some are traders moving goods. After Hmaw Sat Ferry Cooperative Ltd gets its 30-percent cut and fuel is paid for, his average daily income is around 8,000-9,000 kyats. That would just about cover the cost of a cocktail at one the overpriced, extravagantly decorated bars across the river.
"Even if they build the bridge, this is an occupation that feeds both my family and my soul," said U Han Shwe, one of the members of Hmaw Sat Ferry Cooperative.
Hmaw Sat Ferry Cooperative Ltd, one of five such cooperatives, is based in Hmaw Sat ward of Dala Township. Its 38 members operate 31 vessels. As a country that has struggled with the transition to democracy, Myanmar could learn a thing or two from the cooperative's democratic ways; it elects a new chairman and secretary every five years. Its main responsibility is to assign boats and schedules to members — who take turns operating the service — and to remind boat owners to prepare for maintenance when Inland Water Transport officials show up.
U Kyin Hla, chairman of Hmaw Sat Ferry Cooperative Limited and a veteran ferry captain, reckons there will always be a certain number of people who prefer to cross the river by boat.
Ferries stand by during rush hour on the Dala side. ( Photo: Theingi Lynn)
He said, "I heard there will be a bus service that will go around Dala in a loop to pick up passengers. The question is how long this bus service will take to get to the other side, when it only takes our ferries five minutes. We can't predict anything, but the duration of the river crossing is what we should consider." He concedes that there will likely be a drop in the number of passengers at his jetty, however.
Daw Kyaing, who runs a bike-storage shed near the jetty, plans to continue riding ferries, which she said are the most convenient option for her.
"I'd still use boats to cross the river. They're closer and faster," she said.
On the other hand, Ei Phyo Thwe, a Dala resident who crosses the river on a daily basis for her job in Pazundaung Township, is looking forward to traveling via the new bridge. She can't swim, and lives in fear of a boating accident.
"I'd rather use the bridge. I am always hesitant to take ferries but now I have to, even when it rains, and even when I don't want to," Ei Phyo Thwe said as she returned from the city on a full moon day that saw the water level rise to its highest, with choppy swells coming in from the Andaman Sea.
Currently, the jetties along the Yangon River serve as a major mode of transport not only for people from Hmaw Sat ward in Dala Township, but also for people from townships further afield such as Pyawbwe and Kawhmu, as well as small towns in Ayeyarwaddy Region such as Bogalay and Pyapon.
People from these delta region towns usually take the bus to Dala to trade their rice and fish products in Yangon. The Dala-Yangon Bridge would make their journey easier, faster and cheaper.
With a bridge from Yangon's Central Business District in the works, Dala now has the potential to develop into a major urban center housing businesses and tourist attractions. The Dala riverfront could become a place resembling Bangkok's Asiatique, offering opportunities for retailers and other small businesses, as well as jobs for its residents. The much-anticipated construction of the bridge will enhance trading activity in nearby townships and improve the lives of Dala's residents. Consequently, Dala will finally be able to grow to its full potential as a port city situated one bridge away from the country's commercial capital.
Inevitably, some people will be asked to make sacrifices in the name of development. While the Yangon-Dala Bridge will be beneficial in many ways, ferry captains will definitely face a drop in their daily income.
U Kyin Hla said, "We haven't thought about what our next step is, but we will figure something out as an alternative to maintain our income."
For the time being, all the ferry captains and owners can do is to try to save some money, as the bridge construction will take at least three years. While continuing their routine of connecting lives on the two sides of the river, the men at Hmaw Sat Jetty hope their decades-old vocations will be allowed to continue.
"I think our jetty will remain in business," said U Kyin Hla confidently.
NAYPYITAW — The Peaceful Assembly and Procession Law needs to be amended because it does not comply with the military-drafted 2008 Constitution, said lawmaker U Tun Tun Hein, a Central Executive Committee member of the ruling National League for Democracy (NLD).
"This law is fine for people who want to stage a protest with good intentions. But if it is applied for destructive purposes, we have to do what it takes in the interests of the country," U Tun Tun Hein told reporters in Naypyitaw.
Activists and rights groups have protested against the bill in recent weeks, complaining that proposed amendments contain broad and vague terms they worry could be exploited to stifle political dissent. On Friday, the Bill Committee presented its report on the bill to the Lower House, which is scheduled to discuss the amendments next week.
The bill amending the Peaceful Assembly and Procession Law was passed by the Upper House on Wednesday with 113 lawmakers voting in favor and 78 voting against, despite the fact that some NLD lawmakers argued against the changes. Representatives of Myanmar’s military, which is guaranteed 25 percent of parliamentary seats by the Constitution, also opposed the changes.
Though Article 354 of the Constitution guarantees freedom of expression and assembly, hiring people to stage a demonstration with bad intents was not acceptable, argued U Tun Tun Hein, who represents Nawnghkio Township in Shan State.
The proposed amendment was identical to Article 354, he said, adding that existing laws had to comply with the Constitution or would otherwise be invalid.
"We heard that there are cases of people being hired for demonstrations. What we want is that citizens express their real wishes," he said.
If the changes do make it into the law, Article 4 (d) will require would-be protesters planning peaceful assemblies and processions to inform police in advance of not only their agenda and estimated numbers, but also the estimated cost of the event and the identities of the people or organizations paying for it.
The most controversial part of the bill would stipulate jail terms for those convicted of provoking or exhorting others to organize or participate in demonstrations by bribing or paying them or doing anything else with the intention of harming the stability, rule of law, peace and tranquility of the community.
The provision has been criticized as being too broadly written; activists warn it could be exploited to stifle political dissent.
"The Constitution of the United States says that no law shall be enacted to restrict liberty and individual expression. The original Peaceful Assembly and Procession Law already restricts the freedom of an individual, and the new changes restrict it further," Lower House NLD lawmaker U Aung Hlaing Win told The Irrawaddy.
U Ye Htun, a former lawmaker who represented Shan State’s Hsipaw Township, said the proposed amendments would also make it legal to fund demonstrations. He argued that funding should not be allowed at all and that demonstrations should be staged by people on their own accord.
"In Ukraine, demonstrators were paid through NGOs by foreign agencies. As a result, many took to the streets, and finally the president was toppled. That's what we should restrict, but not the instigation [of protests] if it is not for violence."
The NLD made amending the military-drafted Constitution one of its top priorities while campaigning for the 2015 election. Since winning the election, however, the party has made almost no effort to reform it in Parliament.
MANDALAY — Police in Mandalay found more than 28 million methamphetamine tablets and other drugs inside an abandoned car on Friday.
According to police, the Toyota Crown Royal Saloon was abandoned on 73rd Street, between Khing Shwe War Street and Zalatwar Street, about four days ago.
"We received the information that the car was there for about four days and, suspecting something illegal, we checked it and found the drugs," said police Captain T Khaung Lwan.
The police said the initial count included 28 million methamphetamine tablets packed inside pet food bags, 4.7 kg of heroin and about 1 kg of crystal methamphetamine packed inside soap boxes. Police also found 0.15 kg of Sodium hydroxide, which they suspect was to be used to make more drugs, and some sex toys.
"We are still counting the drugs and calculating the value because there is so much. The police have opened a case under the National Drug Law and we are still investigating to find the owner of the car and related drug abuse cases," the police captain said.
According to Mandalay Region’s counter-narcotics unit, Friday’s drug seizure may have been the largest this year.
The largest drug seizure of all, in Mandalay Region’s Pyigyidagun Township in July 2017, netted a haul estimated at over 60 billion kyats ($44.7 million).
The Myanmar Army on Friday evening allowed a group of people to retrieve the bodies of two Kachin internally displaced persons who had disappeared in January, after local people reported discovering their bodies in a grave in Mansi Township. Army personnel had prevented the group from heading to the site for several hours earlier in the day.
The two IDPs disappeared on Jan. 31 while trying to return to their village from the Maing Hkawng IDP camp, and were reportedly last seen being detained by military personnel.
"They have all left the camp, as the army finally allowed them to go," said Naw Mai, a community leader at the camp.
Some local people told The Irrawaddy that the Myanmar Army's Infantry Battalion 206 had earlier blocked the group.
According to Naw Mai, an army captain was behind the original decision to prevent the group from leaving. "He said he was waiting for orders from his superiors. So, he did not let us go."
However, the captain relented at 2 p.m. local time and allowed the group to travel the approximately 6 miles from the camp to the village where the two men were apparently killed, according to community leaders.
"The army said they would accompany the group part of the way, but would not make the entire trip," Naw Mai said.
Hpaugan Yaw, 65, and Nhkum Naw San, 31, were last seen being detained at their village on Jan. 31 by Battalion 206 personnel, according to the IDPs' families.
The group traveling to retrieve the bodies comprised more than 20 people including police, doctors with expertise in forensic medicine and community leaders from the IDP camp.
The gravesite was being guarded by 24 people, according to local sources. Police and medical specialists had instructed them not to disturb the bodies so that an investigation could be carried out.
Initially, the army refused to allow people from the camp even to search for the missing men, who had returned to their home village from the IDP camp to tend to their animals. They were among residents who were forced to flee the village to avoid fighting between the Myanmar Army and the Kachin Independence Army (KIA).
A group of people from the IDP camp went to search for the missing men on Friday without informing the army or telling them where they had found the bodies.
"We searched for them based on witness accounts. We found the two bodies just outside the village," said Ann Kham, an IDP from the camp who was part of Friday's search party.
"[The original discoverers of the bodies] cut down a small tree and put it on the grave. We weren't sure about it, so we dug into the grave, and found the two bodies," he said.
The grave contained two bodies — an older one underneath, and a younger one on top, he said.
Relatives of the two victims opened charges over the disappearance of the two persons at the police station in Mansi town, according to Hkun Nawng, a lawyer and Kachin Legal Aid Network official based in Myitkyina, the capital of Kachin State, who was helping to locate the missing pair.
"We will monitor how the police will build this case to charge the persons responsible for this murder. We are ready to help the police, too, if they need help with the investigation," Hkun Nawng said.
Right abuses are a common occurrence in Kachin and northern Shan, which has been the scene of ongoing fighting between the Myanmar Army and ethnic rebels. There have been instances in the past of the army detaining, torturing and killing villagers suspected of being rebels.
The army has even blocked humanitarian aid from UN agencies intended for Kachin IDPs. Most IDPs rely on aid from local Kachin religious groups such as the Kachin Baptist Convention.
The Maing Hkawng IDP camp houses about 2,500 IDPs. Fighting broke out in the area in 2011, causing many people to flee their homes. Last year, about 50 IDPs attempted to return to their homes, but they were forced to return when fighting flared in January.
In January, six Myanmar Army soldiers were each sentenced to 10 years' imprisonment with hard labor for killing three IDPs from Maing Hkawng last year. The IDPs had been foraging for firewood in the forest.
The Kachin Independence Army has two bases in the area, housing its Battalion 12 and Battalion 27. The Tatmadaw has ordered the KIA to withdraw from these areas but it has refused, fueling the tension.
YANGON — The Yangon regional government will curb fuel price hikes as of this year, said Yangon Chief Minister U Phyo Min Thein.
The minister made the remark at a monthly meeting between Vice-President 1 U Myint Swe and businessmen at the office of the Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (UMFCCI) on Wednesday.
"We can stockpile millions of tons of fuel; we will be able to control fuel prices. But currently, it is under the control of licensed importers. The regional government is taking steps to control this. We are trying to establish companies."
The chief minister agreed that the price of diesel and petrol is fairly high in Myanmar, while it is essential for commodity flow.
The chief minister suggested that prices could be controlled if enough fuel were stockpiled to last six months.
"It is not a commodity for which we need to calculate the price on a daily basis. We can buy fuel for a year's time while prices are lowest and then send it to Yangon. But, we need a place to store it," said U Phyo Min Thein.
"In case of an emergency in the country, we will be able to control political stability if we have fuel for long-term use stored. So, we are taking steps to bring down the price," said the chief minister.
Myanmar Fuel Importer and Distributor Association secretary U Win Myint said that the current market price of fuel is reasonable.
"Our interest is just 1 to 2 percent," he said.
U Win Myint added that he welcomed the regional government's plan to enter the fuel import and distribution business, but that permission should be given to all eligible companies rather than favoring a particular company.
The wholesale price of diesel per liter in Yangon as of Wednesday was 750 kyats, RON 91, 758 kyats, RON 95, 750 kyats, and the retail prices vary at filing stations depending on costs for storage and transportation.
WASHINGTON — US President Donald Trump agreed to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un because Kim is the ultimate decision-maker in his country, a senior administration official said on Thursday.
“President Trump has made his reputation on making deals,” the official said in a briefing with reporters after Trump’s agreement to meet Kim at a time and place to be chosen in what would be the first-ever US-North Korea summit.
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the message from Kim was relayed orally to Trump by a South Korean delegation in the Oval Office. There was no letter from Kim, the official said.
“Kim Jong Un is the one person who is able to make decisions under their authoritarian, uniquely authoritarian, or totalitarian system, and so it made sense to accept an invitation to met with the one person who can actually make decisions instead of repeating the sort of long slog of the past,” said the official.
The United States will settle for nothing less than permanent denuclearization of North Korea, the official said.
Trump spoke to Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe about the development, the official added.
YANGON — U Wirathu, the firebrand nationalist monk who in 2017 was banned from preaching for one year, will be free to resume his sermons on Saturday.
The State Sangha Maha Nayaka Committee, the highest Buddhist authority of Myanmar, better known by its Burmese acronym Ma Ha Na, banned U Wirathu from preaching for one year on March 9, 2017, for spreading hate speech, which it said could lead to religious conflict.
"There is no new instruction from Ma Ha Na about U Wirathu," U Tun Nyunt, director of the Religious Affairs Department, told The Irrawaddy.
Ma Ha Na's annual meeting in February did not see any discussion related to U Wirathu, he added.
U Wirathu declined The Irrawaddy's request for an interview about the expiry of the ban.
"I've boycotted both local and foreign media as I have no trust in them, so I have no comment," he said.
The monk, who is notorious for his anti-Muslim rhetoric since communal violence broke out in Rakhine State in 2012, has made the cover of Time Magazine as the “Face of Buddhist Terror.”
Despite the ban, U Wirathu has shared a number of videos on social media over the past year in which he claimed to be the mentor of Kyi Lin, the accused assassin of prominent Muslim lawyer U Ko Ni, and thanked the gunman and other alleged co-conspirators. In another video, he asked the National League for Democracy (NLD) government, which he has continuously accused of favoring Muslims over Buddhists, to step down.
In late February, AFP reported that Facebook had removed U Wirathu’s page because of his incendiary posts about Muslims as it faces pressure to clamp down on hate speech.
But his videos have continued to spread on Facebook. In a Feb. 7 video he criticized the government and the lawyer prosecuting Kyi Lin, telling them to "Eat Well."
The phrase in Burmese is used as a threat to show one's anger and to warn of impending revenge.
Calling himself the mentor of Kyi Lin, he said in the video: "Those who insult good people, eat well. Those who disrespect monks, eat well. Those who ban preaching, eat well. Those who disturb (preaching), eat well. When you go to hell, you don't even have time to eat. So eat well now."
His open support for Kyi Lin has drawn strong criticism from both monks and laypeople, with some monks calling for legal action against him.
During Ma Ha Na’s annual meeting in late February, Union Minister for Religious Affairs and Culture Thura U Aung Ko urged the committee to take action against monks who disgrace Buddhism through their activities or speech.
The minister said a lack of consensus in society about the proper political role for Buddhist monks had made it difficult for the government to take action against rowdy monks even as some of them were becoming increasingly reckless.
KANDY, Sri Lanka — Police in Sri Lanka said on Thursday that they had arrested the suspected leader and nine other suspects behind a wave of anti-Muslim attacks by Sinhalese Buddhist hardliners in a central highlands region this week.
Sri Lanka’s Kandy district has been rocked by communal clashes since Sunday following attacks on members of the minority Muslim community by nationalist crowds from the Sinhalese majority. At least two people have been killed.
President Maithripala Sirisena decreed a state of emergency in Kandy on Wednesday but crowds carried out more attacks targeting mosques and businesses belonging to Muslims overnight, residents told Reuters.
Police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekara said all 10 people arrested belonged to a hardline Buddhist group. He named the suspected leader as Amith Jeewan Weerasinghe and said he belonged to a group called Mahason Balakaya.
He said this group had published videos of hate speech directed against Muslims.
Most of Sri Lanka’s Muslims live in the east and center of the island and make up about 9 percent of its 21 million people. Buddhists make up about 70 percent and ethnic Tamils, most of whom are Hindus, about 13 percent.
Residents in Kandy district said the death of a Buddhist youth after an altercation with a group of Muslims had triggered the violence.
Two days after the death, a large crowd of Buddhists brought a symbolic coffin to protest against the death of the driver in Digana town, where most of the shops are either owned or rented by Muslims, residents said.
“First they burnt the mosque. There were even women among the attackers. Then they started to burn all the Muslim shops,” said 30-year-old Mohamed Shifan. He said he had 3.7 million rupees ($23,817) lying in his car that he had collected to start a new electric goods business.
But a crowd set fire to his car and beat him up before he could escape.
Nationalists
Some Buddhist nationalists have protested against the presence in Sri Lanka of Muslim Rohingya asylum-seekers from mostly Buddhist Myanmar, where Buddhist nationalism has also been on the rise.
“An upsurge of attacks against Muslims by Sinhala Buddhist militants in Sri Lanka has raised fears of a new round of communal violence,” the International Crisis Group said in a report.
On Thursday, shops were still smoldering in Katugasthota town, where also mobs went on a rampage picking on the small stores and eateries run by Muslims. Groceries were strewn on the street.
Soldiers stood guard outside mosques in the area.
“The situation is improving and there have been no major incidents of violence reported in the last 12 hours,” said Major General Rukman Dias, the army commander in the area.
But he said the curfew would be re-imposed in Kandy as a measure of precaution.
President Sirisena appointed Public Administration Minister Ranjith Madduma Bandara as the new law and order minister, a portfolio temporarily held by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe after public criticism over the government’s inaction to curb violence.
The Tourism Ministry said it did not expect any major impact of the seven-day emergency on the $4 billion industry.
Kandy is a prime destination for foreign travellers, famous for its Tooth temple in honor of Buddha, tea gardens and natural beauty.
“For tourists, this is not the ideal situation,” Henry Venturini, a 51-year-old Italian tourist told Reuters. “There was nobody on the street when we went out in the evening.”
Sri Lanka was for decades plagued by war between government forces and Tamil separatists. The government defeated the rebels in 2009.
EU ambassadors said in a statement that the latest attacks were “very worrying” and that it was important that the government bring the perpetrators to justice.
HONG KONG — China Resources Beer (Holdings) Co Ltd is in talks to acquire Heineken NV's China business in a deal that could be worth more than $1 billion, as the country’s largest brewer seeks new growth from premium brands, five people close to the discussions said. The negotiations come as global beer giants such as Heineken, AB InBev (ABI.BR) and Carlsberg (CARLb.CO) are facing fierce competition from local rivals and each other in emerging markets, which have been touted as the growth engine for the world’s biggest brewers.
China is the world’s largest beer market by volume. CR Beer’s biggest brand, Snow, is the world’s top-selling beer, but is almost exclusively sold in China.
One of the sources said the deal between CR Beer and Heineken would most likely include three breweries – in Guangdong, Hainan and Zhejiang provinces – Heineken’s distribution operation and its brands in China.
The two brewers have discussed a share-swap as part of the transaction, the source said.
Details have not been finalized and talks could yet fall apart, the sources said. They declined to be identified, as the information is not public.
CR Beer did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Heineken declined to comment.
Shares of CR Beer jumped as much as 14.4 percent Friday to an all-time high of HK$35.30. Heineken’s stock price went up 3 percent on Thursday.
Heineken, which entered China in 1983, has struggled to set up a strong distribution network and to make a mark with its flagship Heineken lager, which lags far behind AB InBev’s Budweiser in the premium market, industry analysts say.
The Dutch brewer had a 0.5 percent share of the China market by volume in 2016, according to research firm Euromonitor International, while CR Beer accounted for more than a quarter.
Heineken sells its premium lagers Heineken, Tiger and Sol in China, along with cheaper local brands Anchor and Hainan Beer.
The company has invested millions of dollars in promoting Heineken as the global lager of choice, predominantly through sports, including soccer and Formula One. Next month will mark its second time as prime sponsor of the Chinese Grand Prix.
Beer sales volume in China has been declining since 2013 and is forecast to continue to fall, according to Euromonitor. Sales of higher-margin premium beers, however, have been growing at a double-digit rate each year during the same period.
“CR Beer doesn't have super-premium lagers, while Heineken has high-end brands but lacks scale in China,” said one source. “Heineken is a natural target for CR Beer.”
Heineken’s eponymous brand sells for three times the price of Snow in China. Chinese beer drinkers are overwhelmingly consumers of low-margin inexpensive beer, which makes up 80 percent of the market by volume, compared with an average of 18 percent in big developed markets, according to Nomura analysts.
Last year Japan’s Asahi Group Holdings sold its 19.9 percent stake in Tsingtao Brewery Co – CR Beer’s biggest domestic rival – for $937 million as it decided to focus on Europe and elsewhere in Asia.
CR Beer’s interest in Heineken’s China unit follows its takeover in 2016 of SABMiller’s 49 percent stake in its CR Snow venture for $1.6 billion.
That acquisition helped the Chinese brewer turn around its business. In 2016 it reported its first annual profit in three years after a renewed focus on the Snow brand and expanded sales in key Chinese cities.
Heineken trades on an enterprise value – market capitalization plus debt – of 12 times its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization in the last year. That is above Carlsberg’s multiple of 10 but far short of CR Beer’s 23.
GENEVA — Myanmar wants to see clear evidence to support accusations that ethnic cleansing or genocide has been perpetrated against its Muslim minority in Rakhine State, National Security Adviser Thaung Tun said on Thursday.
“The vast majority of the Muslim community that was living in Rakhine remain,” he told reporters in Geneva. “If it was a genocide, they would all be driven out."
Nearly 700,000 Rohingya have fled Rakhine into neighboring Bangladesh since insurgent attacks sparked a security crackdown in August, joining 200,000 refugees from a previous exodus.
On Wednesday, UN human rights chief Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein said he strongly suspected “acts of genocide”, while Myanmar’s military published a lengthy response to widespread allegations over its campaign in Rakhine, saying its investigations had cleared troops of almost all alleged abuses.
Zeid told the UN Human Rights Council that reports of bulldozing of alleged mass graves were a “deliberate attempt by the authorities to destroy evidence of potential international crimes, including possible crimes against humanity."
Thaung Tun said charges of ethnic cleansing and genocide were very serious and should not be bandied about lightly.
“We have often heard many accusations that there is ethnic cleansing or even genocide in Myanmar. And I've said it before and I'll say it again – it is not the policy of the government, and this we can assure you. Although there are accusations, we would like to have clear evidence,” he said.
“We should look into that before making a pronouncement on whether there is ethnic cleansing or genocide.”
Myanmar has not allowed UN investigators into the country to investigate. A UN fact-finding mission is due to report on Monday on its initial findings, based on interviews with victims and survivors in Bangladesh and other countries.
Thaung Tun added that Myanmar was willing to accept back people who had fled and provide safety and dignity for them, showing that it did not want them out of the country, and that only a minority of Rakhine’s population of 3 million had left.
He said the Muslims who fled largely did so because the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) armed group had sowed fear. He accused ARSA of having forced villagers to join their attacks on the security forces and had insisted on a scorched earth policy, burning villages in retreat.
Rohingya trace their presence in Rakhine back centuries. But most people in majority-Buddhist Myanmar consider them to be unwanted Muslim immigrants from Bangladesh. The army refers to the Rohingya as “Bengalis,” and most lack citizenship.
Thaung Tun said former residents would be welcomed back if they were willing to “participate in the life of the nation," for example by learning the Burmese language.
“Those who want to become citizens of Myanmar, we are happy to welcome them, but they have to go through a process. There cannot be automatic citizenship,” he said.
YANGON — The Kachin Independence Army (KIA) says the Myanmar military, or Tatmadaw, launched a second offensive against its forces in Kachin State’s Tanai Township on Saturday.
"They started a military offensive again in the Tanai area. Their offensive this time is heading toward our KIA Battalion 14," Colonel Naw Bu, a spokesman for the ethnic armed group, told The Irrawaddy on Thursday.
"There was a strong military push on March 5 and 6," he said.
The Tatmadaw launched its first offensive against the KIA in January, seized some amber and gold mining areas in Tanai and driving hundreds of ethnic Kachin out of the area.
"They could not reach the area KIA Battalion 14 controls during their first offensive, so they are trying to get there this time," Col. Naw Bu said.
"They [the Tatmadaw] used only ground forces this time to attack our troops. They have not used the air force yet," he said, adding that the KIA battalion was pushed back from some areas in the past few days.
Locals said the fighting has prevented them from reaching their paddy fields and that Tatmadaw checkpoints around the town of Tanai, home to some 900 displaced Kachin, were hampering their travel. They said they heard shelling throughout most of Monday and Tuesday.
"The fighting is quiet today, but we could hear explosions from artillery all day on March 5 and 6," said Naw Tawng, a Tanai resident helping the displaced families.
The Tatmadaw will celebrate Armed Force Day on March 27 in Naypyitaw. It has often launched offensives against the area’s ethnic armed groups ahead of the annual event, at which it typically hands out awards to soldiers who have distinguished themselves in the fighting.
Another of the armed groups, the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA), reported a clash with the Tatmadaw on Thursday in northern Shan State. It said the Tatmadaw has brought some 50 trucks to the area for what it believes may be a full-on offensive against the TNLA.
The TNLA says it engaged with the Tatmadaw in 14 clashes last month.
To mark International Women's Day, I embrace this opportunity to honor the countless women who have dedicated and continue to dedicate their lives to their families, communities and countries with loving kindness, empathy, courage and the many other qualities their male counterparts so often lack. Unavoidably for me, first among these women is my late mother.
My mother not only led our family as a breadwinner, she also raised her boys to think rationally and justly and backed her rebellious sons when they opposed oppressive regimes right up until she met her ill-fated death, her body crushed by a Hino vehicle carrying Air Force personnel as she was making her way back home. That was in August 1994 — more than two years after I was thrown into jail for my political activism.
I am certain that as she took her last breath on that spot, at the age 49, she was thinking about what would happen during the coming week, when she was due to come and visit me in prison. (Her other son was at that moment living in exile.) Since my sentencing to 10 years in prison by a military tribunal, she had never missed a single one of the biweekly visits she was permitted to make to her political prisoner son in Insein Prison.
By the time she died, she had visited the prison more than 60 times to bring me the food, medicine and other materials that not only I but also my fellow political prisoners so badly needed. But her visits were intended not only to meet my material needs, but also to provide the strong moral support I would need to survive my 10-year imprisonment.
In our country under the previous military regime, it was beyond difficult and dangerous to be the mother of both a political prisoner and an exiled political activist.
While running her own business to take care of the family — as well as provide for me in prison — she faced harassment, threats and intimidation from officials of the junta, known as the State Law and Order Restoration Council, in her ward and township, as well as from plainclothes officers belonging to the regime's notorious Military Intelligence apparatus. In their eyes, she was simply the mother of a prisoner and an outcast who had defied their authority. But she stood up to them until her last day.
In fact, my mother was just one among countless mothers, sisters, wives and individual women in Myanmar who bravely endured similar or even worse situations under one of a series of authoritarian regimes from 1962 to 2010.
Other women took even more risks to play leading roles in the fight for freedom and/or democracy throughout British colonial rule in the late 19th-century, the pre- and post- independence eras, and various authoritarian and military regimes from 1962 to 2010.
We may never know how many mothers, wives, sisters and partners were victims of those oppressive systems and the abusive individuals who did their bidding. Nor will we ever fully appreciated the extent to which so many of them managed to overcome these hardships.
Throughout Myanmar's history, women have always been at the forefront of efforts to combat oppression and promote democracy. In the early 20th century, when the country was under colonial rule, women were active in the nationalist movement that led to independence in 1948.
With independence restored, the role of women in politics and other sectors was more vital than ever. But their role, especially in politics, diminished after the military staged a coup in 1962. Women were marginalized in the male-dominated regime. The period between 1962 and 1988 under the rule of late dictator Ne Win can be seen as a kind of "dark age" for women.
But when we took to the streets to topple the authoritarian regime during the 1988 pro-democracy uprising, young female students in my classrooms joined the movement along with women from every sector. Win Maw Oo was just one example of how bravely women and girls took to the forefront of the movement, staring down the regime's rifle barrels. She was just 16 when she was gunned down in downtown Yangon on Sept. 19, 1988, the day after the military staged a bloody coup.
Several hundred female political activists were among those of us locked up for lengthy terms in cells at prisons across the country. Some might wonder how those female political prisoners managed to overcome such hardships in prisons.
Some of those women are today sitting in national and regional parliaments as lawmakers elected in the 2015 general election. Women now account for 13 percent of the members of the country's legislative assemblies — an unprecedented though still unsatisfactory level.
But the majority of Myanmar people – both male and female – showed in the 1990 and 2015 elections that they are ready to accept women as their leaders or representatives if they are capable. Led by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the National League for Democracy won both elections in landslides. Some ethnic women candidates won seats in their constituencies as well.
In Myanmar, which was closed off to the world by authoritarian and military rulers for nearly five decades, there are bound to be many people who cling to old-fashioned political and social norms.
For an individual person to be able to recognize women's endeavors, sacrifices and achievements, they must be able to change their view and mindset. For an institution or administration, including the incumbent government, it will require policies or decisions that create an environment in which women – half of Myanmar's more than 51 million people – can fulfill their important roles — which are not limited to nurturing families, but extend to leading their country to a better future — with all their strengths and abilities.
NYAUNG SHWE, Shan State — For visitors to Inle Lake, in southern Shan State, the town of Nyaung Shwe is the main access point.
A few weeks ago, I visited Inle with a list of things to do around Nyaung Shwe. And since a cooking classis is the best way to get to know any new place, it was at the top of my list. I booked my class at the popular Sin Yaw Guest House.
Students need to book their place a day ahead because the owner, Sao, needs to prepare the ingredients and other things.
Preparing the ingredients for the dishes.
When you book, Sao will ask if you want to go shopping with her at the market. I decided to skip the market because I didn’t have enough time, so they bought all the ingredients for me.
When I arrived at Sin Yaw's rooftop classroom, it was about 10 a.m. and Sao was waiting for me and my friend with a table prepared with a small gas stove, vegetables and other ingredients.
Students can choose the menu for their class. I chose a few fast and easy dishes including Inle potato rice, Inle fish curry with spring onions for the main dish, tomato salad, and potato and green bean curry.
Other options include Inle fried spring onion with pork, Shan chicken salad, and Shan style chicken or pork with pineapple and cashew nuts.
All the ingredients are ready.
Sao was very helpful and patient in answering our questions, walking us through the class step by step. She and her staff had already cleaned the vegetables and prepared the fish for us. We just had to cook them following their instructions to end up with a delicious Inle meal.
We started by boiling the potato and tomato for the Inle potato rice, which took 45 minutes to prepare. While they boiled away, we rubbed a large stone fish from Inle Lake with salt and turmeric and fried it in hot oil for the Inle fish curry with spring onions.
We chopped the onions and tomatoes into small pieces for the gravy and cooked them until they were soft, then added some salt and chicken powder.
Pouring the spring onions on the fried fish.
The smell was sweet and made us hungry. We poured the gravy over the fish and the dish was ready.
We moved on to the Inle style tomato salad. What sets it apart from other tomato salad is the liberal use of crushed roasted peanuts. It was not difficult to make. We just had to mix the onion and tomato with the nuts and add salt.
By this time the boiled potato and tomato were ready and I peeled off the skins. Then we cut the potato into flat slices, mushed them with some Shan rice and salt, pressed a few of the balls into pancakes and sprinkled them with some roasted nuts. The Inle potato rice was ready to eat.
Sao said the last side dish, the potato and green been curry, was especially popular among the Innthar, or people of Inle, many of whom eat it every day. My friend cooked that one while I prepared the potato rice.
Our meal is ready to eat after class.
The cooking class lasted about three hours and cost 15,000 kyat ($11.22) per person.
We used tomatoes in every dishes. The Innthar eat a lot of tomatoes because they have many floating tomato farms on Inle Lake.
We had a lot of fun. We learned all about the ingredients and what was going on with each dish. Sao and her two staff were lovely and very friendly.
All the dishes we cooked were tasty and we ate them all after class. Our lunch came with bottled water and watermelon.
I'm not an expert cook, but it was lovely to try and nice to learn about a new place through its traditional cuisine.
Nyaung Shwe has a few other cooking class options, and you should definitely try one if you’re in town. If you have the time, I recommend taking the trip to the market to see where the ingredients come from.
To book a class with the Sin Yaw Guest House, you can send a message to its Facebook page, Sin Yaw Guest House and Restaurant, or call 09 960 743217.
CHIANG MAI, Thailand — Myanmar needs a new mineral resources policy and fresh laws developed through a transparent and consultative process if the mining sector is ever to be sustainable, the Myanmar Center for Responsible Business (MCRB) said at the launch of a sector-wide impact assessment (SWIA) report on March 8.
The fourth SWIA based on MCRB's field research focused on mining of three commodities: tin, gold and limestone. In 2016, field researchers investigated a total of 41 mine sites in eight areas: Shan, Karen, Karenni and Kachin States, and Bago, Sagaing, Mandalay and Tanintharyi regions.
Among them were 11 large-scale permitted operational mine sites (of which one was in the exploration phase), 15 small-scale permitted mine sites, and 15 informal mining areas of various sizes.
Based on the many negative impacts on the environment and on mine workers observed by the researchers, the MCRB said in a press release that to achieve responsible mining, "The entire approach to mining in Myanmar needs a rethink."
"Most of the harms were felt by workers — including women and children — and borne by the environment. A rethink is also needed if Myanmar is to develop the modern mineral rights cadaster it needs to meet EITI standards. A fresh start, a clear policy vision, and simple laws to underpin it, are essential if mining is ever to contribute to sustainable development in Myanmar," it said. EITI refers to the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative.
MCRB identified five key challenges based on field research and an extensive review of current laws and initiatives. These are: a lack of clarity on policies, laws and regulations relevant to mining activities, which inhibit responsible investment; the limited capacity of government and business actors to monitor and address the environmental, social and human rights impacts of mining; the externalization of the environmental, social and human rights costs of mining on local communities; problematic governance of mining in conflict-affected areas; and extensive informality in the mining sector.
Vicky Bowman, the director of MCRB, said at the launch of the SWIA in Yangon that the development of mining sector regulation in Myanmar over the past two decades has been based on the 1994 Mining Law, which she said is outdated.
"The legal framework is also fragmented between mining and gemstones," she said, adding that the 2015 Amendments to the Mining Law only made minor changes. New rules imposed this year and based on those amendments have only tinkered at the edges of reform, she said.
The existing Mining Law developed under the former State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) "was designed at a time when mining, and oil and gas, both fell under the same minister [Vice Admiral Maung Maung Khin] and [this continued] even after amendment in 2015," she told The Irrawaddy. Vice Admiral Maung Maung Khin was Myanmar's deputy prime minister under the SLORC.
Bowman explained that the 1994 Mining Law "favors use of production sharing contracts [PSCs] in mining, which are used in the oil and gas industry. However almost no other country in the world uses PSCs for mining, as the commercial risks in mining are different to oil and gas. Furthermore, it does not establish a mining cadaster, which is the fundamental basis for managing mining transparently and attracting investment."
She pointed out that although additional elements related to the environment, health and safety have been introduced, these are either unclear or not in line with international good practice.
"If the law is compared to other countries' mining laws such as Mongolia or Peru, with whom Myanmar is competing to attract investment, the weaknesses are evident," she added.
The MCRB director said the current Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation (MONREC)'s decision to consider adopting a Mineral Resources Policy was "a positive step."
"But it needs to be done as part of a transparent, cross-government and multi-stakeholder process, [and] have concrete actions that incorporate modern international standards. It also needs to be developed in a way which supports the peace process and EITI, the National Environmental Policy and the draft Myanmar Sustainable Development Plan," she said.
Informal gold mining in Kachin State in 2016. ( Photo: MCRB )
Claus Teilmann Petersen, director of the Human Rights and Development think tank at the Danish Institute for Human Rights (DIHR), was quoted in the press statement as welcoming the government's intention "to formalize artisanal and subsistence mining [ASM] rather than outlaw it.”
Teilmann Petersen, an expert on the relationship between business and human rights standards, emphasized that although ASM has serious negative impacts on human rights and the environment, it also benefits thousands of poor people.
"Formalizing artisanal mining is a difficult task," he said. "It can't simply be addressed by a new set of rules on licensing."
He suggested Myanmar take lessons from other countries that have followed the ASM track.
"One lesson for putting together an affective Artisanal and Subsistence Mining (ASM) Management Strategy is that governments need to consult with all stakeholders, including the subsistence miners themselves," he said.
"Their right to livelihood will be affected by an approach which doesn't take the specific nature of ASM into account," he added.
NAYPYITAW — The misconduct of civil servants can ultimately undermine public confidence in the government, State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi said in a public address on Wednesday.
"When administrative measures and decisions are made without reference to the relevant laws and regulations, it leads to poor use of due discretion and can results in biased decision making," the country’s de facto leaders said in her remarks at the Rule of Law: Conference on Justice Sector Coordination in Naypyitaw.
"As a result, failing to reference the legal basis for decisions by civil servants will negatively impact the rule of law and make people less confident in the government."
She urged civil servants to carry out their duties selflessly and with good intentions because they are serving the public.
The general administration department, courts, law offices and police forces play crucial roles in implementing the rule of law effectively and are responsible for protecting the public, she said.
"A great many of the complaints sent to higher authorities are concerned with the police," she added. "If the public is afraid to seek help from the police or does not wish to come forward about a criminal matter, the relationship and cooperation between the public and the police will deteriorate. Consequently, the rule of law will stumble."
U Thein Than Oo, of the Independent Lawyers' Association of Myanmar, said the capacity of law enforcement personnel was limited and that the rule of law was too weak in Myanmar.
"Aung Win Khaing [a suspect in last year’s assassination of prominent lawyer U Ko Ni] is at large, and people criticize that two Reuters reporters were set up," he said.
According to the 2008 Constitution, the lawyer said, the military-run Home Affairs Ministry — and in particular the police force and general administration department, which it oversees — were mainly responsible for these cases. He said the civilian government was next in line.
Thein Than Oo blamed the lack of rule of law on the lack of cooperation between departments.
"Departments should not work as an entity and make decisions on their own. Rather, they should cooperate with each other," he said.
If good laws only exist in books and are not applied to people’s lives, the rule of law cannot be said to exist, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi said. Her National League for Democracy party contested the 2015 election with its eyes fixed on the rule of law, she added.
"Only with the rule of law can other things succeed, for example peace. Some argue that peace should be the top priority, not the rule of law. But without the rule of law, peace will not last long," she said.
The rule of law, peace and the stability of the country were interconnected and the concern and responsibility of every single citizen, said Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.
She urged civil servants not to perform their duties only when there were complaints, but to provide their services dutifully and responsibly.
"To improve the broader governance practices of the public sector, accountability and transparency in decision making and complaints handling are necessary," she said.
The two-day conference, which ends Thursday, was organized by the Attorney General's Office to facilitate discussion on the challenges facing the rule of law in Myanmar and how to improve it.
MANDALAY — The Mandalay City Development Committee (MCDC) is planning to revive traditional Burmese Thingyan nights to attract more visitors during the upcoming celebrations.
After success last year with a traditional Thingyan night walkway, the MCDC will repeat its efforts. By separating the old and new celebrations, it hopes to attract more visitors. High-pressure sprays, DJs and pavilions will still be on some sides of the Mandalay Palace moat, but the south side outside the old palace will be a strolling walkway, with no vehicles allowed.
"The Thingyan night walkway will attract visitors who want to enjoy Mandalay nightlife but in a traditional fashion," U Kyaw Yin Myint, an MCDC committee member, told The Irrawaddy.
According to the MCDC, local and foreign visitors increased considerably last year, largely because of the traditional walkway along the southern palace wall.
Tourists participate in the Mandalay Thingyan Walkway in 2017. ( Photo: Zaw Zaw / The Irrawaddy)
Visitors will be able to enjoy traditional delicacies, puppet shows and classic Myanmar films.
Along with a number of bookstores and souvenir shops, the Thingyan night walkway will be open from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. during the festival.
"We are taking great care to have fresh, quality food to sell at the walking street," said U Kyaw Yin Myint.
"Our target is to revive tradition and create a major festive attraction in the country while also letting the youth be current," he added.
The Thingyan water festival is the annual celebration for Myanmar New Year. Many Myanmar people believe that throwing water on others before New Year's Day will wash away the bad things from the prior year.
People used to use cups and buckets to politely pour water on each other but pressured water pumps and sprays have become popular in recent years.
This year, Thingyan celebrations will run from April 13 to 17.
YANGON — The Myanmar Embassy in Washington, D.C., stated that the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum was "misled and exploited by people who failed to see the true situation in Rakhine State" upon the museum's revocation of its Elie Wiesel Award from Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.
The museum released an announcement on Tuesday about the withdrawal of the award that they honored her with in 2012, stating that the Myanmar State Counselor had failed to use her moral authority to address the Myanmar military's orchestration of crimes against Rohingya Muslims.
More than 680,000 Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh after army clearance operations in northern Rakhine State since August last year in the wake of serial attacks on security outposts in the region by the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army.
Those who made it to camps on the Bangladeshi side reported arbitrary killings, rapes and torching of property by the Myanmar Army. The UN labeled the actions as ethnic cleansing.
In its statement, the museum dedicated to Nazi's victims of World War II said it "had hoped Daw Aung San Suu Kyi would have done something to condemn and stop the military's brutal campaign and to express solidarity with the targeted Rohingya population" as someone celebrated for her commitment to human dignity and universal human rights.
"We understand the difficult situation you must face in confronting decades of military misrule and violence in your country and that institution's still powerful constitutional role. However, the military's orchestration of the crimes against Rohingya and the severity of the atrocities in recent months demand that you use your moral authority to address this situation," said the statement.
On Wednesday, The Myanmar Embassy in Washington said: "We immensely regret that the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum has been misled and exploited by people who failed to see the true situation in fair judgment on the situation in Rakhine State."
It continued that the decision of the museum would have "no bearing on the determination of Myanmar people in supporting the leadership of the State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi in nation-building but will make the government to redouble its effort in finding a lasting solution in Rakhine State."
The museum is the first US institution to revoke an award from Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. Since last year, the Nobel laureate has had at least three honors stripped, including the Freedom of the City awards by Oxford, Glasgow and Sheffield City Councils and the Honorary Presidency award by the London School of Economics.
YANGON — The Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC) has granted permission to two joint ventures involving foreign partners to supply power to areas not connected to the national grid.
"One is for households in Ye Township, and the other is for the developer of an industrial zone in Bago," said U Than Aung Kyaw, deputy director-general of the Directorate of Investment and Company Administration (DICA), at a press conference on Monday.
The Southern Myanmar Development Co., a Singapore-Thai-Myanmar joint venture, won a contract to supply electricity to villages in Ye Township, Mon State. According to DICA, the 26-billion-kyat project will generate 10 megawatts of electricity daily with a diesel generator. The Singapore and Thai partners each hold 33 percent in the venture, while the local partner holds 34 percent.
i-Land Park Myanmar Co., an 80-20 Singapore-Myanmar venture with initial investment of $23.18 billion, will supply 19 megawatts to Singapore-backed i-Land Park Myanmar Industrial Zone in Bago Region. It will use a type of fuel to generate electricity, DICA said.
According to MIC's statistics, in the current fiscal year, Myanmar citizens have invested 172,267.324 million kyats in four electricity-supply projects, and foreigners have invested $405.774 million in five projects.
Up to 70 percent of the country's population, the majority of them living in rural areas, has yet to be connected to the national power grid, DICA said.
Myanmar Oil and Gas Services Society Chairman U Kyaw Kyaw Hlaing said: "Most of the rural areas are out of reach of the national grid. Even if they get electricity from private suppliers, locals have to pay 250 to 300 kyats per unit of electricity, which is five times the rate in Yangon."
"The government should be fair to the whole country. It is not fair that electricity prices are cheap in Yangon and high in rural areas," he added.
"It is good that foreigners are investing in the electricity sector; the more investment, the better. But it is more important that electricity prices fall," he said.
"Rich people use a lot of electricity. The government said it loses [money] for every unit it produces. This means it is subsidizing power for the wealthy. The government should change. Only then will it be fair," he added.
The government spends about 333 billion kyats annually on electricity subsidies, according to figures from the Ministry of Electricity and Energy.
According to the 2014 national census, 77.5 percent of the urban population uses electricity, but in rural areas, the percentage is just 14.9 percent.
Domestic electricity consumption increases by 15 percent every year, according to the ministry.
Currently, households pay 35 kyats per unit up to 100 units and 40 kyats per unit up to 200 units. Above 200 units the rate is 50 kyats.
Industrial users pay 75 kyats per unit up to 500 units, 100 kyats from 501-10,000 units, 125 kyats from 10,001-50,000 units, and 150 kyats from 50,001 to 300,000 units. The unit price drops to 100 kyats for usage above 300,000 units.
In honor of International Women's Day on Thursday, The Irrawaddy revisits a selection of stories from the past five years featuring noteworthy women involved in a diverse range of fields. The women include a filmmaker, self-defense instructor, human rights activist, harpist, yoga instructor, company founder, peace activist, UN award winner, democracy activist and journalist. They are just a few of the many women – who together comprise half of our nation – making notable contributions to the country's social and economic development, while helping to bring peace and understanding to our society.
Let's work together to make a world of equality for all, in which there is no place for discrimination.
"It was my dream to start up a local publication that reflects local needs, reports on the huge human rights violations and raises people’s concerns," said Seng Mai Maran.
YANGON — The Rakhine State government is building a ring road on a popular island off its southern coast in hopes of drawing more tourists to Ngapali beach, though some fear the environmental fallout.
During Tuesday’s session of the state Parliament, Hotels and Tourism Minister U Kyaw Aye Thein, who also serves as Rakhine’s minister of finance, planning and economy, said construction had started recently, according to lawmaker U Naing Kywe Aye, Thandwe (2).
U Naing Kywe Aye said he had asked whether the local government was developing Pearl Island, also known as Apaw-Ye Kyun, with minimal impact on its biodiversity, which could attract international holidaymakers.
Lured by its deep blue waters and white sand beach, many visitors to Ngapali take the 10-minute boat ride to the island. This summer, nearly 100 foreigners and a thousand locals have made the trip daily.
Visitors to Pearl Island enjoy its white sand beach earlier this year. / Aung Aung / Facebook
According to U Naing Kywe Aye, the tourism minister said the ring road would be mainly for walking and cycling and that the government would invite interested investors to further develop the island under the state’s supervision.
The island already has a helicopter landing pad, a viewing tower, and a few modest restaurants operating without business licenses.
Some locals — recalling the fallout from past development projects — are wary of seeing the island developed further.
Aung Aung, a Ngapali boat operator, told The Irrawaddy that trees were being felled to make way for the new road. He feared yet more damage to the island’s ecosystem if dynamite is used to source local rocks for a retaining wall, a move he said could also drain the beach of its white sand in the rainy season.
"Leaving Pearl Island alone is the best way to preserve its natural beauty", Aung Aung said.
He said more visitors would also generate more trash, which, if not properly managed, could end up driving tourist numbers to Ngapali down again.
Oliver Esser Soe Thet, who owns a local hotel and consults the government on sustainable development, said Pearl Island’s bats and eagles were also among its main attractions but complained that its unregulated restaurants have turned it into a virtual “garbage dump,” drawing complaints from visitors and boat operators alike, but to little effect.
He urged Rakhine State Chief Minister U Nyi Pu to consult with both local and international experts on how to protect the area’s natural environment, including garbage and waste management systems.
He also suggested learning from eco-tourism ventures elsewhere that operate their own gardens and playing up the local area’s traditions and customs, possibly even reviving its pearl breeding industry. “Make Rakhine history alive,” he said.
The ring road will run about 3.2 km around the island, which covers less than half a square kilometer.
Pearl Island. / Google Earth
Locals gave the island its name based on the pearl breeding project the government started there in the 1970s. The state-owned enterprise successfully produced natural pearls, including the prized Tahitian black pearl variety. But it came to an abrupt end in 1990 when nearly 100 pearls were stolen, including about 10 black pearls.
U Kyaw Aye Thein, the tourism and finance minister, could not be reached for comment.
A Myanmar artist is concerned for the world. There have been deadly shootings at schools in the United States. Extremists have executed reporters. Around the world, there are wars, natural disasters and epidemics. And Myanmar is no exception. There is considerable uncertainty about its political transition.
"Faced with all this, I've thought about how I can respond as an artist, what artistic creation I can make. I decided to create works about peace and love. I drew families, symbols of peace, and Nobel peace laurates," said Myat Kyawt.
His paintings depict toy doves, happy families and children playing. There is also an installation about families. In one piece, a mother helps her toddler walk.
"The new government came to power with love. It even created opportunities for its enemies. It carried out a revolution with love and created change for more than 50 million people. I have dedicated my work to these causes," said Myat Kyawt.
Myat Kyawt's 'Great Love Line' exhibition will be on display through Friday at OK Art Gallery at Aung San Stadium in Yangon.
Myat Kyawt has been making art for decades, but he never seems to run out of new ideas and ways to approach his craft. He is never satisfied with simply creating new things, and has continuously created performance art depicting love and unity.
In one of his performances, he carried a painting into crowds. "This is what I call brining art to the people. Children, grandmas, and women liked it very much," said Myat Kyawt.
Myat Kyawt's 'Great Love Line' exhibition will be on display through Friday at OK Art Gallery at Aung San Stadium in Yangon.
His exhibition 'Great Love Line' will be on display through Friday at OK Art Gallery at Aung San Stadium (North Wing) in Yangon.
There will be a total of 30 pictures, 15 paintings, four installations, as well as a performance at the exhibition. Myat Kyawt has so far organized 15 solo shows and dozens of group exhibitions at home and abroad.
Myat Kyawt's 'Great Love Line' exhibition will be on display through Friday at OK Art Gallery at Aung San Stadium in Yangon.
He has won awards and his paintings have been collected by museums in Germany, New Zealand and Singapore.
"Art can by one way or another affect the human race. Art is to me the virtue of serving the interests of mankind," said Myat Kyawt.
Myat Kyawt's 'Great Love Line' exhibition will be on display through Friday at OK Art Gallery at Aung San Stadium in Yangon.
COLOMBO — A grenade blast killed one person in further violence between majority Buddhist Sinhalese and minority Muslims in Sri Lanka on Wednesday as the government moved to block social messaging networks in an effort to halt the bloodshed.
The South Asian country has been rocked by communal clashes in its central highlands since Sunday following attacks on Muslims by nationalist Sinhalese crowds.
Communal tensions have grown over the past year with some hardline Buddhist groups accusing Muslims of forcing people to convert to Islam and vandalizing Buddhist archaeological sites. Muslim groups deny these allegations.
Some Buddhist nationalists have also protested against the presence in Sri Lanka of Muslim Rohingya asylum seekers from mostly Buddhist Myanmar, where Buddhist nationalism has also been on the rise.
Police declared a curfew until 4 p.m. Thursday in the central highlands district of Kandy, epicenter of the violence following the death of a Buddhist youth after an altercation with a group of Muslims.
Buddhist mobs attacked mosques and businesses belonging to Muslims overnight, residents told Reuters on Wednesday, even after President Maithripala Sirisena decreed an emergency for seven days to curb the violence.
Police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekara said there had been several disturbances throughout Tuesday night in the Kandy area, renowned for its tea plantations and scenic hills.
“One person was killed and three were injured during the day after a hand grenade exploded,” Gunasekara told Reuters, without elaborating. Police have arrested seven people and three police officers were injured in the incidents, he said.
The severed head of a youth was found in a mainly Muslim area in the capital Colombo, adding to tensions, residents said. Police said they were investigating.
Some of the violence has been instigated by Facebook postings that threatened more attacks on Muslims, the government said. On Wednesday, it said Facebook, Viber and WhatsApp would be blocked across Sri Lanka for three days.
Facebook, which owns WhatsApp, said it was working to identify and remove incitements to violence, and was in contact with the government and private organizations.
“We have clear rules against hate speech and incitement to violence and work hard to keep it off our platform,” the social network said in a statement.
The crisis spurred opposition parties to shelve a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe for alleged mismanagement of the economy that was originally set to be filed on Monday.
On a visit to Kandy, President Maithripala Sirisena urged religious leaders to do more to rebuild inter-communal peace.
Facebook Postings
Muslims in Colombo said they fear for the safety of relatives living in Kandy.
Mohamed Khan, a 71-year-old worker in a soap factory in Colombo, said his relatives in Kandy were in hiding. “They say the police and military are…not taking any action,” he said.
Analysts said Muslim-owned businesses were being targeted, as many Sinhalese believe that the minority group holds disproportionate economic power.
Sri Lanka is still healing from a 26-year civil war with Tamil separatist rebels that was plagued by atrocities and ended in 2009. Sinhalese comprise around 70 percent of the South Asian nation’s 21 million population, ethnic Tamils – who are mainly Hindu – about 13 percent, and Muslims around 9 percent.
UN human rights chief Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein said he was alarmed by recurring episodes of violence against ethnic and religious minorities in Sri Lanka and wanted accountability.
“There should be no impunity, either for the incitement that led to the attacks, or the attacks themselves,” he said in a speech to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.
The US State Department issued a security alert warning of the possibility of further unrest in Kandy.
Tourism, one of the foreign exchange mainstays of Sri Lanka’s $81 billion economy, could take a serious hit from the violence as Kandy is a prime destination for foreign travellers.
Kandy is located in the heart of the Indian Ocean island nation’s tea-growing region but an Indian trader said the crisis was unlikely to affect global tea markets in the near term.
“This will delay shipments, but won’t have any impact on global prices, as Kenya and India have ample supplies to substitute. If supplies remain disrupted for more than a month, then prices could go up,” said a tea broker in the eastern Indian city of Kolkata.
Sri Lanka is the world’s third biggest tea exporter.
Today, Myanmar and countries around the world are celebrating International Women's Day. Since its inception roughly 110 years ago, International Women's Day has provided a forum for women to protest discrimination and express solidarity across religious, ethnic, and social divides. Without question, International Women's Day has played a critical role in increasing awareness of gender equality issues around the world and in catalyzing action to end gender-based discrimination.
Today, International Women's Day is taking place against a backdrop of unprecedented social mobilization for women's rights and gender equality globally. Ending violence against and sexual harassment of women and girls, ensuring the reproductive and sexual health and rights of women and girls, and engaging male champions are the clarion call of campaigns and movements including "UNiTE to End Violence Against Women", "End Violence Now – 1 Billion Rising", "Me Too", "She Decides", "HeForShe", and "Time's Up". In Myanmar, the slogans that women's networks and organizations are rallying for today include "Press for Progress" and "It's Not OK", which aims to challenge and influence change in attitudes and behaviors that condone and tolerate violence against women and girls in Myanmar society.
Global evidence demonstrates an unacceptably high prevalence of violence against women and girls in all countries, with alarming figures documented in countries in, or transitioning out of, conflict. In Myanmar, women's networks and organizations have repeatedly highlighted that violence against women and girls is pervasive and that it is a public concern that needs a well-coordinated response, rallying for a comprehensive law to prevent and prosecute violence against women and girls.
Today, March 8, the Nordic diplomatic missions of Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden join women's networks and organizations and gender equality advocates in Myanmar in celebrating International Women's Day and in advocating for gender equality and women's empowerment. Ending violence against women and girls is fundamental to this agenda, and we urge the government of Myanmar to adopt and enact comprehensive legislation to protect women and girls from violence.
Peter Lysholt Hansen is ambassador of Denmark; Riikka Laatu is ambassador of Finland; Tone Tinnes is ambassador of Norway; Johan Hallenborg is head of office of the Embassy of Sweden, Section Office Yangon.
YANGON — Police in Myanmar searched the family home of Reuters reporter Wa Lone looking for material “related to news” the night after he and a colleague were arrested on suspicion of violating the Official Secrets Act, an officer told a court on Wednesday.
Myanmar has previously denied accusations Wa Lone, 31, and fellow Reuters journalist Kyaw Soe Oo, 27, were targeted over their reporting of a crisis in northern Rakhine state.
Court proceedings are under way in Yangon to decide if they will faces charges under the colonial-era Official Secrets Act, which carries a maximum penalty of 14 years in prison.
Before Wednesday’s hearing a doctor examined and took blood samples from the pair at the request of the defense, after their lawyer raised concerns that their health had deteriorated in prison. Both have been in custody since their arrest on Dec. 12.
Prosecution witness Police Major Soe Aung told the court he had been sent to search Wa Lone’s family home in northern Yangon on the evening of Dec. 13.
Asked during cross-examination what police were looking for, he said the 10 or so police officers who entered the house were “searching in relation to news." He did not elaborate.
Investigation into Killings
The reporters had been working on a Reuters investigation into the killing of 10 Rohingya Muslim men who were buried in a mass grave in northern Rakhine State after being hacked to death or shot by ethnic Rakhine Buddhist villagers and soldiers.
The military excavated the shallow grave in December, days after Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo were arrested, saying they had received a tip-off. Authorities are taking action against 10 members of the security forces and six villagers, according to a government spokesman.
“Police went my home to search about Rakhine and what we were reporting, and they surely aimed to sue us to stop our reporting,” Wa Lone told reporters during a break.
Myanmar’s ambassador to the United Nations, Hau Do Suan, said last month that the journalists were not arrested for reporting a story, but were accused of “illegally possessing confidential government documents."
The government prosecutor, Kyaw Min Aung, did not respond to a Reuters reporter who attempted to ask him about the case after the hearing on Wednesday. Government spokespeople have declined to comment on the case, citing the ongoing court proceedings.
Soe Aung testified that during the search police found a reporters’ notebook from the Myanmar Times, where Wa Lone had worked prior to joining Reuters in 2016, that included the phone number of a leader of an ethnic Rakhine armed group, which was recorded on a police search form at the time of the search.
Police also seized a broken laptop, a hard drive belonging to Wa Lone’s younger brother, and an empty bag during the search, according to the police form and Wa Lone’s family.
Restaurant Meeting
The reporters have said that they had been invited to meet two police officers at a northern Yangon restaurant on Dec. 12, and were arrested almost immediately after being handed rolled up papers by the policemen, whom they had not met before.
Police officers have testified in court, however, that they were arrested after they were stopped and searched at a traffic checkpoint by officers who were unaware they were journalists.
Also on Wednesday, Kyaw Min, a 21-year-old waiter from the restaurant where the reporters met the two police, told the court he could not remember seeing Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo.
Kyaw Min was the second member of the restaurant’s staff called to testify by prosecutors to say they had no knowledge of the arrest. He repeatedly told the court he could not remember details of the night of Dec. 12.
Asked why he was a witness in the case, Kyaw Min said he had come forward to make a statement after being told his restaurant was mentioned in a newspaper article about the case.
The NLD government's relatively quiet campaign against nationalist monks has burst into the headlines again in the past few weeks. First, on February 21, Minister of Religious Affairs and Culture U Aung Ko made a request to the State Sangha Maha Nayaka Committee (Ma Ha Na, in its Burmese acronym) that the group step up its disciplining of monks who speak or behave in ways that disgrace the religion. Then, on February 25, another monk named Ashin Issariya (famous for his organizing role in the 2007 "Saffron Revolution" and probably better known by his pen name "King Zero") tried to hold a press conference to call on the government and Ma Ha Na to discipline U Wirathu for disrespecting Buddhism. It was disrupted by a group of aggressive "nationalist monks," which seemed to prompt another statement from U Aung Ko the following day. In this statement, he claimed that the government found it difficult to act against these monks because of a lack of consensus within society on the proper political role of monks.
Hand-wringing about monks in politics is nothing new in Myanmar. Unsurprisingly, this is itself a deeply politicized topic, where one's approval of a monk's "political" activities often depends on how much those activities align with one's own political perspective. (It is also important to note the ways in which the term "political monk" has been used to delegitimize monastic activities since at least the colonial era, and regularly under previous military governments.) It may be a bit disingenuous of the minister to suggest that, in order for the authorities to be able to take action, society needs to make a definitive determination on what has always been and likely always will be an essentially contested question within Buddhist cultures. But this recent series of events shines light on how the precarity of religious authority in Myanmar today has shaped the current incarnation of "Buddhist nationalist" groups.
For the last 18 months, I have been part of a research team (that also includes Dr. Ma Khin Mar Mar Kyi, Aye Thein and Saw Aung Than Wai) for the ESRC-funded project "Understanding 'Buddhist nationalism' in Myanmar." Part of our goal has been to track the nuances and variation in the phenomenon of "Buddhist nationalism" in different contexts across Myanmar, essentially disaggregating a movement that we believe is neither unitary nor unified.
Crisis of Authority
Recently, members of our research team gave a talk at the University of Oxford in which we positioned the emergence of Ma Ba Tha (the Organization for the Protection of Race and Religion, mostly re-branded since June 2017 as the Buddha Dhamma Parahita Foundation) within an extended crisis of religious and religio-political authority in Myanmar. (You can listen to a podcast of the talk here.) We know that the current transition has generated deeply felt anxieties regarding the resilience of Buddhism in the country. While this has been most notably and problematically directed against a perceived existential threat from Islam, there is a complementary line of concern related to the level of devotion in Buddhist practice and corresponding levels of respect for Buddhist institutions such as the sangha (monkhood).
Ma Ba Tha rose to prominence amidst persistent criticisms of Ma Ha Na, which I describe briefly below. But, however much Burmese monks might resent the politically motivated centralization of the monkhood, they also seem to value the existence of the monastic authority, both because of its role in keeping discipline within the sangha and as a voice of advocacy for monks and for Buddhism, more generally. Persistent concerns that Ma Ha Na is simply a tool of the government (whichever government is in power) run alongside a sense that the organization is necessary, but no longer sufficient, for the protection of Buddhism. It is these sentiments, we argue, that created fertile ground for a group like Ma Ba Tha to emerge and occupy a crucial religio-political space. And it is disputes over the proper boundaries of that space and the role of monks and political authorities within it, that underlie recent events related to monastic discipline and governance.
Criticisms of Ma Ha Na
The 47 monks at the top of the Ma Ha Na hierarchy are often seen as old and out of touch with the day-to-day concerns of the monkhood and of Buddhism more broadly. Most critics stop short of claiming that individual monks within Ma Ha Na are "corrupt," but there are worries about its senior figures having become too comfortable and that their decisions have been influenced by their receiving titles and respect from high-ranking lay figures. They are particularly criticized for being under the control of the government, under whose auspices Ma Ha Na was created in the 1980s. As one monk told us, "Under normal circumstances, it's good to have an organization like Ma Ha Na. However, it shouldn't exist, as it currently does, in a position of subordination whereby it only does the government's bidding."
Many monks encounter Ma Ha Na only in its regulatory capacity, and even then, their interactions would take place largely at arm's length, and only sporadically. Ma Ha Na rules monastic life from a distance, its dormant administrative mechanism becoming active only when serious problems arise, such as disputes over monastic property. Otherwise, the interactions between local monasteries and abbots and different levels of Ma Ha Na authorities remain at a bare minimum. As a result, the central organization only seems to appear in monks' lives when it is "interfering" in their affairs.
At the same time, others (such as Ashin Issariya and U Aung Ko) express concerns regarding the regulation of monastic conduct in general. Ma Ha Na is supposed to undertake this purification duty and it is seen as not consistently carrying out this duty. It should be noted that this can often be a self-interested critique, in that monks strongly believe that other monks should be disciplined and held to the vinaya (rules of monastic conduct) more strictly, but see regulation of their own conduct and activities as unjustified interference.
Many monks seem to want a monastic hierarchy that is not only independent of the government, but can act as a strong defender of monastic interests and of Buddhism more generally. Advocating on behalf of Buddhism would not only include engaging with the government, but taking a more active role in encouraging, managing and supporting activities that strengthen the religion, such as parahita (social work) and thathana pyu (building up the religion through the construction of religious edifices, implementing Buddhist education, or providing material support to monks).
But importantly, there are (often vague and unarticulated) limits to how much monks should be involved in mundane affairs. Senior monks within Ma Ha Na might be restricted in the available actions they could take, because of the perceived dependence of Ma Ha Na on the government, the sluggish pace of the monastic bureaucracy, or because the dictates of the vinaya, while ideally providing a code of conduct for all monks, might weigh more heavily on more senior and respectable monks.
Ma Ba Tha Fills a Religio-Political Vacuum
This point brings us back to consideration of Ma Ba Tha's emergence as a group that straddles the religious and political spheres, and compels us to re-think its relationship with Ma Ha Na. This relationship can seem competitive and antagonistic, but recall that, even in the moments where Ma Ha Na has censured Ma Ba Tha, it has done so in very particular ways, and senior Ma Ha Na monks have continued to express support for the shared goal of protecting the Buddhist religion and Buddhist community more broadly.
There is, then, a way in which monks from both groups could see their coexistence as complementary and mutually beneficial. That is, Ma Ba Tha, as a sangha-lay organization, could be seen to be in a better position to respond to perceived "emergencies," whether communal violence, natural disasters or government policies perceived as hostile to Buddhism. Of course, the other side of this is the expectation that Ma Ha Na would be more focused and effective in its areas of competency, such as in advocating for monks and maintaining discipline within the sangha.
And, despite occasional harsh public criticisms of Ma Ha Na (mostly from more firebrand monks like U Wirathu), the language with which these critiques are expressed reveals the persistent influence of the monastic hierarchy and the norms that govern intra-sangha relations. Even the softest form of condemnation is made in such a way that it is carefully depersonalized. In our interviews, even monks who were strong detractors of Ma Ha Na wouldn't name particular figures within Ma Ha Na's senior leadership. Similarly, Ma Ba Tha's senior monks have always been appropriately deferential in response to Ma Ha Na's public orders against their group.
Challenging or Strengthening Ma Ha Na?
These intra-sangha tensions are rarely discussed in analyses of Ma Ba Tha, which usually focus on anti-Muslim attitudes— which, while still an important and consequential part of the group's ideology, are not the only relevant aspect of its existence. Because Ma Ba Tha emerged during the previous, military-aligned political administration, most analysis of the group has highlighted government support for the organization, especially in the context of the 2015 election. A more contentious relationship between Ma Ba Tha and the current NLD government has brought these critiques of Ma Ha Na back to the surface, reminding us that both religious and political authorities try to influence the other and exercise some control over the other's realm, and that religious authority in Myanmar is continuously contested and re-negotiated. Paying attention to these dynamics helps provide a more accurate picture of what Ma Ba Tha is, how it has been evolving, and where the potential fracture points are, both within the organization and within the sangha more broadly.
Broader insecurities about the place, status and durability of Buddhism that circulate in Myanmar today have sometimes been directed towards the perceived external threat from Islam. But they have also been focused internally, via a discourse on inadequacies in sangha governance and a real or perceived decline in respect for monastic moral authority. While the criticisms of Ma Ha Na in the present period appear to be consistent with those expressed in past decades, they are refracted through a perceived crisis of Buddhism in present moment, occurring in the context of the expansion of political space within Myanmar and dynamics of globalization more broadly. Ma Ba Tha was not intended as a direct challenge to religious authorities in Myanmar, but it has provided an effective vehicle for carrying out activities seen as outside the scope of Ma Ha Na's remit. It has continued calls for the reform of monastic governance, while also expanding the institutional networks through which monks can conduct their religious, social and (sometimes) political activities.
We can see the same dynamics present in the recent statements by U Aung Ko and Ashin Issariya. The latter is concerned about the effects that U Wirathu's words and actions might have on the reputation of Buddhism. (Ironically, some senior monks expressed exactly the same concern when they founded Ma Ba Tha almost five years ago.) The minister knows that he walks a fine line in trying to manage and discipline the sangha from the position of a layperson, with no moral authority over a monk. While the entire monkhood tries to keep these disputes hidden behind closed doors, they spill into public view in periods of heightened tension or fears related to the perpetuation of Buddhism. Myanmar's still-uncertain transition has not assuaged any of those fears, which likely means we can expect to see conflicts between monks continue, accompanied by calls for Ma Ha Na to do its job and discipline "rowdy" monks. But it also suggests that Ma Ba Tha continues to remain relevant and influential— in part because it operates in a religio-political space that the formal monastic authorities are unable or unwilling to occupy themselves.
