Wednesday, March 28, 2018

The Irrawaddy Magazine

The Irrawaddy Magazine

Rakhine Government Puts Brakes on Ngapali Beach Hotel Project

Posted: 28 Mar 2018 06:40 AM PDT

YANGON – Early this year, Rakhine State Chief Minister U Nyi Pu ordered a halt to an upscale hotel project on southern Rakhine State's unique Ngapali Beach. Since 2015, at least 30 tons of beach sand have been used to fill a shallow inlet through wetland known locally as Lin Thar brook to accommodate the project, said Lin Thar village administrator U Myint Tun.

Rakhine State cabinet members have determined that the high-end project violated the Conservation of Water Resources and Rivers Law enacted under ex-military dictator Sen-Gen Than Shwe, as well as coastal directives issued by the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism. Despite this, the developer was granted land ownership documents by the Land Registration Department of Thandwe district, which is under the control of the General Administration Department.

The project is situated between the Golden Coconut Garden, which is owned by the Myanmar military, and the Silver Beach resort on the Lin Thar village seashore. An approximately 50-meter-wide inlet flows in a zig-zag through the village, and a large sandbank protrudes from the mouth of the river.

According to Lin Thar administrators, nearly 100 villagers complained to the Rakhine government three years ago after fishermen lost their docking areas, which had been lined with nipa palms and mangrove forests, when businessmen involved in the hotel project used dredging machines to pump beach sand from the foreshore.

A newly built white sand compound next to Lin Thar brook on Ngapali shore. This area was once crowded with nipa palms and mangrove forests

"Once, fishing boats could dock there, but it's gone now," U Myint Tun said. "I can't say exactly how many tons of beach sand they removed, but I am sure it's a lot," he said.

Last week, Rakhine State Planning and Finance Minister U Kyaw Aye Thein confirmed that the cabinet had ordered a halt to the project, but he could not provide detailed information such as the total land area of the project.

A hotelier from Ngapali told The Irrawaddy on condition of anonymity that the land was bought by U Soe Myint, a former shareholder in First Myanmar Investment (FMI) group. Ngapali residents know him as U Sein Gay, who served as a mayor of Pyin Oo Lwin in Mandalay division around 2001. He currently operates Hotel Pyin Oo Lwin, which is a part of the Soe and Associates hotel group. His status as a shareholder in FMI group remains unclear.

A senior staff member at Hotel Pyin Oo Lwin confirmed to The Irrawaddy over the phone on Wednesday that her boss bought an area of wetland in Ngapali but had no further information. U Soe Myint declined to comment via an employee on Wednesday.

The hotelier disclosed that U Soe Myint tried to resell the disputed land to some foreigners with the help of a US lawyer in order to start a profit-sharing project, but it was canceled. The investor had intended to put about USD40 million into the luxury beach resort.

Both the hotelier and Lin Thar village administrator U Tun Myint estimated that around 5 or 6 acres of mangrove lands had been covered by salty beach sand, and that around 5 acres remained unspoiled. A hotel owner estimated that U Soe Myint's project had resulted in about 30 tons of beach sand being moved, and even labeled the act as "ecotourism crime".

"The small river has been shrunk to nearly half of its former total acreage," he said.

A boat docks in Lin Thar inlet off southern Rakhine State's Ngapali Beach.

During a recent visit, The Irrawaddy independently verified that the developer had laid concrete blocks and filled the site in with white sand, which could clearly be seen from the air, surrounded by trees.

Breaching MOHT's coastal directives is not unusual in Ngapali, where investors and residents routinely violate them for their personal interest. As a result of large-scale sand mining and the construction of huge retaining walls along the seashore for the purpose of keeping out high waves during the rainy season, once-pristine Ngapali Beach is now marked by a steep slope and foot-high sand terraces. For various reasons, Ngapali, once ranked No. 1 by travelers, was not among Trip Advisor's top 25 beaches for 2018.

Early this month, Union Hotels and Tourism Minister U Ohn Maung, Chief Minister U Nyi Pu and several cabinet members held a meeting with hotelier associations in Ngapali. Some guesthouse owners strongly criticized the lack of law enforcement and continued illegal sand mining in Ngapali.

Just last weekend, two motorboats from Irrawaddy delta bearing the name Sai Shan Tun mined with heavy equipment right in front of the standing Buddha stupa in Gyeiktaw village and directly pumped the sand to a nearby compound, despite government officials' insistence that sand mining is strictly prohibited on Ngapali Beach.

The post Rakhine Government Puts Brakes on Ngapali Beach Hotel Project appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Bagan Steps Up Efforts to Stop Climbers After Latest Temple Tumble

Posted: 28 Mar 2018 06:13 AM PDT

MANDALAY — Officials in Bagan are planning to do more to warn people against climbing the pagodas of Bagan after a German tourist was injured in a fall on Tuesday.

Yulia Krylova, 22, fell off one of the relatively smaller of the area’s thousands of pagodas after watching the sun set and was sent to the Nyaung Oo general hospital to be treated for a minor head injury.

Because people are now prohibited from climbing the pagodas typically most popular for sunset views, visitors are clambering up the smaller temples, which can still be risky.

"We've prohibited the climbing of the pagodas since the earthquake hit and have requested the hotels and guesthouses to inform the tourists. However, the incident on Tuesdays shows our efforts are still weak," said U Aung Aung Kyaw, director of the Department of Archaeology, National Museum and Library's Bagan branch, part of the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Culture.

The department said it will put up more notice boards around Bagan and remind hotels and guesthouses to tell tourists that climbing the pagodas is prohibited.

"Since it is very hard for us to keep an eye on everyone and every location, we hope the tourists will also understand the situation and avoid taking risks. Instead, we would like to encourage the use of the sunset viewing spots that we made," U Aung Aung Kyaw said.

Nearly 400 pagodas were damaged in the earthquake of August 2016. Shwesandaw Pagoda, especially popular for its sunset views, was closed to the public after the terrace collapsed last October.

The department prohibited the climbing of all pagodas in Bagan the following month after an American tourist fell to her death.

The department has built three earthen hills around Bagan for sunset views to help discourage climbing of the pagodas.

"It is not uncommon for visitors to fall from pagodas in Bagan. The incident on Tuesday was the fourth in 2017-2018. We would like the visitors to use the sunset viewing spots rather than risking their lives to climb the pagodas," U Aung Aung Kyaw said.

According to his department’s records, about 900 people would climb Shwesandaw Pagoda a day before the ban.

"The views from the pagodas are fantastic. But there are safety reasons, and in our traditional point of view it is somehow inappropriate for people to climb the pagodas. That is why we have to ban the climbing," he said.

With an application to grant world heritage site-status to Bagan now before UNESCO, some have complained that the earthen hills could hurt its chances.

"We've received many complaints and suggestions about the manmade hills. But these hills could be abolished easily when we do not want them," the director said.

"Ideas are welcome, and if we have a better solution we can remove these hills in no time. These hills cannot give the feeling of seeing the views from the pagodas, but we do not yet have a better way to provide an elevated location for viewing the sunsets besides these hills," he added.

Members of the World Heritage Site Committee will visit Bagan in mid-2018. The site will be brought up for deliberation at UNESCO's World Heritage Site convention in 2019.

The post Bagan Steps Up Efforts to Stop Climbers After Latest Temple Tumble appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

On Armed Forces Day, One Holiday, Two Visions

Posted: 28 Mar 2018 04:22 AM PDT

YANGON — The ruling National League for Democracy (NLD) and Myanmar’s military, or Tatmadaw, held separate events to mark the 73rd anniversary of Armed Forces Day on Tuesday and shared very different ideas about how to build peace and achieve national reconciliation.

While the Tatmadaw said Myanmar needed a strong and modern army to protect the country, the NLD said the military should stay out of national and ethnic affairs in order for Myanmar to see an end to decades of civil war.

The NLD marked the anniversary at its headquarters in Yangon, going with Anti-Fascist Day instead of its official name, preferred by the military. March 27 celebrates the beginning of the military’s resistance to Japanese occupation in 1945.

"Exerting influence in national and ethnic affairs with military might must be ended. Resorting to armed conflicts that result from suspicions and grudges between ethnicities and national people must also be ended," the NLD’s statement on the anniversary reads.

It adds that the NLD would never allow the loss of the country’s hard-won democratic gains, the result of the people’s resolve and perseverance.

About 100 party members attended the NLD’s event, at which party leaders recalled the hard work the NLD has put into leading the country toward democracy. They urged party members to also work hard to further their cause and to heed the example of party chair Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the country’s de facto leader.

The NLD attributed its 2015 election victory to its years of resistance to military rule, from the pro-democracy uprising of 1988 on through the start of the transition to a semi-civilian government in 2010.

Party leaders said the NLD remained committed to achieving national reconciliation and a federal system accommodating the country’s many ethnic groups. Only when Myanmar achieves peace can it truly develop, they added.

"If we want to build a safe, peaceful and prosperous nation, this can only be achieved when political parties and the Tatmadaw cooperate with the people," U Hantha Myint, a member of the NLD’s central executive committee, said in his speech. "Therefore, by embracing a policy of national reconciliation, the NLD is working hard to unify the political parties, Tatmadaw and the people."

Since the NLD took power, U Hantha Myint said, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has prioritized peace in order to establish a union based on democracy and a federal system.

"To do so, we have called for the problems between us to be solved at the table rather than with armed fighting," he said.

A Martial Mandate

Control of Myanmar is effectively split between State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and the Tatmadaw chief, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, each with a different vision of how to end the civil war.

Leaders of the country’s ethnic armed groups blame the slow pace of progress toward peace at least in part on the pair’s fraught relationship. Still, many of them see in the NLD a more committed partner than the Tatmadaw, which has been fighting with the armed groups for decades. The military-drafted 2008 Constitution prevents the government from ordering the Tatmadaw to stop fighting, or from amending the Constitution without the Tatmadaw’s consent.

Since taking the reins of government in early 2016 — minus three key ministries and a critical quarter of parliamentary seats, all still firmly in the Tatmadaw’s hands — the NLD has made little obvious progress toward peace. A planned national peace conference has been repeatedly pushed back as the Tatmadaw has blocked efforts by some ethnic groups to hold public consultations with their members in preparation.

Marking Tuesday’s anniversary in Naypyitaw, Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing said the Tatmadaw had to be strong, modern and patriotic to protect the country’s independence.

"Only when the Tatmadaw is strong will the nation be strong," the army chief said, citing a favorite saying.

Speaking on the peace process, he advocated pragmatism over idealism.

"During the peace talks, it will be more practical to negotiate about probable things, in view of long-term benefits, instead of claiming the impossible ones and procrastinating," he said.

The general said Myanmar achieved independence by fighting off the Japanese with the help of the people, saving the country from disintegration.

He said a solid foundation had been laid for a “smooth” transition to democracy and that the Tatmadaw has played an important role in the country throughout its history.

Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing urged people to practice a “Myanmar spirit without racial and religious discrimination, and to strive for the country’s development into a cohesive union. Instead of pointing to the past and finding faults, it is now high time to learn the lessons from the past and to [work] for the country's development."

The post On Armed Forces Day, One Holiday, Two Visions appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

4 Policemen Arrested Over Alleged Torture of Suspects in Irrawaddy Region

Posted: 28 Mar 2018 04:16 AM PDT

PATHEIN, Irrawaddy Region — Four policemen were arrested on Sunday over the alleged torture of two burglary suspects in a village in Irrawaddy Region's Labutta Township.

The chief of the Poe Laung police station and other ranks allegedly tortured two burglary suspects against legal procedures during interrogation sessions, said a spokesperson of the Irrawaddy Region Police Force Police Lt-Col Khin Maung Latt.

"We have launched an internal investigation," he said, adding that the investigation is being led by the chief of the Myaungmya District police force.

Police arrested Khing Maung Latt and Soe Myat Aung, who were suspected of stealing more than 40 million kyats (US$30,000) worth of goods from a house in the village of Daung Chaung in Labutta Township in January.

The four policemen from the Poe Laung police station were arrested and are currently being held in the Labutta police station after families of the two suspects filed a complaint.

Locals said the police held the two suspects for weeks without remand. The four policemen allegedly slapped the two suspects with their hands and shoes, burned their genitals with cigarettes, burned plastic rope and bottles, and hung them upside down with their hands handcuffed.

"In the first few days, we were held separately. They slapped me in my face with a slipper and hung me upside down for about five hours. They also ripped out my pubic hairs. On March 21, they burned [plastic] water bottles and dripped them on my genitals and thighs," Soe Myat Aung told The Irrawaddy.

Khin Maung Latt then confessed to burglary because of the torture and lied and said he had buried the loot under his house. As police brought him to his house to recover the goods, he showed his injuries to his wife and village administrators so that the village knew about the torture, said U Zaw Yan, a member of the Myanmar Farmers Network, a group supporting local farmers.

The wife of Khin Maung Latt and the mother of Soe Myat Aung then filed a complaint with the Labutta District police force. Khin Maung Latt and Soe Myat Aung have been receiving medical treatment at Labutta Hospital since March 23.

"I can't hold things with my hands now because of the torture. I even need my mother to feed me. Because they slapped me in my face, my jaw hurts if I speak for too long. I also have burns," Soe Myat Aung told The Irrawaddy.

Khin Maung Latt also suffered similar injuries, plus he can't hear out of his left ear, said U Zaw Yan.

"The Myanmar National Human Rights Commission said it would investigate the case within a few days," he said.

In 2003, a couple in Pathein who were suspected of a theft, committed suicide following torture by police during their detention. The inspector who led the interrogation was sacked and imprisoned and four other policemen were demoted.

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko

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Highlights of Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing’s Armed Forces Day Speech

Posted: 28 Mar 2018 04:08 AM PDT

At this year's Armed Forces Day commemoration, Myanmar military chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing did not inspect the troops from the back of a moving military vehicle, opting to do so on foot.

In his speech, he said the country is lagging behind even its neighbors in the region.

In order to catch up, he urged people to work hard and show the "spirit of Myanmar"—interestingly, he also told the people of this Buddhist majority country to avoid racial and religious prejudice.

He reiterated his commitment to protecting the military-drafted 2008 Constitution. The military chief also urged all armed groups to sign the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement without making impossible demands.

"Instead of pointing to the past and finding fault," Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing said, "it's time to learn the lessons of the past and to work for the country's development."

Independence Struggle

In what has become something of a tradition for military leaders during Armed Forces Day speeches, Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing devoted the first part of his speech to the Tatmadaw's role in the independence struggle.

He mentioned Aung San, father of State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, who led the independence struggle, using the military training he had received from Japan to drive out the British colonizers. He and the rest of the legendary "Thirty Comrades" entered Myanmar through Thailand to liberate the country, which was then colonized by the British.

Min Aung Hlaing briefly touched on the Dawei and Mawlamyine columns that entered Myanmar from Thailand.

"Among the columns, the Dawei column was the core one and it was cordially welcomed by local residents of all kinds on its arrival in Dawei," he said.

It is well known that residents of Dawei (known as Tavoy in southern Myanmar) welcomed the Myanmar soldiers, then part of the Burma Independence Army (BIA), and that many in Dawei joined the army. Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing is himself from the town.

The army chief then went on to discuss the post-independence period, and highlighted two major issues: the invasion by the Chinese Kuomintang (KMT) of eastern Myanmar, and the Mujahideen insurgency in the west.

In January 1950, KMT troops from China, backed by the American CIA, crossed the border from Yunnan and occupied northeastern Shan State, prompting the government under Prime Minister U Nu to formally complain to the UN. Myanmar forces, including the air force, bombed KMT troops and a series of fierce battles were fought.

In 1953, the UN passed a resolution calling on the US to work for the removal of the KMT troops from Myanmar.

Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing then touched on the Mujahideen insurgency in western Myanmar. In the Burmese language, he talked about the "bad, naughty kalar." (A derogatory term for those of South Asian descent).

In northern Rakhine starting in 1950, separatist Bengalis who had migrated from what was then East Pakistan took up arms against the central government, he said. The military launched several operations including "Operation Mayu." Mujahideen leaders fled or surrendered and the rebellion finally ended in 1961.

Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing related this story to demonstrate how the armed forces had played a role in protecting Myanmar's sovereignty. He did not refer directly to the current crisis in Rakhine State, however.

Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing arrived at the parade grounds in Naypyitaw on Tuesday morning to attend the 73rd anniversary of Myanmar Armed Forces Day. / Myo Min Soe / The Irrawaddy

Modern Army and Military Professionalism

The Tatmadaw leader did not fail to mention the ongoing efforts to build a modern army and to "effectively utilize technology and military professionalism to collectively serve military affairs."

Freedom of Speech

He also touched on freedom of speech.

"Today, our country is marching toward becoming a modern and developed democracy," he said.

"Democracy is a negotiation of different views from multiple directions and it is a way to live cohesively with those attitudes. Whichever policies are pursued in the country, there shall be laws, rules and regulations promulgated."

He added, "In democracy, there is freedom of speech in line with democratic norms, but these must also be in accordance with rules and regulations, as well as accountability…. Baseless speech leads to animosity and degrades the prestige of our country, hindering nation building."

On Ethnicity and Religion

The commander-in-chief stated that more than 130 ethnic groups have existed in Myanmar for decades.

"Among these ethnic groups, some number in the hundreds of thousands, while others have a population of just a handful. However, population is not the main issue, and all ethnic groups have equal rights under the Constitution. Although the majority believes in Buddhism, there is also freedom of worship for other religions. Thus, speech spreading disinformation must be restrained in relation to religion." One wondered whether he was preaching "tolerance" as some army officers, well-funded thugs, vigilantes and extreme nationalists have been accused of involvement in attacking minorities and Muslims.

On Rules of Engagement

"Discipline is the backbone of the Tatmadaw," Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing said.

"Our Tatmadaw is strong because it stands on the firm ground of good military discipline and obedience. Each and every serviceman must strictly follow rules and regulations, orders and instructions."

He told military personnel to adhere to the military code of conduct.

He said, "Moreover, apart from following civil laws, military laws and laws related to war, we must also abide by rules of engagement [ROE]. ROE is a legal instruction as well as guidance for circumstances and restrictions to be followed by units and corps in the accomplishment of military objectives. I would like to say that legal action will be taken against anyone who violates the code of conduct, rules or regulations."

The comments appeared to be aimed at deflecting international criticism of the military crackdown on Muslim insurgents, terrorists and the self-identified Rohingya population of northern Rakhine State.

On the NCA

During peace talks, he said, it would be more practical to negotiate toward likely outcomes, in view of long-term benefits, instead of wasting time and setting impossible conditions.

In conclusion, Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing spoke about peace, prosperity, development of the nation and unity, and urged people not to dwell on the past.

He repeatedly mentioned multiparty democracy and federalism and urged people to avoid racial and religious prejudice.

He did not mention anything about government leadership changes, but his speech indicated that he was trying to put his house in order as well as to counter international condemnation, tougher sanctions and accusations of ethnic cleansing and genocide.

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5 of 9 Suspects in Sittwe Bombings Released

Posted: 28 Mar 2018 02:55 AM PDT

SITTWE, Rakhine State — Five of nine suspects detained over a series of bomb attacks that injured a police officer in the third week of February in Rakhine State's Sittwe were released on Monday.

Ko Naing Soe, also known as Mae Lone, an executive committee member of the Arakan National Council (ANC), was among those who were released on Monday.

Others include locals Ko Shwe Tun Aung, Ko Maung Myint Shwe, Ko Tun Myint Shwe and Ko Maung Thein Nu.

Ko Naing Soe was charged by police under multiple articles of the Counter-Terrorism Law that carry a minimum prison sentence of 10 years.

"My arrest is ridiculing the rule of law. When will Myanmar achieve peace if police, who are supposed to enforce the law, do not respect the law and oppress the people? The fact that they are trying to forcibly arrest us is insulting the law," Ko Naing Soe told the media upon his release.

According to police procedure, suspects shall not be held on remand for more than 30 days. After eight of nine detainees spent 30 days in prison on remand, police still could not find evidence to bring them to trial and asked the court to extend their remand on other charges.

The court only approved the extension for three suspects—two over the charge of illegally crossing the border, and one for a bomb blast in Mrauk-U—and ordered the release of the five others.

Three bombs exploded in Sittwe on Feb. 24, respectively in front of the Sittwe Court, in the backyard of an outspoken state government secretary, Tin Maung Swe, and in front of the Land Records Department.

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko.

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Parliament Elects Ex-House Speaker Myanmar’s Next President

Posted: 27 Mar 2018 11:44 PM PDT

YANGON — The Union Parliament on Wednesday elected former Lower House Speaker U Win Myint the country's 10th president after U Htin Kyaw left the post last week citing the need to rest.

U Win Myint became president-elect after securing 403 votes from the 636 lawmakers of the Upper House and Lower House. The other two candidates, U Myint Swe and U Henry Van Thio, secured 211 and 18 votes, respectively.

U Myint Swe is currently the country’s acting president. Based on the number of votes he secured on Wednesday and his military background, the former lieutenant general likely landed votes not only from all 162 military lawmakers but also from more than 40 lawmakers of the main opposition, the Union Solidarity and Development Party.

"It's announced that U Win Myint, who has secured the most votes, has been elected the president," Union Parliament Speaker U Mahn Win Khaing Than announced after all the votes were counted.

State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and some union ministers attended the election as observers.

As part of the process to select a replacement for the 71-year-old U Htin Kyaw, who resigned on Mar. 21, U Win Myint was elected a vice president on Friday, paving the way for a vote for a new president.

U Win Myint submitted his resignation as speaker of the Lower House soon after U Htin Kyaw's resignation was announced on Wednesday, prompting speculation that he would become Myanmar's next president.

The 67-year-old is believed to be one of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's favorites among fellow senior National League for Democracy (NLD) members. He became Lower House speaker in February 2016, after the NLD won the 2015 general election.

During his time in the Lower House, the former lawyer was known for his strict discipline. He did not tolerate discussions that were off topic during parliamentary meetings. Even union ministers were not free from his stern warnings, not to mention lawmakers, including those from the military.

U Win Myint became an NLD central executive committee member in 2010. In 2012 he also served as secretary of the Lower House's Rule of Law, Peace and Tranquility Committee — chaired by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, who was a Lower House lawmaker at the time — after being elected to represent Yangon's Kawhmu Township.

Born in Danubyu in the Irrawaddy Delta in 1951, U Win Myint studied geology at Yangon University before moving on to study law in the 1980s. He was working as a barrister in 1988 when nationwide pro-democracy protests erupted, leading to the founding of the NLD, which he subsequently joined.

Since joining the party, U Win Myint has won three election races: in the 1990 general election, a 2012 by-election, and the last general election in 2015.

He was elected speaker of the Lower House in 2016.

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UN Chief ‘Shocked’ by Top Myanmar General’s Comments on Rohingya

Posted: 27 Mar 2018 10:10 PM PDT

YANGON — United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres expressed “shock” at comments by Myanmar’s military chief in which he said the Rohingya minority shared nothing in common with the rest of the population and that their demand for citizenship had stoked recent violence.

Nearly 700,000 Muslim Rohingya fled to Bangladesh since the military launched a crackdown in Myanmar’s western Rakhine State in response to insurgent attacks on security forces in August, according to UN estimates. The United States and UN have described the operation as ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya, which Myanmar denies.

Senior General Min Aung Hlaing said in a speech to military personnel and their families last week in northern Kachin State that Rohingya “do not have any characteristics or culture in common with the ethnicities of Myanmar,” according to his website.

The military chief also said the tensions in Rakhine were “fuelled because the Bengalis demanded citizenship,” using a term that Rohingya activists reject as implying they are illegal migrants from Bangladesh.

UN chief Guterres said in a statement on Monday he was “shocked” at the comments, and urged “all leaders in Myanmar to take a unified stance against incitement to hatred and to promote communal harmony.”

“The Secretary-General reiterates the importance of addressing the root causes of the violence and the responsibility of the Government of Myanmar to provide security and assistance to those in need,” the statement said.

Though many Rohingya say their families have lived in Myanmar for generations, they are not among the 135 officially recognized ethnic groups and so are denied citizenship.

Several calls to a military spokesman seeking comment went unanswered.

The army chief is an influential figure under Myanmar’s Constitution, which obliges State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s civilian government to share power with the military.

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China Says North Korea Pledges Denuclearization During Friendly Visit

Posted: 27 Mar 2018 09:59 PM PDT

BEIJING/SEOUL — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has pledged to denuclearize and meet US officials, China said on Wednesday after an historic meeting with President Xi Jinping, who promised China would uphold its friendship with its isolated neighbor.

After two days of speculation, China and North Korea both confirmed that Kim had visited Beijing and met Xi during what China’s Foreign Ministry called an unofficial visit to China from Sunday to Wednesday.

The China visit was Kim’s first known trip outside North Korea since he assumed power in 2011 and is believed by analysts to serve as preparation for upcoming summits with South Korea and the United States.

North Korea’s KCNA news agency made no mention of Kim’s pledge to denuclearize, or his anticipated meeting with US President Donald Trump that is planned for some time in May.

Beijing has traditionally been the closest ally of secretive North Korea, but ties have been frayed by North Korea’s pursuit of nuclear weapons and China’s backing of tough UN sanctions in response.

China’s Foreign Ministry cited Kim in a lengthy statement as telling Xi that the situation on the Korean peninsula is starting to improve because North Korea has taken the initiative to ease tensions and put forward proposals for peace talks.

“It is our consistent stand to be committed to denuclearization on the peninsula, in accordance with the will of late President Kim Il Sung and late General Secretary Kim Jong Il,” Kim Jong Un said, according to the statement.

North Korea is willing to talk with the United States and hold a summit between the two countries, he said.

“The issue of denuclearization of the Korean peninsula can be resolved, if South Korea and the United States respond to our efforts with goodwill, create an atmosphere of peace and stability while taking progressive and synchronous measures for the realization of peace,” Kim said.

Kim Jong Un’s predecessors, grandfather Kim Il Sung and father Kim Jong Il, both publicly promised not to pursue nuclear weapons but secretly continued to develop the programs, culminating in the North’s first nuclear test in 2006 under Kim Jong Il.

The North had said in past failed talks aimed at dismantling its nuclear program that it could consider giving up its arsenal if the United States removed its troops from South Korea and withdrew its so-called nuclear umbrella of deterrence from South Korea and Japan.

Many analysts and former negotiators believe this still constitutes North Korea’s stance on denuclearization of the Korean peninsula and remain deeply skeptical Kim is willing to give up the nuclear weapons his family has been developing for decades.

Trump Briefed

Though billed as an unofficial trip, Kim’s appearance in Beijing contained almost all the trappings of a state visit, complete with an honor guard and banquet at Beijing’s Great Hall of the People.

Kim and Xi also met at the Diaoyutai State Guest House, where Kim Il Sung planted a tree in 1959 that still stands.

State television showed pictures of the two men chatting amiably and Kim’s wife, Ri Sol Ju, getting an equally warm welcome from Xi’s wife, Peng Liyuan.

China briefed Trump on Kim’s visit and the communication included a personal message from Xi to Trump, the White House said in a statement.

“The United States remains in close contact with our allies South Korea and Japan. We see this development as further evidence that our campaign of maximum pressure is creating the appropriate atmosphere for dialogue with North Korea,” the statement said.

A top Chinese diplomat, Politburo member Yang Jiechi, will brief officials in Seoul on Thursday, including President Moon Jae-in, on Xi’s meeting with Kim, according to the presidential office in Seoul.

Kim told a banquet hosted by Xi the visit was intended to “maintain our great friendship and continue and develop our bilateral ties at a time of rapid developments on the Korean peninsula,” according to KCNA.

Xi had accepted an invitation “with pleasure” from Kim to visit North Korea, KCNA said.

However, China’s statement made no mention of Xi accepting an invitation, saying only that Xi pledged to keep frequent contacts with Kim through the exchange of visits and sending special envoys and letters to each other.

China had largely sat on the sidelines as Pyongyang improved its relations with Seoul, prompting worry in Beijing that it was no longer a central player in the North Korean issue, reinforced by Trump’s subsequent announcement of his proposed meeting with Kim in May.

“China is North Korea’s lifeline, so the notion, from a Chinese perspective, that Kim Jong Un couldn’t have these other two meetings before meeting with Xi Jinping, I think the Chinese just thought that is not going to happen,” said Paul Haenle, director of the Carnegie–Tsinghua Center in Beijing and the former White House representative to North Korea denuclearization talks from 2007-2009.

Speculation about a possible visit by Kim to Beijing was rife earlier this week after a train similar to the one used by Kim’s father was seen in the Chinese capital, along with heavy security and a large motorcade.

Improving ties between North Korea and China would be a positive sign before planned summits involving the two Koreas and the United States, a senior South Korean official said on Tuesday.

Kim Jong Il met then-president Jiang Zemin in China in 2000 before a summit between the two Koreas in June that year. That visit was seen at the time as reaffirmation of close ties with Beijing.

The secrecy around the visit was not unusual. The later visits of Kim Jong Il to China were only announced by both countries once he had left the country.

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Philippines Child Slavery Survivors Fight to Heal Scars of Abuse

Posted: 27 Mar 2018 09:47 PM PDT

MANILA — After years of being abused, exploited and enslaved, the girls in gloves do not hesitate to strike when their turn arrives.

Cheered on by their friends, the Filipina children launch into a frenzied flurry of kicks and jabs against their trainers.

These young survivors of modern slavery are learning martial arts as part of their recovery in a shelter for child trafficking victims in Manila, the capital of the Philippines.

“I like learning to fight because I want to protect myself and the other girls,” said 15-year-old Ash, raising her gentle voice to be heard over the constant thud of fists and feet.

“I’m tired but happy … Muay Thai will be useful when I become a police detective one day,” she told the Thomson Reuters Foundation during a martial arts lesson at the shelter run by the Visayan Forum Foundation, an anti-trafficking charity.

Cybersex child trafficking – where victims are forced to perform sex acts, abused or raped over webcam for global clients – is a growing problem in a country regarded by activists and anti-slavery organizations as a regional hub for modern slavery.

Children as young as one or two are sexually exploited by traffickers and also their own relatives in the Philippines, which has been identified as the epicenter of the livestream sex abuse trade by the United Nations’ children’s agency (UNICEF).

For the girls at the shelter – many of whom have been abused, beaten and betrayed by their families – the chance to be active, creative, and even aggressive, is a welcome opportunity.

From self defense sessions in Kenya to Kung Fu lessons taught by nuns in India, a growing number of projects globally teach women and girls martial arts to boost their confidence, help them defend themselves and aid them to recover from abuse.

“Such activities are a very important medium for women and girls who have suffered abuse,” said Dolores Rubia, director of aftercare for the International Justice Mission in Manila.

“They allow them to express their feelings, they are therapeutic, and offer the chance to learn skills for the future,” added Rubia of the global charity, which works with local partners to support child victims of cybersex trafficking.

Healing Process

The Visayan shelter in Manila is home to about 45 girls, ranging in age from 3 to 23. Some have lived here for years.

Most of the girls arriving at the center have been rescued in police raids, found by charities or escaped from cybersex dens, brothels or homes where they were forced to work as maids.

For those who have been exploited by their relatives or are involved in court cases against their abusers, going home may be not an option, says Visayan, which helps the girls find jobs and a place to live once they are old enough and ready to leave.

The shelter provides visiting teachers so the girls can catch up on their education and sit exams, as well as a wide range of activities such as arts and crafts, karaoke, dancing and martial arts, said Rachel Subia of the charity.

“These activities are a good way to help the girls forget their past experiences … it is healing for them,” Subia said.

As each awaits their turn to take on the instructors, the girls fiddle with their gloves and joke, laugh and whoop loudly, watching as the others put their newfound skills to the test.

Those stepping forward are a picture of concentration – eyes narrowed, shoulders raised and fists clenched – as they fight.

“At first, the girls were so awkward,” said Muay Thai instructor Olivia Cruz, who has helped to run the bi-monthly martial arts sessions since they started earlier this year.

“But they are really strong,” she added, chuckling as one girl knocked her male trainer to the ground. “And they love it.”

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Southeast Asia Closes Island Beaches to Recover from Climate Change and Tourism

Posted: 27 Mar 2018 09:31 PM PDT

BANGKOK — More popular Southeast Asian islands will be off limits to visitors this year as officials seek to protect eco-systems crumbling from warming seas and unchecked sprawl, despite the risk to tourism revenues and tens of thousands of jobs.

Thailand will shut Maya Bay, which famously featured in “The Beach," starring Leonardo DiCaprio, for four months a year, from June. In the Philippines, officials plan to close Boracay Island for six months at the end of April.

“Islands have very fragile eco-systems that simply cannot handle so many people, pollution from boats and beachfront hotels,” said Thon Thamrongnawasawat, a marine expert in Bangkok.

“Coral reefs have been degraded by warmer seas and overcrowding. Sometimes, a complete closure is the only way for nature to heal,” he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

More than three-quarters of Thailand’s coral reefs have been damaged by rising sea temperatures and unchecked tourism, said Thon, who last week recommended limiting visitors to its 22 marine parks to 6 million a year to enable their recovery.

Currently, they number about 5.5 million, he said.

Thailand closed dozens of dive sites to tourists in 2011, after unusually warm seas caused severe damage to coral reefs in the Andaman Sea, one of the world’s top diving regions. It also shut some islands in 2016.

The country’s sandy beaches helped draw record numbers of tourists last year, with revenues contributing about 12 percent of the economy. The government expects 38 million visitors this year.

Southeast Asia is expected to bear the brunt of rising damage to coral reefs, depriving fishermen of incomes and leaving nations exposed to incoming storms and damage from surging seas, recent research showed.

In the Philippines, which is among the most vulnerable to climate change, about 2 million people visited Boracay last year, celebrated for its white-sand beaches.

On a visit last month, President Rodrigo Duterte called the island a “cesspool” because of sewage dumped directly into the sea, and warned of a looming environmental disaster with buildings constructed too close to the shore.

Government agencies have recommended closing the island for six months to fix the problems.

Tour operators say more than 36,000 jobs are at stake.

“We support the government in adopting responsible and sustainable tourism practices … but not in shutting down the whole island,” the Philippine Travel Agencies Association said.

But Thailand’s Thon warned against short-term fixes.

“Tourism is important, but we need to preserve these spaces for our future generations, for future livelihoods,” he said.

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Tuesday, March 27, 2018

The Irrawaddy Magazine

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Tatmadaw Chief Calls on All Citizens to Show ‘Myanmar Spirit’ on Armed Forces Day

Posted: 27 Mar 2018 02:20 AM PDT

NAYPYITAW— Myanmar's military, the Tatmadaw, is sincerely working with hope and respect to achieve lasting peace and strengthen the country's system of multiparty democracy, Defense Services commander-in-chief Senior-General Min Aung Hlaing said on Tuesday to mark the 73rd Armed Forces Day.

Sen-Gen Min Aung Hlaing also accused certain organizations of attacking the Tatmadaw by any means possible during the current period of political transition in an effort to erode the public's trust in the military, undermine its political integrity, and create disunity within its ranks.

"The Tatmadaw has tried to lay the foundation needed for the formation of and transition to a multiparty democracy," the Army chief said.

Dr Myo Nyunt, spokesperson for the National League for Democracy (NLD), described the relationship between the nation's de facto civilian leader, State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, and the military leaders as normal, adding that he expected civilian-military ties to improve.

"We have hope [for a better civilian-military relationship]. I want to see more active collaboration. The current political situation calls for closer cooperation; only then can we overcome the existing challenges. But given the suspicion that exists, cooperation is about as effective as we could expect," Dr Myo Nyunt said.

Unlike previous events to mark Armed Forces Day in which the Army chief has been driven around the parade ground in a vehicle to receive a salute, this year Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing stood still as saluting soldiers marched past him. No tanks or artillery were present at the parade ground. Only soldiers participated in the event.

Whatever government is in power, and whatever political system is in place, the main responsibility of the Tatmadaw is to engage in national politics and defend the country, the Army chief said. Additionally, it is responsible for protecting the Three Main National Causes, and the 2008 Constitution, he said.

The military chief acknowledged that freedom of expression is a part of democracy, but warned that it should be exercised in line with the law and with responsibility and accountability. Baseless and reckless expression can result in hatred, which can ruin the image of the country and pose barriers to nation-building, he said.

Since independence, stooges of political parties have used various means to undermine the Tatmadaw in an attempt to gain power, said the army chief. He called on service personnel to respond with awareness and consciousness to speeches and statements that aimed to disunite the Tatmadaw and tarnish its image.

He said the Tatmadaw was born out of Myanmar's national independence struggle, and had served the people ever since.

General Ne Win fought insurgencies on various fronts after independence, and the Tatmadaw had been forced to take on the responsibilities of running the state in 1958, 1962 and 1988, as the country was at risk of disintegrating, he said. The Tatmadaw had laid the foundations for the establishment of democracy, he added.

On the peace process, the Tatmadaw chief warned that "It would be more practical to negotiate goals that are achievable, keeping long-term benefits in view, instead of claiming impossible ones."

He urged "all of the people" to work hard and show the "spirit of Myanmar"—not racial and religious bias—in order to work for the country's development in a cohesive union.

"Instead of pointing to the past and finding fault, it's time to learn the lessons of the past and to work for the country's development," Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing said.

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Ten Things to Do in Yangon This Week

Posted: 27 Mar 2018 12:25 AM PDT

Bella Music Festival

Zaw Win Htut, Big Bag, Wai La, Phyu Phyu Kyaw Thein, Wyne Su Khine Thein and many others will perform.

April 1, 5 p.m. One Entertainment Park. Free Admission.

Summer Beach Party

There will be EDM and international DJs.

March 31, 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. Yangon Waterboom, Tickets are 20,000 kyats.

Personal Branding

Image consultant Nanda Maw Naing will give talks on personal branding.

April 1, 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. MiMber Institute of Management Studies, No. 336/338, Mahabandoola Park Rd., Kyauktada Township. Register by calling 09-771-172148. Free admission, but space is limited.

Charity for Internally Displaced Persons

There will be entertainment — music, magic, fashion shows, food and more.

March 30 to April 1, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. People's Square.

Bar Bondi

G Latt and Thar Deelu will perform.

March 30, 8 p.m. Bar Bondi, International Commercial Center, corner of Strand Road and Botatung Pagoda Road. Tickets are 10,000 kyats.

Sarpay Nandaw

Sarpay Nandaw book shop will offer discounts of up to 50 percent to welcome the arrival of the Thingyan Festival.

March 27 to April 2. Sarpay Nandaw book shop, Upper Pansodan Road.

From Paris With Love

Originals and prints of pencil paintings by French artist Gregory Ogouz will be up for grabs.

March 31 to April 7. Maharzan Art Gallery, near Karaweik Palace, Kandawgyi Park.

One-Ten-Hundred

In her solo art exhibition, Chuu Wai Nyein builds a bridge between the lives of women in Myanmar over time.

March 30 to April 8. Gallery 65, No. 65, Yaw Min Gyi Road, Dagon Township.

Pencil Paintings

World Design Painting School will showcase the pencil paintings of its students. Pencil portraits will be presented to early visitors.

March 29 to 31, OK Art Gallery, Aung San Stadium (north wing).

He & His Friends

Artist Myint Soe and his friends will showcase their creations.

March 29 to April 1. Lokanat Galleries, Pansodan Street.

The post Ten Things to Do in Yangon This Week appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Exhibition Hopes to Teach Young Generation About Myanmar’s Golden Age of Film

Posted: 27 Mar 2018 12:05 AM PDT

"The Art and Influence of Myanmar's Film Heritage", an exhibition being held as part of the "Shwe Khit" arts event, will hold special screenings of the classic Myanmar film Yadanarbon from 1953 as part of a program designed to educate Myanmar's young generation about the country's golden age of cinema and inspire them to create their own cultural legacy.

The exhibition, which opened for a three-week-long run on March 24 at the historic Secretariat building in downtown Yangon, was curated via a collaborative effort between the Pyinsa Rasa arts collective and Save Myanmar Film.

Visitors inspect the exhibition on the opening evening at the Secretariat in Yangon.(Photos: Htet Wai)

The exhibition has been installed in three different rooms: the first room looks like an information lobby and will showcase classic Myanmar furniture mixed with a modern look, with Save Myanmar Film's booth displaying damaged classic films in a small mirror cupboard.

The second room will house a temporary small cinema. Two film posters hang on either side of the entrance with one sporting a 'Now Showing' banner. The last room will display old film equipment, vinyl records, and film and painting posters. It also features a music booth that will play songs from the 1950s to 1980s.

A foreigner looks at a display.(Photos: Htet Wai)

The exhibition will present three different movie weeks, starting with a screening of Yadanarbon, directed by U Tin Maung and produced by the historic film company A1.

"Yadanarbon is a classic, old Academy Award-winning film from 1953," explained U Thein Htut, the current director of A1 Film Company. "I'm so proud of my grandpa and so happy to be part of this event."

He said some scenes were directed in a studio setting, which is rare today. "So, the young generation will be able to see the Myanmar film standards from around that era," he said.

Some younger visitors listen to songs from past eras at the music booths.(Photos: Htet Wai)

"I'm really honored to be part of the organizing team of this event; we can see their potential, good intentions and creativity. They collected all the equipment piece by piece from different suppliers and put it on display in modern settings, so we can learn about the history of Myanmar film with a new, modern sensibility at the same time," he added.

A1 Film Company contributed old film cameras, film posters and film advertisements to be displayed at the event while 'Save Myanmar Film' provided a copy of Yadanarbon.

The modern Myanmar film industry is often criticized by local movie-goers for copying famous films from abroad and repeatedly focusing on the same topics and plot lines, so that the audience can predict the end of film after watching just a few minutes.

A guest looks at a collage of posters.(Photos: Htet Wai)

"Audiences can freely criticize and that's their right but every movement has history and it can't be destroyed and also historic landmarks like the Secretariat building can't be removed, so, I hope the younger generation can upgrade their creativity using film history as a base," U Thein Htut said.

He said that everything can be done very quickly in the modern digital era, in contrast to previous ages when making a film required the use of a lot of people and equipment.

"In the old days, each crew member was very focused on making the film and couldn't afford to make even a small mistake because films were expensive to produce and a mistake would require the whole scene be directed from the beginning again. There were many steps as well. So, every crewmember needed to focus on every detail. That's the big difference point from today's digital film industry," U Thein Htut said.

A young woman poses for a picture in front of movie posters.(Photos: Htet Wai)

"So, I would like to request all young people, please be more creative and put more effort into their films and please study film history first. Hopefully they can learn from the history of the Myanmar film industry through this event," he said.

Ko Okkar, founder of Save Myanmar Film, said his team's purpose was to preserve good, old Myanmar films. "So, we have a couple of old films (in our archive) including Yadanarbon. Pyinsa Rasa's founders are friends and recently we had been talking about holding an exhibition like this and now it has happened."

The organizers expressed the hope that people could learn from the presentation of old Myanmar films, and that filmmakers would be able to get some inspiration after watching the films, he added.

A foreign man looks closely at an old film camera.(Photos: Htet Wai)

Ko Thaiddhi, co-founder of Pyinsa Rasa and the Wathann Film Festival, echoed Ko Okkar's words, adding, "We would love to show Myanmar’s film heritage to the young generation. We hope that they can get a true taste of the golden age of Myanmar film through this event and discover the identity of Myanmar movie-making."

The exhibition will screen three selected films from different Myanmar film eras —Yadanarbon, Tender are the Feet (1973) and Thingyan Moe (1985). Three related musical performances will be staged before the start of each film including music from a Myanmar traditional orchestra as well as popular music.

At the opening of the exhibition, Gitameit music group performed the theme song from Yadanardon before the film played. The film will screen daily at 2pm from March 25 to 31.

The second week starting on April 1 will feature Tender are the Feet.

Ko Thaiddhi said he hopes the exhibit will allow audiences to share in the joy and creativity of previous generations of artists, and that a new generation can look back at their predecessors for inspiration in order to forge a cultural identity of their own.

The Secretariat will charge an entrance fee of 2000 kyat for locals and 10,000 kyat for foreigners to see the exhibit.

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For India, a Myanmar Policy Minus its Northeast is Incomplete

Posted: 26 Mar 2018 09:26 PM PDT

The recently concluded India-Myanmar business conclave in Yangon was nothing short of old wine in a new bottle, with both sides agreeing on the need for improved connectivity, better relations, etc. Perhaps it is time for some soul searching in order to come up with a more pragmatic plan and one that translates into action. As a part of that plan, a crucial factor that would make a huge difference would be the involvement of India's northeastern states, which connect the country to Myanmar and its other eastern neighbors. Just for the record, Myanmar’s Chin State and Sagaing Region share a 1,643-km border with India’s four northeastern states, namely Arunachal (520 km), Nagaland (215 km), Manipur (398 km) and Mizoram (510 km).

It would be wrong to say that the need to engage the northeastern states has not been felt by the Indian establishment in New Delhi since the inception of its Look East Asia — now Act East Asia — policy in the 1990s. However, efforts to involve these states have been piecemeal to say the least, with occasional exchanges and visits of chief ministers and junior ministers and some India-Asean motor rallies through Myanmar. In the truest sense of the term, there has not been a concerted effort to engage even the key states of Manipur, Nagaland, Mizoram or even Assam in any of the business conclaves that have been held so far.

It is no wonder, then, that most of the conclaves have promised so much and delivered so little, especially when measured against how much progress China — or even Thailand for that matter — has made in trade, commerce and connectivity, even in support of different aspects of the political process in Myanmar. The problem is not hard to find, and can be best summed up in the words of a former Indian civil servant: "New Delhi is too far from the northeast and it will continue to be, and the bureaucracy does not have an inkling of how to deal with the northeast vis-à-vis Myanmar." India may not want to be measured against the policies and strategies of China or Thailand, or of Western countries that have already made significant forays into Myanmar. But surely New Delhi must start to explain why its much touted Act East Asia policy is still a non-starter of sorts.

All the ongoing projects that India has with Myanmar as part of its Act East Asia agenda are either stalled awaiting bureaucratic clearance or have made extremely slow progress. For instance, the 1,400-km India-Myanmar-Thai highway project has stretches through Sagaing that have remained undriveable for a long time and bridges that are not fit for international transport. On the Indian side, there are also a number of issues — insurgency, communal unrest, social upheaval caused by arriving migrants — that need to be properly addressed with long-term strategies. The Act East Asia policy must take all of these factors into account.

Even if the Indian establishment believes there has been progress in different sectors, what explanation could it possibly have for lacking any mutual planning with its northeastern states to ensure that the Act East Asia agenda actually gains more momentum than it has managed over the last five years or more? What is even more surprising is that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has been unable to use the expertise of its regional governments in the northeastern states to augment its Act East Asia policy. After the recent victory of the BJP and its allies in Tripura, Nagaland and Meghalaya, the party now has direct influence over the governments of at least six of the eight states that make up India's northeast.

An article in the Wire titled “India's Look East Policy and the Northeast: Bridging Spaces or Widening Schisms?” in January 2017 had this to say: "The participation of the northeastern state governments or institutions in the Look East policy is nearly non-existent. Surprisingly, in the policy documents, there is barely any mention of the tourism sector, which has a huge potential in the picturesque northeast." It goes on to claim that "Seemingly, the imposition of sovereignty on many parts of northeast India post-1947 is now followed by the imposition of India's policy agenda in the post-liberalisation era. There is no doubt that increased connectivity will increase volumes of trade, as it was in the pre-partition era. However, what's troubling is that in both the post-1947 and post-liberalisation era, the consent of and consultation with the northeastern societies have been bypassed."

These will surely be testing times for New Delhi, for yearly business conclaves where promises are made and forgotten will not yield many results on the ground. One is reminded of the unfulfilled promise made by then-Commerce Minister Nirmala Sitharaman at a similar event in Yangon in 2014. Soon after returning to India, she said, she would knock on the prime minister's door and urge immediate air connectivity between the two countries. The demand from most of the Indian delegates was that there be at least one direct flight daily between New Delhi and Yangon, given that there were none and that even countries like Vietnam and Nepal had direct flights, not to mention China and Thailand, which had two to three flights a day and a similar number of operators.

It surely makes for very good food for the ear when both India and Myanmar reiterate their commitment — as Indian Junior Commerce Minister C R Chaudhury and Myanmar Deputy Commerce Minister Aung Htoo did at Thursday’s conclave in Yangon — to strengthen bilateral relations and improve connectivity. Or perhaps when the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) keeps reiterating its plans to collaborate with Myanmar’s business and investment communities, which it has been doing for some time. I remember attending the India-Myanmar business conclave in June 2014, where similar promises were made and it all sounded very positive. Promises to set up a CII office are not new, either.

There is no reason to believe that "things would happen gradually," as a former Indian diplomat in Yangon used to say when confronted with the question "When do we get to see words translate into action?” But more than rhetorical assurances, what matters most is that India understand the call that Myanmar has repeatedly made — that, given the strategic position of Myanmar as an entry point for India into Asean and the greater Mekong subregion, a comprehensive and action-packed policy involving all the states in India and in Myanmar is extremely important.

What may be encouraging to notice, and what New Delhi and even Naypyitaw must take note of, is the interest shown by the BJP-ruled states of the northeast to echo what Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been saying — that development of the northeast is an essential component to realising the dream of a developed country. There was perhaps a sense of seriousness when, at an election rally on Feb. 22 in Tuensang, Nagaland, Narendra Modi sounded out the BJP’s plans and expressed his firm resolve to see the Act East Asia agenda made a reality. He did not forget to mention that one of the key aims of the initiative is to connect the people of the northeast with Southeast Asian countries in order to foster speedy development.

Leaving aside the politics of how elections are won in India, it is worth noting that the BJP, which is seen as essentially a Hindu party, has been able to gain ground in a largely Christian region. In fact, the recent electoral success of the BJP in northeast India is being partly attributed to the government’s Act East Asia policy and its broader message of development. Besides this, it is also being seen as the best possible electoral balance that could have come about, as having the same party in power in New Delhi and in the states makes it easy to make decisions in favour of a policy and having them implemented without any fuss. This view has been reflected in the Indian media. In an article titled "How BJP's northeast election victories further India's Act East policy," online media outlet Livemint quoted Prabhir De, head of the New Delhi-based Asean-India Center, as saying: "The BJP's win in these states means that there will be greater collaboration between the center and states in terms of formulating and implementing policies for development, and this includes integration with the Asean.”

Thus it is time that policy practitioners in New Delhi wake up and consider the importance of the northeast not just as states that stand to benefit but also as partners in planning how to make Act East Asia a tool for greater economic engagement with countries in Southeast and East Asia and, as many scholars have articulated, for finding a solution to the vexed insurgency problem in northeast India.

The author is a former senior journalist who has worked for national and international news media in India and elsewhere. Currently he is a contributing editor for The Irrawaddy.

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Monday, March 26, 2018

The Irrawaddy Magazine

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Who is U Win Myint, Myanmar’s Likely New President?

Posted: 26 Mar 2018 06:28 AM PDT

YANGON— After a 30-year journey that has taken him from a legal career to being a political activist, then elected lawmaker and most recently House speaker — U Win Myint has reached a big turning point in his life that now sees him poised to be named the country's next president.

The 66-year-old has served as the Lower House speaker since February 2016, after the National League for Democracy won the 2015 general election.

As part of the process to select a replacement for U Htin Kyaw, 71, who resigned as president on Mar. 21, U Win Myint was elected as a vice president last Friday, paving the way for a vote for a new president. U Win Myint resigned as Lower House speaker on the same day that U Htin Kyaw announced his retirement.

A long-time NLD member, U Win Myint is considered to be a right-hand man of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, who was barred from taking the presidency under the military-drafted 2008 constitution.

Born in Danubyu in the Irrawaddy Delta in 1951, U Win Myint studied geology at Yangon University before turning to study law in the 1980s. He was working as a barrister in 1988 when nationwide pro-democracy protests erupted, leading to the founding of the NLD, which he subsequently joined.

U Win Myint has enjoyed electoral success three times: in the 1990 general election, a 2012 by-election and in the last general election in 2015.

But the successes didn't come easily. Like many other political activists and politicians, U Win Myint was arrested several times by the previous military regime.

Detained at the time that his only son fell critically ill, he spurned a military intelligence's offer that he sign a promissory note to renounce politics in exchange for the chance to visit his son, who was on his deathbed in hospital. He subsequently missed his son's funeral as well.

"I couldn't accept it as my constituents believed in me and voted for me," he said in a video interview with local media outlet Kamayut soon after he was elected Lower House speaker.

But the loss hurt him with his late son never being able to see his father rise to become house speaker.

"I don't hold grudges against any organization for that. But in my heart, I want my son to be beside me," he said.

Regardless. the then house speaker said he would continue to pursue a path to national reconciliation as laid out by his party's leader, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.

U Win Myint became an NLD central executive committee member in 2010. He also served as secretary of the Lower House's Rule of Law, Peace and Tranquility Committee chaired by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, who was a Lower House lawmaker at the time, after being elected to represent Yangon's Kawhmu township.

With his long experience in legal affairs and politics, U Win Myint's possible presidency has raised hopes and expectations that he will be a more active leader than his predecessor.

He is expected to work effectively on corruption, rule of law and land conflicts, issues for which he revealed a strong eagerness to tackle while he was parliament speaker.

He was also lauded for asking for no wedding gifts for his daughter's wedding last year. Breaking with local tradition, the invitations clearly stated "No Wedding Gifts, Please."

The ruling NLD Lower House lawmaker Daw May Win Myint, who submitted the party's nomination of U Win Myint to parliament on Friday, told The Irrawaddy that she believed U Win Myint was the right choice for the country's top office.

"He is decisive. And as house speaker, he was able to handle the parliament very well [over the past two years]. I hope he will oversee the executive as well as he did parliament," she said.

During his time in the Lower House, U Win Myint was known to be a strict taskmaster. He often warned lawmakers to do their homework before the parliamentary session; to keep their proposals and questions specific and to the point. The lawmakers were not alone in receiving his stern warnings. Union ministers were also among those faulted for poorly prepared answers in parliament. Moreover, he has occasionally given military appointees in parliament a hard time.

NLD Lower House lawmaker Ma Zin Mar Aung said U Win Myint had a obtained good understanding of the checks and balances between the parliament and executive as well as the situation on the ground through lawmakers.

"He knows very well when implementing [new government] policies which parts are blocked or difficult to handle because of the bureaucracy. As he is aware of the situations, I hope he will initiate more plans to tackle those," she said.

The post Who is U Win Myint, Myanmar's Likely New President? appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Report Highlights Plight of Women Survivors of Conflict, Oppression

Posted: 26 Mar 2018 04:17 AM PDT

YANGON — "I didn't go to farm for fear of landmines, but even then I was hit at home," said Ei Seng, a 27-year-old Palaung woman from Shan State's Namhsan Township.

She and her 4-year-old daughter were burning garbage in their yard when a mortar shell fell and exploded nearby on Jan. 14, 2016. The Myanmar military and Ta'ang National Liberation Army were fighting near her village at the time.

She was eight months pregnant and had to have emergency surgery to deliver the baby. Her daughter suffered some hearing loss from the explosion, and Ei Seng still has shell fragments in her body from the shell. They give her pain every day, but doctors say it would be too risky to take them out.

"I don't want to see any more fighting," she said, urging the government to help those affected by the country’s long-running civil war to get their lives back on track.

She is not alone in making the demand.  Asia Justice And Rights (AJAR) and the Karen Women's Organization, Ta'ang Women's Organization and Vimutti Women's Organization launched a report on the lives of women survivors of conflict and oppression in Yangon on Saturday.

"Speaking Truth for Peace: Women's Experiences of War and Impunity in Myanmar" captures the stories of 31 women, including former political prisoners in Yangon, Ta'ang women living in the conflict zones of northern Shan State, female Karen village heads, and land rights activists.

"I would like to urge the government, local authorities and armed organizations to consider rehabilitation for afflicted survivors if they are really building a true democracy in Myanmar," said Mai Ja, who helped compile the report.

Those who conducted interviews for the report said women survivors living in conflict areas and female advocates oppressed by authorities for their pro-democracy activities were struggling with trauma.

One-time political prisoner and former National League for Democracy (NLD) member Daw Thet Thet Lwin recounted her experiences of being arrested several times as a university student for her participation in the pro-democracy uprising of 1988.

On the last occasion, she said, she was handcuffed and beaten in public in front of her house. She said her blouse and longyi were torn during the beating and that she was not allowed to change her clothes.

Most of the political prisoners were arrested as young women, stifling their educational opportunities and putting many in financial hardship after their release.

"The NLD government, which we have shouldered to the position of power, doesn't recognize political prisoners. No one can deny that the shift we have made today is due to those politicians who sacrificed their lives," said Daw Thet Thet Lwin.

AJAR director Galuh Wandita said the women have had not only their political rights violated, but their social and economic rights as well.

The full truth about what happened to them and how it continues to affect their lives is being erased or denied — not only by the state, local authorities and the national elite, but often even by their own communities and families, according to the research.

The report calls for justice and rehabilitation for women survivors and an end to impunity.

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko.

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Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing’s Armed Forces Day Speeches 

Posted: 26 Mar 2018 03:43 AM PDT

Since he became commander-in-chief of the armed forces in 2011, Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing has given annual speeches on Armed Forces Day, which falls on March 27. As with his predecessors, his speeches have tended to be filled with references to building a modern armed force, repeatedly using the phrase "standard army" (while avoiding the term "professional army") and reiterating promises to protect the military-drafted 2008 Constitution and safeguard the nation and its sovereignty. Every year he has also lashed out at "fascists" and "colonialists" and repeatedly invoked Myanmar's independence struggle.

Interestingly, he has also talked about 21st century warfare technology, democracy and the Geneva Convention, and denied that ethnic cleansing or genocide has taken place in the country. He has firmly said that there are no 'Rohingya' in the country, insisting they are 'Bengali immigrants.'

His speech tomorrow, which will mark the 73rd anniversary of the founding of the Tatmadaw, is being keenly awaited. Will he repeat the same rhetoric of previous years or will there be new intrigues and remarks?

Here some excerpts of his speeches since 2012.

2012

In his first speech as army chief to mark the 67th anniversary of the resistance against the Japanese during World War II, Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing said that the military had an obligation to defend the Constitution and that it would continue to take part in politics as it had done in the past.

There was suspicion at the time that the military was opposing the democratic reforms put forward by then President U Thein Sein’s administration.

Min Aung Hlaing rejected such allegations, stating that "while the county is marching towards democracy, the Tatmadaw will support the functions of government."

He then added that the army was following the results of peace talks between the government and armed ethnic minorities.

At the time, the military was also accused of ignoring President U Thein Sein’s orders to obey a ceasefire with the Kachin Independence Army rebel group in northern Myanmar.

2013

In his Armed Forces Day speech this year, Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing spoke about the Geneva Convention, shortly after riots broke out in central Myanmar, where martial law was declared in four townships in the previous week to quell anti-Muslim riots that officially killed more than 40 people.

"All our members are being trained in the provisions of the Geneva Convention so our Tatmadaw does not commit any war crimes," Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing said.

"There is no such thing as genocide in the history of our Tatmadaw," he said.

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, then a lawmaker, attended the Armed Forces Day parade in Naypyitaw for the first time.

2014

Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing focused much of his speech on the peace process. "The nationwide ceasefire is important for our eternal peace, so all ethnic armed groups must be legalized by all means in the achievement of this process."

As part of Armed Forces Day in 2014 the army reached out to old veterans and former senior members and paid their respects to them and their contributions to the country. It was the first time the generals had made such a public gesture to old soldiers.

2015

In his speech, Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing again touched on the peace process and democratization as well as the coming election.

"The basic needs of people are to live peacefully and to develop their lives in health of body and peace of mind. In other words, stability and peace of the state and socio-economic developments are the basic needs and true desire of the people. In order to meet these basic needs and true desire of the people, we, the Tatmadaw men, together with the government, the Hluttaw, political parties and people have to cooperate for successful implementation in accordance with enacted laws."

On the coming general election that November, he said, "The general election, which is going to be held in the early days of November 2015, represents an important landmark for the implementation of democracy in our country. The Tatmadaw will work hand in hand with responsible organizations and people for the accomplishment of the general election. Peace, stability, and prevalence and enforcement of law play a vital role in systematic and peaceful accomplishment of the general election. I want to say that any disturbances to the stability of the state and prevalence of law, any armed pressure or any threats related to voting won't be allowed in the general election."

On the Constitution he stressed, "The 2008 Constitution of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar was drawn up based on our geopolitical location, population, ethnic groups, culture, traditions, religion and recorded history with the aim of successfully implementing a multi-party democratic system. In accordance with the 2008 Constitution, our country is taking a path of multi-party democracy."

2016

Myanmar’s army chief vowed to keep the nation "on the path to democracy," days before power was due to be transferred to Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s mostly civilian government on April 1, after decades of military rule.

"I would like to seriously say that we, the military, will cooperate to achieve success in working for the nation and the citizens' interests," he said.

"The Tatmadaw has to take the leading role in national politics with regards to the way we stand in history and the critical situations of the country," Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing said.

"The two main obstacles to democratization are a failure to abide by the rule of law and regulations and the presence of armed insurgencies. These could lead to a chaotic democracy," he said.

"Only if these two obstacles are properly tackled and overcome will there be advancement on the path to democracy."

Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing gave the speech after Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy party had won a landslide victory in elections the previous November.

Members of Myanmar’s military take part in a parade to mark the 72nd Armed Forces Day in Naypyitaw in 2017. / Reuters

2017

In the 21st century, warfare will be fought with different methods, directions and fields, Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing told the nation.

"To be a victor in 21st century modern warfare, we must be qualified in ICT, electronic technologies and mechanical technological know-how.

"We need to study the changes in military strategies and tactics and update our technologies accordingly," he said.

"It has already been announced that there is no race termed Rohingya in Myanmar. The Bengalis in Rakhine State are not Myanmar nationals but immigrants. It will be seen that the victims coming out of the terrorist attacks committed by some Bengalis in October 2016 were the result of political interference.

"Things that should be done under the existing laws must be carried out with responsibility. The armed forces will be responsible for defending against all types of insurgencies based on religion or race.

"Only if we can establish everlasting domestic peace, will our nation become developed.

The army displays some of its most advanced hardware during the 72nd Armed Forces Day in 2017. / Myo Min Soe/The Irrawaddy

"In a transparent democracy, disagreements over political doctrine must only be solved by political means. Our Tatmadaw has participated with might and main in establishing peace throughout previous governments. On Aug. 18, 2011, the former government initiated the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) and offered ethnic armed groups a peace settlement. Eight ethnic armed groups with the same view entered into agreement to achieve peace. The government invites and urges the remaining ethnic armed organizations to sign the NCA for peace.

"I would like to say that our Tatmadaw will participate in establishing everlasting peace accordingly with the six peace principles laid down by the Tatmadaw under the supervision of the government."

 

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Thai Court Orders Migrant Labor Advocate to Pay Natural Fruit Company $320,000

Posted: 26 Mar 2018 03:24 AM PDT

CHIANG MAI, Thailand — A court in Bangkok on Monday ordered British migrant rights defender Andy Hall to pay 10 million baht (US$320,000) in damages to Natural Fruit Co. Ltd., which sued him for defamation over comments he made to news network Al Jazeera regarding the 2013 report Cheap Has a High Price.

The court also ordered Hall to pay an additional 10,000 baht to cover the cost of the plaintiff's legal and court fees, including interest of 7.5 percent from the date of filing the case until the amount is fully paid, according to a statement released by Finnwatch, a Finnish civil society organization focusing on corporate responsibility, on Monday.

Finnwatch hired Hall to do field research on workers in the pineapple industry and used his findings in the report published in January 2013. The report revealed that Myanmar migrant workers were being subjected to slave labor conditions at Natural Fruit's pineapple processing plant in Prachuap Khiri Khan province. Later the Thai company brought four separate lawsuits, both criminal and civil, against the researcher, seeking damages for defamation among other things.

The company filed a 100 million baht civil damages claim against the British researcher in 2014, related to an interview with Al Jazeera in April 2013, which he gave in Myanmar.

Bangkok's Prakanong Court initially dismissed the case, but the company appealed and the Appeals Court in August 2017 ordered the lower court to accept the case and hear it in full. Witness testimony in the reopened cases concluded last month.

Sonja Vartiala, the executive director of Finnwatch, told The Irrawaddy on Monday, "Andy Hall will be appealing the decision. We have been informed that now following this decision he will need to pay the court fee for the plaintiff. Finnwatch will continue to support Andy in the legal cases."

"Today’s court ruling is one huge leap backward and it will have a chilling effect on anyone acting as a whistleblower," she said. "It is very harmful for Thailand and will surely also raise serious concerns among buyers in Europe."

Myanmar migrant rights advocates condemned the Thai Court's verdict. "The aim of the research is to highlight the situation facing poor migrant workers, who are not paid properly and live in misery. We are sorry to hear the news of this verdict," said U Aung Kyaw, a spokesman for the Migrant Workers Right Network (MWRN) based in Mahachai near Bangkok.

MWRN helped Hall with his research and acted as a defense witness at his court hearings. Hall has worked closely with MWRN as an international adviser.

He said Hall was a "dedicated researcher" who had devoted a lot of time to learning about the situation facing migrants from Myanmar, Cambodia, and Laos.

The migrant labor rights advocate added that Myanmar migrants continued to be preyed upon, even by the Thai judicial system, citing the example of two Myanmar migrants widely believed to have been framed in a murder case in the country's Koh Tao resort island, for which they are now facing the death penalty.

"When it comes to migrant workers … they are far less important than the economy," said U Aung Kyaw, adding that the migrant labor rights movement has continued its efforts to improve the situation for migrant workers in Thailand, even though Hall had been forced to stop his work.

The Finnwatch director said there had been "some improvements in migrants workers' rights in Thailand," citing a Royal Ordinance titled the Management of Employment of Migrant Workers, issued last year, which includes some important provisions relating to recruitment practices such as zero fees for migrant workers.

"However there is a lack of tripartite dialogue in its implementation and migrant workers are still not allowed to unionize," added the director.

Meanwhile, the United Nations Working Group on Business and Human Rights will undertake its first official 10-day visit to Thailand, from March 26 to April 4, to examine efforts to prevent, mitigate and remedy adverse human rights impacts of business operations.

"The working group has been informed about today’s court decision and will hopefully take this up in their meetings with the authorities in Thailand. Thai courts are used to silencing human rights defenders and this needs to stop," added Vartiala.

Verdicts have been handed down in three of the four cases against Hall, but appeals and counter litigation are ongoing.

A criminal defamation case related to the Al Jazeera interview was dismissed in November 2016. Hall filed countersuits against Thailand's Office of the Attorney General, nine Thai state prosecution officials and one senior police officer at the Central Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct cases in the Dusit District of Bangkok, while litigation against the Natural Fruit Company Ltd., two executives and its lawyers were filed at Prakanong Court on May 31 last year. The trial of the two executives started on March 22 and is scheduled to end on March 28, but the litigation against the state officials was dismissed. Hall's legal team has appealed the dismissals.

The Appeal Court's ruling on the Criminal Defamation and Computer Crimes cases is scheduled for April 24. A Civil Defamation and Damages Case over the Finnwatch report has been postponed until final verdicts in the criminal defamation and computer crimes cases are reached by Nakhon Pathom Court.

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Myanmar to Elect New President This Week

Posted: 26 Mar 2018 02:50 AM PDT

YANGON — After the sudden resignation of President U Htin Kyaw last week, Myanmar will elect a new head of state on Wednesday, the country's Union Parliament announced on Monday.

Constitutionally, Myanmar needs to have three vice presidents elected by the Lower House, the Upper House, and appointed military lawmakers from both chambers.

On Friday, Myanmar's Lower House elected its former speaker, U Win Myint of the ruling National League for Democracy (NLD), as vice president. The other two vice presidents are U Myint Swe, who is now the acting president of the country, and U Henry Van Thio.

Parliament will vote for a new president on Wednesday morning from among the three vice presidents.

U Win Myint submitted his resignation as speaker of the Lower House soon after U Htin Kyaw's resignation was announced on Wednesday, prompting speculation that he would become Myanmar's next president.

If the speculation proves true, U Win Myint, a senior NLD member, will be Myanmar's 10th president since the country's independence in 1948.

The 67-year-old is believed to be one of State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's favorites among fellow senior NLD members. He became the Lower House speaker in February 2016, after the NLD won the 2015 general election.

During his time in the Lower House, the former lawyer was known for his strict discipline. He did not tolerate discussions that were off topic during parliamentary meetings. Even union ministers were not free from his stern warnings, not to mention lawmakers, including those from the military.

A Planned Presidential Reshuffle

Despite U Htin Kyaw's resignation coming as a surprise to outsiders, Myanmar's ruling NLD party said the change had already been discussed among senior level officials of the party and the government.

U Win Htein, one of the party's secretariat members and aide to Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, told the media on Saturday after the NLD CEC meeting that U Win Myint would be chosen as the president.

"U Htin Kyaw is not in good health. He wanted to leave for his health," he said.

In his resignation announcement, U Htin Kyaw simply stated that he wanted to retire from his duties.

U Htin Kyaw cuddles a Burmese cat during his visit to Inle Heritage House at Inle Lake on Oct. 8, 2016, during his presidency. (Photo: Inle Heritage)

The former president was the first head of state elected by Parliament after the Daw Aung San Suu Kyi-led NLD government came to power in 2016 after a landslide victory in the previous year's general election. He is a close confidant of de facto leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.

In his critics' eyes, the soft-spoken elderly man was merely a "puppet president." While he was formally the head of state and constitutionally the highest authority in the land, the amount of actual power he wielded was questionable. "The Lady," as State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is known, had already made it known during the election campaign that she would be "above the president," as the Constitution bans her from holding the office.

Since last year, the public knew of the 71-year-old president's ill health due to his frail appearance and absence from some state functions. He also received medical treatments overseas.

Never a Dream Job

Daw Su Su Lwin, the former first lady, told the media on Friday that her husband's resignation was not solely for health reasons but that it had been planned in advance.

"He had never thought he would be the president," she said.

"When he was assigned to the post, he expected to spend three to six months at most in the position for Daw Aung San Suu Kyi," she added, meaning that he thought that the Constitution that barred the state counselor from the presidency could be fixed in that time.

Contrary to what he expected, the charter amendment—one of the NLD government priorities—has so far gotten nowhere in his two years in office.

Daw Su Su Lwin hopes the possible incoming president U Win Myint, who is four years younger than U Htin Kyaw, will be more successful given his younger age and experience.

"I urge all of you to welcome and delight for U Win Myint's presidency as you did for U Htin Kyaw."

 

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Obituary: Junta Insider Dies at 92

Posted: 26 Mar 2018 02:04 AM PDT

YANGON — U Chit Hlaing, the author of the ideology of the Burma Socialist Program Party (BSPP), which ruled the country for 26 years, died of natural causes at the age of 92 at Yangon General Hospital on Saturday.

After former dictator General Ne Win staged a coup on March 2, 1962, he needed a political ideology, and U Chit Hlaing composed the "Burmese Way to Socialism," which became the political ideology of the socialist government that ruled the country from 1962 to 1988.

He was also the author of the political treatise of the BSPP—"The System of Correlation between Man and His Environment" simply known in Burmese as Innya myinnya. U Chit Hlaing worked alongside General Ne Win throughout the 1960s and remained close to later junta chief Snr-Gen Than Shwe during the 1990s.

The assignment to write Innya myinnya came directly from Gen Ne Win. U Chit Hlaing worked closely with the former dictator throughout the 1950s and 1960s and was constantly ready to defend the late dictator as a pragmatist.

He was one of the founders of the Central School of Political Science—the first of its kind in the country at the time, in July 1963. In the 1970s, U Chit Hlaing left the BSPP but still often met U Ne Win whenever summoned by the general.

Born in Sagaing Region's Katha, the Marxist was inspired during the Second World War by books written by Thakhin Soe, who led the Red Flag faction of the Communist Party of Burma (CPB).

He joined the Burma Independence Army in 1942 and became a communist after reading communist communique of Lieutenant Thein Ta, who later became the commander of the CPB Red Flag faction.

He later served as an underground soldier in the revolt against Japanese fascists, working as the messenger between Gen Aung San, Thakhin Soe, and other communist leaders like Thakhin Than Tun and Thakhin Ba Hein.

Among the three leaders of Myanmar's independence struggle who he knew best—Gen Aung San, Gen Ne Win and Thakin Soe—he respected Gen Aung San the most. "Aung San is just Aung San and there is no comparison," said U Chit Hlaing in his Yangon residence during an interview with The Irrawaddy in 2012.

After the CPB split into the Red Flag faction and the White Flag faction, he was in favor of the former faction because of Thakhin Soe, but later he had a falling out with him as he could not stand his criticism of Gen Aung San.

After Myanmar gained independence in 1948, U Chit Hlaing worked in the People's Literature Committee led by leading politician U Ba Swe. In 1951, he visited Eastern European countries and was stranded in France.

He studied philosophy at the Sorbonne in France, and in 1954 he came back to Myanmar after Brig-Gen Aung Gyi, who was the second top brass in the Revolutionary Council, called him back.

He wrote a long article entitled "While stranded in Paris" about his experience in France in The Myawady Magazine.

Arranged by Brig-Gen Aung Gyi, he joined the Defense Directorate of Psychological Warfare as a civilian military official with the same rank as lieutenant-colonel in 1955, as the directorate was assigned to counter the propaganda of CPB. This marked the beginning of his ties with former dictator Ne Win.

In July 1995, U Chit Hlaing and former judge U Tin Aung Hein, a student activist who became a prominent member of the BSPP, visited former dictator U Ne Win's house.

U Ne Win was alone in his residence and U Chit Hlaing and U Tin Aung Hein wanted to bring up the current state of political affairs in the country but were unable to do so since U Ne Win did not want to discuss anything related to politics. They politely listened to the former dictator as he spoke about religion and Buddhism.

They were surprised when U Ne Win confessed that he would not have staged the coup in 1962 if he had studied Buddhism and meditation earlier in life. Ne Win elaborated further if he had known Anicca, Dukkha and Anatta—the three Dharma aspects of life—at the time, he would not have seized power.

"I was taken aback when he said that," wrote U Chit Hlaing, also known by his pen name Ko Ko Maung Gyi, in his autobiography.

The funeral of U Chit Hlaing will be held on Tuesday, March 27, which is Anti-Fascist Revolution Day.

The post Obituary: Junta Insider Dies at 92 appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Army Shutters Myawaddy Checkpoint in Clampdown on Auto Smuggling

Posted: 26 Mar 2018 01:57 AM PDT

Two Border Guard Force (BGF) soldiers refused The Irrawaddy permission to approach a border crossing between Myawaddy and Mae Sot, Thailand on foot on Monday, saying the area was closed. The closure reportedly followed efforts by the army to clamp down on vehicle smuggling across the Thai border.

According to Kyaw Than, an automobile trader who accompanied an Irrawaddy reporter to the area, however, the border crossing was normally open.

Local sources told The Irrawaddy that the Myanmar Army had ordered the BGF to close one of the area's two border checkpoints, which have become a major route for smuggling illegally imported cars.

At another, disused border checkpoint that is also used to smuggle cars into the country, where on most days thousands of vehicles can be seen lined up on the Thai side of the border across the Moei River, no cars could be seen lined up on Monday. Both sides appeared empty, except for a few Myanmar laborers looking for work.

Kyaw Than said he was one of the many car buyers who traveled to the border crossing to buy smuggled cars. To see the cars, buyers must cross the river to where the cars are parked on the Thai side. When a deal is made, a Thai seller brings the car to the Myanmar side. The BGF soldiers then ask for a payment for permission to cross through the border checkpoint. Most traders do business with BGF personnel, he said. BGF soldiers even offered a service to drive the black market cars to the homes of buyers. Until recently, the Myanmar Army and police did not dare to take action against the BGF, he said. "They rule in Myawaddy. No one dares to make a problem for them," Kyaw Than said.

Most of the smuggled cars are second-hand vehicles from Japan and Thailand. Some are stolen cars from other countries, but buyers are not concerned about that, he said. People looking for cheap cars travel to Myawaddy from all over Myanmar. Officially, the government only allows imported cars to enter the country via ports, but it has not been able to control the smuggling of vehicles across the Thai border.

Tension between BGF, Army

On Saturday, the Myanmar Army made surprise checks of two BGF bases — including two border checkpoints —without asking permission from BGF leaders. Some BGF leaders were reportedly upset about the army's move, but decided not to complain about it.

Regarding the army's action, BGF spokesperson Naing Maung Zaw told The Irrawaddy that, "We are all soldiers. We should respect each other. But, they [the Army] did not respect us."

Myanmar Army and BGF leaders held a meeting in Myawaddy yesterday, according to BGF sources. The army ordered the closure of one major border checkpoint that had become a major conduit for car smuggling.

The situation was tense in some locations where BGF personnel were fully armed. Some residents of Myawaddy said both sides were to blame for the problem. "Normally [the town's] restaurants are crowded, but not today," Kyaw Than said.

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Junta Insider Recalls Dancing with Devils

Posted: 25 Mar 2018 11:32 PM PDT

The Irrawaddy revisits this story from August 2012 in which former Red Flag communist Chit Hlaing recalls working alongside infamous figures from Myanmar's past including the brutal dictators Gen Ne Win and Snr-Gen Than Shwe. He died on March 24 at age 92.

In his youth, when British-colonized Myanmar was struggling to restore its independence, Chit Hlaing worked with some of the country's most famous leaders including national hero Gen Aung San as well as the less salubrious Gen Ne Win and Thakin Soe, who led the Red Flag faction.

Now in his early 80s, Chit Hlaing, himself an ex-Red Flag communist who translated several Marxist texts into Myanmar, is still following the political intrigues of the nation. His mind remains razor-sharp and his past memories are still fresh.

As the author of the political bible of the Burma Socialist Program Party (BSPP)—"The System of Correlation between Man and His Environment" simply known as Innya myinnya—Chit Hlaing worked alongside former dictator Ne Win throughout the 1960s, and remained close to later junta chief Snr-Gen Than Shwe during the 1990s.

The assignment to write Innya myinnya came directly from Ne Win and the two were in constant contact. Chit Hlaing worked closely with the former general throughout the 1950s and 1960s and was always ready to defend Ne Win as a pragmatist. Ne Win, a member of legendary "30 Comrades," staged a military coup in March 1962 and introduced the "Burmese Way to Socialism" which turned out to be an unmitigated failure.

Ne Win recruited the Marxist Chit Hlaing as he needed to introduce a political ideology in the aftermath of his coup. Chit Hlaing joined the Defense Directorate of Psychological Warfare as a civilian military official with the same rank as lieutenant-colonel in 1955. In the 1970s, Chit Hlaing left the BSPP but still often met Ne Win whenever summoned by the general.

Ne Win resigned from politics in 1988 during the upheaval caused by nationwide democracy protests and has since devoted his time to reading books and studying Buddhism as well as practicing meditation.

Chit Hlaing, who speaks French and once studied philosophy at the Sorbonne in France, recalled his last meeting with Ne Win during an interview with The Irrawaddy. In July 1995, Chit Hlaing and former Judge Tin Aung Hein, a student activist who became a prominent member of the BSPP, visited Ne Win's house.

Ne Win was alone in his residence—his wife Ni Ni Myint, a university professor of history, left for an appointment after preparing them some food—but he looked healthy and his mind was clear.

Chit Hlaing and Tin Aung Hein wanted to bring up the current state of political affairs in the country but were unable to do so since Ne Win did not want to discuss anything related to politics. They politely listened to the former dictator as he spoke about religion and Buddhism.

They were surprised when Ne Win confessed that he would not have staged the coup in 1962 if he had studied Buddhism and meditation earlier in life. Ne Win elaborated further if he had known Anicca, Dukkha and Anatta—the three Dharma aspects of life—at the time, he would not have seized power.

Chit Hlaing said the former general was no philosopher and always remained suspicious of people. Among the three leaders of Myanmar's independence struggle who he knew best—Aung San, Ne Win and Thakin Soe—he respected Aung San most. "Aung San is just Aung San and there is no comparison," said Chit Hlaing in his Rangoon residence.

In his farewell speech to an emergency congress held by the BSPP in 1988, Ne Win stunned the nation by saying that if the "disturbances" continued the "army would have to be called in and I would like to declare from here that if the army shoots it has no tradition of shooting into the air. It would shoot straight to hit."

Ne Win was not issuing an empty threat. Troops gunned down several hundred peaceful demonstrators during the uprising. Chit Hlaing thought it was a moment when Ne Win was facing a real political crisis and lost control.

Some of those close to the dictator claimed that he kept books of Buddhism in his study to read and contemplate. In his meditation room, visitors claimed there was a sizable gold-plated banyan leaf on the wall. Did this brutal dictator reach Nirvana. Who knows?

Ne Win was placed under house arrest in 2002 accused of plotting to overthrow the military government, with his arrest finally ending decade-long speculation that he was still in control of the regime.

He was imprisoned at his lakeside villa—ironically just around the corner from where democracy icon Daw Aung San Suu Kyi was similarly incarcerated—with only his favorite daughter, Sandar Win, for company.

Ne Win's three grandsons and son-in-law were found guilty of treason and sentenced to death. Sandar Win was recently released from under house arrest along with her husband Aye Zaw Win and has since been seen around Rangoon. She used to own the Nawarat Hotel in the former capital and apparently plans to reopen it soon. One of their sons was also released but several alleged coup plotters remain behind bars.

Ne Win was a reclusive figure who was known to be superstitious and believe in the power of numbers. He once instructed that the national currency, the kyat, should be issued in denominations of 45 and 90 because they were divisible by his lucky number, nine.

Some said that he once asked a plane to circle his native hometown nine times while he rode a wooden horse onboard. Rumors abound that he once bathed in dolphins' blood to regain his youth and his dedication to numerology was legendary.

But Ne Win was not the only Myanmar tyrant with whom Chit Hlaing rubbed shoulders. In late 1950s, he also met a young army officer who came to study political science. This student would one day become Snr-Gen Than Shwe.

From the outset, Chit Hlaing thought that Than Shwe was more like a politician than an army officer.

Than Shwe was sent to study psychological warfare in Yangon in 1958. He then became a teacher at the Central School of Political Science in Minglardon Township in Yangon. Chit Hlaing often met Than Shwe at school or social gatherings and they would make sightseeing trips outside of Rangoon together.

He evaluated Than Shwe as a pragmatist who was more interested in politics than military affairs.

From 1957 to 1960, they met often and discussed Myanmar politics. San Yu, then commander of Northern Regional Military Command and who served as Burmese president from 1981 to 1988, spotted Than Shwe's potential and appointed him chief of the Psychological Warfare Department in Northern Region. Than Shwe was then a young captain.

Chit Hlaing said that Than Shwe, like many army officers in Myanmar, was always a virulent anti-communist. In the early 1990s, Chit Hlaing went to meet Than Shwe twice—in 1990 and 1992.

Than Shwe became head of the State Law and Order Restoration Council, the highest political body in Myanmar, in 1992. He unexpectedly took over power from Snr-Gen Saw Maung in April of that year when the junta chief resigned citing health reasons.

Than Shwe did not reveal much at the time except to say that the current situation was a bit chaotic. He also offered Chit Hlaing some cash to publish books.

Chit Hlaing, who also used the pen name Ko Ko Maung Gyi, has since written several tomes. He usually sends his newly published work to colleagues, politicians, senior members of the ruling council and, of course, Than Shwe himself.

Last year, when he sent his latest memoirs to Than Shwe and other top leaders, he was told by officials in the Ministry of Information to address Than Shwe as "head-of-state" and Vice-Snr-Gen Maung Aye as "deputy head-of-state."

"To Thein Sein?" asked Chit Hlaing of the instructions. "Of course, he is the president," replied the official. "Are you sure about that?" Chit Hlaing insisted.

When asked whether he thinks Than Shwe is still pulling the string and remains in control as many Myanmar scholars believe, Chit Hlaing gave a wry smile. "Maybe he is still in remote control mode. Who knows?" he chuckled.

The post Junta Insider Recalls Dancing with Devils appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Uber Agrees to Sell SE Asia Business to Grab After Costly Battle

Posted: 25 Mar 2018 09:52 PM PDT

SINGAPORE/SAN FRANSICO — Ride-hailing firm Uber Technologies Inc has agreed to sell its Southeast Asian business to bigger regional rival Grab, the firms said in a statement on Monday, marking the US company’s second retreat from an Asian market.

The deal marks the industry’s first big consolidation in Southeast Asia, home to about 640 million people, and puts pressure on Indonesia’s Go-Jek, which is backed by Alphabet Inc’s Google and China’s Tencent Holdings Ltd.

As part of the transaction, Uber will take a 27.5 percent stake in the Southeast Asian company and Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi will join Grab’s board.

Expectations of consolidation in Asia’s fiercely competitive ride-hailing industry were stoked earlier this year when Japan’s SoftBank Group Corp made a multi-billion dollar investment in Uber.

SoftBank is also one of the main investors in several other big ride-hailing firms including Grab, China’s Didi Chuxing, and India’s Ola.

Ride-hailing companies throughout Asia have relied heavily on discounts and promotions, driving down profit margins.

Uber, which is preparing for a potential initial public offering in 2019, lost $4.5 billion last year and is facing fierce competition at home and in Asia, as well as a regulatory crackdown in Europe.

“It will help us double down on our plans for growth as we invest heavily in our products and technology,” Khosrowshahi said in a statement.

Grab said it will take over Uber’s operations and assets in eight countries in the region, and will expand its food delivery services.

The post Uber Agrees to Sell SE Asia Business to Grab After Costly Battle appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Police, Politicians Accused of Joining Sri Lanka’s Anti-Muslim Riots

Posted: 25 Mar 2018 09:44 PM PDT

KANDY, Sri Lanka — Police and politicians backed by the country’s former strongman President Mahinda Rajapaksa joined anti-Muslim riots that rocked Sri Lanka’s Kandy district this month, according to witnesses, officials and CCTV footage reviewed by Reuters.

Scores of Muslim mosques, homes and businesses were destroyed as mobs ran amok for three days in Kandy, the central highlands district previously known for its diversity and tolerance. The government declared a state of emergency and blocked social media platforms for a week to control the unrest.

The role of police and some local Buddhist politicians suggests the Sri Lankan government lost control of elements of its security forces, and that the violence was more than a spontaneous outbreak fuelled by fringe Buddhist extremists and hate-speech spread on social media.

Rajapaksa has denied that he or other leaders of his party were involved. Police said the allegations against officers and politicians were being investigated.

Victims and witnesses, whose accounts were partly backed by CCTV footage seen by Reuters, described members of an elite paramilitary police unit, the Special Task Force (STF), assaulting Muslim cleric and leaders. Local STF commanders declined to comment.

“They came to attack,” said A.H Ramees, a cleric at a mosque where worshippers say they were beaten by police who were supposed to be protecting them. “They were shouting. There was filthy language. They said all the problems were because of us, that we were like terrorists.”

Ruwan Gunasekera, a spokesman for the national police force, including the STF, said a special investigation unit was "probing the deficiencies of the police in the incident." A second unit was examining the role of political actors, he said.

The riots were the latest example of rising Buddhist nationalism and anti-Muslim sentiment in the region and have unnerved Sri Lanka’s multi-ethnic coalition government, which ousted Rajapaksa in an election in 2015, according to analysts and two sources familiar with the government’s deliberations.

Buddhists make up about 70 percent of Sri Lanka’s 21 million people. Tamils, most of whom are Hindu, account for 13 percent while Muslims make up about 9 per cent of the population.

Sri Lanka’s Law and Order Minister Ranjith Madduma Bandara has said the violence in Kandy was “well organized” and pointed the finger at members of Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP), a political party backed by Rajapaksa that scored a huge victory in local elections last month.

At a press conference flanked by senior leaders earlier this month, Rajapaksa said the accusations were politically motivated. In fact, the government fomented the violence to “get the Muslim vote” and to distract from its inadequacies, he said.

Trigger for Violence

The violence in Kandy was triggered by an attack on a Buddhist truck driver, H.G Kumarasinghe, by four Muslim men after a traffic dispute on Feb. 22.

As Kumarasinghe lay in a coma, calls for retribution and anti-Islam polemics flooded social media and the government ordered the deployment of 1,000 members of the STF.

Rioting erupted after his funeral 11 days later.

An excerpt of CCTV footage from the first day of attacks reviewed by Reuters showed police letting a large group of men through the cordon protecting the Noor Jummah mosque in Digana, a Kandy township.

The men rush into a multi-story building opposite the mosque. A local SLPP politician, Samantha Perera, can be seen pointing at the higher floors of the building.

Perera confirmed he was the person shown in the footage. He said he was trying to calm the rioters and only found out later the mosque had been attacked. “I am a good Buddhist. I am not instigating violence against anybody,” he told Reuters.

Cabinet spokesman Rajitha Senaratne said Perera was under investigation for "attacking Muslim-owned shops and mosques with stones." At least three other SLPP politicians, including a national politician, were being investigated and another SLPP councillor has been arrested for setting fire to a mosque, he said. All deny any involvement in the violence.

“There’s a political motive to discredit me, Mahinda Rajapaksa and the party,” Perera said.

"Monster Beyond Control"

Anti-Muslim sentiment has surged in Sri Lanka since 2009, when a long civil war against Tamil insurgents was brutally ended by Rajapaksa amid charges by a United Nations panel of experts of human rights violations, including extrajudicial killings by the military and STF.

As in Myanmar, from where 700,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled an army crackdown in recent months, Buddhist hardliners in Sri Lanka have argued that Islam is a threat to the Buddhist way of life.

Though the level of violence is not comparable, the Sri Lankan Secretariat for Muslims, a civil society group, logged more than 600 attacks and threats to Muslims in the past five years, according to director Hilmy Ahamed, who added the rate of anti-Muslim violence had accelerated in the recent years.

“The fear that Muslims are going to take over, are going to deprive you of your welfare, is so widespread,” he said.

Veteran political analyst Jayadeva Uyangoda said Buddhist chauvinism in Sri Lanka was a "monster beyond control," as local activists draw inspiration from the Buddhist extremists in Myanmar and Hindu radicals in India hostile to Muslims.

“Can You Believe it?"

About 10 minutes after the incident near the Noor Jummah mosque shown in the CCTV footage, the mob returned via a back road, out of the line of sight of the mosque’s exterior cameras, and threw a petrol bomb into the mosque’s first floor office, according to witnesses Mohamed Niyaskhan, who said he was beaten and left bloodied, and the mosque secretary M.I.M Shukry.

The men burned Korans during 45 minutes of looting and destruction, they said.

Niyaskhan said earlier that day he had prepared food and drinks for STF members protecting the mosque, but they had left shortly before the attack.

“No STF, no police were there,” he said. “They had gone around the corner. Can you believe it?”

Later that day, eight to 10 members of the STF rushed the Hijrapura mosque, also in Digana, according to clerics and worshippers.

The police assaulted worshippers with batons, according to Ramees, the cleric.

CCTV footage shows police in riot gear striking Ramees and another cleric, M.S.M Nizam, four times with batons. A local Buddhist monk, Gerendigala Chanda Wimala, told Reuters he saw the men being manhandled by police and successfully demanded their release.

At about the same time, a local Muslim politician, Abdul Saleem Mohamad Fazil, and a friend Mohamad Faizal, were also attacked by members of the elite police unit, according to the victims and a witness, Father Christy Paul, the prelate at Digana’s Catholic church.

“Three STFs came through the back entrance of the house and started beating us,” said Fazil, who suffered a deep head wound and said he spent in a night in prison after being refused medical treatment.

“They grabbed some bottles from the landing and put them in a bag and said we were making petrol bombs.”

Father Christy said he heard the men’s screams and saw the police hitting them with batons. The men were cowering on the ground and not offering any resistance to the police, he said.

A local STF commander, asked about the incidents described to Reuters, declined to comment, citing restrictions on talking to the media. The law and order ministry referred to the police special investigation into alleged abuses.

Police say they have arrested more than 300 people involved in the riots.

The post Police, Politicians Accused of Joining Sri Lanka's Anti-Muslim Riots appeared first on The Irrawaddy.

Philippines Urges Tougher Global Action on Cybersex Child Trafficking

Posted: 25 Mar 2018 09:24 PM PDT

MANILA — The Philippines’ fight to end cybersex trafficking needs other countries to get tougher with sexual predators who pay to watch children being abused over webcam, a Filipina senator said.

Organizations such as the United Nations’ children’s agency (UNICEF) say the Philippines is the epicenter of a growing cybersex trafficking trade, with many children forced to perform sex acts, abused and raped by relatives in front of a webcam.

The Philippines receives at least 3,000 reports per month from other countries of possible cases of its children being sexually exploited online, said the Department of Justice.

Senator Loren Legarda said the Southeast Asian nation must better enforce its anti-trafficking law, which carries the threat of life imprisonment, but there must be global action to stop cybersex trafficking where victims are sold for sex online.

“Developed countries, from which the demand for online sexual exploitation of children usually originates, must do their part,” she told the Thomson Reuters Foundation days after delivering a speech on cybersex child trafficking to the Senate.

She cited a recent case in Queensland, Australia, where a man was spared jail and fined $500 after being convicted of receiving explicit images of two girls from a Filipina mother.

“This calls for amending the lenient sentences that their laws mete upon those who prey on Filipino children … raise the penalties to lower the demand,” added the three-time senator and first woman to be elected head of the Philippines’ upper house.

At least 400,000 people in the country – or one in 250 – are estimated to be trapped in modern slavery, according to the 2016 Global Slavery Index by the Walk Free Foundation.

The Philippines is considered a regional hotspot for trafficking – from domestic workers who are exploited and enslaved overseas to forced prostitution in the nation’s booming sex industry and now to cybersex trafficking.

“We get a lot of help from the likes of Australia, Britain, Germany, Norway and the United States when it comes to tackling the online sexual exploitation of children … but we need more,” said Juvy Manwong, assistant secretary at the department.

“It is disheartening to see soft punishments against abusers in other countries,” she told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Legarda said the Philippines must also raise awareness of the crime and the country’s anti-trafficking law – to deter abusers and encourage the public to report cases – and teach children how to better protect themselves offline and online.

Police, prosecutors, charities, and government and aviation officials in Angeles – one of the country’s major trafficking hubs – last week joined forces in a city-wide drive to identify traffickers, boost victim support and keep people from harm.

“The illegal trade is a complex web – battling it requires a concerted effort from all sectors of society,” Legarda added.

The post Philippines Urges Tougher Global Action on Cybersex Child Trafficking appeared first on The Irrawaddy.
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