Crew of NKorean plane detained in Thai jail
By JOCELYN GECKER, Associated Press Writer – Mon Dec 14, 7:15 am ET
BANGKOK (AP) – A Thai court ordered an extended 12-day detention Monday for the crew of a cargo plane loaded with North Korean weapons, as Thailand said it was trying to determine if the aircraft's destination was in Asia or the Middle East.
The Bangkok Criminal Court accepted a police request to hold the five-man crew in prison pending further investigations in a case that could shed new light on the illicit weapons trade from North Korea, which is widely accused of selling weapons to nations in Africa and the Middle East, in violation of U.N. sanctions.
The United States, which is particularly concerned about North Korea selling weapons and nuclear technology in the Middle East, reportedly tipped off Thai authorities to the aircraft's illicit cargo, according to Thai media reports that the government and U.S. Embassy declined to comment on.
Thai officials impounded the Ilyushin IL-76 transport plane Saturday and discovered 35 tons of explosives, rocket-propelled grenades and components for surface-to-air missiles.
Members of the crew — four from Kazakhstan and one from Belarus — were charged Sunday with illegal arms possession, which carries a penalty of up to 10 years in prison.
The court on Monday approved an initial request for a 12-day extension, which can be extended up to 84 days, said police spokesman Pongsapat Pongjaren.
Thailand convened an emergency session of its National Security Council, after which officials ruled out any threat to Thailand's security and said the investigation would be carried out carefully, slowly and in close cooperation with the United Nations.
The council's Secretary-General Thawil Pilansri said military experts were analyzing the weapons at a base in the nearby province of Nakhon Sawan, where they were moved by trucks Saturday night under high security.
"After an initial inspection we did not find any nuclear-type weapons," said Air Vice Marshal Metha Sungkawijit, in response to a reporter's question.
Government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn said the aircraft was headed for the Sri Lankan capital Colombo but authorities were investigating if the flight plan was misleading and the final destination was in the Middle East, noting the aircraft had recently stopped in the United Arab Emirates.
"We believe after Colombo there may have been another destination," he said.
On Wednesday the plane was flown from the United Arab Emirates to Bangkok where it landed without any cargo for a refueling stop and continued on to Pyongyang. It left the North Korean capital on Friday and returned to Bangkok for a scheduled refueling before it was due to fly to Sri Lanka, Panitan said.
"We had information that the plane was carrying weapons, and so we sent officers to search," Panitan said, declining to confirm Thai newspaper reports that the tip came from American authorities.
U.S. Embassy spokesman Michael Turner said the embassy could not confirm or deny any U.S. role.
The latest U.N. sanctions — which ban North Korea from exporting all arms or weapons — were imposed in June after the reclusive communist regime conducted a nuclear test and test-fired missiles. The sanctions were aimed at derailing North Korea's nuclear weapons program, but also banned the North's sale of any conventional arms.
The seizure came just days after President Barack Obama's special envoy made a rare three-day trip to North Korea on a mission to persuade Pyongyang to rejoin six-nation nuclear disarmament talks. Envoy Stephen Bosworth said the two sides had reached an understanding on the need to restart the talks.
Arms sales are a key source of hard currency for the impoverished North. Pyongyang is believed to earn hundreds of millions of dollars every year by selling missiles, missile parts and other weapons to countries like Iran, Syria and Myanmar.
The crew members insist they thought they were carrying oil-drilling equipment and were not aware of any illicit cargo, said defense lawyer Somsak Saithong.
"They didn't know what was in the boxes, they were just transporting them," the lawyer told reporters. "Their job is to pick up the cargo and go to the destination."
Later in the day, the court rejected their request for bail, he said.
The flight plan turned over to Thai police says the plane was registered to Air West, a cargo transport company in the former Soviet republic of Georgia and was carrying oil-drilling equipment, said Somsak.
In August, the United Arab Emirates seized a Bahamas-flagged cargo ship bound for Iran with a cache of banned rocket-propelled grenades and other arms from North Korea, the first seizure since sanctions against North Korea were ramped up.
In July, a North Korean ship believed to be bound for Myanmar and carrying suspicious cargo, possibly illicit weapons, changed course and headed home after it was monitored for more than a week by the U.S. Navy.
By JOCELYN GECKER, Associated Press Writer – Mon Dec 14, 7:15 am ET
BANGKOK (AP) – A Thai court ordered an extended 12-day detention Monday for the crew of a cargo plane loaded with North Korean weapons, as Thailand said it was trying to determine if the aircraft's destination was in Asia or the Middle East.
The Bangkok Criminal Court accepted a police request to hold the five-man crew in prison pending further investigations in a case that could shed new light on the illicit weapons trade from North Korea, which is widely accused of selling weapons to nations in Africa and the Middle East, in violation of U.N. sanctions.
The United States, which is particularly concerned about North Korea selling weapons and nuclear technology in the Middle East, reportedly tipped off Thai authorities to the aircraft's illicit cargo, according to Thai media reports that the government and U.S. Embassy declined to comment on.
Thai officials impounded the Ilyushin IL-76 transport plane Saturday and discovered 35 tons of explosives, rocket-propelled grenades and components for surface-to-air missiles.
Members of the crew — four from Kazakhstan and one from Belarus — were charged Sunday with illegal arms possession, which carries a penalty of up to 10 years in prison.
The court on Monday approved an initial request for a 12-day extension, which can be extended up to 84 days, said police spokesman Pongsapat Pongjaren.
Thailand convened an emergency session of its National Security Council, after which officials ruled out any threat to Thailand's security and said the investigation would be carried out carefully, slowly and in close cooperation with the United Nations.
The council's Secretary-General Thawil Pilansri said military experts were analyzing the weapons at a base in the nearby province of Nakhon Sawan, where they were moved by trucks Saturday night under high security.
"After an initial inspection we did not find any nuclear-type weapons," said Air Vice Marshal Metha Sungkawijit, in response to a reporter's question.
Government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn said the aircraft was headed for the Sri Lankan capital Colombo but authorities were investigating if the flight plan was misleading and the final destination was in the Middle East, noting the aircraft had recently stopped in the United Arab Emirates.
"We believe after Colombo there may have been another destination," he said.
On Wednesday the plane was flown from the United Arab Emirates to Bangkok where it landed without any cargo for a refueling stop and continued on to Pyongyang. It left the North Korean capital on Friday and returned to Bangkok for a scheduled refueling before it was due to fly to Sri Lanka, Panitan said.
"We had information that the plane was carrying weapons, and so we sent officers to search," Panitan said, declining to confirm Thai newspaper reports that the tip came from American authorities.
U.S. Embassy spokesman Michael Turner said the embassy could not confirm or deny any U.S. role.
The latest U.N. sanctions — which ban North Korea from exporting all arms or weapons — were imposed in June after the reclusive communist regime conducted a nuclear test and test-fired missiles. The sanctions were aimed at derailing North Korea's nuclear weapons program, but also banned the North's sale of any conventional arms.
The seizure came just days after President Barack Obama's special envoy made a rare three-day trip to North Korea on a mission to persuade Pyongyang to rejoin six-nation nuclear disarmament talks. Envoy Stephen Bosworth said the two sides had reached an understanding on the need to restart the talks.
Arms sales are a key source of hard currency for the impoverished North. Pyongyang is believed to earn hundreds of millions of dollars every year by selling missiles, missile parts and other weapons to countries like Iran, Syria and Myanmar.
The crew members insist they thought they were carrying oil-drilling equipment and were not aware of any illicit cargo, said defense lawyer Somsak Saithong.
"They didn't know what was in the boxes, they were just transporting them," the lawyer told reporters. "Their job is to pick up the cargo and go to the destination."
Later in the day, the court rejected their request for bail, he said.
The flight plan turned over to Thai police says the plane was registered to Air West, a cargo transport company in the former Soviet republic of Georgia and was carrying oil-drilling equipment, said Somsak.
In August, the United Arab Emirates seized a Bahamas-flagged cargo ship bound for Iran with a cache of banned rocket-propelled grenades and other arms from North Korea, the first seizure since sanctions against North Korea were ramped up.
In July, a North Korean ship believed to be bound for Myanmar and carrying suspicious cargo, possibly illicit weapons, changed course and headed home after it was monitored for more than a week by the U.S. Navy.
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Myanmar rebels grow more opium to buy arms: report
Mon Dec 14, 1:09 am ET
BANGKOK (Reuters) – Ethnic groups in northeastern Myanmar have stepped up opium cultivation to buy weapons to defend themselves against possible attacks by the country's military, a United Nations report said on Monday.
Opium production increased for the third successive year and rose by 11 percent this year, with Shan State providing 95 percent of the poppy in Myanmar, the world's second-biggest opium producer after Afghanistan, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
"Increased instability in northeastern Myanmar is affecting the opium market. (Some ethnic groups) ... are selling drugs to buy weapons, and moving stocks to avoid detection," said UNODC Executive Director Antonio Maria Costa.
Myanmar's army has maintained a sizable presence over the past few months in Shan State, where rebel militias are braced for an offensive that analysts said could turn into a protracted conflict, creating a refugee crisis for neighboring China.
The junta wants ethnic groups to take part in a general election next year and has told local militias to disarm and join a government-run border patrol force or be wiped out, according to activists in Shan State.
The military overwhelmed and disarmed the Kokang group, the weakest of the ethnic armies, in August after several days of fighting. That triggered an exodus of more than 37,000 refugees across the border and strained ties with China, its only real diplomatic ally.
The United Wa State Army, a 20,000-strong ethnic Chinese militia labeled a narcotics cartel by the United States, has refused to disarm and is preparing for an imminent attack, media reports and activists say.
UNODC said the amount of land dedicated to growing opium -- a thick paste from poppy used to make heroin -- had increased by 50 percent since 2006 to 31,700 hectares in Myanmar.
Despite the rise in cultivation, the report said the potential value of opium production in Myanmar had fallen by 15 percent to $104 million in 2009 from $123 million.
In neighboring Laos, opium cultivation had increased by 19 percent but the total remained low at 1,900 hectares.
However, with opium fetching $1,326 per kg, the price was still attractive for farmers at a time when the value of other crops was falling, the report said.
Mon Dec 14, 1:09 am ET
BANGKOK (Reuters) – Ethnic groups in northeastern Myanmar have stepped up opium cultivation to buy weapons to defend themselves against possible attacks by the country's military, a United Nations report said on Monday.
Opium production increased for the third successive year and rose by 11 percent this year, with Shan State providing 95 percent of the poppy in Myanmar, the world's second-biggest opium producer after Afghanistan, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
"Increased instability in northeastern Myanmar is affecting the opium market. (Some ethnic groups) ... are selling drugs to buy weapons, and moving stocks to avoid detection," said UNODC Executive Director Antonio Maria Costa.
Myanmar's army has maintained a sizable presence over the past few months in Shan State, where rebel militias are braced for an offensive that analysts said could turn into a protracted conflict, creating a refugee crisis for neighboring China.
The junta wants ethnic groups to take part in a general election next year and has told local militias to disarm and join a government-run border patrol force or be wiped out, according to activists in Shan State.
The military overwhelmed and disarmed the Kokang group, the weakest of the ethnic armies, in August after several days of fighting. That triggered an exodus of more than 37,000 refugees across the border and strained ties with China, its only real diplomatic ally.
The United Wa State Army, a 20,000-strong ethnic Chinese militia labeled a narcotics cartel by the United States, has refused to disarm and is preparing for an imminent attack, media reports and activists say.
UNODC said the amount of land dedicated to growing opium -- a thick paste from poppy used to make heroin -- had increased by 50 percent since 2006 to 31,700 hectares in Myanmar.
Despite the rise in cultivation, the report said the potential value of opium production in Myanmar had fallen by 15 percent to $104 million in 2009 from $123 million.
In neighboring Laos, opium cultivation had increased by 19 percent but the total remained low at 1,900 hectares.
However, with opium fetching $1,326 per kg, the price was still attractive for farmers at a time when the value of other crops was falling, the report said.
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EarthTimes - YEARENDER: Myanmar gears up for an election junta-style
Posted : Mon, 14 Dec 2009 05:04:14 GMT
Yangon - Myanmar's junta this year paved the way for their unique vision of "discipline-flourishing democracy" by making sure that the country's chief opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi was safely under detention, if not silenced. In one of the most shameful of sham trials, Suu Kyi was found guilty on August 11 of breaking the terms of her previous six years of house detention by allowing a mentally unstable US Mormon to swim into her compound-cum-prison by Yangon's Inya Lake.
The commuted sentence was another 18 months of house arrest, just enough to guarantee the Nobel peace laureate was under the junta's thumb as it prepares to hold a general election some time in 2010.
Predictably, the sentence sparked international outrage and renewed calls for Suu Kyi's immediate release.
Aung San Suu Kyi, 64, whose name has become as synonymous with opposition to Myanmar's military rule as Nelson Mandela's has with the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa, has spent 14 of the past 20 years under detention in her decaying Yangon family compound.
She was first placed under house arrest in 1989 for publicly criticizing former military strongman General Ne Win.
Suu Kyi was under house arrest during the 1990 polls but, if anything, her detention helped her National League for Democracy (NLD) party win that election by a landslide.
How much more of an impact might she have if she were free during the 2010 polls?
"The military's main objective is to keep her out of the picture during the election time which is absolutely critical to them," said Win Min, a lecturer on Myanmar affairs at Thailand's Chiang Mai University.
"Even under house arrest she may say something about whom she supports - I don't think they want that to happen," he said.
The junta has repeatedly said they will stage an election sometime in 2010 as a crucial step in their seven-point roadmap to democracy, but they have yet to issue regulations covering party registration and the election system.
Nor have they set a firm date for the polls.
Bets were previously on the election being held in May, the traditional month for polls and referendums because farmers are free and the monsoon rains have not yet started.
But with no election legislation yet in place, now Myanmar pundits are predicting polls closer to the end of the year.
"I heard the election will be on 10-10-2010. Is that true?" asked one Asian diplomat based in Yangon.
The number 10 is a symbol of completion according to Myanmar numerology beliefs.
Few in Yangon think the junta will allow Suu Kyi and some 2,100 other political prisoners to be freed before the polls, despite requests from US President Barack Obama and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, among others.
Obama, as part of his administration's new "engagement" policy with Myanmar, has hinted at lifting economic sanctions if the junta agrees to meet certain key conditions such as freeing Suu Kyi and opening a dialogue with the opposition and other stakeholders before holding an election.
The junta is unlikely to play ball.
"They have been ruling Myanmar under economic sanctions for a long time and have proven they can survive," said one Yangon-based political observer who requested anonymity.
"I think they will not negotiate with the lady [Suu Kyi] just to avoid sanctions for one year," he said. "For the military, the ethnic issue is more important than the lady and the NLD."
Under the 2008 constitution, some 37 ethnic minority armies, which the junta calls "ceasefire groups," must be turned into border guards as part of the preparations for the election.
The ethnic minority groups are also encouraged to set up political parties to contest the polls.
So far only only three groups have complied, and there are fears that some of the largest groups, such as the Wa, will refuse and perhaps block polling in their areas.
"It seems to me that both sides, the regime and ethnic groups, do not have a clear plan for the next step," said Aung Din, director of the Washington-based US Campaign For Burma.
"I am sure that the refusal of these ethnic groups to the border guard plan is the main reason for the regime's delay in announcing the election schedule," he said.
Posted : Mon, 14 Dec 2009 05:04:14 GMT
Yangon - Myanmar's junta this year paved the way for their unique vision of "discipline-flourishing democracy" by making sure that the country's chief opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi was safely under detention, if not silenced. In one of the most shameful of sham trials, Suu Kyi was found guilty on August 11 of breaking the terms of her previous six years of house detention by allowing a mentally unstable US Mormon to swim into her compound-cum-prison by Yangon's Inya Lake.
The commuted sentence was another 18 months of house arrest, just enough to guarantee the Nobel peace laureate was under the junta's thumb as it prepares to hold a general election some time in 2010.
Predictably, the sentence sparked international outrage and renewed calls for Suu Kyi's immediate release.
Aung San Suu Kyi, 64, whose name has become as synonymous with opposition to Myanmar's military rule as Nelson Mandela's has with the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa, has spent 14 of the past 20 years under detention in her decaying Yangon family compound.
She was first placed under house arrest in 1989 for publicly criticizing former military strongman General Ne Win.
Suu Kyi was under house arrest during the 1990 polls but, if anything, her detention helped her National League for Democracy (NLD) party win that election by a landslide.
How much more of an impact might she have if she were free during the 2010 polls?
"The military's main objective is to keep her out of the picture during the election time which is absolutely critical to them," said Win Min, a lecturer on Myanmar affairs at Thailand's Chiang Mai University.
"Even under house arrest she may say something about whom she supports - I don't think they want that to happen," he said.
The junta has repeatedly said they will stage an election sometime in 2010 as a crucial step in their seven-point roadmap to democracy, but they have yet to issue regulations covering party registration and the election system.
Nor have they set a firm date for the polls.
Bets were previously on the election being held in May, the traditional month for polls and referendums because farmers are free and the monsoon rains have not yet started.
But with no election legislation yet in place, now Myanmar pundits are predicting polls closer to the end of the year.
"I heard the election will be on 10-10-2010. Is that true?" asked one Asian diplomat based in Yangon.
The number 10 is a symbol of completion according to Myanmar numerology beliefs.
Few in Yangon think the junta will allow Suu Kyi and some 2,100 other political prisoners to be freed before the polls, despite requests from US President Barack Obama and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, among others.
Obama, as part of his administration's new "engagement" policy with Myanmar, has hinted at lifting economic sanctions if the junta agrees to meet certain key conditions such as freeing Suu Kyi and opening a dialogue with the opposition and other stakeholders before holding an election.
The junta is unlikely to play ball.
"They have been ruling Myanmar under economic sanctions for a long time and have proven they can survive," said one Yangon-based political observer who requested anonymity.
"I think they will not negotiate with the lady [Suu Kyi] just to avoid sanctions for one year," he said. "For the military, the ethnic issue is more important than the lady and the NLD."
Under the 2008 constitution, some 37 ethnic minority armies, which the junta calls "ceasefire groups," must be turned into border guards as part of the preparations for the election.
The ethnic minority groups are also encouraged to set up political parties to contest the polls.
So far only only three groups have complied, and there are fears that some of the largest groups, such as the Wa, will refuse and perhaps block polling in their areas.
"It seems to me that both sides, the regime and ethnic groups, do not have a clear plan for the next step," said Aung Din, director of the Washington-based US Campaign For Burma.
"I am sure that the refusal of these ethnic groups to the border guard plan is the main reason for the regime's delay in announcing the election schedule," he said.
******************************************************************
EarthTImes - Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz to visit Myanmar this week
Posted : Mon, 14 Dec 2009 02:52:00 GMT
Yangon - Nobel laureate and former chief economist at the World Bank Joseph Stiglitz is due to visit Myanmar this week to advise the government on its development policies, media reports said Monday. On Tuesday the renowned economist is to attend a seminar in Nay Pyi Taw, the military's new capital, which will also be attended by Myanmar Minister for National Planning and Economic Development Soe Tha and Minister of Agriculture and Irrigation U Htay Oo, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia Pacific (UNESCAP) said in a statement.
In an email message to the Myanmar Times, an English-language weekly, Stiglitz said he was hopeful the military-run government would heed his advice on economic policy, particularly on access to rural credit.
"Growth that does not benefit all of society is not ultimately sustainable," Stiglitz said. "It's important that government take policy measures that include all sectors of the population, especially in rural areas."
Myanmar, which has been under military dictatorships since 1962, is ranked as a least developed developing country by the UN.
Stiglitz's visit was at the invitation of Noeleen Heyzer, under secretary general of the United Nations and executive secretary of UNESCAP.
UNESCAP has contributed money to his airfare and some expenses, but the renowned economist said he was providing his services free of charge and he would cover most of the expenses on his trip, which is also to take in irrigation projects and the temples of Bagan.
"Many people in our position fund their own travel to low-income countries because it is not fair to ask the people in those countries to pay," he said.
As chief economist of the World Bank from 1997 to 2000, Stiglitz played a key role in the publication Rethinking the Asian Miracle, which examined the reasons behind the dramatic growth of eight Asian economies.
He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics in 2001.
Posted : Mon, 14 Dec 2009 02:52:00 GMT
Yangon - Nobel laureate and former chief economist at the World Bank Joseph Stiglitz is due to visit Myanmar this week to advise the government on its development policies, media reports said Monday. On Tuesday the renowned economist is to attend a seminar in Nay Pyi Taw, the military's new capital, which will also be attended by Myanmar Minister for National Planning and Economic Development Soe Tha and Minister of Agriculture and Irrigation U Htay Oo, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia Pacific (UNESCAP) said in a statement.
In an email message to the Myanmar Times, an English-language weekly, Stiglitz said he was hopeful the military-run government would heed his advice on economic policy, particularly on access to rural credit.
"Growth that does not benefit all of society is not ultimately sustainable," Stiglitz said. "It's important that government take policy measures that include all sectors of the population, especially in rural areas."
Myanmar, which has been under military dictatorships since 1962, is ranked as a least developed developing country by the UN.
Stiglitz's visit was at the invitation of Noeleen Heyzer, under secretary general of the United Nations and executive secretary of UNESCAP.
UNESCAP has contributed money to his airfare and some expenses, but the renowned economist said he was providing his services free of charge and he would cover most of the expenses on his trip, which is also to take in irrigation projects and the temples of Bagan.
"Many people in our position fund their own travel to low-income countries because it is not fair to ask the people in those countries to pay," he said.
As chief economist of the World Bank from 1997 to 2000, Stiglitz played a key role in the publication Rethinking the Asian Miracle, which examined the reasons behind the dramatic growth of eight Asian economies.
He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics in 2001.
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LAOS-MYANMAR: "Worrying trend" of rising opium poppy cultivation
BANGKOK, 14 December 2009 (IRIN) - Fuelled by political instability and lacklustre crop prices, opium poppy cultivation is on the rise in Myanmar in a worrying trend that may undo containment strategies, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) warns.
Poppy cultivation is also on the rise in Laos, where farmers are struggling as commodity prices fall, according to the UNODC's latest survey of opium poppy cultivation in the two countries in 2009, launched on 14 December in Bangkok.
"We are worried about trends, especially in Myanmar, where we see the potential unravelling of much of what containment has produced over the past two decades," said Gary Lewis, the UNODC Representative for East Asia and the Pacific at the launch.
"In the past three years we have seen incremental cultivation increases, and this is of [concern] to us ... In conclusion, containment is under threat," he said.
Southeast Asia is home to the infamous "Golden Triangle" of countries comprising Laos, Myanmar and Thailand, once the world's major supplier of opium, but overtaken by Afghanistan since 1991.
Eradication efforts in the past few decades have slashed opium cultivation in Southeast Asia to about 5 percent of the world's supply, although the region is now battling the production and consumption of amphetamine-type drugs.
Most opium cultivation in the Southeast Asian region still takes place in these three countries, mostly in Myanmar; from there the drug is shipped primarily to China and Vietnam, although it is also distributed worldwide.
The UNODC says a combination of political instability in Myanmar, and falling commodity prices over the past year has tempted farmers to turn back to poppy growing.
"We have prices of commodity items such as maize and rubber dropping more than 50 percent, and at the same time we have seen an increase in opium prices," said Leik Boonwaat, the UNODC's representative in Laos.
"Demand has been stable, the prices have increased and this has made it more tempting for farmers to increase production," he said.
Instability threat
The Myanmar government has maintained ceasefires for years with a number of ethnic groups, including those in the country's east, who have been allowed a certain degree of autonomy.
However, pro-democracy activists say the government has now told these groups they must join a government border-patrol force, sparking fears of armed confrontations.
"Increased instability in northeastern Myanmar is affecting the opium market," wrote UNODC's executive director Antonio Maria Costa in the report's introduction.
"Ceasefire groups - autonomous ethnic militias like the Wa and Kachin - are selling drugs to buy weapons and moving stocks to avoid detection," he said.
Cultivation has increased for the third consecutive year in Myanmar, with opium-producing land increasing by 11 percent compared with the previous year and 50 percent since 2006 to a total of 31,700ha, according to the survey.
More than one million people are involved in poppy cultivation in Myanmar, where 95 percent of the poppy is grown in northeastern Shan state, it said.
In Laos, cultivation was up 19 percent to a total of 1,900ha and opium is fetching a high retail price of US$1,327/kg, compared with the farm-gate price of $317/kg in Myanmar. Boonwaat attributed the difference to a scarcity in demand and a population of some 12,000 drug addicts in Laos.
To stem the cultivation, governments and donors needed to maintain vigilance and continue their support to help poppy cultivators find alternative livelihoods, the UNODC said.
"It's in areas where alternative development has had a chance to take place that we've seen less opium, and in places that are more isolated and remote that we are seeing more opium growing," Boonwaat told IRIN.
BANGKOK, 14 December 2009 (IRIN) - Fuelled by political instability and lacklustre crop prices, opium poppy cultivation is on the rise in Myanmar in a worrying trend that may undo containment strategies, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) warns.
Poppy cultivation is also on the rise in Laos, where farmers are struggling as commodity prices fall, according to the UNODC's latest survey of opium poppy cultivation in the two countries in 2009, launched on 14 December in Bangkok.
"We are worried about trends, especially in Myanmar, where we see the potential unravelling of much of what containment has produced over the past two decades," said Gary Lewis, the UNODC Representative for East Asia and the Pacific at the launch.
"In the past three years we have seen incremental cultivation increases, and this is of [concern] to us ... In conclusion, containment is under threat," he said.
Southeast Asia is home to the infamous "Golden Triangle" of countries comprising Laos, Myanmar and Thailand, once the world's major supplier of opium, but overtaken by Afghanistan since 1991.
Eradication efforts in the past few decades have slashed opium cultivation in Southeast Asia to about 5 percent of the world's supply, although the region is now battling the production and consumption of amphetamine-type drugs.
Most opium cultivation in the Southeast Asian region still takes place in these three countries, mostly in Myanmar; from there the drug is shipped primarily to China and Vietnam, although it is also distributed worldwide.
The UNODC says a combination of political instability in Myanmar, and falling commodity prices over the past year has tempted farmers to turn back to poppy growing.
"We have prices of commodity items such as maize and rubber dropping more than 50 percent, and at the same time we have seen an increase in opium prices," said Leik Boonwaat, the UNODC's representative in Laos.
"Demand has been stable, the prices have increased and this has made it more tempting for farmers to increase production," he said.
Instability threat
The Myanmar government has maintained ceasefires for years with a number of ethnic groups, including those in the country's east, who have been allowed a certain degree of autonomy.
However, pro-democracy activists say the government has now told these groups they must join a government border-patrol force, sparking fears of armed confrontations.
"Increased instability in northeastern Myanmar is affecting the opium market," wrote UNODC's executive director Antonio Maria Costa in the report's introduction.
"Ceasefire groups - autonomous ethnic militias like the Wa and Kachin - are selling drugs to buy weapons and moving stocks to avoid detection," he said.
Cultivation has increased for the third consecutive year in Myanmar, with opium-producing land increasing by 11 percent compared with the previous year and 50 percent since 2006 to a total of 31,700ha, according to the survey.
More than one million people are involved in poppy cultivation in Myanmar, where 95 percent of the poppy is grown in northeastern Shan state, it said.
In Laos, cultivation was up 19 percent to a total of 1,900ha and opium is fetching a high retail price of US$1,327/kg, compared with the farm-gate price of $317/kg in Myanmar. Boonwaat attributed the difference to a scarcity in demand and a population of some 12,000 drug addicts in Laos.
To stem the cultivation, governments and donors needed to maintain vigilance and continue their support to help poppy cultivators find alternative livelihoods, the UNODC said.
"It's in areas where alternative development has had a chance to take place that we've seen less opium, and in places that are more isolated and remote that we are seeing more opium growing," Boonwaat told IRIN.
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eTaiwan News - US worried about American jailed in Myanmar
Associated Press
2009-12-12 03:27 AM
The State Department says the United States has raised with Myanmar's government the case of a Myanmar-born American jailed in the military-ruled country.
Spokesman Ian Kelly told reporters Friday that the United States contacted the junta to express its worry and to make sure Kyaw Zaw Lwin is being treated well.
Authorities arrested the U.S. citizen, also referred to as Nyi Nyi Aung, on arrival at Yangon airport on Sept. 3. According to dissident groups he is a resident of Maryland.
Myanmar authorities accused him of entering Myanmar to stir up protests by Buddhist monks, who led pro-democracy demonstrations in 2007 that were brutally suppressed by the junta.
Associated Press
2009-12-12 03:27 AM
The State Department says the United States has raised with Myanmar's government the case of a Myanmar-born American jailed in the military-ruled country.
Spokesman Ian Kelly told reporters Friday that the United States contacted the junta to express its worry and to make sure Kyaw Zaw Lwin is being treated well.
Authorities arrested the U.S. citizen, also referred to as Nyi Nyi Aung, on arrival at Yangon airport on Sept. 3. According to dissident groups he is a resident of Maryland.
Myanmar authorities accused him of entering Myanmar to stir up protests by Buddhist monks, who led pro-democracy demonstrations in 2007 that were brutally suppressed by the junta.
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Inquirer.net - Myanmar junta chief's future still uncertain—activists
By Didier Lauras
Agence France-Presse First Posted 11:27:00 12/13/2009
CHIANG MAI, Thailand—As Myanmar gears up for rare elections due next year, eyes are turning to the fate of the country's ageing military strongman, Than Shwe, and a possible succession, exiled activists say.
Described by critics as reclusive, paranoid, and deeply in thrall to astrology, the 76-year-old "Senior General" has ruled the country with an iron grip since 1992, but is now in the twilight of his career.
A new constitution approved in a widely criticized 2008 referendum says that the State Peace and Development Council—the junta that Than Shwe heads—must hand over power to a new national assembly after the elections.
Than Shwe may take over the new presidential position provided for by the constitution to maintain his hold on power, according to opposition activists living in exile in Thailand.
But after constantly striving to increase his power, he now faces underlying resentment from within the regime, the activists say.
When he eventually quits, "Than Shwe will make sure his future is safe," said Naing Aung, secretary general of the Forum for Democracy in Burma.
She added, however: "Than Shwe has only close circles with him. He is an isolated man."
Aung Naing Oo, a Myanmar political analyst in the northern Thai city of Chiang Mai, predicted it would be "interesting to see how he leaves politics because he cannot leave right away."
"If he retains a formal position, it means he is not leaving. If he doesn't, then he will be protected for quite some time" by keeping his aides close to him, he said.
Than Shwe will be well aware of the fate of several previous leaders since the military took control of Myanmar in 1962.
Ex-dictator Ne Win, who ruled the country between 1962 and 1988, died under house arrest in 2002 and was not granted a state funeral, while several members of his family were sent to jail. The official press hardly mentioned his death.
Than Shwe himself presided over a purge of the military intelligence service that ended with the sentencing of ex-prime minister Khin Nyunt to 44 years' house arrest in 1994.
"He may not want to retire, but under the constitution he may have to. He will put someone he really trusts like his son," said Win Min, an academic at Chiang Mai university and pro-democracy activist.
Win Min said that until Than Shwe played his hand, it would be impossible to predict successors in the largely opaque Myanmar military hierarchy.
"Unpredictability is his strategy. You don't know what he is going to do. He is a control freak," he said.
In 2005 Than Shwe moved the capital almost overnight from Rangoon to the purpose-built city of Naypyidaw to satisfy his dreams of grandeur—and also to protect himself against supposed threats to his rule.
The elections, meanwhile, have been tailored to favor the junta.
The constitution reserves a quarter of all seats for the military, while opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi has been detained for most of the past two decades since her National League for Democracy won the last polls in 1990.
Yet critics say that Than Shwe will still have to deal with some new faces, even if they are just in the military.
"With a new constitution, whether you like it or not, you'll have new leadership," Aung Naing Oo said. "I don't think anyone can be as bad, as manipulative as Than Shwe. The new system will open up a little bit."
A complex power struggle is likely between Than Shwe's circle and the new military officials who will be keen to use their electoral legitimacy, analysts said.
But Than Shwe's fate will for the most part remain in his own hands.
"Than Shwe will be directing things from behind the curtain," said Khuensai Jaigen, exiled leader of the Shan Herald Agency for News, a news service for the Shan ethnic minority.
Changes "will not come right away. People will not be in a hurry to change things like Obama after Bush," he said ironically.
"At first, the successor will be careful. He'll try to change things a bit until he's sure he can be confident. Then there might be drastic changes."
By Didier Lauras
Agence France-Presse First Posted 11:27:00 12/13/2009
CHIANG MAI, Thailand—As Myanmar gears up for rare elections due next year, eyes are turning to the fate of the country's ageing military strongman, Than Shwe, and a possible succession, exiled activists say.
Described by critics as reclusive, paranoid, and deeply in thrall to astrology, the 76-year-old "Senior General" has ruled the country with an iron grip since 1992, but is now in the twilight of his career.
A new constitution approved in a widely criticized 2008 referendum says that the State Peace and Development Council—the junta that Than Shwe heads—must hand over power to a new national assembly after the elections.
Than Shwe may take over the new presidential position provided for by the constitution to maintain his hold on power, according to opposition activists living in exile in Thailand.
But after constantly striving to increase his power, he now faces underlying resentment from within the regime, the activists say.
When he eventually quits, "Than Shwe will make sure his future is safe," said Naing Aung, secretary general of the Forum for Democracy in Burma.
She added, however: "Than Shwe has only close circles with him. He is an isolated man."
Aung Naing Oo, a Myanmar political analyst in the northern Thai city of Chiang Mai, predicted it would be "interesting to see how he leaves politics because he cannot leave right away."
"If he retains a formal position, it means he is not leaving. If he doesn't, then he will be protected for quite some time" by keeping his aides close to him, he said.
Than Shwe will be well aware of the fate of several previous leaders since the military took control of Myanmar in 1962.
Ex-dictator Ne Win, who ruled the country between 1962 and 1988, died under house arrest in 2002 and was not granted a state funeral, while several members of his family were sent to jail. The official press hardly mentioned his death.
Than Shwe himself presided over a purge of the military intelligence service that ended with the sentencing of ex-prime minister Khin Nyunt to 44 years' house arrest in 1994.
"He may not want to retire, but under the constitution he may have to. He will put someone he really trusts like his son," said Win Min, an academic at Chiang Mai university and pro-democracy activist.
Win Min said that until Than Shwe played his hand, it would be impossible to predict successors in the largely opaque Myanmar military hierarchy.
"Unpredictability is his strategy. You don't know what he is going to do. He is a control freak," he said.
In 2005 Than Shwe moved the capital almost overnight from Rangoon to the purpose-built city of Naypyidaw to satisfy his dreams of grandeur—and also to protect himself against supposed threats to his rule.
The elections, meanwhile, have been tailored to favor the junta.
The constitution reserves a quarter of all seats for the military, while opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi has been detained for most of the past two decades since her National League for Democracy won the last polls in 1990.
Yet critics say that Than Shwe will still have to deal with some new faces, even if they are just in the military.
"With a new constitution, whether you like it or not, you'll have new leadership," Aung Naing Oo said. "I don't think anyone can be as bad, as manipulative as Than Shwe. The new system will open up a little bit."
A complex power struggle is likely between Than Shwe's circle and the new military officials who will be keen to use their electoral legitimacy, analysts said.
But Than Shwe's fate will for the most part remain in his own hands.
"Than Shwe will be directing things from behind the curtain," said Khuensai Jaigen, exiled leader of the Shan Herald Agency for News, a news service for the Shan ethnic minority.
Changes "will not come right away. People will not be in a hurry to change things like Obama after Bush," he said ironically.
"At first, the successor will be careful. He'll try to change things a bit until he's sure he can be confident. Then there might be drastic changes."
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Financial Express (Bangladesh) - Foreign secy-level talks with Myanmar begin Dec 29
VOL 18 NO 360 REGD NO DA 1589 | Dhaka, Tuesday December 15 2009
Nazmul Ahsan
The two-day foreign secretary-level talks between Bangladesh and Myanmar are scheduled to begin in Dhaka on December 29 next on issues ranging from trade to energy cooperation, officials in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoF) said.
The MoF at an inter-min isterial meeting, held Wednesday last finalized the issues that Bangladesh would pursue at the upcoming bilateral meeting. Foreign Secretary Mijarul Quayes presided.
Around 30 issues have been identified for the talks.
The visit of five-member Myanmar delegation, led by its foreign secretary, will be a follow-up one. Foreign Minister Dipu Moni paid a three-day visit to Myanmar in May this year.
Establishing a direct air route between Dhaka and Yangon, eliminating problems relating to business visa, introducing the direct letters of credit(L/C), and reducing bilateral -trade gap are some of the major issues to be discussed between the two foreign secretaries, sources said.
Another most important area for discussion will be the possibility of establishing a hydroelectric plant in Myanmar, sources said. In the last Bangladesh-Myanmar joint trade council meeting, Bangladesh requested Myanmar to consider establishment of a hydroelectric power plant in the Rakhaine State under a joint venture. Myanmar side agreed to discuss the matter in the upcoming foreign secretary level meeting.
Dhaka is expected to attach the highest importance to the issue of hydropower plant as the country is in dire need of electricity, sources said.
The issue of importing gas from Myanmar to Bangladesh has been included in the agenda. However, details of gas-import issue could not be known.
Establishing a direct road link between Myanmar and Bangladesh is the priority not only for the two neighbours but also for many regional countries, an official in the foreign ministry said. Both the countries signed a Memorandum of Understanding in April, 2004 in this respect. Later, the communication ministers of both countries signed an agreement allowing establishment of a road link between Bangladesh and China through Myanmar.
But due to fund constraints and other problems, much progress could not be made particularly on the Myanmar side. There could be some development at the coming foreign-secretary level talks about the road link, sources said.
The proposed road link now could be a part of the Asian highway, said a communication ministry official, adding the fund constraint no longer exists as far as the construction of the Asian highway is concerned since a number of donor agencies including the Asian Development Bank has shown interest to finance the projects.
Bilateral trade between the two neighbouring countries has been taking place under the general trade agreement and border trade agreement signed in 1973 and 1994 respectively. Trade between the two countries takes place mostly under the provisions of border trade arrangement. The two-way trade volume is very low and the balance is tilted to Myanmar.
Dhaka's prime agenda at the meeting will be to request Yangon to increase import from Bangladesh. Currently, exporters and importers of both the countries face problems due to the absence of direct L/C opening opportunity between banks of the two countries. Since Myanmar is not member of International Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the country follows strict foreign exchange related regulations, trade officials said.
The scheduled banks of Bangladesh usually open L/C with Myanmar banks via third country banks. As a result transaction costs and time turn out to be very high. To facilitate trade, a decision of examining and devising of a mechanism for opening L/Cs directly between the two countries was taken in 2007.
"We will raise the L/C issue seriously,' a top MoF official told the FE on Wednesday.
Another agenda of the meeting will be the problems of business visa issued from Myanmar Embassy in Dhaka. Bangladeshi businessmen get only 14 days' visa and that allows them to travel only the bordering Rakhaine State of Myanmar. Moreover, with one single entry in the border pass, they are not allowed to move beyond Maundough.
For example to go to Sittwee, the main centre of business in the Rakhaine state, Bangladeshi business people need to go Maundough first and then apply again for proceeding towards Sittwee, sources in the business circle said.
Other major remaining issues for the meeting include fertiliser buy back, border trade, repatriation of Myanmar refugees, demarcation of land boundary, delimitation of maritime boundary, coastal shipping link, cooperation in tourism, border fencing, issuance of border pass and cooperation in agricultural sector.
VOL 18 NO 360 REGD NO DA 1589 | Dhaka, Tuesday December 15 2009
Nazmul Ahsan
The two-day foreign secretary-level talks between Bangladesh and Myanmar are scheduled to begin in Dhaka on December 29 next on issues ranging from trade to energy cooperation, officials in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoF) said.
The MoF at an inter-min isterial meeting, held Wednesday last finalized the issues that Bangladesh would pursue at the upcoming bilateral meeting. Foreign Secretary Mijarul Quayes presided.
Around 30 issues have been identified for the talks.
The visit of five-member Myanmar delegation, led by its foreign secretary, will be a follow-up one. Foreign Minister Dipu Moni paid a three-day visit to Myanmar in May this year.
Establishing a direct air route between Dhaka and Yangon, eliminating problems relating to business visa, introducing the direct letters of credit(L/C), and reducing bilateral -trade gap are some of the major issues to be discussed between the two foreign secretaries, sources said.
Another most important area for discussion will be the possibility of establishing a hydroelectric plant in Myanmar, sources said. In the last Bangladesh-Myanmar joint trade council meeting, Bangladesh requested Myanmar to consider establishment of a hydroelectric power plant in the Rakhaine State under a joint venture. Myanmar side agreed to discuss the matter in the upcoming foreign secretary level meeting.
Dhaka is expected to attach the highest importance to the issue of hydropower plant as the country is in dire need of electricity, sources said.
The issue of importing gas from Myanmar to Bangladesh has been included in the agenda. However, details of gas-import issue could not be known.
Establishing a direct road link between Myanmar and Bangladesh is the priority not only for the two neighbours but also for many regional countries, an official in the foreign ministry said. Both the countries signed a Memorandum of Understanding in April, 2004 in this respect. Later, the communication ministers of both countries signed an agreement allowing establishment of a road link between Bangladesh and China through Myanmar.
But due to fund constraints and other problems, much progress could not be made particularly on the Myanmar side. There could be some development at the coming foreign-secretary level talks about the road link, sources said.
The proposed road link now could be a part of the Asian highway, said a communication ministry official, adding the fund constraint no longer exists as far as the construction of the Asian highway is concerned since a number of donor agencies including the Asian Development Bank has shown interest to finance the projects.
Bilateral trade between the two neighbouring countries has been taking place under the general trade agreement and border trade agreement signed in 1973 and 1994 respectively. Trade between the two countries takes place mostly under the provisions of border trade arrangement. The two-way trade volume is very low and the balance is tilted to Myanmar.
Dhaka's prime agenda at the meeting will be to request Yangon to increase import from Bangladesh. Currently, exporters and importers of both the countries face problems due to the absence of direct L/C opening opportunity between banks of the two countries. Since Myanmar is not member of International Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the country follows strict foreign exchange related regulations, trade officials said.
The scheduled banks of Bangladesh usually open L/C with Myanmar banks via third country banks. As a result transaction costs and time turn out to be very high. To facilitate trade, a decision of examining and devising of a mechanism for opening L/Cs directly between the two countries was taken in 2007.
"We will raise the L/C issue seriously,' a top MoF official told the FE on Wednesday.
Another agenda of the meeting will be the problems of business visa issued from Myanmar Embassy in Dhaka. Bangladeshi businessmen get only 14 days' visa and that allows them to travel only the bordering Rakhaine State of Myanmar. Moreover, with one single entry in the border pass, they are not allowed to move beyond Maundough.
For example to go to Sittwee, the main centre of business in the Rakhaine state, Bangladeshi business people need to go Maundough first and then apply again for proceeding towards Sittwee, sources in the business circle said.
Other major remaining issues for the meeting include fertiliser buy back, border trade, repatriation of Myanmar refugees, demarcation of land boundary, delimitation of maritime boundary, coastal shipping link, cooperation in tourism, border fencing, issuance of border pass and cooperation in agricultural sector.
******************************************************************
Myanmar artists to perform in Jakarta
Saturday, December 12, 2009 22:19 WIB | Entertainment | | Viewed 216 time(s)
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Myanmar`s artists will perform at the Gedung Kesenian Jakarta, here on December 14, 2009.
"Myanmar is a country rich in culture and on Monday, 14 December 2009, at the Gedung Kesenian Jakarta, Indonesia, the artistes from the Fine Arts Department of the Ministry of Culture of Myanmar will be showcasing the best of the performing arts from their country," Jakarta-based ASEAN Secretariat.
From dances performed for the royal court in ancient days to excerpts of the Myanmar Ramayana Grand Drama, the evening of entertainment is co-organized by the Ministry of Culture of Myanmar and the ASEAN Secretariat, and supported by the Myanmar Embassy in Indonesia.
The performance with the theme, "The Royal Beauty of Golden Myanmar" is the fourth in the Best of ASEAN Performing Arts series that was proposed by the Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr Surin Pitsuwan.
The previous series had showcased the colourful and vibrant performances from Indonesia, Thailand and Singapore.
Saturday, December 12, 2009 22:19 WIB | Entertainment | | Viewed 216 time(s)
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Myanmar`s artists will perform at the Gedung Kesenian Jakarta, here on December 14, 2009.
"Myanmar is a country rich in culture and on Monday, 14 December 2009, at the Gedung Kesenian Jakarta, Indonesia, the artistes from the Fine Arts Department of the Ministry of Culture of Myanmar will be showcasing the best of the performing arts from their country," Jakarta-based ASEAN Secretariat.
From dances performed for the royal court in ancient days to excerpts of the Myanmar Ramayana Grand Drama, the evening of entertainment is co-organized by the Ministry of Culture of Myanmar and the ASEAN Secretariat, and supported by the Myanmar Embassy in Indonesia.
The performance with the theme, "The Royal Beauty of Golden Myanmar" is the fourth in the Best of ASEAN Performing Arts series that was proposed by the Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr Surin Pitsuwan.
The previous series had showcased the colourful and vibrant performances from Indonesia, Thailand and Singapore.
******************************************************************
Press of Atlantic City - Refugee families celebrate new lives, Christmas traditions in Atlantic City
By MICHELLE LEE Staff Writer | Posted: Sunday, December 13, 2009 |
ATLANTIC CITY — Last year, Joseph Klaw and his relatives were living in a refugee camp on the border between Thailand and Myanmar, formerly known as Burma.
This year, the 22-year-old is living in Atlantic City and working at Trump Plaza, thanks to a refugee resettlement program run by Catholic Charities.
“I’m happy,” Klaw said while wearing a red traditional outfit and surrounded by dozens of relatives and friends. “I like the people and the opportunity.”
Catholic Charities brought Klaw to the resort six month ago, and his parents, brother and sisters joined him several weeks later.
And on Sunday, the Klaws experienced their first Christmas celebration with dozens of other families at party held at St. Michael’s Roman Catholic Church on Mississippi Avenue.
Klaw listened to religious and secular songs in his native Kayah, English and other languages. He brought a traditional beef and vegetable dish to share with others. His father, Elder Klaw Reh, even performed a tune on the harmonica.
The Klaws were among more than 70 refugees and eight volunteers who showed up for an unique Christmas celebration hosted by Catholic Charities.
The parish hall was a festive, decorated with Christmas trees, nutcracker cutouts and posters of Iraq and states in Myanmar. Holiday tunes such as “Joy to the World” and “Jesus came down to this Earth” shared the same stage as traditional songs and dances from Myanmar. Donated gifts of clothing, toys and school supplies were passed out.
Everyone ate a meal of traditional noodle and rice dishes.
Most of the families were from the Karen and Kayah states of Myanmar, and many of them came to Atlantic County within the past year, said Greg Kilpatrick, the Catholic Charities refugee-resettlement program coordinator. Other families who attended the party were different ethnicities from Myanmar: Arakanese, Mon, Chin. There was also one family from Iraq. All of the Myanmar refugees fled to escape persecution, killings and torture from the Burmese military regime, according to Koko Thein, a case manager and translator for Catholic Charities and a former refugee.
Kaitlyn Muller, program director of Catholic Charities refugee and immigration services said the Christmas celebration is important because many refugee families often get separated when they leave their homeland.
“Now they can come together and celebrate in an opportunity they wouldn’t have in their own country,” Muller said.
More importantly, the families can practice their own religion and traditions without fear of retribution, said Rose Thein, a volunteer with Catholic Charities who came to the United States 20 years ago. Most of the families who attended the celebration are Christian, while others are Buddhist or follow animism, the spiritual belief in the power of natural things such as plants, rivers and mountains.
“All they’d seen is misery, sorrow and persecution and atrocities from all sides,” Thein said. “So (here), they are free to see their friends in their faith (and it) is a blessing to us. This all happen because of the grace of God and Jesus Christ.”
The number of refugee families has been growing in the Garden State.
Catholic Charities helped 340 families resettle in New Jersey from January to September of this year,and a quarter of them were placed in Atlantic County, Muller said. The organization usually helps 200 people resettle each year. The 2007 Christmas party, the first one held for the refugee program, drew 15 families, Koko Thein said.
The attendees said they liked the cultural aspect of the Christmas celebration.
Pi Kee, a 41 year-old ceiling installer from Somers Point, said through Thein’s translation that he enjoyed the bamboo dance because it is very popular back in his homeland of Myanmar, and it is performed every New Year. Kee, who came with his wife, Day Kyu and four other relatives, said his other favorite part was singing Christmas songs and coming together with families of other nationalities.
Sa Lin, a father of five from Somers Point, called it the “most enjoyable festival all year round,” Thein said.
Lin, who is Muslim, said he didn’t feel strange celebrating a Christian holiday, and his family brought a traditional curry to share. While their religion prohibits singing other religious songs, Lin said his oldest son, Abdula, 15, joined in the bamboo dance.
The children, on the other hand, gravitated to food and other goodies.
Newon Lah, 10, said he loved eating chocolate and the Arakanese noodles made by his mother, Ma Lah. His brother Swee, 9, said he enjoyed the dancing and getting presents, especially two plastic balls that stick together.
The celebration also had a special significance for Les and Irene Zan, a married couple from Paoli, Pa., who drives to the resort once a month to help out refugee families.
The Zans — with some help from their local church, the Great Valley Presbyterian Church in Malvern, Pa. — collected and gift-wrapped more than 400 gifts to distribute to the former refugees. The Zans had to use a truck and a sport utility vehicle to haul the presents during their two-hour trip.
“I just want to see the smiles on the kids faces,” Irene Zan said.
Les Zan, whose family fled Myanmar, came to the United States as a child in 1969. Les, now an electrical business analyst, said he was following the example of his father, Spencer, who helped other refugee families in Atlantic City for years before he died in February 2008.
“My observation, when I look at the faces of the young people, (is) where will they be five, ten years from now?” Les Zan said. “I hope they learn English and assimilate to the culture and become productive citizens.”
By MICHELLE LEE Staff Writer | Posted: Sunday, December 13, 2009 |
ATLANTIC CITY — Last year, Joseph Klaw and his relatives were living in a refugee camp on the border between Thailand and Myanmar, formerly known as Burma.
This year, the 22-year-old is living in Atlantic City and working at Trump Plaza, thanks to a refugee resettlement program run by Catholic Charities.
“I’m happy,” Klaw said while wearing a red traditional outfit and surrounded by dozens of relatives and friends. “I like the people and the opportunity.”
Catholic Charities brought Klaw to the resort six month ago, and his parents, brother and sisters joined him several weeks later.
And on Sunday, the Klaws experienced their first Christmas celebration with dozens of other families at party held at St. Michael’s Roman Catholic Church on Mississippi Avenue.
Klaw listened to religious and secular songs in his native Kayah, English and other languages. He brought a traditional beef and vegetable dish to share with others. His father, Elder Klaw Reh, even performed a tune on the harmonica.
The Klaws were among more than 70 refugees and eight volunteers who showed up for an unique Christmas celebration hosted by Catholic Charities.
The parish hall was a festive, decorated with Christmas trees, nutcracker cutouts and posters of Iraq and states in Myanmar. Holiday tunes such as “Joy to the World” and “Jesus came down to this Earth” shared the same stage as traditional songs and dances from Myanmar. Donated gifts of clothing, toys and school supplies were passed out.
Everyone ate a meal of traditional noodle and rice dishes.
Most of the families were from the Karen and Kayah states of Myanmar, and many of them came to Atlantic County within the past year, said Greg Kilpatrick, the Catholic Charities refugee-resettlement program coordinator. Other families who attended the party were different ethnicities from Myanmar: Arakanese, Mon, Chin. There was also one family from Iraq. All of the Myanmar refugees fled to escape persecution, killings and torture from the Burmese military regime, according to Koko Thein, a case manager and translator for Catholic Charities and a former refugee.
Kaitlyn Muller, program director of Catholic Charities refugee and immigration services said the Christmas celebration is important because many refugee families often get separated when they leave their homeland.
“Now they can come together and celebrate in an opportunity they wouldn’t have in their own country,” Muller said.
More importantly, the families can practice their own religion and traditions without fear of retribution, said Rose Thein, a volunteer with Catholic Charities who came to the United States 20 years ago. Most of the families who attended the celebration are Christian, while others are Buddhist or follow animism, the spiritual belief in the power of natural things such as plants, rivers and mountains.
“All they’d seen is misery, sorrow and persecution and atrocities from all sides,” Thein said. “So (here), they are free to see their friends in their faith (and it) is a blessing to us. This all happen because of the grace of God and Jesus Christ.”
The number of refugee families has been growing in the Garden State.
Catholic Charities helped 340 families resettle in New Jersey from January to September of this year,and a quarter of them were placed in Atlantic County, Muller said. The organization usually helps 200 people resettle each year. The 2007 Christmas party, the first one held for the refugee program, drew 15 families, Koko Thein said.
The attendees said they liked the cultural aspect of the Christmas celebration.
Pi Kee, a 41 year-old ceiling installer from Somers Point, said through Thein’s translation that he enjoyed the bamboo dance because it is very popular back in his homeland of Myanmar, and it is performed every New Year. Kee, who came with his wife, Day Kyu and four other relatives, said his other favorite part was singing Christmas songs and coming together with families of other nationalities.
Sa Lin, a father of five from Somers Point, called it the “most enjoyable festival all year round,” Thein said.
Lin, who is Muslim, said he didn’t feel strange celebrating a Christian holiday, and his family brought a traditional curry to share. While their religion prohibits singing other religious songs, Lin said his oldest son, Abdula, 15, joined in the bamboo dance.
The children, on the other hand, gravitated to food and other goodies.
Newon Lah, 10, said he loved eating chocolate and the Arakanese noodles made by his mother, Ma Lah. His brother Swee, 9, said he enjoyed the dancing and getting presents, especially two plastic balls that stick together.
The celebration also had a special significance for Les and Irene Zan, a married couple from Paoli, Pa., who drives to the resort once a month to help out refugee families.
The Zans — with some help from their local church, the Great Valley Presbyterian Church in Malvern, Pa. — collected and gift-wrapped more than 400 gifts to distribute to the former refugees. The Zans had to use a truck and a sport utility vehicle to haul the presents during their two-hour trip.
“I just want to see the smiles on the kids faces,” Irene Zan said.
Les Zan, whose family fled Myanmar, came to the United States as a child in 1969. Les, now an electrical business analyst, said he was following the example of his father, Spencer, who helped other refugee families in Atlantic City for years before he died in February 2008.
“My observation, when I look at the faces of the young people, (is) where will they be five, ten years from now?” Les Zan said. “I hope they learn English and assimilate to the culture and become productive citizens.”
******************************************************************
37 Myanmar exiles in Japan apply for long-term residency
TOKYO, Dec. 14 KYODO
A group of 37 people from Myanmar who were exceptionally granted leave to remain in Japan without refugee status applied Monday for more stable long-term residency at the Tokyo Regional Immigration Bureau, their lawyers said.
TOKYO, Dec. 14 KYODO
A group of 37 people from Myanmar who were exceptionally granted leave to remain in Japan without refugee status applied Monday for more stable long-term residency at the Tokyo Regional Immigration Bureau, their lawyers said.
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DailyIndia - India raised insurgency issue with Myanmar: Krishna
From ANI
Onboard, special aircraft, Dec. 12: External Affairs Minister S M Krishna revealed on Friday that India raised the issue of insurgents groups operating from Myanmarese soil with the Government of Myanmar on the sidelines of the BIMSTEC meet.
"We discussed the issue of insurgent groups working against India from the soil of Myanmar. He assured me of full cooperation in this regard," Krishna told the media onboard his aircraft.
Asked specifically if the issue of ULFA chief Paresh Barua taking shelter in the Kachin state of Myanmar was raised, Krishna said an assurance was given to him by Myanmar Prime Minister Thien Sein that he would look into the matter.
According to sources, India and Myanmar have agreed to share intelligence to deal with insurgent groups.
Speaking to reporters, Krishna reacted sharply to a reported appeal filed by the Jamat ud Dawa with the United Nations to remove restrictions imposed on it.
"There is no reason for us to revise our position on Hafiz Sayeed as we hold him responsible for the Mumbai attacks and, we have enough evidence of his involvement. We expect friendly nations to consult India before taking any decision in this regard," Krishna said.
Dwelling on the back channel talks with Pakistan, Krishna stated: "All channels with Pakistan are open to ensure that the perpetrators of the horrible crime are brought to justice".
Meanwhile, heads of delegations attending to the twelfth BIMSTEC ministerial meeting, have adopted the BIMSTEC Convention for Cooperation in Combating International Terrorism, Transnational Organised Crime and Illicit Drug Trafficking. By Ravi Shankar
From ANI
Onboard, special aircraft, Dec. 12: External Affairs Minister S M Krishna revealed on Friday that India raised the issue of insurgents groups operating from Myanmarese soil with the Government of Myanmar on the sidelines of the BIMSTEC meet.
"We discussed the issue of insurgent groups working against India from the soil of Myanmar. He assured me of full cooperation in this regard," Krishna told the media onboard his aircraft.
Asked specifically if the issue of ULFA chief Paresh Barua taking shelter in the Kachin state of Myanmar was raised, Krishna said an assurance was given to him by Myanmar Prime Minister Thien Sein that he would look into the matter.
According to sources, India and Myanmar have agreed to share intelligence to deal with insurgent groups.
Speaking to reporters, Krishna reacted sharply to a reported appeal filed by the Jamat ud Dawa with the United Nations to remove restrictions imposed on it.
"There is no reason for us to revise our position on Hafiz Sayeed as we hold him responsible for the Mumbai attacks and, we have enough evidence of his involvement. We expect friendly nations to consult India before taking any decision in this regard," Krishna said.
Dwelling on the back channel talks with Pakistan, Krishna stated: "All channels with Pakistan are open to ensure that the perpetrators of the horrible crime are brought to justice".
Meanwhile, heads of delegations attending to the twelfth BIMSTEC ministerial meeting, have adopted the BIMSTEC Convention for Cooperation in Combating International Terrorism, Transnational Organised Crime and Illicit Drug Trafficking. By Ravi Shankar
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BusinessGhana - 11 win state literary awards for 2008 in Myanmar
News Date: 14th December 2009
A total of 11 literati have won Myanmar's national literary awards (NLA) for 2008, according to an announcement of the National Literary Award Scrutinizing Committee carried on Friday's official newspaper New Light of Myanmar.
Besides writer Dr. Kyaw Sein, who was chosen as the winner of Life-time Achievement Literary Award, 10 others respectively won the NLA for the year in collection of short stories, belles- letters, Myanmar culture and fine arts literature, child literature, youth literature, translation (informative), translation (creative), general knowledge (arts) and general
knowledge (applied science).
Of the 14 categories of NLAs, no writers won awards for novel, collected poem, drama and political literature, the announcement of the
committee under the Ministry of Information said.
The prize presentation ceremony is set for Dec. 31 in Nay Pyi Taw, according to the announcement.
Last year, 12 literati won NLAs for 2007 including a life-time achievement literary award, while 31 literati received manuscript awards for
the year extended by the Sarpay Beikman (Literature House).
To encourage preservation and promotion of literary and cultural heritage, the government presents the NLAs to successful writers annually,
while the Sarpay Beikman also extends its manuscript award to literary talents every year.
The Sarpay Beikman was founded as the "Burma (now Myanmar) Translation Society" in 1947 and has published numerous magazines, lexicons, illustrated journals and volumes of Myanmar encyclopedia.
Literati in Myanmar have been urged to serve the national interest and educate people with literature as well as to lead people applying modern arts, new thoughts, theories and ideas.
News Date: 14th December 2009
A total of 11 literati have won Myanmar's national literary awards (NLA) for 2008, according to an announcement of the National Literary Award Scrutinizing Committee carried on Friday's official newspaper New Light of Myanmar.
Besides writer Dr. Kyaw Sein, who was chosen as the winner of Life-time Achievement Literary Award, 10 others respectively won the NLA for the year in collection of short stories, belles- letters, Myanmar culture and fine arts literature, child literature, youth literature, translation (informative), translation (creative), general knowledge (arts) and general
knowledge (applied science).
Of the 14 categories of NLAs, no writers won awards for novel, collected poem, drama and political literature, the announcement of the
committee under the Ministry of Information said.
The prize presentation ceremony is set for Dec. 31 in Nay Pyi Taw, according to the announcement.
Last year, 12 literati won NLAs for 2007 including a life-time achievement literary award, while 31 literati received manuscript awards for
the year extended by the Sarpay Beikman (Literature House).
To encourage preservation and promotion of literary and cultural heritage, the government presents the NLAs to successful writers annually,
while the Sarpay Beikman also extends its manuscript award to literary talents every year.
The Sarpay Beikman was founded as the "Burma (now Myanmar) Translation Society" in 1947 and has published numerous magazines, lexicons, illustrated journals and volumes of Myanmar encyclopedia.
Literati in Myanmar have been urged to serve the national interest and educate people with literature as well as to lead people applying modern arts, new thoughts, theories and ideas.
******************************************************************
Scoop - “Burma’s Children, A Generation Sacrificed”
Monday, 14 December 2009, 11:00 am
Press Release: ITUC
Burma : “Burma’s Children, A Generation Sacrificed”, The New ITUC Report
From International Trade Union Confederation
Brussels, 11 December 2009 (ITUC OnLine): The Burmese military junta is to organise “elections” in 2010, but the Constitution, whose adoption it organised in 2008, leaves no doubt as to the army’s desire to stay in power after the ballot. The ITUC’s new report shows that the generals currently in power have no intention of showing any more interest in the population than their predecessors have over the last 47 years of military dictatorship. Without a return to real democracy and the respect of all human rights, including trade union rights, the next generation of Burmese children will never get to sit in a classroom and will be forced to perform all kinds of work, including the very worst.
The new ITUC report highlights the link between the abuse of human rights, including trade union rights, and the catastrophic situation of Burmese children. Crushing all forms of opposition the Burmese military junta spends at least 40% of the State budget on the army, even though the country is not facing any external military threat, and leaves only crumbs for such important sectors as education and health care. As a result, less than 55% of Burmese children complete primary school education, and every day hundreds of thousands work for long hours, sometimes in forced labour imposed by the authorities. The forced recruitment of child soldiers by different army groups is still frequent in Burma, despite repeated promises by the junta to put an end to it.
The report sheds light on the very difficult situation faced by Burmese teachers, who have no trade union rights and no possibility therefore of negotiating their salaries. What they earn today is only a small percentage of what is needed to support a family. Many Burmese teachers encourage children to take private lessons with them, but not all parents can afford to pay for them, given all the other costs they already have to face for their child’s education (materials, forced donations to schools...). This system exists at every level of education, forcing tens of thousands of children out of school every year and into exploitation at work.
Interviews carried out in the country for this report illustrate the distress of these children growing up under military dictatorship. “I work 7 days a week,12 hours a day, for a salary of 8.60 dollars a month,” says a child of 11 working in a tea room in Rangoon. “Other children only earn 6 dollars a month. My boss gives me two meals a day and I can sleep in a small room, but there are a lot of us all squeezed into one very hot room. I am always tired during the day because I don’t sleep enough. We are constantly busy serving customers, cleaning the cups, the floor...”
As the military dictatorship will not tolerate any criticism, it is extremely dangerous to discuss anything to do with social rights, human rights or children’s rights inside Burma. The junta’s censorship prevents the Burmese media from publishing any reports about the real situation in the country. According to the Association to help political prisoners in Burma (l’Association d’aide aux prisonniers politiques birmans), over 2,100 political prisoners are being held in the country. They include about 30 trade unionists, sentenced to between five years and life. Despite this repression, the Federation of Trade Unions – Burma, FTUB, affiliated to the ITUC but banned in Burma, continues to help workers in Burma and support schools in different regions of the country.
To see the full report: http://www.ituc-csi.org/IMG/pdf/Burma_EN_Final.pdf
Monday, 14 December 2009, 11:00 am
Press Release: ITUC
Burma : “Burma’s Children, A Generation Sacrificed”, The New ITUC Report
From International Trade Union Confederation
Brussels, 11 December 2009 (ITUC OnLine): The Burmese military junta is to organise “elections” in 2010, but the Constitution, whose adoption it organised in 2008, leaves no doubt as to the army’s desire to stay in power after the ballot. The ITUC’s new report shows that the generals currently in power have no intention of showing any more interest in the population than their predecessors have over the last 47 years of military dictatorship. Without a return to real democracy and the respect of all human rights, including trade union rights, the next generation of Burmese children will never get to sit in a classroom and will be forced to perform all kinds of work, including the very worst.
The new ITUC report highlights the link between the abuse of human rights, including trade union rights, and the catastrophic situation of Burmese children. Crushing all forms of opposition the Burmese military junta spends at least 40% of the State budget on the army, even though the country is not facing any external military threat, and leaves only crumbs for such important sectors as education and health care. As a result, less than 55% of Burmese children complete primary school education, and every day hundreds of thousands work for long hours, sometimes in forced labour imposed by the authorities. The forced recruitment of child soldiers by different army groups is still frequent in Burma, despite repeated promises by the junta to put an end to it.
The report sheds light on the very difficult situation faced by Burmese teachers, who have no trade union rights and no possibility therefore of negotiating their salaries. What they earn today is only a small percentage of what is needed to support a family. Many Burmese teachers encourage children to take private lessons with them, but not all parents can afford to pay for them, given all the other costs they already have to face for their child’s education (materials, forced donations to schools...). This system exists at every level of education, forcing tens of thousands of children out of school every year and into exploitation at work.
Interviews carried out in the country for this report illustrate the distress of these children growing up under military dictatorship. “I work 7 days a week,12 hours a day, for a salary of 8.60 dollars a month,” says a child of 11 working in a tea room in Rangoon. “Other children only earn 6 dollars a month. My boss gives me two meals a day and I can sleep in a small room, but there are a lot of us all squeezed into one very hot room. I am always tired during the day because I don’t sleep enough. We are constantly busy serving customers, cleaning the cups, the floor...”
As the military dictatorship will not tolerate any criticism, it is extremely dangerous to discuss anything to do with social rights, human rights or children’s rights inside Burma. The junta’s censorship prevents the Burmese media from publishing any reports about the real situation in the country. According to the Association to help political prisoners in Burma (l’Association d’aide aux prisonniers politiques birmans), over 2,100 political prisoners are being held in the country. They include about 30 trade unionists, sentenced to between five years and life. Despite this repression, the Federation of Trade Unions – Burma, FTUB, affiliated to the ITUC but banned in Burma, continues to help workers in Burma and support schools in different regions of the country.
To see the full report: http://www.ituc-csi.org/IMG/pdf/Burma_EN_Final.pdf
******************************************************************
THE NATION - 4 more border checkpoints with Burma
By PETCHANET PRATRUANGKRAI
Published on December 15, 2009
In a bid to boost cross-border trade with Burma, the government will support the opening of four more border checkpoints next year.
They will be at Huay Ton Nun, Mae Hong Son/Shan State: Ban Nam Khao, Kanchanaburi/Tavoy; Three Pagodas Pass, Kanchanaburi/Taya Thon Zu; and Dan Singkhon, Prachuap Khiri Khan/My Eik.
Deputy Commerce Minister Alongkorn Ponlaboot yesterday said the government would open these checkpoints as soon as possible, in order to facilitate trade, investment and tourism between the two countries.
At present, there are only three checkpoints linking Thailand and Burma.
After meeting with ministers in Burma, Alongkorn also said both nations had agreed to support the construction of a friendship bridge connecting Tak's Mae Sot district with Burma.
The two nations will soon set up a subcommittee to identify an exact location and set up a construction schedule, he said.
Niyom Wairatpanij, chairman of the border-trade committee of the Thai Chamber of Commerce (TCC), said traders were greatly anticipating the opening of more checkpoints to facilitate trade and tourism.
"The Asean Free Trade Agreement will be fully implemented early next year, with tariffs on most Asean goods eliminated. More checkpoints will increase trade opportunities for Thai products," said Niyom.
In addition, after meeting with TCC representatives about its "micro action plan" aimed strengthening seven sectors plan, Alongkorn said the government would lend its full support.
The TCC and the Commerce Ministry have agreed to set up a Joint Public-Private Committee on Commerce, for cooperation in facilitating the plan.
The TCC last month came up with the micro action plan, aimed at strengthening the country's best products and most efficient services ahead of tougher competition that is expected once Asean becomes a seamless market by 2015.
The seven sectors are food and agriculture, gems and jewellery, textiles, healthcare and spas, construction, tourism and border trade.
TCC vice chairman Komson Opassathavorn said the chamber would discuss the plan tomorrow with Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and that he expected full government support.
By PETCHANET PRATRUANGKRAI
Published on December 15, 2009
In a bid to boost cross-border trade with Burma, the government will support the opening of four more border checkpoints next year.
They will be at Huay Ton Nun, Mae Hong Son/Shan State: Ban Nam Khao, Kanchanaburi/Tavoy; Three Pagodas Pass, Kanchanaburi/Taya Thon Zu; and Dan Singkhon, Prachuap Khiri Khan/My Eik.
Deputy Commerce Minister Alongkorn Ponlaboot yesterday said the government would open these checkpoints as soon as possible, in order to facilitate trade, investment and tourism between the two countries.
At present, there are only three checkpoints linking Thailand and Burma.
After meeting with ministers in Burma, Alongkorn also said both nations had agreed to support the construction of a friendship bridge connecting Tak's Mae Sot district with Burma.
The two nations will soon set up a subcommittee to identify an exact location and set up a construction schedule, he said.
Niyom Wairatpanij, chairman of the border-trade committee of the Thai Chamber of Commerce (TCC), said traders were greatly anticipating the opening of more checkpoints to facilitate trade and tourism.
"The Asean Free Trade Agreement will be fully implemented early next year, with tariffs on most Asean goods eliminated. More checkpoints will increase trade opportunities for Thai products," said Niyom.
In addition, after meeting with TCC representatives about its "micro action plan" aimed strengthening seven sectors plan, Alongkorn said the government would lend its full support.
The TCC and the Commerce Ministry have agreed to set up a Joint Public-Private Committee on Commerce, for cooperation in facilitating the plan.
The TCC last month came up with the micro action plan, aimed at strengthening the country's best products and most efficient services ahead of tougher competition that is expected once Asean becomes a seamless market by 2015.
The seven sectors are food and agriculture, gems and jewellery, textiles, healthcare and spas, construction, tourism and border trade.
TCC vice chairman Komson Opassathavorn said the chamber would discuss the plan tomorrow with Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and that he expected full government support.
******************************************************************
Mizzima News - Unmasking Than Shwe
by Mungpi
Monday, 14 December 2009 23:39
In nearly two decades of undisputed and uninterrupted rule, Burma’s military supremo Senior General Than Shwe is certainly going down in the history of Burma as one man, who has vigorously contributed to the collapse of the Burmese economy, failure of the society, catered to the culture of impunity and drainage of mineral resources.
Despite the myriad consequences suffered by Burmese people, most people do not know what Than Shwe is really like. But every Burmese seems to have a basic understanding that Than Shwe likes to think of himself as one of the Burmese Warrior Kings of the past as he has placed his statue next to the famous Burmese kings in his new jungle capital city of Naypyitaw, in central Burma.
Revealing bits and parts of Than Shwe’s character is Benedict Rogers, East Asia Team leader of the Christian Solidarity Worldwide, a London-based human rights group. Rogers, who has long associated with issues in Burma and has written numerous articles, has been working on a biographical book on Than Shwe, titled “Than Shwe: Unmasking Burma’s Tyrant”.
During a short stop-over in New Delhi, India’s capital, Mizzima’s Assistant Editor Mungpi, caught up with Rogers, to take a peep into the book he has written and which will be launched in February 2010.
Q. Can you tell us what your new book is all about?
Ans: The book is basically a Biography of Senior General Than Shwe and it is obviously not the authorized biography that it is a very much unauthorized biography, because we were not able to get the cooperation of General Than Shwe or his family or the regime. But it’s basically a book about Than Shwe, about how he rose to the top, about the nature of the regime and the military. And also what is happening in Burma today under General Than Shwe’s rule, and I believe it would be the first biography of Than Shwe.
Q: Why did you choose Than Shwe?
Ans: Well, I felt that there has been a question of biographies of other dictators like Saddam Hussein, Kim Jong Ill, Robert Mugabe and others. And Than Shwe must be one of the world’s worst dictators and yet the world doesn’t really know very much about him. Even those of us, who work on Burma, don’t know very much about him. And I felt that it would be a good new angle on the Burma’s situation, a new way of telling the story about ‘What is happening in Burma. What the regime is like.’ The idea actually originally came from my friend Jeremy Woodrum, from the US campaign for Burma and he suggested to me, I thought it was a very interesting idea.
Q. It’s really interesting to know how Than Shwe rose to power, as we know very little about him during General Ne Win’s, socialist era, as well as during the earlier part following the military coup in 1988. Can you tell us how he started getting up to the ranks?
Ans: Well, I think, one of the most interesting things about Than Shwe is precisely the fact that he rose from the ranks quite silently and without really being noticed, but actually that is something about that nature of the military system in Burma. I think that Than Shwe rose to the top because he was not seen by his superiors to be a threat, he was seen as quite boring and quite lacking in original ideas, he didn’t display his ambition very overtly and therefore, he wasn’t seen as a threat by his superiors. Whereas officers, who show some initiative, some original thoughts and creativity tend to actually be seen as a threat by their superiors and who are then purged. So I think it’s precisely the quietness and the lack of initiative in Than Shwe that was the secret of his success. I don’t think it’s the case that he was not ambitious, he was ambitious but he kept his ambitions very quite. Everybody says that in all the meetings that had throughout his carrier, he sat silently in all the meetings. He just obeyed orders, and that’s the nature of the system. They want people who would just obey orders.
Q: So that says that Than Shwe must have been systematically planning his ambitions to materialize. Can you tell us how close was he with the former dictator General Ne Win?
Ans: Well, I think he was quite close. And I think Ne Win certainly identify him as a person who could take over. But he wasn’t as close to Ne Win as for example Khin Nyunt [former military intelligence chief] personally. I think that’s in terms of personal relationship, he didn’t have a close relationship. But I think in terms of Ne Win identifying Than Shwe as a man to take over, he was certainly close.
Q: How much does his wife, Daw Kyaing Kyaing, influence Than Shwe?
Ans: I think she has some influence but I don’t think it’s true that she is really the all powerful. He himself does know that he is in the top position. He does have his own agenda, his own ideas. But I think that one influence she has on him is that she takes astrology very seriously. And I think that she probably takes astrology more seriously than he does. She influences him with that. And also I think she has a particular dislike of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and again probably she influences him in that way as well.
Q: And could that be one of the reasons for Than Shwe to dislike or even loathe the name of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi?
Ans: Yes. I think it could be one of the reasons. Several people that I interviewed for the book says that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi represents everything that Kyaing Kyaing and the other wives of military leaders do not. You know, she is very well educated, she has travelled internationally, she’s very sophisticated, she’s very beautiful and Kyaing Kyaing is neither beautiful nor educated.
Q. Talking about your sources, is it possible to reveal to us who are your primary sources in collecting the information regarding Than Shwe?
Ans: Yes, my two primary sources were: firstly, a number of defectors from the Burma Army who, over the years, have left Burma and all of whom knew Than Shwe at different stages of his life. So I interviewed some people who are living in exile, who had been in military training with him, way back in the 1950s. And then I interviewed a person who served as one of his doctors when he was the Southwest regional commander. And I interviewed people who’ve known him more recently since he became the Senior General. And in addition to the defectors, I have interviewed quite a number of international diplomats - British, American, Australian, Japanese and Thai diplomats, former ambassadors including the former British ambassador Mark Canning, former Australian ambassadors and former Thai ambassadors. And that was good because I wasn’t just hearing the western perspectives from the British or American. I was hearing from the Japanese and Thai perspectives as well. And also former UN officials, the former UN special envoy Razali Ismail, the former Special Rapporteur Yozo Yokota and Professor Pinheiro. These were all my primary sources. These are all the people who met Than Shwe at different times. And had also a lot of secondary documents as well.
Q: I have a very vague general understanding that Than Shwe is not a good diplomat. But we know that he recently paid a visit to Sri Lanka, which is one of his rare visits to foreign countries. Do you have any idea how good he is in dealing with all these foreign diplomats?
Ans: It’s true that it’s a very rare visit and it’s quite a surprising visit. Most of his foreign visits in the past have been limited to China, India, Singapore and a few other Southeast Asian countries. But it was interesting that he should go to Sri Lanka. And my suspicion is he went to Sri Lanka primarily to learn about how the Sri Lankan government had dealt with the Tamil Tigers (LTTE), to see if there are any lessons to be learnt.
In terms of his general foreign relations, I think it’s important not to underestimate Than Shwe. You know, many of us think Than Shwe is stupid, uneducated and boring. And to certain degree he can be stupid and not very interesting. But many of the diplomats that I have met said that actually he can be much more charming than we realize and when he meets foreign diplomats if he wants to be charming, he could be, and also his level of English is much better than what we realize. He can actually understand certainly quite a lot and he can speak in English. I think he is more intelligent and more educated perhaps than we think. Although his education has not been formal education, he never went to university.
Q. Talking about his education, what is then Shwe’s highest level of education?
Ans: We believe he completed high school but he didn’t go to university. He finished the high school and he joined the postal service, similar to Ne Win, who also joined the postal service. He also worked for a short time as a postal clerk and then he joined the military and he did military training.
Q. In the military, as we understand generally, he is a specialist in psychological warfare. Do you think he uses the psychological warfare tactics to run the regime?
Ans: I think he does. Probably the most obvious example of that is the divide and rule strategy, which he actually uses successfully throughout the country in many ways with the different ethnic groups, for example, in 1995 the split of the DKBA (Democratic Karen Buddhist Army) from the KNU (Karen National Union) and more recently the split of another faction in the KNU and other parts of the country as well. So I think, in terms of divide and rule and also propaganda, he is really on psychological warfare.
Q. Why do you think Than Shwe purged the former Prime Minister and Military Intelligence Chief Khin Nyunt? How powerful is Than Shwe compared to Khin Nyunt?
Ans: I think we have in the past, tended to overestimate the role of Khin Nyunt and underestimate the role of Than Shwe. I think in reality Than Shwe was always the number 1, since he became the number 1, he was number 1. And I think Khin Nyunt’s influence was limited. And in some ways that was one of the frustrations I think Khin Nyunt wanted to do more. And I think Khin Nyunt’s fall came because Than Shwe tolerated him up to a point but then when he crossed the line he was going too far and was becoming too much and Than Shwe said that’s enough and got rid of him.
Q. How tight is Than Shwe’s security in his home?
Ans: I think his security is very very tight. And particularly now, that he has moved to Naypyitaw. I think he is in his own bunker in Naypyitaw and surrounded by people who provide physical security, but by also people who owe allegiance to him, people he has promoted and they are indebted to him. So he has that political security by surrounding himself with loyalists.
Q. And who among the generals has access to Than Shwe?
Ans: Well, I think Maung Aye as the number 2 certainly has some access. Even if they don’t meet each other often they have regular contact. And clearly Thura Shwe Mann and Myint Swe, two of his chosen prodigies have regular access to him.
Q. Lately, Myint Swe has been speculated of having a close relationship with Than Shwe also rumoured to be the favourite heir to replace Than Shwe, but earlier there were also speculation about Shwe Mann succeeding Than Shwe. What do you say about that? And there is also a missing person in all these speculations, Maung Aye. What about him and where does he stand?
Ans: Well, I think in regard to Maung Aye, it is clear that, if Than Shwe would have to die tomorrow then Maung will become no 1 because of the hierarchy in SPDC. But if Than Shwe can plan his succession, I think it is very clear that Than Shwe doesn’t want Maung Aye to succeed him, so he and Maung Aye will retire together. And he would want either Shwe Man or Myint Swe to succeed him. In terms of whether it’s Shwe Man or Myint Swe, to me it’s still unclear. To me, until recently everyone was saying Shwe Mann and when I read the book most people were saying Shwe Mann. Although some people were saying that Myint Swe is definitely a clear contender. But still people were saying Shwe Mann. As for the recent speculations gave the idea that it might be Myint Swe, think it’s too early to tell. And one of the problems is with regime is that rumours spread, and actually sometimes rumours spread because that is nature. But sometimes I think the regime deliberately spreads rumours in order to cause confusion or they allow rumours to spread. And this rumour about Myint Swe, I can’t comment until it happens.
Q: So do you think that the rumours about the rift between Than Shwe and Maung Aye could be a deliberate plan or do you think there is certainly a big rift between the two?
Ans: It’s quite difficult to tell and I think there is good reason to believe that there is difference in opinion between them. And many people have said to me when I was researching the book. Maung Aye didn’t like some of Than Shwe’s decisions including the severe crackdown on the saffron revolution. One of the interesting things people have said is that Than Shwe tends to take decisions very slowly. But when he does take a decision he overreacts, he takes a very severe decision. It’s also the case in saffron revolution. So I think Maung Aye and Than Shwe do have differences. But I also think Maung Aye is never going to challenge Than Shwe because he knows the consequences. If he challenges and fails and he lives a very comfortable life as the number two, so I think they will stick together even though they may not agree.
Q. Do you think Than Shwe is choking out his seven-step roadmap including the 2010 elections, as part of his “exit plan” to retire from the military or maybe to allow him to get away with whatever he has done?
Ans. Yes, I think it’s primarily about two things. Firstly, ensuring protection for himself, his family and his prodigies and cronies and people, who are close to him. He is also keen that even after he dies, his family and close allies are protected. And secondly, I think, he does model himself to a certain extent on the ancient Burmese warrior kings and in Naypyitaw there is the statue of the three kings. Because in Burmese history, the kings had a tradition of building new capitals or leaving a legacy. So I think both the elections and also the move to Naypyitaw are about leaving a legacy so that Than Shwe in Burmese history is seen as the person who left this legacy.
Q. Talking about the statue and he seems to like to think that he is also one of the great kings in Burmese history. So do you think that he is really obsessed with all these ideas?
Ans: I think he is. When you go to Naypyitaw, I went to Naypyitaw for a day and it’s really an extraordinary place particularly the new pagoda, they built there for the replica of Shwedagon pagoda, which is covered in gold on the outside and the inside. Lots of money has been spent on it and it’s lit up at night. Looking around Naypyitaw, it’s clear that Than Shwe’s part of his decision to move to Naypyitaw is his idea of following the Burmese traditional kings.
Q. Can you tell us a little bit about Than Shwe’s health?
Ans: There have been over the years sporadic reports about his health and people think he is about to die and is very old. And then suddenly he reappears and he seems quite strong and in good health. We know that he is a diabetic and we also believe that he may have cancer (prostate cancer) and went to Singapore for treatment. But he does seem to be quite healthy when he appears in public. He doesn’t looked ill or frail, he looks still in reasonable health although he is quite overweight, clearly lives a good life. But it’s hard to really know but it doesn’t seem that he is in bad health.
Q. How obsessed is Than Shwe with astrology?
Ans: I think astrology is certainly a big influence on him in terms of deciding timing of decisions. So, when he announced the move to Naypyitaw, the timing was carefully chosen. Similarly, with some of the prison sentences that have been passed on activists in recent years, those were carefully chosen for astrological reasons. I think in terms of the actual decisions it may be a factor, but I think it’s a factor alongside other factors. For example, with the move to Naypyitaw, I think the advice of the astrologers may have been one reason. But I think there are also other reasons: the historical legacy, and also the desire to protect themselves from the possibility of a nationwide uprising, having the bunker city in the centre of the country. And also the paranoia, misplaced paranoia of foreign invasion. So, I think those strategic factors whether they are justified or not were also influential in addition to astrology.
Q. Based on the information that you have, would you conclude that Than Shwe is paranoid with the possibilities of a foreign invasion?
Ans: I think he is. And particularly after the Iraq war and if you read some of his speeches, which we quote in the book, he has ordered the soldiers, the military and the USDA [Union Solidarity and Development Association] to prepare for specifically an American invasion. So I think he does have that fear. It’s misplaced, you know, there is no likelihood of it happening, but he certainly has that fear.
Q. We know that Than Shwe is a dictator, a sick man, a xenophobic and obsessed with astrology. But why do you think the military generals and soldiers in Burma fear him so much and accept his rule?
Ans: Well, these are the questions I’ve been asking throughout the research for the book because I couldn’t understand why a person who really has no charisma, he has no personal ability to inspire people is obyed. Why he’s been so successful. And also couldn’t understand, why so many people complain about him. They complain about him personally, not just the regime. And yet, nobody does think about it within the regime. And my conclusion is that, the problem is really with the system, that the Burmese military has a tradition of – ‘you don’t move against you superior even if you hate them you just don’t do it.’ Combined with the fact that Than Shwe has been very successful in creating a cultural patronage within the regime, where he has rewarded a lot of people and promoted a lot of people. So a lot of people feel indebted to him and therefore they are loyal to him out of fear because they don’t want to lose their positions. There is this culture of fear that prevents those within the regime from doing anything to remove him.
Q. Would you say that Than Shwe is a part of the military institution that’s been ruling Burma more than 40 years? Or would you say that he is a determined individual dictator?
Ans: I think he’s actually both. He’s certainly the product of the system. And I think the problem in Burma is much bigger than Than Shwe. If you get to Than Shwe, if you just get with Than Shwe, that’s not going to solve the Burmese situation. However, I think he is particularly a hardline person in the regime. He is someone who really does want to hold on to power at all costs. He doesn’t want to compromise, he doesn’t want to negotiate. And he is an individual who’s exerting particular control over the system as well as being the product of the system.
by Mungpi
Monday, 14 December 2009 23:39
In nearly two decades of undisputed and uninterrupted rule, Burma’s military supremo Senior General Than Shwe is certainly going down in the history of Burma as one man, who has vigorously contributed to the collapse of the Burmese economy, failure of the society, catered to the culture of impunity and drainage of mineral resources.
Despite the myriad consequences suffered by Burmese people, most people do not know what Than Shwe is really like. But every Burmese seems to have a basic understanding that Than Shwe likes to think of himself as one of the Burmese Warrior Kings of the past as he has placed his statue next to the famous Burmese kings in his new jungle capital city of Naypyitaw, in central Burma.
Revealing bits and parts of Than Shwe’s character is Benedict Rogers, East Asia Team leader of the Christian Solidarity Worldwide, a London-based human rights group. Rogers, who has long associated with issues in Burma and has written numerous articles, has been working on a biographical book on Than Shwe, titled “Than Shwe: Unmasking Burma’s Tyrant”.
During a short stop-over in New Delhi, India’s capital, Mizzima’s Assistant Editor Mungpi, caught up with Rogers, to take a peep into the book he has written and which will be launched in February 2010.
Q. Can you tell us what your new book is all about?
Ans: The book is basically a Biography of Senior General Than Shwe and it is obviously not the authorized biography that it is a very much unauthorized biography, because we were not able to get the cooperation of General Than Shwe or his family or the regime. But it’s basically a book about Than Shwe, about how he rose to the top, about the nature of the regime and the military. And also what is happening in Burma today under General Than Shwe’s rule, and I believe it would be the first biography of Than Shwe.
Q: Why did you choose Than Shwe?
Ans: Well, I felt that there has been a question of biographies of other dictators like Saddam Hussein, Kim Jong Ill, Robert Mugabe and others. And Than Shwe must be one of the world’s worst dictators and yet the world doesn’t really know very much about him. Even those of us, who work on Burma, don’t know very much about him. And I felt that it would be a good new angle on the Burma’s situation, a new way of telling the story about ‘What is happening in Burma. What the regime is like.’ The idea actually originally came from my friend Jeremy Woodrum, from the US campaign for Burma and he suggested to me, I thought it was a very interesting idea.
Q. It’s really interesting to know how Than Shwe rose to power, as we know very little about him during General Ne Win’s, socialist era, as well as during the earlier part following the military coup in 1988. Can you tell us how he started getting up to the ranks?
Ans: Well, I think, one of the most interesting things about Than Shwe is precisely the fact that he rose from the ranks quite silently and without really being noticed, but actually that is something about that nature of the military system in Burma. I think that Than Shwe rose to the top because he was not seen by his superiors to be a threat, he was seen as quite boring and quite lacking in original ideas, he didn’t display his ambition very overtly and therefore, he wasn’t seen as a threat by his superiors. Whereas officers, who show some initiative, some original thoughts and creativity tend to actually be seen as a threat by their superiors and who are then purged. So I think it’s precisely the quietness and the lack of initiative in Than Shwe that was the secret of his success. I don’t think it’s the case that he was not ambitious, he was ambitious but he kept his ambitions very quite. Everybody says that in all the meetings that had throughout his carrier, he sat silently in all the meetings. He just obeyed orders, and that’s the nature of the system. They want people who would just obey orders.
Q: So that says that Than Shwe must have been systematically planning his ambitions to materialize. Can you tell us how close was he with the former dictator General Ne Win?
Ans: Well, I think he was quite close. And I think Ne Win certainly identify him as a person who could take over. But he wasn’t as close to Ne Win as for example Khin Nyunt [former military intelligence chief] personally. I think that’s in terms of personal relationship, he didn’t have a close relationship. But I think in terms of Ne Win identifying Than Shwe as a man to take over, he was certainly close.
Q: How much does his wife, Daw Kyaing Kyaing, influence Than Shwe?
Ans: I think she has some influence but I don’t think it’s true that she is really the all powerful. He himself does know that he is in the top position. He does have his own agenda, his own ideas. But I think that one influence she has on him is that she takes astrology very seriously. And I think that she probably takes astrology more seriously than he does. She influences him with that. And also I think she has a particular dislike of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and again probably she influences him in that way as well.
Q: And could that be one of the reasons for Than Shwe to dislike or even loathe the name of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi?
Ans: Yes. I think it could be one of the reasons. Several people that I interviewed for the book says that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi represents everything that Kyaing Kyaing and the other wives of military leaders do not. You know, she is very well educated, she has travelled internationally, she’s very sophisticated, she’s very beautiful and Kyaing Kyaing is neither beautiful nor educated.
Q. Talking about your sources, is it possible to reveal to us who are your primary sources in collecting the information regarding Than Shwe?
Ans: Yes, my two primary sources were: firstly, a number of defectors from the Burma Army who, over the years, have left Burma and all of whom knew Than Shwe at different stages of his life. So I interviewed some people who are living in exile, who had been in military training with him, way back in the 1950s. And then I interviewed a person who served as one of his doctors when he was the Southwest regional commander. And I interviewed people who’ve known him more recently since he became the Senior General. And in addition to the defectors, I have interviewed quite a number of international diplomats - British, American, Australian, Japanese and Thai diplomats, former ambassadors including the former British ambassador Mark Canning, former Australian ambassadors and former Thai ambassadors. And that was good because I wasn’t just hearing the western perspectives from the British or American. I was hearing from the Japanese and Thai perspectives as well. And also former UN officials, the former UN special envoy Razali Ismail, the former Special Rapporteur Yozo Yokota and Professor Pinheiro. These were all my primary sources. These are all the people who met Than Shwe at different times. And had also a lot of secondary documents as well.
Q: I have a very vague general understanding that Than Shwe is not a good diplomat. But we know that he recently paid a visit to Sri Lanka, which is one of his rare visits to foreign countries. Do you have any idea how good he is in dealing with all these foreign diplomats?
Ans: It’s true that it’s a very rare visit and it’s quite a surprising visit. Most of his foreign visits in the past have been limited to China, India, Singapore and a few other Southeast Asian countries. But it was interesting that he should go to Sri Lanka. And my suspicion is he went to Sri Lanka primarily to learn about how the Sri Lankan government had dealt with the Tamil Tigers (LTTE), to see if there are any lessons to be learnt.
In terms of his general foreign relations, I think it’s important not to underestimate Than Shwe. You know, many of us think Than Shwe is stupid, uneducated and boring. And to certain degree he can be stupid and not very interesting. But many of the diplomats that I have met said that actually he can be much more charming than we realize and when he meets foreign diplomats if he wants to be charming, he could be, and also his level of English is much better than what we realize. He can actually understand certainly quite a lot and he can speak in English. I think he is more intelligent and more educated perhaps than we think. Although his education has not been formal education, he never went to university.
Q. Talking about his education, what is then Shwe’s highest level of education?
Ans: We believe he completed high school but he didn’t go to university. He finished the high school and he joined the postal service, similar to Ne Win, who also joined the postal service. He also worked for a short time as a postal clerk and then he joined the military and he did military training.
Q. In the military, as we understand generally, he is a specialist in psychological warfare. Do you think he uses the psychological warfare tactics to run the regime?
Ans: I think he does. Probably the most obvious example of that is the divide and rule strategy, which he actually uses successfully throughout the country in many ways with the different ethnic groups, for example, in 1995 the split of the DKBA (Democratic Karen Buddhist Army) from the KNU (Karen National Union) and more recently the split of another faction in the KNU and other parts of the country as well. So I think, in terms of divide and rule and also propaganda, he is really on psychological warfare.
Q. Why do you think Than Shwe purged the former Prime Minister and Military Intelligence Chief Khin Nyunt? How powerful is Than Shwe compared to Khin Nyunt?
Ans: I think we have in the past, tended to overestimate the role of Khin Nyunt and underestimate the role of Than Shwe. I think in reality Than Shwe was always the number 1, since he became the number 1, he was number 1. And I think Khin Nyunt’s influence was limited. And in some ways that was one of the frustrations I think Khin Nyunt wanted to do more. And I think Khin Nyunt’s fall came because Than Shwe tolerated him up to a point but then when he crossed the line he was going too far and was becoming too much and Than Shwe said that’s enough and got rid of him.
Q. How tight is Than Shwe’s security in his home?
Ans: I think his security is very very tight. And particularly now, that he has moved to Naypyitaw. I think he is in his own bunker in Naypyitaw and surrounded by people who provide physical security, but by also people who owe allegiance to him, people he has promoted and they are indebted to him. So he has that political security by surrounding himself with loyalists.
Q. And who among the generals has access to Than Shwe?
Ans: Well, I think Maung Aye as the number 2 certainly has some access. Even if they don’t meet each other often they have regular contact. And clearly Thura Shwe Mann and Myint Swe, two of his chosen prodigies have regular access to him.
Q. Lately, Myint Swe has been speculated of having a close relationship with Than Shwe also rumoured to be the favourite heir to replace Than Shwe, but earlier there were also speculation about Shwe Mann succeeding Than Shwe. What do you say about that? And there is also a missing person in all these speculations, Maung Aye. What about him and where does he stand?
Ans: Well, I think in regard to Maung Aye, it is clear that, if Than Shwe would have to die tomorrow then Maung will become no 1 because of the hierarchy in SPDC. But if Than Shwe can plan his succession, I think it is very clear that Than Shwe doesn’t want Maung Aye to succeed him, so he and Maung Aye will retire together. And he would want either Shwe Man or Myint Swe to succeed him. In terms of whether it’s Shwe Man or Myint Swe, to me it’s still unclear. To me, until recently everyone was saying Shwe Mann and when I read the book most people were saying Shwe Mann. Although some people were saying that Myint Swe is definitely a clear contender. But still people were saying Shwe Mann. As for the recent speculations gave the idea that it might be Myint Swe, think it’s too early to tell. And one of the problems is with regime is that rumours spread, and actually sometimes rumours spread because that is nature. But sometimes I think the regime deliberately spreads rumours in order to cause confusion or they allow rumours to spread. And this rumour about Myint Swe, I can’t comment until it happens.
Q: So do you think that the rumours about the rift between Than Shwe and Maung Aye could be a deliberate plan or do you think there is certainly a big rift between the two?
Ans: It’s quite difficult to tell and I think there is good reason to believe that there is difference in opinion between them. And many people have said to me when I was researching the book. Maung Aye didn’t like some of Than Shwe’s decisions including the severe crackdown on the saffron revolution. One of the interesting things people have said is that Than Shwe tends to take decisions very slowly. But when he does take a decision he overreacts, he takes a very severe decision. It’s also the case in saffron revolution. So I think Maung Aye and Than Shwe do have differences. But I also think Maung Aye is never going to challenge Than Shwe because he knows the consequences. If he challenges and fails and he lives a very comfortable life as the number two, so I think they will stick together even though they may not agree.
Q. Do you think Than Shwe is choking out his seven-step roadmap including the 2010 elections, as part of his “exit plan” to retire from the military or maybe to allow him to get away with whatever he has done?
Ans. Yes, I think it’s primarily about two things. Firstly, ensuring protection for himself, his family and his prodigies and cronies and people, who are close to him. He is also keen that even after he dies, his family and close allies are protected. And secondly, I think, he does model himself to a certain extent on the ancient Burmese warrior kings and in Naypyitaw there is the statue of the three kings. Because in Burmese history, the kings had a tradition of building new capitals or leaving a legacy. So I think both the elections and also the move to Naypyitaw are about leaving a legacy so that Than Shwe in Burmese history is seen as the person who left this legacy.
Q. Talking about the statue and he seems to like to think that he is also one of the great kings in Burmese history. So do you think that he is really obsessed with all these ideas?
Ans: I think he is. When you go to Naypyitaw, I went to Naypyitaw for a day and it’s really an extraordinary place particularly the new pagoda, they built there for the replica of Shwedagon pagoda, which is covered in gold on the outside and the inside. Lots of money has been spent on it and it’s lit up at night. Looking around Naypyitaw, it’s clear that Than Shwe’s part of his decision to move to Naypyitaw is his idea of following the Burmese traditional kings.
Q. Can you tell us a little bit about Than Shwe’s health?
Ans: There have been over the years sporadic reports about his health and people think he is about to die and is very old. And then suddenly he reappears and he seems quite strong and in good health. We know that he is a diabetic and we also believe that he may have cancer (prostate cancer) and went to Singapore for treatment. But he does seem to be quite healthy when he appears in public. He doesn’t looked ill or frail, he looks still in reasonable health although he is quite overweight, clearly lives a good life. But it’s hard to really know but it doesn’t seem that he is in bad health.
Q. How obsessed is Than Shwe with astrology?
Ans: I think astrology is certainly a big influence on him in terms of deciding timing of decisions. So, when he announced the move to Naypyitaw, the timing was carefully chosen. Similarly, with some of the prison sentences that have been passed on activists in recent years, those were carefully chosen for astrological reasons. I think in terms of the actual decisions it may be a factor, but I think it’s a factor alongside other factors. For example, with the move to Naypyitaw, I think the advice of the astrologers may have been one reason. But I think there are also other reasons: the historical legacy, and also the desire to protect themselves from the possibility of a nationwide uprising, having the bunker city in the centre of the country. And also the paranoia, misplaced paranoia of foreign invasion. So, I think those strategic factors whether they are justified or not were also influential in addition to astrology.
Q. Based on the information that you have, would you conclude that Than Shwe is paranoid with the possibilities of a foreign invasion?
Ans: I think he is. And particularly after the Iraq war and if you read some of his speeches, which we quote in the book, he has ordered the soldiers, the military and the USDA [Union Solidarity and Development Association] to prepare for specifically an American invasion. So I think he does have that fear. It’s misplaced, you know, there is no likelihood of it happening, but he certainly has that fear.
Q. We know that Than Shwe is a dictator, a sick man, a xenophobic and obsessed with astrology. But why do you think the military generals and soldiers in Burma fear him so much and accept his rule?
Ans: Well, these are the questions I’ve been asking throughout the research for the book because I couldn’t understand why a person who really has no charisma, he has no personal ability to inspire people is obyed. Why he’s been so successful. And also couldn’t understand, why so many people complain about him. They complain about him personally, not just the regime. And yet, nobody does think about it within the regime. And my conclusion is that, the problem is really with the system, that the Burmese military has a tradition of – ‘you don’t move against you superior even if you hate them you just don’t do it.’ Combined with the fact that Than Shwe has been very successful in creating a cultural patronage within the regime, where he has rewarded a lot of people and promoted a lot of people. So a lot of people feel indebted to him and therefore they are loyal to him out of fear because they don’t want to lose their positions. There is this culture of fear that prevents those within the regime from doing anything to remove him.
Q. Would you say that Than Shwe is a part of the military institution that’s been ruling Burma more than 40 years? Or would you say that he is a determined individual dictator?
Ans: I think he’s actually both. He’s certainly the product of the system. And I think the problem in Burma is much bigger than Than Shwe. If you get to Than Shwe, if you just get with Than Shwe, that’s not going to solve the Burmese situation. However, I think he is particularly a hardline person in the regime. He is someone who really does want to hold on to power at all costs. He doesn’t want to compromise, he doesn’t want to negotiate. And he is an individual who’s exerting particular control over the system as well as being the product of the system.
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Copenhagen urges protection of environmental journalists
by Salai Pi Pi
Monday, 14 December 2009 22:23
New Delhi (Mizzima) – World leaders at the UN Conference on Climate Change were urged by media freedom groups to pressurize countries, including Burma to protect journalists covering environment.
Vincent Brossel, Head of the Asia desk at the Paris-based Reporters Without Border (RSF) told Mizzima on Monday despite the world leaders’ efforts to come to an agreement on how to tackle climate change, many countries of the world including Burma are not doing well at home on the issue.
International Media Support, Reporters Without Borders, Internews and International Institute for Environment and Development on behalf of all the signatories on Friday made a call to protect journalists covering environmental issues and climate change.
“We have received information in recent years about the difficulties in reporting about deforestation and the issues related to logging in the areas [in Burma] which borders China,” Brossel said.
Brossel said Chinese companies present in Burma are freely into illegal logging, which causes serious impact on forests and other environmental damages.
“In fact, logging companies can do business without any problem because there is no accountability and the government is not treating the case seriously,” he added.
While the Burmese military regime allows reports about the general problem of global warming, Brossel said, Burmese journalists are restricted from in depth reporting.
“The important thing is to get foreign and Burmese journalists to be able to investigate the logging issue,” he added.
Brossel, in a statement released on Friday, said delegations of some countries attending the Copenhagen conference need to provide an explanation as to why journalists and activists investigating environmental issues in their countries are being jailed, beaten, threatened or censored.
“If Uzbekistan, Russia, China, Burma or Indonesia, for example, do not respect the right of their media to inform on such crucial issues, how can we expect them to really commit to fight the climate change?,” he asked.
Last week, a Berlin-based Climate Watchdog in its new report titled ‘Global Climate Risk Index’ ranked Bangladesh, Burma and Honduras as countries most affected by extreme weathers from 1990 to 2008.
The deadly Cyclone Nargis had devastated Burma’s Irrawaddy delta in May 2008, killing, according to UN figures, over 134,000 people and leaving over 2.4 million homeless.
Despite of the devastation, the Burmese junta had restricted journalists from reporting the catastrophe and arrested and detained some Burmese journalists.
“With an increasing number of violent attacks on journalists covering environmental and climate change issues, there is an urgent need for action,” the statement said.
James Fahn, Global Director of Internews Earth Journalism Network, in the statement said, “When climate change reporters move to the field and cover illegal logging and pollution, they face dangers similar to their colleagues covering the crime beat.”
by Salai Pi Pi
Monday, 14 December 2009 22:23
New Delhi (Mizzima) – World leaders at the UN Conference on Climate Change were urged by media freedom groups to pressurize countries, including Burma to protect journalists covering environment.
Vincent Brossel, Head of the Asia desk at the Paris-based Reporters Without Border (RSF) told Mizzima on Monday despite the world leaders’ efforts to come to an agreement on how to tackle climate change, many countries of the world including Burma are not doing well at home on the issue.
International Media Support, Reporters Without Borders, Internews and International Institute for Environment and Development on behalf of all the signatories on Friday made a call to protect journalists covering environmental issues and climate change.
“We have received information in recent years about the difficulties in reporting about deforestation and the issues related to logging in the areas [in Burma] which borders China,” Brossel said.
Brossel said Chinese companies present in Burma are freely into illegal logging, which causes serious impact on forests and other environmental damages.
“In fact, logging companies can do business without any problem because there is no accountability and the government is not treating the case seriously,” he added.
While the Burmese military regime allows reports about the general problem of global warming, Brossel said, Burmese journalists are restricted from in depth reporting.
“The important thing is to get foreign and Burmese journalists to be able to investigate the logging issue,” he added.
Brossel, in a statement released on Friday, said delegations of some countries attending the Copenhagen conference need to provide an explanation as to why journalists and activists investigating environmental issues in their countries are being jailed, beaten, threatened or censored.
“If Uzbekistan, Russia, China, Burma or Indonesia, for example, do not respect the right of their media to inform on such crucial issues, how can we expect them to really commit to fight the climate change?,” he asked.
Last week, a Berlin-based Climate Watchdog in its new report titled ‘Global Climate Risk Index’ ranked Bangladesh, Burma and Honduras as countries most affected by extreme weathers from 1990 to 2008.
The deadly Cyclone Nargis had devastated Burma’s Irrawaddy delta in May 2008, killing, according to UN figures, over 134,000 people and leaving over 2.4 million homeless.
Despite of the devastation, the Burmese junta had restricted journalists from reporting the catastrophe and arrested and detained some Burmese journalists.
“With an increasing number of violent attacks on journalists covering environmental and climate change issues, there is an urgent need for action,” the statement said.
James Fahn, Global Director of Internews Earth Journalism Network, in the statement said, “When climate change reporters move to the field and cover illegal logging and pollution, they face dangers similar to their colleagues covering the crime beat.”
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The Irrawaddy - Burmese Media Lead with Than Shwe's Favorites
By WAI MOE - Monday, December 14, 2009
Burmese military strongman Snr-Gen Than Shwe traveled to Pyin Oo Lwin on Friday to attend the graduation of the 52nd Intake of the Defense Services Academy (DSA). As with previous graduations, he took along an entourage of family members, including his favorite grandson, Nay Shwe Thway Aung.
The following day, a photograph of Than Shwe’s extended family appeared in The New Light of Myanmar, the country's only state-run newspaper in English. In the photo, Nay Shwe Thway Aung sits on a sofa alongside Than Shwe's wife wearing sunglasses and a white Western suit.
Described quietly by ordinary people as “The Royal Family,” Than Shwe and his kin regularly dominate the pictorial sections of state-run newspapers with the following pages covering senior ranking generals in order of favor or importance.
The New Light of Myanmar featured separate photos of Shwe Mann and Tin Aung Myint Oo––who reportedly dislike each other––at the event. Whether intentionally or not, Tin Aung Myint Oo, the No 4 general in the military hierarchy and quartermaster-general of the armed forces, appeared ahead of Shwe Mann’s photo in the newspaper. Such details are frequently said to portray underlying messages, observers say.
The day before the military academy event, Than Shwe visited Yadanabon Cyber City, the country's largest IT center, which is also in Pyin Oo Lwin. Again, he was accompanied by his grandson who has developed a reputation for gangster activities in recent years.
Pictures of Nay Shwe Thway Aung appeared again in the state-run mouthpieces along with Than Shwe and other top generals. One photo showed Than Shwe's grandson apparently telling a joke to military representatives while touring the IT center.
The media reported that Than Shwe was met at Yadanabon Cyber City by Ne Aung, a son of Industry-1 Minister ex- Lt Col Aung Thaung. One of the richest businessmen in Burma and a close crony of the military elite, Ne Aung is managing director of IGE Co Ltd, which has an outlet at the IT center.
Ne Aung's brother, Pyi Aung, is the son-in-law of junta No 2 Deputy Snr-Gen Maung Aye, and is also an executive of the IGE company, which is registered in Singapore.
One of Burma's most successful new companies, IGE was permitted by government authorities to expand into agriculture, steel, chemicals, electronics, and the oil and gas
industries, including a stake in the offshore natural gas project in Arakan State.
Another well-known business crony who met up with Than Shwe on his visit to Yadanabon Cyber City was family friend Tay Za, whose vast range of business interests include an airline, Air Bagan, logging, jade mining, import/ export, and a retail outlet in the IT sector. Burma watchers have speculated that Than Shwe's family has shares in many of Tay Za's companies.
Both Tay Za and Ne Aung are on the blacklist of sanctioned Burmese business cronies issued by the US, the EU and Australia.
“Burma is a patronized system,” said Aung Naing Oo, a Burmese political analyst based in Thailand. “Therefore the way Information Minister Brig-Gen Kyaw Hsan directs the setting of photographs within the state media reflects the ranking of officials from Than Shwe down.”
Apart from the political manipulations, he said, “as Burma is a military dictatorship, family members of the ruling generals and their cronies get business licenses before anyone else.”
By WAI MOE - Monday, December 14, 2009
Burmese military strongman Snr-Gen Than Shwe traveled to Pyin Oo Lwin on Friday to attend the graduation of the 52nd Intake of the Defense Services Academy (DSA). As with previous graduations, he took along an entourage of family members, including his favorite grandson, Nay Shwe Thway Aung.
The following day, a photograph of Than Shwe’s extended family appeared in The New Light of Myanmar, the country's only state-run newspaper in English. In the photo, Nay Shwe Thway Aung sits on a sofa alongside Than Shwe's wife wearing sunglasses and a white Western suit.
Described quietly by ordinary people as “The Royal Family,” Than Shwe and his kin regularly dominate the pictorial sections of state-run newspapers with the following pages covering senior ranking generals in order of favor or importance.
The New Light of Myanmar featured separate photos of Shwe Mann and Tin Aung Myint Oo––who reportedly dislike each other––at the event. Whether intentionally or not, Tin Aung Myint Oo, the No 4 general in the military hierarchy and quartermaster-general of the armed forces, appeared ahead of Shwe Mann’s photo in the newspaper. Such details are frequently said to portray underlying messages, observers say.
The day before the military academy event, Than Shwe visited Yadanabon Cyber City, the country's largest IT center, which is also in Pyin Oo Lwin. Again, he was accompanied by his grandson who has developed a reputation for gangster activities in recent years.
Pictures of Nay Shwe Thway Aung appeared again in the state-run mouthpieces along with Than Shwe and other top generals. One photo showed Than Shwe's grandson apparently telling a joke to military representatives while touring the IT center.
The media reported that Than Shwe was met at Yadanabon Cyber City by Ne Aung, a son of Industry-1 Minister ex- Lt Col Aung Thaung. One of the richest businessmen in Burma and a close crony of the military elite, Ne Aung is managing director of IGE Co Ltd, which has an outlet at the IT center.
Ne Aung's brother, Pyi Aung, is the son-in-law of junta No 2 Deputy Snr-Gen Maung Aye, and is also an executive of the IGE company, which is registered in Singapore.
One of Burma's most successful new companies, IGE was permitted by government authorities to expand into agriculture, steel, chemicals, electronics, and the oil and gas
industries, including a stake in the offshore natural gas project in Arakan State.
Another well-known business crony who met up with Than Shwe on his visit to Yadanabon Cyber City was family friend Tay Za, whose vast range of business interests include an airline, Air Bagan, logging, jade mining, import/ export, and a retail outlet in the IT sector. Burma watchers have speculated that Than Shwe's family has shares in many of Tay Za's companies.
Both Tay Za and Ne Aung are on the blacklist of sanctioned Burmese business cronies issued by the US, the EU and Australia.
“Burma is a patronized system,” said Aung Naing Oo, a Burmese political analyst based in Thailand. “Therefore the way Information Minister Brig-Gen Kyaw Hsan directs the setting of photographs within the state media reflects the ranking of officials from Than Shwe down.”
Apart from the political manipulations, he said, “as Burma is a military dictatorship, family members of the ruling generals and their cronies get business licenses before anyone else.”
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Junta chief ‘used child soldiers for bodyguards’
Dec 14, 2009 (DVB)–Burma’s junta strongman Than Shwe has surrounded himself with a special bodyguard unit that took root 15 years ago and reportedly included child soldiers, sources close to the army have said.
The unit was designed independently by Than Shwe as means to create a “private family army” that will aid his efforts to control the parliament and the army after the 2010 elections.
“It was arranged by the old man [Than Shwe] and regular majors don’t even have any say in it,” said a source close to senior army officials, speaking to DVB on condition of anonymity.
The majority of the unit is made up of children of ethnic origin who were orphaned during Burmese military operations in Karen and Shan state around 15 years ago, he said.
He added that military training given to the unit was of a superior quality than regular army training. The children were trained at No. 6. Central Divisional Training School near Oktwin, in Bago division, and Yeh Mon training school in Rangoon division.
“The orphans were collected from various places and are quite old now, but they could be exploited and handled,” he said. “No one else gives them orders as it is a matter that can only be decided by [Than Shwe].”
According to Aye Myint, who runs the Guiding Star legal advocacy group, which represents child soldiers in Burma, suspicion among the army’s top brass is high.
“Politically, the situation is that the generals can’t trust one another and they are adopting the children to create private family armies,” he said.
Human Rights Watch claimed in 2002 that some 20 percent of the Burmese army could be under-18. Burma is thought to have more than 400,000 troops, one of Southeast Asia’s largest armies.
The International Labour Organisation (ILO) has received 102 official complaints of under-age recruitment into the army since February 2007, it reported last month.
“What is happening now is that when the ILO [officials) come, they look for them [children] at the training school or at the army base,” said Aye Myint.
He added that when investigating the disappearance of children thought to have been recruited by the army, some of them do not remerge at training schools but “go missing” and cannot be traced.
The claims of a private army would fit the profile of a notoriously reclusive and paranoid leader, who rarely meets with foreign dignitaries. Despite residing over the ruling State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) since 1992, his political future remains uncertain.
According to the Burmese constitution, the SPDC will be forced to cede power after the elections next year, but whether or not Than Shwe takes a backseat role in politics is unknown.
Reporting by Ahunt Phone Myat
Dec 14, 2009 (DVB)–Burma’s junta strongman Than Shwe has surrounded himself with a special bodyguard unit that took root 15 years ago and reportedly included child soldiers, sources close to the army have said.
The unit was designed independently by Than Shwe as means to create a “private family army” that will aid his efforts to control the parliament and the army after the 2010 elections.
“It was arranged by the old man [Than Shwe] and regular majors don’t even have any say in it,” said a source close to senior army officials, speaking to DVB on condition of anonymity.
The majority of the unit is made up of children of ethnic origin who were orphaned during Burmese military operations in Karen and Shan state around 15 years ago, he said.
He added that military training given to the unit was of a superior quality than regular army training. The children were trained at No. 6. Central Divisional Training School near Oktwin, in Bago division, and Yeh Mon training school in Rangoon division.
“The orphans were collected from various places and are quite old now, but they could be exploited and handled,” he said. “No one else gives them orders as it is a matter that can only be decided by [Than Shwe].”
According to Aye Myint, who runs the Guiding Star legal advocacy group, which represents child soldiers in Burma, suspicion among the army’s top brass is high.
“Politically, the situation is that the generals can’t trust one another and they are adopting the children to create private family armies,” he said.
Human Rights Watch claimed in 2002 that some 20 percent of the Burmese army could be under-18. Burma is thought to have more than 400,000 troops, one of Southeast Asia’s largest armies.
The International Labour Organisation (ILO) has received 102 official complaints of under-age recruitment into the army since February 2007, it reported last month.
“What is happening now is that when the ILO [officials) come, they look for them [children] at the training school or at the army base,” said Aye Myint.
He added that when investigating the disappearance of children thought to have been recruited by the army, some of them do not remerge at training schools but “go missing” and cannot be traced.
The claims of a private army would fit the profile of a notoriously reclusive and paranoid leader, who rarely meets with foreign dignitaries. Despite residing over the ruling State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) since 1992, his political future remains uncertain.
According to the Burmese constitution, the SPDC will be forced to cede power after the elections next year, but whether or not Than Shwe takes a backseat role in politics is unknown.
Reporting by Ahunt Phone Myat
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